Statecraft & Independence
Landmark
Kenneth Matiba
1932 – 2018
Demanded multiparty politics and was detained until it nearly killed him
Landmark is level 2 of 4 in the Kenya Hall of Fame: a first that opened a door, or the pre-eminent figure of their generation in this country. See how the levels work.
Why they are here
A cabinet minister and hotel magnate who resigned over a rigged election, then in 1990 publicly demanded an end to one-party rule. He was detained without trial, denied treatment through a stroke, and came out permanently disabled — and Kenya got multiparty elections.
Kenneth Stanley Njindo Matiba was the first African permanent secretary in Kenya's education ministry, built the Alliance Hotels group, chaired the Football Kenya Federation, and was a cabinet minister under Daniel arap Moi.
He resigned from the cabinet and from parliament in 1988 in protest at the queue-voting system used to rig that year's KANU primaries, which was an almost unheard-of thing to do. In May 1990, with Charles Rubia, he called a press conference to demand the repeal of Section 2A of the constitution — the clause that made Kenya a one-party state — and to announce a public rally.
They were arrested before it happened and held in detention without trial. Matiba suffered a stroke in his cell and his family's requests that he be treated were refused for days. He was released in 1991, partially paralysed and with his speech permanently impaired, and flown to London for treatment. Section 2A was repealed that December.
He stood for president in the 1992 election, the first multiparty poll in a generation, and came second in a divided opposition field. In 2017 the courts awarded him nearly a billion shillings against the state for his detention and torture. He died in 2018.
He resigned from the cabinet and from parliament in 1988 in protest at the queue-voting system used to rig that year's KANU primaries, which was an almost unheard-of thing to do. In May 1990, with Charles Rubia, he called a press conference to demand the repeal of Section 2A of the constitution — the clause that made Kenya a one-party state — and to announce a public rally.
They were arrested before it happened and held in detention without trial. Matiba suffered a stroke in his cell and his family's requests that he be treated were refused for days. He was released in 1991, partially paralysed and with his speech permanently impaired, and flown to London for treatment. Section 2A was repealed that December.
He stood for president in the 1992 election, the first multiparty poll in a generation, and came second in a divided opposition field. In 2017 the courts awarded him nearly a billion shillings against the state for his detention and torture. He died in 2018.
Spotted something wrong? Tell us and we will check it.