REVIEW: The Making of a Nation: A Political History of Kenya

REVIEW


The Making of a Nation: A Political History of Kenya

By Pauline Muindi

A certain professor once said that if you didn't know history, you didn't know anything. You were just like a leaf that didn't know it was part of a tree. I know that a vast majority of Kenyans don’t pay attention to the country’s history apart from the Mau Mau struggle for freedom. This is with the misguided belief that history is a boring subject and the past should remain in the past. Watch The Making of a Nation, a documentary which is aired on NTV on Sundays 10:00 PM, (or even better, buy the DVD) and you will find such beliefs to be just that, beliefs.

The Making of a Nation: A Political History of Kenya is a series of 14 riveting half-hour episodes which chronicle Kenya’s political journey from the period just before independence, the early turbulent years of independence to 2007.

The series, which won the 2010 Kalasha award for Best TV Documentary is co-produced by Nation Media Group and veteran journalist, Hilary Ng’weno. The documentary utilizes flawless cinematography (using still pictures and video) and audio quality to create a captivating 2-set DVD which brings Kenya’s political history to life. The only thing I found a little irksome was the use of sepia-colored stills.

Throughout the 14 episodes one is treated to a tale that is colored with twists and turns as the larger than life cast which includes Jomo Kenyatta, Tom Mboya, Daniel Moi and Mwai Kibaki as they engage in Machiavellian tactics so as to stay firmly in political control.

The first episode, In the Beginning, introduces you to the characters who fought for the independence of Kenya. They all had a collective objective: to end the colonial rule in Kenya, a feat that they achieved in 1963. However, what many history books will conveniently forget to tell you is that these heroes also had their own personal ambitions and objectives. In addition, each of them also represented the interests of different ethnic regions of the country. And that might have been the birth of ethnic politics in Kenya and the culture of ‘it-is-our-time-to-eat’. This is when the political rivalry between Kikuyus and Luos allegedly began.

The rivalry between Tom Mboya and Pio Gama Pinto, Oginga Odinga, and Charles Njonjo among others in Kenyatta’s inner circle is also chronicled in the first episode. You get to follow the journey of Tom Mboya, a Luo political wonder-boy who was later assassinated by his rivals in July 1969. The assassination of Tom Mboya greatly shook the Luos and strengthened their anti-Kikuyu stance.

The second episode, Dividing the Spoils, starts with explaining the effect that instability in the neighboring countries had on Kenyan politics under the leadership of President Kenyatta. The remaining episodes of disc one: Battle of Alliances, Shifting Alliances, Cohesion at the Center, No Longer at Ease, and The Rise and Fall of the Community will take you through the rest of Kenyatta’s era.

The second disc starts with The End of an Era, an episode that will take you through the last days of Kenyatta’s tenure. After Mzee Jomo Kenyatta’s sudden death in 1978, Daniel arap Moi, the Vice President, hitherto perceived as a non-threat to the presidency took over the reigns, promising the nation that he would faithfully follow in Kenyatta’s footsteps. Episode nine, The Rise of Moi takes you through the relatively calm days after Moi took over power. The Rise of Moi is followed by an episode tellingly entitled Feet of Clay which records the 1982 military coup that shook Kenya. Moi apparently realized Kenyan politics was a jungle in which only the fittest could survive. He started employing dictatorial tactics so as to eliminate any dissenting forces.

Through the other episodes recording Moi’s era, you will be taken through the struggles of other key politicians to usurp political power from Moi. The journey comes to a rather spectacular end in the 2003 general elections when Mwai Kibaki is elected president. Unity and After, the ending episode records Kibaki’s first term and all its hopes and dreams. The series ends on a positive note with bright hopes for the nation.

However, you and I know that Kenya is yet to achieve unity and new events still continue to shape the history of Kenya. Remember, to remain ignorant of history is to remain a child. Get yourself a copy of this documentary masterpiece DVD for only 1500 KSh at any DVD outlet and you will never regret it. This is a definite collector’s item. As they say, if you want to understand today, search yesterday.