Most of today's politicians served under him—that is one reason why, despite his atrocities, there has been no shortage of eulogies
DANIEL ARAP MOI was in many ways an accidental president. Though he had been number two to Jomo Kenyatta, independent Kenya’s first leader, the Kikuyu elite looked down on him. They saw the former teacher from the Kalenjin group as a modest man with much to be modest about. But when Kenyatta’s death in 1978 led to a struggle for power among Kikuyu bigwigs, the pragmatists settled on Mr Moi, believing they could manipulate him from behind the scenes.
But things changed in 1982, when Mr Moi pushed through a revision to the constitution that made Kenya a one-party state. That, in part, led to a coup by air-force personnel, which the president crushed. He ordered the arrest of the entire air force staff, all 2,100 men. Some were never seen again. His earlier modesty went, and so too did Njonjo.
While neighbouring Uganda, Ethiopia and Somalia fell into civil wars, Mr Moi presided over nearly a quarter-century of stability in Kenya. He never got bored with pointing this out. “Are you tired of peace?” he asked before stepping down in 2002. But during his rule the economy often stagnated and corruption spread. Investigations after he left office showed that as much as $4bn may have gone to his family and allies. Though not flashy, he acquired vast amounts of farmland in the Rift Valley.
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