The Mirage of Democracy

From: Martin Ouko

As we once more approach the general elections, it is not unusual to hear nice choreographed public speeches from our beloved politicians and masterpiece editorials from the media that has made a career out of reinventing and then repackaging these same crooks for resale at full value to the unsuspecting citizenry. Both the literate minority and the semi-literate majority are met at the emotional level and ...voila!! We've elected a new government constituted of the same old corrupt individuals in the name of Democracy.

Someone once said "the essence of power is in the people and politics: Politicians are hypocrites." The question I guess is whether this power is really with the electorate. The only power left to the people is the ballot. Unfortunately, it takes less than a minute to cast that same vote and then the power reverts back to where it wrongfully belongs.....the politician..... for the next five(5) years. They come humbly asking for a chance to serve the nation but instead we give them an opportunity to Lord over us in the name of Democracy. We're held ransom by our leaders and we ain't goin' nowhere no time soon.

There is a tendancy to use the terms Democracy, Freedom and Justice synonymously. The assumption that democracy comes hand in hand with justice and the succeeding interchangeableness is highly errorneous. Democracy is based on what the majority want and it doesn't necessarily need to be right. A critical look at this ideology reveals that the minority stand to be oppressed. Democracy therefore fails in its intended purpose. Justice on the other hand is based on what is right regardless of the prevailing mood. These two do not mix, therefore, looking to build a just democracy is like chasing a mirage in the desert for water........you'll die thirsty.