So You Think You Are A Failure?

Before his election to the presidency at age 51, Abraham Lincoln had eight times lost lower office elections. He was miraculously elected to the Illinois State Legislature at age 25 but was out of a job within a year. In fact his only other notable political success came at the age of 37 when he won a congressional seat by a razor thin margin. That was characteristically followed by a resounding defeat at his reelection two years later. You see, this man was not only a bona fide political failure but also a businessman of magnificent losses. To fortify his miserable credentials, the chap became a card carrying permanent resident of a mental hospital at the age of 27; this after suffering a nervous breakdown following the untimely demise of his sweetheart.

So what does Lincoln do with his shabby life? Well, after special prayers, the man wins the presidency and introduces measures that result in the abolition of slavery. He then successfully leads his country through the American civil war only to be shot dead at the end of it. Damn! Talk about courage, persistence and perseverance….and a potent dose of bad luck.

Well, that looser is apparently not done. Coincidentally, at the 200th anniversary celebration of his birthday, an African American of Kenyan decent will be inaugurated as the 44th president of the United States.

One thing we could do here today is compare Abraham Lincoln to the fat leeches taking a series of short naps inside Parliament Buildings….but that will quickly degenerate into a heaven versus hell argument. You see, the last parliament can only be remembered in terms of a fruit basket; bananas and oranges. There’s nothing to suggest that the current one will achieve anything outside of keeping its members from The Hague. In fact, its sole preoccupation is self-preservation at the expense of the tax payer. As we speak, Moses Wetangula, our comedic foreign affairs minister, is excitedly planning a multi-million shillings ministerial excursion to Washington DC. All this money is being spent so that a bunch of sweaty MPs can stand under a tree to view Obama’s inauguration proceedings from about one or two kilometers away. This is not a simple case of misplaced priorities or misguided outbursts. It is in fact, an affront to wanainchi.

The problem is that we have allowed our leaders to disenfranchise us to the point where we see Kenyan pride in terms of Tusker beer, success in long distance athletics and tribal dominance. Our uncanny ability to survive adversity is seen as a badge of honor….when in real sense, honor is totally avoiding adversity. There exists no powerful affinity to ensure the country’s destiny or identity because it truly does not exist. In other words, we have lost all hope.

How else do you explain our lethargy in confronting the excesses of politicians in power?

This is where we can learn from Lincoln. We should never give up hope. So far, doing so has resulted in a docile Kenyan citizenry accepting of all manner of abuses. If we accept to remain roadside spectators watching hummers and helicopters crisscross the air space, we shall all perish. Let us get involved from all levels. Courage fellas, courage.

The only thing we must not do is wait 200 years.

My Challenge To The Kenyan Youth...Are We Any Different?

Are we really ready?

For a nation as small as Kenya, I'm stunned by the magnitude of corruption going on. In a span of less than two months, various degrees of corruption have been revealed to the public. But by far the most troubling remain the shenanigans that went down at the Kenya Pipeline and at the Tourism Board. I single out these two because the nation is on track to lose billions of shillings to cartels that have blatantly worked with government officials to line their pockets at the expense of the Kenyan people.

How could thirty five million shillings have been paid to a company that never delivered services? And just how could Permanent Secretary Nyoike have failed to notice that Triton was teetering on the brink of collapse at the time the Ministry of Energy was pumping billions of shilling in awarded tenders to them? Something is gravely wrong in a nation where within such a short time billions of shilling are lost...and apparently without much of a fight from Kenyans.

But if you thought these are bad, consider the growing evidence that the hunger and starvation being experienced by many Kenyans now is actually the work of a cartel within the Ministry of Agriculture. These sleazy folks have consciously decided that the mass starvation of Kenyans does not mean anything to them as long as they make a little money. How can these guys sleep at night? What do they think when they watch the emaciated bodies of little children and the withering breasts of mothers who can't feed those helpless Kenyans? Martha Karua, if you truly know who these folks are, let Kenyans know with you. Then let us collectively ask how such cruel people can remain in office.

Then there are the people we call the police. I have never seen more blatant corruption in my life. These guys have perfected the art of grabbing money from the hand of a tout into theirs in the twinkle of an eye. I've even heard stories of senior officers who have worked a deal with the matatu owners so that for a fee of about one hundred shillings per day, the lucky matatus will never ever be stopped. The troubling thing about this state of affairs is that Kenyans seem perfectly okay with what's going on. Nobody is complaining. Just how did we come to sink so low?

But even in the face of such blistering corruption, I have hope that things will get better. I have seen a lot of Kenyan youths who are eager to take the helm and help steer Kenya toward what her real potential is. Before we stake our claim to leadership, however, we as the youth must answer a fundamental question: Are we any different than the people who have brought Kenya to her knees? What will we do about the police? What will we do about corrupt men like Okungu and Achien'g? Will we be content to just jail them, or will we go a step further and make them return the money stolen from Kenyans? And finally, what will we do about these cartels that are making life a nightmare for Kenyans?

Fellow Kenyan youth, are we any different?