Africa Notes: Kenya: Revolution, Relapse, or Reform? - November 2001

The advent of multiparty politics in Kenya in December 1991 was greeted with great excitement and enthusiasm but the last decade has left many Kenyans feeling disillusioned, dismayed by the bitter “ethnicization” of the country’s politics. The next 18 months, however, will see important changes. President Daniel arap Moi, who has ruled Kenya since 1978, is set to retire before the end of December 2002, and a constitutional commission, headed by Professor Yash Ghai, is due to make recommendations transforming the country’s political system, which has changed little since Kenya’s independence in 1963.