AFRICANEWS-Kenya Election Watch
A monthly publication of AFRICANEWS
For the period covering May 15 - June 15, 2002
Part II: Events
The year 2002 is a crucial one for Kenyans. By the conclusion of the
current Parliament, whose term legally ends on February 4, 2003, Kenyans are supposed to head to the polls to elect a new
government (or re-elect the current one). Observers expect that the general
election will called for December 29. At the same time, the country is
undergoing a complicated, expensive, and controversial review of Kenya’s
constitution, attempting to make right injustices stretching back as far as
1895 when the country had her first constitution as a British Protectorate. A
new constitution was supposed to be unveiled prior to the holding of the
general election.
Elections in Kenya are always an exciting event. But this election is
exceptional for several reasons. To begin with, current President Daniel arap
Moi had announced last October that he plans to retire after the election. Many
Kenyans and observers greeted this announcement with cynicism and suspicion.
Moi has been in power since 1978, and his party, Kenya African National Union
(KANU), has ruled Kenya with an iron fist since independence in 1963. Election
monitors, human rights activists, and even government-appointed investigations
have, in the elections of the 1980s and 1990s, reported many irregularities and
downright strategies that Moi and KANU had employed to hang onto power. Witness
the findings of the government-appointed Kiliku Commission, which revealed that
the so-called “ethnic clashes” of the early 1990s in western Kenya were
instigated by government agents to destabilize the area so as to assure a
victory for KANU. So it is hard to believe that Moi can walk away from all of
that power at this time.
Another unique aspect of this election is that there is a proposal being
put forth by both government and the opposition to radically change, within the
constitution, the structure of government. Both sides are essentially
advocating that the new government structure consist of a largely ceremonial
president, and a prime minister – assisted by two deputies – that would run the
day-to-day affairs of government. From the opposition’s point of view, this
structure would spread some of the powers of the president around to other
offices in an attempt to increase accountability and democracy. It is not so
clear what the government’s motivation is for advocating this proposal. In any
case, a new government structure could have implications for who gets elected
into power and how that power is distributed.
A third peculiarity of this election is last year’s KANU-National Development Party (NDP) merger. Raila Odinga
– son of the late Jaramogi Oginga Odinga, the firebrand who broke away from the
KANU government to start a political party called Forum for the Order of
Restoration and Democracy (FORD) in the early 1990s and who proved to be a
thorn in Moi’s flesh – founded and headed NDP in the mid-1990s. The junior
Odinga was beaten up several times during campaigning for the 1992 election.
Now, he has become Moi’s right-hand man. Amongst other things, Odinga has been
made chairman of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Constitutional Review,
and his name has been flouted as a possible candidate for the prime minister
post. Observers say that Moi struck a deal with Odinga to eliminate a popular
opposition, but more importantly, to capture the vote of the Luo ethnic group,
which traditionally has backed FORD and some of its subsequent breakaway
parties.
The same dynamic appears to
be happening with the recruitment of “Young Turk” Uhuru Kenyatta – son of the
late former President Jomo Kenyatta – into Moi’s inner circle. Analysts says
Moi is trying to capture the Kikuyu vote, directed at, among others, Mwai
Kibaki, head of the Democratic Party and leader of the Official Opposition. In
fact, Moi has publicly sidelined members of the “old guard” such as
long-standing Vice President George Saitoti in favour of young, rising stars.
Why he is pitting old against young so blatantly remains to be seen… Church
officials and human rights observers note that similar ethnic politics seem to
be behind two bloody riots and attacks that have taken place in the Nairobi
slums of Kibera last year and Kariobangi in March. They say that those areas –
strongholds of the Kikuyu and Luo ethnic groups respectively – are particularly
anti-KANU, and that the same divide-and-rule strategies of the clashes of
western Kenya have moved into Nairobi.
