Umamah Bakharia 

William Ruto has won the race to be the fifth president of Kenya; this is according to results announced by the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) on Monday.

However, the opposition candidate, Raila Odinga, is contesting the results, calling them “null and void”.

“There are no losers. The people of Kenya have won because we raised the political bar,” said the president-elect after the announcement. “There is no looking back, we are looking to the future, we need all hands on deck to move forward.”

Speaking to Radio Islam on this week’s ‘Media Lens’, analyst Ebrahim Deen says that despite contestation, the numbers at the polls are adding up. “The numbers do seem to add up, but it doesn’t help in a situation when 4/7 electric commission officials have refused to associate themselves with the results – there is a polaristaion,” he says.

According to the IEBC, Ruto received 50.49% of the vote, while Odinga received 48.85%.

However, the electoral commission’s vice chair and three other commissioners told journalists they could not support the “opaque nature” of the final phase.“We cannot take ownership of the result that is going to be announced,” said Deputy Chairperson Juliana Cherera.

Deen says that the credibility of the elections has been doubted because of this. This has led to tensions in the country as voters have demanded fair elections.

“There are tensions that the constitutional court has tried to overcome since 2007, but electoral processors, especially at this level, seem to be quite difficult, and its only at the presidential elections,” says Deen.

The final results will be investigated and announced in the upcoming weeks.