ONGERI`S REBUTTAL OF THE PM IS A DESPERATE ATTEMPT AT SANCTIFYING HIS OWN GROSS ERRORS.

Buried deep in Ongeri`s rebuttal against the PM`s call for his resignation was the phrase “evil scheme to bring me down" presumably by his political nemesis.” Taken literally, Ongeri thinks that the snowballing corruption in his ministry is hot air. To him, it is just an orchestrated fight to oust him from his comfort zone. It also means that Kenyans are too benighted and are thus uncomprehending or deliberately misinformed. I dare say that there is no need for any right thinking person to take seriously Ongeri`s rhetoric for in so doing we shall only be sanctifying the depths of his errors and imagine (as he has done) that there are hidden motives in the PM`s call for his resignation. Contrary to what Ongeri believes, “this evil scheme” played under his very nose, threatens to bring down not him, but the future of millions of the Kenyan children and the future of the country as a whole. The fact that he was so inept not to have detected it early enough is the reason the public is demanding for his resignation. What is worrying though is the sad realization that some among our current legislators like honorable Walter Nyambati have taken this cue and are already accusing the PM of ethnicizing the fight against the rot in the public service. Does Nyambati imagine that the children of the Abagusii will be exempted from the suffering brought about by the Minister`s lackadaisical attitude to management of public resources? This to me is an unfortunate legislative condescension that we need to purge from this country because it is a tradition that has for generations impoverished the Kenyan economy, society and the functions of government. We must more than ever before say no to this apocalyptic tendencies. It must be understood that the fight against corruption transcends personal as well as ethnic boundaries. If this sobering message does not compel our legislators and the cabinet to set aside their quarrels long enough to address the problems facing the nation, then they deserve the contempt in which many Kenyans hold them. It is against this backdrop that I expect them to fully support the PM`s call for Professors Ongeri`s and Mutahi`s resignation for proper investigations to take place. One thing that must be clear to all is that the office sanctifies its holder thus there is not even the remotest possibility of thorough investigations being carried out while the two are in office. I therefore specifically call upon those who have expressed their ambitions for becoming the CEO of this country to condemn the scams in Government. Like the PM they should show the public that they have the penchant for promoting the country`s good. The PM has on several occasions risked his political career by running into burning buildings and trying to put out fires that are decimating this country. Whether he is framed by his conniving political nemesis does not matter because the electorate now than ever before is looking for someone who has demonstrated capability to fix that which is crucial to the well being of the country. I wish that in the same vein the President dispenses with his perennial gentility and cracks the whip on recalcitrant public officers. I do not know whether the president`s loud silence in the FPE saga is a "measure of leniency" towards the people under whose watchfulness the pilfering took place. One thing I know is that his reverberating silence is totally inconsistent with the zero policy tolerance on corruption and only serves to amplify his naiveté. This silence falls far short of what is needed to restore to our children the bright future prospects as our legacy. The sad truth is that until the President takes a lead role in the fight against corruption in the various sectors, the country will continue to pay the price. TOME FRANCIS, BUMULA http://twitter.com/tomefrancis