The Nation (Nairobi)

Kenya: The Three Steps to Our Liberation Next Year

opinion

Nairobi — Generally, I am bored by politics. Very bored. And on this, I am not alone. A while ago, I stopped everything, including "life", to watch news. Today, I detest it. I am sickened by the "KKK" and by its primary target; the Prime Minister. These people are not the future. Like a rocking chair, they keep us busy; take us no where. It is that simple.

Good people, we need liberation. We must break from their yoke of oppression. And here is the plan. One, we should renew our minds. Let me explain. Simply put, politics is about the following: "...who gets what, when and how".

Period. In other words, it is about "getting". And "getting" is not "eating". It is a right. Similarly, "getting" is personal. It is about me, myself and I. This is why good politics is about "me"; bad politics is about "us". The Nazi and the Fascists built their ideology on the principle of "us".

Our fighting last year was powered by the ideology of "us" versus "them". To liberate ourselves, therefore, we must only think of "me". And if we do, the new order will emerge. People with common interests, beyond tribe, will gather. In sum, an alternative to the tribal "KKK" will form. This will be the first step.

Allow me to explain the second step with a story. A young mother entered a toy shop. Picking one of the toys, she looked intrigued. And so she asked the salesman: "Isn't this toy complicated for a small child?" To this, the salesman replied:

"it is an educational toy. It is designed to adjust the mind of a child to the weirdness of the world. Any way he puts it together, it is wrong!" Each time I think of handing over Kenya to my children, I think of this story. Our country has become an experimental toy. Whichever way we put it together, it is wrong.

What is more: It is wrong by design. Like this educational toy, it is designed not to work. Consider why. If politics is about "getting", it must also be about the economy. Whoever controls the politics, controls the money. And this brings me to my second step. That is; politics is big money. Make no mistake. If this is true, the politicians are in it for the money. Not for the tribe; not for the people.

Tribal talk and drums of war have a bottom-line: money. The question therefore is this, why support them blindly? Why is the Luo Nation enslaved by the Odingas and the Kalenjin Nation captivated by the likes of Ruto? Is it for our children? Zero. Similarly, why is Mr Oginga's son acceptable to the Luo Nation, and not PLO Lumumba, the son of a lumpen-proletariat from Eastlands?

Why is Jimmy Kibaki talking "Othaya politics" and not Maina Kiai? Between the two, who has substance? And as my grandmother would ask, "... haven't the other women given birth to sons?" Sons and daughters who can lead? In fact she tells me that when the "dynasty boys" walk, they make a noise.

The noise of a small brain knocking against the walls of a big head. I think she is mean, but she has a point. We are like the young mother in the toy shop. Supporting the dynasties and their tribal projects is like buying an experimental toy for our children. Whichever way they put it together, it will be wrong. And more so because the dynasties are not in it to create new wealth. They are in it to protect old wealth.

The second step towards a new order therefore is the rejection of the old. The Luo Nation must liberate itself from the slavery of the Odingas and the Gema country must shun the Kenyattas and the Kibakis. As for the Kalenjin Nation, they must not return to Moi. However, they must follow the likes of Ruto with caution. Politically, he is a student of Mr Moi. Just like all the "KKK" leaders are.

Together, they will liberate us from the terror of the dynasties. However, and like Moses in the Holy Bible, they will not be the ones to take us to the "... land of milk and honey". The question therefore is this: Is there a "Joshua" out there? Is there a younger brother to "Moses" capable of leading us to the "promised land?" I am not looking for a saviour. All I ask for is someone daring enough to take on the dynasties and their students in the "KKK".

And this takes me to the third step. Every liberator I know in history was a man of mean achievements. More so the religious ones. Prophet Mohammed was a man of stammering lips. Not as eloquent as Mr Ruto. And so was Isaiah, Jeremiah and Moses in the Holy Bible.

All men of stammering lips. If you took them to Uhuru Park for a rally, they would be booed. Yet they liberated their people by the millions. My point? If we are looking for an alternative, he or she does not have to be elegant, eloquent and rich. He can be a Shepherd like David, or a Kawangware carpenter like Jesus.

His bottom-line, however, must be simple: He must "... create like a god, command like a King and work like a slave". To the contrary, the "dynasty boys" and the KKKs live like gods, command like kings and work the slaves!"

But will this leader arise? I have no idea. I will, however, not tire in calling out for him or her. And in doing so, I must further submit the following thought I read this week. " ...To laugh is to risk appearing like a fool. To weep is to risk appearing weak. To reach out is to risk exposing your true self. To love is to risk being hurt. To live is to risk dying.

To hope is to risk despair. To try is to risk failure. But the greatest hazard in life is to risk nothing. The man who risks nothing and does nothing will have nothing and will become nothing". In sum, if we are to break from the yoke of oppression; to liberate ourselves from these people, someone must take a risk. Who will that be? Does he or she have a name?

Mutahi Ngunyi is a political scientist with The Consulting House, a policy and security innovation think tank for Great Lakes Region and West Africa.

Tagged: East Africa, Kenya

Copyright © 2009 The Nation. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.

AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 130 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.

Comments Post a comment