• Kenya has so much potential but lags behind because of lack of vision, self interest
Image: PIXABAY
Wow. Kenya is 60 years old this year. This year’s big birthday is our diamond jubilee of self-governance and the birth of our great republic. On the first of June, we mark sixty years of self-governance since after our victorious fight from our former colonisers.
Sixty years sounds like a long time in human years, as I, for one, have realised I am more than half the age of Kenya. Insert wailing emoji. Side note: how is it that when a country gets older we celebrate, but when we as citizens get older, it's a matter of concern? In some ways it's such a long time, then you remember the late Queen Elizabeth was at some point the head of state in her 70 years of rule as monarch.
Much like human growth, a nation’s age symbolises growth, maturity, development and most importantly, its ability to sustain itself. As part of the developing nations that were once colonised by Europeans, most African countries are still trying to come out of the systemic disparities that plague our country underneath the surface.
Indeed, we have come a long way from the control of the white man in a khaki suit. We overcame the one-party state and authoritarian regimes to become the liberal songbirds we are today. We turned dusty roads into highways and small villages into bustling economic hubs. In 60 short years, our young country turned into the most industrious country in sub-Saharan Africa.
However, as a nation, we still have a long way to go. It’s so easy to look around and be satisfied with our progress as we have, in fact, surpassed many other African countries, who have been independent for far longer.
I have always compared Kenya to Singapore, because in my travels there, I learnt that by the time of independence, Kenya was more developed and had a bigger economy than the tiny nation in the southern tip of the Malaysian Peninsula.
As a matter of fact, Singapore attained Independence in the same year as Kenya but joined the Malaysian federation. Only after being kicked out of the Federation in 1965 did Singapore become a self-governing nation. This country picked itself up from the debris and rose up with the magnificence of a Phoenix. So much so that to date, it is perhaps the most developed nation in Southeast Asia, and its infrastructure, the envy of the world.
Countries like Singapore should be our inspiration. They show us that our history does not define us. What defines us is the achievement of our goals, put in place by like-minded fellows who only wish to see the betterment of their people.
Kenya has so much potential but lags behind because of the lack of vision and the self interests of those at the top. We know we can become a hundred times better than what we are now. Our drive should stem from patriotism and the will to see our own people thrive.
As much as we celebrate the 60 years of our nation’s Independence and the achievements we have made since the birth of our great republic, it is important to set our sights towards the uphill climb that is the next 60 years.