MLAVIDAVI CHRONICLES: DO WE HAVE ENOUGH BLOOD?

One word is enough for a wise man

By Julius Jumah

Politics and tribal affiliations have recently proved notorious for going hand-in-hand in Kenya Institute of Mass Communication. Many myopics might be vocal in opposing this obvious fact, but taciturns will of course question their motivation. 

The hotly contested July 2016 elections that saw Kiongozi (not his real name) swagger into the senior-most student office were in many ways, if not all, smeared with tribalism. The celebrations and other activities that followed this victory confirmed this.

It is not certain whether the school management is aware of this institution-killing menace or not. But from the look of things, there are all reasons to believe that a good fraction of those in office are aware of this but playing blind, deaf and numb. 

Consider a situation where on every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday you have to encounter a public memo drafted in ethnic alphabets directing our esteemed sisters and brothers from the Rift Valley, Gusiiland or Mt. Kenya to converge in BJ1 or DJ1 classrooms. However, our Kisii relatives have off late been stubborn with black and white vernacular posters all over.

Even as I leave this mark of history on this paper, there are public memos at the hostel gates and the students’ mess indirectly informing me that from 8:30 PM, I should not bother looking for any of my Kisii friends, Yusufu Obwoge inclusive. I have no mandate to question that, but the clear-cut contrast between the agenda written in the native languages and what is actually discussed in these forums raises more than a few eyebrows. 

One Tuesday evening after learning a few Gusii vocabularies, renaming myself Maraga and carrying a bunch of bananas, I walked into BJ1 with my friend Yusufu Obwoge to attend one of these meetings and have a feel of what transpires during these infamous sittings.

I must acknowledge the native Kisii, Obwoge, for doing the translation for me. My fears were confirmed. My brothers and sisters from the mentioned land of intellectuals were planning on how to clinch three seats in the July 2017 student elections- the academic secretary, the day representative and the secretary general. To sum it all up, the chair-turned-master-of-ceremony was Kiongozi.

Once bitten twice shy.....

Ethnic groupings and tribal animosity are twin brothers making our beloved country bleed, a clear and most vivid tape being recorded in January 2008. 

It is clear that this monster starts at institutional level, Kenya Institute of Mass Communication inclusive. It is also clear that despite our education system bringing different ethnic backgrounds together, it rarely makes them act together especially on matters of national interest. Politics in Kenya Institute of Mass Communication is a perfect representative of national politics. 

And if this is the picture, Kenya will bleed again come 2017 (God forbid) if stun preventive measures are not taken. The rhetoric question remains, who will act? Who will stand up against this political cancer in our beloved institution and country? Do we have enough blood to bleed? Only God knows.