2012 ELECTIONS

The 2012 elections are a round the corner, and politicians as usual, have come out with promises of free lunch. If Imay go back to the time when former President Moi relingushed power to President Kibaki, the later had campaigned maily on making kenya a corrupt free country, create 500000 jobs per year, and do away with roadside declarations. He promised us that he will take us to the promised land, thus comparing himself to the Biblical Moses, who took the children of  Israel out of Egyptian bondage. The common man was happy that at least things like unemplyment were going to b ethings of the past. However, immediately the man occupied the house on the hill, things were not rosy as he had thought. When spectators watch say soccer game, they will always blame a player who misses a chance to score. Given a chance to enter the filed to play, one will not see the mistake. This is what is like in leadership. To cut the story short, we have ended seeing more road declarations like creating of more districts some for nothing. The jobs promised are not there, even some advanced countries economically like south Africa are not able to create such jobs we were promised.
        On the 13th November 2011, the Standard Newspaper reported that a group of youthful MPs affliated to PNU have formed a new political party associated to Uhuru Kenyatta. The party formed is "UDFP", which is a party of progress( one wonders whether PNU was anti-progress). The people behind this new party promises among other things that it will triple the GDP from $40 billion to $120 billion, and raise per capita income from the current level of $3000 to $10000. one of the promotors of this party is an Assistant Minister Hon . Nderitu Muriithi, who happens to be President Kibaki's nephew. The tactics they are using are the same tactics used to promise us jobs. How the party is going to triple GDP and raise per capita more than threefold is what they are not telling us. According to " World  Development Indicators data base" which has listed all countries' per capita income, kenya is ranked number 183, with aper capita income of $1610, while the "2011 CIA world factbook and other sources" shows that the per capita income for Kenya is $1600(http://www.theodora.com/wfbcurrent/kenya/kenya_economy.html). Where does Muriithi's party get the figures of $3000? Kenyans this time must be vigilant, and question all potential candidates who want to be voted in on what they promise the voters, and they must be ready to defend whatever they promise, an dgive a time frame  when such promises will be honoured, and if they will require financing, how will they finance them. Let us not accept free lunches this time, and be told that" haya tutafanya".