Dear Mr. President,

Mr President, your trip to United States of America was bungled and aborted mid-air. We still are in the dark as a nation about what really happened! The Secretary of State from Obama-land, John Kerry came to town days later, in what Kenyans and pundits alike saw as setting the ground ready for the visit of the world’s most powerful president, Barack Obama of USA. Meanwhile, you went on a peaceful and quiet retreat at Sagana State Lodge perhaps to cool from the aborted trip. That was timely and a much-needed breath of fresh air. That said, as you await to receive the world’s most powerful man, Barrack Obama in July, we have problems across the country. As our brothers in Nigeria put it, there is fire on the mountain!

You need to put your act together. Since the appointment of Maj-Gen (Rtd) Joseph Nkaissery to head the interior security and Inspector General of Police, Samuel Boinnet, nothing has changed in our security. Indeed, it got worse. In early April, 148 Kenyans were slaughtered at Garissa University College by Al-shabab, in a day-long senseless butchering of our brothers and sisters. The response as we all know, was one of the worst ever seen on this land. You have the details as much as Kenyans do, courtesy of our dedicated investigative journalists at K24, KTN and NTV. This was the second worst terrorist attack on Kenyan soil since the 1998 bombings. Weeks later far in rift valley, 58 Kenyans were slaughtered by warriors from rival community in Nadome, a far flung and evidently forgotten and neglected part of our country. Nothing really seems to be right within our security apparatus. Just like Mpeketoni, Baragoi, Westgate Garissa and Nadome will be forgotten too!

Irene Keino was forced into resignation from the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC), and as a rare breed of morally-correct Kenyan leaders, she opted not to face grilling by the commission investigating suspended director, Mumo Matemu. She thought of her family and her respect and yes as rare as it is, she opted out of an out-rightly smeared process. Remember how Jane Onsongo was forced into a corner and had to resign? All signs are crystal clear that this fight has been dominated by political witch-hunt and bad faith. Then in what was the final blow, EACC director, Mumo Matemu resigned barely a week ago too. The commissioners all cried foul play and external forces fighting them back in their capacities at EACC. At the background of all these, the 60 days within which to investigate suspended cabinet secretaries and principal secretaries are nearly over and we all wait to see the near-predictable twists that this fight on graft will take.

Lastly, the appointees to chair parastatal bodies and their boards were a complete disappointment. Political rejects have been recycled, and political handouts rather than competence and objectiveness seem to have been the key factors in the appointments. Does it mean that we have no fresh Kenyan minds that can lead and chair the boards of these parastatals? You short-changed Kenyans on this!

Mr. President, terrorism and the incompetence within the security apparatus, corruption and many of your recent appointees are a cause for concern to Kenyans. Your bungled trip that aborted mid-air en-route to USA was an embarrassment to you, Kenyans and the seat of presidency. There is fire on the mountain.

You came to power with a lot of promises to Kenya, remember the laptop project to class one pupils? It sadly turned out to be another political propaganda. Many of the multi-billion tenders have been smeared with corruption too and grey spots. Remember, the ambitious standard gauge railway? 

Mr. President, the ambiance and tranquility at state house is deceitful and is nothing close to the turmoil that Kenyans endure each day. The political sycophants around you are equally deceitful and never tell you the truth! A nation that was highly expectant in your leadership as you came into power in March 2013, has fast been crushed down and disillusionment has set in. Horrifying attacks that epitomize the acme of inhuman brutality, in Mpeketoni, Westgate, Garissa and lately Nadome are the scars on the skin of Kenyans! Yet, the security apparatus appear to be in self –induced lull and clueless! They always react to these attacks instead of trying to prevent them from happening. Corruption has also gone on an all-time high!

Unless you bite the bullet and face these challenges, Kenya will roll down the fast lane of insecurity, corruption and all forms of upheavals! Things are terribly bad and you ought to act.

Otherwise, the fire on the mountain is spreading fast and ordinary Kenyans who voted you in are the helpless victims!

Pierre Nkurunziza is a typical African President!

Burundi is in a precarious moment of its life! Following a reportedly failed coup d’etat against President Pierre Nkurunziza, no one knows what will happen to the tiny Central African nation. Civil unrest has been the norm in the streets of Bujumbura and other districts. Protesters have been killed by police, nearly 50,000 civilians have fled to neighboring Rwanda. As the battle between the president and his loyalists on one side and the civil society, church, opposition and civilians on the other side rages on, the embers of fire are slowly catching fire. Soon or later, Burundi might catch fire, barely a decade after the decade-long war that was ended by The Arusha Peace Deal in 2005.

President Nkurunziza’s decision to seek a third term in office is threatening the fragile stability in Burundi. It is what led to the attempted coup. However, Nkurunziza has stuck to his guns and his greed for a third term, illegal under the Burundi law and against the terms of the 2005 peace deal in Arusha are fighting back. The election is due in June and predictably, Nkurunziza will win it! The opposition has vowed to boycott the polls and sadly, African Union (AU), has been rather muted on such a grave matter, all it has done is to make friendly statements that simply empower Nkurunziza. But it is Africa and Nkurunziza is following the script as drawn out by African presidents. Look at Robert Mugabe in Zimbabwe, Yoweri Museveni in neighboring Uganda, Teodoro Obiang Nguema in Equatorial Guinea, Paul Biya in Cameroun and Joseph Kabila in Democratic Republic of Congo among others. These represent presidents for life, whose greed and obsession for power has turned them into presidents for life! They believe that their countrymen are not good enough to replace them in power and so they must rule their nations! They have turned constitutions into personal wills and the seat of presidency is not an opportunity to lead their people, but rather to rule over them and perpetuate all sorts of evil. True African presidents! And then they thump their chests that leaders are chosen by God!

These presidents are tin pot dictators. Their mistresses, cabinet members, family members and sycophants flout laws with impunity and because you are the president’s man or woman, no one can hold you to account. They hold hands and plunder economies, steal mineral wealth and even hunt down the opposition that dares to challenge them. They are ready to throw their countries to the dogs, if that is what it takes to stay in the highest office! Nkurunziza is playing this card and millions of Burundians matter no more!

The current African Union chair, Robert Mugabe is a president for life and has messed up Zimbabwe, and so are most of his colleague presidents across the continent. So how dare they fight one of their own! Nkurunziza belongs to the table of these tin pot dictators, demi gods and presidents for life who occupy the seats of presidency in Africa! They rule at all costs and the millions of their countrymen and women cannot stand in their way in the pursuit of power. 

Once again, as it has happened in many other African countries, Burundi might collapse into a civil war or ethnic cleansing right under the very noses of AU! The signs are all there and crystal clear, unless Pierre Nkurunziza reignites the morals of responsible leadership; a phenomenon so rare in a majority of African countries! 

As the continent watches Burundi slowly catching fire, let us remember that Nkurunziza is a typical African president who does not lead his people but rather rules over them!