2016 HAS BEEN A ROCKY YEAR FOR KENYA

The year 2016 has been a rocky year for Kenyans in many ways.

It is a year that has been characterized by shifting political demographics, acrimonious fights between the ruling Jubilee and the opposition CORD, a warped relationship between the office of the Auditor General and the Executive, and citizen's growing frustrations over lack of more transformative policies aimed at improving their standards of living.

It is a year in which petty and real-politic took center stage over bread and butter issues; of protests, hostility and insults; a year in which leaders talked from roof-tops about slaying the dragon of corruption while doing nothing about it; and a year in which Kenyans continued to die in road accidents, extra-judicial killings and hunger.

The year 2016 has also been a year of labor unrests, the doctors' and nurses' strike taking the longest period to resolve and culminating in disruption of health services and deaths of patients.

But it was also a year in which the government of Uhuru Kenyatta and William Ruto delivered some positives on education, mass electrification, infrastructure, and security.

The best news as the year comes to an end is, after months of haggling the new chairman of the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission has been unveiled. Eliud Wabukala, the soft-spoken former head of the Anglican Church is perhaps the most qualified candidate among those interviewed. He is non-controversial and commands respect across the political divide.

When he moves to Integrity House in the new year, he will find his in-tray full of files requiring immediate action. But his first task will be to restore the integrity of the anti-corruption body which has suffered years of disrepute.

It is hoped that as a decent man of the cloth, Wabukala will not buckle down to political interference and pressure from crooked elements whose career is to ruin our country. He will need to be fair but tough, apolitical and above ethnic instincts. He must always remember his service is to Kenyans and not to the Executive or anyone else.

Given the history of EACC and the high turn-over at the top of the organization, the question is not whether Wabukala will excel, but how long he will last. That remains to be seen.

The outgoing year has also seen electoral reforms moving steadily forward. Soon, the process of extinguishing the old Commission and installing a new one will be completed. It has been a slow process but we hope preparations for the polls will proceed smoothly thereafter, and the elections will be held as scheduled on 8 August, 2017.

Unfortunately, in their usual mischief, Members of Parliament have already begun lobbying for the polls to be postponed, reasoning that the electoral body would not be ready to carry out fair elections. That proposition is as futile as it is nonsensical and Kenyans should resist any such move.

The constitution mandates for elections be held every five years. As lawmakers the MPs must be beholden to the law. So, next year it must be.

As I proceed on my own holiday, I want to wish all my readers a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year and to thank them for their support. This column rests until January 5.

And that is my say.

KENYA NATIONAL HONORS NOT FOR SYCOPHANTS

A month ago, US President Barack Obama honored 21 citizens with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian citation presented to individuals for their meritorious contributions in a wide range of disciplines including music, the arts, science, philanthropy, civil service and others.

According to the White House brief, these are people who "helped push America forward, inspiring millions of people around the world along the way."

Among them were two world-class sportsmen, basketballers Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Michael Jordan, internationally-acclaimed innovators and philanthropists Bill and Melinda Gates, film stars Tom Hanks and Cicely Tyson, and musicians Bruce Springsteen and Diana Ross, among those known to Africa.

It was a mixture of all that is good for America and the world. The White House presentation was dignified, and was washed down with a lot of laughter and tears. It is a yearly presidential ritual.

This week in Nairobi, President Uhuru Kenyatta honored some individuals with Kenya's own version of citations "in recognition of their distinguished and outstanding services to the country."

Other that the notable men and women in uniform, most of the names on the list were of 'regular, not-so-distinguished' folks - civil servants, politicians, and sycophants - some of whom are not known beyond their own villages.

For example, what "distinguished and outstanding service" have some of the politicians given to the country other than doing what they were elected to do?

In fact, some of them are famous more for their perpetually hateful and tribal tendencies than for exemplary behavior that inspires unity and hope. They are invariably incendiary and divisive and display no respect for the common good. They deserve no commendation from the people of Kenya.

Similarly, by selecting nondescript individuals from the Executive for decoration is an abuse of common sense. Unless the citizenry is told what their outstanding qualities are, it would not be easy to convince anyone that they deserve any honors.

