Sh1m fine for taking bribe from Kenyan politician

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By NJERI RUGENE nrugene@ke.nationmedia.com And EMEKA-MAYAKA GEKARA gmayaka@ke.nationmedia.com
Posted  Saturday, February 4  2012 at  21:57

Did you know that accepting money, food or drinks from any Kenyan politician as an inducement to vote for them could land you in prison for six years, a fine of Sh1 million or both?

For a considerable number of Kenyan voters, the election period is the “season of harvest”. Beware. Things have changed.

A new elections law prohibits voters from receiving gifts in order to vote for seekers of elective posts.

The same law also bars politicians from dishing out money and other items to prospective voters to win support.

Section 62 of the Elections Act 2011 says: “A voter who accepts or takes any food, drink, refreshment, provision, any money or ticket, or adopts other means or devices to enable the procuring of food, drink, refreshment or provision knowing that it is intended to influence them commits the offence of treating.”

Politicians are known to use financial and material inducements to buy votes. These inducements vary according to regions.

In rural communities, womenfolk who are the majority voters, receive household food items such as sugar. Men are treated to cheap liquor and cash.

The same law prohibits candidates from giving promises to reward a voter to refrain from voting. This mostly happens when candidates buy votes to deny their rivals support.

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The candidates will also face the law if they ferry voters to or from polling stations or pay voters after voting or refraining from casting ballot. The candidates would have committed the offence of treating.

Jail terms also await voters who pretend to be illiterate, disabled or visually impaired in order to be assisted to vote with the intention of selling their vote.

This tendency is particularly pronounced in Central Kenya, mainly in Kiambu, Murang’a and Nyeri counties.

Here, such voters are paid by certain candidates and have to prove that they have voted as agreed.

They then pretend to be illiterate or blind and seek help from the candidates’ agents to vote.

In this way, the agencies are able to confirm the voter has earned his or her bribe.

Section 58 says a person who pretends to be illiterate to obtain assistance in voting or pretends to be visually impaired or suffering from any other disability so as to be assisted in voting commits an offence and risks six years in jail or a fine of Sh1 million on conviction or both.

Election officials are not spared. Any member of the electoral commission found to be condoning the pretence will receive the same punishment.

Think twice, too, if you are planning to sell or destroy a voter’s card. Anybody planning to destroy, deface, sell or even alter a voter’s card will face the same penalty.

And woe unto those with the habit of pulling down or defacing their opponents’ campaign posters. The offence carries a five-year jail term and a fine of Sh500,000 or both.