Unity is vital in the fight against Covid-19

As the hustle-and-bustle settles down after the dusk to dawn curfew, I sit in my apartment and cannot help thinking.

The outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic has given me time to reflect on the past. I think about my loved ones, my friends and the people I would usually pass on the street on my way to work. I think about my father and all the knowledge that might help us demonstrate better judgement during and after the current crisis.

After weeks of staying at home, I have been trying to digest President Uhuru Kenyatta’s message that Kenyans have to take care of one another.

Children keep asking questions like why do we need to wear masks if all it will do is protect others? Why do I have to care for complete strangers? Above all, why do Kenyans have to work so hard to come together despite our differences?

Trying to answer these, I remembered a play about the fireside tale. Our elders gathered their children around a village fire to teach them about life, their tribe and morality.

We preserved the tradition of telling stories, integrating them into our songs and proverbs. This custom has linked our ethno-linguistic groups. I find myself thinking about what I would like to teach my children about our country, perhaps during this crisis even more so than before.

The lessons of my “fireside tale”— in our kitchen rather than under the sky— reflect my hopes and aspirations for our country.

Although I want to see compassion and understanding between our citizens, I am a realist. I have seen dozens of Kenyans wounded and killed in elections related violence.

Like many of my friends, I wish to change our in-fighting and see the government work on real policy issues rather than be preoccupied with the perpetual cycle of in-fighting, peace-making and back to conflict.

This is the reason I have had high hopes for the Building Bridges Initiative. The BBI promotes national cohesion and beating coronavirus requires cooperation.

It is disheartening to see some leaders oppose the initiative. The Covid-19 crisis has demonstrated how valuable unity is.