A bad decision is better than no decision at all. This is a golden rule of management. It is better to make a bad decision than build up a habit of indecision. If you are wallowing in indecision, you certainly can’t act—and action is the basis of success.
Napoleon Hill describes procrastination as “the bad habit of putting off until the day after tomorrow what should have been done the day before yesterday.” Management and leadership operate on basically the same rules and whatever is bad for one is equally bad for the other.
In the recent past Kenyans have seen a lot of hesitation and vacillation coming from the highest office in the land, the presidency. The continued procrastination on the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) and the exact position of the Deputy President are causing anxiety across the country.
Bungoma Senator Moses Wetang'ula put it succinctly when he urged President Uhuru Kenyatta “to release the BBI report to end divisive speculation. Further delay will jeopardise the BBI’s core mandate of uniting Kenyans”. He added, "People have been saying imaginary things and we have been asking Kenyans not to pre-empt what they haven’t seen”.
The same applies, I daresay with some trepidation, to the Office of the Deputy President. The Deputy President has been under severe verbal attack from certain politicians (Kieleweke) with the presidency maintaining a studious silence. A group of politicians, Tangatanga, has been crisscrossing the country in defence of the Deputy President.
The upshot, or result, is a country divided. All right-thinking Kenyans believe that the presidency has no desire in maintaining a badly fractured nation. It is cardinal that the presidency pronounces itself on the position of the deputy.
Civil servants have also jumped into the fray and are publicly saying unsavoury things about the Deputy President. In one shocking instance in Murang'a Cabinet secretaries Fred Matiang'i, James Macharia and Joe Mucheru threw potshots at William Ruto at a function they were representing the President.
What are Kenyans to make of this? Is the President fighting his deputy?
The recent Kibra by-election was an eye-opener. Jubilee nominated MP Maina Kamanda campaigned for the ODM candidate, ostensibly on presidential instructions. How does a person not elected or mandated by the people harass a Deputy President?
This is a very awkward situation and peace-loving Kenyans watching from the sidelines are duly apprehensive. We now are in almost an identical situation as after the divisive 2005 referendum. Why are we testing fate?
The presidency must not waver. A comprehensive decision must be taken immediately regarding BBI and the Deputy President. The Internal Security ministry and the National Cohesion and Integration Commission must rein in rogue politicians roaming the country preaching a gospel of division and despondency before the country reaches a point of no return as we are about to cross the Rubicon.
The unhappy situation currently sitting between President and Deputy President is sending wrong signals. The presidency is a symbol of unity and a focal point for all citizens in the republic. What happens when the presidency itself appears divided? Who will herd the flock when there is an apparent vacuum? What if a vexatious inter-meddler was to step in or has one already?
It matters precious little whether the President confirms confidence in his deputy or the reverse. What is important is that a decision must be made either way. It takes courage to make cardinal decisions and they are usually lonely and personal.
It is harmful and psychologically unhealthy for a country to remain in a constant situation of indecision and procrastination. As has been stated before Kenya is greater than all of us and all citizens must act in the best interests of our beloved country.
