An Accidental Blog Post; My Experiences Studying in Maseno University

I was applying for a freelance writing job online, and they needed a 200 word essay on my experiences studying in University. As I was typing the Essay, one thing led to another, and I ended up with a six hundred word essay... enjoy.

I studied Political Science in Kenya’s Maseno University from 2009. Right now, I am waiting to graduate in December. I thoroughly enjoyed my time at the university, where I learnt much about political theory, public policy and political culture. The biggest impact that my university education has had on my life so far is opening my eyes on the political system and culture in Kenya.

As many may be aware, Kenya is a highly fragmented society, divided along tribal or ethnic lines. Kenya did not exist as a polity before the British made it a colony in the early years of the 20^th century, as a result there is little to unite the 43 ethnic communities into one, especially when it comes to politics and general elections that determine who gets to share the “national cake” among the citizenry.

My Political Science degree gave me insight as to why Kenya’s voters are so passionate about voting for their own tribesman into the presidency, since they firmly believe that it is only through doing so that they can guarantee jobs in the public sector, enhanced businesses with the government through tenders, and even government services such as physical infrastructure, hospitals and schools will come to their home areas.

In addition, studying in Maseno University was also a life changing experience for me as a kikuyu. Virtually all of my family and tribe were in the jubilee coalition, headed by the current president Uhuru Kenyatta and his deputy, William Ruto. During my time at Maseno, which is located in the Luo country that was and remains an opposition stronghold, I got to understand why many Luos and Luhyas were against another kikuyu president taking over the reins of government.

 The biggest irony about my experiences in school was that when I went to visit my family in my grandparents’ home in Limuru, is that I was castigated as an ODM/CORD supporter. When I went back to school, I would become a TNA/jubilee supporter by default. At the end of the day, I ended up renouncing my hatred and disregard for Kenyans who support a political party or coalition simply because it belongs to their tribe.

I am more nuanced in how I view tribalism and ethnicity in my country as a result, although I am still appalled by ethnic violence and hate speech caused by politics. Thanks to my studies in Maseno university, I now think that ethnicity cannot be solved by uraia, Kenya Ni Mimi Na wewe sort of campaigns. Neither should it be embraced, since more often than not it leads to violence, demonization and hatred of fellow countrymen, as well as a weaker political system as a whole.

 The solution lies in a stronger civil society that can fight for economic and political rights that will benefit all Kenyans regardless of tribe, stronger political parties, understanding of tribalism and the Kenyan history, and possibly closer cultural and social ties between Kenyans of all tribes and races. Even then, it will probably not be enough. Tribalism is rife in every part of the world, from the united kingdom, the Balkan regions, the Middle East and even North America.

 It is more realistic to start by ensuring no one will ever die as a result of politics or belonging to the wrong tribe, as this happens in 2008 after the disputed presidential elections. A Kenya where majority of people feel more Kenyan than kikuyu, meru or taita is probably decades in the future and a pipe dream at the moment.

THE RIVER NILE: AFRICA'S NEXT CONFLICT?

The river Nile is the longest river in the world, flowing over 6,700 kilometres, with tributaries spanning over ten countries in eastern and northern Africa. It has long been the lifeblood of Egypt, whose economy is largely based on agriculture and depends on the river Nile waters to thrive. Thus, the security of its population and economy depends to a sizeable extent on the river Nile. Egypt has legal and historical rights to a large percentage of the waters of the river Nile, mostly treaties signed between Egypt and the British colonizers before independence.

Ethiopia, on the other hand, is the source of up to 85% of the river Nile. Yet it has largely been restricted on how much water it can use for its own economic development by treaties it either signed under duress, or it had no party to, such as the Nile waters agreement of 1929, and the 1959 Nile waters agreement between Egypt and Sudan.

the flow of River Nile, image source wikipedia

All this is about to change, as Ethiopia is building Africa’s biggest hydro power plant at a cost of no less than US $ 4.8 Billion. It hopes this power plant, named The Grand Renaissance Ethiopia Dam (GERD) will generate electricity to sell to its neighbouring countries, as well as a major boost to an economy that depends heavily on agriculture and is hampered due to its landlocked nature from developing.

