IEBC best suited to manage party nominations

Party primaries in Kenya are a big joke, precisely an abuse of democratic rights, if the tales that fly from the grassroots are anything to go by.

Chaos, manipulation and utter abuse of electoral laws are the order of the day in party primaries where, in essence, the majority of credible candidates have their political dreams shattered simply because they are not the ones favoured by the system.

Yet, getting a party ticket of the dominant party in some regions is the ultimate election. It therefore means the big parties must treat primaries as a mini-election.

I laud Jubilee Party’s attempt to have the IEBC conduct its primaries. The announcement by the Jubilee secretariat that it has officially written to IEBC to kick start discussions on how the commission can help conduct its primaries will definitely breath a fresh round of confidence in the nomination process.

Candidates will now have confidence that their political investments will not go down the drain at the instigation of some party hawks thriving on greed and blackmail. In previous elections, primaries have been conducted as a formality where the blue-eyed boys and girls have their way.

Long gone should be the days where the real votes do not count; goons lie in wait to intimidate those coming in to vote; thuggery is instigated by losing candidates to disrupt the process and some party officials connive to favour their preferred candidates.
The result announcement must not be left to individuals without a clear check and balance mechanism. The party must also design and unveil an elaborate system for redress and communicate the same to candidates.

In past elections, many of the results that were officially endorsed as the true reflection of the outcome of the primaries were contested. For example, the former TNA party lacked capacity to ensure that most polling stations were even manned. No one knew where to call for information or where to take the results to. The exercise was marred by alterations, destruction of election materials and other forms of electoral malpractices. I need not belabour the facts that are in the public domain over the situation in some of the opposition parties.

The acts of hooliganism and corruption, synonymous with party primaries, are a thorn in the flesh of democracy and must be contained. IEBC’s intervention may be termed a costly affair, but democracy is expensive and Kenyan should be prepared to pay any price for it.

The price to the country for lack of this democracy cannot be equated to the agony, frustration and the effect of poor leadership that the people suffer due to lack of good leaders. IEBC has a tested structure and equipment capable of ensuring a smooth nomination process. Coming close to the General Election, such a nomination exercise can be used as a dress rehearsal for the real election.

Our key parties must design plausible structures that run from top and bottom. The party must invest in people with integrity whose main mission is to revamp the party and give it a fresh impetus. The interim officials mandated to oversee the party’s operations must ensure there is fairness and transparency because these are the hallmarks of party democracy.

However, the party must guard against putting IEBC under intense pressure as we know the key mandate of the polls body is the mechanics of the General Election.
With a considerable budget allocation, IEBC can set up an auxiliary unit to help conduct party primaries because I believe it is not only Jubilee Party that is desirous of a process that produces popular candidates.

The commission has the technical know-how and experience to guide on how the pitfalls of an electoral process can be surmounted.