Many are the times Kenyans vow never to elect the wrong leaders come the general elections held every year. But this has turned out to be just but a seasonal song that comes and goes without having any impact to the society. To the politicians-the people meant to be threatened by this song-it has turned into the barking of teeth-less dogs which do not bite. The politicians are well versed with the verses of the song and they know its rhythm so well that they can notice it from very far without mistaking it for another. And they also have their way of responding to it.
These cunning politicians give false promises to the gullible Kenyans during their campaigns but once they are elected and are in office, they never turn up to deliver what they promised. This betrayal irritates most people and they swear never to elect the leaders again back to office. Nevertheless, along the way, something goes amiss and my fellow poor Kenyans forget about the betrayal, life becomes usual and nothing changes.
However, at some point huge fraud cases and irregularities and misuse of office is reported through the media and everyone again boils up with anger condemning the same incompetent leaders they elected themselves. The stories remain in the media for maybe a week and then they fade away from the media and also and to a greater degree, they fade away from the minds of the people.
Life goes back to normal set trend and within no time, its elections time again, the politicians go back to their people to do what they do best; give some small amounts of money to the people, fill their minds with sweet empty promises of hope, change and prosperity and finally get the votes. The cycle is once again initiated till the next election period; the poor Kenyans remain in the same state of poverty year after year and our economy never makes any significant development, if there is any development in the first place.
But what happened with the Kenyans who are said to be among the best educated people in Africa? Don’t they see what is happening in their country? Haven’t they observed for a long time now to notice they are being taken for a ride? Could there be some magic working behind the whole mystery of quick forgetting and continuous electing of the same incompetent and corrupt leaders we swear never to elect each elections year? Or is it sorcery and witchcraft as some have been claiming?
Maybe the answer to the above questions may not be clear to many Kenyans, especially those from the poor and rural places who are not informed of what transpires within the government day in day out. However, it won’t take the mind of a genius to relate the trends of activities in our country on a daily basis; with the outcome of quick forgetfulness of the mess some of our leaders have put us through in the past.
Think about this: the mother in the family wakes up early in the morning, prepares breakfast, and then leaves for a long day of toiling. Later in the evening the mother comes back home very tired, prepares super and gets to bed after doing some other household chores. Now, that is for a typical Kenyan woman from a poor family; for those lucky enough to be from middle income families, the cycle changes a little bit. This woman from a middle income family changes the cycle in the evening by creating time to watch the Latin soap operas on TV and then later retire to bed.
When they have free time, most women will be found in their merry-go-rounds or in some other social gatherings having fun. No time is spent analyzing the economic and political development in our country because they are preoccupied by raising of their children, soap operas and chamas.
Talking of men, the situation is not different much; wake up in the morning, take breakfast, leave for the days normal activities then in the evening have a chat with a few men on their way home where they watch the news and then go to bed. Men are mostly preoccupied with looking for finances to sustain their families and keep them going .However, they may make some comments about the politics of the day but they all end up with the same punch line of despair: “there is nothing we can do, the rich have the say!”
Looking at most of the youths, it is all vividly seen that they have lots of time for fun and leisure, and no time for nation building through participation in economic development activities or politics. They have the football leagues which keep them glued in front of their TV screens and parties to keep them occupied in the weekends. To most of them, issues of governance, economic development and justice do not interest their intellectual faculties.
With such preoccupations as described above, is it not obvious why we tend to forget so fast? May be it is more complicated and well organized for use by our leaders; to make us forget their ugly pasts at least for a while till they get back to power again. This might be true, and not only true, but also very cunning of them. Think about that……………………….
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