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Should Kenyan in the diaspora have voting rights.
tony stark
#1 Posted : Sunday, January 31, 2010 3:17:20 AM
Rank: Veteran

Joined: 7/8/2008
Posts: 947
http://www.nation.co.ke/.../-/wrtr4lz/-/index.html

Kenyans in the diaspora do not have a right to vote while outside the country. The right to vote should be for tax paying kenyans. Remittance they send back, which is appreciated by many, is for there family and is not tax. Diasporans should either fly into Kenya if they so feel inclined to vote.
Kenyans in the diaspora might not be well informed on kenyan politics. I appreciate that there are many who are well informed and participate a lot in kenyan issue but majority are not. This is group that can be easily swayed to make uninformed decisions.
Kenyans in the diaspora will not suffer directly from the decisions they make. All politics is local. The right to vote should be for Kenyans who will live with there poor choice in councillors and MPigs.
Voters register of diaporans will be manipulated. Kenyan in the diaspora are asking for too much.
Tokyo
#2 Posted : Sunday, January 31, 2010 8:23:44 AM
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Joined: 10/9/2006
Posts: 1,502
All Kenyans should have RIGHT to decide.
work to prosper
tony stark
#3 Posted : Sunday, January 31, 2010 12:14:54 PM
Rank: Veteran

Joined: 7/8/2008
Posts: 947
@ Tokyo i totally agree with you.
My question is do Diasporans have to exercise that right in there respective countries at our expense? There are too many logistical issues which will increase the cost of our already expensive elections and can easily manipulated.
We should differentiate the ideals and reality.
Tokyo
#4 Posted : Tuesday, February 02, 2010 1:50:51 PM
Rank: Veteran

Joined: 10/9/2006
Posts: 1,502
The voting station should be the nearest embassy. For logistics,cost reduction and eliminating manipulation, the voting requirements should be a Kenyan passport holder over 18yrs with a legal status in their respective countries of residence.An electors card should be eliminated.
"Remittance they send back, which is appreciated by many, is for there family and is not tax."- Sir,In due respect Kenyan currency will be totally unstable without remittances.That's reality
work to prosper
tony stark
#5 Posted : Tuesday, February 02, 2010 8:16:33 PM
Rank: Veteran

Joined: 7/8/2008
Posts: 947
Mr Tokyo i seem to be rubbing you the wrong way! You seem to have forgotten kenyan electoral rules. Well the logistical issues are not the simple, the rewards are not that great and risk and too many.
Logistical issues range from having electoral observers in over 60 countries, each party has to fly over an agent, which constituencies will you vote in. Those are not simple questions and are very expensive
Rewards 3000 more kenyans vote. I can see the headlines now " Billions spend to please diasporans who send home millions of shillings"
Risk ballot stuffing and 2 million diasporans vote kibaki in for the 4 term.
The remittance will still be sent whether you vote or not. If you feel inclined to vote why not book a flight and come back and vote.... with all due respect!
mukiha
#6 Posted : Wednesday, February 03, 2010 4:28:11 AM
Rank: Elder

Joined: 6/27/2008
Posts: 4,114
tony stark wrote:
The right to vote should be for tax paying kenyans. Remittance they send back, which is appreciated by many, is for there family and is not tax....


@tony stark;

In that case, there are many Kenyans living right here in the country who should not be allowed to vote because they don't pay taxes.

Also, it is mandatory for all Kenyans [whether living here or abroad] to pay taxes...with the exceptions of a few countries that have double taxation treaties with Kenya.

But I see where you are coming from. I have suggested in several fora that the voter registration exercise should be done by KRA to ensure that only registered taxpayers get the voters card.

Ideally, this "one man, one vote" thing is unfair. It should be "one shilling [of taxes], one vote". And the taxes should be those paid directly {forget VAT!} during the last five years [an election term].
Nothing is real unless it can be named; nothing has value unless it can be sold; money is worthless unless you spend it.
Wa_ithaka
#7 Posted : Wednesday, February 03, 2010 7:19:31 AM
Rank: Veteran

Joined: 1/7/2010
Posts: 1,279
Location: nbi
Tokyo-huna aibu kweli. Just the day in SK, you weere telling us how we should all move abroad bcos Kenya will go to the dogs in 2012, now you come here demanding to be allowed to vote when you are in Tokyo.
Kwani you think bcos u send ma-Yen, you are spesial. Hakunaaaa! You are no different from a farmer like me who grows marenge.
If you want to vote, pring yourself to motherland.
And don't forget to send some Yen.
The Governor of Nyeri - 2017
digitek1
#8 Posted : Wednesday, February 03, 2010 12:45:53 PM
Rank: Veteran

Joined: 2/3/2010
Posts: 1,797
Location: Kenya
diasporans tend to be very tribal ,,,i mean just look at the blogosphere, their inclusion will only worsen the situation
I may be wrong..but then I could be right
tony stark
#9 Posted : Wednesday, February 03, 2010 11:50:18 PM
Rank: Veteran

Joined: 7/8/2008
Posts: 947
@ Muhika,
I seem to have been shouting the wrong message. Voting as a right should be for all kenyans period. The diasporan argument for voting is valid. If they are Kenyan they should vote. My question is how far should the tax paying public facilitate that right?
I also think that a reason for the voting choice should be on the ballot.
I am voting for this candidate because of
1. tribe
2. economic policies
3. social policies
4. academic prowess
5. i have faith in him
6. Random i did pinky pinky pinky ponky!
Wrong answers would be spoilt votes but that suggestion as sensible as i think it is not possible same thing as voting from kiribati islands for kenyan diasporan.
BGL
#10 Posted : Wednesday, November 28, 2012 5:10:04 PM
Rank: Veteran

Joined: 10/11/2009
Posts: 1,223
Kenyans in the diaspora have been shut out of participating in march 2013 polls.

I think someone (not the chief fence-sitter) thought that >75% of Kenya diaspora is comprised of GEMA nation and UK would have been their candidate. I know there even churches in UK and US where they preach in their local dialect.

If Diaspora is not voting i am also not voting!
History will not remember you for your IQ. It will remember you for what you did. “Genius is 1 percent inspiration, 99 percent perspiration.” Thomas Edison
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