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Former Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) Commissioner Roselyn Akombe, who resigned from the commission on Wednesday, says that she once worked as a night guard in the US.
After graduating with a degree in Education from the University of Nairobi, she worked a bit in Kenya before she seized an opportunity to seek greener pastures in the US. “Dr Wanjiru Kabira hired me the day I graduated, and when an opportunity arose, she encouraged me to fly overseas, into the unknown."
Beginning life at the US was not a walk in the park for her, she was forced to work as a night guard, all in a bid to make ends meet. "In the United States, I used to work as a security officer at night, then in the morning take my daughter to school before going to study,” she recalls.
She says after patience and endurance, one day she visited the African Observer Mission to the UN to inquire about her PhD dissertation. Here, an economist who got impressed with her work offered her an internship opportunity. “I had to stop being a security guard because you don’t sleep much. I took up a job taking care of persons with different types of disability because I could sleep a little at night and then study and do my internship the next day. I did that for seven months before the Mission employed me as an economy advisor,” she says.
Three years later, she got lucky and was offered a one-week job at the UN, which was the turning point in her life, she narrates: “I took a huge risk, leaving a permanent job for a one-week assignment at the UN. I have not left the UN since,” she revealed.
Early this year, she requested for a leave from her UN job in New York to become a commissioner of the IEBC, but she says it did not turn out to be what she expected.
Last Wednesday, she flew back to New York where she announced her resignation. In her resignation, Akombe said she felt the repeat election could not be a credible one, due to the wrangles and partisanship within the electoral commission. "It has become increasingly difficult to continue attending plenary meetings where commissioners come ready to vote along partisan lines and not to discuss the merit of issues before them. It has become increasingly difficult to appear on television to defend positions I disagree with in the name of collective responsibility. I have concluded that I am no longer making any significant contribution to the Commission and to my country as a Commissioner," she said in her resignation letter.
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What a sham. After being an inside person for Raila in the IEBC the mission is accomplished. You have done your dirty needs. Good riddance.
Dr. Roselyn, if I were you, I wouldn't say much in the media. After resigning for whatever reasons, I would keep quiet and let the fire burn and then go out by itself. The more you say the more you give a chance to those who don't support what you did to talk about you or to attack you through the same media.
She was part of the leadership, she should own the problem. She should be explaining why problems that should have been discovered at the IEBC were only discovered at the Supreme Court. Anything else is pointing fingers, redeeming self.
@imkgoogo,agreed. This woman was part of the leadership in IEBC, we now know she was never never fully committed to the job and when she realized it was NOT a beauty contest she took off leaving the country burning. No ounce of shame, personal responsibility in this woman with a PHd. She has lots of growing up to do and just because she has a PHd does not mean she was the right person for the job. This is a total shame to the institutions of higher learning she attended in US. This was no way to resign as a leader and to claim she was being threatened, oh gosh does she look traumatized. The UN job and American citizenship is what made her leave a job Kenya had given her, with a lot of faith that she would do to completion and prevent chaos! It was NEVER easy. Two or three commissions have been fired before. What the hell did she think? Do Kenya a favor, shut the hell up cos each time you open your big mouth feels like rubbing an open wound over and over.Grow up.This was never about you.
a toilet fly. Now that you left Kenya on the brink of burning after being bribed by the other idiot RAO like you, you're happy?
Shame on you
Kombe Kombe we are bored of hearing from you. Your stories are now stale...YUCK...YUCK...
Dada Roselyn, I don't blame you for doing what you did. You have only one life to lead on your short visit on our only home - planet earth. You didn't want to take chances on your life. You saw what happened to Chris Msando and you didn't want to be Msando Junior! In other words, you didn't want to be " msandomized!" By the way, why hasn't the state told us the people responsible for the deaths of Chris and Jacob so far?
Looking at what she has been saying in the media since fleeing and resigning, I now fully believe that she was one of the the strongest moles for NASA in IEBC and her move was well choreographed to give credence to NASA's boycott of the elections on Oct 26. If she knew things were not well from the beginning, wouldn't she have done the right thing and resigned long ago to give room for someone else to come in and be responsible for the direction IEBC takes?
Dr. Akombe you will take your right share of responsibility if further blood is shed following the planned disruption of the elections by NASA on Thursday. You have been part of their game right from the beginning. Don't you attempt to put on sheep's skin while deep inside you the hyena's blood is boiling. Your so called tour to Nyanza region just before you flew out was in essence to go and reinforce NASA's message for Nyanza residents to be defiant. Otherwise if you believed the IEBC staff were being harassed in Nyanza, should you not have gone back to IEBC and condemn the same while there? Why take a publicly funded tour to Nyanza and then use a supposedly tour of duty to Dubai also publicly funded to flee and start discrediting the same national agency that you were so "proudly defending" during August 8 election results announcement?
