From: Judy Miriga
Good People,
Kwa roho safi,
For Unity and Peace for common good of all, I take this early opportunity to congratulate Uhuru Kenyatta, Ruto and team for winning the election.
For healing, we should leave behind our fierce challenging battle, begin the journey of healing and plan to move forward as a family.
I am extending my hands to brothers and sisters from Kenya who hoped differently to do the same so we take Uhuru for his word and waste no time to embark on sustaining our Reform Change working towards development progressive agenda.
Once against, Uhuru Kenyatta and Ruto, I salute you, let us celebrate together your victory as a family……..
Cheers everybody !!!
Judy Miriga
Diaspora Spokesperson
Executive Director
Confederation Council Foundation for Africa Inc.,
USA
http://socioeconomicforum50.blogspot.com
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Uhuru pledges to unite Kenyans
Nairobi, Kenya: President elect Uhuru Kenyatta on Saturday gave his first speech after being declared winner and pledged to unite Kenyans and work towards prosperity of the country.
Addressing supporters at Jubilee Media Center Catholic University of Eastern Africa, Uhuru said he will work without fear or favour with all for the sake of the country.
He extended an olive branch to his opponents and call upon them to join hands in building Kenya.
He commended Kenyans for conducting themselves peacefully during elections and called upon them to maintain the same after polls.
“This victory is not about me, it is about you, the people of Kenya,” he said.
He added; “We celebrate triumph of democracy, peace and nationhood. You all displayed political maturity and surpassed expectations, maintained peace and order, that’s a victory for Kenya.”
He commended IEBC for conducting free and fair elections and pledged to support the commission to get efficient ways to conduct elections in future.
He also commended the police for ensuring peace and order was maintained throughout the election period.
On international relations, Uhuru said Kenya will work with countries in the region.
He said Kenya was part of the international community and will cooperate with nations and institutions but maintained the country’s sovereignty should be respected.
“I expect that the international community will respect the sovereignty of the Republic of Kenya,” he said.
Vice President elect William Ruto said the Jubilee win was miracle and said the coalition will work to honour pledges they made.
“I am lost for words…..Our victory is a miracle. We dedicate this coalition’s victory to God,” he said.
Read full speech by president-elect Uhuru Kenyatta here
Calm in Kisumu as results announced
By Dennis Mosota and Rushdie Oudia
Kisumu and most parts of Nyanza province, mapped out, as hotspots remained calm following the loss of Raila Odinga in the votes cast.
Security officers patrolled the area as religious leaders and the Kenya Association of Manufacturers Nyanza Western Chapter called on businessmen to open their shops.
Heavy rains accompanied by thunderstorms forced people to stay indoors as they followed the results on their television sets on Friday night.
In Kondele that was the most affected area during the 2007-2008 post-election violence, by 9am on Saturday, the youth stayed away from violence as they waited calmly for the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission’s verdict.
Two trucks of General Service Officers (GSU) patrolled the lakeside town, from 3am. There were also Land Cruisers with regular and administration police backing up the GSU team.
However, Kenya Association of Manufacturers Nyanza Western Chapter Israel Agina appealed to all stakeholders and communities to support the return of normal business operations.
“We all lose out if people let their emotions rise and do not seek constructive solutions,” said Mr Agina.
He added that the city could only attract investors through peace after the elections.
Fear of violence
“How we carry ourselves will show the investors that Kisumu is an investor friendly,” added Agina.
He said as they return to work, peace should prevail despite the results since the main thing is ensuring that Kisumu’s future is bright and prosperous.
Banks and some business premises remained open along the Oginga Odinga Street as residents went on with their activities.
At Oile Market, traders packed their goods for fear of violence since they knew that the president would be declared at that time.
A number of people also closed shops out of fear.
“We are waiting to hear what Raila will say because there are issues that must be addressed,” said Ken Otieno, in Kondele area.
Joseph Owino, a matatu driver, said there is need for the Jubilee presidential candidate Uhuru Kenyatta to treat all regions equally, if the IEBC declares him winner.
“Uhuru should not leave out Kisumu and other parts of the province for not giving him enough votes.
He should treat counties equal in the sharing of the cake,” said Owino.
Anglican Church of Kenya Maseno South Diocese Bishop Francis Obiero thanked Kisumu people for showing patience, tolerance and determination during vote tallying.
“All we need is to maintain peace as Kenya is more important than all of us,” said Obiero.
