Niko Kadi movement leader Allan Ademba has urged young Kenyans to move beyond just registering to vote and ensure they actually turn up at the ballot box in the upcoming 2027 general elections.
Speaking on a local radio station on Wednesday, Ademba said the movement’s focus extends to civic, voter and political education, and not merely collecting voter cards.
He expressed hope that the movement will convert its growing social media and grassroots momentum into 15 million actual votes in the August 2027 elections.
“Tuko Kadi is not a movement that is going to end at people registering to vote… what we are looking for is 15 million young Kenyans at the ballot going to vote,” Ademba said.
The Niko Kadi initiative began in mid‑March 2026 when young activists started using the sheng phrase Niko Kadi to encourage peers to register as voters ahead of the August 2027 elections. What started as a simple social media push, with Gen Z posting photos of themselves holding voter cards and tagging friends, has grown into an organic, citizen‑led campaign that now stretches across universities, estates and towns nationwide.
Movement organisers, led by photojournalist Ademba and activist Willie Oeba, say the campaign’s goal is ambitious: to mobilise millions of young Kenyans to register and make their voices count at the polls. Activists have helped groups of youths navigate the voter registration process in many counties, turning long lines at Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) centres into scenes of collective action and shared purpose.
Ademba has been clear that Niko Kadi is not tied to any political party or politician and that its motivation is rooted in frustrations with the status quo and a desire for greater accountability from leaders. He has repeatedly said the movement is funded and driven by ordinary citizens and their lived experiences, not by political sponsors or big donors.
Controversy over political appropriation
Despite being a grassroots movement, Niko Kadi has faced controversy as politicians began using the slogan in their own messaging. Ademba and other youth leaders have accused senior figures, including President William Ruto, of trying to co‑opt the phrase and attach it to political agendas. Ademba described such efforts as intellectual theft, saying the campaign was created by young Kenyans as a citizen‑driven drive and not as a political tool.
Ademba warned politicians not to interfere with the movement’s work, arguing that established leaders had long failed to mobilise youth registration and should not now claim authority over a campaign they did not build. He stressed that Niko Kadi is aimed at empowering citizens especially the youth, and that political figures should not hijack it for their own benefit.
