INTEGRITY, A COLLECTIVE RESPONSIBILITY

On weekends I always make sure I organize a platform with a friend. irrespective of age, at-least
to gather one or two new developments about life, which mostly knocks a sixth sense on my
head. This has incidentally made me think about life in a different perspective. Most of such
"sittings", always goes well when we somehow sharing a calabash of Uji or maybe under a
Mugumo tree enjoying the afternoon's breeze which otherwise acts a catalyst, to kick the flow of
ideas, all along.
On this particular one Sunday afternoon am hosting Mr Boniface Kariuki,a senior lecturer in
JKUAT-the school of Engineering, sharing on how a single death incident in countries like
Seychelles is treated like a ‘national disaster’.He narrates that these people do value life with a
great magnitude. Actually, death rate in such a country is rated zero, owing to the fact that every
instance which has led to any death in the past, say an accident, disease or any other occurrence
must be analyzed and any possible measures be put in place to ensure minimum damage if such
an occurrence re-occur. This left me oozing with immense admirations and nonstop wishes to
visit such a country, interact with the citizens to deliberate on how they have achieved this, as
well as have a taste of how life is all about in that particular country.
On another scenario, he shared of how back in countries like Japan, corruption is treated like a
direct ticket to your death. He avers that, in such a country, when implicated, even your dear
family members will most likely start to term you an outcast, since no-one can't buy the idea ...of
you being associated with a corrupt deal. That aside, I have always thought about this, not once,
not twice, but a conglomerate of times and questions keeps running down my small head. Sad
enough......not a single answer seems enough to settle down this dubious melee. When I try to
figure out, my beloved country Kenya, into this beautiful picture.
Now, as a country...when do you think the rain start beating us ladies and gentlemen? Kindly,
let’s not play innocent here, we all guilty as charged. As word could have it, we have technically
failed all along, collectively. As a society, I have come to realize our main problem is not those
people who commit some of these capital felonies equating to pedophile, corrupt leaders
swindling humongous pieces of money from the public coffers, to feed their ‘bellies’ or else
killing someone out of selfish ideologies/malicious escapades to settle dubious scores.
Through an acute aerial view of the ‘ground’, it has tremendously dawned on me that, the main
reason for behaving so as a people, is purely; - lack of integrity/selfishness. Am sure by the time
am through with these, you will analyze how morally upright you are. Let me take you down
through this lane. My friend’, have you ever found you ‘self in one of the following situations?

1. Have you ever received an extra change from a "Donda"(Conductor) in a Matatu and
assumed it’s a "godly" blessing?
2 .Are you a student, the class is supposed to start at 8am, and you arrived at 08:15am?
3 .Are you an employee in a company, on a normal day....the rated hours runs from 8am
through 5pm but you arrive at 08:30am and leave at 3pm?
4.Do you in any case feels that you cheated in your way up, to be where you are today?
5.Have you ever discussed your pastors in a church set up, of their incapacity to lead your
church, but again you got no intentions of leaving that particular church soonest?
 7.Are you a government representative but when any employment slot is advertised, it can
only be allocated to your kinsmen?
8.Ever been in a relationship and deep inside, you very sure it’s heading nowhere
but just "staying" for your needs to be met?
9.You are a parent but the rationale of raising a kid who can mingle with everyone, who
can take
care of him/herself is not your cup of coffee?
10. Ever been a driver, but when in traffic you the overlapping ‘master’ to show others how
busy your life is?..
11. Ever been a student but when your parents gives you school fees, the best you can do is
"Kuicheza chini" and work on it, caring less on what they gonna do later?
12.Have you ever been a church member, the service/fellowship starts at 9.am and the
earliest you can check in is 10.am, not forgetting you always on time when going to your
work place whether it's raining or not?
13.Have you ever found a lost phone/gadget, money or say document....and the first thing
that
hit your mind is how to keep it?
14. Have you ever master-minded a marriage break-down merely because you think you
financially stable, beautiful/handsome than the wife/husband of the family in question?.
15. Ever found yourself cheating in a relationship and since you ain't caught, went home
Feeling nothing?
16.Ever found yourself photographing some people who've just perished in a grisly accident
and the next idea in your head is to share with your WhatsApp contacts and all your social
media platforms?
Just to mention,but a few..........
Basically, the above is just an outline of some 'atrocities" in record, of what we go through in
life. It's very painful indeed, and which always makes us burn in fury when somehow, any of the
above comes into the picture. That aside, have you ever asked yourself how best/sweet this world
can be,if only "we"(me/you) can play our roles guided by the set morals/integrity in our lives?.
Don't answer me(Am sure you mad already😀😀)

Let’s all agree in unison, we living in a society where everyone is morally sick. The moral fabric
which used to bind us way back, its long torn and an unfathomable waves of injustices have
taken over. All these palavers, have now been certified as ethical, as a result of this evil
"mentalitudes" in our neighborhoods. We will keep wallowing in agony, cry that we have corrupt
leaders, corrupt policemen, killer roads, rapists and all manner of "evildoers" from morning till
cows come home......without a clear mental picture that all what’s happening around us, is just a
mirror of who we actually are.
One reggae maestro, of all times: - Bob Marley once said "The greatness of a man is not in how
much wealth he acquires, but in his integrity and his ability to affect those around him
positively" . The moment we will all come back to our senses, and realize change will only start
from within us, nothing positive will ever get streamlined. Folks, start dealing with your integrity
issues on a personal level, and right from your doorsteps. With all these in mind, trust me you,
never again in your life will you ever find yourself lifting a placard in the streets shouting "Haki
yako". Everything will have fallen in place, incognito! With all due respect, Let’s all embark in
our ‘integral capacities’, as a people. Make it your rationale to be a person of INTEGRITY in all
that you do. It’s not late, we can all join hands to make this world, a little ‘heaven’.

@RarryJohns