Whenever it is a two-horse race, Kenyan political parlance describes the other candidates in an election contest as ‘donkeys’.
In the smallest presidential election field since the return of the multi-party system, the only two outsiders in the race deserve credit for successfully navigating rigorous nomination requirements that saw the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) knock out more than 50 other applicants.
Prof George Wajackoya of the Roots Party and Mr David Mwaure Waihiga of the Agano Party are not expected to make much of dent in the vote that will be dominated by the top dogs—Deputy President William Ruto, carrying the Kenya Kwanza alliance banner and his chief rival, former Prime Minister Raila Odinga, the Azimio la Umoja-One Kenya flagbearer.
All recent opinion polls, even those before conclusion of the nominations, which whittled the field down to four, indicate the “alternative candidates” getting less than one per cent of the vote.
Polls also do not show a third-force candidate emerging with potential to secure enough minority votes to make an impact on the presidential race by taking enough votes from one of the strong candidates to hand victory to the other; or clawing away enough to deny the leading candidate the 50 per cent threshold and thus forcing a run-off, and being in a position to trade his support base.
However, in a situation where Dr Ruto and Mr Odinga in a virtual dead-heat share almost equally some 80 per cent of the vote, a large undecided pool of 20 per cent of the voters will make the difference.
Some will eventually lean to either of the two main candidates, but having so many undecideds less than two months to the polls indicates a large degree of voter apathy, and a ‘none of the above’ mindset.
That makes quite high the likelihood of a substantial protest vote, and that’s where Mr Wajackoyah and Mr Waihiga must stand to benefit, and tilt the race.
But as of now, it is difficult to see where specifically they could pick up votes. Both say they want to bring alternative leadership away from the current crop whom they accuse of failing to deliver.
Mr Waihigia, who has been the invisible candidate, is the unknown quantity. Unlike the controversial Wajackoyah, who has been in the news for some time now, especially after he declared his intentions to succeed President Uhuru Kenyatta, Mr Waihiga said that if elected, he will make changes that will leave the country much better than it is. Both candidates have also nominated women as their running mates, a move that could be significant in helping them win some votes from the women voting bloc.
Prof Wajackoya has nominated Ms Justina Wangui Wamae, a 35-year-old businesswoman in the construction industry, while Mr Waihiga has Ms Ruth Mucheru Mutua. The Agano party leader said his desire to run for the presidency was due to his being tired of seeing the same faces contest in every election.
“I am running for the position of president because just like many Kenyans, I am angry because of the way we have handled this nation. I am angry at corruption, the high cost of living, scandals, hunger and the same kind of leaders who just keep on recycling themselves,” Mr Waihiga told Sunday Nation .
He said he is the new broom needed in the country. “I am also angry at the fact that even the public debt, which we keep talking about, is something that has largely been contributed to by most of my competitor.”
Mr Waihiga is a lawyer and has vied in previous elections for MP, senator and governor. He also tried to contest the presidency in 2013 but opted out and instead vied for governor in Lamu, where he has been practising law.
His most recent attempt at an elective post was in January 2021 when he got a greenlight from the Agano Party to contest the Nairobi governorship.
This was after the impeachment of Mike Sonko. No election was, however, held. He had in 2011 thrown his hat in the Kamukunji MP ring after the High Court nullified Simon Mbugua’s win. He was unsuccessful.
Mr Waihiga, an advocate of more than 35 years of practice, is a graduate of the University of Nairobi. He also has a master’s in leadership from the International Leadership University and is currently pursuing a PhD.
“I am a strongly committed born-again Christian and evangelical who is also an ordained minister, a reverend and an apostle. I also have many other academic and professional achievements,” he said.
He said that if elected, he would like to be remembered as president who slew the dragon of corruption, bureaucracy, maladministration and ethnicism completely from Kenya. He has also promised to recover all stolen wealth in scandals and endemic corruption.
Prof Wajackoyah, on the other hand, has promised what he said is a 12-point agenda that seeks to, among other things, make radical changes in education and healthcare sectors and improve the working conditions of the police.
The immigration lawyer has also promised to legalise the growing of marijuana for industrial and heritage purposes, serve as the immigration minister, as well as appoint a person of Asian ancestry to the Trade ministry.
He has also vowed to revive local industries to promote indigenous agricultural products like coconut on the Coast, and mukombero in Western, and promote tourism. “The corrupt will face a firing squad, for at least the first two years to tame the appetite for corruption...Look at the security forces in this country. The police are the most deprived of human beings. It is planned for them. They're not asked to consent to what is being planned for them,” Prof Wajackoya told Sunday Nation.
Prof Wajackoya is a graduate of the University of Wolverhampton in the United Kingdom where he studied law. He also has master’s in law from the University of London, the University of Warwick and the University of Baltimore, advanced diploma in French from the University of Burundi, among other certificates and academic qualifications. He was born in Matungu, Kakamega County. He said his campaigns will be funded by his supporters and from his own sources of income.
