Kenyatta and Odinga: The Harbingers of Ethnic Nationalism in Kenya

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Dr. Paul Abiero Opondo
Dr. Paul Abiero Opondo
α Moi University

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Kenyatta and Odinga: The Harbingers of Ethnic Nationalism in Kenya

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Abstract

The paper traces the political problems that Kenya currently faces particularly the country’s inability to construct a united national consciousness, historical relationships that unfolded between the country’s foremost founders, Jomo Kenyatta and Oginga Odinga and the consequences of their political differences and subsequent-fallout in the 1960s. The fall-out saw Kenyatta increasingly consolidating power around himself and a group of loyalists from the Kikuyu community while Odinga who was conceptualized as the symbolic representative of the Luo community was confined to the wilderness of politics. This paper while applying the primordial and essentialist conceptual framework recognizes the determinant role that the two leaders played in establishing the foundations for post-independent Kenya. This is especially true with respect to the negative consequences that their differing perspectives on Kenyan politics bequeathed the country, especially where the evolution of negative ethnicity is concerned. As a result of their discordant political voices in the political arena, there were cases of corruption, the killing of innocent Kenyans in Kisumu in 1969, political assassinations of T J Mboya, Pio Gama Pinto and J M Kariuki among others as this paper argues.

References

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Funding

No external funding was declared for this work.

Conflict of Interest

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Ethical Approval

No ethics committee approval was required for this article type.

Data Availability

Not applicable for this article.

How to Cite This Article

Dr. Paul Abiero Opondo. 2014. \u201cKenyatta and Odinga: The Harbingers of Ethnic Nationalism in Kenya\u201d. Global Journal of Human-Social Science - D: History, Archaeology & Anthropology GJHSS-D Volume 14 (GJHSS Volume 14 Issue D3): .

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Issue Cover
GJHSS Volume 14 Issue D3
Pg. 27- 36
Journal Specifications

Crossref Journal DOI 10.17406/GJHSS

Print ISSN 0975-587X

e-ISSN 2249-460X

Keywords
Version of record

v1.2

Issue date

July 28, 2014

Language
en
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The paper traces the political problems that Kenya currently faces particularly the country’s inability to construct a united national consciousness, historical relationships that unfolded between the country’s foremost founders, Jomo Kenyatta and Oginga Odinga and the consequences of their political differences and subsequent-fallout in the 1960s. The fall-out saw Kenyatta increasingly consolidating power around himself and a group of loyalists from the Kikuyu community while Odinga who was conceptualized as the symbolic representative of the Luo community was confined to the wilderness of politics. This paper while applying the primordial and essentialist conceptual framework recognizes the determinant role that the two leaders played in establishing the foundations for post-independent Kenya. This is especially true with respect to the negative consequences that their differing perspectives on Kenyan politics bequeathed the country, especially where the evolution of negative ethnicity is concerned. As a result of their discordant political voices in the political arena, there were cases of corruption, the killing of innocent Kenyans in Kisumu in 1969, political assassinations of T J Mboya, Pio Gama Pinto and J M Kariuki among others as this paper argues.

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Kenyatta and Odinga: The Harbingers of Ethnic Nationalism in Kenya

Dr. Paul Abiero Opondo
Dr. Paul Abiero Opondo Moi University

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