Anglican Church offers to counsel Election losers » Capital News

Nairobi, Kenya, April 21- The Anglican Church of Kenya says it will offer counselling to both winners and losers of the August 9 polls as part of efforts to speed up the healing process among the contestants.

Speaking in Nairobi during a conference with bishops and senior clergy, ACK Archbishop Jackson Ole Sapit called on the Independent Elections Boundaries Commission (IEBC) to put in extra measure to ensure a free and credible elections in the country.

Ole Sapit’s comments come at a time when a section of aspirants from different political parties have expressed frustration over a lack of fairness in the ongoing nomination exercise.

“We note that in any election, there will be winners and losers. As a church, our clergy have also been sensitized to offer counsel to aspirants of all persuasions, and support both losers or winners in counsel and a healing process during and after the electioneering period,” he stated.

During the three-day conference, Ole Sapit said the religious leaders drawn from all over the country met to pray for the nation and discussed the forth coming election and national issues and explore how they can offer effective and godly guidance to the nation in the period before, during and after the campaign period.

“After deep reflection and prayer, we discussed a number of issues of national concerns including the forth coming general election, level of preparedness by concerned agencies, the high cost of living, extremely high cost of fuel, security situation in the country and national values,’’ he added.

He expressed concern over the rising cases of incitement and violence in different parts of the country during campaigns.

He also urged political leaders to shun violence while on the campaign trail for the sake of the country’s stability.

Ole Sapit advised aggrieved parties to seek legitimate redress through available mechanisms including judiciary.

“We advise that all aspirants should promote peace at all times. They must not use the youth to cause violence during and after election,” he said.

He added that the ACK church will conduct a sustained, targeted civic education during the campaign period.

During the conference, the ACK launched a civic education resource booklet that will be used by churches and church workers in informing, empowering and sensitizing their congregants into making informed choices.