By Christopher Omondi
Voter registration turnout in Kisumu County has been low, just like in other parts of the country, with the youth who are supposed to be at the forefront of the initiative not showing up to be registered as voters. According to the Independent Electoral Boundaries Commission (IEBC) report, low numbers were recorded for weeks one and two of the voter registration drive nationally, with Kisumu recording 142 for week one and 732 for week two. The Kisumu Young Leaders, a movement aiming to unite young leaders within the County from across different political parties, held a public participation at the Kisumu Social Hall, engaging the public on why the youth are not turning up in large numbers to be registered with the residents expressing their views on why the initiative is not successful so far.
“The proximity to the registration centers and identity cards centers to the residents, especially in Kisumu East constituency, where one has to get to the Mamboleo showground, where voter registration is taking place from far areas like Kibos, Kasagam, and Rabuor. The same challenge is experienced by residents from Bandani, Kisian, and Otonglo in Kisumu West constituency, where they have to spend to get to the sub-county registration center in Maseno, and this makes it more difficult. There is also a mistrust in the system in terms of their vote having a real impact and the transparency of the electoral process. We also feel like the IEBC is using the same old means and is not innovative enough to come up with new ways. For example, the voter education initiative is still stuck with the old voter mobilization methods, whereas they could use the internet space to raise civic awareness. We also have a challenge of replacing lost Identity Cards (IDs), as many people can’t afford the KSHS 1050 charges for replacing the ID cards. And finally, the government also didn’t prioritize the voter registration drive as the parliament did not provide IEBC with the budget they requested.” This is by Lilian Ayoo.
However, some leaders blamed the youth for ignorance, stating that some just don’t want to take responsibility and would rather use other unconstitutional means instead of expressing their democratic rights at the ballot. “There are a lot of IDs that have not been collected from the Immigration department here at the Huduma center. We urge them to collect their IDs and register as voters. When you look at Kisumu Central, where residents are closer to the registration centers, the turnout is still low, so it’s not just about the distance, but our youth are also ignorant”, added Belinda Omondi.
