The recent destructive demonstrations by Azimio supporters were nothing short of insurrection and the Office of the Director of Public Prosecution (ODPP) should have charged all who took part in it, especially the politicians who incited the same.
The chaos that occurred many months after the election indicates this was premeditated and it was unleashed not just to undermine Kenya’s democracy but threaten the country’s peace and security.
Kenya can no longer afford to make election-related violence the norm at the expense of stability to appease select politicians. Peace and security are what will get us out of the doldrums of a failing economy, not destructive insurrection clothed as demonstrations against the high cost of living.
The insurrection that occurred in Kenya is not too dissimilar to what happened after the 2020 election in the United States and the recent one in Brazil. The supporters of defeated former President of the US, Donald Trump, and Brazil’s then-President Jair Bolsonaro didn’t stop at disputing elections won by their challengers, which were deemed fair and transparent, but incited their supporters to violence too.
Cities in the US and Brazil suffered from the terror unleased by Trump and Bolsonaro supporters, respectively. The US and Brazil governments made sure that anybody who incited or took part in the insurrection was punished. Why has Kenya failed to act on the recent insurrection?
Democracy
Two key points that came out are that democracy in Kenya is only on paper and the rule of law belongs to the highest bidder.
The ODPP has, once again, come under sharp criticism for failing to act. Despite apprehending a number of suspects, the office decided against taking the matter to court. The fact that a dialogue has been allegedly agreed between Azimio and the government does not take away the fact that the law was breached and the law must be applied to deal with those breaches. The withdrawal of the cases yet again points to the lack of independence of the ODPP. The office has become a puppet to politicians and this raises serious questions on the impact of that relationship to justice and democracy in the country.
As I wrote last week, I fail to understand what exactly Azimio were demonstrating against. The first issue raised was that they wanted President William Ruto’s “illegitimate” government out of office. The second was on high cost of food and the third reconstitution of IEBC.
Smacks of mischief
The first and the third reasons intrigue me the most. To challenge a presidency established both by voters and the Supreme Court smacks of mischief and shows lack of respect for the rule of law. The idea of reconstituting IEBC does not appear an initiative to favour voters but aggrieved political parties and coalitions such as Azimio.
If the latter had won the election, I bet the issue of IEBC changes won’t have even come up because the shoe would be on the other foot. Demands to reconstitute IEBC every time a party loses elections is a recipe for chaos and creates instability. There is an urgent need, therefore, to rethink the role of political parties in nominating and appointing electoral commissioners. This is the bone of contention that creates unnecessary conflict of interest.
The most important issue that the country needs to address is that of the ‘handshake’. The few times this has happened, it has been preceded by violence. Political parties must never be allowed to rely on insurrection to find their way to the government through the back door after they lose an election.
The ‘handshake’ must be outlawed and insurrection punished to deter unjustifiable demands and post-election violence. Politicians’ greed for power are holding the citizens to ransom and we must stop this. The country’s majority shareholders are the voters, not politicians.
Serve the public
The ODPP ought to go back to the drawing board and analyse its cosy relationship with the Executive, or politicians generally, and its mandate to the people. It is constitutionally made independent for a reason—in that its primary role is to protect and serve the public.
Secondly, it has to take its role in upholding justice and the Constitution much more seriously than it is. Thirdly, it must understand public interests and protect them as demanded by the Constitution.
ODPP missed a great opportunity to set a precedent in the latest case of insurrection by failing to punish the perpetrators of the recent violence in the country; that is, the masterminds and their supporters.
Lest we forget, the deadly post-election violence of 2007/2008 started with just one spark and we could have ended up there if common sense didn’t prevail. The unjustifiable death of innocent citizens should never have gone unpunished because the system is bent on protecting politicians. Insurrection is insurrection, wherever it happens, and it must be punished.
Kenyan politicians have made it a habit of inciting citizens for their selfish gain after they lose elections and get away with murder—literally. For how much longer?
