One-party rule was necessary, says Moi

Retired President Daniel Arap Moi (right) had a word with Cabinet Secretary in the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure Eng. Michael Kamau during the officially opening ceremony of the Imara Daima Railway Station, on the 11th of December 2013. PHOTO/EMMA NZIOKA 

By PETER OBUYA
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Retired President Moi Wednesday defended his preference for a single-party state that prevailed for a decade in his tenure.

Speaking in Nairobi when he officially opened a new railway station at Imara Daima, the former President said a one-party system was necessary for the sake of unity.

“There was no unity but the need to unite the people was great,” he said.

Mr Moi ruled Kenya for 24 years from 1978 to 2002.

Recently, his successor Mwai Kibaki delivered a public lecture that blamed his tenure for making Kenya retrogress.

Addressing his first public lecture since leaving the Presidency at the University of Nairobi, Mr Kibaki said the country backslid during the period of one-party state.

“In terms of state organisation, there was an outstanding difference between the period spanning 1966 to 1982 and the one that followed 10 years after until 1991. It was a fact that the leadership feared organised political opinion that went contrary to the ideology of the government of the day posed a threat to the interests of the state,” Mr Kibaki said.

Kenya became a one-party state in June 1982 after the National Assembly amended the Constitution to do away with the Opposition.

Mr Moi, who was in power after the death of President Kenyatta, said plans to make Kenya a one-party state began during the founding father’s tenure.

Addressing a host of MPs and senators at the new railway station, he said unity of Kenyans was a crucial ingredient for development and urged political leaders to unite the country. He said opposition leaders and government should work together