Eyes on Kenya

Reuters posted this morning a quote from the government spokesperson Alfred Mutua:

“We would accept even another election as long as the constitution is followed. If the courts decide it, we would accept that,”.

Goode news that the government intentd to adhere to its laws. But can the Government guarantee a fair court hearing with safety for all people willing to testify? Serious doubts arise if you remember that even the head of the Election Committee gave in to the pressure of Kibaki’s people.

Here are some remarks from the Kenyan Jurist Blog, concerning this issue:

If the government was bold enough to interfere with the tallying of votes. Just consider the following;

1. Do we know where the Returning Officers of the disputed polling areas are? Is their security guaranteed? Will they be able to testify without intimidation and inteference? Remember the case sad case of DAVID MUNYAKEI. Is any of these people willing to risk their lives for the greater good of Kenyans.

2. Has the official ECK tally of votes been published in the Kenya Gazette or other media? Will it be interfered with? The longer this takes the greater the risk.

3. Have all the election materials been secured. Remember, in law, the petitioner has the burden of proving that the election was rigged. If the election materials have not been secured or tampered with then this would render the case moot.

4. Now that the Commonwealth Observers, European Union Observers, the Electoral Commissioners and many other have cast doubt on the election result, can Kenyans accept a court verdict that say the Election was proper?

Would politicians please spare us the legal mumbo jumbo and go right to resolving the political dispute at hand.