Kenya’s opposition leader rejects election re-run date

Kenyan opposition leader Raila Odinga said on Tuesday his coalition would not participate in a re-run of a presidential election proposed for Oct. 17 unless they are given “legal and constitutional” guarantees.

“You cannot do a mistake twice and expect to get different results,” Odinga told reporters. Kenya’s Supreme Court on Friday ordered a re-run of the Aug. 8 vote within 60 days, saying President Uhuru Kenyatta’s victory was undermined by irregularities in the process.

Daily Times Nigeria recalls that Kenya’s electoral body the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) on Monday set a date for the repeat presidential election as ordered by the country’s Supreme Court last week
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The electoral commission said on Monday that the repeat exercise will be carried out on October 17.

The commission further stated that only President Uhuru Kenyatta and opposition leader Raila Odinga will be on the ballot.

Last Friday, the country’s apex court annulled President Kenyatta’s official win in the August 8 polls by 1.4 million votes, saying the IEBC neglected to conduct the election in a manner within the dictates of the constitution.

The commission said it is revising the operational and procedural requirements for the conduct of the fresh election.