s devolution marginalising North Eastern region?

Before devolution, government critics from northern Kenya always laid blame on the central government for the sorry state of affairs in their home region.

In 2013, when we ushered in devolution, many of these critics had hoped that marginalisation would be a thing of the past. Six years down the line, however, the same can’t be said of the state of affairs in these ‘frontier’ counties.

CONFLICTS

To a certain extent, the county governments of Garissa, Wajir and Mandera have undertaken several development projects. However, these efforts do not match the expectations the people had in devolution.

The root cause of yesteryears’ intermittent inter-clan conflicts is yet to be resolved. In general, nothing much has changed. That is contrary to the belief that the north would blossom under devolution.

GRADUATES

In most cases, the leaders of the county governments have favoured their clans, both in the appointments of key office holders and the geographical spread of development projects. It is very rare that minorities are considered for county government positions. My heart goes out to the qualified university graduates, who will not get a chance to serve their people.

I understand that the majority of northern Kenya residents enjoy their rights, but it is important to have a cohesive society. It is imperative that the public service in these county governments is run in a professional manner.

EXECUTIVE

At the moment, one can argue that there is no merit in the way appointments are done. Each of the governors in the former North Eastern Province has appointed more than 20 chief officers. While the law doesn’t limit the number of chief officers that a county government should have, it would have been better for the governors to opt for a lean executive rather than have a bloated one.

I know it will take many years for the north to be on par with other regions in the country, but devolution presents a wonderful opportunity. This will, however, be missed if the leadership and the people do not come together to define a common purpose. The region will remain in the shackles of what increasingly appears to be self-marginalisation.

SCORECARD

Before devolution, we accused the subsequent central governments of failing to help us develop. We accused them of bias. But it is no different during devolution when the county governments allocate development projects in a biased manner.

It will be premature for me to give a devolution scorecard, especially during its infancy years, but the indicators paint a grim picture already.

MISCONTRUED

It is critical for the leadership of the counties to wake up from their deep slumber. The local people have been marginalised for years. The time has come for them to take control and reverse the situation.

No doubt, devolution is great — not only in the north but also in the entire country. However, there is a need for the people of the north to own the process. For them, devolution is misconstrued for the opportunity for the majority to dictate to the minority. That should not be the case.

DESPERATION

We have seen the magnitude of desperation that the many years of marginalisation can cause. To again blame one another for failure to grab opportunities under devolution should be the last thing.

We can only justify our criticism and lay the blame on the subsequent national governments the country has had if we show value for money in the use of the devolved funds.

Mr Maalim is a communication specialist. [email protected]