Monday, February 13, 2006
CRY FOR HELP
Martin Meredith in his book The Fate of Africa notes that ‘for the most part, Africa has suffered grievously at the hands of its Big Men and its ruling elites.’ On Kenya he observes that ‘even when regimes have changed hands, new governments, whatever promises they made on arrival, have lost little time in adopting the habits of their predecessors.’ Three years after declaring that ‘corruption will cease to be a way of life in Kenya’, the government is seen to be doing little to combat the menace.
The western world and the donor community, to whom we constantly turn for largesse and support, are slowly exhibiting fatigue symptoms. The vast amount of aid sunk into the country is not replicated in discernible projects and programs. People are dying of hunger and thirst, yet the Cereal Board is bursting with excess storage of maize. What is there is grand evidence of avarice, greed and conspicuous consumption by a privileged few. The pampering of the politically correct cabal at the expense of the nation is something that the people can no longer condone. When Kibaki declared war on corruption, it was to be fought by all and from all the fronts. Some of his confidants took it that the war was to be fought on other fronts and at the lower levels and they expected to continue with business as usual.
Most problems of post independent Africa can be traced directly to its leaders, their caliber, their vision, and their commitment to national ideals or lack thereof. Some leaders come into the scene full of promise and determination. One such was Kibaki, but he quickly found himself in the shackles of paternalism and political maneuvers which have manipulated his power and made him a lame duck. Kibaki’s hands-off style of leadership was taken as a license to loot. He trusted his ministers to act judiciously and patriotically, they ended up being malicious and spiteful. In spite of all the damning evidence, they still continue to cling on to office and the entrapments of power. This is abuse of the people’s intelligence and abrogation of the contract between the government and its people. The people cannot continue trusting the intentions and actions of their government when their confidence in the truthfulness, integrity and honor of the key players is heavily eroded. The people cannot, and should not, be forced to wait another two years before cleaning up the mess that is in the government today. The time to take the initiative is now. As the Swahili saying goes asiyezimba ufa atajenga ukuta. Stitch in time and save nine.
Kenya has had opportunities in the past to be a political show case in Africa and the world. Beginning with the peaceful transition of power in 1978 through the various elections, rigged or otherwise, to the era of competitive politics and ascension of opposition to the seat of power in 2002, Kenyans exhibited resilience and maturity rare in African politics. The people should not allow this faith and confidence to be lost because of the actions of a few. Demand for accountability at every level should be the clarion call. We must seize the time to show the world that we can live the true meaning of our national motto harambee, that we can pull together and in the same direction and rid ourselves of the corruptor and the corrupted.. It is not enough to just sweep the floor and leave the dirt by the door side. It must be collected and deposited in the compost pit where the stench does not permeate the house.
The government should not forget the lessons of the November 2005 referendum. People united in a course are like a juggernaut that will crash all on its path. Those able to harness this force will reap the fruits that fall when the tree is shaken. The international community is watching to see whether the government will respond to the cries of its people. Only then will they come in and help to pull them out of the abyss into which they have been deposited by the gluttony and greed of its leaders. The wanton suffering in the countryside, hunger, insecurity, breakdown in the infrastructure and the attendant neglect of the various projects should be addressed forthwith. We cannot continue to blame God for all our problems. God played His part when He endowed us with the capacity to think and act proactively. That is why He does not give us rain all the time so that we can sink wells and get water. The days of Moses talking to rocks to produce water are long gone. We need action, selfless and humble service. Some are however busy digging canals to divert the river course from its natural path and denying the others their rightful share of the water. Somebody please pull us out of this mess. But they have dug a pit, thrown us into the pit, we will surely not trust them to pull us out of the pit. It is time to look for someone to pull us out of the pit.
Charles Wairia
USA
The western world and the donor community, to whom we constantly turn for largesse and support, are slowly exhibiting fatigue symptoms. The vast amount of aid sunk into the country is not replicated in discernible projects and programs. People are dying of hunger and thirst, yet the Cereal Board is bursting with excess storage of maize. What is there is grand evidence of avarice, greed and conspicuous consumption by a privileged few. The pampering of the politically correct cabal at the expense of the nation is something that the people can no longer condone. When Kibaki declared war on corruption, it was to be fought by all and from all the fronts. Some of his confidants took it that the war was to be fought on other fronts and at the lower levels and they expected to continue with business as usual.
Most problems of post independent Africa can be traced directly to its leaders, their caliber, their vision, and their commitment to national ideals or lack thereof. Some leaders come into the scene full of promise and determination. One such was Kibaki, but he quickly found himself in the shackles of paternalism and political maneuvers which have manipulated his power and made him a lame duck. Kibaki’s hands-off style of leadership was taken as a license to loot. He trusted his ministers to act judiciously and patriotically, they ended up being malicious and spiteful. In spite of all the damning evidence, they still continue to cling on to office and the entrapments of power. This is abuse of the people’s intelligence and abrogation of the contract between the government and its people. The people cannot continue trusting the intentions and actions of their government when their confidence in the truthfulness, integrity and honor of the key players is heavily eroded. The people cannot, and should not, be forced to wait another two years before cleaning up the mess that is in the government today. The time to take the initiative is now. As the Swahili saying goes asiyezimba ufa atajenga ukuta. Stitch in time and save nine.
Kenya has had opportunities in the past to be a political show case in Africa and the world. Beginning with the peaceful transition of power in 1978 through the various elections, rigged or otherwise, to the era of competitive politics and ascension of opposition to the seat of power in 2002, Kenyans exhibited resilience and maturity rare in African politics. The people should not allow this faith and confidence to be lost because of the actions of a few. Demand for accountability at every level should be the clarion call. We must seize the time to show the world that we can live the true meaning of our national motto harambee, that we can pull together and in the same direction and rid ourselves of the corruptor and the corrupted.. It is not enough to just sweep the floor and leave the dirt by the door side. It must be collected and deposited in the compost pit where the stench does not permeate the house.
The government should not forget the lessons of the November 2005 referendum. People united in a course are like a juggernaut that will crash all on its path. Those able to harness this force will reap the fruits that fall when the tree is shaken. The international community is watching to see whether the government will respond to the cries of its people. Only then will they come in and help to pull them out of the abyss into which they have been deposited by the gluttony and greed of its leaders. The wanton suffering in the countryside, hunger, insecurity, breakdown in the infrastructure and the attendant neglect of the various projects should be addressed forthwith. We cannot continue to blame God for all our problems. God played His part when He endowed us with the capacity to think and act proactively. That is why He does not give us rain all the time so that we can sink wells and get water. The days of Moses talking to rocks to produce water are long gone. We need action, selfless and humble service. Some are however busy digging canals to divert the river course from its natural path and denying the others their rightful share of the water. Somebody please pull us out of this mess. But they have dug a pit, thrown us into the pit, we will surely not trust them to pull us out of the pit. It is time to look for someone to pull us out of the pit.
Charles Wairia
USA
