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22:26
You Call This World News?
» For Love and Money You Call This World News?
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20:29
Shocker: US Exit Poll Now Shows That Raila Won Presidential Race Convincingly
» You Missed This EXCLUSIVE: Kirui the Whistleblower Exposes How They Stole the Presidency
Amid mounting evidence that Mwai Kibaki DID NOT win last December’s general elections, a U.S. government-backed foundation has now released results of an exit poll conducting during the elections that clearly shows ODM presidential candidate Raila Odinga winning the presidential race convincingly.
Indeed this is the first piece of statistic that comes anywhere near vindicating a Kumekucha poll conducted shortly before the elections that gave Raila Odinga an overwhelming 60 per cent of the vote.
Still, the kind of international politics being played out behind the scenes is very complex because it was the very same Americans who released a poll just before the disputed elections showing a Kibaki win. This was followed by an exit poll also showing a Kibaki win. The two polls raised eyebrows more so because all previous polls gave ODM presidential candidate Raila Odinga a clear lead.
Even stranger was how ODM would have convincingly won the vast majority of parliamentary seats with voters clearly in an angry mood against the president’s point men, voting a huge percentage of them out. In one bizarre instant in Webuye the ECK would like Kenyans to believe that voters rejected Kibaki’s Musikari Kombo and yet gave Kibaki the winning number of votes in that constituency (Webuye).
The latest exit polls shocker proves what most Kenyans have known all along—that this was a stolen election. What this also does is to place responsibility for the hundreds of deaths countrywide squarely at the feet of Mwai Kibaki. Indeed many Kenyans are now insisting that when all this is over, Kibaki must face criminal charges, not only for rigging the elections but for the astrocities that resulted after security forces were given orders to shoot to kill. It is believed that it is this order that resulted in the deaths of so many innocent women and children. Some of these bodies were shown piled together at the main city morgue in earlier posts in this blog.
The consequences of stealing an election when Kenyan voters were obviously in a very angry mood as they voted would have been very clear to any right thinking Kenyan. Yet Emilio Stanley Mwai Kibaki went ahead with his circus of December 30th 2007 which has thrown the country into a very serious crisis and caused many Kenyans to lose their loved ones. Incidentaly the current post-election crisis in Kenya is one that will take decades to recover from.
The light at the end of the tunnel is the fact that some analysts believe that the Americans seem to be now doing a “Mobutu” on Kibaki. After propping up and supporting Mobutu Sese Seko for years, the Americans suddenly turned against him in the 90s.
This blogger remains skeptical of the true intentions of Uncle Sam. Only time will tell.
Read full story about exit poll that shows Raila won presidential race.
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19:45
I want to help!!
» intricately me I would like to help with the relief efforts in Kenya, if you need any volunteers or if you know of any way in which i could help, please leave a comment on my page with your contact details and i will get back to you. I have alot of experience in relief work and i would really like to help get our beautiful country out of these trying times in one piece. Its extremely frustrating to watch and hear about the plight of my fellow Kenyans and yet be unable to do anything to help so i would appreciate any responses in regards to this.
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19:09 These Ghanians Are Funny
» Kenyanentrepreneur.com Why do these people even bother? That guy Kufuor had absolutely no charisma. He looked like a kid who was being forced to eat his vegetables (totally disinterested and wishing he could wiggle out of it). Now, they are sending another Ghanian, our friend Koffi Annan (can I get a resolution? and another and another [...]
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18:28
Ushahidi in the News
» White African 
A couple of us have been doing interviews and trying to get the word out about Ushahidi to as many news and media outlets as we can. Why? In hopes that by reaching out and talking to a broad selection of media more people will hear about it and that the news of Ushahidi will trickle down to the Kenyans who need it most. The BBC recently did some interviews with those of us involved with Ushahidi. You can listen to the piece at the link below (4:30 long):
BBC Audio Interview on Ushahidi
BoingBoing and the TED blog each did a write-up about Ushahidi and the TEDsters involved with it.
Well known VC blog VentureBeat has a story on Ushahidi, as well as Global Voices on the broader picture behind cyber activism.
On Business Daily
Good MagazineWe’re trying to spread the word even further. If you know anyone at a media outlet in need of a story, consider helping by directing them towards Ushahidi. This is a newsworthy cause that only gets better the more people know about it and use it.
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16:42
The script of the the Parliamentary Session of Janurary 15th 2008
» Eyes on Kenya Here is the script for the Parliamentary Session of Janurary 15th 2008:
The Session will be opened,
MPs will be asked to pledge allegiance to the Kenyan President Kibaki,
ODM MPs refuse to do so,
next agenda: voting for a new speaker,
only MPs who pledged allegiance will be allowed to vote,
a big turmoil breaks out,
ODM MPs try to stop the session,
all other MPs vote back Francis Ole Kaparo, PNU’s choice.
Alternative ending:
PNU convinces enough MPs to switch sides,
and MPs vote back Francis Ole Kaparo, PNU’s choice.
…and the Academy Award for the best script goes to:
Mwai Kibaki
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Destrcutive Prayer Come True
» You Missed This Joe represents Kenya’s new face. Urbane, eloquent and opinionated this chap is smart with his rights at his fingertips. So this particular Friday evening (December 28, 2007) Joe came home from the pub late one Friday evening stinking drunk, as he often did. Poor intoxicated Joe creeps into bed beside his wife who was already asleep. He gave her a kiss on the cheek and fell asleep.
On waking up, Johnny’s half-closed eyes encounter a strange sight. Standing at the end of his bed, is a heavily built man wearing a long flowing white robe. "Who the hell are you?" Demanded Joe, "and what business do you have in my bedroom?"
"This isn't your bedroom, and I'm St Peter," came the soulful answer from the mysterious man. Joe was stunned "You mean I'm dead??? That can't be, I have so much to live for, I haven't said goodbye to my family....you've got to send me back Straight away".
St Peter replied "Yes, you can be reincarnated but there is a catch. We can only send you back as a dog or a hen."
Poor Joe was devastated. But knowing there was a farm not far from his house, he asked to be sent back as a hen. A flash of light later he was covered in feathers and clucking around pecking the ground. "This isn't so bad" he thought until he felt this strange feeling welling up inside him.
The farmyard rooster strolled over and said "So you're the new hen? How are you enjoying your first day here?" "It's not so bad" replies Joe, "but I have this strange feeling inside like I'm about to explode". "You're ovulating" explained the rooster. "Don't tell me you've never laid an egg before". "Never" replies Joe. "Well just relax and let it happen", says the rooster.
And so he did and after a few uncomfortable seconds later, an egg pops out from under his tail. An immense feeling of relief swept over him and his emotions got the better of him as he experienced motherhood for the first time.
When he laid his second egg, the feeling of happiness was Overwhelming and he knew that being reincarnated as a hen was the best thing that ever happened to him ... ever!!!
The joy kept coming and as he was just about to lay his third egg he felt an enormous smack on the back of his head and heard his wife shouting... "Joe, wake up you drunken bastard, you're sh*tting in bed!!"
Moral of the story: Watch out what you wish for and don't take it for granted. In fullness of time it may turn out to be the noose around your neck.
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15:33
The kiss of death, how Kenya could spoil it for Obama
» Kenya Imagine If you are, as I suppose is likely, Kenyan, the content of this article may be a little bewildering. So let's start by saying that what passes for good and even holy in Kenya, is in most other places unpalatable.
