Abubakar Zein remembered for using theatre, storytelling and politics to shape Kenya

An event celebrating the life and legacy of the late Hon. Abubakar Zein Abubakar, highlighting his contributions as a poet, literary figure, public intellectual, second liberation hero, pan-Africanist, human rights activist and thought leader, will be held on August 29 at Swahilipot Hub in Mombasa.

His death in Nairobi on July 9, 2026, brought to an end a remarkable life spanning theatre, literature, civic education, constitutional reform, human rights advocacy and politics.

Zein, popularly known as Mheshimiwa Zein, was a public intellectual and cultural leader who served Kenya and East Africa in a number of influential roles. He was a commissioner of the Constitution of Kenya Review Commission (CKRC) and represented Kenya in the third East African Legislative Assembly (EALA) from 2012 to 2017.

But before he became a constitutional commissioner, legislator and political strategist, Zein was a storyteller and theatre practitioner.

His interest in history and culture was nurtured from childhood and became evident during his years at Allidina Visram High School in Mombasa. At Kenyatta University, where he pursued a Bachelor of Arts degree, he developed his reputation as an orator, a storyteller and a thespian.

He was instrumental in establishing the Kenyatta University Cultural Festival in the early 1990s, an initiative that has since inspired similar annual cultural festivals in public universities across Kenya.

After university, Zein joined the Nairobi Theatre Academy (NTA), hosted at the then French Cultural Centre in Nairobi, now Alliance Française Nairobi. The academy was an experimental institution that trained a new generation of Kenyan thespians while combining international theatrical traditions with African performance practices.

Journalist and BBC award-winning playwright and colleague Ben Ateku, who worked with him at the academy, remembers Zein as an administrator, an educator and a communicator who was deeply committed to excellence.

“Zein was a consummate colleague whose quest for excellence placed him in the highest echelon as an administrator, educator and communicator,” Ateku says.

The two worked long hours to fulfil the goals set by the academy’s board. Ateku says that Zein did not shy away from difficult conversations and was able to articulate his ideas respectfully regardless of a person’s age, status or political leaning.

He had a strong influence on the academy’s students and encouraged them to explore the meaning and power of their theatre roles.

These qualities, Ateku says, helped the academy bring together thespians from different performing groups in Nairobi and develop their skills.

“Zein will be remembered as the man who fully embraced art—not in piecemeal bits, but in every manner and in every space as an actor, educator, encourager and leader. He lived art,” Ateku says.

Zein’s theatre was focused on African storytelling, especially the history and culture of the Swahili Coast. Among his notable performances was The Epic of Fumo Liyongo, which he performed at different venues, including the Kenya National Theatre (KNT) and Alliance Française.

Writer, storyteller and teacher Prof Mkawasi Mcharo first met Zein in the 1990s when they were both active in the theatre scene at the NTA and KNT. She remembers The Epic of Fumo Liyongo as one of the performances that demonstrated his commitment to storytelling and the preservation of African cultural traditions.

The work was produced during difficult years for artists under the Moi regime. Mcharo says that Zein was among the practitioners whose work confronted oppression, corruption and the excesses of power.

“Those were exciting years and also dangerous years. Exciting and dangerous art confronts, agitates and looks to change society,” Mcharo says.

She remembers Zein as a leading voice in the performing arts and in critical discussions around social and political issues. He was an instructor, thinker and agitator who used theatre, workshops and public discussions to examine issues affecting society.

Dr Mshai Mwangola, a performance scholar, oraturist, actor, director and storyteller, first met Zein at the Kenya Schools Drama Festival in 1985 before reconnecting with him at Kenyatta University. She says that storytelling was central to Zein’s identity.

They worked together on Austin Bukenya’s The Bride, after which Zein became chair of Creative and Performing Arts, a student organisation at the university. He later moved to the NTA.

Dr Mwangola says that Zein and Ateku were part of efforts to strengthen the NTA’s African foundation at a time when its training drew heavily from European theatre traditions.

“His work was very much grounded in Kenyan and African storytelling culture, especially coming from the Coast,” Dr Mwangola says.

Zein explored Swahili history and language in Kiswahili and English and worked with poetry, including the works of Kithaka wa Mberia and Abdilatif Abdalla.

Dr Mwangola says that Zein’s background in business studies also gave him an understanding of publicity, marketing, contracts and the business side of artistic production at a time when these aspects received little attention.

Seasoned journalist, performing artist, arts writer, cartoonist and graphic novelist Kimani Wa Wanjiru also encountered Zein through theatre in the late 1990s. Their collaboration grew through Theatre Workshop Productions, which pioneered Theatre for Development and Participatory Education Theatre.

The group developed performances for civic education during the campaign for multiparty democracy and the repeal of Section 2A. Working under a repressive regime, they used theatre and creative language to communicate political messages.

Wanjiru remembers Zein as skilled at using language to hide the truth in plain sight.

