Ex-IEBC chair Issack Hassan: Why I wanted Raila to Win 2013 Presidential Election

Former Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) Chairperson Issack Hassan on Wednesday, May 17, said that he wished Azimio leader Raila Odinga to emerge the winner in the March 2013 presidential race.  

His disclosure came while speaking on an interview on JKLive, where he heaped praises on the opposition boss, stating that his interactions with Mr Odinga elevated him in his career. He said that Raila’s stint as a Prime Minister was unbiased, leading him to occupy his first job at the Constitution of Kenya Review Commission (CKRC).  He continued to appreciate Raila’s input in helping him rise to occupy the top office at the electoral agency. 

 “I have a lot of respect for the prime minister and in my first job as a commissioner of the Constitutional Review Commission, he was chairman of the parliamentary select committee on the constitution. They interviewed us and I was among those selected from North Eastern. That is one thing I always give him credit for because there were attempts to try and meddle with our nomination but he refused,” Hassan said. 

Hassan stated that he would wish for Kenyans to enjoy Raila’s presidency. However, he ended up announcing Uhuru Kenyatta as the winner since that was the will of the people. He termed Uhuru’s win as a low moment for him since he desired to have a feel of Raila’s presidency.  

“As chairman of the electoral commission, I only announced the will of the people. It was a very difficult time for me, but what can you do?” he said. 

After the result announcement, Raila led his battalion in castigating the commission pushing for the ouster of then President Uhuru Kenyatta.