National Ethos: An Increasingly Weak Foundation that threatens Kenya’s Gains

A look at the post-colonial set-up of the Kenyan community, shared ethos and values dictated the co-existence of various tribes. Importantly, this was done in a manner that fostered peace and unity. It was a set-up of the African traditional values and beliefs system made it easy for the Maasai in Kenya to assimilate with the Fulani in West Africa. It silently decreed our interactions and our association with others but most importantly laid the critical foundation for sustainable socioeconomic growth. Fast forward, this has changed drastically and as a country, we are synonymous with certain beliefs, acts and behaviors that do not have a sound origin and have a negative impact on the gains garnered over the years.

So who is to blame? In as much as the scramble and partition of Africa and, later on colonization, played a major part in the identity crisis we are  currently facing, we also have to shoulder the burden equally. The onus has been and still is on us to reclaim our shared beliefs and ideals, which have to  supersede our own personal interests. Community comes before an individual and an individual comes before a community. A delicate case of the chicken and the egg dilemma which the African traditional values had  found a solution to. Our beliefs and ideals manage to take care of the interests of an individual while ensuring it does not conflict with the common good of the community. Our founding beliefs had a philosophical basis attached to it that echoes sentiments shared by Aristotle in his famous book Politics in which he states that “man is by nature a social animal; an  individual who is unsocial naturally and not accidentally is either beneath our notice or more than human. Society is something that precedes the individual.”

In as much as the CoK 2010 outlines under article 10 (2) our National Values and principles of governance, many Kenyans of late have bemoaned the lack of a unifying identity and shared ethos. To a large extent, we can attribute the degradation of morals to our failure of institutionalizing and implementing these values. The solution will not involve us solving a rubric cube, rather, it will take goodwill and conscious commitment in deciding to live and be guided by these principles. It will require each and every one of us to have a moment of reflection and assess how our individual actions  have a bearing on the prosperity of this beautiful nation.

As Mwalimu Wesonga brilliantly puts it in one of his iconic patriotic songs ‘Mkenya Daima’,  ‘sisi ni wenye nchi na wala si wananchi pekee’ meaning each one of us has a  stake and we have to make our own investment for the prosperity of this  nation. We do not require an ingenious solution to the challenges facing us  as a country. The solution lies in tuning our inner belief and ideals (software) in order to have a sound foundation on what drives us to do the actions we do every day. This is a key recipe for success and if we achieve it, we will see a revitalized economy, first-class public service delivery and a blossoming  private sector.

There is a need to continuously engage each and every Kenyan to have a national discourse around the issue of establishing a true identity of Kenya  guided by National ethos. We can never disassociate ourselves from one another. We are sons and daughters of this great land with sacred yet subtle responsibilities to ensure its unfaltering continuity. A better, prosperous and united Kenya is not only beneficial to us but to future generations as well, who will look back to us with lots of admiration and gratitude, not resentment or despair. We have weakened the foundations of what makes us a wonderful country through the disintegration of shared beliefs or values. Over the years, we have tried to patch on the cracks, which misrepresented the true picture of what the country is going through. As such, the center will no longer hold, and things shall fall apart… unless we redefine our shared beliefs and values.

Article by Jamal M. Hassan

Fulbright Fellow, Public Policy Expert, Data Scientist, RAEng LIF Fellow, Certified Executive Coach