Parliament in session on November 9, 2023. Local politicians, starting with Governors and even CSs are forced to abandon their offices to follow their leaders on campaign trails.
It’s only one year since the last election in August 2022 and the campaigns are in full mode. This is arrogant and deceitful of politicians whose mantra has been about working for the voters. This year’s campaigns kicked off in the first week of January with both Kenya Kwanza principals and Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) leaders traversing the country campaigning.
This means local politicians, starting with Governors and even Cabinet Secretaries are forced to abandon their offices to follow their leaders on campaign trails. The ODM one at the Coast took a week of back-to-back campaigning from Kilifi to Tana River and Mombasa counties.
If politicians are not on a campaign trail, they are on TV political panels drumming up support for their parties.
Kenyans are barely able to catch a breath between these prolonged campaigns. As elected leaders who took the oath to serve their electorates, when do they actually serve if they are constantly on the move to chase party interests and align themselves for another election that is five years away?
Out on development tours cutting tapes for building projects is just an excuse to campaign. Development projects are becoming intangible by the minute and even if anything is built, it is not done to last to serve the public but only for public relations purposes.
If politicians were truly working for the people, we won’t have a schoolgirl commuting daily in a dangerous manner over a plank of wood on a fast-flowing river to school.
Many school children, especially in rural areas still find it difficult due to poor roads and poor school infrastructure to continue learning. These are not situations that can be improved by self-serving politicians on perpetual campaign mode.
If politicians worked for Kenyans and put them in work to build the economy, they won’t find thousands of people at their rallies during a working week.
Many Kenyans are still unemployed, and the focus should be about politicians spending more time in the offices to work and find ways to build industries and generate other economic activities for Kenyans. There is no pride in sending Kenyans to other countries when there is need within to build the country.
Kenya is in a constant political mode, which keeps the country in a perpetual state of fear and anxiety.
Politicians even dominate the TV stations to whip up support for their parties daily. There seems to be more TV shows for politicians than other more intellectually engaging and entertaining programmes nowadays. I have resorted to switching off from TV programmes for politicians.
They are not debating for me or in a courteous manner half the time.
Politics should only happen in parliament and the rest of the time used to build the country. That is what politicians have been elected to do.
Most of the times, politicians are not even seen in Parliament or constituency offices because they are out campaigning or running personal errands. This is something that needs to change. A quorum in parliament is never achieved on crucial matters affecting the electorates but on the day of party politics and rubber-stamping government policies.
Our politicians do not show value for money given the few hours they put in to serve their electorates. For the big salaries they draw from the public funds, they should be available to Kenyans 24/7 a day, seven days a week. Majority serve their electorates remotely. Even rural MPs hardly every return to their constituencies after their win until the next election period. This is something that needs to change.
Once parliamentary business is finished, the focus should return to the electorates. Politicians are given funds for personal offices to meet their electorates and they should use them regularly to serve their electorates.
Most leaders only hear of problems in their constituencies through the media after all hell breaks loose. If they engaged with the electorates regularly, they would know what help is needed and have time to avert disasters such as drought, floods and famine.
Kenya is considered one of most advanced countries when it comes to use of technology. In this regard, I fail to see why politicians are not using digital technology to engage with their electorates. They could use technology to update their voters on the work they are doing for them.
If MPs have time to tick-tock and fashion parade on social media, they surely have time to use the digital space to serve Kenyans from sub-county level to the top of our political system.
Being an elected politician is being given a mandate to serve Kenyans. The best way to do that is to be there for the electorates. Everyone else contracted to work serves from 9am to 5pm and it should be the same for politicians too.
They are paid to serve the public not political parties. They must show value for the big salaries they draw every month. They are not setting a good example to other public servants by skiving work. Time for politicians to put their bottoms on the seats and work for Kenyans.
- Ms Guyo is a legal researcher, [email protected]. @kdiguyo
