PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION
Why businesses must monitor Kenya’s pulse
‘Kenya risks a long spell of political volatility that will divert from policy reforms and scare investors,’ writes William Attwell
Kenyans return to the polls on Thursday in what is proving to be the most contentious and unpredictable election since the 2007-08 crisis. Back then, a disputed result sparked nationwide instability that lasted months. The vote is a rerun of the presidential contest held on August 8, which President Uhuru Kenyatta won, an outcome that was later annulled by the Supreme Court, citing "irregularities". Opposition candidate Raila Odinga refused to participate in the repeat poll unless his demands for reforms to the electoral commission (including the dismissal of officials allegedly involved in irregularities) were met, saying reform measures implemented to date had been inadequate. Kenyatta has been determined for the vote to go ahead, and his party has in recent weeks passed legislation making it harder for the courts to cancel the results — a move that has inflamed tensions. The risk is that Kenya enters a prolonged spell of political volatility in which government attention is diver...
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