Paza Sauti

Kenyan intellectuals have to lead the way in nationalist thinking

2012-01-07T16:36:00.000-08:00

As the presidential elections appear around the corner, Kenyans are getting anxious about how they are going to manage an election in a toxic political environment poisoned by ethnic animosity.

In such troubling times, the role of intellectuals is crucial: to help Kenyans clarify the issues, and to help them imagine a different scenario that would help us vote peacefully and with our conscience and intellect - as opposed to violently and according to our primal instincts.

Yet over the last few weeks, Kenya's two main dailies have carried unfortunate opinion articles in which educated Kenyans appear just as imprisoned in the tribal framework as the rest of the population.

In the East African Standard was a debate between Onyango Oloo and Ken Opande on the vote of the "Luo Nation." Oloo criticizes the Luo for failing to vote strategically and for instead voting the Odinga father and later the son almost to a man. Opande replied a few days later, criticizing Oloo for speaking against a community that is intelligent enough to speak for itself, after which he defends the community against accusations (which Oloo did not make) of the community being hostile to presidential candidates other than Raila.

Neither of the two writers noticed the absurdity of speaking of a "Luo Nation" when we shall be voting for the president of the Kenyan nation. And the argument that one can embrace their ethnicity and be Kenyan at the same time is not very helpful. That's because the choice Kenya is faced with is not between ethnicity and nationhood; it's between justice, law and care for our most challenged and vulnerable populations on one hand, and on the other impunity, corruption and arrogant disregard for Kenyans from impoverished regions.

Secondly, the two gentlemen assume that Luos voted for Jaramogi and Raila only because the two Odingas are Luo. Did they consider, especially Opande who defends the Luo as intelligent, that maybe those who overwhelmingly supported either Odinga also did so because they believed in what either stood for?

As a staunch admirer of Jaramogi, I think the pity is not that Luos voted for him; it is that other tribes didn't. And if those who voted for Jaramogi did so with conviction, rather than ethnic adrenaline, there is nothing to apologize for. Voting should be a declaration of what we stand for, not a lottery in which we hope that ours is the winning ticket to the State House. Oloo and Opande would have helped Kenyans if they would clarify the voting issues, so that Kenyans everywhere can see the diversity of issues and opinions, not just of ethnic groups.

A similarly unhelpful discussion was sparked by Hassan Omar Hassan's criticism of Kibaki's Kikuyu-centric government. Hassan has received many criticisms for spreading ethnic hatred, but I will respond to that of Koigi wa Wamwere. I resent Wamwere's articles because they are based on flawed reasoning and worse, he is given extensive space in the newspapers and politicians even quote him.

Yet Wamwere offers a shallow analysis of the complicated tribal quagmire in Kenya. His simplistic logic is that there are the Kikuyu elite and the poor Kikuyu. He normally doesn't say what Kenyans should do about the Kikuyu elite, but he says that the poor Kikuyus should not be banded together with the Kikuyu elite, and should be able to live and own land anywhere (he doesn't argue the same for poor from other ethnic groups).

What is frustrating about that argument, besides its flawed understanding of the intersection of economic class, gender and ethnicity, is the obsession with the innocence of Kikuyus from the lower classes, when that innocence is largely irrelevant.

It matters little whether the elite straddle across all ethnic groups; what matters is that they are exploiting us in the first place. No poor person gets food to eat and a roof over their head from knowing that poverty affects Kenyans from all ethnic groups. No bereaved person whose loved one died from poor medical attention is comforted by knowing that people from other communities die in the same way. No one suffering from injustice is consoled to know that it is not unique to their own ethnic group. There is no comfort in mediocrity and injustice just because the people who face it or perpetuate it are from all ethnic groups.

But Wamwere's criticism of Hassan proves that his constant defense of the Kikuyu non-elite is not just irrelevant; it is also tribalist. Wamwere rushed to defend Kikuyus even though Hassan had criticized Kibaki and not Kikuyus. Hassan condemned the impunity of the Kibaki government which is very Kikuyunized; which is very different from condemning the Kikuyu. Nowhere in the article did Hassan say that Kenya's next president should not be a Kikuyu; what he said was that most Kenyans will not want to vote a Kikuyu president because of the Kikuyu-centric poor leadership of Kibaki. So by defending the Kikuyu when Kibaki is criticized, Wamwere has done no different from the typical Kenyan politicians who, when criticized, say that it is their community which is being targeted.

Wamwere's article ends up being ethnocentric, despite the author's intentions, because it equates ethnocentrism to hatred and discrimination, when hatred and discrimination are merely the product of what Kenyans call tribalism. Ethnocentrism is a framework of viewing the world. In Kenya, it means interpreting everything in terms of a person's tribe. It means explaining someone's behavior or choices ONLY by the person's birth and never by the person's experience, ideas, belief, history and environment.

Tribalism is mediocrity, intellectual laziness and myopia, because one decides they don't need to know, learn or understand anything; they just need to look for the tribe. Tribalism is degrading because people no longer see themselves as human beings with a mind, body and soul; all they see of themselves and others is the blood running through their veins.

The promise of nationalism is therefore not the absence of tribalism. The promise of nationalism is the absence of this mediocrity. It is the ability to use our intellect and think creatively, to make wise political decisions and to love God and our fellow Kenyan. The promise of nationalism should be revolution which destroys the conditions that incubate our current vicious and voracious political elite. But the tragedy of nationalism shall be the failure of Kenyan thinkers to lead Kenyans in achieving that promise.

Posted January 6th, 2012 by Wandia Njoya in The Zeleza, African Affairs

2011-07-08T19:35:00.001-07:00

Similarities between Senegal, Tanzania

allAfrica.com: Tanzania: Dar es Salaam's Tax Holidays Costing Economy Hundreds of Millions of Dollars

2011-02-22T14:03:00.000-08:00

allAfrica.com: Tanzania: Dar es Salaam's Tax Holidays Costing Economy Hundreds of Millions of Dollars

Ujamaa and the Nyerere legacy: What went wrong?

2011-01-26T18:29:00.000-08:00

By Joseph Mihangwa
26TH JANUARY 2011
It is on record that Mwalimu began thinking Socialism during his student days in Britain. He is quoted saying: “It would be surprising to find a progressive student in those days who did not think in terms of Socialism”.

But Mwalimu was not a Marxist, partly because Karl Marx was influenced by Darwinist racist theories that relegated African peoples to second-rate human beings. He also did not import European Socialism because it derived its arguments from class conflicts.

Mwalimu’s argument for African Socialism was summed up thus: “For a Third World country, once you have accepted the idea of Socialism, there is a problem of succumbing to the ideology of evolution. Marx says backward countries go through stages of development, with one stage leading to the other, and socialism is the product of developed capitalism”.

He goes on: “But it is very difficult for an intellectual to say I’ll engage myself in building capitalism in order to later go on to Socialism. So I felt we really have no choice at all if we are going to try and build socialism, we have to begin where we are…. And where we are is underdevelopment, not capitalism”.

When it came to applying African Socialism (Ujamaa) in Tanzania he says: “Although people wouldn’t believe it, we did not abolish capitalism. We gave it a less of a go-there wasn’t much capital around….In the meantime we have some African capitalists, actually we have what the Chinese call “nationalist capitalists” – sort of natural capitalists, although it is very difficult for them to survive without the tentacles of the transnationals”.

In the beginning, Mwalimu deliberately kept ideology out of the process of building TANU as a nationalist movement: “I thought if we get involved in ideologies, we’ll divide the people. I wanted to get rid of the British. That was far more important than thinking capitalism versus socialism”.

Mwalimu says the opportunity to formulate the socialist vision for Tanzania arose out of the need to solve a practical problem of social justice: “Before independence, the British used to give loans to the colonial officers to buy cars, but only to white staff. After independence, there was a lot of pressure on me to give car loans. I said no, but I’ll give loans to build houses. Later the facility was extended to politicians. One of them was my brother; he had built one house and was in the process of building another. I thought to myself they cannot do this, these fellows are becoming businessmen, simply selling houses…. So I thought I should produce a series of articles on self-reliance”.

Out of Mwalimu’s deliberations came “The Arusha Declaration for Self-reliance”, which he admits summarises the vision of the Tanzanian society which he wanted to build: “That was one of the best things we’ve ever done for this country. It gave clarity to what we were trying to do. People may now want to oppose it, they can oppose it. But they know what they are opposing”.

Several years before retirement, Mwalimu was asked for what he would best like to be remembered by his countrymen; his answer was: “For trying”.

As to the validity and relevance of the Declaration he said: “In the basic things, I would not change a thing. I do not think I would change the Arusha Declaration; with hindsight I would try to implement it differently, possibly in two areas”.

About nationalization, he said he would have nationalized carefully, or taken joint venture with the owners, rather than nationalize outright.

On rural policies, Mwalimu said, he would have turned down “Siasa ni Kilimo” (Agriculture is politics), the rallying cry of the Iringa Declaration that led to the not so popular “Villagisation”; Mwalimu laments: “I would have emphasized the family but encouraged the people to work together. We wasted too much energy trying to develop communal farming. We could have been more relaxed about it….. But the object would have been exactly the same”.

On the demise of the defunct East African Community in 1977, Mwalimu reveals that he had prior warned President Jomo Kenyatta of Kenya about the intrigues by the people around him. “But your people are destroying the Community”, he had told him. He notes that Jomo was committed to the Community, but he had some narrow-minded people around him.

He personally traces the cause of the Community’s collapse to Kenyans’ resentment of a strong fraternity between himself, Milton Obote of Uganda and Kenneth Kaunda of Zambia. He says: “Some fellows in Kenya felt isolated, and when I tried to get Zambia into the Community they felt it would become three to one. But they got it all wrong”.

Mwalimu reveals further that in any case the Community would have survived had it not been for the “chaotic situation in Uganda with Idi Amin there…. Tanzania and Uganda would have continued the Community, which would have meant not a breaking but withdrawal by Kenya; and Kenya would have not withdrawn”.

The other possible reason of the Community’s collapse was capitalist Kenya’s resentment of Tanzanian socialism: “But I said this to them, and I will say it again; I am much more an African nationalist than a socialist. The priority for Africa is not socialism; the priority for Africa is development and unity. I would rather have a united capitalist Africa than a bunch of non-viable little things under socialism. Over that I was absolutely clear”, he clarifies.

Mwalimu admits that he may have been resented because he had been vocal about his vision: “Some times when you are more vocal you anger more people. So I annoyed more people than those who were not active….and therefore I was more disappointed”.

Throughout his political life, the organization of the Party was at the top of Mwalimu’s personal agenda, beginning with the drafting of the original TANU Constitution (based on CCP in Ghana, extracted from George Padmore’s Ghana Revolution), his resignation as Prime Minister soon after independence to re-organize the TANU, and finally the formation of the Chama cha Mapinduzi (CCM) to accommodate the politics of the Union with the island of Zanzibar, for which he remained Chairman for a couple of years after retiring as President.

Was Mwalimu ever against the multi-party system? He replies in the negative: “No! No! I was politically brought up by the British and I never saw anything wrong with the parliamentary system”.

The historical fact is that, the earlier post-independence elections were multi-Party. It is also true that, Mwalimu’s democratic sensibility was unhappy with the success of TANU as a result of which opposition parties were annihilated to such an extent that up to 80 per cent of TANU candidates were being returned un-opposed.

Although he was ideologically a one-party man, Mwalimu was not ideologically opposed to multi-party system. It was Mwalimu who lifted the lid off the debate on multi-partism in Tanzania: ”Ideologically I’m a socialist. Ideologically I’m a one-party man. But I have introduced the debate on multipartyism because the idea that it is taboo to question our constitution is undemocratic…. I mean I cannot accept this”, Mwalimu pointed out.

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Powerful Hands

2010-11-04T15:34:00.000-07:00

African, Arab partnership must overcome history of slavery

2010-10-25T16:11:00.000-07:00

When Libyan leader Mouammar Kadhafi recently apologised on behalf of Arab countries that were involved in the African slave trade, some observers regarded his remarks as whimsical, especially because few are wil ling to broach new ideas about the denigration of human dignity engendered by the subjection of Africans to the evils of slave trade.

Many in Africa learnt about slavery as part of history lessons at school, while many have also seen or travelled along the trail of sites, towns, road markers and seaports retracing the Arab Slave Trade in Tanzania and in the rest of East Africa. Beyon d that, not much has happened.

According to available studies, more than five million Africans were captured, enslaved, and shipped to the Middle East, India, Asia, and also to the West.

Today's African population abhors slavery as much as their ancestors did and, as it appears, many will want more than an apology. Analysts have however commended the Libyan leader for his courage in not only talking openly about the issue but als o apologising on behalf of the Arab countries that were involved in slave trade.

'Though coming belatedly, brother Kadhafi's apology is commendable,' said Edis on Maige, a retired Tanzanian teacher. 'No Arab leader had shown such courage and openness to admit the atrocities that their forefathers committed against the African race.

'Despite the passage of time, hidden grudges are still there in our societies a gainst foreigners who perpetuated slave labour. Accounts of people who had suffered under Arab slavery have been handed down from generation to generation. This explains why l ocal people of Arab descent are sometimes detested, especially when they seek influential positions,' Maige said.

As an outcome of entrenched slavery, Arabs became major planters of coconuts, cloves and other spices in Zanzibar and along East African coastal areas in the 1800s. The crops have since then been the economic mainstay of the islands, though their producti on no longer booms as they used to be until the 1970s.

