• The CSOs have depended on political personalities pursuing individual interests
• Confusion blamed on the truce between Uhuru and Raila
Image: FILE
The confusion in civil society organisations has been blamed on the political truce between President Uhuru Kenyatta and opposition leader Raila Odinga.
A forum on CSOs in Nairobi was told that the movements had for a long time coalesced around political personalities.
Panellists at the forum moderated by Citizen TV journalist Yvonne Okwara-Matole noted that the organisations depended on Raila's organisational and mobilisation skills, hence the handshake undercut them.
The forum heard that while there is a proliferation of CSOs, most of them are briefcase outfits not grounded on any ideological orientations.
The speakers included former deputy Speaker Farah Maalim, USIU history professor Macharia Munene, African Nazarene University dean of law Duncan Ojwang’ and East African Center for Law and Justice Chief executive Joy Mdivo.
“Civil society movement in the '80s and '90s were vibrant and grounded on ideological vision. However, the post-2003 activism has been clumsy and disjointed, hence the disorientation by the handshake,” Maalim said.
“We became rudderless and without impact the moment we stopped working on issues but personalities. This started after [President] Kibaki came to power in 2002, became worse in 2007/8 after the grand coalition government was formed and got compounded by the handshake,” he said.
The deputy party leader of Wiper party said CSOs have consistently allowed the political class to hijack their causes for expediency, with the common mwananchi losing out.
“Deals between politicians, just like this handshake have nothing in it for Kenyans but the interest of the two gentlemen involved,” he said.
“Civil societies should champion causes that outlive individuals and be consistent in doing that,” Maalim said.
He called for the CSOs to fill the void left because of a lack of substantive opposition in the country.
Ojwang’ said the insignificance of the sector is felt by the fact that it no longer set the agenda for national discourse, rather joining those set by other players.
“Even on the discussion on the referendum, we have not had a voice. We are only joining in and not having any impact,” he said and attributed the current state of the CSOs to their inability to rope in and engage the academia unlike in the past.
“We used to have think tanks in the university faculties who would be the centres of thought, figuring out the strategy and sustainability of the causes of activism but this is no more,” Ojwang’ said.
Macharia said the management of universities no longer allows free thinking, especially in light of the “grossly underpaid professors”.
“Intellectuals are fundamental cogs in any change movement. The problem is that those of us who took part in the second liberation struggle have been co-opted into positions of privilege, thereby deserting the change agenda,” he said.
Mdivo observed that part of the failings of the sector is its over-reliance on donor funding, arguing that part of the conditions for the funding is that they domesticate the ideological thoughts of the donors.
“This leads to lack of ideological freedom and creativity. We need to wean ourselves from donor money so that we have ideological orientation around which we mobilise Kenyans,” she said.
(Edited by O. Owino)