Herman Manyora: Why Mwai Kibaki was Kenya’s worst president despite his legacy
By Mabonga Makhanu, September 13, 2025Seasoned political analyst Herman Manyora has come out to give reasons why he regards the late former President Mwai Kibaki as the worst Head of State in Kenyan history.
While speaking during an interview aired on his channel on Friday, September 13, 2025, according to Manyora, Kibaki is the root cause of issues that still bedevil the nation to date, such as tribalism, and if he had set a good precedent then, the nation would be in a better position now and free from such vices.
Manyora has stated that if Kibaki had stuck to the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that he signed with fellow coalition principals then who had supported him in rising to power in 2002, then tribalism would have ended.
According to Manyora, Kibaki’s failure to agree to the MOU was the one that led to a spurt in tribalism that still cripples the nation to date.
“The opportunity to deal with this issue firmly and decisively once and for all had been with us since independence; the animal of tribalism had presented itself. If Kibaki could have stuck to the MoU, this thing called tribalism could have died then,” Manyora stated.
He has also added that, unlike his predecessor, Daniel Moi, who is always regarded as the worst president in Kenyan history, he, after losing in 2002, honourably left without causing any chaos, but Kibaki in 2007, according to Manyora, refused to leave and was hurriedly sworn in at night, leading to tensions in the country.
Also watch: Manyora says Ruto should consider halting his frequent county visits
This, according to the analyst, took the country back to where it had come from.
“He did what Moi could not do. When Moi lost, he left; when Kibaki lost, he didn’t leave, setting the country backwards. That is why his swearing-in was hurriedly done,” he added.
Defending Kibaki
He went further to play devil’s advocate, defending Kibaki, stating that some things were beyond Kibaki and that had he wanted to accept defeat and leave power, those who had surrounded him then could not have accepted and would have pushed him to resist the urge to back down.
“If Kibaki wanted to walk away after losing in 2007, he could not have been allowed,” he added.
This comes days after former Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka came out during an interview with a popular podcast and defended Kibaki against tribalism.
Kalonzo said that the late president was never tribal, since he was hesitant to appoint his successor, Uhuru Kenyatta, as the deputy prime minister, since people could have viewed it as tribalism.