Airport inferno response shows malaise in public service

By Ken Opalo

They say a picture speaks a thousand words. And on Wednesday morning the image of officers carrying buckets of water in an effort to fight the fire at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) in Nairobi said it all. We are a nation of M-Pesa and Ushahidi and Konza techno-city and Lapsset, but which lacks some of the most basic amenities and public goods. Majority of our people lack proper housing, indoor plumbing, running water, electricity, and adequate healthcare and education. As the saying goes, when the tide recedes those swimming bottomless get exposed for all to see. That is what happened to us on Wednesday, in front of the whole world.