Kenya : Raila Odinga, withdraws from October 26 poll re-run

Raila Odinga, a Kenyan politician who served as the 2nd Prime Minister of Kenya from 2008 to 2013, has withdrawn from the re-run of the presidential elections, Al Jazeera reports today.

The decision seen as unpredictable came following the September 1st ruling pronounced by the Supreme Court which annulled the August presidential poll. «Odinga and his National Super Alliance (NASA) had pledged not to take part in the vote re-run unless reforms were made to the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC)», stated the same source.

«We have come to the conclusion that there is no intention on the part of the IEBC to undertake any changes to its operations and personnel ... All indications are that the election scheduled for 26 October will be worse than the previous one», Odinga said on Tuesday.

The withdrawal of Odinga is bad news for Morocco, since Kenya is one of the African countries that support the Polisario and defend it internationally.