- Iain Njiraini challenged Kenyan youth to prove their activism goes beyond protests by registering as voters
- He said the 2024 anti-finance bill protests will lose meaning if Gen Z fails to show up for the ballot
- IEBC recently reported only 7,048 new voter registrations nationwide after day four of the Continuous Voter Registration
TUKO.co.ke journalist Harry Ivan Mboto has over three years of experience reporting on politics and current affairs in Kenya
Political commentator and pilot Iain Njiraini has reignited debate over youth participation in politics.
Source: UGC
This is after he questioned why many young Kenyans have failed to register as voters despite their massive mobilisation during last year’s protests.
In a video posted on his Instagram page, Njiraini expressed disappointment at what he described as a sharp contrast between the energy seen during the 2024 anti-finance bill demonstrations and the current voter registration apathy.
What did Njiraini tell Gen Z regarding voter registration?
He said it was disheartening that the same young people who once led a national revolt were now silent when it came to collecting voter cards.
“After the serious revolt in 2024, after all the talk about hiding your parents’ ID and voter cards so they don’t vote for the current regime, now the turn is yours — and the turnout is low?” he said. “Are you only good at mobilising for protests and chanting in the streets, but not for taking up voter cards? Are we just keyboard warriors?”
Njiraini said the youth risked losing the moral ground they earned during the protests by failing to take political responsibility through the ballot.
He added that the same leaders the protesters had rejected were now mocking them by urging them to register, showing how quickly the movement’s momentum had faded.
Are leaders urging Gen Z to register as voters?
“The leaders you protested against are daring you to take up voter cards. I find that sad,” he said.
“Let 2024 mean something. All those lives lost should not be in vain. You need to be taken seriously, but many are now saying Gen Z are not serious about change. Wake up, get up,” he added.
He urged young Kenyans to understand that their power extended beyond hashtags and street marches, saying the true revolution lay in voting and holding leaders accountable through democratic means.
The debate comes amid growing concern over the low turnout in the ongoing voter registration exercise by the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC).
Source: UGC
IEBC reports low voter registartion numbers
Just days earlier, IEBC reported worryingly low numbers in the Continuous Voter Registration drive, which resumed on September 29 across the country.
The commission said only 7,048 new voters had registered by October 3, while 259 had transferred polling stations and eight had updated their details.
Nairobi recorded the highest number of new registrations at 1,597, followed by Mombasa with 556 and Kisii with 312. Counties like Lamu, Tharaka Nithi, and Nyamira had fewer than 30 new voters each.
IEBC chairperson Erastus Ethekon had urged Kenyans, especially the youth, to take the exercise seriously, warning that the country’s democratic future depended on active participation.
Source: TUKO.co.ke
