Deputy President William Ruto unveils the Kenya Kwanza Alliance manifesto at the Kasarani Indoor Arena in Nairobi/DPPS
By: Jerameel Kevins Owuor Odhiambo
Worth Noting:
- President Kenyatta regime has been a regime full of corruption in the public sector. He did admit sometime last year that two billion is stolen daily from the public coffers and no one is being brought to book to account for them. Guess what?
- The corruption that has gained root in the civil service has eroded public confidence in the government; in short they don’t trust men who lead the government. You have to correct this as soon as possible once you get to office. Let money from the Exchequer be prudently used and accounted for.
- Apart from the promises you made to implement in 100 days. You had other raft of proposals of which I will produce below.
Felicitations your Excellency following your win of the presidency. Definitely, the journey to you ascending to the highest position of the land was gruesome, tough and full of tribulations. However, that is now the past and as it is always said let the bygones be the bygones. You have a country to build and serve the populace of Kenya.
Perhaps it can better for me to remind you of what you stated categorically during your campaigns. Maybe you might have forgotten courtesy of all you have been through. You did pledge to establish the 50 billion Hustlers’ Fund, allocate 50 percent of the Cabinet to women, implement the problematic two-thirds gender rule for appointive and elected officials and halt the allegedly selective investigation and prosecution of corruption cases.
You did as well promise to allocate your Deputy and proposed Prime Cabinet Secretary Specific portfolios and responsibilities, establish a women rights agency in the Presidency and remove healthcare insurance restrictions. Not forgetting to allocate funds to all the 47 counties for realisation of economic charters and appoint the six nominated judges that President Uhuru Kenyatta rejected, leading to conflicts with Chief Justice Martha Koome and her predecessor David Maraga.
All these you promised to effect within 100 days after swearing in. All eyes are watching you; definitely you cannot let those who elected you down. The over seven million Kenyans voted overwhelmingly for you expecting prompt service delivery and for you to fulfil your agenda and manifesto as you promised during the campaigns. All folks hope that what you said during the campaign season won’t be hot air as has been the case with an array of politicians including you in 2013 when you promised that Kamariny Stadium will be built in six months. Surprise, surprise Kamariny Stadium remains a pipe dream to date. Everyone hope that a repeat of that won’t occur.
Lucy Kiruthu rightly notes, ‘a lot of promises are made during the campaign season. Some are outright unrealistic. Other promises are simply made to attract votes with no intention of keeping them. Most of the promises made, if kept, could make Kenya a better country for all.’ All the promises you made I must say some were lofty; I still wonder how you will deliver. That should be none of my problem for you did make all these promises without any undue influence. Now is the time to implement the agenda you promised without employing situational ethics. I hope you will do better.
President Kenyatta regime has been a regime full of corruption in the public sector. He did admit sometime last year that two billion is stolen daily from the public coffers and no one is being brought to book to account for them. Guess what? The corruption that has gained root in the civil service has eroded public confidence in the government; in short they don’t trust men who lead the government. You have to correct this as soon as possible once you get to office. Let money from the Exchequer be prudently used and accounted for.
Apart from the promises you made to implement in 100 days. You had other raft of proposals of which I will produce below. In the education sector, you promised to improve the capacity of day secondary schools to guarantee access to affordable and quality education to many in the country; pledge to reduce monthly contributions to the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) from Sh500 per person to Sh300 per household. Additionally, Ruto proposed fully-financed primary healthcare that accords patients a choice between public and private facilities as well as more financial input on conditions such as HIV, tuberculosis, malaria, family planning, immunisation and nutrition programs.
The above are only a fraction of what you did promise Kenyans. Kenyans are keen to ensure that you bring forth fruits for that will determine your legacy. Apart from being your legacy, Kenyans pay taxes and they have genuine expectation that you will deliver services that government ought to deliver for the citizenry. If you deliver on the 100 days agenda then am sure definitely that in a matter of time you will deliver these other items in the manifesto.
The Constitution of which you will swear to protect, promote and defend enumerates that as citizens we hold you to account. We hope that those who criticize your regime won’t be sacrificed for that is the major fear that most people I talked to revealed to me. Accountability is key for any democratic nation. It aims to make sure operations in a regime are transparent and ensure that those in public offices conduct their work within the purview of the law.
The role of citizens in democratic governance cannot be overemphasised. Democratic governance is premised on the assumption that citizens know what is best for them and therefore able to identify the right individuals to occupy public offices to safeguard their interests. This is anchored on democratic theory that posits that a working democracy requires a well-informed citizenry that can make right decisions on matters governance.
Social Accountability supports good governance and fosters better service delivery. Institutional accountability mechanisms alone are often not effective in promoting good governance, leaving room for opaque and corrupt practices in the management of public resources. When citizens get involved through social accountability mechanisms they can monitor and hold public officers and elected leaders to account for how public resources are spent and their performance in the delivery of services. Citizens also provide vital feedback on the quality and challenges faced in accessing public services. This helps to improve responsiveness and quality of services, and the rational and effectiveness use and value for money. The feedback loops ultimately lead to better informed policy design and outcomes.
Social accountability can safeguard against wastage, ‘leakage’ and corruption. When properly applied in monitoring implementation, evaluation and audit of services and projects social accountability mechanisms and tools can enhance transparency. A key benefit of social accountability is that it strengthens the relationships and builds trust between the government and citizen, and between service providers and users. It enables citizens engage with the county executives and elected leaders, influence decisions concerning their development and hold them accountable between elections.
Social accountability promotes empowerment of social groups, social cohesion and inclusion particularly when marginalised, vulnerable and other socially excluded groups are involved and their concerns and interests get attention. It enables bringing all members of the community together around a common interest.
By virtue that you are a believer, a strong one for that matter. My solemn prayer is that Almighty God may give you guidance, insights and wisdom to guide this nation. But be sure that, whenever I note something wrong within your regime, I will pen you another letter.
Jerameel Kevins Owuor Odhiambo is a fourth year law student at University of Nairobi, Parklands Campus.
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