When one looks at the divergent needs and interests between Egypt and Sudan on one hand, and other countries that also claim a piece of the river Nile (Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and Tanzania), it is clear that strong leadership and calm heads are needed to avert future potential conflicts that could occur, as well as new treaties that demarcate afresh how these countries use the river Nile, so as to ensure prosperity and peace between all countries involved.

Yet the politicians in both countries are ratcheting up the tensions, with Egyptian president saying recently in a speech that, "As head of state, I confirm to you that all options are open." He later added: "We are not calling for war, but we will never permit our water security ... to be threatened." I do not think that war is an option at the table at the moment, while the internal political dynamics of Egypt cannot be ruled out to explain why the politicians are engaging in such fierce rhetoric. According to international crisis group analyst Yasser el-Shimy, “Mursi is addressing the concerns of Egyptians regarding their water supplies, while sending a blunt message to Ethiopia and other Nile basin countries that Cairo takes this issue seriously.”

But the feeling upriver is at odds with Egypt’s sentiments. In countries such as Uganda, Ethiopia, Rwanda, Burundi and Kenya, the Nyerere doctrine which states that former colonies have no obligation to abide by treaties signed for them by Great Britain. Many analysts contend that Egypt and Sudan have gotten away with using majority of the Nile’s waters by the political instability and poverty of many of these countries upstream. As they get richer, more powerful and more ambitious, they will have the power to exploit the river Nile’s waters to their own benefit. Thus how the conflict between Ethiopia and Egypt could have ramifications for all these countries, and how they exploit this natural resource.

In the meantime, leaders will be looking keenly at the unfolding scenario and who will blink first. I am confident an agreement can and will be found, whether it will be to the benefit of the environment, the Nile ecosystem, all the citizens of the Nile basin and sustainable however, is not clear.

·         Ethiopia also has a hydro project on river Omo, that will create a reservoir and reduce the water flowing into lake Turkana, thus endangering the livelihoods of many fishermen and the populace that depend on lake Turkana for sustenance. It is not clear how Kenya plans to adjust to its construction, and save the livelihood and future of the biggest fresh water lake within its borders.

UNDP HUMAN DEVELOPMENT REPORT 2013: LESSONS FOR KENYA

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) released its 2013 report titled “The Rise of the South: Human Progress in a Diverse World” recently. As the title suggests, it focuses on the success stories of the global South, and mostly the BRICS countries (Brazil, Russia, India and china) which have achieved tremendous economic development and improvement in human development indices. This is with a view of promoting discussion and even imitation by countries in the global north and south of the best practices adopted by these countries.

The Human Development Index was developed in the early 1990s by a group of economists including Amartya Sen, so as to more accurately measure how a country’s economic growth was being translated to improved wellbeing of its citizens. According to Wikipedia, HDI “is a composite statistic of life expectancy, education and income indices to rank countries into four ties of human development: very high human development, high human development, medium human development and low human development.”

The human development index was meant to shift the focus of development economics from national income accounting, and towards people-centered policies. It measures the life expectancy at birth, the mean years of schooling among those aged 25 years and the expected years of schooling of those aged five years, as well as the standard of living of the citizens by looking at the Gross National Income per capita.

According to the report, Kenya is ranked at 145 out of 186 countries of which data is available, in the level of low human development. Kenya has an under five mortality of 85 deaths per 1000 births, life expectancy of fifty seven years, adult literacy rate of 87%(over 15 years) and GNI per capita of 1,541 USA dollars as per 2005 rates. Although Kenya is best ranked among countries of the East African Community, with Uganda ranked 162, Tanzania 152, Rwanda at 167 and Burundi at 178, clearly there remains massive room for improvement.

