Lawyer Omari explains why it’s an offense to take selfies of the ballot paper when voting

Added: 2026-05-18

[00:00:00]We have seen people taking a ballot.

[00:00:04]They mark and mark for Dunstan Omari if he's the one in the ballot.

[00:00:09]They take a selfie. They take a photo.

[00:00:12]Then post it on their status.

[00:00:16]Is it an offense?

[00:00:19]You are a foreigner.

[00:00:20]You come to vote. You are an underage.

[00:00:23]You are below 18 years. You would come to vote. You are not registered in a Marakwet.

[00:00:29]But you have been brought from West Mugirango. You have been brought from Vihiga. You have been brought from Ugenya to come and vote. It is an offense to vote.

[00:00:40]One commits an offense and is liable to conviction to a fine not exceeding 1 million shillings or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 years or both.

[00:00:55]This is your girlfriend. This is your mother. This is your workmate. This is your colleague.

[00:01:02]Don't try to ask anybody who they want to vote or who they have voted for. That is a crime. Wow.

[00:01:12]B.

[00:01:14]If you take your photo your phone, take a photo of your ballot and say, "I have marked a vote for Dunstan Omari."

[00:01:27]Then you take it to be paid.

[00:01:31]Very many people have been told in Marakwet the key and other places once you take take a photo, bring, we give you 1,000 shillings.

[00:01:42]It might not only be because you want to be paid. It can be to show allegiance.

[00:01:50]You want to show you are UDA so you take a photo and post it that you are a UDA member and you voted for a UDA member. Wewe ni DCP damu.

[00:02:02]You take the ballot and show you voted for DCP. One commits an offense and is liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding 1 million shillings or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3 years or both.

[00:02:21]If you give a bribe or if you receive a bribe you're going in.

[00:02:30]You'll pay 2 million shillings. Welcome to Hotel Kopter trending news.

[00:02:36]We analyze any trending issue and give it the legal basis so that Kenyans will know the law behind those trending issues.

[00:02:47]Today we have an election a by-election at Murua Dekil where a sitting member of parliament Mheshimiwa John Ng'eno died.

[00:03:01]From Hotel Kopter news we pass condolences to the family of the former member of parliament.

[00:03:08]Two for those who are contesting in the by-election we wish them all the best and may the best person succeed.

[00:03:19]But more than that, we wish the will of the people of Murua Dekil to be respected and IBC to conduct elections as provided.

[00:03:33]But we went back my crew Vivian asked this was asked this question.

[00:03:41]We have seen people taking a ballot.

[00:03:45]They mark and mark for Dunstan Omar if he's the one in the ballot.

[00:03:50]They take a selfie, they take a photo, then post it on their status.

[00:03:57]Is it an offense?

[00:04:00]Is it going too far to put up what you have? After all, what is the mistake? It is my vote. I have voted for Danson Mungatana, and I have put X. I take my photo because nobody stops you from carrying your phone to your booth.

[00:04:20]But, what does the law say?

[00:04:24]Let us look at what are the offenses relating to voting. This applies to people in the whole country.

[00:04:33]It will be the law that will apply in 2027.

[00:04:36]Once 2027 elections come near, we shall be giving you bullets of the laws of elections.

[00:04:45]What does the law say?

[00:04:46]One, a person who, that is section five, a person who forges, counterfeits, defaces, or destroys any ballot paper or the official perforation, stamp, or mark on any ballot paper is a crime.

[00:05:05]You cannot forge. You cannot counterfeit. You cannot deface that ballot paper. You can't destroy it. B, you [snorts] cannot supply any of the ballot papers to any other person without authority. Three, you cannot sell or offer for sale any ballot paper to any person.

[00:05:28]Five, you can't purchase a ballot paper from anybody.

[00:05:34]So, if IBC staff are selling, this is an offense. E, >> [snorts] >> any person not being a person entitled to be in possession.

[00:05:44]If you are not an IBC person, You are not allowed to have an official perforation, a stamp, or a mark that is in possession of the IBC.

[00:05:57]F.

[00:05:58]If you put into any ballot anything other than the ballot paper, you are going to vote. You are only given a ballot box, but you take your handkerchief, you put it there. You take your paper, tissue paper, you put it there. You are a mole. You remove your 1,000 shillings, put it there. That is an offense.

[00:06:22]G.

[00:06:23]If you take out a ballot paper outside the polling polling station.

[00:06:31]When you are mjanja.

[00:06:33]You don't want to vote for the people there. You are given your ballot papers, you voting for an MCA, you pick, leave it out. It is illegal to walk out of a polling station with a ballot paper.

[00:06:47]Then, if you remove any material after the election from the polling station.

[00:06:55]I know some goons will be hired to run and carry. It is an offense.

[00:07:00]If you destroy or take or open or dispossess otherwise any election material that is supposed to be used.

[00:07:10]The tents, the ballot boxes, the anything. If you destroy any of those, you will get a problem. If you print a ballot box, I know quite a number of guys are very ingenious. If you try to print, my friend, you will get a problem. If you manufacture or construct anything similar like election materials, it will be an offense to do that.

[00:07:38]If you mark any paper, an election paper that does not belong to you and you are not an an authorized agent, you will get it very rough.

[00:07:51]If you vote at an election when you are not entitled to vote, you are a foreigner, you come to vote. You are an underage, you are below 18 years, you don't come to vote. You are not registered in a mood key, but you have been brought from West Mugirango, you have been brought from Vihiga, you have been brought from Udaya to come and vote. It is an offense to vote.

[00:08:17]If you vote more than twice, they are Kuna wajanja. Because you are you are put an ink, you run outside, you get you you you you rub it, you have sulfuric acid, or you have spirit, you clean, then you go to vote.

