it wont always be political but here smthn

Just a thought by John Makite

Hey you, Kenyan voter. What do you think you are doing? You spend every 5 years whining and complaining about the quality or should-i-say crop of leaders you have. Let me highlight your typical behavior during the elections.

Hon. So and So comes on his Prado and a briefcase full of money surrounded by his cronies and body guards. He has not been seen for months on end, some just know his name and don’t even know what he looks like. “Oh mheshimiwa amefika” wacha  tuka muone, anaweza tuangushia kakitu”. Ever stop to think those loose notes being thrown at you are actually your tax money? The money that you don’t have that the Government still taxes? So a few notes land on you and what’s the first thing you do? Forget all your problems and speed off to the nearest bar. Of course the Hon. So and So knows he has your vote in the bag.

Let’s not even mention the myriad of “white elephants” sprawled all over the constituency. The half- finished dispensary, classroom, public toilet, chief’s camp or police post. You walk past all these everyday on your way to the shamba or kiosk and none of you stop to think about who is responsible for all this? The waheshimiwa say they don’t want to pay taxes because you keep asking them for money, well, you do need it but you’re are sourcing it from the wrong place. Instead, focus on pressuring these individuals to get the projects completed and restructure the concerned committees to allow for more participation form the citizens.

Wake up fellow voter, get your proverbial head out of the sand and shout at it all. Shout at the poor living standards, high cost of living and seemingly directionless leadership we have.  I’m talking about the half-finished project right next to you that your community badly needs, that committee that only seems to meet when it’s convenient i.e. when the mheshimiwa is around and most of all that as the most important entity in the political landscape of this great land, nobody seems to listen to you. Not even the Government, International community or diplomats.

Solution? Get up and get it done. Don’t wait for those moi-era special communities that wrote large reports telling us what we already know or direction from the government once a year during National Days or the ICC to tell you who did what when. You are intelligent enough, resilient and more than patient with the status quo. That’s enough, it doesn’t have to be this way. You can do something about it. Break the cycle, stop the proverbial snow ball rolling down the hill getting bigger and bigger, smashing through everything. Everyone everywhere is using this powerful position that you have as a legally registered voter to change destiny and alter the way things are done. You have the power to get these people out of their comfort zone and really work hard to earn both your vote and respect. That’s all.