Thursday, December 20, 2012

Of voter apathy and vacuous leadership

The I.E.B.C (Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission) released the 2012 listing of registered voters.  The figures showed 12.7 million have registered as voters in the country, representing 71 per cent of the target set by IEBC. The electoral body had set the target at 18 million.
Clearly this time around voters are convinced it will be a futile effort at the ballot box as change will not be forthcoming. Many waited until the last minute to register, this in the hope that an alternate candidate may emerge.
My take on the Kenya at present is rather glum. In terms of everyday life, it continues, albeit amid hardships. We are not starving as yet, but putting food on the table takes up most of the family budget leaving precious little for anything else.  In terms of business, some are doing well, while others are struggling. The food industry is holding steady, from the vegetable stand through to manufacturers of foodstuffs. The construction industry continues to grow, emphasis being on high rise buildings for tenant occupation. The real estate industry has stalled. According to brokers, people are not buying land at the moment.  This may be due to uncertainty about the forthcoming General Elections. Potential buyers or investors in real estate are waiting for the outcome of the General Elections to buy land in ‘neutral areas ‘that is, places not affected by post election skirmishes.
On a lighter note, there is one business that does well here in Kenya regardless of harsh economic times. That business is the sale of alcoholic beverages. I have noted that every village, every small town has multiple bars and Wines and Spirits businesses. Yet important institutions such as community centers, where youth can learn some skills and socialize appropriately, are lacking. Kenyans drink in good times and bad, when things are going well, they drink to the good times and when times are bleak they drink to drown away their sorrows, it’s a win-win situation for manufacturers and purveyors of alcoholic beverages.
Condemned to rudderless insipid leadership
With less than 3 months to go to the General Election, aspirants for public office have not defined their agenda for the post election period. They are instead locked in closed door meetings arguing over who will take what position in the government they hope to form. Not one leader has come out to address the concerns of the struggling Kenyan. Yet it is we who will put them into office, the same recycled trash from 20 years ago is still promising us a better Kenya, what complete and utter hogwash! Kenya has not progressed to its full potential since the days of Multi-party politics, instead we have bred a genus of a politician that has perfected the art of stealing public property and funds meant to provide basic services and initiate development projects.
But why is this so? Why do we continue to suffer inept leadership? Why, in a country that that has a relatively well educated population do we make such terrible choices at the ballot box?
My take:
-Voters have become resigned to the fact that this is the way things ought to be, call it voter fatigue. Some believe that things will not change as it is the same people vying for office every 5 years, with nothing to show for their years in office.
-Others think of the election period as a time ‘to eat’. They are mostly unemployed youth who will sing the tune of moneyed politicians in the hope of getting a handout. Others who have fallen prey to this malady are women’s groups. Politicians target these groups as they are voter rich and are easily swayed by a few blankets, some banknotes and bags of sugar.
-Potential great leaders are being locked out by the old guard. One way is through the costly nomination process whereby an aspirant has to pay a hefty registration fee to contest under the banner of a certain party. Although the Constitution allows independent candidates, we are not at that stage where your ideals and policies will sway the masses; the carnival type of campaigning is still the vogue here in Kenya, complete with dancing clowns and gyrating lasses.
-An ignorant, unaware voting populace also contributes to voter malaise. They have been kept so intentionally by our nefarious, inane politicians. Civic education is nonexistent in our schools and in the community. If the masses knew what good leadership entails and the expectations once in office, maybe then they would vote out permanently our corruption ridden politicians.
Post election prediction
I predict that many of the top positions in government will be retained either by those already firmly entrenched or the new administration will bring in their cronies to eat at the trough. We have a lot of qualified bureaucrats yet they will never get to live to their potential as nepotism and tribalism is the criteria for hiring.
I predict that life for the regular Kenyan will continue to be one of hardship and struggle. That feeder road will not be repaired; The Police will continue to be ill equipped, under paid and underprovided for in terms of amenities such as housing, thus making them less effective in service provision.  The local school will not be getting the needed supplies, overcrowding will continue thus teachers will be hard pressed to give individual attention. Hospitals and local health centers will be under staffed and under equipped thus increasing the misery of patients instead of providing succor.
My final prediction and fervent wish is that there will be no post election violence. Even if we elect the same dismal leaders, I urge all my fellow countrymen to remain calm and keep the peace. It does not make sense for neighbor to take arms against his neighbor for the sake of worthless politicians who will not remember you until the next election period. Your neighbor is whom you have to live with after the politicians drive back to their secluded estates, so be wise and please keep the peace and remember to vote.

Saturday, September 15, 2012

COMMUNITY CLEAN UP: YOUTH LEAD BY EXAMPLE


Standard 8 students with their teacher picking up trash in Tuala

This Friday, Standard 8 students from Rudolf Steiner School, took time from school work to pick up plastic and other refuse from Tuala town.
They put it into bags to be recycled and properly disposed of by the staff of Kitengela Glass.
SOME BACKGROUND
RUDOLF STIENER SCHOOL
From their website:
The Rudolf Steiner School is a non-profit making organization; the school is situated 20 km south of Nairobi. There are approximately 320 children in the whole school, a Primary department and four Kindergarten groups. 
The school has facilities such as a wood work classroom, a computer classroom and a small farm with milking cows and a vegetable garden.
KITENGELA GLASS
From their website:
Kitengela Glass is located opposite the Nairobi National Park.
The staff led by owner, Nani Croze recycles glass and scraps of other materials into beautiful artworks, jewelry and home wares.
WHY THEY DID THE TRASH PICKUP:
-The students will get funding from Kitengela Glass to go on a field trip.
-The trash will be recycled and disposed with minimum damage to the environment.
-The students get to learn a valuable lesson about how they can make a positive impact in their community by getting involved.
LESSONS FOR THE COMMUNITY:
-It takes a united effort by all members of the community to better our lives and bring progress to our Town.
- We can set an example for our children to follow by taking part in community projects.
- If united, we can put pressure on local Government to deliver the services we pay taxes for.
CONCLUSION:
-It is woefully apparent that Local Government is a complete failure when it comes to service delivery, yet they are vigorous and timely when it comes to tax collection in the form of tolls, license registrations among others.
-Local Government and civic leadership is littered with ineffectual, mediocre and often illiterate personnel who more often than not got their jobs from nepotism and cronyism, thus to expect them to perform is to expect the impossible.
-We, as community activists need to be ever vigilant and even confrontational when it comes to holding the government responsible for service delivery using our tax money.
- We also need to engage our neighbors in mapping and implementing development projects to better our lives.
- We have a General Election in a few months, I urge our readers to critically assess the leadership presently occupying elected positions. If in the last five years, you or your community has not been affected positively by your local leadership, we urge you to reject them soundly at the ballot box. An ignoble end befitting a dismal tenure!