As the anniversary approaches, there is tension in the air

At this time last year the country was preparing for a General Election. We all know what happened in the aftermath. Since March 2008 there has been an uneasy peace held together by a hastily assembled coalition. We avoided outright civil war by a hair’s breadth. Since then nothing seems to have improved. There are still thousands of IDPs (Internally Displaced Persons) and now there is hunger because of gross mismanagement and a growing rage against the government.
The most recent fiasco about selling the staple maize meal at two different prices has misfired as we suspected. Certain people will be making millions of shillings, paid for by the tax payers–who do not include the MPs.
President Kibaki was heckled and jeered this week at a Jamhuri (Independence) Day celebration in his own Central province where he has long been revered as a demi-god. This would have been unthinkable just a few short years ago. Odinga, who rode in on his white horse a year ago to become Prime Minister, has been revealed as self serving as the rest once in power.
In a latest manifestation of ineptitude a Bill has been passed giving the government power to close down media outlets, seize equipment and even dictate what they are allowed to convey to the public. There is outrage at all levels. People were arrested this past week for protesting and even for wearing T shirts with slogans indicating support for all Kenyans to pay tax.
I have never seen such newspaper articles. The general belief is that the senior officials have grown embarrassed by the insistence on prosecution of those responsible for last year’s troubles and the implementation of the Waki report as well as the exposure of parliamentary corruption.
Another Bill, a Constitutional amendment, devised to dismiss the bungling Electoral Commission, might be vetoed by the president. Some believe the fear is that the Commissioners, if dismissed, would in retaliation reveal too much about last year’s shenanigans.
I don’t have a good feeling about all this. It seems things could explode again. I don’t believe people want the same kind of turmoil we experienced a year ago, but when they try to demonstrate peacefully (just by wearing a T shirt), they are arrested and roughed up.
No healing and reconciliation programme, however powerful, can withstand this kind of provocation.
Yesterday we went to the market to buy five woven baskets (less that $1 each) We will fill these with a bag of flour, sugar, tea, margarine, cookies, jam and a phone card for each of our three instructors to share with their families. Johnstone, who has a birthday on Dec 26, gets a new pair of shoes. He has resoled his existing ones three times and they won't last any longer. The fifth basket is for the young man Sammy, the shamba boy, who lives in a small hut, looks after the animals and always opens the gate for us with a big smile.
On Wednesday we leave for our Christmas break. I have an appointment at the Canadian High Commission on Thursday to present a proposal for a Local Initiatives grant. It is submitted by the Virtues group on behalf of the local Task Force set up by the Provincial Commissioner who is very supportive of the work we have been doing in Western. The Province has seen a decline in violence in the schools where we have trained and we are now beginning community workshops. We desperately need solid funding to continue and the Canada Fund is one possibility. We will also meet some other potential donors on the morning of 19. We fly out to India on the afternoon of 19, returning on Jan 1.