Honour is what a leader fights for on behalf of the people

What you need to know:

  • The unspoken acceptance that Kenyan leaders are viewed as an untouchable special breed of humans while the rest of us are disposable ordinary people is one that needs changing.

  • If all the leaders who were loud about the mishandling of a governor were equally loud every time Kenyans have been mishandled by police, that would have been something tangible.

I have been following the debate on what honourable treatment is when it comes to Kenyan leaders after the theatrical arrest of the Nairobi Governor. From the circulated clip of the arrest incident, one can see that there was resistance during the arrest, hence the drama.

ORDINARY PEOPLE

Some leaders felt the police should have been more diplomatic and that they could have summoned the governor instead of allegedly manhandling him. These leaders argued that this is not the way to handle "honourable" members of society.

Many Kenyans, on the other hand, have been questioning why these leaders only spoke about the supposed manhandling of a governor by the police when citizens encounter worse with nobody coming to their defence. The obvious double standard in how citizens and supposed honourable people are to be handled by officers of the law becomes a contentious issue. I do agree, that the way in which police officers handle people must change from its abusive, excessive force and brutal methodology to a more dignified one.

However, this change needs to be for all Kenyans and not just a certain group of people as it is currently. The unspoken acceptance that Kenyan leaders are viewed as an untouchable special breed of humans while the rest of us are disposable ordinary people is one that needs changing.

POLICE BRUTALITY

It is the reason some leaders were crying foul over the arrest of a governor — not because everyone deserves dignity but because governors fall into the category of those who should be treated better.

This means that when something that has been happening to the ordinary people happens to this special category, it is blown out of context. Explanations are demanded, the law is questioned and the term honourable starts flying around to remind us that some people need better handling. If all the leaders who were loud about the mishandling of a governor were equally loud every time Kenyans have been mishandled by police, that would have been something tangible.

But the argument that “we are your leaders so we must be treated better” yet Kenyans experience worse than this in police custody is deep selfishness. If leaders are going to fight against police brutality, they should fight it for everyone. Kenyans are tear-gassed, beaten and brutalised so often it has become the norm. Kenyans are arrested for standing up for right against wrong, they're punished for knowing their rights and, in extreme cases, they are murdered and their bodies thrown away like some replaceable items.

ATTITUDE AND ATTRIBUTES

Remember Willy Kimani?

Honour is a role that a leader plays, it is not a title. It's not something you call yourself, rather it is something you are called. It is in the conduct a leader carries themselves, the language a leader uses, the principles within which they lead, their attitude and attributes. It's in what they stand for and condone, it's in their character, their sense of right and wrong. Honour is what a leader fights for on behalf of the people, not something owed to them.

The writer is a policy analyst; [email protected]