Sam Ongeri, the DAP-K party’s Kisii Governor candidate, has been dealt a setback after his running mate Josiah Maaga ditched him.

Ongeri was in Kisii State Lodge on Wednesday for a Gusii Leaders meeting with President Uhuru Kenyatta when Maaga dropped him in favor of UDA candidate Ezekiel Machogu.

The ‘defection’ is the second to hit a Kisii governor candidate in less than two months.

KNC candidate Manson Oyongo was also dealt a setback when his running mate Alfred Ndemo defected to ODM’s Simba Arati.

Maaga told journalists that Bomachoge elders urged him to defect.

He claimed he was “recalled by the elders,” who forwarded him to deputise Ongeri.

“I don’t have the power on my own to make such a decision, I was only sent to deputise Ongeri with the same community that sent me there,” stated Maaga.

Everything in the country, according to Maaga, was done communally, and his decision to abandon Ongeri was unanimously agreed upon by the same community.

Maaga stated that he would await further briefing from the same individuals who ‘deployed me there.’

Part of the community’s concern with Ongeri was his failure to run an effective campaign while running for the County seat.

“His campaign has largely been shoddy and lacking in vigour,” said Maaga.

He said he already saw signs of losing the polls.

“We were losing and that is why I accept this decision to withdraw me from him so that we support Machogu,” said Maaga.

DPP Noordin Haji has asked Inspector General of Police Hillary Mutyambai to investigate Mombasa Governor Hassan Joho and Suna East MP Junet Mohamed in connection with a doctored video posted on their Twitter accounts.

The video, which was released on Tuesday, was manipulated to show Deputy President William Ruto shaming certain ethnic communities in Rift Valley.

He added that the investigation will also look into an audio clip that was allegedly a recorded phone call between Junet and an IEBC commissioner.

Haji stated that the investigation should be completed as soon as possible because the alleged materials could sow seeds of discord.

The DPP established a call center to handle any election-related incidents.

The center, which opened on Wednesday, will be open 24 hours a day to receive and document any cases of violence against civilians.

He stated that the data from the distress calls will serve as the foundation for the files and evidence developed by prosecutors in order to charge the perpetrators in court.

According to Haji, this election cycle will be different from previous ones because victims of poll-related violence will receive prompt justice.

“No violence perpetrator will go scot-free,” he said. 

The center is a collaboration between civil society organizations such as Transparency International, Haki Africa, the International Justice Mission, Amnesty International, and the ICJ-Kenya chapter.

Haji stated that the efforts were to supplement the police’s efforts to record the cases as they were reported.

He described it as a multi-pronged intervention to combat electoral violence, which he described as an ongoing feature of Kenya’s electoral cycles.

The DPP stated that his office had assigned 200 special prosecutors to handle cases of electoral violence in the country.

In addition, Chief Justice Martha Koome had gazetted 118 magistrates and five special courts dedicated to hearing cases involving hate speech and electoral violence.

Toll-free numbers for victims to call the center are 0800723377 and +254110939802.

Sheila Masinde, executive director of Transparency International, believes the DPP should broaden his focus to prosecute cases involving the misuse of public resources in partisan campaigns.

He should also hold accountable public employees who have openly participated in political campaigns.

Masinde stated that her lobby had created a portal where members of the public could lodge up to 1200 cases relating to the use of public resources in campaigns, and that once they were all consolidated, they would like the DPP to give them attention and address them.

She stated that the IEBC had informed it that state officers who had resigned and were participating in the elections had not declared the public assets in their possession as required by law.

Hussein Khalid, the CEO of Haki Africa, stated that his organization has seen an increase in violence by organized groups such as MRC, and that the region needs to be scrutinized to ensure that violence is not used to prevent voters from exercising their rights.