I am told that today's Nairobi Star has an interesting albeit very brief story about Moi's secret plan to destroy Raila Odinga's chances of ascending to the presidency. I am a little surprised because that was the exact information I was going to share today and I have a little more information than the Nairobi Star, thanks to my faithful team of informants who are the real power of this blog.
The Rift Valley is one place that no presidential contender can afford to take lightly. Not only are there a very high number of votes in the province but the province also boasts of the highest number of parliamentary seats. Moi and his cronies seem to be pretty sure that they hold sway in Rift Valley and both Baba Gidi and Gidi himself (reputed to be the richest Kenyan and the second richest respectively) are hatching a plot to neutralize Raila Odinga's popularity in the province.
The plan is to position...
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12:10
Moi's Secret Plan To Demolish Raila's Presidential Ambitions
» You Missed This -
What Is Moi's Real Motivation?
» You Missed This There is an emerging debate as to what former President Moi's real motivation in wanting to do everything to deny Raila the presidency is.
Raila supporters say that the day Raila is sworn in at as the fourth president of Kenya at Uhuru Park, the moment he puts the bible down, Baba Gidi and Gidi will be behind bars. Some people believe that this is what drives the aging Moi to spend all his spare time these days plotting for Raila's downfall.
However those close to Moi disagree. They say that the old man has said several times in recent weeks that he is not frightened of a Raila presidency. He points out that if Kibaki was not able to prosecute him, then who is Raila? It is said that he has told close aides that he and Gideon are well able to take care of themselves.
So why is the former president so much against a Raila presidency, if he feels that he can take care of himself. Moi's aides and supporters claim that their man wants to save the country from blood shed.
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The Powerful Forces That DO Not Want Raila To Be President
» You Missed This Analysts including this blogger have long pointed to the powerful anti-Raila forces that seem prepared to do anything to ensure that Raila never sees the inside of State House as the main occupant.
Top on that list is Moi, whose tentacles after 24 years as Kenya's presidency spread far and wide, giving him plenty of influence, even when he is no longer president. Then there is the fact that he is rated as the richest Kenyan alive by many people who also place his son Gideon at number two, in terms of wealth. Money usually does miracles in Kenya and magically opens ever doors that have previously been firmly shut for a long time. There is little doubt that a lot of the Moi family fortunes will be put to work against Raila.
Then there is the Central Kenya billionaires club. This consists mainly of people who made their money during the Kenyatta days. Many of these men are in the twilight years of their life and are extremely anxious that the country avoids a Luo presidency at all costs. These individuals who even Kumekucha is frightened to mention here...
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Want To Torture Info Out Of A Kenyan?
» You Missed This Do you want to torture some information out of a Kenyan? That's easy, especially if that Kenyan has not had Nyama choma or specifically mbuzi choma for a long time all you need to do is show them photographs of Nyama choma or even better present a few pieces of well roasted nyam choms and then you can start asking all the questions you want.
"What do you know about XYZ? Tell me everything you know and all this nyama choma is yours."
If it is genuine Kenyan you are dealing with, I can assure you that they will start talking.
So it is not really surprising that some of the gifts being send back home from Kenyans in the US includes Nyama choma, even whole mbuzis.
The service being used to accomplish this is Mama Mikes, that Kenyan web site that has been helping thousands of Kenyans in the diaspora send home the sort of gifts that inspires villagers to sing their praises for days on end.
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12:03
Housewife make Millions... trading stocks & forex!
» Rants, Raves & Reviews I need stock tips from this Japanese housewife!
I think it makes sense for some investment bank or mutual fund to hire her as an analyst or trader... even if just for the publicity!
Japanese housewife makes MILLIONS...
I have a feeling that there are soma "Mamas" in Kenya who have made millions but you would never guess just looking at them!
That's why I cringe when some silly bureaucrat tries to impose rules/regulations ostensibly to protect someone against market risk!!!
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11:21
Bio-diesel; powering growth for tomorrow
» Kenya Imagine Global warming has taken centre stage in discussions on the future of mankind. Climate change and its impact on humans and the environment stand out already as the most pressing problems of our time.
For the already impoverished masses of the developing world, this catastrophe presents also an opportunity. We can ,if prepared, turn a global crisis into an opportunity for change in Kenya and in the whole East African region.
More from Ole Mepukori here. -
The dollar, circumcision and AIDS
» Kenya Imagine Readers will no doubt have seen the new American strategy on combating HIV/Aids in Kenya and the wider the region as is reported in the local press (Daily Nation 23/08/2007).
