Elections Watch: Voter Register Inspection

In every sense the Kenyan electoral process was reborn after the promulgation of the 2010 Constitution. We had to set up a new electoral commission, register political parties and voters afresh. Now the electoral wheel has been set in motion. With less than 54 days to go till the start of the elections, there still remains a number of critical aspects that need resolution before Kenyans can go to the Ballot.

Even with the IEBC being able to register 14.3 Million voters, which was about 4 million shy of its target, it is vital that the registered voters are able to confirm the details retained by the IEBC to prevent the eventuality of them being turned down from voting on election day.

This very important undertaking is yet to take off three weeks since the close of the voter registration exercise. Even worse is the fact that Kenyans have no idea that the process of voter register inspection and verification exists. Many Kenyans assume that with them having gone through a registration process that utilised the much hyped Bio Metric technology, then the accuracy of the process is assured to the highest degree. All this is indeed quite to the contrary. Voter register inspection is still very important regardless of the confidence levels in the technology employed especially considering that this is the first time a newly established commission has employed the technology relied upon. Every voter needs to verify that the details entered into the IEBC system correlates with their own personal information and the particular centres they intended to take out their vote.

Before the Elections Act was amended the Principal Register of Voters was meant to be opened for inspection within a span of 30 days. However, with the Elections (Amendment) (No.4) Act, 2012 becoming law, this process has been shortened to a record 14 days. Whether the IEBC can be able to  actually be able to inform the 14.3 Million Registered voters of their need to inspect the Register for anomalies and have a substantial majority of them undertake the verification exercise in the 14 day period is a question that needs to be answered. Up until the date of publication of this post, there has been no word as to when the exercise is set to begin.

The only information available is the information contained in law and The Elections (Registration of Voters) Regulations, 2012  regulating the voter register inspection exercise. The regulations under Part V provide for avenues to follow especially when one needs to make a claim in the event that their name is not included in the register after having undergone the registration exercise. One is meant to submit a claim to the registration officer however according to the regulations  Section 17(2), one cannot make such a claim within 90 days to the election. In keeping with this such a claim can only be made before the 4th of January. Unless the regulations are revised, then making of any such claim would be illegal. 

As an engaged citizen it is important that you seek out information on the modality of confirming your voter details and the channels of redress. Once you know, help to let others know too.

Act of Convenience: Assessing the Amendments to Kenya's Elections Act towards the General Elections

When Kenyans adopted a new Constitution on the 27th of August 2012, they hoped that all the sins of the past would be left in the pages of history and thus mark the beginning of a new chapter for the Republic.
One of the key transformations hoped for was in the manner in which the electoral process would be handled in the future. It all began with the assessment that the election preceding the adoption of the constitution as being so fundamentally flawed that it would have been impossible to assert who may have won the  Presidential election as other electoral positions.

What followed after the institution of the new constitution was the establishment of the successors to the disbanded Electoral Commission of Kenya, largely blamed for the bungled elections. These were known as the Interim Independent Electoral Commission and the the Interim Electoral Boundaries Commission which were later merged into the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission through a Statute. Additional to these changes was the enactment of two key pieces of legislation that would act to complement the work of the electoral commission these being the Political Parties Act and the Elections Act.

The Political Parties Act was enacted and came into operation on the 1st of November 2011 to instil discipline in what was a chaotic organisation in how parties were established and governed. Upon its enactment  there were well over one hundred parties. After its enforcement only 51 parties could meet the tighter registration criteria. The Elections Act was a statute enacted  and came into force on the 2nd of December 2011 to streamline the conduct of elections, general, referenda or otherwise.

Since their enactment the two pieces of legislation have have been targeted by legislators for a number of amendments many of which have been to cater for their interests ahead of the 2013 general elections. The Elections Act has seen a number of changes to it occur within a period of 13 months of its existence for purposes of politicians expedience as pointed out in a blog by political information website Mzalendo. The key changes that are catered to the politicians are those touching on the timelines that would allow the MPs to hop from one Party to another. Frankly, these changes have enabled the MPs to remain in their parties until the 14th of January 2014. The space between that date and the final allowed date for the carrying out party nominations is only four days. This is a clear example of politicians clinging to power to the very last straw.

Politicians however are not the only culprits in this game of mutilation of the Elections Act. Through the hand of Parliamentarians, the IEBC has been pushing for amendments to the Act in a manner that favours its haphazard operations. The latest has been in facilitating the period of voter register inspection from 30 days to 14 days and increasing the period within which IEBC is to make compilations from not less than 30 days to the election to read "at least 14 days to the election" This means amendments can even be done to the very last date.

