On November 10, 2014 media outlets reported that Kenya's Ministry of Foreign affairs transferred the recently appointed Director of Diaspora Affairs H.E. Ambassador Zachary Muburi-Muita to "the Middle Eastern Division" http://ksnmedia.com/2014/11/diaspora-affairs-director-transferred-middle-east-division/ . This is yet another form of volatility in Kenya's handling or should we say mishandling of the Diaspora as manifested in the instability of the office of Director for Diaspora Affairs created by the Jubilee government to work with the Diaspora. It is not so much that Ambassador Muburi-Muita had barely settled into office and started engaging the Diaspora and God knows he had miles to cover but it is the tease by the administration that leaves many a Diaspora miffed.
Suppose you had a multi-Billion dollar business portfolio or a golden goose that continuously lays priced golden eggs? How would you treat it? Would you feed it? Perhaps nurture it somehow- maybe a little bit? Of course I am being facetious but the analogy fits well into what Kenya's Diaspora is to the country. However, thanks to an incoherent or non-existent policy on any subject by the Kenyan government, the golden goose, aka the Diaspora has been neglected and relegated to mere spectators with no seat at the decision table in any decisions about them. Consider this, over the last 18 months, Kenya's Jubilee administration has sent several mixed messages to the Diaspora on how serious it is its engagement with one of its most affluent but unrepresented constituency. Those messages have been grand but for one thing, they are only rhetorical, just for show for the most part. This is primarily because of a non-existent and incoherent Diaspora policy. Most of the government's pronouncements have sounded really good but when looked closely, they lack congruency, clarity and are temporary in nature thus rendering them in-actionable. Consider the following candid assessment and see if you agree with some of my observations:
Examples of the Government's Diaspora hits and misses – Most of these are actually juxtaposed within the pronouncements themselves as you will see below:
HIT- Duty-Free imports of cars – This was supposed to be a big relieve to the Diaspora who live in left-hand drive countries and was one of the most welcome directive by President Uhuru Kenyatta, i.e. that those of us who live in left hand drive countries will now have equal protection against tariffs and that we can actually buy vehicles from right hand drive countries as substitutes. It was a hit policy is (and yes, this qualifies as a policy), well- that was short-lived not so much because it was so convoluted when the President announced it the first time in Washington DC that he actually clarify it again a month later clarified it in New York but because soon afterwards, before the ink was even dry on the policy, his Finance Cabinet Secretary Henry Rotich practically reversed it and rendered the President's announcement useless by invalidating the intent of the policy. Here, http://www.kenyamoja.com/featured/kra-how-to-import-left-hand-vehicle-from-diaspora/ . If you scrutinize the actual import guidelines that Rotich came up with, they fall to level the playing field as the president intended. KRA and Rotich inserted caveats that make the President's directive meaningless. I wish I can elaborate but there is not enough space or scope for details but suffice to say KRA effectively negated the president's directive- just review them for yourself. So it is a MISS. I think the government should keep this policy simple; set up an a value amount that is exempt from tariffs, say a KSH 1 or 2 Million- so if a returning Diaspora imports a vehicle within that threshold amount, it is duty free and if its value exceeds this, he or she pays tax on the difference- simple as that.
MISS -Diaspora Policy- By definition, a policy is a principle to guide decisions and achieve rational outcomes. It is a statement of intent, and is implemented as a procedure or protocol. So far there is NONE! Zero, zilch Diaspora policy. But in launching the Diaspora web Portal recently, Deputy President William Ruto is quoted as lauding the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for fast tracking the completion of the Diaspora Policy, REALLY Mr. Deputy President? Really? Have you seen or read the "policy"? Because there is no Diaspora policy, so we are at a loss reconciling what you are quoted as saying vs what we know. Where is that policy and what is it? All we know is that in June of 2014, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs released a 22 page of what appeared to be a recycled old bootleg draft that it swiped from some college kid's term paper (pun intended), I mean here it is- judge for yourself, http://www.kenyaembassy.com/pdfs/Final_National_Diaspora_Policy_Revised_13.06.2014.pdf . Nothing in this document is actually a "POLICY" in the true meaning of the word policy. NOTHING! It merely attempts to identify the problems and what it calls "objectives and strategies"- whatever that means. It just misses it completely, it doesn't even mention any policy. The document is just full of platitudes and nothing specific that addresses ONE (1) policy of any kind whether it is representation, voting, repatriation, imports, etc, etc.
MISS- Website Portal – The Ministry of Foreign Affairs release of the much hyped and anticipated Diaspora website portal just weeks ago was a total unmitigated disaster! A complete flop that belittles and mocks the Diaspora- both literary and figuratively. http://diasporaportal.eurocom.co.ke/ .I do not know how else to describe it but suffice to say it was a joke only exacerbated by the hype leading up to the release and then of course the fanfare- the country's Deputy President and Foreign Affairs Cabinet launched the site but only to for the rest of us to discover that the site itself is not functional, is insecure, is for all practical purposes just an input form to "register" or sound alarm when you in "Distress" and that is really it. Even the optics of the so called portal send the wrong imagery, a subliminal message that is totally misplaced and more importantly symbolizes exactly how high or should I say how low the government regards the Diaspora.
