Kulundu Named Acting IEBC Chief Executive Officer
The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission has named Ruth Kulundu as its acting chief executive officer with effect from the fifth of August.
She will continue to hold her existing post as Deputy Commission Secretary in charge of operations while discharging the additional responsibilities of the top administrative role. The appointment fills a gap that had remained open for several months and ensures continuity in the management of the electoral body.
Moses Ledama Sunkuli, who had been handling the duties, now reverts fully to his substantive position as Director of Electoral Operations. The chief executive vacancy arose in February after Marjan Hussein Marjan left the organisation through a mutual agreement to end his contract. His departure followed sustained calls from opposition parties for a change in leadership ahead of the next general election cycle.
Kulundu brings more than a decade of hands-on experience in election management to the role. She previously served as a Regional Elections Coordinator between twenty-ten and twenty-seventeen before advancing to County Elections Manager. Her academic credentials include a Master of Business Administration in Strategic Management and a Bachelor of Commerce, both earned from the University of Nairobi. She is also an associate member of the Chartered Insurance Institute of London and of the country as well as the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators of the country Chapter.
The commission has already begun the process of recruiting a permanent chief executive. Vacancies for the position were publicly advertised on the twenty-eighth of July, with the deadline for applications set for the eleventh of August. In the interim, Kulundu’s dual responsibilities are expected to maintain steady oversight of operational and administrative functions.
Her past relationship with the commission was not without difficulty. In twenty-twenty-three the then chief executive interdicted her on allegations of gross misconduct, insubordination and involvement in irregular activities, including claims that she helped organise an unauthorised plenary meeting. A court later suspended that action after finding that she had presented a sufficient defence. The latest appointment places her at the centre of the electoral body’s preparations for the period ahead.
