NDUGU WENZANGU – HAMJAMBO

MWANZONI NINGEPENDA KUKUJULISHA KAMA NIMEFURAHI SANA KWA KUALIKWA NA NINYI – WAKENYA WAZALENDO. ASANTE SANA. SHUKRANI KUBWA.

NINAJUA KWAMBA YOU DO NOT OFTEN SEE SOUTH ASIANS IN SUCH A GATHERING OR IN PUBLIC RALLIES. BUT LET ME TELL YOU THAT THEY ARE HERE, AND THAT THEY ARE VERY MUCH PART OF KENYAN SOCIETY.

SOUTH ASIANS HAVE BEEN INTEGRALLY INVOLVED IN THE ANTI-COLONIAL STRUGGLE AND IN THE STRUGGLE FOR KENYA’S SECOND LIBERATION. YOU HAVE ALL HEARD OF ALLIDINA VISRAM – YOU KNOW HIM AS A VERY SUCCESSFUL TRADER. BUT HOW MANY OF YOU KNOW THAT IN 1901 HE WAS PRESIDENT OF THE NAIROBI INDIAN ASSOCIATION, FORMED TO FIGHT FOR EQUAL RIGHTS. A M JEEVANJEE WAS PRESIDENT OF THE MOMBASA INDIAN ASSOCIATION. HE CAME TO KENYA TO DO BUSINESS BUT TOOK TO POLITICS TO PROTEST AGAINST COLONIAL INJUSTICE. HE FOUNDED KENYA’S FIRST NATION-WIDE POLITICAL ORGANISATION IN 1914, THE EAST AFRICAN INDIAN NATIONAL CONGRESS. ITS SECRETARY, MANILAL DESAI, WAS A CLOSE FRIEND OF HARRY THUKU AND PRINTED HIS TANGAZO PAPER. ISHER DASS ACCOMPANIED JOMO KENYATTA ON HIS FIRST TRIP ABROAD. SHAMS-UD-DEEN, H S VERJEE AND B S VARMA FOUGHT FOR AFRICAN RIGHTS IN THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL.

MAKHAN SINGH FOUNDED THE TRADE UNION MOVEMENT WHICH BROUGHT ASIAN AND AFRICAN WORKERS TOGETHER IN THE ANTI-COLONIAL MOVEMENT. THEY DETAINED HIM FOR ELEVEN YEARS. JOURNALISTS SUCH AS D K SHARDA, HAROON AHMED AND PYARALI RATTANSI GAVE VOICE TO THE NATIONALISTS. G L VIDYARTHI WAS THE FIRST KENYAN TO BE JAILED FOR SEDITION. TODAY HIS SONS RUN COLOURPRINT WHICH CONTINUES TO SUPPORT PROGRESSIVE PUBLICATIONS. JASWANT BHARAJ, PIO GAMA PINTO, APA PANT, YACOOB DEEN, OSMAN ALLU, AMBU AND HIS WIFE LILA PATEL – ALL WERE INVOLVED IN THE MAU MAU MOVEMENT. ACHHROO KAPILA, SAEED COCKAR, CHANAN SINGH & JASWANT SINGH WERE SOME OF THE LAWYERS WHO DEFENDED THE FREEDOM FIGHTERS AND THE KAPENGURIA SIX. J M DESAI’S HOUSE WAS ONE THE FEW PLACES WHERE DIFFERENT AFRICAN LEADERS COULD MEET AND PLAN THEIR STRATEGIES. POST INDEPENDENCE YOU HAVE HEARD THE NAMES OF FITZ D’SOUZA, PRANLAL SHETH, RAMESH AND SATISH GAUTAMA, JUSTICE MADAN, PROF YASH PAL GHAI, PHEROZE NOWROJEE, DAVINDER LAMBA, SALIM LONE, HASSAN RATTANSI, SUDHIR VIDYARTHI AND MANU CHANDARIA.

I HAVE MENTIONED THESE NAMES BECAUSE MANY OF US ARE NOT AWARE OF THIS HISTORY. LET ME ASSURE YOU THERE ARE MANY SOUTH ASIANS WHO QUIETLY SERVE THIS COUNTRY – THEY FEED THE HUNGRY, EDUCATE THE POOR, CLOTHE THE NEEDY AND PROVIDE HEALTH CARE TO THE SICK – THEY DO THIS ON A DAILY BASIS WITHOUT FANFARE AND WITHOUT RECOGNITION.

MY FELLOW KENYANS, THE BASIC PROBLEM IN OUR COUNTRY IS NOT RACIAL OR ETHNIC. IT IS CLASS. IT IS THE HUGE DIVIDE BETWEEN THE RICH AND THE REST OF US. THE SOUTH ASIAN CAPITALIST SITS AT THE SAME TABLE AS HIS KIKUYU, LUO AND KALENJIN FELLOW CAPITALISTS AND EATS THE SAME MEAL.  TOGETHER THEY PLAN HOW THEY CAN KEEP US DIVIDED AND WEAK SO THAT THEY CAN RULE OVER US. WHEN OUR HONOURABLE MPS UNITE TO RAISE THEIR SALARIES THERE IS NOT EVEN A WHISPER OF KABILA YANGU OR ODM VERSUS PNU, APOLOGIES TO THOSE PRESENT TODAY.

IN THE POST ELECTION VIOLENCE KALENJIN, LUO AND KIKUYU YOUTHS, LARGELY WORKING CLASS OR UNEMPLOYED, FOUGHT EACH OTHER. HOW DID IT HELP THEIR CAUSE? THEY WERE LEFT WITH TERRIBLE TRAGEDIES AND IDPS, AND EVEN MORE GRINDING POVERTY. AND THE RULING CLASS MADE SYMPATHETIC NOISES AND CARRIED ON GRABBING THE FRUITS OF OUR SWEAT AND LABOUR.

THIS TIME ROUND LET US NOT MAKE THE SAME MISTAKE. LET US ELECT LEADERS WHO WILL WORK TOWARDS A FAIRER DISTRIBUTION OF WEALTH IN OUR COUNTRY; AND LET US UNITE WITH LIKE-MINDED KENYANS TO BUILD A MORE EQUITABLE KENYA. MOST IMPORTANTLY LET US ORGANISE PURPOSEFULLY AND MEANINGFULLY. LET US PUT ASIDE OUR PETTY DIFFERENCES AND THE LIES THAT OUR RULING CLASS REGULARLY PUTS OUT. I URGE THE SOUTH ASIAN COMMUNITY TO COME OUT AND CAST THEIR VOTE, TO SPEAK UP WHEN WRONGED, TO DENOUNCE THEIR WRONG DOERS AND JOIN HANDS WITH ALL PATRIOTIC KENYANS. OUR COUNTRY IS AT A CROSSROADS – LET US MAKE SURE THAT WE, ALL OF US, ARE ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF HISTORY. HII KENYA NI YETU – SISI SOTE. Asanteni.

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