Ungrateful Borrowers Whose Stock-In-Trade is Not Paying Debts

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By Jay Kioko

Why is it that Kenysns don’t pay back money they borrow from friends and relatives? And if they ever pay, it’s in very small bits spread over a long period of time. Amid that long period of time is bad blood, matusi and end of friendships… Very bizzare.

In William Shakespeare’s play, The Merchant of Venice, Antonio helps Bassanio by lending him money. This is to enable Bassanio to woo the wealthy Portia, the woman of his dreams. But as all Antonio’s wealth is tied up in his fleet of ships and their cargo, Bassanio will have to borrow the money he needs.

Antonio expected his ships to return soon, so he decided to help Bassanio by going to Shylock, a professional moneylender, to borrow money until his ships returned.

Antonio and the Shylock agree to enter into an agreement, a contract. The contract stipulates that if Antonio does not pay back the money lent to him, Shylock is entitled to a pound of flesh from Antonio’s buttocks. Antonio cannot pay back the money and so the court is about to grant Shylock the right to take his pound.

I find that contract very appropriate and should be transposed to our context. We all borrow money from friends, relatives and other people. I am not talking here about banks and other financial institutions. Those have their own way of collecting debts. I am talking about friends and relatives particularly.

Why is it so hard to pay back debts wearing the same smile, energy and gusto you wore when you were borrowing? Why is it so hard to pay back debts in one transfer the way it was given to you? Instead you pay in small tranches spread over several years. Kasimolo is still paying me back the money I lent himin 1987. He pays in bits…10 bob, 5 cents, 20 cents like that. The last time I checked my records, which was last week, he still had 45 cents to clear

Why is it that you have to beg people you loaned money to refund? You have to give them a reason why you need your money back. Is it not your money? Why is that we are happy and vivacious and over-friendly when we are borrowing but become animalistic and unfriendly when we start demanding our money back. I find this very very very strange, stranger than fiction.

Back to ‘The Merchant of Venice’. If I borrow money from you, kindly get a lawyer and let us have a contract that should I not pay back on the agreed date, you should have my liver on a plate. Add the clause that should the liver be burned by chang’aa, you will get the kidneys instead.Conversely, if you borrow money from me and you don’t honor the date of paying back, I shall have your two testicles extracted and presented to me on a silver platter. Fair game. Isn’t it?

Though Shylock did not get his pound of flesh because judges and lawyers are slippery sniving maggots, that was a good agreement. Some operational issues arose. The issue of blood was not discussed in the agreement. Shylock was required to cut his lound of flesh and no blood was supposed to be spilt. That’s how Antonio saved his ninio……

Watu guyaz, have a lovely week

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