Just two days after the announcement of the presidential results, Kenyans are resuming back to their normal life.
A tailor referred to by her trade name, Mama Fundi sits outside her stall at a market on the eastern edge of Nairobi, the Kenyan capital, animatedly chatting with some customers. Further away, some children play a game of chase and beyond building work is underway.
These scenes provide a snapshot of a state of normalcy in the country two days after the electoral commission declared William Ruto as Kenya’s fifth President-elect after a grueling vote counting and verification process.
“Everyone in the market is back to work,” Fundi said, hoping the economy will perform well in the future.
Kenyans on August 9 trooped to polling stations to elect the country’s fifth president alongside members of the national assembly, county governors and senators including local leaders.
Despite the tension and high stakes surrounding the August 9 elections, the east African nation has largely sustain peace and revert to normalcy.
After Wafula Chebukati, the Chairperson of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) declared presidential results on August 15, pockets of unrest broke out in veteran opposition leader and one of the aspirants, Raila Odinga’s strongholds. However, a spot check by Xinhua in Nairobi’s bustling downtown section indicated that businesses have resumed, even as office workers demonstrated a sense of relief and calm.
“People did not fight because some leaders were prudent and preached messages of peace. For instance, on Tuesday when Raila Odinga disputed outcome of the poll, there was no chaos because he asked us to observe peace,” said George Kameo, a motorbike rider in Nairobi.
The former Kenyan prime minister, 77-year-old Raila Odinga has rejected the results of Kenya’s presidential election saying that the figures announced on Monday were “null and void”. Odinga who addressed the nation on Tuesday added he would be seeking legal and constitutional recourse.
Kenyan security authorities on Tuesday appealed to the citizens and the business community to resume their normal daily activities following the conclusion of the electoral process.
“We are happy as Kenyans for peace to carry on with our lives,” said Belden Waswa, a local kindergarten teacher. At Kawangware, a densely populated low-income suburb located west of the capital, Nairobi, the day carries on uninterrupted. And public vehicles have filled up the roads while members of the public move about with ease. Enditem
