Taitz Finds the Birth Certificate Smoking Gun

In 1960, the principle of African independence was finally accepted, although the next three years were marked by intense political struggles and negotiations over Kenya's political future. It was during this period that political factionalism began to rear its ugly head that would haunt postcolonial Kenya. At the root of this factionalism, which became less ideological and more ethnic and regional, lay the conjuncture of approaching independence in a society suffering from acute uneven development. Uneven development in Kenya, as in other colonies, corresponded to, and was intersected by, regional, ethnic, and class factors. In spite of the emergency-in fact, because of it-the Central Province, populated mostly by the Kikuyu, had continued its relatively fast level of development.

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Underlying the broader regional cleavages, there were local social, economic, and political divisions that provided the basis for local factional and leadership rivalries and future inter-ethnic and inter-regional political realignments. In fact, both KANU and KADU, formed following the Lancaster House Constitutional Conference in 1960, were basically loose coalitions with weak central party machinery, so that almost from the beginning they were given to internal political splits and realignments. The fact that these parties were formed in the midst of the transition to independence meant that there was not enough time to consolidate the party structures and therefore institutionalize the inter-party competition. Hence the relative ease with which KADU dissolved itself into KANU in November 1964. (P.T. Zeleza)

From the time of State of Emergency being lifted to independence in 1963, things moved quickly. The British Government, pushed along by Harold Macmillan's 'Wind of Change' speech, opened negotiations that had always been inevitable with the African leaders. A constitutional conference was held at Lancaster House in London in January and February 1960, that led to a transitional constitution legalizing political parties and giving Africans a comfortable majority on the Legislative Council. The Kenya African National Union (KANU) - the successor to the KAU - was subsequently inaugurated, adopting a firm stance on land resettlement in the highlands. M'boya and James Gichuru became the leaders of KANU because Kenyatta remained in detention. Other African politicians, who were wary of Kikuyu-Luo domination, favoured a more federalist government; to this end, they formed the Kenya African Democratic Union (KADU).

When Kenyatta was released in August 1961 (the same month the Berlin Wall went up), he formed an all-party government and accepted the KANU presidency. At the legislative elections in May 1963, KANU triumphed over KADU with 124 seats opposed to 83, and Kenyatta was elected prime minister. The country's first internal self-governing administration was formed on 1 June 1963 amid scenes of unparalleled joy, and Kenya was formally declared Independent on the 12th of December, 1963. (Kikuyu – The Mau Mau Uprising and Independence: The Winds of Change 1960-63)