The topmost class of Kenyan politics is mostly peopled by persons with truly dirty histories. Many of them have hands sullied to the elbows in the filth of corruption, constituting as they do a billionaire elect that has made millions in corrupt gains off of what passes for public service within our borders. Of this same political class are several politicians, many of whose political fortunes are in no small way built on the most tyrannical and divisive politics, promoting hatred, violence, exclusion and ethnic division.
Read more from Khadija Mohammed here.
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tick tock tick tock..........
» You Missed This Gangs of Nairobi
Andrew Ehrenkranz and Scott Johnson
Photo: AFPLAST July, Washington made some brief, if mostly unexamined, news in East Africa when it announced a $15 million grant to the Kenyan government to help with "law and order" issues. The funding came a full six months before last December's disputed Kenyan election and the subsequent wave of violence that is now flowing, amoebalike, across the country. For outside observers the cash injection may have seemed odd, given Kenya's positive political and economic track record. But the African nation's nicely lettered signposts of progress and development masked a jarring problem. Throughout much of last spring, in part because of the run-up to the elections but also for a host of other reasons, huge swaths of Kenya were succumbing to a particularly undulant, brutal kind of gangsterism. In episode after episode, many of which were documented by Kenyan reporters, innocent people were beheaded, skinned, raped, murdered and tortured by members of a secretive outlawed sect called Mungiki. In response the Kenyan police and domestic security services began to jail thousands of young men. Human rights organisations began calling attention to the apparent "disappearances" of several of them. The "Mungiki threat" became a national, if not an international, obsession. Kenyan fears were not misplaced. The dynamics of the Mungiki sect were as compelling as they were appalling. Mungiki had deep and growing political influence. Its 1.5 million members were drawn from Kenya's largest and most powerful tribe, the Kikuyu, who controlled much of Kenya's economy. The sect was said to have as much pull with the police as it did with senior ministers. And yet for all the suspicion, the government, led by Kikuyu President Mwai Kibaki, appeared to be fighting back against the destructive creep of criminal violence by stepping up police raids in cities like Nairobi, a Mungiki stronghold and long the center of a major crime problem.And then the elections happened. Over the last several days the world has begun to focus its attention on the particularly complex web of factors -- tribal, economic and historical -- that have thrown Kenya into its worst political crisis of the last half century. US Assistant Secretary of State Jendayi Frazer has been in talks with Kibaki and his opposition rival, Raila Odinga, to find a solution to the political stalemate. On Monday both figures agreed to meet to discuss ways out of the impasse, but on Tuesday there were fresh outbreaks of violence after Odinga pulled out of direct talks. His withdrawal was in protest of Kibaki's unilaterally making some key cabinet appointments ahead of the arrival of African Union chairman John F. Kufuor, who arrived in Nairobi Tuesday to mediate the talks. Meanwhile, the Law Society of Kenya, citing the Kenyan constitution, announced Tuesday that Kibaki was in office "illegally" and called for fresh elections within 90 days. It could be weeks or months before a viable political solution is hammered out, however, and as that process wears on, the subterranean forces in the ghettos and slums of Nairobi have begun to reassert their strength. This time, though, the gangsterism of the spring is quickly morphing into an ethnic war -- a radicalisation of the tribal politics that has garnered so many headlines and cast the unity of the country into doubt. The poison is manifesting itself through what could be called the gangs of Nairobi, the swarming multitudes of young men who have begun patrolling the slums with machetes, axes -- anything they can find to protect themselves from one another and from the swelling tide of resentment that the election and its handling have cast over the city. In its crudest form the gangsterism has taken on tribal overtones. On one side are the Mungiki, the self-proclaimed protectors of the Kikuyu, but also of the disenfranchised, the poor and the outcast. On another are crowds of enraged Luo tribesmen, whose anger over the disputed election results that kept their candidate, Odinga, from taking office, have contributed to the looting, burning and killing across the country. The result, at least in the hives of Nairobi's ghettos, places like Kibera and Mathare, is a tense standoff between groups of armed men and a pervading sense of unease about the ability or willingness of either side to back off. In one such slum, known as Area 3 -- a sprawl of tin-roofed shacks, supermarkets and community centers that have been burned to the ground over the last two weeks -- a lumbering Luo man wearing a New York baseball cap and carrying a 10-inch machete tucked into his jeans, escorted a Newsweek reporter into a Luo safehouse. "Don't worry," he said, "it's safe here." The man, who called himself Titus, was a security escort for this group of Luo vigilantes, who have taken to calling themselves "Taliban," partially in emulation of the draconian tactics of the Afghan tribesmen who enforced law and order through the barrels of their AK-47s. Looking out onto the street, these Luo Taliban searched the area for the men they now perceive as their sworn enemies: the Kikuyu Mungiki gangs who have taken up positions at intersections and alleyways. Taliban members see themselves as providing security and justice. They first became active the day after the elections. Their men, typically tall and built like heavyweight boxers, light fires and sleep with groups of unaffiliated volunteers outside apartment buildings and shanty towns at night, trying to allay the fears of restless women and children. Last Saturday night Taliban members tried unsuccessfully to dynamite a small bridge that links a Kikuyu area to a smaller Luo area where a now vacant tenement building had been attacked."Those are them," whispered one Taliban member named Moses, pointing at a group of armed men down the street manning a fruit stand. He believed they were Mungiki. Earlier that morning two non-Taliban Luo had been killed walking across an adjacent neighborhood called Stage 2930. Moses believed the killers were Mungiki disguised as policemen. Without the protection of the Taliban, Moses said, the Luo are in danger. Moses claimed to have seen four people butchered and said he had had to use his own panga machete in self-defense on three of the last four nights. As the incursions and counterattacks have increased in this desperately poor section of Nairobi, many have been left without food or water. Food prices have skyrocketed. Three small potatoes stacked on a vendor's mat used to cost less than a nickel; today they are an unaffordable 50 shillings, about 55 cents. Moses said he thought the violence elsewhere in Kenya among similar groups of armed men was simply a long-suppressed desire for revenge. " If you are Luo, they chop you," he said ruefully. "So what do you think we do?"Fears about the Mungiki seem well founded. In an interview with Newsweek last summer, Hezekiah Ndura Waruinge, co-founder and former national coordinator of the sect -- it's name means multitude in Kikuyu -- said the sect had changed drastically from its original conception as freedom fighters modeled on the Mau Mau rebels who fought for independence from Kenya's British colonizers. "Mungiki no longer exists," warned Waruinge, adding that the new gangs are dangerous because "there is no more central control. There is no leadership to negotiate with, just a bunch of rogue groups taking money from the highest bidder." While much of the Mungiki's ritual and history is shrouded in secrecy, their attacks have tended to follow distinct patterns. Prior to attacking they make a bonfire and roll their pantlegs up to alert fellow members in the area. They believe that women should be circumcised -- and sometimes force the procedure on them. In other cases Mungiki behead and circumcise their victims, usually scattering body parts in different public locations. No outsiders know what all their initiation rituals are for certain, but some are said to involve drinking or bathing in blood.With postelection Kenya becoming increasingly volatile, many residents fear a brutal boost to Mungiki power. Many Luo slum residents, like 29-year-old Rachel -- who was afraid to give her surname -- are planning to flee Mathare. "We don't even talk in our own language because of Mungiki," Rachel says. "We can't sleep here, so we are staying with a relative in a Taliban area." Many others, seen filling up the backs of old pickup trucks and steering their belongings on wooden carts, are following suit, heading toward the displacement camps that are growing in number outside churches, police stations, and military bases. Hustling out toward a safer haven on Sunday afternoon, Louis Etiyang sported thick bandages on his head and machete gashes on his arms. On Dec. 30 he was walking alone through a Kikuyu area when someone shouted "Luo!" and a group attacked him. "If a KTN (Kenyan Television Network) truck had not passed, I'm dead."The conflict has pitted tribes, voting blocs and even best friends against one another. The majority Kikuyu and the Kamba tribes are together. Kenya's third- and fourth-largest tribes, the Kalenjin and the Luo, as well as a hodgepodge of many of the country's 40-odd tribes, have also forged an alliance. "Everything is different now. It's all tribes and partisans," said Rogers Wanyonyii, a 35-year-old teller at a currency exchange bureau who was hovering near a group of Luo men clutching makeshift weapons outside a barricaded restaurant in Taliban stronghold Area 4-A. "What I see isn't Kenya; it's like war." Given the tensions between the Taliban and the Mungiki, that war isn't likely to end anytime soon.
