Religious Aspects to The Election of Kenya's New President
A large amount of Kenyans will be able to enter the biblical land of Canaan, if the opposition leader Raila Odinga wins the presidential election on October 26.
This is due to Raila Odinga succeeding in his proposal, with the now commonly used phrase “tunaenda Kanani,” which in Swahili stands for “we are moving going to Canaan.” This is the holy land that is believed to flow with honey and milk.
Kenya's re-election has already turned into a complex affair. To win the elections, money is no longer enough. Now you have to know the Bible very well, in the search for a particular message.
The leader of the opposition, Mr. Odinga, must have already carefully learned the Book of Joshua. Recently, he played the role of the celebrated hero who succeeds Moses and keeps on fighting to release enemy territory and settle the Israelites in the new land.
For the moment, the current president, Uhuru Kenyatta, and his second-in-command William Ruto must be suffering from aching knees, as they continue to move from church to church and kneeling before the men of God.
In particularly, Mr. Ruto has been at the center of a religious storm, when the chiefs of the Pentecostal Assemblies of God tried to read between the lines, and establish what exactly his recent gift to them (almost 70,000 dollars) could mean. Some people are sure it was a planned donation for the church development. Others disagree saying it was a political hand-out to make them vote for Kenyatta`s Jubilee Party.
“When the rival presidential candidates keep their Bibles close to their chest, Kenyans have been on the lookout for any heavenly sign that could help them make a decision which of the two should be the anointed one,” religious mentors say.
They continue that in a country where people expect a better future, and have often been destroyed by widespread corruption, bad politics, and deep-seated tribalism, millions of Kenyans have become accustomed to believe in God.
Therefore, when Kenyans face any disaster, they seek God's advice in enormous prayer meetings that are shown live on TV. Kenyan politicians know very well that they live in a country of believers. And if you want them to vote for you, you need to be seen to be God-fearing.
For example, in May, during a visit to Israel, media spread a photo of Raila Odinga praying at the historic Western Wall in Jerusalem. Mr. Odinga, in turn, explained that the Wailing Wall was sacred to all Abrahamic religions—Judaism, Islam, and Christianity. Therefore, according to him, it was one of the most influential symbols of unity and strength on the planet.
Therefore, while the opposition presidential candidates were keeping Bibles close to their chest, Kenyans have been continuing to look for any heavenly sign that would help them make a the “right” decision on which of the two is the chosen one.
Author: Oleinic Andrew.