Immediately after Independence, the state set in place development policies that advocated negligible investment in the northern region on the grounds that there would be no worthwhile returns. As a result, the region was marginalised and subjected to untold suffering and terror, including massacres well documented in history.
The 2010 Constitution provided a glimmer of hope for this region. Devolution has spurred economic growth and enhanced services. In 2013 there were only one medical doctor and 67 staff serving the entire county of Wajir. After seven years of devolution, there are now more than 30 medical officers and close to 800 medical staff. But the constitution and devolution have earned the region enemies.
First, they cast into doubt the region's 2009 census results and demanded their cancellation. Although the courts saved the region, it set in place a sustained onslaught by powerful personalities to cast aspersions that are at times outright demeaning and offensive to the population of the Northern counties.
The offensive climaxed with the release of the 2019 Census results. An in-depth analysis of the results reveals outrageous assumptions, including unreported epidemics that have decimated populations in some constituencies. It also reveals constituencies such as Eldas and Tarbaj where the ratio of registered voters to population is outrageous and defies logic.
The opponents of devolution intend to centralise resources at the national government and favoured regions. This object is being actualised through the militarisation and weaponisation of state agencies that pursue predetermined objectives authored by partisan politicians.
The transfer of teachers from the North due to insecurity is another incident that further undermined the region. Besides, the Teachers Service Commission fought tooth and nail against an affirmative action formulated by the Education ministry to allow students with slightly lower grades to train as P1 teachers. This initiative would have benefited many students from the North.
To make matters worse, the Education CS recently listed the Northern counties as some of the areas where there would be heightened security during the exam period. This not instils fear in candidates but also profiles the region in the eyes of exam markers.
Besides, despite mass failures in national exams in this region since Independence, the ministry has hardly ever raised the alarm over the issue.
Away from education, anyone from this region applying for a national identity card, passport or even a birth certificate will have to toil to acquire these basic documents that every Kenyan citizen is entitled to.
Leaders from this region must be more aggressive in defending the few gains the 2010 Constitution has bestowed on the region. The IEBC should not use the just-released 2019 Census results as a basis for the expected constituency boundaries delineation. The leaders must also use judicial means to invalidate the census results.
If the state compels the IEBC to use the 2019 Census results for the boundary review, the legislators must unite with like-minded colleagues from other regions to defeat the recommendations in the National Assembly. A presser will not solve these issues. There must be sustained and well-resourced efforts to fight these deliberate efforts to further marginalise the North.
Should there be exam cancellations in the region the legislators, through relevant committees, must demand evidence. Failure to provide proof of cheating should lead to censure of government officials who are paid by the state to ensure no irregularities during examinations. The electorate should also ensure they elect leaders who aspire to unite, champion and defend their rights.
Sociopolitical commentator
