The hand that smoothed Prof Phylis Bartoo’s way into Parliament

Serving as dean of the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences at Egerton University, Prof Phylis Bartoo never thought her actions of helping students would define her political life.

She helped scores of students and transformed their lives. “I sponsored many needy students to complete their university education and then linked them to the job market. I also provided students from far-flung areas with shelter in my home,” she says.

What she did not know was that stories about her helping hand and good deeds were reaching the ears of people in her constituency. Many were speaking well of her. In the process, they became her ambassadors and would later prove vital to her political success.

Moiben residents felt she would do greater things for them if she represented them in Parliament. They reached out and requested her to vie. She accepted.

Although she had previously helped women candidates craft their own political strategies, she feared going into politics herself. “I did not know how to manage failure. I was also wary of the propaganda, which targeted women seeking elective politics.”

But by 2021, the demand for her leadership was so strong that she had to put this fear behind her. In February 2022, she resigned from the university and plunged into politics. “It was my first stab at elective politics. I had just come from academia and, unlike my opponents, did not have enormous resources to wield a massive campaign.”

Her first headache was to find a political party to use. She settled on the United Democratic Alliance (UDA), going by its popularity in the constituency. She won the party nomination, but the win was short-lived. The party instead pronounced another winner. Her supporters refused to accept the decision, sending shockwaves in the UDA establishment.

“My supporters did not accept that decision. They staged protests in the constituency and demanded that I be given the certificate as I had won. The party listened to us and gave us a go-ahead to conduct a repeat nomination.”

This time around, she took a decisive lead and became the UDA candidate. Immediately she was announced the winner, her former students and fellow lecturers hit the campaign to popularise her candidature. The seat had attracted 11 candidates. She trounced them, garnering 40,892 votes.

“I am grateful to my family who supported me financially and my friends who contributed to my campaign kitty.”

She says the media coverage she received was a major boost for her candidature as it portrayed her positively as a reliable, honest, and empathetic leader.

Strategies

In addition to these approaches, Prof Bartoo had to apply other strategies to win, given her first time in politics. She used songs to communicate her development agenda and vision for her community. One of the songs was done by one of her supporters and was played by local radio stations.

“The song became very captivating and popular with the community to an extent that children were singing it. This song helped to pass messages about me, about why people should vote for me, about my agenda, and that women are better leaders.”

To reach as many people as possible, she attended public forums such as harambees, funerals and weddings that had ready audiences. “I crafted different messages to speak to both the rural and urban populations of my constituency. I made sure all the messages embraced diversity and were inclusive.”

Watch: Stop funding private universities, Moiben MP Prof Phyllis Bartoo tells govt

For the homogeneous rural population, she made it clear that she was a UDA candidate and if they voted her in, she would spearhead implementation of the UDA agenda. For the urban and cosmopolitan population, she had messages of diversity and inclusiveness.

Her academic credentials, powerful slogan “Mama na Kazi”, work with women and youth volunteers, visibility through use of posters, and active WhatsApp and Facebook platforms popularised her agenda and combined to give her a competitive edge.

Still, there were times she felt down. Supporters of her competitors would hurl abuses at her, pull down her posters, and distribute leaflets containing propaganda maligning her. Some of her competitors even spread malicious rumours about her. She remained undeterred.

Lessons learnt

In hindsight, Prof Bartoo says one of the greatest challenges women political aspirants face is being denied party tickets even when they have won. “Most party officials use delaying tactics to favour male candidates and discourage female aspirants.”

To overcome such mischief, she has learnt that in politics, a person has to be very alert and always remember that “power is not given, you have to wrest it, you have to be there for yourself.”

While power is up for grabs, nobody will give it to you, it will be taken by those who are strong. She also feels women politicians need to make themselves stand out by running decent campaigns.

They should also not delegate too much of their work or plans. “If you delegate too much, somebody will misrepresent you and the damage cannot be undone. Always strive to drive your agenda.”

Prof Bartoo believes for women to have an upper hand in political contests, they need inspirational talks, mentorship, and enhanced capacity. “Tell them it is possible, it is doable and support them, talk to them, listen to them, hold their hands and encourage them to take up positions at different levels in the community.”

To her, there is a need for women to take up leadership positions to have their voices heard in policies and decision-making processes. “People are warming up to women leadership, people believe that their resources are safer in the hands of women and, therefore, women need to challenge themselves to take up leadership positions.”

This story has been published in partnership with African Woman and Child Feature Service (AWC).