Gen Z in Kenya: Register to Vote but Avoid Voting for Kalonzo, Ruto or Raila

Gen Z in Kenya: Register to Vote but Avoid Voting for Kalonzo, Ruto or Raila
Kenya's Gen Zs during protests. (Photo: AR)

We are still far from the General Elections, yet political leaders, most prominently Wiper Party leader Kalonzo Musyoka, are already urging Gen Z to register as voters. For heaven’s sake, the IEBC isn’t even properly constituted!

But Kalonzo is a good man. He’s doing this because he’s been left out of President William Ruto’s government, so he isn’t among the “eaters.” Previously one of Azimio’s key figures—at least in the public eye, more so than former Mombasa Governor Ali Hassan Joho, ex-ODM Deputy Party Leader Wycliffe Oparanya, and John Mbadi—he did not receive a ministerial position when others were given Cabinet Secretary roles after the dissolution, which followed Gen Z protests.

Why wasn’t Kalonzo Musyoka appointed, especially considering he has been ODM leader Raila Odinga’s running mate multiple times, and Raila is now central in the government? Perhaps it’s because Kalonzo is a clean, honest man. Some say Raila is a person of deals, a power broker, and, as outspoken Busia Senator Okiya Omtatah Okoiti put it, a “political prostitute.”

> Raila’s Petrol Station Chain Expanding Across Kenya

Kalonzo might indeed be clean and honest, which makes him not fit Ruto’s type.To be honest, hii ni system ya majambazi. Look, you can’t explain why Ababu Namwamba was removed from the Sports docket and replaced by Kipchumba Murkomen.

Ababu had a proven track record. He is a diligent worker, which is why he quickly landed a job as the President of the Africa-China Legal Alliance, a partnership formed between his law firm, Ababu Namwamba Attorneys-at-Law, and the Chinese Jingsh Law Firm. They know his work ethic. As Sports Cabinet Secretary, he facilitated Harambee Stars’ participation in the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualification, enabled Kenya’s Junior Starlets to compete in the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup 2024 in the Dominican Republic, and elevated secondary school sports for talents like Aldrine Kibet to be spotted. That’s just to name a few.

You see, the Sports Ministry has a lot of funding, which likely explains Murkomen’s new role. Remember when athletes would qualify for international championships only to get stranded at airports? Where was the funding going? What did Ababu change? Why is the former Elgeyo Marakwet representative now in charge? Common sense tells us that this could signal the decline of our sports and field talents from now on.

Generally speaking, former Garissa Township Member of Parliament Aden Duale, Kipchumba Murkomen and Kithure Kindiki are President Ruto’s most trusted allies. That is why they were retained as Cabinet Secretaries after the dissolution.

Duale, who was the Defense CS—a powerful role central to the President’s security—was reassigned as the Forestry CS. Strangely, just a few months into his term, the government lifted the six-year logging ban, with the President assuring the public that “logging licenses will no longer be issued in an opaque manner.”

Kithure Kindiki, the “deep state” himself and a longtime friend of the President, was reappointed as Interior CS before his eventual appointment as Deputy President. At his inauguration, he said his story proves that “anyone can aspire and become something.” As Interior CS, he controlled the police, so it can be said that, if it was true, he was part of the team that orchestrated efforts to have Gachagua removed by allegedly bugging the ousted DP’s room in Kisumu, the aftermath of a leaked audio recording revealing disparaging comments about his boss, ultimately leading to his impeachment. Quite the aspiration! Anyway, don’t kill the messenger.

Now, Gachagua has joined forces with Kalonzo, urging Gen Zs to register and vote. But I believe Gen Zs should avoid voting for the Wiper Party leader, Raila, or Ruto in 2027. These are the same faces, and the same patterns will likely repeat.

If we truly want change, let’s bring new faces into the game. Let’s vote for candidates like Morara Kebaso. If any constitutional change is needed, it’s not about term limits but reducing the presidential age limit from 35 to 30. We need fresh perspectives. We’re tired of political conmanship.

Yes, the prices of goods have come down, but where is the money? It is the economy, the economy, the economy.

> Why What Former Deputy President Gachagua Is Saying Is True

Picture of JUSTUS KIPRONO
JUSTUS KIPRONO
Justus Kiprono is a freelance journalist based in Nairobi, Kenya. He tracks Capital Markets and economic trends, infrastructure reform, government spending, and the financial impacts of state decision-making nationwide. You can reach him: [email protected]

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Related Articles

Social Health Authority (SHA) acting CEO Elijah Wachira has been sent on compulsory leave for 90 days. According to the suspension letter

The Teachers Service Commission (TSC) has announced 5,690 job vacancies for senior teachers, open and available for immediate hiring, with applications closing

Baloobhai Patel, a reclusive billionaire who made his fortune trading equities, has taken a Ksh216.5 million stake in Co-operative Bank of Kenya

With mobile phone penetration increasing at an unprecedented rate and internet connectivity expanding to even the most remote areas, Africa has become