Kenya election official results out, Kibaki re-elected

[Emperor]

Kibaki named victor in Kenya vote

 

 

Mr Odinga (left) has accused Mr Kibaki of electoral fraud

Kenya's President Mwai Kibaki won Thursday's closely-fought election, the electoral commission has declared.

The announcement came after opposition leader Raila Odinga accused Mr Kibaki of electoral fraud and called for a full re-assessment of the results.

 

Opposition protesters began riots in the capital Nairobi, just minutes after the announcement.

 

The count was badly delayed, sparking violence in which at least 10 people are reported to have been killed.

 

'Time for healing'

 

Mr Kibaki won 4,584,721 votes, beating Mr Odinga by more than 230,000 votes, the Electoral Commission of Kenya (ECK) said.

 

[Mr] Kibaki has flooded this [electoral] commission with his cronies

 

Raila Odinga, opposition leader

 

 

Kibaki: Dream or nightmare?

Odinga: King-maker

 

Kalonzo Musyoka, another presidential contender, got 879,903 votes.

 

"The commission therefore declares Honourable Mwai Kibaki as the winner," ECK chairman Samuel Kivuitu said.

 

Mr Kibaki was then sworn in for his second five-year term - about an hour after the ECK statement.

 

In his speech, he described the elections as "free and fair", urging all political parties to "accept the verdict of the people".

 

Mr Kibaki said it was now "time for healing and reconciliation" to overcome issues dividing the nation.

 

He also promised to form a "clean hands government" free of corruption.

 

The ECK announcement immediately triggered riots in Nairobi's Kibera slum.

 

Reports say riot police fired live rounds into the air to disperse the crowds.

 

Opposition heckling

 

Mr Odinga had led since vote counting began, but saw his advantage evaporate as later votes were added.

 

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The ECK announcement was delayed, following chaotic scenes at the commission's headquarters in Nairobi.

 

Just minutes after Mr Kivuitu began reading the poll results, an opposition member approached the podium, shouting "Justice!" and "This is not a police state!"

 

Pandemonium then broke out, as other members of Mr Odinga's Orange Democratic Movement got to their feet and began shouting, the BBC's Adam Mynott reports from inside the ECK headquarters.

 

Mr Kivuitu had to be led away from the building by police, only to return later and announce Mr Kibaki as the winner of the poll.

 

Mr Odinga had earlier said that Mr Kibaki "flooded this [electoral] commission with his cronies".

[Miskiin-Macruuf-Aqiyaar]

He died today.

Kenya's former president Kibaki dies at 90

Mwai Kibaki, who ushered in economic reforms and a new constitution but struggled to tackle widespread corruption as Kenya's third president from 2003-2013, has died aged 90.

A British-educated economist, Kibaki's unflappable demeanour concealed political guile that finally won him the presidency after four decades as lawmaker, government minister and then vice president to his predecessor, Daniel arap Moi.

Kibaki, whose death was announced President Uhuru Kenyatta, is credited with reviving Kenya's then ailing economy, but his tenure was marred by deadly violence that killed more than 1,200 Kenyans following his disputed re-election in December 2007.

The opposition had been far ahead when journalists were hurriedly ejected from the election commission. Hours later, Kibaki's win by a narrow margin was announced. Smoke immediately began rising from fires lit by protesters.

While announcing Kibaki's death, Kenyatta recalled his long public service, including being a member of parliament for five decades.

"Kibaki was a quintessential patriot whose legacy of civic responsibility will continue to inspire generations of Kenyans long into our future," Kenyatta said in a televised address.

Kenyatta did not state the cause of death but Kibaki has been ailing for some time, domestic media reported.

Politicians took a break from campaigning for a general election scheduled for Aug. 9, to mourn Kibaki.

"He stood firmly and laid the foundation for the economic fruits that Kenya is experiencing today," said Musalia Mudavadi, who is backing Deputy President William Ruto in the presidential contest.

But Kibaki failed to tackle endemic graft, which remains a key demand of voters in the upcoming polls that pit Ruto against Raila Odinga, a former veteran opposition leader now embraced by the political establishment.

Kibaki had also tried to bring peace to regional hotspots, said Moses Wetengula, who served in the cabinet. "As his foreign minister, I ran many missions to stabilise Somalia and other pockets of instability including Congo," Wetangula said.

Kenyan peacekeepers are still serving in southern Somalia.

Reuters