Negotiating ‘Kenyanness’: Public discourses and Private realities
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Date
2008
Authors
Wekesa, Peter Wafula
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
CODESRIA
Abstract
Most current debates on the Kenyan nation revolve around the unfortunate events that
followed the disputed 2007 presidential elections. The resultant post-election violence
claimed over 1,200 lives and left thousands injured, displaced and billions worth of property
destroyed. The nation is still currently agonizing over the resettlement of thousands of people
evicted from their homes after the violence. Food prices and other essential commodities have
skyrocketed and social inequality is threatening the social fabric of the nation. More
disturbing has been the rise of several militia gangs including Mungiki, Sungusungu, Saboat
Land Defence Force, Taliban among many others. The key question that most analysts of the
Kenyan scene have been grappling with is not just the impact of the post-election violence but
more specifically the reasons that led to the violence and how a repeat of these unfortunate
events in future could be avoided. In this paper, we examine the public and private discourses
that have come to inform the debates around ‘Kenyanness’ as a concept. We argue that, if
‘Kenyanness’ is an ethical and philosophical doctrine, then it should relate to the broader
context of Kenyan nationhood whose object is to aspire or inspire the Kenyan people into the
love for their country, Kenya. Our basic argument is that the post-election violence in Kenya
provided a key test to the more often projected Kenyan collective spirit. While questioning the
public discourses around the Kenyan collective spirit, the paper raises pertinent issues on the
concealed private realities that continue to inform the country’s social, economic and
political developments. ‘Kenyanness’, as we suggest, ought to recognize the two levels of
similarity and difference as strong building blocs for the Kenyan nationhood that is peaceful
and prosperous.