Before you cast that vote, just think about yourself

Labour Party leader Ababu Namwamba addresses a crowd during a Jubilee Party rally in Murang'a on June 8, 2017. Come August, many upstarts will unexpectedly be thrust into positions of leadership. PHOTO | GRACE GITAU | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • Politicians have brushed up on their messaging in order to entice undecided voters in their constituencies.
  • While we extol the virtues of selflessness and caring for the welfare of our neighbours.

Election campaigns are now fully under way ahead of the General Election and, as usual, our political class is seeking to make it an emergency for all of us.

It is totally understandable why the aspirants for the various positions are anxious given this is the first election that will be fully organised under the new constitution.

The voter now has a relatively clear idea about the role of each elective post, and has a benchmark against which to measure all aspirants.

CAMPAIGN MONEY

Many incumbents will fall come August, and many upstarts will unexpectedly be thrust into positions of leadership.

Politicians have brushed up on their messaging in order to entice undecided voters in their constituencies, with some going as far as peddling propaganda to paint their opponents negatively.

Lots of money has been and will be spent as everyone puts their best foot forward in the hope of achieving goals that many of them have nursed for a long time.

INFORMED CHOICES

All this investment turns on you, the voter, getting convinced that voting for a particular candidate is the best thing you can ever do.

The entire effort is meant to put the politician at the center of all discourse, from the dinner table to the workplace. And therein lies the problem.

For a long time we have allowed ourselves to be used by politicians to achieve their selfish ends after being cheated that the politicians’ interests intersect with our own.

We have been blinded to the fact that elections are actually recruitment exercises in which we hand out five-year contracts to fellows with very specific job descriptions.

FAILED LEADERSHIP

We have been made to believe in elections we get to select monarchs and emperors to lord it over us for five years, after which we are obliged to do the best we can to renew their terms. This must now stop.

While we extol the virtues of selflessness and caring for the welfare of our neighbours, it is my considered view that these virtues do not apply to electoral processes.

Being selfless and worrying about the person your neighbour wants you to vote for is actually a recipe for the kind of failed leadership we have become accustomed to.

VIOLENCE

It breeds the kind of boorish behaviour whereby some politicians and their supporters threaten their neighbours with dire consequences should they vote differently.

On August 8, it is necessary that every Kenyan pauses for a moment and considers the available options from a purely selfish perspective.

We need to ask ourselves several very personal questions as we consider our choices for all elective positions.

First, what personal benefit do you stand to gain should you elect this candidate?

SECURE FUTURE

Will you have more food at the table for the same amount of money?

Will you get better health care? Will you be safer when the candidate is in charge?

Will your children have access to quality education that builds their character as well as equipping them to effectively participate in the modern economy?

Will you get good jobs, or access markets for your products without unnecessary bottlenecks?

Second, which of the candidates would you trust your loved ones with should you have to choose?

CONVICT

Would you trust them with the serial liar or sociopath promising you heaven today?

Would you trust them with that convicted felon who is only on the ballot because the courts have ruled that even felons have a right to vie?

Would you trust your loved ones with the misogynist who insults the women in your life and glorifies gender-based violence?

Would you trust them with the fellow who, without batting an eyelid, orders his supporters to butcher anyone supporting his opponent?

VIRTUES
Finally, which of the candidates do you feel closest to or has traits you admire?

Which of them has behaviours closest to those you think are ideal for a leader in that position?

Pushed to its logical conclusion, which of the candidates would you want as your offspring’s role model?

Go on and be selfish this once, so that we can finally get to see the leadership we deserve!

Atwoli is Associate Professor and Dean, Moi University School of Medicine [email protected]