Kenya is truly changing. Since the promulgation of the new Constitution a lot of things have happened some of which give us hope for the future while some point to the nostalgic bondage of past ways of corruption. Our nation is a country of big unpredictable contrasts, where a minister publicly refuses to resign after court order, and then gets suspended, another one resigns after a thorough soul searching following a parliamentary committee report but a city mayor charged of corruption may remain in office because the new Constitution states he is not a public officer.
The new Constitution ushered in a new era of politics. It has given citizens of Kenya another chance to serve their country without fear or favour. But change is hard to accept. The people resisting change do not want to let go of their past darker days when a mere mention of a ‘name’ was enough to open and close doors. This was the time one could be jailed indefinitely without appearing before a magistrate and sight of a police officer was a sign of being in trouble.
In this new spirit, it is vital that all implicated leaders in positions of responsibility, adhere to the Constitution when they are found wanting. To some politicians, there is no difference between the judiciary and the state (politics) but that was in the past, now things are beginning to turn around. At a time when the judicial system is becoming independent and assertive and organs of the national assembly are aggressively following through with their investigations with a public not willing to condone acts of impunity in the name of tribe, this time round such politicians will be on their own and in big trouble.
It is the fear of the future and arrogance of the past, why in the same government one minister takes personal decision to resign pending outcome of the investigations while one defies the court, simply because some of these people do not know whether to follow the Constitution or not as this was the order of business in the yester years. You can understand it is still confusing for if you are not defined in the Constitution as a public officer, you can commit a crime and be charged in court but you need not to resign.
Even though the new Constitution protects our human rights, it is still difficult in the minds of many to come out and positively engage the public and policy makers for fear of being labelled anti-system. However, it is now time for our university scholars to come out and engage the public and policy makers as they used to in the late 1970s. These scholars must force their way into public life by providing robust critique of public policy without fear of being visited at night by police officers. Some of the scholars who were critical of public policies became compliant once their hands were forced into politics and begun singing like parrots. These learned friends must stick their necks out now that we have a new dispensation without fear of intimidation or arrest for they are an invaluable asset to the nation and politicians must not interfere with their free thinking. Politicians even in the West sometimes do not find work of independent research bodies or individuals challenging the government policy palatable but they engage them in some ferocious but informed policy debates. Such discourse is good for the development of our people and the nation. Politicians have often for too long had their way in managing university scholars or other professionals’ thinking but the nation needs impartial and independent opinionated people. What is your take?
Peace to Kenya
Dickson Aduonga