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Post by Omwenga on Oct 10, 2011 3:17:55 GMT 3
President Kibaki on Sunday thanked Othaya people, whom he has served for 37 years, for giving him time to pursue his national ambitions. Speaking at an interdenominational thanksgiving prayer service in Othaya yesterday, President Kibaki said he will retire a happy man after having tried to give his best as president and Othaya MP. The president said his Government was committed to serving all without too much discrimination. The president disagreed with those who say all key offices and personnel are disproportionately staffed by fellow brothers and sisters, but mostly brothers from the House of Mumbi. The president categorically denied charges that he has been the most tribalist president even beating his two predecessors, Daniel arap Moi and Jomo Kenyatta. Those who have analyzed hiring trends for all three presidents, however, contend the rate and ratio of employees in senior staff positions at all parts of the government, including nearly all foreign embassies are staffed by people who are either from the former Central province or speak the language very well to fool anyone coming from there. Indeed, it is said but not confirmed there is one embassy where only one language is spoken among and between staff, which is neither English nor Swahili, the two predominant languages in the country. “Whenever you go in this country, you are impressed by the steps that Kenyans have taken to uplift their lives,” Kibaki told the congregation, meaning neither he nor his portion of the government has done much to help the people and thus the reason he is impressed folk are still making it. The president was first elected Othaya MP in 1974 after shifting his base from Nairobi’s Donholm Constituency (later renamed Bahati and now comprising parts of Kamukunji) where he was first elected MP in the first post-Independence elections in 1964. The president also took a swipe at some unnamed leaders who he described as “proud”, saying the pride was likely to be a precursor to their downfall. He said such leaders “must show humility rather than brag about their achievements as they were only the servants of Kenyans.” Asked afterwards by a reporter to clarify who he meant by this reference, the president laughed, saying he would leave it up for people to imagine who he may be referring to. A quick check of the news archives and analysis of media reports shows there is not a single leader in the country other than Raila who has accomplished anything to be proud of so it is likely this was a swipe of Raila, the president’s partner in the coalition government. Indeed, a source close to the president confirmed Raila, indeed, was the target of the swipe. The swipe, however, is unfair and inaccurate because Raila has not bragged about his accomplishments and neither has he acted other than with humility in all of his political life. The PM did recently address a large crowd in Minneapolis, MN where he ticked off the government’s achievements while also stressing the challenges that lie ahead and offered reasons the country has not attained the progress it should have attained by now. The speech can hardly be seen as bragging, however, and thus confusion as to whether the president really meant Raila or his (Raila’s) opponents who have been bragging about how good they are when, in fact, they are not good at all other than in engaging in empty talk and besmirching of Raila. It therefore remains to be seen in the days ahead who the president really had in mind with the swipe and his laughingly saying he’ll leave it up to the readers to figure out who he meant, Kibaki may just have been having a little fun playing cat and mouse. The prayer meeting at the Othaya Approved School Grounds was organized by churches in Nyeri County, including the Catholic, PCEA, the ACK, AIPCA as well as evangelicals such as PEFA and the Redeemed Gospel Church. HUMBLE LEADER Archbishop Peter Kairo of the Nyeri Catholic Archdiocese delivered the main sermon. He said Kibaki had served the country with a bit of humility and some wisdom at times. Kairo added that Kibaki had brought progress in education, health, infrastructure and trade but noted that a lot more needed to be done to reduce graft, laziness, crime and consumption of illicit brews. At the service, the president sat between his son Jimmy and daughter Judy, while younger sons David Kagai and Tony Githinji and Jimmy’s wife completed this row. Also present were his grandchildren, Cabinet ministers Uhuru Kenyatta, Amos Kimunya, Beth Mugo, Chirau Mwakwere and Moses Wetang’ula, MPs Ephraim Maina (Mathira) and F T Nyammo (Tetu) and former Vice-President Moody Awori. Wetang’ula said the president’s greatest achievement was in reinstating him as minister. Uhuru said Kibaki had been at the center of national development since independence and has remained there without moving to any direction and will remain a role model to many in how to be hands off, hear nothing and see nothing, even as storms are swirling around you as was the case in 08. At the meeting, Mwakwere confessed how Kibaki turned down his offer to lead a crusade for extension of his tenure beyond the constitutional limit but he is believed to be in a deep funk since he made the confession, wondering what caused him to confess this as he is now completely and truly exposed as a watermelon who during the referendum supported passage of the new constitution in the day time while being opposed to it at night and therefore a champion of status quo. His confession was, in fact, the real headline of this event but given Makwere’s now diminished role in political circles and influence, the media may not care much to make anything out of it other than to feel sorry for him and his continued sliding into political irrelevance, if not oblivion. ***The foregoing is a parody of a story appearing on Standard Online at www.standardmedia.co.ke/InsidePage.php?id=2000044489&cid=4& *** |
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Post by danielwaweru on Oct 10, 2011 4:41:37 GMT 3
