By Scovian Lillian
Busia County, Kenya: Kenya’s much-awaited August polls kicked off on Tuesday 9 with a huge voter turnout of 22 million voters across the Country.
The voters turned up to vote at various polling stations across the 47 Counties in the Country.
In Matayos Constituency a sub-county of Busia County in Western Kenya, some of the 67,708 voters began arriving at the polling centers as early as 4.00 am to cast their votes. Various returning Officers at various polling centers confirmed that the voter turnout was slightly impressive as it was higher than in the previous election held in 2017.
“I arrived here at 6:00 am and I expect to cast my vote. I have waited for this day anxiously and it’s finally here. I am personally impressed by how the Independent Electorate and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) has organized elections here. The process so far is smooth and I am hopeful that the new elected leaders will help cut down the cost of living in the Country”, said Irene Baraza, a voter at Busende Primary School polling center.
She hopes that the next Busia County governor will revive Busia town, the sleepy-dead economic hub that lies on the Busia-Uganda border.
Another voter at the same polling center Linus Ojiambo Oduko lamented the slow voting process. “The process is impressive but some slow because some voters are skipping the queues. The process is better compared to 2017.”I hope that the IEBC will be fair and just in conducting these elections countrywide and I pray that peace prevails”.
‘It is also my hope that the new leaders we are electing now will keep their promise and work on the Country’s economy while tackling corruption which has almost become a norm in this Country. We as citizens should as well work on fighting corruption through these polls by not voting in people who gave money and freebies during campaigns but electing leaders for their abilities because choices have consequences”, he said.
James Oloo Returning Officer at Busia Youth Polytechnic polling station said: “most voters are cooperative and the voter turnout is good, we have not had any challenges or incidences so far. We also expect more voters to come in in the afternoon. Deaf voters were excited to vote, and most came with their family members to help them vote”. However, in my spot check, various polling centers did not meet any blind voters.
Presiding officers at different polling centers also noted that women voters turned out in large numbers compared to men.
Additionally, the spot check I made across several polling centers in the Matayos constituency confirmed the availability of KIEMs kits. Although they were not in use, presiding officers said that it would be their last resort should the KIEMS kits fail at some point. However, in my spot check, I did not meet any blind voters.
Meanwhile, Busia County Commissioner Dr. Ahmed Omari said that Kenyans residing in Uganda can also cross over to Kenya and vote as long as they are registered voters with the right voting credentials for instance national identity cards and passports.
