HOW VOTERS CAN MAKE MONEY POLITICS

I have been told that even in these late hours of party nominations, Kenya's political parties are bracing for inter-party defections by the losing candidates. If political party hopping is a normal practice then why do voters make a big deal about belonging to /any/ party during the election? When looked at objectively, political parties in this country are merely slogans. They don't stand for anything . As this opinion is being written, primary nominations are taking place. It is widely believed that after the Friday nominations many losing candidates will be on the move to join new parties where they could be nominated to run for the general election Dec. 27th. Some candidates according my sources have secured "option B certificates" from small parties to use just in case they lose the nomination in their current parties.

I have come to conclusion that voters in Kenya vote for individuals rather than political parties. If political parties stood for anything like the US or Great Britain, these overnight party changers would have a difficult time holding an elected office. It boggles my mind why a political party can accept losing candidates from a another party at the eleventh hour. If a candidate cannot win nominations in his primary party, how can he expect to win with a new party? I find very difficult to have public trust in candidates that hop from one party to another. If you vote in non principled politicians..you will always get the non principled government.

Voters and supporters of candidates hopping from one party to another can make money and also help develop stable political parties in this country. It is a waste of time and resources for voters to support a candidate from ODM, PNU, ODM-Kenya or other parties before Nov. 16th and in a moments notice that candidate can switch to Banana or other farm implement party after losing the first nomination.

I often wonder and feel sorry for the voters who support their candidates in one party and then follow them to a new party to start over again. Maybe voters in this country have nothing but a lot of time on their hands to spend building these temporary or overnight political parties with their candidates. This is how poor voters in Kenya can make money and help the development of political parties in the country: Let voters form Kenya Independent Political group (KIPG). The KIPG will establish political "franchises" through out the country. The KIPG will abide by ECK rules in political party registration and other laws of the land. KIPG will vet and sponsor candidates running for Presidential, parliamentary and civic offices. The selection of KIPG candidates will not be based in tribal solidarity or regional affiliations. So long as the candidate in question is a Kenyan citizen, he or she will be able to represent KIPG anywhere in the country. The vetted candidates will pay party affiliation and nomination fees to KIPG. The money raised from candidates will be distributed to all KIPG franchises in the country owned by local voters.The difference between these KIPG political franchises and the current parties is that KIPG will only take fees from the candidates who have been vetted to represent each district. The screening of potential candidates will be done by KIPG at no cost to the candidate. The vetting/screening process will be used as the primary election tool. From the pool of qualified candidates, KIPG will be able to post these candidates anywhere in the country to compete with other party nominees for public office. One may say "how can KIPG nominate or vet candidates without a primary election (as it being done now)?". If you look closely one of the issues that cause candidates to hop from one party to another is the "automatic" nomination certificates offered by various parties to their prime members. The KIPG vetting process will not do anything foreign when it comes to the selection process of it's political office candidates. The KIPG will vote as a party on matters dealing with national interest, which will make increase the influence far beyond tribal and regional lines. Membership in the KIPG at the grassroots level (voters) will be voluntary. Candidates seeking KIPG support or sponsorship must abide with it's principals.

The KIPG model will liberate voters from the joke that is the current political party system in Kenya. The KIPG model will make winners accountable to their respective KIPG districts rather than just their tribal district or region.The KIPG model may sound radical, but so long as a KIPG representative can perform and deliver services required by KIPG principles nobody will care about tribalism and regional differences. To foster multi-party political growth in the country the ECK and the central government will be required to pass party affiliation laws. For example, if a candidate switches parties after the election, a special election must be held in that district to give the losing party a chance to elect another candidate.

For Kenyan voters, you are not that helpless. If you think "outside the box", beyond your tribal solidarity and regional lines, you have more power than these current politicians. These politicians will keep using you with tribal propaganda making promises and offering public service that you are already entitled to in the first place. I understand that you may not want to blame these politicians because holding political office at the national level is business. But which jobs in Kenya here can give you severance pay of Ksh. 300,000+ per year? If my math is right the outgoing members of parliament just took at least Ksh 1.5 million on top of their annual salaries, benefits and public privileges paid to them while they were in office. Based on these benefits you should now understand why these politicians will do anything to get elected, like change political parties overnight. It is up to you the voters as group to find out how you too can benefit from the system. With the KIPG model, a part of that Ksh 1.5 million severance pay could have been earmarked for the district/regions where these representative comes from. Think about /that/!

Dan M. Orao
Michigan, USA