Former President Uhuru Kenyatta, now leading the African Union (AU) election observation mission in South Africa, has expressed his thoughts on the ongoing general elections.

In an interview with BBC Africa, he emphasized the importance of coalition governments focusing on areas of agreement rather than their differences for the benefit of the South African people.

“At the end of the day, [when] you look at the different manifestos, they’re all talking about the same thing – better housing, better water supply, better education, better infrastructure,” he said.

He also drew parallels with past coalition governments in Kenya and elsewhere on the continent, urging party leaders to learn from both the “good and bad” examples.

Kenyatta’s comments come as the governing African National Congress (ANC) is struggling to secure the 50% of votes needed to secure absolute victory to form the government alone.

Uhuru Kenyatta Calls for Unity 

The party is currently in the lead but falling short of the 50% mark, and its leaders are expected to engage in coalition negotiations.

Kenyatta’s message of unity and cooperation resonates with the ongoing election process, where parties are being encouraged to put the country’s interests first and avoid instability.

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“I can only wish them well and hope that the leadership will take this decision by the people in a positive frame.”

“This vote is not about their differences but about their desire to take bits from the different political parties, put them together for a better South Africa not for a worse South Africa,” said the former president

Uhuru Gives Speaks on South Africa’s Electoral process

During the interview Kenyatta also discussed the electoral process he had observed.

While commending the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) for its efforts, he highlighted a few areas where he believes improvements could be made.

“We want to commend the electoral commission, I think they have done a good job, but despite the fact that we acknowledge that they’ve done a good job, and we praise them for it, we are also pinpointing a few areas where we think they failed,” he said.

Also Read: South Africa Elections: When to Expect the Results and Why the President Will be Chosen Later

He noted the failure of voter identification equipment that led to long delays, frustration in the lines, and people getting fatigued and going home, thereby being denied their opportunity to vote.

Kenyatta also mentioned issues where a lack of voter education resulted in people going to the wrong polling stations due to changes in the law.

“There was not enough education on this new law because a lot of people did come and were not aware of the change in the law that occasioned for them to vote differently from how they voted last time,” said the former head of state.

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