We must fight graft in all facets of our national life

Someone asked the other day whether miracles still happen.

I pointed out to him one that had happened on Tuesday of last week.

An eight-month-old baby was pulled out of the rubble of the collapsed building in Huruma alive after a whole four days.

That baby is now recovering in hospital and I keep asking myself how it survived.

I have thought hard and the only answer I can arrive at is that future generations of Kenyans will judge ours with harshness.

I only pray that someone will explain to this child how it is that she cheated death.

Early last month, there was a major earthquake on the island of Kyushu in Japan. Many people died and a lot of others were rescued.

DISASTER PREPAREDNESS

Watching their rescue operations, one got the impression that the Japanese disaster preparedness is highly advanced.

I assume, of course, that this level of preparedness has to do with the fact that they are used to dealing with natural disasters and so they have perfected the art of handling them.

The disasters which we have had to deal with here have nothing to do with nature.

They are disasters either of our own making or of the making of our enemies.

With regard to the ones caused by our enemies, the only thing we can do is keep our defence forces well motivated and on the alert.

My biggest worry is the disasters of our own making. How many buildings have we seen collapsing and killing so many people and yet we go on business as usual?

Every time a building like that collapses, we say all manner of things and even arrest one or two people, and then we forget and move on.

On Tuesday last week, I watched a television talk show where panellists were discussing the Huruma building disaster.

ADMINISTRATIVE CHECKS

The discussants were an officer from the county government, an official of the architectural association and a structural engineer.

The latter insisted that the real problem was that the administrative checks that need to be done before the building work starts are usually not properly done.

Apparently, a lot of developers do not pay much heed to the necessary approvals.

It would also seem that the relevant professionals and government licensing agents are not as diligent as they ought to be.

This, no doubt, is as a result of the culture of corruption that has permeated every facet of our our national existence. We must say No to disasters of our own making.

Fr Wamugunda is dean of students, University of Nairobi
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