KAIKAI’S KICKER: Dear Gen Z, get registered to vote!

On my kicker tonight, I have a message for every young Kenyan above the age of 18 and particularly the Gen-Z: here is my message, get out on Monday and get registered as voters.

The IEBC has just announced that the continuous registration of voters will resume on Monday, the 29th of this month. This is a very important window for every Kenyan of age that is yet to put their names on the list of voters.

To the Gen Z specifically, this is your opportunity to acquire the most powerful weapon in the whole democratic world: a voter’s card. Alongside the national identity card and even a Kenyan passport, a voter’s card constitutes the most consequential possession of any citizen. A voter’s card is the one true equaliser; it has exactly the same value for each citizen regardless of their status in society. A voter’s card carries the same weighty value in the hands of a poor man as it does in the hands of the wealthy. An 18-year-old and a 89-year-old are equals when it comes to the voter’s card. The president and the peasant become peers when holding their respective voter cards.

So, to the Gen Z that so proudly carried Kenyan flags at the peaceful beginning of protests on June 18, last year, here comes your moment. If you are 18 years and above, don’t let this moment pass. A voter’s card is the most lethal peacetime weapon any civilian can possess in a democracy or an aspiring democracy like Kenya.

Let me tell you a little story. On election day in December 2002, I was on duty as a reporter covering the opening of polls in Nairobi’s Eastlands. I was in Kayole at 5 a.m. when the polls were opening, and I remember the queue that stretched for more than a kilometre that early. The air was pregnant with expectation, and the mood in polling stations was almost festive. I believe the reason was that Kenya was having its first-ever mandatory transfer of power election. President Daniel arap Moi, who had ruled for 24 years, was not eligible to run, so the election, whichever way it went, was the first ever “change election.”

I remember interviewing a male voter who was shedding tears after casting his vote. I asked him how he felt that morning. Amid bursts of tears and emotion, he responded in Kiswahili and told me, “Nimefuta mtu kazi!” meaning, “I have fired somebody.” The man was not in an emotional state to sustain a conversation any further, but I understood him. I knew what he meant and I could tell how he voted and therefore who he fired. The overwhelmed man walked away mumbling audibly for all to hear, “Nimefuta mtu kazi!”

I will always remember that man as a perfect illustration of the power of the vote. That can be you in August 2027. All electoral positions from the president to the Member of County Assembly (MCA) are up for appraisal. With a voter’s card, you can hire and you can fire any of the leaders in any of the six positions that will be on the ballot. The voter’s card is power — political power — and voting is the only time tables turn, when power belongs to the voter that very moment. Whether it is the cost of living or corruption, health or education, jobs or housing, the voter’s card allows you to have your say at the ballot box. So, to every young Kenyan out there, go out in numbers for that magical card.

Something else I need to tell you about the 2002 election — it was the last credible election, and indeed the only credible election ever held in Kenya. And you know what made it credible? The overwhelming will, voice, and power of the voter. I remember the system-defying and rigging-bursting atmosphere, and I remember it was powered by a very small card in the wallet — the voter’s card.

So, beginning Monday, get out and get the IEBC to list you up as a voter. Are you above 18? Are you Gen Z? This message is for you.