Nairobi People's Convention Party
Nairobi People's Convention Party | |
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Leader | Tom Mboya |
Secretary | |
Secretary-General | |
Founded | 1957 |
Dissolved | 1961 |
Succeeded by | Kenya African National Union (KANU) |
Headquarters | Nairobi, Kenya Colony |
Youth wing | NPCP Youth wing (Kenya Ginger Group/NPCP Choir/NPCP Uhuru Singers) |
Women's wing | NPCP Women's wing |
Ideology | African nationalism |
History of Kenya |
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Kenya portal |
The Nairobi People's Convention Party (NPCP) was a Nairobi based political party formed in 1957 by Tom Mboya. This party played a crucial role in the fight for Kenya's independence. Despite attempts at suppression from the colonial government, the NPCP managed to mobilise Africans in Nairobi to further the nationalist cause and fight for independence from Britain. Following Jomo Kenyatta's release from detention in 1961, the NPCP merged with the Kenya African Union (KAU) and Kenya Independence Movement (KIM) to form the Kenya African National Union (KANU).[2]
History
Kwame Nkurumah's Convention People's Party impressed and inspired Tom Mboya. Ghana attained independence in March 1957. In Kenya, political activity by Africans was strongly discouraged by the colonial government after the Mau Mau rebellion. An outright ban on national level political organisation by Africans was in place. However, political parties at the district level were permitted. Tom Mboya attended Ghana's first anniversary independence celebrations in March 1958. This visit inspired him to increase the pace of political activity aimed at agitating for Kenya's independence. Despite the suppression, the political mood in Kenya was vibrant as African independence movements were gaining momentum. The NPCP reflected this mood more than any other political party. Although based in Nairobi it was uncompromisingly nationalistic and was the first well organised and disciplined mass party in Kenya. The NPCP expanded their boundaries beyond Nairobi with the intention of turning NPCP into an unofficial countrywide nationalist party.[2][3]
Organisational strategy
NPCP was described as a political machine due to its effective growth strategy and organisation. Tom Mboya was careful to ensure that the party was multi-ethnic. For instance, the NPCP's leadership group in 1958 included three people from the Luo community, two from the Kikuyu community, and two from the Luhya community.[4][5] The NPCP also made inroads into other district political parties in the country, bringing their brand of organisation and vision.[2]
Persecution
The NPCP Youth League and Women's wing
NPCP had a vibrant youth and women's wing. The youth wing was also called the Kenya singer group, the NPCP Uhuru Singers and the NPCP choir
Dissolution
In 1960, just before Jomo Kenyatta's release, the NPCP merged with the Kenya Independence Movement and Kenya African Union in order to present a national unified front at the Lancaster House Conference in the form of the Kenya African National Union (KANU).[2]
References
- ^ Magazine, AwaaZ. "Dennis Akumu (1934-2016) - AwaaZ Magazine". awaazmagazine.com. Archived from the original on 2020-10-27. Retrieved 2020-10-23.
- ^ a b c d e The Politics of The Independence of Kenya by Kyle Keith. Palgrave MacMillan 1999
- ^ a b Asian and African Studies: Vol. 18, No. 3 By meisai.org.il
- ^ Ethnicity and Leadership in Africa: The 'Untypical' Case of Tom Mboya Author(s): David Goldsworthy Source: The Journal of Modern African Studies , Mar., 1982, Vol. 20, No. 1 (Mar., 1982), pp. 107-126
- ^ Challenging the Rulers: A Leadership Model for Good Governance Joseph Kwaka, Okoth Okombo, Barrack Muluka & Betty Sungura-Nyabuto
- ^ Talking drums. Commentary on African Affairs. Disintegration in Central Africa. Africa Today, Vol. 6, No. 2 (Mar. - Apr., 1959), pp. 3-6+21 Indiana University Press
- ^ a b Kenya, the National Epic: From the Pages of Drum Magazine By Garth Bundeh and James R. A. Bailey East African Publishers, 1993
- ^ The African Crowd in Nairobi: Popular Movements and Élite Politics by Frank Furedi. The Journal of African History Vol. 14, No. 2 (1973), pp. 275-290 (16 pages) Published by: Cambridge University Press
- ^ "The passing of a revolutionary | Pambazuka News". www.pambazuka.org. Archived from the original on 2020-10-26. Retrieved 2020-10-22.