On this final stretch, show what you can do for Kenyans

The sudden appearance of a shadow startled him. He had been looking at the silhouettes grow bigger as they approached where he was perched, trying to figure out what or who they were. The first time he spotted them on the horizon, they were tiny specks that kept changing positions in the open sandy field stretching for miles.

Presently, he determined they were men, tired by their gait, but determined nonetheless. One of the men veered off the path and sat down. The others urged him on but he waved them away, yet they couldn't leave him there. Wearily, they sat down beside him to regain their waning strength.

That was when the shadow got his attention. Looking upwards, he saw the vultures that had been biding their time, following the haggard men. They were getting impatient; their prey was refusing to oblige them by dropping dead. A few minutes later, the men stood up and resumed their walk. When they reached and disappeared under the canopy of trees, the ungainly vultures turned back.

Political rivalry

Jubilee's nightmare, the National Super Alliance (NASA), survived the long desert walk, the wavering and anxious moments of indecision as it sought its presidential candidate.

All the while, the vile vultures circled impatiently, waiting for NASA to drop dead. With IEBC's clearance of Raila Odinga and Kalonzo Musyoka to gun for the highest office in the land, the much anticipated free feast has been denied the vultures, much to their chagrin.

But nobody can blame Jubilee for not trying to scuttle the Opposition's quest for unity through calculated misinformation and taunts; only that the gods did not approve. Uhuruto's post-IEBC approval speeches and the array of dimming stars who gave speeches was a dead giveaway of a party in turmoil.

As often said, a drowning man will clutch at a straw. On the surface of the raging sea of corruption, maize scandals, rocketing cost of living, company closures, unemployment, redundancies and shifting political alliances, there were soaked straws in the persons of Ababu Namwamba, Martha Karua and some nondescript politicians that Jubilee clung to. It is wasted effort hoping to latch onto Western through Namwamba, a drowning man himself.

Uhuru Kenyatta is circumspect, William Ruto is not. When one repeatedly hears Kenyatta say he will accept the results of the August elections no matter who wins, one understands he recognises the gargantuan task ahead of him. He acknowledges that losing is probable, and that there could be a re-run. Latest opinion polls by Ipsos putting Uhuru's approval ratings at 47 per cent and Raila's at 42 per cent where before Uhuru was rated in the 50s and Raila in the 30s are alarming.

On the other hand, William Ruto is dismissive of the competition and talks with the confidence of a man who has an irrevocable pact with God; that in 2022, he will be there, up hale and hearty asking those present, "ama namna gani my fren?"

After IEBC clearance, the hard part begins. The level of awareness among Kenyans today, thanks to technological advances, is such that throwing wool over the teary eyes of Kenyans en masse with false promises won't do. Personality attacks and propaganda have dominated the political scene for so long it is now time to address issues that will positively impact the lives of Wanjiku. We have heard about free maternity services, SGR, laptops, examination fees and kilometres of tarmacked roads a million times it is grating on the ears. Jubilee must compose a new danceable song.

The positives of the SGR are there for all to see, but there are downsides too. These include taking away the livelihoods of truck and bus owners whose businesses will be suffocated; thousands of truck and bus drivers, touts, bus ticketers and loaders who will be out of jobs, thanks to the SGR. Add to them dependants; families, friends, mechanics, spares dealers and you will have created more despondency and the likelihood of more crime.

Personalised attacks on Jubilee will not aid the Opposition's cause. Though not in as many words, the Opposition has been telling Kenyans Jubilee is a soiled rag, and there is plenty to support this; the NYS scandal, Eurobond, Afya House shroud, SGR cost, massive corruption within Government and the Mexican maize imports. NASA should simply pick what cannot be found in Jubilee's delivery portal and sell it.

Kenya's backbone is agriculture yet the country suffers acute food insecurity. The health sector is moribund; quality education is for the elite, our roads are abattoirs because corruption reigns supreme, rampant insecurity is the new normal, acute water shortages are looming large; all because of a paucity of visionary leadership.

Jubilee claims Opposition leaders were in Government (not the government) for 145 years yet did nothing. What Jubilee is not telling Kenyans is that it has run the country to ground; saddling Kenyans with the highest debt burden ever and the highest cost of living since independence. Impoverishing millions to improve infrastructure is lacking prudence.

Mr Chagema is a correspondent at The [email protected]