Official abolition of slavery in the isles in 1897 did not make a big difference for the majority of the population. The abolition decree by the colonial rulers and the measures taken to implement it, as it turned out, were designed to bolster Arab slave owners, to tie ex-slaves to the plantations through contracts and to discourage the independence of workers.

For several years, it became apparent that the number of slaves who were being freed remained modest and that ex-slaves were restricted from accessing free labour market.

According to records, the end of the slave trade in coastal East Africa, including Zanzibar, came through the gradual destruction of the complex networks that gathered and distributed slaves.

Zanzibar's clove plantations had survived to enrich Arabs because of slave labour, while slavery itself became an integrated social system under which Africans were controlled as personal property.

The changing political landscape of East Africa greatly contributed to the freedom of slaves and reduced their economic dependence on Arab landowners. The expansion of British imperial activity increased the demand for caravan porters and Zanzibar became a centre of recruitment.

With Mombasa port in Kenya becoming a staging area for caravans to Uganda and construction of the railway linking the two countries, new demand for workers were created.

Therefore, slave owners in Zanzibar witnessed a great exodus as slaves escaped to freedom and new economic opportunities in railway camps.

Although the work in those camps was menial and often dangerous, a slave who deserted his master in the late 1890s could survive in dignity. Wages on the railroad were above the going rate for hired labour on the coast, where economic options for ex-slaves were narrower.

They had no difficulty with the concept of wage labour, but they wanted to control the condition under which they worked, to make cash earnings part of their economic lives rather than to subordinate themselves to plantation labour. The fertile soils of Zanzibar made it possible for a small plot to produce enough crops for a family's subsistence and a surplus for sale.

With a cash income, they could buy all provisions for which they had in the past relied on their owner.

Arab landowners eventually failed to keep ex-slaves as personal dependents tied to their estates and, as the wind of freedom swept across sub-Saharan Africa, the role of the Arab sultanate and the colonial state in Zanzibar came into question.

By 12 January 1964, the Arab predominance and their ruling structure were toppled by a revolution that gave birth to the present Zanzibar, where all citizens enjoy the social and economic benefits of the state.

Despite the history of slavery involving Arabs, however, the relationship between Africa and the Arab world is not so much represented by the fate of slavery victims.

According to Maige, it is heartening to see African and Arab leaders coming together to put a new life in the relationship of their worlds.

'The basis of our relationship had to change fundamentally. We no longer accept subordination in whatever joint ventures the two sides may agree to undertake,' he said.

But Maige warned that African politicians should not use slave trade as an excuse for Africa's underdevelopment.

'Slave trade did not mean the demise of the African race. Renewed partnership with the Arab nations should not be a source of disputes with Africa, but it should enable populations on both sides to advance to better standards of living because we all need each other,' he added.

By Anaclet Rwegayura - Pana 25/10/2010 Afrique en ligne

This is Larger than Ruto or his Clout.

2010-10-17T12:41:00.000-07:00

The recent ruling by the High Court in Kenya is the first test for the country and principals under the new constitution. The law of the land is very clear - Anti-Corruption and Economic Crimes Act, which disqualifies people facing criminal charges from holding office. If Kenya and Kenyans are the realize the change they hope for then it is imperative that law be followed to the letter in this instance.

Any attempts to water down, re-define or skirt around this issue will point the way forward in the implementation of the Constitution and will be another triumph of impunity in Kenya. So I call first on Ruto to be a law abiding statesman and resign pending the proceeding and conviction or acquittal. But knowing Kenyan politicians I believe that my call to action must be to the principals in the coalition. But finally civil society and the general public must appeal, protest and sue, to ensure adherence to the law.

By this measure Ruto must go.

Making Of A Constitution: Kenya

2010-07-19T17:22:00.000-07:00

This is the best account of Kenyan history I have seen. The series covers some of the historic factors underlying Kenya's Constitution:

Part 1

Part II

Part III

Part IV

Part V

Part VI

Powerful East African tribes rocking the boat

2010-04-19T14:05:00.000-07:00

Napoleon Bonaparte of France once told his son while in exile: “My son always study history, reflect on it; it is the true philosophy.” East Africa is among the regions in the world that have a very rich and exciting history.

It is common knowledge to those who have had the time, interest and ability to read that Tanzania’s senior statesman, Baba wa taifa, Mwalimu Julius Kambarage Nyerere was willing to postpone and delay the independence of Tanganyika in order to achieve the East African Federation.

Indeed in 1961 when Uganda and Kenya were still fighting for their own independence, Dr. Milton Obote of Uganda and Mzee Jomo Kenyatta of Kenya seemed to support the idea. But when they got their respective independence, Mzee Jomo Kenyatta backtracked.

In his own words he said that his support for the East African Federation before his country’s independence was “ujanja ujanja,” which is Kiswahili for trickery. As President, he made sure that the Kikuyu tribe stood above all the other forty-two tribes of Kenya. He empowered his tribe politically and economically such that no one could govern Kenya without their consent.

It is this superiority complex amongst the Kikuyu that has time and again threatened the national unity and the democratic progress of Kenya and by extension, East Africa. In Uganda, Buganda has always put every regime, and more so the NRM government, on “bunkenke” as President Yoweri Museveni has always stressed. Bunkenke is Luganda word for keeping one on tenterhooks.

There is hardly a regime in Uganda that has not been ‘disorganised’ by Buganda and her demands for a special status of being a state within a state. The Ganda people have also successfully fought Kiswahili, which is actually favoured by majority Ugandans, as the country’s national language.

Buganda, like Zanzibar in Tanzania, has always harboured the need to secede and form an independent country or state of her own. Unlike Zanzibar though which is geographically detached from mainland Tanzania, Buganda is in the heartland of Uganda which makes it very difficult to achieve this desired aspiration.

No Ugandan leader, even if he/she was to be a Muganda him/herself, in their right senses would ever grant Buganda her unrealistic demands of secession. To make it more complicated, Kampala, the capital city of Uganda, is located in Buganda.

Buganda as an entity has never been in bed with the East African Federation. Kabaka Edward Mutesa II, the first President of Uganda, is known to have vehemently opposed the formation of this federation in the 1950s. Now to imagine that Kabaka Muwenda Mutebi, the son of Kabaka Mutesa and current king of Buganda, can support and have the goodwill for the federation is to expect eggs out of a cow.

As our leaders dream big about forming the East African Federation for whatever reasons, they still have a lot of domestic challenges to sort out. This is why when a consultation was carried out in Tanzania for people’s opinion on the East African Federation around 2007, many said: Muungano kwanza; shirikisho baadaye, meaning the union should be streamlined first, and then the federation can come later.

In 1964 after the Afro-Shiraz Party (ASP) successfully took over power, Mwalimu Julius Nyerere of Tanganyika and Sheikh Abeid Amani Karume of Zanzibar merged the two nations with ease to form the United Republic of Tanzania.

This union sailed smoothly, basing on the goodwill legacy of the two leaders until Benjamin Mkapa’s administration, when the passion for the marriage started wearing thin and cracks in the union began to appear more than ever before.

One of the current President Jakaya Kikwete‘s campaign promises was to sort out the cracks in the union government after assuming power. But sources close to him intimate that at times his efforts to heal the cracks have instead created new cracks.

Finally, the efforts our East African leaders have tried to use in trying to manage Buganda, Kikuyu and the Zanzibari reminds one of a statement in A. Koestler’s novel Darkness at noon in which somebody says, “We diagnosed the disease with microscopic exactness; but when we applied a healing knife, a new sore developed elsewhere.”

The author is a teacher and freelance journalist
mwalimakol@gmail.com

Optimist or pessimist, Kenya’s future is clear

2010-03-05T18:04:00.000-08:00

For the optimist, Kenya will become the rail, air and sea travels hub of East Africa. Oil and farming products will be hauled on rail and road to the Indian Ocean from places as far away as Uganda, Sudan and Ethiopia.
The nation’s stability and democracy will provide the credibility for an economic rebirth.
For the pessimist, however, corruption and political instability will overtake the country and drag it down into the depths of its neighbours.
Tribal and political battles will divide the country and it will lose its foothold as one of Africa’s greatest democracies.
For the realist, the future is filled with questions. Will there be forthcoming trials of people implicated in the 2007 post-election violence?
Will the nation be able to reverse a culture of corruption to take advantage of some very real economic possibilities?
Will the country rid itself of the current political mess and find new leadership that will take it forward?
Let’s start by looking at the opportunities. With Southern Sudan soon to become independent, Kenya is likely to have a burgeoning economy on its northern border.
They will need to find a way to get their goods to the sea, and Kenya offers the most secure port. As reported, the Chinese are interested in building rail lines that will carry goods from the east, particularly Uganda, to ships ready to sail to Shanghai.
The Ethiopians, seeking to avoid a turbulent Somalia, have the same need.
The negatives are obviously in the papers everyday. Most appalling, at least to me, was the recent rip-off of education money from the Kenyan children by those who were in charge of educating them.
Call me old-fashioned, but the children should be a sacred trust.
Then there is the inflow of weapons from the war zones of an unstable northern Uganda and the Islamic battlegrounds of Somalia. Too many disputes are settled by the barrel of a gun in Kenya.
There is tribalism. In some respects, a tie to one’s past is a good thing. In America, we’re celebrating St Patrick’s Day in a few weeks, and it is said that almost every American has some Irish blood in the veins.
But we all take pride in our heritage, whether it’s English, French or Kenyan.
Tribalism takes the matter to a far different level. The British used tribalism to divide and conquer the continent, and now it’s become the weapon of choice of native Africans, most recently in post-election violence.
And there’s the matter of leadership. Both President Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga showed the nation in the last few weeks that their interests were more directed at themselves than at the nation.
Their refusal to sit down and talk put the nation on edge, and almost lit the fires that took so long to extinguish in 2007.
Most observers agree that Kenya desperately needs fresh leadership.
My prediction is that the forces of economic opportunity, combined with the international pressures against corruption, will end up pushing the country towards a more prosperous future.
But Kenyans must mirror the change that they want to see.

By RANDALL SMITH Posted Friday, March 5 2010 at 17:10

DISTURBING TELEVISION – DIVERSION - MILK GLUT AND COTTAGE INDUSTRY

2010-02-12T09:28:00.000-08:00

I was sitting before a panel of interviewers today for admission into a training course and one of the questions that was shot at me by the panel was, "What have you watched on television recently that has disturbed you?” Of course with the pressure of an interview my response was absolute rubbish. I went on to talk on how the format of a documentary on television could have been improved...how they should have personalized the presentation by using an interview...how they should have tried to engage the audience by focusing more on the people rather than plain impersonal video shots. Clearly I missed the point of the question and I have already taken myself through the process of feeling like an absolute idiot. So here are the answers I should have given with emphasis on one point that so completely irked me.

Here are a few stories recently carried on Kenyan television that have disturbed me:

• How our politicians divert attention from one scandal that is receiving media attention to resurrect another "dying" but yet to be resolved scandal. Case in point- the maize scandal brought up by one faction of the political class to divert attention from the free primary education scandal in which politicians their side of the coalition are implicated.

• How the prime-minister played down the findings by Price-Waterhouse-Coopers on the maize scandal by saying that the Anti-Corruption Commission had earlier carried out investigations and had found “no wrong doing” by those implicated and exonerated them. However on a positive note he has set-up a committee to reconcile the two contradictory positions.

• The most disturbing of all, is how we, after suffering a long devastating drought and yet to recover from its effects are now forced to pour out thousands of litres of milk because our milk factories are not able to process it. We are still suffering from severe food shortages in many parts of the country, yet we are not at this point able to handle our domestic dairy production. We should have had the capacity to process all this wasted protein.

Our dependence and insistence on large scale industry scares me. It seems that everything (even the simplest) needs to be done on a large scale. It’s about time that we were able as communities to handle our local production. What we produce should be sustainably produced and consumable. If it is not consumable at that point it should be preservable. Local dairy farmers should have capacity (at least in terms of knowledge) to produce cheese or butter or yoghurt or ghee. It was sad to see farmers who had put in so much effort after the drought watch their labour go down the drain. What if this farmer had a way to process this milk? What if the technology and the know-how to process this milk was accessible to him?

With these questions the old concept of cottage industries came to mind. In our rush to industrialize we have ignored this important stage in the process. If we are not making progress on the macro level, let us work on the micro level. Several countries have successfully ensured food security by focusing on small scale local production. On a policy level, our politicians have let us down. It’s time for us to shift focus to small scale manufacturing and production (and I am not talking about jua-kali) its time for industries run by two or tree or ten people scattered in every corner of this country to make a difference in this economy...lets stop thinking super or mega or giga and start working on the local...one person with a cow, another with a micro-dairy, one with a maize shamba, another with a posho mill, one with a soap making project another with a fish farm...small sustainable communities working together…using what they produce and selling, saving, storing or preserving the excess.

However, you still cannot ignore the Macro-level. The government with the input of communities should implement a shift in policy and focus on building local capacity for communities to handle their own production. It is in the governments very own interest to ensure that its communities are knowledgeable enough and capable enough to handle their own economy -whatever the scale- right from production through processing, distribution and consumption. For a country that is yet to achieve food security and experiences such erratic weather patterns we cannot afford to waste such a rich source of protein as milk. Our government needs to be able to predict outcomes and support the efforts of its citizens.

James Adolwa
February 12, 2010

Sustainable fishing is the way forward

2010-02-07T13:10:00.000-08:00

The population of Lake Victoria’s most famous produce – the Nile perch – is dwindling and conservationists have started making shocking projections for future stocks.

