By Peter Atsiaya
Hundreds of Sudanese in Eldoret town are in an upbeat mood ahead of Sunday's referendum to determine whether their country would be split or not.
Kapsoya estate in Eldoret is home to a large number of Sudanese nationals who say they are anxious to cast their votes in the historical referendum.
The Sudanese living in the town will cast their vote at Rupa voting centre in Eldoret along Nairobi road.
When The Standard team visited the estate, they talked with bitterness over the suffering they have been subjected to by their Northern colleagues while others showed optimism of Southern Sudan becoming a great Nation if it separates from the North.
The head of the Eldoret Referendum Centre, George Dangasuk, said 1, 360 people had registered as voters in the region that covers Eldoret, Bungoma and Kapsabet and its environs.
"Another centre in Kitale town has a total of 504 registered votes while Nakuru centre has more than 2, 000 registered voters," he explained.
He went on: "We have been conducting a vigorous civic education on how to vote in Kapsoya, Kapsabet and Bungoma where majority of the voters reside".
He added that the move was to ensure 50 per cent of voters cast their vote for the exercise to allow the secession as is required by the law.
18-year-old Sidonia Aker, , is a class eight pupil at Kapsoya Primary School and is an eligible voter. She says she would vote for separation.
If the country splits, she said she would return home to continue with her secondary education.
"I left Sudan when I was one year old because my parents fled the war. I am optimistic that I would return after completing my primary education in Kenya," she added.
Other students also supported the separation vote saying that the war that rocked Sudan for two decades and unequal distribution of resources had hurt the growth of their country.
The Sudanese nationals called for a peaceful referendum vote adding that their country was in dire need of peaceful co-existence for them to realise development and fight critical issues like illiteracy, poverty and diseases.