Mind Boggling
By Njeri Mucheru-Oyatta
Chapter 50
There are three presidential candidates in Kenya this year. My first minimum thinking decision in regard to who I will vote for was to eliminate Kalonzo Musyoka for the simple reason that only a miracle could get him into office and I do not want to waste my vote.
The other two candidates are the current president, His Excellency President Emilio Mwai Kibaki and the dangerous man, Raila Odinga.
There is a story in the Bible about a man called Moses. Moses was chosen by God to go to Egypt and free the Israelites from slavery. Moses was not confident and asked God to provide him with someone who could speak on his behalf and God appointed Moses’ brother called Aaron. Both Moses and Aaron went to Egypt and confronted the Pharaoh and after a few miracles and plagues, the Israelites were freed from slavery after which they proceeded into the desert on their way to the promised land called Canaan. Along the way, the Israelites camped at the foot of Mount Sinai and Moses climbed up the mountain to go and meet with God and receive the Ten Commandments. While Moses was gone, he left Aaron in charge. When Moses came down the mountain after receiving the Ten Commandments, he found that the Israelites were worshipping idols and had turned away from God. When he asked Aaron what happened, Aaron blamed the people and said they made him make the idols for them. Those who refused to change their ways and follow Moses were killed at the bottom of the mountain and the rest proceeded on to find Canaan.
In my assessment, Raila is Moses and Kibaki is Aaron. They are both Kenyans and therefore brothers. Raila is a Luo and Kibaki is a Kikuyu. Raila, in choosing Kibaki at the last election did so believing that only a Kikuyu could beat a Kikuyu since the alternative candidate was Uhuru Kenyatta. Raila, like Moses, was not confident that he could succeed on his own.
The same dilemma Moses was faced with at the bottom of the mountain is what Raila is faced with now. He was the one who told the Kenyan people to vote in Kibaki at the last election so the question he is being asked is: if Kibaki was good then, what has changed? His efforts to explain what is wrong with the current government although supported by factual evidence are being shunned without concrete evidence by those who were worshipping the idols of economic development and tribalism when Raila was consulting with God on his next move. Moses was not an angel. He had killed a man in Egypt and had abandoned his people for many years. But he was God’s choice. To me, Raila is also God’s choice for Kenya because compared to Kibaki, Raila has a lot less danger in him.
In making my decision to vote for Raila, I set out a criteria of the kind of person I would vote for. For me, the choice is between a brother’s keeper and a Cain.
Cain is another man whose story is told in the Bible. Cain killed his brother, Abel, and when God asked him where his brother was he said that he is not his brother’s keeper. Cain was a hands-off approach kind of guy who left his brother for dead! I will not vote for a Cain, I will vote for a brother’s keeper.
The following is what a brother’s keeper does:-
(a) A brother’s keeper is one who acts in the best interests of those close to him. If you cannot act in the best interests of your loved ones, why should I expect you to act in my best interests? A brother’s keeper defends those who are benefiting from his position not only in private but also in public.
(b) A brother’s keeper is respected by all his children regardless of who their mother is. And takes appropriate action to ensure that he gets the God given respect due to him.
(c) A brother’s keeper is someone whose associates and friends do not assemble private armies of panga wielding youths numbering a thousand-fold and then threaten his fellow men with peeing on them. The associates and friends of a brother’s keeper do not send hooded gangs to raid private offices for sinister reasons.
(d) A brother’s keeper chooses his friends carefully, avoids thieves like the plague and keeps the company of God fearing men and not Raila fearing men.
(e) A brother’s keeper speaks in unison with his friends and does not wait for his friends to hurl abuses then stand up and say he does not agree with them.
(f) A brother’s keeper is one who does not practice the politics of hypocrisy by pleading to the work force to put their selfish interests aside and pay taxes while they themselves cannot put their selfish interests aside and use those taxes responsibly. A brother’s keeper’s first order of business should be to pay numerous visits to the slums of Kenya and immediately provide them with the basic needs that their children are taught about at school. Community Development Fund and Youth Development Fund are great ideas, but a person who does not have food, clothing and shelter ought not to be expected to file an application or wait in line for his turn to get help. I have never seen President Kibaki set foot in any of our slums.
(g) A brother’s keeper is one who takes immediate action when his associates abuse or steal from his clients who have put him where he is. Especially if he is the Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces.
(h) A brother’s keeper does not sit on the fence. A brother’s keeper stands for something or falls for everything. A brother’s keeper represents a fixed agenda and does not support the varied agendas of anyone and everyone.
(i) A brother’s keeper is someone who has something to lose. Not someone who is going in for his last term in office accompanied by thieves, a man with a panga and a snake.
(j) A brother’s keeper is someone who you can entrust the future of your babies and little children to. A brother’s keeper who cares about the future of your babies and little children must of necessity be someone who is a hands-on approach kind of guy. Someone who is willing to rock your baby to sleep and not be vexed by her colicy cries, someone who remembers her feeding time, someone who is alert and aware of what is happening around them, someone who keeps out thieves and barbarians, someone who is willing to wipe your baby’s poo, someone who can speak your baby’s language and talk baby talk, someone who can tell when your baby is unwell and take immediate action appropriately.
Am going to Canaan people. You decide where you want to go.