They say the population of the Nile perch has declined from 1.2 million tonnes at the turn of the century to a mere 331,000 tonnes last year. The figures could plunge further if remedial action is not taken immediately.

Up to 22 million people from the region depend on the lake for fish. The industry directly supports two million people, providing them with much needed incomes to sustain their households.

That the population of the Nile perch is thinning is therefore bad news to many. But it must also be understood that the fishermen face difficult but important choices between conserving the resource – so there will be fish to catch in the future – and earning a decent living.

That is why the duty of conservation must not be left to them. It is encouraging the governments of Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania through the East African Community’s Council of Ministers, have now launched Sh129.6m campaign to help conservation efforts.

Partner states

The ‘Operation Save the Nile Perch’ drive must not be in vain. It must not follow the familiar script of poor locals whose need for economic development is fought by affluent outside conservationists.

Residents of the three partner states rely on the fishing industry for subsistence. And their economic future will be improved more by preserving the ecosystem and promoting better fishing methods than by unsustainably exhausting what is currently available for export.

Conservation efforts must be supported by all stakeholders with partner states being encouraged to implement the proposed ‘harmonised action plan’ to help end illegal fishing on Lake Victoria and help restore the ecological balance.

Now it is up to the Council of Ministers to create regulations that will make the fishing industry successful. It is time to get rid of systems that have failed and replace them with better alternatives that will protect the marine ecosystem, allow fish stocks to rebuild, and increase revenues.

This will allow fishermen to make profit and also ensure future generations will enjoy the delicacy. It is upon the Ministry of Fisheries to ensure fish catchment sites are not only protected but also nurtured and sustainably exploited.

EA Standard

Why Africa welcomes the Chinese

2009-11-07T13:44:00.000-08:00

Africa must attract broad investment, not rely on handouts, if we are to sustain development

There is a debate among geopolitical and economic commentators about the merits of Chinese versus western involvement with Africa. One argument is that Chinese investment is exploitative and undermines the development of democracy and human rights on the continent. Others view the matter in terms of competition, arguing that China is encroaching on the decades-long monopoly of the west over Africa's natural resources.

Neither of these viewpoints addresses the core issues. First, major players in global investment and development are discussing Africa without engaging its people as equal partners. Second, Africans are not seen to be proactive in setting their own priorities and terms of engagement.

Development aid, fashioned on this skewed relationship, has long been a key source of income for the continent. While helpful, aid has not delivered sustainable development. It is clear that trade and investment bring greater opportunity for wealth creation. Africa welcomes investment, from the east and west, north and south, and Rwanda is no exception. We want investment that offers skills and jobs, encourages entrepreneurship, and provides the opportunity to improve millions of lives.

This call for investment and trade rather than traditional aid does not mean the latter's contribution to addressing poverty is not recognised. However, the fundamental problem with the current development aid practice is the danger countries face as they become perpetually reliant on handouts.

So what should those who give aid, and those who receive it, focus on? The primary purpose of aid should ultimately be to work itself out, leaving a positive legacy behind. Aid should also be used to create opportunities for trade, enhance self-sufficiency and assist with the development of a robust private sector to attract investment. In many countries, for example, aid offers resources such as fertilisers for free. The intention is good but this often prevents local businesses from being able to provide these goods competitively. Given the choice, people would prefer to work and provide for themselves, rather than receive charity. Africans want self-determination and dignity.

Our continent, like others, requires investment to further its development. Efforts to pursue this need not be seen as a threat to the strengthening of democracy. Of course, African leaders should take good governance and human rights seriously – and most do. This is not – and should not be – because anybody else tells us to, or in return for investment, but because it is the right thing to do. The presence of Chinese investment in Africa does not discharge governments of their responsibilities any more than its presence in the EU or US should erode human rights there.

In Rwanda, we have worked hard to tackle the root causes of corruption and ensure there is a strong case for attracting investment. This programme of reform is yielding results and has been recognised by the World Bank's 2010 Doing Business Index, which saw Rwanda jump from 143rd to 67th position in one year, making it the world's leading reformer. In 2008, Rwanda's GDP grew at 11.2%, and despite the global financial crisis our 2009 projections give us cause for optimism. Wages in key export sectors have grown more than 20% annually over the last eight years, and all these developments have occurred while the percentage of our national budget funded by aid has been reduced by half since 2001.

Ultimately, Africa's relationship with its international counterparts should be redefined. For too long, we have not been able to trade fairly with Europe and the US; trade barriers and subsidies, particularly in agriculture, have protected external markets from African products, hindering our ability to trade as equals. Investment and trade with willing countries, including intra-African trade, helps the continent to build a much-needed culture of entrepreneurship and development.

All would benefit if the world focused on increasing investment in Africa, and if Rwanda and the rest of the continent worked to establish more equitable international partnerships. A trade relationship built on this new approach would be more helpful in reaching what should be our common goal: sustainable development, mutual prosperity and respect.

Paul Kageme
President of Rwanda

2009-10-23T17:39:00.000-07:00

Ni Leboo Joo

2009-10-23T17:34:00.000-07:00

The worst insult in some far-right circles in America nowadays is to be called “a Kenyan.”

The label acquired racist overtones when Barack Obama, whose father was Kenyan, won the US presidency, sparking emotional denunciations among the so-called birthers, who say Obama should not have competed for the presidency in the first place because he was allegedly not born in the US, and was in fact a Kenyan.

Last week, when Senator Olympia Snowe broke with fellow Republicans and voted with Obama in favour of health care reform, she came in for such a barrage of criticism from the right that a satirical blog, the Borowitz Report, carried a mock news story to the effect that she had been labelled “a Kenyan” by her party.

“This vote is going to raise suspicions, once again, that Sen Snowe was born in Kenya,” the blog purported to quote Republican Party chairman Michael Steele, adding; “We demand that she prove that she is definitely not Kenyan.”

The blog also purported to quote Orly Taitz, leader of the “birther” movement, as terming Snowe’s vote “textbook Kenyan” behaviour, because, “She’s putting her tribe first.”

What they don’t tell you about Rwanda

2009-10-03T16:47:00.000-07:00

Rwanda enjoys a positive reputation internationally and its President Paul Kagame is regularly praised by the World Bank, the US, and UK administrations for his integrity, efforts at reconciliation, and economic policies. I was impressed by his advice to Kenyans at the national prayer breakfast last May to follow his government’s example of commitment to ethnic diversity, consensus building on the common good, national values, and inclusion of all political views in national life and development agenda.

When I visited Rwanda at the request of the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative to do a report on the state of human rights and democracy in Rwanda (in connection with Rwanda’s application to join the Commonwealth) my first impressions, despite some critical reports I had read, were favourable: Very efficient and courteous processing of incoming passengers, a safe, clean and well organised Kigali, and bright and suave officials.

However, I was put on guard when every non-official person I interviewed, diplomats, journalists, professionals, and local and international civil society officers, would not speak to me except on assurances of anonymity.

When I read the constitution, I found no mention of ethnic or religious groups, and came across legislation, which banned discussion of ethnicity (yet huge government posters reminded people of the "genocide against the Tutsi", although of course many Hutus had also been massacred). Those who imply that Kagame’s Rwanda Patriotic Front had killed Hutus unnecessarily are heavily penalised, as are those who question official accounts of the genocide. This hardly fits with Kagame’s advocacy of reconciliation, inclusion or coming to terms with the past.

Exiled hutus

Rwanda President Paul Kagame
Reading numerous reports of the UN Security Council, UNHCR or international NGOs, memoirs of some key Rwandan politicians and of the commander of the UN forces Romeo Dallaire, and scholarly literature, I learnt that, though of course the Tutsi had suffered greatly at the hands of a large number of Hutus, the RPF had also killed thousands of Hutus, and driven many to exile (and then pursued them in their countries of exile). Incoming Tutsi have appropriated Hutu owned land. When considered strategic, the RPF allowed the killing of Tutsis. Dallaire writes that their deaths can also be laid "at the door of the military genius, Kagame, who did not speed up his campaign when the scale of genocide became clear and even talked candidly with me at several points about the price his fellow Tutsi might have to pay for the cause". Kagame refused Dallaire’s proposal to accept ceasefire to stop the massacre, because it did not suit Kagame’s grand design of Tutsi hegemony. He has been quoted as criticising people who see the war in terms of human rights. He has said that some conflicts are good, "a sort of purification" which "erupt in order to make a real transformation possible".

The Rwanda regime relies on power structures that sometimes run parallel to, and sometimes crosscut, the formal government; and in which the army plays a central role. The country has relied heavily for its revenue (to fund its institutions and elite) on plunder of the mineral resources of the DRC.

Mode of extraction

It bears the primary responsibility for the political and economic instability in the Great Lakes Region (including the overthrow of the Congolese government), which is functional to its mode of extraction of wealth and its regional dominance.

It practises, and has contributed to, a complex, regional regime of illegal economic transactions, evasion of UN sanctions, arming of militias, criminal business organisations, and disregard of neighbours’ borders and fiscal systems, which has greatly impoverished the region.

The RPF has used an extraordinary amount of violence, domestically and internationally. It has killed several thousands Hutus, citizens and others, and is responsible for the deaths of even more through displacement, malnutrition and hunger. It has denied hundreds of thousands of children the opportunity of education, and deprived millions of family and community life. It has conscripted child soldiers. The UN has voluminously documented these practices and repeatedly chastised Rwanda for its irresponsible behaviour in the DRC. Beneath the gentility of RPF leaders, the tidiness of Kigali, and its gleaming high rise buildings, I found a country deeply fragmented, operating under the hegemony of a small Tutsi political elite, which rules through oppression and fear.

Effective Public Relations

I discovered that these leaders are extraordinarily effective at public relations, especially as directed at the West, and make the most of the guilt in the West for doing so little to prevent the terrible genocide in 1994, directed largely but not exclusively at the Tutsi.

[The report of the CHRI can be found at http://www.humanrightsinitiative.org/publications/hradvocacy/rwanda’s_application_for_membership_of_the_commonwealth.pdf]

By Prof Yash Ghai
Prof Ghai is a former CKRC Chaiman

Is Kenya a failed state?

2009-09-22T18:22:00.000-07:00

A Professor who taught Research Methods and Methodology once told our class that "what you see depends on two things: Where you are standing and what direction you are facing."

I suspect this statement may well inform the response to the public debate as to whether Kenya is a failed state or not.

From casual observation, one cannot fail to see that the political elite in Kenya froth at the mouth whenever anyone dares compare Kenya with her troubled neighbours such as Somalia or DRC. Such politicians use words like "we are a sovereign state" and "we have a duly elected government" to justify that we are not a failed state.

Rarely do the voices of the masses get the same publicity as those of the powerful elite on this debate or any other. It would be safe to say that politicians and wananchi would have converse opinions on the "failed state" debate because the two, metaphorically speaking, stand on different podiums and face different directions and therefore see and experience different "Kenya’s".

The term "failed state" is often used by political commentators and journalists to describe a state perceived as having failed at some of the basic conditions and responsibilities of a sovereign government.

The Fund for Peace, United States-based think tank, uses the following attributes to characterie a failed state:

loss of physical control of its territory, or of the monopoly on the legitimate use of physical force therein,

erosion of legitimate authority to make collective decisions,

an inability to provide reasonable public services, and

an inability to interact with other states as a full member of the international community.

On the other hand, the UK-based Crisis States Research Centre defines a failed state as a condition of "state collapse" that it can no longer perform its basic security and development functions and loses effective control over its territory and borders.

Since 2005, the Fund for Peace and the magazine Foreign Policy, publishes an annual index called the Failed States Index. The list only assesses sovereign states (determined by membership in the United Nations).

It has released this year’s Failed States Index. From a list of 177 failed states, Kenya is ranked 14th among the top 20. So if our politicians bothered to be informed they would realize that sovereignty does not exclude one from being a failed state as all 177 states named as failed states are all sovereign, some, like Somalia, with very impressive economic growth!

The index's ranks are based on twelve indicators of state vulnerability - four social, two economic and six political.

Social indicators include: Demographic pressures; Massive movement of refugees and internally displaced peoples; Legacy of vengeance-seeking group grievance; Chronic and sustained human flight.

Economic indicators include: Uneven economic development along group lines; Sharp and/or severe economic decline.

Political indicators include: Criminalisation and/or delegitimisation of the state; Progressive deterioration of public services; Widespread violation of human rights; Security apparatus as ‘state within a state’; Rise of factionalised elites; Intervention of other states or external factors.

Published on 19/07/2009

By Roseleen Nzioka

Childish things, childish ways

2009-06-20T14:47:00.001-07:00

A wise man of the ancient once said " when I was a child, I did childish things. Now that I am a man, I have put away the childish and act like a man". I was in Kenya about a month ago, and during my visit two interesting events occurred. These were the live telecast of parliamentary proceedings and the verdict on the Tom Cholmondeley Delamere case.

These were both significant events in the history of the country, one heralding a new era of openness and maturity for the Kenyan society. While the other displaying our inability to deal with an old era, and its resulting diversity. We focused our attention on the narrow prism with which every Kenyan seems to define self, by - race, tribe, ethnicity, in evaluating guilt. However, inspite of these two momentous occurrence, I was intrigued by a different phenomenon, one more apparent and obvious. I watched the central figures of authority in these branches of government. And conspicuous on each head, the Speaker, Kenneth Marende and High Court Judge, Muga Apondi, both wore these hideous blonde wigs in what appeared to be either oblivion or pride.