In Siaya County, the ancestral home of Prime Minister Raila Odinga, people gathered in shopping centres to follow what was going on television sets in some restaurants.
Others tuned on their radio sets to follow the historic moment the country was waiting for.
Uhuru hits victory mark
NAIROBI, KENYA: The son of Kenya’s first president has all but secured victory against Raila Odinga and six others to become the country’s Fourth President.
Barring any changes or successful challenges to a final tally released early this morning, Uhuru will win the presidential vote with a razor-thin margin, ending a dramatic contest against the Prime Minister.
Following delays in tallying and verification, announcement of the final confirmed result of the March 4 presidential election was put off until 11am today. Updates to electoral figures at 2am, however, included the tally from the six constituencies whose results were still outstanding. They were Laikipia North, Emurua Dikirr, Molo, Konoin, Narok West and Turkana Central. Uhuru garnered 141, 447 to push his final tally to 6, 173, 433. Raila secured 58, 485 in the six constituencies to raise his final tally to 5, 340, 546.
If the figures stand, Uhuru will go over the constitutional threshold of 50 per cent plus one by a narrow margin of 4,100 votes. The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission will make the official declaration of whether he has secured the vote at 11am after verification of the results by all parties.
Earlier, addressing the media at about 15 minutes past midnight, IEBC commissioner Yusuf Nzibo said the electoral body and political party agents needed more time to audit the results before a final declaration could be made.
At the Jubilee alliance’s tallying centre, however, last night had the air of a victory party after the gap in official results between Uhuru Kenyatta and Raila peaked at over one million votes just after 10pm. While the lead shrank later in the evening, it mostly remained just above the 50 per cent threshold.
At 3am, with all 291 constituencies reporting, Uhuru had 6,173,433 valid votes (50.03 per cent) against Raila’s 5,340,546 (43.28 per cent). The Jubilee alliance and CORD candidates also had at least 25 per cent of the vote in about 30 counties each. Candidates were required to secure more than half the total votes cast, as well as at least a quarter of all votes in at least 24 counties to win.
Uhuru, 51, and running mate William Ruto, 46, took an early lead in the final manual tally to decide who was headed to State House. In a trend repeated from an earlier electronic tally that failed before it was completed, the two held onto their lead all day, rising and falling past the 50 per cent mark as ballot totals from various constituencies came in. Their thin margin above the constitutional threshold raised the dramatic prospect they might not secure a victory, forcing the contest to a run-off on April 11 this year. For the ‘true believers’ in Team UhuRuto, however, the presidency was almost in the bag.
Uhuru and Ruto have outperformed their rivals in a hard-fought election that opinion pollsters said was too close to call after they ate away at a sizeable lead held by Raila last year. Their hopes for a final result on Friday morning, after almost four days of contentious vote tallying, were dashed as questions about errors in the tallies led to fresh delays. Published figures that were provided to party agents for verification were alleged to have “missing or erroneous entries”. This prompted a decision to verify the numbers from all 291 constituencies afresh.
“There may have been errors and discrepancies here and there,” IEBC chief executive, Mr James Oswago told a media brief at the national tallying centre in Nairobi. “Some we have already detected and we are working on them.”
The election, the most complex ever attempted by Kenya, has been plagued by technology failures and protests from party agents. Earlier, CORD presidential agents complained that electoral officials had failed to include results from 11 constituencies in their final tally. The areas they say were left out include Changamwe, Ganze, Homa Bay, Kanduyi, Khamisi, Kitui South, Kitutu Chache, Kubuachai, Magarini, Mumias East and Vihiga. IEBC officials agreed to an audit of their documents to determine if this was true.
A last minute attempt by civil society activists to stop the process failed when the High Court in Nairobi ruled it had no jurisdiction to handle their petition. The petitioner, Africog, was advised to pursue their suit in the Supreme Court.
Two of the eight candidates in the race conceded defeat before the final result was announced. Eagle coalition candidate Peter Kenneth threw in the towel after interim results showed it was a two-horse race. UDF leader and Amani coalition candidate Musalia Mudavadi joined him Friday as the final tally continued to confirm this, announcing he was “ready to work with the winner”. He added he had spoken to Raila and Uhuru and requested then “not to allow any statements from within their ranks (about the election) that will be misconstrued and lead to a break-up of the prevailing civic order”.
Raila Odinga, who was following the contest from his home in Nairobi’s Karen area, plans to issue a statement today (Saturday) on the final result.
