Ruto Uhuru and Kalonzo; KKK proponents. Photo courtesy

The KKK, an acronym for Kikuyu, Kalenjin and Kamba, is an alliance fronted by key leaders from three communities to enable one of them ascend to power. This ideology fronts the figures of these communities going by the last census as sufficient to win elections. As such, it has nothing else binding other than bringing the three big tribes in Kenya to win Executive power. The flipside of it is that as soon as that power is won, it will be the same story of being shortchanged as each tribe demands its pound of flesh. Ruto will demand  Cabinet seats and other government positions for his tribe. Kalonzo will do the same and so will Uhuru.

This alliance should not be allowed by the very Kenyans from these three communities from which it is being fronted. Firstly, this alliance has nothing to offer the common man in terms of economic and social development; it is about power sharing and wealth protection, mostly acquired through corruption. Secondly, this kind of tribal alliance degenerated into tribal clashes and Post Election Violence (PEV). The whole concept of fronting tribe against others is a dangerous undertaking which no sane Kenyan, let alone leader, should even contemplate after we witnessed 2007/8 PEV.

Kenyans know what happened soon after tribal alliances coalesced during the 2005 referendum debates. These tribal alignments were largely to build the platform and arena in which the largest tribe in Kenya, the Kikuyu, was to find themselves being slaughtered in many parts of the country especially the Rift Valley. On the other hand, members of the Luo found themselves on the receiving end in areas dominated by the Kikuyu like Naivasha and Nakuru. The wider battle was perceived to be Kikuyu versus Luo and others were either allies in this tribal orgy with the Kalenjin mostly taking the side of the Luo and the friendly security forces and militia under the President were sent to counter such attacks, culminating into yet more massacres in places like Kisumu, Eldoret among others.

With the background of how things go following disputed elections and with PEV victims not yet settled, perpetrators not yet brought to book, our electoral reforms not completed, an alliance of the three big tribes poses a threat to other big tribes such as the Luo, Luhya, Kisii,Somali, etc who are likely to, under common political interest and threat, unite into another tribal block. The smaller tribes are likely to join one or the other tribal blocks. This scenario will then build tensions around borders as we near the general elections based on perceived support for or against preferred candidates.

Now, I have given so far the path such thinking will take Kenya to as we approach 2012 and with equally balanced “tribal forces,” a dangerous tribal stadium is being watered by none other than our leaders for nothing else other than power. This time round, the slaughter will be to a wider scale like the  genocide in Rwanda.

It is instructive to note that none other than the President is playing into the hands of these tribal players. As a key leader who should lead the healing and reconciliation process, he should avoid like the plague tribal outfits. He should plan reconciliation meetings accompanied by all the leaders from the Kenyan communities with him, where the face of Kenya and not that of Kikuyu, Kamba and Kalenjin (KKK) is seen. He should stretch this to all parts of Kenya where violence has taken place and not just for political reasons, but for true healing and reconciliation.

If I were Kibaki, I would bring together Ruto, Raila, Kalonzo, Uhuru, Mudavadi, and key leaders to reconciliation and peace meetings be they in the Rift Valley, Nyanza, Coast, Central, Western Kenya. The topic would be ONE KENYA, ONE NATION, not realignments for 2012. Where do you stand as a Kenyan in all this tribal matrix?

By Otieno Sungu
The author can be reached at [email protected]