The MPs congratulated Kenya for holding what the members of parliament described as free and fair elections. “Media reports are still reporting the result of the Kenyan presidential election as razor-thin. In fact, President-elect Uhuru Kenyatta won by almost seven points on an 86% turnout in an election that was regarded by observers as fair and free, and was, thank God, peaceful. Prime Minister Raila Odinga, the losing candidate, has observed the law and rules, and lodged a court appeal, which will be considered in due course,” Eric Joyce, MP for Falkirk. Joyce said there was perception among Kenyan voters that the UK and other western countries including the US preferred Raila Odinga over Uhuru Kenyatta, and that the perception may have tilted the election to Kenyatta’s favor. “I believe that a significant element of Mr Kenyatta’s margin of victory came in the form of a statement by Kenyans that if they were required to choose between sovereign self-determination and the patronage of foreign powers, they would always choose the former,” said the MP.
Ian Lucas, Wrexham MP called on the UK to respect the Independence Electoral and Boundaries Commission and other Kenyan institutions including the courts, saying the elections were carried out in the “right spirit and with the right principles.” He was confident the Kenyan Supreme Court was capable of delivering a fair ruling on the ongoing election petition by Raila Odinga.
The MPs described Kenya as an important UK ally in the East African region, having played a central role in bringing peace back to Somalia, fighting piracy off the Indian Ocean, and for being the launching pad of humanitarian efforts of UK and other countries to Somalia. They also hailed Kenya for providing training facilities for British soldiers over the last several decades, where about 10,000 soldiers of the British Army have trained every year.
On the issue of ICC, Eric Joyce said that so far all 31 of the ICC inductees have been Africans, creating a wide perception among Africans that the court unjustifiably focuses all its efforts on Africa and ignores human rights abuses in other parts of the world. He however said the court has played an important part in countries such as Sierra Leone and Liberia. He said with the Kenyan President-elect and his Deputy willingness to cooperate with the court, the UK should maintain its current relations with Kenya.