Diaspora Conference in Nairobi – December 19 & 20 2014 – The jury is still out on this, I think it is a wonderful idea to have an annual Home-coming conference/party for the Diaspora. A great idea all way round. This year's conference is slated to cost KSH 40 Million. My trepidation is the manner in which it has been planned and themed, no Diaspora was involved in planning the event as far as I know but the theme itself is pretty telling, " how to double Diaspora remittances" – translated the agenda is really how best to milk the Diaspora wapende wasipende. Reminds me of a recent quote by Massachusetts US Senator Elizabeth Warren wherein she said this, "If you don't have a seat at the table, you are probably on the menu." In this case there is no question whatsoever as to whether the Diaspora has a seat at the table or part of the menu but for the record and clarity, the Diaspora is on the menu, simple as that!
Diaspora Voting- Nothing to write home on this front, the government continues to vacillate on the issue. At least they are consistent. Despite the explicit requirement on IEBC to "continuously" register Kenyans to vote, the Independent Electoral & Boundaries Commission is adamantly stuck on the "progressive" clause that simply allows them to register Diaspora voters over time without any timelines or benchmarks. IEBC recently came up with yet another draft of what it calls "Registration and Voting Policy" but like the other draft stated elsewhere, it was nothing to write home about. At the rate they are going it might happen in 2099 but do not hold your breath, there is no political or professional will to implement Diaspora voting that gives us any real comfort that it will happen. All we have are silver-tongued IEBC commissioners who have mastered the meaning of lip service, and use it very well.
What Does the Kenyan Diaspora want?
Representation:
This is a very simple and straight forward concept- taxation without representation has to end. The Kenyan Diaspora has been referred to as the de facto 48th County. Of course this is allegorical but effectively, it is. It is also the richest of all counties going by remittances. Current estimates of combined Diaspora remittances currently stand at close to 2 Billion US dollars annually that far outpace tourism revenues and contributes between 16 and 20% to the treasury. So it is inexplicable that with such economic clout there is not one (1) Diaspora voice in parliament/cabinet level office or any substantive office that advocates for Diaspora interests. The much the government has done, to their credit, is staffed by folks who have no experience or relational gravitas with the Diaspora and have no capacity to move any agenda on behalf of the Diaspora. The Administration has been advised over and over to enlist the services of the Diaspora itself but it is tone deaf. In fairness, President Uhuru Kenyatta has demonstrated sincere interest in engaging the Diaspora albeit belatedly. I don't expect the President to engross himself personally in Diaspora affairs per se and it appeared as though his administration was putting effort toward the Diaspora in appointing Amb. Zachary Muburi-Muita as Director of Diaspora Affairs but that as we now know has been dialed back; the gyrations of the government's appointment deepen the gap and disconnect between Diaspora expectations and the government is still huge. Bottom line is, the Diaspora wants equitable representation at ALL levels of government just as anyone else in Kenya. All levels of government means that the Diaspora must be part of the government in proportionate numbers that reflect its true value and interests of the country. This includes participating in elections to pick the government and having a fair number of officials that cater to their interests from within the Diaspora ranks instead of one(s) picked by the government itself. To that end, it must get serious and enact realistic Diaspora policies that actually address the concerns and interests of the Diaspora.
Operating Budget – This dovetails representation. The Diaspora does not have a seat at the government table but it is clearly on the menu instead. There needs to be a meaningful budget for the Diaspora, I am not talking Billions like the counties in Kenya which usually lines up MCA's pockets, we are not building roads, hospitals or schools, not house allowances or car grants but rather a reasonable amount to advance the common welfare of the Diaspora. There is need for Diaspora Secretariats and Boards especially in high population density countries such as the US, Canada, Europe, Australia, etc.
A Stand-Alone Ministry/ Department
Why are Diaspora Affairs being handled by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, could it be because the government actually views them as "Foreigners"? Just wondering out loud. Meaningful representation should start with a formal policy, something like non-voting Diaspora delegates to Parliament is a great start, an actual cabinet level department or ministry staffed by competent staff, preferably the Diaspora itself or former Diaspora who understand the needs of the Diaspora.
There is this misnomer that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is best placed to address Diaspora affairs, of course it is the government's prerogative and I am not sure what informed the government to manage its Diaspora through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs but the inference here is clear, that we are treated as "foreigners" and indeed in some cases that is exactly how we are treated – perhaps that also explains not only the hesitancy in which the government deals with the Diaspora but also its "arm's length" approach to the Diaspora, more so than with other sovereign governments.
Functional Diaspora Policy – There is none at the moment and the government keeps dithering or worse fronting that which doesn't muster much support. Whether it is the overall Diaspora policy or something as simple as voting, the Kenyan government has been derelict at best and makes offers that are deliberately false that it knows or should know are worthless. It is a shame to say the least. The bottom-line is, the government is still very detached from the Diaspora and needs to do way more.
0 Comments