Wheelbarrows are not the problem, Kenyan leadership is
The 'wheelbarrow' has now become a scapegoat for the leadership failures that plague the country.
It is rather clear from President Uhuru Kenyatta's corner that the political divorce with his deputy William Ruto is now certified. The President made it clear during his weekend meetings at the Sagana State Lodge that his relationship with his deputy was not where they started more than 10 years ago when they agreed to seek the country's leadership together.
While speaking to his political backyard, Uhuru used his ‘working tour’ of the region to throw jabs at Ruto accusing him of political mischief. There was less on what the government has done for the region and more of succession politics in the meetings that the President addressed.
But in his subtle attacks on his deputy, the President made some interesting admissions with the most striking being that Ruto was hoodwinking people with the 'hustler' movement narrative. It got even more interesting when the President admitted that his government had failed to create jobs for Kenyans and thus the alternative route Ruto had taken was not only mischievous but meant to hoodwink Kenyans.
What we have seen in the last two weeks is that the President, as well as ODM leader Raila Odinga, have made an attempt to dismantle the 'hustler' narrative by basing the strength of their thesis on the wheelbarrow. While addressing the youth in Sagana on Sunday, Uhuru said; “You say we know the problem of Kenyan youth, that you want to help them by giving them wheelbarrows, who told you that the youth need wheelbarrows? What they need are jobs; they want to be independent.”
Other than this being admission to his administration's failure to create jobs, it is also disingenuous for the President to also narrow this debate to a tool that is used widely across various spectrums of the economy. Uhuru should be telling Kenyans why the economy has failed to create enough jobs that do not need a wheelbarrow in his eight years as President.
The 'wheelbarrow' has now become a scapegoat for the leadership failures that plague the country. If the wheelbarrow was such a bad thing, why would it be a key feature in the government's own 'Kazi Mtaani' programme that is aimed at helping young people make a living?
Instead of focusing on a tool that is used in such places like farms, markets, construction sites and factories, the Kenyan leadership should be focused on expanding opportunities. The Kenyan leadership should make not only wheelbarrows available to millions of jobless Kenyans but all other tools that can help them work and earn a living.
Thousands, if not millions, of young people in Kenya, are computer literate but cannot afford a computer. Others are well trained in masonry but cannot afford basic tools while we have those who went to design school but have no access to sewing machines or even the materials to turn their ideas to clothing.
The government should be creating opportunities and making it easy for people to access the necessary tools that they need. Turning the wheelbarrow into a political tool should not even be crossing their minds. Kenyans are looking for leaders who will facilitate their aspirations regardless of what political affiliation they have decided to associate themselves with.
Ruto has defended the government’s failure to fulfil is promises on the diversion created by the clamour for Constitutional changes spearheaded by Uhuru and Raila. On his part, Raila has said that Ruto was creating an excuse for the failures of the Jubilee administration.
Both Ruto and Raila are right about the Jubilee administration’s failures but cannot be blameless. This is the failed leadership that Kenya is facing and the two are squarely at the centre of it. In their respective capacities, especially having the President’s ear, they have had the opportunity to push the government to focus on the economy and especially job creation for young people.
At the moment, they and their respective political groupings are only using the unemployment card to endear themselves to the youthful population. We know that more than 70 per cent of the voters in the next election will be young people - many of them jobless. The wheelbarrow debate is therefore being used as bait and a distraction to avoid the hard question - ‘WHERE ARE THE JOBS?’.
Even as Ruto and Raila line up as the frontrunners in the 2022 presidential race, they are yet to outline how they are going to create jobs for Kenyans. The debate has been narrowed to why wheelbarrows matter or do not matter. As for Uhuru, other than extending the ‘Kazi Mtaani’ programme, his administration seems to have no clear plan on how the economy is to be revived especially after the slowdown arising from the pandemic.
We can only hope that Kenyans can see beyond the wheelbarrow politics and demand for better leadership that facilitates them to achieve their aspirations.