Kenya police predict poll violence

2013-03-01 07:42

A Kenyan man sits in the cab of a destroyed truck used as a makeshift roadblock while a tyre burns on the roof, during post-election violence in Kisumu, Kenya. (Ben Curtis, AP/File)

Nairobi - Kenya's police inspector general says he expects a mostly peaceful vote when Kenya holds a nationwide election on Monday, but he acknowledged that some violence may happen.

Inspector General of Police David Kimaiyo reported a new skirmish in Kenya's north on Wednesday "triggered mostly by politics" between two ethnic Somali clans. Police reported one death after a car hit a bystander.

Kimaiyo has held the newly created position of inspector general since December. He said he has much work to do to improve the police force's tainted image but he said he is confident the police are prepared to handle security during Monday's vote.

The inspector general said 99 000 police will watch over the election, Kenya's first since its 2007 vote devolved into tribal violence that killed more than 1 000 people.

- AP