Of what use is a burning nation?

By Njambi Mungai

Obama got re-elected. I can still hear the crowd roar. Quite an amazing feat as many didn't think it was possible. I also doubted it at some point but the man beat the odds with his character, eloquence, wife and a great campaign team.

Of course there are those who pulled the little hair they had (read Donald Trump) in disbelief but they now know that you cannot put a good man down.

But what struck me was the fact that in a span of approximately 24 hours, the voting and announcing of results was complete. All that had been done in a region with a population of over 300 million people! That is almost 10 times the population of Kenya, which ranks at around 40 million.

However, I will not blame the Kenyans for having a wanting electoral body. The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission does not give priority to its job despite knowing how volatile the election process has been in the past.

So while Kenyans work on getting a functioning electoral body, we can borrow a leaf from the Americans. They have all gone on with their lives. We have seen no fighting or bloodshed just because the opposition has not won. In fact Mitt Romney called Barack Obama and conceded defeat before giving his speech to the rest of the world. That is what I call civilization, accepting defeat and finding ways to work with the winner.

I believe Peter Kenneth, Martha Karua and Raphael Tuju have what it takes to lead this country. However, what I think or whom I vote for will not matter if there is violence.

Whether Raila, Uhuru or any other candidate are announced the winner, any post poll violence will affect all Kenyans regardless of tribe. We shall have to go back to the drawing board, start businesses from ashes and try to relocate our bearings. All that chaos because we could not accept a winner not of our choosing.

While we are busy proclaiming and forcing our preferred candidates down other people's throat, we need to remember that we cannot be sore losers. The idea of voting then razing an entire neighborhood because we lost is like moving forward one step then ten backwards. It is counterproductive, primitive and above all inhuman. We need to remember that life goes on after an election and its up to us to decide how we to continue it. 

Maintaining peace

The major part of elections that has been overlooked yet should be an integral part of the process is how to maintain peace. The Mkenya Daima campaign was in the right path but it died down when it should be running on all cylinders as we approach the polls. 

These politicians are our servants and they should not be making us fight each other. I dream of a country where we would be so wise, that elections will be just like a public holiday that brings joy and is forgotten once it is over. I dream of country where we would not worship politicians, one in which they would have to come looking for us. How I desire that Kenya would be country where people with opposing ideologies can shake hands and decide to agree to disagree for the sake of the nation.

‘Primitive Africans’

Africans have been called primitive for so long because we constantly live up to that name. We senselessly kill each other because of leaders who will go share a laugh and a drink as our blood continues to pour. We will determine the course of our country after the elections. We will decide that even though someone else won the elections, we will not attack our neighbor who voted for someone else. 

We need to educate those around us. I know that even if Raila , Uhuru, Ruto or any other aspirant wins the elections, it will not be the end of the world for me. I will accept it and move on. No need to uproot railways, burn buildings or walk around talking bad about the winner.

 I keep hearing "If candidate X does not win, no one else is seating on that seat", "If candidate Y does not win, this country will burn"... to what end I ask? Of what use is a burning nation to you? 

We need to educate Kenyans, that as much as we can differ in opinion, peace among us is imperative. Because with peace, Kenya can move forward, regardless of who sits on the ‘throne’.

It has been said that followers are more important to leaders than leaders are to followers. Let us all realize that and spread the word. 

“Peace is not something you wish for; It's something you make, Something you do, Something you are, And something you give away.” ~~ Robert Fulghum

 Written by Njambi Mungai who runs her blog at njambiemungai.com/wordpress