Why the Diaspora Vote is Crucial in the 2017 Kenyan Elections

There is little doubt that Kenyans are a widely travelled and globally dispersed people. Whether at the foots of the Alps in Brescia, Italy, at the traditional Christmas market in Bonn Germany, in Tamale, Ghana or even at the Wall Street in New York to name but just a few, one is bound to bump into Kenyans not as tourists but as hardworking global citizens contributing their share to better the world. Indeed, the Daring Abroad series by Alex Chamwada is just but a highlight of some of these countrymen and women living beyond our borders. Similarly, my engagements with fellow Kenyans abroad have been, to say the least, impressive. The passionate ideas always discussed on how the full potential of the country can be realized are not only well informed but also promising and devoid of tribal connotations that have, unfortunately, come to be associated with most of us. However, the important role played by this group of citizens in contributing to Kenya’s governance seems to be receiving lesser seriousness than it deserves.

As Kenyans the world over look forward to 2017, it is lost to a few, if any, that the New Year will be a key determinant of the trajectory that the country will take after the General Elections slated for 8^th August 2017. The farce that was witnessed in parliament shortly before Christmas over the amendment of election laws is just a pointer. The point of contention between the opposition and the ruling coalition is the introduction of the law allowing the IEBC to have a manual back up system should the electronic system fail as experienced in elections Nigeria, Ghana and even in the United States. While such an important law that means good to this country should be guided by the spirit of agreement between relevant stakeholders, it is the vigor that was applied by the ruling coalition to see the amendments sail through that is raising questions. It is, therefore, imperative for the relevant stakeholders to agree on laws concerning elections so as to avoid a repeat of the dark days of 2007/8.