By Njeri Mucheru-Oyatta
Chapter 50
There are three presidential candidates in Kenya this year. My first minimum thinking decision in regard to who I will vote for was to eliminate Kalonzo Musyoka for the simple reason that only a miracle could get him into office and I do not want to waste my vote.
The other two candidates are the current president, His Excellency President Emilio Mwai Kibaki and the dangerous man, Raila Odinga.
There is a story in the Bible about a man called Moses. Moses was chosen by God to go to Egypt and free the Israelites from slavery. Moses was not confident and asked God to provide him with someone who could speak on his behalf and God appointed Moses’ brother called Aaron. Both Moses and Aaron went to Egypt and confronted the Pharaoh and after a few miracles and plagues, the Israelites were freed from slavery after which they proceeded into the desert on their way to the promised land called Canaan. Along the way, the Israelites camped at the foot of Mount Sinai and Moses climbed up the mountain to go and meet with God and receive the Ten Commandments. While Moses was gone, he left Aaron in charge. When Moses came down the mountain after receiving the Ten Commandments, he found that the Israelites were worshipping idols and had turned away from God. When he asked Aaron what happened, Aaron blamed the people and said they made him make the idols for them. Those who refused to change their ways and follow Moses were killed at the bottom of the mountain and the rest proceeded on to find Canaan.
In my assessment, Raila is Moses and Kibaki is Aaron. They are both Kenyans and therefore brothers. Raila is a Luo and Kibaki is a Kikuyu. Raila, in choosing Kibaki at the last election did so believing that only a Kikuyu could beat a Kikuyu since the alternative candidate was Uhuru Kenyatta. Raila, like Moses, was not confident that he could succeed on his own.
The same dilemma Moses was faced with at the bottom of the mountain is what Raila is faced with now. He was the one who told the Kenyan people to vote in Kibaki at the last election so the question he is being asked is: if Kibaki was good then, what has changed? His efforts to explain what is wrong with the current government although supported by factual evidence are being shunned without concrete evidence by those who were worshipping the idols of economic development and tribalism when Raila was consulting with God on his next move. Moses was not an angel. He had killed a man in Egypt and had abandoned his people for many years. But he was God’s choice. To me, Raila is also God’s choice for Kenya because compared to Kibaki, Raila has a lot less danger in him.
In making my decision to vote for Raila, I set out a criteria of the kind of person I would vote for. For me, the choice is between a brother’s keeper and a Cain.
Cain is another man whose story is told in the Bible. Cain killed his brother, Abel, and when God asked him where his brother was he said that he is not his brother’s keeper. Cain was a hands-off approach kind of guy who left his brother for dead! I will not vote for a Cain, I will vote for a brother’s keeper.
The following is what a brother’s keeper does:-
(a) A brother’s keeper is one who acts in the best interests of those close to him. If you cannot act in the best interests of your loved ones, why should I expect you to act in my best interests? A brother’s keeper defends those who are benefiting from his position not only in private but also in public.
(b) A brother’s keeper is respected by all his children regardless of who their mother is. And takes appropriate action to ensure that he gets the God given respect due to him.
(c) A brother’s keeper is someone whose associates and friends do not assemble private armies of panga wielding youths numbering a thousand-fold and then threaten his fellow men with peeing on them. The associates and friends of a brother’s keeper do not send hooded gangs to raid private offices for sinister reasons.
(d) A brother’s keeper chooses his friends carefully, avoids thieves like the plague and keeps the company of God fearing men and not Raila fearing men.
(e) A brother’s keeper speaks in unison with his friends and does not wait for his friends to hurl abuses then stand up and say he does not agree with them.
(f) A brother’s keeper is one who does not practice the politics of hypocrisy by pleading to the work force to put their selfish interests aside and pay taxes while they themselves cannot put their selfish interests aside and use those taxes responsibly. A brother’s keeper’s first order of business should be to pay numerous visits to the slums of Kenya and immediately provide them with the basic needs that their children are taught about at school. Community Development Fund and Youth Development Fund are great ideas, but a person who does not have food, clothing and shelter ought not to be expected to file an application or wait in line for his turn to get help. I have never seen President Kibaki set foot in any of our slums.
(g) A brother’s keeper is one who takes immediate action when his associates abuse or steal from his clients who have put him where he is. Especially if he is the Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces.
(h) A brother’s keeper does not sit on the fence. A brother’s keeper stands for something or falls for everything. A brother’s keeper represents a fixed agenda and does not support the varied agendas of anyone and everyone.
(i) A brother’s keeper is someone who has something to lose. Not someone who is going in for his last term in office accompanied by thieves, a man with a panga and a snake.
(j) A brother’s keeper is someone who you can entrust the future of your babies and little children to. A brother’s keeper who cares about the future of your babies and little children must of necessity be someone who is a hands-on approach kind of guy. Someone who is willing to rock your baby to sleep and not be vexed by her colicy cries, someone who remembers her feeding time, someone who is alert and aware of what is happening around them, someone who keeps out thieves and barbarians, someone who is willing to wipe your baby’s poo, someone who can speak your baby’s language and talk baby talk, someone who can tell when your baby is unwell and take immediate action appropriately.
Am going to Canaan people. You decide where you want to go.
1 comment:
very bold analysis
Post a Comment