By John Wesley
Democracy was meant to be the voice of the people. A table where every citizen had a seat, every voice had weight, and every life had dignity. But today, that promise feels upside down.
Instead of leaders listening to the people, it is the people who are forced to beg for crumbs from leaders who dine on their sweat. Instead of free expression, young voices are silenced with teargas and labeled as enemies of progress for demanding accountability. Instead of inclusion, the poor, women, persons with disabilities, and youth are pushed further into the shadows, their hopes traded in political bargains.
We were told democracy means representation. Yet, look around. Who truly sits in the chambers of decision-making? Whose stories are heard? Whose pain is addressed? When insecurity grows…not just from guns and terror, but from poverty, unemployment, and failed health systems. Democracy feels like an empty chant at political rallies.
And then, there are the State House concerts. They call it engagement, but it feels more like entertainment to distract a restless youth. Big stages, flashing lights, celebrity appearances…yet behind the music, the cries of hungry families echo louder. It is “picky picky ponky,” a game of choosing which youth will sing, dance, or clap for the cameras, while the real questions about jobs, debt, and dignity remain unanswered.
The contradictions are endless. One day, MPs are paraded as corrupt, enemies of progress, an obstacle to development. The next day, the same MPs are courted to extend terms, to pass motions that protect the powerful. The billionaires’ league remains untouched…those who control wealth and influence always find a way to bend democracy to their favor, while ordinary Kenyans are told to tighten their belts, again and again.
In Kisumu, in Nairobi, in every corner of this country, young people flood the streets not because they hate their government, but because they love their country. They march with courage, demanding accountability, demanding a future. But what does democracy give them in return? Promises. Empty manifestos. Theatrics that play out in Parliament while the cost of unga, fuel, and medicine climbs higher each day.
A world turned upside down is one where the majority suffer while a few thrive. Where democracy becomes a ritual, not a reality. But inclusion means flipping this upside-down world right side up. It means budgets that serve people, not politicians. It means youth not as statistics but as decision-makers. It means health centers with medicine, schools with resources, and governance that remembers that power belongs not to the state, but to the people.
Democracy must be reclaimed. Not as a word we celebrate every September, but as a living truth. Because without inclusion, democracy is just a stage performance. But with inclusion, it is the heartbeat of a just society.
The world may be upside down. But our voices, our demands, our resilience…they can turn it upright again.
Kisumu County
