Monday, April 1, 2013

Political stallement amidst Kenyatta poll and court wins

I was in Busia, Kenya about two weeks to attend an in-law's burial. The mass poverty and dejection in this part of Kenya rivaled the wretched of the earth I have seen in Uganda's most desperate parts. No wonder these Kenyans have consistently voted against the ethnic alliances of the day which have most often than not had the Kikuyu-backed coalition win the day. The idea that the Kikuyu (and another large ethnic group will always win national elections is one that doesn't bode well for Kenya. Parts of Kenya will always feel marginalized and the violence we witnessed in 2007 will always be a possibility because of the simmering ethnic tensions that are almost always benign but alive nonetheless. Ironically electoral democracy may not solve's Kenya's political questions because the Kikuyu will always win as long as they ally with another major ethnic group. Governing coalitions are what Kenyans need. Coalitions that are ethnically broad based not winner takes all electoral contests. The fact that Uhuru Kenyatta and Ruto will always win votes because they are assured of a numeric advantage is a defeat of the spirit of electoral democracy.

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