Stop taking voters for fools

There is an expression in sheng which I have become rather fond of: Acha kutubeba ufala. By now, the pithy phrase, meaning “stop taking us for fools”, may have metamorphosed into another – with the meaning remaining quite the same – but I wouldn’t know. I’m old school on this lingo, but not too old to know that politicians have been practising this art from time immemorial, and they will continue doing so as long as their fibs are swallowed with relish. In that sense, we voters are really to blame, for politicians have little choice but to lie for survival.

Things become extreme at times like this when the election fever is upon us. Politicians seeking votes dole out propaganda, alternative truths and optical illusions to the electorate in generous doses, and once elected, they set out to break every one of the pledges they made while campaigning. But, of course, this is not peculiar to Kenya; it is as universal a gimmick as they come, and also as old as time itself. But if voters know these things, why do they subject themselves to such treatment every election cycle? Are they gluttons for punishment?

Unfathomable despair

But maybe I am being too generous; not all voters know they are being deceived and not all of them really care. The reason many politicians get away with so many shenanigans is mainly that the majority of voters are either ignorant, susceptible to propaganda, or because their lives are so miserable that anyone promising change appears to be a Messiah. That is why you hear some argue that so and so may be a thief but if he has not stolen anything from you, leave him alone for he is our thief. Such cynicism can only come from unfathomable despair.

There are many ways in which voters are taken for a ride by politicians. A good example is the illusion of numbers. Before the digital explosion, the main platform to prove your popularity with the masses was the newspaper. If the front-page coverage of a campaign rally showed a multitude filling a whole stadium, then everyone “knew” the particular party had won long before election day.

 But then any competent sub-editor could always crop such a picture in a way to show the numbers. When this matter of fairness persisted, newspaper editors started filling the front page with huge photographs of competing campaign rallies. This, obviously, ended up crowding out the news.

This solution could not be sustainable and the photographs were pushed inside, leaving the front-page for the real news-makers. Today, editors do not have to worry about such things for other actors have taken over on social media.

Incorporate crowds

The digitally manipulated picture has become king and photoshop skills have so improved you can even incorporate crowds from other countries into your picture so long as your party colours are dominant. The most important thing is to show that your party is so popular, none other can beat it.

On the same issue of crowds, politicians have devised another way of cheating voters – the paid cheerleaders imported from elsewhere. On this one, I have first-hand experience. I happened to drive to Gatundu town last week when I beheld an unusual sight– almost 40 buses parked on the roadside. Deputy President William Ruto was expected and the buses had been hired to ferry mobs from the populous Githurai suburb and Ruiru town. Each was being paid Sh3,000 to cheer or boo on cue.

To be fair, the importation of crowds for campaign rallies is not restricted to one party; apparently every politician with any sense does it. If, for instance, the crowd in that rally had not been boosted by almost 2,000 “supporters”, it is doubtful how many Gatundu businesspeople would have closed shop to go cheer. In fact, they were disgusted that few of the outsiders ever stopped to buy. The same thing applies to the Azimio crowds that are hired to throng its meetings. But then, this is an easy job for hustlers, however temporary.

Terribly offensive

I will leave the most important for the last. The use of overt religiosity and attempts to use faith for propaganda purposes is terribly offensive to those who believe that an individual’s relationship with God is a private matter. Recently, there was a concerted effort to paint Azimio’s running mate Martha Karua as an atheist. No efforts whatsoever were made to prove it; the idea was to sway voters’ opinion of her character, thereby disparaging her credentials. It didn’t work.

What is distressing is that we have a history of leaders who never missed church on Sunday, but from Friday to Saturday devised curious ways of showing their love for humanity by throwing critics into the dungeons while looting the country dry. At present we have people whose overt piety is unquestionable but whose past raises questions. Churches throughout the country are populated by hypocrites, thieves, killers, adulterers and gluttons. Who are we to condemn someone for his or her faith, or lack thereof?

Incidentally, Kenya is a secular state, not a theocracy. Acha kutubeba ufala.

Mr Ngwiri is a consultant editor; [email protected].