The president categorically denied charges that he has been the most tribalist president even beating his two predecessors, Daniel arap Moi and Jomo Kenyatta. Those who have analyzed hiring trends for all three presidents, however, contend the rate and ratio of employees in senior staff positions at all parts of the government, including nearly all foreign embassies are staffed by people who are either from the former Central province or speak the language very well to fool anyone coming from there. Indeed, it is said but not confirmed there is one embassy where only one language is spoken among and between staff, which is neither English nor Swahili, the two predominant languages in the country. I have a copy of "Governance institutions and inequality in Kenya", which is Ch. IX of Readings on Inequality in Kenya. It finds that the first Kibaki administration's first cabinet was the most representative in Kenyan history (look at table 9.16 on p. 377). Even the cabinet formed after the referendum results---a cabinet which had only one Luo representative (see table 9.21 on page 380)---was more representative than Moi's or Kenyatta's. As the author of the paper states (p. 381): It is interesting to note that although the figures show domination by Kikuyu and other main groups during the Kibaki administration, the share of positions allocated to each group is not out of proportion with the group's share of population. For instance, the number of Kikuyu in the cabinet from 2003 to 2005 averaged between 16 and 18% of the total number of Cabinet seats. This is within the national population share of the group. Similarly, other groups have had numbers almost equal to their share of the national population. The post-referendum period significantly altered this position. The Luhya bargained to have more seats, but at the expense of the Luo who were shut out of government. For comparison, Moi's cabinets almost always (the exception is 1987, see p. 375) had Kalenjin at their proportion of the population or above. Equally, Gikuyu were overrepresented in Cabinet throughout Kenyatta's reign (see p. 374 for figures). The claim that Kibaki is the most ethnocentric president is false, even when one applies your chosen metric. It's astonishing that Jukwaaites continue to make this claim especially when the paper from which this research is drawn has already been quoted before (see Sadik's post here). But as research on political communication in Kenya has shown (see p. 16): The main means of spreading political information among the general public is still via word-of-mouth. This is done via the ubiquitous personal networks that individuals subscribe to for economic, social and cultural survival. In a country where ethnic logic is paramount, networks are most frequently based on ties of extended family and ethnicity, ties in which the highest levels of trust are vested. Although networks would seem to be expanding and, especially in urban areas, cutting across ethnic boundaries, in times of political contest and conflict such as general elections, individuals seem to retreat into their ethnic nucleus (Shrum et al. 2010). Political information will thus primarily reach the individual from members of the same ethnic group. As such, this form of political communication serves to constantly renew and reinforce ethnic ties and thus ethnic and clientelistic political divisions, acting as a conduit of both moral ethnicity and political tribalism (Lonsdale 1992:315ff). These networks are obviously not the only, or even a primary, cause of ethnic division in the country, much of which has been whipped up by politicians in their interminable competition for political support and access to resources. Though, as both a cause and effect, they form a self-entwining knot in Kenya’s ethnic tangle.... |
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Post by furaha on Oct 10, 2011 5:39:47 GMT 3
I have a copy of "Governance institutions and inequality in Kenya", which is Ch. IX of Readings on Inequality in Kenya. It finds that the first Kibaki administration's first cabinet was the most representative in Kenyan history (look at table 9.16 on p. 377). Even the cabinet formed after the referendum results---a cabinet which had only one Luo representative (see table 9.21 on page 380)---was more representative than Moi's or Kenyatta's. As the author of the paper states (p. 381): It is interesting to note that although the figures show domination by Kikuyu and other main groups during the Kibaki administration, the share of positions allocated to each group is not out of proportion with the group's share of population. For instance, the number of Kikuyu in the cabinet from 2003 to 2005 averaged between 16 and 18% of the total number of Cabinet seats. This is within the national population share of the group. Similarly, other groups have had numbers almost equal to their share of the national population. The post-referendum period significantly altered this position. The Luhya bargained to have more seats, but at the expense of the Luo who were shut out of government. For comparison, Moi's cabinets almost always (the exception is 1987, see p. 375) had Kalenjin at their proportion of the population or above. Equally, Gikuyu were overrepresented in Cabinet throughout Kenyatta's reign (see p. 374 for figures). The claim that Kibaki is the most ethnocentric president is false, even when one applies your chosen metric. Daniel, with all due respect, there's quantity and there's quality. I have no reason to contest the figures but if you look at the distribution of key positions (not only cabinet postions) you find a disproportionate share of Gema individuals in the financial, justice and security sectors. Why is that so? Probably because these sectors are the most crucial to the control of Kenya. This is where considerable power is concentrated. And it is not only about cabinet ministers but also about key other positions, such as the governor of the Central Bank, critical PS' positions (e.g. office of the president, treasury, security), head of NSIS, key positions in the armed forces and so on. This was true under Kibaki 1 and it is true under Kibaki 2. ODM would have been wise had it not accepted this skewed portfolio distribution in 2008. Granted, some progress has been made in recent years, but overall the distribution of power is still quite skewed. I am reluctant to use the term 'invisible hand' in this forum but the officials in the sectors mentioned also have strong linkages with individuals in the parastatal and private sectors. Furaha |
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Post by joblesscorner on Oct 10, 2011 6:49:19 GMT 3
The president also took a swipe at some unnamed leaders who he described as “proud”, saying the pride was likely to be a precursor to their downfall. He said such leaders “must show humility rather than brag about their achievements as they were only the servants of Kenyans.”Asked afterwards by a reporter to clarify who he meant by this reference, the president laughed, saying he would leave it up for people to imagine who he may be referring to.