It is sad that the 2013 elections are going to be an example in ill preparedness and expediency for large parties and incumbents. So far, IEBC has used the legislative process to seal loopholes in execution of its mandate working at the behest of the political elite.  Kenyans must be vigilant to ensure that they monitor each of the activities of the politicians and IEBC and ensure that they conform with the law especially now that Parliament is in its dying days.

Mischief on the Finance Bill 2011 (Letter to Business Daily Editor)

The Finance Bill has been one that has invigorated much debate both within Parliament and in the public domain. Since its introduction on budget day 2011, there has been much intrigue going on about the Bill. On Friday's April 6th Business Daily Letter titled "Law empowers KRA to collect taxes prior to enactment of Finance Bill", the Senior Deputy Commissioner of the Kenya Revenue Authority correctly asserted that even though the Finance Bill 2011 has not been passed, the enforcement of tax collection by KRA stands legal by virtue of The Provisional Collection of Taxes Act Cap 415 Order 2011 in which the Finance Minister invoked on the 8th of June 2011. However, it must be noted that the Act in itself does not envision a scenario as the one that is being played out at present. In fact the act explicitly provides under section 3 that such an order invoked by the Minister would cease to be valid if the Bill is not introduced into Parliament within four months after order is made, on the expiration of six months after the order is made, on passage of the Bill or if the Bill is either rejected by Parliament, withdrawn or on consideration of the Bill by the National Assembly, the bill is adjourned sine die (without delay).

It is quite evident that the order has been in place for more than six months but what KRA could be banking on to maintain the order is the aspect of the various adjournments by the National Assembly on debate of the Bill. However, it must be noted that the adjournments have not been "without delay" seeing that four months into the new year, 2012, the Bill is yet to be effectively debated. The last time the Bill came to the house for debate on 15th of March 2012, the Deputy Speaker deferred discussion on the Bill espousing that it was not the role of the Chair of the National Assembly to move Bills but rather the Government. In fact, the Deputy Speaker went as far as asking the members of Parliament to go to court or amend the law.

The Government has erred in not fulfilling the law and indeed on the basis of the fact that much of the adjournment has been due to lack of pro-activity by Treasury to move the Bill then indeed it is quite clear there is mischief involved. But then again, unless Kenyans go to court to stop this mischief, there can be pretty much little that can stop the KRA from collecting these taxes.

49 Years on...

Am not proud to say am glad the Kenya is finally 49. We are a disgrace. There exists a huge illusion of democracy and rule of law. Quiet anarchy is what exists and although as a nation we can be proud to have one of the best Grundnorm's in the planet, we still have individuals who still trod on the liberties that are envisioned to be esteemed and espoused.

We have a citizenry that's so beaten that it fails to take its place in running the country and is instead either apathetic or plain left to be spectators in the theater of decadence that is our politics.

We have a nation with leaders who play economics from the lavish greens of Kenya's top golf courses with tee off times taking priority over serving their ultimate employers, the people of Kenya.

All I can say to this end is that the keen responsibility lies with the people of Kenya. Frankly I wish I can have hope in a demographic but unless they can look beyond their blog spaces, mailing lists, walls and their tweets and take to seeking a vote based revolution that looks to selective choice of leadership that is visionary and one that gets to get the job done, our remaining hope lies with the pulpit speakers, collective gender organisers and political hawkers & mercenaries for hire who know no better than to look close to safety of the known than demand change that they have no time to ever come to believe in because they have become creatures of habit cultured over election cycles spanning a one party rule and mediocre paper democracy.

I rest my case but trust me am patriot enough to be standing at Nyayo stadium come the 12th because love for my country behooves me to recognise our 49 years of state-hood. Nitakuwepo!

Middle Class 2.0

My dear friend Nancy Muigei @kenyangriot only yesterday got me thinking on whether our middle class does in any way hold the key to unlocking the indifference that exists in our society. She went on to mention that its alarming that while the middle class is the most heavily taxed, it does not relate such huge tax deductions to scandals such as those involving the Free Primary Education and in that sense rise up to demand better accountability and responsibility. The lingering question is should we leave the quest for social justice to a handful of activists or should it be the battle led by the middle class?

Frankly, it is disappointing to see that little or no effort is made by the middle class to play a role in shaping the future of this country. Ten years ago we could have blamed it on a stifled political environment that hindered engagement but now the space is as wide as it can ever be. In just three years we have experienced not only a a wider engagement space but we have also seen the doors burst open to a world of information. We are now a society that has free and unrestricted access to information. Now with space and information access why is the middle class still not playing its part?

