KENYAN ROLLERCOASTER

Many Kenyans seem to agree that the political old guard's sell-by date is long past. As frustration with government in-fighting and perceived time-wasting grows, people are looking for saviours. But few see any among the current crop of politicians and members of parliament, most of whom are lumped together in the public mind -- rightly or wrongly -- as sharp-suited, shifty time-wasting wabenzi who are in politics solely to enrich themselves or their immediate communities. There are undoubtedly exceptions but as Kenya's political roller-coaster rattles from crisis to crisis, never getting anywhere, it's easy to see why some Kenyans feel fresh faces are the only answer. Two constituencies spring to mind -- women and Kenya's young people.
Women's groups put themselves in the spotlight last week when they called for a seven-day sex boycott to demand political reform and protest poor leadership. And now, as the boycott ends, the groups, known as Gender 10, say they are drawing up a 90-day plan to keep pressure on the government to fulfil its obligations. "Women want to go on with the business of building this nation, not mourning their children or worrying about their safety," G-10 said in a statement.
Kenyan youths are also showing their disatisfaction -- whether by pulling up railtracks in Kibera over the Migingo dispute with Uganda, heckling a minister at the May Day rally, or urging change as in this post from the National Youth Convention.
It would probably be prudent to pay attention to the demands coming from Kenya's future voters, entrepreneurs and leaders. A Kenyan expert has warned that the number of unemployed youth could rise to 14 million over the next seven years. Professor Inonda Mwanje, chief executive officer of the Institute of Policy Analysis and Research, said this surge could spark off a peoples’ revolution if it is not tamed. He said parliament should dedicate a day to discussing this problem -- a tall order when the House cannot yet agree on who leads government business.
The government is aware though: In April, Prime Minister Raila Odinga said: "The unemployment we face in Kenya is nothing but a time bomb. It has been correctly stated that despondency played a big role in fuelling the violence that swept our land during the political crisis last year."
The time bomb may be ticking, but there is little sense of urgency in the corridors of power. President Mwai Kibaki and Odinga have now met again after weeks of scrapping between their PNU and ODM parties but there has been no breakthrough on the crucial question of who will head government business in parliament. And when the House Business Committee attempted to meet on Tuesday, there were not enough members for a quorum. Only five turned up. Daily Nation said those who failed to show included Odinga (who wants to head the committee), Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka (the president's choice to head the committee), deputy prime ministers Uhuru Kenyatta and Musalia Mudavadi and new Justice head Mutula Kilonzo, among many others.
Government paralysis does have a pratical cost -- it creates the perception of a failed state, or at the very least a stagnating state, and why would you put your money there? Kilonzo, who was Nairobi Metropolitan minister before getting the justice portfolio, said this week that persistent traffic jams, rising insecurity and poor infrastructure means Nairobi is losing its status as a destination of choice to investors and tourists.
For those who may be still committed to "eating" their way to the next election in Kenya, this news from Paris may be worth a read. A French judge has launched an investigation into whether the presidents of Congo-Brazzaville, Gabon and Equatorial Guinea used embezzled public funds to buy luxury homes and cars. The judge opened the case after a police investigation and at the request of the French arm of Transparency International -- setting a precedent that could be copied by anti-corruption organisations elsewhere.
Back in Nairobi, the reports of scurrilous dealings and scandals keep coming, thick and fast -- among the latest: Uhuru Kenyatta is being questioned over whether he duped MPs into passing an extra 9 billion shillings as part of the supplementary budget. And Odinga is angrily denying reports that his family and associates were involved in the maize scandal earlier this year.