A quick check of the news archives and analysis of media reports shows there is not a single leader in the country other than Raila who has accomplished anything to be proud of so it is likely this was a swipe of Raila, the president’s partner in the coalition government.
how did President Kibaki brag about his achievements and what has Raila accomplished btw? |
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Post by joblesscorner on Oct 10, 2011 7:39:57 GMT 3
You remember the infamous confidential cable by Mr Ranneberger stating......." in the June 2009 cable in which he says that the Prime Minister “is unable or unwilling to move forward the reform agenda.”
He also says that Mr Odinga's Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) seems both directionless and less united than before.
"Odinga is increasingly perceived as feckless, unable or unwilling to govern effectively and move forward the reform agenda. There is growing disillusionment within his camp (as conveyed by key interlocutors of Odinga's Orange Democratic Movement, ODM, party to the ambassador," the cable reveals.
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Post by danielwaweru on Oct 10, 2011 8:11:15 GMT 3
I have a copy of "Governance institutions and inequality in Kenya", which is Ch. IX of Readings on Inequality in Kenya. It finds that the first Kibaki administration's first cabinet was the most representative in Kenyan history (look at table 9.16 on p. 377). Even the cabinet formed after the referendum results---a cabinet which had only one Luo representative (see table 9.21 on page 380)---was more representative than Moi's or Kenyatta's. As the author of the paper states (p. 381): It is interesting to note that although the figures show domination by Kikuyu and other main groups during the Kibaki administration, the share of positions allocated to each group is not out of proportion with the group's share of population. For instance, the number of Kikuyu in the cabinet from 2003 to 2005 averaged between 16 and 18% of the total number of Cabinet seats. This is within the national population share of the group. Similarly, other groups have had numbers almost equal to their share of the national population. The post-referendum period significantly altered this position. The Luhya bargained to have more seats, but at the expense of the Luo who were shut out of government. For comparison, Moi's cabinets almost always (the exception is 1987, see p. 375) had Kalenjin at their proportion of the population or above. Equally, Gikuyu were overrepresented in Cabinet throughout Kenyatta's reign (see p. 374 for figures). The claim that Kibaki is the most ethnocentric president is false, even when one applies your chosen metric. Daniel, with all due respect, there's quantity and there's quality. I have no reason to contest the figures but if you look at the distribution of key positions (not only cabinet postions) you find a disproportionate share of Gema individuals in the financial, justice and security sectors. Why is that so? Probably because these sectors are the most crucial to the control of Kenya. This is where considerable power is concentrated. And it is not only about cabinet ministers but also about key other positions, such as the governor of the Central Bank, critical PS' positions (e.g. office of the president, treasury, security), head of NSIS, key positions in the armed forces and so on. This was true under Kibaki 1 and it is true under Kibaki 2. ODM would have been wise had it not accepted this skewed portfolio distribution in 2008. Granted, some progress has been made in recent years, but overall the distribution of power is still quite skewed. I am reluctant to use the term 'invisible hand' in this forum but the officials in the sectors mentioned also have strong linkages with individuals in the parastatal and private sectors. Furaha 1. Just looking at the stats in the paper (p. 383) suggests otherwise: Luo, Luhya and Kenyan Asians were massively overrepresented in the judiciary in Kibaki's first term (each had 18% of Appeal judges; Luo had 23% of High Court). Well into the Kibaki era, the plurality of key posts in public corporations was held by Kalenjin at 21% (see page 392). I don't have decisive figures for the other key positions, but after seeing the personnel lists with which job has so often regaled us, well, one grows wary and weary. Further, we'd need first to have an argument about which positions count as key: I remember ODMers would discount Moody as VP, because, it was argued in those days, the VP was merely powerless. The tune changed once Kalonzo acceded to the position. The NCIC method, which takes an ethnic census of the entire civil service, as well as what everyone agrees is a key ministry such as the OP, seems to me a much better way to go. 2. But all this is slightly besides the point. Omwenga didn't make the sensible claim that the Kibaki administration was ethnically skewed; he made the far stronger claim that Kibaki was the most ethnocentric president in Kenyan history, beating even Moi and Kenyatta. It happens clearly to be false. |
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Post by kamalet on Oct 10, 2011 8:42:09 GMT 3
Whilst this Omwenga fellow is within his rights to be the official propagandist for Raila in Jukwaa, is very dishonest to embellish a story with lies or even things not said in a story (both online and paper versions). How he manages to drag in Raila's name one must actually wonder
This entire bit was not reported in the media story:
Asked afterwards by a reporter to clarify who he meant by this reference, the president laughed, saying he would leave it up for people to imagine who he may be referring to.
