There is a tiny African country that could comfortably fund Kenya’s annual budget but the country is economically poor like Kenya.
What is shocking is that this country has the highest par capita income in Africa (USD 34,865) i.e Ksh. 3.5m and a population of less than1.5 million (2020 UN data).
This country’s annual revenue income is in excess of USD 40bn (Ksh. 40Trillion), which means it can fund our Ksh. 3.5T budget ten times over.
Although this country doesn’t have political, democratic and governance gains like Kenya, both are poverty stricken.
Equatorial Guinea, a small country in Central Africa is ruled by a despotic leader, Theodoro Obiang Nguema Mbosoro who ascended to power in 1979.
In an interesting twist of fate, what Equatorial Guinea has in in plenty (Oil wealth) Kenya doesn’t have and what Kenya has (Constitutional and democratic system), Equatorial Guinea lacks.
Unfortunately, both countries have something in common- RUNAWAY CORRUPTION and mismanagement of public resources.
It is extremely important for Kenyans to learn a lesson from EG, especially now that they are about to elect their leaders during this year’s general election.
Three decades ago Equatorial Guinea discovered vast amounts of offshore oil and gas deposits and the tiny African country with a small population was touted to be on its way to economic wealth and development.
Unfortunately, this has not happened.
Equatorial Guinea has the highest child and maternal mortality rate, low literacy and endemic poverty in Africa.
With par capita that can provide every citizen with Sh3.8 million annual income, this is tragically the greatest injustice to citizens ever.
Three quarter of citizens in this country live below poverty line, while infrastructure projects, military and other installations worth billions of US dollars (Trillions of shillings) are being developed all over this tiny country.
What are other mistakes Equatorial Guinea and Kenya have committed?
Whereas Equatorial Guinea has money in plenty and Kenya doesn’t, both are bedeviled by poor management and leadership.
For instance, Equatorial Guinea’s government officials are notorious in pursuing supply-driven projects for kickbacks, which even the system defends as palatable.
This official backing has seen a few leaders close to the president and his family amass astronomical personal wealth at the expense of poor citizens.
To highlight one such monstrous self aggrandisement, the son of the long serving president, Theodorin Obiang Nguema stole from public coffers trillions of dollars through dubious projects and invested most of the ill-gotten wealth abroad.
Although the government of EG strongly deny any wrongdoing on the part of the president’s son, the US government seized and sold off plum assets owned by Theodorin in the US and wired the proceeds (Trillions of shillings) to the UN Health Organisation purposely to fund Covid-19 medical and vaccine needs for the citizens of EG.
Switzerland, France and other European countries followed suit and either sold off or froze Theodorin’s assets and trillions of shillings hidden in secret bank accounts even as the government of EG termed the move as vindictive and neocolonial punishment.
Other foreign countries have focused their attention to such stolen wealth by Theodorin and EG officials with the aim of returning it back to this tragic African country.
Their hope is that such funds will be invested in education and health.
Under the now aged Obiang Nguema, EG government and Kenya with its acclaimed constitutional and democratic system are prove that in Africa, it is not the lack of resources or structures that makes citizens poor but choice of leadership or if you may what bad leaderships can do to a country.
Indeed, citizens of EG have been confined into poverty by a despotic regime that control and deny them their voting and economic rights.
Like in Kenya, elections in Equatorial Guinea are always marred with irregularities and disputes.
How can these two countries get out of such economic and political leadership quagmire?
Looking at the kind of leaders who Kenyans are likely to elect this year, it breaks heart that the downtrodden who are supposed to ensure good leaders are elected into mainstream politics and governance structures are ignorant of the inherent danger of choosing devious characters.
No person has a right to deny a people their wish and therefore Kenya has a long way to go in achieving any meaningful leadership-driven economic development.
But should this be the case?
In my view, Kenya is ripe for benovelent dictatorship. A selfless leader with popular mandate is the answer to Kenya’s problem.
Such a leader should be installed through any means possible to on one hand protect the gains so far and on the other revolutionise a new socio- economic and political order.
I wish this can happen when I am still alive.
Imagine if Equatorial Guinea’s Theodoro Obiang Nguema Mbosoro was such a benevolent dictator instead of what he has been. EG would be the economic pearl of Africa.
Kaunda wa Muchunku
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