When I was a child, I copied and aped a lot. I pretended to be my father, a policeman, a soldier and we made costumes that allowed us to look the part. I believe we called it 'kalongo'. This throw back to my childhood was an epiphany into the state of Kenya's maturity. We have a population looking at figures in authority with real expectations of life and death, however the leaders are playing the part aping some distant colonial era, some servant of the Royal British Empire. This lack of self awareness or knowledge of self was excusable in the 1960s, but 40 years later we are still playing 'kalongo' and acting the part.

Games have no accountability and the outcomes are not real. We have had vision 1995, 2000, 2010 and now 2030. These are words on paper, a script for a well choreographed play, where all the actors go back to their real lives after the curtain falls with a fat paycheck, nothing real.

Some will site tradition, and I am the biggest fan of tradition, however we must pause and ask ourselves whose tradition. We as Kenyans run the risk of playing the baffon, the joker, the jester at every court. Parallel to a colonial tradition we have a liberation tradition and too often we have honored the colonial over the liberation tradition in Kenya and to some extent Africa. Lake Victoria, Victoria Falls are just symbols of this immaturity, an inability to take full ownership of yourself.

We need to rediscover who we are and rekindle what our true values were and here is my short list of where we should start.

A new constitution that reflects the will and tone of the people to replace current one handed down by the British
Full ownership of our successes and failures - its the only way we will learn to do better
New land policy that honors indigenous land rights - otherwise what were the struggles for?
Renaming of all national symbols and land features
And finally getting rid of those UGLY WIGS

If you look at countries that have shared a liberation tradition - United States, India, South Africa - have all shed this semblance of a clingy undesirable past. Some how we seem to find it a convenient scapegoat. We blame every issue on the colonial era, we kill each other, steal land, even urinate in the streets and blame the colonial era. We need to stop the games, no more 'kalongo' this is realings we are way past 'tryzex' and 'mujaribu'. Or have we already lost our marbles?

Accord, Constitution have no answer

2009-04-28T14:33:00.000-07:00

Kenneth Marende

Honourable members, on Thursday, April 23, just as the House was about to resume the interrupted debate on the Motion for the approval by the House of the names of Members nominated to serve on the House Business Committee, the Member for Kisumu Town West, the Honourable John Olago-Aluoch, stood on a point of order claiming to raise an issue touching on the ability of this House to defend the Constitution. The Member noted that the Motion for approval of Members of the House Business Committee had been brought by the Honourable Vice-President as Leader of Government Business. He, however, sought to know from the Chair who under our Constitution is supposed to move the Motion.

Citing the definition of the ‘Leader of Government Business’ in the Standing Orders, which at Standing Order 2 is defined as "the Minister designated by the Government as the Leader of Government Business in the House" the Member posed the question: "Who is the Government in the context of the Kenyan situation?"

Olago-Aluoch went on to argue that ‘Government’ in the context of the Kenyan situation is defined by the Constitution and the National Accord and Reconciliation Act and that, considering the functions of the Prime Minister as set out in the Constitution, the inference from the Constitution and the National Accord is that the Leader of Government Business and the chairperson of the House Business Committee is a constitutional affair. It was the argument of the Olago-Aluoch that the Leader of Government Business ought to be the Prime Minister and that it would be unconstitutional for any other person to be the Leader of Government Business or the chairperson of the House Business Committee. He, thus, sought a Ruling from the Chair on these matters before the House could proceed.

Weighty Matter

The Chair took the view that the matters raised by Olago-Aluoch were weighty and decided to hear a few more contributions from Members before indicating the way to proceed.

Honourable Members, what followed was a barrage of learned and educated opinions by many Members canvassing various positions on the issues raised. In the process a number of Members also raised new issues which merit consideration and comment by the Chair. Some of the Members who gave opinion or raised issues include Honourables Mutula Kilonzo, James Orengo, Gitobu Imanyara, Kiraitu Murungi, Dr (Wilfred) Machage, Isaac Ruto, Uhuru Kenyatta, Charles Kilonzo, William Ruto, Walter Nyambati, William ole Ntimama, Abdul Bahari, Prof George Saitoti, Chris Okemo, Peter Munya, Elizabeth Ongoro, Dr Naomi Shaban, John Mbadi, Prof Sam Ongeri, Ababu Namwamba, Prof Anyang’ Nyong’o, Bifwoli Wakoli, Farah Maalim and George Thuo. This list is not exhaustive.

Honourable Members, you will recall that at the end of all the contributions, I delivered a communicationin which I among other things promised, without prejudice to the Ruling I undertook to deliver today, to seek direct audience with His Excellency the President and the Right Honourable Prime Minister with a view to bringing the matter of the constitution of the House Business Committee, its chairperson and the Leader of Government Business to a speedy and amicable conclusion. I also undertook to make known to this House, the results of that initiative. Indeed, I will do so in the course of this communication.

Speaker ill-equipped

Honourable Members, before I get to the heart of this Ruling, let me remind you of what I said on Thursday, 23rd April, 2009. I said then and I repeat now that the office of the Speaker of the National Assembly is singularly ill-equipped to advise on or determine for the for the Executive arm of Government, and, for that matter, political parties, how they shall run their affairs.

I further stated that the Speaker will limit himself to questions of constitutionality, statute and the Standing Orders, but only so far as these relate to the business and affairs of this House. I, therefore, want to make it clear from the onset that subject to these qualifications, I do not intend to traverse territory that is outside the province of my office.

Honourable Members, I have distilled the following issues from the points of order and contributions made:

a) What is the definition of the Government in the context of Standing Order No 2?;

b) Whether the Speaker having recognised or allowed the Vice-President to appear before the House as the Leader of Government Business, is estopped from entertaining any questions as to the legality or propriety of his incumbency as such;

c) Whether the House has any role in the nomination or determination of the Leader of Government Business;

d) Whether the Constitution, as read with the National Accord and Reconciliation Act, provides for who shall be the Leader of Government Business in this House;

e) How any inconsistency between the National Accord and Reconciliation Act and the Constitution, or for that matter the Standing Orders, is to be resolved;

f) What the Speaker is to do in the event that he receives two different letters from the same Government designating different persons as Leader of Government Business in the House;

g) Whether the House can remove a Leader of Government Business and if so by what procedure;

h) The procedure for nomination of the chairperson of the House Business Committee and whether the nominee of Government for chairperson is to be part of the list submitted to the House for approval or is additional to it;

i) Whether the House can proceed to approve the membership of the House Business Committee without regard to the question of who the Leader of Government Business or the chairperson of the Committee is.

Honourable Members, I seek your indulgence as the menu of issues for determination is very long. Allow me to pronounce myself as concisely as I can on each of these issues:

The first and probably the most important issue is the question of who or what constitutes the ‘Government’, for the purposes of the designation of a Minister envisaged under Standing Order 2. This issue was canvassed at length and is at the core of the present impasse.

Various documents were cited as providing the answer; including the Interpretation and General Provisions Act; Chapter 2 of the Laws of Kenya, the Constitution and the National Accord and Reconciliation Act. The simple question being asked is this: When the Standing Orders provide for designation of a Minister to be the Leader of Government Business in the House by the Government, who is envisaged to make that designation?

Honourable Members, the position of Leader of Government Business exists in virtually all Parliaments in the Commonwealth. There are, however, no hard and fast rules as to who shall hold that office. In some jurisdictions, the matter is expressly provided for in the Constitution, while in others it obtains by statute or the standing orders. The following few examples shall illustrate this point:

No Universal Rule

In the Republic of Ghana, the Leader of Government Business is not specifically provided for in the Constitution and the holder of that office need not be a Minister. In fact, today, the Leader of Government Business in the Parliament of Ghana is not a Minister. He is not a member of Cabinet and cannot lay a paper in the House on behalf of a Minister.

In the Republic of Uganda, pursuant to Article 108A of the Constitution, the Prime Minister is designated as the Leader of Government Business in Parliament. In the United Republic of Tanzania, under the Constitution, the Prime Minister is appointed by the President and is the Leader of Government Business in the National Assembly and has authority over the control, supervision and execution of the day-to-day functions and affairs of the Government.

In the Republic of South Africa, the President appoints the Leader of Government Business in Parliament. In democracies with a longer history such as the United Kingdom and India, the Leader of Government Business is designated by the Prime Minister who is the Head of Government. There is, therefore, no universal rule of general application in this matter.

Honourable Members, in Kenya, the office of the Leader of Government Business is recognised and defined only in the Standing Orders. The position as defined in the Standing Orders must be construed, not generally, but only in the context of the National Assembly. The holder is the Leader of the Business of the Government only for the purposes of the House.

National Accord

The phrase ‘Leader of Government Business’ is not, to my knowledge, to be found anywhere in the Constitution or in the National Accord and Reconciliation Act. The position is not established by or under any other statute. It follows that neither the Constitution, nor any statute has provision on the appointment of the Leader of Government Business in the House.

In providing that the Leader of Government Business shall be the Minister designated by the Government, I find that, in terms of how the House functions, the Standing Orders mean no more than that the Leader of Government Business is to be the Minister designated by the Government. It is that organ that is entrusted with the running of the Executive arm of the Republic.

The office of Leader of Government Business in this House has been held by various persons since Independence. At some times the office has been held by the Vice-President while at other times it has been held by a Minister. The one constant thread running through is that the decision about who shall be the Leader of Government Business has always been in the Executive.

Honourable Members, a number of Members suggested that as the Speaker had "recognised" the Vice-President acting as Leader of Government Business at some point, the Speaker was, therefore, estopped from entertaining any queries on the legality or propriety of the Vice-President’s incumbency as such. This is not so. The role of the Speaker, as is well known, is to act as a neutral arbiter. The Speaker is not a protagonist in the arena that is the House. The Speaker does not raise points of order on his own motion...

Continues Thursday.

Hon. Kenneth Marende, E.G.H., M.P.,
Speaker of the National Assembly
28th April, 2009.

When a ruler surrenders instruments of State to hangers on, tragedy is never far

2009-04-25T12:08:00.001-07:00

Under different circumstances, leading lawyers like Gibson Kamau Kuria would today ask for legal mechanisms to be put in motion to show that President Kibaki can still continue being relied upon to steer the ship of State.

They would invoke the Constitution to enquire into the wellness and ability of the national CEO. They would seek to know that it is safe to continue trusting him with the heavy, sensitive and critical responsibility of Office of President and Commander-in- Chief of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Kenya.

But Kibaki is not Daniel arap Moi. People like Kamau Kuria and others know why they were very vocal against Moi. They know why they say nothing on Mzee Kibaki’s atrophied presidency. Instead they praise him, even as the country hurtles most dangerously on Destruction Highway.

But history shows that this is how it has always been with societies that will self-destruct. They have a sleepy, slow and laid back incumbent who quietly surrenders the instruments of State to his courtiers and hangers on. As the nation dithers on Destruction Highway, he is conspicuously missing in action. Only occasionally does he peep outside his hideout to mutter some irrelevant things while the nation slowly smoulders in what will presently become a full-blown inferno.

When France was gravitating towards the apocalypse of revolution in the late 1780s, Louis XVI was an absent-minded, slow and laid back Head of State and Government. He squandered valued time in making door locks and experimenting with guns and chasing after wild animals in the jungle. When he was not doing this, he would be sampling fine wines in the Palace at Versailles, while the spoilt Queen Marie Antoinette massaged his feet. Or he would simply be wallowing in perfumed bathtubs, completely oblivious of the storm building outside. Even when the custodians of public opinion raised the red flag, the drowsy King Louis XVI took no notice. In the proper order of time, France paid the price. But Louis XVI also paid his price, with his head, as did the spoilt Queen.

Elsewhere in Russia, King Nicholas II had for all practical purposes and intents surrendered the country into the hands of his spoilt Queen, Tsarina Alexandria and Grigori Yefimovich Rasputin. Rasputin, also known as the Mad Monk, doubled up as the queen’s not-so-secret lover and magic maker. Nicholas would in the proper order of time be forced to abdicate from the throne in May 1917. His reign saw Russia degenerate from one of the greatest powers of the times to an economic and military disaster. Historians have told of how the Bolsheviks ended the Romanov Dynasty with the weakly Nikolai Alexandrovich Romanov as the last emperor. The country paid a heavy price.

Weak leaders are bad for any country. And President Kibaki is clearly not a strong willed leader. The religious fraternity has recently ventilated its exasperation with what it calls ‘a moribund president’. What they are saying is simply that the President is not in charge of the affairs of State. At any rate, he does not behave like one who is in charge. President Kibaki leaves you wondering what the presidency is about.

Ugandans are flying their flag on Kenyan soil and the President thinks this is just a practical joke. They tamper with beacons in West Pokot and the President’s voice is missing. Goons slaughter dozens of Kenyans in Gathiathi village and the President is missing in action. Kenyatta University goes up in flames under the charge of hopelessly flawed leadership and the President is nowhere.

The country is in the throes of a frightening constitutional crisis and the President sees nothing wrong with this. We have no electoral commission and no voters’ registers. If this presidency were to fall vacant in the present circumstances the country would burn. But the President is doing nothing to correct this absurdity, which in the first place he should never have allowed.

