In the past 48 hours, Kenya has again woken to the death of its citizens in various parts of the country. As at now the exact number has not been established but the toll is estimated at 100 people with fear of the figure rising as some of the victims are still hospitalized after consuming the poisonous alcohol. The political Islamic movement Hizb ut Tahrir has pointed the notes below in relation to the incident.

First: This incident reflects to the extent alcoholism has spread in the country resulting to Kenya being called a "drinking nation". The name suiting the nation since alcohol is abused from the slums, clubs, academic institutions, wedding and even funerals. This clearly shows alcohol, regardless of its health hazards causing deaths, there are still a few individuals benefiting from its trade. This also clearly shows the rotten measure of the capitalist system when it comes to good and bad as the system only considers the benefit that it begets. In this regard even if alcohol is a danger to human life but a few individuals are benefiting from its trade hence the capitalist system allows the trade to flourish to the possible extend in the simplest manner. This is completely against Islam's view and measure of human deeds. Islam's measure of human deeds is based on either halal or haram. In this case, if something is haram then it is strictly forbidden regardless of the benefits than can come from it.

Second: It doesn't really come as a surprise when calamities like these befall the Kenyan community since the government has adopted a capitalist system which holds a wrong view of human happiness and success. The capitalist system defines happiness and success as the ability to achieve maximum material leisure and satisfaction. To achieve this, the capitalist system believes it is essential to give humankind personal freedom to do whatever one wishes or find necessary. This is again in contrary to Islam, which has clearly defined real happiness as striving to achieve the pleasure of the Creator and confining oneself to His jurisdiction.

Third: Most of those consuming alcohol among the poor and even the rich claim to do so to relieve stress. Though this reason does not justify a noble human being to indulge in such acts, it is true that the Kenyan citizens are going through tough times economically. This is a clear failure of the government in taking care of the affair of its citizens. This failure by the government is justified by adopting a corrupt capitalist ideology with a faulty economic system that just views production of resources that ends in the hands of a few powerful individuals and leaves the rest of the citizens staggering in poverty. Islam on the other side has forbidden humans from losing hope in life and its economic system ensures proper and equal distribution of resources to all and sundry and not allowing only a few powerful individuals to benefit.

Fourth: The Kenyan government certainly declines to declare alcohol as a vice in the community and that it should be banned. It instead resorts to solutions which actually fuels the problems rather than solving them. How can the government claim that the best solution is to give the alcohol trade a hawk eye, hasn't it been doing that by establishing all the regulatory bodies which themselves end up to be corrupt and incompetent? These solutions portray the rotten facts of democracy. It shows how human life is not valued but instead the main concern is the money obtained through taxes from the alcohol trade and leaving human life to suffer the blow.

Alcoholism wrecks the fibre of human structure and also destroys the base on which human race rests. Looking at the statistics; disasters, alcoholism and drug abuse have been a reason for greater number of deaths than what the government calls "terrorism".

In conclusion, the solution to this vice is in Islam. Islam as ideology forbids the consumption or use of anything that affects the human race be it health-wise or socially. According to Islam, alcoholism is a vice and is considered as one of Satan's deeds that leads to abhorrence in the community not to mention sending humans far away from the righteous path of abiding by the wish and whims of our Creator.

Shabani Mwalimu
Media Representative of Hizb ut Tahrir in East Africa