THE TRIBALISM PROBLEM IN KENYA.
IT’S TIME WE CONSIDER A CONSTITUTIONAL ROTATIONAL PRESIDENCY.
Despite Kenya’s adoption of one of the world’s most progressive constitutions in 2010, tribalism impedes the country’s socio-political and economic progress. Economist David Ndii’s 2016 article, “Kenya is a Cruel Marriage, It’s Time We Talk Divorce” accurately portrays the complexity of Kenya’s tribal burden. Ndii emphasized that the country’s recurring political tensions mostly stem from the failure of the Kenyan political elite to foster a sense of national identity. To move forward, he proposed that more power and funding should be transferred from the national government to county governments and that economic inequality for all Kenyans should be addressed rather than continuing to pursue the politics of tribal segregation.
The issue of tribe and politics in Kenya again took center stage during the 2022 Presidential Elections, with the two main presidential contenders hailing from different tribes. While Raila Odinga stood for the potential of a Luo Presidency, William Ruto represented a continuation of the power of the Kikuyu and Kalenjin who have dominated the presidency since Kenya’s independence.
As Ndii predicted in 2016, the Odinga and Ruto camps were hampered by tribal undertones, stifling constructive debate on critical issues such as the rule of law, corruption, and the dire state of the economy. Rather, the political discourse centered on opposing political alliances and constitutional amendments strangled with tribalism.
Political Alliances and Constitutional Amendments
A case in point is the UHURUTO alliance and the Handshake multi-faceted political occurrences encompassing ethnic politics, historical grievances, and personal ambition. The formation of the UHURUTO alliance in 2013 was a significant achievement in overcoming deep-rooted mistrust between the Kikuyu and Kalenjin communities. However, the pressures of power-sharing were inevitable, and the addition of Raila Odinga to the coalition in 2018 under the Handshake further complicated matters, ultimately leading to the de facto dissolution of the relationship between President Uhuru Kenyatta and William Ruto.
Still, despite President Kenyatta’s initial support for Odinga under the Handshake, Ruto’s faction of the UHURUTO alliance shifted its focus to a Ruto Presidency by gearing up the consolidation of the Kalenjin-Kikuyu truce with a national rallying call to address issues such as high costs of living and unemployment. On the other hand, it could be argued that the Handshake government aimed to break the Kikuyu-Kalenjin dominance and promote national unity by passing the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) Constitutional amendments to the 2010 Constitution.
As the 2022 presidential election neared, the political discourse between Odinga and Ruto became centered around this issue. The BBI arguably sought to address ethnic division and increase the inclusiveness of minority tribes in government, thereby promoting national unity, while critics argued that it would undermine the principles of democracy and separation of powers. In contrast, the 2010 Constitution was viewed as a symbol of progress that represented a departure from the past, but was criticized for being an elitist document, and still incapable of effectually addressing deep-rooted tribalism.
While President Uhuru Kenyatta and Odinga supported the (BBI), Ruto expressed more cautious support. Many political analysts observed that the Kenyatta-Odinga support for the BBI signaled an end of the Kikuyu-Kalenjin political dominance in executive leadership and government appointments, posing a direct threat to Ruto’s presidential ambitions. Thus, while Ruto accepted the proposal in principle, he also expressed concerns, notably about the creation of the position of Prime Minister and two deputies, arguing that this might not effectively address the issue of the “winner-takes-all” system. Ruto also criticized the idea of political parties nominating members to the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) proposed in the BBI.
In response to the BBI, Ruto’s campaign focused primarily on economic issues and youth unemployment, which appeared to resonate more with some voters, compared to Raila Odinga’s emphasis on social justice, which was at times overshadowed by accusations of enabling State capture due to his alliance with President Uhuru Kenyatta. However, despite these efforts to focus on the pressing issues of Kenyan society as a whole, the election remained deeply entrenched along tribal lines, with core voters largely remaining loyal to their respective ethnic affiliations.
Ultimately, despite early predictions favoring a Raila Odinga win, he suffered a disappointing defeat in the election. In the end, Ruto won and his government was largely staffed with loyalists from the Kalenjin and Kikuyu tribes, fueling concerns about the continuation of tribal politics in Kenya’s political landscape.
CONSTITUTIONAL ROTATIONAL PRESIDENCY
The lead-up and outcome of the 2022 presidential election and the current political situation in Kenya reveal that neither Ruto’s ethnic nationalism nor Raila’s defiance of the status quo can create a sense of nationhood. It’s time to stop being dogmatic and reflect on whether Kenya should consider another therapeutic constitutional amendment geared specifically toward healing its toxic tribal relationships.
One specific idea to address these challenges is to revisit the proposal to have a federal system of government (majimbo system) from the Kenya African Democratic Union (KADU) made during independence and to consider introducing a Constitutional Rotational Presidency similar to that of Switzerland. Each regional government, with its conglomerate of tribes, should be given the constitutional mandate to form a government and select a president for a specific duration of time.
