My heart has been bleeding since 6th September 2013 after watching this raw video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=59s25NxD32M of the Governor of the city of Nairobi assaulting Hon. Shebesh,the women representative,Nairobi City county. Hon Shebesh had accompanied a group of county workers to the governors office to demand their workers rights and the table a few demands,only for the governor to open the door office and with fury written on his face,and slap the Hon shebesh in the face.
Mind you the governor was in public office,in public hours and in the office he was elected by Nairobi-ans to serve them all.First,his anger issues came out strongly and secondly it is high time he stops propagating this rumor that he hit hon. Shebesh as a re-iteration because she was trying to hit his groins.Why didn’t the cameras capture that?IF IT IS NOT RECORDED,IT NEVER HAPPENED.This rumor will not only make the situation worse but equally lower Kidero’s dignity and the way we view him.A LEADER OF INTEGRITY.
As is always the case,Kenyans who hide behind social media were up in arms.Not only did they ridicule Hon.shebesh but they equally amplified the male chauvinism that is deep-rooted in this country.They were busy justifying their baseless and unscientific hypothesis that women who are empowered are arrogant and need to be tamed.It is high time that Kenyans understand that EMPOWERING WOMEN IS NOT DIS-EMPOWERING MEN. This stalemate equally humiliates devolution and the team spirit that should be,between the two leaders.This drama that paralyzed the city county offices and made headlines in major media houses,came just a few days after an infamous journalist Carol Mutoko called the senator of Nairobi, Hon Mike.Mbuvi.
The content of the calls were what the senator was planning to do to ensure that he implemented sustainable projects for his people.Agitated and not caring to listen,he ended insulting the presenter,the insults are too profane to be typed in this blog.Here is the Link,http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RzAWtYLy1d.The content and the actions of this officials do not be fit their offices.Governor Kidero got into office through the ODM ticked a party that prides itself in upholding democracy and the rule of law.Their leaders in the top of the hierarchy,have strongly commented on public interest issues ie land and the ICC but disturbing enough,they have not made any verbal or written statement of the assault of this honorable woman irregardless of her political affiliations.The question I beg to ask is,what is the place of women in ODM?Are they flower girls and dolls who do not really matter unless they are stage managed for publicity and then that is the end?Kenya,promulgated the constitution in 2010,that come into full force in 2013 especially the political perspective.
The constitution creates an affirmative action for women,in all the 47 counties,to be elected.While the spirit of the constitution is great,the elephant in the house is the bargaining power of this women.Do we just have them there as ceremonial creatures or are they movers and shakers.Are they there to push the women agenda in solidarity or are they there as flower girls.Hon shebesh has stood as an exemplary woman who has continuously fought for women interests and most occasions gone the extra mile and against the tide.It is heartbreaking though that the women parliamentarians and politicians did not come out strongly and in one voice to condemn the assault of their own.The governor has not expressly apologized to Hon. Shebesh though a few brokers have been trying to reconcile them.Regardless of their clandestine agreements and forgiveness there in,Hon,Kidero owes the women of this country an apology.An explicit apology for he glorified violence and with so doing,led to me and many other women feeling vulnerable and exposed.It intimidated an upcoming activist who believes that for there to be good governance there must be gender equality.
The Jubilee government of the other hand vowed to uphold the place of women in this country.6 months down the line after taking office,they should issue an assurance to all women in Kenya.Assault could be physical but also emotional and i can imagine how embarrassed and intimidated Hon. Shebesh felt,and how ridiculed his family was.Who will pay to this in-quantifiable damages?Dr. Awino Okech is a researcher who lives in Nairobi stated in his article that,”Making women a priority is not only about economic resources and quotas, it is about zero tolerance on all forms of violence. It is about holding all public office holders accountable including Nairobi Senator Sonko, to a minimum code of conduct that contains firm indicators that show us where Kenyan women stand in the Jubilee government”.
