Date Posted: 11/26/2012 11:27:31 AM
Posted By: kevinmabz Membership Level: Silver Total Points: 397
Disparity in simple terms means lack of equivalence.One wonders why there still exist the common trend of increased gap between the rich and the poor in Kenya since independence.But one thing remains clear that the leaders of this country have contributed towards this trend and plunged the country into a canyon of disrepair.Hope has become the only chattel that majority of the Kenyans hold,and a second liberation is what each yearns for to get emancipated from political whited sepulchres masquerading themselves as staunch leaders.They have over the years concerned about their aggrandisement and forget so easily about the role they are called to serve.The purpose of this article is to divulge the causes of this endless lack of equivalence in the country endowed with enough resources.To begin with,the root cause of disparity in Kenya is the inequitable distribution of national resources arising from the influence of political power.Kenya is endowed with numerous resources that if tapped can serve all its regions and sectors to almost the same ratio,but this has not been the case.Some regions get more resources than others based on other factors that are not practical.In resource allocation,factors such as population size,geographical size of a region and the poverty index should guide the process of resource allocation.Some marginalised groups continue to be isolated and the rule of the affirmative action has lost meaning.In addition,some regions of the country provide source of important resources but the benefits derived from them cannot be enjoyed by those in the region.This has been going on for years and resulted in the widening of the gap.The rich and elites get access to these resources amassing them to themselves.Many regions have remained neglected due to their minority status,and have continued to suffer the challenge of unrepresentation in important matters rendering their state of existence vanity.Unless these challenges are addressed expeditiously,the gap will continue to widen even more in the days to come.Secondly,another cause of disparity related to the above is the political power influence.This has been evident in the increased rate of corruption,favoritism,and nepotism of people in political power who seek aggrandisement after assuming power.Those who relate with people in power get first priority in important matters like resource allocation.What is egregious is how these politicians facade themselves in the eyes of the electorate as saints who would serve the public with equity and modesty,but end up being wolfs in a sheep''s skin.They use all the ways to appeal to the electorate to give them the authority to represent them,but when they get this positions,they get subsumed and acculturated in the practice of corruption and endless defalcation of public funds.This simply means that those with strong affiliations with people in political power are favoured over those who are not.Thirdly,access to important social resources such as education and proper health care contribute greatly to the trend of non equivalence.Education is considered a better provision to a journey to old age and many endeavour to access this education to better their lives.However,many are compounded by the problems of lack of financial support to access this important resource.It has therefore become affordable to those who are well off,living the have-nots without a chance.Education teaches life skills that can help one cope with life''s challenges and those who benefit are the able ones contributing greatly to the widening of this gap. Unemployment is considered as one of the causes of disparity in Kenya.You realize that the middle class level comprises people who are earning income from working for either in the public or private sector.The income generated is sufficient to cater for their welfare and some remain with reserves for savings and investments leading to growth in their income.The lower class on the other hand feed from hand to mouth and has little or no savings and investment and their state remains the same for a long time.This brings the disparity that we witness in the economyOther causes of this trend relate to the geographical locations of certain regions.The rich considered to be rational always looks for places that are conducive and productive thus leaving the poor to continue suffering in their poor state.In addition,the rich continue to work hard to increase returns on their investment while the poor being bombarded with many problems and coupled with disillusionment don''t do anything constructive with their time.This leads to even a wider gap considering the deviations that come between this two extremes.In a nutshell,disparity in Kenya will continue to rise with the advent of the new technology,and unless we address this,we will be heading into a social stratification that many are opposed to.The simple rule is to begin with equitably distributing national resources without favour.Secondly,the access to social services such as education and health care should be improved. In addition,appointments should done based on merit rather than one''s affiliation to a person or group of persons.
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