The reason for the change in strategy is said to have been occasioned by the recent studies in Kenya and South Africa that indicate that Male circumcision more than halves the chance of contracting HIV/Aids among males (by up to 60%).
Read more from Elijah Marangu here.
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11:10
Friday Fretting.......
» My part of the world....... The day I couldn't blog is when I knew my life had plunged into the depths of boredom. Nowadays all my life is work, home, occasional shopping and back again. The one light of my life is the fact that my new apt complex have their own cable provider and one of the free channels is FSN (Fox Soccer Channel) but the only problem with it, is the fact they are a small company so at times the service is trash. So last week on Saturday morning I got up primed to watch Liverpool beat Chelsea only to have a black screen staring back at me. I called them only to be told "we shall send someone over on Wednesday." I had to restrain myself from cussing, Wednesday?! I needed to watch the match now! But anyway I did miss Rob Styles robbing us and handing Chelsea a point, but at least it's back, and I'll be able to watch this weekend's matches.
Speaking of soccer, I found this classic quote about some older players who decided to joint some lower league teams.
Over at Cardiff, the new strikeforce of Robbie Fowler and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink (combined age 232) will surely be dubbed Darby and Joan. Neither will be playing at the weekend due to 'injury' and 'late registration'. Could the real reason be that the team coach has not yet been fitted with a wheelchair ramp?
I was reading this article and first thing I have to say, "no shit Sherlock!" When would white people ever be dissatisfied with their standard of living in America?! It's like doing a study to find out that the Sun rises in the East and sets in the West.
Talk about laying of hands! He must have really been in the Spirit! But for real, to move from sharing the gospel on TBN (The Blasphemy Network) to stomping your wife means that someone just isnt practicing what they preach? Anyway time to go back to my humdrum existance which is only brightened by the splendour that is the English Premier League. Nice weekend people!
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10:17 Blog You on Tuesday
» My Life is...Mochalicious! Yep….Monday ni holiday huku! So, I will make this entry brief! Notting Hill Carnival will be kicking…..I won’t be there this year, but I will be going to a Dj Edu afterparty in London. Pics…..maybe, ongea vizuri! My pal is having a house warming…..so more pics of me cooking chaps on the way, maybe! Its been a hectic [...]
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9:11
All That Glitters Is Not Gold
» For Love and Money All That Glitters Is Not Gold
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7:42
Malagasy Bloggers Unite: Foko
» White African Madagascar is one of the African countries that doesn’t pop up in the news all that regularly. It’s an island of incredible diversity - you can find animals and plants there that are found no where else in the world. However, one of their biggest problems is that their rain forests are being clearcut as people expand into some of the untouched regions.
4 African bloggers from there have united on a project to make a difference. They aren’t just talking, they are doing something. Their goal is to focus on one village in the Southeastern region of Madagascar, with one of their goals being to help save their forests, you can follow it on their new site called Foko. In their own words:
The project is multi-pronged with emphases on tackling environmental issues that directly affects the villagers, building sustainable infrastructures, empowering the villagers to seek manageable solutions, especially the women and providing an efficient health care program.
The underlying philosophy behind the project is that all programs initiated in the village will be able to self-sustain in the long run because emphasis will be put on an effective cost-revenue strategy.
It’s great to see bloggers networking and getting together to do things. It’s the power of the web at work - the ability to communicate easily. Of course, I believe that this culminates in offline interaction, which is exactly what Foko is.
The bloggers:
Andriankoto Ratozamanana (Harinjaka)
Joan Razafimaharo (the Purple Corner)
Lova Rakotomalala (the Malagasy Dwarf Hippo)
Mialy A. (Windows on the new World of SipaKV)
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Correction On Mrs Kilimo's Story
» You Missed This In an earlier post I suggested that Linah Chebii Kilimo who recently defected to support President Mwai Kibaki's re-election bid did so from the Raila camp. This is NOT true. The usually alert Kumekucha even missed the words Mrs Kilimo used in explaining the reasons for her defection. She said clearly she had abandoned a split or half orange which surely has to be contaminated. The half orange is of course the symbol that identifies Kalonzo Musyoka's ODM faction, namely ODM-Kenya. The full orange is reserved for the original ODM.
I take this opportunity to apologize to my dear readers who place a lot of trust in the information I supply them with here daily, despite the jeers of some paid hands who pollute this blog. I would also like to thank my hawk eyed, readers and regulars who spotted the error immediately. This surely confirms that unlike the Kenya Government and Parliament, this blog surely has some very effective checks and balances that work. Not to mention our hawk-eyed well-loved Taabu (or is it Mwalimu Taabu?) Once again thanks guys. I don't know what I'd do without you all dear Kenyans and people.