Make no mistake. The country is in a free fall. The electoral commission collapsed. The Judiciary is tottering on the brink of collapse. The Cabinet has collapsed. At its very best; it is a Tower of Babel. The presidency is ailing and crumbling. The only institution that can save Kenya is Parliament. But Parliament is ailing and facing imminent paralysis. For all its avarice and allied weaknesses, the Tenth Parliament must not be allowed to collapse. A presidency in atrophy requires other organs of State must take leadership. It is on the shoulders of the Speaker Kenneth Marende that the load of saving Kenya rests.

He must begin by saving Parliament. He must not let Parliament collapse. He must ensure there is a Leader of Government Business in the House next week and that this leader is not some whimsical self-seeking opportunist or turncoat who cannot be trusted with the reforms that Parliament must undertake, beginning now. Parliament for its part needs to move swiftly with the reform programme and to lead the way in Agenda Four of the National Peace and Reconciliation Accord.

Barrack Muluka

Is Africa Staring at Overt International Supervision

2009-03-23T19:34:00.000-07:00

Hate or love Paul Collier, the Oxford University gadfly with provocative ideas about development or lack of it, in the poorest countries of the world: but you can trust him to come up with astonishing analysis every time he gets to it. That is precisely what he has done in his latest book War, Guns and Votes: Democracy in Dangerous Places.
Collier is a contrarian. He goes against the flow of conventional thinking, which, in the case of the countries he baptized the bottom billion assumes that somehow those countries will turn around and become success stories. Not so says Collier, who by the way has updated the list of the countries he implies are basket cases to include virtually all sub-Saharan African countries. The way he sees it, the trajectory is in the wrong direction. More precisely, these poor and dangerous places are cornered. Left to their devices, these countries will stew in their misery forever, which may be fine by the rest of the international community except that the conditions of these countries imposes global public bad on the rest of the international community, which must act in self-interest, if nothing else, to minimize the costs to them.
Collier is not a heterodox thinker of big ideas distilled from opaque philosophies. He bases his analysis squarely on results of state of the art quantitative analysis. The thrust of Collier’s argument is that poor countries are hobbled by many challenges, most of them self-inflicted, that it would be unrealistic to expect them to pull themselves up by their bootstraps although an attempt to do so would help.
Take the matter of nation building. According to Collier, few of these places are nations: maybe they are states, and even so barely, but they are not nations in the modern sense of the term. Collier says a nation must have some internal identity and cohesion. Most of them lack both. Why is that a problem? By Collier’s lights, many of the countries are too big to be nations in the sense that they are an amalgam of various competing, often ethnic identities, and too small to be states because their size does not allow much of economies in the provision of public goods. That is his punch line. Bad consequences proceed from this fact. The politics in these places is ethno-centred because national cohesion is nonexistent. Bad governance further exacerbates the problem because its modus operandi is ethnic manipulation that sets the stage for perpetual ethnic rivalries over the control of public goods without consideration to the whole society.
In these circumstances, observes Collier, increased democracy simply ups the scale of rivalry that very often results in violence and the weakening of already weak societies Does Collier therefore believe that democracy is bad for fragile societies? In the short-term yes, but the alternative, dictatorship, is not really an option because it merely suppresses pressures without attempting to address their root causes. The reason increased freedom becomes disruptive is because rulers and the casts of supporting elites have not internalized democratic and accountability values. This leads to fundamental contradiction between form and content.
Collier dwells a great extent on Kenya as an exemplar of what could go wrong. The book is dedicated to John Githongo, the whistleblower on grand corruption in Kenya and the subject of a recently published book on governance in Kenya, It’s Our Turn to Eat, by Michela Wrong It did not surprise Collier in the least that the last election in Kenya held in 2007 was followed by mayhem of frightening proportions. The tragedy according to Collier is that the correct lessons are being missed and episodes like those that are likely to be repeated if both the countries concerned and the international community do not put the effort to learn from such experiences.
As far as internal solutions go, Collier pins his hopes on enlightened and visionary leadership such as Julius Nyerere's and Nelson Mandela's. Collier’s acknowledged friends, Uganda’s Yoweri Museveni and Rwanda’s Paul Kagame do not make the cut although of the latter, Collier says, is the most effective state builder in Africa. Notice the use of the word state rather than nation. Kagame is building an effective but largely authoritarian state that militates against nation building because of its ethno-based ideologies.
Since the emergence of visionary leaders is chancy, Collier focuses on the international community as a potential source of corrective. International aid is the lifeline of the bottom billion countries. The trouble is, says Collier, aid has not been strategically and effectively deployed leading to disillusionment on both sides, particularly among the donors, who keep doling out money anyway for a variety of reasons, guilt among them.
This nonsense should stop declares Collier who would go a step further and add even stricter conditionality to ensure that aid reaches those it is intended for.
Sovereignty should not be an issue Collier claims boldly. Countries of the bottom billion do not have much national sovereignty to begin with; few of them are nations anyway. They might have state sovereignty but even that has been converted to presidential sovereignty. By framing the issue thusly, Collier carefully isolates what he sees as the main obstacle, leadership or lack of it, and then proceeds to propose remedies that target that major link in the chain. His conclusion: the international community should design carrots and sticks to influence leaders in the Bottom Billion countries to move towards better governance systems. The sticks, threats of military intervention in certain instances, should be credible. After all, observes Collier, the international community owes it to fellow human beings who bear the brunt of suffering in the Bottom Billion countries. A return to colonialism or trusteeship of a sort? Collier is unapologetic. If that is what it takes to heave the benighted places in the 21st century, so be it. Already, he says, it is underway in several places. Liberia has virtually ceded its sovereignty of its financial management to international donors. All checks cut by the country’s ministry of finance have to be countersigned by donors.
Collier may have found unlikely allies in certain parts of Africa. During a recent demonstration to protest the suspicious killing of two civil society activities, university students in Kenya carried placards calling for a return of foreign rule in Kenya. That was not much different from a comment by a bewildered character in Chinua Achebe’s the Anthills of the Savannah who wondered perplexedly when independence would end. Beware Africa. Berlin Conference II may not be too far off.

By John Mulaa PhD

Help Us Make A Powerful Noise

2009-03-02T14:56:00.001-08:00

Hanh is an HIV-positive widow in Vietnam. Nada, a survivor of the Bosnian war. And Jacqueline works the slums of Bamako, Mali. Three very different lives. Three vastly different worlds. But they share something in common: Power. These women are each overcoming gender barriers to rise up and claim a voice in their societies. Through their empowerment and ability to empower others, Hanh, Nada and Jacqueline are sparking remarkable changes. Fighting AIDS. Rebuilding communities. Educating girls.

Hanh learned that she had contracted HIV after her husband and daughter died from AIDS. Bouncing back from despair, she started a self-help group in Vietnam, called Immortal Flower, to give people living with HIV/AIDS a place for support, counseling and health care.

Nada is a working mother of three children. As a refugee, she survived the Bosnian War. Her women’s association, Maja Kravica, is helping ease hostilities between Serbs and Bosniaks in a region marred by war crimes and massive destruction. Nada is building an agricultural cooperative to offer employment opportunities for war widows, and fair trade markets for families to sell their crops and livestock.

Jacqueline, better known as “Madame Urbain” fights forced labor practices in the slums of Bamako, Mali. Madame Urbain stands up for the rights of powerless girls who are often abused in the workplace or on the streets of the big city. Her organization, APAF, provides girls a basic education, teaches them vocational skills and places them in safe jobs

A Powerful Noise takes you inside the lives of these women to witness their daily challenges and their significant victories over poverty and oppression. Their stories are personal yet illustrate larger issues affecting millions of marginalized women worldwide. A Powerful Noise is a meditation on the inherent potential of women to change the world.

USI NI BORE

2009-02-07T12:26:00.000-08:00

This might seem a bit of a diversion from the main themes tackled on this site but somehow things might eventually tie in at the end. I attended a music concert by a group of young Kenyan musicians at the Goethe-Insitut. The concert was to mark the end of the 24 Nairobi exhibition.

The group is “JUST A BAND” the title of the concert “Muziki wa Kenya” this was a strange title because their music is mainly electronic music. Not many Kenyans play let alone listen to electronic music. The concert opened with an interesting rendition of the Kenyan National Anthem with electric guitars and drums and that caught the attention of most of us. I havn’t heard the national anthem played like that before.

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The music of Just a Band is mentally stimulating, the sort of music that you listen to with headphones so that you can catch all the words and when there are no words you just want to listen to the instrumentation it is good that Kenyans are starting to write music like this, it is good that Kenyan musicians are getting creative enough to be intelligent. When I walked in to the auditorium and saw three computers sitting next to the microphones I knew I was in for something different and when the three bespectacled introverts who obviously cannot dance walked onto the stage and started punching on the computer keyboards and good music came out, I was converted, there is something like “Kenyan electronic music”.

There is one song that sums everything up for me.. The title “Usini Bore” transated “don’t bore me” The song is inspired (as the artist said) by the cost of an onion. He spoke of how the cost of living in Kenya has gone up, how food prices have sky rocketed how policy makers don’t seem to be doing their job and are constantly reacting to crisis and only when it is highlighted in the media. He seems to ask himself (this is my own interpretation) how real is all of this? Sure, you can blame some of it on the global financial crisis but most are just not real not genuine. Is some of this caused by some politicians playing the cards with some middle men who can open and close the taps of supply as they wish (we have seen this with the fuel shortage) is someone playing around with the supply for a quick buck? Then there are the other scandals: maize, Triton and the list goes on.

It seems like something is up… some scheme…someone or some people are always up to something and when they are exposed explanations that are given are a cover up for something else…and it is to those politicians that he is saying “USI NI BORE”

If you would like to know more about the band visit http://kwani.org/main/author/jaband/ you can also view some of their music videos on youtube

In tribute: Notes from James Kariuki Muiruri and the "Ng'ethu Star".

2009-01-26T06:42:00.000-08:00

It is with dire sadness i post this notes. For a young man's life has been lost. An individual who trully embodied the spirit of the rising generation. I will not dwell on the circumstaces of his passing but rather empasis on his ambitious optimisim of the future very well expressed in his notes.

Ladies and Gentlemen In tribute: notes from James Kariuki Muiruri and the "Ng'ethu Star".

My Farewell and Gratitude to Sheffield, London and Kent

Back at home, my bags are now unpacked with I having left the only life I have known for the last six years! And it all ended in Sheffield, a Great City built on seven hills. With all its splendour, its surrounding beauty fondly and constantly reminded me of the stars and breathtaking valleys of Ngethu village where I was bred and raised as a child. Now in Nyari Estate, my heart is as peaceful as a quiet afternoon as I reflect on my recent past while gazing through the window to capture the lights beneath the beautiful pattern of street lights. Having originally left Nairobi for London on the 14th of September 2002, I can safely say that it has been a tremendous academic expedition. Back then, the many men that blessed me as I left the airport on that momentous night must have known what we can achieve with our education. And as the day of my home-coming party draws near, the women await to dance and say the full five Ngemis.

THE IMPOSSIBLE IS NOTHING!! In six years, I attained three law degrees, including the Big one, a PhD in law that was awarded to me on my birthday; 3rd October 2008. Although Sheffield is my second home, I believe that this is how my story in the UK shall be told. It all started at the University of Kent which accorded me a Bachelor of Laws (Hons) degree in July 2004. But it was in September of that year when my life got more exciting after I enrolled at the University of London. Not only did I achieve a Distinction in the LLM-Public International Law, I was also awarded the Drapers Company Prize for Academic Excellence in December 2005. Those that know me well recognise the magnitude of this feat, particularly with I previously having been written off during my high school days where I got and E in math after having entered the prestigious Mangu High School with the lowest marks ever. A decade later, I can engage in a little bit of contentment when I reflect on how a full Scholarship from the University of Sheffield allowed me to teach law for three years and attain a PhD.

MY DEEPEST GRATITUDE goes to those who allowed me to be myself, as I really am, and urged me on. Some stem from my early days on this earth while others have been the angels that I have come across along the way in this journey. Through all my days, my closest friends have shone, particularly during those extremely difficult moments when I found myself alone in the dark with instinct as my only companion. But they also know that I would not have wanted it any other way. I remain, and will always be, an eternal optimist who aspires to live a complete life. As I bid my farewell to my academic and exciting social life in the UK, I wish everyone well. I know that although history remains the ultimate judge, there are always ways that one would always wish to be remembered. So for the moment, I hope to show that amidst all the partying, crazy times and occasional madness, it is still possible to maintain a sense of purpose and return to your faith and ability to achieve your dreams.

LOOKING BACK, there are many memorable times that shall forever be engraved in my heart wherever I go. I will always cherish the victorious moment when I successfully represented a Disabled man at the Benefits Tribunal in Kent in 2004. We beat the system! Also, my graduation in London in a full Maasai outfit (in memory of my great grandmother) remains the most fulfilling moment so far. And I cannot thank my friends enough for making our week in London such a success for my family. As for the Sheffield crew, I am definitely going to miss you; the times we have had are out of this world. Thank you for electing me as the President of the East African Society where we won all the awards there were to win in 2006. With humility I urge you on. And in doing so, I must also now melt in the Nairobi’s heat and take to the skies. Truly, to All, I wish you all the best in the future and I will be there.

orginally posted by James kariuki Muiruri on Facebook :Tuesday, January 20, 2009

A report card for the Grand Coalition

2008-12-24T00:00:00.000-08:00

This is an end-of-year report card for the grand coalition. I suggest we grade it on two things; effort and achievement. Overall, the government gets a “D-plus” for effort and an “E” for achievement.

I have two reasons for this modest grade. One, this government is built on a lie. What the two principals shared was positions, not power.

