I do realize that any critique I may provide is done so as “outsider” and some may question if I even have the right to offer my observations, assessment and recommendations. I do so out of a true caring for this country and its people.
When I was in Kenya in November, I picked up the newspaper “The Daily Nation” during a 12 hour (gasp) layover in the Nairobi airport. And my assessments were confirmed in that the general population of Kenya agree with my strong recommendation that the problem of rampant corruption needs to be acknowledged and addressed. Corruption is one of the major wrongs that can hold any country or organization back because it inefficiently siphons off needed resources for the good of the whole into the personal pockets of the wasteful few.
Here are some of the points raised in the article “Poll: We’re headed in wrong direction” on page 3 of the November 16, 2015 issue of “Daily Nation.”
• According to the poll, only 29% of Kenyans feel the country is headed in the right direction, down 5 points from the previous year. 62% of Kenyans feel the country is moving in the wrong direction.
• The three issues identified on “top of mind” of Kenyans leading to these results are: corruption, high cost of living, and lack of jobs. The high level of corruption in government was rated the #1 issue by 40.9% of the citizens.
• The national ministry of Education, Science and Technology was the poorest rated ministry by the citizens. This is a dangerous assessment given the importance of education on helping build highly skilled citizens to help compete in the global economy.
• And in terms of national commissions, the “Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission” was the lowest rated.
International corruption measuring bodies do confirm the high corruption in Kenya; for example Transparency International ranks Kenya 139th out of 168 measured countries , which is a horrendous performance. NOTE: and we think the USA is corrupt – we rank 16th out of 168!
My sincere hope is that the people of Kenya can unite to fight corruption and elect women and men of high integrity with hearts and minds to help Kenya progress, and that bold new leaders will arise to lead with honesty and transparency.