One word aptly sums up our endless political problems: Ego

One thing that I quite regularly find intriguing is the question of what internal dynamics drive the various categories of people who purport to guide our national destiny.

A study on our recent socio-political developments, particularly in reference to the mindset of the direct players in our social, cultural and political arenas would be, in my view, not just be in order, but would also help us appreciate better our condition as a national community.

Could it be that some of the major events that have happened, and which have effects on our national life, are only as a result of reaction to the selfish behaviour and thinking of an individual or a group of people?

I have been observing the various levels of drama that we are treated to daily on the political front and I have come to the conclusion that the biggest problem with our politics is the individual and collective ego of the players in the political class.

There could be other factors — and indeed there are — but it seems clear that when ordinary mortals internalise the feeling that they have a following from among a section of the citizens, their egos get bloated and at times, drive them to make misguided utterances.

SIMILAR EXPERIENCES

I do agree that a good leader must always lead from the front but given our Kenyan experiences, I often wonder about the nature of that front.

Is it a front that is about the leader himself, his or her friends and family or is it a front that is for the good of all Kenyans? Of course, when actors in all the sides of the political divide speak, they purport to speak on behalf of Kenyans.

Differences between them become differences between Kenyans. But is that necessarily true? The majority of ordinary Kenyans from all corners have similar experiences in terms of their real life conditions.

This brings me to another point which I have reflected upon before in this same column.

Over and above the issue of ego, there is also the small matter of resources. This is, in my humble submission, a dimension of our politics in which the majority of the political actors are similar in spite of all the other differences they have between themselves.

Funding of elections is a big thing and the use of whatever resources could mean anything from publicity to bribing voters and other such matters.

Many times we have heard stories of corruption involving ministers of government. We will probably hear more involving governors. This should not be surprising because elections “must be funded” and the money must come from somewhere.

A statesman thinks about the future generation and a politician the next election.

Father Wamugunda is Dean of Students at the University of Nairobi: [email protected]