GOVERNANCE
Kenya ’ s Problem May Not Be Political , But May Be A Matter Of Values
By Walter Nyabundi
Kenya would rightfully be described as a low trust society . A low trust society is defined as one in which “ interpersonal trust is relatively low and does not have shared ethical values ”. This low level of trust cuts across all spheres of our life - politics , government , business , culture , relationships , and even religion .
Article 10 of the Constitution of Kenya states that the national values of principles of governance include facets such as patriotism , the rule of law , democracy , human dignity , equity , social justice , inclusiveness , equality , human rights , good governance , integrity , and sustainable development .
Some thirteen odd years after the promulgation of the Constitution of Kenya 2010 , it is fair to say that we the people of this republic have been completely unable to inculcate these national values in our interactions with different actors be they state actors or non-state actors . Recent events in the country attest to this .
Let us begin with the call for mass action called by the leadership of the Azimio la Umoja – One Kenya Coalition Party . Whether one agrees or disagrees with the rationale for the protests , the law is very clear on this matter . Article 37 of the Constitution states that “ Every person has the right , peaceably and unarmed , to assemble , to demonstrate , to picket , and to present petitions to public authorities ”.
This must be read together with Article 27 of the Constitution that states “ Every person is equal before the law and has the right to equal protection and equal benefit of the law . Equality includes the full and equal enjoyment of all rights and fundamental freedom .”
The long and short of it is that while the protests may be a source of irritation and inconvenience to some people , the fact is that Azimio are well within their rights to call for these protests . It then behooves the police to provide an enabling environment in which these protests can take place in an orderly and peaceful manner . On this one the National Police Service must be indicted , if only in the court of public opinion .
While it is largely accepted that every new government must be allowed time to settle in before it makes a real go of executing its plans and programmes , there is a sense in
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Kenya would rightfully be described as a low trust society . A low trust society is defined as one in which “ interpersonal trust is relatively low and does not have shared ethical values ”. This low level of trust cuts across all spheres of our life - politics , government , business , culture , relationships , and even religion . which the current government is taking an inordinate amount of time to get to work . Indeed , many of us old enough to remember look back at the Kibaki years rather wistfully . Within its first 100 days , the National Rainbow Coalition ( NARC ) government had begun to revive the economy and the reform agenda it set out to implement had gained real impetus . A far cry from this government ’ s performance in its first 100 days , given the lofty promises it made during the campaigns ahead of the August 2022 elections .
The Kenya Kwanza government however finds itself in a rather awkward position with questions around its legitimacy refusing to dissipate . This is despite the Independent Boundaries and Electoral Commission ( IEBC ) declaring their candidate the winner of the Presidential election and the Supreme Court affirming his win after it was contested by Azimio .
This buttresses the point that our political and state actors , perhaps more than anyone else , operate in a low trust environment . Indeed , why would a government confident that it won the elections - as tightly contested as they were - act in a manner to suggest that it is unable to govern by appearing to neuter independent institutions within the Executive and irregularly co-opting large swathes of the Legislature , and even the Church ?
Conversely , why would Azimio -having willingly participated in the electoral process- not abide by the ruling of the country ’ s apex court that held that the Kenya Kwanza government was democratically elected ? The Theatre of the Absurd .
In any society but especially developing societies like ours , the church has a sacred duty to be the conscience of the nation and act as neutral arbiter in national discourse ,
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