of Nairobi engage in regular clean up exercises was expectedly met with incredulity and derision .
While most of us were still reeling from the unfolding events at City Hall , the President through an Executive Order decided to move the Kenya Meat Commission ( KMC ) from the ambit of the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock , to the Ministry of Defence . The reasoning behind this was quite frankly hazy and not made very clear . Lawmakers who have sought full disclosure on the decision that informed the transfer of KMC from the Ministry of Agriculture to the Ministry of Defence are yet to get any concrete answers from the respective Cabinet Secretaries .
President Kenyatta has on more than one occasion extolled the Kenya Defence Forces ( KDF ) for its professionalism and work ethic . Interior Cabinet Secretary Dr . Fred Matiang ’ i on his part , recently took to Twitter and declared “ The delivery of livestock to KMC since the military took over in a very short time has grown by 28 %. The military has paid the farmers all 250 million shillings owed to them . Because the military is trained for results .” High praise indeed .
It does however raise this fundamental question ; has Kenya ’ s public service fallen so far behind as a result of corruption and ineptitude that the President now sees it fit to involve the military in service delivery to members of the general public ? It appears so .
A senior and distinguished member of Civil Society recently remarked to me that the President having basically lost all confidence in most of his Cabinet as well as the Civil Service , has turned to the military to salvage his legacy . He went on to remind me that history is replete with examples of countries that made the grave mistake of allowing their militaries to have a say in the running of civilian affairs and ended up suffering dire consequences - basically military putsches . This should worry us .
Indeed , examples abound all around us of the military ’ s pervasive and dangerous influence in civilian affairs ; Uganda , South Sudan , Ethiopia , Sudan , Nigeria and Zimbabwe just to name a few . While the situations in these countries seem rather farfetched , it is not beyond the realm of possibility that this could be our future . This cannot and should not be allowed to happen .
As the son of a former military man myself , albeit one with a medical background , I can attest to how efficient the military is . The Forces Memorial Hospital where my father worked for many years and where my family was privileged to regularly receive medical treatment was run with the utmost professionalism and had ( and probably still does ) the best facilities , equipment , nurses and specialists . However , I must state unequivocally that the military should be kept out of the running of civilian affairs .
The perceived failure of the Executive under the stewardship of this government perhaps speaks to the need for urgent civil service reform . It is more indicative however of the crisis of leadership currently facing the country , brought into sharper focus by the current economic and public health crisis .
The solutions to making Kenya ’ s public servants more responsive to the needs of citizens and improving service delivery does not lie in seconding soldiers to our civilian institutions . Instead , it lies in those entrusted with these responsibilities realizing that public service is a noble calling and then acting accordingly for the benefit of those who pay their salaries - the tax payers .
Walter Nyabundi is the Research Manager for Public Policy & Governance at Infotrak Research & Consulting Limited . You can commune with him via email at : Walter . Nyabundi @ infotrakresearch . com .
A Leader In The Real Estate Industry
WE SPECIALIZE IN :
Civil Works Fibre Optic & Networking Telecommuncations Infrastructure Information Technology
P . O Box 50511-00100 Nairobi , Kenya North star building , Lenana rd Nairobi | Email : Info @ procom . co . ke Tel : 0721200663