Take heart my countrymen, poll violence highly unlikely

A recent posting on social media containing details of how to stock essentials in case of violence presumably after the polls was quickly ignored by WhatsApp group members. Long fictional write-ups on what could happen if there is violence in Kenya have also been going round. However, “emotional violence” has been rife on social media occasionally muted by comedy and fun. Every political decision on both sides of the political divide has its cheerleaders and men and women ready to oppose.

The absence of a hot issue like the International Criminal Court (ICC) has left the political field wide open, with observers opining that elections could go either way. But 36 days is a long time in politics as events in recent UK, USA and France general elections showed. It is, however, contestable if our political market is efficient enough to factor in new information that fast.