State of the Kenyan Nation: What is the way forward?

Fellow Kenyans, as I write this post I feel tired. Very tired.

In fact am down right mentally exhausted by what I see and read about our country almost daily since the beginning of this year.

Everyday, I listen to the news or read with despair about a parliament that refuses to be taxed, the high cost of basic foodstuffs, a hungry population and leaders who want to escape justice from the Waki report. Sometimes it can get really annoying. And when you listen to other Kenyans talk about these issues, all you get is complaints after complaints summed up in pure frustration.

Something is going to give. Soon. And we may not like the consequences.

I’m not going to repeat here what has been discussed a great deal in other forums, but Kenyans must now draw a line on where they want the country to go. Without a shadow of a doubt, we do not have any leaders worth talking about at the helm of this nation.

It’s quite clear that the leadership philosophy in Kenya is still based on the personal accumulation of wealth and nothing else. There is no visible commitment to a higher vision (despite the launch of vision 2030), no dream, no nationalistic desire to improve citizens’ welfare, but just a primitive accumulation of personal wealth by all means possible.

We can count well-documented corruption scams in this country for hours. I’m not about to do it here. The site www.marsgroupkenya.org provides well-documented corruption reports for any Kenyan who needs to read about the big political names that always get away scot free.

The big question now for all of us who care about the future of our families in Kenya remains – What are we going to do about this state of affairs?

Complaining and verbally ventilating our anger regarding the Kenyan leadership does not help one bit to change the country for the better. People simply need to take charge of their destiny through actions.

When I ran for a civic seat in my residential ward of Kileleshwa last year, I was trying to make a profound statement that one can actually effect positive change in Kenya right from the grassroots level. It wasn’t easy. In fact it was one of the most challenging and frustrating undertakings I’ve ever done in my life. Some of my peers and relatives thought I was crazy.

Though I lost the elections to an ODM nominee, I was happy to have introduced a fresh approach to local politics and shared with voters a glimpse of what is possible with a committed leadership at the grass roots level (see my campaign posts of 2007). I still meet lots of people in the ward who tell me they respect what I did last year.

What do we do now?

My challenge to fellow Kenyans who are increasingly frustrated by the state of the Nation is not to sit there and moan, but to start doing something about it. We are fond of ranting and raving about the leaders, especially in our homes during the evening news or in our favourite local pubs. This just raises our blood pressure but changes nothing on the ground.

Lets not send or forward angry emails that don’t change our lives. We need to get out of our office chairs and do something to change the situation. This is the point where many Kenyans often ask: “Surely, what can I do? I’m just an ordinary Kenyan trying to survive.”

As I saw for myself last year, there’s a lot one can do if they apply their minds to it, even in a small way. For instance, one can even organise neighbourhood meetings, reach out to like-minded peers - begin a culture of holding meetings in small halls or rooms to discuss and implement a way forward for our Nation. It is these little things that eventually build up into something big. This is far much better than doing nothing.

The guys who participate in forums such as ‘Bunge La Mwanachi’ or peaceful street demonstrations are admirable Kenyans who have decided to do something for their country, rather than complain endlessly waiting for an ‘Obama’ to emerge. I really respect their courage against great odds.

The intriguing question for all of us remains: Why must we always wait for someone else to emerge and take the lead, someone else to demonstrate, someone else to speak up, someone else to sacrifice by putting his career or family on the line?

I submit that perhaps we don’t want to rock our comfort zones or our safety cocoons. Or perhaps we just don’t care that much.

Allow me to pose one more question: Do many working professionals hold the attitude - “Let someone else, with ‘little’ to lose do it for me?” I definitely think so and I will explain this very briefly.

Just recently on October 6th, I attended a City Council public meeting to discuss LATF funds for Kileleshwa Ward at St. Marks Church Westlands. These Ward meetings had been advertised severally in the newspapers and through posters (see image). Apparently this didn’t work very well. Besides myself, my two pals, and Councillor Otieno, no one else from the Ward turned up for this crucial meeting.


