History of Building Bridges Initiative has biblical roots

The bone of contention that was solved by the handshake between our elder brothers began way before they were born. It began before the Cold War era. In the book of Genesis, the birth of Cain and Abel signifies the sides into which the world was divided.

This is nowadays understood as the left and right. Cain and Abel were the two ideologies that divided the world. One on denying God's ideology and the other on accepting the ideology. The reconciliation of Jacob and Esau when they were over 40 years is another battle of twins that took place in their mother's womb.

The story in the book of Genesis says as Tamar was giving birth, one of the twins put out his hand so the midwife took a red thread, tied it on his wrist and said, "This one came out first." This red thread symbolises the red flag of communism ideology.

The Cold War was the climax of the two ideologies - the battle between Cain and Abel on the world stage. This tension trickled down to other nations, dividing the political class into two different camps. Our founding fathers found themselves drawn to these perspectives that led to historical injustices.

Jaramogi Oginga Odinga was pro-communism while Mzee Jomo Kenyatta was pro-democracy. Unfortunately, our founding fathers passed away without burying the hatchet thus leaving our country in a dilemma. Their reconciliation was paramount for a peaceful nation.

The first handshake, which was later betrayed, was between Raila Odinga and President Mwai Kibaki. But it only temporarily resolved post-election violence and did not lead to a lasting solution. The March 9, 2018 handshake was a significant move. I call it the Big Brothers' Initiative. The handshake buried the long-running animosity from the time of our founding fathers.

The nation could now embark on a new beginning. Unity was the way forward after a long history of confrontation between Cain and Abel, communism and democracy. From God's point of view, this is sibling rivalry and reconciliation is paramount for a peaceful future. This is the reason Jacob had to go back after 21 years and reconcile with Esau.

We need to embrace the BBI and trust that it will lead the nation in the right direction. Calling it a dynasty is ignorance of history and facts. Let us not create sibling rivalry in our nation.