[www.thedailystar.net]
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12:58
The History of Land in Kenya
» Kenyanentrepreneur.com It is becoming clear to anyone watching the unfolding violence in Kenya that the question of land is at the heart of the issue (especially with the violence between the Kalenjin and Kikuyu in the rift valley). It does not appear to be an issue in Kisumu (they just want Raila to become the president). I’ve [...]
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12:07
Jelly Fish
» Cock And Bull My friend warned me that a season would come when there would be numerous tiny jelly fish in the ocean and it becomes excruciatingly painful to swim. And as I touch my still sore knuckle, I guess that season is about now. I have had 2 jelly fish stings in the last three days. The first day it happened, a tiny jelly fish drifted towards me from the back and came into contact with my shoulder. Reacting from the sting and not knowing what was going on I reached behind and smeared the wispy tendils all over my back, making it even worse. I can only describe it similar to the pain of skin coming into contact with a hot surface. And the reaction is similar since like a burn, you instinctively attempt to wipe it away even after the contact is no longer there.
Up till today, the only thing that I knew about jelly fish is what I learnt from the animated movie titled Finding Nemo: that they look similar to pretty pink mushrooms with thin roots growing downwards and that they sting. The jelly fish at the coast of Mombasa must be babies since they are tiny and blue have a few bubbles around them. They might not even be easily recognized from any other tiny sea debris floating in the water making them treacherous. Today I heard howls and screams from no less than three swimmers who had been stung.
And as I research about jelly fish, the most surprising things to learn are that they have no brain and that the same orifice used to take in food, is also the one used to expel waste. Here’s more:
The body of an adult jellyfish consists of a bell shape producing jelly and enclosing its internal structure, from which tentacles are suspended. Each tentacle is covered with cells called cnidocytes, that can sting or kill other animals. Most jellyfish use these cells to secure prey or for defense. Others, such as the Rhizostomae, do not have tentacles at all.
Jellyfish lack basic sensory organs and a brain, but their nervous systems and rhopalia allow them to perceive stimuli, such as light and odor, and respond quickly. They feed on small fish and zooplankton that become caught in their tentacles. Most jellyfish are passive drifters and slow swimmers, as their shape is not hydrodynamic. Instead, they move so as to create a current forcing the prey within reach of their tentacles. They do this by rhythmically opening and closing their bell-like body. Their digestive system is incomplete: the same orifice is used to take in food and expel waste. The body of an adult is made up of 94–98% water. The bell consists of a layer of epidermis, gastrodermis, and a thick, intervening layer called mesoglea that produces most of the jelly.
Most jellyfish have tendrils or oral arms coated with thousands of microscopic nematocysts. Generally, each nematocyst has a “trigger” (cnidocil) paired with a capsule containing a coiled stinging filament armed with exterior barbs. Upon contact, the filament rapidly unwinds, launches into the target, and injects toxins. The animal can then pull its prey into its mouth, if appropriate.
Although most jellyfish are not perniciously dangerous to humans, a few are highly toxic, such as Cyanea capillata.
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11:59
Hostile Takeover of Sorts…
» Me, Life & Everything Rendezvous: 2059hrs Prolixity: Medium Mood: Bleh Whereabouts: Home Track: Easy Lover, Phil Collins I decided to have a look see at the putrescent stuff that has been residing on my blog, this being occasioned by some things that ensured we hobbled into the new year, and no, its not about humpty dumpty or none of his relatives, just that i [...]
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11:30
Night Time In The Heart
» Cock And Bull It was one of those nights where a person finds themselves wondering how long they have been awake or asleep. I did not know what time it was, and did not want to know. All the same, I hoped that it was closer to morning than to midnight. The air was very still and the night was hot and stuffy. Whereas I would be tossing around in bed if I were in Nairobi, in Mombasa, I found myself scratching my body at no place in particular. And so it was almost a relief to learn that Kachir was drunk once again.
In this town, Kachir is the word used to refer to fried potatoes, and is the nickname given to the short, lean man with a bald head and shaggy beard who lives in an iron sheet shack at the back of the apartments block. The reason why the man is called Kachir is because once in a while, he lights a huge fire, brings out a huge frying pan, boils some salad oil and spends a few hours preparing potato crisps. He then packages them in small transparent plastic bags and sells them next to the main gate. However, his trade is not consistent since as soon as he has a substantial amount of money, he wraps up his trade and goes off to drink mnazi (local alcoholic beverage prepared from coconut milk).
Kachir might or might not be our watchman. I heard that he resigned about a month ago after a theft in the neighborhood, but from his loud theatrics last might, I suppose he still considers himself the watchman. When he resigned, he took up the job of cleaning the neighborhood and collecting garbage, after telling off the former contractor.
Though inconsistent, Kachir is very hard working. He is also the true jack of all trades and an even truer master of none. The other day when my shower tap was leaking, Kachir offered to fix it. Even though he only needed to replace a rubber valve, I ended up purchasing a whole tap, and then realized that he did not have the right tools to fix the problem. The leak was eventually fixed when Kachir enlisted the help of friends. If water was blood, and Kachir and company were a team of surgeons, it would have been one of the messiest operations you have ever seen. It is amusing to think that Kachir’s solution was similar to a person buying a new car so that he can remove the wheel and replace the puncture on the old car, and then realizing that he did not have a wheel spanner once the purchase had been finalized. Still I am grateful to Kachir since when I moved in, he is the one who did the general cleaning in my house and also did most of the moving of the furniture. I also have a standing offer from him to do my laundry, which I keep turning down.
Anyway, Kachir was high as a kite and he walked into the compound shouting at imaginary enemies. He dared them to “kuja mkirukaruka kama chura” (come hoping around like frogs) and informed them of his deadly arsenal of bow and arrows. By then, I was already out of bed and I looked out of the window to see him seating on a heap of building stones attempting to wear his shirt. The task must have been very cumbersome to accomplish as he simultaneously made his loud threats since it took a very long time before the shirt successfully went over his head. By then he had given his opinion about educated people who do not use their “school brains”, the government and also about the opposition. To a person from bara (upcountry), listening to Kachir’s insult laced tirade of poetic coastal Kiswahili is as fascinating as a British aristocrat listening to a African American brother talk shop.
