The rains pounding most parts of Kenya are set to continue for a while and therefore all Kenyans wherever they live are advised to be prepared for the effects of those rains in terms of flash floods, floods, landslides, mudslides washed away bridges, damage to roads, power outages and other similar disruptions.
The functions of County Public Works and Services including storm water management systems in built-up areas and water sanitation services are devolved and also the implementation of specific national government policies on natural resources and environmental conservation including soil and water conservation and forestry. Disaster management is also a devolved function.
Are the County Governments of Kakamega, Bungoma, Busia, Vihiga and Trans Nzoia prepared to handle the effects of the on-going rains which are likely to aggravate the degradation of infrastructure? Is the County of Busia that is the net recipient of most waters from Nandi County and the Counties of Kakamega, Vihiga, Bungoma and Trans Nzoia preparedto handle the effects of rising water levels, floods as the rivers cascade into Lake Victoria?
The heavy rains as usual bring to the fore, unmask the shoddy workmanship, the corruptly executed, unprofessionally undertaken infrastructure projects like roads, bridges, sewage systems and others that crumble, fall to pieces yet they ought to have been designed and implemented to withstand severe climatic conditions like the rains being experienced in the Country.
Whether we will progress as a Country or Counties lies in how we perform public duties that cost millions of shillings to taxpayers? The tragedy is that the authors of the crumbling infrastructure due to poor workmanship will be the same ones given the task of rehabilitating the same collapsed infrastructure and as it were they will have another round of indulging in corruption, overpricing the works and executing them in a mediocre manner.
The National economy, the County economies already badly battered by Kenya’s primitive elective politics experienced in 2017 is set to be further damaged by the heavy rains and thus dashing any hopes of meaningful development, economic growth in 2018 which is already halfway in the year.
We must all redouble our productivity on the farms, in cottage industries, in whatever economic activity we engage ourselves in if we are to achieve better economic outcomes for the remainder of 2018.