by JOE KOBUTHI
Reflections on the philosophical underpinnings of social accountability in Kenya.
The fall of the Berlin Wall on 9 November 1989 was a pivotal event in world history. The Wall, which until then had symbolised the ideological divisions of the Communist East and the Capitalist West, could no longer hold back the ideological change that had been spreading in Eastern Europe and across the world.
The political, social and economic changes that ensued seemed to confirm political theorist Francis Fukuyama’s pronouncement that history had ended. He opined that the “flow of events over the past decade made it difficult to avoid the feeling that something very fundamental has happened in world history”, and that the ideological evolution of humanity was complete, with Western liberal democracy prevailing as the ultimate form of human government.
By Western liberal democracy, Fukuyama meant government in which people consent to their rulers, and rulers, in turn, are constitutionally constrained to respect the people’s rights. It emphasises the separation of powers, an independent judiciary, and systematic checks and balances between branches of government. It provides a foundation for multiparty elections, political and human rights, free media, a market economy, and a robust civil society. Fukuyama proclaimed the triumph of this political paradigm at the moment it was primed to spread across the globe.
Many of the West’s allies embraced the liberal democratic form of governance. The Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet was ousted from power and Patricio Aylwin was democratically elected as president. South Africa’s Apartheid system ended in 1994 and Nelson Mandela became the president of the newly formed “rainbow nation”. In Kenya, this wind of change triggered the process of political reform in 1991 with the repeal of section 2A of the constitution, returning Kenya to a multiparty state. The changes set in motion culminated in the promulgation of a new democratic constitution on 27 August 2010.
Argued to be one of the most progressive in the world, the Constitution of Kenya (2010) enshrines many values and principles that have the potential to transform Kenya into an equitable, just and fair society. However, a governance dividend facilitated by a constitutional framework only occurs in a society where citizens have high public trust because their leaders are accountable to their aspirations and desires. At the centre of democratic societies lies the idea of accountability whereby a social contract exists between a responsive and accountable state and responsible and active citizens, which also takes into account the interests of the marginalised, alienated, and dispossessed.
Social Accountability – A philosophical reflection
This form of civic initiative that fosters accountability through the organised collective action of citizens and other non-state actors to hold power to account for their responsibilities and obligations has been broadly defined as “social accountability”. Indeed, social accountability processes create different avenues for citizens and non-state actors to participate directly in political processes by providing them with leading roles in the process of constructing more inclusive and just democratic societies by catalysing their engagement with state actors in an informed, systematic and constructive way.
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