What can we learn from the late Michuki and Karume?

By JOHN KARIUKI

Last week Kenya suffered the deaths of two prominent patriots, the late Environment Minster John Michuki and businessman Njenga Karume. Both octogenarians served the country from before independence and rose from humble backgrounds and used their amazing energy, clarity of issues and dedication to work to distinguish themselves in both the public and business worlds.

And although both approached public service differently, there are several lessons in their struggles that can apply in today’s workplaces.

As a public servant, Michuki served Kenya in various capacities, including District Officer, Executive Chairman of the Kenya Commercial Bank, and Permanent Secretary in the Finance Ministry. He later served as a Member of Parliament and cabinet minister until his death.

Speed governors

But his legacy will be the famous ‘Michuki’ rules and ruthlessness he embodied as he carried out his work. The ‘Michuki’ rules forced the public transport industry to adopt speed governors and seats belts that reduced road carnage quite considerably. And he displayed even more zeal and focus when he treaded where others had long given up: He cleaned up Nairobi River. This is the first workplace lesson. Regardless of their status, employees have only themselves to fear before undertaking any major task.

Michuki left a mark wherever he went. He earned himself the reputation of a ‘ruthlessly efficient’ manager, who was widely acknowledged as among the best performing administrators in both the Kenyatta, and Kibaki regimes.

And herein is the second workplace lesson. When one does a good job, other people are bound to notice it. Indeed, the most fool proof CV is not in nicely typeset and embellished documents of one’s achievements but rests in the public domains. And this often applies to all jobs unless they are classified.

Michuki’s illustrious CV challenges employees to do their work with singular determination without wavering to accommodate every shade of opinion. This doesn’t augur well with greatness or a legacy.

On his part, Njenga Karume rose to become a billionaire, writer and power broker with little formal education. He joined politics with a clear aim of changing the policies from within. He accomplished this mission by continuously remaining at the forefront in crafting constitutional changes. This is the third workplace lesson. Many employees with illustrious credentials hardly stay long enough to change oppressive policies but jump ship at the slightest hint of conflict.

There are many career job hoppers, trained, for example, in management, industrial relations and business law, but wouldn’t be found dead revising archaic and draconian work regulations even as a hobby.

In his autobiography, Beyond Expectations: from Charcoal to Gold, Njenga Karume traces his early life right from birth in 1929. He takes the reader through the various spheres of his life. Born into poverty, Njenga ventured into business and become a respected politician and Cabinet Minister. He interacted intimately with all the three Presidents that Kenya has had.

Karume comes across as a shrewd and affable person in his biography, traits that have seen his longetivity in public life and firm friendship with many people. Some accounts have it that he would even give the less privileged people clothes off his wardrobe. Karume made and sustained friendship from which he reaped handsomely.

And this is the fourth workplace lesson. Many employees today hardly sustain any friendships that are worth writing home about. Their networking is only superficial with a calculated purpose of attaining their goals, which might include mitigating a workplace spat, canvassing for a promotion, or a transfer to a favourite station and so on. And the ‘friendship’ goes in limbo thereafter, until another crisis arises.

But people feel cheated and used when friendship operates on such a plane. Consequently, they loathe such thankless and selfish people and never to rise to the occasion again.