Free, fair and credible poll is all we want for Kenya, say donors

US Ambassador to Kenya Robert F. Godec. Foreign donors have denied claims they are out to influence the outcome of 2017 polls. FILE PHOTO | FILE |

What you need to know:

  • On Monday, the government stopped a Sh2 billion electoral programme by an American NGO, IFES, citing breach of laws.

  • NGO Coordination Board Executive Director Fazul Mahammed said the organisation had not been registered and therefore could not operate in the country.

  • IFES was to receive financing from the USAid and the money would to be channelled to various local NGOs.

Donors have refuted claims that they are financing electoral programmes to influence the outcome of next year's polls.

In a statement, envoys from major western countries on Tuesday said they were only supporting Kenya's bid to have free, fair and credible elections.

"To be clear, we do not provide electoral assistance to any organisation, governmental or non-governmental, to influence the election results for any side, political party, or candidate," the ambassadors of 10 countries and the European Union said in a joint statement.

UNNAMED DONORS

"Rather, our assistance supports the Kenyan people to independently exercise their right to vote and have their voice heard.  The Kenyan people alone have the sovereign right to choose their leaders, and we fully respect this right."

The ambassadors were responding to President Uhuru Kenyatta's Jamhuri Day speech in which he condemned an alleged plan by unnamed donors to influence elections.

On Monday, the government stopped a Sh2 billion electoral programme by an American NGO, IFES, citing breach of laws.

NGO Coordination Board Executive Director Fazul Mahammed said the organisation had not been registered and therefore could not operate in the country.

PUBLIC AFFAIR

IFES was to receive financing from the USAid and the money would to be channelled to various local NGOs.

But the diplomats said any programmes their countries support are done in the open.

"We operate with full transparency. Our solicitations for project proposals are, and always have been, publicly available.

" In accordance with our bilateral agreements, we have created our electoral assistance programmes in consultation with government, political party, and civil society leaders, who identified weaknesses in the 2013 electoral process that would benefit from international support. 

TRANSPARENT

"We provide our electoral assistance to support the Kenyan people in making their choices freely in an environment of transparency and peace."

The envoys who signed the statement include Robert F. Godec (United States), Mette Knudsen (Denmark), Stefano Dejak (European Union Delegation to Kenya), Frans Makken (the Netherlands), Tarja Fernández (Finland), John Murton (Chargé d’Affaires a.i., UK), Victor Conrad Rønneberg (Norway) and Johan Borgstam (Sweden).

Others are John Feakes (High Commissioner, Australia), Jutta Frasch (Germany) and Sara Hradecky (High Commissioner, Canada)