Here are veritable signs that our democracy has matured

Azimio la Umoja supporters carry placards outside Milimani court buildings where Presidential candidate Raila Odinga filed a petition challenging the declaration of William Ruto as President-elect. [Collins Kweyu, Standard]

Many people especially our neighbours have been joking about how our elections seemed to go so well until the announcement of the presidential election results.

They claim that, the alleged arbitrary action by the chairman of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) in announcing the presidential results in absence of the other six commissioners, and the secretary of the commission, and the subsequent disowning of the results by a majority of the commissioners, compromised our entire democracy, making a mockery of everything that we have achieved.

I would, in disagreement say, the actions by the chairman and commissioners and what transpired, are additional proof that Kenya's democracy has come of age.

Flashback and imagine, if it had happened in the 1990s and 2000s, after the re-introduction of multiparty politics but before the new Constitution what would have happened after the announcement and to the dissenting commissioners?

The Deputy President would already have been sworn in the same night of the announcement, then he would already have sworn in his cabinet and would now be going about his government's business like nothing happened on August 15th 2022.

Every dissent and criticism would have by now been silenced and I would never dare write this kind of article! The petitioners would either have petitioned the High Court and the case would not be heard for years or they would attempt some street demonstrations, which would die down with years of waiting or which would most likely be violently quelled by security officers, especially the General Service Unit (GSU).

The announcement of results by the chairman under the circumstances, he did. would have been "normal."

What would have been absolutely impossible to see, is the four commissioners daring to disassociate themselves from the results and casting any aspersions to their chairman. In fact, their alleging opaqueness and arbitrariness in the manner in which the chairman tallied and eventually announced the presidential election results, would have been unimaginable.

Can you imagine that their drivers and security officers, paid by government would have dared drive them to Serena Hotel where they issued their press statement?

Drivers and security officers of cabinet ministers were known to kick out their bosses from government vehicles before reaching their destinations, if an announcement was made on radio replacing them!

Also, imagine any media house covering whatever the commissioners had to say. All these would have been unimaginable and impossible in Kenya. That, all these happened without dire consequences to the four commissioners, who subsequently went back to meetings of the IEBC and continued to work, is a demonstration of our manifest democracy.

Further, even after the alleged arbitrary and capricious announcement of the results by the chairman, protracted and violent street fights were not witnessed and security officers generally remained calm and shelved their weapons, even in the isolated cases where there were brief demonstrations by some dissatisfied supporters.

Instead, Kenyans remained calm even those with serious grievances. Those celebrating, did so peacefully while everyone else calmly awaited the next steps from their preferred political leaders.

The decision by aggrieved parties to choose resolution of the electoral disputes through the Supreme Court as laid down by the law, and the parties announcement that they will all accept the outcome of the Supreme Court petition, demonstrate trust and confidence in our institutions.

That indeed, everyone expects and trusts the Judiciary to render electoral justice. In addition, the materials the petitioners will use to support their case are those that the IEBC will supply and have indeed supplied the requested documents, even if they result in finding culpability of the chairman and the IEBC!

This is high level democracy many countries can only dream of. We can only celebrate that, despite intractable electoral grievances, the aggrieved and their supporters have remained calm and decided to put their trust in the Supreme Court to professionally and justly resolve the electoral dispute.