When Good People Do Nothing

Singapore’s story is an amazing one.  It has an ultra-efficient, modern airport, built on land reclaimed from the sea. A very efficient transport system where you can get anywhere by their very fast underground trains. Reputed to be the cleanest city in the world. A huge number of high-rise apartments some go up to 70 storeys high (in contrast, Times Tower, the tallest building in E & Central Africa is 38 storeys). 90% of the housing in Singapore is constructed by the government, and then provided at subsidized prices to the populace. The government operates like a corporation and invests public funds, periodically giving a dividend to all citizens! Singapore got their independence from the British only 3 months ahead of Kenya. Unlike us, they had practically no natural resources. Yet where Kenya gets 1M tourists a year, they get 1M tourists a month! Where Kenya’s per capita income (average income per person per year) is 1,784$, Singapore’s is 32x as high! At 57,238$ – the 3^rd highest in the world!

What’s the difference? What happened to us?

I see a key reason in our passage why our involvement in politics is not optional. EVIL WINS WHEN GOOD PEOPLE DO NOTHING.

Read Judges 9:1-21

It’s clear in our story that the businessmen of Shechem were not physically present when Abimelech murdered his brothers. It was the ‘reckless adventurers’, unemployed youths that Abimelech (like many of our local politicians) hired to act as his thugs that struck terror in the hearts of the citizens. If asked, Abimelech’s uncles would have said ‘that wasn’t us – we were minding our own business; we had nothing to do with it – and anyway, what’s wrong with supporting our relative?’ But Jotham’s parable refused to let them off the hook. When the good trees were too busy to minding their own business to give leadership, they allowed the thorn-bush to do so. And as a result, they were ultimately forced to abandon their various businesses and serve the thorn bush or else face fire and destruction! In other words, they paid for their apathy!

Africans often tolerate evils in society which they ought not tolerate. In Kenya, we have tolerated oppression of the poor, people starving whenever there’s a drought, slums and internally displaced people, matatu hooliganism, impunity and public corruption. Our tolerance and our fatalistic acceptance perpetuate these evils within our society. Is it possible that we too will pay greatly for our apathy?

It was Edmund Burke, an 18^th Century British member of parliament, who once said, ‘All that is necessary for the forces of evil to win in the world is for enough good men to do nothing’ Many of us not concerned because Me, Myself and Mine are fine within our pretty fences. What we don’t realize is that evil eventual catch up with us just like in the parable of the trees. The memories of post election violence are still fresh in my mind. The monster that our silence helped create came to my door step and may be to yours too. All of a sudden, the middle class woke up to the fact that they could not hide forever from the realities that affect the rest of the population. How quickly we forgot and went back to business as usual! With 2012 around the corner, we must remember: Evil wins when good people do nothing.

Wikipedia defines politics as ‘the process and method of making decisions for groups’. In other words, when you participate in your estate committee to discuss security in your neighborhood, or when your Life Group decides to help clean out the market area near where you live, or when you rally your workmates to sign up their house helps for NHIF, you are engaging in political action! If we don’t get involved in political action in our neighborhoods, at work and in our nation, others will make decisions for us. And we will have to live with them.

I want to say that it is time for us to get involved in governance & politics. Africa desperately needs new type of leaders in our neighborhoods, businesses, civic and national offices; responsible men and women of integrity and excellence who refuse to enrich themselves or their tribe and who have a genuine concern for and commitment to the well being of all their fellow citizens. And I am saying if not us, then who? If God’s people will not do this, then evil has already won!

How can we begin to become engaged politically?

1. Open your eyes and see… what are the problems and injustices facing people in your office, hood, class, family and nation?
2. Kneel down and pray…for those affected and to show you if there is a role you can play to alleviate their sufferings.
3. Get up and act… A major lie we have swallowed that is straight from the deepest corner of hell… what difference can one person make! ‘My one vote won’t make a difference!’ Here’s what I say to that, the real issue is before God, are you being a faithful steward of the responsibility He has given you? Leave the result to God!

I have a dream…

…That we will train hundreds of leaders of integrity for political and civic responsibility in our nation as  senators, governors, members of the national assembly, CDF committee members, trade and workers unions and many other positions. We already have a group meeting every month led by Pastor Simon, 35 of whom are running for political office in 2012. I dream that these would be leaders of integrity who submit themselves to accountability and that they will influence the way this country is led so that politics becomes known as the clean game

…That through our Life Groups, we will completely change how Nairobi is governed – imagine a LG in every court of every estate in the city; that is actively participating in and leading each estate committee; using resources well to change the city from the grassroots

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