Negotiated democracy breeds ‘theft’

 The charters which these elders make reference to are unconstitutional. Their decisions do not respect the two-third gender rule, and women are left out of decision-making processes

The words ‘negotiated democracy’ are fast becoming part of the vocabulary of the people of North Eastern Kenya.

The rate at which residents of this region — whether by default or accident — are embracing this new concept is shocking. In truth, negotiated democracy is an anti-climax to devolution.

While devolution sought to improve lives by bringing services closer to the people, negotiated democracy impedes trade and business integration. In short, it has intensified parochial politics and compromised entrepreneurship, talent and skills.

Proponents of negotiated democracy, the council of elders or sultans (as they are referred to in some counties), have turned themselves into tender-preneurs. They literally provide a list of companies to be awarded jobs, and county CEO’s who go against their wishes are roasted dry.

Often time, the council of elders intimidate the leadership by inciting residents, who will not hesitate to take to the streets. Others are funded to file cases in court about things they don’t understand, just to keep the administration in check.

As usual, those who win tenders have to ‘thank’ the lords. You will see these lords driving flashy cars and sitting behind expensive desks in big offices in Nairobi, waiting for opportunities to quench their love for money by rabble-rousing. County CEOs are forced to dance to their tunes or lose support.

When resources are controlled by a few individuals who get to decide who gets employment, the larger population of qualified youth are left out, hence the probability of the youth engaging in illegal activities.

Due to its novelty and bias, this ideology which is specific to certain regions, groups, clans and communities, may yield to an autonomous region or several sub autonomous regions which are a threat to national governance just like what is happening in Somalia and some Arab countries.

The charters which these elders make reference to are unconstitutional. Their decisions do not respect the two-third gender rule, and women are left out of decision-making processes.

Those selected to vie for the position of deputy governors or MPs have to part with Sh10 million. Those picked for elective MCA posts have to part with Sh3 million, while nominated MCAs part with Sh1 million. That’s what they call negotiated democracy.

Often, the so called sultans present names to political parties, asking that they be given straight nomination. This contravenes the general objective of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission as underlined in Article 249 of the Constitution.

The Constitution stipulates that every citizen has the right to free, fair and regular elections based on universal suffrage and the free expression of the will of the electors. That means that nobody can restrict the will of the person to seek a political office, so long as the person is qualified for the post.

Therefore, the custodians and the fathers of negotiated democracy infringe such rights by intimidating aspirants and their followers.

If this system of ‘democracy’ is allowed to thrive, it will kill the whole value of nationalism and can segment the nation. The people of Kenya, especially in the north eastern part of the country, must embrace constitutionalism and say no to people whose aim is to stifle true democracy.

The writer is a lawyer and communication strategist. Twitter: @musdaf86

Facebook: Mustaf Arabia

Email: [email protected].