Nomination mess dims voters’ hopes for peaceful polls

By Oscar Obonyo

The chaotic scenes witnessed early this week during the ODM nomination in Ndhiwa constituency once again beg questions as to whether the General Election will be free, fair and peaceful.

But unpalatable drama was not limited to the Nyanza region constituency where ODM holds sway. There were equally fierce battles in Kangema and Kajiado North constituencies, where a new outfit – The National Alliance (TNA) – is fighting for ground. 

The experiences of Ndhiwa, Kangema, and Kajiado North give a glimpse of what might transpire in regions dominated by particular political parties, in the elections. Owing to this factor, competition is a do-or-die affair as winners in party primaries are almost assured of victory in the main poll. 

This is the case in Nyanza where Prime Minister Raila Odinga’s ODM is dominant, Ukambani (Vice-President Kalonzo Musyoka’s Wiper Democratic Movement), and central Kenya (Deputy Prime Minister Uhuru Kenyatta’s TNA). Similarly, Eldoret North MP William Ruto’s United Republican Party is the party of choice in parts of Rift Valley.  

High risk

These are the probable hotspots ahead of next year’s polls, as aspirants here have little manoeuvre of choice of parties and stand a high risk of falling victim to poll fraud. In Ndhiwa, for instance, a record 36 hopefuls lined up on the ODM ticket in an ill-tempered exercise.  

Although some parties have proposed to engage services of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), none has actualised this. TNA, however, used the IEBC poll registers in a move protested by an aspirant in Kajiado North, Peter Parsimei Gitau.   

And owing to stiff competition, most parties kept off the exercise. According to New Ford Kenya Secretary General Benjamin Muema, the party did not field a candidate in Ndhiwa, for instance, because the party does not enjoy much support in the area. 

“With regard to Kajiado North and Kangema parliamentary seats, New Ford-Kenya simply opted to support candidates of TNA of which we are in partnership with,” says Muema. 

But where the party shied away because of limited support, it compensated at civic level in Trans Nzoia County – the backyard of party leader and Justice minister Eugene Wamalwa. “We had a crowded field of more than 10 aspirants in each of the two wards, and I can assure you although we pulled through with minimum protests, it was a challenge,” says Muema.

No doubt the challenge would have been bigger and the stakes higher, had the contest been over a parliamentary seat. As the New Ford-Kenya official aptly puts it, competition for the two civic slots in Trans Nzoia was competitive because victory on the party “is almost a sure shot at the seat”. 

Already Kalonzo is addressing the political pressure issue. After months of fire fighting in his Ukambani backyard in a battle involving a set of sitting MPs and aspirants, Kalonzo has finally called for a truce.

At a recent meeting of all aspirants on the WDM held at Nairobi’s Bomas of Kenya, the VP set the record clear – that he is not pushing the case of sitting MPs at the expense of newcomers, as generally alleged. 

During the function, Kalonzo assured aspirants for all the six elective posts countrywide that primaries for the Wiper party nomination ticket would be conducted in “a very transparent manner”. The VP even talked of the possibility of engaging IEBC officials in executing the exercise.

Friction is particularly expected in Ukambani where Kalonzo enjoys political support. Sitting area MPs have been accused of allegedly trying to blackmail the VP by threatening to decamp if they are not accorded direct nomination tickets. 

It is courtesy of such games that Kalonzo is thought to have obliged to officially open a parallel party branch office in Machakos last month. Area MP Victor Munyaka is in serious competition with a Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut) official Albanus Mutisya for the party ticket.   

Bomas meeting

Tension between the two is so heightened to the extent that Munyaka’s absence at the Bomas meeting was quickly attributed to the presence of the Knut official. Equally, Yatta MP Charles Kilonzo, who is facing challenge from Nairobi businessman, Francis Mwangangi, attended the function briefly but left midway.   

“There is discomfort among some MPs over the idea of having primaries. I understand their fears owing to the VP’s popularity here. And this is precisely why I support the VP on the point that we engage IEBC to help us conduct democratic primaries,” says Mwangangi, also Wiper party’s coordinator, Machakos County. 

Stating that the region will be presenting a strong presidential candidate, Mwangangi appeals to fellow aspirants to unite behind the VP by agreeing to a credible nomination exercise instead of trying to blackmail Kalonzo for direct nominations.

“We must all agree that this is a Wiper zone and we can only therefore pull together by investing in a credible nomination exercise instead of engaging in destructive political games including creating excuses to jump ship,” says Mwangangi. 

In the meantime, some parties plan to use the shorter route of handpicking candidates “through consensus”, to avoid confrontational primaries. Already this is the case with ODM and PNU, who have avoided primaries in Kajiado North.