Kenya Decides 2013

As I write this blog, all of Kenya is waiting to hear election results to learn who will be the next president.  This election has been so complicated  and there are so many facets to and implications of the outcome.  This election will totally redivide the country into new areas of local government, thereby fully executing the new constitution that was passed in 2010.

In terms of the presidential arm, there are 8 candidates running for president but, all along, only 2 have been serious contenders:  Uhuru Kenyatta and Raila Odinga.  Kenyatta is the son of the first president of Kenya - he ran and lost in 2002, and he (and his running mate) are both charged with crimes against humanity by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for their part in the post-election violence of 2007/8.  He is currently leading in the popular vote, but it is so hard to know who will win.  To win, a candidate must garner at least 25% of the votes in at least 24 of the 47 counties AND they must win 50% +1 of the popular vote.  Both of the top two candidates have more than 25% in more than 24 counties...so it comes down to the popular vote.  Only about 1/3 of the constituencies have counted and verified the votes, due to problems with the electronic machines and sending in the results electronically.   Officials have had to hand carry the results to the IEBC at the Bomas of Kenya(Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission).  These are being verified now - the process is taking some time, which seems to be causing some growing anxiety.

So, you may wonder if people have factored the 2007/8 fiasco into election preparations this time.  The answer is most certainly "yes."  Kenya has gone to great pains to orchestrate an election process that Kenyans and the world can have confidence in, and one that is well-organized and peaceful.  Remaining peaceful has been a constant prayer in the hearts of most Kenyans, and the words on their lips have reflected that.  On one of the main news websites on Monday, here was a public service announcement that I love.  It reads "Choose Kenya. Choose Peace.  SMS (ie, text) 108 to report any threats to peace." 

And, from the newspaper, a more heart-wrenching reminder of the destruction and grief of 2007/8 and a plea to not repeat it.

The citizens of Kenya have seemed very invested in these elections.  Of the 40 million citizens, 14 million registered to vote (keep in mind, that over 40% of the population is under 15 years of age).  Of those, 11 million actually voted.  Monday was Election Day - the day of casting votes.  For the week prior, patients were trying to be discharged from the hospital and no one was scheduling elective surgery.  Some of this was due to fear of violence and wanting to be home, but some of it was from the desire to go to their places of registration and vote.  Monday was a national holiday, and the hospital was like a ghost town....except in the nursery.  Newborn babies wait for no one and nothing!  I discharged 3 patients on Monday morning, and they were so excited to be able to go vote on the way home!   Here are ads from the paper the weekend before the election-everything was closed on Monday!

The queues (I'm becoming British here, but my British accent is lost in print!) at the polling centers were impressive!  There was no violence, and I think most citizens felt that the process was smooth.  I did see in the news that a young woman delivered a premature baby in line (only 1 kg~2 pounds), and PROCEEDED TO VOTE before going with her baby to the hospital!  I think that is a little excessive - I don't know how that baby is doing. :(

 

Here is a screenshot from the online news page from earlier today.  Not much has changed, as they continue to verify the votes brought from the surrounding countryside.  There will be some issues, as there are in many elections (remember the "hanging chads" in the US a few years ago?).  The biggest issue that I see as a serious concern is if Kenyatta wins and then faces international charges at The Hague in April.  How will Kenya and the world react, if he is convicted?  The fact that Kenya has allowed someone on the ballot with pending charges is a whole other issue. 

 

In hospital chapel this morning, we had a time of corporate prayer.  I heard people placing the elections and their country at their Lord's feet.  I heard someone say "we are a country of 42 tribes," and it struck me how the citizens struggle with those divisions.  We have heard much about tribalism here - it is not something that the young people hold fast to, and I think Kenya will be much more cohesive in 30-50 years, when this generation and the next is in leadership (my opinion)....but for now, it drives a lot of decision making.  Please pray with me as the election results come in - that the process and the results are accepted as trustworthy, and that peace reigns in the land.  Our Lord is Lord of all the nations!

Love,
Sarah

Revelation 7:9-10
After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands.  And they cried out in a loud voice:

“Salvation belongs to our God,
who sits on the throne,
and to the Lamb.”