The three notable “drivers of development”, according to the UNDP report, which have propelled the growth of economies such as India, Brazil, China, Mexico and Indonesia, which Kenyan policy makers might want to take heed of include the following:

• A proactive developmental state that has a long term vision and leadership, with shared norms and values, rules and institutions that build trust and cohesion, and are pragmatic in terms of policies and ideologies they adopt to bring about human development.

• Tapping of global markets. The strategy should be one of “importing what the world knows and exporting what it wants.” It is imperative that Kenya adopts a policy that is maneuvers between excessive liberalization and statism, depending on its unique capabilities. Regionalism is also encouraged, as is focusing on niche products.

• Determined social policy innovation. The report encourages public investment in infrastructure, which was largely been the case in the Kibaki administration, and looks set to continue with the jubilee government, as well as in education and health. The investment in health could certainly improve, and the free maternal service to be offered is a step in the right direction. The Kenyan government should also end discrimination and unequal treatment, according to gender, age and ethnicity. I hope the 30% rule, as well as making illegal cultural practices such as FGM and wife inheritance, as well as child marriages go a long way in fighting this. The civil society should also keep the government and leadership accountable.

Kenya can also improve include increasing the income of Kenyans, reducing poverty, gender and inter generational inequality, social integration that has been damaged by fractious politics and historical injustices, and human insecurity. Human insecurity caused by hunger, disease, crime, unemployment, human rights violations and environmental challenges is a major challenge to the jubilee government, the private sector and civil society to bring about human development. It must be addressed as a national crisis.

The UNDP report concludes that less developed countries can learn and benefit from success of emerging economies in the south, new institutions and new partnerships can facilitate regional integration and development, and new global governance institutions that reflect the new realities of a more powerful south are needed.

In a nutshell, Kenya’s human development index is much lower than I thought it would be, especially when compared with countries such as Ghana, Libya, South Africa, Mauritius and Botswana. The undo report gives clear and concise recommendations on what we should do if we want to develop, drag millions of Kenyans out of poverty and join the exciting and innovative countries of the south as an African lion that puts human development at the very centre of its policies and economic agenda.

CAN CIVIL SOCIETY RECLAIM ITS ROLE AS FIGHTER FOR MWANANCHI INTERESTS?

The civil society ought to play a bigger role in promoting peace, reconciliation and implementation of the new constitution in Kenya. Mention of civil society in Kenya elicits images of the likes of Okiya Omtata, Boniface Mwangi, and maybe AFRICOG, the “professionals” who seem to have a lot of time to be always planning this or that protest or court injunction against “MPigs” or the police. Yet the World Bank defines civil society as “the wide array of non-governmental & not for-profit organizations that have a presence in public life, expressing the interests and values of their members/others, based on ethical, cultural, political, scientific, religious or philanthropic considerations.” In other words, any voluntary collective activity in which people combine to achieve change on a particular issue is the civil society, as long as it is outside the government or the market.

Examples of civil society organizations include charities, neighbourhood self-help schemes, human rights campaigns, non-governmental organizations, labour unions, religious groups, and professional organizations. In Kenya this would include the Red Cross, KNUT, SUPKEM, AFRICOG, etc. it is clear from the above definitions and examples that almost every citizen interacts or is a member of civil society in one way or another.

Why is it that the “evil society” is so demonized and associated with opportunistic and tribalistic Kenyans, rather than organizations of patriotic Kenyans formed to push for good governance, self-reliance and socio-economic development? The civil society’s golden moments in Kenya are often said to be the push for multipartyism in early 1990’s when the clergy, NGOs, multilateral organizations, oppositionists to force the Moi government to repeal section 2a and make Kenya a multiparty state.

It seems to have all gone downhill from there, as opportunistic individuals in the civil society have used the platform to push for narrow tribal interests, political posts, donor funding and attention from the foreign media. Yet, the civil society, according to BBC world service, can provide a social structure in nations where the government is non-existent or rudimentary. Think of the controversial Kenyans for Kenya initiative, or the many bursaries offered by rotary foundation etc. The civil society, ever since the days of harambee have done much to promote socio-economic and political development in Kenya.

