President William Ruto takes breakfast at a kibanda in Mandera Town during a 2022 campaign trip. Some of the names sought to ride on the political wave created by President Ruto’s ‘hustler’ campaign slogan.
The cold-blooded killing of mask hawker, Boniface Kariuki, by the police in Nairobi during the June 25 anniversary protest, shows how hollow the hustler narrative was during the 2022 presidential election, and still is.
UDA placed hustlers at the front and centre of that election, where they were promised milk and honey. “Mama mbogas” became the poster hustlers of the narrative, and one or two were even featured at presidential rallies. Hustler Fund was created, and money from the kitty was given out like sweets.
To my mind, and perhaps to many Kenyans, the understanding was that the Hustler Fund was a token (read bribe) to voters. It now transpires that it was a loan that came without the requisite small prints to warn the recipients that the money was to be repaid.
The scam of it all is the fact that the money did not come out of politicians’ pockets, but it was taxpayers’ cash that was being diverted from its intended use. Such huge expenditure should rightfully have gone through the necessary legislative and legal process for approval.
However, like many government projects, it relied on the acquiescence of an interested politician to give away public funds and properties to voters in form of bribes.
The hustler narrative seems to have died as soon as the election ended, and its users assumed power. Hustlers became a nuisance all of a sudden. They were accused of blighting cities and had to be moved out into the backstreets. Allegations of hustlers becoming a security risk became more noticeable, unlike during the campaigns when they were considered a crucial voting bloc and embraced with both arms.
Nothing signals the betrayal of hustlers than the death of mask hawker, Boniface Kariuki. He was a young man in the right place at the wrong time. He appears to have wanted to take advantage of the protests to improve his chances of earning a living by selling masks that would come in handy should police decide to throw teargas at the protesters.
Opportunism is a hawker’s survival. Sadly, the police could not distinguish a hustler from the protesters and killed Boniface in cold blood.
Sycophancy
A former police spokesperson thinks that Boniface was shot dead because he “insulted” officers. Who knew the punishment for insulting a police officer was death? The lack of understanding of what constitutes “proportionality” by officials is disturbing. Former Police Spokesperson Charles Owino and Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen should have that understanding at their fingertips.
Charles Owino and politicians have made sycophancy the biggest threat to national security. Why such people are given airtime to spew threats and hate at Kenyans is beyond comprehension.
Extrajudicial killings
Being a spokesperson or government official is not a licence to lie or threaten. In fact, it is a criminal offence to alter facts, especially at a time like now when extrajudicial killings and kidnappings in Kenya have become a matter of grave concern.
Most of those caught in the crossfire are hustlers whom the government had promised to protect at all cost prior to assuming power. Every Kenyan facing a myriad of challenges is by definition a hustler, and that includes Gen Zs. Protection of a hustler is not a fad. It’s a mandate that ought to be taken seriously.
The hustler narrative, therefore, burst when all the promises made failed. It turned out to be wool pulled over hustlers’ eyes and a pack of lies. This has led to tension in the country.
Hustlers now believe that they were just backs for hire used by politicians to ride to power. Politicians can say anything to get elected. Kenyan politicians have taken this to a whole new level when they rely on deceit to gain votes. Lying in the name of politics should now be criminalised. When people, who are desperate are told lies so that they can vote — that amounts to abuse.
Desperate people will cling to any hope to survive. The least such people need is deceit.
Honesty in politics is paramount if a society is to move forward. Kenya needs to inculcate a culture of honesty and transparency in order to attract leaders who are credible.
As things are, the more the country relied on lies and criminality, the worse the leadership has become. No Parliament should have people with criminal records. As legendary Jamaican singer Bob Marley said: “You will never find justice in a world where criminals make the rules.”
Therefore, the hustler narrative burst because it was built on a series of lies!
Our Parliament can afford to stand by and let injustice prevail in the country because most of the members lack credibility as perennial liars and are criminals. Hustler narrative burst therefore because it was built on series of lies!
Ms Guyo is a legal researcher, [email protected], @kdiguyo
