Kenya African National Union Research Articles

On the History of the Restoration of a Multi-Party Political System in Kenya

On the eve of the declaration of independence in 1963, the specifics of the alignment of political forces in Kenya consisted in the struggle for future power between two large nationalist unions – Kenya African National Union (KANU) and Kenya African Democratic Union (KADU). The outcome of this struggle brought victory to KANU and largely determined the vector of the future political history of this country. Under its first President, Jomo Kenyatta (and Chairman of KANU), multiparty Kenya became a de facto one-party state after KADU was dissolved in 1964 and the activities of the opposition Kenya People Union (was emerged in 1965) was banned in 1966. Kenya became officially the one-party state under Kenyatta’s successor D. аrap Moi in 1982. In the process of further establishing the authoritarian regime, he used KANU to extend state-party control to all forms of socio-political life of the country (parliament, judiciary, trade unions, public organizations, etc.). The main guarantor of ensuring order was repressive measures against any forms of dissidence. After the adoption in 1991 of the amendment to the Constitution on the liberalization of the political system, Moi managed to remain as president twice more (after the 1991 and 1997 elections), thanks to the disunity of the opposition represented by parties created on ethnic grounds. Only in 2002, the opposition managed to create a multi-ethnic short-term alliance National Rainbow Coalition led by M. Kibaki. As a result, the first president was elected in Kenya, who was not a member of the party that had been in power for 39 years before. It also put an end to the 24-year «Moi era», which was characterized by the flourishing of corruption, the crisis in the economy, political repression and tribal strife. But the same challenges, and the unresolved land issue among them, again led to the unrest during the next presidential campaign of 2007–2008. The culmination was the largest ethnopolitical crisis in the history of Kenya, which was stopped only thanks to the efforts of international mediators. In 2010 a new constitution was adopted, in which an attempt was made to reform the political system in order to prevent the aggravation of interethnic conflicts in the future during presidential election campaigns in multiparty Kenya. The purpose of the main provisions of the Constitution is to make politics more inclusive, to expand the participation of the population in decision-making, to overcome of the population distrust to their results of a presidential elections.

The Formation and Instability of Coalition Governments in Kenya

Abstract Coalition governments have become a common feature of liberal democracies world over. Although relatively new in the African context, it is apparent that they are becoming a common feature in Africa’s political systems. In Kenya, the first coalition government emerged after 2002 when the National Rainbow Coalition (NARC) trounced the Kenya African National Union (KANU) in the 2002 general elections. Since then, two other coalition governments have been formed. This paper interrogates the rationale for the formation of the three coalition governments. It is clear from the paper that coalition governments have not been driven by ideological considerations but office seeking reasons. Further, lack of ideological consideration coupled with weak coalition management structures have largely contributed to intermittent wrangles and instability in the coalition governments. The paper draws upon secondary and primary data sources. Primary data was collected through key informant interviews with targeted respondents who were considered knowledgeable in the subject area.

9 - The Use of Land to Generate Political Support

Abstract

Authoritarian experience and electoral success: the fate of authoritarian diasporans in Kenya

ABSTRACT Since the early 1990s, many African countries have instituted multiparty elections and experienced electoral turnover. Despite this apparent change, politics in many places remains dominated by politicians who defected from the former authoritarian ruling party and won power on rival party tickets. Kenya is seen as a paradigmatic case of this kind of authoritarian “diaspora”. After the defeat of the Kenya African National Union (KANU) in 2002, the party entered into fairly speedy decline, yet the country has yet to elect a president or deputy president who did not previously hold office in KANU. Former KANU office-holders also composed significant proportions of cabinet appointees after KANU’s defeat in 2002. But how far down the ladder of political office does the prevalence of “diasporans” extend? In the first multiparty elections of 1992, 1997, and 2002, we show that KANU diasporans compose a sizeable proportion of candidates in parliamentary elections, and both “strong” and “weak” diasporans were more successful in winning election than new political entrants. This suggests that, overall, Kenyan voters do not consistently sanction diasporans for their authoritarian pasts. These findings have implications for our understanding of democratization and party development in hybrid regimes.

