Saba Saba Day: The origin and context

The 33rd Saba Saba anniversary comes amidst growing political animosity and at a time when the country is grappling with the worst economic meltdown in years.

Azimio la Umoja One Kenya Coalition Party leader Raila Odinga is pushing for economic reforms to address the high cost of living and the quashing of the Finance Act 2023.

This, according to veteran politician and former Runyenjes MP Njeru Kathangu, is a mere morphing of Kenya’s struggle for transformation which is yet to be completed more than three decades later.

As dozens of opposition supporters led by Azimio leader Raila Odinga went back to the historic Kamukunji grounds to celebrate the Saba Saba anniversary, Citizen TV visited the veteran politician Kathangu who was a pivotal organizer of the nationwide protests on 7th July 1990, the first Saba Saba.

He says that the Saba Saba movement was birthed by political agitation which dated back to the 1970s when Mzee Jomo Kenyatta died.

According to Kathangu, those who were seeking to succeed the late Kenyatta detested Moi’s ascension to power, which was choreographed by Charles Njonjo. This feeling of political betrayal compounded with Moi’s dictatorial style of leadership fanned the flames of agitation

“The Moi system then put up Nyayo house which was opened in 1982 the same year that these things were happening and it had been constructed for about 5 years meaning that the idea was still in their head, to punish, to torture to subdue everybody that was going to be talking against him,” he explained.

In 1982, the Kenyan Air Force attempted a coup to overthrow Moi’s government which turned chaotic. Many were beaten and arrested. Moi would then pass an amendment to the constitution introducing Section 2A which made Kenya officially a single-party state marking the end of competitive politics.

“Immediately before that, there was the attempted formation of a political party Kenya African Socialist Alliance (KASU) in June and that brought Jaramogi Odinga Odinga into house arrest, George Anyona into detention and I was spared because I had just come from prison in 1980,” he said.

The climax of the growing displeasure was on 7th July 1990 when Kenya witnessed the largest nationwide protests. This was in spite of the fact that the late Kenneth Matiba and Charles Rubia, leaders who were key in calling for the protests, had been arrested a few days before that.

“They were fighting for freedom, they were fighting for their independence and they were fighting for their land,” he noted.

Over 20 people are reported to have died in that protest which left thousands injured. However, Moi’s government bowed to pressure and allowed a return to political pluralism.

Section 2A of the constitution was repealed in 1991 and Kenya had its first multiparty elections in 1992 where about 8 political parties participated.

The democratic space was also expanded as Kenyans were allowed to enjoy their freedom of speech and assembly, rights that were previously curtailed.

Despite the gains, however, the country's quest for transformation has been snail-paced.

“The spirit of Saba Saba was to push for freedoms and democracy, the spirit of this Saba Saba is to push for survival; it is not very different, only that the environments are different, situations different and the people involved slightly different,” Kathangu stated.

Among the issues weighing Kenyans down, according to the opposition, is the high cost of living and the passing of the Finance Act 2023 which they term punitive to the taxpayer

“For them to be able to seal the gap created but the debt then they have decided that maybe the best thing is to take tax from people's pockets, there is no country in the world that can be able to grow an economy from people’s pocket,” Kathangu suggested.

But as Azimio Leader Raila Odinga rekindles the Saba Saba flame, Njeru opines that it is time for the current president William Ruto, his political nemesis Raila Odinga and former head of state Uhuru Kenyatta to prioritize the interest of the country

“If there is nothing personal between the relationship between Uhuru, Raila and Ruto let Kenyans move and go please,” he noted.