6 urgent matters President Uhuru needs to attend to immediately after Supreme Court verdict

President Uhuru Kenyatta running under Jubilee ticket was seeking re-election while his fierce political rival, National Super Alliance (NASA) coalition flag bearer, Raila Odinga was seeking to be elected the 5th president of Kenya.

According to Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) results, President Uhuru garnered 7,339,228 votes which amounted to 98.2% of the total number of votes cast to be declared the winner.

While Nasa has alleged rigging and even demanded Raila be declared president, on Monday morning, the six-judge bench led by Chief Justice David Maraga unanimously upheld Kenyatta's victory in the repeat poll held on October 26th removing the last hurdle and paving way for President Uhuru to be sworn into office.

Here are 6 urgent things Uhuru needs to address while in office before he completes his second term.

#1. Genuine national unity

This is the most pressing task President Uhuru has on his hands as he awaits to assume office, with the general elections over Kenyans are still divided along ethnic lines and some don’t even feel like Kenyans.

Uhuru needs to step up big time and ensure in his second and last term all Kenyans irrespective of their tribe feel like they belong and have a stake as Kenyans.

First order of business is reach out to Kenya’s opposition chief and National Resistance Movement leader,Raila Odinga who represents millions of Kenyans and have a sober talk with him on how to move forward.

When a region feels aggrieved and the government of the day chooses to give it lip service and turn a deaf ear secession becomes the only option.

The two leaders and levels of government need to address election reforms once and for all, enough is enough, Kenya’s economy cannot afford to tumble every electioneering year because of politics.

That will not only go a long way in ensuring future elections are peaceful but remain just that, elections where the winner and the loser shake hands after results are announced, enabling Kenyans to go back to their daily lives without drama.

The most expensive election in Africa must deliver free, fair and credible election results or else it should be done away with.

Everyday spent in Kenya should feel like how our legendary athletes the likes of David Rudisha, Ezekiel Kemboi, Humphrey Kayange and Hellen Obiri to mentioned but just a few make us feel during world's competitions.

#2. Equitable development of the whole country

You would be forgiven for thinking some regions of Kenya are not part of Kenya, so huge is the disparity in terms of development and infrastructures.

Parts of Nyanza and Northern Kenya for instance lack some of the most basic amenities yet they pay taxes like other Kenyans, Uhuru needs to put an end to this.

Devolution has helped in a big way to feel this gap but a lot still needs to be done.

The government needs to come up with affirmative actions to spur development in these areas so has to catch up with the rest of the country.

#3. High cost of living

Despite Kenya attaining independence more than 50 years ago, 42 per cent of its population still live below the poverty line according to unicef.

Immediately President Uhuru is sworn into office he needs to start working on reducing the high cost of living.

Consumer prices in Kenya increased 7.47 percent year-on-year in July of 2017, forcing millions of Kenyans to skip meals so has to cope, that should not be the case with a country which has over 57,000 km² of arable land.

"We wish to give the people of Kenya a government that works and empowers its people because this country belongs to 45 million people and we will empower them to stand up and be independent." President Uhuru said during the launch of Jubilee manifesto.

Uhuru can start by ensuring watertight and durable policies to spur growth are in place as well as Galana/Kulalu project which occupies 1.75 million acres become operational, the sooner the better.

#4. Jobs! Jobs! Jobs!

Now that elections are over, the few hundred of Kenyans who were employed during the campaign season are now jobless.

The few coins they received during campaign season is over and they need a new source of revenue to take care of themselves and their families.

It is time President Uhuru Kenyatta comes up with a long term plan on how to create sustainable jobs for Kenyans youth.

Four out of every 10 Kenyans of working age have no jobs, the worst level of unemployment in the East Africa region, according to the 2017 Human Development Index (HDI).

During Jubilee’s manifesto launch, Uhuru promised to create at least 6.5 million jobs over five years to ensure that Kenyans, particularly the youth, can secure and maintain good jobs that enable them to enjoy a decent life.

It is time he puts his words into action.

#5. Corruption

Kenya scored 26 points out of 100 on the 2016 Corruption Perceptions Index reported by Transparency International.

Corruption Index in Kenya averaged 22.36 Points from 1996 until 2016, reaching an all time high of 27 Points in 2012 and a record low of 19 Points in 2002.

Since coming to office in 2013, Jubilee administration has been rocked by corruption scandals one after another.

It no wonder some section of Kenyans believe one can never be rich in this country unless one becomes a thief.

Nothing much to say here only that Uhuru has his work cut for him.

#6. Insecurity

It is high time Uhuru nip this insecurity menace in the bud.

While terrorism is a global problem and one solution cannot address it adequately nonetheless Kenyans can longer continue dying.

Al Shabaab, for instance, beheaded nine men in an overnight assault on a village in the Kenyan coastal district of Lamu on July 2017.

Public Works PS Maryam El-Maawy was shot on the upper left side of her chest, fractured her hand and sustained severe burns after Al Shabaab militias pounced on her car at Milihoi area on the Lamu-Mpeketoni highway.

She later succumbed to her wounds while receiving treatment in South Africa, this goes to show terrorism does not discriminate between the haves and haves not and therefore the haves can no longer depend on their body guards, high walls and CCTV cameras to be safe.

And while at it, Uhuru needs to also urgently address claims of police brutality, according to Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch between August 9 and September 12, 2017 as many as 67 Kenyans could have been killed by the police.

President Uhuru is the chief commander of armed forces and needs to make Kenya a safe country to live in and prosper.

Check it out here!

6 urgent matters President Uhuru needs to attend to immediately after Supreme Court verdict

Kenyans went to the polls on October 26th and exercised their democratic right in the fresh Presidential elections to elect the leader of the choice.

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