How protests erode Kenya Kwanza's legitimacy and plan

Protestors barricade a section of the road during anti-government protests in Nakuru city on July 12, 2023. [Kipsang Joseph, Standard]

In politics, legitimacy is a currency. It allows losers of elections to accept to be governed by their competitors.

It also facilitates delegation of governing powers by voters to a specific set of public officers in-between elections. And perhaps most importantly, legitimacy lowers the cost of government through cultivation of implicit consent to government policies provided the processes through which they are achieved are themselves legitimate.