Draw inspiration from spirit of the ‘90s to reclaim nation

Laziness makes very poor learners. Extreme laziness makes the most intelligent person narrow and petrified, scared and unable to comprehend from whence he comes. It blurs his vision and robs him of the ability to respond to present circumstances. The weakest of them all finds inspiration and mental relaxation by quoting the old tired bourgeois phrase of the French Revolution “The more things change, the more they remain the same”. The stupidest of them all get stiff and exclaim: “History repeats itself.”

History never repeats itself and never shall it do so. The hidden generations of the past hang heavy in the present psychology, such that when the oppressed meet with old weaponry and rigid, overused State reactions, it forces them to think they are treading the same grounds, and fighting the same battles their predecessors fought; it’s easy to give up. Each epoch presents its different challenges and different playground complete with different actors. The chants may remain the same, but the cause may be more advanced in pregnancy.

At the height of President Daniel Moi’s autocratic rule, Kenyans lived in constant fear and suspicion. Torture, enforced disappearances and human rights abuses characterised the Kanu regime, which rode roughshod over the hapless population. The State was the law and the President was riding high above the law. It was treasonous to imagine the death of the President. The dreaded Special Branch had tentacles in all towns, urban areas and villages across the country. They had just one goal: To crush and silence all real and imagined enemies of the State. Every citizen was a suspect whose main duty in life was to show that he was pro-State. The State was more important than the human. It was a State of anarchy built on a foundation of fear.

Despite all these odds, Kenyans took on the beast and successfully pushed for the repeal of Section 2A of the constitution to allow multipartyism. Jaramogi Oginga Odinga, Raila Odinga, Kenneth Matiba, Charles Rubia, Martin Shikuku, Masinde Muliro, James Orengo, Paul Muite, Gitobu Imanyara, George Anyona, Njeru Kathangu, Prof Edward Oyugi and Rev Timothy Njoya led the multiparty revolution that inspired the nation. Many other unsung heroes were left as bones trampled underfoot.

About two decades later, the promulgation of a new constitution ushered in a new era for the rule of law. Described as one of the most progressive constitutions in the world, the decentralisation of power to the counties and the establishment of constitutional bodies gave hope for a better future. The recent state of affairs, however, threatens to reverse all the gains made over the past three decades.

Abductions, enforced disappearances, corruption, crime, human rights abuses, stifling of democratic freedoms and blatant disregard for the rule of law pose a threat to the nation. Abductions carried out by state agencies date back to the colonial era, when the British used such tactics to suppress dissent and maintain control. It is unfathomable that in this day and age, the same methods are being employed to silence critics and maintain a culture of fear. In the recent past, abductions were carried out under the guise of counter-terrorism operations. Indeed, it is the same way they used the Communist scare to hoodwink their capitalist West supporters during the Cold War. The killing and disappearance of critics was sold to the West as a purge on communists. Now, Gen Z are being hunted down and abducted for just expressing themselves on social media.

Kenyans must rise up and call on the Saba Saba spirit to defend the gains made over the decades. We must we must recall the past struggles to empower the present assault; we must gaze intensely into our history and recollect the courage that makes us the first in Africa. We have a new Constitution to keep us going and we must be shrill in seeing its enforcement. It must be obeyed in spirit and letter. We must grow the culture of collective disgust when any policy or act dares to drag us backwards. We are on a precipice and we are still daring. In this way and only this way shall history absolve us.

 Mr Gachahi is a former public health officer in Kenya and now a businessman in Washington, US.