State should have encouraged, not suppressed Gen Zs for exposing corruption

Morara Kebaso, a Gen Z, rose to public limelight because of his role in 'The Vampire Diaries', in which he exposed corruption at its core. Specifically, he gathered revealing information on mega government projects that had either stalled or never taken off, yet taxpayer funds had been allocated to them. Many other young people were inspired by his creativity, courage, and determination and referred to themselves as graduates of Kebaso University with Index 0002, 0003, and so forth. Gen Z, in particular, began to emerge in all parts of the country, questioning government expenditure on projects that were launched but never took off. For once, young people started to take their civic responsibilities seriously.

One would have expected that government, determined to fight corruption, would take advantage of and nurture such courageous young women and men as advocates for anti-corruption efforts. Unfortunately, this is not how things turned out for the youngsters who took on corruption at its roots. As Kebaso injected the wounds of corruption, he became a target of corruption itself, fighting back. I am not sure how he ended up in politics, but the idea of 'The Vampire Diaries' should never have been left to die by those who care about fighting corruption.

Many of those Gen Z who had emerged as strong anti-corruption agents disappeared from social media platforms. The reasons are not rocket science for anyone to imagine what happened. They were tracked and harassed to silence. The hopes of these youngsters to ensure taxpayer resources are correctly accounted for were dashed. What we now have is business as usual. The lowly who speak against corruption are often followed up and silenced, God knows how.

Where does this leave us? Except for a few institutions committed to fighting corruption alongside government agencies, such as the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC), there is no significant grassroots voice as promising and on a scale of what Gen Z meant to achieve.

I do not know how the government benefits from either remaining silent or actively suppressing innovative anti-corruption initiatives by its own Gen Z. In many public forums, government officials and, indeed, all responsible leaders take the opportunity to call on young people to engage meaningfully in fighting corruption. I cannot think of a more meaningful strategy and initiative than what they were doing: Exposing wastage of public funds on stalled or non-existent projects. What is wrong with this?

Social transformation is a participatory process. Those in government and others who have contributed to suppressing the innovative initiatives of youths in the fight against corruption should revisit their fears. We risk being anti-young people in the name of guiding them or in our ontological worries of losing power and control when young people emerge with creative solutions.

Let us be honest with ourselves. Being anti-young people may not be evident to many of us. However, actively discouraging noble initiatives, such as exposing corruption with such clarity, is a step in the direction of condoning corruption while pretending to fight the vice.

The government needs to nurture social justice activists. We cannot develop without critical voices raising social awareness of ills such as the wastage of public funds and demanding prompt action against those who are bent on embezzling public funds.

We cannot be a peaceful society if young people are not given a chance to grow as responsible citizens who care about the common good. Every generation has its social justice activists. The Gen Z has demonstrated to us that among them are young people determined to make the country a peaceful country through accountability and transparency in the usage of taxpayer funds.

The government stands to be the greatest beneficiary of Gen Z's innovative initiatives aimed at tackling corruption. It pays to support them with the security they need to stand up for their country and their future. The Holy Book advises that even the most wicked of parents will not give their children a snake if they ask for fish, a stone when asked for bread. Let us be humane towards Gen Z.

Dr Mokua is Executive Director of Loyola Centre for Media and Communication