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4:38
Eccentric Swimming Lesson
» Cock And Bull I used to admire the bigger boys swimming in the river, and I longed to have as much fun as they were having. One day, I asked one of them to teach me how to swim and he agreed. Since I did not know how to swim at all, we agreed that he would teach me one step at a time. Since I was afraid as well, we agreed that on the first lesson, he would let me hold on to his back and he would swim with me. That way, I would familiarize myself with the water and get a grip of my fear. That seemed quite reasonable and when I was securely piggybacked, the bigger boy slowly swam to the middle of the river. I have never had such a thrill, especially when he explained that this was the deepest part of the water.
My first swimming lessons were going quite well, and the bigger boy seemed happy with my progress. He then informed me that he wanted me to see how the inside of the river looked like. I said that was OK, took a huge gulp of air and he went under water while I was still holding on to his back. But then, he did something I had not expected. He swam straight to the bottom of the river and stayed there.
So, I found myself out of breathe under water, holding on to the person who was keeping me there and there was nothing I could do to make him come to the surface. And so, even though I did not know how to swim yet, I realized that if I kept holding on to the bigger boy, I would drown. And that is how I ended up coming to the surface and flapping my arms frantically until I ended up at the river bank. My teacher was to find me shaking uncontrollably at the shore with a big grin on his face and told me, “See! You can now swim without my help!” Apparently, his first lesson was to prove to me that I could swim on my own.
My first swimming lesson is similar to what happens when we ask God to help us increase our faith. The lessons in faith can feel like God has abandoned us. For example, if you pray for more faith and God takes away your job, it is so that you can build enough faith to learn how to trust Him with your daily financial needs. However, people often fail to see this and end up spending a lot of energy running up and down talking to people with ‘connections’. It is not until a person has exhausted all their contacts that they turn to God in resignation. I imagine that the first question that God would ask would be, “why did you take so long to come to me?” Consider a person who asks for more faith and gets sick instead. That person might exhaust all their strength and resources seeking treatment, and it is not until they submit themselves to God that he heals them instantly. Though often eccentric, God’s lessons are very effective.
When we turn over our lives to God, we realize that the things that used to offer us comfort are no longer useful. In fact, they even become the reasons why we are not making any headway. For example, many people already realize that they are holding on to jobs that force them to compromise their integrity, and yet cannot find the courage to walk away. What if a person decided to have faith in God, and resigned? This would be an excellent exercise in faith. Giving faith a chance is a challenge to God to come to our help. He never fails.
It is not until we realize that we are holding on to that which will make us drown that we let go and realize that we can swim.
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4:37
Cheap Liquor In Expensive Bottle
» Cock And Bull Back in college, setting up a party on a student’s budget never used to be easy. However, we knew a few tricks that could make us throw a bash and make people party like it’s 1999. One such trick was that of putting cheap liquor in an empty bottle belonging to a more expensive liquor. One only needed have worried about getting the color right, for these ‘expensive’ bottles came out when everyone was quite drunk. And so, very few people even realized that the taste would be horribly wrong for a Jonnie Walker Black label, Captain Morgan rum, or J&B rare whiskey. When on the next day people raved about how sloshed they became, and accuse you of hoarding all the good drinks until the end, you knew it was a successful party.
That need not shock anyone since in the story of life, there are many instances where cheap liquor is poured into a bottle belonging to a more expensive liquor. Haven’t you ever dealt with a person based on the strength of their job title, only to realize that they are totally incompetent? A few years ago, one of my friends went to set up a site for an exhibition and was left doing the paper work while his driver was allowed to go ahead. The reason is because the driver was wearing a suit and my friend was in jeans and a t-shirt. The guards automatically assumed that of the two, the driver was the boss.
Looks are deceiving. Always take time to look past that fancy exterior in order to know the kind of a person you are dealing with. Don’t be fooled by the beauty, or the clothes, or the money, or the car. The more serious the kind of interaction, the more important it is to take time and look more carefully.
There is a Kikuyu saying, “Arũme maigananagio nĩ mĩbuto”. This translates directly to, “All men are equalized by their trousers”. It means that if you look at a group of men, you might assume that they are all alike. However if they were to each take off his trousers, one might realize that they are all not equal!
