The Role Of Religious Organizations In Electoral Conflicts In The Horn Of Africa Region: A Case Study Of Ncck In Kenya’S 2017 Election

Abstract

The Horn of Africa’s political landscape has been marred by protracted conflicts, which are worsened by lack of effective ways to manage them. With the management bodies in place, which are seen to be weak due to political influence, Kenya may lose its strategic importance if electoral conflicts continue to occur in every electoral process. Regrettably, and despite the fact that Religious Organizations (ROs) can play a critical role in checking post-election conflicts, no documented study has assessed the roles and challenges facing such organizations in the highly contested presidential elections of 2017 which resulted in the loss of human lives and property in some areas in Kenya. This study therefore identified the role played by NCCK during the 2017 electoral violence and made recommendations on how best the government can incorporate these institutions in future conflict management and resolution. The study is guided by specific objectives which include to; investigate the role played by NCCK in the 2017 Kenyan post-election conflicts; explore the key strategies applied by NCCK in Kenya’s 2017 electoral conflicts and; examine the key challenges faced by NCCK in resolving the 2017 Kenyan post-elections conflict. This study adopted two theoretical foundations: the Conflict Theory and the Dual Concern Model of Conflict Resolution. Based on the exploratory research design, data was collected from 110 persons (21 permanent staff of NCCK, 37 employees of the IEBC headquarters in Nairobi, 2 OCPDs and, 50 community leaders. The community leaders were drawn from Kawangware and Kibera areas of Nairobi, the two areas were hard hit by the 20017 post-election violence in Kenya. Data was collected from primary and secondary sources using interviews, questionnaires as well as deskreview of existing literature. Such data was analyzed using descriptive statistics as well as conceptual content analysis techniques. The findings obtained show that NCCK in the 2017 played a vital role in the Kenyan post-election conflicts. This is due to the fact that religious leaders had some form of trust and moral authority, though not much, that could be used to check conflict in electoral disputes. Regrettably, there is no clear evidence that ROs used proper strategies to mitigate the 2017 post-poll conflict. However, ROs under the auspices of NCCK were pivotal to the democratization process and peace-building initiatives in Kenya. Lastly, it is evident that most cases ROs face numerous challenges such as lack of moral authority to talk against postelection violence in some instances due to bipartisanship, lack of adequate financial resources to successfully undertake conflict resolution strategies as well as internal bureaucratic tendencies that bred inter-religious tension were also major factors inhibiting effective conflict resolution by ROs. As such, ROs such as NCCK should put in place strategies for strengthening their trust and moral authority and technical as well as financial capacity so as to be effective in checking postelection disputes and the associated violence.”