Resist all temptations to trigger, promote violence

The beautiful country called Kenya is currently going through a transformational experience. This political change always comes with its own challenges characteristic of which is the escalated food and commodities prices. This time round, this is exacerbated by a worldwide economic meltdown occasioned by multiple factors.

Amid all these, the strong wananchi continue to work hard and stay focused on making ends meet. Kenya needs to take a leap forward, a great leap of faith that will see it break all the shackles that are tethering us to the ground. There is a common misconception that it is the politicians who are holding us back, but truth is, we all play a part in making the country better.

The average citizen will cry aloud on how the leaders have messed us up but given a slight opportunity at their level of influence, they will re-enact the same bad mannerisms and decisions that point towards self-aggrandisement and overtly parochial interests. A committee chair will skew all the catering tenders, for instance, to their mistresses and cronies instead of the youth in the community who recently graduated from hospitality college. Yet this same man will never waste a moment in advising the same youth in to create own jobs.

The head of something or the other will be quick to have buddies, cronies and relatives staffing an official list at the expense of the rightfully deserving patriots who are qualified to take that trip. Does Rio games come to mind? What about the current Oregon sports fiasco? How about you look closely home where you work or worship, these things are happening right at your doorstep.

We shamelessly blame our leaders for practising what we have perfected over time. We have built a misconception over generations that mali ya umma (public resources) are immune to wastage and pilfering.

It is also common for students in public institutions to leave taps running or lights on while quipping “this is public property”.

We have conditioned the populace to react to grand heists with an almost predictable question, how much was stolen? The more the amounts, the more the masses are convinced “you did a respectable job”.  Ad hoc meetings across towns and villages will discuss the heist, by breaking down the amounts in terms of how much will go to the police, the lawyers, the judges and the accrued net profit.

This is how far we have sunk in terms of values and ethics. These are the voters who are supposed to make good choices and give us good leadership. From potent wood we get potent offshoots, and the same applies to impotent wood. It may be a tall order to expect our leaders to behave any different when they are part of the community.

Fighting corruption is a personal calling, building the strong foundations that will take this country to the next level is also a personal calling. As patriots, we should be ready to be uncomfortable with the truths that make the unpleasant habits fester. We need to sacrifice our comforts and familiarity with the effortless way out and embrace change.

Resist the temptation to support violence during elections, to break laid down rules and procedures for personal gain, to be inconsiderate to the vulnerable members of our society. Standing firm and being an agent of change will inevitably set you on a collision course with the diehard conservatives who are the direct beneficiaries of chaos. Stay focused on the end game and always remember Kenya is bigger than the sum total of all of us, let us guard it jealously and maintain peaceful co-existence.

God bless Kenya.

— The writer is career educationist, curriculum developer and researcher

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