NASA supporters block major roads as they protest over presidential election results

 

Police officers clear roads in Mathare slum which had been blocked by the demonstrators who were protesting the IEBC 2017 Presidential election results being released, on 09/08/2017.(Pius Cheruiyot/Standard)

Two people have been shot dead and three others wounded in Mathare Number Ten as police battled protesters in Mathare slum.

Protesters took to the streets in parts of the slum to protest at provisional results that were aired yesterday morning.

Some protesters took advantage of the absence of police in the area to attack and rob pedestrians, locking up parts of the slum for hours.

Journalists who went to cover the violence were not spared as they were stoned and chased away.

They protesters shouted that the electoral agency was 'cooking' figures.

There were also protests along Juja Road, where groups blocked the highway for hours.

Tired policemen

By 2.30pm police had not responded to the chaos. Police were said to be fatigued as most of them had spent the day and night on Tuesday manning polling stations and tallying centres.

In Mathare, residents barricaded the Mathare North Road, blocking traffic from Juja Road to the Thika superhighway and lit fires in the middle of streets.

They chanted in support of Opposition leader Raila Odinga. They also questioned why IEBC had started streaming the provisional results before confirming them with forms 34A and B, as required by the Constitution.

Police were later deployed to the area. The officers dispersed the crowds and restored calm after the skirmishes that lasted for about two hours.

However, the peace lasted only a short time as fresh protests broke out along Juja Road, where a bigger group marched. The demonstrators blocked the road connecting Thika Road and Eastleigh.

State's warning

Motorists using both Thika and Juja roads had to find alternative routes as police worked to clear the roads.

Acting Interior CS Fred Matiang'i said he was not aware of any disruptions. He said this year had seen the most peaceful pre-election and election period since independence because of improved management of the electoral process and security.

"So far, there have been no major security incidents. Our security agencies remain vigilant and are at hand to maintain law and order throughout the country. We assure Kenyans and all residents that the country is safe and urge everyone to freely go about their daily chores," he said.