A quick check of the news archives and analysis of media reports shows there is not a single leader in the country other than Raila who has accomplished anything to be proud of so it is likely this was a swipe of Raila, the president’s partner in the coalition government.
Indeed, a source close to the president confirmed Raila, indeed, was the target of the swipe.
The swipe, however, is unfair and inaccurate because Raila has not bragged about his accomplishments and neither has he acted other than with humility in all of his political life.
The PM did recently address a large crowd in Minneapolis, MN where he ticked off the government’s achievements while also stressing the challenges that lie ahead and offered reasons the country has not attained the progress it should have attained by now.
If he wanted it to be his running commentary of the story, it is fine and he should say these are my comments/views, but what gave him away was the bit about a reporter asking Kibaki a question which was responded to......come on we all know Kibaki does not answer media questions!
All this Omwenga character wanted to do was remind us of Raila in the US but he did not have to distort a story in the media! We have seen worse sycophants but this one leads the pack!
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Post by mank on Oct 10, 2011 8:47:29 GMT 3
I will not read all the yari yara before I say this ... I hope he thanked the people of Kenyat at large. He owes the rest of us more than he owes those of Othaya. The closer to the village you circle, the less the chances that there was someone more warranted for the position bestowed you - o then, the converse. Someone else would have served Kibaki's term, and so often Kibaki did not fight enough for it, regardless of what the laggards want understood!
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Post by kamalet on Oct 10, 2011 9:10:36 GMT 3
I will not read all the yari yara before I say this ... I hope he thanked the people of Kenyat at large. He owes the rest of us more than he owes those of Othaya. The closer to the village you circle, the less the chances that there was someone more warranted for the position bestowed you - o then, the converse. Someone else would have served Kibaki's term, and so often Kibaki did not fight enough for it, regardless of what the laggards want understood! Mank And what happened to charity beginning at home....? Kamale |
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Post by phil on Oct 10, 2011 10:40:34 GMT 3
The fact he had to go to Othaya (and not Uhuru Park for instance) speaks volumes.
More Kenyans have been killed for political reasons during his reign than for any other president. More Kenyans have been displaced and rendered homeless during his reign than for any other president. The constitution reform was something that was actually forced on him through NARA and he never had any plans to deliver a new constitution to Kenya. Hi cabinet is the largest and most corrupt since independence and the first lady ladies give Kenyans very little comfort. The country has been attacked more by armed militia during his time than during any other president and he as the CiC has done absolutely nothing to protect Kenyans. Kenya's territory is occupied by foreigners as we speak, something that was unthinkable during Kenyatta's or Moi's time. The biggest scam of our times happened during his watch and was executed by his close associates - protected by his close friend former KACC Director Justice Ringera.
Yes, he can retire a happy man. Kenyans will breath a sigh of relief to see him go. What a liability he has been for the last 10 years.
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Post by danielwaweru on Oct 10, 2011 11:02:26 GMT 3
The fact he had to go to Othaya (and not Uhuru Park for instance) speaks volumes. More Kenyans have been killed for political reasons during his reign than for any other president. More Kenyans have been displaced and rendered homeless during his reign than for any other president. Truly, words fail. The vast majority of the killings and displacements are the direct result of your party's electoral strategy. You yourself have referred to these consequences as 'collateral damage'. You have some cheek blaming it on Kibaki. |
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Post by nowayhaha on Oct 10, 2011 11:15:44 GMT 3
The fact he had to go to Othaya (and not Uhuru Park for instance) speaks volumes. More Kenyans have been killed for political reasons during his reign than for any other president. More Kenyans have been displaced and rendered homeless during his reign than for any other president. The constitution reform was something that was actually forced on him through NARA and he never had any plans to deliver a new constitution to Kenya. Hi cabinet is the largest and most corrupt since independence and the first lady ladies give Kenyans very little comfort. The country has been attacked more by armed militia during his time than during any other president and he as the CiC has done absolutely nothing to protect Kenyans. Kenya's territory is occupied by foreigners as we speak, something that was unthinkable during Kenyatta's or Moi's time. The biggest scam of our times happened during his watch and was executed by his close associates - protected by his close friend former KACC Director Justice Ringera. Yes, he can retire a happy man. Kenyans will breath a sigh of relief to see him go. What a liability he has been for the last 10 years. In the same venom can you also list his achievements vis a vis the achievements of former presidents . In your" facts" above you have failed to list the fact that it was Raila and ODM who orchestrated the killing of Kenyans for political reasons by the careless tribal oriented utterances .Also you fail to mention that it is ODM supporters who displaced and rendered Kenyans homeless after incitement from Raila and ODM. But then again ODM didn't exist prior to Kibaki becoming the president. As for the constitution we all know the presidents input .If it wasn't for him it would never have seen the light of the day . |
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Post by phil on Oct 10, 2011 11:31:25 GMT 3
Ok guys, here's a blast from the past, about the same man Kibaki Kenya will eternally be grateful for the presidency of Kibaki! He is perhaps the best Kenya has had and will have in a long time! Qualifier: He ranks right up there as a very poor politician! No need to be emotional here Kamale, but are you grateful to the biggest curse that has visited this country since independence? Goodness gracious! Ati Kibaki is the best president?
