Kenya’s opposition has faulted US Ambassador Meg Whitman for saying that the country’s 2022 elections were free and fair.
“The election has been hailed by many commentators and analysts as the freest, fairest and most credible election in Kenya’s history,” Whitman, who is the US envoy to Kenya, said on Tuesday.
She spoke in the Rift Valley town of Eldoret, some 310 kilometres northwest of the capital Nairobi, during the opening ceremony of Kenyan governors’ conference.
Whitman added that the Supreme Court of Kenya affirmed the electoral fairness by upholding William Ruto’s win in the presidential election.
Raila Odinga, who was Ruto’s main challenger in the August 9, 2022 polls, has denied that the elections were transparent, terming Whitman’s remarks “insensitive.”
Protests
“Whitman must be told that Kenya is not a colony of the United States of America. She must respect Kenyans or keep her mouth shut,” Odinga said on Thursday. He spoke at the governors’ conference in Eldoret, where he was the guest of honour.
The veteran politician also defended the recent cost of living protests held in Kenya, saying the country’s constitution protects Kenyans’ rights to demonstrate.
Odinga added that due to the protests, the government and the opposition have agreed to set up a joint team that would seek a peaceful resolution to the opposition’s grievances.
Odinga, who ran for president for the fifth time in 2022, got 6.94 million (48.85%) of the total votes cast, while Ruto, a first-timer in the presidential election, got 7.18 million (50.49%) to win the election.