“A new animal”: student activism and the Kenyan state in an era of multiparty politics, 1991–2000

ABSTRACT This article explores the impact of the reintroduction of multiparty politics at the University of Nairobi in the late-1990s. It argues that the reinstatement of Nairobi’s student union (SONU) in 1998 represented a fundamental turning point in the history of student activism in Kenya. SONU’s return served to open space on campus for national political parties, particularly the ruling party, the Kenya African National Union (KANU), to play a greater role in student politics than they ever had before. The growing influence of these external actors and the support that they provided to candidates vying for SONU positions fundamentally altered the nature and practice of student politics at Nairobi in several important ways: exacerbating internal divisions within the student leadership along party and ethnic lines; contributing to the commercialization of student politics to an unprecedented degree; and driving a spike in intra-student violence through the creation of externally supported “goon squads.” In documenting this history, this article challenges the conventional historical periodization of student politics at African universities in the 1990s and 2000s, which has tended to exclusively understand student activists as key actors in protesting against Structural Adjustment Policies and in promoting processes of democratization.

‘Now the cry was Communism’: the Cold War and Kenya’s relations with China, 1964–70

ABSTRACTThis article, by exploring the complex interaction among domestic politics, foreign policy, and the Cold War in Africa, analyses Kenya’s relations with Communist China between 1964 and 1970. As newly independent Kenya sought foreign aid and trade opportunities, the Sino-Soviet competition for influence in the ‘Third World’ enabled limited bargaining power for the Kenyan nation, commonly perceived as ‘weak’. Through an analysis of the factional political struggles within the Kenya African National Union (KANU) as well as Oginga Odinga’s overtures to China, this article emphasises the significance of local dynamics and forces in determining the unfolding ‘local’ Cold War.

Making Sense of Kenya's Contested 2017 Election

Kenya held its second General Election under the 2010 Constitution, and its sixth since the introduction of multiparty politics, on 8 August 2017. Citizens cast their votes for six positions: The Presidency; Governor; Senator; Member of Parliament (MP); Women’s Representative; and Member of County Assemblies (MCA). Prior to the August eight elections, opinion polls indicated that the presidential election would be closely contested - the incumbent, Uhuru Kenyatta, was polling at 47%, while the opposition candidate, Raila Odinga, was at 43%, with 5% of the voters remaining undecided. The presidency was not the only tight race; Governors’ and the MCA seats were equally closely contested. The two major political coalitions that contested the 2017 elections were: The Jubilee Party, the incumbent coalition headed by Uhuru Kenyatta and William Ruto, who were both seeking a second term; and the opposition coalition, the National Super Alliance (NASA), led by Raila Odinga, with Kalonzo Musyoka as his running mate. Smaller political parties, such as the former ruling political party, the Kenya African National Union (KANU), the Third Way Alliance and the Labour Party also fielded presidential candidates ; however, their impact at the presidential level was insignificant. The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) commissioners, who oversaw the 2013 general elections, left office owing to political pressure from the opposition . The Commissioners were accused of being involved in various corruption scandals, such as “the Chicken gate scandal,” thus their impartiality and independence were seriously questioned. A new team was put in place to oversee the 2017 general elections, which was led by Wafula Chebukhati, who served as the chairman. The team underwent rigorous vetting and scrutiny by Parliament, and were eventually appointed after unanimous approval by the House. The new commissioners did little to boost public confidence in safeguarding the integrity of the electoral process. The IEBC remained mired in controversy regarding the procurement of election materials and its appeal against a lower court’s ruling confirming the finality of presidential results (which was announced at the constituency level rather than at the national level by the IEBC’s Chair). The IEBC was seen to be opposed to transparency due to past discrepancies in vote counts—in both 2007 and 2013—between constituency- and national-level results.

‘Everything is Possible Without Moi’: Kenya's 2002 Abortive Transition and 2007 Post Election Violence

In 2002, Kenyans voted out Kenya African National Union (KANU) and replaced it with National Rainbow Coalition (NARC). It was a watershed moment in Kenya’s political history. The elections were considered the freest and fairest of them all since independence in 1963. Significantly, the passing of power from Moi to Kibaki was incident free. However, it turned out that the KANU defeat and ineligibility of Moi to stand for re-election was not the panacea of Kenya’s socio-economic and political ills as NARC had made Kenyans believe. Patronage, corruption, tribalism, impunity and arbitrary rule remained hallmarks of Kenya’s politics. The article argues that the 2002 elections superficially pointed to a consolidated democracy but did not substantially result in the reorganisation of Kenya’s politics. Kibaki and most of the NARC politicians were beneficiaries of a centralised power structure under one party state and therefore could not countenance a reformed state. Kibaki impeded reform and trashed a pre-election agreement between NARC affiliate parties which was instrumental in his ascendancy to the presidency. Consequently the fallout within the NARC coalition polarised the country along the tribal axis. This polarisation snowballed into the highly divisive 2005 constitutional referendum and the 2007 post-election violence following the ‘stealing’ of elections by Kibaki and his cohorts.

