It is time to take responsibility for our civic duties

There comes a time in every person’s life where he or she must take responsibility for their decisions, and understand that the life they live is a direct outcome of these decisions. As much as it is easy to put the blame on the people around you, one must recognise that at the end of the day, we alone dictate our own realities.

It is easy to point fingers, it is easy to blame our parents and our upbringing, the economy and the job market. The much harder route is deciding to be the master of one’s own destiny. But that is also the most rewarding.

One of the issues highlighted by the BBI is Responsibilities and Rights. To an extent the state protects us with a thorough Bill of Rights, but we all know it is not sufficiently respected. The problem is, as the report states, “we do not have a healthy regard for our responsibilities as citizens to promote our rights and those of others. We must realize that we are the wenyenchi and take responsibility for our country.”

Many young Kenyans today have little interest in giving back to the community and taking time to volunteer. This is not a call for financial donations, but rather, for the valuable donation of time to help in local communities. Globally, each generation is marked by different characteristics, a product of the period in which they grew up.

Right now, our youth lack motivation and sometimes feel a sense of hopelessness when thinking about the future. As older adults, what we must focus on now is how to get them involved and interested - how to get them to feel part of something larger.

The BBI takes the first step by outlining a plan of action. It calls for writing a Charter of Citizen Responsibilities to make it clear to every Kenyan what are his or her responsibilities with regards to themselves, their family, their community, and the nation.

It calls for the establishment of programmes that spread civic education on rights and responsibilities. It points out that children must be inculcated with a culture of responsibility that continues on to young adulthood. They should be encouraged to take off six months to volunteer around the country.

In a handful of countries around the world, young men and women are called to service by a mandatory military draft before beginning university or embarking upon their careers. Not only does this offer help build the country and give them a sense of civic duty, it also gives the volunteers who serve a moment to step back, take a breath and look at the bigger picture. This pause is helpful in finding direction in the future and in reducing the pressure that graduates feel to rush into a career.

Another point that stands out in this section of the BBI is the call to subject Cabinet Secretaries and Principal Secretaries and their families to public institutions - “if public institutions are not good enough for them, then they are not good enough for Kenyans.”

There was a time when certain ethnic groups and well-connected people here got better treatment and had an easier time. Public servants have service in their job title. They should not demand higher - nor be subjected to lower -standards than the rest of us. Now, the zeitgeist is equality and fair treatment.

That’s the deal the government is giving to us. As a response, we must undergo a fundamental switch in our mentality and begin to give back.

One of the hardest parts about taking responsibility is having the awareness of ways to fulfill our civic duties. The simple things could include saying no to bribery even at the smallest level, or volunteering once a month in the neighbourhood. For the middle class and wealthy especially, it means paying taxes where taxes are due and working to employ people from disadvantaged backgrounds.

As the people surveyed noticed, this is one of Kenya’s biggest challenges. But it is also one of our greatest duties. We have set the bar high for the government, and so far under Uhuru it is working towards reaching great heights. And with that expectation, we must set the bar equally high for ourselves.