Kenya Reborn- A new Constitutional Dispensation!

I used to say while in the University that I was among the top ten last victims of the oppressive Moi/Kanu- era regime of 1978 to 2002. At around early November 2002, as president Moi set off for his coastal tour of meet the people and campaign for his erstwhile political protige', Mr. Uhuru Kenyatta, a few University of Nairobi student led by a friend of mine called Mutiga Gitobu and I left for Mombasa ostensibly to oppose Mr. Moi's choice of successor. While in Mombasa we rode on the University bus as it criss-crossed the busy morning streets of the coastal town. Our heads our danggled out as we bellowed out with passion, ''Rainbow! Rainbow! Rainbow!'' It might have begun as a chorus for two people but soon it picked up momentum and the entire of Mombasa city reveberated with shockwaves reckotchetting from Mnazi Moja to Mwembe Tayari.
Soon the then dreaded Coast political lion, Mr. Sharif Nasir roared into action accompanied by a contigent of General Service Unit police demanding to be told what Luos were doing in Mombasa (according to Sharif Nassir all opponents of Moi were Luos). He shouted at us wondering whether we had confused Mombasa for Kisumu! But we were determined to pass the message, that time had finally come for the country to shell off the dirty-stinking rag that had characterised our body-politiq. We refused to be told that Mr. Uhuru Kenyatta had an answer to the sweltering morass of political quargmire and eons of socio-economic dormancy that our country had been drifted into. And so we shouted, ''Rainbow! Rainbow! Rainbow!, Comrades power! Comrades power!'' And the onlookers were quite responsive, they roared back with enchanting enthusiasm, ''Rainbow! Power!''
It was at this juncture that Mr. Nassir ordered the Police to swing into action. They rolled back their sleeves and the resultant impact was immediately registered on our bodies. They began kicking and throwing. Crashing of the University Bus window vanes, shooting in the air and throwing tear gas at us. We ran helter skelter, some pissing and sipping like never before! There were about sixty or so students in the bus. The driver thought very fast that if he drove off at cutthroat speed he could save us from the hitherto beasts who had now surrounded us from all angles. The bus whizzed through the open space like a bullet shot from an M.16 machine gun.
In no much time we were blocked by the Police officers of Rabai Police Station. An immediate interrogation began and two people were identified as Ring Leaders, Mutiga Gitobu and Benson Maisori, myself! We whisked away to the station for further interrogation where we were released after six hours. Probaly our day was saved by the fact the period was a campaign season and so any move to incacerate us would have triggered hue, cry and jitters across the political divides.
Why I have decided to give this story is not because I like talking about it, but because of the fact that Kenyans tomorrow (4th August, 2010) are headed for a referendum meant to usher in a new Constitutional dispensation. Whereas there is every omen in and around the country that points to the fact that the country will adopt a new constitution after attempting the same unsuccessfully for the last 20 years, it is incumbent upon us who have something to say of our history to imortalize what we knew of the woeful current constitution adopted at the Lancaster House Conference in 1963. The main reason I have given this highlight of my encounter with President Moi's most loyal leutenant, Hon. Sharrif Nassir, Minister of State for Internal Security then, is because I wanted to remind Kenyans that Nassir was able to harrass us as he did not because he was very powerful but because of a rogue constitution that granted him such raw power to intrude and infrige on our freedom of expression. What we were doing was simply exercising our right to a free political consciousness and the very least and freedom of association as well as freedom of movement, at best! But we were treated to police brutality instead. It was after this incidence that I sought to dig deep into Kenya's post indepence History. And it was a mess!
In short, Kenya, Malasya, South Korea and Singapore were at par with each other economically in 1963. But down the line in 2010, the former is a beggar while the latter three are in the league of first class economies of the world. From Political assassination of political icons like Pio Gama Pinto 1965, Tom Mboya 1969, JM Kariuki 1975, Robert Ouko 1989 to Bishop Alexander Muge to complete tattaring up of the economy presided over by the Moi/Kanu regime. The mega economic scandals of the 1990s spearheaded by the Goldenberg Luminaries such Kamlesh Patni, Wilfred Koinange, James Kanyotu among others brought down to its knees, Kenya's budding economy. These scandals were peppered up by the most recent scandals epitomised by the Anglo Leasing scandals which saw almost 10 Billion shilling make their way into indivivual people's pockets! Goldenberg scandal could very easily rank among the biggest economic scandals of the 20th century globally!
The reign of terror overseen by the Moi regime culminated in the conversion of Nyayo House basement rooms into torture chambers where political opponents who held divergent opinion were dragged into unceremoniously and subjected to what might not even be admissible in hell as dignified punishment. I have ever had a session with one of the torture victims, Mr. Paddy Onyango, who narrated to us what it was like to be thrown into torture chambers. We all shed tears then! I still shed tears everytime I recall what My. Onyango told us. I might not be perfect so as to judge other men, but I think there certain things that when committed against a fellow man, then God will have to intervene on the day of judgement. It was horrible! All this was in the name of demanding for a new constitution.
Then came the year 2005 when Kenyans were invited to vote for a new constitution. It was rejected at the referendum. Moi then joined the victors of the day to celebrate victory. Today we are faced once again with a plebisite at a time the country is still healing from the 2007 Post Election Violence that saw the killing of over 1300 Kenyans and the displacement of over 600,000 other Kenyans rendering them internally displaced persons (IDPs). Allow me to observe that for once this country has closest to getting a new constitution. Apart fro a few Church leaders who my friend Dr. Timothy Njoya described as bastards who learnt their theolgy in the streets of Nairobi and who are now opposing the proposed constitution claiming it is biased in favour of Islam and that it gives room for abortionists, the country is the truest ever mood of getting a new Constitution tomorrow.
And so this is a call unto all Kenyans. We are lucky to have witnessed the making of history in this era. We must wake up tomorrow in the morning and usher in a new era that we shall be proud of. An era of jubilation for generations to come. To me these are the days of James Monroe, he of the American Constitution! These are the days Martin Luther King, he of the civil rights movement. These are the days of Jesus Christ, he of the days of setting free the oppressed, feeding the hungry and establishing God's Kingdom here on earth. And as the American heroes of American War of Independence declared, ''We hold these truths to be self evidence that all men are born equal and continue to be so in the eyes of their creator. And that at birth all men are endorwed with certain innalienable rights among which is the right to life, libert and the freedom to pursue happiness!'' Kenyans! Now is the time for us to rise to the occasion and answer the clarion call of duty. We have a duty to this nation. A duty to deliver a consitution that shall serve posterity. So that when they ask 100 years from today, who was responsible for this beautiful order of our governance? our children shall be answered with no iota of doubt, 'It was the great generation led by President Mwai Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga. The year of our Lord 2010, the exact date being 4th Of August.
Viva Kenya!