HUSSEIN KHALID
Africa-Press – Kenya. In Kenya’s evolving democracy, political parties have become the most decisive gatekeepers of leadership. Yet paradoxically, while we demand transparency, accountability and constitutionalism from government, we have largely ignored the state of democracy within the very parties that produce that government.
It is time for Kenyans to shift focus inward to interrogate, reform and democratise political parties themselves.
In many regions of Kenya, political parties are so dominant that securing a party ticket is virtually equivalent to winning the general election. In parts of Nyanza, for example, a ticket from the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) can be as good as being elected unopposed. In sections of Central Kenya or the Rift Valley, similar dominance has historically been enjoyed by other regional kingpin parties.
The practical implication is profound—the real contest for leadership is not at the ballot during the general election but rather during party primaries and internal party processes.
When this is the case, internal party democracy ceases to be a peripheral matter. It becomes the very foundation of Kenya’s democratic health. If party nominations are opaque, manipulated or dictated by a few individuals, then voters are effectively denied a meaningful choice. They are left to rubber-stamp decisions already made in backroom meetings.
Political parties are expected to model the democratic values they demand from the state. Yet many parties in Kenya have increasingly behaved like fiefdoms—private political estates controlled by a handful of elites who wield enormous influence with minimal accountability. Internal dissent is treated as betrayal. Party organs are weaponised to silence alternative voices.
Constitutions are selectively interpreted or outright ignored when inconvenient.
The ODM party provides a telling case study. For years, it has positioned itself as a defender of constitutionalism and a champion of democratic governance in Kenya. It has loudly and rightly criticised state institutions for violating the Constitution of Kenya and undermining the rule of law. However, it is difficult to reconcile this public posture with its own recent internal conduct.
ODM’s so-called National Executive Council (NEC), which should function as a custodian of the party’s constitution and internal democracy, has increasingly been accused of acting in ways that contradict the party’s own rules. Rather than serving as a neutral administrative body, it has appeared to entrench certain individuals in positions of power while sidelining those with dissenting opinions.
A particularly glaring example is the party’s failure to convene a National Delegates Conference (NDC) to elect a new party leader as required by its own constitution.
The NDC is not a ceremonial gathering; it is the supreme decision-making organ of the party. It is meant to embody grassroots participation and ensure that leadership is legitimately elected and periodically renewed. By failing to hold this conference in accordance with its constitution, the party undermined the very democratic principles it claims to uphold nationally.
This is not merely an internal administrative oversight. It is a constitutional failure within the party. When leadership positions are extended or retained without proper electoral processes, when constitutional requirements are bypassed and when party organs ignore their own governing documents, the message to members is clear – rules are optional and power trumps principle.
Such practices erode trust not only within the party but in the broader political system. How can a political party claim moral authority to monitor government, to demand adherence to the constitution or to protest executive overreach, when it does not respect its own foundational document? How can it credibly accuse the state of violating the rule of law while itself bending or breaking internal rules to serve narrow interests?
This problem is not unique to ODM. Across the political spectrum in Kenya, parties are often built around personalities rather than institutions. Leadership transitions are rare and contentious. Internal elections are frequently delayed, manipulated or stage managed.
Party constitutions gather dust while informal power networks dictate decisions. Loyalty to individuals is rewarded over commitment to principle.
Yet political parties are not private clubs. They are public institutions playing a constitutional role in governance. They receive public funding through the Political Parties Fund. They nominate candidates who go on to wield state power. As such, they must be held to the highest standards of transparency and internal democracy.
Kenyans must therefore demand more. Party members must insist on regular, credible internal elections. Delegates’ conferences must be convened as stipulated in party constitutions. Disciplinary processes must be fair, transparent and free from factional manipulation. Financial accountability must be strengthened. Party organs must operate within clearly defined mandates.
Ultimately, democracy is not built only at the ballot box during general elections. It is built into the internal culture of political organisations. If parties are democratic, transparent and accountable, they will likely produce leaders who respect those same values in government. If they are autocratic and opaque, they will produce leaders who govern in the same manner.
The time has come for Kenyans to demand that political parties act as they preach to the government. Only then can we build a democracy that is genuine, resilient and worthy of its name.
Source: The Star
