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Kenyans Have Not Learnt Anything from Their History

  • Author Gĩthĩnji
  • Updated on:

Kenya has a lot that is part of our history since we achieved independence. The good things have taken us forward while the retrogressive ones have stalled our progress.

We have always made a mark in the history of this region. In our own history, we have either maintained or destroyed our will for unity.

Yet, we can barely afford to sing praises because our history judges us harshly.

Our beloved nation has faced a lot of negative things. The culture of negative ethnicity, corruption, and political patronage dominate our history.

Political assassinations, insecurity, ethnic cleansing, economic deprivation, marginalization, ignorance, and poverty also follow suit. Other vices include religious intolerance, religious exploitation, and social hatred.

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Our history shows that we are famous for many things

Kenya is famous for many things. We dominate athletics in world circles and attract many local and foreign tourists because of our beautiful natural resources.

Kenyans are very welcoming and charming. We play a pivotal role in establishing regional peace. We are also committed to world peace and are aggressive in both local and international relations.

Kenya realized a new Constitution in 2010 that ushered in a new system of governance, which was meant to transform our lives.

Moreover, we showed our will and commitment to democracy through the struggle for multiparty democracy. The commitment and will led to the end of the tyranny and dominion of the previous dictatorial regimes. These regimes brought untold suffering to us.

All these characteristics and accomplishments leave an indelible mark on our country’s history.

Through the spirit of national unity, Kenya has come a long way since independence. Therefore, as Kenyans, we need to evaluate where we are heading.

We have, in our history, a reminder of what our country was back then. We are also aware of its current state and we can use this history to shape Kenya’s future state.

Where we failed or the government failed us, we are aware of what (or how) our country ought to be.

We always dream of the Kenya we want. Many of us have worked tirelessly to realize it. However, are we out of the woods yet?

Have we achieved the ideal state that we always wanted? Can we create room for more improvement? Lastly, are we open-minded and receptive to change?

We are yet to learn from our history

Every civilization and society in the world has a unique history, including Kenya. However, we are yet to learn from our history’s lessons.

We always crucify the truth and find shortcuts to it. It is easy to lie to us than to convince us that someone is lying to us.

We believe government and media propaganda without a second thought, despite the destructive impact the lies have on us.

I am always surprised when I hear our so-called political leaders saying they want their tribesmen to enjoy the national cake; yet, I never hear then talking of baking the national cake. Even divine manna was exhausted.
P.L.O Lumumba

The truth has become hate speech to many Kenyans.

We support regimes that plunder our resources and commit political atrocities. We shield politicians and religious elite who exploit us for their selfish purposes.

Yet, history shows us that the casualties of these actions are ourselves.

The indoctrination culture in this country has reduced many of us into sycophants and creatures afraid to question their beliefs.

We have become donkeys for hire. The price of our service goes to the highest political, economic, social, or religious bidder.

The bidders grow tired of us when we become old and worn out. They go for our offspring and devour them, thereby killing our future dreams.

What we should do

The maladies of sycophancy, bad choice of leadership, and negative ethnicity lie squarely on our shoulders. This is because we train our children and their children how to propagate and to get accustomed to the vice in our country.

We embrace corruption as an easy way to escape justice, or largely to get favours.

The electoral cycle is the biggest showdown that depicts the ridiculous ideals we uphold as a country. We elect leaders based on hubris, popularity, wealth, and ethnic identity.

Our politicians propagate selfish interests first. They do not even care about allocating enough wealth for their electorate. They eat first then mind about us later just when the campaigns are near.

Yet, many of us bash these leaders for their greed. Did we not elect them in the first place?

What we need to do now and in the near future is to learn from our history’s lessons. They are the key to our progressive future.

We must correct past mistakes and embrace good lessons from them to build our future. Otherwise, we shall hand down our future generations a burden that they shall not bear.

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