According to the National Honors Act of 2013, persons meriting conferment must be individuals who have exhibited exemplary qualities, actions or achievements of heroism, sacrifice, bravery, patriotism or leadership for the defense, benefit or betterment of the country or a county.

That is why, in naming individuals, we have to be told in a summary form what each one of the recipients has contributed to make Kenya better, socially, culturally, or economically. We want to know how they made the list and why they deserve to be honored.

In the past, we have had instances where those named were found to have been involved in criminal activities including corruption and fraud. Being a cabinet secretary, a politician, a civil servant or even an officer in the uniformed service alone should not be enough to qualify.

The system we use to choose these citizens is unsatisfactory and appears skewed. A Cabinet Minister who has been in the office for a year only cannot be judged to have rendered "distinguished" service to the nation.

My view is that each recipient should be thoroughly vetted and their 'merits' must be justified.

We have teachers in the most difficult parts of our country who are sacrificing their comfort and lives to impart knowledge; doctors, scientists, and young innovators who wake up every morning and spend all their lives trying to make a difference to others; ordinary Kenyans in our villages who work quietly to help others deal with disease, hunger and misery,

who are more deserving of the commendations than the elite names we see year after year.

And that is my say.

YOU WANT TO BE ELECTED IN KENYA? GO AHEAD AND STEAL!

Do you want to go for an elective office in Kenya?

Then do one thing: steal!

No! I am not asking you to steal your neighbor's chicken or snatch someone's land. I am asking you to go and filch the big bucks. Millions, and if you can, billions of hard cash....from the public.

If you do that, a few things will automatically happen and none of them will land you in jail.

One, you will become limitlessly famous and every tom, dick and harry will invite you to a fund-raiser; and two, you will have all the money you need to corrupt the corrupt - enough to buy a nomination certificate, sufficient to bribe voters; and adequate to bargain for a cabinet position when the right time comes.

Theory? Not at all!

Next year, Kenyans go to the polls in one of the most consequential elections. For the second time the incumbent President Uhuru Kenyatta will battle the resilient Raila Odinga for the presidency. Thousands of seats for governors, members of parliament, senators and members of county assemblies are at stake.

To join the fray, hordes of former jail-birds and criminal suspects have crawled out of the woodwork to declare interest in myriad positions of power. Drug dealers, tender fraudsters, women abusers, and yes, even land grabbers, want your vote. Some of them are already in public positions and want either to retain their jobs or rise to more powerful ones so that they can continue 'eating.'

Among them are 273 sitting members of parliament who are said to have bilked Shs4b of public funds in one year alone, according to a government audit report released this week. Also on the list are governors who collect millions from taxpayers in taxes and rates but refuse to declare the income to higher authorities.

All of them promise to make life better for us.

Saying we are a strange specie in Kenya is an understatement. We exalt thieves for their money. We feel blessed to associate with them. We invite them to our villages and churches, and give them a platform to flaunt their wealth and make us look poor and stupid.

They come in choppers. We kick the dust for miles on end. When it is over, with our stomachs churning in hunger, we trek back to our mundane misery.

On weekends, priests and pastors pose for pictures with these characters while holding brief-cases full of money and no one questions the source of the bundles. We welcome them with praise songs as if God approves.

When these thieves are busted, we crowd to support them and jump and jolt in courts to catch their attention.

And when they are let out we give them our ear and our votes because they are rich. Rich people, we cheat ourselves, don't steal. Like modern-day Robin Hoods, they just take and give to the poor, we say.

The moment we vote we are cooked. These serial good-for-nothings jump into their guzzlers and go out to steal some more leaving the majority of us limping away desultorily.

We repeat this charade year after year and wonder why we are still poor 50 years after independence, and why these people are driving late-model Mercedes Benz, BMWs and Jaguars, on our pot-holed roads.

It galls me to see people, caught in some of the biggest money scandals in history, being mobbed by ululating women and hugged by admiring local officials.

This happens because we think we know these characters, yet the only information we have of them is of the millions pinched from us, the taxpayers. These people are without remorse, shame or care.

Yes, if you want to be a governor, a member of parliament, or a senator in Kenya, don't be shy: go out there and steal. The rewards are boundless. And moreover, Kenyans are incorrigibly gullible.

And that is my say.