They say that politics is the art of the possible. It’s also the science of the impossible. In a liberal society — one that’s undergirded by democratic norms — politicians woo and hoodwink citizens to be elected into office. But once firmly in the saddle, politicians of all hues are unpredictable. They can do, or become, anything.
For example, who knew that former US president Donald Trump would seek to overthrow American democracy? Usually, there’s a very wide gulf between what politicians promise to do, and what they actually do. Often, they say one thing, and do another.
In this respect, the Kenya Kwanza government is squarely within the four corners of this political fact. My advice is to promise less, and then deliver more.
The mouth with the accompaniment of the vocal chords is the biggest asset to a politician. But it’s also the deadliest Achilles Heel. Politicians can talk themselves into office, and then talk themselves out of office.
I have watched with increasing dismay as various Kenya Kwanza leaders twist themselves into pretzels and commit errors that in any other country would send them to the political guillotine. Perhaps many of them are simply drunk with power. What’s shocking to me is that there seems to be no one to crack the whip, or send them packing. Many Kenya Kwanza leaders seem to know nothing, and often brag about their ignorance. Who will call them to order?
It's now more than a year since William Samoei Ruto was declared elected President of the Republic of Kenya. From all appearances, President Ruto is a commanding — some could even say he is a brilliant politician. But yet he – and a large coterie of his appointees — have made many unforced errors.
I know that governing an inchoate and fledgling democracy like Kenya isn’t a walk in the walk. But he and Kenya Kwanza asked for the job. That’s why they shouldn’t expect Kenyans to feel too sorry for them. It’s not the job of citizens to feel sorry for government. Rather, it’s the obligation of the government to deliver on its promises.
Let me tell you what I see as KK’s deficits. First, there’s a golden rule of power. If you break it, you buy it. That is to say that if you are in a store and you mishandle an item and break it, you can be forced to buy it. You can’t look around and start blaming another customer who may have broken you concentration and caused you to inadvertently drop and break the item.
There’s too much handwringing in Kenya Kwanza about the government’s helplessness because of the misdeeds — alleged and imagined — of the predecessor regime. I have breaking news for Kenya Kwanza — Kenyans don’t give a flying fig about what the previous state did. No sir — more than a year down the line, they simply want KK to deliver.
Second, why are so many government officials talking too much and making irrational and pie-in-the-sky promises? It’s a truism that those who talk more know little while those who know more talk less. Many senior officials in government are known quantities. As Kenyans we can separate the wheat from the chaff. You don’t become competent simply because you are appointed to a high office with impressive furniture and a retinue of supplicants. You are incompetent if you were incompetent before you lucked into high office.
Talking until you are hoarse won’t change this basic fact. Citizens listen when you make promises and punish you when don’t – or can’t – deliver. More promises over broken ones don’t erase the broken ones. Third, politics is the art of seduction. It’s a kin to wooing a girl.
During courtship, most men are on their best behaviour. You’d think angels of them. But after they have bagged the girl and legally wedded her, many become monsters. Their true colours come out. My point is that there’s a difference between campaigning and governing. A competent government should know the difference between the two.
The chasm between them is as wide as the Rift Valley. KK should immediately drop the campaign rhetoric of yore. Don’t talk unless you have to — instead get down to work. And stop commissioning and bragging about past projects. Do less fanfare and put your nose to grind. Learn lessons from the Kibaki regime.
Finally, I want to make one thing clear. Azimio La Umoja wasn’t declared the victor in the 2022 polls. However, most people in Azimio want the government to succeed where it’s pursuing pro-people policies. If it fails, then as a country we fail. We have no interest in seeing our people suffer if the country collapses. But it is Azimio’s responsibility to hold Kenya Kwanza’s feet to the fire. When that happens, the state shouldn’t accuse Azimio of sabotage or disloyalty. There’s no democracy without a vibrant — even loud – opposition. Ruling over Kenya isn’t a right, but a sacred obligation.
Makau Mutua is SUNY Distinguished Professor and Margaret W. Wong Professor at Buffalo Law School, The State University of New York. @makaumutua.
