If we wanted fence-sitters we'd release BBI to birds

The BBI report was unveiled this week in a forum that saw the President and his deputy share the same political stage for the first time since God attempted to put them back together during the National Prayer Day four weeks ago.

The Chorus of Speakers must have been carefully chosen because they all agreed with the contents of the report. What they lacked in a catchy hook they made up for in praise-and-worship talent.

All had been going according to the hymnbook until Deputy President William Ruto rose up to deliver his speech.

If we ever forget what Dr Ruto said, we remember his revelation that Kenyan scientists are slow readers. While Kenyans are looking for their expert opinion on issues that matter, they are still on the introduction chapter of their coursework.

It now makes sense why our engineers are building roads without pedestrian walkways and cyclist lanes; why architects are designing buildings without natural lighting and sewerage systems, and why ecologists are quiet as construction companies murder innocent trees along Waiyaki Way.

Feeding programme

Had we been told of this before, we would have organised online remedial classes for Kenyan scientists during this Covid-19 pandemic, but we would first have to fundraise for their lunch, now that children who reported to school without money for the feeding programme are being sent home to eat where their parents work.

When the President rose to speak, he had seen enough of the chaos and sought to put out the fire his deputy lit, by first adding fuel. We got to know why he no longer wears matching shirts with his deputy, whom he not only accused of refusing to wait for his relay baton, but also had started running against his track record.

He might have said it in jest to puncture the tension in the auditorium, but the message was home: Dr Ruto had chosen to be away from the President’s unifying agenda.

Dr Ruto is not alone. He represents a group of elite Kenyans who claim they had no time to present their views to the BBI Taskforce, as they were busy mingling with those without money and hence couldn’t pay attention. There are sections of the population who are justified in raising contentious issues in the report, as they made time to present their concerns when the public were called upon.

They never went to church to backbite the BBI Secretariat instead of the holy sacrament. These are the people who are genuine about their concerns.

They might not have got all they wanted in the final document, but they showed their commitment in building their country because you cannot have change if you don’t pay the price of public participation.

We must applaud these Kenyans who had the wisdom to put aside their political biases to present their views to the Taskforce, and in particular their maturity to separate political grandstanding from where they sit. This lot have left no room for critics to deny them a chance to be heard.

Good intentions

They did everything by the book, stuck to the rules of engagement, remained consistent in their clamour and demonstrated good intentions from start to finish, when it could have been easier sitting on the fence and waiting for the donkeys to drop dead with the luggage before picking it up and running away with it.

You cannot disregard a consultative process then come back to tell us that you have unused notes the BBI Taskforce could have benefited from. If the team needed political handouts, they could have asked for wheelbarrows for carrying their files instead of public views on the Building Bridges Initiative.

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