Sunday, June 24, 2012

Raila owes women in Luoland a favour


Raila owes women in Luoland a favour

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By OTIENO OTIENO
Posted  Saturday, June 23  2012 at  17:34
Last week after I wrote an open letter to the chairman of the Luo Council of Elders on the practice of wife inheritance, one Josiah Ngigi Kariuki from Kiambu County asked me in an email to remember to always copy the letters to the PM [Raila Odinga].
“He [Mr Odinga] has quite a following and therefore in a position to bring change — probably faster than the Ker of the Luos,” he wrote.
I have no reason to believe that Mr Kariuki was being cheeky or cynical in his advice. Indeed Mr Odinga enjoys reverence in the Luo community — part earned, part inherited.
Mr Odinga has also not demonstrated public revulsion to the idea of being thought of as a cultural elder. I have lost count of the number of times he has been installed as a Kalenjin elder, a Meru elder, a Maasai elder, or a Luhya elder.
And he installed the chairman of one of the factions of the Luo Council of Elders. So like Mr Kariuki, I, too, believe that the PM can use his high status in society to influence how people view outdated cultural practices like wife inheritance.
But Mr Odinga is best known as a politician and it would be a little unfair to judge him on his perceived achievements or failures on cultural matters.
One can, for instance, legitimately challenge him to show how much he has done to expand the democratic space for women since he emerged as the most powerful politician from the community.
Unfortunately, Mr Odinga’s performance has been rather poor in my view. The last time a woman was elected MP in Luoland was in 1992 when his dad, Jaramogi, called the shots.
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Mrs Phoebe Asiyo’s victory in Karachuonyo that year came at the head of a progressive momentum that began in Kisumu Town with the election of Mrs Grace Onyango. In between, Mrs Grace Ogot was also elected MP in Gem.
The dry spell for women in elective politics in Luoland is therefore best viewed through the lens of Mr Odinga’s reign.
Chaotic party nominations and violent election campaigns have robbed women of their democratic right to participate meaningfully in elections as voters or credible candidates.
The next elections present Mr Odinga the opportunity to match rhetoric with deed and give women a chance. From what I hear, there is no shortage of takers.
Prof Collette Suda in Migori, Ms Millie Odhiambo in Mbita, Prof Jacqueline Oduol in Siaya, Mrs Monica Amolo in Ndhiwa and others have already shown they are equal to the challenge. Mrs Mary Ojode also gave an excellent speech in Ndhiwa.
jkotieno@ke.nationmedia.com

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