fauz

Wednesday, June 29, 2011

I smell the scent of the Jazmine in kenya

'Every generation needs a new revolution'-Thomas Jefferson

The last time I blogged was just when Mohammed Bouazizi,the Tunisian vendor ignited the spark that lit up the Arab world,pushing two dictators out of power and two more holding onto their seats against the wishes of their people.I have been watching the events in the Arab world and wishing the scent of the jazmine could just move southwards towards sub-saharan Africa.To all the despots,the time is nigh!!
If there is one thing that we can learn from the Arab spring,it's the fact that real power is in the hands of the people and that our destiny is in our hands if and only if we can stick together.No amount of oppression can stop the power of the people.We saw what happened in Tahrir Square where the people congregated,demonstrating day,day out.We saw,in admiration,proffessionals ranging from Doctors,lawyers,teachers to Engineers who decided enough was enough and decided to join the people till the dragon was slain.The power of the people is indeed mightier than the guns and tanks.we saw it in Tahreer and we can see it still happening in Syria,Yemen,Bahrain,Libya and Tunisia where the Presidency of ben Ali was cut short by a fruit vendor-mohammed Bouazizi.
You may ask why I am emphasising so much about the Arab spring but wait and reflect about the leadership that we have in our country.do we have sincere leaders with the interests of the people at heart or do we have leaders with self interests.Can you look our leaders in the eye and ask them why they are in politics.I believe many do not know why they are in politics in the first place.Eighty percent are in it for the money and power.I pray and hope that one day,we will have leaders who care about the interests of the masses.I think that most of the leaders in our counties have failed us and need a kick.They need to be fired and we have that power-the voter's card.We don't have to go the Bouzizi way.We can still use peaceful means.If a half naked Indian could defeat the British empire,so can we!!!
All we need in this country is a revolution.Yes we need a revolution.We need to rise up and vote the right kind of people.We need to change our thinking during election time where leaders start thinking according to their tribes and not the quality that the candidates possess.We need to sanitise politics and stop thinking and labelling politics as a dirty game.We need to stand up.The egyptians did that through social media.It took the courage of a young google executive,Wael Ghonim to put up a facebook page and as they say,the rest is history.We should emulate this great Egyptian who had the choice to stick to his job at Google and see the masses suffering but said 'enough is enough'.
I urge Kenyans of goodwill to stand up.Leave the comforts of your high paying jobs and stand for elective posts to sanitise the politics in this country.If not,shut up and stop complaining.One great Kenyan I had an opportunity to brainstorm about the politics of the day with (and yes he stuck in my mind as the kind of leader that I dream to have) is Mr.Suleiman Shahbal,the chairman of Gulf Africa Bank.He is a leader with a vision,very accessible.He is ready to leave the comfort of his job for the sake of righting the wrongs in the leadership of our county.I was so impressed when he declared the fact that he is standing for Governor because of the leadership vacum in thecounty of Mombasa.This country needs more Suleiman Shahbals and we need to change our thinking and start getting men and women of substance stand for office.
I know I may be stepping on some people's toes by imparting my thoughts but I have no apologies to make.My loved ones fear for my safety but I believe I am fine.That's what I think and there is nothing I can do about it.We need to stand up and get counted.To the leaders who think you are demigods-your time is up.The youth of this country want their country back!