|
|
The youth in every society form a vital crux for the overall continuation and enhancement of any generation. Other than being symbols of revolution, freshness and revival, the youth contribute towards issues of national development through their direct and indirect participation.
The evolution of youth politics (student politics) in Kenya since independence has more often than not served to highlight various shortcomings, loopholes and aberrations especially within the economic and political system of the day. Being the highest of all institutions of learning, universities contain the cream of knowledge, intellectual awareness and youth politics in any society.
In Kenya, universities have through youth politics seen the rise of now eminent politicians and policy makers like Mwangi Kiunjuri, James Orengo, Wafula Buke, and lawyer PLO Lumumba amongst many others some of who went through political persecution during the dark political era .The cradle of oppositionist attitudes, fundamentalist ideologies and radicalism are always the higher institutions of learning, the universities.
Most intellectuals would freely admit that the oppressive policies of the former regime made Kenya’s student politics a hot bed of well orchestrated opposition versus ruling party antagonistic clamor for control of the student masses through their unions. These maneuvers unfortunately witnessed several running street battles between students and the law enforcement agencies of the day. Many students died in the limbo of the agitation for change. The most affected were the students at the University of Nairobi.
Currently, university students have become a pale shadow of what is expected of them. Most of the problems dogging them are tumors of their own creation. As intellectual trendsetters, its quite appalling that tribalism, a national stigma, festers among most university students in spite of the academic aura ruling their lecture halls and halls of residence. This is especially more evident during students’ union elections where most leaders may be elected depending on tribal numbers within the campuses rather than leadership qualities. The ethnic equations thus come into play here.
It is therefore quite serious that most universities face tribally iced strife rather than administration problems. This has seen some students fighting some administrators because of their ethnic orientation resulting into adverse economic and social damages, to the chagrin of tribal cabals.
Other cancerous problems such as drug abuse, crime, and prostitution/sexual immorality have continued to create academic fog and mist among the university student fraternity. Many university students have, in effect, become a sickly lot of academic zombies, roaming the market places of intellect with much inconsequential fuss, arrogance and impractical drivel. Gone are the days when they were the elite of the society. While some keen observers trace the problem to poverty and the general breakdown of societal norms, it is worth noting that there can never be any excuse for betraying the trust bestowed upon them by the society. With the prevalent student riots and unrest, one wonders whether this is the trend that the students want to leave for their offsprings and offsprings’ offsprings. This question is timely and applicable to all youth regardless of their academic ladder.
Unwarranted and as avoidable as they are, the riots set precedence for the future generations, a skewed legacy. As one Ndichu Gitau noted (“Daily Nation Kenya” May 17th 2003), the students should know that “as always our needs are certainly aroused by the conditions in our environment” and therefore “no university administration or government on earth can save them from the violence of their own emotions”.
|
1
Tags
You must be logged in to add tags.
|
Writer Profile
Antony Felix O. Simbowo
TakingITGlobal has never been more apt than it is now in providing a forum for expression. This is because the dynamic world has undeveloped challenges that pose a great problem to the growth and daily life of any youth in the global society. What with the incessant wars, poverty, HIV/AIDS, pornography, racism and several other vices creeping into the society in a culture best objectified as vicious gradualism.
Here is where writing comes in handy and the TakingITGlobal literati, glitterati and pundits alike have provided a vital conduit through which these vices, positive and negative dynamism can be expressed.
I am saddened for example, when a promising youth is reduced to a hopeless parasite by drugs. More saddening is when I see the mercilessness, the hopelessness, the dereliction, the lack of love that many children, youth and people are subjected to due to wars, poverty, pornography and such as other negativities which silently and slowly kill the spirit and will within humans! Having gone through such experiences myself, I pray that God gives me the massive ability to be able to help these people to the best of my ability with His guidance, provision and protection. I have often wondered whether the expression "do unto others what you would have them do unto you" is being subjected to relativity. These are the problems which need highlighting and what better forum is there than TakingITGlobal.
I am privileged to be part of this ideologically vimmed and gustoed community.
|
Comments
You must be a TakingITGlobal member to post a comment. Sign up for free or login.
|
|
