Youth leaders in Uasin Gishu County have been encouraged to belong to political parties and take part in political processes in order to agitate for their rights in leadership.
The call was made during the Electoral Preparedness training for youth leaders organized by the Office of the Registrar of Political Parties (ORPP), held at Rift Valley Technical Training Institute (RVTTI) in Eldoret.
Speaking during the session ORPP regional Coordinator of the North rift region, Hassan Maloba said they are conducting the training for youth from Uasin County on election preparedness, educating them on their need to participate in political processes and to belong to political parties since they cannot agitate for their issues outside political parties.
“We are calling upon political parties to also be inclusive and advocate for youth empowerment. Use youth within their political parties to lead the parties. Give them a position to advocate for their rights and agitate for their issues,” he noted.
He affirmed ORPP’s commitment to including youth in their programmes to ensure they are enlightened to be able to fully participate in electoral processes. Youth were also urged to look for the political party constitutions, to be able to understand the law so that as much as they are involved in political party issues, they are privy to the law.
Having deep knowledge about political parties constitutions will help minimize problems that arise in case of disagreements especially in cases where youth are supposed to be involved but they are not involved.
“We are doing this training so that they understand the law and what it gives them to be able to be members of the political parties in Kenya. We register the political parties; we make sure that the youth are registered when they are members. Additionally, we ensure that the youth can be registered as part of the leadership organs,” explained Maloba.
Maloba also cautioned youths against engaging in political malpractices such as violence and goonism, urging them instead to embrace responsible and progressive politics.
“I urge the youth to familiarize themselves with political party constitutions and relevant laws so that they can participate effectively while minimizing conflicts and disagreements,” he added.
IEBC Returning Officer for Kesses Constituency, Mathew Chenger lauded the forum by ORPP, noting it is a good forum to sensitize the youth about activities of IEBC. He indicated that this is the major group they are targeting to register as new voters. He commended the youth for coming up with the recent Niko Kadi campaign sponsored by the young people which played a key role in mobilizing Kenyans to turn out and register in numbers.
“Seeing all the youth is a very good platform for us) and it will help us raise the numbers because we still have continuous voter registration going on in our offices and we are planning to have the ECVR 2 coming to us at the end of the year. So being here is very good for us to share information all over the county,” noted the IEBC Official.
The event brought together youths, mainly students from institutions of higher learning, aspiring political candidates, and representatives of various development groups from across the region.
The training covered several key topics, including the importance of active participation in political processes, political malpractices, leveraging digital technology to promote electoral integrity, and emerging trends in electoral management.
Chenger noted that voter registration remains ongoing at IEBC offices and encouraged eligible youths who have not yet registered to do so.
He further assured participants that the commission remains committed to conducting free, fair, transparent, and verifiable elections in accordance with its constitutional mandate.
The youth leaders lauded the ORPP and IEBC for organizing the training, describing it as a valuable opportunity to better understand political party operations and electoral processes. Some noted that the knowledge gained would be particularly useful as they prepare to contest various elective positions in the forthcoming general election.
Speaking during the forum, Mercy Machichim observed that youths are often overlooked within political parties despite their significant contributions.
“Youths are rarely seen or heard and are often used only as a backup plan in political parties, despite the important role they play,” she said.
Another youth leader, Dancan Ochieng, emphasized the importance of combating misinformation and disinformation, especially on social media platforms.
He urged fellow youths to verify the authenticity of information before sharing it, warning that spreading false information could have serious consequences.
by Ekuwam Sylvester and Brian Seronei
