The key word is investment

Wiliam Oduor has raised some very fundamental issues. I did a piece on development in Nyanza, and I will post it to Jaluo.com again, because, that reasoning is gaining ground.

I have followed articles by Meshack Owino, Joseph Okumu, Dan Onyango and lately by Dick Aduong'a, and I get convinced that we can create a revolution, an economic revolution in Luoland.

I have also followed the initiative by Dr Barack Abonyo on creating partnership in development, and I still get convinced that we are on the right path.

But in doing all this, as I stated in one of my earlier dispatches, I am firmly for a unitary system of government, where the Luo create their own space, and we bulldoze our might into the economic kingdom.

I have always believed that you do not win a war by running away from it. You fight and win. But cowards run away and gloat over their might. We have the potential to re create Nyanza, and Kenya. Lets do it.

The starting point must be at the ballot. We have many of our people who do not vote, some do not even care about having an ID card, even a voters card. Let all of us make this an issue.

Go out there, and preach this gospel to all Luos; Go out get an ID, get a voters card, then go out there and vote. We must start from there, then all will follow.

The problem we have with Luos is that as we pull in one direction, some of our best learned brake ranks and form their own parties. It is their democratic right to do just that, but in the process, they create perceptions of conflict. We must dis abuse this notion, and simply declare them politically irrelevant to the Luo course.

I want to believe that we are better off fighting together, so that when we loose, we cannot be ignored.

So thura, lets go out and make some difference. lets make it our collective responsibility to create the needed awareness that will redeem us economically, and more importantly, make us have the numbers at the ballots.

Power, be it economical or otherwise, rests peacefully in numbers.

Odhiambo T Oketch
Embakasi Nairobi