Raila Odinga: We must not take our freedom for granted
By RAILA ODINGA
Posted Saturday, August 20 2011 at 22:40
Throughout all the years since independence, Kenyans who desired progressive change have spent inestimable time and energy opposing wrongs inflicted on our governance structure by self-serving policies.
These polices eventually rendered our Constitution an incoherent patchwork, reflecting not what was good for our country but only the whims of those who wished to retain and reinforce the status quo.
All that changed last year, when we scored a major victory as a nation in voting overwhelmingly for and promulgating a new Constitution.
With the new Constitution, we took a significant step towards redeeming ourselves from a troubled past and pushing the frontiers of our freedom.
Our new Constitution is a celebration of our democracy. It honours freedom of speech, respect for human rights, an independent judiciary and freedom for the individual to pursue his or her interests under the rule of law.
These are values we must never take for granted. Very few countries have had the opportunity to change their constitutions peacefully after many years of struggle against entrenched regimes. That is why we must appreciate and celebrate what we have, and commit ourselves to building determinedly on our gains.
As we mark the first anniversary of life under our new Constitution, I would like to pay tribute to the men and women who never gave up hope that Kenya deserved better, our brothers and sisters who were prepared to pay the ultimate price to see a dream come true.
We salute those fallen heroes, and we also keep in our prayers those whose daily lives involve a valiant struggle to cope with damage sustained in the fight for freedom. We remember many acts of uncommon bravery and selflessness.
We also pay tribute to the extraordinary resilience of Kenyans as a whole. It was the culmination of all those efforts and that resilience which gave us our new Constitution last year. It stands as testimony to what we can achieve when we unite and stay focused.
We are, of course, alert to the fact that the passage and promulgation of the new Constitution was only part of a continuing struggle for a better, freer, more equal Kenya.
That dream still has some very strong opponents. But I remain confident that, drawing strength from the unity we have forged in the recent past, we can together ensure the full implementation of the Constitution, and realise the vision that lies at its heart.
The new Constitution is already changing the way we manage our affairs, giving a voice to minorities and the marginalised, and imposing tough integrity and accountability standards on those vying for public office.
It is making unprecedented demands for transparency and accountability in the management of public affairs, and ensuring public participation in critical decision making. Examples are recent judicial and government appointments, which have been achieved in a dramatically different manner.
There are challenges, it is true. There is no doubt that some of the changes ushered in by the new laws are demanding and radical. This has led to robust debate and, in some cases, to apparently intractable deadlock.
It is right that there should be debate on fundamental changes to our way of life. And, given the intrinsic importance of such changes, some roadblocks were not unexpected.
But we must never give up. Vigorous debate can make some ready to give up too easily, predicting an abyss in waiting. But it is my firm belief that none of the challenges we face is insurmountable.
I am under no illusions that the future will be particularly easy, but I would like to emphasise to everyone that, as a nation, we must not be afraid of these changes. They offer great potential for renewal — for renewed and justified confidence in national leadership and in our institutions.
Whatever we do, we should not allow healthy debate to become the excuse that polarises the nation and extends the argument that the new Constitution cannot work.
No one should ever believe that the coming of the new Constitution was a mistake, that the old one was better, or that business-as-usual would promise greater reward than reforms.
Let us keep our focus. Let us be aware that beyond the issues forcing us to engage in heated debate lies the potential for a sea-change in Kenya’s body politic.
After 2007-2008, we committed to making laws that would enable us to work together across the ethnic, regional, gender and political divide. The search for unity and reconciliation was our priority, and it must remain an indelible principle as we implement this constitution.
That implementation must seek and create greater unity, not more divisions. There is nothing that will influence our ability to reconstruct and develop our land which will be more important than this.
Mr Odinga is the Prime Minister of the Republic of Kenya
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