Nairobi, Kenya - International election monitoring and observer groups on Wednesday called on Kenyan political leaders to restrain their supporters as results trickled in after last Monday's the presidential election.
The heads of observer Missions of the African Union, the Carter Centre, the Commonwealth, the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) and the East Africa regional peace body, Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD) and the East African Community also praised the conduct of the voting and the transparency of the process.
The Kenyan elections were observed by former African heads Joaquim Chissano of Mozambique, Rupiah Banda of Zambia, Festus Mogae of Botswana and Mr. Alojz Peterle, of the EU.
In their joint statement, the observer missions, which also included the European Union, the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region and Electoral Institute for Sustainable Democracy in Africa, said they were pleased with the fact that voting took place in a transparent atmosphere.
'We call on all stakeholders of the Kenya electoral process to ensure that this peace and transparency continues to inform the remainder of the process,' the African statesmen said.
'We are pleased that the voting and counting took place in a peaceful and transparent atmosphere and that the people of Kenya demonstrated strong commitment to their democratic process by turning out in significant numbers to cast their votes.'
The group called on political parties to respect the official election results that will be announced by the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) with calmness and in full respect of the Constitution.
They reiterated the need for all political parties and candidates that have concerns to follow the legal process laid down in the Constitution and the Electoral Code for the resolution of any disputes.
'A special responsibility lies with the political leaders of Kenya to continue to abide by their pre-election commitments to peace,' the group stated.
Kenyans are still waiting for the final results that are expected to be announced later in the week.
Pana 07/03/2013