Embracing morality and ethics as the bedrock of leadership if Kenya is to have a chance at prosperity

Abstract

Some see the cure to Africa's political problems as the rule of law and democracy. In Kenya, the political class tend to associate democracy with development as if democracy is the necessary condition for development. However, in our case, we are of the view that a people's development is not primarily derived from the rule of law, democracy, money or technological means but from the formation of consciences and the gradual maturing of ways of thinking and patterns of behavior. "Let us value moral over legal considerations for what is legal is not necessarily what is moral in that morality is and will always be the higher principle in human life" (Bichachi, Mark 2019). This is to say that society is safer with a moral code than it is with a legal one for ethics requires more of us than does any reasonable body of laws. This paper aims at pointing out that the primary root cause of many protracted cases after every election in Kenya and even the 2017 August elections is basically of a moral nature. "Unless there is a general adherence to a basic moral code that protects basic . values, society itself would be impossible" (Pojman, L.P. 2006). The paper will begin by highlighting the importance of ethical theory since ethical reflection illuminates an individual's sense of right and therefore it is not appropriate to divorce politics from ethics since the ultimate aim and function of the state is ethical. Besides, the paper intends to show that Kenya's political problems is not about democracy per se but about which brand of democracy is suitable for the people of this era for there is no specific universally accepted definition of democracy owing to the fact that there are several variety of democracy. Besides, the paper intends to highlight that although it is theoretically proven that democracy is the system of government which is necessary to ensure good governance, "neither the creation of political parties nor holding of elections in themselves guarantee the existence of key democratic freedoms and rights, i.e. tolerance, respect for civil liberties and equality before the law" (Grugel 2002). The paper will conclude by pointing out that no society can develop outside its culture hence there is need to incorporate the indigenous African social, political and economic institutions in addressing Africa's predicaments.