CORD should offer solutions not oppose everything Jubilee does

Raila Odinga

In the countdown to 2013 general election, the flag bearers of the Jubilee alliance Hon Uhuru Kenyatta and his running mate William Ruto made a raft of pledges that were designed to reactivate economic growth and improve the living standards of the Kenyan people.  If elected into office, the duo promised to walk the talk in ensuring the pledges were implemented to the letter and spirit.

So far, a number of pledges have been rolled out and they include free maternal health care, setting up of One-Shop-Huduma Centers, resettlement of internally displaced persons [IDPS], allocation of land and issuance of the thousands of title deeds to poor landless Kenyans, the launch of one-million-acres irrigation project and the construction of Standard Gauge Railway [SGR].

But on the other hand, the government has been encountering lots of challenges in seeking solutions to some of the problems, most of which it inherited from the previous administrations. This scenario is largely blamed on the fact that both the state and opposition are not reading from the same scripts, in terms of adopting seamless efforts geared towards changing the livelihoods of Kenyans.

Instead of engaging the government in a structured and constructive dialogue as envisaged in the constitution, it is no secret the opposition coalition CORD has been working so hard to sabotage the Jubilee initiated projects and it is widely believed that the endgame is to cause the downfall of the Jubilee administration before it conclude its five-year constitutional term in office. If this conspiracy does not work, they intend to capitalize on the “failed projects” to demonstrate that Kenyatta government has failed and so it does not deserve a new term in 2017 polls. 

Meanwhile, they would present their candidate and as they drum up support for him, they would tell Kenyans he carried all solutions to their problems. It is widely believed that this is the card that was used by the opposition in Nigeria to bring down President Jonathan Goodluck. In particular, the opposition there capitalized on deadly terror attacks carried out by the localized insurgency group Boko Haram.   I only pray and hope that CORD is not using the same card?

It is however important to note that the opposition in Kenya has not so far supported the government efforts in the war on terror and banditry attacks. Whenever the attacks occur, the leaders have always resorted to launching scathing attack on the government and piling pressure on President Kenyatta and his Deputy to surrender power. If they want Kenyans to believe them, why can’t they offer solutions? Why resorts to inflicting more pains to the bereaved families? For instance, one would have expected CORD to eulogize families of those who lost their loved ones in the latest banditry attacks that took place along the Baringo and Turkana borders instead of resorting to hurling insults at the government.

Laptop Project

Allow me at this juncture to focus on the laptops for standard one pupil in all public schools. Though the pledge stood out as Jubilee’s signature pre-election campaign promise, it is yet to be rolled out two years down the line. For those who have followed the political intrigues surrounding this issue, I hope many would agree with me that one of main reasons that have caused the continued delay is the stiff opposition.

It all started soon after President Kenyatta and deputy took the oath of office when the teachers countrywide went on strike to demand salary increments and better terms of service. Led by the Kenya National Union of Teachers [KNUT], the teachers who received the full backing of CORD leadership would hear none of the government explanations that it cannot manage to immediately address their concerns because it was facing serious financial problems.

“As a government, we appreciate that the teachers play a critical role in the nation building and as such we are ready and willing to address their concerns, “ President Kenyatta and his deputy assured the tutors at the time.

“But for now, we urge you to give us time so we can put the house in order and fix systems. The truth of the matter is that we almost inherited empty public coffers from the outgoing grand coalition government, “they explained.

The teachers would however stay put and pile pressure that Sh25 billion set aside for laptop project be diverted to pay their salaries. CORD would also join and accuse the government of allegedly having its priorities upside down. The said that it did not make sense to buy laptops when the teachers were not been paid well. The coalition would later capitalize on the issue to ostensibly demonstrate that the government “lied to Kenyans”.

This would come as President Kenyatta assured the country that the project would be rolled out. No amount of politicization and diversionary tactics that will stop us from delivering on the noble promise we made to the children of Kenya. The matter would later end up in Court after the disgruntled suppliers who lost the lucrative contract moved to court.  The case is still pending in court.

But going by the recent media report, it appears the President is increasingly becoming impatient with the delay to roll out the project. It is said he has since constituted a multi-agency committee which is comprised of all stakeholders in education sector to consider various proposals on how to address the matter once and for all.

One of the proposals is to abandon the laptop project and instead distribute tablets to the pupils. Many believe the provision of the tablet is the way to go because this would address the concerns raised by the parents in regard to portability and safety of the gadgets. In addition, the rolling out will not interfere with the Court case.

It is worth to note that the tablets contain all the required information to teach ICT. It is best for reading e-textbooks and allows easier communication between the pupils and teachers. Deputy President has also added his voice to the matter. He insisted that Jubilee will not allow retrogressive and partisan politics to stand in the way of what they promised Kenyans.

For me, it is time those opposed should swallow their pride and support the government efforts to equip our children with knowledge that would put them at par with rest of the world. ICT has become a key facilitator of economic growth and social development. I hope the opposition will drop hard line stance and support Jubilee efforts in this endeavor.

As of now, the President has lived up to his promise of ensuring the public schools have been connected to electricity and this is a key milestone that would facilitate the use of gadgets. Let us stop opposing everything on earth. Kenya is more important than individuals.