The High Court has ordered the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) to extend the voter registration deadline by a further three days to allow more people to register as voters.
In his ruling on a petition filed by activist Okiya Omtatah, Justice Enock Chacha stated that it is the right of every Kenyan to participate in the elections and the extension of the deadline will give more people an opportunity to vote in the August 8 polls.
Justice Chacha said, "Voter registration should be a continuous process but taking into account the logistical and financial challenges I order IEBC to continue with the mass voter registration until February 19 at 6pm."
Earlier in the week, the court had extended the deadline of the registration exercise which was to end on February 14 by two days to February 16, 2017.
The extension will require IEBC to spend an additional Ksh210 million. Through their lawyer Eric Gumbo, IEBC had asked the court not to extend the deadline citing budget constraints.
Omtatah argued that the deadline should be extended to allow people in remote areas to access registration centers. He also stated that there was no evidence IEBC had requested additional funds from parliament.
Omtatah said, "We cannot allow IEBC to lock out members of the public from registering as voters just because of budgetary constraints. They should make an application to the national assembly and get more funding for the exercise."
