Pitfalls in Uhuru’s war against corruption

Although Uhuru Kenyatta’s war against corruption must be applauded as a great leadership initiative, its ultimate fate must be evaluated within the broad context of his own agency and political will, on the one hand, and Kenya’s political, economic and cultural structure, on the other hand.

Viewed in the context of the thoughts of Anthony Giddens, the historically and politically minded sociologist, the interaction between agency and structure will condition the achievement of the desired change in Kenya. How is this to be explained?

First let us define agency and explain how its characteristics can either facilitate or constrain the war against corruption.

In Giddens’ usage, agency means an individual’s or leader’s capacity for willed action. Such action ought to be characterised by intentionality, purposiveness, rationality, forethought and self-reflectiveness. And if by a president, such action should, indeed, be for the good of the country and its citizens.

WELL INTENTIONED

We cannot deny the fact that Uhuru’s war against corruption is well-intentioned. He found out that the vice has eaten into Kenya’s political economy and society like debilitating cancer and concluded that it should be immediately eradicated. Uhuru’s purpose is to reconstruct the country and place it on a high moral pedestal.

Although Uhuru may not be quite sure of the success of his crusade, like all of us, he must remain hopeful that the war will be won against all odds.

However, by instituting the lifestyle audit for purposes of accountability, taking many corruption suspects to court and exhorting all leaders to play a vital role in the anti-corruption war, Uhuru has demonstrated unprecedented political will, defined here as the commitment of agents to undertake action to achieve a set objective.

But what other strategies has he put in place and how do they sit with the present structures of governance, economy and society?

STRUCTURE

This leads us to questions pertaining to structure, the other component of our analysis.

For political will in the war against corruption should include issues such as whether Uhuru’s initiatives will be sustained in the long run, whether the chosen anti-corruption programme is technically sound on the basis of its process and outcome, whether all possible stakeholders have been mobilised, whether the public has been sufficiently conscientised to support the anti-corruption war, and finally, whether sufficient financial and institutional resources have been committed to the crusade.

What is structure and how can it condition the war against corruption? As has been stated above, structure refers to the political, economic and socio-cultural processes in a country.

Each of these is an ensemble of institutions, rules, roles, beliefs and meanings into which people are socialised in matters pertaining to their governance, economic activities such as production and the distribution of products of their labour through personal consumption, trade and accumulation. Structure also refers to cultural values which regulate people’s social relations.

NOBLE INTENTIONS

In our context all these are the outcome of Kenya’s history through past and present roles of our leaders and us. Positively or negatively we are products of our country’s structures as much as we are their authors.

For instance, Kenya’s political, economic and socio-cultural systems may stifle Uhuru’s noble intentions in many ways. First, our neo-patrimonial governance systems at the national and county levels are the very opposite of democratic governance. Far from serving the public good, the State at these two levels is the instrument for the self-enrichment of the political and other privileged classes. This is a colonial legacy.

Just as the colonial state corruptly served the interests of the British capitalist aristocracy and middle class, including local African chiefs, our own leaders today resort to grand corruption, including patronage, ethnicity, impunity and nepotism to serve their own interests.

Corruption is therefore a deeply embedded political vice which will only be successfully eradicated through comprehensive and meaningful democratic transformation.

POLITICAL LEADERS

Uhuru’s crusade against corruption may be well-intentioned but to what extent has he convinced other political leaders, the business community, the civil society and the clergy to join him in it?

Secondly, Kenya’s poor and dependent economy promotes corruption which is made official through international and domestic rules intended to regulate production and local and international trade. Surplus value is extracted from peasant farmers, traders and labour through returns to produce and wages that are far below effort. Individuals and companies that control both the export and import sectors accumulate astronomic surplus value, mostly through unfair arrangements with the state and at producers’ expense.

Corruption is intended to subvert the rules. The fight against corruption, therefore, calls for major transformations.

For instance, agricultural production should be improved through mechanisation.

EMPOWER MAJORITY

Our tea, coffee, sugar, maize and flower producers should be paid the real value of their labour and merchandise.

Financial and other institutions in charge of the economy should be streamlined to serve in the best interests of all stakeholders.

This will empower the majority to fight against corruption.

Finally, corruption has become an accepted culture in Kenya. The majority of our people worship material wealth irrespective of its source possibly due to feelings of relative deprivation in terms of the people with whom we compare ourselves.

Most of our leaders aspire to be as rich as former European settler farmers like Lord Delamere and billionaires in the developed countries. The rest of the poor and middle class citizens want to be like our billionaire leaders and businessmen. Max Weber states in his book, The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism, that European Christians who colonised North America believed in hard work and frugality.

CHRISTIAN VALUES

In contrast, the majority of Kenyans cultivate capitalist tastes and acquisitiveness without these requisite Christian values. In what ways will the Government positively transform the cultural values of the majority of Kenyans so that they see the vice in corruption and what role should our families, schools, churches and mosques play in this?

In the war against corruption although Uhuru occupies the position of the principal agent, Kenya’s political, economic and socio-cultural structures, if not simultaneously transformed, will continue to stifle the President’s agential power.

 Prof Ndege teaches history at Moi University. Email: [email protected]