If Kenya really wishes to be the “Singapore of Africa,” then allow us to embrace the complete package deal—not simply the glitzy financial system, but additionally the uncompromising, cruel warfare on corruption. Singapore didn’t change into a first-world nation by giving thieves authorities appointments or by treating corruption as a minor inconvenience. No, they did it by guaranteeing that corrupt officers have been both behind bars, bankrupted into oblivion, or useless. Lee Kuan Yew didn’t entertain nonsense. He made it very clear: steal from the individuals, and you’ll face essentially the most brutal penalties.
Kenyan politicians, nevertheless, are wonderful college students of selective imitation. They admire Singapore’s roads, monetary sector, and environment friendly techniques, however they conveniently ignore the half the place Singaporean leaders have been imprisoned, exiled, or executed for theft. They need the tip outcomes, however not the self-discipline, the brutality, or the unwavering dedication that received Singapore there. They salivate over Singapore’s success however refuse to acknowledge the ache it took to construct. In Kenya, corruption is a full-time profession, and the one requirement for promotion is stealing greater than your predecessor.
In the Seventies and 80s, Singapore despatched a number of high-ranking officers to jail for corruption. Teh Cheang Wan, a minister in Lee Kuan Yew’s authorities, was caught taking bribes. He didn’t even anticipate a court docket trial—he swallowed poison and died. In Kenya, politicians caught stealing billions from the sick, the hungry, and the jobless don’t swallow poison; they swallow whiskey in costly golf equipment whereas laughing about how “Kenyans forget easily.” Here, corruption isn’t just tolerated—it’s celebrated. The greater the heist, the louder the reward.
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Yet we dare to match ourselves to Singapore? Then let’s do it correctly. Let’s start public floggings. Every corrupt official, from the president to the lowliest tenderpreneur, must be stripped bare and paraded in Uhuru Park. One stroke of the cane for each shilling stolen. If they stole KES 100 million, they get 100 million lashes. If they die earlier than reaching the complete rely, effectively, that’s divine justice. Their our bodies must be left on show as a warning to the subsequent batch of thieves ready to take workplace.
The argument in opposition to harsh punishment for corruption has all the time been the identical drained nonsense: “due process” and “human rights.” But what in regards to the hundreds of thousands of Kenyans who die yearly as a result of cash meant for hospitals was looted? What in regards to the youngsters studying underneath bushes as a result of funds for colleges disappeared? What in regards to the moms who die in labor as a result of somebody pocketed the finances for maternal well being? Corruption isn’t a victimless crime—it’s mass homicide in disguise.
Singapore understood this. That is why they made examples out of the responsible. Lee Kuan Yew made it clear: the legislation doesn’t sympathize with criminals in excessive workplace. Kenya, however, makes excuses for them. Here, corruption is “a small mistake,” a “miscalculation,” a “witch hunt.” In Singapore, it was a loss of life sentence. In Kenya, it’s a networking alternative.
It is time we cease treating corruption as a minor inconvenience and acknowledge it for what it’s: financial terrorism. A corrupt politician isn’t any completely different from a terrorist with a bomb strapped to his chest—each are keen to kill for their very own acquire. The distinction? One dies immediately, the opposite enjoys his loot in Dubai.
Kenyans must ask themselves: Are we really able to eradicate corruption, or will we similar to complaining about it? If we’re critical, then let’s observe Singapore’s instance to the letter. Let’s amend the Constitution and introduce capital punishment for corruption. Let’s flip Uhuru Park right into a public execution floor. Let’s make the noose a everlasting fixture in Nairobi’s skyline. The world should see that Kenya doesn’t tolerate thieves.
Some could argue that that is too excessive. But what’s extra excessive—flogging thieves in public or letting hundreds of thousands of residents die from poverty and illness due to stolen funds? We have been form to criminals for too lengthy. The time for speeches and anti-corruption seminars is over. We want motion. If politicians know that stealing public funds will result in instant and painful penalties, they are going to suppose twice earlier than looting.
Imagine the scene: a governor who stole KES 1 billion being pressured to obtain one billion lashes. The individuals chanting, the air thick with the sound of cane on flesh, the cries of a person who thought himself untouchable. By the time he reaches 50,000 strokes, he’ll beg for loss of life. By the time he reaches 100,000, he will likely be nothing however a heap of remorse. By the time the rely reaches a million, corruption could have a brand new definition in Kenya: suicide.
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Singapore didn’t develop by treating corruption like a minor inconvenience. China didn’t change into an financial powerhouse by tolerating thieves in workplace. The UAE didn’t rise from the desert by permitting incompetence to thrive. These nations crushed corruption with an iron fist, and their outcomes converse for themselves. In Kenya, we reward looters with diplomatic appointments and state funerals. The best honor a Kenyan politician can obtain is a road named after him, not for his service, however for the way efficiently he plundered the nation.
If we need to be taken critically as a rustic, we have to be ruthless. No extra petty fines. No extra suspended sentences. No extra political video games. Steal from the individuals, and you’ll pay together with your blood. The selection is easy: public flogging or the hangman’s noose. The message have to be clear—corruption is treason, and treason have to be punished.
This is the one option to save Kenya. Anything much less, and we stay what we’re right now—a nation run by thieves, dominated by cowards, and exploited by the very individuals who swore to guard us. Corruption has killed extra Kenyans than terrorism, illness, and warfare mixed. It is the silent genocide that nobody needs to speak about.
But we should discuss it. More than that, we should act. The period of impunity should finish. If we wish a greater Kenya, then let the flogging start. One stroke for each shilling stolen. No exceptions, no mercy. Let the responsible bleed, and let Kenya be free.