Kenya’s recent political handshake between President Ruto and opposition leader Raila Odinga raises concerns about the integrity of its electoral process. This trend, rooted in past agreements, threatens democracy, accountability, and public trust. To break the cycle of political mediocrity, necessary reforms must focus on strengthening opposition roles and ensuring genuine electoral integrity.
In recent political developments, Kenya has once again observed a truce between President William Ruto and opposition leader Raila Odinga. This handshake, though celebrated by some as a step towards national unity, raises profound concerns regarding the authenticity of democracy and the accountability of the opposition. The question arises: Are elections in Kenya merely a facade to determine who will eventually engage in power-sharing agreements?
The phenomenon of political handshakes in Kenya is not unprecedented. Following the contested elections of 2007, President Mwai Kibaki and Raila Odinga entered a power-sharing agreement facilitated by former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, resulting in the formation of a Grand Coalition Government. While this was viewed as a necessary response to post-election violence, it established a troubling precedent of negotiations following contentious elections.
In 2018, Raila Odinga once again set a precedent by aligning himself with President Uhuru Kenyatta after years of criticism. This repetition leaves many citizens questioning the significance of elections in a system that seemingly values negotiation over genuine democratic processes.
Such trends pose severe risks to Kenya’s democracy. Article 38 of the Constitution ensures citizens’ rights to free and fair elections, yet the merging of opposition leaders with the ruling party diminishes voters’ choices, leading to a façade of political theatre rather than authentic democracy. This situation contravenes Article 10 of the Constitution, which emphasizes national governance principles, including accountability and transparency.
Kenya’s political landscape increasingly resembles a cycle of recycled leadership, where systemic issues, such as entrenched corruption, evade resolution. The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission continues to unveil significant corruption cases, yet the prevailing political will to address these issues remains absent.
Policy instability is exacerbated by political handshakes and governmental reshuffles, which lead to unpredictable shifts in policy that hinder business and economic growth. Consequently, public trust in governance wanes as citizens perceive little correlation between their electoral choices and substantive change, reflected in declining voter turnout.
Moreover, the occurrence of political handshakes often undermines the principles laid out in Kenya’s 2010 Constitution. The intended structure is a pure presidential system, yet backdoor agreements erect a quasi-parliamentary system that fosters confusion and inefficiency within governance.
The establishment of the Office of the Prime Minister post-2008 crisis further complicated governance, creating overlapping authorities that engender inefficiencies. Without corrective measures, Kenya risks perpetuating these governance flaws, weakening institutional integrity.
Political handshakes have broader implications, leading to egregious violations of human rights as victims of electoral violence and economic mismanagement are overshadowed by the pursuit of political power. Despite being a signatory to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, Kenya frequently neglects its commitments in favor of expedient political alliances.
The lack of a robust opposition weakens Parliament’s oversight capabilities, resulting in an unchecked executive branch. Article 94 embeds Parliament’s independence, but when opposition leaders ally with the ruling party, the core separation of powers is compromised, fostering poor governance.
To foster a mature democracy, breaking the cycle of political mediocrity is essential. Institutionalizing opposition is vital, and amending the Political Parties Act to prohibit opposition parties from merging with the ruling party within an electoral cycle would represent a constructive first step. Furthermore, comprehensive electoral reforms are necessary, particularly concerning the restructuring of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) and strict regulations on post-election coalitions.
Civil society and media entities must intensify their efforts to hold leadership accountable and advocate for governance transparency. The recent Ruben-Raila handshake epitomizes a long-standing history of political betrayals that render Kenya’s democratic process farcical. If elections devolve into mere agreements for compromise, their utility is questionable; ultimately, a government without a formidable opposition resembles a dictatorship. Until the Kenyan populace insists on accountability and reform, the nation is likely to remain ensnared in an unending cycle of unproductive elections and inconsequential power-sharing.
The recent handshake between President Ruto and Raila Odinga symbolizes a troubling tendency in Kenyan politics, where elections appear to serve merely as a pretext for power-sharing rather than a genuine democratic exercise. This pattern not only undermines citizens’ rights as enshrined in the Constitution but also engenders policy instability and entrenched corruption. For democracy to flourish in Kenya, it is imperative to institutionalize opposition and enact reforms that uphold accountability and transparency. Without these critical changes, the cycle of compromised governance will likely persist, jeopardizing the nation’s democratic integrity.
Original Source: icj-kenya.org
