NASA Makes U-Turn After Private Meeting on October Presidential Election

The National Super Alliance (NASA) has made a U-turn and embraced international election observers to oversee the October election.

Speaking shortly after meeting observers from the European Union and representatives from the African Judges Jurist Forum Secretariat, NASA co-principal Musalia Mudavadi noted that they had changed their mind over election observers because they realised the important role the monitors play in ensuring the credibility of elections. 

Mudavadi further noted that following the consultative meeting, the Opposition had sorted out its concerns with the delegations and was now open to having International Observers during the October polls.

"We have today met observers from the European Union (EU) and African Judges Jurist Forum Secretariat led by former Tanzania Chief Justice Chande Othman. We are happy with their input.

"Despite our earlier criticism of international observers, we still need their input in elections. We have taken cognisance of their recommendations to the IEBC. We are not against them," Mudavadi stated.

The decision to embrace the international poll monitors marked a change of heart but the Opposition Leaders who had in August faulted poll monitors for " giving a clean bill of health to a faulted election".

They accused the observers of being ill-informed about Kenya’s voting system, saying they had only witnessed the voting but not the transmission of results.

The Opposition particularly expressed their concerns with the US Carter Centre and former US Secretary of State John Kerry.

Following the Supreme Court ruling, Kerry and his group took US Carter Centre and a host of other election observers have since taken back the initial statements they had made on the August 8 elections.