Wednesday, January 9, 2008

Aftermath of the 2007 general elections

Following the general elections held on December 27th 2007, I hereby wish to thank Kileleshwa voters and indeed all Kenyans for coming out in big numbers to make their will known through the ballot. However, 2008 started tragically for many Kenyans following the announcement of the disputed presidential elections.

My heartfelt condolences to all the families that have lost their kin through the senseless violence that has gripped our nation over the last two weeks. I’m praying for a speedy resolution to this unprecedented conflict.

The Kileleshwa civic elections were highly influenced by what was happening at the national level. The "three-piece" voting style that I’ve talked about previously in this blog, took centre stage yet again. I managed a commendable 4th place behind the three major parties ODM, PNU and ODM-K respectively. This was from a field of 10 candidates at the civic level.

The tragedy of voting three-piece

My campaign experience has clearly shown me that the tragedy of our civic elections can rightly be attributed to the 3-piece voting pattern adopted by an overwhelming majority of voters across Nairobi. Quite a number of people I’ve talked to over the last few days in Nairobi have no idea whom they voted for at civic level.

They simply voted for the Council candidate who was in the same party with their favourite presidential candidate. It was a really uphill battle for candidates like myself who had no presidential candidate in the party!

Nonetheless, I would like to take this opportunity to thank all those residents who voted for me based on my demonstrated capabilities and agenda for Kileleshwa ward. I thank you for believing in me and for what I stood for during the hotly contested campaigns. I also thank all those who supported my campaign both financially and through voluntary work.

Over the next five years, I will strive to initiate more development projects in the community where I reside and advocate strongly for an enlightened leadership at council level. I also plan to continue the lively discussions started on this blog while focusing on the performance of our City Councillors over the next five years.

God bless you all. God bless Kenya.

Dancan Muhindi – SAFINA
Email dmuhindi@gmail.com