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President William Ruto with former Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong at State House, Nairobi. [PSC]
President William Ruto says he will make Kenya the next Singapore. He can pull it off, even with just 14 months left in his term. His 30-year master plan is rare in our politics. It’s not fantasy or political theatre. But speeches don’t build nations. Discipline does. So does fearless leadership, a merciless war on graft, and a relentless, passionate drive for industrial growth, fiscal sanity, and sound management. Nothing ventured, nothing won.
Singapore rose on steely leadership, skilled people, strict public accountability, and a business climate that drew capital from home and abroad. Countries don’t fail for lack of opportunity. They fail when they tolerate waste, laxity, impunity and weak institutions. Kenya can mirror Singapore. But ambition must be matched by structural courage and total commitment.
Singapore’s small size helped, but Kenya still has much to learn to stand with the Asian Tigers: South Korea, Taiwan and Hong Kong. As André Gide put it, man cannot discover new oceans without the courage to lose sight of the shore. Lee Kuan Yew turned Singapore from Third World to First in a generation. Dr Ruto should seize the moment to spur Kenya, or squander it.
