Nervous Kenyans waited on Tuesday for the reply of opposition leader Raila Odinga to President Uhuru Kenyatta's victory inward concluding week's election, which inflamed the deep ethnic tensions dividing the East African nation.
Odinga, a veteran political leader who has right away lost his 4th election, is expected to give his starting fourth dimension reaction to Kenyatta's Mon nighttime victory inward a spoken language to loyalists from his Luo tribe some fourth dimension later 0700 GMT.
"We are only waiting for Baba to speak," said Desmond Litava, an Odinga supporter inward Kawangware, a restive slum inward the capital, Nairobi, using a term of abide by for the leader.
In the worse case, Odinga could telephone phone for his supporters to postulate keep to the streets, unleashing chaos inward cities such equally Nairobi together with Kisumu to the detriment of the already struggling economy.
After a disputed election inward 2007, around 1,200 people were killed inward clashes betwixt competition ethnic gangs that likewise led to a prolonged slump inward the region's biggest together with almost of import economy.
On the other hand, Odinga could limit his appeal to the courts, equally he did inward 2013, together with yield to diplomatic delineate per unit of measurement area to engage inward post-election 'national dialogue' alongside his arch political rival.
The annunciation of Kenyatta's victory, past times a margin of 98 per centum due to an Odinga boycott on the grounds the election was non complimentary or fair, provoked anger inward pro-Odinga slums, whose residents burnt tyre barricades together with threw rocks at police.
Anti-riot officers responded alongside volleys of tear gas, inward scenes that postulate keep been mutual inward Nairobi's slums together with Odinga strongholds inward western Republic of Kenya since the starting fourth dimension endeavour at an election inward August.
That vote was annulled past times the Supreme Court on the dry reason of procedural irregularities inward the vote-tallying. Odinga argued that the re-run was likewise flawed because of a failure to supercede cardinal officials of the election commission.
Reuters