The Myth of Civil Society in Kenya's Democracy
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ISSUE NO. 16, JULY 2017 THE MYTH OF CIVIL SOCIETY IN KENYA’S DEMOCRACY Peter Kagwanja Kenya’s civil society is a frightening paradox. As observed by Professor Peter Kagwanja, the said Civil Society has patched together a powerful ‘informal empire’ based on an unholy alliance with known corruption rings, adroitly infiltrating and capturing strategic cogs in state institutions such as Judiciary and forging gainful linkages with Western donors. Thus, Professor Kagwanja in his detailed discourse, reveals that Kenya’s civil society is no longer a force for progress. It is an unholy trinity of intellectuals of nihilistic hue, human rights extremists and corrupt business networks, hell-bent on capturing both civil society and political opposition as a grand strategy to capture state power during Kenya’s 2017 General elections. Kenya’s civil society is a frightening paradox. forging gainful linkages with Western donors. Scanning the horizons ahead of the August 8, Surprisingly, their power and influence ripple 2017, election, the petrifying rise of a rogue deep into the United Nations bureaucracies in ‘Civil Society’ is the greatest risk to peace. Nairobi and New York! A cursory read of Makau Mutua’s acerbic Nairobi’s civil society godfathers take no article, “Ndemo wrong to bare fangs at civil prisoners. They wield the untrammeled power society for oversight role” (Standard, July 23, to reward and punish loyalty in a classic 2017), brings to light the horrifying intellectual patrimonial fashion. hubris of the godfathers of Kenya’s new mafia- Power like ‘civil society’, now stalking the country’s political terrain like Colossus, threatening fire But their real power rests on a universal moral and brimstone, scorching rival initiatives and claim to the talismanic power that civil society terrorizing alternative voices. organizations and actors have enjoyed since Francis Fukuyama’s declaration of the triumph Self-evidently, the godfathers have read of liberalism over rival ideologies. Civil society Niccolo Machiavelli with a toothcomb, and is liberalism’s heaviest gun against rival taken to heart his logic of power. ideologies and models of development. Unholy Alliance This moral power of Nairobi’s godfathers Discernibly, since 2002, they have cobbled thrives on tapping instrumentally into the together a powerful ‘informal empire’ based on wisdom that the future of democracy in post- an unholy alliance with known corruption rings, authoritarian societies in Africa, as elsewhere, adroitly infiltrating and capturing strategic cogs is inextricably tied to the strength of civil in state institutions such as Judiciary and society, with weak civil societies blamed for an integral cog of this unholy trinity is perhaps flawed or trapped democracies. the most untypically, saddest. From this powerful perch, Nairobi’s godfathers have Ideologically, this is the wind driving the sails of managed to use their networks in a stick-and- Western donors, UN agencies, professionals in carrot style to punish those outside their realm the charity industry and dispensers of aid who or perceived as rival networks. support activists as the white knights in the construction of an alternative order and Cancellation of Maendeleo Policy Forum promote civil society as a precondition for Ignorance of this incipient force is likely to cost development. one dearly. On Friday, July 28, 2017, the Africa But this argument is standing on its head. Policy Institute, which I head, was to hold a Indeed, sustainable development and the joined high-profile forum with the United consolidation of democratic regimes rest on Nation’s Development Programme (and the existence of strong and functioning political UNESCO) on the: “Preparedness for 2017 institutions, not on the configuration of a General Election.” Among those slated to take nebulous civil society stratum. At least, this is part in the dialogue, the third in a series of the argument Omar G. Encarnación makes so debates within the aegis of UNDP’s Africa-wide convincingly in his seminar work, The Myth of “Maendeleo Policy Forum,” was the Chairman Civil Society (2003). of IEBC, senior security officers, academics, international experts and civil society actors. Civil Society “I don’t understand this”, exclaimed a UNDP In Kenya, the tail is wagging the dog. Here, the official when word came that the forum had idea of civil society as a neutral, humane and been unceremoniously canceled barely 24 altruistic space is a myth. Nevertheless, its hours to the event. There was not even enough godfathers have no qualms masquerading as time to write to API or to communicate to the a “neutral” progressive force while trafficking in invited participants! partisanship. It is now official. Powerful doyens of Kenya’s Confronted with this ugly face of civil society in civil society with global networks made urgent Darfur, Ugandan scholar, Mahmood Mamdani, calls to “New York,” ratcheting pressure on the coined the term, “human rights UN’s Nairobi offices to willy-nilly call off the fundamentalism” to describe the nasty forum. underbelly of rogue civil societies. This was a massive show of retributive force by But the Kenyan dilemma is deeper. The the kingpins of Kenya’s new civil society for phenomenon of state capture, as a type of publishing an article that appeared on my systemic political corruption in which private Sunday Nation column titled: “Fundamentalism interests significantly influence a state's that casts a dark cloud over election” (SN, July decision-making processes to their own 23, 2017). advantage, is familiar. Not so the capture of civil society. Scholarly Dispute Kenya’s civil society sphere is no longer a force Seemingly, the godfathers are not yet done for progress. It is an unholy trinity of and are coming for me. Uncannily, Makau intellectuals of nihilistic hue, human rights Mutua, the attack dog (to borrow his signature extremists and corrupt business networks, hell- phrase) of the unholy trinity in Kenya’s civil bent on capturing both civil society and political society, was back at his vitriol, describing me opposition as a grand strategy to capture state as part of “Jubilee’s intellectual pit bulls” power during the August polls. (Standard, July 23, 2017). But the capture of some United Nation’s Earlier on, in April 2016, Mutua published a agencies in Nairobi and its transformation into loutish article: “Confront the epidemic of fake academic credentials”, an invitation to a dwell Mr. Mutua’s gift of the garb as a grandmaster in a pigsty disguised as an honest intellectual in conjuring up the obscene and the grotesque debate. “Methinks Dr. Kagwanja is an to tear into the flesh of his victims can only be intellectual coward”, he posted on his rivaled by the legendary market women of Facebook page. Kwame Nkrumah’s Accra. As I pondered the next move, I recalled my Sadly, the public cost of the Mutua grandfather’s sagely advice, inspired by the phenomenon on our freedom of expression, collective wisdom of the Rwathia hills: “If intellectual decency and public culture will be Waitina’s (Mr. Whitener’s) tailless stray dogs felt for generations to come. back at you, stay away.” I took heed and declined. ©Africa Policy Institute, July 2017 Professor Peter Kagwanja is a former Government adviser and currently the Chief executive of Africa Policy Institute , Visiting Scholar at the University of Nairobi and author of: Unwanted in the White Highlands: The Politics of Civil Society and the Making of a Refugee in Kenya (Published Ph.D. Thesis, University of Illinois, 2003). This article was previously published by Sunday Nation on July 30, 2017 under the title- Taming Kenya's rogue ‘civil society’ key to electoral peace About API Research Notes API Research Notes Series publishes scientifically valid research outputs that cannot be considered as full research or methodology articles. Its aim is to provide a forum for sharing data, useful information and perspectives on topical issues of concern to the policy and research communities. Articles published under this series cut across disciplines, and include some short articles or opinion pieces that have already been published by the experts of the Africa Policy Institute. Some are brief publications, updates to previous work, abridged versions of research agendas or concept notes or brief reports of policy forums. .