By Yvonne Idamano
I became aware of the term broad-based government recently when the President appointed a
new cabinet to replace the old one, he had dissolved after months of Kenyans expressing
dissatisfaction over a cabinet they described as ‘incompetent and with a controversial show of
opulence’.
With the new appointments came the reappointment of six previous cabinet members. The public
felt the President had just transferred incompetency from the old into the new cabinet, forgoing
the appointment of fresh faces, which could have cooled down the public’s anger.
The new twist to the appointment brought about the phrase ‘broad-based government’, where
four popular members from the opposition, with positions in their parties, were appointed to
various dockets of the cabinet.
The public believes there are more knowledgeable and well-equipped technocrats who can
handle the various dockets of the cabinet without having to recycle the same crop of politicians.
At the same time, many want to know if the President’s move has a motive behind it.
The President recently came out to the public to defend his move. He stated that the appointment
of the six opposition members was to create an inclusive government. He reiterated that this was
to ensure inclusivity in the government and that the executive was not just a reservation of a few
of the President’s allies.
Many speculate that by bringing the opposition on board, the President wanted to quench the
anti-government protests; working with the opposition will enable him to manoeuvre through the
rest of his term, handling the opposition in the process and quelling the public’s agitation.
Political commentators see this as a political move to woo the opposition and its allies in re-
aligning with him for the 2027 polls, seeing that he had lost favour with his 2022 supporters.
But what will the opposition gain by aligning with the President?
The opposition leader has defended the President’s move, saying the President reached out for
help to help evade anarchy- a call he made for the sake of the country’s wellbeing.
The opposition’s alignment with the government received mixed reactions. Some have embraced
the move, while others argue it is a selfish move to get a stake in the government and remain
relevant, acquiring some form of executive power to the detriment of the Kenyan citizens,
causing them to declare themselves the new opposition.
The opposition is viewed now as opportunists riding on the wave of the youth’s anti-government
protests. The government is seen as being tone-deaf again, as the citizens are uninterested in a
broad-based government; they just want good governance led by competent people, their
resources well managed and accounted for, enabling them to sustain themselves in their beloved
country.
For now, all the country can do is wait and see how the ‘broad-based government’ works. If the
cabinet performs, the better. It means a win for the country.