I have a hunch. The gains we now have indeed are far much better than those that existed in Tunisia and Egypt. We are now a true democracy (at least in the purely theoretical sense excluding the free and fair polls part which is yet to be put to the test next year). But still we are too young. We are like a techie who just stumbled upon this amazing new gadget and is still fumbling around about how it works, adjusting settings and all the amazing features, reading reviews and all before they actually get on to adapting it to their day to day lifestyle and using it as a solution tool. That's what I see our middle class grappling with. A new Constitution, open space to now picket & demonstrate, new justice dispensation, social media to learn share and vent, access to media and content, discovery and adventure. But soon this should change, at least that's what am betting on.

Demographics are plain and obvious. 40 Million Kenyans of which 14 million are aged between 18-35 and are taking up technology with speed. With 25 Million Mobile phone subscribers , there is indeed time and chance to see a new middle class evolve. Soon we will be done being amazed about internet access on our phones and wherever we go and begin to ask how can we use these tools to improve our lives and well being. Already there have been pacesetters such as the good folks at ushahidi.com who have made technology work for this country and the world over and now with the many new innovations coming up we will soon see that the middle class will find in technology an engagement tool. But my question then becomes how do we drive people from tech advocacy to action. Or is tech enough?

The opportunity does lie, as has been witnessed with the jasmine revolution, in the ability to move from agonising (in social media spaces) to organising on the ground and making our voices heard.

So is there anyone out there with skills enough to code Middle Class 2.0?

Twitter: @mwakesi

Eating Stress for Breakfast:::Ranneberger on Kenya and youth - Mindspeak Edition

Saturday morning 22nd January, I woke with a zeal to make sure that I do make it for the Mindspeak Edition run by Financial and Geopolitical Guru Aly Khan Satchu. Location: Westgate. But things did not actually go as planned. 45 minutes after my departure from my house I found myself staring at the words Nakumatt Junction. That's when it hit me that 'This is not Westgate Mall.' We all have our blonde moments but its amazing that I had mine of the "Mindspeak" Day.

Honestly speaking, why I chose to attend the mindspeak session that had Amb. Ranneberger (US Amb. to Kenya) was driven purely out of a desire to be around thinkers for the better part of my Saturday morning and what better way to spend the morning other than to sit and listen to the representative of the Worlds Super Power jabber on about the Geopolitical dynamics of the East and Horn of Africa Region plus titbits of US Foreign Policy.

The fact is I have always viewed the presence of the United States in Kenya as one that has always brought about a push for all the values that an ever changing and eveolving democracy like Kenya would need. Of course such a viewpoint is not generated without consideration of the strategic interests that the US is concerned about in the region. In this regard its not hard to figure out that the US Amb. in Kenya has always been an important figure in the Socio-Political scene of Kenya.

I came to the meeting with several expectations. First to understand the man that is Amb. Ranneberger, second the FP attitude towards Kenya and the larger East and Horn of Africa Region, third the American driven agenda for youth in the country and finally what next for the man following rumours he could be well on his way departing from the country. I wasn't sure if all these were going to be answered or touched upon but I guess being the optimist I am I couldn't loose hope. Sad fact though is after my whole episode of mixing up Junction with Westgate I arrived at the venue one hour after the start of the two hour session. Lucky for me @alykhansatchu was always on hand to bring out the latest quips. So much of the aspects on this post will dwell on the man and the youth agenda and they stood out in the one hour or so that I was there

If you have followed my blog before you will notice that I have never really had kind words for the US embassy's intervention on the youth landscape in the country. Matter of fact I have viewed it with suspicion and often believed that the better approach would be to work with Government rather than directly with youth. It must be said that this by no means puts to the fore an inbuilt general distrust or misgivings on the part of the American Governments intervention in Kenya. Matter of fact, I do hold it in much the high esteem for all the great and straightforward straight and tough-talking support and standpoints it has always had for this country. As a partner on the reform agenda, Kenya could not have found a better partner not forgetting the massive impact on support to the health care system especially with regard to community HIV AIDs Programs. A personal favourite of mine was the intervention in the Mau Forest Affair and its generous support. But the devil has always been on the youth question.

