The Puzzling Tumechoka Narrative

The perception of the growing Tumechoka campaign in Kenya is a mixed cocktail whose taste is not easy to catch. But it’s deducible who is involved in creating it. It was first the government and the opposition. Then the third party loudly emerges-the people.

The government side claims the opposition is out to create problems because they are embittered by the 2022 election loss whose result split the nation into two. But the other identified bitter taste is the leader of the Azimio coalition, Raila Odinga, whose political history is tagged with liberation struggles. The Government on the other hand is painted as a regime that is unwilling to hear the plight of the people, especially with the advent of the finance bill 2023.

On reflection, the current Kenyan situation is a tiered scenario. The major issue is the political party wars within and beyond parliamentary disagreements. Secondly, the pending national issues such as electoral justice, unemployment, corruption, and budget allocations. Thirdly, people’s emerging issues i.e. high cost of living and the finance bill taxation burden.

As the government grapples to juggle this scenario, it’s important that the development agenda for Kenya remains a top priority. The people are central to development in our devolved system and therefore an entity that can’t be ignored.

The government and the opposition have to recognize that the Tumechoka slogan adopted by the masses is a change in national tune that requires keen attention. Governing beyond 2022 will be tasked with finding solutions, building counties, and protecting resources, for the people. The people need a vehicle to run a people’s agenda, that’s the basic message behind Tumechoka.