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(Guest Blog)
By Paul Nyawanda
The feeling that makes you curse at an overlapping ‘matatu’and term it a ‘menace’ when stuck in traffic because ‘your’ driver decides to play by the rules. Same feeling that makes you whisper a prayer asking that there be no cops ahead, when you happen to be in the overlapping ‘matatu’. Simplest definition of corruption yet.
Coupled with tribalism, the two social evils enjoy a love-hate relationship similar to that which many Kenyans have with their elected representatives. The love relationship is based on a common destruction-oriented agenda, while the hate relationship is based on differing views on the best means to this end. So that as corrupt leaders advocate for discrimination based on ‘technical know-who’, tribal leaders advocate for the same based on ‘linguistic know-how’.
We often ponder when the rain started beating us with respect to the two evils. But rain is synonymous with blooming flowers, lush landscapes that make for picturesque scenes, and bumper harvests. Hence, we ought to ponder when it was that the drought caught up with us.
We decided to have leaders who’ll send a team to our rescue once the drought has kicked in, rather than those who would have built our capacity to keep the drought at bay. We decided to have leaders whose academic background isn’t nearly as impressive as the ‘percentages’ often presented to us as their popularity ratings, rather than those who would have increased the ‘percentage’ of students transitioning from one academic level to the next. We decided to settle for dogmatic political parties over pragmatic political leaders.
Parties have a significant role in the socialization process. A mandate which they’ve failed (and continue to fail) to execute. Thus, we settled (and continue to settle) for the wrong party. That’s when and where the drought caught up with us.
All this while, the right political party remains buried in the 6th Chapter of our constitution. A sneak peak of its manifesto indicates that leaders will not disrespect the electorate they serve in whichever way. That their conduct will not dishonor the dignity associated with the offices held, and that they’ll promote your confidence in the integrity of these offices.
The manifesto further asserts that competence and personal integrity will be the basis for determining suitability for state office(s). Decisions will be made objectively and in an impartial manner free of favoritism in all its various forms. Lastly, service delivery and public interest will go hand in hand and that the two principles will guide the actions taken/decisions made by all leaders associated with the party.
Here’s my #NaneNaneChallenge: On the eighth of the eighth, excavate the Chapter 6 party from where it’s buried and let’s ride on the crest of its wave into the next five years.
This article is courtesy of Project Mchujo, running with the hashtag #ChujaSiasa
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