This archive report was first published on 22 September 2021.
As the 2022 General Election approaches, leaders in Nyanza and Western regions are intensifying efforts to ensure residents register as voters and cast their ballots. The push for mass voter registration is led by Kisii Governor James Ongwa, who emphasized the importance of participating in the electoral process.
“We need to stop loitering around during the voting day. This is our time to clinch the top seat,” Governor Ongwa said during a development tour of Kisii and Nyamira counties.
Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang'i also urged residents to register as voters in large numbers, while Siaya Governor Cornel Rasanga promised to reward new voters with a bag of flour. East African Legislative Assembly MP Oburu Odinga and Ugunja MP Opiyo Wandayi emphasized the need to focus on ID and voter registration ahead of the elections.
“We have to enlist as voters in large numbers. We also have to encourage people to register for identification cards. They are the shield that we will go to elections with,” said Oburu.
Amani National Congress leader Musalia Mudavadi has been leading the voter registration drive in western Kenya, while Devolution Cabinet Secretary Eugene Wamalwa and former UNCTAD Secretary General Mukhisa Kituyi have also been pushing for the government to ease registration for National Identity cards.
Dr. Kituyi appealed to youths to take active roles in shaping the country's politics through the ballot in 2022, saying, “No country can change its political history without involving the youth. Younger people must come out to be players and not spectators in the national liberation of our country. I did it at their age as a university student.”
Bungoma Senator Moses Wetang'ula emphasized the region's quest to produce a president will depend on the number of registered voters, while Central Organization of Trade Unions Secretary General Francis Atwoli promised to support MPs and MCAs who ensure residents register in large numbers.
“The top 10 MPs and 20 MCAs who manage to register 100 per cent new voters in the areas they represent will be supported by the committee,” Atwoli said.
