Freedom and independence are not synonymous

NAIROBI: Semantic arguments can be tiresome, since the bone of contention is often obscure, and of interest only to pedants. However, it seems to this pedant that the conflation of freedom and independence has meant that few of us fully appreciate the meaning of either word.

Yet a moment’s reflection should cause us to recognise that full political independence, granted on December 12, 1963, brought freedom only to ambitious and rapacious politicians who, from that day to this, have felt ‘free’ to do as they like to the detriment of the rest of us, led to believe that the more power they take into their own hands, the freer we become. Whereas, of course, the reverse is true.