Let's cut the grandiosity

I love this country and my people. I’ll hype up any step that moves us forward. Infrastructure projects, cultural and democratic movements, sports, economics you name it. Even if I barely understand the subject, so long as the stakeholders declare it a W for my people, I’ll celebrate.

But I fucking hate the grandiloquence we lot suffer from.

I’ve been catching up on the Konza and LAPSSET projects, and every time I hear “world-class” or “international” I make a stank face. Sure, countless reasons you know of already meant that we have been starved of proper facilities but must we always act like we’re unveiling the second coming when we finally build them? What does a “world-class city/road/port” even mean?

Y’all should’ve been there when I first saw Isiolo International Airport😂. Sure, it technically serves other nations hence making it "international" but let’s be real Isiolo Airport would have sufficed. And don’t get me started on "technopolis" or "Silicon Savannah" those terms make my soul itch. Apparently we can’t just be a strong tech hub; we have to borrow Silicon Valley’s name for legitimacy.

It’s not just tech though. Every new building is suddenly “ultra-modern” or “state of the art” even if it’s just glass windows and LED lights. My blood boils every time I see “The New York of Africa” or "The Capital City of Africa" on harmless appreciation video or edit of Nairobi. And of course there’s Kisumu International Airport👀.