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4:36
Miracle Moments
» Cock And Bull Last night, I finally got a chance to see the daily newspaper and was impressed by the half page colored advertisement of a four days even dubbed “Miracle Moments”. The Christian public gathering will be presided over by a preacher from Dubai and starts today, extending for the whole weekend. If I am right, the main feature of the event will be the portion where the preacher performs miracles such as healing sick people and making whole of the handicapped. These kinds of awesome miracle crusades happen in Nairobi once in a while.
Do you have one of those days when you have been doing too many things for too long that it feels like you are operating on auto-pilot? Yesterday was that kind of a day for me. And when I think about it, it is a miracle that I am alive and well today, given all the things that could have gone wrong yesterday. Before even the day started, I was driving in a mad rush to the airport to take a friend who was running late to catch a flight. Just a few hours previously, we had come across a police roadblock along Kiambu Road, and I had casually remarked to my friends, “Maybe a car was hijacked or a person was shot by thugs”. While I was saying that, I was making a return run on that road for the third time that night.
Do you ever wonder at the chances of survival in one single day? On a brief 30 minutes that you are on the road, how many other people perish or are injured while doing the same exercise? On a night that you go to sleep and wake up, how many people die or wake up horribly sick? On a lunch break, how many people will die from starvation of go hungry for another day? My friend was flying for the umpteenth time to Somaliland in one of those tiny planes that make a person feel as if they are floating in a rubber duckie during a child’s bath time. What keeps that plane up in a turbulent sky for hours?
Instead of cursing at the time that we spend in traffic, how about talking to God in thankfulness? Instead of giving dark looks at the driver who dared cross our path, how about being grateful that they never swerved a moment earlier? Instead of waking up to just another day, how about rejoicing at the opportunity of being alive? Instead of scowling at the lunch that looks exactly like what we ate yesterday, how about thinking about how we can help the less fortunate?
That we are alive today, that we are able to walk, that we are well fed, that we are able to read about an upcoming miracle crusade, that we are able to travel by land, air and sea and live to tell about…is all a miracle!
The preacher from Dubai will be able to heal a person who has been suffering from a terrible disease for a long time. That’s a miracle. But isn’t it a bigger miracle for a person not to be suffering from any of the myriads of diseases that are catalogued in all of many copies of the voluminous medical encyclopedias? The preacher from Dubai will be able to restore eyesight to a person who lost it. That’s a miracle. Isn’t it a bigger miracle for a person to have eyesight and all the other senses and all parts of the body functioning correctly? And that is on top of the all inclusive miracle of being alive, that even the preacher from Dubai needs in order to performs his miracles.
Between this weekend’s “Miracle Moments” crusade and the next event which might be weeks away, we can choose to experience our own private miracle moments each time we choose to.
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4:35
Queue First, Ask Later
» Cock And Bull My Zimbabwean friend who lives in Kenya recently came from his country after a two weeks holiday. For the last few days, he has been narrating incredible stories of hardships that Zimbabweans have to endure as a result of a prevailing national economic crisis. For example, as a result of a severe shortage of commodities in the markets, people have to queue for almost everything; from fuel to building material to even foodstuffs.
Zimbabwe’s is a case of too much money chasing too few goods. What makes the situation unique is that unlike in the classic case where the prices of goods would automatically shoot up, the Zimbabwe leadership has maintained stringent price controls on all goods and services. As a result, the astronomical rise in the inflation has made everything dirt cheap and driven most traders out of business since it does not make sense for them to sell at a loss. And so, it is daily becoming a case of more money chasing fewer and fewer goods.
My friend tell us that the situation is so bad that whenever a person comes across a queue, he or she automatically joins it without even bothering to find out what is being queued for. The reason is because one will most likely not have whatever is being sold, or they decide to buy since it might not be available in the market the next time they need it. And so, able bodied men and women are spending hours armed with millions of Zimbabwe dollars looking for queues to join in order to make purchases of much needed commodities. Incidentally, landing in Zimbabwe is guaranteed to make you have more money than you have ever imagined. At the rate of 200,000 Zim dollars for 1 US dollar, you are guaranteed to be a millionaire with just 5 US dollars!
It was in that spirit of ‘join the queue first and find out what is being queued for later’ that one gentleman spent some time along the line religiously shuffling forward on his feet. And then at some point, he realized that he had joined a queue to view a dead body! He must have been too preoccupied to see that everyone was sad and that even some were crying, but my friend adds that in Zimbabwe things are so bleak that that being in a commodities queue is no more uplifting that being in a queue to view a dearly departed.
