In 2020 political deceit will not hold any sway

Some, indeed, preach Christ from envy and rivalry, but others from goodwill. The latter do it out of love, knowing that I am put here for the defence of the gospel. The former proclaim Christ out of rivalry, not sincerely but thinking to a?ict me in my imprisonment. What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretence or in truth, Christ is proclaimed, and in that I rejoice.” - The Holy Bible, Philippians 1:15-18

Nothing de?nes the Kenyan situation in general and the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) in particular than these words that Paul wrote to the Phillipians.

And as we launch the last year of the second decade of the second millennium, I proclaim 2020 the year of BBI and of President Uhuru Kenyatta.

The president is desirous to leave a legacy of political hygiene.

To do so he has zero opposition. In as much as the stated BBI objectives are concerned, no one in their right mind would oppose them.

This year then, Uhuru will cement his legacy and place in history alongside nationalists like Nelson Mandela, Julius Nyerere, Mahathir Mohammed and Lee Kuan Yew.

Having said this, let me point out three major risks that could kill the BBI baby at infancy unless a serious and urgent ‘Beyond Zero’ intervention is applied.

Infant mortality

The ?rst infant mortality agent is personalisation of the BBI project. That should be avoided at all costs.

The easiest way to kill a national project is to sacri?ce it at the altar of personalisation, sectarian advantage, political brinkmanship and competitive oneupmanship.

This is what maimed, if not killed Vision 2030 when the internal rebels within NARC dismissed it as a ‘Kibaki Project’.

If the opposition then had not sacri?ced Vision 2030 at the altar of expediency, the Big 4 Agenda would have been achieved eons ago, long before the Jubilee government. BBI can avoid this trodden path, but only President Kenyatta can save it from that perilous path.

The second risk is the false illusion that one can stop politicians from taking political positions.

You cannot stop the political sun from rising in the East and setting in the West. If you try, it can only be to confer advantage to one party over another as we ?nd out in Joshua 10:13 where Joshua, as leader of the Israelites, asks God to cause the moon and the sun to stand still so that he and his army might continue ?ghting by daylight.

God further assists Joshua by calling up a powerful storm to bombard the Canaanites with rain and hailstones. It was purely a partisan game.

If we do it with the BBI, let us not be deceitful or pretentious about it. Let us be open with it like Joshua.

Finally, we ought to be realistic about the economic environment.

Much as there is no opposition or argument about the BBI objectives, we must be cognisant that we are implementing the BBI at a time when Kenyans are undergoing a lot of economic strain.

Granted, this cannot be an excuse to delay the BBI, but it’s instructive to note.

It calls for all of us to undertake the BBI project in tandem with an all-out war to improve the economic lives of our people.

It calls for throwing away taboos like regional and international trade protocols that continue to imprison our people through cheap imports of milk, eggs, poultry and maize.

You do not continue harassing small traders and expect them in the same breath to support BBI.

You do not report our students to the IMF for defaulting on Helb loans and still hope to co-opt them in this vital national project.

Finally, 2020 is the year to talk with each other, not at each other. Never before has humility been needed in our nation.

We must all move together. The convoy must move at the speed of the slowest ship.

The BBI chain will only be as strong as the weakest link. Happy 2020 Kenyans!