“Our people” syndrome obstructs justice

 

 

It is a tired argument, but one that we must not be tired of. The rallying cry of “My People” or “Our people” cannot and must not be used to pursue selfish agenda, defeat the course of justice, or entrench impunity.

It is a position we have taken in this space before, but a position worth repeating. It does appear that in every electioneering season, men and women arise with all manner of claims about “My people” or “Our People.”

From such flimsy claims as – I am under pressure from my people to stand for an elective post, to – our people are being finished. The most unfortunate is when this cliché is used for selfish ends or partisan agenda. Even worse is when it is lifted as a shield against the sword of justice.

We have seen a trend in the recent past where men and women mentioned in possible corrupt deals or criminal activity, quickly retreat to My People. Likewise, political party leaders have been quick to name and shame their opponents, yet they unashamedly defend their own – even in indefensible cases.

When Moses could no longer bear the sight of his brothers and sisters struggling under the yoke of slavery in Egypt, he rose up to do something about it. And, with the powers conferred upon him by his God, he stormed Pharaoh’s palace and confronted him with the simple but powerful message: Let my people go! Moses’ one and only concern was to see his people delivered from the dehumanising state of slavery. There was nothing in it for him; if anything, it was at the risk of his own life.

In contrast, what we seem to be hearing from our leaders is: Let me go to my people! Whenever they have been fingered for possible criminal offences, they retreat to My People corner, where they hope they can be shielded from possible prosecution.

Thus, as we have witnessed in the recent past, whenever key leaders have been associated with mega corruption, their party leaders and followers quickly rally to their defense. Similarly, when several were recently listed as suspects in mega drug cartels, their first port of resort was their parties and their people. And indeed, there they have been readily accorded due protection.

The unfortunate consequence of such conduct is that it inadvertently gives the impression of concealed guilt or an attempt to hide the truth – even when there is no truth in the allegations. It further makes the party or community leaders who defend them to appear as either accomplices in the alleged crimes or beneficiaries from the same. Of course, there is also the sad reality that such allegations have often been used to get rid of political opponents.

Yet, in a country where mega corruption is terribly entrenched, and where drugs are destroying millions of young lives; it is a fact that there are men and women who are certainly guilty of these offences.

There is no way that billions of shillings can be disappearing from state coffers and yet everybody in Government is innocent. Neither can it be true that hundreds of kilos of heroin are finding their way into our national veins and yet there are no faces behind it.

Therefore, to give blanket protection to all suspects of corruption and to defend all suspected drug barons, is to stand in the path of justice and to entrench impunity. It is a callous sacrifice of the soul of our nation at the altar of political expediency. It follows, therefore, that if we are serious about defending, standing with, or being proud of My People, then we must collectively accept that those who are corrupt, the drug barons, terrorists, and all manner of criminals, are not and cannot be part of My People.

Such men and women, who have out of their own volition chosen to jeopardise the lives and well-being of others, must be left to the consequences of their individual wickedness. The only place where they can be declared innocent or guilty is in the established courts of justice. A blanket extra-judicial defense of such suspects cannot be the path we chose as a nation. It is an emerging trend that we must uproot.