“He was a consummate reader—widely read, deeply thoughtful and attentive to the subtleties of language, structure, context and meaning,” Wanjiru says.

Zein’s literary work included the novel Mbio za Maisha and an unpublished manuscript, Kumbukumbu: Ya Kuja kwa Maafriti, exploring the arrival of the Portuguese on the East African coast.

He was also a founding member of the Orature Collective, established in 2018 with Dr Mwangola, Dr Kawive Wambua, Mueni Lundi and Aghan Odero to promote orature, oral literature, literacy and history through performance and public readings.

Wambua describes Zein as a walking encyclopedia of enslavement, colonialism and resistance who had a gift for turning history into accessible narratives.

Zein’s transition from theatre into constitutional reform and public service came during the political upheavals of the 1990s.

He was involved in the multiparty democracy and constitutional review movement and joined the Safina Party in its early years.

Mcharo also remembers Zein as instrumental in the formation and launch of Safina in the late 1990s, alongside figures including Paul Muite, Farah Maalim, Richard Leakey and Mwandawiro Mghanga.

She says that his involvement contributed to the expansion of Kenya’s political space, freedom and recognition of minorities.

“He was a writer, mentor to many, politician, leader and theatre practitioner,” Mcharo says.

In 2000, Zein was among the 15 commissioners appointed to the People’s Commission of Kenya, established through the Ufangamano Initiative as a civil society-led alternative to the government-backed constitutional review process.

Following the merger of the parallel processes, Zein joined the CKRC as a commissioner.

His knowledge of culture and the arts also influenced his constitutional work. He advocated for the recognition of culture as a foundation of national identity and participated in discussions around culture during the Bomas constitutional talks.

Wanjiru says that Zein was instrumental in supporting the culture and arts working group and advocating for culture to be reflected in the Constitution.

Though the proposed standalone chapter on culture did not make it into the final document, culture is in the 2010 Constitution, like provisions on culture, language, national symbols, values and tangible and intangible heritage.

Zein later became executive director of the National Civic Education Programme, which evolved into Uraia Trust. He helped shape its vision of civic education “by Kenyans, for Kenyans and to Kenyans”, drawing on his constitutional expertise to make the 2010 Constitution more accessible to ordinary citizens.

In 2012, Zein moved into regional politics after being nominated by the Orange Democratic Movement and elected by Parliament to represent Kenya in EALA.

Between 2012 and 2017, he chaired the Regional Affairs and Conflict Resolution Committee and headed the East African Community Election Observation Mission to Burundi’s 2015 presidential election.

His interest in regional affairs continued after leaving EALA. He supported initiatives promoting democratic institutions and people-centred governance across East Africa.

He later returned to Kenya and served as executive director of Muslims for Human Rights (MUHURI) in Mombasa, where he advocated for approaches to counter-terrorism that avoided criminalising entire communities based on their religious identity.

Zein subsequently moved into full-time politics while continuing to contribute to civil society, public discussions and governance initiatives.

He served as a strategist in three presidential campaigns of former Prime Minister Raila Odinga and represented the Orange Democratic Movement on the National Dialogue Committee. At the time of his death, he was leading the secretariat of former Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka.

Those who knew Zein say his ability to move between the arts, academia, civil society and politics came from his intellectual curiosity.

Former journalist and anti-corruption activist John Githongo remembers him as an accomplished actor, director and storyteller whose theatrical instincts were evident in his political communication.

His understanding of performance, storytelling and human interaction made him a charismatic figure in public spaces. His ability to absorb large amounts of information and synthesise complex issues into clear ideas was one of his defining qualities.

“He was always seeking the narrative, the big ideas and what people wanted to say. His love for performance was with him throughout his life and was overshadowed by his public and political career,” Githongo says.

One of his most memorable performances was The Epic of Fumo Liyongo, which Githongo saw him perform several times at venues including the Alliance Française and the KNT. Githongo says that his legacy, he says, extends across the arts, constitutional reform, civic education and politics.

Dr Mwangola describes him as an intellectual giant who researched deeply, read widely and could translate complex theories into language that ordinary people could understand.

“He never lost sight as an African. He was committed to challenging misconceptions about African history and the Swahili people," Dr Mwangola says.

Wanjiru says that Zein’s legacy lies in his ability to use storytelling to educate, mobilise and preserve history.

“He epitomised what writer Maya Angelou once said: ‘There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you,’” Wanjiru says.

Away from his professional achievements, Zein is remembered as kind-hearted, generous and principled. He was a committed Muslim, a Pan-Africanist and a passionate advocate for the historical and cultural heritage of the Swahili Coast.

Prof Mcharo says that celebrating Zein’s life is also an opportunity to reflect on the gains Kenya has made in political freedom, cultural recognition and democratic participation.

His life shows how theatre and storytelling can extend to civic education, constitutional reform, cultural advocacy and public leadership.