The meeting was organised to discuss the LATF allocation of nearly Ksh. 4M and determine priority projects for the ward next year. Our deliberations with the Councillor saw the funds getting earmarked to begin the construction of the Waruku Health Clinic (one of my key campaign pledges).

It was a big shame that the Kilimani Councillor, Linnet Mirehane, had no single voter from her Ward to discuss the use of these funds.

I’ve provided this episode to illustrate my point – an overwhelming majority are waiting for someone else to take charge of the country’s destiny and will not bother to step in, even at the most basic level. And we still complain loudly when things don’t work in Kenya.

Perhaps, we are just cowards, content to complain from a distance rather than face our visionless leaders. And if we are a people who lack the courage to confront our corrupt and inept leadership, a leadership that is very likely to destroy our future, then surely we deserve everything we are experiencing now.

If we are not going to do something about it, lets just shut up and get on with our difficult lives.

What shall we do with our juvenile City Fathers?

If you’ve been wondering what has been ailing our troubled teenagers in high schools across the country, look no further than our elected representatives at the Nairobi City Council.

Two days ago, in a clear demonstration that quality leadership has yet to be embraced in our local authorities, our so-called ‘City Fathers’ went physically for each other during the Nairobi City Council departmental committee elections. Chaos and pandemonium broke out when the rival PNU and ODM Councillors could not agree on the mode of electing the committee chairmen.

This is reminiscent of another shameful fight witnessed during the 2006 mayoral elections. Elected Councillors resorted to throwing chairs and fists at each other to emphasise their arguments.

Mayor Godfrey Majiwa was compelled to flee the Council Chambers under tight security with Town Clerk John Gakuo close on his heels. Read the full story in yesterday's Standard Newspaper.

City Council Askaris actually threw tear gas canisters at the fighting Councillors to restore some semblance of order in the chambers (see photo). What’s intriguing about this incidence is the fact that these security guards are very junior employees of the same Councillors.


But what choices do they have when Councillors refuse to conduct their committee deliberations with decorum and civility befitting their status? It now appears that violence has been entrenched as an acceptable method for conducting council business at the Nairobi City Council.

Photo credit: Saidi Hamisi/Standard Newspaper.

Mincing no words to describe this culture among civic leaders, a lady Councillor from Karen put it bluntly on Kiss FM radio this morning: “This is very normal at City Hall. You have to fight to get what you want!”

Well, the ODM Councillors managed to get all the committee chairs at the end of the chaotic elections. Their PNU counterparts had taken off from the chambers, perhaps to nurse their wounds.

What a beautiful example for our growing teenagers in high school. No wonder they can't wait to burn down their dormitories when they fail to get a hearing from their school heads.

Who takes the blame for this state of affairs?

It’s very easy to condemn the Councillors for this deplorable behaviour, but as we point one finger at them, the proverbial four other fingers are pointing directly back at ourselves. I would like to submit that we the voters are the ones to blame for this appalling state of affairs in our local authorities. Allow me to explain.

Barely 9 months ago, we all went gleefully into the general elections and a majority of us voted for Councillors we hardly knew based purely on party choice. Very few took the time or effort to scrutinize their civic candidates before casting their votes, relying instead on party euphoria and the “3-piece” voting method to determine their choices. Indeed, how many Nairobians today can point out their local Councillor in a crowd?

This blind formula (yes, blind because we just guessed and hoped for the best) has been tried every time since the 1992 multi-party elections and it always falls short in delivering quality leaders into our local authorities.

In last year’s elections for example, the fact that a voter preferred PNU’s Kibaki to ODM’s Raila for President, did not automatically make the PNU council candidate a good choice for his/her ward, and vice versa. But that’s how the warped logic behind the 3-piece voting method works.

As demonstrated by the recent fight, we have yet again saddled ourselves for the next five years with low-calibre civic leaders who are not likely to deliver any credible services to city dwellers.

