AFTER VOTING by two to one for a new constitution, Kenyans will now have to make it work with a new constitutional politics. A huge legislative programme faces the Kenyan parliament over the next five years to implement the radical changes it introduces in the political and legal systems, giving many opportunities for delay as vested interests fight their corners. But this was a serious political choice by its electorate last week, with a large turnout and a decisive result clearly accepted by those who opposed it.
The decision has been widely welcomed as laying the ground for a second republic to replace the post-colonial one set up with independence from Britain which degenerated into a centralised kleptocracy under former president Daniel Arap Moi. The constitution arose from a United Nations brokered agreement after violent clashes between ethnic groups killed over 1,000 people after the 2007 presidential elections. It transfers powers from the presidency to the prime minister, strengthens parliamentary accountability, introduces impeachment and recall procedures, extends the bill of rights, reforms the judiciary and the important land commission. An estimated 49 bills are needed to implement these changes, and although both President Mwai Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga have pledged their support, it remains to be seen whether they have the political will to do so as elections loom in 2012.
The changes are intended to address acute problems which arose from the outgoing highly centralised presidential system. It encouraged political patronage and corruption on a grand scale by channelling all key appointments through the president and by giving that office effective control over land holding. This constitutional rebalancing should reduce that through greater parliamentary and legal accountability, but it will require renewed political and civic energy on the ground if it is to be followed through effectively. That will be helped by the decentralisation of power away from the capital Nairobi to a new system of county and local government. Handled well, this should enhance democratic participation.
Kenya is the key state in East Africa and these changes could make it a flagship of reform in the region, where up to now political stability has depended on strongmen with largely unchecked powers. Favourable economic conditions have recently brought higher growth and development to the country, which should contribute to political renewal.