The East African bloc, the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD), on Tuesday congratulated Kenya’s president-elect William Ruto following the conclusion of the Aug. 9 general elections.
“I applaud Kenyans for the peaceful elections and look forward to the peaceful conclusion of the entire electoral process,” said IGAD Executive Secretary Workneh Gebeyehu in a statement.
The statement came after Kenya’s Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission Chairman Wafula Chebukati said Monday that Ruto garnered about 7.17 million votes, or 50.49 percent of the total votes cast and declared him the winner of the highly competitive presidential election.
Chebukati’s announcement Monday had followed grueling days of verification of votes transmitted from 46,229 polling stations countrywide. According to him, Ruto’s close rival and veteran opposition leader Raila Odinga garnered about 6.94 million votes, or 48.85 percent of the votes. Enditem
