Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki dissolved Parliament on Monday, starting the countdown to what could be the closest election in East Africa’s biggest economy. ”I hereby dissolve the ninth Parliament of the Republic of Kenya,” Kibaki said in a televised speech.
Kenya’s electoral commission will within the next 10 days set a voting date, which is widely expected to be in December.
Kibaki is hoping to clinch a second five-year term, but opinion polls show him trailing opposition candidate and former ally Raila Odinga.
Three new surveys on Sunday gave Raila — a wealthy former political prisoner who projects himself as a champion of the poor — a strong lead ranging from 43% to 52% of those polled.
Between 31% and 38% favoured Kibaki.
Previous ballots in Kenya have been marred by bloodshed, and the president appealed for calm.
”It is only through a fair and credible poll, free of violence and intimidation, that the true verdict of the people will prevail,” he said.
Kibaki (75) is widely applauded for providing free primary education, opening up democratic space and reviving the battered economy he inherited from predecessor, Daniel arap, Moi in 2002.
But his popularity has been dented by accusations that he failed to tackle tribalism, rampant corruption and a crumbling road network.
The recent defection of two government ministers to the Odinga camp has boosted his campaign to become Kenya’s fourth president since independence from Britain in 1963.
Under the Constitution, the next Parliament must convene within three months of the dissolution of Parliament. — Reuters