A Play About Crowds, Campaigns, and the Economy of Elections
Narrator – Sharp observer of village politics
Chairman wa Groups – Village strategist, politically experienced
Chorus of Villagers – Excited, skeptical, opportunistic
Young Graduate – Educated but unemployed
Mama Mboga – Streetwise trader
Pastor Karanja – Moral voice with practical instincts
MCA Aspirant – Loud and desperate
MP Aspirant – Wealthy and calculating
Governor’s Agent – Distributor of promises and envelopes
Old Man wa Kirenga – Cynical elder
ACT I – The Discovery
Scene 1: Under the Mugumo -ini Tree
(Villagers gathered lazily. Some idle. Others complaining about the economy.)
Old Man wa Kirenga: And yet politicians are driving new Prados.
(Pause.)
(Enter Chairman wa Groups slowly, smiling like a man who has solved a secret.)
Chorus: Groups?
Chairman wa Groups: Not groups for violence. Not groups for fighting. Groups for eating politics properly!
(Murmurs.)
Mama Mboga: Explain yourself, Chairman.
Chairman wa Groups: Politicians love groups. They fear individuals. An individual cannot make noise in a rally. An individual cannot wave branches. An individual cannot chant slogans properly. An individual cannot attract media. An individual cannot show ground acceptance.
Narrator: And suddenly… the villagers leaned closer. Because in Lari, wisdom sounds sweeter when it smells like money.
ACT II – The Market of Aspirants
Scene 1: Counting the Cows
(Chairman draws imaginary figures on the ground.)
Chairman wa Groups: Listen carefully. In this ward alone— we have twenty MCA aspirants.
Chairman wa Groups: Ten MP aspirants.
Mama Mboga: And women reps?
Chairman wa Groups: Many.
Young Graduate: Senators?
Chairman wa Groups: Too many.
Chairman wa Groups: Those ones spend like people escaping death.
(Laughter.)
Chairman wa Groups: All these people are now cash cows.
(Pause.)
Chorus: Cash cows...
Chairman wa Groups: But my people do not know how to milk.
(Silence. Then excitement.)
Narrator: And there it was. A new economic policy for the village. Not farming. Not business. Not employment. Campaign season.
Scene 2: The Training
Chairman wa Groups: Rule number one: Never attend a political meeting alone.
Chairman wa Groups: Move in groups of fifty.
Mama Mboga: Even funerals have fewer people nowadays.
Chairman wa Groups: Exactly! A politician must feel important.
Young Graduate: What do we ask for?
Chairman wa Groups: Transport.
Chorus: Transport!
Chairman wa Groups: Lunch.
Chorus: Lunch!
Chairman wa Groups: Facilitation.
Chorus: Facilitation!
Chairman wa Groups: And never call it voter bribery.
Pastor Karanja: Then what should we call it?
Chairman wa Groups: Appreciation for participation.
(Huge laughter.)
ACT III – The Milking
MCA Aspirant: Where are the youth?
Chairman wa Groups: They are coming.
Chairman wa Groups: Mobilized.
MCA Aspirant: Where are the elders?
Chairman wa Groups: Very expensive nowadays but they are ready with their traditional regalias.
(Enter villagers singing loudly.)
Chorus: Our leader! Our leader!
Narrator: Notice carefully. The louder the singing…the emptier the loyalty.
Scene 2: Negotiations
(Chairman pulls Aspirant aside.)
Chairman wa Groups: My people came from very far.
MCA Aspirant: I already hired tents.
Chairman wa Groups: Crowds do not eat tents.
MCA Aspirant: I printed T-shirts.
Chairman wa Groups: Can T-shirts pay school fees?
MCA Aspirant: What do they want?
Chairman wa Groups: You are asking the wrong question.
MCA Aspirant: What is the right question?
Chairman wa Groups: How badly do you want the seat?
(Pause.)
(Aspirant quietly removes tallow envelope.)
Narrator: And democracy continued its sacred journey.
ACT IV – The Great Harvest
Scene 1: Competition
(Another convoy arrives before the first leaves.)
MP Aspirant: Why are these people wearing another candidate’s T-shirts?
MP Aspirant: Were they not at my rally yesterday?
Mama Mboga: Leadership requires consistency. That is why we attend all meetings.
Young Graduate: We believe in inclusivity.
(Laughter.)
Governor’s Agent: We need five hundred people tomorrow.
Chairman wa Groups: With or without dancing and ngemi?
Governor’s Agent: With energy.
Chairman wa Groups: Energy costs extra. Coro maí.
Scene 2: Wisdom of the Village
(Night. Villagers counting money.)
