Fidel’s Death Will Not Be In Vain
The news of Fidel Odinga’s death on the 3rd of January was a bolt out of the blue and we all mourn the passing of the first son of reformer and political super-heavyweight Raila Odinga and the distraught family he leaves behind. His was an unexpected death; coming as we began the slog of a new year and now for years to come this shall not be a period synonymous with joy for this famous brood.
Theories about the manner of his death are germinating by the minute, some bizarre and some quite interesting. The over-arching though unsubstantiated belief (the results of the official autopsy are not in yet, and the family and government decline to comment further) is that he was poisoned; other more sinister ideas are that he must have used hard drugs which led to his death. The latter is irresponsible and churlish, to suggest that he bore even a modicum of responsibility for his death is reckless and disrespectful. That said, there is something that the cutting down of this young man in his prime has brought about, which has passed unnoticed. It has brought mortality to the doors of the powerful ruling class.
Whenever a member of that top echelon of society passes away for a reason other than old age or a terminal illness, our interest is aroused. More so when the deceased was visibly healthy and wealthy. The intrigue and suspicion that swirls in the air is gossip fodder and media chatter material. The shock value is massive. We do not expect wealthy people, with seemingly limitless funds, to die in their sleep at 41 years of age.
The last time anything of this scale happened was when young Brian Githae, the late son of former Minister of Justice Robinson Githae due to a suspected suicide, seemed to be removed from our memories and chalked down to an unfortunate case of depression. Fidel’s passing, though, shows that the grim reaper is just as indiscriminating as sunshine. The sliver of fear that the ruling class feel creeping up their back when such things happen is a wakeup call to the need for greater input in the affairs of mankind rather than a narrower view of what matters to them directly. They will fund research, spend a fortune on medical checkups, prevention and so on. All in an effort to stave off death, all of which will lead to a trickle down of improved health-care for the less well off.
The realities of life are simple. You are born, you will die. All the talk of Kenya’s expanding middle class fails to completely mask the reality that while we are more productive as a nation than we ever have been, a third of our population is not receiving proper and sufficient nutrition. According to the World Bank, 45% of our population lives in poverty. That is a staggering statistic. While we mourn the death of Fidel, we hope this rare and tragic foray into pain, anguish and loss at this most basic basic level will bring the empathy back to the wealthy class. Rest in Peace, Fidel, and the other thousands of people who have passed away in such unfortunate circumstances.