The political parties in this election include: FORD-Kenya, headed by
Kijana Wamalwa; FORD-People, led by Simeon Nyache; Ford Saba-Saba, with Kenneth
Matiba at the helm; National Party of Kenya (NPK), led by Charity Ngulu;
Safina, led by Paul Muite; and the Democratic Party (DP), headed by Mwai Kibaki. Amongst these parties are two major multi-party
alliances: the National Alliance for Change (NAC); and the Kenya People’s
Coalition. NAC, a partnership of DP, FORD-Kenya, NPK, FORD-Asili, the
unregistered Saba Saba Asili, SPARK, and several advocacy groups, is in the
process of trying to field a single presidential candidate so as to increase
the opposition’s chances of defeating KANU. The group has come up with an
economic blueprint, a system of government in which women’s representation in
Parliament would be increased, and even a shadow cabinet. The Kenya People’s
Coalition consists of FORD-People, Safina, the Labour Party of Kenya, and the
National Convention Executive Council (NCEC). Currently, the two groups are
trying to build bridges with one another.
Intertwined within the politics are processes to reform Kenya’s
constitution. Calls from all quarters for constitutional review gained momentum
in the early 1990s, culminating in the July 1997 formation of the Inter-Parties Parliamentary Group (IPPG), which was
the driving force behind the passage of the Constitution of Kenya Review
Commission Act of 1997 and subsequent amendments. Towards the end of 1999,
religious leaders and civic groups, unhappy with the machinations of the IPPG,
came together at Ufungamano House to form a parallel constitutional reform
process, one that they said would be more “people-driven.” The subsequent
15-member People’s Commission of Kenya (PCK) collected views from its
constituents throughout 2000. Last year, the Constitution of Kenya Review
Commission (CKRC) was created under the Constitution of
Kenya Review Act 2001; the Ufungamano Initiative eventually merged with the
commission. The 27-member CKRC, chaired by Prof. Yash Pal Ghai, is charged with
the responsibility of collecting views from a wide cross-section of Kenyans as
the basis for a new constitution. The Parliamentary Select Committee on
Constitutional Review, chaired by Raila Odinga, oversees the CKRC.
The commission was to have
presented Kenyans with a new constitution on October 4. However, it recently
announced that it might not be able to meet the deadline, which means that, if
Kenyans are to have a new constitution by election time, the life of Parliament
must be extended.
But that presumes that the processes of constitutional reform and the
election are tied. The debate revolves around the key question: should the
general election be tied to constitutional reform? Those in favour of tying the
two processes say that the constitution is biased in favour of the ruling
party; hence, the constitution needs to be reformed to provide a level playing
field for a free and fair election. Those advocating a separation of the two
say that the constitution should not be rushed because it will long outlive the
election.
The options for the future are thus: hold elections under a new
constitution, perhaps extending the life of Parliament to do so; hold elections
under an interim constitution, to be refined at a later date; put in place
“minimum reforms” to the constitution insofar as they will facilitate the
election; or hold elections under the current constitution.
Part II: Events
1. Glossary of terms
All throughout the chronology
and updates are sprinkled acronyms referring to various committees,
commissions, political movements, etc. Here, we spell out these acronyms and
provide some brief background information.
CKRC = Constitution of Kenya Review
Commission. Chaired by Prof. Yash Pal Ghai, the 27-member group collects the
views of a wide cross-section of Kenyan groups and individuals. The commission
is supposed to present Kenyans with a new constitution on October 4.
PSCCR = Parliamentary Select Committee on Constitutional
Review. Chaired by Raila Odinga, Minister of Energy, the committee monitors the
work of the Constitution of Kenya Review Commission (CKRC).
KANU = Kenya African National Union, the party that has
ruled Kenya since independence. Daniel arap Moi is the president of Kenya.
NAC = National Alliance for Change. This is a grouping of
the Democratic Party, FORD-Kenya, National Party of Kenya (NPK), FORD-Asili, the unregistered Saba Saba Asili,
SPARK, and several advocacy groups. The group is striving to field one
presidential candidate.
KPC = Kenya People's Coalition. This is a grouping of FORD-People,
Safina, the Labour Party of Kenya, and the National Convention Executive
Council (NCEC).
2. Chronology
In this
issue of Kenya Election Watch, information comprising the chronology has been
culled from The Daily Nation, Saturday Nation, and Sunday Nation of the past
month.
