Cash crunch undermines youth elections

By Kenfrey Kiberenge

The ongoing voter registration ahead of the upcoming national youth council elections has been marred by apathy amid claims of sabotage by the Government.

Youth Agenda Chief Executive Officer Ms Susan Kariuki expressed concern that out of the country’s 11 million-strong youth population, only 1.3 million had registered as of Thursday last week.

That figure, however, jumped to 1.5 million on Friday, according to Mr Stephen Jalenga, the head of Youth Empowerment and Participation Division.

The apathy has forced the Youth ministry, which had targeted to register at least three million youths between the age of 18 and 35, to extend the registration deadline from April 30, to May 7.

Even then, the ministry has scaled down the target from three million to "anything over two million".

Control by PNU and ODM

Sakaja Johnson, an expert in youth matters, says the outcome of the process could have been predetermined.

"It is because of poor communication channel and it could be a deliberate effort not to have the word out there," said Sakaja, a partner at Arthur Johnson Consultants.

Narc Kenya youth leader Sande Oyolo claims that the registration process has been sabotaged by a scramble for control by PNU and ODM.

"They are seeking to control the council but it is the Kenyan youth who are hurting," said Oyolo.

The registered youth will vote for representatives at sub-location to provincial levels on May 16 and 17, who will in turn vote for national representatives to the national youth council on June 23 and 24.

Once in place, the council, according to the National Youth Policy, will address all issues relating to youth.

A drop in the ocean

Ms Kariuki says the low turnout by the youth has been occasioned by low sensitisation on the exercise.

"Many people do not know about this council. Also demanding that people register at their places of birth has locked out most young people," said Kariuki.

She also accused the Government of under funding the process. The Standard on Sunday independently established that the Youth ministry has been given just Sh20 million for the registration and elections.

The amount is a drop in the ocean compared with Sh4.6 billion used by Interim Independent Electoral Commission (IIEC) to conduct the referendum last August.

Jalenga also confirmed that the ministry has resorted to using volunteers to conduct the registration process.

Generational change

"If we had to wait for Treasury the youth might never had representation," said Jalenga.

Kariuki said they would lobby the IIEC to give the Youth ministry the voters register used during last year’s referendum.

Analysts have raised concerns that the flopping of the youth registration, and by extension the elections, had cast doubts on the viability of a generational change at next year’s general elections.

But according to Sakaja, generational change does not necessarily mean electing a youthful leader but any aspirant who resonates with the youths.

He argues that the youth will vote in high numbers in next year’s General Election, the apathy in the current registration process notwithstanding.

There has been talk that Kenya could have a youthful or a new president outside the usual line up.