Adversities that rocked Kenyan Presidential poll on Thursday have been subject of coverage by foreign media.
Among them, violence in some parts, election boycott in Nyanza and low turnout all over the country was highlighted in different ways.
For example, Associated Press (AP) premised its story on election boycott called for by the opposition.
Raila Odinga-NASA leader and Presidential candidate asked his supporters to boycott the poll.
And they heeded to their master’s call.
AP thereby, focused on clashes between opposition supporters and the police on the polling day placing death toll to four by end of the exercise.
Part of AP’s story read: “While most of Kenya was peaceful, voter turnout was relatively low even in some regions considered to be strongholds for President Uhuru Kenyatta, who was declared the winner of an August 8 election that later was nullified by the Supreme Court in a decision seen as precedent setting for Africa.”
Wall Street Journal in its story said despite hopes that the repeat Presidential election would solve the political crisis in the country, it depended it with boycott by opposition supporters.
This led to clashes between the supporters and police leaving three dead.
The Journal also reported that Kenya’s electoral commission, Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) was forced to cancel the polls in some regions which posed a security threat to its staff.
IEBC Chairman Wafula Chebukati in a presser on Thursday pushed polls to Saturday for Kisumu, Migori, Homa Bay and Siaya Counties.
The four are pro-NASA regions where Raila Odinga almost enjoys unrivalled political dominance.
CNN anchored its story on boycott by loyal supporters of NASA.
“The political uncertainty has left residents of the East African economic powerhouse on edge. The election has become so divisive, it has revived fears of violence like that experienced in 2007 and 2008, when at least 1, 000 people were killed in Kenya,” read a report by CNN filed by Faith Karimi, Said Moorhouse and Farai Sevenzo.
BBC based its story on the ugly side of clashes in Kisumu where a teenage boy was killed by a bullet.
Kisumu is among one of the four counties in Nyanza that has periodically reported incidents of violence as NASA supporters clash with anti-riot police.
“We’ve been coming across pockets of protestors as we drive around the city-with police firing teargas to disperse them. Most people here have heeded the boycott call by the opposition and stayed at home, and many polling stations have been barricaded to stop any would-be voters,” BBC’s Emmanuel Igunza reported.
Lastly, UK’s, The Guardian centred its report on President Uhuru Kenyatta’s pronouncement that he may reach out to his political nemesis-Raila once after the polls.
“President Uhuru Kenyatta has raised the prospects of negotiations with his opponent as millions of Kenyans voted in a contentious election re-run marred by a widely observed boycott and sporadic violence,” reported Jason Burke for The Guardian from Nairobi.