Former Prime Minister of the Republic of Kenya Raila Odinga made rare
remarks this afternoon at Strathmore University Law school at the
invitation of students and faculty of the institution.“I had a wonderful time interacting with the students and fraternity
of Strathmore University’s Law School. Our future as a nation is indeed
bright in the hands of such talented and promising individuals” Odinga
later wrote on his Face book account.Odinga’s address to an intellectual audience comprising students and
faculty at Strathmore Law School is the first in Kenya since leaving
power at the beginning of this year.
In June, Odinga delivered one of the
best democracy speeches
by an African leader in the 21st century at the University of Pretoria
where he challenged leaders and pioneers like him to “to keep empowering
the youth, support their education, strengthen their grassroots
networks and help them keep the flames of liberation burning”.
At Strathmore, here are are some of the hilarious questions students asked
mwenyekiti:
Students: Aren’t you bitter? With being kept in detention and being tortured?
PM: Response: Mandela Left Prison after years of being Tortured and
Detained and became the President of South Africa. We learn to forgive
because they did not know what they were doing.
Students: You have been in government for as long as I was
born (Laughter) how come there have been no progress or growth in
Government?
PM: Ethnicity and Elitists nature is our Number One Enemy where the
Elite surround centers of power and fear letting go. Laws of the land
were only answerable to one Mtukufu Rais and nothing could move without
his consent. This promoted Nepotism, Tribalism and corruption which
inhabited growth because there were no checks and balances.
Students: How do we attain this Democracy!? How do we save ourselves? How do we unify our country so that we can develop?
PM: Devolution under the new constitution was passed so that we can
attain all this however, because of ethnicity and elitist nature (of the
national government), it is being fought, if we can give power to
people at the grass roots level then I shall have achieved my dream of
unifying one nation. . .the Kenyan nation… because this is my dream.
Closing remarks by a Student: (Addressing the PM) We
appreciate you taking time to come be with us today. . .(usual
undergraduate hope filled thank you speech)
These remarks are yet to be confirmed by any of the press secretaries
attached to the PM as verbatim record of the PM’s talk with the law
students, however, it is a great stride for this country that an
academic institution did “muster courage” to invite Odinga to speak to
Kenyan students.
Read Odinga’s speech
here.
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THE FULL SPEECH:
SUSTAINING DEMOCRACY’S FUTURE IN AFRICA: A CHALLENGE TO THE NEXT GENERATION.
Presentation by Hon. Raila A. Odinga, Former Prime Minister, Republic
of Kenya during the Forum at the University of Pretoria, South Africa.
Mr Chairman; Ladies and Gentlemen:
It is always an honour for me to have the opportunity to discuss a
subject that ever-remains so close to my heart: democracy, particularly
with special reference to my continent, Africa;
For some people in this audience, democracy in Africa could be mere
theory; safely commented upon and discussed from the safe confines of
the academia or a conference setting.
For some us though, it has become life; real life.
At your age, my generation of Africans believed there was only one
threat that, once conquered, everything would be fine on our continent.
Growing up in the Africa of the 1950s and 1960s, we believed that once colonialism was defeated, the future would be bliss.
While today we repeatedly say Africa’s future belongs to its young
people, in the Africa of pre and immediate post independence period, the
present and the future were in the hands of the revered founding
fathers. We deeply trusted the founders of our newly independent
nations.
The idea that after independence, Africans could once again take up
arms, return to the streets and even to the bushes to fight fellow
Africans who were taking over the reigns of power from the colonialists
was extremely remote.
Independence had come. The leadership comprised those who had fought
for basic freedoms of expression, speech, association and movement.
We assumed the leaders understood the pain of being denied these
freedoms. They understood the pain of inequitable distribution of
resources.
They knew the pain of being discriminated against on the basis of
tribe, race, religion and place of origin. They would not commit such
sins against their own people.
Today, we know we were wrong. The struggle that the African people
have had to endure in the years after independence have been as vicious
as, sometimes more vicious than, the ones they waged against the
colonialists.
It was a struggle laced with the pain of being betrayed by a brother,
an uncle, a father, a neighbour, and a friend. Where were we to turn?
This is the reality this generation of Africans here in Pretoria and
across the Continent have to face. We must never trust individuals. Only
institutions count.
Even more importantly, we bequeath to you that the reality that
freedom, as President Ronal Reagan said, is never more than a generation
from extinction.
It must be fought for, protected, and handed on to the next
generation to do the same, “or one day, we will spend our sunset years
telling our children and their children how it was once like in a land
where men were free.”
Let a young Kenyan, Zimbabwean, Sudanese, South African or Ugandan
not say “the environment is so bad here, let me struggle and get out to
Britain, the U.S, France or any other countries where systems seem to
work.”
You have a rendezvous with destiny. To protect democracy, the youth
of Africa must reinvent the spirit of patriotism that informed our
struggle to be free.
And by patriotism, I don’t mean blind obedience. I mean a deliberate
effort by the youth to treat their countries as the last heaven on earth
where if they lose freedom, there is nowhere to escape to.
You have the responsibility to tell those in power that the first
duty of the government is to protect the people, not run or ruin their
lives.
Sometimes you will succeed in these efforts. Sometimes you will fail.
But there is always an option. You have the energy, the flexibility the
audacity to dream. And you have the numbers.
So do what Reagan told us: “When you can’t make them see the light, make them feel the heat.”
Engage in the affairs of your nation and your parties. Retreat and surrender are never options.
Leaders, elders and pioneers; whether in government or out have a
duty to keep empowering the youth, support their education, strengthen
their grassroots networks and help them keep the flames of liberation
burning.
Your generation is coming up well aware that the single goal we were
made to pursue; that of throwing out the colonialists, was not good
enough.
We know the colonialists left, but in a number of places, secret admirers took over from where they left.
This generation is therefore confronted with two paths and two
realities. One reality you must grow up with is that the struggle in
Africa continues.
You must know that without securing the basic freedoms, you are on a
path to conflict, bloodshed, underdevelopment, poverty, racism,
tribalism and religious intolerance and strife.
The other path will lead you to more democratic space, more opportunities more freedoms. It is the path to take.
Let me conclude by reminding you that there still remain forces that want to perpetuate impunity in the continent.
They scheme to scuttle the free expression of the popular will by
ensuring that even the most expensive electoral technology must fail in
African elections.
They endorse fraudulent elections, even where all other facts point to the contrary;
They ensure that even judicial decisions are compromised and a far
cry from basic sense of natural justice and expectations, and;
Who knows, they will ensure that any remnants of true African liberators are gagged, hounded and tormented to their graves;
I remain optimistic and emboldened by faith; that with your
engagement, propelled by the history you have been eye witnesses to,
Africa will triumph; the goodness that God intended for all of us will
triumph over all evil;
And as I said as Prime Minister, Africa remains the next frontier for genuine economic hope, peace and prosperity.
RT. HON. RAILA AMOLO ODINGA
