Democracy In Kenya

I do not know how many of you are aware about the slight crisis in Kenya at the moment. But for those you don't know of this then let me educate you.

At the end of 2007 the elections were held in Kenya to decide who would be president, but the government that was in power beforehand came top in the elections to stay in power for another term.

This is quite normal, however the people living in Kenya that did not like the government were accusing the government of cheating and changing the polls so that they stayed in power for another term. But naturally the government denied this.

So what I would like to ask is: 'Who Do You Believe?' and 'What Should Be The Next Course Of Action For The Country?'

A good old fashioned leadership/political debate question

There always seems to be some political unrest in Africa. But far as Kenya goes, perhaps they should have someone from the outside count the \"Chads\"...a little political humor, Chad also being a country in Africa and those little pieces of paper associated with ol'school voting cards. That way there wouldn't be any political influences. In which case,would make it seem as though they can't run their own government.

IMO they should have another vote held by an outside party, this would allow any possible changed votes to come to light, and should the government have changed the votes all parties will know who is responsible. Should they stay in power i am guessing the people will still say that they cheated them somehow but might be better to accept it should it happen again.

The Political Climate

The extent and character of corruption in Kenya is highly influenced by some key features of the Kenyan political system. The division and separation of power is, both in the constitution but even more in practice, weak. The executive (the president) is extremely powerful and a system of patronage has been inherited from the post-colonial political system. Not only is the legislature and the judiciary weak, executive influence in the two powers has been profound since the country gained its independence.This \"tradition\" can still be seen to some extend in the Kenyan political system. The strong executive has been associated with many recent and previous corruption scandals. Furthermore, parallel government structures (eg. in the police and provincial administrations) have made the system highly complex and consolidated the powers of the executive. Many institutions exist that have no legal basis or official authority. This gives rise to the phenomena known as \"clawback\", meaning that rights and improvements in one part of the public system are undermined in other parts of the administration. \"Clawback\" has been widespread within the anti-corruption efforts by the Kenyan government.



As a result of a post-colonial history of one-party rule and a low attachment of civil society and the political system, there is a weak divide between the ruling party and the state. This, combined with elements of tribalism and neopatrimonialism, has fostered a political culture of using the state as a vehicle for personal gain. This has curbed efficiency and meritocracy. Recent state decentralization has led to a decentralization of corruption in the public sector.

Mr. Kibaki ran for presidential elections in 2003 on a strong anti-corruption agenda. Comprehensive laws on integrity and transparency have been enacted, but practice does not yet live up to the high standards in may areas. Following revelations in late 2005 of continuous high-level corruption by the former permanent secretary for ethics and governance John Githongo, high-level corruption scandals and allegations of nepotism have flourished. Three ministers have resigned, resulting in the biggest political crisis of President Mwai Kibaki's government. The World Bank has frozen its aid to Kenya until the government undertakes the necessary steps to combat corruption. The popularity of President Kibaki has declined, and, according to a poll by the Steadman Group, only 38% believe that the government's fight against corruption to be sincere. A recent move by President Kibaki has been to hire the Saachi and Saachi advertising agency to handle Kenya's nationwide anti-corruption campaign.


The way of combating corruption in Kenya has been criticized for being a \"grafting\" approach, meaning that there is are only weak institutional and legislative ties from the anti-corruption efforts to other parts of the public system. The many shifting anti-corruption agencies during the last decade can be seen as a symptom of this lack of institutional anchorage.

Corruption is not natural resource driven in Kenya, as is the case in other African countries. Most scandals have involved fraudulent or inflated public procurement deals, where funds were re-directed to top government politicians and officials. One of the biggest recent corruption scandal was the so called Anglo Leasing deals in 2001-2004, where passport printing equipment was bought at inflated prices through the British company Anglo Leasing, owned by the influential Kenyan-Indian Kamani family, which has close ties to the Kenyan government. More than 20 million Euros was misappropriated by the individuals implicated in the deals. Part of these funds were to be used for funding the 2007 electoral campaign of president Kibaki's NARC coalition. According to international observers, corruption has depleted the Kenyan economy for about 100 billion KSH during the last 10-15 years. Leading politicians and public servants are infamous for their high salaries.

There are indications on a changed perception of corruption among the Kenyan public. In the Kenya Bribery Index 2005 there are signs of an increased willingness to report and decline bribery by members of the public, whereas public officials have not changed their conduct to the same degree. A significant ammount of the polled (41,9 %) reported that they decline when a bribe is demanded. The poorest segments in the Kenyan society suffer most from corruption: low income groups pay up to 30% of their income in bribes.

Business and Corruption

On average, firms to spend 2,91% on sales in unofficial payments in order to get things done. Corruption ranks second in constraints to firm investments in Kenya with over 70% reporting it as a \"major\" or \"very severe\" obstacle. The size of the informal economy is estimated to be 34,3% of GNP (World Bank 2003).

Solicitation of bribes and gifts from the private sector by public servants is common. In a study conducted by the World Bank and the International Finance Corporation, corruption was rated as a severe or major obstacle by 74 percent of the sample firms and generally seems to have the same effect on firms across the spectrum. More foreign firms, however, are seemingly more affected by corruption, as 81 percent of them rated it as a major or very severe problem.

Registering a business is relatively straight-forward although delays and irregularities occur. Registering a business name costs approx. 10 USD (2003)-

Regulatory Environment

Although comprehensive legal changes have been made, the Kenyan public administration is still dominated by a secretive culture, making it very non-transparent. It is difficult for the public to gain any insight into the procedures and potential conflicts of interest of the administration. The NARC government has taken steps to ensure political independence of the public servants. During the KANU government, parts of the public administration were known to be in political control of the ruling party. Still, bribery, nepotism and political patronage is widespread.

According to a poll conducted by the International Commission of Jurists Kenya, 58 % of the polled report that they would not appeal an unfavourable court decision because of the costs. Legal fees are high compared to the median income and many opt for nonjudicial settlements. This extends to both individuals and small enterprises. Court processes are long and bureaucratic.