May 16 - Four opposition Members of Parliament (MPs) push
for the passage of the Constitutional Amendment Bill that gives the House
powers to ensure that President Daniel arap Moi does not call snap elections
before the end of the year. The MPs say that Moi is “holding Kenyans ransom” by
keeping the election date secret. The bill would amend Sections 58 and 59 of
the Constitution of Kenya that grants the president powers to dissolve
Parliament at will. Parliament should determine its own calendar, and the
constitution should provide the election date, they say.
PSCCR chair Raila Odinga,
tells the press that a proposal submitted to is committee recommended that the
CKRC be dissolved on October 4 and the commission’s work be handed over to
Parliament. “The commission may be told to give us what they have gathered so
far and be told to go home,” Odinga was quoted as saying. Meanwhile, religious
leaders led by the National Council of Churches of Kenya (NCCK) insisted that
the review process can and must be completed within the life of the current
Parliament, which ends on February 4, 2003. The Law Society of Kenya said that
it is unwise to hold a national referendum and a General Election in the same
year because it would cost the Kenyan economy Sh3 billion (US$39 million). The
Law Society also opposes extending the life of the current Parliament.
May 17 - As they were preparing their presentation to the
CKRC, KANU officials hint that they would also put forth the idea of Kenya
having a prime minister. Opposition leaders had first proposed that the Office
of the President largely be a ceremonial post, while a new Office of the Prime
Minister would be created to head Cabinet and run the day-to-day affairs of
government. In an earlier submission,
opposition leaders recommended that there be a presidential system of
government with an executive prime minister and two deputies – one in charge of
foreign affairs, and the other finance – in an 18-member Cabinet.
CKRC
chair Prof. Yash Pal Ghai says that the commission will come up with a draft
constitution by October 4 provided that commissioners “work quite hard.” Once
the commission’s mandate ends on October 4, Parliament would have to continue
the process, says Ghai, which includes: holding public discussions on the draft
constitution; holding a National Constitutional Conference; and conducting a
referendum. Ghai said these things in a proposal submitted to the PSCCR during
a meeting to determine whether Ghai’s commission should be given extra time to
complete its task.
May 22 - Delegates attending a NAC meeting discuss a
proposal that they are about to submit to the CKRC. The proposal outlines a new
government structure. The NAC plan advocates that an executive president, who
would be commander-in-chief of the armed forces and would also chair the
Cabinet, head this government structure. The vice-president would act as the
president’s deputy and head the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development.
The prime minister would be named Leader of Government Business. There would be
two deputy prime ministers, one in charge of administration and the other in charge
of Parliament. Eighteen ministers – a minimum of one-third of which must be
women – would comprise the Cabinet. The president, vice-president, and prime
minister must come from different regions, according to NAC’s plan, and
“ministers would be appointed on the basis of competence and integrity.”
Cabinet
Minister Julius Sunkuli says KANU is ready for the general elections in
December, whether or not there is a new constitution in place. He says KANU is confident that it will win
the election and form the next government. He also says that the proposed
president and vice-president will not be elected Members of Parliament, but the
prime minister and the two deputy prime ministers will be elected. He said
those advocating for the extension of Parliament so that the CKRC can finish
its work are “doomed and cowed.” The president of the East Africa Law Society
calls KANU’s proposed new government structure “brilliant,” and says it is in
line with Uganda, Tanzania, and Zanzibar, paving the way for an East Africa
Federation. He says there should be a provision that will enable Parliament to
impeach the president in the case of wrongdoing, and that the prime minister’s
duties be spelled out clearly so that the president’s office doesn’t take over
the prime minister’s office.
May 24 - Prof. Ghai says it is “very delicate indeed” to
review laws in a country with more than 40 ethnic groups. He says some ethnic
groups want to have more say in the constitution-making process than other
groups, yet it is not possible for each ethnic group to have its own
constitution. He also says the commission can finish its work by October 4, but
extending the commission’s life is “the better option.” He stresses the
independence of his commission.
