Kenya Government Assures Foreign Envoys of Smooth Handover of Power After August Elections

The Kenyan government has reiterated its commitment to ensure a smooth transition of power ahead of the August 9th elections.

Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang'i in a statement on Monday assured development partners that plans are in place to ensure that there will be a peaceful handover of instruments of power to the next government.

At the same time, the government pledged to deploy and mobilize security agencies to provide support to the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) during the forthcoming elections.

“Today, we have given assurance to our partners that, as a country, we are ready to proceed and facilitate the IEBC to conduct the elections. The agencies that have got the constitutional mandate to facilitate the Commission during the elections are represented here,” said Matiang’i.

He added: “Whether the country will have free and fair elections is a question that only Chebukati and the IEBC can answer. We are clear that is the mandate of the IEBC. Ours is to provide whatever support IEBC requires to get it done.”

Matiang’i spoke following a meeting between the Cabinet Committee on National Government development projects and members of the diplomatic corps at Serena Hotel in Nairobi on Monday.

During the meeting, the British High Commissioner to Kenya Jane Marriot sought assurance that key foreign investments would not be negatively affected by election-related activities.

In his response, CS Matiang’i said: “We have taken counsel from our partners and observations from them in a number of issues. As a country, we are much better because of the support we have received materially and in terms of policy advice. We are grateful that they are forthcoming in engaging with us on all the programs that we have.”