Standard Digital World

Peace Forum - Can our leaders walk the talk?

It’s a good thing to see all our leaders from President Mwai Kibaki and his co-principal in the Coalition Government Prime Minister Raila Odinga to all the backbenchers in parliament (read MPs) join hands in Mombasa to talk about how to ensure the next General Elections are held peacefully.

This of course we know is being informed by the ugly scenes we all witnessed in early 2008, scenes that shook Kenya to its core. I therefore must laud this peace forum as a very noble idea and urge all of us who want peace in Kenya to fully support it.

The mere fact that our leaders can congregate to talk about making sure the next General Elections are peaceful is very important. Important because it sends a very strong message to the masses; that our leaders want and are for peace.
Yet deep within, many are those who will tell you of their worries that this could end up being just another talk shop. Why is this so? Because unless Kenyans see our leaders take bold steps towards ensuring peace by walking the talk, these kinds of meeting will end up just being what we have known them to be – talk shops.

Walking the talk means being able to do and say behind the cameras, that which you say in front of cameras. As a long as our leaders keep playing to gallery, speaking like the most holy of all preachers in front of cameras and taking the opposite direction immediately they are switched off  will not make any progress in ensuring a peaceful Kenya.

Leaders must carry the same message of peace whenever they retreat to their night strategy meetings, tribal cocoons or economic groupings. For it will amount to nothing if they speak of peace in live TV broadcasts during the day and at night they are busy hiring goons to unleash terror on their competitors,  or retreating into their tribal cocoons to declare they will not allow a member who is not from their tribe to ascend to the throne. With these kinds of happenings it all amounts to a zero sum game.

The challenge therefore goes to our leaders; can you please walk the talk?