Wetang'ula to reward Bungoma chief who excels in ID and voter registration

National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetang'ula has announced a Sh1 million cash reward for any chief who excels in driving new Identity Card (ID) and voter registrations in Bungoma County.

Speaking yesterday during a meeting with political leaders and administrators from the county, Wetang'ula urged chiefs and local administrators to leverage President William Ruto's directive, which exempts National ID applicants from vetting, to accelerate the registration process.

Earlier in the month, President William Ruto issued a Presidential Proclamation on the registration and issuance of IDs to border counties, simplifying access to this essential document.

During the meeting, Wetangu'la emphasized that the presidential directive was not limited to the North Eastern region but also applied to numerous border counties and towns.

Additionally, the Speaker raised concerns over Bungoma County’s low voter registration.

He wondered why, despite being Kenya’s third-most populous county, it had only registered approximately 600,000 voters in the 2022 general election.

"Bungoma is the third largest county in Kenya behind Nairobi and Kakamega. But when you look at registered voters, you find Nakuru has 1 million, Kiambu has 1.2 million, Nairobi around 3 million, and  Bungoma is still in the 600,000 mark. How will we be taken seriously?" Wetang'ula was quoted asking by Citizen Digital.

The Speaker stressed that voter registration should reflect the county’s population, which stood at 1.6 million, according to the 2019 Kenya Population and Housing Census.

To encourage registration, Wetang'ula announced a competition, pledging a Sh1 million reward to chiefs and their assistants who excel in the drive by mid-next year.

"I want to raise something for you chiefs. I'll start a competition among the locations based on the numbers you have," said Wetangu'la.

"By mid-next year, the chief and assistant who will have recorded the highest number of ID and voters cards, I'll give them one million shilings."