A Mafia System Robbing Its Citizens
News:
Electricity consumers face Sh8.1 billion backdated bills as Kenya Power moves to recover costs incurred on diesel generators last year but which were not factored in monthly charges while the government sought to keep a lid on utilities in an election year. Kenya Power revealed the hefty bill in its annual financial statement, explaining that it arose from severe drought last year, which necessitated a surge in the uptake of expensive diesel-generated electricity that compensated for a sharp dip in hydropower production. The bill is part of the Sh10.1 billion identified as unrecovered power fuel costs in the State-owned Kenya Power’s annual statement for the year ended June 2017. About Sh2 billion has been recovered so far, leaving Sh8.1 billion that will be passed on to consumers in monthly invoices.
Comments:
Immediately after the announcement by Kenya Power on the plans for the recovery of the said amount, almost unanimously Kenyans on social media with the hashtag #switchoffKPLC reacted negatively and against the plans and each one of them casted aspersion on the rationality on how such a huge bill was incurred! The Kenyan government via the Energy CS Charles Keter after realizing that the report issued by Kenya Power; was not well received by the public he came in swiftly to save the face of the government which might face a court battle on the same. Mr Keter said that the inconsistent power bills experienced by customers recently were as a result of an imperfect billing system that estimated meter readings instead of taking actual readings!
To make matters worse the Government divulged that electricity bills for low-income households could rise from April 2018 while charges for middle-income homes are set to drop with the expected coming to an end of subsidies for small consumers! Currently the Government has categorized the citizens in the following setups:
- Low household consumers use 50 units and below per month and are charged KSh2.50 per unit (kilowatt hour (kWh)).
- Middle household consumers use between 51 -1,500 units per month and are charged KSh12.75 per unit
- High household consumers use 1,500 units and above per month and are charged KSh20.57per unit
The above statements confirm that in any capitalist country service delivery is a means of business and not a public duty for any country to its citizens. How can a state owned company like Kenya Power post profits of Ksh7.27 billion while the citizens who are supposed to be the owners of the said firm are languishing with exorbitant charges based on a categorization formula that was not arrived at with their input? The answer is, firms in capitalist governments are known as state owned on paper but in reality, they are managed and run by the gluttonous capitalists in the name of investors. The so-called investors are the ones who micromanage state institutions and execute policies that are meant to favor them and ensure that they receive high dividends based on the shares in their possession. This has led to citizens suffering in all sectors including but not limited to health, whereby citizens without insurance cover like NHIF are not accepted or treated in hospitals, education policies are drafted to favor investors in the sector such that quality education is never the criterion used in benchmarking policies!
The only solution is to replace this mafia system of democracy and its invalid capitalist ideology from which it emanates from. A system that thrives in inhumane treatment of its citizens and views service delivery as source of income and projects designed to plunder the public resources for egocentric interests. Calling for the replacement of such a system is not only an urgent issue but a necessity to realize peace, tranquility and prosperity for all citizens who shall not be categorized based on their means of livelihood. That can only be realized under a just system of governance established from the pure Islamic ideology drawn from the methodology of the Prophet (saw). The Khilafah (Islamic system of government) shall always be striving to please Allah (swt) and yearn for His blessings and mercy to be ushered in His highest Jannah. With that in mind leaders in the Khilafah will be motivated by genuine service delivery and what is for the public will be genuinely recognized as so and will be fully utilized and prioritized to meet citizens needs and based on their inputs.
Oh Kenyans, until when will you suffer from this economic sabotage by your own government? That is hell bent to see that your lives are ever miserable despite the meager salaries that few of you who are lucky to be employed receive; still they plot to even take the little you have saved from the numerous taxes that you have been exposed to? We call up on you to think critical about the situation you are currently in and the future of you children and grandchildren and ask yourself is there no radical solution to these plights once and for all? With a kind heart we direct your sincere hearts and minds to give Islam an opportunity and study it as an ideology revealed to Prophet Muhammad (saw) to comprehensively run the affairs of humanity with it.
Oh Muslims, until when will you be champions of a system that is contrary to what was revealed to your beloved Rasulullah (saw)? Are you only satisfied with the peanuts that this evil and invalid capitalist ideology has thrown to your hands and sacrifice in return to forego the everlasting happiness in the gardens of Jannatul Firdaus? We your brothers with open arms are calling you to the best work that was ordained to the Prophets of guiding the Ummah from darkness to the light. The darkness of the rule of capitalism and its secular creed that has caused catastrophes daily in today’s world. So that together we may call for the alternative of the darkness to the light of Islam as an ideology emanating from the Creator of man. The light that shall lit in all houses including those of Muslims and Non-Muslims due to the mercy of the Creator of creations.
Ali Nassoro
Member of the Media Office of Hizb ut Tahrir in Kenya
http://www.nation.co.ke/news/Poor-homes-to-pay-more-for-electricity/1056-4256474-oos5asz/index.html
From UQAB Magazine Issue 13