Bungoma: The Pain Of Perception As Our Beloved County Rots Away

Bungoma deserves better. Bungoma should be better. Bungoma should be the economic Capital of the EAC given its strategic location in the EAC.

But Bungoma is crying. Bungoma is weeping. Bungoma is howling. Bungoma is a county that is rich in resources,  both in terms of human capital,  natural resources, and monetary capital. The challenge lies in the leadership of the county. As a resident,  I’m crying. Because Bungoma is home.

In 2017 the people of Bungoma changed the top guard of leadership from Hon. Lusaka to Hon. Wangamati. Hon. Wangamati was lauded as the best option. Coming from the private sector, no less, Alexander Forbes, we believed he would transform the county into a business titan in the region. Irrespective of one’s political standing, we had faith and hope in him.

In politics,  it’s all about perception. Its all about how one communicates about what they are doing for the people on the ground. Off course, true leadership is about putting the people first. It is about the meeting, sorting and solving the challenges that face them.

It is about going out of your way to deliver for them. It is about sorting the healthcare system. It is about creating the right environment for entrepreneurship to thrive for jobs to be created for the future to be secured. It is about justice. It is about fairness in the distribution of resources. It is about listening to the people who elected you.

Unfortunately,  for Bungoma, it seems to be a feast for the leadership to enrich themselves. It is about a leadership that does not listen. It is about a leadership that is too vindictive. It is about leadership that has no clue on how best to deliver for its people.

Unemployment in the county is among the highest. The basic component of a society,  which is the family unit is under attack with daily stories of what is happening with spouses killing each other.

The youth have resolved to get into crime, alcohol and petty issues as jobs are an alien issue. We have leadership that has no time for investors in the county. That doesn’t listen to its professionals. That is only keen on eating with a spade and trying to bribe the poorest of the society for 2022.

When I heard that the Bungoma Governor had been ranked 39th out of 47 governors,  my heart broke. I cried. Am very passionate about my home. I have faith in WWW that he can deliver. I believe the growth and success of the county is also good for him, his family and associates.

So I understand how he would be ranked 39. Yes, the survey was carried out by a foreign firm. Yes, the Council of Governors has written a complaint about it. Yes, the parameters used are in question,  but 39? How bad are things for WWW to be ranked 39?

As I said, politics is about perception,  so in this case, it does not matter what was used to come up with the survey results. People are already talking and saying how WWW is busy focusing on himself and not the county. It has become worse because a couple of days before, there was a story in the dailies about the Governor bribing the youth with 50 shillings in readiness for 2022. Whether it’s true or not, this creates a perception that paints our county in a very bad light.

From my personal view, changing Governors every term is not good for development. We need a Governor to finish his or her two terms so that we can see good tangible development. The development that the former Governor had started stalled with the new Governor taking over and if WWW is not careful,  2022 will see him go home and his development will stall and the one taking over, will start afresh. We should be a leading county in the country in terms of:

• Creating jobs
• Creating new industries
• Creating investment options

Yet, we are not. We are trailing counties that are in hardship areas by far. WWW has a team that is arrogant,  full of themselves and focusing on their personal interests come 2022 instead of focusing on now so that WWW can deliver. This is an indictment on the kind of leadership that WWW has.

The perception already across the country is bad for us. It doesn’t matter what WWW is doing on the ground. No one knows about it. Hence the perception of a lazy, corruption and greedy leadership.

My unsolicited advice to WWW and the entire leadership under him is this: We need you to win 2022 again. We need to see Bungoma grow. I don’t care about our relationship or the none existent of the same. I care about the development of Bungoma and sustainable and accountable leadership. Stop campaigning now. Read the riot act to your team. Deliver. Focus on:

• Healthcare
• Manufacturing
• Housing
• The youth
• Roads
• Security

Be open. Be accountable. I believe you can do it. If I opt to fight you, I will be fighting the people of Bungoma who elected you and we will waste time that could go to development. Instead, I will offer my unsolicited advice and patiently bid my time in the Lord for 2022. If you want to succeed as a businessman, then deliver for Bungoma.

I still believe WWW can deliver for Bungoma. Fire anyone who doesn’t support your ideology. Fire anyone who will be on the ballot next election and appoint a team that will bully focus on delivering for the people of Bungoma.

Any research, survey or poll offers the opportunity to look into the loopholes, mistakes, and areas of concern at hand. Even if it was a PR stunt, every leader must endeavor to maintain good PR, Communication, and branding as such and grow the brand and make it more visible. The world has moved to data analytics and all decisions emanate from it. Politics is now analytics based on performance, impact, and perception.

Such a poll cannot tell what the future holds, but it offers an opportunity to pause periodically and reflect over shorter periods of time, plans, achievements, failures, setbacks and strike a balance of how they are highlighted in various media to adjust and adapt to various matters at hand. The perceptions and prejudices that come with it coupled with media gimmicks predict what will happen in future. The handling of the key matters raised coupled with PR and satisfaction either restore hope or stirs it’s dwindling. The onus stops with those bestowed with the mandate.