The Patriot

Kenya our mother land, our inheritance, our pride, our history, the only true place that we belong. We promise our love, our loyalty, our patriotism and our devotion to the betterment of our society. We the patriots proclaim our love for our beloved nation.

At the same time we are saddened by the actions of the ones who we believed held close to their hearts our aspirations. We voted them to power in hope that they will renew our nation and make it rise from colonial shackles like the proverbial phoenix but they have erred from their oath.

Corruption has choked our great country to its knees and it seems that we the patriots are in the front line in condoning this malady. We point a finger at the politicians whereas we have the power to grasp their throats and shake them to oblivion. Our restraint reveals the truth that we are as corrupt as they are.

We wear the patriot symbol to show our loyalty but in our hearts we are far away from that. From the president to you and me, we are hypocritical to the patriot doctrine that we profess. Why do we sink so low? Why do we let our mother land bleed from the blade of corruption?

Unable to solve the real intrinsic problem of our society about equitable distribution of resources, we turn to tribalism to iron out our issues. We believe that the only hope at the end of the tunnel is for our tribesmen to be leaders so that our time to “eat” can come to light. A lost philosophy that was practiced by the uninitiated but you my patriot, you must be enlightened.

Enlightened to the truth about our motherland. About the injustices and marginalization that has transpired since independence. About the ever growing gap between the rich and the poor. About the tribal politics that we deny in public but practice behind closed doors. About the fact that true democracy is not only the ability to vote in the candidate that you want but also the ability to hold him/her accountable to the ideas that made you vote for them.

So when are we going to rise above all this dear patriot. When are we going to turn a new page for our beloved country? When are we going to stop its bleeding? When are we going to be true patriots of Kenya to the core?

As of now you may be asking, how do I become a true patriot? First you can wear the symbol of patriotism to declare your stand in all this. Next and this is the most vital one, promise that you will always be on the lookout to hold all that are in public offices accountable to their actions. In whatever capacity that you can, you should speak out about anything that does not sit well with the betterment of our country and is not ingrained in our constitution.

So let us promise that we will wear the patriot symbol and be true to it. Let us promise that we will sing our national anthem with pride and purpose in every action to the betterment of our nation. With that we will be true patriots of our nation, true patriots of democracy, true patriots of equitable distribution of resources, true patriots that would change the destiny of our great nation.