Who has presided over murder of innocent Kenyans, let his wife lose to attack independent media, purported to introduce free basic education while maintaining an approved levy on parents, appointed his tribesmen to all the important ministries and state positions, subverted the NARC dream and denied us the Bomas constititution in 2005, killed the official opposition in the 9th parliament by poaching and appointing KANU members to parliament, committed genocide on Kenyans when he unleashed his kwekwe security forces on hapless and unarmed civilians under the guise of fighting organised crime, presided over some of the largest corruption cases in the history of the republic? Ati the best president?Toa hiyo, leta ingine. No wonder even his birthday was a hidden affair. Nothing worth celebrating. Unhappy birthday mzee Kibaki. |
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Post by danielwaweru on Oct 10, 2011 11:50:43 GMT 3
The fact he had to go to Othaya (and not Uhuru Park for instance) speaks volumes. More Kenyans have been killed for political reasons during his reign than for any other president. More Kenyans have been displaced and rendered homeless during his reign than for any other president. The constitution reform was something that was actually forced on him through NARA and he never had any plans to deliver a new constitution to Kenya. Hi cabinet is the largest and most corrupt since independence and the first lady ladies give Kenyans very little comfort. The country has been attacked more by armed militia during his time than during any other president and he as the CiC has done absolutely nothing to protect Kenyans. Kenya's territory is occupied by foreigners as we speak, something that was unthinkable during Kenyatta's or Moi's time. The biggest scam of our times happened during his watch and was executed by his close associates - protected by his close friend former KACC Director Justice Ringera. Yes, he can retire a happy man. Kenyans will breath a sigh of relief to see him go. What a liability he has been for the last 10 years. (1) The boundaries of one of the Pokot districts were only fixed in the 80s. I'd have to check the exact details. At any rate, between independence and 80 or 81, a large chunk of Kenyan territory was occupied by Uganda. (2) Assuming you're referring to Anglo-leasing when you call it the biggest scam, you're wrong (I'm beginning to worry that you might be lying rather than making an honest mistake). The biggest scam (in both absolute terms and relative to the GDP) remains Goldenberg, since at least KES 150B was paid out according to the Commission report. It's unclear how much was paid out in Anglo-leasing, since the figure of $1B (or $770m) included deals signed either side of 2002. But even if the full amount is taken into account, Anglo-leasing remains smaller in both relative and absolute terms. (3) The Shifta war was, I think, larger in scale than present militia attacks. And those are just the falsehoods I could spot right away. |
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Post by kamalet on Oct 10, 2011 12:19:17 GMT 3
The fact he had to go to Othaya (and not Uhuru Park for instance) speaks volumes. More Kenyans have been killed for political reasons during his reign than for any other president. More Kenyans have been displaced and rendered homeless during his reign than for any other president. The constitution reform was something that was actually forced on him through NARA and he never had any plans to deliver a new constitution to Kenya. Hi cabinet is the largest and most corrupt since independence and the first lady ladies give Kenyans very little comfort. The country has been attacked more by armed militia during his time than during any other president and he as the CiC has done absolutely nothing to protect Kenyans. Kenya's territory is occupied by foreigners as we speak, something that was unthinkable during Kenyatta's or Moi's time. The biggest scam of our times happened during his watch and was executed by his close associates - protected by his close friend former KACC Director Justice Ringera. Yes, he can retire a happy man. Kenyans will breath a sigh of relief to see him go. What a liability he has been for the last 10 years. (1) The boundaries of one of the Pokot districts were only fixed in the 80s. I'd have to check the exact details. At any rate, between independence and 80 or 81, a large chunk of Kenyan territory was occupied by Uganda. (2) Assuming you're referring to Anglo-leasing when you call it the biggest scam, you're wrong (I'm beginning to worry that you might be lying rather than making an honest mistake). The biggest scam (in both absolute terms and relative to the GDP) remains Goldenberg, since at least KES 150B was paid out according to the Commission report. It's unclear how much was paid out in Anglo-leasing, since the figure of $1B (or $770m) included deals signed either side of 2002. But even if the full amount is taken into account, Anglo-leasing remains smaller in both relative and absolute terms. (3) The Shifta war was, I think, larger in scale than present militia attacks. And those are just the falsehoods I could spot right away. Unless Phil is a product of Nyayo milk, it is strange he cannot see very far back....even with a little effort to read!!! |
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Post by phil on Oct 10, 2011 13:13:12 GMT 3
Meanwhile, news just in, President Pedro Verona Pires of Cape Verde wins the 2011 Ibrahim Prize for Achievement in African Leadership.
