We must unite to fight terrorism

The recent Garissa University College massacre was devastating for all Kenyans. It hit us where it hurts and this must never happen again. This should be a resolve of every Kenyan alive today.

We must unite against this faceless enemy apparently living among us. It was a sad moment as I accompanied some of my colleagues to console mourning parents, relatives and friends at the Chiromo Funeral Parlour as they looked for their butchered children and relatives last weekend.

The pain and grief on their faces was unbearable. Education in Kenya and most developing nations is a financially draining sacrifice most families go through.

Some parents, guardians, siblings and whole villages work so hard to keep some university students in school. Some organise for fund raisers just to keep these students in school and such a massacre was uncalled for. One parent narrated to the media how their son who died in the massacre, was their only child as the mother was declared medically unfit to bear another baby after him.

How cruel can terrorists be! To lose a child is the most terrible thing a parent can stomach. As we mourn the departed 142 students and the security agents, we must never forget them.

We should put up a monument at Garissa University College, with their names inscribed on it as a reminder to all that we must not spare any effort.

We must also continue giving our children the best education possible. Indeed, we must unite strongly and actively look out for those among us or elsewhere seeking to hurt us. We must be brave enough to single out these uncouth criminal elements.

All Kenyans must strongly denounce Al Shabaab adherents, sympathisers and financiers. Muslims should not allow their religion to be misused by terror cells.

Christians, on the other hand, must not give in to terrorists’ attempts to wage a religious war. This is also time for deep soul-searching and a drastic change in tack. We, as a country, must not fight the terrorists using archaic methods of yester years. We must retrain our security agencies in detection, intelligence gathering and quicken our response to terror attacks.

The government must take the lead in changing this painful narrative. The Al Shabaab should not seem to be always a step ahead of our security agents.

Finally, I appeal to Kenyans to stand firm against those hellbent on destroying our way of life. We must not give up, not now, not in the near future. For we are Kenyans and must live the way we desire!