Azimio presidential candidate Raila Odinga (left) and his Kenya Kwanza opponent William Ruto. | Courtesy.

With only three weeks into the Kenyan General Election, there are fears the polls could impede the free flow of goods from Mombasa Port to its land locked neighbors like Uganda and South Sudan.

Kenyan newspaper, The East African reports that Ugandan legislators have been discussing the impact of the polls and have challenged President Yoweri Museveni to assure the country that there are plans to secure its imports.

Ugandan MPs reportedly raised concerns in Parliament that Kenya’s August 9 election could impact the landlocked country, which depends on the Mombasa port for most of its imports.

The lawmakers reportedly asked President Museveni to make public the plans to protect Uganda from the likely effect of polls in case the aftermath disrupts the supply chain, as was the case in 2007-2008.

Importers from the landlocked countries are already looking for options, with oil marketers reportedly preferring the port of Dar es Salaam for the importation of petroleum products.

The Kenyan media reported in May, that the heat from Kenya’s campaigns ahead of the August 9 General Election is affecting the flow of goods on the Northern Corridor, with Tanzania benefiting from the windfall as more cargo destined for the Great Lakes region is diverted to the Dar es Salaam port.

However, amid heated election campaign, Nairobi repeatedly assured its neighbors of unhindered flow of goods through the Mombasa Port.

Kenyans is heading to hotly contested polls on August 9, with opposition leader Raila Odinga maintaining a narrow lead of 3% over Deputy President William Ruto, according to a July 11 assessment by the Bloomberg.

It is not yet clear what options are being explored by South Sudan, as one of the countries which rely on the Kenyan port of Mombasa as the shortest and most convenient mean of import.