May 29 – The PSCCR recommends that the
general election be postponed until as late as August 2003 so that CKRC could
complete its work of constitutional reform. PSCCR chair Raila Odinga proposed
that the CKRC be given a deadline of April 15 to prepare and present a new
constitution. Parliament would then be given another month to enact the
constitution before it would dissolve to pave the way for the election. A
further two months would be spent on campaigning, making the election date in
early August. In the current constitution, Parliament can only be extended
during wartime. Civic groups react badly to Odinga’s proposal. Constitutional
lawyer Lee Muthoga says that Section 59 (4) of the constitution prohibits
Parliament from extending its own life. The PSCCR rejects proposals to hold the
election under the current constitution, implement only minimal reforms, or
hold the election with an interim constitution.
NAC leaders say they don’t wish to see President Moi
celebrate his silver jubilee in office next October. But, for the sake of the
constitutional review process, NAC would not be against a brief extension
“maybe of one or two months” of Parliament. President Moi was sworn into office
on October 14, 1978.
May 30 - If Parliament is extended for five months, the House’s 222 MPs will
take home an additional Sh550 million (US$7.1million) in pay and the six-month
extension that CKRC is asking for will cost a further Sh350 million (US$4.5
million), bringing the total price tag of the extension to Sh900 million
(US$11.6 million), reports The Daily Nation. The article was a reaction piece
to the PSCCR’s recommendation that the general election be postponed until as
late as August 2003. Lawyers
Gibson Kamau Kuria and Kathurima M'Inoti argue that an extension of the life of
the House would be tantamount to "parliamentary dictatorship.”
June 1 – The international human rights organization Human Rights Watch releases a report
that says top KANU officials were behind political violence in Coast Province
that led up to the 1997 General Election. The detailed report, Playing with Fire: Weapons Proliferation,
Political Violence and Human Rights in Kenya, says that, for the first time ever,
individuals involved in the Likoni attacks acknowledged their participation in
the violence and described how it was organised. Their first-hand accounts and
other evidence indicate that local party politicians, with support from
national ones, were instrumental in organising the violence "designed to displace ethnic communities seen as
potential Opposition voters.” One hundred people died and more than 100,000 were displaced in the armed attacks.
The PSCCR withdraws the proposal it made several days earlier to extend
the lives of Parliament and the CKRC so that the CKCR could complete its
constitutional reform work. PSCCR chair told Saturday Nation: "The committee has decided that it will grant an
extension up to and including February 4, 2003, as opposed to April 15 which
was in our earlier recommendation."
June 2 – During the Madaraka Day celebrations, President Moi hints that he
might hold this year’s election under the current constitution, possibly
dissolving Parliament early, and promised to hand over power at he end of his
term, in seven months’ time.
Twenty police officers disrupt a civic education seminar
organized by the National Convention Executive Council in Marakwet District on
May 31. The police ordered participants to leave the meeting held at Chesoi
Catholic Church, calling the meeting “illegal.”
June 4 – NAC announces that it will publicly identify its presidential
candidate in two months’ time. Noah Wekesa, NAC’s coordinating committee chair,
said a committee was already trying to identify the most suitable candied,
which might not be one of the mainstream opposition leaders.
June 5 – Religious
leaders of the Ufungamano Initiative announce plans to hold a daylong
consultation in a last-ditch attempt to resolve the crisis over the
constitutional review and a date for the general election. They plan to
reconcile people who want to extend the life of Parliament so that the CKRC can
complete its work with those who feel that the constitutional review should be
de-linked from the election date. The
religious leaders resolved to call the meeting, said Ufungamano Initiative
steering council spokesman Rev Mutava Musyimi, following confusion over the
review process and when the next general election should be held. The Ufungamano Initiative brings together Catholics,
Anglicans, Methodists and the Supreme Council of Kenya Muslims. Others members
include the National Council of Churches of Kenya, the Hindu Council,
Presbyterian Church of East Africa, and Muslim Consultative Council. Rev Musyimi reiterated that the religious leaders want
the CKRC to complete its work within the life of the current Parliament and the
elections held on schedule.
The KPC announces plans to negotiate
with NAC, provided that NAC agree to minimum reforms targeting the general
election, said Safina member Paul Muite, who is a key player in KPC. He says
KPC will discuss with NAC contents of a new or interim constitution and other
issues, but refuse to discuss the “futile” issue of putting forth a single
presidential candidate.