In fact, the 50:50 power deal was a fat lie. It did not happen, it will not happen! On this account, Mr Raila Odinga was cheated yet again. The record must reflect that President Kibaki has never won a straight election.

In 2002, he defrauded Mr Odinga through the MoU. In 2007, they had to swear him in at night. And this deceit continues to unfold in the coalition. Although ODM is in ‘power’, all they have is an illusion of power.

The result is political impotence: they want to act, but they cannot! But my second reason is more tragic.

In this coalition, the president has behaved like the proverbial ‘dog in a manger’.

This dog did not eat grass, but it guarded the manger to ensure that the cows did not eat either. Its point? If it cannot have the grass, no one has a right to eat it.

And this is President Kibaki’s approach to power. He is not interested in it, but he will not allow anyone else to have it. The result of this is paralysis in the running of Government.

This is why I give the coalition an “E” on achievement. Similarly, and on this account, I suggest we give the president a “D minus” for effort and a “C plus” for performance. And this is because, instead of giving us ‘cruel rule’ he has given us ‘no rule’.

Let us grade the other members of the ‘matatu’ presidency now. Regarding the Prime Minister Raila Odinga, I submit that he has done his best. And for this, I give him a straight “A” for effort.

However, and because he is powerless, I give him a “C plus” on performance. But I have another reason for this and I want to give it by way of a story.

A French entomologist took a caterpillar and placed it on the rim of a flower pot. Inside the pot, he placed the caterpillar’s favourite food — pine needles.

The caterpillar began to crawl around the rim of the pot, smelling the food and desperately wanting to get closer. According to the scientist, the caterpillar crawled around the rim for seven days and nights without being able to reach the food.

Having failed, but still attempting to, the caterpillar died of starvation. Each time the caterpillar went round the rim, it counted that as an achievement and saw itself getting closer to the food. It could not distinguish activity from achievement.

And this is Mr Odinga’s problem. Like the caterpillar, he is busy at work alright. However, and because he is ‘powerless’, we must not confuse his activities with achievement

As for the vice-president, Mr Kalonzo Musyoka, we do not know what he does. As such, we cannot grade him. But we must also tell him the following: “…the best calculation is the absence of calculation” The fact that he is vague and ungradable is politically strategic.

And the strategy here is simple: they must never see you coming! The Deputy Prime Ministers, Mr Uhuru Kenyatta and Mr Musalia Mudavadi should be graded together.

For effort, I give them an “E minus” and for performance, I give them an “E minus” too. The two have potential, but they lack in guts and creativity. In fact, they are condemned to the ‘curse of permanent potential’.

In this curse, a story is told of a man who was very cautious. He never laughed or played. He never risked or dared. And when he passed away, his insurance was denied.

The argument was that he never really lived, and so how could he have died? This is the story of the two guys.

Regarding the other ministers, I suggest we put them in two lists. The first comprises of the performers, the other is made up of the goofers.

From the first list, Mr John Michuki gets an unqualified “A” for effort and an “A plus” for performance. This mzee is a serious Kenyan and ‘hats –off’ to him! Mr William Ruto and Ms Martha Karua get an “A” for their diligence in ministerial duties.

However, they get a “B minus” for their politics. And I am compelled into this grade by Napoleon Bonaparte. According to this strategist “ …in order to have ultimate victory, one must be ruthless”.

But one must temper their ruthlessness with a streak of charm. That is why Napoleon adds that “…a good king must wear a velvet glove behind his iron fist”. And this is what is lacking in the ruthless politics of Mr Ruto and Ms Karua.

This Christmas, I suggest that they acquire a pair of velvet gloves to cover their bare knuckles. The second list has Mr Makwere who gets a straight “F”.

Similarly, Mr Otieno Kajwang gets an “F” for playfulness. If I was a school teacher, I would recommend the expulsion of Mr Makwere and order Mr Kajwang to bring his mother to school the next term!

And now a Christmas message to our greedy MPs. As you enjoy your untaxed Sh800,000 this Christmas, I want to leave you with the words of Okot p’Bitek in “Song of an African Woman”.

“ …I do not ask for money, although I have need for it. I do not ask for meat, although I could do with some. I have only one request. And all I ask is that you remove the road block from my path!”

This Christmas we do not need your money and gifts. All we ask is for you to remove the obstacles you have set on our path! Is this too much to ask?

By MUTAHI NGUNYIPosted Saturday, December 20 2008 at 17:50

I'm dreaming of a sunny christmas

2008-12-22T12:39:00.000-08:00

Living in this great land of multiple opportunities you get to appreciate Christmas and the holidays even more than others do, because deep down the Kenyan in you knows the true meaning of the holidays.
And what is the true meaning of Christmas you ask my friends?

It is definitely not the depressing replaying of slow jingle filled play lists that constitutes carols but the constant rumble of Mario by Franco from the row of bars at the local shopping center open all 8 days of the week including sunday.
It is not the singing about a good for nothing donkey named Rudolf and his red nose but about the nameless goat that just graduated summa cum laude to a half rack of ribs after years of intentional fattening just for this moment.
It is not about uncontrolled spending in buying of stuff the recipient will probably return if not re-gifted, but the sharing of stories and tales that are ceremoniously repeated by a certain relative 3 cousins deep that always feature a new twist every year.
Its never about a fat fictional old man who climbs down chimneys at night in the name of delivering gifts to thy young children (i think that's psycho and under psychological evaluation Santa/father Christmas would at some level qualify as a class A pedophile but that's just me thinking) .. but about genuine appreciation of time spent with thy children.
I don't know about you but playing in sub-zero temperatures is not something I'd want to do for long periods of time, even when the event is referred to as sledging. I'm liable to catch a cold. people do die of pneumonia ladies and gentlemen.
Do we really have to resort to spiking our milk to stay cheerful in this frigid temperatures so we can call this the good times, when we would all be requesting the next tusker baridi to quench that baada ya kazi.

I propose we pull a P-Diddy and remix this carols .. because right now I'm dreaming of a hot, sunny christmas somewhere in the vicinity of Maragua, with 8 cousins from the city who answer to similar names chasing the chicken, women in the smooty mud kitchen gossiping over burnt stew, fellow men argue the latest political casualty while turning the ribs on an open fire, sipping on a never ending supply of frothy beer.
Now that's is the REAL meaning of Christmas.
happy holidays everyone and have a merry merry Christmas

credits to darling.

Politicians have poisoned regional market dream

2008-12-20T19:49:00.000-08:00

Conventional wisdom provides for economies of scale as a platform for energising trade and industrialisation. The two are critical ingredients for jobs creation, which East African countries urgently require.

This is precisely what Europe set out to achieve more than two decades ago. Western European states agreed to bring down economic barriers by forming an economic bloc with vast economic resources and broader market. The move has spurred production and market access because of the large size of the population. The bloc has a common currency — the euro — and uniform tariffs, which cut substantially the cost of production and living.

Despite some hitches, the European Union has spurred growth in erstwhile tame economies. Spain, Portugal and Greece have been posting high economic growth, proof of which is the numbers of illegal migrants from Africa and Asia.

The transformation of the Organisation of African Unity into African Union was inspired by the economic benefits that accrue from the economies of scale — the more, the better. The larger the size of population, the more the economic benefits.

It is this economic concept that necessitated the formation of the East African Common Market, which according to the EAC treaty should come into force next year. However, political leaders have poisoned what was a good idea that would have been a major boost to the region’s weak economies.

The start of the process to collect and collate views on envisaged regional Common Market last week was marked with diffidence and apathy. This signals that the dream to integrate the economies of Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda and Burundi — with a combined population of nearly 130 million people — is evaporating.

First, there is the longstanding fear and mistrust among founder members — Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania. The three countries have, since independence, acted like strange bedfellows in matters economic. Unequal levels of development has also been cited as one of the factors that derail formation of a common market to facilitate cross-border movement of goods, services and labour. Generally, these are excuses rather than reasons for procrastination. It is an open secret that political chauvinism and misplaced patriotism have replaced the original dream — a single economic entity.

Members of EA Legislative Assembly, who are currently collecting views on formation of the common market, were appalled by the low turnout when simultaneous sittings began last Monday in the five states. It is premature to make any serious conclusions about the future and viability of the bloc, but it is a fact that the enthusiasm that the concept had initially elicited has faded.

This is as a result of differences in thinking and execution of the few projects the envisaged economic bloc has undertaken jointly. The EAC Customs Union, which came into being in 2005, is dysfunctional with members constantly trading accusations – and insults – over discrepancies in its implementation. Free movement of labour may never takeoff, save for between Kenya and Rwanda.

These are two instances of discord in EAC. The region and its leaders are locked up in a time warp that can only be undone by economies of scale. A regional common market is evidently a long shot.

EA Standard

Would a Barack Obama even be possible in Kenya?

2008-12-16T19:28:00.001-08:00

Barack Obama is now the president elect and Kenyans appear to be even more excited than the Americans about the prospect of an Obama presidency. I understand the excitement and even share in it, however now that some of the dust has settled Obama's victory got me thinking. Is Barak Obama even possible in Kenya. I will not mentioned the issues we have with tribe and ethnicity. Though they are huge. Even without these Kenyans are a unique set of people, an a diverse group. I recall when Richard Leakey and full blooded third generation white Kenyan attempted to run for president. He was rewarded with forty lashes of the nyahunyo and Kenyan sneers saying " Huyu Mzungu hajui kuwa tuli pata uhuru." What if he was the man for the job? What if Kenyan would have been better off with a Richard Leakey? What if the man for the job is different from the regular Kenyan? These are not part of the national discourse as we shout OBAMA OBAMA OBAMA. For Kenyans your cultural heritage in an inherent part of the equation of your eligibility.

Now to many Kenyans Leakey is an extreme example but how different would this be from Obama's historic victory in the USA. Kenya has a number of nationals who have only been allowed to participate on the periphery of Kenyan politics.Like minorities in the USA they have been allowed to participate on all other areas with relative success but have been kept away from the political arena. First, its the Asian or rather Kenyan's of Indian decent. These Kenyans have been stereotyped as corrupt and no good elements, I know we have had our share of no good Kenyan Indians, but it is no reason to black list the this or any other community based on the actions of a few. Kenyans will willingly accept Patel's contribution to the economy, even cheer Rajit where it concerns hockey and cricket, but do not touch siasa or atleast the highest levels of siasa. Hiyo ni kazi ya mwafrika mweneji wa kabila yangu. Perceptions of so called Kenyan Arabs is no better. Then there is the so called half-caste, who we canot quite place. Kenyans continue to view our lighter skinned brothers as peripheral to the nation's destiny.

Now I have to be fair here. The Mafrika is not solely at fault here. The entire Kenyan family has to play in the same sandbox; and want to play together. We have had selective self-segregation in our schools, residential areas, clubs and pubs, based on race, tribe, religion and or national origin. We need to grow. So for all the faults that are sited about America and American society, we as Kenyans have a lot to learn and grow on treating our own as equals. We need to expose our own issues, we will never change unless we Paza Sauti.

The lies about Jomo and Kenya

2008-12-13T18:26:00.000-08:00

Jamhuri Day celebrations have just been concluded with pomp and pageantry. What, however, is critical to me is not the annual celebrations we have witnessed. Not even the honours some people might have received.

My concern is about the blatant lies associated with the occasion that we have been living with for a long time. Old wisdom informs us that when a lie is told several times, it actually turns into truth. At the risk of displeasing some people, let me highlight some political lies about Kenya and the late President Kenyatta.

We have been told several times that Kenya gained independence in 1963. We have also been informed that Kenyatta was not only the country’s founding father but also a quintessential freedom fighter. I have spent a lot of time perusing relevant documents to establish the veracity of these claims but I have not been able to find any truth in them.

Divide and rule

Colonial rule had certain fundamental pillars. Through a carefully conceived ‘divide and rule policy’, colonialism was implanted to secure the exploitation of Kenya’s human and material resources. In addition to promoting ethnic hostilities among the African communities, colonial rule was both dictatorial and intolerant.

Those who challenged colonial authorities were killed by the police, jailed or summarily detained without trial. Under the system, the imperial Governor presided over a prefectural network that ensured that British government policies were fully implemented.

On their part, the Africans paid taxes without representation and provided the cheap labour, which facilitated production of wealth. Influential public service jobs went to whites and very few African collaborators. Furthermore, most of Kenya’s productive land was alienated and given to Europeans. Education opportunities for the African people were scarce. Kenya belonged to the white people.

Kenya’s First President Mzee Jomo Kenyatta

In the past 45 years of African leadership, Kenya has been unable to deal with the problems the country experienced under formal colonialism. That is why I am proposing that since colonialism did not end in 1963, our celebration of the occasion is rather misguided. Biting poverty, police brutality, political intolerance, unfair distribution of resources and jobs, unemployment and ethnic parochialism continue to haunt every aspect of life in Kenya. Our past history shows that, in fact, 1963 was not the year of independence. Rather, it was the time when European colonialism was Africanised, making Kenyatta the first black governor.

Our struggle for the second liberation was hijacked in 1992 when Moi — the second black governor — took charge of the proceedings by pretending to be a democrat. He rigged the first serious multi-party polls since 1963 and retained the status quo.

In 2002, the peoples’ second attempt to overthrow Kenya’s black colonial rule seemed to succeed when Narc swept its way to power and promised real change. What followed, however, was an anticlimax of our dreams. In a recent interview with media officials, former Lurambi Member of Parliament Masinde Werangai captured the hopelessness of our political situation when he conceded that the promises of uhuru had not been fulfilled by successive Kenyan governments.