This set me thinking of the various situations where people subscribe into ventures without having a clue of what is going on. Have you ever met a friend and both of you started walking and then after some time, you find yourself in a strange neighborhood, stop, look at each other and ask simultaneously, “Where are we going?” That happens when each assumes that the other knows where they are going. When it becomes apparent that no one knew, both people feel pretty silly, especially given the simplicity of the situation, and laugh it off.
Unfortunately, people find themselves lost even in much more complicated joint ventures. It is not uncommon for a woman to join a man for a lifetime walk in a relationship, only to realize that the man has no idea where he is going. The reverse is also true. In such cases, one partner might blame the other for misleading them, but the truth is that the person joined a queue without even bothering to find out where it led. People have lost their savings in shaky business ventures, become mislead by dubious religious leaders, and even found themselves in questionable social associations, all in the name of joining first and asking later.
When a person knows where they are going, he or she can only walk with a person who is going in that direction. So, decide where you are going, and you never have to ask another, “Where are we going?”
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1:51
Tanzania diminishes chances of regional integration
» The Benin Epilogue Part I: Africa-Ready for Business 
On 20/08/2007, after the 6th ordinary session of the EAC Heads of State, I waited with bated breath for the announcement of a fully integrated East African Economic Union, a union redeemed from the fear and suspicion that previosuly led to breakup.
To my dismay, the same structural failings and issues that necessitated the first collapse still exist. During the first collapse it was easy to blame ideological differences between Tanzania and the rest of the East African Community since the latter was socialist while the former shared capitalistic ideologies. This aside, the real reasons as time came to reveal was the fear that Kenya dominated the rest of the community.
Following the collapse of the EAC and prior to the recent haphazard re-integration, arose the Common Markets for East and Southern Africa (COMESA ) the only remaining workable regional organisation that Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania had in common. This was until Tanzania opted out again to join South African Development Cooperation (SADC) , allying itself to what is clearly a grouping for Southern African countries.......................(please read the rest of the post at http://businessinfocus.blogspot.com)
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1:01
My happy ending…
» Me, Life & Everything Rendezvous: 0901hrs Prolixity: Minute Mood: Chilled out Whereabouts: WaSk Echelon: II Track: My happy ending - Avril Lavigne. Sasa sijui kaa mnaikumbuka ii ngoma toka zile enzi za bafoe…heheh…mazee…wacha nicheke kwanza..hehhehe!! Haya, sasa leo morning nikielekea waSk nilikuwa nimeachilia Capital Dj Adrian anaangusha ngoma kali kali alafu Fareed anajaribu kuchekesha wadhii na jokes zingine stale kiasi…moja iliwanga ii ya Violet Moyo…aliyocheza [...]
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Constricted political space and forced allies
» Kenya Imagine It was not a big headline, but it may count for more than is obvious. Former Cabinet Minister and Marakwet MP Linah Jebii Kilimo has packed her bags, left the ODM 'bash' and returned to support the government. I am not going to speculate on the exact reasons for the departure of the Marakwet legislator, who was famous not just for her courage in advocating the rights of women in her area before she came to Nairobi, but also for her resolution when she chose to quit the government and serve ODM. But it is curious that she should return now, to the very people and group she had previously made speeches against, and from whose grip she had sought to redeem her people.
More from Amir Ibrahim here. -
Our tribes, our rights
» Kenya Imagine I remember having a conversation with a lawyer friend of mine, where we were discussing whether the jury system of resolving court cases would be viable in Kenya. The jury system ,you would know, is one in which the accused is tried by his peers who, based on the facts presented in court determine his guilt or innocence and thus his fate. He laughed in my face, at my naiveté in conjuring up such a notion. This was not because mine was an unsound proposition but , he said, because I had failed to consider how deeply entrenched tribalism is in this country.
Read more from Sophie Mukwana here. -
Race and Money
» Kenya Imagine Jesse Jackson is in the UK this week. His visit is targeted at the commemoration of the abolition of the slave trade 200 years ago, and importantly too, in addressing the matter of race in the economy. I watched the Reverend on Channel 4 last week. He seemed very urbane, an elder statesman even. Most impressively, he was determined not to look at the world through the red, wild eyes of an angry black man but rather in the strict terms of justice and righting past wrongs.
John Victor Ogot asks Black people all over the world to take charge of their destiny. Read more here. -
Amnesty and Abortion
» Kenya Imagine What does a woman do with a pregnancy that is the result of rape?
Read as Amina Mohamed discusses Amnesty International new policy that will support a woman's right to abortion after a rape.It goes without saying that abortion is not an easy procedure for all parties
involved, however, in instances of violence it is a crucial step on the journey
of healing for the woman.
Read more here.
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