Election Time Myths and Facts

Myth: "an idea or story that many people believe, but which is not true"
Fact: "a piece of information that is known to be true"

MYTH: An ODM government will result to Kenyans’ living standards being worse. ie "the same as those of residents of Kibera Slums in Langata constituency".
FACT: Of the approximately 33 million strong Kenyan population, only 43% (ie. 14.1 million persons) have access to adequate sanitation and only 61% (20 million persons) have access to clean water. Do the rest live in Kibera?

MYTH: By voting in an ODM government it would set a dangerous precedent and create an insecure/unstable living environment in Kenya!
FACT: Presently, Kenya has the highest number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) for a country not at war. 1.5% of the Kenyan population are IDPs. That is; nearly half a million people living as refugees in their own country. If truth be told, hundreds of thousands have died, thousands more lost their property and were scarred for life due to politically instigated violence. This social injustice continues to present time.

MYTH: The Kibaki regime has brought economic growth and Kenyans are generally happier than 5 years ago.
FACT: With a per capita income of about US$400, that is a little more than a dollar per day, Kenya is one of the poorest countries in Africa with widespread endemic poverty as well as gross inequalities. In actual fact, only less than 10% of the population (3.3 million persons) control national assets, while the remaining majority 90% (30 million persons) have been fighting double digit inflation for the last five years and are at a great disadvantage in terms of access to wealth, health, education and justice.

MYTH: The Kibaki regime has improved Kenyans’ general life styles and the population is healthier than it was previously.
FACT: Life expectancy for Kenyans has fallen from 58 years in 1986 to 48 years in 2006, and the cost of living has skyrocketed with Nairobi now ranking 107th costliest city globally in 2006, up from position 117th in 2005.

MYTH: That the Kibaki regime has improved infrastructure and infrastructure is generally efficient and well maintained.
FACT: Nearly 80% of Kenyans, comprising small scale farmers, traders and manufacturing enterprises rate road and rail services as ‘poor’, ‘very poor’ or ‘not available at all’. Dilapidated, congested or inadequate infrastructure (ie, roads, rail, telecoms, etc) affects the poverty stricken citizens most. That is; those who cannot fly or afford other means of communications. Poor Kenyans, (those living on less than a dollar per day) are 18 million persons, at last count.

MYTH: The current government has satisfactorily managed land distribution and there is absolutely no need to implement the Ndungu Land Commission Report recommendations as it will result to civil strife.
FACT: In Kenya, some 3600 large scale holdings control a staggering 780 million hectares of arable land (ie. each having an average 217,000 hectares) against a meagre average size of one hectare of land for each 3.5 million small holding peasant farmer. The rest of the population makes do with unfertile, arid and semi arid land.

MYTH: That the ODM is unpopular, cannot form government next term and it is does not offer a worthwhile alternative to the current government.
FACT: Recent opinion polls (Sept 2007) puts the ODM candidate ahead by nearly 10% of registered voters. That is nearly 1.4million votes. The same opinion polls rate ODM the most preferred party with more than half of registered voters supporting it.

MYTH: That the current regime has satisfactorily tackled corruption in public offices.
FACT: According to TI, Kenyans still rate 'corruption' as the number one problem in their country, followed by 'poverty' and 'unemployment'. Corruption remains a national problem and that which is directly responsible for promoting poverty and inequality, which is in turn breeding discontent and instability. Corruption is a real threat to democracy and uniform economic and social development.

Tribal Bigotry: Nazi Eugenics Kenyan Style

That Adolf Hitler epitomizes ethnic cleansing in recorded history is indisputable. But even to the Germans in whose name he fought and sought purity for, Hitler smeared them with blemish that will be carried forward by generation to come and probably into eternity. Most history students outside Germany and Israel marvel at the murderous heroics of Hitler oblivious of the irreparable damage he caused the human species. He is simply a case study of how ruinous the idd (animal) in us can be given a trace of chance.

But why all the rant about Hitler in this blog, you may ask? Well, the answer sits pretty in that very question. Our nation is undergoing that five-year painful and divisive ritual christened election. Painful because electioneering inflicts such obtuse emotional and personal harm to a majority of Kenyans than any other period in their lives. And divisive to an extent that even people whom one previously thought would have mellowed intellectually from exposure to other cultures and continents all over a sudden start spewing such acidic tribal vitriol without parallel.

An outsider visiting Kumekucha for the first time would imagine that its bloggers are permanently at war albeit without guns. God forbid prospects of inventing e-guns. The tone of posts in this blog have changed dramatically for the worse. The pretence to civility has vanished and the gloves are off. But the evil bit comes in comments dressed in ethnic gabs.

The earlier civilized and unwritten agreement to respect divergence in views has suddenly evaporated and in its place hatred and war mongering shamelessly taken residence. And where does this leave us as the future of Kenya and our motherland herself? At the risk of being branded a judge, I put it to readers here that we have been cleverly roped into tribal jingoism by our selfish politicians. We have perfected the art of being hate peddlers to unfathomable proportions. Consequently the scoundrels answering to the name of 'our leaders' must be laughing their heads off as we shadow box each other inside the maze they have weaved for us.

Politicians and polls come and go but the country is there to stay. With one finger we vilify Moi for perfecting ethnic division of Kenyans while what our own practice makes him look a saint. Until we resolve to rise about our cheap leaders and see the forest for the trees, we will continue riding our respective horses down a steep slope to oblivion. We must STOP and PRESS Kenya. She is bigger than any of us and until we accept that we all equally belong together, we are all engaging in nothing short of self-deception.

My dear country people, we must accept being biological accidents populating geographical accident (forget colonialism) called Kenya. Hitler thought of Aryan’s superiority and people are still paying the price almost a century later. Stop imagining that you are more Kenyan than your neighbour. Never mistake bigotry for superiority. We must not talk at each other but rather to each other. Support your candidate if you must but don’t transform political campaign into grandstanding and brinkmanship. It is unity in diversity, stupid. May the real Kenyans please stand up? God bless Kenya