JAMILA'S MEMO: 250,000 ways to Germany

On my Memo tonight, idadi sio lazima, those numbers can come later. I know we are under pressure with numbers, but they too can wait. And the reason for waiting is very simple: to allow certainty and to avoid contestation. The more exact scientists and linguists have one word for it: accuracy.

I remember my Maths teacher in primary school. He was deeply unpopular. By the way, that was both ways. We were as unpopular to him as he was to us. This gentleman was very specific, especially on that topic called sums.

You see, in sums, the answers must be exact. What this means is the sum total must be the same. Whether it’s from me, my deskmate, or the noisy one at the back, and indeed whether we are in Kericho, Nairobi, or Germany, the sum must be the same. My teacher insisted on that, not just so that we got it right, but so that we don’t mislead.

This brings me to that sum of 250,000 that came from Germany the other day. And hey, it actually originated from Nairobi if you recall that press conference at State House, addressed by President William Ruto and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. That was the first time I heard that number: 250,000 jobs.

You see, that’s a very impressive number, especially when talking about jobs. I mean, if the affordable housing project has created 160,000 jobs, then Germany beats it hands down by nearly 100,000 more jobs. This is lovely Math, but it lacks accuracy. The German Interior Ministry contested and politely denied these numbers. If I were a Kenyan job seeker, as there are millions, I would have felt misled at that moment. This is why numbers must wait until they are certain.

Back home, Kenyans are becoming increasingly good at tracking numbers, and this spells trouble for authorities. Trouble because once uttered, those numbers had better be accurate. Jobs, understandably, are a very emotive issue. We are talking about livelihoods and a means to earn a living.

So every number matters. When you say 160,000, we had better remember we are talking about 160,000 breathing souls. They are not mere statistics; they are real people, real families. And when we upgrade 160,000 to 250,000, we had better be straight with our people, because for sure, they will be pursuing those 250,000 opportunities. And that had better be accurate.

The President has lately been on the spot for uttering contested numbers, but let’s cut him some slack. This President has more than any of his predecessors walked away from the scripted path of presidential communication.

This might sound exciting for those who see this as a skill in top-of-mind command of detail. But there is something I have learned from Kericho to Berlin: the presidency is an office of strict record. This is why the Constitution, in Article 135, requires that decisions of the President shall be in writing. This is because the drafters of the Constitution understood the risk of roadside pronouncements, whether made at home or abroad.

So, on my Memo tonight: just write it down, especially if they are numbers.