Put in adequate measures in place to minimise rain damage

Unsurprisingly, the coronavirus pandemic has been dominating the headlines over the past few months. As such, it is understandable that news of the most recent spate of deadly flooding in our country was not as heavily covered as it would otherwise have been.

In April alone, flooding and subsequent landslides claimed the lives of 164 innocent people, while government statistics indicate that over 40,000 Kenyans have so far been displaced. Larger than expected rain fall is expected in May as well, meaning that further lives may be at risk if government warnings for Kenyans living in flood danger zones to move to safer ground are not heeded.

Nobody can defeat Mother Nature. What we can do is make sure we have adequate measures in place to minimise potential damage. This is even more important now, as experts have predicted that some of the worst flooding we have seen in years is coming.

Represented on the ground in the worst hit Busia and Siaya counties by CS Wamalwa, the government has been assessing the extent of the damage caused by the flooding. This is in order to ensure that the, “Administration continues to make every effort to support affected families and communities across the country”.

The government’s policy has been and will undoubtedly remain that no family should be left to struggle on their own in these difficult times. This has been the essence of Uhuru’s approach to battling the Covid-19 pandemic as well; we must remain united in the face of national enemies.

Flooding is an issue which challenges our countrymen every year. Considering the significant humanitarian crisis that these cause year after year, and in order to better prepare for the inevitable, Uhuru in 2018 declared flooding a national disaster.

Such an official definition, instead of simply referring to flooding as a crisis, might seem trivial but indeed has far reaching implications. It allows for national disaster relief to be allocated towards recovering from floods, and encourages NGO’s and international organizations, who might otherwise not be able to assist considering their official mandates, to get involved. Semantics very often do make a world of a difference.

Our government is also showing support for those who have been affected by allocating over Sh 1 billion in extra funding to the Kenyan Red Cross, in additional to the Sh1.5 billion already earmarked for flood relief. This funding came during a recent announcement by Uhuru who explained the reasoning behind this saying, "Let the victims of recent calamities know that my government will give every support in this moment of grief and difficulty, so that they can rebuild their lives and livelihood”. Even if not directly affected, we Kenyans need to always support one another.

Bypassing government bureaucracy, Uhuru has again led by example and allocated this much need funding within an exceptionally short time frame. This is even more challenging as the country grapples with the Covid-19 public health crisis. This quick and comprehensive response should send a message to us all. We are indeed all responsible for one another.

These floods have been particularly damaging, affecting citizens in 32 counties across our nation. Irrespective of if it is one county that is hit or 32, we have a national responsibility to care for those in need.  We would naturally want someone to do the same for us if we found ourselves under similar circumstances. The discussions about unity that have raged since the beginning of the BBI process are useless if we cannot display this unity when challenges concretely present themselves. Our leadership has indeed lived up to its commitment to support national unity at all costs. We must follow suit.

Our government’s response might not seem extraordinary at first sight. After all, isn’t the most basic responsibility of a government to help its citizens? However, one can see how extraordinary it actually is when examining other national responses to flooding.

This has not been a uniquely Kenyan challenge and has had an impact on other African countries as well, such as the DRC, where flooding ravaging the east has led to the displacement of over 100,000 people. Citizens have been crying out for help, with a noticeable lack of wide-scale government assistance. It is during challenging times such as these when we can see how truly lucky we are to be Kenyan.