Go pick your ID, be heard

Leaving the youth out of political decision making is dangerous. Youths should collect IDs to participate in politics

When I read on the Daily Nation that over 300, 000 national identity cards are lying at Registrar of Persons offices unclaimed, I was perturbed. 

What could be wrong with the youth? Could they be still waiting for their parents to go collect the IDs for them? Who is denying the youth the chance to be heard?

Without these important documents, the youth contribute trivially to development. Financial transactions, even those running on the MPESA platform, have identification as a prerequisite. 

Lack of IDs excludes this cohort of youths from those who can count on entrepreneurship. Kenyans without national identity cards are not employable, too. This is not all. 

Youths lacking without their national identification cards are important when it comes to making political decisions. 

When Kenyans are debating on whether to have a referendum to ensure that the National Government relinquishes 40% of the taxes we collect to the counties, these youths should mute.  

Does it mean that the youth have no right to take part in matters affecting them directly? 

It reminds me of a comment on Facebook by Stephen Kimei in an update in which the initiator, perhaps aggrieved by the inaccessibility of the incumbent, sought counsel on whether to run for the Thange/Utithi (Kibwezi) County Representative post in the 2017 general elections. 

In a quick rejoinder, Kimei advised the apparently budding politician to focus on acquiring a national identity card first. 

At first, I found it comical. Later on, I could not help empathize with the poor chap, for his inability to auction his political aspirations.  Apparently, he lacked a national identity card. 

When the youth fail to participate in political processes, it should concern everyone. Sizeable part of the Kenyan population is made up of the youth. Marketers have always counted on this group for its consumerism. 

Political systems that do not accommodate opinions of the youth risk running into difficulties. The infamous uprisings in the Middle East were orchestrated by youths who had been gagged for decades.  

That Facebook, Twitter and YouTube were the meeting platforms for the organizers hints on the gargantuan role the youth played. 

Cognizant of the significance of youthful ideas in politics, some mature democracies have lowered their voting ages to 16 years. The United States is debating on lowering the majority age to 16. 

With the majority age at 16, it means that the youth can acquire national IDs and participate in political processes. It means more voices going into political decisions. Isn’t this beautiful? Not to everyone. 

Supporters of the status quo cannot cordon fresh ideas from the youth. Therefore, the rhetoric that the youth in Kenya are the leaders of tomorrow is vague. 

Voices of dissent on the youth voting claim that this group lacks sufficient political literacy. Some posit that the youth know nothing about the maze of political systems. 

Could this be the reason why civic education programs in third world countries (read Kenya) are seldom implemented? 

Anyone contending that the youth are not able to make political decisions, and by extension, any other decisions, have not interacted with the Njeri Chelimo, the 19-year-old techie who discarded pursuing a degree in Medicine to follow her newly found passion in programming. 

Chelimo failed to secure visa to join Hacker School in the United States. Burning with fire in her belly, she resolved to fundraise in order to build a replica Hacker School in Kenya, the first in Africa. It welcomes its first batch of students sometimes last week. 

The youth have done great exploits. They are capable of making decisions. They are significant in development. 

No one should concur with those attempting to belittle the youth. Sadly, it is unfathomable that the youth are betraying their ability to make decisions. They are playing into the hands of the status quo. 

By not collecting their national Identity cards, the youth are denying themselves an opportunity to play an active role in social development. Nothing is more frustrating.

Youths should match to Registrar of Persons offices and collect their identity cards. Those who registered in Nairobi should prioritize Kariokor District Registrar’s Office. Most certainly, their IDs will be among the 25, 132 lying idle in that office.