The other four IEBC commissioners you are so desperately trying to discredit will turn out to be the ones with the country's interest at heart because they did not jump ship a few days to the elections and start hurling rocks to poke holes and sink it. Instead, they are holding firm to the ship's wheel to steer it safely to the shore.
Although he has taken a few weeks off duty owing to the pressure of hate directed at him I am so proud of Mr. Chiloba for refusing to wear the tribal hat of "my people" even when the same people are rooting for unconstitutional means of usurping power. Remember some of the personalities you have mentioned as having given you a spring board to rise and encouraged you to pursue your dreams will not be so happy seeing you play tribal cards instead of being a professional as they are. By the way working at the UN does not sanitize your sins. Remember Ocampo was a very prominent person leading the UN's ICC but he is fighting his own battles of insincerity.
Your 15 minutes of fame are up Miss. Find yourself a rocking chair or rake some leaves. Better still get a diary and spare us a blow by blow account of your daily chores. Yaani ata mtu akienda choo lazima apost?
Roselyn don't worry you need to spit more beans and come and visit me in Boston we eat ugali and eat nyama ya buzi and we shall plan on how our way forward in diaspora.
If she was bribed to cause electoral chaos in Kenya, US government must investigate her and punish her for corruption the same way US does to its corrupt citizens. Corruption is a global offense and you cannot corrupt yourself in Kenya and go and hide in the US.
It's quite unfortunate that Kenyans are this ignorant..Most these guys have really been brainwashed.Why are Kikuyus feeling entitled to lead Kenya:Here are fact
1.Uhuru/IEBC bungled August 8th election as was proved by Supreme Court.
2.Uhuru wants to mantain the status quo as per IEBC so ge can rig agai
3.Chairman IEBC has stated "I will not guarantee a credible election with the current commissioners and secretariat and has issued "a yellow card" warning to Jubilee fir interference and threats to commissioners
4.A commissioner has resigned because she fears for life and that there will be no credible elections.
Let me stop there:So Kenyans are supposed to sit down and wait for Uhuru to dictate what to do..
My friends you are about to witness a mother or all revolutions in Africa::Infact continue to harass Dr Akombe at your risk..You people are everywhere in the country- your blood will pay for this revolution::This is serious stuff?Surely you guys want to ride on our backs..never...
It's playing to your tribal inclination. Being Kisii means very less to everyone else. Being Kenyan and human are the most of societal instruments. Polls are about numbers. Not tribe. Even though tribe forms different cultural pratices that make valuable coexistent communities we always have to cherish it. It shouldn't be about my tribal leader!
Jameni yawa, mbona wivu? Hamuoni huyu omosubati amaridadi, mtoto wa Kisii vile ako sawa? The vast majority of human beings, by the hundreds of millions never ever get any media limelight whatsoever so mwachieni Rosie acherehekee.....I always blow my own trumpet 'coz I realized long time ago nobody will ever do it for me. By the way, sijui kama ameolewa? Who has info? I am looking for her contacts too and the only thing I know at this moment is that she's in Jersey, about 450 miles from where I am (manageable). Nisaidieni nimpate huyu kidosho...ni mrembo tu saana
Ha ha too late, Richard Onyonka is way ahead of you 🤣🤣🤣🤣😜😜😜. Haiya with all that wealth Mla bado uko peke yako 😋😋😋😋
Thanks FormerlyGuest2 for the heads up; saves me lots. I have been having sleepless nights nikimfikiria huyu mrembo... Me no wealthy, biashara iliinama so back to my Hustler lifestyle (mpanda ngazi hushuka, ama namna gani?. Good thing is that it wasn't hard to slide back 'coz I have lots of experience. Wanna join me tujijenge ama pia wewe umenyakuliwa?
sawa, siku ile uko area ya DMV ha haha , nitafute tuongee . I agree mpanda Ngazi Hushuka, all the best with the hustle, hopefully you had saved enough to fall back on .....cheers!
FORGIVE HER, AND PRAY FOR HER. KENYA HAS SEEN AND WILL SEE MANY, BUT WILL ENDURE!
The current gvnment has failed, Dr. Akombe your resignation has proved to the country how partisan iebc is
Until Akombe turned up in USA she insisted that the IEBC was ready for election. It is a shame for someone who insisted how much she cared for Kenya and agreed to take an unpaid leave and take IEBC job @30% of her UN salary was a BIG LIE. it was for a purpose but this has cost several lives and she has to take part of the responsibility . there is more that ' she did it for the love of Kenya ' How unfortunate
I thought she had shut up. Okay. If she wants more attention, here we go. You are the MOLE. Period. If Kenya burns, I hold you personally liable and you bear full responsibility.