When his shirt was firmly on his back, he stood up and went away towards the direction he had come from. And there was just a small respite after Kachir’s departure before a car pulled up and the silence was replaced by the agitated voices of two females. One was telling another, “Makena…stop crying!” and the one called Makena replied by telling her partner, “Why does someone take my life for granted?” After a short heated exchange, the car drove away with Makena’s voice wailing loudly. That is not totally unexpected in Mombasa since here, the party never stops and once in a while the aftermath comes interrupting your sleep.
When I found Kachir washing a car at the car park this morning, I asked him who had so incensed him last night, and he looked at me as if he had no idea what I was talking about. And as I walked away I thought about the cycles; the light that chases away the darkness and you cannot recognize the person you saw in the night, when it is day. And I prayed to God that the angry Kachir and the anguished Makena that is in each one of us may find true peace, and that eventually in our hearts, night may be as day.
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If Raila Were the President
» You Missed This EXCLUSIVE: Kirui the Whistleblower Exposes How They Stole the Presidency
A Christian newspaper in Tanzania, Mwamini Mungu, yesterday alleged that Kenya would be ruled by Sharia Law if Raila were the president. In fact, this was the lead story in the newspaper.
It continued to say that the arsonists who torched churches in some parts of the country were in fact venting their hatred and ire for failing to achieve their goal of turning Kenya into a Muslim state. The nitty gritty of how this would have been accomplished was set in a secret meeting that was held on 29th August, 2007 in Mombasa between Raila and a cross section of Muslim leaders.
The fact that only churches, and not Mosques, were targeted is reason enough to believe the crisis in Kenya is not only fuelled by political reasons but also by religious fanaticism.
One of the reasons that was tendered to prove this claim was the secret MOU which was signed between ODM‘s Raila Odinga and the chairman of the board of Islamic leaders in Kenya Sheikh Abdullah Abdi.
This MOU said in part that once Raila took the helm he would acknowledge Islam and accord it special treatment.
Another politician who is believed to be party to the secret MOU, which the paper claims to have a copy of, was Najib Balala (a Muslim and a leader who is very popular at the Coast especially in Mombasa).
Among the ‘demands’ tabled by the Muslims in the event that ODM won the presidency was a change to the laws of the land to set apart Coast and North Eastern Provinces for Muslims. Muslims would have complete control of the regions’ religious matters.
The Council of Muslims would be responsible to go through requests to start religions other than Islam in these regions. They would have the final say whether to accept or reject the requests. This would be for the purposes of rooting out any “imani potofu” and Satan worship.
Within six months of the ODM in power, a new constitution would be drawn. This new constitution would embrace Islamic laws (Sharia Law) to be at work in the regions set apart for Muslims.
The ODM government would sack the Police Commissioner with immediate effect. It would also ‘break’ the special Force that deals with terrorism (ATPU) which is believed to be ferrying some Kenyans( mostly Muslims) who are suspected to be terrorists to Guantanamo Bay in Cuba.
Raila, it is said, agreed to the creation of Kadhi Courts in each and every District in the republic when he ascended to the highest office in the land. Madrasa classes (classes where Islam is taught to children) would also be incorporated in the school system. Each and every primary school would have Madrasa for the Muslim students. Religious open air meetings (such as crusades) would not be allowed in the Coast and North Eastern Provinces.
The MOU also stipulated that all areas where 40% of the people are Muslims, alcohol would not be allowed to be sold. Also preaching that is accompanied by signs and wonders of miraculous healing would be illegal in such areas.
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9:00
Tribalism & The Youth
» tHiNkEr'S rOoM Without a doubt one of the most uttered sentences in Kenya today is along the following lines ... Me? A tribalist? No! I am no such thing! A more refined version goes as follows. I am not a tribalist! In fact I have friends who are Kikuyu/Luo/Kamba etc. Interesting. A feeling of déjà vu ...
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Kirui the Whistleblower: How They Stole the Presidency
» You Missed This By Kipkemoi Arap Kirui
STATEMENT
My name is Kipkemoi arap Kirui, 40 years on January 24th. I am a Clerk Assistant at the National Assembly working at the Table Office. I am a lawyer.
This is my statement of activities that took place at the Electoral Commission of Kenya’s National Election Centre at the Kenyatta International Conference, Nairobi in December 2007 during the nomination and voting exercise.
I am writing this statement on January 2, 2008 in hiding. I am not able to lay my hands on a number of documents which would provide further evidence of the irregularities that I witnessed during the vote tallying exercise.
Sometimes late in November 2007, after I proceeded on my annual leave, I received telephone and later written instructions from Principal Clerk, Mrs. Consolata Munga, on behalf of the Clerk of the National Assembly assigning me duties at the Electoral Commission of Kenya to assist in the General Elections Nomination Exercise and later at the National Tallying Centre after the voting was concluded.
The nomination exercise was orderly. At least at the ECK nominations processing centre. I was in charge of Coast and Nairobi. Though I was apprehensive about Lang’ata and Kamukunji constituencies, the exercise went on smoothly.
On December 19, 2007 I got another phone call from Mr. Mutungi a colleague from the National Assembly Hansard Department asking me to report at the KICC. He told me that I had been assigned the duties of a Team Leader of Team II (Night Duty). I was at my home in Western Kenya. I took a bus the next day for Nairobi. I arrived the same evening and reported at the KICC National Tallying Centre. Work had not started. So I proceeded to my residence to rest. I reported to work early on December 21st and found a slow briefing process going on. The officers in charge of staff were a Mr. Simon Njoroge Inegene (a nice gentleman I later learned was a Human Resource Officer with the ECK, and effectively in charge of staff at the venue temporarily hired by ECK for the election exercise), and others were Mr. Njogu, Mr. Laichena, Mr. Koech and Mr. Chepsat who I never got to interact with so much except in their course of issuing instructions. They took us through some briefing.
The staff at the National Tallying Centre were largely school leavers and students in colleges in town. They were handpicked by officials from ECK. The briefing process was haphazard and wanting in many ways. Recruitment of staff continued until the eve of the Election Day.
Duties: I was made the Deputy Team Leader of Team II (Night) under a Mr. Chris Musyoka. Things later changed and a Mr. Malonza was posted. He never stayed long and a Mr. Njuguna was posted as Team Leader. At one time on the night of 28th Mr. Njuguna admitted to the team that he did not understand what he was expected to do. He asked that I assist. I was already apprehensive because around this time, a number of my colleagues who were in other teams were smelling mischief. We went round whispering. It was tense. We were expected to make calls to Returning Officers (ROs) to start receiving preliminary results where vote counting had been concluded.
For the Presidential Elections, the ROs must deliver physical copies of the statutory declarations. The ROs are not empowered to vary results declared at the tallying level. Most of the ROs had been allocated satellite phones, mobile phones and adequate airtime for the exercise. They also had Fax machines. Each Team at the KICC also had five telephone/fax lines. The process was supposed to be smooth. We were supposed to have received the preliminary results by midnight.
