Using chess to clean up the society

Daring ideas are like chessmen moved forward; they may be beaten but they may start a winning game, said German writer and polymath Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe.

Many parallels can be drawn between what transpires in society and the dynamics on a chessboard.

Besides players being stratified according to ranks and functions, their operations are shrouded in a web of fierce competition, scheming and manoeuvres where wit and positioning determine the losers and winners.

The game mirrors the intricacies of success in a fiercely competitive world.

It entails tactical calculations and strategising, tabulations of a competitor’s intents and how to manipulate and undermine them, timing of critical moves, sacrifice of pieces in execution of bigger plans, patience and promotion of hardworking juniors.

Therefore, a study of this ancient sport can help train visionary and futuristic leaders.

And with Kenya’s Ministry of Education emphasising Vision 2030-compliant courses, chess would be a perfect course.

(In the country, a once active national chess group is now moribund. The game is kept alive mainly by private groups and organisations.)

Invented in India 25 centuries ago, chess spread rapidly through trade and military conquest to the rest of the world.

It was principally developed as a tool for studying the art of contest.

Since it was meant to blend wit and ruthlessness into a winning combination, its operating formulae found a place in other fields like politics and business.

Chess also broadens perceptions, enhances the concept of initiative and encourages fair competition.

One can only imagine the impact a generation of Kenyans with such a mental orientation would have on the realisation of Vision 2030.

Possibilities are limited only by a player’s depth of perception, for as long as one looks deeper, probabilities and opportunities multiply.

Every problem becomes an opportunity in disguise to explore new horizons.