IEBC Conducted Satisfactory Election: Association of African Election Authorities

The Association of African Election Authorities has termed the August 9 polls as peaceful and inclusive and therefore satisfactory.

According to the team, IEBC  demonstrated good communication and inclusivity for all Kenyans, therefore, upholding the Declaration of Human rights and the international covenant on civil and political rights.

The association further lauded the mechanism put in place conducive for the visually impaired ,persons with disability and lactating mothers in accordance to the declaration of a human Rights and article 25 of the international Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

The association had stationed observers/solidarity mission to observe the elections

"The AAEA Solidarity Mission takes this opportunity to commend the people of Kenya, the IEBC, all political actors, and civil society for the political maturity demonstrated throughout the entire electoral process." Read the statement.

In every election, international observers play a key role in ensuring elections are conducted in a free, fair, and integral manner.

Their role in maintaining election integrity includes;

•Liasing with election administrators to enhance and execute international and good practices in election conduct.

•Detecting and deterring integrity malpractices-international observers are normally specialists and experienced and are therefore able to root out  poll fraud.

•Increasing legitimacy of the electioneering process through in-depth reporting and analysis

Keen to note,International observers are however guided by  ethics and code of conduct such as

•Non-interference-their task is only to observe and assess .No supervisory or advisory role

•Neutrality-an observer will be nonpartisan showing no  no preference for a particular candidate

•Respecting sovereignty of host country by respecting laws.

•Accuracy based only on available data.

Overall over 18,000 local and international observers monitored Kenya's elections held on 9th August.

Human Rights Watch, an international watchdog had earlier on highlighted the importance of addressing past abuses by police to avert a looming crisis during the election period.

"Kenya has a history of election-related violence including excessive and unlawful use of force by police ,with few,if any, police officers held to account" read part of their statement.