In handling succession, let’s learn from, not mimic, Romans

Most civil conflicts that contemporary societies go through mirror other events that have happened at some point in ancient history.

It is no wonder that military and civilian leaders frequently turn to written Roman histories when strategising their next moves. Statesmen of today can always look to ancient stories of war and leadership to take examples of decision making.

But they should also be wary of not repeating the past when it means replicating civil war or social disarray.

Consider the story of Julius Caesar, beginning around 50 years before the birth of Jesus Christ. He had just completed a successful military campaign in Gaul, but his alliance with Pompey the Great had turned into a rivalry. Pompey’s allies in the Roman Senate demanded that he return to Rome as a civilian, rather than a leader. But of course, Caesar would not agree to that, and a civil war erupted.

Across Italy and Spain, Greece and North Africa, Caesar’s and Pompey’s troops fought to the death. In 48 BCE, a crucial turning point occurred when Caesar’s outnumbered troops defeated Pompey’s at the Battle of Pharsalus. Pompey was exiled to Egypt and then killed, while Caesar returned to Rome and was crowned dictator for life in 44 BCE.

But his reign was short lived and he was famously murdered on the Ides of March. Following that, his heir Octavian and his general Marc Antony fought for control of Rome. Civil war once again erupted, this time between the former allies. Finally, after many lives were lost, Octavian was victorious and exiled Marc Antony to Egypt, where he eventually committed suicide with his lover Cleopatra. Octavian became known as Augustus and ruled as the first emperor of Rome.

But what is the connection between this story and contemporary Kenya, if at all?

Well, quite a lot actually. History repeats itself because human nature is human nature. The main difference is that if politicians are cognisant of historical lessons, they may be able to use them to prevent future disasters.

And this story between Caesar and his successors has many parallels with the landscape in Kenya today. We have had many episodes of disunity in the past decade or so, oftentimes because supporters of different politicians have reverted to violence in order to make their voices heard, and show what side they are on.

But it does not have to be that way.

Perhaps in antiquity the go-to way to battle it out was to quite literally battling it out. Nowadays, not so much.

While the Romans were highly skilled in the art of rhetoric, using dialogue for conflict resolution was perhaps not their strong suit.

But in Kenya in the 21st century, dialogue is exactly what we need to see more of. More understanding, less vitriol. More communication, less misinterpretation.

It is clear that that is how President Uhuru Kenyatta has been governing his people and I certainly hope that his successor follows his lead. While not as shocking as a decade earlier, the post-election violence in 2017 was jarring for any pundit or regular observer. While it certainly blemished the beginning of Uhuru’s second term, it didn’t ruin it.

The President decided to reverse the course of history by calling an end to the fighting and offering an olive branch instead. By shaking hands with Raila Odinga and inviting him to take part in the decision-making process at government’s highest levels, Uhuru signified that he is beyond any sort of tribalism. The notion of a winner takes all system is behind us today in Kenya.

What we need to focus on is the implementation of the BBI, and how to make Kenya better - the government, the economy, and relations between different ethnic groups. The last thing we need to be focusing on right now, in 2020, is 2022 succession politics.

The 2022 election race is dominated by just a couple of main figures. But we cannot let ourselves be torn apart by who we choose to vote for. While I doubt a civil war will erupt like in the aforementioned Roman story, we must still be careful that no violence at all occurs at the end of Uhuru’s second term.

Our minds should be preoccupied with following his legacy of unity and togetherness, of peace and prosperity. As long as the next generation of politicians are on the same page in terms of working together rather than fighting for who has the most power, we should be just fine.