Millie Odhiambo a true reflection of who we are as Kenyans

Dominic Opaka

If you listen to our politicians speak, they are always in a mood for a physical brawl. They are unapologetic, abusive and violent. The happenings in parliament during the special sitting exposed our shame. There was nothing honorable from the August house. If you happen to have been following the live coverage of the session you will have been appalled by the behavior of the so-called honorable members, which by all intent and purposes resembled shouting matches.

We need not a reminder about Mbita Member of Parliament Millie Odhiambo's verbal insults, rants and bully remarks outside Parliament. It’s a day when the people’s representatives behaved like thugs. There have been accusations and counter-accusations from both sides of the political divide about what’s purported to have happened during that short spell of time when live coverage was switched off. All we are responding to is Millie Odhiambo's rants because they were caught on camera. However, none of us knows what happened inside that house of disgrace except the MPs; but one thing is clear whatever happened wasn’t pleasant.

Millie Odhiambo's rants were perhaps clear signs of an angry, bitter, intolerant, disintegrating and a morally decayed society. A clear reflection of who we are. Our leaders, independent of their political views, are reflecting our own rebellious hearts.

By reading opinions on social media you can clearly see a lot of bitterness and anger. Their angry undertones belie their individual emotions that epitomize the country's mood. A majority of Kenyans are very angry in a way that speaks out clearly that Kenya is an angry nation. Millie Odhiambo's language towards the president has become the hallmarks of our public discourse. In depots where home-made brews are the best menu and in decent pubs and up-market restaurants conversations are punctuated with spiteful remarks if not disrupted by physical fights. There is too much tension, deep suspicion, intolerance, fear and a burning desire for brutal revenge.

Citizens are loudly complaining about threats to civil liberties, police torture and murder of suspect, personalization of the state, institutionalized corruption, predatory leaders, a mutilation of the constitution and so forth. There is fear everywhere. You cannot commit a mistake in traffic and escape without being asked for a bribe. You cannot secure government services without buying ‘Kuku Choma na viazi’. Road rage has become a defining feature of many motorists and is an indication of the boiling rage hidden in us.

These are pointers of simmering tension that has been allowed to brew for a while. It can eventually transcend to generations and concoct into full blown hatred that could culminate in something akin to the Rwanda genocide. A genocide that resulted from the longstanding tension between the Tutsi and Hutu.

With due respect to the young generation which is perceived as a lost generation or the generation of slackers, anger, resentment, and bitterness are their defining morals. Their determination to show the political leadership they feel betrayed and hard done is unparalleled. Their violent protests and anarchic behaviors tell it all. We are surely sitting on a time bomb and we can no longer pretend that everything is ok.