leader and his position on family values.
Recently, when he tried to chastise the parents of the children who had been posting unflattering memes of him, his lecture fell flat as the parents were able to ask him to remove the log in his eye before he worries about the specks in theirs.
The one issue that we believe most undermines the credibility of a leader is the use of polarizing rhetoric and the use of divisive politics. Since politics is a game of numbers, some leaders can be quite unscrupulous and Machiavellian in the pursuit of their goals.
An unholy alliance was formed by the dynamic duo with a view to win the elections. Although the two did not have much in common, they were dependent on each other like Siamese twins to win the election.
They pulled off that gargantuan feat and were elected to govern. No sooner did they get to work than the unlikely alliance started to unravel and it was soon very clear that this uneasy marriage was not going to last.
Kenyans started hearing strange terminologies that the country had shareholders and it became apparent that every investor to the shareholding was being given a piece of the pie but the principal stakeholders did not seem to be in accord.
What followed was a bruising tuff war that culminated in the sham impeachment of the deputy president by the parliament and the senate. It was obvious that the outcome was a fait accompli and the process was just for legal niceties.
This highly divisive drama and the
demonization of the deputy president as a tribalist brought to fore a disturbing reality and had the expected outcome for the president who was portrayed as a user and an unreliable partner.
The people of the mountain were galvanized to defend their own and even those that did not particularly like the deputy president felt assaulted as the president was now targeting them as a community and especially given that they had played a pivotal role.
The president’ s initial pretense that he had nothing to do with the impeachment, having found an innocuous Eastern Kenya politician to sponsor the impeachment motion only served to paint the president as deceitful.
Loyalty is a premium asset in politics and a leader that blatantly demonstrates that he will use and discard a partner is likely to sow a legacy of mistrust and suspicion and such a leader will not endear himself to other potential partners.
A credible person is believable in that he does what he says he will do and their claims are supported by facts and logic and not merely idle gossip. He does not change course in the middle of the journey after the objective has been attained.
A credible person is trustworthy, he is honest and acts with integrity and as they say there is even honor amongst thieves since they know that their word is their bond and as soon as that crucial ingredient is removed, any partnership collapses.
When there is dishonesty and deception, credibility is tested, lying and misrepresenting facts just aggravates matters. Unethical behavior undermines the foundation of credibility and one should remember that inappropriate behavior is in
A leader does not have the luxury to associate himself with anything that has a whiff of scandal and certainly is not expected to hobnob with those accused of unethical behavior. But to double-down on an issue that is suspect is to invite unnecessary criticism and to demonstrate a degree of tone deafness that is inimical to good governance. the eyes of the beholder.
Inconsistency and a penchant for changing positions and crafting statements to fit the occasion rather than to stay true to facts undermines credibility. So is a lack of accountability and unwillingness to take responsibility for failures and mistakes.
The Kenya leadership is experiencing a serious credibility crisis. The anointed one has told one lie too many and nobody is about to take him seriously anymore. The doyen of opposition by betraying the Gen- Zs has lost natural legitimacy.
The super broad-based government has singled out the opportunists who are willing to sell their souls to be part of a kleptocracy while pretending to join the current administration to steady a rocking boat.
The previous safe hands of the current chief secretary have been tainted by defending the indefensible and those in opposition have yet to find their common ground since on the outskirts lies a restive Gen-Z that still has unfinished business.
The current political situation is evidently untenable as the state of insecurity persists with the administration playing possum that it has no clue as to what is going on as regards the abductions and extra-judicial killings.
Those politicians that have taken a principled stand on the current situation will help shape the future of politics in Kenya and the full effects of this will be felt in due course. We are not talking about opportunists but men and women of conscience and integrity.
A new dawn is born of a crisis and the present predicament we find ourselves in is a testament of our collective acceptance of bad governance and the politics of exclusion rather that the edifying politics that develops a country.
The blood that has been spilt and tears that have been shed will not go to waste since it is when the future looks bleak and hope is trampled, when the oppressor keeps telling you that they will be in power for a decade- that’ s when Kenyans rise and reclaim their land!
February 2025 Marketing Africa Magazine Cover Story was assembled and weaved together by the Marketing Africa editorial crew. For feedback or any more discourse please drop us a line at: Info @ marketingafrica. co. ke.