Rédaction Africa Links 24 with Daily Nation
Published on 2024-02-10 21:00:00
Unfortunately, I was unable to attend the recent funeral for Caesar Handa, a founding director of Strategic Public Relations (SPR) and CEO of Strategic Africa. His passing filled me with shock and sadness, prompting me to share my memories of him in this tribute.
I first met Caesar Handa in 1996, shortly after I joined USAid-Kenya as an advisor in their Democracy & Governance office. At that time, I was waiting to secure my contract with USAid, and Caesar extended an invitation for me to join Strategic as a fellow-director. However, due to my expected position at USAid, I had to decline. Nonetheless, I was inspired by Strategic’s plans, especially since there was limited political survey work being conducted in Kenya at the time. Although there had been pre-election polls in 1992 by the Institute for Education and Democracy, there was a gap in this area that Strategic aimed to fill.
After I started at USAid, our office provided a grant to the Institute for Education and Democracy to monitor the Electoral Commission of Kenya’s voter registration and education efforts ahead of the 1997 election. SPR, with support from the Embassy of Finland, undertook groundbreaking survey work ahead of the election. Despite some initial challenges with Ms. Grace Githu, CEO of the Institute for Education and Democracy, our intention to objectively appraise their work was eventually acknowledged.
In my role at USAid, I helped facilitate the establishment of the Nairobi office of the International Republican Institute and introduced the IRI Director to SPR. They later conducted various surveys prior to both the 2002 and 2007 elections for IRI, including an exit poll showing that Odinga had defeated Kibaki by about six per cent, which was blocked from public release. Throughout these experiences, Caesar always stood by his firm’s work, even when faced with differing poll results from other research firms.
Caesar’s dedication to professional integrity was evident when he made the decision to abstain from conducting pre-election polls for public release, until Kenya had an election commission that produced credible results. This position, although principled, also drew attention to the importance of credible polling in influencing public opinion and political decisions.
Caesar Handa’s passing is a significant loss to his family, friends, and the Kenyan public opinion research community. His commitment to professional integrity and his contributions to the field of polling have left a lasting impact. I deeply regret not being able to have our planned chai-chat and feel that his departure has left unfinished contributions to his family, profession, and country.
In conclusion, Caesar Handa will be remembered not only as a pioneer in Kenyan public opinion research but also for his unwavering commitment to his principles and professional integrity. His legacy will continue to inspire others in the field.
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