Home Opinion REVIEW OF THE ELECTION PREPAREDNESS OF IEBC AND A CALL TO ACTION BY DIASPORA IN THE UK.

REVIEW OF THE ELECTION PREPAREDNESS OF IEBC AND A CALL TO ACTION BY DIASPORA IN THE UK.

by JT reporter

The current electoral cycle is perhaps the most significant event that our generation have to deal with other than the adoption of the 2010 constitution. It will for years shape the way we develop our governance structures and roll out the remaining provisions of the 2010 constitution to help Kenya advance its democratic gains.

We call upon the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) to continue taking all legal and practical steps to ensure that they conduct a free, fair, independent and verifiable elections and ensue that any attempt by any person to interfere with the independence of the commission is dealt with accordingly regardless of their station in life.

We want to recognise, honour and thank the IEBC through its chairman, Mr Wafula Chebukati, for the decision to withdraw from the illegal and unconstitutional ational Multi-Sectoral Consultative Forum on election preparedness that was set up by the interior Principal Secretary Karanja Kibicho to illegally police, manage and prepare for the elections contrary to Article 88 of the Constitution and Article 249(2) of the independence of the commission.

We want to remind all Kenyans that we as a country run the serious risk of back-peddling to the dark era of political intolerance and one-man rule. We have for the past 5 years tasted the fruits of this through the dictatorship involving the Kenyatta, “the de jure president” and Odinga “the de facto deputy president” through the numerous but illegitimate and ill-advised issuance of the so-called executive orders, most of which have been declared null and void by the judiciary acting to secure and safeguard the gains by the 2010 constitution. This is even more serious following the revelation that the cabinet has not met for years and months until a couple of months ago.

Whereas many Kenyans have individually and collectively stood firm and fought off the two-man dictatorship successfully using legal means or otherwise, the hour has come for all Kenyans, in their multitude, rank and file to now complete this fight by equivocally voting to remove from power the people who have been showing us contempt and running rough shod over Kenyans by attempting to change our constitution and our laws to consolidate their advantage and control on state resources and structures.

This election is about whether BBI should be brought back or whether the ghost of BBI ought to be sent to the grave once and for all, never to rear its ugly head again in our beautiful country. Kenyans should ask themselves which of the four main parties fronting presidential candidates want to bring BBI back and whether that is what the country needs!!

KENYANS WHO DO NOT support BBI, must vote for KENYA KWANZA. Kenyans who want BBI back must support Azimio la umoja. This is the crux of the matter at this election.

It is understandable that some have tried to deflect this into a debate of corruption but every Kenyan knows that corruption is a cancer that pervades all sides of the political divide and its successful reduction and elimination depend on building strong institutions led by men and women of impeccable character and integrity, something that is lacking in the current dispensation. Fighting corruption is not a job for the executive or the president as we are being misled to believe. If that were true, then what happens if the president and his cronies are the ones involved in corruption as is currently the case? Again, on this issue we urge Kenyans to look at the contending parties’ manifesto and decide which of them has a plan to empower and facilitate strong independent offices that can effectively fight corruption, abuse of office, forced disappearances and continuing murder of innocent poor Kenyans that we are getting accustomed to as part of our life but which we must reject.

In voting therefore, Kenyans must look at the recent past and interrogate the actions of the men and women presenting themselves for election and ask who among them is committed to addressing the inadequate implementation of the 2010 constitution including the bill of rights. Which party has a plan that addresses the continued attempt to weaken independent offices as created by the 2010 constitution by staffing them with cronies and children of those who have always presided over the oppression of the Kenyan masses. Which side wants to introduce executive control of the judiciary for the protection of vested interests?

Kenyans need to acknowledge that wealth distribution in Kenya has since independence and since inception of the 2010 constitution been skewed to those in the executive branch of government because of the foregoing.

We should support a party that wants to distribute wealth to the base of the pyramid so that tax payers are capitalised to do what they want to enable them to generate wealth for themselves and create jobs for the rest of the country. We must vote a party that intends to decriminalise economic activities and support agro-industries to create jobs and to open up the country for investment. Why for example, should our traditional Brewing industries remain illegal while western based breweries are legalised 60 years after independence?

The job of voting is just the first and most important step in bringing about this change that Kenyans yearn for. The second and most crucial step is to concurrently commit to hold those we are electing accountable for the promises they have made to us. We must remain vigilant and ready to defend the hopes and aspiration we have about our country by committing to the enforcement of the 2010 constitution and good governance by ensuring that Kenya Kwanza not only has adequate numbers in parliament to drive the decision needed but also that there is a functional opposition in place. The past 5 years has demonstrated the importance of having a functional opposition in the running of government.

Let us use the vote on 9th August 2022 to purposely disrupt the state capture that has paralysed the implementation of the 2010 constitution and re-engineer our governance structure so we can forge ahead with the task of nation building as opposed to spending another 5 years witch-hunting leaders who have diametrically opposed views and beliefs to their own as has happened during the handshake government of Uhuru Muigai Kenyatta and Raila Amolo Odinga. Let us not allow the five painful years to repeat themselves by allowing two despots to manipulate the whole country and undermine our heritage, our future, our hope and our legacy as a country. 

Allowing Raila Amolo Odinga and Azimio to take over power will be rubberstamping the dream that an outgoing president can handpick his successor regardless of what the people want. This should not be allowed as a precedence no matter what. If allowed, it will usher in a chaotic scene every time we change the presidency.

We must pass an equivocal statement to Uhuru and Raila that they can fool some of us some of the time but they cannot fool all of us all the time. The hour of reckoning is now and the date for Kenyans from all walks of life to say ENOUGH IS ENOUGH is on 9th August 2022.

In conclusion, we find that Kenya Kwanza is the party which has recognised all these problems and set out a plan to deal with these. The hustler fund comes in handy and if well implemented will create jobs and open up the country to economic development and prosperity. We urge Kenyan graduates and entrepreneurs to take advantage of this fund and open up opportunities for themselves and others to enable the country empower its workforce at every level of the economy. Vote out Azimio by returning a resounding victory for the hustler nation.

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