Mind Boggling
By Njeri Mucheru-Oyatta
Chapter 64
Discrimination is an art. In order to perfect it, these are the things that you MUST do:-
1. Accept that it is normal to divide people into groups like men and women, blacks and whites, Kikuyus and Luos, Kenyans and Nigerians, Fats and Thins, Disabled and abled, rich and poor, supporters of Kibaki and supporters of Raila etc. Usually the groups you choose have no justifiable basis. Whatever enables you to disguise your insecurities will do.
2. Accept that you belong to one of those groups so that you adopt a perception of people as us and them.
3. Apply double standards in the way that you judge the group you belong to and the other group so that as far as your group is concerned, any imperfections are excusable but as far as the other group is concerned, you will not accept anything less than perfect.
4. Completely disregard the possibility that all people including those who belong to your group are different in many ways and the correct standard in judging anyone is by their deeds. Jesus said that we will know those who follow Him by their deeds.
5. Completely disregard the possibility that the people who are important in your life are those who experience the same or similar challenges to you and who share the same interests as you.
6. Completely disregard the possibility that your point of view may be flawed.
7. Adamantly refuse to listen to any point of view that may be different from your own.
8. Refuse to give your opponents the opportunity to challenge you and be heard on their point of the view and its justifications.
9. Develop a morbid fear of standing alone in a debate over your views and if confronted, you raise your voice in an angry tone and rush off.
10. Refuse to accept others as your equals.
Here is a summary of a conversation I had with a PNU supporter the other day:-
Njeri: So ati why is it you are against Raila?
PNU supporter: That Raila man. Who does he think he is? How can he expect us to vote for him? What kind of a cabinet will he even have if he comes into power? He has no record. He has never done anything useful, all the time he has been in government his job has been to disturb the peace and mess up. Ok, he helped us get our man into power but now he needs to leave things as they are. And let me tell you, those people from the lakeside, you cant trust them. Everywhere they go they just want to cause chaos. All the labour unions are run by them!
Njeri:Well, I am supporting the guy from the lakeside.
PNU supporter: You cant be serious. Are you not a Kikuyu? How can you not support your own?
Njeri: Well, my vision for this country goes beyond my tribe. I am an advocate for change. I want it to be one day possible for a Kenyan Indian woman to run for presidency and get it. The presidency has been the reserve of the elite and look what is happening to our country, we are being robbed silly by every regime that comes. What we need to do is agitate for change and use our votes to make it clear to the politicians that we want the best and if they do not perform, they are out. We need to encourage qualified educated people, CEOs of businesses to run for presidency by showing them that we choose our leaders based on their performance not on euphoria or tribal lines.
PNU supporter: Eheeheeheehe! You have said it. Raila is all about euphoria, that guy is not interested in working! He just wants to take power and turn our country into a dictatorship.
Njeri: Ok, first let me tell you the underlying principle of my support for Raila before we get to the nitty gritty. I am like the battered wife. I voted for this government expecting Kenya to be transformed into a nation of Kenyans. Now all I see is marginalization of Kikuyus and a government dominated by Kikuyus. The government that I have now has disappointed me in many ways most of all is the Angloleasing scandal, the Artur Brothers and the raid of the Standard Newspapers. Nothing much has changed for the better in the last five years. I now have the chance to change things, to leave my abusive husband and am going to take it. I know that there are husbands out there who don’t beat their wives and there is one for me too. No-one tells a battered wife to stay with her abusive husband even if it means that she has nowhere to go, no money, and no-one to help her, she MUST leave to save her life. I am surprised that you are willing to stay on inspite of the wrongs that have been committed against our country by the current government. There is no valid excuse for any of it. I will not settle for what I’ve got when it comes to anything in my life including the President of my country. The Bible talks about the shepherd who comes home at sunset and finds that he is missing one sheep and instead of locking up the sheep he has and going to bed, he goes out to look for the missing sheep until he finds it. That’s me. I am missing something in my life and am going back into the dark to look for my missing sheep because I know that when I find it, I will be happy because I will have secured a better future for my children.
PNU supporter: Look Njeri, be realistic, you are being stupid. A Kenyan Indian woman can NEVER EVER be president of Kenya. As it is, even me I can never be president. And how do you know that Raila will help you find your missing sheep?
Njeri: I don’t know what Raila will do when he gets in but I do know that voting him in gives me hope that things can change for the better. Something that the current government cannot give me. Its record reads loud and clear. With Moi siding with them, I can see us regressing into the hell that we fought so hard to get out of in 2002. When it comes to who can be president of this country, what matters is what you are ready to accept. If you accept that the presidency is for the select few excluding even you, then that’s what you will get. We need to demystify the presidency and make it accessible to more Kenyans who are able and willing to serve. Voting for Raila will awaken our country and bring us to a realization that ANYONE can be president. Don’t you see that? That is the first step towards building a Kenya for Kenyans.
