All roads lead to Bomas of Kenya, where special prayers are being held for former Prime Minister Raila Odinga, who is vying to become the next Chairperson of the African Union Commission (AUC).
The Orange Democratic Party Director of Communications Philip Etale shared an invitation on Sunday from the Nairobi County Party leadership.
A similar prayer ceremony was organised by party leaders from Western Kenya at a church in Kakamega Town.
“The Nairobi County Party leadership has the pleasure to invite you for a Special Prayer Service to pray for the Rt. Hon. Raila Amolo Odinga as he heads to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia for the election of the Chairperson of the African Union Commission. The event will be held at the Bomas of Kenya on Monday (10th February 2025) from 9:00 am,” Etale announced.
African heads converge in Addis Ababa on February 15 and 16 to elect a replacement for the outgoing chairman, Moussa Faki Mahamat, who has served his maximum two terms.
Raila is among the top three contenders for the position, facing competition from Djibouti’s Mohamoud Youssouf and Richard Randriamandrato of Madagascar.
EXPLAINER: The role of the AUC chair
The Chairperson of the African Union Commission is the Chief Executive Officer, legal representative of the AU and the Commission’s Chief Accounting Officer. The Chairperson of the Commission is elected by the Assembly for a four-year term, renewable once.
The Chairperson’s functions include: overall responsibility for the Commission’s administration and finances; Promoting and popularising the AU’s objectives and enhancing its performance; Consulting and coordinating with key stakeholders like Member States, Development Partners, RECs, etc; Appointing and managing Commission staff; Acting as a depository for all AU and OAU treaties and legal instruments.
Voting process
A candidate must garner a two-thirds majority of the votes cast.
The 𝐄𝐱𝐞𝐜𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐂𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐥 will elect and appoint the 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐬 during their Session on the 12-13 February 2025 while The 𝐀𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐥𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐆𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 will pick the 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐢𝐫𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧 and 𝐃𝐞𝐩𝐮𝐭𝐲 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐢𝐫𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧 during their Session on the 15-16 February 2025.
The voting process begins with all the candidates on the ballot. Voting is conducted 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐞𝐞 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐬 and if the third ballot remains inconclusive without any candidate garnering the two-thirds majority, the next ballot shall be restricted to the two candidates who obtained the highest number of votes and the candidate with 𝐟𝐞𝐰𝐞𝐫 𝐯𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡𝐝𝐫𝐚𝐰𝐧.
Where there are only two candidates initially and neither candidate obtains the majority required after the third ballot, the 𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐟𝐞𝐰𝐞𝐫 𝐯𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡𝐝𝐫𝐚𝐰𝐧 and the remaining candidate proceeds to the next round.
If the remaining candidate fails to obtain the two-thirds majority required in that round, the Chairperson is required to 𝐬𝐮𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐝 the election.
Where there is only one candidate initially and he or she fails to obtain the two-thirds majority required after the third ballot, the current Chairperson is required to 𝐬𝐮𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐝 the election.