When we see them fighting each other at City Hall, they are certainly not fighting for better services for us. The chances are that some of those committee seats (especially Finance) hold the key to very lucrative deals at the council for these pretenders.

How do we get out of this mess?

This debate has come up every time these fights recur at our local authorities. Many people have suggested reforms to the local government act that would impose a minimum educational qualification for civic candidates, perhaps at O level, diploma or degree level. But wouldn’t that also compel a similar law for Parliamentary candidates?

This raises another interesting question of whether literacy levels are indeed to blame for this disgraceful behaviour by civic leaders. I’m open to reader’s views on this subject.

My submission is that we can find credible people to elect, if we de-link completely the civic elections from the Parliamentary and Presidential elections. What I have in mind is a system where for example, we elect Councillors in 2011, while MPs and the President are elected in 2012. We could repeat this again in 2016 and 2017 respectively.

This would ensure that hooligans and goons who have nothing credible to offer voters at the council level, don’t get a chance to hide behind a Kibaki, Raila or Kalonzo election euphoria. They would have to face the voters on their own merit.

Voters would also be compelled to scrutinize whom they vote for in such an election. After all, you are only voting for a councillor and no one else. This way, the chances of electing more credible civic leaders increases dramatically. I have faith that voters can make the right choices given an open and enabling environment.

Despite the extra costs of holding two separate elections in two years, the benefits in terms of quality leadership and service delivery to Kenyans would simply be mind-boggling. I submit that the impact would not only be felt at the grass root level, but ultimately at the national level when we elect our MPs.

However, there is one thing Town Clerk John Gakuo can do as we lobby for these ambitious reforms to be enacted by Parliament. As a matter of priority, he could start by bolting down all chairs at City Hall to prevent Councillors from using them as weapons whenever they fail to agree on anything.

By all means, let us protect the furniture at city hall from these marauding Councillors.

Local Authorities 9.2 Billion Shillings Payout: Who will account for our money?

In April 2008, a routine yet significant event went unremarked at the Local Government Ministry. The first 2008 allocation of the Local Authority Transfer Funds (LATF) totaling Ksh. 3.2 billion was paid out to the 175 local authorities in the country. A further Ksh. 1.32 billion was due by April 30th 2008.

Save for a full-page advert (click image) in the main dailies listing the amounts per council, there’s not been a single serious commentary or analysis regarding this money from our mainstream media houses. This being one of the most opaque and least understood public funds in Kenya, it’s important that we pause for a minute and ask ourselves a few pertinent questions regarding this money.

Are members of the public aware that these big sums of their own money have been given out to their ward Councillors?

Are members of the public aware that these funds are meant to initiate and complete various projects in their wards this year?

Are the taxpayers aware that their Councillors do not have ward committees (akin to the CDF committees) to oversee the use of these funds in the ward?

Are Kenyan voters aware that these funds have consistently been paid out to civic authorities every year since 1999?

Above all, can Kenyan voters confidently point out past LATF projects in their respective residential wards?

In attempting to answer these questions, I would like to begin by castigating the mainstream media in Kenya for failing in their duty to inform us regarding the LATF funds and their use over the years. In yet another classic example of this gross abdication, no journalistic enquiry worth talking about has been conducted by leading media houses to examine these funds, even after their disbursement this year.

The result is that few people are aware that public money is available for various development projects at the ward level, besides the much talked about CDF. Even fewer are aware that their elected Councilors have been entrusted with the authority to use this money as they deem fit within the wards. Incidentally, they are expected to do this in consultation with the ward residents.

Nairobi City Councillors receive the highest LATF amounts

This may come as a shock to many Nairobi residents, but it is true that from the LATF allocations in the 175 local authorities, Nairobi Councillors receive the highest amounts based on population density compared to other councils. From the recent disbursments, Nairobi City Council has already received a whooping Ksh. 597 Million for use at the wards level.

