Ndung’u Wainaina
By Ndung’u Wainaina
Worth Noting:
- President Ruto and Kenya Kwanza Government in the manifesto promised to end political weaponization of state institutions, these include the criminal justice system and the entire security system.
- Today, the country is confronted by The Ruto Gulag of state terror. President Ruto has succeeded in capturing, compromising and weaponizing state institutions especially police for his political purposes. He cannot exonerate himself from full responsible and culpable for abductions, enforced disappearances, detention without trial, and murder of young Kenyans, Gen Zs. There must be accountability, justice and reparation. Kenya has sufficient legal instruments including international for the courts to be bold and decisive in stemming out official impunity by state officials and police.
Last year was one of the most difficult years for majority Kenyans.
For the majority, 99% of Kenyans, the economic and financial life has been very traumatizing, painful and full of tears. More than 87% cannot meet their basic needs and financial obligations.
For the last two years, Kenya’s democracy has been on dangerous regression. Kenya remains very unequal and partially free country. It has been proven beyond doubt that Ruto regime is the biggest existential threat to our 2010 Constitution, our democracy, and our economy.
President Ruto ferociously abhors dissent, criticism and independent of thought and expression. He runs a one man show. He is a ruthless iron fist tyrant.
The Hustler Kenya Kwanza Government which was elected on August 2022 is officially dead. Hustlers have been betrayed, abandoned and crushed. Paradoxically, President Ruto has relapsed to old ways and appointed a mongrel cabinet of sycophants, retirees, and rejects that cannot withstand a constitutional and legal challenge in a court of law. This is not a cabinet for governing. It is assembling of President Ruto’s political reelection vehicle.
President Ruto has fundamentally violated the Social Contract and electoral mandate he was given on August 2022. He has lost the legitimacy to govern. This is why he has become violent, ruthless and intolerant. He must seek fresh mandate from the people.
Whereas the macroeconomic stability might have been realized, the economic reality on the ground is completely different. Families and businesses are economically devastated. Their incomes are constrained and destroyed. The economy has contracted and economic activities has significantly declined with high rate of unemployment and job loses.
The country is in high debt risk distress with more than 70% of revenue going to pay debt, fiscal deficit remains high, private sector investments have declined, industry last lost momentum and even some closed, and crucial agricultural, housing and services sectors are slowing with risk of further deceleration. Consequently, the Bottom Up Economic model has turned into a political hoax with pain and misery.
President Ruto and Kenya Kwanza Government in the manifesto promised to end political weaponization of state institutions, these include the criminal justice system and the entire security system.
Today, the country is confronted by The Ruto Gulag of state terror. President Ruto has succeeded in capturing, compromising and weaponizing state institutions especially police for his political purposes. He cannot exonerate himself from full responsible and culpable for abductions, enforced disappearances, detention without trial, and murder of young Kenyans, Gen Zs. There must be accountability, justice and reparation. Kenya has sufficient legal instruments including international for the courts to be bold and decisive in stemming out official impunity by state officials and police.
Kenyans must not fall the Kenya kwanza politicians and state operatives narrative of shifting or transferring burden of proof of abductions and enforced disappearances to the victims( abductees). This is state cover up and voiding accountability. All state officers who are denying abductions are complicit and acquiesce with abductions. They must be held accountable.
Parliament has become graveyard of representation. It is subservient instrument of whitewash for President Ruto. Parliament was breached and cancelled by the young people. It lost legitimacy and the right to represent the people. Parliamentarians have denigrated their electoral mandate. Kenyans must exercise constitutional recall clause and attrition to punish them.
According to Article 159 of the Constiution the ‘judicial authority is derived from the people’. Judiciary is the last hope and bastion for justice, rule of law and constitutionalism. It is inappropriate for collective condemnation and attack of the judges and magistrates. However, Kenyans are fully aware that judiciary has very corrupt elements within it. It has also has been infiltrated by the Presidency. The Chief Justice must clean the Judiciary with veracity, urgency and thoroughness without blinking to restore trust and confidence with the people.
The electoral democracy is facing a dangerous peril. President Ruto has flatly refused to establish selection panel to recruit and reconstitute the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC). This is intentional with political motive. He and his friends wants to constitute IEBC in his own image and making.
This disingenuous political act has denied Kenyans right to representation in some constituencies and wards. It has further created a constitutional crisis in reviewing the electoral units’ boundaries, which hinders fair equal representation. The right for recall by Kenyans have also been violated.
There has to be escalation for demanding immediate appointment of the selection panel to recruit and reconstitute IEBC transparently failure to Kenyans should mobilize to force putting IEBC in place for with.
Devolution is facing imminent danger of being stifled and killed by President Ruto. National government has systematically been recentralizing devolved functions with national ministries heavily performing devolved functions and being allocated huge budgets for devolved. Devolution is our last frontier of transforming our governance, economy and services delivery. National government must full transfer of all constitutionally assigned devolved functions including those being held by national ministries, state corporations and parastatals. The National Assembly must expedite approval of audited accounts to facilitate fair and equitable sharing and transfers of financial resources between two levels of governments.
Finally, education and health sectors are in complete tatters. The agony, dysfunctional and chaos in the two vital sectors is unacceptable and unjustified. It is President Ruto’s self-serving created crises. He must be held accountable personally.
The people of Kenya led by Gen Zs have shifted the center of gravity of politics and taken a firm stand on economy, rule of law and clean governance. 2025 is going to be the year of aggressive actions to restore the liberty, dignity and wellbeing of the country and the people.
The Writer is Transitional Justice and Human Security Fellow. @NdunguWainaina
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