Let President and Raila political marriage lead to better services

President William Ruto and ODM leader Raila Odinga after the African Union Commission elections in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on February 15, 2025. [File, Standard]

The human suffering in our midst is without definition. We have abandoned the vulnerable members of society to their own devices. There is a pervasive feeling that the Kenyan dream lies comatose on the operating table. Our senior citizens, after a lifetime of work, are unable to access their pensions and retirement benefits. Those who can access the benefits realise that the tax regime and the cost of living is lurking in the shadows like a mugger in the dark. When they fall sick, they also discover that the healthcare system has completely collapsed. the healthcare professionals’ union bodies constantly have to plead, cajole and threaten the government to do the right thing.

When I take a mental flight into the future, what I see is not very promising unless we undertake urgent remedial measure. We are dangerously hurtling towards the cliff’s edge. The working class, just like the retirees, are battling an increasingly contracting employment space. The assurance of job security is gone. One day, you take your two children to school without struggle, living comfortably in your three-bedroom apartment, driving your four-by-four. The next you are jobless without even the dignity of a severance pay. In one fell swoop, dignified men and women are turned into paupers and beggars.

I will avoid describing the plight of the young people; the late millennials and Gen Zs, for their pain has been sufficiently documented on this column. The enduring question remains, are the series of decisions made by those in power capable of obliterating the humanitarian crisis facing our nation or are they simply political salves intended to see the political class transition from one election to another while tightening their grip on power?

That leads us to the practical question, is the rapprochement between the President and the former Prime Minister a hit or a miss?

Opinions are sharply divided on this matter. There are those who, supposedly on the basis of ideological purity, have denounced the rapprochement. Others, while citing pragmatism, say it’s the best thing to happen to us after the birth of Christ.

But from the standpoint of The Mandate, is the rapprochement a good thing or a bad thing?

We cannot answer this question from an emotional standpoint. For as Robert Green warns in his book, The Laws of Human Nature, “Emotions tend to cloud our vision by magnifying our anger and insecurities.” As such, I think that in analysing the new camaraderie between the hitherto nemeses, we must ask, does it serve any greater good?

One, the 'marriage' is primarily a political necessity that we cannot run away from. The ethno-regional jingoism that had infiltrated Kenya Kwanza and imploded it from within, made it practically impossible for it to govern. The net effect was that with a huge constituency outside government distrustful of government, the legitimacy of the state kept chipping away. A government without legitimacy is worse than a gun without bullets in combat.

So in the last eight months, the President has managed to extract a modicum of legitimacy to help him govern. But we must remind him and his broad-based partner that ultimately, the goal of governance is to unite the people through genuine love for democracy and abiding faith in words of our national anthem.

The new lease of life should make us see a shake-up of the civil service. Government foot-soldiers, the civil servants are either too demotivated or too distracted to faithfully serve the nation. An efficient civil service would more clearly explain the affordable housing conundrum without leaving it to the political class whose explanations sound like the story of the four blind men describing an elephant, each with his own side of the story.

As we watch the Ruto-Raila deal, we must guard against our own biases so that we are not assailed with half-truths. Leadership must start and end with the people.

Mr Kidi is the convener Inter Parties Youth Forum. [e-mail]