On Saturday,
October 25, 1969, President Jomo Kenyatta travelled to Kisumu to open the New
Nyanza General Hospital. The hospital had been built by the Russians through
contacts made by Jaramogi Oginga Odinga, the leader of Kenya People’s Union
(KPU) and was therefore known as the “Russia Hospital”.
During the
opening ceremony, the bad blood that had been simmering between Kenyatta and
Jaramogi came to a boil and bitter words were exchanged. Insults were hurled, a
physical confrontation took place and threats of detention were made by the
president.
The crowd jeered
Kenyatta and by the time he was leaving, tempers had risen to the point where
some youths began to stone the presidential motorcade. The presidential guard
opened fire and the result was 10 dead people and scores of others injured.
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| "Yeah, bros before hoes! Bro." |
This event
marked the turning point in the relationship between President Kenyatta and
Oginga Odinga. Odinga was detained two days later and his party, KPU banned.
But perhaps more importantly and for the purposes of this post, the
relationship between the Luo community and government was scarred.
Two gallant sons
of the Luo had died in the months preceding this event. Tom Mboya had been
assassinated by a lone gunman in a Nairobi street in broad daylight and
Argwings Kodhek had died in a road accident. Jaramogi had personal and
ideological differences with Kenyatta that had seen him bundled out of
government and the ruling party, KANU years before.
The president
vowed to never step foot inside Luo Nyanza again, and indeed, up to the time of
his death, he went on as though that part of the country did not exist.
When Daniel arap
Moi took over as president in 1978, there was a thawing of sorts in the
relationship between the government and the Luos. This was until the attempted
coup of 1982 in which soldiers of the Kenya Air Force from that community were
implicated. Many Luos, including Jaramogi’s son, Raila, were arrested and
detained by the Moi administration as a result. Raila has, in the book, Raila Odinga: An Enigma in Kenyan Politics
released not too long ago admitted to his role in that event.
Once again, the
Luos found themselves at odds with the government. This situation got worse
when in February, 1990, the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Dr Robert Ouko went
missing, and was subsequently found murdered near his home. Subsequent
investigations revealed that there was complicity and cover up by elements in
the government. People from the Luo community were up in arms and charged that
there were attempts by whichever government was in power to finish off its
leaders.
Fast forward to
December, 2007. Kenya held a presidential election that was hotly contested by
the then incumbent, Mwai Kibaki and Raila Odinga. We have been told that no one
knows who won that election, but Kibaki was nevertheless declared winner and
the Luos took to the streets. There were riots in Kibera, Raila’s stronghold
and in Kisumu where property owned by non Luos was looted or burnt. The police
reacted and people were killed and others injured.
In March, 2013,
another presidential election was held. This time, Raila Odinga went up against
Uhuru Kenyatta, son of the nation’s first president. It was another hotly
contested race, and it brought back memories to people who are old enough to
remember, of the epic battles between their fathers, the first President
Kenyatta and Jaramogi (the duo never competed in a presidential election,
though).
Uhuru won this
election. The Supreme Court, in a judgement on a petition against the election
results brought before it by Raila upheld Uhuru’s victory. Once again, members
of the Luo community felt aggrieved. They complained that there was a
conspiracy by the Kikuyu and Kalenjin communities to lock them out of the
presidency.
Now, I cite
these various examples to demonstrate that yes, unfortunate things have
happened to people from the Luo community. Whether it be assassinations or missed
political opportunities.
But the truth is
that these things have happened to members of other communities too. Pio Gama
Pinto was assassinated in the sixties. JM Kariuki was brutally liquidated in
1975. They were not Luos. The Kikuyus were economically sabotaged by the
administration of President Moi. Their businesses collapsed. Ask SK Macharia.
I am happy to
observe that in the days and weeks following the inauguration of President
Kenyatta, there has been gradual acceptance of the new administration and
goodwill by the Luo. Matters, of course have been helped by Raila’s own
recognition, albeit grudgingly, of Uhuru’s presidency.
One can only
hope that the president will take advantage of this new situation and begin by
mending fences with Luo Nyanza. On his first visit outside Nairobi as
president, Mr Kenyatta went to that region to attend the burial of the late
Secretary General of the Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT), Mr David
Okuta Osiany.
I was impressed
by the way he handled himself in the face of what could potentially have been a
hostile crowd. The residents made it very clear that it is Raila that they
regarded as their leader, but Uhuru behaved very respectfully to them and to
Raila, even making the point that he (Raila) was his “elder brother”.
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| "Our dads were right! Up there. Bro." |
So, should the
siege mentality among members of the Luo community continue indefinitely or is
it time for it to come to an end?
Well, that
largely depends on future engagement between the new administration and Luo
Nyanza. The president appears to be keen to send the right signals. He has
treated the former Prime Minister with respect (which I must stress is
important) and he has appointed a Luo as Cabinet Secretary for the important
Ministry of Defence. I am waiting to see him visit Kisumu as that will set the
tone for what kind of relationship we can expect to see between the government
and that region.
Of course it is
not as simple as that. My own feeling is that the Luo should also meet the
government halfway and cease acting like perpetual “rebels”. Raila has
indicated that he will not oppose the government just for the heck of it. That
is a good sign, and one that the larger Luo community should embrace. President
Kenyatta should also avoid the mistakes of the presidents who came before him,
and treat all regions of this nation equally and not appear to marginalize
anyone.
Beyond that, we
can only wait and see.
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President
Kenyatta I was at the centre of the Pan African movement of the 1960s that
threw out the mzungu from Africa.
President
Kenyatta II finds himself at the centre of yet another Pan African movement 50
years on that is against the interference of the mzungu in African affairs.
I don’t know
about you, but these are very interesting times, no?
