•Dear Deputy President, show me your friends and I’ll tell you who you are.
•To share a stage with a leader who has been democratically, legally and procedurally been removed from office for gross abuse and misconduct on his part can only mean that you share their ideals
Image: DPPS
The democratic journey of this country has been a long and trecherous one. All the way from the strggle for independence, to the struggle to multi-party democracy which culminated in the 2010 constitution. Guided by the renewed zeal and fervour of building the nation, the ‘I Believe' and ‘Tuko Pamoja’ mantras of the TNA and Jubilee parties where born. The Hustler Nation, a movement that was seemingly incepted by goodwill for the common mwananchi, perceived to be the salvation movement for the poor, at its inception, was a carrier of hope especially for the young people who “Hustle” to make ends meet.
The concept was genius, The Hustler Nation, while being a name you wouldn’t like to be carried by a nation you love, had begun to look like the platform for change and transformation of a crippled economy. It however has now morphed into a safe space for people who are considered the enemies of the state. Some of the steering team of the Hustler Nation are infact the same people that conceived The National Alliance and the Jubilee Party which both pledged to fight corruption, strengthen the economy for all Kenyans and foster national unity.
However, it defies all emblems of logic and good intention when we see legally and procedurally impeached leaders, assuming the stage of the Hustler Nation platforms to cry wolf and seek sympathy, while in fact they are the core enemies of what the Hustler movement purports to stand for. The troubles in the economy have been amplified by gross corruption and bad governance that has become the symbol of leadership. The hustlers find themselves in a situation where they are rapidly moving from hand to mouth livelihoods to nothing at all. This, while the propagators of theft of public resources stand to be counted as Hustlers or Hustlers clerks.
Dear Deputy President, show me your friends and I’ll tell you who you are. To share a stage with a leader who has been democratically, legally and procedurally been removed from office for gross abuse and misconduct on his part can only mean that you share their ideals, and are sympathetic to their plight. The fact is however, you cannot be for the thieves and also be for the people. Hence begging the question, since your allegiances seem to longer be with the Tuko Pamoja ideals, is the Hustler Nation the official Criminal Sanitation Unit? In which case, whose side are you really on? It is clearly not of the future of this nation.Now that the Hustler Nation has become the Wakora Rescue Team, we the young people are on our own! Wananchi have to find real hope. I crave a leader who will desist to take advantage of the unfortunate state of the youth, their ignorance of their sovereign power and their desperation to make change.
The youth need a leader who chooses to focus on the future of their children. We need leadership that doesn’t simply woo for votes, but that interrogates genuinely the needs of the people. 2021 has to be the point of divergence between mythical antics and real strategies towards a better Kenya. It is time for the rubber to meet the road, for the wheat to be separate from the tiers, and the truth to be laid bare.
June Ndegwa, Nairobi County MCA. National Chair KYMCA