Commentaries

HARNESS UNITY FOR ECONOMIC PROSPERITY

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Published on Tuesday, 12 June 2007 08:45

The founding fathers of Kenya embraced the Harambee motto and officially publicized the spirit as soon as Kenya became an independent state. It's this spirit that was to empower them in their strife to unite the Kenyan People and actively engage the young state into collective nation building. Then, there were enormous initiatives to undertake: Structuring a
government, Shaping the economy, and educating Kenyans were just but a few of the challenges they faced. Fortunately, our elite leaders were intelligent, courageous and ready to sacrifice immensely for a purposeful cause. It was a thing of patriotism and a common goal to enjoy the fruits of newfound independence. But before the bounty harvest they knew they had to sow, and nurture their projects.

It wasn't a walk in the park for the then leaders to mobilize the Kenyan people to make the best of their potentials. But, the late President Kenyatta and his compatriots did not shy away from that task. They couldn't afford to, because united they could push his stack Mercedes from the muddy shores of Lake Nakuru, raise funds to build a church, pay taxes which in turn facilitate the physical development of the country and many other possibilities that would have otherwise remained unrealized if our founding fathers had chosen otherwise.

Does the punctuation of President Kenyatta's speeches with the 'Harambee' slogan still surprise you? Is it a mystery that the same 'Harambee' slur appears on the Kenyan national emblem of arms and unity? The reason is obvious, the Harambee motto was the one ideology that the Kenyan first president wanted to inculcate in our minds. Hence his diligent campaign
throughout his presidency. He left the Kenyan people with a vital spear to fight on, after his death. The spear he bequeathed us with is timeless and will win the battles facing us today; in the same way he used it to win his. By the way, his were much complicated and uncertain but he won nonetheless. Our docility has him spinning in his stately mausoleum. It's about time we put the inherited spear into productive use, so the late president Kenyatta can rest in peace. At least we owe him that much.