Mosiria to Kenyans: Stop applauding handouts, demand real change

Nairobi Chief for Citizen Engagement and Customer Care Geoffrey Mosiria/ FILE

Nairobi Chief Officer for Citizen Engagement and Customer Care Geoffrey Mosiria has criticised the growing trend of political leaders using handouts as a substitute for meaningful governance, calling the practice both “funny and painful.”

In a statement shared on Tuesday, Mosiria said leaders have turned citizens into “professional clappers” while failing to address systemic challenges affecting livelihoods.

“It is both funny and painful how people have slowly been turned into professional clappers by leaders who should be busy transforming lives,” Mosiria said.

“Leadership, in many places, has been reduced to seasonal photo sessions."

Mosiria lamented that members of the public are often forced to queue the whole day under the scorching sun for a few packets of unga for Christmas.

"Cameras flash, people clap, and everyone is expected to believe a great favor has been done," he added.

He pointed out that much of the maize flour distributed during such events is often donated by companies or supermarkets, sometimes because it is nearing expiry.

“The leader did not grow the maize, did not mill it, and in many cases did not even buy it. Yet they smile for the camera as if they personally sacrificed everything for the people,” he explained.

"That is not empowerment; that is cheap public relations. PS: No Mwananchi gain, only individual political gain."

Mosiria also highlighted the irony of citizens applauding even when the handouts originate from public funds meant to serve them.

“In some cases, funds meant for development disappear, and what remains is returned to wananchi in the form of handouts," he said.

"We clap, we sing praises, and we thank leaders for using our own resources to make us feel grateful and sometimes even foolish."

He offered a practical example to show the cost to citizens:

“Spending an entire day waiting for a packet of unga worth about Sh140 is not help. That same day, a person could earn at least Sh300 through casual work," he stated.

"Now multiply that by 1,000 people. Value of unga given out: Sh140,000. Potential earnings lost by wananchi: Sh300,000. Net loss to the people: Sh160,000 in just one day.”

Mosiria clarified that he is not against helping the vulnerable, but against replacing giving with control.

"This is not an attack on giving. Helping the vulnerable matters. But when handouts replace education, opportunity, and long-term solutions, they become tools of control," he said.

"Leaders who rely on such tactics are not lifting people; they are managing them."

He emphasised that real leadership is measured not by how many packets of unga are distributed, but by how many people no longer need them.

“Let us stop applauding poverty. Let us stop celebrating handouts. Let us start demanding dignity, opportunity, and results. Because progress does not come in a plastic bag,” Mosiria urged.