IMPROVING THE KENYAN LEADERSHIP STYLE

IMPROVING THE KENYAN LEADERSHIP STYLE There is often an argument that Kenya has too many public servants and that the government workforce should be reduced. I take a different view. Rather than reducing the workforce, Kenya should rethink how leadership and public service are carried out. Today, many elected leaders and public officers spend much of their time in offices waiting for citizens who have already encountered problems to come and report them. Their work therefore becomes largely reactive, responding to crime, legal disputes, complaints, and administrative requests. While these responsibilities are important, they represent only a small portion of the challenges affecting the lives of ordinary Kenyans. Many people suffer silently. A parent whose child lacks a school uniform, a family struggling to put food on the table, a young person without employment, or a small business owner whose income can no longer sustain the family may never walk into a government office to report these hardships. Such problems often remain invisible, even though they affect millions of citizens. Kenya needs a leadership model that is proactive rather than reactive. Elected leaders and public servants should spend a significant portion of their time engaging directly with communities, listening to citizens, understanding their circumstances, and identifying practical ways of improving their lives. Instead of waiting for problems to be reported, government should actively seek them out before they become crises. Regular interaction with communities would enable trained public officers to identify local needs, connect people with available government programmes, coordinate solutions across departments, and empower individuals and families to become self-reliant. Such engagement would also strengthen trust between citizens and government because people would see that their leaders are present, accessible, and genuinely concerned about their welfare. As communities become healthier, more educated, more productive, and more economically empowered, businesses will grow, employment opportunities will increase, household incomes will rise, and government revenue through taxation will naturally expand. This creates a positive cycle in which stronger communities support a stronger government, and a stronger government is better able to provide quality public services. Leadership should therefore not be measured only by how efficiently government responds to problems, but also by how effectively it prevents them. The future of Kenya depends on leadership that is visible, people-centred, solution-oriented, and committed to improving the welfare of every citizen before hardship becomes a crisis. BY ELIJAH MUTUA KIRIMA BASW (UoN) THE WORD OF GOD IS THE WILL OF GOD JULY 15, 2026.