Let Us Make Political Noise But Resist Violence

The political temperatures are rising. The ruling JUBILEE coalition launched Jubilee Party (JAP), the vehicle that President Uhuru Kenyatta will use in his bid to secure a second term in the house on the hill, while CORD’ race for the presidential ticket is getting fiery too.

It is time to hoot and clatter the serenity that Kenya has enjoyed except for disturbances from the Al-Shaabab cowards, take our efforts from building the economy and plunge heads-on into the murky political waters.

We are a nation that loves politics more than we care about making our lives better. Politics are close to our hearts yet there are no ideologies that back our love for this national love! Ethnicity and party euphoria determine how we vote!

Jubilee Party has perpetuated the lie of uniting the nation yet two big ethnic blocks call the shots while the rest are supporting cast, applauding the main actors on the stage.

At CORD, the coalition led by the kingpin of opposition politics, Raila Amollo Odinga and his band of followers has chastised the government for its failures, notably endemic corruption and an ethnic card that has never been this significant. 

It is humbling to accept that despite the two coalitions commanding near-colossal following, they have nothing to show except splashing money, extorted from the public purse to fuel their guzzlers and traverse the entire nation, taking part in harambees to cleanse ill-gotten money and hoodwink Kenyans into their fold.

Uhuru Kenyatta, William Ruto, Raila Odinga, Kalonzo Musyoka and Musalia Mudavadi are the major political voices in the nation and each commands a mini-nation!

They, however share a dubious distinction. They are all products of the KANU and Moi school of politics.

Their interests are co-joined at the hips like Siamese twins and can never give Kenya anything different despite the defeaning noise made by their foot-soldiers.

As we head to a fever-high political atmosphere, void of ideologies but full of empty promises of change, the nation must avoid drawing into the all-too familiar story of politically-instigated violence.

In 2007-08, we played with sparks that nearly burnt the entire nation. The wounds have not healed completely and the aggrieved never saw justice. 

Some Kenyans vowed never to return to the homes they were flushed from for fear of reprisals. Jubilee has used the unity lie to woo supporters while CORD has not offered and solutions in case it ascend to power next year.

Violence should not be part of the game this time round. It is happening in Gabon and Democratic Republic of Congo, where politics have set the nation on fire.

Kenyans should not go back to 2007-08. The wounds are still fresh. Let politics not destroy this great land. As former president Mwai Kibaki once said, voting is a day’s event but the nation will forever be here.