Mombasa politician Said Abdalla popularly known as ‘Saido’ has urged voters to reject divisive politics, tribalism and inflammatory rhetoric ahead of the August 10, 2027 General Election.
He called on voters in the coastal city of Mombasa to reject political aspirants attempting to campaign on religious and tribalism grounds.
Abdalla who is a parliamentary aspirant for Nyali constituency in the forthcoming general election also urged fellow leaders to abandon personality attacks, insults, character assassination, and ethnic politics in the runup to the polls.
He said citizens should judge political parties and their candidates by their manifestos, performance, competence and character ahead of the high-stake 2027 general elections.
“Voters should reject leaders who only surface during electioneering periods and hellbent on dividing the people along tribal and religious lines for selfish gains,” he said.
He went on ‘as leaders we should focus on policies, manifestos and programmes that would enable voters to make informed choices at the ballot’.
Abdalla warned that hate speech, misinformation and inflammatory rhetoric if unimpeded could deepen divisions in the country.
Civil society organizations in the coastal city have in the past expressed concern over what they described as the growing use of character assassination by a section of the political class and called on the political aspirants to instead focus on policies, manifestos and programmes that would enable voters to make informed choices.
Civil society activists have been urging voters to look beyond party affiliations and campaign promises and focus on issues such as the cost of living, unemployment, infrastructure, education and healthcare.
Political analysts contend that politics of division during electoral cycles if left unchecked could weaken social cohesion and democratic culture and undermine national unity.
Abdalla who is affiliated to the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM), cited Mombasa’s diversity, noting that residents from different ethnic and religious backgrounds have supported one another and formed families across communal lines.
“We should reject divisive politics, tribal rhetoric and inflammatory remarks before, during and after the elections so as to protect the country’s peace and democratic stability,” said Abdalla, adding that voters should reject politicians who use insults to gain popularity.
Mombasa county has six constituencies of Changamwe, Jomvu, Kisauni, Likoni, Mvita and Nyali which are further divided into a total of 30 electoral wards.
He insisted that citizens have a role to play in discouraging politics of insults and promoting responsible conduct in the country’s politics.
Abdalla made the call during a meet-the-people-tour in the expansive Nyali constituency where he intensified the economic empowerment program for small-scale traders.
The parliamentary hopeful distributed large market umbrellas and issued several cheques to boost small-scale traders’ businesses to cushion them from the surge in fuel prices.
The parliamentary hopeful has declared his unwavering support for President Wiliam Ruto and the broad-based government as the country races towards the high-stake 2027 general polls.
Abdalla said the Kenya Kwanza administration deserves another five-year mandate owing to the progressive policies being implemented.
“President Ruto’s administration needs stability and continuity to complete its development agenda for the citizens across the country” he said.
by Hussein Abdullahi