Notions of Nation in Nairobi's Nyayo-Era Monuments

This article examines how, between 1983 (Kenya's 20th anniversary of independence) and 1992 (the year Kenya became a multi-party state), the Kenya African National Union (KANU) used Nairobi's monumental landscape in a concerted effort to create a Kenyan postcolonial identity. The monuments erected in the capital city during these years of Moi's presidency (the Nyayo era) illustrate how the memory of the moment of independence was drawn upon in an attempt to unite the country's heterogeneous population through a Kenyan national identity. This memory was additionally mobilised through the use of independence anniversaries as lieux de mémoire in the inscription of these monuments into Nairobi's landscape. However, the memory was one chosen by the political elite, those who had the power to do so. While this group used its power to inscribe the landscape, it similarly used the inscription of the landscape to assert power. The political elite claimed the memory of independence to validate its authority and to associate itself with the independent country. The article examines how the abstract and metaphorical physical forms of Nairobi's Nyayo-era monuments form a postcolonial aesthetic in the city's monumental landscape and how this aesthetic was constructed to invite the wananchi (citizens) to participate in the celebration of the nation state.

‘Yours in Struggle for Majimbo’. Nationalism and the Party Politics of Decolonization in Kenya, 1955-64

Since the ending of colonial rule, the struggle for independence in Kenya has been seen as a triumph for the nationalist politics of the Kenya African National Union (KANU), the party that was victorious in the 1963 elections and held power until 2002. This article returns to the party politics of decolonization to reconsider the alternative vision of Kenya’s future then promoted by KANU’s rival party, the Kenya African Democratic Union (KADU). KADU supported majimboism (regionalism), a proposal for decentralization in which six or more provinces would each have equal status. In the heated politics of the early 1960s, majimboists were derided by KANU as tribalists. Under the de facto one-party state of Kenyatta’s KANU government, the majimboist cause was obscured by the nationalist project. This article returns to the forgotten history of majimboism to argue that the debates of the early 1960s remain relevant in contemporary Kenya. It outlines the politics of the majimbo debate of the 1960s to argue that regionalism was rooted in a colonial system of political mobilization. Those who supported majimboism were minorities, both African and European, fearing economic domination because of the underdevelopment of their regions, or political exclusion in a nation state dominated by more populous ethnic groups. The electoral politics of region and nation took shape within KADU and KANU respectively. The article goes on to analyse the importance of the Regional Boundaries Commission of 1962 in consolidating public support behind the two parties. The conclusion examines the revival of majimboism in the re-emergence of multi-party politics during the 1990s. Many of the constitutional claims made by KADU in the early 1960s are now again under consideration by the National Rainbow Coalition (NaRC) government, and majimboist ideas can be heard from KANU, now in opposition. Majimboism reflects a fundamental tension between region and nation that was not adequately addressed in the independence settlement. Its current revival highlights the limitations of the colonial model of government that Kenya retained. For that reason, regionalism may yet be a more enduring political project than was nationalism.

Re‐forming the state? Kleptocracy & the political transition in Kenya

Kenya's general election of December 1997 saw the return of President Daniel Arap Moi and the Kenya African National Union (KANU) but has inaugurated a period of intense political fluidity. On the one hand, the ruling party won the election, but its sense of vulnerability has been reinforced by widespread recognition that a less divided opposition could have displaced it. On the other, apparent acceptance by the President of a 1992 constitutional amendment which dictates that his re‐election would signal his last term of office has precipitated a struggle around the succession. In turn, the uncertainty has been compounded by the fact that, prior to the election, the government was forced to concede a political reform package which not only partially corrected the imbalance in the electoral rules which systematically favoured the ruling party, but which also conceded that these changes would lead on to an open‐ended review of the constitution starting in the new year (Southall, 1998). The immediate outcome has been dramatic, for whilst Moi has been casting around to shore up the increasingly shaky foundations of his regime, rivals for the presidency have begun to jockey for position and the opposition parties to re‐assess their options and relations to both KANU and each other. Additionally, the political class as a whole has been shaken by a series of financial scandals which threatens its control over an increasingly troubled economy. In short, whilst the new fluidity suggests some opportunity for a genuine democratic opening, the situation is also fraught with the danger of a simultaneous collapse of the state and of the ramshackle foundations which sustain it. Yet even if Kenya does pull off a ‘successful’ transition, it does not follow that this will matched by the arrival of a new government able and willing to confront the political roots of the economy's stagnation.