Uhuru and Ruto have won the largest number of voters nationally despite warnings from their rivals and some foreign envoys over the burden of the criminal charges they face in two cases at the International Criminal Court. There are six other candidates in the presidential race: Amani/UDF’s Mudavadi, 52, had 438,215 votes as at 3am today.
In fourth place was Peter Kenneth, 48, the Eagle/Kenya National Congress candidate who secured 72,786 votes. Former teacher Mohammed Dida, 39, who ran on an Alliance for Real Change ticket got 52,848 votes to take the fifth slot. Narc-Kenya’s Martha Karua, 55, followed with 43,881 votes.
In seventh place was Restore and Build Kenya candidate James ole Kiyiapi, 51, who polled 40,998 votes. Trailing the pack of eight was lawyer Paul Muite, 67, with 12,580 votes on a Safina party ticket.
IEBC declares Uhuru Kenya’s fourth president
By Standard Digital
Kenya: The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission ( IEBC) chair Isaac Hassan declares Uhuru Kenyatta duly elected President of Kenya after he garnered 50.07 per cent of votes cast.
Hassan on Saturday announced Uhuru garnered 6, 173, 433 votes against his rival CORD’s Raila Odinga who got 5, 340, 546.
The IEBC chair said Uhuru got 105 per cent of votes cast in at least 32 counties.
There were 14, 350, 533 registered voters and Hassan said the voter turnout was impressive and the highest in the country at 86 per cent.
Hassan issued the certificate of the results to Uhuru who was accorded security and escort befitting a president.
While announcing the results, Hassan urged presidential candidates to put the nation first before the results and commended aspirants who conceded defeat.
“The elections were credible and transparent”, said IEBC boss.
He said the six ballot election was quite ambitious and challenging to the electoral body, political parties and voters.
Uhuru Kenyatta wins Kenyan presidency; rival to challenge outcome in court
By Faith Karimi and Nima Elbagir, CNN
updated 11:31 AM EST, Sat March 9, 2013
Nairobi, Kenya (CNN) — Uhuru Kenyatta, the son of Kenya’s founding leader, narrowly won the presidential poll despite facing charges of crimes against humanity over election violence five years ago.
Kenyatta clinched 50.07% of the vote, the election commission announced Saturday, barely breaking past the halfway mark.
His main rival, Prime Minister Raila Odinga, got 43.31% of the vote, and said he will challenge the outcome in court.
The constitution requires a 50% plus one vote for an outright win.
His victory puts the West in a quandary. Kenyatta is facing trial at the International Criminal Court over post-election violence that plunged the nation into chaos in 2007.
Shortly after election officials announced the results, he thanked citizens for bestowing him the leadership role and vowed to work for everyone.
“We celebrate the triumph of democracy; the triumph of peace; the triumph of nationhood,” Kenyatta said. “Despite the misgivings of many in the world, we demonstrated a level of political maturity that surpassed expectations.”
Odinga will challenge Kenya’s election
Monitoring Kenya’s vote — digitally
Winning parties should remain “modest in victory,” he said, acknowledging that nearly half the nation did not vote for him.
Jubilant supporters took to the streets, speeding down crowded streets, honking and chanting his name.
“This is a new dawn, our leader has been elected,” said John Kamau, a Nakuru resident.
‘It is frustrating’
For some of Odinga’s strongholds, the mood was tense but calm.
“Our man has tried to be president three times, it is frustrating,” said James Ouma, who lives in the capital of Nairobi. “We will accept it. What can we do? Life must go on.”
Odinga said the election outcome is flawed.
“We are confident that the court will restore the faith of Kenyans in the democratic role,” he said.
Despite the looming challenge, Kenyatta struck a conciliatory note after the close election, applauding Odinga for a “spirited campaign,”
“I know that all the candidates have made tremendous personal sacrifices .. and I welcome them to join us in moving our nation forward,” he said.
A vital ally
The vote’s significance extends far beyond Kenyan borders.
Kenya is East Africa’s biggest economy and a crucial trade route into the rest of the continent.
It provides an important buffer of stability in a region that includes the fledgling Somali government and the politically tense Sudan and South Sudan.
Most importantly — at least to the West — Kenya is a major U.S. ally in the war against Islamist militants in the region and has remained relatively peaceful amid civil wars in neighboring nations.
Complicated relations
Kenyatta’s victory raised the prospect of complicated diplomatic ties with the West.
