Kenya Elections Tomorrow

Kenya in the lead up to the elections

Tomorrow Kenyans go to the polls to elect their 4^th President since independence. There is an inertia across Kenya as people apprehensively await the elections on March 4^th. Given that over a thousand people died in the 2007/8 elections and hundreds of thousands of people lost their homes it is not surprising that people are worried. The inertia is that generally people are not willing to commit to new projects or decide their direction until after the election. The economy grinds to a snails pace and people do not want much cash on them. Retailers do not replace stock for fear of looting. Nairobi town is quieter. The trolleys at the supermarkets are overflowing with all the staples people are buying in case they need to bunker down for the next month or so. I felt a bit stupid with my little hand basket with a packet of pasta, some chocolate and a few cans of beans. Is there something I am missing here?

Performers at Blankets and Wine advocating voting.

The inertia in Kenya is frustrating as we can’t move forward with any of our projects. It is like being in purgatory but with the uncertainty of whether we will end up in hell or we will just go back to normal after the elections.

The campaigns have been more cohesive than last time according to locals. At the last election there was not much tolerance for the diversity of parties to campaign in a tribally loyal area. This year other parties have been able to sell their polices, even if it has meant being stoned in some places. There have been a few deaths that have been attributed to politics but generally so far it has not been terrible.

Stefanie from Beyond Violence creating the pledge at the workshop

Yet the air is thick with fear. I am starting to catch it. The supermarket today was a sobering moment when I saw how packed it was with people buying food in case there was violence and they could not leave the house. My minor uneasiness has moved to moderate fear. Maybe I should leave Kenya for the elections? Visit my friends in India.

I facilitated a workshop in Kibera for youth on peace yesterday using Open Space. It was chaotic, mostly because we were disorganized and people were frustrated. The lunch did not arrive until 4pm. Hungry people are grumpy people, which is fair enough! I am grumpy when I am hungry. The whole day managing the space was hard work but some good work was done.

The theme of the workshop was ‘What are the triggers of violence in my community and what can I do to prevent it.’ The main triggers identified were tribalism and nepotism, where leaders favour people from their own family or tribe. ‘Nepotism also makes people not choose good leaders because they vote for their tribe.’

Workshop I facilitated in Kibera

 

Other triggers identified were lawlessness, being power hungry.

‘We beg our leaders to accept defeat if they lose so we can avoid violence’

The popular solutions identified to were choose leaders who stood for the unity of all Kenyans, who did not favour their own tribe, that community members preach peace, having peace concerts and forums…

Overall the response was that we are one Kenya, not a series of tribes.

While the election is one day away, on March 4^th, it could be round one of a two round competition. In order to win, the Presidential candidate needs 51% of the votes. Given there are 8 candidates it is unlikely anyone will get 51%. it is likely that there will be a run off in another two weeks between the two highest voted parties. So the tension will be here for at least the next three weeks. The two most likely candidates to win are the current Prime Minister Raila Odinga (Kenya has a President and a Prime Minister as a way to bring about peace from the last elections) and the son of the first President of Kenya, Uhuru Kenyatta. Uhuru is in the international criminal courts with his running mate Ruto for crimes against humanity from the last elections. He is accused of insighting violence that led to many deaths. Raila is a candidate that many Kenyans thought should have won the last election as he was winning the count until there was a power cut and then when the power came back on, Kibaki was winning. Apparently the Chief Justice was forced to announce Kibaki’s victory at gun point before the votes had even been counted fully. So democracy in this country is at the end of a rifle or a shilling note.

Workshop in Kibera on Peace

Raila is also not squeaky clean, but he is  corrupt as he pays people to vote for him and creates lies to deface his opposition. But then again, that is normal political practise. Kenyan politicians are the highest paid in the world. While 50% of the population lives below the Kenyan standard of the poverty line and 40% are unemployed, Kenyan politicians have multiple helicopters and can afford to give out millions of dollars to win an election.

It would seem that Kenya has an absence of leadership with real vision and integrity. This is not to be blamed entirely on the politicians. Kenyans overlook  leaders if they don’t have the money to give them to buy their loyalty. It is said that in Kenya to gain power you need money, not leadership. It is highly unlikely that a poor person could ever rise through the political ranks in Kenya. So Kenya gets the leadership that is corrupt from the beginning, as to obtain the amount of money required to run for office, corruption is the usual method.

The campaigns have been making themselves visible to the community through trucks with loud music and speeches driving through the streets and giving out money. Advertising is everywhere. Every free space seems to be taken up with posters of candidates.

Dan the Magician at a school in Babadogo

Kenya’s current political structure gives the President a huge amount of power but that is supposed to change after the election. There is a new constitution that will be implemented after the election that marks the devolution of power to a small extent to the 47 counties. Kenya is in a period of transition. Done well, this will mean more democracy and power to the people. Done badly it will just spread the capacity for corrupt government employees to use tax payers money for their own agenda at the expense of the community.

Time will tell what happens. There is a general sense of people voting and returning to their homes to hide tomorrow. Let's hope that like Dan, the magician with the young girl in the photo above, what appears is something that delights and inspires wonder for the future. We will see….