Accepting change the guaranteed route to faster development

In one of the weirdest events last week, the Law Society of Kenya (LSK) and the Matatu Association lodged petitions to stop projects that would change their business models. Their self-interests were more important to them than the public good. Since then, the LSK seems to have retreated, but it does not change the reality that Kenyans can sometimes be haters of development and intellectualism.

Technology and development are by nature disruptive and are bold enough to drag society kicking and screaming into new eras of existence. Uber and Taxify showed this clearly when old taxi owners took to burning their competitors cars in order to save their “market”.

The SGR cargo is facing similar arguments, that it will be the death of heavy lorry cargo companies. But we forget that telephones and email killed telegrams and telegraphs. Television nearly killed radio and the same television is being threatened by the onslaught of the internet and various content streaming services such as NETFLIX.

The reality of this century is that now, more than ever, human technology is advancing faster by the day. We can’t be haters of development and yet be the same ones who keep demanding better from government.  If my mom can get onto whatsApp, then the Matatu Owners Association should find a way of partnering with government on a permanent basis and fund the creation of government owned public transport.

Efficiency

Profit making transportation is a pipe dream, it is the cause of accidents and a culture of matatu drivers with little regard for human life, as well as the safety and comfort of their vehicles. No thinking nation relies on privately owned transport as a solution for its public. Instead transport remains a government domain. It is the only way to ensure rapid transport for the public while keeping to a schedule without regard to how full the vehicle is.

The idea of such a public system is to make private car owners so jealous of the public transport efficiency that they ditch their cars for the public transport. Finally we will have an excuse to have the minister of transport share a bus ride with us since he will no longer need a chase car to push traffic out of his way.

The second stage should be the increase of parking rates within the Central Business District, a fee of two thousand shillings per day for parking will be a good reason to leave our cars at home and join the public transport system and more importantly will create much needed space for city trams. The matatu association would be best advised to take the route of partnership for once the public tastes freedom from traffic jams and bad driving, they will not support them.

The LSK should also now realise that land and vehicles are no longer the only things Kenyans need registered. The future of ownership is in patents and intellectual property. Kenya is innovating and what the young generation needs is protection from people who don't pay for models, or steal ideas from the down trodden. Tales of intellectual fraud abound in this nation.

Property theft

So many intellectuals write papers, articles, business plans, proposals and marketing plans only not to be paid or worse to see their ideas implemented under a different name. This has been true especially of late when certain famous people took an awards program idea from a poor event MC and when a certain personality took debate from young men. This is worse than robbery, this is stealing food from the mouths of children and entire families.

I have seen Kenyans argue why they should pay more than Sh1000 for a piece of art because to them the canvas cost 200 and the paint was less than 500, so it only makes sense the artist should make a 300 shillings profit.

This kind of reasoning assumes the art and therefore argues that the artist is a canvas and paints re-distributor or retailer at best. Hence the death of many talented creative careers. Laden with the burden to find resource, many abandon their talents to go work in blue and white colour jobs where their pockets are better off.

You can’t move forward and still want to live in the past. You can’t vote for progress and then go ahead to champion regress. For Africa to develop, we must innovate and break tradition. We must of necessity, relegate many industries and businesses into the dust bins of history. These include the matatu sector, the heavy cargo lorry industry, especially the long distance ones, taxis that charge 500 shillings as a base rate for crossing the street, people who steal other people’s ideas and finally any business that refuses to pay for intellectual work done.

Let us not waste our time on those who think the markets will be theirs forever. They should, in fact, learn from Kodak sat comfortably as technology disrupted the camera industry. Change or be forgotten.

Mr Bichachi is a communication consultant. [email protected]