Welcome to the season of political lies

According to TheOxford English Dictionary, the International word of the year for 2016 was "post-truth". Yes, thanks to Donald Trump and the Brexit debate, truth is whatever you choose to believe, and there is no objective truth. Put another way, truth is unfashionable and probably unfathomable, so don’t waste your time searching for it.

What is important today are emotions and opinions no matter how uninformed they are. Mr Trump describes everything that he doesn’t like to hear as "fake news". He is more concerned about the brand that he espouses than a consistent policy that upholds the common good. So the Oxford Dictionary describes post-truth as circumstances whereby “objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than appeals to emotion and personal belief”.

Politicians have always lied; they have even made an art of lying. It comes easy to them and they never apologise for their untruths. George Orwell said “political language is designed so that lies are perceived as truthful and murder as respectable”. This might explain why the Kenyan public still applauds extrajudicial killings. Truth is not falsified by politicians, it is just downgraded and of secondary importance. Feelings, not facts, are what matter in today’s world.

NO DIFFERENCE

There is not much difference, however, between Trump's outbursts and the content of Kenyan election campaigns. Campaign rallies are not about truths, policies or honest debate; they are all about working up the crowd, insulting your opponent and making ridiculous promises. Crowds, too, don’t attend to be informed about the state of the economy or national cohesion; they go to be entertained, excited and to watch old men dance in public.

Politicians are viewed as celebrities so their mentors and PR crew present them as a brand that tastes, looks and talks good. Who is concerned about substance or content? Certainly not the crowds who wait at the shopping centres for a free T-shirt. The advent of social media has not assisted either. Half-baked truths, catchy hash tags, hired bloggers and a cohort of ethnic chauvinists have taken over this space and an honest debate on matters that concern every Kenyan rarely takes place. There is such a fragmentation of news sources that every commentator and editor would appear to have taken sides in the war on truth. Worse still, the few who still speak the truth to power and to the public are the most vilified of all. Perhaps this is because they have the audacity to expose lies and are not available for hire.

PAY PRICE

What happens then when lies or dodgy manifestos are exposed? Pilate may have asked "what is truth?" but Jesus had earlier taught his followers that the truth will set them free. How many are willing to pay the price of freedom? The real fear is that a post-truth era will lead to the return of old-fashioned oppression as is happening in Zambia.

We need to be very vigilant and courageous in exposing lies and standing up for the truth. Malcolm X said “I am for truth no matter who tells it. I am for justice, no matter who it’s for or against”. Where do you stand?

Fr Gabriel Dolan is an Irish missionary priest who has been working in Kenya since 1982. He is currently based in Mombasa.

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@GabrielDolan1