On January 8, Deputy President William Ruto’s supporters gathered at the Eldoret Sports Club for a mega rally.
Various leaders from across the country who supports DP Ruto’s presidential bid were in attendance. It is here that Meru Senator Mithika Linturi said residents should do away with what he termed as ‘’Madoadoa’’. This can have at least two meanings in Kenya’s political context — one, those who are not from our tribe and two, those who do not subscribe to our political ideology.
The term is quite relatable with the history of the Rift Valley.
During the 2007 the violent 2007 general election, some politicians used the term to refer to the supporters of former President Mwai Kibaki. The supporters were later profiled, maimed, displaced from their land, while others — including children and women — were burnt inside a church in Kiambaa, Uasin Gishu county.
Linturi’s utterances are sadly, an incitement and quite dangerous, to say the least [the matter is in court]. This is especially given the deep-seated and sensitive tribalism issue that has bedeviled the Rift Valley region for years. The diction used was wrong, uncalled for, in bad faith and rekindled the wounds many sustained during the 2007-08 post-election violence.
It is also disappointing, coming from a national leader and a legislator who should be at the forefront of fostering peace and cohesion in the society.
As we approach the general election in August, we should learn from history.
In Rwanda, some government leaders who belonged to the Hutu tribe described the Tutsi as inyenzi or ‘’cockroaches’’ and as inzoka or ‘’snakes.’’ The promoters of the genocide also used other metaphors to turn people against their neighbors. Since the Hutus are relatively shorter than the Tutsi , some leaders publicly urged the former to ‘’cut down the trees.’’ The aftermath was death of an estimated 800,000 people.
On January 6, 2021, US President Donald Trump told a crowd rallying outside the Whitehouse to ‘’walk down the capitol,’’ adding that ‘’you will never take back our country with weakness.’’
His supporters quickly descended on Washington D.C to dispute the 2020 presidential election results. They climbed the steps of the Capitol, breaking the doors and the windows.
Political incitement can burn down a country. Our leaders should thus be careful with their words whenever they speak. They should also respect other people’s political views.
Article 36 of the Constitution gives every Kenyan freedom of association, which includes the right to form, join or participate in the activities of an association of any kind, and no person shall be compelled to join an association of any kind.
The constitution also guarantees the freedom to live, work and own property anywhere in Kenya. Linturi should, therefore, understand that Kenya is a democracy. Those who do not subscribe to Ruto’s political ideologies or support his bid should be respected and not be profiled as ‘’Madoadoa.’’
All political leaders should refrain from inflammatory utterances that can threaten the political stability of our country.
Citizens must also resist any backward effort by politicians to take us back to where we were in 2008. This is the year that we should collectively preach peace and harmony to our people. The focus should be on the manifesto and agenda of each political candidate but not the camp he/she supports or which tribe he/she belongs to.
For Kenya to survive and develop, we must end tribalism, entitlement and political division. As Martin Luther King, Jr once opined, let us learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools.
Researcher
