Running communication is not easy

Running communication is not easy

I remember starting to shout in joy on October 20, just two days ago, when that speech by the president of Kenya was still going on.  I was joining many other Kenyans in anticipation.

“Lastly, with the powers conferred on me as the president…,” the TV screen sound came out loudly and clearly.  

It was just about two-thirty in the afternoon on this Tuesday.  It was Kenya’s Mashujaa day holidays, a celebration of heroes from those of independence, to the current ones.  The shouts continued.  The speech continued.

“The national wide dusk to dawn curfew that has been in effect from March 27, 2020…,” he did not even need to finish.

I could hear the louder shouts in the streets of Uthiru.  I heard shouts from the TV itself.  I was shouting myself at Uthiru house.  The junior runner, Atieno, also with me in the house during this holiday, was also in jubilation.  No one, be it on the streets or on TV was waiting for the words to be said.  We knew what would be said.  It was not a surprise when it was said.

“… be and is hereby vacated with immediate effect!”

The shouts in the air reached their crescendo.  The shouts and jubilation would continue for another five minutes.  This was the day that we had been waiting for!  Finally, we would start living our lives without the fear of the dark.  We had not seen the night for over eighteen months.  The day to finally remember that a day has 24-hours had finally come.

That night there was celebrations outside the housing estate, as evidenced by the noises and the background music that persisted all the way to when I fell asleep a few minutes past one.  Kenyans were celebrating their freedom.  

‘All corona restrictions’ had been lifted, according to what I heard on the streets the next day.  Nobody wanted to know that it was just the curfew issue that had been lifted.  It would take the minister in charge of health issues to clarify that other restrictions remained in place, including social distancing, limits of number of people in churches, meetings or events and putting on of masks while in public places.  That clarification did not change things… corona was over!

Three days later, on this Friday, October 22, 2021, there was yet another communication issue that needed clarification, albeit when it was too late.  I had asked the waste management company to clear some items from my office for incineration.  Some of those papers that you just want burnt, call it old notes, money matters, receipts and all.  The contractors have done this for me many times before and I therefore trust them to do this when they say that they shall do it.

I had sent a message to the contractor’s contact person and had asked them to pass by my office and pick a ‘small package on my desk’.  It was the only item on the desk anyway, since I changed offices and all material had already been moved to the new office in another office block, four hundred metres away.

I was therefore in shock, when I came to the new office some four hours later to find all items on my in-tray missing.  I remember having at least two files and probably some marathon registration documents and receipts on that tray.  It was not as clean as a newly purchased tray.  That was strange and it could only mean one thing – someone had made away with my files for whatever reason.

It did not take me long to realize that my very important files had already been turned to ashes.  When I asked the service provider why this was so, they informed me that that is what they found on my desk.

“We first went to your initial office but were told that you had shifted, so we came to the new office”

I was still in shock before they even told me that, “We even thought of incinerating those boxes at that corner,” while pointing to the boxes containing my marathoners team running kits consisting of T-shirts, medals, water and energy drinks.

WWB, the Coach, Nairobi, Kenya, Oct. 22, 2021