20100803
africanews

Kenyans are preparing feverishly to participate in the first ever referendum after the post election violence that hit the Eastern African nation. Reports indicate that all is set for Wednesday's referendum. Kenya's electoral body has dispatched ballot boxes and papers to all the centres for the vote.

A reporter with the Standard newspaper, Peter Opiyo, told AfricaNews that the electoral body has sensitized the populace enough for this exercise and is very optimistic everything will go well in Wednesday’s vote. “Well, the people are ready and are just waiting to cast their vote tomorrow.”

Meanwhile, the head of Kenya's electoral commission has assured Kenyans to expect a peaceful referendum and not a repeat of the violence that followed December 2007's presidential elections that killed more than 1 300 people as the nation votes on a new constitution.

"In terms of security ... we expect to have a peaceful referendum," Ahmad Issack Hassan, Chairman of the Interim Independent Electoral Commission (IIEC), told journalists in Nairobi.