By D S
The standard operating procedure in campaigns and elections is always about lowering expectations and then milking and maximizing the positive results on election day. For example, when a campaign’s internal polling suggests that they will have a short election night and when those findings are congruent to other credible independent polling, the natural thing to do is to downplay the prospects of the impending landslide until it actually happens then go to town with the results. I find CORD royalty’s rhetoric on the issue of electoral results wanting and overly exuberant.
Telling the voters to “go register to vote and then leave the rest to us,” or “wakiiba wataona cha mtema kuni” is not a very encouraging way to rally people to the registration booth. Voters are not stupid. They see what’s happening around them. So, far, the numbers being reported from CORD strongholds are severely underwhelming and for a good reason. RAO gave the directive but the MPs are yet to pick the gauntlet. The voters have been around a long time and they now know how the system works.
They know that there will be no cha mtema kuni because Jubilee controls everything and the same leaders promising cha mtema kuni routinely complain about security withdrawals! If they can’t secure themselves, how are they going to go out on a limb and bring about cha mtema kuni?
IF they couldn’t stop these very Jubilee guys from robbing them in broad daylight when they had some executive leverage ( PM and VP), how are they, as civilians, going to guarantee fairness in the electoral process? And what magic wand are they going to deploy in the event that Jubilee decides to rig the elections?
The voters are being treated to a high expectations game that is bound to be anticlimactic. The opposition leaders must refocus their efforts on voter registration and refine their rhetoric to a more pragmatic narrative. Threats are not going to work. The voters can see through that. Provide more realistic reasons for voter registration and voting CORD. CORD supporters are a very intelligent lot who can separate fact from fiction.
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