I was in charge of Galole, Bura, Lamu West, Lamu East, Taveta, Wundanyi, Mwatate, Voi, Dujis, Lagdera, Fafi, Ijara, Wajir North, Wajir South, Wajir West, Wajir East, Mandera West, Mandera East, Moyale, North Horr, Saku and Laisamis constituencies as a Deputy Team Leader (Night).
On the night of the 28th we sat for long hours without any call from the Returning Officers. We attempted to call them one by one. There were 21 constituencies under my charge. There was no response until about five in the morning when some who sounded sleepy and uncooperative refused to give any information saying they had nothing to give. They would then hang up. Some rendered themselves completely unreachable. I left work at 7.00 am. Concerned.
I left the Hall to find strong General Service Unit (GSU) police officers within the building on every floor and outside the building arranged a metre a part round City Hall Way, Parliament Road, Harambee Avenue and Taifa Road. They had sophisticated weapons, namely, powerful machine guns, grenades and teargas canisters. [It was a scene of tension building up typical of what I saw in the famous movies ‘Hotel Rwanda and ‘100 Days’.
I must also indicate here that I had accompanied officials of the KNCHR and Kenyan Members of Parliament to Rwanda in 2004 on what I regarded as a ‘pilgrimage to conscience’. I still went back to Rwanda in 2006. I decided to commit myself to the course of human rights and justice]. I went to sleep. I did not have a wink. I watched the news coming in in consternation. The results were coming in too slowly.
I took some light lunch and proceeded to work at 5.00 pm. I never used my car. Matatus were hard to come by. So I left early. I alighted at the Times Tower bus stage and walked up the few metres to KICC Harambee Avenue gate. It was barricaded by the GSU. I was asked to go round to the City Hall Way gate. It took me around twenty minutes to get through the GSU stops and questioning (This would ordinarily take a minute). I got to the office at 7.15pm.
December 29th. It was tense. The day staff had left in a huff. Never handed over to me. They handed over to my new Team Leader. Constituencies received: Lamu East, Lamu West, Wundanyi and Dujis. The statutory documents Forms 16A, 17 and 17A did not accompany them. I refused to deal with them. For most of the night, we kept calling the ROs. The Ijara, Galole, Wundanyi and Dujis statutory documents were never received at all.
Why? The Day Team Leaders responsible did not sign for receiving them. They left it to us. Form 16As had not arrived. There was word going round that we do not accept results without Form 16A because my colleagues doubted the incoming data. Work stopped until around midnight when one sleepy looking guy was ushered in. He was from Moyale. He started with a quick doze. He did not have his Forms 16A, 17 and 17A. I asked him to rest while I consulted. I talked to a Mr. Chepsat who advised that I do not receive the results. I did not. Hours later Chairman Kivuitu would be going public with Moyale results.
After Moyale, we received Saku and Laisamis. No Forms 16A, 17 and 17A again. I refused to receive them. My Team Leader went ahead to receive them nonetheless. ECK Chairman went ahead to announce them. The figures were in a number of instances overstated. I was perturbed. There is no reason why the ROs did not get back to us with the statutory documents three days after the vote tallying at the constituency.
My colleagues informed me of reduction and suppression of results in some constituencies. This is when I raised the alarm. I hit the roof. I pulled my Team Leader Mr. Njuguna aside and I started by saying “My brother, this is an important national exercise. I am concerned that we are not following the law and we are letting down Kenyans …” He told me that he was recommending to his bosses that I be removed because I was proving difficult. He actually went ahead to report me to a Mr. Koech who dismissed him and asked him to cooperate and work with me. He went back to the work station. I came back to find him addressing the team members. I informed them that I regarded the work we were doing as an important national exercise and it demanded patriotism and a non partisan approach to issues. I told him that I demanded his respect and cooperation. He said I should leave if I so wished. I left in a huff…
I feared for my life. I never took the matter up with ECK Commissioners.
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8:17
Something to Do
» bankelele 1. Donate
Through Mama Mikes and a bloggers for Kenya initiative.
There are also other other initiatives - like Save-A-Life, Kiss FM's Jaza Lorry, the Nairobi Women’s Hospital, but beware of a revival of some NGO’s and unusual causes
2. Report Violence
Ushaidi.com is a tool for people who witness acts of violence in Kenya in these post-election times. You can report the incident that you have seen, and it will appear on a map-based view for others to see.
(3) Become a better tipper
Or, better yet, start tipping - because in Nairobi, tipping is something that we have left to tourists only.
Kenyans are woefully underpaid especially out security forces (some of whom had not been paid salaries even as they were asked to quell post-election violence) and yet they also guard our houses, million shillings cars, look after our families, serve us meals they can never afford, and never ask for more.
Many of them live in the very areas that relief initiatives are being formulated for - but just because they are not visibly suffering does not mean they don't need our help. And while many of us are at the mercy of people whose ability to take our money we can’t say NO to (taxman, church, landlord, relatives), we need to spare a moment for those less fortunate who we interact with everyday, who also have lives and families, and are more at risk after working a full day. Yet we dismiss them so quickly, if they ask or dare to look like they are about to ask for help while at work.
So even if it means paying less tax or tithe, or having one less beer in order to spread some wealth around, get to know these people better and tip them well; waiters, maids, taxi drivers, bank clerks, and especially policemen – though how this can be done without being seen as bribing them – is a delicate task to accomplish.
Banking briefs
- Kenya’s leading bank, Barclays, is the first to acknowledge a distressed loans problem resulting from the post-election violence and standoff.
- From IHI blog; tired of bank charges? Consider a shariah account since they won’t incur frivolous charges that build bank profits.
Paper banks : Is the Nigerian banking model, which Kenya is going to emulate with increased share capital and consolidations, built on sand and bilking shareholders?
Other observations
- China speaks on the Kenyan political crisis blaming the west for imposing democracy on Africa.
– Mobile phone wars continue with Celtel shockingly low rates, while market leader Safaricom won't compromise and keeps making money
– Hawkers who expected to be evicted from downtown Nairobi, on December 28, now enjoying continuing business with the political uncertainty in the air
– It’s not quite as staggering as Marion Jones or BALCO scandals, but from this month on a whole bunch of expensive, long hitting, golf equipment, widely used in Kenya,(including some Callaway, Titleist and TaylorMade), are now illegal. If caught using them you will be disqualified from a tournament or match event.
– Rapidly growing and expanding Fly540 airline taking a dig at Kenya Airways – with an advertisement that their propeller powered aircraft (ATR72) are more environment friendly than KQ's jets
– Advertisers taking down the politician billboards that littered the city
– As fuel prices pass the 90 shillings a litre, will some petrol pumps in the country be able to process the sale prices over 100 per litre (3-digits) which are around the corner?
– Where’s the prophetic prophetic Mutahi Ngunyi gone to?
Opportunities
- Kenya Airways: Head Of Marketing & Corporate Communications, In-flight Performance Manager, Load Control Officer, Head Of Is Development (IS) , Systems Administrator, Training Officer – Fares & Ticketing, Qualified Pilots, Multilingual In-Flight Attendant, Customer Service Agent
- Sales positions at KCB. download form here.
- Director of research at the Mo Ibrahim Foundation. D/L is 31/1
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Tribalism & The Youth
» tHiNkEr'S rOoM Without a doubt one of the most uttered sentences in Kenya today is along the following lines …
Me? A tribalist? No! I am no such thing!
A more refined version goes as follows.
