Residents of Ijara Constituency have raised concern over delays in the release of national identity cards, saying thousands of youths are unable to register as voters ahead of the next electoral process.
According to residents, many applicants who applied for identity cards more than four months ago have not received their documents.
They claim the IDs are being withheld at the National Registration Bureau offices located at the NSSF Building headquarters in Nairobi, instead of being dispatched to sub-county registration offices across Northern Kenya.
The delays have affected many young people in Ijara who had hoped to register as voters after attaining the required age of 18 years. Residents say the continued withholding of the documents has frustrated efforts by youth to participate in national democratic processes.
Ijara Sub-County Registrar of Persons, Mr Mohamed Keinan, confirmed the delays and said more than 400,000 new identity cards are still being held in Nairobi awaiting distribution to various regions. He noted that officials are planning to collect and release the documents soon.
Local leaders and community elders have now challenged political aspirants in Ijara and the wider Northern Kenya region to prioritize the release of identity cards instead of engaging in early political campaigns and clan-based meetings.
The leaders, led by peace elder Mr Adan Ismail, Ijara youth leader Mr Salah Yarrow, Masalani Watchdog Chairman Mr Abdullahi Abdi, and women youth leader Ms Furaha Abdullahi, urged leaders from Garissa, Wajir, Mandera, Marsabit, and Moyale counties to focus on helping youth access identification documents to enable them to register as voters.
The leaders warned that unless the identity cards are released promptly, many eligible youth risk being locked out of the voter registration exercise.
By Dahir Mohamed
