The obituary of Daniel arap Moi misinterpreted his philosophy of “nyayo” as “peace, love and unity”. In fact, Moi’s catchphrase was “fuata nyayo”, in kiswahili “follow the footsteps”, a plea for continuity of the relative prosperity of Jomo Kenyatta’s time in office as president of Kenya.
But Moi’s government was certainly a kleptocracy. When I taught in Kenya in the early 1980s, I often found that my monthly government salary had been docked 10% as my contribution to a harambee – fundraising –initiative by the government. As a consequence, many of my fellow teachers were unable to visit their families that month.
