That gulley that appeared outside your gate after a night of heavy rain; that blocked culvert that gave you a lake to drive through as you leave home; that huge pothole on the corner: whose responsibility is it to fix these things? Clearly, it must be the government… or the county… or maybe NEMA… it’s theirs. It’s definitely not yours.
But who suffers? Whose bumper gets scratched, whose springs grow weak, whose bushes wear out and universal joints grow thin with the jolting up and down; whose shining, newly washed vehicle is thoroughly spattered with mud before you even reach the tarmac? Who would benefit most from taking the responsibility? The answer to that one is clear: you and me.
What’s missing? Maintenance. It’s simple: maintenance. Why is there no maintenance? I have a simple answer: there’s no word for maintenance in Kiswahili, Kikuyu or any vernacular in this country. Or so I’m told….