By Njeri Mucheru-Oyatta
Chapter 64
Discrimination is an art. In order to perfect it, these are the things that you MUST do:-
1. Accept that it is normal to divide people into groups like men and women, blacks and whites, Kikuyus and Luos, Kenyans and Nigerians, Fats and Thins, Disabled and abled, rich and poor, supporters of Kibaki and supporters of Raila etc. Usually the groups you choose have no justifiable basis. Whatever enables you to disguise your insecurities will do.
2. Accept that you belong to one of those groups so that you adopt a perception of people as us and them.
3. Apply double standards in the way that you judge the group you belong to and the other group so that as far as your group is concerned, any imperfections are excusable but as far as the other group is concerned, you will not accept anything less than perfect.
4. Completely disregard the possibility that all people including those who belong to your group are different in many ways and the correct standard in judging anyone is by their deeds. Jesus said that we will know those who follow Him by their deeds.
5. Completely disregard the possibility that the people who are important in your life are those who experience the same or similar challenges to you and who share the same interests as you.
6. Completely disregard the possibility that your point of view may be flawed.
7. Adamantly refuse to listen to any point of view that may be different from your own.
8. Refuse to give your opponents the opportunity to challenge you and be heard on their point of the view and its justifications.
9. Develop a morbid fear of standing alone in a debate over your views and if confronted, you raise your voice in an angry tone and rush off.
10. Refuse to accept others as your equals.
Here is a summary of a conversation I had with a PNU supporter the other day:-
Njeri: So ati why is it you are against Raila?
PNU supporter: That Raila man. Who does he think he is? How can he expect us to vote for him? What kind of a cabinet will he even have if he comes into power? He has no record. He has never done anything useful, all the time he has been in government his job has been to disturb the peace and mess up. Ok, he helped us get our man into power but now he needs to leave things as they are. And let me tell you, those people from the lakeside, you cant trust them. Everywhere they go they just want to cause chaos. All the labour unions are run by them!
Njeri:Well, I am supporting the guy from the lakeside.
PNU supporter: You cant be serious. Are you not a Kikuyu? How can you not support your own?
Njeri: Well, my vision for this country goes beyond my tribe. I am an advocate for change. I want it to be one day possible for a Kenyan Indian woman to run for presidency and get it. The presidency has been the reserve of the elite and look what is happening to our country, we are being robbed silly by every regime that comes. What we need to do is agitate for change and use our votes to make it clear to the politicians that we want the best and if they do not perform, they are out. We need to encourage qualified educated people, CEOs of businesses to run for presidency by showing them that we choose our leaders based on their performance not on euphoria or tribal lines.
PNU supporter: Eheeheeheehe! You have said it. Raila is all about euphoria, that guy is not interested in working! He just wants to take power and turn our country into a dictatorship.
Njeri: Ok, first let me tell you the underlying principle of my support for Raila before we get to the nitty gritty. I am like the battered wife. I voted for this government expecting Kenya to be transformed into a nation of Kenyans. Now all I see is marginalization of Kikuyus and a government dominated by Kikuyus. The government that I have now has disappointed me in many ways most of all is the Angloleasing scandal, the Artur Brothers and the raid of the Standard Newspapers. Nothing much has changed for the better in the last five years. I now have the chance to change things, to leave my abusive husband and am going to take it. I know that there are husbands out there who don’t beat their wives and there is one for me too. No-one tells a battered wife to stay with her abusive husband even if it means that she has nowhere to go, no money, and no-one to help her, she MUST leave to save her life. I am surprised that you are willing to stay on inspite of the wrongs that have been committed against our country by the current government. There is no valid excuse for any of it. I will not settle for what I’ve got when it comes to anything in my life including the President of my country. The Bible talks about the shepherd who comes home at sunset and finds that he is missing one sheep and instead of locking up the sheep he has and going to bed, he goes out to look for the missing sheep until he finds it. That’s me. I am missing something in my life and am going back into the dark to look for my missing sheep because I know that when I find it, I will be happy because I will have secured a better future for my children.
PNU supporter: Look Njeri, be realistic, you are being stupid. A Kenyan Indian woman can NEVER EVER be president of Kenya. As it is, even me I can never be president. And how do you know that Raila will help you find your missing sheep?
Njeri: I don’t know what Raila will do when he gets in but I do know that voting him in gives me hope that things can change for the better. Something that the current government cannot give me. Its record reads loud and clear. With Moi siding with them, I can see us regressing into the hell that we fought so hard to get out of in 2002. When it comes to who can be president of this country, what matters is what you are ready to accept. If you accept that the presidency is for the select few excluding even you, then that’s what you will get. We need to demystify the presidency and make it accessible to more Kenyans who are able and willing to serve. Voting for Raila will awaken our country and bring us to a realization that ANYONE can be president. Don’t you see that? That is the first step towards building a Kenya for Kenyans.
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