We will prosper if we get rid of tribalism - Kenya's biggest enemy

Youth uprooting a railway line during the 2007 -2008 post-election violence. [File, Standard]

The United Nations International Day of Peace was marked yesterday across the globe. Established in 1981 by a unanimous United Nations resolution, the day provides a globally shared date for all humanity to commit to peace above all differences and to contribute to building a culture of peace.

The 2022 peace day theme is 'End Racism. Build Peace'. The theme is reminding us that we all have a role to play in tackling racism as a crucial way to contribute to sustaining peace. It is a coincidence that as this year's theme was just gaining momentum, Queen Elizabeth II died, and the ensuing conversations have raised bad memories of the dark days of colonialism which thrived on racism across the globe.

"Racism continues to poison institutions, social structures, and everyday life in every society. It continues to be a driver of persistent inequalities and it continues to deny people their fundamental human rights. It destabilises societies, undermines democracies, erodes the legitimacy of governments," says UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

The International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination adopted on December 25, 1965, reaffirms that discrimination between human beings on the grounds of race, colour or ethnic origin is an obstacle to friendly and peaceful relations among nations and is capable of disturbing peace and security among peoples and the harmony of persons living side by side even within the same state.

'Racial discrimination' as used in the above convention means any distinction, exclusion, restriction or preference based on race, colour, descent or national or ethnic origin which has the purpose or effect of nullifying or impairing the recognition, enjoyment or exercise, on an equal footing, of human rights and fundamental freedoms in the political, economic, social, cultural or any other field of public life.

With a new government under President William Ruto, it is time to look at all forms of racial discrimination and put in place ways and means to root them out of society. Of course, one of the ways racial discrimination manifests in largely homogeneous societies like Kenya is through tribalism, segregation based on ethnicity, nepotism and all other forms of favouritism based on individual backgrounds.

Tribalism is a retrogressive practice where people demean, belittle and dehumanise others by disrespecting and making fun of other people's cultures and customs. When people from one tribe consider others inferior and undeserving and put in place strategies to discriminate against them, it becomes unacceptable and often degenerates into conflicts as witnessed in the 2007/08 post-election violence.

Tribalism has been a major stumbling block to democracy as well as socio-economic development. It affects every sphere of development from social economic, political to educational spheres. During the leadership of our first and second presidents, tribalism permeated political spheres serving as avenues via which state goodies and favours trickled down from those in power to their tribesmen. Loyalty to tribe was given greater relevance than loyalty to the country as the first two regimes entrenched tokenism in Kenyan politics.

British Journalist Michela Wrong captured it well in her 2009 book on corruption in the third regime in Kenya. Leaders under the Kibaki administration are documented to have engaged in corrupt deals like Anglo-leasing in the name of "it's our turn to eat". Employment in public sector was skewed, with members of certain communities favoured or discriminated against depending on their ethnicity. This culture affects performance of duty as people are recruited based on tribe and not meritocracy.

Tribalism is responsible for a lot of ills in Kenya including underdevelopment, corruption, rigging of elections and violence and civil war. In terms of employment, people are given jobs based on tribe regardless of their low qualifications. Bad governance and lack of accountability have also been linked to tribalism as people do not question a government run by their tribesmen. Delivery of services is also hindered as the culture of impunity is also inculcated. Delivery of services in both public and private institutions where tribalism is rampant is also highly affected by tribal affiliations and politics.

Given this state of affairs about the negative effects of tribalism, there is a need to make a deliberate effort towards gaining national consciousness rather that a tribal one. Development into national consciousness calls for retaining self-consciousness and at the same time working towards the attainment of universal consciousness which is not limited to one's tribe. Being 'a Kenyan' should be the people's tribe or race if we are to realise a peaceful nation.

This is a very good time to look at tribalism which every so often rears its ugly head and causes conflicts as a component of racial discrimination according to the International Convention on Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination.

If tribalism is to be successfully combated then meritocracy has to be fully embraced in Kenya. The government should only hire the most qualified people and the hiring process should be transparent and only the best candidates considered.

If we can address tribalism, the main cause of conflicts will have been defused and in time governance will improve, corruption will decrease, skilled citizens will return home, investment will be encouraged, development will occur and living standards will most likely improve. Most importantly tribal violence will be eradicated in the country.