SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 6, 2014

Attention Moi got confirms nothing much has changed

Former President Daniel arap Moi greets wananchi during a rally in Kirigiti, Kiambu, on May 24, 1979. FILE PHOTO

Former President Daniel arap Moi greets wananchi during a rally in Kirigiti, Kiambu, on May 24, 1979. FILE PHOTO |  NATION MEDIA GROUP

In Summary

  • While Moi left office in considerable ignominy, a 12-year absence from the centre has seen a softening of attitudes towards the former dictator.
  • Kibaki also presided over human rights abuses, notably the largest number of extra-judicial executions in Kenya's history, particularly in Central Province.
  • The chances of justice for victims of the multifarious injustices, both under Moi and others, decrease with the adulteration of the memory that drives their grievances.
By GEORGE KEGORO
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Before last week on his 90th birthday when he got several newspaper headlines the same day, the last major coverage of retired president Daniel Moi was in December 2002 at Uhuru Park, on the day that he formally handed over to the incoming president Mwai Kibaki.

On that day, Moi sat still, stoically enduring unrestrained derision from the enormous crowd that had gathered to witness the change of guard at the top. It was a way of telling him what they thought about his long presidency that was ending on that day.

In his acceptance speech, Kibaki rubbed in the salt, declaring that he was "inheriting a country which has been badly ravaged by years of misrule and ineptitude" and promising "to bring back the culture of due process, accountability and transparency in public office." It is this same speech that contained the famous announcement of an end to the era of "anything goes" and roadside declarations.

While Moi left office in considerable ignominy, a 12-year absence from the centre has seen a softening of attitudes towards the former dictator.

On his birthday, there was even space in the media for paid congratulatory messages, themselves a reminder of a Moi-era habit, when public corporations took out space to congratulate him, in a competition to prove loyalty. What then explains the softening of attitudes towards the former dictator?

The first reason is the reaction by Kalenjin people to how Moi was treated when he left power.

KALENJIN RECKONING

One explanation of the post-election violence of 2007 is that it was a reckoning with the Kalenjin people, whose honour had been injured in the manner in which Moi was treated when he retired from office.

In the wake of 2007, a new correctness has emerged around coverage of the subject of Moi, one that is apologetic in nature and which fears that an unrestrained statement of what is thought about him risks unforeseen consequences down the line.

Secondly, the record of his successor, Kibaki, softens any critical view one might have had about Moi. Other than running down the economy, the other major criticism of Moi centred on ethnic balkanisation, human rights abuses and grand corruption.

Although Kibaki did a commendable job in reviving the economy that Moi had worked so hard to destroy, (Kibaki called it "certain deliberate actions or policies of the past"), Kibaki himself had no better record on ethnic inclusion or in the fight against corruption.

Kibaki also presided over human rights abuses, notably the largest number of extra-judicial executions in Kenya's history, particularly in Central Province.

In the period after Moi's retirement, another imperfect president like Moi has now also left office lessening the harsh judgement on Moi. As Aristotle observed, "men become calm when they have spent their anger on someone else."

Aristotle was referring to the fact that though the people were more irritated with Ergophilus than Callisthenes, they acquitted the former because they had condemned the latter to death only the previous day. Moi is benefitting from the fact that a section of the population is angry with Kibaki.

Thirdly, it is also material to the way Moi is viewed, that the current president entered the big political stage as a "project" of the retired president when he first ran for president. Moi himself was raised to the big stage by the father of the current president. Bonds of gratitude exist between these families, and a harsh view of Moi undermines the current status quo.

REVISING HISTORY, MOCKING VICTIMS

Of course, a section of the media is promoting Moi because of ownership arrangements that oblige a sympathetic editorial policy towards him.

Does it actually matter how Moi is viewed? The answer is yes. Moi's actions produced victims. Victims of tribal clashes, the Nyayo House torture chambers, and those exiled. Raising Moi as a hero revises history and mocks these victims, complicating their recognition and possible redress.

The country's truth commission, part of a transitional justice process, produced a report last year in which Moi features prominently. The chapter on land, for example, details not only the Kenyatta-era abuses but also those committed under Moi. What are the chances that the report will ever be implemented if Moi is at the centre of Kenyan politics?

Secondly, in studies on transitional justice, memory is linked to emotion, and is an important variable in determining the chances of justice. The example is given of the post-Second World War trials where those tried earliest got the stiffest sentences, compared to those that were tried subsequently.

The chances of justice for victims of the multifarious injustices, both under Moi and others, decrease with the adulteration of the memory that drives their grievances.

A revision of our memory on Moi betrays collective national experiences and implies we have learnt nothing from our history.

Thirdly, the softening view of Moi sets the stage for entrenching dynastic politics, which have already taken a foothold through Uhuru Kenyatta, the son of a former president. Dynastic politics undermines merit in leadership, and complicates chances of reforms. With the wealth they control, including vast lands, a rehabilitated Moi image creates a conducive platform for the Kenyattas and Mois to interchange leadership in perpetuity.

In short, the attention surrounding Moi's birthday confirms that nothing has changed in Kenya. Official support for reform processes is merely formalistic and Kenya's transition is dead. Merely because of their forebears, those currently leading Kenya will, in different combinations, dominate leadership well into the future.

gkegoro@gmail.com