Young Graduate: Today I attended three rallies.
Mama Mboga: I attended four.
Old Man wa Kirenga: Last election we were manipulated for free. Today at least inflation has reached politics.
Pastor Karanja: But is this not wrong?
(Silence.)
Chairman wa Groups: Pastor…when elections end, will these people remember us?
Pastor Karanja: Probably not.
Chairman wa Groups: Then this is our season....íkamagwo íría í njoku.
(Pause.)
Chairman wa Groups: The cows are ready.
Chorus: The cows are ready!
Chairman wa Groups: The milk is ready.
Chorus: The milk is ready!
Chairman wa Groups: Your time is now. Milk!
ACT V – After the Milking
Scene 1: Elections End
(Silence. Empty roads. Torn posters everywhere.)
Narrator: Then one morning…the music stopped. No convoys. No envelopes. No promises. Only potholes remained faithfully.
Scene 2: The Forgotten Crowds
Young Graduate: My phone no longer rings.
Mama Mboga: Even the MCA stopped greeting people.
Old Man wa Kirenga: The milk dried.
Pastor Karanja: And now?
(Pause.)
Chairman wa Groups: Now we wait five years again.
Chorus: Five years?
Chairman wa Groups: Yes. Democracy is seasonal work. Ona ng'ombe níhiukagia.
Final Scene
(Villagers stand quietly.)
Narrator: The politicians came looking for crowds. The crowds came looking for survival. Both used each other. And both called it politics.
(Pause.)
Chorus: We sang. We danced. We filled rallies. We hated each other. We milked the cows.
(Pause.)
Chorus (softly): But somehow…we remained poor.
(Long silence.)
Old Man wa Kirenga: One day…we shall stop renting ourselves to politicians…
Young Graduate: …and start demanding something more expensive than money.
Pastor Karanja: Truth.
Chairman wa Groups: And dignity.
(Curtain falls.)
Far away, campaign music begins again. Some villagers slowly turn their heads.
Blackout.
Characters
Narrator – Sharp observer of village politics
Chairman wa Groups – Village strategist, politically experienced
Chorus of Villagers – Excited, skeptical, opportunistic
Young Graduate – Educated but unemployed
Mama Mboga – Streetwise trader
Pastor Karanja – Moral voice with practical instincts
MCA Aspirant – Loud and desperate
MP Aspirant – Wealthy and calculating
Governor’s Agent – Distributor of promises and envelopes
Old Man wa Kirenga – Cynical elder
ACT I – The Discovery
Scene 1: Under the Mugumo -ini Tree
(Villagers gathered lazily. Some idle. Others complaining about the economy.)
Narrator: In Lari, elections do not arrive quietly. They come like rain clouds over dry land. And before the first speech is made… politicians begin searching for crowds.
Young Graduate: There are no jobs.
Mama Mboga: Tomatoes are rotting in the market.
Old Man wa Kirenga: And yet politicians are driving new Prados.
(Pause.)
(Enter Chairman wa Groups slowly, smiling like a man who has solved a secret.)
Chairman wa Groups: My people… I really do not know up to when I will tell you to organize yourselves in small groups.
Chorus: Groups?
Chairman wa Groups: Not groups for violence. Not groups for fighting. Groups for eating politics properly!
(Murmurs.)
Mama Mboga: Explain yourself, Chairman.
Chairman wa Groups: Politicians love groups. They fear individuals. An individual cannot make noise in a rally. An individual cannot wave branches. An individual cannot chant slogans properly. An individual cannot attract media. An individual cannot show ground acceptance.
Narrator: And suddenly… the villagers leaned closer. Because in Lari, wisdom sounds sweeter when it smells like money.
ACT II – The Market of Aspirants
Scene 1: Counting the Cows
(Chairman draws imaginary figures on the ground.)
Chairman wa Groups: Listen carefully. In this ward alone— we have twenty MCA aspirants.
Chorus: Twenty?!
Chairman wa Groups: Ten MP aspirants.
Mama Mboga: And women reps?
Chairman wa Groups: Many.
Young Graduate: Senators?
Chairman wa Groups: Too many.
Old Man wa Kirenga: Governors?
Chairman wa Groups: Those ones spend like people escaping death.
(Laughter.)
Chairman wa Groups: All these people are now cash cows.
(Pause.)
Chorus: Cash cows...
Chairman wa Groups: But my people do not know how to milk.
(Silence. Then excitement.)
Narrator: And there it was. A new economic policy for the village. Not farming. Not business. Not employment. Campaign season.
Scene 2: The Training
Chairman wa Groups: Rule number one: Never attend a political meeting alone.