Constitutional and Legal Reform in the Postcolony of Kenya

The central government of Kenya is well known for its use of the legal system, state structures, and the KANU (Kenya African National Union) party apparatus to threaten and thwart those who criticize its undemocratic practices and human rights violations. There are numerous and detailed accounts of attacks on the news media, the denial of permits for opposition public speaking events, the disruption of opposition party meetings, and the arrest and incarceration of reformist political and religious leaders. It is common for the central government to criminalize political activity by charging critics with sedition or holding an illegal meeting, and to use police violence to break up both licensed and unlicensed political events. Government officials and institutions played a major role in inciting and organizing violence in the Rift Valley from 1991 to 1993 that led to the deaths of over 1,500 people. The return to multiparty politics in 1991, after a lapse of 26 years when KANU reigned supreme, has done little to change these practices. Repression of the freedom of assembly, the freedom of association, and the freedom of expression is the modus operandi of the Kenyan nation-state.

Constitutional and Legal Reform in the Postcolony of Kenya

The central government of Kenya is well known for its use of the legal system, state structures, and the KANU (Kenya African National Union) party apparatus to threaten and thwart those who criticize its undemocratic practices and human rights violations. There are numerous and detailed accounts of attacks on the news media, the denial of permits for opposition public speaking events, the disruption of opposition party meetings, and the arrest and incarceration of reformist political and religious leaders. It is common for the central government to criminalize political activity by charging critics with sedition or holding an illegal meeting, and to use police violence to break up both licensed and unlicensed political events. Government officials and institutions played a major role in inciting and organizing violence in the Rift Valley from 1991 to 1993 that led to the deaths of over 1,500 people. The return to multiparty politics in 1991, after a lapse of 26 years when KANU reigned supreme, has done little to change these practices. Repression of the freedom of assembly, the freedom of association, and the freedom of expression is the modus operandi of the Kenyan nation-state.

Bleak Future for Multi-Party Elections in Kenya

Withattention turning towards Kenya's second multi-party elections, due to be held before the end of 1997, it is imperative to look back to the flaws in the system which helped deliver President Daniel arap Moi and the Kenya African National Union (KANU) their victories in 1992. At present there is no sign of these defects being eradicated and the creation of new districts since then has demonstrated the Government's intention of enhancing an already biased structure. The underlying distribution of tribes and ethnic groups has had a fundamental impact on the electoral geography of Kenya, since they have controlled the delimitation of both the parliamentary constituencies and the administrative machinery of the whole country.1

The left and the question of democratic transition in Kenya: A reply to Mwakenya

In the aftermath of the 1992 Kenyan multi-party general elections, the first plural elections since political independence in 1963, and the victory of the ruling Kenya African National Union (KANU) on a minority vote, progressive forces, patriots, democrats, and the left in Kenya have demonstrated a concern to critically evaluate the political fecundity of participating in electoral politics. Inside the country, the frustrations, disenchantment and despondency over the failure of the opposition parties to remove the Moi regime at the last election, has fostered a situation in which ordinary people are beginning to ask whether genuine changes can be brought about through the ballot box. Given this state of affairs, it is not surprising that in their latest pamphlet, Mwakenya addresses itself to the content of 'democratic transition' in Kenya and attempts to chart a way forward.

Democratisation in Kenya: should the left participate or not?

Mwakenyais a radical political organisation formed in 1979 in opposition to the Kenya regime of President Daniel Arap Moi. It operated underground and in exile. Unlike other opponents of the ruling party, the Kenya African National Union (KANU), it declined to operate openly and participate in the electoral process in 1992. It issued the following statement in May 1994 to explain its position. We invite responses by Kenyans who have chosen to participate in open party politics.

The rise of a party-state in Kenya: from "Harambee!" to "Nyayo!"

Although Kenya is often considered an African success story, its political climate became increasingly repressive under its second president, Daniel arap Moi. Widner charts the transformation of the Kenya African National Union (KANU) from a weak, loosely organized political party under Jomo Kenyatta into an arm of the president's office, with watchdog youth wings and strong surveillance and control functions, under Moi. She suggests that single-party systems have an inherent tendency to become party-states, or single-party regimes in which the head of state uses the party as a means of control. The speed and extent of these changes depend on the countervailing power of independent interest groups, such as business associations, farmers, or professionals. Widner's study offers important insights into the dynamics of party systems in Africa.