Kibaki is as corrupt as Arap Moi.
Daniel Arap Moi led Kenya for 24 years. It was a time of peace and democracy in Kenya but behind the scenes there was corruption on a huge scale and the slums of the poor grew larger. As the Land Rovers toured the Masai Mara and Serengeti with khaki clad millionaires the average Kenyan began to sink into poverty. The slums grew as Moi and his henchmen filled their pockets and promised reform that did not come. Moi's successor, Mwai Kibaki, promised to uplift Kenyans and provide employment and stability.
It was not to be. Kibaki failed to honour his promises and the slums grew. Come election time this week it became apparent that KIbaki, standing for re-election,would use any methods available to ensure that populist opposition leader Raila Odinga, would not win. And, of course he did not. I refer you to the Guardian for full comment but I must admit that I was taken aback by the methods Kibaki was using to ensure victory. Here's a snippet: " The EU election observer cited examples of vote tallying discrepancies that clearly favoured Kibaki in his heartland where it's (EU) monitors had been refused entry to counting stations."
The EU observers concluded that there was a lack of transparency in the election. On Tuesday, the poor, the beaten, the Odinga supporters and every man who could hoist a stolen TV onto his shoulders re-acted against the result. As I write Nairobi and other centres are erupting with anger, looting, police re-action (live bullets) and horrendous chaos.
Corruption in African politics is certainly not dead and it is always the weak and the poor who suffer most at the hands of liars and greedy, corrupt politicians. I Hope there is some resolution before the country burns!