• This trend has been preached against and the messages continue to be spread but from the look of things, the message could be falling on dead ears.
• Each election cycle comes with its own version and this dates as far back as beyond the 2007 general elections where post-election violence arose from the little acts of hooliganism, from disgruntled youths.
Image: GEORGE OWITI
Every election cycle comes with its fair share of challenges, and the biggest of them is violence during elections. This has been highly attributed to hooliganism.
Hooliganism is defined as violent or rowdy behaviour by young troublemakers, typically in a gang.
This trend has been preached against and the messages continue to be spread but from the look of things, the message could be falling on dead ears.
Each election cycle comes with its version and this dates as far back as beyond the 2007 general elections where post-election violence arose from the little acts of hooliganism, from disgruntled youths.
The same was experienced during 2013, 2017 and this year’s elections being the latest casualty.
On Saturday, deputy president William Ruto's Jacaranda rally was faced with hooliganism after rowdy youths pelted stones at the meeting.
The incident, however, did not interrupt the DP's meeting as the rally went on as planned.
This makes it the second time Ruto has been a victim of such violence while on his campaign trail, with the last one being in Kondele, Kisumu county where rowdy youths pelted his entourage with stones as he made his way into Kondele grounds.
Moments before he arrived in Kondele, anti-riot police officers were forced to lob teargas canisters, forcing the rowdy youth, that had thronged the area to scamper for safety.
This is where the usual card comes in and obvious as it is, he blamed his main opponent in the August 9 election, ODM leader Raila Odinga.
The DP on Sunday accused Raila of having a penchant for hiring youths to cause violence at his meetings.
He said the ODM leader is known for planning violence adding that it is time he should stop misusing the youths.
"Shame on you bwana kitendawili for hiring youths to come and stone people here. You won't intimidate us with violence," Ruto said.
He added: "You planned violence in Kondele, you have come here again in Embakasi to mobilise youths to stone us. We will not allow you to instil fear in the people of Kenya by using violence".
ODM leader Raila Odinga in his response to the claims by DP Ruto said the DP was the one behind the disruption of his rally.
The ODM leader said the Jacaranda violence was sponsored by Ruto to provoke war in his Rift Valley backyard and cause the eviction of non-Kalenjins.
The opposition chief faulted the DP for his woes saying, after all, people were being paid to attend his Jacaranda rally and that was enough to cause chaos witnessed on Sunday.
"The strange rage expressed by Deputy President William against Rt. Hon Raila Odinga this afternoon should be easy to understand. Ruto is simply setting the stage for the removal of Madoadoa from the Rift Valley and, if need be, start a war in the Rift Valley," Raila said in the statement.
"It is not beyond Ruto to sponsor the disruption of his rally so that he can have an excuse to start ethnic cleansing back at home.”
This chaos brought by hooliganism is bred by politicians who pay jobless youths to go and cause disruption of rallies organised by their opponents.
For supporters of presidential aspirants, such happens when one visits their competitor’s perceived strongholds and the aftermath is usually not good.
People get hurt, lives and property is destroyed in most of these instances and there is no one to account for such mistakes.
Ruto’s party, the United Democratic Alliance on Tuesday through Secretary-General Veronica Maina formally wrote to the International Criminal Court over "state-sponsored violence" ahead of the August elections.
In a letter addressed to President Uhuru Kenyatta and copied to the ICC prosecutor on January 17, UDA said they are concerned about recent "deeply worrying security" incidents.
UDA's said the incidents are sustained by official "inaction and connivance" by the state.
Maina said as a general rule, nothing has been done by the security agencies to prevent or arrest this "egregious criminality".
"In the handshake era, ODM's bedroom policy and the use of violence to advance political strategies appear to receive tacit official support," she said.
The party claims that up to date over 10 major criminal incidents of violent disruption have taken place, six of which had been brought to the attention of the IG of police.
The six include chaos on September 2 in Kisii, Murang'a on October 4, Taita Taveta chaos on August 24, 2021, Kondele, Busia, and Nyeri chaos.
“They have all gone unattended by his office. This negligence on their part Is not only dismaying to all law-abiding Kenyans and disappointing to the UDA fraternity but it also explicitly signals the state's approval,” she said.
“… or support for the criminal acts of ethnic and political violence conducted in furtherance of a divisive agenda focused on the 2022 elections."
During the 2013 and 2017 general elections, President Uhuru could not campaign in areas that were perceived to be Raila's strongholds.
Raila on the other hand, could not campaign in most parts of the Rift Valley and Central Kenya, which were Uhuru’s strongholds.
Efforts have been put in place to preach peace and unity in such areas but with the recent occurrences, only time will tell.