- The EU has called for dialogue between President Uhuru Kenyatta and Opposition leader Raila Odinga
- The union through its election observation team also blamed the two leaders for fueling the current political situation
- The EU blamed Jubilee and NASA of intimidating independent bodies ahead of the poll
The European Union has accused both the Jubilee and NASA sides of the political divide of fueling the current political stalemate in the country.
The EU Election Observation Mission(EOM) in a statement on Wednesday, November 1 also called on President Uhuru Kenyatta and Opposition leader Raila Odinga to dialogue in order to end animosity between them.
“The EU EOM assessment at this stage is that actions by both sides of the political divide have been damaging to the electoral process and have put the people and institutions of Kenya in an extremely difficult position,” said the observers.
The country has been rocked with chaos in some areas before and after the repeat election which Uhuru won with a landslide but which Raila boycotted.
Voting did not take place in some 25 constituencies in NASA strongholds after residents barricaded roads and harassed election officials.
The EU blamed both Raila and Uhuru for intimidating various independent bodies ahead of the poll which the Opposition leader has rejected.
These actions according to the international observers included intimidation of the judiciary, attacks on the IEBC, last minute changes in the electoral laws without political consensus, obstruction of the electoral process among others.
“The weaknesses of the IEBC, including pronounced internal divisions, further contributed to uncertainty and agitation. Despite these problems, polling and counting appeared to be generally well administered and some technical improvements were evident in the results process (although further assessment is still needed)," the EU team noted.
The team noted that such a divisive electoral process, with accompanying violence, has been detrimental to Kenya’s democratic space.
The EU called on political leaders to find a way out of the current impasse with dialogue being suggested between Raila and Uhuru.
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