What I learnt as an IEBC voter clerk
By MUSYOKA NGUI
One year ago today I was
a Voter Registration Assistant with the Independent Electoral and Boundaries
Commission (IEBC).
It was my gap job which led me to other
opportunities elsewhere. During that time, as a Voter Registration Assistant,
one had to work with colleagues to list voters in social places. I was based in Kathuri, a tiny town in Mwingi
North that teemed with Kambas and Somalis herding cattle and camel and school children
chasing their dreams in government facilities.
It was a chance for retrospect as I when dusk
fell there was no electricity to charge phones and mobile network was one bar
that was shaky and only available in known “hotspots”.
Staying alone and sleeping on the floor with foolscap
of a mattress was a most humbling experience.
At the work station, we registered many
people. The youths gave us a wide berth as if they did not know what we were
doing. We went to secondary schools with
students older than me but their teachers chased us away saying their pupils
were “underage” and thus we were wasting time.
We camped at gates of markets, schools and
road junctions waiting for passersby we had no date with.
Sensing we might fall below the targets we
even got the backing of the National Registration Bureau and the
County Government of Kitui who sensitized the voters that it was in their own
interest to participate in the civic duty.
Overall, the 30 days were each different. From
the headmaster who recharged our batteries when our own fell flat to the
canteen owner who gave us a shade, all these people facilitated our stay in
their jurisdictions. We thanked them for that.
The deciding constituency in my area was not
the smartphone touting teens or the college students on holiday idling around. Neither
was they recent grads. The network of elderly women and men, especially women,
are the game changers in any election in the North. They are loyal to a fault. They
register and turn out to vote.
LIKES AND EMOJIS
The indelible ink on their finger has mighty power
that the ranting social media addicts cannot muster even after trending useless
garbage. That is why Facebook governors, presidents and whatnot will fail on
August 8 by 8 am.
The ballot box is not won by likes and
emojis. It is won by votes cast after registering as a voter.
Dear 2017 VRAs, you will trek. Like us, the
police post will demand a bribe for keeping your BVR. You will oblige once and
next day you will sleep with the BVR in your room after the police say no bribe no
BRV custody-as if they are not paid by tax payers to guard public property.
Party loyalists will accuse you of favoring
some areas and non-disclosure of the turn out as if they were the local
Registration Officer. They will call the politician and tell him that you have
hidden the BVR under your bed.
But remain focused in your work. Don’t politick
like them. During the 30 days, they will curtail your opinion and gag you
openly. Others hoodwink you to side with this or that. Your job is clear,
register voters and do so efficiently.
Like us, you will idle at the station. We used
to play all games we know until we get bored again. You will take turns until
it becomes a routine. Lastly, strike a deal with your boda boda rider to be dropping and picking you to be punctual in
your work. There is no better job than serving your country, especially the
lowest in the social ladder. They respect you and are proud that this time
change is coming, not by the bullet but by the ballot. Good luck and remember to
buy something with the stipend. A chicken, a goat or sheep and call it IEBC. Hahaa…!
Best part, you will know
new places and people.
PS: Back then, the recruitment was
quite open but this year there were a lot of murmurs and discontent from former
candidates, veterans and aspiring ones. Dear reader hit me up.
