MOURNING THE DEARTH OF SOUND LEGISLATION COURTESY OF POLITICAL BARKERS.

Dear Sir/madam, Many of those who were incarcerated by the Kenyatta and Moi regimes respectively confided that they drew their inspiration from Thoreau. When Thoreau was placed in prison for ostensibly refusing to pay taxes, he was visited by Ralph Waldo Emerson who asked, “Thoreau, what are you doing in jail?” To which Thoreau replied, “Ralph, what are you doing outside, when honest people are in jail for their ideals?” This is the budding spirit of liberation that characterized yesterday`s youthful patriots who sacrificed everything including their valuable lives and those of their families to make a better Kenya for everyone. They believed that they were the atoms in the incessant human struggle towards the light that shines in the darkness—the Ideal of economic, political and spiritual liberation of Kenyans from all walks of life. They believed that not even in their demise, would the seeds of liberation they had painstakingly planted and watered, wither. The torture chambers could not just contain their budding youthful spirits. Unfortunately, today, a huge chunk of youths have in so startling a manner departed from the philosophy of those who gallantly fought to have us enjoy some of the freedoms we enjoy today. Going by what transpires in the tenth parliament, youthfulness is no longer in the fore front of the liberation struggle. The liberation struggle has been given a wide berth. Neither do they care to e on the right side of history. Instead, politics of deceit and ethnicity is the order of the day. They will rarely hesitate to adapt the facts to fit the selfish cause for which they care. Yes, youthfulness has become an age of credulity. Many a youthful legislators are totally inept. They are phoney. Is not evident that the Kenyan parliament is increasingly becoming a precinct of cerelac and youthful legislators some of whom are evidently suffering from petrified adolescence? They elect to permanently engage in gross-out sessions wherever they go. Rather than engage in sound legislation in parliament, they falsely think that the ability to badmouth government and personalities is a mark of true leadership and valor. In fact, they will oppose sound legislative pieces if only to settle political scores. Be ware, this is the crop of new political leaders that are taking over this country with a storm. So disgusting are they that at times I am on the verge of dispensing with the paragon of civility and shouting at them “Hark ye, friends, have you got padlocks on your (***) that you should sh-te through your teeth?” What is more worrying is the fact that some of the political kingpins desperately need these scrubs to advance their selfish political interests. However, the danger is that the same political kingpins risk their minds being contaminated. That they stand shilly shally on issues of national importance lends credence to fact that they constantly imbibe vile while in the company of these BARKERS. I for one cannot believe that love of one's country lies in blindness to its social faults, in deafness to its social discords or in not articulating its social wrongs. Neither can I believe that the mere accident of one being elected to parliament gives one a carte blanche to purvey falsehoods, inanities and vitriol most foul. I know many people (I am one of them) who love Kenya with deeper passion and greater intensity than many of the current youthful legislators whose patriotism manifests itself in pulling, kicking, and insulting the fabric of our society. I rightly think that now more than ever before the conscientious public is duty bound to bawl out these political BARKERS. This is because if this trend is left unchecked, then there is real danger that this country will inevitably suffer from the dearth of sound legislation. This is the worst form of impotency that any country can suffer from. It is for this reason that I wholly support the architects of the draft constitution for including a clause that empowers the electorate to recall any political saunterer. TOME FRANCIS, BUMULA CONSTITUENCY.