Political bickering holding back progress on Agenda 4 reforms

As the country marks the third anniversary of the birth of the Grand Coalition Government, Kenyans appear to have little to celebrate as there has been little progress in tackling the long-term issues listed under Agenda 4.

Though the country has made strides in instituting some of the reforms envisaged in the National Accord that was signed by President Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga on February 28, 2008, there is still a lot pending.

Resettlement of IDPs

But Justice minister Mutula Kilonzo believes the country has made great strides. He told the Sunday Nation that apart from addressing the resettlement of IDPs and achieving justice for victims of post-election violence, the country was in the process of putting in place better governance structures.

“We have made a lot of achievements and it is an amazing improvement on the perception of governance in the country,” said Mr Kilonzo.

He added that the purpose of the National Accord was to ensure that the country is reconciled and achieves the necessary reforms.

However, political bickering between the two coalition partners appears to be slowing the pace at which necessary changes are being instituted.

Parliament has fallen behind in the implementation of the Constitution, which is part of the legal and institutional reforms recommended under Agenda 4.

However, the Judiciary, Defence Forces and the electoral system are under review.

Mr Kilonzo said the country was set for great changes in the Judiciary with the enactment of the Judicial Service Act and the Vetting of Judges Act.

“The Bills on police reforms are already with the Commission on the Implementation of the Constitution and we expect them to come to Parliament soon for enactment,” he added.

Parliament is however yet to make progress on the bills required to overhaul the electoral system and establish the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission. Lack of these legal structures has also stalled the review of electoral boundaries after the report by the Ligale team elicited sharp divisions among politicians.

Another key component under Agenda 4 is land reforms. Though the country already has a national land policy and new provisions on land in the Constitution, a lot is still pending. The National Land Commission is yet to be established and the Land Dispute Tribunal Act has not been finalised.

Agenda 4 also tackles youth unemployment, poverty and regional development imbalances. One of the goals under this is to generate an average of 740,000 new jobs each year, but there is no data to show if this has been achieved.

Youth employment

The government has however initiated projects to bolster youth employment, including the economic stimulus programme Kazi kwa Vijana and increased access to credit under the Youth Development Fund.

The National Youth Council Act was also enacted; the youth are expected to elect their officials from next month.

But efforts to consolidate national unity and cohesion have been undermined by political contest and the government appears to have left the issue to NGOs, churches, the Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission and the National Cohesion and Integration Commission.

The TJRC has faced institutional and financial problems and has only nine more months left to finalise its work. The NCIC is still waiting on the Attorney-General’s office and the courts to act on hate speech cases it has initiated.

The last item on Agenda 4 addresses impunity, transparency and accountability.

There have been key efforts in achieving this with the revamping of the Kenya Anti-Corruption Commission, which has moved to prosecute high-profile corruption suspects.

“We still have some problems to overcome and these include impunity, fighting corruption, unemployment among the youth and inadequate infrastructure. We still have to put in place a new Political Parties Act before August,” said Mr Kilonzo.