The Kenya Prison Warders’ strike is a far cry to African governments to rethink the manner in which their  institutions function. When the officers staged the strike, the government was quick to remind them that they were under oath hence their  dissatisfaction was an act of 'mutiny.'

An act of mutiny when they were decrying their deplorable conditions? Wasn't a lot of taxpayer money collected and citizens promised that 'by the year 2000' they would have piped water, decent housing, health insurance and electricity? What happened to this grand plan? Why are prison warders suffering eight years down the line? If it is true that they have often complained to relevant authorities about punitive taxes, poor sanitation and lack of shelter they are subjected to, what precedent is the government setting? That the citizenry will be listened to if only they rise up in arms?

Clinging to obsolete social, political and economic institutions has made most African countries suffer. These institutions have served their purpose. However, they were not written in stone. The prevailing circumstances now are totally different from pre-independence ones. Consequently, any institution and oath that leads Africans on the road to serfdom must be avoided as plague or exterminated like vermin.

African governments must urgently resolve to nurture the goose that lays the golden egg by creating conditions that will make the citizenry productive and able to keep more of what they earn.They must also review antiquated colonial working structures that are long overtaken with time.