CORD cannot provide alternative leadership in Kenya

The Coalition for Reforms and Democracy (CORD) is the second largest political coalition after the Jubilee Coalition by the virtue of political seats in both the Senate and the National Assembly. It has 117 elected Members of Parliament (MPs), 21 Women Representatives and 20 elected Senators. The number of nominated CORD MPs in both houses could also go well beyond ten.

With such a huge membership in parliament, the Coalition for Reforms and Democracy (CORD) was expected to form a formidable political opposition that could drive fundamental change in terms of how the government policy is generated and implemented. However, it has ultimately miserably slackened.

All that CORD has concentrated on is prying on whether the Jubilee government fulfils its manifesto or not. CORD has its own manifesto which it has made little effort (if any) to enforce in parliament through instituting broad and reformist legislative policies.

By heckling the government and failing to offer a prudent and functioning alternative, CORD continuously presents a negative image of desperation and political opportunism, yet its parliamentary numbers speak otherwise.

As the official opposition (it is currently more hypothetical) the Coalition for Reforms and Democracy (CORD) has the potential to make sure that some (if not all) of the proposals from its manifesto are enacted into law. However, they often construct the excuse that the ‘tyranny of numbers’ by Jubilee MPs prevents CORD MPs from passing any law due to limited support.

The ‘tyranny of numbers’ by Jubilee MPs (which has more members in both houses of parliament) has been a source of retrogressive parliamentary policies such as the Security Miscellaneous Amendment Act 2014 and the laws seeking to gag the media and the civil society. The Jubilee Executive has tried to use the parliamentary majority to force its most severe policies down the throats of Kenyans to no avail.

Nevertheless, the Jubilee Coalition parliamentary majority should not be an excuse for the Coalition for Reforms and Democracy (CORD) to camouflage its ineptitude. If CORD legislators have the goodwill to address the challenges facing this country, they need to start performing and convince the public that, despite the tyranny by the MPs in the government side, they are at least trying to do something!

If CORD cannot be capable of initiating or enforcing its own manifesto pledges, does it then have the sanity to criticize the Jubilee manifesto? On the other hand, have they left their manifesto at Orange House to accumulate dust?