Corruption is our national sport and we proudly
play it, all too aware of the destruction it causes to our nationhood and economy!
The recent allegations of bribe taking that have engulfed the Ababu Namwamba
led-Public Accounts Committee (PAC) weeks ago, have suddenly awakened this
demon of corruption. From the Chicken-gate that brought the Independent
Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) into spotlight, to the land-grabbing
scandal at Lang’ata Road Primary School that grabbed global attention,
corruption is eating our society alive!
Our Twitter-sphere is awash with the hashtags that
Kenyans on Twitter so viciously use to fight corruption, albeit for some time
in the virtual space. We are an active lot on Twitter and we
fight good battles there against corruption and all manner of social ills. But
wait a minute! Have we devolved corruption yet we deny it? As a society, do we
knowingly take part in corruption, yet we deny it? Have we socialized
corruption and normalized it as the norm? Do we proudly play the deadly game of
corruption? The answer to these is a resounding YES!
The highest public offices on the land, national
parliament, our county assemblies and governments and entire society reek of corruption.
How many times, did we witness our Members of County Assemblies (MCA’s) and
other County officials on absurd spending sprees in overseas trips all in the
name of learning from Singapore and the like on how to make devolution work?
How many times have we heard of misappropriation of public funds and now worse,
alleged bribe taking by our legislators in order to alter reports and
investigations? Countless is the answer! Back in our universities, the tales of
sex-for-grades is so real and those of us who have curiously walked the
corridors of our institutions of higher learning know this too well. Hard work
is not the only way to academic excellence!
Every five years as we cast our ballot, we all know
that whoever throws the fattest wallet to the excited masses gets the vote! In
short, we believe that mkono mtupu haulambwi, and that only money
can buy our votes! That is why once every five years and during by-elections,
money and votes exchange hands. Kenyans give the votes and in return,
politicians dish out the money. Sadly, we do not even care, that it is public
money stolen, or money accruing from drugs that have ravaged our youths! On our
roads, the traffic cops are never ashamed of taking folded and filthy
fifty-shilling notes, to abet traffic offences! Corruption has manifested its
ugly face in all aspects of our life as a nation. We proudly take part in the
game! We are all corrupt and yes, our corrupt and horribly dishonest society
has produced corrupt public officials and legislators! So who should cry foul
play and cast the first stone, between the leaders and the citizens? No one
because we all are guilty as charged.
We have socialized corruption. As most Kenyans take
up public offices, either appointed or elected, they realize it is their time
to eat and plunder the public coffers. Perhaps it explains why corruption and
public offices in Kenya are co-joined like Siamese twins! The two go hand in
hand!
The fact that we lose one-third of our financial
year budget to corruption should be enough to shake our moral fibre,, rally the
leaders and hoi-polloi alike, to fighting corruption. President Uhuru Kenyatta
and his Deputy, William Ruto should stop the loud talk on how vicious the war
on corruption will be. They should sanctify the Office of the President and
other senior offices on this land, which are the altars of corruption. Heads
should roll and yes, the culpable should soon become guests of the state. The
war on corruption must be decisively fought from the top. The story of sacred
cows as we all know it should stop.
As the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC)
led by Mumo Matemu and the judiciary lead the war on graft, all Kenyans should
re-examine the moral decay in the society and abhor corruption as the evil we
all know. Our corrupt ways should stop and integrity should not only be a
requirement of our leaders. Corruption is already a national disaster and we
all feel its devastating effects on our economy. It has nearly crippled
our economy, destroyed numerous economic opportunities for our people, stolen
from our budget and curtailed development! Losing at least Ksh 300billion yearly
to corruption is a worrying trend.
Corruption has opened doors to Al-shabab to Kenya,
destroyed Kenyan football, increased fatalities on our roads, tarnished the
name of government offices, derailed development and denied opportunities to
deserving Kenyans, in the academic and employment spheres! Corruption has
increased the taxation on Kenyans. According to the Auditor General and the
parliamentary Public Accounts Committee, we lose about Ksh 300billion annually
to corruption! Simply put, money meant to develop this nation, upgrade health
facilities, improve road network and uplift the lives of Kenyans, disappears
into the pockets of a few evil souls!
We can choose to act now and start the long and
painful process of slaying the dragon of corruption and save the future of our
economy and statehood. If we choose not to fight it, our economy and statehood
will live to bear the scars of this socialized evil!
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