Let Uhuru, Ruto shake hands for stability ahead of elections
President Uhuru Kenyatta greets Deputy President William Ruto shortly before the 57th Madaraka Day Celebrations at State House, Nairobi.
What you need to know:
- The signs of an elite-triggered class competition leading up to next year’s elections are clear.
- Thus, it becomes imperative for us to have the uncomfortable but necessary discourse on why we must strive for, among other things, political stability.
Political tension is a counterproductive force of national and even regional scale. It slows or reverses development. We have a concrete past in Kenya that we can point to as a reference for the challenges that have been posed by political instability, and 2007/2008 is just one macabre example of where we would never again desire to be as a country.
However, the signs of an elite-triggered class competition leading up to next year’s elections are clear.
Thus, it becomes imperative for us to have the uncomfortable but necessary discourse on why we must strive for, among other things, political stability.
At a time when nations across the world are devising means to regenerate in the post-Covid era, we have a presidency that seems discordant.
Political uncertainty
In a recent interview with senior editors, President Uhuru Kenyatta made it clear that he was not on the same wavelength with his deputy, Dr William Ruto. While the revelation is not novel, it is chilling to see the people we elected to lead us pulling apart.
For his part, the President has made it clear that as part of his legacy, he wishes to unite the country. Paradoxically, he is at the same time sidelining his deputy, who does not seem to agree with his boss’s path towards unity. On the other hand, Dr Ruto is determined to oversee an economic revolution if elected to the presidency next year. Thus far, both gentlemen mean well for Kenya.
However, each seems to believe it is either their way or the highway. This has led to political uncertainty. Their wars, which Wanjiku has done well not to participate in, have led to public competition that is posing a great threat to peace and unity.
If we are to ask for a favour from the gentlemen we voted into the presidency, it would be for them to be tolerant of each other. If indeed they love Kenya and Kenyans as they profess to, it is time for them to unroll their sleeves and shake hands till the journey ends. We have less than a year to go.
The writer is an advocate for good governance and a Risk and Insurance Consultant at Half-moon Africa Holdings.