Prize Committee impressed by Pires’s vision in transforming Cape Verde into a model of democracy, stability and increased prosperity. Pires refused to change the constitution to run again.
Under his presidency, Cape Verde became only the second African country to graduate from the United Nation’s Least Developed category.
President Pires has been dedicated to the service of his people, while retaining his humility and personal integrity.
In contrast and like Moi before him, President Kibaki of Kenya can only DREAM about earning such prices in his retirement.
Last year, there was no winner announced, a slap in the face of retired presidents of Africa like Moi and others.
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Post by phil on Oct 10, 2011 13:49:09 GMT 3
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Post by b6k on Oct 10, 2011 14:08:54 GMT 3
You can't expect too much from a man who's been MP practically since independence. Those outmoded ideas can only go so far.
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Post by roughrider on Oct 10, 2011 14:25:59 GMT 3
Perhaps one of the early salvoes in debate around the legacy of Mwai Kibaki was this interesting take by Kwamchetsi Makokha. Allow me to reprint in full to contextualize the discussion here, better.
A tragic figure: clever, but too rigid to rise to greatness
By KWAMCHETSI MAKOKHA
Posted Saturday, July 30 2011 at 00:27
Ethnicity is not the main thing in Kenya; many times, it is the only thing.
Yet, for a moment after the December 2002 election in which Mr Mwai Kibaki won 62 per cent of the vote to become Kenya’s third president, it seemed as if the tribe would become a relic in the country’s political lexicon.
Mr Kibaki had received votes from across the country’s 40-odd ethnic groups after losing two previous contests. It seemed as if Kenya had crafted a formula for dealing with the divisive demon of tribalism.
Fast-forward to 2007, and the landslide president was hanging on by the skin of his teeth. The country was split, smouldering in the cinders of ethnic hatred and perched on the rim of a cauldron of civil war.
As soon as he took power, Mr Kibaki and his allies began to dismantle the political coalition that had brought him to power.
Hiding behind the infirmity of a stroke he suffered following a road accident on the campaign trail, he remained leader of the National Alliance Rainbow Coalition, but refused to engage those who helped him capture power.
He had, by default, effectively replaced the political party system with a subdued personality cult in which his ideas and plans alone counted.
During his first term in office, Mr Kibaki denigrated the system of political parties, cannibalising his own and undermining the opposition.
Although packaged as a dislike for politics, Mr Kibaki’s disdain for parties betrayed an intellectual hubris that would submit to neither check nor audit.
The arrogance that encouraged Kibaki and his advisors to imagine they knew better what Kenyans needed delivered a grubby development without a soul.
It was a wrong fit and only evoked jealousy among those who saw themselves as excluded from it.
Yes, the economy was expanding, but it was also widening the chasms between classes and regions.
Mr Kibaki’s friends and allies had captured the economy; its policies would hence seek to tighten their stranglehold while locking large swathes of the population out.
It seemed as if Mr Kibaki was concluding the business he left unfinished as Finance Minister in the 1970s, when individuals got rich overnight through smuggling and underhand deals.
Some say, it was a continuation of the policies of exclusion planted in the policy document, African Socialism and its Application to Planning in Kenya — the development blueprint Mr Kibaki wrote in 1965.
In the new season of intellectual dictatorship, the refusal to listen to the will of the people on the constitution-making process — as on many other issues — delayed it by nearly three years and ended in an electoral stillbirth at the 2005 referendum. It is the failure or refusal to overhaul the country’s governance system that brought cataclysmic events of 2007.
The narrative was the same with regard to the war on corruption. None of the old graft cases around the loss of nearly Sh100 billion in the Goldenberg International fraud would be concluded during the Kibaki presidency — despite an inquiry finding evidence of wrongdoing. Senior members of his administration would be caught with their fingers in the till when the Sh53 billion security equipment supply contracts awarded to Anglo-Leasing and Finance Company came to light.
The bumbling and unaccountable politics of Mr Kibaki’s presidency produced an insecurity evident in the string of incidents prefacing the rush to self-destruction. One is the saga, right on the edge of treason forest, in which two non-Kenyans with dubious backgrounds — going by the names of Artur Margaryan and Artur Sargsyan — were absorbed into the heart of the country’s security system and appointed to positions only a rung lower than the Commissioner of Police.
