Kenya’s ‘Yes’ win is not about politicians

I realize that what I will say might not be very popular, but I want to desperately plead with the media, & everyone else involved in discussing about what Kenya has just achieved through this Referendum Vote – to ensure that it does not become a story about how politicians fared: who delivered, who did not: who are winners & who are not: etc. Am I saying that politicians did not work – NO. They did. They delivered, and they did a good job. However, at some point they were playing their own games while ordinary Kenyans were sincerely looking for the truth, and this intense desire for the truth from the ordinary populace is what shifted a lot of water melon type politicians to go green, & it also motivated those politicians already green, to work even harder. Lets appreciate the politicians for stepping up their game, but lets give credit for the overwhelming decision for YES where it belongs-to ordinary Kenyans of all walks of life.

I say this because what we have achieved has been made possible through the sacrifice of ordinary Kenyans: ordinary people went out & spoke for the proposed constitution in public forums: ordinary people read the proposed constitution & compared it with the current one: ordinary people went against their own clergy-a difficult decision in the best of circumstances: ordinary people sacrificed over the years: ......& the list goes on. My main fear is that if we make this precious moment in Kenya's history about politicians, we risk loosing all these ordinary Kenyans, who stepped out of their comfort zones, at a most crucial part of the process: implementation of the new constitution. What I mean is that ordinary Kenyans who now own this process, will have it taken out of their hands again, and given over to a small elite who do not always do what is in the best interests of the masses. We also risk demotivating those who felt they were performing a national duty-which once again leaves the hard work to a small elite.

It happened in 1963, in 1992, in 2002. Let’s make sure it does not happen again in 2010.

Media, I hope you are listening.