False hope

False hope is what these people are living with. From one plot to the next the storyline is the same. It is something they are all too familiar with where the word research is a common lingo. I am at the Kaptembwo slum in Nakuru conducting a social economic survey on behalf of a certain Ngo which for convenience of this article I will not name. It is my job to talk to at least 250 people from different households within a period of 15 days and I must admit the prospect of talking to all these strangers at first appears insurmountable. Some of the questions required to ask ask appear quite irritable and my worry is that most of the respondents will not be cooperative. Soon I will be on the ground where I brush shoulders with helplessness and ignorance as well as pure bad luck.

Contrary to my expectations, the people I thought belligerent were mostly cordial and friendly, mostly unperturbed by the insensitivity of some of my questions. Few would hesitate to mention their average income per month or list their assets and I can’t blame them for that. I would also be sceptical about anyone who, for whatever reason, tries to dig into my personal life. There are those who would agree to do the interview but back out halfway and these accounted to the atrophy of my eraser. Some of the questions would jolt the respondents, guilt and shame littering their faces and you could sense their deliberate attempt to veer from the questions. You would see the struggle of a mother trying to remember the number of children she has, at times unsuccessfully.

What I have witnessed in the slum is a mixture of helplessness and despair which have led to my questioning the relevance of the research I am undertaking. Overreliance on government and NGOs help has led to slackness, an insidious infection slowly eating away the once able bodied workforce. It beat me why you would stay in a plot that does not have a toilet and lament waiting for the government and NGOs intervention. With such pictures in mind it is easy to agree with the politicians’ (only on this) slogan that change start with you. If at all anyone will assist these people that change must start with them.

It is a case of man eats man society and a lie has been planted on our major slums that NGOs are there to help. Most of those organizations that go with the theme of fighting poverty have set their firm bases in all the major slums in all towns. They are busy, spreading their roots and achieving their missions and visions, breaking milestones and winning awards all in line with their goals and objectives. With this paper achievements one wonder why the slum problems are on the rise. There can be two explanations to this, either these NGOs, international and local, are not doing enough or are not doing what they are saying.

The slum inhabitants are getting tired with this tomfoolery and are now sceptical about their activities. “You people only come here to ask question and don’t do anything”, someone jeers at me. I had not prepared a comeback for this so I just smile and urge them to be patient for change but by then it is obvious that this individual will not grant me the interview. I would raise my concern about this with those in the office and they will knowingly smile, perhaps reflecting on how they joy ride on the plight of the poor.  If truth can be said, the people running these organizations are in for a kill. They are on a mission of making lemonade with the slums; not to eradicate the slum problems. Theirs is a parasitic relationship, one propagated under the guise fighting their hosts. Hardly a month pass, am told, without some organization conducting a research in the slum yet nothing can be seen about these researches.

The other lot of people are those whose houses flood every time it rain yet they continue blaming the landlord. Sure he cannot be exonerated from the blame but if you tell me that the house has been flooding in the past two or three years and you are still there loyally paying your rent every month, then you are the problem. Could be your brain too has flooded with mucus to keep in psych with your sewage water flooded house. Pardon my tone but if you expect any change, start with your attitude. I went into one such plot where confusing me for some health workers, all the tenants took turn narrating their ordeal and their incessant fruitless cries to their landlord. It was a lengthy banter where I was forced to spread false hopes that “we will be back” to take actions. After listening to these people, I still don’t understand why you would complain that the toilets are always dirty yet it is your responsibility to keep them clean.

Here, I met mothers who don’t know how many children they have, wives who don’t know what their husbands do for a living and I saw plots that that doesn’t have toilets and bathrooms. All these are waiting for the government and other organizations to come mend their lives. On a lighter note, all is not lost since deep in these slums, there are a number of people who are faring quite well and I should add that these were not helped by these NGOs.