On the eve of the Ol Kalou by-election, Jeff Koinange Live turned to the man now in charge of keeping Kenya's politics from boiling over. Bishop Dr Kepha Omae, chairman of the National Cohesion and Integration Commission, had been in office close to 100 days.
Jeff opened with the criticism the NCIC hears most: that it is a toothless bulldog, all bark and no bite. Omae blamed a lack of civic education. The commission has 20 functions, he said, but most Kenyans only know about hate speech and judge it by whether someone ends up in court.
Sworn in on 25 May, the new commission had already drafted a roadmap towards peaceful 2027 elections, he said, built on the work of the previous team. His promise was direct: "Kenya is going to have peaceful elections."
Jeff challenged him on the ethnic mobilisation visible every weekend, from opposition rallies to State House delegations. Omae explained that the NCIC Act defines hate speech and incitement, and that free speech has a threshold. Once a leader crosses it, the commission investigates and recommends prosecution.
He revealed that the commission was handling about 58 cases. The process takes time, he said, describing how a TikTok clip, for example, is first sent to the Communications Authority for transcription before investigators and prosecutors take over. A joint statement with other agencies days earlier, he added, had made clear that anyone found culpable this time would face the full force of the law.
The NCIC was born out of the 2007–08 crisis, he reminded viewers, precisely so the country would have the legal tools it lacked then. Whether those tools are used firmly enough before 2027 is the test his commission now faces.
Continue with Part 2 on Citizen TV.
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Jeff has covered Kenya's elections for decades and knows what is at stake. For his personal reflections and behind-the-scenes content from the road to 2027, subscribe to Jeff Koinange's official YouTube channel, @JeffKoinangeTV.