Duale not doing Parliament, public reputation any favours

Last week, we were subjected to ‘wananchi’ hooliganism at a presidential function in Migori. This week, we saw ‘wenye nchi’ hooliganism on display courtesy of the National Assembly Majority Leader Aden Duale at a function presided over by the Deputy President William Ruto.

Duale’s grossly impolite utterances directed at Bomet Governor Isaac Rutto are part of a broader pattern of careless statements that are reminiscent of the kind of mindless sycophancy that was the hallmark of 24 years of Moi’s rule. As a country, we deserve better from a leader of his stature in the most important institution in the land, the National Assembly.

Throughout our history, the National Assembly has always been a source of moderation to our national politics. The institution, and Cabinet, has always been the locus of elite political bargains and settlement. It was the backbenchers group, in the 1960s, that kept the right and left wing extremists in the Jomo Kenyatta administration in check.

Following the 1974 elections, Parliament went against the wishes of President Kenyatta and elected the firebrand politician Jean-Marie Seroney as Deputy Speaker. It was because of Seroney that the select committee to investigate the assassination of Josiah M Kariuki was formed and exposed government officials implicated in the murder.

Fast-forward to the 1990s, and you find Speaker Francis ole Kaparo, who despite his misguided political subservience to former President Moi, served as a reasonably respectable speaker. Kaparo respected and understood the position of the National Assembly in our political history. As such, he allowed the opposition sufficient space to be part of the political process even as Moi continued to limit that same space.

The same can be said about Kenneth Marende, who is perhaps our most Solomonic speaker since the days of Humphrey Slade. Marende’s partisan leanings were public knowledge, but he too, respected the House and sought to engender in it the culture of dialogue and compromise.

So it is very worrying to see the National Assembly become a rudderless institution led by test-tube politicians who are more at ease spewing vitriol at their colleagues than ensuring that our politics continues to be structured around dialogue and compromise. I am on record expressing my dissatisfaction with the current leadership of the National Assembly. Because of their neglect of duty, the first branch of our government has been relegated to a shouting match arena and a near-rubber stamp legislature.

Needless to say, Duale has recently emerged as the public expression of these failures. The Majority Leader’s careless utterances against Rutto are not only crass and unbecoming of a public figure, they are also a sign of his disrespect of the institution of the National Assembly in which he is a leader.

As I opined a few weeks ago, the very fact that Parliament has been unable to broker an elite political settlement over the many issues animating the referendum debate is a symbol of failure by Duale and the rest of the leadership at Parliament. It is high time all leaders internalised the fact that the days of ‘wapende wasipende’ are gone, and that we should instead inculcate into our political culture the values of dialogue, compromise and unwavering respect for institutions of state. It is especially important for public officials to lead by example in this regard. If we expect Kenyans to consider politics not as a mortal combat between inherently irreconcilable camps, then the attitude change must begin from the very top.

Duale’s behaviour is also an indictment of the leadership style of Deputy President William Ruto. The remarks by Duale were made as part of the continuing political rift between the governor and the Deputy President. Yes, it is common practice to use political attack dogs to fight one’s political fights. It is especially helpful if such attack dogs are people with little concern for their personal reputation.

However, ultimately senior leaders must be accountable for the actions and utterances of their attack dogs. The Deputy President would be well served to distance himself from people who do not care about the lasting implications of the things they say or do. Our politics will be better when public leaders, at all levels, become concerned about their reputation and public image. As things stand, Duale is not doing the public reputation and image of the Deputy President any favours.