The ghost town of Kisumu

The schools in Nyanza are yet to re-open. Both Primary and Secondary school kids are still at home, wondering whether they'll ever go back to school. Its a sad situation. Thousands of kids don't know what the future looks like for them.

My cousin who happens to be a bursar at a certain high school says that they cannot re-open as some of their schools were burnt down or looted. The chaos after the elections last year have affected kids who are not even old enough to vote. I'm sure during the campaigns, they must have been wondering what the beef was all about with politicians 'dissing' each other during their 'meet the people' tours.

As it is, they lack the basics to go back to school, their food stores were raided, books stolen, desks and chairs set on fire (you wonder why). Even as they are given an ultimatum to be back to school by Monday 28th, I wonder where they are going to start. Kids are traumatised and I'm sure they want to wish away everything that has happened so far. Watching the killings and the running battles, with looting and vandalizing of stores will remain embedded in their minds for a long, long time.

But I'm an angry woman. Angry at the the few residents who took part in vandalizing the town. They lack all the basics as it is. No food, water, airtime, houses, clothes, medication, the works! A bamba 50 is going for 90 bob, 100 bob airtime is being sold for 150, and so on. How will they survive like this. The people complaining are the same ones who burnt down the food stores and are now appealing to be fed, by who I ask. I feel bad that children and women are the most affected as the kids still look up to them for their daily meal. If I set the supermarket on fire, who do I expect to bring me food, to sell from where, I do not even have the money to buy the food in the first place. The only bank operating is Standard Chartered. Most of the locals bank with KCB. Barclays are yet to re-open (hope they have anyway-last time I checked they were still closed). The only supermarkets operating are the two Nakumatts, Yatin Supermarket has removed 90% of his stock from the shelves so even if you walked in you would not buy anything, but he he keeps the grill doors open for anyone daring to go there.

Kisumu resembles a bombed out town like Mogadishu. Who will save the luos from themselves, I hate to ask. How can anyone be so stupid as to do what they did to a place they call home. I wonder what they say everyday when they wake up in the morning. There are no offices to go to work, no restaurants to visit, no pubs to drink in, it is bad. Kisumu Travels has ceased operating, sending home tens of workers all because of this. This was the biggest travel company in the whole of Nyanza, and now its gone, God knows if there is going to be another one like it. It must be scary to live the way they do in Kisumu, I'd hate to be there, I know its on my way home but I still do not condone what they did.

Some bus companies have pulled out of the route for fear of being attacked or set ablaze for belonging to the 'wrong' tribe. And what tribe is 'right'? These so called hooligans have messed the city. I wonder how many years it will take to rebuild it to what it was. I don't envy the current MP who has to urge them to 'behave' as they are just hurting themselves and nobody else.

I rest my case..................