As elections loom, Prof. Anyang’ Nyong’o’s 1990s warning echoes louder than ever – removing leaders is not enough; we must define the system that will deliver democracy and prosperity
With less than two years until the 2027 general election, Kenya stands deeply divided. Political camps trade slogans and promises, but one fundamental question remains largely unasked: what kind of government do Kenyans truly want after the polls – one that is not only elected, but also acceptable, effective, and capable of delivering the democracy and socio-economic progress the majority crave?
The question is not new. In the mid-1990s, as pro-democracy forces battled to end President Daniel arap Moi’s authoritarian grip despite the return of multiparty politics in 1992, a group of Kenyan scholars and young politicians gathered to plot constitutional reform.
Among them was Prof. Peter Anyang’ Nyong’o, today the Governor of Kisumu County. In the introduction to his book Presidential or Parliamentary Democracy in Kenya? Choices to Be Made, he recounts a moment that stopped the room cold.
Malawian scholar Thandika Mkandawire, then Executive Director of CODESRIA, challenged the group: “Have you people thought about what kind of government you want to put in place after Moi which will be acceptable to the Kenyan people and which will achieve the democracy you seem to be looking for?”
Most in the room dismissed the question as obvious – almost not worth asking. Mkandawire pressed on: historical conditions and prevailing social forces would shape whatever system emerged. Good intentions alone would not suffice.
Three decades later, Kenya faces a similar crossroads. Shouting party slogans or personal loyalties is easy; designing a government structure that unites rather than divides, that delivers services rather than patronage, and that guarantees economic independence rather than perpetual begging is far harder.
The late Jaramogi Oginga Odinga understood this link between political freedom and economic self-reliance. In his autobiography Not Yet Uhuru, he wrote of his determination to disprove stereotypes about the Luo community and to build unity through business and self-help.
“I hated the idea of our people begging from the government,” he declared. “Economic effort, self-help, and development would be the hurdle to advance in Nyanza and in Kenya.”
Jaramogi’s words remain a powerful reminder: true independence is not won at the ballot alone, but in boardrooms, farms, factories, and markets where ordinary citizens stand on their own feet.
As campaigns heat up ahead of August 2027, Kenyans must move beyond personality-driven politics and confront the deeper choices: presidential or parliamentary? Centralised or devolved? Majoritarian or consensual?
The gallant men and women who sacrificed to challenge one-party rule – Nyong’o, Jaramogi, and countless others – left us a legacy of courage and reflection. It is time to honour that legacy with clear-eyed debate about the kind of government that will finally deliver the Kenya we all yearn for.
The clock is ticking. Let the real conversation begin.
Dr. Abiero Awuora is a strategy expert and public policy analyst. Reach him at info@edunetconsultants.
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