Politically besieged, the Kibaki administration began a campaign of ethnic consolidation targeting his Central Kenya stronghold. Internal dissent was discouraged, nay, crushed.
The brutal suppression of the Mungiki, an extortionate murderous gang with pretensions to Kikuyu cultural purism, created a siege mentality in Kibaki’s political strongholds. The anti-Mungiki crackdown would balloon into one of the most egregious human rights violations in Kenya’s history, claiming over 500 lives and attracting the attention of the UN Special Rapporteur on Arbitrary and Extra-judicial Executions.
As this amount of force was being deployed in his backyard, Mr Kibaki somehow allowed a rag-tag army of youth called the Sabaot Land Defence Force to take over Mt Elgon District, close it to government and even levy taxes.
It was only after security forces made a connection between the SLDF and the post-election violence that the army was sent to crush it.
By the time the elections were called, the only ideology that resonated around the country was one that pitted tribe against tribe. With the benefit of hindsight, one can sympathise with why the Leader of the Official Opposition, Mr Uhuru Kenyatta, saw it fit to join in alliance with Mr Kibaki’s hastily assembled Party of National Unity for the 2007 elections.
Such was Kibaki’s decline in popularity that, after all the roads and dispensaries he had built, the millions of children sent to school at no charge and subsidised medical care, he was neck-and-neck with his challenger.
It was telling verdict — a president who had got into office with 62 per cent of the vote could not muster 50 per cent a second time. The dispute and conflict that followed the 2007 elections will, in all likelihood, define Mr Kibaki’s legacy more than anything else he has ever done.
Mr Kibaki bears much responsibility for the blot of those 60 days in which Kenya sunk into lawlessness and came to the brink of war. Mr Kibaki’s pretended powerlessness in the face of so many deaths and great suffering was a way of condoning what was going on.
Although the Commission of Inquiry into the Post-Election Violence recorded 1,133 deaths, the number of inquest files stands at 3,650. The refusal to take decisive action to deliver justice on the tragic events of 2008, and the subsequent charging of six Kenyans with crimes against humanity at the International Criminal Court at The Hague, are singular as low moments in Mr Kibaki’s presidency. Questions will linger about what he knew about the violence and why he did so little.
Having squandered the solid mandate to build a nation, it is a fitting backhanded compliment that the lessons on how not to govern a country, many learnt during Mr Kibaki’s presidency, are writ large in the new Constitution.
In a less forgiving country, Mr Kibaki would be looking at a retirement filled with numerous court appearances. And all that because he failed to read moments correctly and had little compassion, Mr Kibaki will likely be viewed as a tragic figure: clever, but too insular to rise to greatness.
kwamchetsi@formandcontent.co.ke
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Post by roughrider on Oct 10, 2011 14:39:12 GMT 3
I am chuckling at some of the feeble defense offered Mwai Kibaki here and elsewhere. One could be forgiven for thinking that it is based on tribe. But I wouldn't want to defend Kibaki by saying he was merely better than Moi or even Kenyatta. That is insulting. In a subsequent post, I will try to enumerate the better choices Kibaki has made and some good aspects of his leadership (if we can call it that).
The very last sentence in Omwenga’s writing is a clear disclaimer that this is a parody of the main article. So only one who has not read it carefully or in full will berate him for distorting a newspaper report!
Having said that, the sentiments resonate: Kenyans must accept that Kibaki is a great disappointment when weighed against the great expectations of 2002 and the quality of his predecessors. He claims that retires a happy man since he is extremely wealthy and somehow escaped the jaws of the ICC. But what of millions of kenyans whose lives were destroyed under his watch?
Any reasonable analyst should be grieving uncontrollably at the state of this once promising nation.
For the sake of proper argument we should state that, of all Kenyans, Mwai Kibaki has had the most and longest ability to influence the direction of the Kenyan economy and the Kenyan state. By logical extension he bears the brunt of blame for the anemic state of our national economy and society. He (and other Kikuyu and Luo) technocrats were responsible for economic planning after independence. Kibaki continued to be an important player through the 80’s while sitting at the heart of Moi’s Kanu. To crown it all, Kibaki has held the rudders for the past 10 years. It is these levers which make or break a country. Here are some observations, off-the-cuff, that describe Kibaki's dismal record:
1. Our economy is a shambles. Inequality, in all its manifestations, is catastrophic (thank you Daniel Waweru for the SID report).
2. The collapse of the Kenyan shilling: The last few months reveal quite a lot about Kibaki. Our currency has taken a terrible battering with dire consequences on the cost of living. The Kikuyu managed central bank and treasury
3. Our national cohesion is in tatters. Tribalism is rife. Kenyans are identifying themselves more by tribe than they did before. Tribalisation of security forces – Army, Police, AP etc is a particularly dangerous manifestation of native barbarism that creeps upon us whenever we distribute national resources according to tribal calculation.
