Jamhuri: Door for slow change closing fast as Kenya turns 62

Jamhuri Day celebrations are underway at Gitwamba Primary School grounds in Saboti Constituency, Trans Nzoia County. The event is being attended by Trans Nzoia Governor George Natembeya, County Commissioner Gideon Oyagi, and senior county officials. Area MP Caleb Amisi is also expected to join the celebrations.[Martin Ndiema,Standard]

This week Kenya celebrated its 62nd Independence Day with the usual pomp and pageantry, and the political leadership promising its citizens, as it has done on 61 occasions, to deliver them to the elusive promised land.

For those privileged to watch the country from infancy to present, there is no doubt that there have been exhilarating successes, but there also has been some unforgivable failures. Independence by itself was exhilarating. While in today’s world we can take self-government for granted, one only needs to view peoples that remain under occupation, the most obvious being Gaza, to appreciate freedom. Beyond freedom, we have kept our nation united, despite its many crevices. There have been major threats to that unity, the most obvious being the Shifta war as parts of Northeastern threatened to secede in late 60s.

More recently, the 2007 election-catalysed violence came close to splitting the nation along its ethnic fissures. The introduction of the devolved system, in which every part of Kenya would be entitled by law to receive a portion of national resources was to ensure that the sense of exclusion that inflamed the 2007/08 violence would not occur again. We have also made some strides in overcoming the trio of enemies that our independence leaders identified; the eradication of poverty, ignorance and disease. 62 years later, the levels of literacy have definitely improved with recent census data showing adult literacy stranding at 83 per cent in 2023. The same data also disclosed that about 4 per cent of Kenyans have a university degree, a significant achievement, but still below the Africa average that stands at 7 per cent. In terms of disease, the scourges that terrified our parents in Kenya’s first years are long gone and health services are generally available in most parts of the country, particularly after devolution.

The level of services declined after the Structural Adjustment Programmes of the 80s when the government introduced cost sharing in public services, but devolution has made a dent in the regression of health services. Even on poverty, the country has made some positive strides. By the turn of independence, the per capita income was just slightly over 100 dollars. Currently this number stands at about 2200 dollars.

This growth, while an improvement, is an embarrassment compared to countries that were at similar levels including Korea, Malaysia and Singapore, with the latter enjoying per capita income of above 90,000 dollars! In terms of governance, Kenya is a more open and democratic society than it was in its first decades. The years of open and undisguised political persecution accompanied by detentions without trial, torture and forced confessions by perceived “enemies of the state” are historical relics.

The terrain of political and civil rights, including freedom of expression, has changed positively, protected by a progressive constitution, a vibrant civil society, a freer media, and a robust Judiciary. We have comparably open and competitive elections, and most elected leaders are a true reflection of voter choice.

On all these scores however, there are also a host of failures. While literacy has improved, quality of education, particularly in the public sector has been deteriorating. Education, which used to be the path to ensuring equal opportunities and access devoid of class, is now largely the preserve of the elite. The latter can assess private primary and secondary schools and private universities, locally and abroad.

On health, children and adults continue to die of preventable diseases, and one hopes that much touted SHA will resolve this challenge before illness overwhelms the weaker in society. Political rights continue to be abused through police violence, threats and abductions of “dissidents”.

Elections while patently free and fair are compromised through latent means including misuse of state resources, compromised nominations and extensive voter bribery. The IEBC’s credibility remains wobbly, actuated by a combination of its own deficiencies, threats of political capture and a determination by politicians to keep it delegitimised. Poverty, despite improvements in per income capita, abounds with those below the poverty line increasing every year. With a growing number of disenchanted and impatient youth, these challenges require urgent resolution and the door for incremental change is slowly closing. Let those who have ears hear.

Dr Kamotho is an advocate of the High Court of Kenya