IEK Election Crisis Deepens as Caretaker Committee Declares Outgoing Council's June 30 Polls Null and Void

The Institution of Engineers of Kenya (IEK) is facing a deepening leadership dispute, with a newly formed Caretaker Committee publicly declaring that communications from the outgoing 2024/2026 Council, including its June 30 election announcement, carry no legal standing.

In a letter dated June 18 and signed by Eng. Hillary Nyaanga, Chairperson of the Caretaker Committee, members are told to disregard the election notice under Ref No. IEK/PRE/CEO/MA/991/2026. The accompanying Annual General Meeting (AGM) notice under Ref No. IEK/SEC/CEO/MA/010/2026 is similarly dismissed. Both, the letter states, should be considered null and void.

The Committee's authority stems from a Special General Meeting (SGM) held on May 21, 2026, where members resolved to form a nine-member caretaker body to guide the institution. It subsequently registered those resolutions with the Registrar of Societies, which recognised the Committee and confirmed its mandate.

The 2024/2026 Council's term officially ended in April 2026. On that basis, the Caretaker Committee argues the outgoing council no longer holds a mandate to transact on behalf of the institution.

Earlier on the same day, outgoing IEK President Eng. Shammah Kiteme had informed members that June 30 was confirmed for elections. That announcement followed a Kiambu High Court ruling in Sam Aberi vs. IEK and Another, which discharged an injunction that had suspended the polls.

The petition behind that case had sought to include graduate engineers in the electoral process. The court dismissed it, and the judge ordered that interim conservatory orders suspending the elections stand discharged.

The Caretaker Committee's position is that the governance dispute runs deeper than the injunction. Their letter warns members against engaging with any guidance from the outgoing body.

Lawyers acting on behalf of the Caretaker Committee already wrote to Standard Chartered Bank seeking to freeze the outgoing council signatories from operating IEK accounts, directing the bank to recognise only the Caretaker Committee's chairman, secretary, and treasurer.

The Committee says it will issue its own direction on election and AGM timelines. Two bodies are now claiming authority over the same process, and the one that will ultimately convene the election will depend on whether the competing claims are reconciled, or whether the matter is forced back before the courts.

How long will this drag on?

Any further updates will be available on Mjengo Hub.