GOVERNMENT TO HAVE A SAY ON OPINION POLLS

MP Jamleck Kamau(Kigumo), on 11^th May, 2011, moved a motion before the house urging the government to “develop a framework that includes an Opinion Polls Controls Board for the regulation and conduct of the opinion polls…” MP for Naivasha, John Muthutho seconded the motion saying, “the pollsters were to blame for the political chaos that rocked Kenya in the 2007 elections,” allAfrica.com reported.
Jamleck who is the PNU (Party of National Unity) Vice-Chairman, in his statement made in parliament pointed out that “propaganda and misinformation are potent tools for destabilization of peace and stability especially during the electioneering period…” The Bill which Jamleck, Muthutho and a team of allied lawyers are working on purposes to “put discipline and restore professionalism in the operations of research so far as opinion polls are concerned,” Jamleck said.  The Bill will create an Opinion Polls Control Board that will be under the office of the Vice-President according to the proposed legislation. In response to this developing story, the Managing Director of Synovate Kenya, George Waititu said that in Kenya, research companies work under the Market and Social Research Association that regulates their operations. The proposed legislation will “require research companies to declare to the Board the sponsor of the survey and the organization behind the survey. The Board will require that the research company declare the date of the survey, the population from which the sample respondents were drawn, the number of people contacted to participate, and the margin of error in the obtained data.” allAfrica.com reported.
Laws and Regulations Restricting the Publication of Electoral Opinion Polls introduces that, “one specific area in which restrictions on freedom of expression have been imposed to protect the integrity and fairness of the electoral process is in relation to the publication of pre-election opinion and exit polls. Pre-election polls are public surveys which assess the views of the electorate on various election-related matters while exit polls take place immediately after people have voted and assess the level of support for the various parties and candidates. Media coverage of such information can, at times, be controversial. This is particularly true of polls and projections commissioned or conducted by a source that is not impartial. Furthermore polls may be subject to manipulation at many levels; in the choice of questions, the choice of sample, the time that the questions are asked, and so on. It is often perceived, therefore, that polls and projections may have a distorting effect on the vote, rather than simply reflecting public sentiments.” What the MP’s are proposing is appropriate only that they are not doing it the right way. Many democratic governments have tried it in their respective jurisdictions but failed because this issue is pertinent to and touches on the delicate issue of freedom of speech and expression. Instead, the government should find ways to strengthen relations and build trust with civil institutions (including research institutions) through the various established regulatory bodies, and be a government that works for, and with the people.

Source; jijuze.com