Style up, Mr Alfred Keter, the world is much bigger than you and your bile

Nothing is as disgusting as when people seek to twist stories that are otherwise quite straightforward.

Nandi Hills MP Alfred Keter did not storm the Gilgil weighbridge with his Asian buddy to fight corruption!

He was going there to intimidate the police to have a truck, which lacked a necessary permit, released.

Let’s all get that and stop dancing in circles. He was breaking the law. Full stop.

Mr Keter is evidently not a very bright man; nor are those taken in by his tales. When you assume a posture that is fake, please don’t vex us further by also getting childish.

If you are what you want us to believe you are, you should have first gone to the anti-corruption commission and expressed your interest in busting those “corrupt” weighbridge fellows.

Normally, the commission would send you along with an officer and “treated” money to set a trap.

Remarkably, none of the policemen is heard soliciting a bribe in that vulgar video where Mr Keter throws his tantrum.

All one can see and hear is the foul-mouthed MP calling the officers names which, incidentally, best fit him. If I were one of those policemen, I would have dealt with this uncouth fellow long before the CID butted in.

Mr Keter openly referred to them as criminals. Right now he would be in court to show what proof he has.

The online brigade muttering that corruption-is-rife-at-weighbridges-and-so-let’s-give-Keter-a-break are mixing up issues.

Just because traffic policemen are known to be corrupt does not excuse you from obeying traffic laws.

In any case, corruption at the weighbridges is not the issue here. It is Mr Keter and his behaviour.

Nobody had asked him to do the job of the anti-corruption commission. And none of us will “die” — as he absurdly claimed we will — if he disappeared into the ether. Can he get that?

AN OAF AND A DEMAGOGUE

Outwardly, Mr Keter’s boyish face and the constant grin that plays on it even when he wants to look serious or angry have a certain kind of charm — until he opens his mouth.

Essentially, what you are left with is a guy who is just an oaf and a demagogue. His previous visibility stemmed from his constant ranting for special government treatment for his Nandi people. By word or deed, he seems nostalgic for the Nyayo era.

I fully agree with Charles Nyachae of the Commission for the Implementation of the Constitution that too many MPs are getting away with boorish and even criminal behaviour. It is indeed true as he says that Deputy Chief Justice appointee Nancy Baraza was thrown under the bus for far less.

Morever, she showed immense humility in agreeing to resign. Of course, I am very much aware somebody like Mr Keter lacks the upbringing and the culture to do anything as decent.

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Talking of leadership, Aden Duale’s cohorts from the old North-Eastern Province need a refresher course. Their ultimatum to the teachers who have refused to report to work in that region should have been more tactfully handled.

Regardless of whether one supports the teachers’ boycott or not, the call by the politicians that the teachers be fired was misplaced. Plus it could be costly and counter-productive for the region.

If the political leadership in the region really wants the teachers to return, this is not the language to use. They should be polite and accommodating.

The crisis of confidence that the boycotting teachers have called attention to needs to be handled with a sense of maturity by all.

And there must be an appreciation — first and foremost — that the professionals have very genuine security concerns.

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