I am not a tribalist! In fact I have friends who are Kikuyu/Luo/Kamba etc.
Interesting. A feeling of déjà vu took over me and it’s just this morning I figured out what was causing that feeling.
About two years ago I wrote a post about tribalism, or to be precise an amazing creature that had been introduced to me called “positive tribalism“. I remember how astounded I was when I first heard it. I thought it was the most outrageously preposterous thing I have ever heard. And there were people who objected to my objection. The post, needless to say, triggered a healthy debate, replete with the usual fare of outraged indignation, threats, and insults, thinly veiled and outright, that I preserved in their entirety. The only comment I obfuscated was one attacking someone else (the only fair game I allow here is myself!)
My opinions have not changed. I think positive tribalism is about as absurd as positive racism. I think it a thinly veiled attempt to legitimize the illegitimate.
I think if you voted for Mwai Kibaki because he is Kikuyu, or Raila Odinga because he is Luo, then you’re an ass.
I think if you didn’t vote Mwai Kibaki because he is Kikuyu, or you didn’t vote for Raila Odinga because he is Luo, then you’re an ass.
If tribe was one of the considerations in your voting decision, then you’re an ass.
What makes me especially sad is that many of the people I know born in the window between 1970 and 1990, who really ought to know better by virtue of being brought up in a cosmopolitan Nairobi have left me puzzled and saddened.
I find it difficult to believe that to a wo(man), most of my peers with roots (albeit several times removed) in Central Kenya resonate with Mwai Kibaki’s policies and agenda, and that his tribe was not a factor. I find it difficult to believe that to a wo(man), most of my peers with roots (albeit several times removed) in Nyanza resonate with Raila Odinga’s strategies for growth and empowerment, and that his tribe was not a factor.
Let me stress that again. These are not people in Central Kenya and Nyanza who have grown up in a homogenous community. I’m talking about people who grew up in cosmopolitan, multi-cultural estates.
Absolutely preposterous that we, the leaders of tomorrow, the iPod-carrying, blogging, Kwani-reading campus graduates have the temerity to purport to be the enlightened future of this nation and yet we still use tribe as a guide in our decision making!
If the tribes of our play pen mates when we were howling toddlers filling our pants did not affect us, and they did not affect us when we were racing our BMX and Choppers how then are we, the product of the cosmopolitan 80s and 90s, using these very things we ignored against our fellows? How, in 2008, can lawyers and doctors and engineers who will be standing for public office in 4-8 years subtly and openly promulgate the same innuendo, fear, paranoia and outright hate and in the same breath express outrage at people hacking each other to death?
My friends, using blogger.com and WordPress.com does not absolve you from your responsibilities. Neither does using gmail.com or yahoo.com. Neither does using Safaricom and Celtel text messaging facilities. Using technology to spread disunity does not absolve you of responsibility!
Do you get outraged when you hear “thieving nigger”? (Yes, nigger) You do? Then why don’t you get outraged when you hear:
- Money hungry Kikuyu
- Colour blind Kamba
- Violent Kisii
- Extravagant Luos
- Chicken loving Luhya
- Warlike Somali
- etc
I’ll just bet you don’t! And I also bet you forwarded and re-forwarded all those inane jokes starting with “A Kikuyu, a Luo and a Luhya …”, that you fondly believed to be funny.
It’s just a joke, you say? Oh really? Is blackface funny? Disabuse yourselves of that notion!
We are the generation that ought to know better. Why then do our communication, our perceptions, our stereotypes and our voting have anything other than sound logic, merit and character at their foundation?
Have the two-faced youth done this country a disservice, preaching unity from one side of the doubt and undermining it with the other? Could we be the problem?
Given the events of the past 3 weeks I’m beginning to be so inclined …
AOBI was very serious about hate speech in this blog. If I find your comments fail to live up to the basics of respect for your fellows, even those of opposing views then your comment, and then you, are gone. I am not interested in Oompa Loompas and River Trolls interested in sowing their hate here. I will black list your IP address. I will not remove your IP address from the black list until January 1, 2012. So do not bother emailing me.
USHAHIDI.COMA brilliant initiative is ushahidi.com, an initiative to keep track of incidences of unrest in the country. Ushahidi.com is a tool for people who witness acts of violence in Kenya in these post-election times. You can report the incident that you have seen, and it will appear on a map-based view for others to see. This will be a big help not only in knowing what’s going on, but also some time in the future be a tool for introspection
© M :: tHiNkEr'S rOoM, 2008. Comment On Tribalism & The Youth
Category: Elections, Hubbub, Reflections.
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ODM Works Hard To Prevent Kaparo's 4th Term As SNO
» You Missed This 
After being 'awarded' presidential votes by Samuel Kivuitu, President Kibaki through his PNU party and affiliates are due to make another 'award' to Mr. Francis Ole Kaparo, as Kenya's 'permanent' Speaker of the National Assembly (SNO).
Information reaching this blogger indicates that the the vote count for the race for the speakers seat 'is already out in the open', in the same style and manner as when Kibaki was sworn-in at the presidential polls whereby Kivuitu irregularly declared him president prematurely in a secluded room somewhere in KBC studios. Indeed, the leaked SNO result shows a very close contest - much closer than the presidential polls, with less than 5 individuals separating the contestants.
Although the young Emuhaya MP Kenneth Marende would have been a perfect replacement for the older Francis Kaparo, the power of the incumbency is just too strong for Marende's backers. Perhaps Njoki Ndun'gu would have been an agreeable compromise candidate for both PNU and ODM even if only for the history of parliament as the first woman MP to be elected into the speakers seat. Despite pressure from PNU to drop her bid in favour of Kaparo, Njoki says she is in the race till the end.
In the course of this past week, well known PNU foot soldiers have been busy buying the votes from MPs elect who are only too willing to sell to the highest bidders after a strenuous and expensive campaign period. Some of the foot soldiers have been busy trying to infiltrate the ODM camp with promises of cash and cabinet appointments. With a total of 207 (206 minus the president himself) MPs already elected into the 10th parliament, it will be a very close race, because ODM has 99 MPs plus 3 others from NARC. Assuming all the rest will vote with PNU it is not hard to take a wild guess. Some ODM MPs are rumoured to have already crossed over either by coercion or compromise. It is unclear which ODM MPs have already 'defected' even before being sworn-in and it is also unclear which MPs Njoki has convinced to vote for her.
Unless ODM/NARC changes the tide and infiltrates the PNU camp tonight, it is almost a foregone conclusion that Kaparo will start his record 4th term tomorrow by swearing-in MPs and continuing to play to the whims of the executive for the foreseeable future.
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5:49
Bloggers for Kenya, and Hope in Jamhuri Park.
» Afromusing 
Mamamikes’ donation page is now live. When you click on the homepage, you now have an option to purchase vouchers for Kenyans in Distress. The food and supplies bought will be distributed by the Red Cross to the various parts of Kenya that have been affected by post election violence. This is another way to help and it can save you on wiring costs associated with direct Bank Transfers to the Red Cross. Even without advertising, Mamamikes has already received $300, worth of donated vouchers. (Thank you to that Kind Soul wherever you are)
Update: The amount received so far is now $1000 (thank you!)
For your $10 voucher a package with the following items is purchased for the Red Cross.
