The much-anticipated Election Day saw Kenyans troop to different polling stations to elect their preferred leaders.
The exercise ended on Tuesday evening and Kenyans will now sit back and wait for the results before they resume their normal activities.
With the announcement of the results by the IEBC, we will have winners and losers.
It is important for the losers to take it easy and accept the results.
In the past elections, we have seen some candidates not accepting the results, especially in the presidential race.
This was among the top factors that resulted in post-election violence in 2007-08 and the recent 2017 election that led to the nullification of results.
Candidates should be aware of the consequences of not accepting results, especially when their opponents win fairly.
In such a scenario, they should be ready to accept the outcome and move on for the sake of our country.
The Independent Electoral Boundaries Commission recently said only one candidate in each of the six electorate seats is expected to win.
Kenyans who were major participants in the voting exercise chose their preferred leaders and this means that politicians should obey their decision since they have crucial reasons why they voted for a certain candidate and not the other one.
It is a fact that losing an election is very painful and many people find it extremely difficult to concede defeat, even if elections are transparently managed. But this time, for the sake of peace and harmony, let everyone accept the outcome.
It should be well understood that elections were not set aside to divide us but rather to strengthen our democratic ideals.
When we promulgated the 2010 Constitution, we collectively agreed to pay the cost of democracy.
The losers should avoid inciting their supporters to cause violence.
If any of them is aggrieved, they should instead follow the right process to have their grievances addressed.
Tension during the electioneering period is normally brought about by rejection of election results by the aspirants leading to violence and disruption of normal business so it is high time we all avoid this.
Kenyans are still battling the Covid-19 pandemic that affected our economy.
They need a solution to this, not violence.
All those involved in the electoral process must commit themselves to peaceful conduct after elections by accepting election results in peace.
As the IEBC prepares to announce election results, all candidates and political parties must shun using inflammatory language, which may fan the flames of violence.
Post-election violence mainly leads to political and humanitarian crises, and violations of human rights, particularly against women, persons with disabilities and ethnic groups.
According to United Nations Human Rights, it is the responsibility of everyone to create an enabling environment for peaceful and inclusive elections that will deliver upon the aspirations of our country.
Many can recall the outcome of the 2007-08 post-election violence where people lost their lives and others were displaced.
To avoid being pulled back into those dark times, all political parties, candidates, and authorities are urged to foster an enabling environment during this period by welcoming the election results in peace.
Students at Rongo University
Edited by Kiilu Damaris
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