From: Lee Makwiny

Shock is what can best describe the reaction of the people of Bungoma County when Jack Nelson Wamboka, Kizito Temba and Fwamba NC Fwamba were associated with the proscribed Mungiki youths. Some of them even paraded themselves before the full glares of the media, savoring every bit of the moment as they bawled from both ends of their mouths admitting to what many have considered the basest of unpatriotic act.

Whereas it is not my intention to associate them in whatever way with the proscribed Mungiki sect, one wonders why they chose to visit State House precisely at the time when Kenya was being decimated by this proscribed sect. Was it their insatiable appetite for quick wealth at the expense of the health of the Nation that propelled them to the pedestal of idolatry? Did their political ambitions receive a jab in the arm courtesy of the State House visit? It is instrumental to note that since then Jack Nelson Wamboka and Kizito Temba have declared their intention to vie for parliamentary seats in Bumula and Webuye Constituencies respectively.

The question on everyone`s mind is whether these individuals have the budding spirit of liberation that characterized yesterday`s youthful patriots who sacrificed everything including their valuable lives and those of their families to make a better Kenya for everyone? Are they really the atoms in the incessant human struggle towards the light that shines in the darkness—the ideal of economic, political and spiritual liberation that the electorates yearn for?

Unfortunately, the answer is an emphatic “No.” Their actions and inactions point to the fact that they have in so startling a manner departed from the philosophy of our founding fathers such as Masinde Muliro who gallantly fought to have us enjoy a better and meaningful life. Sadly, Jack Wamboka, Kizito Temba and Fwamba NC Fwamba have given the liberation struggle a wide berth. They do not care to be on the right side of history. Their proclivity for politics of deceit, corruption, self aggrandizement and negative ethnicity knows no bounds. They have demonstrated beyond any reasonable doubt that they cannot hesitate to stab the country on the back for the sake of the selfish course they pursue. Perhaps they mistakenly believe that the ability to cut stinking deals and becoming masters of impunity is a mark of true leadership and valor.

I for one cannot believe that love of one’s country lies in blindness to its social faults, in deafness to its social discords or in not articulating its social wrongs. I know many people who love Bungoma County and the country at large with deeper passion and greater intensity than this current youthful harem whose patriotism manifests itself in pulling, kicking, and insulting the fabric of our society.

Unfortunately, the danger is that these are the individuals who have taken over leadership positions in political parties such as New Ford Kenya. Even more worrying is that the political kingpins in such political parties risk their minds being contaminated on account of their association with these idolaters of impunity. That they stand shilly shally on issues of national importance lends credence to fact that they constantly imbibe vile while in the company of these youthful political barkers.

I rightly think that now, more than ever before, the conscientious electorate is duty bound to bawl-out these political barkers. If we do not confine them in the dustbin of politics there is real danger that Bungoma County and especially Bumula and Webuye constituencies will inevitably sink deeper in morass. No constituency should wish to suffer from this worst form of impotency.

Lastly, I request the administrators of Bungoma County and Bumula Sub-County Stake-holders forum to desist from partisanship. I understand that they have declared some people personae non gratae in these forums courtesy of their reluctance to mince words in respect of a specific aspirant. Whereas other aspirants have received as much flak the administrators of these two forums have largely remained silent.

TOME SIMIYU FRANCIS,
BUMULA, MABUSI VILLAGE.
CELL: 0720 877 518