4 years ago, if you felt like taking a breath of fresh air, a short break to recharge your joy batteries, the beautiful south coast of Mombasa “Diani” was always the place. As a resident of Diani in my teenage years, I felt as if I was living in another planet.
Watching the approaching boats, sprawling ocean and cool sea breeze as the wanzugus flocked from different corners of the world beckoning it as the best scenery to ever watch. It was very friendly for businesses as investors migrated from their home countries to establish hotels and properties targeting the beach goers.
So what happened? Presently Diani and Miami Beach are no longer the same.
Early 2012, a drastic change occured as terrorist attacks vested a threat to Kenyan security. As a result of fear and tension along the coast region, tourists started fleeing back to their mother countries for the safety of their lives.
With no customers, the investors, mama “samakis” and hawkers who were on their toes daily had no choice but to abandon the beach to look for jobs in town. This led to the current ugly scene of the desolate south coast beaches.
My urge to the Jubilee government is to renovate the whole of south coast, establish many police camps in the area and make it friendly to tourist and investors as it is one of the avenues Kenya can use to boost its growing economy. Is that not a gain for us?