4. The rendition of Kenyan citizens to foreign countries (US and Uganda)
5. The extra judicial killing of Kenyan youth
6. The continued breach and annexation of Kenyan territory (Migingo and Todonyang)
7. The ugly post election violence of 2007/2008 which is the subject of two cases at the ICC. Related to this is the inability of the GOK to seek justice for thousands of victims of PEV.
8. The famines (if you prefer to call them droughts) – and no, famines are not caused by lack of rainfall. They are caused by incompetence.
9. The continuation of mega corruption of the Nyayo era. There is no goodwill to fight corruption since Kibaki’s close associates are deeply involved and this has been the case since 2002
So, If any what positive things can we credit Kibaki for? There are a few… I will be back to point them out
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Post by destiny on Oct 10, 2011 16:46:43 GMT 3
KIBAKI'S inaugural address to the nation as Head of State shortly after being sworn in at Uhuru Park on 30th Dec 2002:
"Corruption will now cease to be a way of life in Kenya and I call upon all those members of my government and public officers accustomed to corrupt practice to know and clearly understand that there will be no sacred cows under my government."
FAST FORWARD 2012:
Not a single high ranking Govt official has been convicted of any corruption in over one decade when Mzee Kibaki has been in power! And how many scandals have rocked the Kibaki Administration?
KenRen, Goldenberg, Anglo Leasing, De La Rue, Grand Regency, Free Primary Education Funds, Artur Brothers, Untouchable Drug Barons, Mobitelea, Promissory Notes, Ndung'u Land Report? Deepak Kamani, Triton Oil Scandal, Kroll Report? Passat Scandal... And a huge debt worth Sh 1.1 TRILLION as Prezzo retires a "Happy Man!"
Kenyatta was possibly right when he warned against the presidency crossing River Chania.
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Post by roughrider on Oct 10, 2011 17:09:40 GMT 3
KIBAKI'S inaugural address to the nation as Head of State shortly after being sworn in at Uhuru Park on 30th Dec 2002: "Corruption will now cease to be a way of life in Kenya and I call upon all those members of my government and public officers accustomed to corrupt practice to know and clearly understand that there will be no sacred cows under my government."FAST FORWARD 2012: Not a single high ranking Govt official has been convicted of any corruption in over one decade when Mzee Kibaki has been in power! And how many scandals have rocked the Kibaki Administration? KenRen, Goldenberg, Anglo Leasing, De La Rue, Grand Regency, Free Primary Education Funds, Artur Brothers, Untouchable Drug Barons, Mobitelea, Promissory Notes, Ndung'u Land Report? Deepak Kamani, Triton Oil Scandal, Kroll Report? Passat Scandal... And a huge debt worth Sh 1.1 TRILLION as Prezzo retires a "Happy Man!" Kenyatta was possibly right when he warned against the presidency crossing River Chania. Yes. In that big Uhuru park speech Kibaki told Kenyans how he wanted us to judge him. And yet he failed miserably on all metrics. This was a dishonest politician lying as usual - the sad part, is we all fell for it! As he fades into the sunset, we must remind Mr. Kibaki, every single day of his utter failure as president and the consequences arising. |
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Post by destiny on Oct 10, 2011 17:19:32 GMT 3
I suspect we don't even have a clue about the rampant corruption that has been taking place over the last 10 years, even some senior figure shamelessly asking Githongo to "ngo srow" over his investigations and eventually hounding PLO out of his office.
If only we knew about those mega scandals within the ministry of defence! The grand coalition has also been a disaster with such a bloated and corrupt cabinet that is overpaid and overrated. Can't wait for Miguna's explosive book which he's busy penning ready to spill all the beans. Raila may as well kiss 2012 goodbye once double M's work hit the shelves.
Timing is everything, they say.
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Post by b6k on Oct 10, 2011 17:35:04 GMT 3
Destiny, I think RAO's presidential aspirations are doomed whether MM publishes his book or not. Let's be honest, he peaked in '07. The 40 aligning behind him as they did in '07 is those once in a lifetime deals.
Too much water has since gone under the bridge. There's Wikileaks & ICC fallout he'll have to reckon with. MM's book may just be the icing, but the cake is more or less baked already.
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Post by Omwenga on Oct 10, 2011 18:07:57 GMT 3
Destiny, I think RAO's presidential aspirations are doomed whether MM publishes his book or not. Let's be honest, he peaked in '07. The 40 aligning behind him as they did in '07 is those once in a lifetime deals. Too much water has since gone under the bridge. There's Wikileaks & ICC fallout he'll have to reckon with. MM's book may just be the icing, but the cake is more or less baked already. This is what is referred to as wishful thinking. If wishes were horses, beggars would ride. Put your candidate forth and tell us why he or she is better. |
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