The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) should not take Kenyans to an electoral exercise that will divide the country and jeopardize harmonious day to day activities. The IEBC chairman in a press statement last week indicated that he could not guarantee a fair and credible poll under the prevailing political environment. One of the IEBC commissioners fled the country and has been “spilling beans” on how besieged the commission is from external quarters. Kenyans are keen to resume their day to day activities but not to be plunged in a future where a few conspire to hold the country hostage.

Kenya is a nation-state with over 42 nations (ethnic communities) each with its aspiration and expectations. The architecture of the Kenyan nation-state presents dialogue as the best option to address competing political party interests. The law and the constitution in itself cannot cure the challenges facing Kenya. Use of brutal force cannot and so is the use or misuse of electoral processes. IEBC in its quest to fulfill the Supreme Court of Kenya’s ruling on the repeat poll must seek to restore confidence in the electoral process by postponing the election under the guidance of law to such a time where all players can agree to the rules of the game.

Kenya is a great country that always rises from threats of near-collapse even stronger. Elections are a tool to capture, delegate and transfer authority to elected individuals to steer the country to greater heights on behalf of the citizenry. Elections are not about the individual aspirants but about Kenya. The IEBC should stop the repeat poll plan until it gets all players to actively participate and legitimize the outcomes of the electoral contest.