Koffi Olomide’s Drama And the Kenyan Way of Handling Things

On Friday, a renowned Congolese musician, Koffi Olomide landed at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport for a concert over the weekend in Nairobi.

As he landed and became exited with all the frenzy that had been caused by Members of the Fourth Estate (journalists), Koffi Olomide did a mistake, one that will always make him remember Kenya: he kicked one of his female dancers.

That was when Kenyans descended on him, throwing missiles at him on the social media. Despite the fact that Koffi Olomide did not kick a Kenyan woman, Kenyans on Twitter took it upon themselves to condemn, accuse, prosecute and hung Koffi Olomide.

At first, the Kenyan police had ignored the incidence and for the better part of Friday, no action had been taken against the Congolese musician. Kenyans on twitter became even more infuriated and tweeted with vigour and calling on the Inspector General of Police, Joseph Boinett, to order for the arrest of the flamboyant musician.

Boinett had to give in. The government too had to give in. Koffi Olomide was arrested outside Citizen TV offices just after he had completed an interview with Lilian Muli Kanene. Kenyans on twitter celebrated and the following day, the musician was deported. His performance was cancelled. Once again, Kenyans on social media said that they had won.

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That drama surrounding the Congolese musician got me thinking and asking myself several questions:

1. Why did the police take too long to arrest Koffi Olomide and only waited for the outrage on the social media?
2. Is social media the current strong weapon that can change this country?
3. The way police reacted during the arrest of Koffi Olomide, what if the reacted with the same swiftness during other situations?

Kenya on twitter too had a strong influence on the Zambian authority. Koffi Olomide had to perform in four functions in Zambia but the functions had to be cancelled after what had happened in Kenya.

Something that came out clear was that social media has power. That Kenyans on social media have an unseen power which if well utilized, the change we need can be realized. This is not the first time Kenyans on the social media have had their way. There was a time Present Uhuru Kenyatta had turned himself into a tourist, flying from country to country. It took the efforts and the noises of Kenyans on social for the State House to issue a statement.

Even the arrest of some politicians because of hate speech allegations was originally pushed and engineered by Kenyans on social media. Kenyans on social media have always come together to collet funds for most medical bills, blood donations as well as condemning evil in society.

If social media has so much power, why can’t Kenyans use it with a common purpose of eradicating poverty, corruption, poor governance and all other evils in the society?