There is an unwritten law in most mature democracies that when a new government takes over power, they get the first 100 days as a ‘honey-moon’ period from criticism, and the benefit of doubt when they make mistakes, as they are bound to as they settle into office.
This has guided my writing on the government ever since Uhuru Kenyatta and William Ruto were sworn in. What I did not expect is that it would be this easy to actually give them those 100 days, and from discussions with several other people who did not ‘believe’ in the two, I am not the only one.
It is a fact that President Uhuru and Deputy President Ruto have pleasantly surprised many of us who did not support them in the last election. This last weekend, for instance, the President told a crusade in Uhuru Park that, “It is time for a new healing and a new dawn for our nation. This is a year of reconciliation and forgiveness”.
Deputy President Ruto then publicly admitted that not even their close friends expected them to win the elections. Uhuru summed it up when he said, “Many did not expect us in this country at this time. But God knows more than human beings do”.
It takes a lot of humility for a President and Deputy President, who were elected in the first round with over 50 per cent of the vote, to say that in public. In fact, past experiences are that such a victory would usually be followed by national incidences where the vanquished are put down publicly.
It is also very rare to hear politicians publicly giving glory to God for victory when in office.
The Bible says that if someone humbles themselves before God, He will lift them up. As a Christian, I am convinced that the favour Uhuru and Ruto are garnering locally and abroad has everything to do with how they have humbled themselves before God, and are giving him glory for their victory.
That many accept that all the odds were against their winning the last election is just the kind of scenario God likes working in. I pray they sustain this attitude, because Kenya will surely be a blessed nation, and they will distinguish themselves as leaders internationally.
One way President Uhuru can enhance the message of reconciliation would be to reach out to families who were adversely affected by past injustices, especially under his father’s government.
I can only imagine the impact he would generate if, for example, he reached out to the families of Pio Gama Pinto, JM Kariuki or Tom Mboya, and let them know that as Kenya celebrates its year of Jubilee, it has not forgotten them.
It should also not be hard to help immediate family members where necessary, now that the British government has shown us it is possible to compensate, without admitting liability.
This would go a long way in smoothening out the process recommended by the TJRC report.
The President should also make sure that this attitude devolves down to other functionaries within his government, as part of policy.
That the former Prime Minister had to go all the way to a hotel on Mombasa road to freshen up before connecting onto an international flight, when we have facilities at the airport that he can use, does not inspire a feeling of reconciliation in his supporters. In fact it contradicts the message of ‘moving on’ by indicating that petty political putdowns are not over.
In addition, to deny the leader of the largest party in Kenya today (both in terms of regional reach and elected leaders) access to a VIP lounge is politically naïve as it provides a reason for people, including those who might have started the process of ‘moving on’, to rally around the PM; .
But as those government officers behind this mess get taken to task by the President, Raila must also deal with his handlers.
As part of an institution the former PM has officials around him, including advance teams that handle protocol matters. To take such stories to the media makes it look like they are also playing politics – it does not help the former PM’s image at all.
The conversation on what VIP lounge Raila can access; how far his vehicles can go, etc, should not be happening in the press; it should be dealt with in the corridors of power.
The former PM’s handlers must avoid playing to the gallery on such matters if we are all to do our bit in reconciling this country.
The writer is the head of Change Associates. info@change-associates.org.
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