From Hero to Zero: The Fall and Fall of the Kenyan Opposition

How the mighty have fallen! Listening to the sycophantic fawning of Dr. Mukhisa Kituyi during the debate on the President's salary, one would be hard-pressed to imagine that he was the scourge of the Moi regime. In 2002, just the whiff of power was enough to get Dr. Kituyi to abandon his long-held (and I think genuinely held) principles. During the chaotic NARC nominations, I read with disbelief reports of him raining blows on another candidate who presumed to present his nomination papers. Then shortly after the electoral triumph of NARC and his elevation to the Cabinet, he was caught on national TV promising a fat government job to the Sabaot community. Just consider the words of William Ruto (not exactly an angel himself) during yesterday's Parliamentary debate: "In 1997, when I came to this House [Dr. Kituyi] could not afford to hire a car, but he now flies in a helicopter."

Dr. Kituyi's moral descent mirrors that of other former opposition and civil society luminaries such as Kiraitu Murungi, Martha Karua and Kivutha Kibwana. The question is, what is it about the Kenyan system that makes hyenas out of erstwhile sheep? Or were they never sheep to begin with? Why do we get internationally renowned lawyers such as Amos Wako and turn them into thieves (or abetters of thievery)? How come that formerly staunch defender of Press freedoms, Martha Karua, has, since she came to power, herself filed over 15 cases in court against the very same press? Why does the man who more than any other personified the fight for a people-driven constitution, Prof. Kibwana, turn around and try to foist a bastardized version on the people?

Before I am accused of ODM bias, I seem to remember Prof. Anyang' Nyongo defending the MP salary increment which was the first act of the current Parliament. This gentleman once famously spoke of those "incompetent to govern", referring to the KANU regime. Yet when he was placed in a position of authority, he did the exact same things they were doing.

When Raila Odinga dissolved his NDP party and joined KANU, he became one of the most vociferous critics of his former comrades-in arms in the opposition. As a Cabinet Minister, he once called for the prosecution of James Orengo and his Muungano wa Mageuzi comrades for treason. Their crime? Holding a series of anti-Moi rallies which had been banned by the police on "security" grounds -the same thing Raila's ODM colleagues were doing on Tuesday.

Now, I am not talking here about the Kibakis, Saitotis and Michukis of this administration. We already knew them to be incorrigibly corrupt and dictators at heart. I am asking about those who for many years and at great cost to themselves, fought against the tyranny of KANU, only to turn around and perpetrate the very same tyranny on the mwananchi. I think what we have here is not just a case of a few rotten apples but a systemic failure. And this leaves Kenya more vulnerable than during the KANU days. At least back then we had hope of an alternative, and yes, better government. Back then, we we had a vibrant civil society which could inspire and mobilize the people to fight against injustice. In fact, in the face of the ineffectual and divided Parliamentary opposition, civil society became the de facto check on KANU excess. However, in the euphoria of 2002, we allowed this movement to be decapitated. Its leaders all cashed in their chips and jumped ship. Now they are all arraigned against us with no one standing with us.

Mugabe-nomics in Kenya

Yet another example of NARC's commitment to alleviating poverty. According to the Standard, the government has committed to the demolition of buildings and businesses worth Kshs. 5 billion at Mlolongo township to make way for the expansion of the Nairobi/Mombasa highway. This brings back disturbing memories of the 2004 demolitions which were to pave the way for the now fictitious bypasses. I wonder how destroying livelihoods improves the lot of Kenyans.

The fact is unscrupulous people have "grabbed" the road reserves and either developed or sold them to other unsuspecting investors. The government, under Moi, was largely complicit in this orgy of looting. The way to correct this state of affairs should not be Mugabe-style land redistribution. Considering the amount of money that has already been invested, the number of jobs that this investment has created and the fact that many of the affected investors are twice or even thrice removed from the original illegality (the owners of one demolished petrol station valued at Kshs. 70 million and employing 30 bought the land from the NSSF), the government should have approached this matter in a different way.

In Nairobi, buildings worth billions of shillings were reduced to rubble to implement plans that were over 30 years old. Estates like Runda did not exist when those plans were drawn up. Wouldn't it have made more sense to redraft the plans to take account of the "facts on ground" and then go after the individuals who grabbed the land in the first place? We could attach their assets as compensation instead of punishing innocents.

Similarly, the bulldozers at Mlolongo should never have been dispatched before alternative routes for the road were considered. And I have seen no evidence that that happened. Neither have I heard talk of compensation or plans to address the inevitable suffering this will cause. And all this from the very people who were shedding crocodile tears over Mo1's kiosk demolitions.

GoK AIDS Day Goofs

In a recent post, I decried the government's early World AIDS Day present to criminals (or would-be criminals) afflicted with the disease. Today brings news of yet another gift, this time to teachers. According to the Nation, Teacher Service Commission Secretary Gabriel Lengoiboni has promised that HIV-positive teachers will "get transfer requests approved automatically while those seeking early retirement will also have their terminal benefits prepared within a short time". As all who have dealt with the TSC will no doubt attest, this is no small award. Many teachers wait for years to get their transfers or benefits. And now every AIDS patient has jumped the queue.

I acknowledge the havoc that AIDS has wreaked in our communities but I am unable to see how this is helpful. After years of fighting AFRAIDS, it seems we are now being asked not to treat sufferers same as anybody else, but to shower them with pity. We were once told that with proper medication, care and nutrition, people with AIDS could be just as productive (and just as criminal) as the next person. However, now the government has opted to make them out to be "dead men walking".

These government edicts reinforce, rather than fight, the stigma associated with the syndrome. They further the view that those with the disease are different and lesser than the rest of us. That the disease renders them incapable of coping with the daily challenges faced by the rest of us. Just as the physically disabled rightly resent such notions (remember "disability is not inabilty"?), so those with AIDS should resent this government's characterisation of them. What they need are not condescending nods to their condition but the means to continue living full and productive lives.