Opinion: NASA’s ultimatum on poll announcement is pure conmanship

If you thought NASA would use its first rally since Raila Odinga was named its flag-bearer to release a positive vision for Kenya and some actual policies for development, then you haven’t been paying enough attention to an alliance that since inception has not stood for anything except divisive politics, thirst for power and corruption.

NASA reached the height of hypocrisy when it decided to use this platform to challenge democracy and threaten violence and insurrection if its rules are not imposed on Kenyans.

Why is NASA putting as its flagship policy the condemnation of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission’s (IEBC) appeal of the High Court decision allowing announcement of election results at the polling and constituency level?

A cursory understanding of the alliance’s approach to democracy tells its own story.

Flag-bearer Raila’s ODM -- the only party that will actually appear on the presidential ballot -- appears to have a perennial problem understanding the rules of democracy. In almost every ODM primary, irregularities were recorded.

ODM’s decision to stagger its primaries gave hope that it might step in and set the tone for any corruption emanating from the first primaries.

But these hopes were soon scuttled. In the first ODM gubernatorial elections in Busia County, Governor Sospeter Ojaamong mocked the entire process by holding onto results from his two stronghold sub-counties of Teso North and Teso South to gauge his performance in the five sub-counties where his opponent, Paul Otuoma, was considered stronger. Teso North and South results were released the following day, showing an impossible voter turnout of more than 100 per cent, completely bucking the trend in the other sub-counties.

When Ojaamong was declared the victor, there was a tremendous opportunity for Raila and his ODM acolytes to demonstrate a commitment to democracy. They spectacularly failed and sent a message to all other primary contestants that democratic norms were not necessary in ODM. This message was received loud and clear and it is hard to point to a single ODM primary that held free and fair elections.

It is unsurprising that Raila is the most vocal in ensuring that election results are announced at the constituency level; this is where he and his party have sufficient expertise in defrauding the voters. Raila’s running mate, Kalonzo Musyoka, has no less of a tolerance for democracy and grasp of proper electoral processes. Kalonzo, fearing that he was losing a grip on his Wiper party, gave various allies direct nominations at the cost of popular aspirants in various counties.

At least in Wiper there is still a fighting democratic spirit as Kitui Senator David Musila and party bigwig and main financier Machakos Senator Johnstone Muthama have abandoned Kalonzo, branding him a dictator. Kalonzo seems to have learnt from the best. He and Raila nominated immediate family members to the East Africa Legislative Assembly (Eala). The original four NASA principals, with a long list of scandals, obviously didn’t think there was enough corruption in their alliance so they invited Isaac Ruto, whose Bomet County was claimed by the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) as the third most corrupt in the country. The corruption agency is investigating how Mr Ruto acquired immense wealth.

Court of Appeal

It is clear that decentralisation appears to have worked to the benefit of NASA principals and leaders. They have demonstrated that far away from the watching eyes, rules, democracy and decency are the only luxuries they seem not to covet.

The case on announcement of results at the constituency is now in the hands of the Court of Appeal, and both sides can make coherent and cogent arguments to make their case. Obviously missing from NASA’s case will be the real reason they want to decentralise voting results, simply because they have experience and success in ensuring that no returning officer in an area where they exert influence will be able to provide the real results.

Reacting to the appeal, Raila has said that if successful, that it “will not be our election”. On this, he is 100 per cent correct. He and his NASA co-principals only know and recognise corrupt and fraudulent elections. It is impossible for them to recognise a democratic, free and fair electoral process. So let’s give them exactly that. Let’s make this Kenya’s election.

- The writer is the Senate Majority Whip