Khamati Shilabukha
Kenya, being one of the most endowed countries in the world in terms of human and material resources, has the potential to be a leading economy.
But alas. Visionless and corrupt leaders have consistently led her. Primitive accumulation, which is the hallmark of the leaders, is the bane of this country.
Right from independence in 1963, successive leaders have raided our public coffers. One can imagine the impact this has had on our national life in terms of human and infrastructural development. Nothing other than the theft of such huge sum of money is responsible for the abject poverty in our land. It is basically the chief reason for the mass unemployment leading to high crime rate and prostitution. Of course, it is unarguably the reason for the change in our value system.
Our value system has since changed to the pursuit of money. The opulence being displayed by those who have stolen our wealth has changed the orientation of the people in such a way that the emphasis is not only on money but to get it at all cost.
Perhaps, it may not be out of place to say the damage the corrupt attitude of our leaders has caused could be said to be beyond repair — it has corrupted everybody in one way or the other.
Could this damage be corrected really? The answer may be ‘Yes’ or ‘NO’. If it can, how and when? If it cannot, then, are we not doomed as a nation?
While discussing leadership and corruption, the fundamental poser is why have we not been able to find a solution, our problem having been identified? Despite efforts to deal with the cancerous worm of corruption, why does it remain incurable? Is it that we are not sincere or serious about fighting it?
The fight against corruption at leadership level cannot succeed except we fight the mother cause. And what is the mother cause? Our emphasis has always been on economic and financial corruptions. Economic corruption didn’t give birth to itself. It has a mother and that is the political corruption itself. The process through which our ‘leaders’ get to power is questionable. To derive power through a dishonest way is the height of political corruption and this has been identified as the mother of all corruptions.
Thus, you cannot successfully fight economic corruption without first of all getting rid of political corruption. In essence, until we have credible people you cannot talk of eradicating economic corruption. And how do you ensure that such people get to leadership? It can only be through a free and fair electoral process.
Unless we put in place a system that will make it impossible for crooks to get to power, our efforts at tackling corruption may amount to a wild goose chase.
