Dear politicians, seek ye equality first, all else will fall into place

Deputy President William Ruto with Nakuru senator Susan Kihika eating boiled Maize during a rally at Mauche in Njoro, Nakuru County on November 25, 2021. [Kipsang Joseph, Standard]

The idea that it is the rich who decide those elected to political positions is divisive and should be avoided at all costs.

A majority of Kenyans are poor and igniting a class war in the country is not helpful at all. 

We need to cultivate a culture of political tolerance that ensures both the rich and the poor coexist.

Should a repeat of the 2007/08 post-election violence recur, the rich have more to lose than the poor who have little to no investments. Those of us who are over 50 years are aware of how much the standards of living have fallen over the decades.

The living standard of many graduates is not even a quarter of that of a school leaver in the 70s and the 80s. A situation where a majority of the population, especially the youth live below the poverty line is not sustainable.

It is ironic that politicians are voted in by the youth who make up the bulk of the electorate but perennially leave them high and dry once they get into office.

The fact that politicians are still able to pull large crowds even with the risk of contracting the virus in the Covid-19 era speaks to a country with a youth unemployment crisis.

Depriving citizens of their basic rights is a ticking time bomb.  

We must as a country specify an average living standard, which requires a clear definition of poverty.

This is considering that poverty is defined differently across countries. It is the only way that we will develop relevant programmes to tame runaway poverty in this country. 

In a country like India, poverty is expressed in terms of minimum intake of cereals, milk and vegetables.

It is disturbing that those in power talk of growing the economy, yet the reality on the ground is that it has been shrinking.

This can be traced to poor leadership that translates in turn to poor deployment of resources; this must be addressed. According to the United Nations, inequalities in income distribution and access to productive resources, basic social services, and opportunities are the major causes of poverty.

The rich must be more concerned about those elected to political offices because they stand to gain the most in terms of markets for their goods and services.  

We must also get our priorities right by first making sure all Kenyans are able to feed themselves before putting up mega infrastructure projects.