THE NEW LOOK CABINET: Mr. President All Eyes and Ears on State House

By Prof. Dr. Halimu Shauri

Email, thecoastnewspaper@gmai.com

Kenya is a very dynamic country, marked by events and interventions in unprecedented ways. 

Some of the events look so monstrous but the way the country navigates through them successfully leaves many people, in the region and abroad mesmerized.

UNIQUE

The very recent event that threatened the countries heartbeat with demonstrations all over the country was unique among events that have befallen our motherland. Unique in composition: tribeless, party-less and leaderless GenZees. 

Unique demonstrations, peaceful with water bottles and mobile phones on display. Unique in terms of the courage to face the security agencies. Unique grievances that resonate with the whole country’s mode of thinking and feeling. Innovative and unique slogan: ‘When we lose our fear, they lose their power’ and unique song, _Anguka_…? 

In addition, the outcome of the GenZees demonstrations were also unique. Many people have aligned with them and encouraged them. Many, the so accused, have seen their mistakes and I am sure they have woken up from the deep sleep of arrogance and display of opulence. Unique because President Ruto conceded to the Genzees’ grievances. 

From his initial concession, which looked superfluous to his conviction, but concretising his action going forward. From state house threats of treason and rhetoric to surprise action for many globally.

DISSOLUTION

The unique action of dissolving the cabinet has reverberated across the world and painted the presidency with goodwill to address what the GenZees were agitating, bolted cabinet and its concomitant bad governance.

The dissolution of cabinet was among other reasons arrogance, opulence, corruption, impunity but to sum the challenges I would say poor leadership and stinking governance.

The genesis has been President Rutos state crafting, where he appointed friends, cronies and shareholders to his government. What he, the president, didn’t know then is that “the presidency is a soft symbol of national unity and transcends all parochial and personal interests to higher levels of patriotism and statesmanship.”

Now he has realised this through the agitation by the GenZees push for good governance and exemplary leadership.

President Ruto, the metamorphosis character in his personality has made him to act, and he acted by pulling the correct card this time round through dissolving the cabinet. I want to remind Mr President though that pulling the right card is one thing and playing it correctly is another thing altogether.

Now Mr President, the biggest challenge for you is to state craft a cabinet that reflects the current mode of thinking and feeling of the republic.

I know it is not easy to measure the current mode of thinking and feeling of the republic, but there is a way you can gauge it from a sociological point of view.

As an experienced and one of the senior sociologists, I advise you to trace the current mode of thinking and feeling of the nation from the GenZees demands.

IMPLEMENTATION

You can surpass their demands with implementation of many more principles of good corporate governance, but the irreducible minimum is already known from what GenZees have shared. 

However, please “…remember the lion can do the hard job of killing the pray but the hyena can come in and spoil the feast by chasing the lion away.”

My advice will be stay focused and climb the GenZees mountain, the rest of pressure sources are just anthills, they have been there with not much adoration from Kenyans, and you managed to climb them before.

This is because they have not been genuine enough and have not been standing for real change than the GenZees. They were just out for only some cosmetic actions to ice coat their own personal interests.

Mr President time has come, and you know it, to surprise the country and the world by state crafting a cabinet that matches your intellectual ability. I would employ you to “…recognise professionalism and talent and place them at the centre of action to resuscitate your intellectual prowess and genius that was hitherto surrounded by incompetence and arrogant mandarins”.

THEORY

When one looked at your dissolved cabinet and yourself, one would see a suit with two colours, the colour of gross incompetency and competence at its best respectively.

The theory of differential association says you become who you associate with.

“While you believed you were shining, locally and internationally, the surrounding mediocrity was mediocritizing your intellectual ability and image culminating to the ugliest incidents in the history of our great nation”.

Accordingly, I employ you to dive deep into your intellectual prowess and bring a cabinet that will not dwarf your intellectual ability but will multiply your power of intellect, zeal and ability to transform Kenya.

A cabinet made up of the correct intellectual and talent mix that mirrors the needs and aspirations of Kenyans. A cabinet that is inclusive and appealing to the current mode of thinking and feeling of Kenyans. A cabinet that has its foundation anchored in what is written in our Constitution 2010 and the walls of the GenZees. 

I wish you well Mr President, as my eyes and ears, including those of other Kenyans and the world are eager to see and hear what State House will conjure a its new governance structure, especially the quality of your second cabinet.

I finish by paraphrasing Albert Einstein, saying: “…we are hopeful because we believe being sane is not to do it the same way you did it in the last attempt and expect different results.”

I drop my pen Mr President and wish you well as you struggle to mirror the demands of Genzees in your new cabinet, which is hidden in the spirit and content of the Constitution 2010. Good luck sir…

Prof Shauri is a consultant sociologist & dean at Pwani University’s School of Humanities and Social Sciences