Voters must keep the peace during elections

NAIROBI: Voters in Malindi and Kericho will go to the polls tomorrow to elect new leaders in two by-elections following the appointment of the previous office holders to the Cabinet. In Malindi, voters will be seeking to replace Dan Kazungu, the new Cabinet Secretary for mining, who had served the region as MP since the 2013 General Election, while in Kericho the contest will be to elect a senator to replace Energy CS Charles Keter.

Campaigns for these by-elections have been quite heated. In Kericho, Deputy President William Ruto has been leading a spirited campaign to have Jubilee Alliance Party (JAP) candidate Aaron Cheruiyot replace his longtime ally Keter amidst reports that the South Rift region has turned hostile against the ruling coalition. Regrettably, this tension has triggered an intemperate campaign by the Jubilee team whose leaders have been asked to conduct a more civil campaign. The campaigns in Malindi have been just as ill-tempered with local leaders demanding greater respect from the Jubilee brigade which has been accused of needlessly insulting its rivals. This is unfortunate because during heated political campaigns, heated rhetoric can spark violent episodes and contribute to circumventing the democratic process.