HISTORY has it that, NATIONS that aspire to continue EXISTING AND PROSPERING must undergo a moment of RE~INVENTION once after several years.
A moment of RE~BIRTH breathes a new life to the soul of a nation. Worth-noting, no nation can entirely SKIP this moment. You might ignore or postpone it but it will surely happen.
In modern day democracies, the RE~BIRTH of REPUBLICS is embodied in CONSTITUTIONAL MOMENTS. From time to time, a REPUBLIC must REVISIT its SUPREME law, AUDIT IT and BRING IT UP TO SPEED with unfolding CIRCUMSTANCES and REALITIES. Kenya is no exception to this dictate of history.
1963 was our FIRST moment of re~birth; quiet a successful one.
Then came the SECOND one which took us too long to execute. Since the 90s, as a REPUBLIC, we kept on POSTPONING a beckoning CONSTITUTIONAL MOMENT. Prof Yash Pal Ghai’s CKRC, Bomas etc were all FALSE starts.
But a TIME CAME when the hovering spirits of a COSTITUTIONAL MOMENT could not keep up with our ESCAPIST maneuvers anymore. They went ahead and VENGEFULLY served us one PAINFUL reminder in 2007/8. We had to OBLIGE or PERISH.
But it seems as a people, we NEVER LEARN. 2007/8 appears not to have taught us a lesson GOOD ENOUGH.
Once again, the spirits of a CONSTITUTIONAL MOMENT, EMBODIED in BBI, have been hovering around, BEGGING us to listen and consider a CONSTITUTIONAL CONSENSUS that would deal with the pertinent issues of DIVISIVE ELECTIONS, INCLUSIVITY and ETHNIC ANTAGONISM/COMPETITION.
As usual, we have chosen to either IGNORE or POSTPONE the conversation. We have happily cheered on our JUDICIARY as it decimated the BBI CONSTITUTIONAL MOMENT. This week, the SUPREME COURT through its #BBIFinalVerdict, executed the last step of our NAIVE plan to wish away the beckoning CONSTITUTIONAL MOMENT. We are gullibly celebrating.
Unfortunately, we won’t be happy for very long. Because the spirits of the BBI CONSTITUTIONAL MOMENT have gone nowhere. They are still hovering around waiting for a PERFECT OPPORTUNITY to strike and when they do so, they will strike with VENGEANCE. They will serve us a very IMPOLITE REMINDER, perhaps more IMPOLITE than that of 2007/8.
So folks, as we happily toast to the FALL OF BBI, let us remember that the moment of re~birth our Republic is yearning for is not going anywhere.
The beckoning RENEWAL of the SOUL of our NATION is INEVITABLE. Whether it will be in the form of Reggae, Ragga, HipHop, Genge, Mugithi or Rhumba does not matter.
The big question is, will we come back to our senses as Republic early enough to embrace it on time or will we allow the hovering spirits of a Constitutional Moment to serve us one painful reminder?
© Mr Chronicles Alvan Kinyua, C.G.P. 2022