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Politics of tribal alliances doomed
Such calls have emanated from politicians who have nothing in common but the greed for power. These calls are neither genuine nor sustainable in the context of the national and social fabric of the political landscape.
The calls have been made by some politicians, political parties and tribes to form alliances in order to wrest national power. These alliances would balkanise and polarise the country and sacrifice national unity at the altar of personal ambition, political myopia and ethnic chauvinism.
The alliances proposed by these politicians include Kisii-Kamba, Kisii- Kikuyu, Kamba-Kikuyu and so on. Those involved in these games are from Kanu and the Opposition in Kisii, in Ukambani and in Central Province.
There have also been similar calls for co-operation between some Kanu and Opposition politicians in Kisii and some Opposition politicians in the National Development Party.
These politicians purport to speak for their communities. This is far from the truth. In the Abagusii community, there are 10 elected Members of Parliament from Gucha, Kisii and Nyamira districts. The community does not believe in or have a spokesman.
Abagusii believe in the collective and united leadership of their elected MPs. They can only accept and be committed to such political alliances by the collective and united leadership of the 10 MPs with a clear mandate from the community.
In the Kikuyu community, those calling for tribal alliances with the Abagusii are neither genuine nor serious. They do not even speak for the Kikuyus or the political parties with which they want the Abagusii to forge an alliance.
In any case, the Kisii politicians they want to form an alliance with are "political tenants" of parties they do not control. Indeed, even the level of political stature at which these alliances are articulated is clearly lop-sided. The Kisii side of the so-called alliance is dealing with nondescript proxies from Central Province while the bigwigs are hedging their political bets.
The proposed political alliance between some Kisii and Kamba politicians was not even a political abortion or stillbirth since there was no political co- habitation and conception in the first place.
The Abagusii and Akamba communities deserve better from their leaders than to be treated to the farce of a political marriage that does not exist even in the wildest imagination of daydreaming. The mooted alliance between the Kamba and Kikuyu communities is even more far-fetched given the political experience of the past relationships of the cousin-communities.
Indeed, while the Akamba straddle the political divide between Kanu and the Opposition, the Kikuyu are in a cluster of political parties whose only difference is the coloration of the chameleon.
The dilly-dallying between some Kisii politicians and those from NDP is an aberration of personal whims. The Abagusii and the Luo communities do not need a tribal alliance to promote their mutual interests.
The two communities are good neighbours and have remained so far many years. They do not need tribal alliances to deliver the presidency to Nyanza. What they need to do is to remain good neighbours, produce genuine national leaders and cultivate the support and unity of all Kenyans.
The late Jaramogi Oginga Odinga did not fail to deliver the presidency to Nyanza because he never sought such a parochial scheme of things. Jaramogi would never wear the political blinkers of an ethnic chauvinist. His life-long ambition was the struggle for freedom and democracy in Kenya. He achieved and delivered freedom in 1963 and multiparty democracy in 1992.
The way forward in Kenya today does not lie in the formation of tribal alliances. The way forward is in the democratisation of the economic, political and social system without regard to the ethnic origin of the political leadership.
The way forward is in the constitutional review process. These are the challenges of the new millennium.The people of Kenya will reject national leadership based on any form of chauvinism, ethnicity and/or sectarianism.
For those politicians whose ambitions for national leadership and the presidency are anchored on chauvinism, ethnicity, and /or sectarianism through tribal alliances and other nefarious schemes, the message from Kenyans is loud and clear: Forget it. Mission impossible.
