By Billy Mijungu
A bad law demanding that civil servants resign before contesting elections should enrage us all. Its outcome has been the opposite of merit: we end up taking our worst not our best to political leadership.
This legal barrier deters professionals and experienced public servants from pursuing politics for fear of losing their livelihood.
Civil servants, especially those who are not AIE holders or accounting officers, should be allowed to take unpaid leave during the official campaign period. They should be free to contest for office without the disadvantage of losing income from jobs they have diligently served in.
The justification that public officers might misuse public resources or wield undue influence while vying for political office is flimsy. The truth is, anyone with such intent lays the groundwork years in advance, not just during the campaign window. Why should a teacher, for instance, be forced to resign? What massive public resources do they control that could warrant such restrictions?
Running for public office is a job application like any other.
Politicians are public officers too, just like civil servants, and they are paid by the exchequer. The current law targets public officers unfairly, while private sector candidates, many of whom control vast resources and networks, are free to run with no such consequences.
This law has discouraged competent public servants who could bring much-needed experience and integrity to elective positions. It has drained the public space of experienced voices and shrunk the pool of potential leaders. Worse still, it is a direct affront to the political rights guaranteed by the Constitution.
Members of Parliament went a step further by imposing similar restrictions on Members of County Assemblies who must resign before seeking higher office. Kenyans should have seen this for what it was, a desperate move to lock out competition.
This explains the growing number of MPs returning to Parliament term after term. The law has made it easier to entrench incumbency by intimidating would-be challengers.
We cannot continue to use this flawed law to deny others the right to compete. All public officers should be allowed to take leave during the campaign period and seek elective office without losing their source of income.
Politics must be viewed as a legitimate career path. In Singapore, public policy is designed to bring the best minds into politics, and the results are visible in its transformation into a global powerhouse. In contrast, our laws ensure that only the most desperate, compromised, or self-interested individuals venture into political leadership.
The consequences are all around us, stalled development, weak institutions, and public frustration.
We must define political candidacy as a job application and recognize politics as a respectable career. It is only in countries like ours where politicians, defeated or retired, are treated as unemployable.
In most advanced jurisdictions, former politicians move on to other roles in public service or the private sector with dignity and respect. Politics is, after all, the apex of public affairs management. Former MPs should be able to return to their professions, enriched by the experience of governance.
An accountant should be able to return to audit firms or corporations. A doctor should resume practice. Lawyers, who have long enjoyed this flexibility, often continue to practice while serving in office and return seamlessly after. This should be the norm, not the exception.
Our country must change, not just politically but structurally. Public infrastructure should reflect a sense of equality, catering to both the common citizen and the high-profile leader. When this happens, we reduce the power distance and begin to appreciate all careers equally.
Theatrics like convoys, sirens, and excessive security details should fade, replaced by a dignified, shared public space.
We have left the most important job, politics, in the hands of the least prepared. Subjective interests now dominate a space that demands objectivity. Crooks have exploited this vacuum and taken over Parliament, using it to protect themselves and shut out reformers.
This law must be reviewed urgently.