Genuine heroes

The lie that Jomo Kenyatta was the founding father of the country should not be allowed to continue. As truly conceived by genuine founding mothers and fathers, the Kenyan nation is yet to be born. What helped Kenyatta to rise to the top was his mastery of pretense and deceit. Kenyatta knew how to mimic what he was not. This is demonstrated by the way he easily changed names to hide his true self. Although he was born Kamau wa Ngengi, he changed to John Peter and by 1922, he had become Johnstone Kamau. While in Europe in the 1930s, he became Jomo Kenyatta. In 1963, Kamau wa Ngegi was simply known as Mzee Jomo Kenyatta. So what is the difference-in character and deed between President Kenyatta, Mzee, John Peter, Johnstone or Kamau? Was it safe for Kenyans to have entrusted the institution of the presidency in a person whose names kept changing?

After spending along time in Europe, Kenyatta returned home in 1946 and shortly seized the leadership the Kenya African Union party. Although he was mistakenly arrested and jailed for being a member of the Mau Mau, Kenyatta denounced the nationalist movement several times and eventually set the record straight during the Kapenguria trial of 1953.

His nationalist credentials were further undermined by the fact that during his presidency, he became the biggest land owner in Kenya when he acquired over 500,000 acres of land. Besides, he made it his top priority to punish and neutralize freedom fighters who questioned his political practices.

Crushed dissent

Throughout his rule, Kenyatta did not hold any presidential elections to test his popularity. It is tragic that such a person has been branded founding father and freedom fighter.

Like the colonial governor before him, Kenyatta crushed dissent without mercy, terrorised political opponents using the police and detained without trial those with divergent opinions.

Contrary to the dreams and aspirations of the freedom fighters, Kenyatta failed to unite Kenya when he embarked on the programme of Kikuyunizing the public service, by replacing the outgoing Europeans with his own kinsmen. At the height of his presidency, he failed to appreciate Kenya’s diversity when he receded to his own ethnic cocoon.

This was not surprising because, from the very beginning, Kenyatta’s political operations revolved around Kikuyu nationalism. It is noted that as early as 1929, he had been sent to London by the Kikuyu Central Association to lobby for Kikuyu tribal land rights. He even edited a tribal newspaper, Muigwithania.

We have to recognise that the struggle for independence which began in the early 1890s when British rule was imposed on our people was never concluded in 1963, 1992, 2002 or 2007. It continues to date. In addition, the true heroes of Kenya’s liberation combat include the brave fighters of the Chetambe War of 1890s, the champions of the Mau Mau era as well as the stalwarts of the Giriama and the Nandi resistance. These people deserve respect and recognition.

Individuals who should make the list of founding fathers and mothers of Kenya should not be Jomo Kenyatta and his fellow traitors of the freedom struggle. Genuine freedom fighters include, Mekatili wa Menza, Koitalel arap Samoei, Harry Thuku, Fred Kubai, Bildad Kaggia, Masinde Muliro, Elijah Masinde, and Jaramogi Odinga Oginga, among others. Contemporary scholars have an obligation to the people of Kenya to rewrite our history by correcting the lies we have lived with for a long time.

By Dr. Edward Kisiang’ani

Dr Kisiang’ani teaches History and Political Studies at Kenyatta University.
Kisiangani2007@gmail.com

MIRO JUNGU OR CHUT- SAMOSA FESTIVAL

2008-11-16T12:00:00.001-08:00

MIRO JUNGU OR CHUT

I attended the Samosa Festival today and I am very glad I did. The spoken word performance “Oceans Apart” by Shane Solanki and Yusra Warsama was a performance I think I will remember for much of the rest of my life. A beautiful blend of drama and poetry. Humorous...but it left a lot of questions in my mind (and I am sure that that is what they wanted to happen).

Who are we as Kenyans? Are we really an integrated society? Are we a society? I remember a few comments by one of my political science lecturers... I think the unit was “ The Politics of Post Independence Africa” He said that Kenyans after independence failed to form a sense of nationhood. He said that the people are so culturally and ideologically diverse that a sense of “ Kenyanness” does not quite exist...this was way back in 2001 come 2008 and those words rang true in the happenings after the elections.

Now forget about the Kenyan mwafrika with all the complications of ukabila...add the Kenyan Indian and Mzungu and it gets ever so complicated. The big question of integration comes to mind...Its really difficult to look at each other as members of one society...Its like seperate continents in one country...limited or no contact...superficial interaction only what is necessary for survival ....anything to avoid the discomfort....and remember this is forty plus years after independence.

Probably out there in the diaspora Kenyans feel that sense of Kenyanness. I can remember this from my own experience while on a student exchange programme as a child.Our party was on a stop over in London. A waiter served us at a table and happened to hear us speaking Kiswahili. He introduced himself in Kiswahili and instantly we knew he was Kenyan. We were so happy to have someone speak to us in Kiswahili in a strangers country. I don't think we noticed at that point that he was Muhindi we were just happy that he was Kenyan

Anyway thats just my thoughts rolling again bravo to the organisers of the SAMOSA festival.

To read more visit www.samosafestival.com

p.s I havn't edited this for spelling or grammer so just take it as it is

Man vs Movement

2008-10-29T13:59:00.000-07:00

I have been intently following the US presidential elections since Joe Biden, being the first to do so, announced his intentions to seek the Dems nomination. Since then the kamuthonjo (a clique) has congregated many a time and because the polls are in favor of my predictions i'm due to collect from Kangethe and Co. come November 5th.

My accurate (i can claim that now) forcast has not just been based on luck and a nag for making a quick buck, it is the ability to identify a force much larger than the usual politico that has shaped my ideas and opened my views.

Why will Barack Obama gain the title of POTUS over John McCain?

John McCain /Sarah Palin campaign does not realize that they are not running against a presidential candidate but rather a movement that seeks to vote in its leader as president.

Obama is not just your usual presidential candidate person, he has taken a totally new identity; a brand, a true representative of the people's day to day needs, wants and aspirations.

He has identified with the core of every american living in this day and time and has addressed much of what we don't openly admit to the fear of being called weak.

I can imagine telling my kids of a fella with a funny name who run for the highest office in the land by offering Hope to its great citizen.

I don't condemn those who don't buy it, come to think of it, on paper this does seem to be straight out of the snake-oil salesman's handbook, then again he must be a really good salesman because not one iota of slander seems to stick. I don't know if i should give credit to the citizen who seem to have figured out the ridiculous claims or to John McCain who for his age should be very wise and should not have made some very puzzling decisions during the phase of the campaign.

With that I foresee a few new dictionary entries not too far from now:

Obama: verb the act of a true underdogs ability to achieve success with great measure without the use of fear mongering and deception

Bush: noun one who influences others by use of fear and wmd's ..or wait that is also known as a scarecrow.

now let me go collect

South Africans Just Sacked their President @#$@%#^%#^

2008-10-17T20:54:00.000-07:00

There are times when certain occurrences hit you in the face and others take time before you realize their magnitude,and it just occurred to me, that South Africans, just fired their president. WHAT???? They just gave him the sack, the pink slip, terminated HAKUNA KAZI HAPA. So where is the loud report, accompanied with the wailing of women and children, or the shirtless youth wielding his machete with disastrous consequences? Shouldn't some community south of the Limpopo be arming itself under the claim that one of their own has been robbed of his rightful claim. I mean, this is Mbeki, Thabo Mbeki, the same guy who by the power of his presence, brought the primal foes Mugabe and Tsvangirai together in one government, the guy who dares challenge that HIV is the cause of AIDS. His economic record has been good and would win another elections in South Africa. So why is everything so calm, it looks like Mbeki packed his things in a box, left the key with the security guard and caught the bus home. No drama.

After my initial shock I realized that this phenomenon was not unique to South Africa. Our brothers in TZ have had changes in government without the accompanying hullabaloo. That is the power of precedent. These countries have had iconic leaders who stepped down while there political careers were still viable. Madiba left his thrown and Mwalimu was humble enough to retire. Just think, what would Africa look like if Jomo Kenyatta and Moi had served one or two terms and passed the baton to the next generation. Or Mugabe left the presidency when he was still relevant and an African hero.

George Washington was a leader who was keenly aware of this role as founder and father of a nation. At the height of his popularity he forsaw the need for precedent and said in his farewell speech "I beg you at the same time to do me the justice to be assured that this resolution has not been taken without a strict regard to all the considerations appertaining to the relation which binds a dutiful citizen to his country; and that in withdrawing the tender of service, which silence in my situation might imply, I am influenced by no diminution of zeal for your future interest, no deficiency of grateful respect for your past kindness, but am supported by a full conviction that the step is compatible with both". Africa has had its share of good leaders who have turned bad, heros who end up villains. They were unaware of their true roles as founders of nations.The key purpose of a founding father is to lay a foundation and Thabo's exist is an example of a well laid foundation. Well done Madiba once again you make us proud.

Kenya: The blue print to Africa's, political woes

2008-09-28T10:49:00.000-07:00

To experience true change one does not need to look across to the land of opportunity; where now faces and sounds march across the continent under its banner, stumping and vehemently calling on its populous to embrace their persons.
Pay attention, read and listen to the voices of the sons and daughters of their great continent.Change and what it brings about and its portrayal as the new phenomenon ladies and gentlemen is nothing new.

There are many forms of government , some that have emerged as the present day blue prints to effective rule of law,while others are questionable and are revolting to those who's ideals include freedom (the do whatever , whenever i feel like flavor) and liberty. Sad but very true, Africa has always been the implementation guinea-pig grounds for bad foreign policies and influencing powers have one way or the other become tolerant to dictatorships and horrible governance. Here is good news, even with the current environment, of usual ignorance of the common African citizen, the tide has changed. The people are demanding accountability from the thrones of high office.

And it comes with no surprise to us Kenyans that at the this very delicate point in history we serve as the most viable of options is a world of confusion, misinformation, mistrust and general candidate skepticism. In a continent that has experienced devastating natural disasters world wars and continued gut churning conflict in a relatively short period of time, we are actually doing pretty good with ourselves.

We have proven to the world that we don't have to follow the rule and oppose principle, that a country who's two leaders are from different schools of ideology can successfully co-exist and work together regardless of their differences. Granted this template of governance is challenging and does take time and patients to formulate but progress is being made and effects of policy are being felt by the mwananchi relatively fast.Hopefully this will not turn into a loop hole route for every other Mugabe to evade consequences of their bad rule.

The Kenyan and South African Violence

2008-08-23T19:51:00.000-07:00

Typically, I would have kicked the door and come in blazing on how the South African xenophobic violence was backward, counter productive and (Yes, did I already say it) backward. I would have argued that a country with the history of South Africa should know better than classifying people and give free rein to wanton violence because these people were different. I would have chastised South African memory, reminding them that their liberation armies were hosted in the front line countries for decades and their leaders were housed in African capitals during these times of need, much to these states peril. I would have derogatorily called the government inaction hypocritical, and given free rein to my anger on this issue. But, being from a country where there was this same type of violence, but between its own citizens, kind of makes you hold your own tongue, climb down from your pedestal and think a little deeper.

Why is this happening? Why is it happening now? What can we do to prevent this? Is there anything we can do to prevent this? So here are my thoughts in a more introspective and less boisterous voice.

First and foremost, my thoughts are with the victims of the violence, the internally displaced and refugees living in the various camps in both countries. I completely reject violence as an option for resolving African problems. I believe we need to rely on constitutional and legal means as the only alternative for issue resolution, however, to understand the these outbreaks I first want to explore want is common among the Kenyan and South African violence. This article is in no way trying to excuse the abhorrent acts that were perpetrated on innocent individuals but seeks to understand why there was such fertile ground for these violent eruptions at this time.

The Promise of Politics
Unfortunately, in many instances, politics seems to be the last bastion of hope for the masses, and this perception is particularly intense where the histories have been tortured. Politicians exploit these histories peddling hope as though they controlled the destinies of all. Kenyans only have to remember the deposition of their despotic ruler by an unlikely coalition of unlikely characters triumphantly and successfully defying Moi's grip on power and that indomitable feeling that validates the fact you matter and have the power to change your destiny. After all we killed the dragon and things will be better. One can see Kenya in 2002, the excitement that the new political dispensation will provide a new life. This life is defined by concrete issues, not the amorphous 6% economic growth, but life in terms of rent, transport, milk, bread, flour, sugar, the basic necessities of life. The promise politics never delivered and cannot deliver. Though there was growth it was not felt by the masses and this anger and frustration was compounded with ethnic exclusions that appeared targeted. The culmination of this anger was when the elections, the only opportunity to change things, were stolen from the people, things went overboard. This is not unlike the South African experience. You can imagine seeing Madiba in his long walk to freedom lift his hands and shout Amanda!! leading the Sowetonites to better living conditions. Everyone says in this new political dispensation it will see a new day in my lifetime. The triumph, the joy, the feeling of empowerment, but once again, politics fails the people. Now, do not get me wrong. I am not disparaging the contribution of such powerhouses as Mandela and the noble example he set for all politicians. His contribution is immense and cannot be viewed lightly, however, people in disparate times place their hopes and aspirations in our representatives and even call them our leaders. This is a is an extremely tempting opportunity for politicians, who ply in the trade of persuasion. So the people's hopes and dreams cause the politician to morph into everyone's only answer to their condition and the politician peddles promises that they cannot keep and soon the stakes are personal No Raila No Peace or translated I would rather die because without Raila I am dead already.