[00:08:33]My friend, if you vote twice, it is an offense.

[00:08:38]If you interfere with a voter who wants to cast his vote or her vote in in secret, there are wounds they are saying, "Lazima tuonyeshe hii kura umepigia nani?" We want to see who you have voted. You will get it very rough.

[00:08:54]If you pretend to be unable to read or write so as to be assisted in voting, let me repeat this.

[00:09:03]My crew Vivian tells me, "Read P."

[00:09:07]If you pretend to be unable to read or write so as to be assisted in voting, there are people who will go there saying, "Mimi macho yangu sioni."

[00:09:21]I'm blind.

[00:09:23]You have your walking stick.

[00:09:25]Or you pretend that you don't know English. You can't read for somebody to assist you.

[00:09:33]If you pretend, my friend, the DCI will pick you tonight.

[00:09:40]Then it is saying, if you pretend to be visually impaired or suffering from any other disability so as to be assisted in voting.

[00:09:50]All those offenses, one commits an offense and is liable to conviction to a fine not exceeding 1 million shillings or to imprisonment for time not exceeding 6 years or both.

[00:10:06]Wow.

[00:10:08]1 million shillings.

[00:10:10]Um, you define it before.

[00:10:13]You because you have been given 50 shillings before because you have been given 100 shillings because you have been given 1,000 shillings. The fine is 1 million shillings or 6 years imprisonment.

[00:10:27]What about maintenance of secrecy at elections?

[00:10:33]Section 7 says, an election officer, a candidate, an agent >> [clears throat] >> or any other person.

[00:10:40]So even a voter, A, without authority obtains or attempts to obtain in a polling station information as to the candidate for whom any voter in the station is about to vote or has voted for.

[00:11:00]The law says, you [snorts] cannot start asking somebody who are you going to vote for or who have you voted for.

[00:11:10]Boss, this is your girlfriend. This is your mother. This is your workmate. This is your colleague.

[00:11:18]Don't try to ask anybody who they want to vote or who they have voted for. That is a crime. Wow.

[00:11:29]B, >> [snorts] >> if one communicates at any time to any person any information obtained in a polling station as to the candidate for whom any voter in the station is about to vote or has voted for. Or you tell somebody I have information Vivian wants to vote for money.

[00:11:53]I have information Cyrus will not vote for Bramwell.

[00:11:58]That is an offense. See? So even the IBC staff are not allowed to communicate.

[00:12:07]Whatever the information they have is confidential.

[00:12:12]It's top secret.

[00:12:14]Vivian's vote cannot be disclosed who she voted for.

[00:12:21]Whether you are the agent who assists that old woman who can't read, [clears throat] that impaired visually impaired person, you are not supposed to disclose who they voted for.

[00:12:36]A person attending any proceedings relating to an election and who without lawful excuse A communicates before the poll is closed to any person any information obtained at those proceedings as to any official perforation, stamp, or mark to be used in connection with any paper. B who communicates to any person at any time that information.

[00:13:05]E, and this is the most important one.

[00:13:09]Captures an image [clears throat] of any marked ballot for the purpose of financial gain or for showing allegiance.

[00:13:22]If you take your foot your phone, take a photo of your ballot and say, "I have marked a vote for Dunstan Omari."

[00:13:35]Then you take it to be paid.

[00:13:39]Very many people have been told in a rural area and other places, "Once you take Take a photo, bring, we give you 1,000 shillings."

[00:13:51]We know somebody has has money outside the polling station.

[00:13:55]They give you 1,000 shillings or 200 shillings. When you go in, you vote, you take a photo, you come out. Your balance of 200 shillings or 500 is there. That is an offense.

[00:14:07]Two, it might not only be because you want to be paid. It can be to show allegiance.

[00:14:15]We we need to be a UDA supporter.

[00:14:18]You take a photo and post it that you are a UDA member and you voted for a UDA member. We we need DCP down.

[00:14:28]You take the ballot and show you voted for DCP, or you are Wiper, or you are Jubilee.

[00:14:38]It is a crime. What is the penalty?

[00:14:43]One commits an offense and is liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding 1 million shillings or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3 years or both.

[00:14:57]What?

[00:14:59]1 million shillings or to an imprisonment to 3 years. What about bribery?

[00:15:07]People are being bribed money to vote.

[00:15:12]Section nine talks about a person who during an election period directly or indirectly offers a bribe to influence a voter to vote or refrain from voting to a particular candidate or a political party.

[00:15:30]B.

[00:15:32]Attend or participate in or to refrain from attending or participating in any political meeting, match, demonstration, or any other issue.

[00:15:43]C. In any manner unlawfully influence the results of an an election. Commits an offense.

[00:15:54]That person commits an offense.

[00:15:57]A person who commits an offense under this section shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding 2 million shillings or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 years or both.

[00:16:13]If you give a bribe or if you receive a bribe you're going in.

[00:16:21]You'll pay 2 million shillings. What about section 10? Undue influence.

[00:16:27]If you devise tricks you cause harm, you cause war you harass people, you carry pangas, you threaten people. If they vote this way, you will get this. If you do this, your house will be burned. If you exert undue influence on any voter my friend you will go in and you'll pay 1 million shillings. You commit an election offense.

[00:17:03]That is the position of the law.

[00:17:06]If you use violence what about violence? Section 11 says a person who directly or indirectly in uh injures or inflicts injury, damage or harm or loss or against any other person commits an offense and is liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding 2 million shillings or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 years or both.

[00:17:39]So, what we are saying, avoid election related offenses as a voter and as a goon who will be hired.

[00:17:51]We wish the best candidate all the best. From Ghetto Helicopter News, Ghetto Helicopter will bring the winner for Emurua, but you have understood offenses that are likely to be conducted at that Wakili Danson Mungatana.