Government's indifference to Kenyans' suffering appalling

A customer shops for sugar in supermarket . [ File Standard]

First, there is raw anger in Kenya, and it cannot be attributed to a single factor. The cost of living is already beyond the reach of many families. They toil and moil to secure their daily bread. Some have school fees to pay while others face health issues that drain their financial resources. Still, others are struggling to make basic investments for tomorrow. Some families juggle a mixture of basic needs, and only God knows how they survive.

Therefore, the news of an increase in pump prices could not have come at a worse time. Any responsible government would be cautious about pushing the struggling population to the limit. What is the lesson? We, the government and the citizenry alike, have not learned that anger, if not managed realistically, will soon destroy the relative peace we currently enjoy.

Secondly, over the years, we have treated industrial strikes with a degree of contempt. Teachers and nurses, for example, have tried to raise their concerns through a collective approach in the form of industrial action. They were taken in circles until they signed return-to-work agreements. Nothing life-changing ever came out of those agreements; the increments they received were quickly consumed by taxes. In sum, their industrial strikes did not improve their living standards.

As if to spite them, union leaders used those very strikes to bargain for political seats, never returning favours to the people on whose suffering they built their profiles. That anger and hopelessness are seated deep in the consciousness of many workers. Consequently, any slight opportunity to vent will manifest strongly against the government. What is the lesson? The government must consider giving industrial strikes the seriousness they deserve. If not, we are stockpiling anger that, with a single trigger, could explode into a national disaster.

Thirdly, the Gen Z protests of 2024 remain a wound that is yet to heal. They bring forth memories of the high cost of living that the Finance Bill 2024 was perceived to exacerbate. Young people were killed, injured, and traumatised. Some were left disillusioned about the very meaning of life, perhaps forever. The increase in the prices of diesel, petrol, and kerosene is being interpreted as a sign that there is no hope for a bearable life even after the deadly protests of 2024.

The transport sector strike, therefore, drew out many young people, even if, strictly speaking, it was not their protest. But who cares, if participating helps to heal the wounds of the past? Arguably, had the families of the Gen Z victims who lost their lives or were affected in various ways been compensated, perhaps some sympathy towards the government would have emerged. What is the lesson? Young people are restless because the economy is biting hard.

Cumulatively, these lessons show that Kenyans are suffering. Those in power and those benefiting from them do not exist in the same reality as those hurting from economic pangs. We have thousands of luxury cars on the roads and tens, perhaps hundreds, of helicopters dizzying the birds in the air, wowing the poor with their acrobatic landings and takeoffs. But let us be honest with ourselves: Millions of families are barely getting a taste of decent life.

More and more people are beginning to draw a line in the sand between the government and the citizens. There is a growing perception that the government belongs to the “sharks,” and the people merely pay taxes to feed them. This binary is dangerous. It not only risks more industrial strikes but, given a trigger, could easily turn violent.

One thing the government can do, if it truly cares, is to be human. It has to treat people with dignity, regardless of their economic status. The fuel price increase that sparked the transport sector strike could have been avoided had those in charge been sensitive to the suffering that the majority of Kenyans are enduring. Before imposing further burdens on the people, the government should reflect on their capacity to bear them.

-Dr Mokua is the Executive Director, Loyola Centre for Media and Communication