If you’re a middle-class Kenyan, the word happiness seems like an unfamiliar term to you!
If you’re an upper-class Kenyan, the word happiness still means nothing to you if you care about the plight of your brothers and sisters languishing in poverty.
Indeed, the UN World Happiness Report ranked Kenya as the 124th happiest country in the world out of 158 countries.
Punda Amechoka
Kweli, punda amechoka! (Indeed, the donkey is tired!)
Kenyans have been victims of an autocratic government that has robbed them over their resources and left them hungry physically, emotionally, and mentally.
Right now, there are over 800,000 Kenyans at risk of dying from hunger because of misappropriation of funds and neglect from leaders.
Empty promises of 31 dams to be constructed is what we hear on the news. The government goes as far as to deny that there have been deaths in the ongoing famine.
So, should Kenyans be happy?
Certainly not!
A Disappointed Population
In fact, you can see it just about everywhere. When a passenger hurls bitter insults at the makanga (turnboy) for failing to give him or her his change on time.
When a Kenyan begger is stepped on in the middle of street and considered a ‘waste of space’ by fed-up wananchi making their way to work, we are unhappy.
When 21 billion goes missing, money that was meant to better the lives of hundreds of thousands of Kenyans, we are unhappy.
So, as a voice of 47 million collective Kenyans, until we make the right decisions, until we start to promote brotherhood and eliminate tribalism, we will continue to be unhappy.
Let’s work together to pursue happiness.
Let’s celebrate today as a marking point to change the future of oneself, our children, and our children’s children.