- Ashford Kimani argues that Kenya’s reaction to the Summertides controversy risks overlooking deeper social and economic challenges facing young people.
- He says public outrage alone cannot solve problems rooted in corruption, unemployment, weak institutions and declining social values.
- He calls for stronger leadership, responsible regulation and honest national reflection instead of selective moral outrage.
Every few years, Kenya discovers a new moral enemy. One season it is TikTok. Another it is alcohol. Then comes a controversial concert, a nightclub incident or, this time, the Summertides festival in Malindi. The outrage is loud, the condemnations are swift and politicians rush to occupy the moral high ground. Yet once the noise subsides, the deeper problems remain untouched.
The disturbing videos circulating after the festival deserve condemnation. Public indecency, reckless drunkenness and behaviour that offends both the law and public decency have no place in any civilised society. Those responsible should be held individually accountable. Organisers who fail to provide adequate security and enforce acceptable standards should equally answer for their shortcomings.
But Kenya must resist the temptation to turn one controversial festival into the convenient scapegoat for a nation’s moral failures.
A society does not lose its values over a single weekend. It loses them gradually through years of failed leadership, collapsing institutions and a culture that increasingly rewards excess while punishing integrity.
It is astonishing how quickly some leaders found their voices after Summertides. The same leaders who remain silent as billions disappear through corruption suddenly become passionate defenders of morality because a few young people misbehaved at a beach festival. Their outrage would carry greater weight if it extended to the theft of public resources that denies millions of young Kenyans decent schools, jobs and healthcare.
Kenya’s greatest moral crisis is not a dance floor in Malindi. It is corruption that has become normalised. It is leaders who preach virtue while looting public coffers. It is youth unemployment that leaves educated graduates idle and frustrated. It is the growing hopelessness that pushes many young people towards escapism through alcohol, drugs and reckless entertainment.
The uncomfortable truth is that festivals merely expose cracks that already exist within society. They do not create them.
The danger of selective outrage
Social media has made matters worse. Algorithms thrive on outrage. One shocking video spreads faster than a thousand ordinary moments. Within hours, isolated incidents become the national narrative. Millions who never attended the festival confidently conclude that everyone present behaved irresponsibly. Nuance disappears, and context is sacrificed for clicks.
This selective outrage is deeply hypocritical. Every election season, Kenya witnesses political rallies where hate speech is cheered, violence erupts and public property is destroyed. Football matches sometimes descend into hooliganism. Road carnage caused by drunk driving claims innocent lives almost daily. Yet few demand the abolition of politics, football or highways. Why then should an entire festival be judged solely by its worst moments?
That is not an argument for lowering standards. Quite the opposite. It is a call for consistency.
Responsibility begins with all of us
Entertainment cannot become a lawless zone. Organisers must invest heavily in security, emergency response, crowd management and strict enforcement of public order laws. County governments should issue licences based not merely on projected revenue but also on demonstrable safety plans. Police should protect law-abiding revellers while acting firmly against criminal conduct. Freedom without responsibility quickly degenerates into chaos.
Parents also have questions to answer. Character is not taught at the entrance to a festival. Respect, self-control and responsibility begin at home and are reinforced in schools, places of worship and communities. When thousands of young people struggle to distinguish freedom from recklessness, society cannot outsource all blame to event organisers.
Yet criticism alone will not solve the problem. Young people are searching for belonging, identity and opportunity. Many face unemployment despite years of education. Others see corruption rewarded while honest work goes unrewarded. In such an environment, entertainment often becomes more than leisure—it becomes an escape from disappointment.
Until Kenya addresses the deeper economic and social frustrations confronting its youth, controversies like Summertides will continue to recur under different names.
Learning the right lessons
Ironically, the same festival that has attracted condemnation also generated income for hotels, restaurants, transport operators, beach traders and countless small businesses in Malindi. Tourism remains one of Kenya’s most important economic pillars. Destroying the industry through reactionary bans would punish thousands of ordinary workers who had nothing to do with the misconduct captured on social media.
READ ALSO: Church, Kisii University partner to spread Gospel through sports
Kenya therefore stands at a crossroads. We can continue responding to every controversy with emotional outrage and political grandstanding, or we can confront the uncomfortable truths it reveals.
Festivals need better regulation. Young people need stronger mentorship. Families need to reclaim their role in shaping values. Leaders need to demonstrate integrity before preaching morality. Above all, the law must apply equally to everyone, whether they are revellers on a beach or officials in government offices.
Summertides should not merely be remembered for controversial videos. It should force Kenya to ask a far more difficult question: Why is it easier to condemn youthful excess than to confront the corruption, inequality and leadership failures that are steadily eroding the nation’s moral foundation?
Until that question is answered honestly, every new scandal will simply become another convenient distraction from the crisis that truly threatens the soul of the Republic.
By Ashford Kimani
Ashford Kimani is a teacher of English and Literature who writes on education and social affairs.
You can also follow our social media pages on Twitter: Education News KE and Facebook: Education News Newspaper for timely updates.
>>> Click here to stay up-to-date with trending regional stories
>>> Click here to read more informed opinions on the country’s education landscape
