The rules of natural justice are predicated on self-preservation. That is, when faced with a threat to your life, economic or social interest, take what is in your best interest first before you start thinking of others.
For those who have travelled by plane, you will remember the final instructions before a plane takes into the skies should anything go wrong during the flight, put your safety gear first before attempting to help others. Why do airlines always advise on this? It’s the rule of self-preservation!
Officially, the country has been returned to weekly street violence, restrictions on free movement and violations of the freedom and rights to earn our livelihoods without fear for at least 2 days a week.
I must say as things stand, it has nothing to do with the cost of living for ordinary people. Whichever side you look at, the political elites are purely working for the individual greed for power. Either to take it or to preserve the power they hold for those already in government.
Unfortunately, it is children of poor people or the poor who are abused to fight for the leader’s greed for power. While the poor give them shields with open bodies, the leaders themselves hide under armoured vehicles, funded by taxes of the poor they drag into their political battles.
In the circumstances, each one of us must revert to the rules of self-preservation first, before fighting for others. Here are my reasons:
- All the top leaders currently in government and opposition take home not less than a million shillings a month + official vehicles and armed security including in their residences. None has sacrificed their pay to donate food to the affected over 6 million Kenyans. They are paid from taxes and all of them –whether in government or opposition have lived on taxes for the past 30 -40 years. ‘Kwa hivyo, hatuko pamoja’!
- The Azimio la Umoja-led protests are not genuine – they cannot mix the cost of living with issues of elections concluded 7 months ago under the Constitution and law. If the government in place was so fraudulently elected to warrant the overthrow of the Constitution to install a new one from street protests, then let all the Azimio elected leaders and appointees into the EAC parliament resign en mass so that we can join them in the streets from a clean slate and on equal terms;
- Yes, the Kenya-kwanza regime has so far proved itself incompetent over the past 7 months. One thing is definite, there will not be any transformation in the economy or reasonable effort to address issues afflicting ordinary people. Truth is, this is just the second face of the Uhuru Kenyatta administration. Big contracts and plunder of public resources are and will be their rule of the game. At some point, ‘Punda’ may reach her breaking point and revolt –but we are not yet there yet.
For now, it becomes sacred for each one of us to take personal responsibility for our life and preserve the interest of our loved ones and family. Do not die for any politician nor destroy anyone’s business or property in the name of ‘maandamano’.
For as far as I remember, the politicians who lead people into the streets haven’t done anything to pay bills for those who were injured; they have not gone to condole with the families that lost a son or daughter nor did they give you any packet of Unga to take home to your children after last Monday’s protests.
In Kenya and Africa, dying for a politician is not patriotism but foolishness. As soon as they get their butter or power, they move on as if nothing happened!
Lovely week ahead!