How to save Kenya

The courage to do what is right and just is often the only distinction between good and bad. In a world fast changing and evolving, the perception of what is right and wrong is often marred with personal sentiments, opinions and personal interests. Sad but it’s true.
Often we think and go ahead, even place blame on the justice system, the police force and other legal institutions. But maybe our demon is too hidden for our eyes, lying in the castles we call home ,offices we call business; Smog is alive and well.

The problem boils down to an individual’s stand. And when the said individual is so bent on accumulating wealth for his/her own sake then it destroys the little work they accomplish. Think of a company whose CEO doesn’t care for his workers, the result is a disgruntled workforce, easy.

Now expand that to a national level where every Thomas, Daniel & Harriet is ready to pounce into the cookie jar and come out a mouthful. As time moves forward from since our independence this trend seems to be growing and increasing with no signs of ceasing; sad more so due to the hope and expectations the Kenyan people had before the hard earned independence. So here we are fifty something years past and we have all been shortchanged, all the four generations that have been there, yes all of them! From the empty promises, the embezzling of funds, theft of public land, theft of poor citizen’s land and the list goes on and on.

We have had commissions of inquiry, investigative bodies, police investigations even reports which are publicly handed over to the president, DPP and AG or even to the three at the same time. A few weeks later the report is not heard of and is piled somewhere in a cabinet to gather dust, for justice never to be seen.

So let’s put the past behind us, let’s let the ill gotten wealth go, just for a moment, if for nothing but to clear our minds to focus on the bigger picture. We have been robbed and outwitted for too long for it to be a coincidence, we should review our steps and strategies to find out what ails us. There must be a fault in our society, the reason behind the theft, lack of integrity, impunity and corruption. Watching an old Movie a white man stands from among hostages held at gunpoint and proclaims loud & proud,

“We are Americans, we don’t bow to anyone….”
For a moment, the captors(not american, of course) freeze and wonder for a moment as if biting, nimbling and tasting at their ferocious victims. Whether gunshots flew is of no consequence, let’s focus on the identity they (captors) have of themselves.

As I sat there I wondered how proud the said ‘Americans’ were of themselves, so much so that they have coined a character, so hard coded that it only needs one word to define it. As I was held in awe and admiration I wondered whether I can pull off a ‘I am Kenyan’ and let it speak for me? In a bus abducted by terrorists, or maybe in a closed room meeting deliberating on what wealth is to be grabbed and by who (not yet happened, if it does post me a video)

The thing is we, as a nation, have portrayed ourselves as thieves, unable to take care or behave in an upright way. So much that any European, Asian or American would claim that we are a country of corrupt morals and thieving leaders and none of our forty million Kenyans would dare throw a defamation suit against the foreigners, sad but true.

A mirror has to be held up to us and should be met with the willingness to change and strive to be better. We should all change our notoriously popular character to one with integrity if we wish to have Kenyans regarded with distinction and dignity at the world table.

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