COULD DEVOLUTION BE THE ADVENT OF 47 REVOLUTIONS?

We celebrated. We danced. We sang songs of praise. We called everybody to come and witness the year of fruits and abundance. The year of devolution and people-power.

We pinned our hopes on devolution. For we knew this was designed to reach the poorest of the poor. That it will be the bedrock over which the village economy will stand. But is it turning out to be the guardian angel we all expected? Or has it been corrupted by the dare-devils of this planet?

Taxes, levies, fees, licenses...kuku-kodi (chicken tax) and the brutality, arrogance, open display of ignorance by counties will kill devolution. 

Let's put the record straight. It is no crime to pay taxes. And it is no crime too to disobey punitive taxation laws. Ignoring unjust laws is the weapon of the voiceless. This can't be taken away from them.

There is a common feature popping up in almost all counties across the Republic of Kenya. They envision grand projects - mega cities, airports, convention centers etc. Which is very good. But one question remains unanswered. Who will shoulder the cost of bringing these "progressive" ideas into reality?

It appears the brains behind these projects didn't go beyond their noses. They failed from the word go. They thought their grand projects are "sell-able"  to the common county citizen. 

Which brings us to the grand question: why should a chicken farmer finance the construction of a city he will never "enjoy" while he walks for hundreds of kilometers in search of clean drinking water? 

I think our county chiefs must be reminded to read the signs and act before they are caught up. You don't grow the county economy by imposing scary fees. Growing economy demands creativity and moving along with the "builders of economy"- the village "investors".

Simple gestures will avert the chaos we witness in Mombasa, Machakos and Kiambu. You can't lock out hawkers from selling their wares at designated points and expect to sleep in peace. You can't over-tax the local sukuma-wiki vendor and expect poverty levels to go down. 

Create conducive environment for business for the lowest of the lowest and your grand projects will be accomplished in record time! Failure to do so, expect nothing short of a revolution. Yes, "County Spring."

Twitter: @mlemukol