The ‘strange’ inclusion of Tuju in Cabinet and what it means to our politics

Raphael Tuju, the Jubilee Party secretary general

Kenya is a multi-party democracy with a vibrant political culture but lacking in one ingredient that makes democratic consolidation a mirage; the inability to sustain political parties beyond a five-year electoral cycle.

In Kenya, political parties are cobbled up in the run-up to a General Election and act as special purpose vehicles which quickly decline and outlive their purpose once elections are over. The idea of democratic consolidation suggests a durable and functional state to the extent that a return to a non-democratic state is no longer viable with a strong multi-party political system being key to its achievement.