Nairobi-based political and social commentator
In cowboy movies, outlaws ride into a quiet town, terrorise residents, humiliate the local sheriff, then trot into the sunset, firing into the air, crying out triumphantly, ‘Yee-haw!’ In their wake, they leave injuries and deaths. However, the outlaws will soon have their comeuppance, because a hero will ride into town to seek justice for the traumatised populace.
In Ol Kalou, locals lined up dutifully to cast their votes in a by-election. However, the peaceful procession of voters was disrupted when armed hooded men drove into town. They rode outside or on the sunroof of high-end vehicles, firing tear gas and live bullets. The staccato of automatic rifles sent crowds scuttling for safety. On a whim, the riders would disembark and assault those not fast enough to escape. Journalists were beaten and robbed of their equipment. Uniformed police stood idly by, cowed like everybody else.
Unlike in Western movies, the outlaws did not ride away at sunset. They continued terrorising residents into the night. By daybreak, there were deaths, injuries, and a traumatised town. Unlike in Western movies, there will be no hero to ride into town to seek justice for the traumatised populace.
How did a rural Kenyan town come to resemble a plot in a cowboy movie, albeit one without heroes to seek justice? The answer is Ol Kalou was caught in the middle of a struggle between rule of law and democracy on the one hand and unchecked power and greed on the other. In other words, Ol Kalou was a battleground between progressive and retrogressive forces. The forces of retrogression want to return Kenya to the period before the 2010 constitution, while the progressive forces want a country governed through constitutionalism and where leaders are held accountable.
The powers that be feared that defeat in the by-election would not only signal electoral vulnerability, but it would also inspire the rest of the country to rally around the constitution.
In the lead up to the election, the residents of Ol Kalou were inundated with bribes of money, gas, and mattresses in order to vote for the state candidate. When, on election day, it became obvious that the ruling party candidate would lose, Plan B was unleashed. Signs that bribery and violence were going to be in ascendance during elections were seen in the Mbeere North and Malava by-elections last year. The scenes in Ol Kalou confirm terror and mayhem will characterise the 2027 elections. In fact, the Kofi Annan Foundation predicts that Kenya will be plunged into violence during next year’s elections. Catholic bishops have also issued the same warning.
In Ol Kalou, the electoral commission did well in terms of mechanics and procedures of elections. But it failed to address bribery and violence before and during the poll. The body is caught in an impossible situation: How to enforce electoral laws when elements of law enforcement and the state are the outlaws.