June 6 – KANU says it refuses to attend a meeting organised by Ufungamano
Initiative religious leaders to discuss constitutional reform and the date of
the general election. William Ruto, KANU’s director of elections, accused the
religious leaders of causing confusion over the Kenya’s political future. “What business do religious leaders have on matters to
do with the Constitution and politics? They should keep to their job – telling
us about how to get to heaven – while we politicians deal with elections and
constitutional matters,” Ruto was quoted as saying.
June 7 – President Moi hints that the life of Parliament will not be extended.
He says that the election will be held in December as scheduled. "We are known for holding our elections on
schedule,” Moi was quoted as saying. “We held our last elections in 1997 and we
are only seven months away from the completion of the term.”
June 8 – Participants at a constitutional seminar organized by the National
Convention Executive Council recommended that the new constitution allow voters
to recall their MPs before their terms expire if the MPs fail to represent their
constituents properly. The president should also be impeached if he/she fails
to perform, they said.
June 11 – Augustine Kipterer Towett, an
official with FORD-People, could be charged with treason for allegedly
discussing President Moi’s health. He has been held at the Molo police station
for the past five days. He called the intended criminal charge a “frame-up”
meant to intimidate the opposition.
The Electoral Commission of Kenya says it needs Sh5
billion (US$64.9 million) to prepare for the general election. ECK chair Samuel
Kivuitu says the money is needed to train personnel, buy materials, and other
expenditure. “If we are given Sh5 billion, we will be ready in three months,”
he was quotes as saying.
Interim reports complied by the CKRC say that several
groups and lobbies are calling for the introduction of Sharia (Islamic) law in
North Eastern Province. Pastoralists in the area also want the constitution to
allow them to acquire Ethiopian and Somali nationality while retaining their
Kenyan citizenship, as their nomadic lifestyles takes them across these
borders.
June 12 – The Kenya government says it will give Sh4.6 billion (US$59.7
million) to the Electoral Commission of Kenya, further indicating that
elections will be held this year. A week before, the commission opened tenders
for election materials including ballot boxes, papers, and ink. The estimated cost of financing the general election
is much higher than the Sh2.3 billion (US$29.8 million) sought by the
commission in 1997.
The PSCCR recommends that the general election be de-linked from the ongoing constitutional review process, and that CKRC chair Prof. Ghai be empowered to deal with errant commissioners. "We want to draw a distinction between the life of Parliament and the commission's work," PSCCR chair Raila Odinga was quotes as saying. "We are giving the commission a fixed time limit because the current Parliament can be dissolved any time by the President."
June 13 – MPs from all parties unanimously pass a
KANU-sponsored motion to create more constituencies before the general
election. Kenya currently has 210 constituencies, the maximum allowed in the
constitution; the MPs aim to create 90 more. A review of constituency
boundaries will most likely influence the outcome of the upcoming elections and
will increase the number of MPs sitting in the House. It could also alter the
balance of power among political parties in the next election. The criteria to
be used in creating new constituencies are still up in the air. Some MPs say population
size should determine the boundaries of a constituency, while others prefer
geography and community interests.
Representatives of the
opposition, non-government organisations, and church meet at a one-day forum
organized by Ufungamano Initiative religious leaders to discuss constitutional reform
and the date of the general election. It was unanimously agreed that the
general election should be held on December 29, the life of Parliament should
not be extended, and the CKRC can present Kenyans with a new constitution by
its October 4 deadline. Participants also called for street protests to
pressure the government into holding the election in December.
June 15 – During a visit to the United States, Democratic Party chair Mwai Kibaki appeals to international organisations to
provide funds to the opposition. The Leader of the Official Opposition said
political parties were dependent on their own "meagre resources"
which needed to be topped up from other sources. He said a bill that would see
political parties being funded by the government had been passed but not
implemented. He asked various organisations to support NAC by providing
training for agents, civic education and other efforts to ensure a peaceful
transition to a new government.
For more information, comments, etc., contact AFRICANEWS-Kenya Election Watch editor Cathy Majtenyi at: cathymaj@hotmail.com