‘Handshake’ has given us hope for unity

I have been following the Brexit politics in the United Kingdom and I must say I find the whole scenario quite interesting. A woman I admire by the name Theresa May is in some kind of trouble. I am not so sure that she was one of the conservatives that was supporting the exit from the European Union as proposed by her predecessor Prime Minister David Cameroon.

TROUBLE

At any rate she succeeded him after his proposal to remain in the union failed. Now it seems there is serious trouble with her efforts to get the job done both from her own party and from the opposing Labour Party. She comes across as one who does not have that much support.

HANDSHAKE
As I have been following these developments I could not help but think about our own Kenyan internal political operations as it is today. I went to a function the other day where I met former Prime Minister Raila Odinga. When I announced to him that I was demanding a “handshake” we generated quite some laughter.

ATMOSPHERE

The truth is that the famous “handshake” of March this year has brought about some very positive developments in the political atmosphere of this country. We of course thought that it was only about Odinga and the President. It is now clear that my friend Kalonzo Musyoka is now part of the equation. In terms of what we want to achieve for national unity one cannot beat that.

FIGHTING
The reality is that the government that was elected in 2017 and the opposition that refused to accept the results of those elections are now together on the same table. What does that say to the ordinary Kenyan? My view is that when we start insulting and fighting each other on behalf of the “leaders” we support we have got to be very careful.

CONSPIRED

After the violence of early 2008, there are some people who conspired with foreign governments to the point that some of the others were taken to the International Criminal Court in The Hague. They were probably doing that for their own gain but I have always argued that it was a necessary evil because anyone who ever thinks of organising criminal acts against fellow Kenyans in search of political power will have to think twice.

PERSONALITIES
In short the famous “Handshake” has brought about good results towards our national unity whichever way any of us thinks. One would only hope that things keep that way because from our experience, Kenyan politics can be and has been quite volatile. My view is that if we had serious political blocs in terms of parties that believed in strong ideas and not in personalities we might just get somewhere. Any hope soon?
Fr Wamugunda is the dean of students and a lecturer of sociology at the University of Nairobi. [email protected]