Listing Jubilee graft scams is informative, but does not necessarily excite people to see the nexus between corruption and bad governance. However, it is in my view easier to connect bad economy to bad governance.
In all the countries that incumbents have lost, it is the economy that has propelled voters to vote otherwise.
If you want to know that corruption in the African context isn’t enough to outvote an incumbent, you only have to follow South African politics where Jacob Zuma, confirmed corrupt by a highly respected judicial system couldn’t be impeached by the Opposition on that score.
Only in Malawi did an IFMIS scandal torpedo Joyce Banda, but that’s because she was listening more to the Nigerian ‘prophet’ TB Joshua than her advisers.
In Copperbelt Zambia, incumbent Edgar Lungu played to the religious mores of a catholic country, even leading national prayers for a falling Kwacha, which miraculously started strengthening against the dollar. Lungu won.
However, it is only the economy that has outmaneuvered African incumbents. If you can convince young people that you can grow the economy and create new jobs for a new age, that’s a big deal.
Corruption has been so normalized through a corrupt education system that a student cheating in exams at university doesn’t get THAAAT outraged by theft of public money. Many hope they would be the ones stealing.
But it’s a big deal if the same student can’t even get a job to come close to the prospect of stealing, and later looting.
Economy is a more superior campaign platform. I’m not saying anti-graft platform isn’t. Leave it for civil society.
Furthermore its NOTHING Uhuru can do to change the economy, no amount of propaganda can fix the exchange rate of Kshs to USD or soar employment numbers or reduce prices of basic commodities. The messed up economy will kamatia Uhuru chini since even Kikuyus are VERY MUCH AFFECTED!
“…for those who know…”
