Fikira and Maoni on the Kenyan Crisis 2

I said to myself "that things have really changed and history changes everyday."

Back to the election story, I am not sure about what I have felt all along. But the killing of women and children in the most horiffic manner has shocked me so much. In an instance people have become beasts. I read of a story in BBC of a woman who managed to escape with her child through the window of the church. She was snatched the child who was thrown back to the inferno. It basically confirms that the leaders have been preaching hatred. And just confirms to me how tribalism can easily be exploited in a real bad sense. A really highly learned friend of mine wrote to me saying that "he is ready to fight." In fighting and because he cannot reach President Kibaki, he will have to finish as many Kibaki's supporters as possible. By doing so it is hoped that he can reach Kibaki.

As far as the voting process was concerned, I am so confused in that I do not know who to trust anymore. If in deed this was a rigged election then there is still a big problem. And if an impasse created by the ODM agents through out the country as far as the forms 16 and 16A are concerned; this should not be left left to only circulate in the emails. I think that it ought to be exposed. You journalists have a great role in bringing the truth out. However if indeed PresidentKibaki rigged back himself to power because he has the machinery and resources to do so, it is unfortunate. This could be the begining of a life presidency. Another joke is thatRaila's government was going to be bankcrupt in a few days from lavish misappropriation! However, if democracy would have brought him, then I respect that. Vox populi vox dei!

Hey dear Kenyan son and dayghter, this is just an honest question; are you still that lovely, pure and energetic youngster of those days! Or has life changed you completely! Never mind for I know that change is the only constant inour lives! This change however has to be a daily transformation, I invite you to rise above the moment's occassion. Let us see where we have gone wrong both now and in the past and let us encourage and honest discussion of the same from fellow Kenyans. You are a very popular figure in Kenya among the youth, you can reach a million at once. Some of the areas we should look at include:

a) The rigging and irregularities that characterised these elections. What could we learn from them and howcan this be stopped in the future?

b)The murder and plunder that characterised the post election period, does it signal a bigger problem forKenya that need to be addressed? Are we sitting on atime bomb?

c)Tribalism. This shows that we have big problems of tribalism in Kenya that are so indellibly infused into all of us! All in Kenya have a tribal stereotype about the next person.Umeshawahi kusikia watu wakiitana We Mjaluo, or HuyuKikuyu, Mkamba or Wacha Umasai etc. By the way even wethe youth have these tribal vermines eating us. And our leaders know how to exploit this to their advantage and to the detriment of all the masses. For example boys growing up in my community are discouraged from marrying a Quk because she will kill you for your money or from marrying a Luo cos she will impoverish you by apportioning your money to luxuries. You are discouraged from marrying a Kao cos they are so hungry for sex and might give you strange looking children. Some of the children could belong to your life sworn enemies. And I tell you that this is a real phobia that is in us as we grow up!! To say the truth, tribalism and tribal stereotyiping is a real problem and we cant deny that it exists.

c) The destruction of the economic gains that we havemade out of our over 40 years of independence. Economic gains involve trading with each other,capital accumulation, etc. These relationships have just come to a standstill etc. How do we educate people that development is as a result of accumulation of gains from trade? We need to think about the next generations and hence have to preserve what we create now? At the moment I am in Europe funded fully for my education by a European institution, this is part ofan inheritance they got from previous generations. The infrastructure here is just good; again the previous generations worked. Etc. A friend of mine disagreesand says that whatever I am recieving is a subtle wayof reparation for what was stolen from us. Whatever;but there was work involved in it!

d) The return of optimism, hope and image that isassociated with Kenya. This has also been tampered a heavy blow as a friend of mine wrote to me, "I will keep looting if I can do it. Working hard is the maxim of the elite, religious, the middle class and the ruling class." It is ideas like these that kill the gains we have made for a long time. And we need to look at Kenya in the 50 years to come and ask ourselves, what did we do to promote life. There was hope for HIV people, the school going children, and many other areas! We can loose all these if we kill democracy, if we plunder and if we let the poison of hatred sprout and thrive in us!