A THREAD. Tribalism in government has many undesirable effects for many of us in the Kenya youth bracket (under 35). I’ll zero in on three problems. For context, I grew up in a mostly Kikuyu neighborhood in Kiambu and I speak the language fluently. Kikuyu & Kiswahili are what 1/N

I spoke most growing up. Language meant community & a shared expressio. Even the local non-Kikuyu butcher spoke Kikuyu. My home church back in Kenya still has a Kikuyu translator (relevant for later). The congregation is now mostly youthful but we still got our cucus & gukas 2/N

Now enter PROBLEM 1. Given how much tribalism has taken hold of our exclusionary politics, tribe & language have become increasingly weaponized. When I told a friend about Kikuyu in my church, they were upset “Why is your church tribalistic?” For them, context was irrelevant 3/N

It did not matter that this church started in 1989 in a itura (a village) with mostly kikuyu-speaking locals. Like my friend, many Kenyans get irritated at others soeaking their ethnic language (even on something as personal as a call in a mat). How bad tribalism has us jaded 4/N

It makes many of us wrongly conflate ethnic tribalism (favoritism/exclusion based on tribe) with the identity of one belonging to an ethnic tribe with its beautiful ethnic language. One thing I enjoy is friends’ weddings with food, music & nuances particular to their tribes 5/N

Enter PROBLEM 2. Work. By virtue of tribalism in government & in private sector, it means that in our generation we live to see many of our peers, smart & qualified people, denied opportunities because of their tribe. Unfortunately this is already a lived experience for many 6/N

This has 2 immediate effects. One is huge talent misallocation in public service: many undeserving tribal appointees with many deserving locked out. Already figures are bad, don’t know how worse it gets. Second effect is that this will create even a bigger rift between tribes 7/N

Enter PROBLEM 3. Dignity. Given the consequences of problem 2, it follows that many competent Kenyans will never have the dignity to take up public office without the risk of their reputation being soiled that they got it because they’re Kikuyu or from another majority tribe. 8/N

Since I started working in 2014, my work has taken me to 8 countries & I have never retreated to my tribe let alone appealed to it, in order to get hired or engage a client. Sometime last year, I got to work at a Swiss bank as the only non-EU summer placement, but even then 9/N

I was careful to downplay race. Because always I’d rather my work speaks. Not appealing to anything like tribe or color. Same at my graduate school as the only Econ student from Sub-Saharan Africa. I put my head down & work to deliver. No sideshows. Now to imagine one 10/N

day I will apply for public office & when I get it by God’s grace someone comes saying “He got it because he is a Kikuyu”. That thought really bothers me. Not after years of work & building competence. Even if those opinions won’t matter, we’d all like our dignity intact 11/N

FINALLY, with that said, I agree we need true representation across ethnic groups as per the constitution & as the right thing to do. Let us each do our part to dismantle tribalism & not to benefit. No one has to worry that their tribe means more than what they have to offer. END