Gikuyu Kiaigire, iguthua ndongoria itikinyagira nyeki” When the leading sheep is lame, the others may not reach the grass.

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ANOTHER NICE PIECE ….Kipkalya Kones @CollinceBey

The Ruto regime will fall with a mighty thud, either in 2027 or under the weight of its incompetence before then. When that happens, it will mercifully end the worst experiment ever tried in this land; taking state power and bestowing it on village heroes with no inkling on statecraft. It will also have taught the country one global reality; that state power is an elite occupation, reserved world over for citizens of a certain level of finesse and maturity.

There is a reason Kenyans permanently bemoan how at independence, sons of homeguards and products of the Alliance-Maseno-Mangu-Makerere networks took power at the expense of the Mau Mau fighters. But what state would dreadlocked ruffians fresh from killing people in the bushes have run? There is a modern equivalent for anyone who cares to extrapolate historical events. Just look at South Sudan, where an attempt to run a functional nation by people who came from the bushes has fallen flat. It is that much difficult to have a proper civilian government when everyone in the office trying to read world bank reports or steady the economy is a former General or Colonel.

This also explains why at the twilight of colonialism, European masters did something rarely talked about openly. First, they chose elite tribes in Africa into which they pumped education and picked the finest for those Oxford scholarships, in readiness for leadership. They then filled the pre-independence armies with people from the herder, warlike tribes, many of whom had graced World War II for the Crown and the Allies. This distinction, essentially, was meant to last long, because succession was presumed to follow the Oxford-Makere path, in the case of our region.

In the last general elections, poor masses were led to believe that people who glorified poverty and harped on their supposed disadvantaged upbringing could take power and become icons of economic prosperity. But we have learnt the hard way that, the same way the white man wouldn’t entrust state power to “we are the Mau Mau who fought for freedom”, there is nothing that “I sold chickens by the roadside” and “we were squatters in Embobut Forest” can offer in terms of successful economic policies, because those who glorify grass are wired to reach grace via shortcuts, hence the affinity for corruption and expensive personal tastes. By contrast, elite upbringing conditions one to grow enterprises, mainstream stability and build networks that develop firm foundations for prosperity.

African families have for generations chosen Kings and Chiefs from royal lineages. Nelson Mandela was in fact of royal bloodline from the Thembu lineage. Look at how trappings of power totally unfazed him. He would even leave his mortal enemy, Mangosuthu Buthelezi of Inkatha Freedom Party, in charge of the nation when both he and his deputy, Thambo Mbeki, were abroad. Because of this finesse, Mandela had the emotional security and high self esteem to fight and sacrifice for others, both in South Africa and world over. In fact, long before he retired after just one term, he had already handed most power to his deputy. A fine leader with an elitist mentality has nothing to prove.
I invite you to pick up other examples across the world. JF Kennedy; son of a top diplomat, Senator, fine schools, prepared to lead from childhood. George Bush Senior; diplomat, CIA Director, UN Ambassador, White House Chief of Staff, Vice President, President. Elite conditioning, elite mentality, elite leadership. There is actually nowhere in the world where “I sold chickens by the road” or “I went to school barefoot” has ever taken a country into prosperity. If you take a look along this avenue, you will only find Idi Amin, Bokassa and the one who leads you now. These are actually the types who teargas birthday cakes. The insecurity, ignorance and primitivity they bring to government teaches them to solve disputes violently since that’s all they know.

Diplomacy, in case I didn’t tell you, is an elite endeavour, because it is the basic foundation of the community of nations.

I end by reminding you that our Al Nakba was in 1978, when Moi took power. Having had no elite connections, like say Njonjo, he responded to power by heading to the villages to bring his own people to state offices. Elitism died. Power became a village tool for domination and enrichment. The economy went to the dogs. You couldn’t teach statecraft to “I went to school barefoot” who wanted to own Highrise buildings in the CBD. This built the appetite for Al Nakba II in 2022. People glorifying poverty returned to mislead poor Kenyans that they were peers. But you do know there is nowhere they could have learnt how to run profitable state business. It will end the same way.