In his article ‘Don’t interfere with the Diaspora vote’ published by The Star (accessed online); Kenneth Kipruto discusses critical issues on the voting by the Kenyan Diaspora in the forthcoming general elections. It is the first time that our brothers and sisters living outside Kenya will get a chance to exercise their right of representation; a major win for them in the new constitution.
I agree with Kipruto that the number of voters in the Diaspora is significant enough to provide a significant tilt in the balance of votes. I also think that they could provide a balancing effect to the ethnicity that characterizes our politics and also greatly influence the voting patterns of their families and friends back home.
I however disagree with Kipruto when he implies that there is a plot, by what he calls ‘powerful politicians’, to interfere with the voting by Kenyans in Diaspora. He argues that it is them that want to restrict the Kenyan Diaspora from voting by blocking the IEBC from registering them as voters and having Embassies, High Commissions and Consulates as the only polling stations. He names Uhuru Kenyatta, William Ruto, Peter Kenneth, Musalia Mudavadi, Eugene Wamalwa and Martha Karua whom he says have not travelled abroad to look for votes and insinuates that they are possibly responsible for these moves. From amongst them he sees the likelihood that William Ruto and Uhuru Kenyatta as being more culpable because they are the ones likely to have ‘been banned from travelling abroad’; by whom, I wonder. Continue Reading »
