It is time we admitted
defeat in our efforts to reform the ruling classes from their myopic
ethnic-tainted look at the political landscape. Regardless of the wishes
of millions of Kenyans, what we have is a political class that sees
everything in the un-rosy tint of one tribe eating at the expense of all
others. Or one coalition of tribal leaders eating while the people they
claim to be fighting for suffer from all the ills that have bedeviled
this country since Independence. Their leadership, if it could be called
that, has been the reason why illiteracy, disease and poverty have
remained realities for large swathes of the nation. Images of starving
children, or children taking their lessons in caves or under leafless
trees will not soften their hearts and persuade them to address the
problems of the people. In their desire to control the destinies of
millions, our political masters have forgotten that leadership is not
for eternity but for a term, the presence of leaders-for-life in distant
lands not withstanding.
The Gang of Seven, the United Democratic Front, the Wiper Democratic Movement, the United Republican Party, The National Alliance and the Orange Democratic Movement, among scores of others, are living proof that regardless of the lofty aims of the Constitution, the political landscape in Kenya continues to be shaped by men and women who see the masses as political pawns to be moved about the chess-board in an effort to seize and hold onto power and great material wealth. Looking at the leading lights of the political kingpins in Kenya, one is hardpressed to identify one whose great fortune is not as a direct result of his proximity to the levers of political power. While millions of Kenyans have to do with substandard public services, these men and women have the ability and capacity to ensure that their families enjoy only the best the country, and the world, has to offer. Their children attend the best national and international schools. They are treated in the best medical facilities money can pay for. The last time any one of them slept hungry was when they were participating in another Western-inspired 'diet'; millions of Kenyans are at constant risk of hunger because they can scarcely keep up with the ever-rising cost of living.
This weekend, the President, the Chief Justice and the Speaker of the National Assembly led their government colleagues in a charade aimed at hoodwinking the masses that peace was the government's aim. The lofty speeches aimed at cooling down the temperatures that were made at a five-star hotel in Mombasa are a cruel reminder that the peace that these men and women are seeking have nothing to do with the travails the peoples of Kenya suffer, but with the desire of the rich and powerful to protect their wealth and status in society. It is impossible not to conclude that our political, religious and financial leaders only wish to maintain the facade of stability with the view of entrenching their positions and not to give Kenyans a better life. Every atrocity suffered by innocent Kenyans is an opportunity for the political class to parade before the cameras to portray their status as first-among-equals.
As a people, we have been programmed to look at everything through the prism of entitlement. "My community is entitled to this because..." is the enduring leitmotif of our political culture. We parade our ignorance before the comity of nations every time we speak of the evils of one community or the innocence of another while ignoring the malgovernance of our nation at the hands of men and women who should know better and do better. Forty-nine years of Madaraka have passed by cruelly for millions of Kenyans and all they have been programmed to think of is elections and nothing else. The promulgation of a Constitution in the face of such overwhelming odds has not reminded Kenyans of their duty to one another, merely the fact that "their man" has yet to taste the power that comes with the Presidency or some such powerful position. In our adamant refusal to see beyond the election of one man from one community to one position, we reinforce the foundations of inequality and venality on which the Government of Kenya is built.
The lone efforts of people like the Chief Justice will be in vain if all Kenyans fail to join in the efforts to reform their government and their society. The valiant efforts of lone MPs such as John Mututho are in vain when the basic frailties of the communities they are trying to help remain unaddressed. Reforms are not for the political and judicial leadership alone to address; every man must re-examine his place in the great scheme of things. Until that is done, until we can face the truth about ourselves and our leaders, all the great constitutions in the world and all the Willy Mutungas of the world will not rescue us from the catastrophe that lies down the road. We faced choices in 1964, '65, '69, '92 and 2002 and we consistently made the wrongs ones. Will we do so again in 2013?
The Gang of Seven, the United Democratic Front, the Wiper Democratic Movement, the United Republican Party, The National Alliance and the Orange Democratic Movement, among scores of others, are living proof that regardless of the lofty aims of the Constitution, the political landscape in Kenya continues to be shaped by men and women who see the masses as political pawns to be moved about the chess-board in an effort to seize and hold onto power and great material wealth. Looking at the leading lights of the political kingpins in Kenya, one is hardpressed to identify one whose great fortune is not as a direct result of his proximity to the levers of political power. While millions of Kenyans have to do with substandard public services, these men and women have the ability and capacity to ensure that their families enjoy only the best the country, and the world, has to offer. Their children attend the best national and international schools. They are treated in the best medical facilities money can pay for. The last time any one of them slept hungry was when they were participating in another Western-inspired 'diet'; millions of Kenyans are at constant risk of hunger because they can scarcely keep up with the ever-rising cost of living.
This weekend, the President, the Chief Justice and the Speaker of the National Assembly led their government colleagues in a charade aimed at hoodwinking the masses that peace was the government's aim. The lofty speeches aimed at cooling down the temperatures that were made at a five-star hotel in Mombasa are a cruel reminder that the peace that these men and women are seeking have nothing to do with the travails the peoples of Kenya suffer, but with the desire of the rich and powerful to protect their wealth and status in society. It is impossible not to conclude that our political, religious and financial leaders only wish to maintain the facade of stability with the view of entrenching their positions and not to give Kenyans a better life. Every atrocity suffered by innocent Kenyans is an opportunity for the political class to parade before the cameras to portray their status as first-among-equals.
As a people, we have been programmed to look at everything through the prism of entitlement. "My community is entitled to this because..." is the enduring leitmotif of our political culture. We parade our ignorance before the comity of nations every time we speak of the evils of one community or the innocence of another while ignoring the malgovernance of our nation at the hands of men and women who should know better and do better. Forty-nine years of Madaraka have passed by cruelly for millions of Kenyans and all they have been programmed to think of is elections and nothing else. The promulgation of a Constitution in the face of such overwhelming odds has not reminded Kenyans of their duty to one another, merely the fact that "their man" has yet to taste the power that comes with the Presidency or some such powerful position. In our adamant refusal to see beyond the election of one man from one community to one position, we reinforce the foundations of inequality and venality on which the Government of Kenya is built.
The lone efforts of people like the Chief Justice will be in vain if all Kenyans fail to join in the efforts to reform their government and their society. The valiant efforts of lone MPs such as John Mututho are in vain when the basic frailties of the communities they are trying to help remain unaddressed. Reforms are not for the political and judicial leadership alone to address; every man must re-examine his place in the great scheme of things. Until that is done, until we can face the truth about ourselves and our leaders, all the great constitutions in the world and all the Willy Mutungas of the world will not rescue us from the catastrophe that lies down the road. We faced choices in 1964, '65, '69, '92 and 2002 and we consistently made the wrongs ones. Will we do so again in 2013?
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