This barbaric acts against women and structurally and emotionally sometimes physically assaulting then is back-dated and a NO-NO especially 50years down the line since the independence.Wangari Maathai a fallen icon was once assaulted for defending public recreation facilities and and catchment areas.Due to her unprecedented strength,she overcome all and in her infamous analogy of “the hummingbird”,she urges us to do “what we can in our own small way”. I equally urge all of us to do what we can in our small way to protect the women and girls of Kenya and Africa.To stop taxing sanitary towels as this could stop our girls from going to school,to condemn that colleague who is sexually harassing a female and to publicly condemn the faceless Kenyan making nasty and sexist remarks against women.
As a strong believer of this continent,I am dead sure that African emancipation will be fueled by the women an girls to a larger extent,and it is morally right to take care of them.After all one Martin luther said that “all people were created equal” and I could not agree more.As this assault sensation goes on,it is time for us to reflect deeply on the place of women.In the mean time Hon.Kidero should stop whining around,with propaganda and express remorse,deep remorse,apologize and when he does that,MY HEART WILL STOP BLEEDING.
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NOTE TO READER:This the opinion of the author.feel free to comment on this opinion piece.You can write to me wanjamaina00@gmail.com
Wanja Maina is a 22-year old Pan-African and human rights activist who hold a B.sc in Management.She has been largely involved in the ongoing post-2015 consultations and believes in the Emancipation of Africa.
THAT GIRL WANJA 
If he was man enough he should have dealt with the situation in a better way rather than being brutal is that how he deal with issues
Yes Alice.Kupigana tuliachia bulls za western
It so sad tht we still got such men as kidero who await to be taught the hard way to respect women. Its the biological diffrences that make them see us as inferior than they..bt they forget we were created for a diffrent role as they were too bt with similar senses and stands..these men leave me wondering if they respect their mothers for only giving birth to them or as women too..
Great article you got there.
Thanks Maggie for the resounding and great point.Lets do what we can.
Indeed an terrified to be a rights activist in Kenya, knowing all too well that our place in the society has somewhat been pushed down there with the mats. But then again, if we the empowered don’t speak out and form the voice for the voiceless, who will?
Then again, I wonder how a man would want to pick a fight with a women in the midst of so many men. It goes out to show that he picked his equal, as he felt. This is a man who has inferiority complex issues, and hence feels inferior to the men folk. And for my fellow women, we are our own worse enemies. I have heard in the Nairobi vilage grapevine women celebrating the slap. Only that they didn’t stop long enough to think that it could be me, my sister, my mother my daugther. As long as we women remain in competition with each other, the men will always look down on us, and watch us fight each other, and ridicule each other out of jealousy.
All said and done, that’s just a bridge we have crossed. Everything gone by is water under the bridge. We will not be cowed, nor will we fold our tails and run off like scared dogs. Because we are strong and too determined to be derailed.
I honest had no word to add.I wish to amplify what you said “…And for my fellow women, we are our own worse enemies. I have heard in the Nairobi vilage grapevine women celebrating the slap. Only that they didn’t stop long enough to think that it could be me, my sister, my mother my daugther…”.No one could put it any better.Thanks Joy.
My heart bleeds as well Wanja.It goes to show how these leaders treat their mothers, wife and daughtes . it’s a pitty and something should be done . grt point right there .
My first comment would be to congratulate you for starting a blog.Secondly there is alot of subjective analysis from many people on the incident between the governor and Nairobi women representative,on the one hand many men support publicly or privately the governor’s actions and vice versa without looking at it objectively and in context.What the governor did was wrong and indefensible but for every action there is a reaction,the manner of approach by the Nairobi women representative was wrong and should not be directed at any office public or private,she has chosen this modus operandai which is immature for a leader of her status.We need mature leadership irrespective of gender.Thirdly,the CORD coalition through David Musila issued a statement condemning the act to newsrooms and called for investigations to be instituted,so its not factual to say that no condemnation came from ODM.Fourth,devolution cannot in any way be jeopardized by the misadventure and bad manners of politicians for we are responsible for those we elected,it is a fact that the three leaders you’ve mentioned have behaved in a manner past and present unbefitting state officers and were we a country that upholds constitutionalism and rule of law neither Rachel Shebbesh,Evans Kidero or Mike Gedion Mbuvi will be occupying public office.Lastly,irrespective of gender,objectivity must apply in any debate based its pros and cons and not based on any gender biases.