In 2007, Kenya went to the polls, then to the dogs. The ethnic violence that followed pushed Kenya to the brink and left a deep scar. The bloodbath was the result of years of political mobilisation.
When things cooled, everybody resolved never again! But it would seem some careless politicians have yet to learn.
The ethnic slur by Sirisia MP John Waluke against Jubilee secretary general Raphael Tuju is primitive. It exposes the MP as shallow and incapable of decent discourse.
Our politics should be issue-driven and political differences must be articulated with decorum. In any case, the Jubilee Party constitution, the outfit Waluke claims to be “protecting” advocates “sophisticated political debate based on ideas”.
None other than Jubilee Party leader Uhuru Kenyatta is spearheading truce through the Building Bridges Initiative. Waluke's rant doesn’t help the course of the party or that of Deputy President William Ruto whom he purports to support.
The National Cohesion and Integration Commission should walk the talk and crack the whip on rogue politicians without mercy. Similar prosecutions have not been successful before. However, the Commission must continuously reinvent itself and speak even louder through action. Ethnic political mobilisation for 2022 must be tamed at all cost.
Quote of the Day: “A good head and a good heart are always a formidable combination.”
Nelson Mandela
The anti-apartheid icon and South African President was born on July 18, 1918.
