President William Ruto has officially gazetted the removal of former Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commissioner Irene Masit from the electoral agency.
Masit ‘s removal was recommended by the IEBC tribunal, headed by Justice Aggrey Muchelule, after weeks of hearing submissions from petitioners and the ex-Commissioner’s defense team.
The tribunal constituted to probe the conduct of four commissioners of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) recommended the removal of Commissioner Irene Masit from office over violation of the constitution and gross misconduct.
In a report submitted to President William Ruto on Monday, February 27, the tribunal chaired by Court of Appeal judge Aggrey Muchelule said allegations that Commissioner Masit agreed to a request made by some members of the National Security Advisory Committee (NSAC) to moderate results in last year’s presidential election were proved.
Further, the tribunal stated that the actions by Masit and her colleague to disown the presidential results announced by former IEBC chair Wafula Chebukati on August 15, 2022, amounted to gross misconduct.
“From the analysis of evidence on record, it is our finding that Commissioner Irene Masit ’s actions of 15th August 2022 of agreeing to the proposal by the two delegations to moderate the result of the Presidential Election to enable a re-run with the promise that there would be a reward if this was done amounts to gross misconduct on her part,” the report reads in part.
“Secondly, the actions by the Commissioners to proceed to Serena to issue the presser to disown the result that she had participated in tallying and verifying were intended to undermine and erode public trust in the commission and to the result. In our considered view, these actions amounted to gross misconduct.
“This Tribunal recommends to the President pursuant to the mandate assigned vide Gazette Notice No. 14890 of 2nd December 2022, and further in accordance and in compliance with Article 251(1) and (6) that Commissioner Irene Cherop Masit be removed from office as a member of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission,” the document added.
The tribunal, however, found that the actions of Commissioner Masit did not amount to incompetence.
Masit is the last commissioner standing after three of her colleagues led by former vice chair Juliana Cherera, Justus Nyang’aya and Francis Wanderu opted to resign rather than face the tribunal.
Chebukati and former commissioners Abdi Guliye and Boya Molu testified against Masit during the proceedings of the tribunal.
