Karl Marx, the revolutionary German economist and philosopher, wrote at a time of immense industrial transformation.
Cities were swelling with workers drawn by the promise of opportunity, yet many found themselves trapped in miserable living conditions, enduring long working hours and grinding poverty. The parallels with contemporary Kenya are difficult to ignore.
Marx viewed history as a series of class struggles in which the oppressed eventually challenge and overthrow those who hold economic and political power.
In ancient societies, slaves and peasants laboured for the benefit of landowners and aristocrats. Industrialisation shifted power towards merchants, manufacturers and the emerging middle classes, but it also created a new divide: that between the bourgeoisie, who own the means of production, and the proletariat, whose labour sustains the economy.
According to Marx, capitalism thrives on this imbalance. Workers create value through their labour, yet they receive only a fraction of the wealth they generate.
The surplus becomes profit, accumulated by those who own factories, businesses, capital and land. The more productive the worker becomes, the richer the capitalist grows. The worker, meanwhile, often remains trapped in a cycle of survival, unable to enjoy the full fruits of their labour.
Marx believed that capitalism contained the seeds of its own destruction.
As inequality deepened and resentment grew, the working class would eventually rise against a system that concentrated wealth in the hands of a few. In its place, he envisioned a classless society governed by the principle: “From each according to their ability, to each according to their needs.”
Whether one agrees with Marx or not, his observations resonate strongly in Kenya today.
Millions of Kenyans work tirelessly every day. They till the land, teach in schools, build roads, drive public transport, run businesses, trade in markets and keep industries functioning.
Yet many remain unable to afford decent housing, quality healthcare or a secure retirement. Productivity rises, profits increase and executive bonuses soar, but wages stagnate and opportunities shrink.
The frustration of Kenyans is therefore understandable. They witness vast fortunes being amassed while ordinary citizens struggle under the weight of taxes, unemployment, rising living costs and declining public services. It often feels as though a small elite captures the rewards of economic growth while the majority bear the burden.
Perhaps the real question is not whether capitalism will be overthrown. The elephant in the room is inequality. How long will citizens tolerate exclusion from the prosperity they help create? At what point do demands for fairness become impossible to ignore?
The responsibility of the government of the day is therefore not merely to pursue economic growth but to ensure that prosperity is shared equitably, institutions remain accountable, and every Kenyan has a fair opportunity to benefit from the wealth that their labour helps create.
The writer is a climate action enthusiast and a communications specialist at Windward Communications Consultancy.
