By M.M Boy
To start with, I am not an economist, not a politician and not, by any chance, a governance expert. I, however, understand the concept of money and how it works. This is not because I have had millions under my control, it’s actually quite the opposite. Just like a majority of Kenyans, I have learned financial management, prudence and shrewdness thanks to the scarcity of this resource.
Now forgive me for not understanding why the seemingly good men and women in the senate need to dramatize this complex yet simple issue of revenue allocation. Methinks the biggest barrier to an amicable solution to the impasse in the upper house is not the complicated formulae or the external forces at play. It is the grandstanding, attention-seeking legislators themselves.
Harsh? Maybe. I don’t say this because of the passion with which they express themselves or propose their preferred formula. Zero. I say so because of the bile with which our dear legislators dismiss any view that in a way seem to contradict their own. It is akin to questioning each other’s mental acuity. It is demeaning, it is provocative and not expressed with the mildest intention of bringing the other side onboard but to berate them for the best sound bite for political mileage.
As indicated from the start, I am not an expert but I do not see the folly in someone asking for one man, one shilling as population is a major factor in planning and development. I also see no harm in someone asking for sheer acreage to be considered as the vastness of a county is bound to strain its resources. Where is the idiocy again when someone asks that counties that have further ground to cover due to historical marginalization be given an extra hand?
These issues are complex no doubt, but the discourse in the upper house need not be unsavory. Our legislators need to know that they need not put up a show for us. We need not matching ties, matching clothes and catch phrases to boot! We need to see and feel their intent in not only what they say but also how they say it. If you cannot respect each other in your debates then we know for sure you could care less about us.
“Politics is the art of the possible, the attainable.” This is according to German statesman Otto von Bismarck. You reconcile your interests to find middle ground and come to an agreement that is a win-win for all knowing that no side can get all their desires. Of all the jobs you could have done, you applied for this one and we either gave you or you stole it, either way, the job is yours. Just do it!
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