This implies that each of the 75 elected Nairobi Councillors is currently in charge of almost Ksh 8 Million meant to initiate various projects within their electoral wards. To appreciate the seriousness of this issue, it’s worth noting that this disbursement is just the first allocation this year by the local government ministry. Two other payouts will follow by October 2008.

During the government budget speech read on 14th June 2007, Finance Minister Amos Kimunya explained: “Budgetary allocation under LATF more than doubled from KShs.3.0 billion in 2002/03 to KShs.6.5 billion in 2006/07 and is projected to rise to Kshs.9.2 billion in 2007/08.”

Indeed, this year’s budget has allocated Ksh. 9.2 billion to local authorities. Nairobi City Council will receive the biggest chunk of the fund at Ksh1.7 billion. I invite you to do the maths and see how much each of the 75 elected Nairobi Councillors will receive from this by the end of the financial year.

However, the big question for the rest of us remains: Who is going to watch over these big sums of our money?

Of great concern to the Kenyan taxpayers is the fact that these funds are not publicly supervised nor are they publicly audited. A most feeble attempt at public audit is captured on the local government full-page adverts in these words: “Citizens should demand regular progress reports from their elected local councils on the use of the funds.”

According to the LATF act of 1998, the closest the funds come to being audited is when the officer administering the Fund (PS Local government) “prepares, signs and transmits to the Controller and Auditor-General, in respect of each financial year and within four months after the end thereof, a statement of accounts relating to the Fund specifying the income to the Fund and showing the expenditure incurred out of the Fund.”

To the best of my knowledge, I’m yet to see, read or hear a government public audit report on these funds since 1999.

The urgent need for Ward Committees

During the civic election campaigns last year in Kileleshwa, my most important and consistent pledge to the voters was the immediate establishment of a ward committee if I got elected. This proposed committee would comprise residents’ association officials and other critical stakeholders, to supervise the use of LATF funds meant for Kileleshwa. This ideal remains even more valid today. (Read my contract with Kileleshwa voters).

It’s obvious that without this sort of accountability on the money and going by what we’ve seen in the past, the money will easily find ‘better’ uses for our Councillors. Indeed, stories abound of people who were financially strapped becoming overnight millionaires during their first terms as Councillors.

There’s no magic or brilliance to it. As Kenyan voters, lets not regale ourselves with these stories in 2012. It’s our money after all that’s enriching a few.

The act needs to be revised by our MPs to enable the formation of ward committees and annual public audits. LATF is at par, if not more critical than CDF when it comes to uplifting the infrastructural and economic conditions of Kenyans at the grassroots.

Used well, these funds have the potential to catalyze some serious development projects in the wards. More so if targeted at informal small-scale business people, agricultural initiatives and the time-bomb that is the ever growing number of unemployed youth.

In concluding, I submit that due to an incredible omission in the local government act, the LATF funds remain a blank cheque given to our Councillors. Its high time taxpayers woke up from their ambivalence to start demanding accountability for their money.

As usual, your views and comments on this subject are most welcome.

Email me: dmuhindi@gmail.com

Uhuru Kenyatta: A poor legacy at the Local Government Ministry

I write this with a heavy heart, but I believe the truth needs to be stated as it is. Otherwise, we Kenyans will continue fooling ourselves that we have leaders in high positions interested in our welfare yet we don’t have them. The disagreements by PNU and ODM over the naming of a huge 40-member cabinet is a case in point. But that is a topic for another day.

The subject of my post today is motivated by the recent fiasco in the form of the Muthurwa bus stage and the transport chaos that continues to affect residents of Nairobi’s Eastlands estates. The master architect of this myopic plan appears to be none other than the local Government Minister Hon. Uhuru Kenyatta.



Hon. Uhuru Kenyatta. In 2002, KANU presented him to Kenyan voters as a “young” visionary Presidential candidate. Photo credit: www.africanpress.wordpress.com

Lets just take a moment not only to look at his obviously shortsighted traffic plan for Nairobi, but critically also evaluate his background and leadership credentials. We need to do this because the two aspects have a strong bearing on the present transport crisis.

