Is Kenya ready for a Luo President? Posted by africanpress on March 12, 2007
2007 is
election year in Kenya
This
year is election year in Kenya. Kenyans would like to get a leader they will trust. To do so, one has to look at the country’s
history before and after independence.
While doing so, one has to
consider many things including tribal connotations and loyalty to the state and the Kenyan people. One
should also look at the past rulers and how they functioned and which tribes have done what for the Kenyan people.
There is one very important factor in leadership: "Tolerance."
Many Kikuyu people died for Kenya during Mau Mau
When the colonialists ruled Kenya they manhandled the Kenyan people. Manhandling did not end until the
Mau Mau uprising was stepped up forcing the colonial government to agree to hand over power. For
Kenya to become independent many Kikuyu people lost their lives than any other tribe in the country. This is a fact that the
Kenyans and all the tribes of Kenya must accept.
What we are saying
should not be seen as a contribution to tribalism. People have to deal with the the truth and accept it as it is. This is
not being brought up to cause division in the country but to see the point, accept it and move on.
When Mzee Jomo Kenyatta took over as the President, he appointed a Luo Man Mr Jaramogi Oginga Odinga to be his vice
President. That was okay for all the other tribes. Kenyans wanted to be their own bosses and surely they did.
Odinga’s impatience and intolerance
It did not take long before a problem arose within the government. The then vice president Odinga, did not have patience
and tolerance. He wanted to topple Kenyatta. That is called lust for power.
The
government had to get a new vice president. Joseph Murumbi stepped in and the Kenyatta administration continued to serve Kenyans.
It was soon to become tribal at the top. Many appointments in most senior and sensitive positions
were given to Kikuyu people by Kenyatta. Can we blame him for doing that?
The
answer would be no. Kenyatta saw no reason to trust any other tribe after that. He had trusted Odinga, a Luo man but he became
impatient and intolerant. The seat of vice president was not big enough for Odinga. He wanted to be president.
Many started blaming Kenyatta for being tribal in his appointments after Odinga’s fall
from grace as his vice president.
The "Loyal and patient"
Daniel Moi rewarded
Murumbi’s exit was smooth. A gentleman’s
resignation. After Murumbi, Kenyatta appointed Daniel Arap Moi, as vice President. The then quiet Moi became Kenyatta’s
loyal servant and the servant of the Kenyan people. He was loyal, patient and tolerant. He did not try to topple Kenyatta.
Kenyatta was comfortable to have such a man as his vice president.
Moi,
a Kalenjin was not a man who tried to influence Kenyatta to appoint many Kalenjins in top and sensitive positions
just like Odinga had tried to do when he tried to push Kenyatta around in an effort to get the president to appoint his Luo
supporters to top positions.
When Kenyatta died peacefully in Mombasa state
house, Moi took over power. Moi did not sack anyone immediately. He followed Kenyatta’s footsteps and allowed those
appointed by the late president to continue in their top sensitive positions.
The clipping of the wings
It
was not until when he was almost overthrown in 1982 attempted coup that the then President, Daniel Moi decided to clip the
wings of those he found to be against his leadership.
Loyal
and patient Kibaki
On
taking over the presidency, Moi appointed appointed Mwai Kibaki, a Kikuyu as his vice president. Kibaki
was a loyal and patient. But when Moi realised his policies were being sabotaged by some people in his government,
he decided to sack many and replace them with his own men. He kept his vice president.It
was not long before government buildings, state house and other major important installations were headed by many from the
Kalenjin tribe. Of course Moi had said he was following Kenyatta’s footsteps. And Kenyatta was simply being copied by
Moi in way of appointing his own men and women. These were the people Moi felt comfortable with, but he also had to have other
tribes because of unity, peace and stability that the country needed after the attempted coup of 1982 had distabilised the
nation.
Can we blame Moi for having many Kalenjins at the top
and sensitive positions after the attempted coup to topple him? The answer is no, if we
have to be realistic because leadership depends on trust and loyalty to the leader and the people the leader is serving.
Moi at one point decided to renew the vice presidency by removing Kibaki, but did not put him
in the cold. He gave him a ministerial position. People have said it was a demotion, but the fact is that the ministry of
health is a very important and significant ministry world-wide. It is the ministry that makes policies that save people’sÂ
lives.
Moi then appointed Prof George Saitoti, a Masai - Kikuyu who served
Moi’s government just like Kibaki - a service dedicated to the Kenyan people in total loyalty.
The multiparty democracy
The multiparty
politics soon took the front seat in the 90’s forcing Moi government to re-tune and face the reality of changing politics.
Mwai Kibaki, Raila Odinga, Kenneth Matiba, Charles Rubia and others who pushed for multipartyism
were soon in the front line challenging Moi for the presidency. They failed at the time to remove Moi.
President Mwai Kibaki and the faked memorandum of understanding
It was not until 2002 when Moi stepped down because of the respect for the constitution
that a new man emerged the winner and took over as Kenya’s president. The man is Mwai Kibaki. He has led the country
peacefully after taking over from Moi. President Kibaki has been loyal to the Kenyan people and has provided what the
people needed most. The development and free primary education. Kibaki’s government
started slowly and carefully with coalition partners that included Prof Saitoti, Kalonzo Musyoka, Raila Odinga, Charity Ngilu,
Kijana Wamalwa and others.
They said there was something called
a memorandum of understanding that was signed. Kibaki has denied and has been supported by Saitoti who has characterised Raila
as a leader that cannot be trusted. Saitoti and Kibaki have said that they were in the room where MoU was supposed to have
been endorsed, an endorsement that would have made Kibaki to appoint some of the coalition partners to the top and to sweet
things in his government, sharing the ministerial positions equally. According to Kibaki and Saitoti, there was no MoU unless
one faked by his critics.