Open letter to President-elect Uhuru on agenda

Dear President-elect Uhuru Kenyatta, as you prepare to officially take the reins as Kenya’s fourth President, I would like to bring some issues to your attention.

But before I proceed, I must congratulate you for your victory in the March 4 General Election.

However, Mr President-elect, you must note that you are taking over a country that is deeply divided.

You must have realised this because, in your speeches before and after the elections, you and your Deputy President-elect William Ruto talked about working hard towards the unity of Kenya.

Because when leaders talk of unity and inclusion yet they send contrasting signals, there is cause for worry.

Tribalism is a dragon that has ruined this country in more ways than one.

This is your chance to go into the annals of history if you dare slay it. When you see senior and strategic Government positions as witnessed in the past only going to a certain region in a country as diverse as Kenya, an owl is surely on the tree, as Nigerians would put it.

This mistrust among some communities and hatred towards some people will only take Kenya down the drain, if not checked. When a young man hangs himself in fury because you have been declared President-elect, do not dismiss him just as another indoctrinated fanatic, but dig deep and seek to find out why he reasoned like that.

Then imagine the over close to six million people who voted for your opponents, and who are yet to accept that you will rule and reign over them for the next five years.

Clearly, wananchi need to be unified, they need to be made to feel that they all belong.

How this happens will depend on the way you handle affairs of this country.

When you unveil your new Cabinet line-up, Mr President-elect, Kenyans will be expecting to see all the various tribes of Kenya represented.

They will want to see such portfolios as security, defense, finance, public service and other key ministries shared among our tribes.

Your party symbol is a dove, which stands for peace.

That can only be achieved and sustained if you treat all communities equally, and if all communities enjoy an equal distribution of the country’s resources.

Dennis Lumiti, Kakamega