The International Criminal Court indicted him for allegedly funding a local militia that conducted reprisal attacks in the last election in 2007. His running mate, William Ruto, also faces ICC charges at The Hague.
Both have denied the charges and have said they will cooperate with the court to clear their names.
The assurance has not allayed fears among some Western diplomats.
Before the election, Johnnie Carson, the State Department’s top diplomat for Africa, issued a stern warning, saying Kenyans can pick their own leaders, but “choices have consequences.”
But in a statement after the election, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry applauded the vote.
“Kenya has been one of America’s strongest and most enduring partners in Africa,” Kerry said. “We … will continue to be a strong friend and ally of the Kenyan people.”
The UK minister for Africa, Marks Simmonds, echoed his sentiment and called on candidates to address disputes in court to avoid violence.
Kenyatta has said the indictment will not affect his ability to do his job and urged the international community to respect the will of Kenyans.
“I have been a member of the government, and I’ve still been able to execute my duties,” said Kenyatta, a deputy prime minister in the outgoing administration. “I still believe I will be able to execute my duties as president.”
Carson’s predecessor, Jendayi Frazer, said she does not foresee much change in ties between Kenya and the United States.
“Kenyatta knows that he needs the United States, and the United States knows it needs Kenya,” she said. “And so I suspect that while it might be awkward, there won’t be a significant change in our policy stances toward Kenya or theirs toward us.”
No faith in the ICC
Analysts say the ICC indictment may have rallied citizens to Kenyatta’s side in defiance of the West.
“Many Africans have lost faith in ICC and view it as targeting African leaders and failing to discharge its justice among non-African leaders,” said Ayo Johnson, director of ViewPoint Africa. “Kenya sent a loud message to the ICC … don’t interfere. And it does not matter if you brand our leaders as criminals.”
The president-elect’s trial is scheduled for July while his running mate’s is in May.
Kenya is the second African nation after Sudan to have a sitting president facing charges at the International Criminal Court.
Eager to avoid a repeat
In a nation with fierce ethnic loyalties, Kenyans were eager to avoid a repeat of the last election.
At the time, the nation plunged into ethnic violence after Odinga disputed results that declared the incumbent president, Mwai Kibaki, as the winner, alleging the election had been rigged.
Ethnic groups loyal to each side took to the streets, where supporters of both camps fought one another. More than 1,200 people were killed and hundreds of thousands displaced.
But despite the divisive vote this year, some citizens said it is time to move forward.
“The people have spoken, even though my voice was not one of them,” said Jane Nduku, a Nairobi resident.
Kenyatta’s win at age 51 makes him the nation’s youngest president.
CNN’s Nima Elbagir reported from Nairobi, and Faith Karimi from Atlanta. CNN’s Lillian Leposo contributed to this report.
Kenya’s Election: What Uhuru Kenyatta’s Victory Means for Africa
By Alex Perry | Time.com – 39 mins ago
Uhuru Kenyatta, wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for crimes against humanity, won election Saturday as Kenya‘s new President. The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission announced that Kenya’s richest man, the current Deputy Prime Minister and former Finance Minister, and the son of Kenya’s first President Jomo Kenyatta, won 50.07% of the vote — just marginally more than was needed to avoid a second round run-off. Kenyatta’s running mate Will Ruto, a second of the four Kenyans indicted by the ICC, is slated to become Deputy President. Turnout was a high 86%. With the margin of victory so thin, and the count plagued by days of delays and hundreds of thousands of spoiled ballots, Kenyatta’s main rival, Prime Minister Raila Odinga, has already said he will fight it in court.
If the result withstands Odinga’s challenge, a win for Kenyatta would represent the most stunning articulation to date of a renewed mood of self-assertion in Africa. Half a century ago, Africa echoed with the sound of anti-colonial liberation. Today, 10 years of dramatic and sustained economic growth and a growing political maturity coinciding with the economic meltdown in the West and political dysfunction in Washington and Europe, has granted Africa’s leaders the authority and means to once again challenge Western intervention on the continent, whether it comes in the form of foreign diplomatic pressure, foreign aid, foreign rights monitors or even foreign correspondents. In his victory speech, Kenyatta said: “Today, we celebrate the triumph of democracy; the triumph of peace; the triumph of nationhood. Despite the misgivings of many in the world, we demonstrated a level of political maturity that surpassed expectations. That is the real victory today. A victory for our nation. A victory that demonstrates t
o all that Kenya has finally come of age. That this, indeed, is Kenya’s moment.” He also pledged to work together with his political opponents with “friendship and cooperation.” “Kenya needs us to work together,” he said. “Kenya needs us to move on.” In a pointed warning to the international community, he added: “We expect the international community [to] respect the sovereignty and democratic will of the people of Kenya. The Africa star is shining brightly and the destiny of Africa is now in our hands.”
