Campaign sign vandalism increasing in Bomet County

A campaign sign destruction wave has hit Bomet County in the last one month, targeting candidates who are not members of the United Democratic Alliance (UDA) party.

The latest posters to be destroyed was that of Chama Cha Mashinani (CCM) party leader Isaac Ruto, which stood prominently in Bomet town.

This comes a week after Bomet Governor Hillary Barchok pulled down a billboard in the middle of the town that carried his photograph, that of the deputy president and all the seven parliamentary candidates in the county.

On Thursday, the torn billboard carrying photographs of Deputy President William Ruto and former governor Ruto was hanging from the board, swaying side to side to the slap by the wind, and was yet to be completely pulled down or replaced by press time.

But one side that carries a photograph of Dr Ruto and CCM Bomet senatorial candidate Enock Kemei was intact.

“We are hoping that the billboard was destroyed by a whirlwind but not by rogue individuals associated with our opponents. As a party, we are conducting our campaigns peacefully and have no interest in sideshows, nor are we engaged in dirty political tactics,” said Mr Francis Tonui, the CCM National Elections Board chairman.

The incident comes a month after a campaign sign for Azimio la Umoja One Kenya presidential candidate Raila Odinga was also destroyed. It was vandalised on June 3 and replaced last week.

Ms Lilah Siele, the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) Bomet Central parliamentary candidate, claimed that four of her campaign posters had been destroyed in the area.

“It is quite interesting that the only campaign materials that have been spared are those belonging to UDA candidates while ours have been pulled down, defaced or simply torn to shreds,” said Ms Siele, a businesswoman.

Mr Evans Kiprotich Kirui, a civil engineer and independent candidate for the Bomet Central parliamentary seat, said his posters strategically erected at trading centres across the constituency had been pulled down.

“Some of the posters have vanished overnight, while others have simply been destroyed. But such sideshows will not deter me from directly engaging the electorate who have the ultimate power to decide through the ballot who their next MP will be,” Mr Kirui told the Nation at Kapkoros trading centre.

“Perhaps they expect us to go and waste time complaining to the police or the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) so they can have a head-start in the campaigns. But we will remain steadfast in our peaceful campaigns.”

It is an offence under IEBC rules for candidates, their agents or supporters to interfere with the campaigns of a competitor.

In a pointer to deeper political undercurrents as the August 9 elections approach, Governor Barchok has pulled down posters bearing his image and those of the entire seven parliamentary candidates in the county under UDA.

His huge billboard in the Bomet town centre has now been replaced with one bearing the image of DP Ruto, the UDA presidential candidate, and that of Governor Barchok, who is defending his seat.

Candidates whose photos have been dropped are Mr Hillary Sigei, the UDA Bomet Senate candidate; Ms Linet Chepkorir “Toto” (woman representative hopeful) and parliamentary candidates Mr Brighton Yegon (Konoin), Mr Paul Bii “Savimbi” (Chepalungu), Mr Francis Sigei (Sotik), Mr Richard Yegon (Bomet East) and Mr Richard Kilel (Bomet Central).

Prof Barchok, who is facing a tough tackle from Mr Ruto (CCM) and Mr Benard Mutai (Amani National Congress), made changes to his campaign branding late last week.

“It is the governor who paid for the initial billboard that was erected on a space he personally rented for a month. None of the seven candidates contributed towards it. It was just the goodwill of Prof Barchok that he brought on board the others,” said a senior officer at the governor’s office, who requested anonymity.

The officer added: “When the contract was renewed for another one month, the governor and his team deemed it fit to change the face and have one of Dr Ruto and himself.”

Prof Barchok has lately been campaigning with his deputy and running mate Mr Shadrack Rotich, as opposed to a few weeks ago when he went round with the UDA parliamentary and ward rep candidates.

This comes as parliamentary aspirants who lost in the UDA primaries in the county insisted they would only root for Dr Ruto for President and leave party candidates for other positions to conduct their own campaigns.

Mr Lucas Ngeno, who lost in Sotik constituency alongside Mr Daniel Terer in the UDA primaries to Mr Sigei, recently led other losers in pouring cold water on attempts to root for an all-party (UDA) affair in the General Election.

“We wish to categorically state that we will hit the ground running to campaign for Dr Ruto, who is the UDA presidential candidate, but will let our supporters choose the candidates for the other positions. We do not want to impose leaders on our supporters,” said Mr Ngeno.

Mr Terer said: “We lost because some people interfered with the nomination process in favour of some candidates. Let them campaign on their own, we will only pitch for Dr Ruto … the other candidates are on their own.”

They said the winners in UDA primaries should go out and convince voters on their own and should not expect a transfer of goodwill and support from the ones who lost or were rigged out.

Matters were complicated by the fact that CCM and ANC, which Mr Ruto and Mr Mutai, respectively, are running on, are in the Kenya Kwanza coalition, making it difficult to campaign against them as they are supporting Dr Ruto for the presidency.

Mr Ruto wants to recapture the seat he lost in the 2017 to the late Dr Joyce Laboso, who succumbed to cancer complications on July, 29, 2019 at Nairobi Hospital.

Prof Barchok, who was her deputy, was elevated to the position of governor as required by the Constitution and was sworn into office on August 8, 2019. He then picked the county assembly Speaker at the time, Mr Rotich, as his deputy.

Mr Mutai, a former Bomet County Jubilee Party chairman, is a businessman turned politician who declared his candidacy two weeks before the IEBC cleared candidates for the elections.

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