Kenya election observer calls for peaceful vote

By Magdalene Mukami and Andrew Wasike

NAIROBI, Kenya (AA) - Former Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama arrived in Kenya with a 15-member Commonwealth observation team on Thursday ahead of next Tuesday’s general election.

Mahama acknowledged that ethnic tension and hate speech had risen in the past few days, especially following the murder of Kenya’s electoral commission IT chief, Chris Msando.

He called on the government to investigate the killing which has spread fear among Kenyans and the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), the country’s electoral body.

Mahama called on Kenyans and the government to ensure next week's elections are free, peaceful and fair, noting that even though they were overseeing the poll, the world would also be watching the East African country.

“This is a high-stakes election, it is a critical election and I call it a watershed. It is an election that is going to see the maturity of the Kenyan democracy. It will establish Kenya as one of the leading democracies on the continent,” Mahama said.