The multi-pronged strategy that delivered Jubilee many votes

Jubilee approached the August 8 General Election with a multifaceted strategy that stretches back five years. First, it locked in its strongholds, then ventured out into Opposition strongholds. Central and Rift Valley regions are obviously the mainstay of the ruling party’s political strength. By rolling out development projects and setting out to improve the living standards of the people, Jubilee ensured support from these regions never waned.

Those who had predicted that NASA would garner as much as 30 per cent votes from Rift Valley were therefore jolted to the core when Jubilee swept clean all the seats. The second strategy that Jubilee deployed was to give special focus to such regions as Kajiado, Narok and Kisii, which were considered the swing-vote zones. Jubilee spent time listening to the development needs of the people and tirelessly worked with grassroots leaders to ensure that the common man’s views were accommodated in crafting programmes. With such responsive leadership, there wasn’t any prizes for guessing for whom these regions would vote.

Planning

The third strategy was a bold mission of bringing Kenyans under one party. This started with the dissolution of TNA and URP to form a single entity aimed at de-ethnising our politics. To realise this objective, Jubilee ventured into zones such as Coast and Western.

This was a deliberate strategy to bring Kenyans together into one national party and kill the dragon of tribalism that has for long been the bane of our country’s development. Thus, Jubilee’s victory on August 8 reflects a triumph of national unity efforts over the schemes of divisive forces.

Jubilee did not start wooing these regions yesterday. Nor did it do it for the sake of merely winning the elections. It goes to the heart of the transformation agenda that kicked off five years ago when Uhuru Kenyatta’s administration assumed office. It is a strategy that touches the root of the well being of Kenyans.

It is a well-thought-out plan to transform every facet of wananchi’s lives - boosting livelihood, kicking out poverty, improving education and providing better healthcare to all Kenyans. Once the dust raised by the 2013 polls had settled, the train of transformation hastily left the station. National resources were shared out equitably and key infrastructure projects rolled out in every corner of the country. There was no discrimination along the lines of how regions had voted.

By taking development to the doorstep of every Kenyan, Jubilee aimed at making all citizens to feel they belong and that they have a stake in this great nation. This was a sharp departure from the politics of yesteryears when development was dished out on the basis of ethnicity, patronage and political connections as well as affiliations.

Growing popularity

This is the background against which the 2017 political realignment must be understood. The rising support for Jubilee in Western, Kisii, Narok, Kajiado among other regions, did not just happen during campaigns. Substantial work was done in between polls. Jubilee has put this country on the path to a future when ethnicity will no longer matter in politics, but a development record and sound agenda will.

Despite commendable success in the last five years, Jubilee is not about to drop the ball. The next five years promise to be even more exciting as most mega projects are completed and begin to make substantial contribution to the economy, with huge benefits cascading down to the grassroots.

These rosy prospects are certainly what informed the choices of Kenyans as they went to polls on August 8, and this is what will matter to them the most when the October 26 repeat presidential election is held.

NASA spent disproportionate amount of time finding faults in Jubilee’s record and plans and trying to keep their loose coalition together. They completely forgot that elections are about selling persuasive policies to the electorate.

Instead of telling Kenyans what they had in store for them, they bombarded them with vitendawili, folklore and football commentaries. Add this to their utopian politics of Canaan and Kenyans were more than convinced they were being taken for a ride. This cavalier attitude, which is a consequence of a sense of entitlement that pervades their camp, cost them dearly.

Kenyans are interested in real tangible issues. If NASA wants to resuscitate their hopes of making any meaningful impact in the repeat polls, it had better look itself in the mirror.

In there they will see what the face of failure looks like. They should stop sitting on their laurels and chasing phantom shadows in the form of IEBC, Chiloba, Server, OT-Morpho, Safaricom, Uhuru, ad infinitum and head to the villages to seek votes.

Ms Kibaara is a communications expert.