Security tightened as Kenya goes to polls
Security has been tightened in Kenya as voting takes place in a
re-run of the presidential election, which is being boycotted by the
main opposition.
Kenya’s President Uhuru Kenyatta, who is seeking a second term, has urged people to vote and remain peaceful.
Opposition leader Raila Odinga, who has pulled out of the election re-run, has called on his supporters to stay away.
Mr Kenyatta was announced the winner in an 8 August vote but the poll is being held again because of “irregularities”.
The
polls on Thursday opened at 06:00 (03:00 GMT) with tens of thousands of
police and other security personnel deployed to protect voters and
polling stations.
However, the BBC’s Alastair Leithead in Nairobi says turnout so far appears to be much lower than in the first vote.
One
voter in Nairobi’s Mathare slum, taxi driver David Njeru, 26, told the
AFP news agency: “It is my duty to vote. Last time the queue was all
around the block and I waited six hours to vote, this time the people
are few.”
On the eve of the vote, Mr Kenyatta urged people to
cast their ballots: “Our forefathers fought and died for the right of
the African to vote, we dare not reject this inheritance.”
As the
polling stations opened their doors, opposition protesters attempted to
block roads in parts of Nairobi’s Kibera slum, with riot police using
tear gas in a bid to disperse the crowds.
BBC
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