COUNTY POLITICS: Young Bomet aspirants fire up campaigns

A 28-year-old Jubilee aspirant for Sotik Constituency has set tongues wagging by her ‘unorthodox” way of campaigning for the seat.

Unlike your typical politician, who would most of the time make a grand entry to political meetings, using flashy branded cars, for Ms Vicky-Betty Chepkorir, the situation is different.

The aspirant mainly relies on motorbikes, hikes lifts from well-wishers and most of the time, walks, as she campaigns in the vast Constituency in Bomet County.

For this, she has earned herself the nicknamed “Chepikipiki” - Kalenjin word coined to loosely mean boda boda user.

Chepkorir does this not because she likes it, but because she cannot afford to hire a vehicle for use in her political campaigns.

RESILIENCE AND PASSION

It is a classic case of resilience and passion for Chepkorir, who is competing with five other aspirants to replace the National Assembly Deputy Speaker Joyce Laboso, who has set her sights on the region’s gubernatorial seat.

They include Bomet Women Representative Cecilia Ngetich, Mr Francis Sigei, former ambassador for Nigeria and Provincial Commissioner for Nairobi, Kimetto Junior, son of former MP Sotet Kimetto, Accountant Kibet Koskei and businessman, Paul Mutai, all people of means.

“If elected, my priority is to push for the betterment of education standards in the country. Then issues of poverty alleviation, promoting talents and sports and entrepreneurship to close the unemployment gap,” she said.

She has come to love and accept the name ‘chepikipiki’, which is now part of her brand.

At times, the environmentalist covers more than 200 kilometres a day moving from one venue to another, undertaking door-to-door campaigns using motorbikes.

DEVELOPMENT AGENDA

“Crowds get really perplexed whenever they see me alight from the bodaboda and walk to the dais. But as soon as I state my development agenda for the constituency, they applaud me,” she says.

“I have earned their respect from my well-thought-out agenda and not out of opulence,” she told the Nation on phone.

She goes on to explain her predicament when in one day, she had to attend 10 different meetings across five wards in the constituency.

One was a strategy meeting at Kapkures, a parents’ meeting at Elite Academy, a fundraiser at Oldabesi, an opinion leaders’ meeting at Sisei Primary and other engagements at Kipsonoi and Ndanai wards.

“It can be overwhelming to manage the distance with no personal means, especially during the rainy season. But I took all this in my stride and attended all those meetings,” she adds.

HEAVY BREAKFAST

On a typical day, Ms Chepkorir wakes up early – at around 5 am – prepares for the day ahead including taking a heavy breakfast, just in case she will not have adequate time to have another meal during the day.
She then summons a boda boda rider who transports her to her various campaign meetings.

To avoid accumulating waiting charges, she releases the rider and picks another to the next venue once she concludes her business.

“At first, people thought I was joking. They found it laughable. But after listening to my speeches, they changed their attitude and respected my ambition. I have traversed the region and given them my agenda in line with improving education, agriculture, health,” she adds.

Chepkorir is a typical example of the crop of young, creative and unrelenting minds, that would go any lengths to prove that winning elections is not a matter of wealth.

Also going against the odds is Ms Stacey Chepkemoi, 27, seeking the Bomet senatorial seat and Mr Josiah Metto, 28, also eyeing the same position but in Uasin Gishu.

JUBILEE TICKET

Both are seeking the Jubilee ticket.

In Kericho, Ms Vicky-Bati Chepkorir, 30, is eyeing the Woman Representative position on a Kanu ticket, Mr Kipkirui Mutai, (Bureti MP, Jubilee) among others.

All these ambitious youngsters are products of the radical university student leadership, with others later venturing into social justice activism.

One would wonder why a penniless youth would take the trouble to join the murky world of politics despite not being funded.

And is passion and sound policies enough to sustain voter loyalty and support to a “broke” aspirant?

Learning from the history of Kenyan politics, the answer is discouraging, considering the culture of handouts that is deemed to sway voters’ loyalty to opulent politicians.

HOUSEHOLD NAME
But Ms Chepkemoi, a former youth leader in Bomet County disagrees.

She says as much as becoming a household name in politics was not easy, the stakes have risen and so has her optimism.

“The issue of handouts had been a problem, but not anymore because I have interacted with people and they understand that I do not have money to dish out. I have a sound agenda,” she says.

“Many people have offered to support me by printing campaign posters for free and so on.”

It is estimated that an MP, for instance, spends about Sh20 million to put up a campaign, an amount that remains a dream for many young aspirants.

POLITICAL AMBITIONS

Many others like Samoei Bii of Bomet have shelved their political ambitions despite believing that they could make good leaders. This is largely due to lack of enough finances to drive the costly campaigns as has been the tradition in the country’s politics.

Whereas it is the mandate of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) to regulate the amount of money used for campaigns by politicians, it remains a hard nut to crack considering that it would be difficult to quantify the amount individuals spend on the campaign trail, without proper evidence.

“Regulating campaign money is the elephant in the room. Aspirants do not divulge their expenditures and it is also difficult to quantify. But we are doing our best to ensure that we undertake our mandate,” Mr Yonah Ogallo, the IEBC regional official, said.

Just like, Chepkorir, the ‘broke’ aspirants have devised interesting and cost-friendly ways of catching the eyes of the electorate, including printing their portraits and manifestos on matchboxes,  using trendy names to be recognised and stuffing their flyers on household goods like sugar in shops as Mr Mutai does.

ATTRACT SYMPATHY

The farmer in Bureti believes he will attract the sympathy of a common mwananchi by doing that.

“I cannot compare with the heavyweights. But the electorate should understand that the reason why they suffer is because there is a big gap between the rich and the poor,” says Mr Mutai.

“I tell the electorate the truth, that I do not have handouts to give, but I have the skills and heart to serve them.”

It is not all gloom for the ambitious leaders as Rift Valley is known to support women and youth to climb the political ladder.

Bomet East MP Bernard Bett is one of those who literally relied on well-wishers to finance his campaign in the 2013 General Election and made it, trouncing Ms Beatrice Kones, the then incumbent who many thought would win.