The cost of corruption is beyond loss of public funds; it encroaches into all facets of our lives beyond the imaginable:
My mind wonders why we become surprised:
when buildings which have been approved by architects and structural engineers as fit for human habitation collapse at will;
or when a patient who was admitted for appendix removal ends up having cranial surgery, aka, surgery of the brain, after being mis-tagged;
or when people are diagnosed with illnesses that they never had in the first place;
or when items used during a surgery are left tucked inside after the bodies are neatly closed up;
or when students graduate from colleges not on merit but as a result of favours that were bestowed on them by supervisors who received bribes, in cash or in kind, from unscrupulous parents/guardians, or from the students themselves;
or when criminals escape and innocent people wind up in jail for crimes that they never committed because of cases that were bungled up by half-baked investigators, lawyers, prosecutors, and magistrates;
or when damning, foolproof evidence regarding sue-able misdeeds was thrown out of the window because some investigative journalist decided to trade-in the findings with kickback so as to not release the evidence in their possession;
or when spiritual leaders accept handouts so that they can support certain political ideologies;
or when they receive donations for projects when they know for a fact that the donations are from suspicious sources;
or when the laws or decisions that are made by politicians are not based on what is right for the constituents, but they are based on the whims of whoever greased the palm best;
or when terrorist attacks happen because security officers ignored intelligence reports, became compromised and allowed thugs and ammunition past control points.
My mind, therefore, asks:
What else do we expect when these ‘professionals’ did not pass their Primary School exit (KCPE) examinations but went on to join reputable Secondary Schools because the guardians, who were in high places, greased palms for the cause.
What else do we expect when the same ‘professionals’ did not pass their Secondary School exit (KCSE) examinations but went on to join reputable institutions of higher learning such as Universities because the guardians could influence a few decision makers here and there.
What else do we expect when the same ‘professionals’ performed below par in college but passed exams with flying-coloured degrees because the godfathers would hear of nothing to the contrary and had a side chat with the lecturers to ensure top of the notch results.
Over and above all else, the most fundamental questions are:
What do our children learn from us parents and guardians when we bend all rules and requirements so as to ensure that they join reputable institutions even when they did not qualify, just because we can influence?
What is the resultant effect, or impact, on the communities that they serve? and thirdly,
Isn’t this how we invite curses onto ourselves?
My mind therefore sobs, it mourns, it weeps, it is in that low moment where it wonders whether there is a possibility that the situation is redeemable.