Over the last few weeks, I’ve been looking at the chaos that Uhuru unleashed on Nairobi residents in the guise of decongesting the city, and I’ve concluded that he does not have what is takes as a leader to add value to the local government Ministry.

According to various statements carried in the mainstream media, blog discussions and ordinary conversations with people affected by the traffic chaos, there’s a widespread belief that is not being said so loudly. That Hon. Uhuru has no idea the suffering Eastlands commuters are going through because he has never used public transport in his entire 47 years of existence!

Now, this might seem outrageous at first glance, but after careful consideration, I believe this to be true.

Picture this: the man is the son of the first president of Kenya the late Mzee Jomo Kenyatta. He was born in 1961 when his father was already Prime Minister. Three years later, his father became President of an independent Kenya and remained so till his demise in 1978.

You can imagine the perks and comforts that go with living at the State house for most of your childhood. Am talking about things like being chauffeur-driven to school with state security in tow. Even after Daniel arap Moi took over as Head of State, I highly doubt whether this lifestyle changed much considering that Mzee Kenyatta was immensely wealthy at the time of his death and today, the Kenyattas remain one of the wealthiest families in Kenya.

Simply put, for a person who has probably never had to endure the rigors, frustrations and pains of using a Matatu, Uhuru is least qualified to be making policy for lots of Kenyans who use public transport on a daily basis. The decision to restrict matatus to Muthurwa resulting in thousands of Kenyans walking long distances to work clearly shows the lack of empathy by Hon. Uhuru Kenyatta. I believe a Matatu trip from Buru buru estate to Muthurwa, might be a very liberating and enlightening experience for the Minister. :-)

Uhuru's local governance vision

Nonetheless, I’ve been following his statements as a Minister, waiting to glean some revolutionary ideas on managing our local authorities and I’ve ended up disappointed. Sad to say, but the reality is that the man has not shared a vision, direction nor articulated a well thought-out decongestion plan for Nairobi traffic. What we are seeing is a haphazard implementation of some rookie ideas revolving around Muthurwa market.


Traffic Jam in Nairobi. Photo credit: www.mambogani.com

For a man who presented himself in the 2002 elections as a promising fresh pair of hands if elected President, there’s apparently no difference between himself and the political dinosaurs he was angling to replace. In those elections, he offered his youth as a presidential credential, a sign that he represented a new generation of leadership. Unfortunately, this has hardly been seen in the last 7 years that he has been in the national limelight.

This is not the first time Uhuru has held the local government portfolio. Former President Moi appointed him to that position back in 2001 when he was preparing the man for his unexpected presidential bid in 2002. And even then, Uhuru left no legacy worth talking about at the ministry. Why then should we be surprised when he starts off on the wrong foot at the same Ministry 6 years later?

Since 2002 when Uhuru ran for president, am yet to see anything convincing validating Uhuru’s leadership credentials or tested experience in the management of public affairs. The dwindling fortunes of the once mighty KANU party (he remains Chairman), his poor performance as Leader of opposition in the last parliament and the recent Muthurwa transport crisis lends credence to this.

The Uhuru situation captures very well the inherent leadership contradictions prevalent in Kenya. When we elevate individuals to high office awed by their pedigree names without due consideration to merit, ability or vision, we end up paying a very heavy price for the resulting incompetence. Ordinary Kenyans are today going through an extremely stressful and hurting period in our nation's history because of such poor leadership.

In conclusion, I firmly believe that Uhuru should ultimately leave the running of the City to elected officials at the City Hall. After all, why do we have Councilors drawing 85,000/= each and a Mayor earning over Ksh. 200,000 every month?

These are the people Nairobians elected to provide ideas and directions on how the city should be managed. They are not decorations to fulfill constitutional requirements. For heavens sake, they are using our money and because of this, we deserve the best service possible for every coin we pay them. Where are you Mayor Godfrey Majiwa?

As usual, am open to readers’ views and comments on this post.