(PHOTOS: Scenes from Kenya’s 2013 election.)
The ICC, based in The Hague, is a particular focus of African anger. The court accuses Kenyatta of being one of four Kenyans who orchestrated the bloody tribal violence which followed the last election in 2007-8. After troops loyal to the incumbent Mwai Kibaki — from Kenyatta’s Kikuyu tribe — stormed the counting center and forced officials to declare their candidate the winner, the country erupted in weeks of killing in which around 1,200 died and tens of thousands were displaced. The ICC intervened to try to bring those most responsible for the violence to account after concluding Kenya was unable to do so for itself
But the ICC’s focus on Africa — nearly all of its investigations concern Africans — has earned it accusations of bias. And the manner in which the 2007-8 tribal violence was beamed around the world by the Western media, deterring tourists and overshadowing the story of an increasingly less impoverished, and more healthy, sophisticated and self-reliant Kenya, also drew widespread resentment. At this election, with a new 2010 constitution, and a new electoral body with a new — though not glitch-free — electronic voting system, Kenyans’ determination to hold a peaceful election has been palpable. The popular mood has also been notably anti-Western. Foreign diplomats have been warned of blood-curdling revenge should they interfere in the poll. Foreign journalists have been publicly ridiculed and denounced as prejudiced if they predicted chaos and disaster. And a central message of most candidates’ campaigns was strident, patriotic self-determination. Kenyatta and Ruto — who deny the charges brought by the ICC — managed to convert a Kenyan public that initially largely supported the ICC’s attempts to call them to account into one that viewed the ICC as a representative of unwarranted Western interference in African affairs. In the last days of the campaign, Kenyatta’s Jubilee Alliance reflected and heightened the anti-West mood, saying it was “deeply concerned about the shadowy, suspicious and rather animated involvement of the British High Commissioner in Kenya’s election.” Such assertions of sovereignty are only likely to intensify under a Kenyatta presidency. Ruto’s trial is due to begin on May 28, Kenyatta’s on July 9. Both men have said they will attend — a point Kenyatta repeated Saturday when he said his government would “continue to cooperate with international institutions.” Kenyatta has, however, said that his official duties would prevent their pair from being at The Hague continually — a pointed diluting of the court’s importance, and one that will likely drag out trials already expected to last several years.
From the West’s perspective, a Kenyatta victory presents a conundrum. Assistant Secretary for African Affairs, Johnnie Carson, warned before the election that “choices have consequences,” widely seen as a recommendation that voters should back Odinga. London has already warned that it would keep official contact with a President Kenyatta to a minimum, as it does with Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe. But the reality is that, in a world where Kenya finds itself as much sought after as suitor, Western powers no longer get to call the shots in Africa. In many ways, and particularly in its home-grown innovations in mobile technology such as mobile banking and solar power, Kenya personifies the new, emerging Africa of young and dynamic entrepreneurs. Its position as East Africa’s business hub has only been enhanced by its recent discovery of large reserves of oil and gas. Kenya is also a lynchpin of the U.S. and European security structure in Africa, ranged as it is against Islamist groups and pirates, particularly in neighboring Somalia. Westerners rely on Kenya in other ways too: the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, is the base of choice for much of the international community in East Africa, from large embassies to aid group headquarters to donor conferences to security contractors. And should the West give Kenya the cold shoulder, it may find it is not missed as it once might have been: Chinese, Indian, Middle Eastern and Latin American diplomats and businessmen are also part of the fabric in today’s Kenya.
In Washington last month, Carson’s predecessor at the State Department Jendayi Frazer warned Western leaders to be “pragmatic” in their approach to Kenya, adding she was “troubled” by Carson’s “very reckless and irresponsible” statement, which she called “essentially meddling in Kenya’s election.” The ICC case against Kenyatta “is a weak one and is based on hearsay,” she said in a public discussion at the Brookings Institution, and — in words that might have come from Kenyatta himself — she added the ICC itself was “a very manipulated institution, particularly by the West.”