 It only has to reclaim its space from the donor funded, opportunistic and professional organizations and return to the very centre of politics and society in Kenya.

In a new dispensation where there are many more devolved governments where politicians will rob and increase salaries and benefits at every turn, it is critical that the civil society finds its voice. the government seems less than legitimate to half of the population, due to a political culture that promotes ethnic competition and winner takes all mentality. In my opinion, the government of Kenya has served to divide Kenyans since independence, and it is the role of the civil society to unite all of us to fight for implementation of the new constitution, oversight of the government and fight for the justice of all who have been beaten, discriminated against and overtaxed among us by successive governments. This is even more crucial when political parties remain to be personality driven, tribalistic and election vehicles bereft of ideology or long term strategy. One only needs to look at the way the CORD coalition is stumbling in parliament, while the jubilee government is not expected to last past the next coalition cycle at the latest.

The civil society has the potential of pushing for reforms and a better Kenya by fighting for “non-tribal” interests such as better roads, higher wages, stronger judiciary, and fighting natural disasters and calamities. Yet the labour union movement is only good at fighting for salary increases, the student unions are akin to spoilt kids only good at throwing stones and looting shops every time they demonstrate, while the NGOs are seen to be as fleeting, tribalistic and opportunistic on donor money as the government and politicians, while pushing for “western” lifestyles and agenda.

It is time every citizen recognized that we are all members of the civil society, and the only way for us to achieve long term unity, peace and economic development is for more active involvement in the politics and economy of Kenya alongside the government, pushing the government and sometimes outside the government. The days of harambee may be long gone, but by recognizing avenues through which we can all improve our lot without serikali, we may just be able to slay the dragons of donor reliance and tribalism for good.

seven things i learnt from political party nominations

• 1.  Balkanization in Kenya continues unabated

The zoning of particular counties and regions has shown that Kenya is fast becoming a balkanized country. URP, ODM, wiper and TNA each had their own regions where winning the nominations was enough. This proves that national unity is fast becoming a pipe dream

• 2.     In an era of weak, personalized political parties, party defections are a good thing

The political parties of Kenya remain personal objects of the ‘’ bigwigs’’ such as Rail, Kalonzo and Uhuru. Hence their relatives, friends and cousins are always assured of winning the nominations. The only way to circumvent this is through defections. If the voice of the people is to be heard in Othaya, Siaya and Nakuru, then the politicians have to be prepared to defect from the political parties.

• 3.       The marginalized regions in Kenya are not interested in politics.

It has always been my view that there are certain regions in Kenya that are no longer interested in politics. Coast province, north eastern and parts of northern rift valley recorded the lowest voter turnouts in the land. This shows that these regions are moving out of the political dynamics. The citizens of these areas have realized that they cannot win in politics, hence why take part in the nominations?

• 4.       Demagogues are stoking the interests of the underclass: the middle class is running scared

The wins of Sonko and Waititu have heralded the end of tribalism in many parts of the land. This is a major issue since it means that the lower classes are no longer voting according to one’s last name. For many days, Kenyans have been complaining on how tribalism will be the death of us. But tribalism remains a lesser devil than classism!

• 5.       Voters are very passionate about politics and democracy

Despite the ridiculous disorganization, corruption and theft that characterized the party nominations, many voters lined for hours to cast their ballots. In areas such as Othaya and Siaya, they were ready to demonstrate immediately it became obvious that their voice was being silenced. This shows that democracy in Kenya remains strong.

• 6.       Politics makes everything in Kenya come to a standstill

Schools were closed, businesses shut down and jobs missed during the nominations. One can only fear about what will happen during the general elections on March 4^th.

• 7.       Do we overestimate the power of social media in Kenya?

Reading the comments, updates and tweets on Kenya’s vibrant online community, one would have been sure that the likes of jimnah Mbaru were winning on a landslide. However, this did not materialize. Does this mean that the middle class is not voting? Or are those of us not online more than those on it?  Opinion is divided.

those are my thoughts anyway. do you agree with me, or differ? kindly let me know your thoughts below in the comments section.