Nairobi City Council: Nomination fever a shame on civic leadership

As Nairobi residents wait for the elections of a new mayor on February 25th 2008, intense campaigns are currently going on for the 25 nominated slots at the Nairobi City Council. Unbeknown to the general public, hundreds of individuals have been camping at the ODM and PNU party headquarters attempting to influence their nomination into City hall.

Hilarious reports from reliable sources indicate that PNU, which was allocated six seats for nomination, has received over 300 applicants! ODM, with 12 seats to fill, has received an even greater number of applicants, estimated at 500 plus individuals.

Clearly these guys know something the rest of the public doesn’t.

I can confidently assert on this forum that selfless public service is not the motivation driving these individuals to cajole and induce party bosses into nominating them.

Allow me to explain why these seats are so attractive.

Just imagine a monthly salary of Ksh. 85,000/= for the next five years, and no job description to talk about. In addition, voters will never ever scrutinize your performance over this time because the media will never put a spotlight on you unless you are the Mayor.

According to the Local Government Act cap 265, you can even go up to three months without attending a single council meeting. The icing on the cake could be the potential deals one is likely to come across at the City Hall. This is definitely a dream job for many people out there. Remember, no CV is required for this job.

These factors might as well apply to many of our recently elected Councillors. To add insult to injury, the caliber and competence of many of these councillors is nothing to write home about, party affiliations notwithstanding. I honestly do not expect much difference in terms of service delivery and accountability from the new councillors. LATF monies remain without oversight while Council meetings are likely to degenerate into the tragi-comedies we saw in the last Council.

Maybe we should borrow some radical ideas from other countries if we seriously want to improve the management of our local authorities. For example, Councillors in the United Kingdom are not paid a salary but rather a sitting allowance. In a way, this ensures that money is not the motivating factor in seeking a council position.

If per chance this was to be adopted here, I believe that Nairobi City Council is likely to attract more selfless and dedicated individuals to offer much needed reforms in urban management. Am open to corrections and ideas on how we can improve this critical local authority. Meanwhile, lets wait and see how the current council will perform.

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Dancan Muhindi
- A Professionals for City Hall initiative -
Email - dmuhindi@gmail.com

Aftermath of the 2007 general elections

Following the general elections held on December 27th 2007, I hereby wish to thank Kileleshwa voters and indeed all Kenyans for coming out in big numbers to make their will known through the ballot. However, 2008 started tragically for many Kenyans following the announcement of the disputed presidential elections.

My heartfelt condolences to all the families that have lost their kin through the senseless violence that has gripped our nation over the last two weeks. I’m praying for a speedy resolution to this unprecedented conflict.

The Kileleshwa civic elections were highly influenced by what was happening at the national level. The "three-piece" voting style that I’ve talked about previously in this blog, took centre stage yet again. I managed a commendable 4th place behind the three major parties ODM, PNU and ODM-K respectively. This was from a field of 10 candidates at the civic level.

The tragedy of voting three-piece

My campaign experience has clearly shown me that the tragedy of our civic elections can rightly be attributed to the 3-piece voting pattern adopted by an overwhelming majority of voters across Nairobi. Quite a number of people I’ve talked to over the last few days in Nairobi have no idea whom they voted for at civic level.

They simply voted for the Council candidate who was in the same party with their favourite presidential candidate. It was a really uphill battle for candidates like myself who had no presidential candidate in the party!

Nonetheless, I would like to take this opportunity to thank all those residents who voted for me based on my demonstrated capabilities and agenda for Kileleshwa ward. I thank you for believing in me and for what I stood for during the hotly contested campaigns. I also thank all those who supported my campaign both financially and through voluntary work.

Over the next five years, I will strive to initiate more development projects in the community where I reside and advocate strongly for an enlightened leadership at council level. I also plan to continue the lively discussions started on this blog while focusing on the performance of our City Councillors over the next five years.

God bless you all. God bless Kenya.

Dancan Muhindi – SAFINA
Email dmuhindi@gmail.com