Commentaries

INSECURITY IN KISII

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Published on Tuesday, 12 June 2007 09:25

For years, Kisii town and its surrounding suburbs have been a haven of peace and tranquility. Little, in the name of violent robbery transpired. Incidents of car jacking, burglary, and gun wielding thugs was a thing to be read in the newspapers but never to be experienced by Kisii residents.
Having been raised in one of Kisii's most aesthetic suburbs, I reminisce with nostalgia how everybody went about their lives without fear of getting mugged, burglarized, raped or even shot.
To date the horrors of crime, previously thought to be a preserve for big towns have spread their tentacles to the most pristine of communities and Nyamataro, where I grew up has not been exempted from the evil wave.
Grim economic times are culprit, for the current state of affairs. Unemployment, being the worst symptom of a bad economy, has set a fertile breeding ground for a labyrinth of societal maladies, which are certain to get worse, unless a concerted effort is made to pull a one eighty and resurface the sinking vessel.
The situation has affected not just the residents of Kisii town but also all the abagusii residing in the United States. We live in fear of our families' security whenever we send them splashy gifts from cars, home appliances, cloths and what have you. We are precious targets whenever we travel back home. Personally I can't believe that I can no longer go back to Kisii and represent in hip nightclubs without compromising my security. It's a scary thought. The thugs have practically exiled us from where we grew up and they have promised that we will not enjoy our stay, if we dare to go back to Kisii.

Security encourages, investment and when investments are in place they build jobs, when most people are employed the crime rate drops drastically and prosperity is realized as the cycle revolves and expands. The abagusii living in the United States are potential investors who can elevate the economic standing of Kisii, because of their sheer numbers. But they will stay away from Western Union for as long as they have reservations on matters of security in Kisii.
It is for this reason that I find it disturbing that; Town hall elected officials would be so myopic in their decision-making. How could they not know that; security, prosperity, and employment are linked in a manner that you won't jeopardize one without affect the others. You take out one piece and the rest of the pieces tumble on you, you reinforce all the pieces together and they all stand upright and strong.

The recent decree by Kisii town hall, that ensured the destruction of unplanned kiosks was a good intentioned move. But it overlooked and failed to address the tragic consequences of what would follow. It left me, wondering whether; the mayor and the councilors took into consideration the social cost of such a highhanded order.
True, it's the duty of the Kisii town hall elected officials to clean up the city and that so happens to involve impeding the mushrooming of unplanned structures within the town.
But, Wouldn't it have been better to employ patience and compassion in enforcing the passed decree? Town hall should have first set a side a piece of land to re allocate the kiosks and allowed reasonable time for the Kiosk proprietors to carry the transition. However, they were too impulsive and eager to see the demolition of property that mostly belonged to the struggling lower middle class. The result is: inevitable class warfare between the haves and have-nots. The lower middle class are now filled with resentment and anger against the governance that seems to favor the rich and upper middle class and continues to elbow and sideline the lower middle class and the poor from the economic main stream. Not that unemployment, justifies a venture into crime. But, the demolition of kiosks evidently tempted some weak souls into a life of crime. And they are wrecking havoc in Kisii.