The Reform Ambasador (@USAmb4Reform) did take time to put across why the US government felt it prudent to intervene in Kenya and especially with the youth. The all famous 2006 by Sen. Obama at the University of Nairobi never fails to be brought up. Of course I must admit it is indeed a brilliant piece of inspiration and telling sign of the later speeches that led him to the White House. The African Leaders meeting at the White House and the US Presidents advise to the youth leaders present that went something like 'You are the Future of Africa. It starts with you...' also did not escape the Amb. mind. But the real reason, according to him, was drawn out of the countless town hall meetings that the Amb had with the youth all across the country and this lead to the strategic direction that the US Embassy took with the youth.

The whole idea as I understood it was this, the US established a $45Mil. programme that is aimed at forming a correlation between political reform and economic development. Central to this is the provision of support to grassroots organisations. On the Political reform aspect there is the establishment of national youth coalitions that are non partisan and multi ethnic. Thus already established is the National Youth Forum. That was where my concerns began. However, the Ambassador did take time to mention that this intervention was necessary owing to the changing political climate that has taken root in the country and that this change requires an active intervention to ensure that the youth are not manipulated and utilised out of turn. To this I agree. The Economic front of course is by all means the most well crafted and suitably packaged to empower the youth economically.

So then you may ask, what's really changed? Do you have any misgivings still? Well, the answer to those questions are simple. Let me elucidate. First my viewpoint on the man, Amb Ranneberger had changed. He is quite the candid man, upfront and firm in his believes and truly one who beyond his JD seems to really care about the reform agenda of this country. It must be said that indeed he does take the time to listen and share with Kenyans an attribute seldom found in other Foreign Representatives. Second is my viewpoint on the youth program that has been established by the US Embassy has somewhat changed. The overall objective is indeed sound. I do have misgivings on why such a hugely funded program would bypass government systems and directly target youth but then again different paths are always open to adoption. I reserve the idea that this may be an affront to sovereignty but am sure there must be a way of trying to work with the system even if its broken because the shift for thinking amongst the youth should be away from associating development with politics but more with policy because even the best or trustworthy of politicians who have no clue on sound policy drives will not deliver the change that's needed. The youth must see the benefit of having good politicians who understand the shaping of overall policy for the benefit of this country. Vital point would be to make it clear that Government is not the politicians of the day. Government functions with or without politicians and it is the custodian of policy. Therefore Government as an institution is not the enemy and the youth must work with the Government to shape long-term policy as they advocate for a leadership of integrity. My case rests on the fact that if we invest to much on political reform that is devoid of making it clear to the youth of this country the link that politics has to policy and how to translate that link into the selection of leadership then this agenda that's driven by the US is bound to fail.

I must also point out that even the NYF in itself has not been quite reaching out platform thats its envisioned to be. Frankly, I for one have never interacted with either one of its leaders or members yet apart from maybe seeing them on TV or the occasional briefing email on acts long done. But then again you can never reach everyone, or can you?

The title of this post is fashioned from the statement of the American Ambassador. I must say I do admire his courage and work ethic. He does make it clear that he does have more than his fair share of stress. 7 stress areas as opposed to the general 3, he puts it. Well, when you are dealing with the current calibre of politicians as we have here then you are bound to bear those stress levels. But thanks for hanging in there for Kenya.

And so there you have it. Am shocked what a mindspeak edition can do in shaping viewpoints. It must be said Aly Khan Satchu is on to something. Join me for the next on, wont you?

Why we need Action on the Drought Situation

In 2009 Kenya witnessed one of the most severe droughts that have ever hit the country. The result of the drought was millions of Kenyans facing starvation as others lost livelihoods owing to the death of both cattle and crops. The impact was indeed severe and an outright evidence of the effects of climate change especially in vulnerable regions such as Africa.

Come 2011, situation hasn’t change as Kenya begins to experience yet another drought spell that could inevitable render millions facing hunger and starvation and millions worth of cattle dying. Already over 1.6 million Kenyans are already receiving relief food from the World Food Programme while it is anticipated that the figure could escalate to 5 million within the next three months. What’s bewildering is that at the same time we have tons of food wasting away in the fertile regions of the nation. This has been blamed on the lack of a comprehensive early warning system that would be able to see more food reserves in place in anticipation of drought. However this is not the matter at hand.

Unless something is done fast quick and in a hurry, we will see millions of Kenyans going hungry and staring death in the face. There is need to make concerted efforts to get emergency relief food to those who need it, not in three months time but right now. In addition there is need to take measures to ensure that there is provision of safe clean drinking water and available medication to fight off related diseases. Hunger and starvation breeds conflict as the fight for resources gets more and more vicious with each turning day. This cannot be allowed to happen.