Chorus: Never alone!
Chairman wa Groups: Move in groups of fifty.
Mama Mboga: Even funerals have fewer people nowadays.
Chairman wa Groups: Exactly! A politician must feel important.
Young Graduate: What do we ask for?
Chairman wa Groups: Transport.
Chorus: Transport!
Chairman wa Groups: Lunch.
Chorus: Lunch!
Chairman wa Groups: Facilitation.
Chorus: Facilitation!
Chairman wa Groups: And never call it voter bribery.
Pastor Karanja: Then what should we call it?
Chairman wa Groups: Appreciation for participation.
(Huge laughter.)
ACT III – The Milking
Scene 1: Arrival of the Aspirants
(Music. Dust. Convoys arrive.)
(Music. Dust. Convoys arrive.)
MCA Aspirant: Where are the youth?
Chairman wa Groups: They are coming.
MCA Aspirant: Where are the women?
Chairman wa Groups: Mobilized.
MCA Aspirant: Where are the elders?
Chairman wa Groups: Very expensive nowadays but they are ready with their traditional regalias.
(Enter villagers singing loudly.)
Chorus: Our leader! Our leader!
Narrator: Notice carefully. The louder the singing…the emptier the loyalty.
Scene 2: Negotiations
(Chairman pulls Aspirant aside.)
Chairman wa Groups: My people came from very far.
MCA Aspirant: I already hired tents.
Chairman wa Groups: Crowds do not eat tents.
MCA Aspirant: I printed T-shirts.
Chairman wa Groups: Can T-shirts pay school fees?
MCA Aspirant: What do they want?
Chairman wa Groups: You are asking the wrong question.
MCA Aspirant: What is the right question?
Chairman wa Groups: How badly do you want the seat?
(Pause.)
(Aspirant quietly removes tallow envelope.)
Narrator: And democracy continued its sacred journey.
ACT IV – The Great Harvest
Scene 1: Competition
(Another convoy arrives before the first leaves.)
MP Aspirant: Why are these people wearing another candidate’s T-shirts?
Chairman wa Groups: Development has many stakeholders.
MP Aspirant: Were they not at my rally yesterday?
Mama Mboga: Leadership requires consistency. That is why we attend all meetings.
Young Graduate: We believe in inclusivity.
(Laughter.)
Governor’s Agent: We need five hundred people tomorrow.
Chairman wa Groups: With or without dancing and ngemi?
Governor’s Agent: With energy.
Chairman wa Groups: Energy costs extra. Coro maí.
Scene 2: Wisdom of the Village
(Night. Villagers counting money.)
Young Graduate: Today I attended three rallies.
Mama Mboga: I attended four.
Old Man wa Kirenga: Last election we were manipulated for free. Today at least inflation has reached politics.
Pastor Karanja: But is this not wrong?
(Silence.)
Chairman wa Groups: Pastor…when elections end, will these people remember us?
Pastor Karanja: Probably not.
Chairman wa Groups: Then this is our season....íkamagwo íría í njoku.
(Pause.)
Chairman wa Groups: The cows are ready.
Chorus: The cows are ready!
Chairman wa Groups: The milk is ready.
Chorus: The milk is ready!
Chairman wa Groups: Your time is now. Milk!
ACT V – After the Milking
Scene 1: Elections End
(Silence. Empty roads. Torn posters everywhere.)
Narrator: Then one morning…the music stopped. No convoys. No envelopes. No promises. Only potholes remained faithfully.
Scene 2: The Forgotten Crowds
Young Graduate: My phone no longer rings.
Mama Mboga: Even the MCA stopped greeting people.
Old Man wa Kirenga: The milk dried.
Pastor Karanja: And now?
(Pause.)
Chairman wa Groups: Now we wait five years again.
Chorus: Five years?
Chairman wa Groups: Yes. Democracy is seasonal work. Ona ng'ombe níhiukagia.
Final Scene
(Villagers stand quietly.)
Narrator: The politicians came looking for crowds. The crowds came looking for survival. Both used each other. And both called it politics.
(Pause.)
Chorus: We sang. We danced. We filled rallies. We hated each other. We milked the cows.
(Pause.)
Chorus (softly): But somehow…we remained poor.
(Long silence.)
Old Man wa Kirenga: One day…we shall stop renting ourselves to politicians…
Young Graduate: …and start demanding something more expensive than money.
Mama Mboga: Responsibility.
Pastor Karanja: Truth.
Chairman wa Groups: And dignity.
(Curtain falls.)
Far away, campaign music begins again. Some villagers slowly turn their heads.
Blackout.
