Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has ordered a crackdown on 24-hour bars in the Mount Kenya region. He wants bars to only open from 5pm to 11pm to curb alcoholism in central Kenya.
The DP should be commended for this initiative but it needs to be extended further.
Over-drinking is not only a problem in central Kenya. Gachagua needs to look at the rest of Kenya as well.
Secondly, crude alcohol, also known changaa, is also widely consumed in Kenya. It is much cheaper than beer or spirits as no tax is paid to the government. It is often contaminated with industrial alcohol such as methanol to make it stronger but this frequently kills or blinds drinkers.
Crude alcohol is a bigger problem than 24-hour bars but it is widespread across Kenya because the police and chiefs turn a blind eye to illicit stills and brewing.
If DP Gachagua, really wants to save Mount Kenya and the rest of the country from the curse of alcoholism, he should also crack down on illicit alcohol brewing. He should instruct the police and chiefs to close all changaa dens and crude alcohol breweries immediately.
Quote of the day: "It is a sin not to do what one is capable of doing."
José Martí
The Cuban revolutionary was born on January 28, 1853
