Forum needed for aspirants to sell their ideas

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By KWENDO OPANGA
Posted  Saturday, November 19  2011 at  16:11

The time has come for those who want our votes to engage us in debate in broadcast town hall-style meetings.

In such settings, we will be able to listen, ask questions and hear the so-called presidential and governor hopefuls outline and then discuss their agenda.

I am making a pitch for this style of campaigning because those who want to be our leaders need to sell to us their ideas.

I am saying this because I believe a campaign is a stall of ideas into which we should walk so that we can browse (listen), pick and choose.

I want us to debate the ideas of the hopefuls with them; I want us to see the hopefuls propose, pitch and then defend their ideas for wealth and job creation; security within the borders and beyond; provision of water and energy and realisation of Vision 2030.

I am making a pitch for two kinds of town hall-style meetings. One is that organised by or for individual candidates and the other features two, at most three, hopefuls.

The idea is that the candidates outline their objectives and explain how they will achieve them.

I say organised for because I would like lobby groups, civil society and sundry interest groups to be able to invite the hopefuls to speak to them to persuade them that they have what it takes to change society for the better and not merely to seize power.

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The political rally as we know it does not give us the opportunity to interrogate the ideas put forth and to force those on the stumps to put meat on the bones that are their skeletal ideas or the sound bites that are crafted for media or with media in mind.

And, I know that there are hopefuls who have invested money and time in very useful research about health, education, infrastructure, security, employment and youth empowerment. But the findings cannot be well articulated in the atmosphere of a rally.

Our political rally is an occasion for dramatising and chest-thumping; name calling and label pinning by both candidates and crowds.

It is an opportunity to chant slogans, quote the Bible, spew out riddles and lead the gathering in singing secular and religious tunes.

The same goes for the frenzied road show or caravan. The hallmark of our political rallies is working up the crowds.

The political campaign needs to shift to candidates spelling out what they want to do about the economy and how they plan to do it.

Think again; what do you remember most from the last 2007 presidential campaigns?

For example, candidate Kalonzo Musyoka’s favourite declaration was: dunia nzima inangoja (the whole world is waiting – presumably for his election).

The other was: na mimi Kalonzo nitapitia kati kati ya Rais Kibaki na ndugu yangu Raila Odinga (I Kalonzo will pass between President Kibaki and my brother Raila Odinga – presumably to victory).

In my view, this was his best: I want to build a 24-hour economy. The first two were slogans, but the last one was a hugely important statement.

But it was a one-liner and was never explained in detail. As I say, we did not have the chance to interrogate it and get Mr Musyoka to explain this wonderful declaration on the public podiums.

Why am I keen on the 24-hour economy idea? It opens up a whole lot of questions that he who espouses the plan needs to explain.

What, for example, will he or she do to ensure adequate, regular and reliable supply of electricity? How will he or she pay for it?

24-hour economy

In other words, what is the plan, what are the pillars or drivers for a 24-hour economy? We know that governments do not create wealth; entrepreneurs do.

It is fine for candidates to eloquently diagnose and blame the government for the challenges, problems and evils that bedevil us.So what is the candidate’s plan regarding investment, and in which areas, for economic take-off?

But it will be better for the candidate to go to the next step and outline their remedies and how he or she will give them effect.

Our political rally is not suited for the kind of discourse. To change it calls for discipline and transformation of candidate and crowd etiquette on a massive scale.

That, in turn, calls for voter education on the importance of listening to ideas and voting on account of ideas.

For starters, however, let us consider town hall-style caucuses broadcast live on radio and television.

Kwendo Opanga is a media consultant opanga@diplomatafrica.co.ke