-3litres of cooking oil,2kgs of rice and slippers
-2kgs of unga,5litres of water and a pair of shoes
-sanitary products,2kg unga and 2kg of rice
Vouchers are available in the amounts of $15, $20, $25, $50, $75, and you can buy as many as you are able to.Bloggers for Kenya
This week we would like to appeal to all bloggers, friends of bloggers, wannabe bloggers, diaspora kenyans, Tedsters, treehuggers, geeks, nerds, boingboingers, worldchangers…you get the idea, to give what they can using Mamamikes’ donation page. On Thursday the 17th of January the bloggers in Nairobi will meet at the mamamikes office, assist in purchasing all the items and delivering them to the Red Cross.
Parliament opens tomorrow and there are some rallies planned later in the week, therefore depending on the situation, we will still shoot for Thursday to deliver the items to Red Cross. If for one reason or another the situation is too unstable on Thursday, we will reschedule and let you know. For now, please post about this and tag your posts with ‘Bloggers for Kenya’.Hope In Jamhuri Park
With all the feelings of helplessness many feel at the current situation; what with failed mediation attempts, fears of more instability as Parliament opens tomorrow, the secondary trauma of watching news of your country being torn apart; perhaps the only thing that can keep Kenyans (here and in the diaspora) sane is doing something to assist the displaced. I have since learned the acronym IDP (Internally Displaced Person), something that aid workers such as Mr. Arunga who works in Darfur, and diplomats in Africa are familiar with…Now the acronym is being used to describe the people camped in various shelters in Kenya.
One such place is Jamhuri Park, Nairobi. I joined Martin and Cynthia of Mamamikes on a visit to Jamhuri Park to see first hand the plight of Internally Displaced persons. It was heart-rending, and very surreal. We could not believe that this was happening in our country, but left with a bit of hope in our hearts as we saw the work of other volunteers, the Red Cross, St. John’s Ambulance Service and even the police/military. Martin and Cynthia have written about the experience here. I will only add some pictures from our day, as they have wonderfully captured everything i wanted to mention in the post. Thank you!
Queues to get food
Queue for health care by St. Johns Ambulance Services
Red Cross
Ahmed’s red cross Jacket. He usually works in Isiolo, but came to Jamhuri Park to help with the tracing activities. I.e figuring out who are the lost children, photographing them, and tracing their relatives.
Soccer with the children
Kevin (the little boy) talks to Victone of the Red Cross,who is part of the tracing team that will try to locate and reunite Kevin with his family.
Children gathered for a bit of entertainment in the afternoon.
Volunteers entertaining the children with song and dance
Watching and listening…
The whole set of photos from the day is here.
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4:34
Diary 17 - I no longer think my government listens to me
» Kenyan Pundit By Allan Kirui I have been reading your blog and other and I must admit, like many others, it is a much better source of information than the actual news pages! Thank you!! Personally, I was too young (or perhaps also too naïve) in the Moi era to know whether he rigged himself in, or won [...]
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4:02
Quotable Weekend
» What An African Woman Thinks Quotable Weekend
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Diary 16 - Government of National Unity
» Kenyan Pundit Written by Ben Kiilu (aka BigBen) Kibaki, the man who many believe is illegally in office as the president of Kenya has offered to form a government of national unity. Not a surprising turn of events. Many will urgue; yes, there goes a true leader, trying to find a solution to save our motherland. While others [...]
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3:51
Depressed Nation: Deploy Psychiatrist, Psychologists and Counselors not Police!
» Hapa Kenya Kenya is a depressed Nation. The hopelessness that the country is in is beyond any psychiatric description. The stolen elections, the death of a new hope, change that never came, new economic hardships, death and displacement. What Kenyans need are not the police to keep them away from the streets but someone to make them understand. Someone to make them live with all the bad things. Someone to psychoanalyze them and turn their anger into hope. The anger must be converted into strength. We need someone to explain to us why it had to happen the way it did. That someone must be able enough to tell us why we had to participate in the elections in the first place. Kenyans need counseling.
At the moment, this is somewhat melancholic acutely dissatisfied and to some extent bitter nation. The police might be brutal in containing the situation but the will of Kenyans might not welter. If Kibaki plans to stay in power for the next four years, then Kenyans must be made to understand. Someone must appeal to our minds. We must be made to accept him unconditionally. A psychologist/Psychiatrist/Counselor must be deployed.
Blogged with Flock
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3:12
The Death of James Odhiambo - Kenya Post Election violence.
» Afromusing Note: Images posted on www.Ushahidi.com.
Disclaimer: The following images are gruesome and disturbing. The humanitarian crisis is real and dire. Complete set of photos taken in Kakamega by Mr. Arunga are available here. The images include shots of the police station, showing the displaced taking refuge there, burning shops, vandalized petrol station and burned car.
Onlookers and concerned citizens around the body of 24 yr old James Odhiambo, who was killed in the post election violence in Lurambi - Junction on the way to Shikoti, Kakamega, western province, Kenya. The gentleman in white (Brian) on the right worked with James at the petrol station as attendants and witnessed the shooting.
Close up of the bullet wound on the body of 24 yr old James Odhiambo. According to eye witnesses, he was walking to work when he met the GSU paramilitary. Mr. Odhiambo continued to walking towards towards the GSU as he thought he could talk to them and find out what is happening. According to eyewitnesses, he was shot without even though he was not violent or doing anything that would indicate he would be a threat to the GSU. The witnesses tried to contact the police so they could come and pick up the body, but the police said that they did not have fuel for the vehicle. As of the writing of this post, the late James Odhiambo was buried yesterday in Homa Bay, Nyanza province. Brian and other friends from the area traveled to Homa Bay to comfort the family. If you would like to help the family directly, please do not hesitate to contact Brian Oluoch at +254 724 912015. Mr. Odhiambo was the sole breadwinner for his family…Any contributions towards their well being is appreciated.Pictures were taken by Mr.Michael Arunga, who works for World Vision in Darfur, and was on holiday at the time. He witnessed the burning of a kikuyu owned property, as shown in this photo.
**The decision to post the pictures here and to tell this story is partly because the pictures were sent to editors of newspapers in Kenya, they did not run them or cover the story. As people try to get back to ‘normal’ life around the country, it is important to remember that there is no normal for a lot of people in Kenya.
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1:32
Economic Losses Mount for Kenya
» Rants, Raves & Reviews In spite of various "all-is-normal" pronouncements by the (possibly illegitimate) government, Kenya has & will take a HUGE hit in 2008. I wonder if these "ivory-tower" mandarins, who get huge salaries no matter what, live in the same Kenya I do?
I can't go in much detail but I will highlight the major issues as I see them. Keep in mind Kenya is/was a US$12bn economy. KShs 780bn.
Tourism- Cancellation of charter flights. Loss of immediate tourism benefits esp at the Coast.
- Many charter firms will adopt a wait-and-see approach just as they did in 1997. Some may NEVER return. This is a long term loss.
- Hotels are almost empty. Whereas January sees 70%+ occupancy coz its winter in USA & Europe, the maximum seems to be 35% for "new" arrivals. Taking into account that some hotels have closed that means true occupancy (vs available beds) is closer to 20%.
- KQ loses traffic both local & European traffic. KQ has been growing rapidly since it was privatised. This may be its first year that it sees a drop in passenger & revenue growth. KQ - a Kenyan firm - contributes directly to Kenya by buying foods, blankets, services, etc from Kenyan manufacturers. Not to mention Kenyan staff.
