WE SAY NO! TUNAKATAA!
ECONOMIC EXPLOITATION AND SOCIAL OPPRESSION
By the Communist Party Marxist Kenya (CPM Kenya)
February 18th, 2025
The Charter for the Majority presents the demands of all the working poor Kenyans and the jobless people who have not only been alienated from national resources but also have been marginalised by successive Governments since independence in 1963. The Charter is based on our firm belief in our right to sovereignty and self-determination as a basic right of the people. We hold that people have the right to determine and participate in their own political, social, economic and cultural development. It is to assert this right, long denied to people of Kenya, that we, the undersigned, have issued the Charter.
Background
Our rights to land, livelihood, and life itself were stolen from us twice: first by British colonialism and then by the governments of Jomo Kenyatta and Daniel arap Moi. Their policies have been followed by successive neo-colonial governments, the Uhuru Kenyatta led Jubilee coalition intensified the same policies of alienation and the Present Kenya Kwanza government led by Willian Ruto is continuing, rather quietly, the same policies that his teacher, dictator Moi used in Kenya.
The situation is intolerable for working people. The systemic suppression of people continues with the daily killings by the police. We say the time for change is NOW. We are no longer prepared to wait for crumbs from the tables of the ruling elite who have grown fat by stealing our labour, land and resources. The government of Kenya has been destroying our unity by creating false antagonisms based on artificial divisions under nationalities (‘tribes’), race, region, religion, sexuality and many other divisive factors. We are united, we are one people and shall defend our unity.
Our peaceful attempts to change the situation have been met by the state brutality, murder and massacres. We Say No. Tunakataa!
The values and ideals that Kenya brought to its nationhood in 1963 was the rejection of colonialism, that among other things meant the abuse of power; the affirmation of freedom, both national and individual, of safety from arbitrary harm and the just access to land. Uhuru was for national unity, tolerance, hospitality and inclusiveness; for the sharing of both power and resources equitably; for freedom to think, for the concept of individual and academic independence and the flowering of creativity, among other aims. These ideals have persisted in spite of governments of betrayal, corruption and murder.
Government ought to be a covenant that pledges that there shall always be increasing convergence between the promises of the Constitution of Kenya and the circumstances of every Kenyan’s life. The purpose and priority of Government is to ensure that life, liberty, nutrition, health, shelter, education and that the democratic governance shall be adequately and increasingly the possessions of all Kenyans. To guarantee that quality, universal education shall be the foundation of Kenya’s future, constantly reaching out to the frontiers of knowledge in the service of the people.
We, the signatories of this Charter have come together to create national unity of all working people, of all regions, of all nationalities, of all genders and of all those oppressed and exploited by the government of the elites that has grabbed power by ‘legal’ and illegal means.
A people united, can never be defeated! We have learnt the lessons of 60 years. We can no longer trust the ruling elite made up of all nationalities who have betrayed us by deception, false promises and police batons. They have sold our country to global finance capital and corporations in exchange for power and wealth for themselves. An exploiter is an exploiter, irrespective of their colour, sex, religion, or nationality.
This charter will be and remain real. For only words and actions that have a basis in truth and possibility have reality to those in difficulty. To a people in difficulty, change is only change if something has moved from the intent of words to the tangibility of altered circumstance in the positive direction. We must not offer only words where we can deliver action. We must not offer only hope where we can offer change.
RESTATING that the attack on poverty is our nation’s most urgent priority and thus our first duty is to our people; REALISING that only through SOCIALISM can the majority of exploited and oppressed Kenyans be liberated; AFFIRMING that our guiding IDEALS, PRINCIPLES AND BELIEFS shall be:
1. The unity of the Kenyan people, led by the working class, is paramount and the firmest guarantee of the well-being of every Kenyan.
2. Denounces and categorically rejects political activity and political parties based upon ethnicity, regional origin, gender or religious divisions.
3. Rejects ethnic or racial hegemony by any group or groups. Every Kenyan is a part of the nation and its rightful beneficiary. Our diverse peoples in unity are cords of unassailable strength.
4. The unity of Kenya is the bedrock of all our national political, economic and social activity and the test of our political actors and actions.
5. All Kenyans are equal parts of Kenya, equal in dignity, in the equal right to resources and to equal opportunity.
6. The urgent task is to ensure a national democratic change away from the destruction, sectionalism and inequities of the past and the present.
7. The ultimate task is the establishment of socialism and a socialist state in Kenya.
8. This shall be coalition of political parties and organizations committed to socialism.
FURTHER we demand that our stolen RIGHTS are restored immediately. We demand:
1. Respect for the rule of law and the Constitution.
2. An end to the state-sanctioned murder of our youth and minority nationalities by the police.
3. A limit to maximum land ownership and the settlement of squatters and landless people in line with the Constitution.
4. The independence of judiciary and acceptance of all judgements of the High Court of Kenya.
5. The restoration of the independence and the power of the Parliament and County governments and enduring security for all regions in the country.
6. Cessation of all corrupt practices from the President down to local officials. All those found guilty of crimes of theft, corruption or human rights and other violations of the constitutional right of Kenyans should be held to account.
7. Immediate change in government economic policies to support livelihood of working people.
8. Technological knowledge and resources be made available for the widest possible use by all Kenyans in every single part of Kenya
9. Immediate change in government social policies so as to ensure people realise their right to adequate health, education and other social services.
10. Worker Rights: Living wages and respect for the right to organise themselves into trade unions.
11. Peasants small-scale farmers: Fair return for their produce.
12. Professionals: salaries to be commensurate with their education, experience and expertise.
13. Justice and equality for all, individuals, nationalities, regions. People without jobs and homes must get priority in government policies. Women to have equal rights with men.
14. Immediate stop to foreign wars that the government has got the country involved in. Follow an independent and ethical foreign policy that sides with oppressed people and nations worldwide, including the restoration of rights to the people of Palestine.
15. New resources discovered, whether oil or others, are national assets on trust for all the peoples of Kenya and are to be managed accordingly for the present and future generations, not for the personal enrichment of any holder of public office in Kenya or for the benefit of Multinationals Corporations and their allies
Our Assertion
These rights belong to the people of Kenya. They are not granted as a favour by the governing elite. They have been stolen from us. We demand what is ours. We demand power to decide our future and our present. People throughout the country are behind these demands of the Charter. Those obstructing these rights will face the wrath of people. There can be no compromises. The people have spoken. The people demand their rights. They refuse to be subjected to colonial-style exploitation so the rich can gobble more wealth created by working people. Tunakataa! We say NO.
The parties to this charter have loyalty to the socialist ideas and ideals of the Coalition and not loyalty to an individual or to any ethnic or racial group or region or ethnic hegemony. We therefore does not ask Kenyans to follow. We say, let us instead meet in the efforts ahead of us, more and more Kenyans meeting together for the real change which is democratic socialist Kenya, this is the vision of the Front and that of the overwhelming majority of Kenyans.
“Is there an alternative?” Kenyans are asking.
Yes, Tunakataa is the alternative.