As opposition supporters, we should not be naive, as to take the statements Aden Duale and others in the regime are making about our numbers lightly, or fail to challenge them because we fear being called tribal. You will find a guy supporting Duale’s propaganda, but when you state facts about our numbers based on verifiable data, the same guy dismisses you as tribal.
What they are doing is conditioning, so that they can implement their rigging scheme.
When they say Mount Kenya has only four million voters, or claim that Sifuna can only attract votes from Bukusus, when they dismiss Kamba and Kisii votes, they are doing more than arguing politics. They are trying to make Kenyans believe long before election day, that the opposition cannot possibly win.
Perception matters. If people accept it without question, it becomes easier to dismiss a result that does not reflect the will of voters with a simple line: “We told you they did not have the numbers.”
We must push back, firmly and with facts. Let us put the IEBC’s registered voter figures on the table whenever someone understates a region’s numbers. Let us also speak confidently about the visible, solid and loud support we are seeing across Mount Kenya, Western, Ukambani, Kisii, the Coast, Maasai land and beyond. The WANTAM call is reaching Kenyans from many communities.
And let us be clear that discussing voter numbers in different regions is not tribalism. More importantly, challenging false figures is necessary. Nobody should shame us into silence while they repeat claims meant to make our support look smaller than it is.
We have numbers. We have the right to talk about them. And when the time comes, every vote must be counted and accounted for.