- Many Game & National Parks are no-go areas for tourists. These include L. Nakuru National Park & Mt. Elgon National Park.
- Cancellation of conferences. Kenya was becoming a preferred destination for these regional conferences BUT there are other options e.g. Uganda which has recently built 1,000s of rooms for CHOGM.
- Kenya's #1 forex earner about to drop a few places. Estimated losses in 2008 will be KShs 60bn. 7.7% of Kenya's GDP.
- Loss/waste of produce destined for Europe during the holiday season. This produce rotted as it could not get to the airport.
- Penalties for missed or late deliveries by the exporters.
- Ethiopia & Uganda will "eat" Kenya's lunch as European importers diversify their suppliers. Long-term damage to Kenya.
- #2 forex earner with substantial effects on the economy in terms of jobs. Losses could be KShs 40bn (5.1%). The loss of jobs & services associated with horticulture will just add to the misery.
- 100s (if not 1,000s) of cars, matatus, lorries & buses were destroyed. In Kisumu an entire car dealership was destroyed. This reduces competition among transporters.
- Kenyans will have to pay more to transport goods & people to Rift Valley, Nyanza & Western province.
- Damaged roads - in addition to the pathetic roads we already have - coz of idiots who dug trenches across them or blocked them with debris.
- Knock-on effect on everything. Cost of commodities, services, etc will all go up fueling inflation.
- Phone firms have losts sales & equipment. Hopefully, they will upgrade their equipment soon.
- The port is congested. This affects exports from Kenya. Goods in transit to Uganda are also affected thus denying Kenyans income & jobs.
- Increase in cost of basic commodities. Some of these "costs" will not go down. Inflationary pressures can be felt all over.
- Increased government expenditure on providing aid & relief to displaced victims.
- kibz announced relief packages to businessmen. I am worried that the funds will be wasted by (1) incompetent government employees (2) corruption (3) selected beneficiaries aka tribalism.
- Kenya govt will see cessation of donor aid. Whereas the budget might not "use" donor aid in its calculations, many projects benefit from it. These are projects the government has either ignored or not interested in.
- Increased gov't borrowing from local markets will crowd out the private sector.
- Huge potential payouts by insurance firms will affect the balance sheets of these firms. Some will collapse.
- Exports to COMESA & E.Africa accounts for 35% of Kenya's exports. Larger than any other region.
- Uganda is working with Tanzania to set up an alternate route for fuel imports.
- Kenya has lost markets in Burundi, Zambia, Rwanda & Somalia to others. The S.Africans are moving in. They provide stability that Kenya does not.
- Local manufacturers are stuck with goods they can't sell esp to the "opposition" strongholds.
- Exports have slowed down to a trickle due to transport restrictions.
- Many firms are laying off workers. Some had started hiring last year in anticipation of increased business in 2008.
- Many firms have been severely affected by the slowdown & are in trouble with the banks. They can't service their loans.
- I expect some bankruptcies in 2008. A real pity.
- Idiots burned factories & equipment in tea-growing areas. The loss of exports will affect Kenya.
- Farms are laying off workers. They can't process the produce coz the factories are damaged.
- Crops are rotting since harvested crops can't be transported to the buyers. This is especially so in the Rift Valley region. Losses all around.
- I have discussed exports above.
- Dairy farmers are losing KShs millions DAILY since they can't get their milk to the processors. KCC's Eldoret plant remains closed.
- They pumped in huge amounts over the past 2 years. Some of them will stop. Why build a house in Eldoret if it can be destroyed?
- Many invested on the NSE. Why do so if the growth prospects are diminished?
- Media - Politics is emotive & the media is taking full advantage. I am sure sales of newspapers, radio & TV ads have gone up.
- Building suppliers will start benefiting from reconstruction but it will be a slow process.
- Some firms will come out stronger as they will consolidate market share. This is a blow to a market economy by stifling competition.
Overall... Kenya is in a funk. There is hope but in 2009 & beyond IF there is peace. It is difficult to say what teh real growth will be but probably around 5%. The loss of momentum will affect us far in the future.
Oh, and the bloody MPs, ministers, prez & cronies continue screwing us for more while the economy shrinks. - Cancellation of charter flights. Loss of immediate tourism benefits esp at the Coast.
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1:31
Martin Luther King’s Dream Had One Little Hitch: Tolerance Isn’t All That It’s Cracked Up to Be
» The Displaced African Part one of the 10 things I wish I knew before I left Africa
One of my teachers once told me, “If you want to succeed, put words to things which people haven’t put words to yet. Give a name to, verbalize or talk about gnawing feelings that people have that they just can’t describe.” Ironically, I am about to do that for myself and in so doing I hope I give voice to some of the things that YOU experience.
Social Bookmarking
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Visa Ban For Kenyan Politicians?
» You Missed This There is talk that the International community plans to slap a Visa ban on all Kenyan politicians (MPs and the speaker) as a way of putting more pressure on the political elite to find a quick solution to the Kenyan crisis.
My informant thinks it is a brilliant idea and so do I. My informant suggests that they go a step further and also withdraw visas for the children of these politicians most of whom go to school abroad. That way they will truly feel the pinch like other ordinary Kenyans. Personally, I wouldn’t agree more.
This is a better idea than sanctions which will mostly hurt the ordinary Kenyans who are already going through so much suffering because of the mistakes of the political elite.
Kumekucha remains hopeful and positive but at the same time a little skeptical because it is clear that the Americans despite the nice things they keep on saying in public, fully back the Kibaki administration and may not support such sanctions. One does not need to be a rocket scientist to figure out why. Sly Kibaki made a deal with them about terrorist suspects which Raila Odinga promised the Muslim community during his campaigns, that he would reverse once in power. Many Kenyan terror suspects are still held outside the country and family members do not know where they are, let alone what their fate will be.
The Americans have also been very keen to locate their main anti-terrorism headquarters in the region in Kenya. It is obvious that they are not interested in the Kenyan people’s views on this matter (which is critical) because it is bound to have long term repercussions on the country.
The latest is that America has issued a very strongly-worded statement warning the Kibaki government that it will NOT be business as usual if the government does not move quickly to end the current crisis. Brave words indeed, but just words all the same. Let us wait and see if there is some concrete actions that follows this statement. Kenyan politicians are not the only ones in the world who are good at talking and doing nothing you know... there are other countries that can be a close second.
P.S. I am strongly considering going back to moderating comments on this blog because a section of those leaving comments here have abused the priviledge of being allowed to have their say without a moderator like before.
I have received a number of petitions in favor of this action. Like the one I reproduce here;
Dear Chris,
I just wanted to say thank you thank you thank you for your blog. I appreciate all the work that you do, for us to be able to know what is really happening in Kenya and behind the scenes.
I am just upset that some people still continue to threaten and speak badly in the comments section, and I know you have asked for all to be 'grown up' about the comments but it still happens, I tell you, In this time, when I don't know if my parents back home and my fellow Kenyans will come out ok, I hate to read all the stupid, ignorant, hateful, threatening comments. Chris would it be censoring if you moderate the comments so these people don't have a place to spew their poison. The angry people who can't control themselves in this time should be ignored they are not contributing anything and their negative energy is not helping.
God bless you Chris and your family.
Sincerely