12th December 1964.
The day we became a republic. Our Jamhuri day. A day up till now we celebrate. (I wrote this title at a time when I felt so proud of Kenya. It’s sad that at this time I do not write on a positive note)
I’m afraid this day has become nothing but a day to get off work. We have forgotten how it all came to being. How people fought and died so that we can get our freedom, so that we can run our own country. In a previous article, I asked “Are we still colonized?“. I urged us to wake up and stand for our country. But what is happening now?
I weep for my country. The news now a source of stress and depression. Our leaders use our problems against us without our knowledge. Ignorance blinds us to reason. Demonstrations day after day with people getting hurt, some dying even. Businesses running on constant losses with our economy taking a nose dive? Children in all their innocence now know what tribalism is. Only that they do not know that it is a disease that eats us from the inside, breaking down our systems and killing us slowly.
I grieve for Kenya. Hopelessness now the order of the day. The nurses’ strike has devastated the citizens with some seeking medical attention in neighboring countries. Not that they can afford a flight ticket, most of them have never even been out of their county. But what else can they do when their own country fails them? The youth have been promised employment opportunities regime after regime, still nothing. So I understand the desperation and the need for change. Being a young person I can relate to the struggles of working hard without knowing whether after obtaining your degree, you will get a job.
I wail for my homeland. I aspire to make a difference but I only have one vote. As citizens we queue for long hours to choose our leaders. We do not go to steal votes. Why can’t our leaders take our decision as is?? Non of them is innocent. They are all guilty of cheating and stealing from us. It gets to a point we choose between the evil we know and the evil we don’t know. Still after every election we hear about rigging and there is always a party that feels disadvantaged. What I think, and anyone is free to disagree, they all steal… only that one does it better than the other.
I pray for my motherland. That wisdom shall rain on each and every one of us. One politician said that we should not trust politicians. But we all know that politics definitely affects our growth as a country. So I pray that we may be wise and make decisions without thinking of our tribe or following a person blindly. I pray that we may only think of what is best for us as a country in unison. That the youth may get together and find better ways to solve our problems instead of burying our own. That the police may give security to peaceful protesters while businesses run smoothly. That the courts may make the right decisions considering today and the days to come. I pray that we will get servant leaders that put the country first.
This is our country and we will live here longer than the years a leader can be in power. People already shed blood and lost lives fighting for freedom, democracy and for Kenyan citizens. So why should we do it all over again? Most especially, why should we fight among ourselves??
AlfieCiru 