Who knows .....

So the verdict is out, withe respect to our recent mishaps in the +254. In summary:

JKIA Fire
This icon of our nation from before independence. This gateway where literally 95% of all the Kenyans who've flown out of and into this country have walked through the gates, lounges, check-in counters and terminals of this icon. When you're growing up as a Kenyan no matter your class, going to the airport was special. IT had a strange excitement to it. Literally relatives would come to the city from up country to say good bye and welcome you back when you flew in or out.... at least in my family :-)

Recently a monstrous fire ravaged the international arrival complex at JKIA affecting the international departure terminals as well. If you watch TV read the news, are on social media you saw it. A towering column of smoke reached into the sky, it could be seen from quite far. The whole city was in shock that whole day as fire engines and public officials raced into and out of the airport and we wondered which direction our country was headed... with everything we've been to our airport was that sacred icon of normalcy that met international standards (well most) and set us apart from other (African) nations and connected us to the rest of the world. Through out every crisis we've gone through its been a constant and then it burned....

So after the fire was put out, investigators were assigned and invited we had several press conferences and then a report was born and sprung on us at an inspection tour of the airport by the transport CS. The fire was caused in all its enormity by teeny weeny electrical fault. As we chocked on our incredulity the findings were corroborated by foreign investigators (which out to give us a measure of reassurance, I mean foreign is best yes? No!) end result we are all left tweedling our thumbs.. with a partially burnt down :-( but rapidly being refurbished :-) airport - winning smile!

So I'm left wondering ( and I hope I'm not alone) what happened? How did this happen after all these years of it not happening? Did anyone think or not think that this would happen?

Don't we have leaders to avoid having a situation where everything goes to hell in a basket and the nation burns down around our ears? Is this going to be the norm for Kenya? Horrible after horrible surprise and the findings are "Well it was an accident, we didn't plan or prepare for it?"

Are we one?

It's day twenty after the attacks on the  Westgate Shopping mall. It was horrible, it was horrific and shocking.

I've spent a significant time each day searching the media reading up on the new developments in the Westgate story and the more I learn the more disillusioned I get.

After the mall attack there was the killings, assassinations or executions of the Muslim clerics in Mombasa swiftly followed by Islamic outrage in which church's were burnt.

So much is happening around us, we are taking so many hits as a people yet somewhere in the ether "Weareone" is still trending its still a moto. The questions begs for an answer though;  Are we one?
Whichever way you ask it, weareone_dering?

A short is aside is that all these quips that have appeared as we find different ways to deal with the questions that we've all be left with in the aftermath of the events of the last three weeks are the way we deal with the questions we've been left with over the different things that have happened. 

Getting back to my main theme, I believe the answer is yes and no. How?
YES
We are one in receiving mediocre service and experiencing the effects of negligence and infighting by public officials - Westgate proved that
We are one in experiencing a sense of loss - should the image of our nation be tarnished even further by misfortune.
We are one in wondering what the future holds for Kenya and wanting to succeed (at what cost is another question)

NO
We are not one though - when it comes to religious extremism. When one religion with people who profess to be its followers can call for tolerance when those members (radical or not) carry out heinous crimes in retaliation for real or perceived injustices.
We aren't one when there is infighting amongst the people charged with keeping watch over our nation
We aren't one when our public servants steal (outright) 30%  of the money we give them through are hard earned taxes to build this nation and there is no recourse....

So the question remains  are we or aren't we one?