Political leaders have been urged to be cautious and listen to the people to avoid facing their wrath. avert anti-government protests.
Former Head of the Presidential Press Service (PPS) under the late President Moi’s administration, Lee Njiru said that although Kenyans were working to restrain Gen Z by reasoning with them, politicians are not making the situation any better.
Acknowledging the critical role that advisors play, Njiru said they should be persons with a wealth of experience to avoid overshadowing wisdom in running the Government.
“We are trying to restrain the Gen Z by trying to talk to them because there is a lull… The writing is on the wall but they cannot see it, who will teach them? Our politicians should know that there is power in humility. As soon as they ascend to power, they think they are a national miracle,” he said during an interview on Spice FM Tuesday morning.
He said the political class are authors of their own problems and often ignore warning signs, even when they are so obvious and instead, act as untouchable.
The former head of PPS regretted that politicians ignore the electorate who put them in power and instead engage in amassing wealth.
Njiru said that power and fortune have corrupted the majority of leaders.
“I am not surprised with the political situation in Kenya now. Power and fortune are potentially destructive and you have to be careful when you have both. It can rob you of your sobriety, and friendship between you and relatives, it destroys humility. You probably need the wisdom of a water engineer to know how to reticulate it otherwise, it will lead you to dangerous situations,” he explained.
His remarks come in the wake of the Gen Z protests against some government policies, including the Finance Bill 2024.
Gen Z also complained that some Cabinet Secretaries had failed in running their dockets.
Although the youth celebrated after President William Ruto dismissed the Cabinet, it was short-lived since some of them were reinstated, a move that sparked an uproar.
Gen Z also took issue with Ruto's decision to form a broad-based government, saying it only serves the interests of a few.
Njiru claimed that the first rule of joining politics for majority leaders is "saying goodbye to the truth."
“Politicians are like superpowers. All politicians are political cousins and have one diet – the electorate. Even if you come to politics as an honest man, politics is contagious and someone is likely to get that disease from other politicians. I saw very many of them, they got the disease,” he said.
But even as he took a swipe at politicians, the former head of PPS blamed the electorate for pushing politicians to the edge with incessant demands.
He recounted how people would flock to the State House to seek an audience with President Moi and in some instances try to blackmail him to have their way.
“Sometimes, the electorate contributes to making politicians who they are. During Moi’s time, people would come to the gate and when they are about 10 of them, they tell the security that they are a group of professionals yet each came individually,” he said.
“Others would come in priestly robes and a bible. Why would a bishop come to State House on a Tuesday morning wearing priestly robes? It was kind of a way of threatening the President,” he added.
Njiru warned that unless drastic changes are made to the education system, it is a ticking time bomb.