The Fierce Challenge of Now

Barack Obama's claim to fame is what Martin Luther King Jr called the "the fierce urgency of now". Obama's call is for an immediate change in the coarse of the United States siting the pressures on the population from the raising food prices, the rising cost of transportation and petroleum products in the wealthiest nation on the planet. The primary concern for a majority of Americans is the a choice between using the SUV (large car) or the mid size car (smaller car), taking vacation this summer or staying at home and how trips to Europe are so expensive due to the falling dollar.
The developing world is facing tough times. Capitalism seems to have won the ideological struggle with socialism just in time for its ugly under belly to show, much to the disgust of the proletariat. As capitalism marches along, the wealthy all around the world are increasing in wealth while the poor have only had their lot get worst. Obama's concerns are very real, but their true impact is not in the land of the free but in the developing world. Food prices have more than doubled with cereal prices leading the way. Many of African communities especially in the East and the South of the continent have maize (corn) at the center of their diets, unlike the US where maize is primarily an animal feed it is a staple and primary source of nutrition for a majority of Africans. Therefore, the shortage partly created by the conversion of cereal use for bio-fuels, impacts the very day to day capacity of bread winners to put food on their tables. The expectations of the hopeful masses are dashed by forces that are larger than what the local politicians can control, yet the only hope out of this quagmire, to many, seems to be the false hope of politics and the lies peddled by political demagoguery. These challenges of existence significantly dash the expectations in both Kenyan and South African alike. The nature of these challenges places an urgency on a solution and that urgency fuels the violence for it demands action now. Unfortunately, often this desperation expresses itself in actions of violence on innocent scapegoats - the so-called outsider. One may argue that the violence had nothing to do with economics but rather community characteristics, I have heard that after all South Africa is one of the most violent societies, and the stereotypes of Nilotic aggressive traits abound in Kenya. However, it is interesting to note that none of the violent eruptions occurred in the more affluent communities in either country and a majority of the middle and upper income groups continue to this day with a business as usual mind set. Another notable phenomenon was that violence in South Africa was clearly African on African. The 'xenophobia' does not seem to extend to the British, American, Chinese or Japanese but rather only to the Zimbabwean, Zambian and Mozambicans living in South Africa. These I call the convenient scapegoats.

The convenient Scapegoat.
So who are these convenient scapegoats? This is a good question but, first let us identify the perpetrators who have aided and abated the mass disillusion. Kenya has an interesting history closely connected to its land. Shortly after the turn of the century European settlers invaded Kenya and other countries including South Africa, with the intent to to recreated the American or New Zealand model of occupation and subjugation . This model - where the British man decimates local population and retains a small labor force just sufficient to meet his needs but too small top provide active resistance to the occupation - fell in to disarray due to the costs of the two world wars that that the 'Empire' engaged in. The Central Highlands in Kenya had been significantly populated by British immigrants and significant displacement of Kikuyu into the Rift Valley much to the ire of the local. Then came independence, and the British government provided significant funds to right the land displacement but the Kikuyu ruling elite double crossed their own and kept the funds and the land. It is estimated this clique owns more than 500,000 acres of land. The resettlement of the Kikuyu that was done was token and also done in the Rift Valley without involvement of the locals thus resentment and animosity against the 'invaders'. The resettled Kikuyu just need land and a place to call home. The South Africans see the foreigners in the same light as the indigenous populations of the Rift Valley. The front line country populations were viewed as willing labor in South Africa their motivation only being economic. Being foreigners they kept a low profile did not actively or rather vocally engage in the struggle. After the liberation nothing seemed to change and thus the instead of the politicians paying the price for peddling 'hope' the convenient scapegoats find themselves in the line of fire.

Unfortunately the guilty politician goes free and uses the unfortunate circumstance to gain political mileage.

Is anoyone paying attention to Cote D’Ivoire

2008-08-22T17:49:00.000-07:00



The killing fields of Cote D’Ivoire! How could that be so? How did a country so famous for its economic prowess become known as one of the many 21st century sites of murder? The killing in Cote D’Ivoire was systematic and in most cases based on ‘if’ the perpetrator felt that the victim was a supporter of Allasane Outtara. Quttara was one of the presidential hopefuls, denied the right to run for presidency because the Cote D’Ivoire constitution recently made it impossible for individuals with a “foreign parent” to run for presidency. How the “foreignness” of the individual was determined remains questionable. The slaughter of an estimated two hundred Dioula people in the capital Abidjan, during the month of October 2000 came as a horrible surprise. It is hard to imagine that Cote D’Ivoire and Ivorians could have fallen so low as to kill each other like that. Suspicion, dislike, and hatred among different ethnicities are part of the problem whose roots can be traced to the colonial times. When France exited Cote D’Ivoire in 1960 it left behind the eloquent and much loved Houphouët Boigny. President Boigny is considered responsible for the influx of immigrants in the country. He allowed immigrants from the neighboring Mali and Burkina Faso to come into the country and take up jobs, which were at the time perceived as supplementary to the then affluent Abidjanaise population. The notion of a “political other,” who through propaganda becomes the cause of ‘all things wrong’ and must therefore be annihilated has for many years been propagated to destructive ends. The Dioula have conveniently become responsible for things going wrong in Cote D’Ivoire. Over time, they have come to be perceived as money-hungry, backward and perpetually destructive to the development of Cote D’Ivoire. The split in Ivorian society has the Dioula against all possible odds. It is not clear whether President Laurent Gbagbo has done enough to rebuild a united spirit amongst his people. The North has not seen much development of social services since the crisis of 2000. In fact images on the BBC website showed boxes of mail in a post office in the northern city of Bouake that have not been delivered since 2002. Hospitals, schools and other government institutions have turned into white-elephant projects. So why is no one giving Gbagbo a little nudge? The president must be reminded that Cote d’Ivoire’s and indeed Africa’s future is dependent on unity and not on dividing people. So far, disarmament, demobilization and reintegration of the rebels, also called ‘Forces Nouvelles’ based in the North are taking longer than expected. Guillaume Soro, the former rebel leader, is said to be doing a good job but with little help. Gbagbo’ regime has exhausted its five year mandate. The president is currently under an extended two-year mandate since 2006 and has pushed elections back all the way to November 2008 from the earlier UN request of April 2008. Though Cote D’Ivoire has seen relative peace since the crises of 2004, work still needs to be done in terms of democracy. Many northerners and “perceived immigrants” still do not have the right to vote. Most of all, president Gbagbo has still not signed an agreement that would allow for Ouattara to run for presidency. It is clear that the incumbent is trying to buy all the time he can for reasons that may not be so noble. No one was ready for what happened in Kenya earlier this year. It does not take a genius to know that Cote D’Ivoire could be going down that road. If the international community does not intervene, God knows what will happen to the country. Like Kenya in East Africa, Cote D’Ivoire is a regional giant in West Africa. It would be bad to let the country lose its glory to ethnic violence. The collapse of Cote d’Ivoire would portend a lot of bad for the region. The international community must step in to save the situation if we are to rescue the coast of ivory from anarchy.

Kenyan Values: A Case for Majimbo

2008-06-03T17:00:00.000-07:00

What are Kenyan values? You may wonder why I ask this question, but living in a foreign western country one cannot avoid the constant drum beat championing western values, and after 9/11, the demarcation of them (non westerners) against us (typically Americans) is louder than ever. During this American election year, you will hear a candidate try to appeal to the core values of the nation. Love or hate this drumbeat, one cannot deny that its questioning percussion. Do I share these values? What are my values? What are values anyway? Is there really that value thread shared by those of the same national heritage? These questions are even more confounding when looked at in the context of recently independent African nations. Our nations were defined by European powers, our boarders were drawn based on foreign interests and our cultures within each nation are varied and diverse. We have no particular affinity for ideology and our intelligentsia have not sparked any social movements on the strength of their ideas. So we have no Communism, no Capitalism, no Marx, no Plato, no Mao, we are largely Muslim or Christian and the primary philosophies of our indigenous cultures are fast fading if not all together gone. So what are Kenyan values.

At this point you may be asking what do I need these values for? We have made it so far without clarity on what they are, but before tackling this, let us establish a baseline. So what do we really have? I pose that currently Kenya is primarily a political entity that is evolving into a socio-cultural entity with common values. In a sense, Black Africa hided Kwameh Nkrumah's bidding "seek ye first political kingdom." But in the words of that famous philosopher, Heavy D and the Boyz - Now that we have the political kingdom, what are we going to do with it? Politics does not exist for itself. Harold Lasswell defined politics as who gets what, when, and how. That is where values came in. We have to use our values to determine how to grow and share the mythological national cake. Economics has been defined as The study of how people use their limited resources in an attempt to satisfy unlimited wants. I quote this definition just to emphasis that that the resources are limited and the needs/wants are unlimited, hence the need for a value system to guide these decisions. Without the agreed and articulated value system, everyone with power will push their value system on the weaker members of society. That is why we have a developing country with one of the the highest paid legislators.

History will show that there is one thing that Kenyans from all corners of the country will agree with and have fought for - a corner stone of their values. Each community in Kenya resisted the the advent of colonialism to varying extents, but all the same resisted. From Kisii to Wajir all Kenyans value there freedom more specifically their liberty. What is Liberty - immunity from arbitrary exercise of authority, the condition of being free from restriction or control, the right and power to act, believe, or express oneself in a manner of one's own choosing without trespassing against that same ability in others. The infringement on liberty or control does not have to be foreign, it is possible for your oppressor to be your brother. Therefore, from the mob justice matted on a pickpocket to the loathing of the police, chiefs and other exploiting government official, to the disdain of foreign interference in Kenyan affairs, are all expressions of our quest for liberty.

So how do we guarantee our liberty? Majimbo or devolution of power has been trashed as a tribal and divisive form of administration. The key question is why has Majimbo become synonymous with ethnicity, while Majimbo is a recognized and preferred form of government? The truth lies in our history, and the KANU - KADU slogan fight in Kenya's first election. The thinking then, was that our leaders were benevolent and had the interests of Kenyans at heart and would be different from the Mzungu, because they had black skin. Therefore consolidating power in one black man's hands would give us order and direction - positive direction. Nobody thought checks and balances were needed because one of us was king, thus, Majimbo looked irrelevant and its purpose would only serve narrow sectarian and divisive interests.

History has proved us wrong. We now know that the oppressor can be one of your own and consolidating power in one man/woman has been disastrous. We have witnessed land theft, our taxes misused, Kenyans tortured and killed and general mismanagement for personal gain by our own leaders. Majimbo has a unique cure for this. First, it decentralizes power bringing it closer to the people this has the dual effect of having power accountable to specific people and compelling power to align to the people. Secondly, we can affect that power directly, that is the most important government official is your local representative not the kingly president in the capital, therefore our priorities are communicated directly to the person who can address them and the position of power is maintained due to direct performance on those priorities. You do not need a Nyayo Monument or Stadium if pit latrines and wells are the priority. Third, a reduction in ethnicity is inevitable under and devolved system, in addition to seeing performance in regions outside your own, the regions will test out their leaders and find their fools and favorites and realize that ethnicity has nothing to do with performance. Finally and most important, you will have more liberty. If you do not like the policy of your region you can change your government or change your region. Many small changes are easier than one large change. As witnessed in the past elections we voted out almost the entire government, but by hook or crook the king held on.

So how do we organize ourselves under Majimbo, well that is the topic of my next article, but remember whatever increases your liberty increases your life. As Patrick Henry said in 1775 - Give Me Liberty Or Give Me Death.

Where are the People in this Crazy Arrangement?

2008-04-26T20:21:00.000-07:00

Like all Kenyans, I love peace, I would even say I love peace more than democracy. I rejoiced when Dr Annan declared that there was an agreement between Raila and Kibaki. However, I am uneasy with the arrangement that I have seen evolve over the past couple of months.

It has been a while since I posted on this blog. The main reason for this delay was that I traveled to Kenya. My intention was to post an article from the belly of the beast, but my best efforts were thwarted by the slow connection speeds. But that is a topic for a different blog site.

In my previous article, I was enthusiastic, but suspicious of the mediation and negotiations and for those with ODM persuasions like me cannot help but feel that we have been short changed by both politicians. I am one who believes in voting for my interests based on the issues. I have never been one give to personality cults. My membership in ODM is not linked to Raila or The Pentagon in anyway. The reason I supported Raila and I am passionate about ODM is that ODM appears to be the party of ideas and Raila has been a transformational leader to this point, and not because his Bondo is near my Vihiga or we are bonded in some Western Alliance. I believe in the issues: that Kenya needs a new constitutional dispensation as soon as possible, Kenya needs to move to a devolved system of government in which my grandmother in Vihiga will have greater say in the priorities of her government, and that corruption has to be uprooted by a relentless radical like Raila, before a foundation can be established, for a nation based in the values of our forefathers and not in an imperialist colonial mold. In my humble opinion these core issues will be beneficial to all Kenyans current and future.

My frustration with the current peace accord and all its outputs is that they are a result of compromise over compromise, and it appears that the ODM ideals will be watered down by the PNU agents who want to maintain the status quo like all incumbents. This tendency to reject change is due to the assumption at any alteration to the current course is a rejection and reflection of the regimes past failure: hence Kibaki's, Kazi iendelee, without questioning if the job at hand is the correct task for this time. Therefore, I am concerned that any changes to the primary structures will be insufficient, inconclusive, insincere compromises between the two parties that do not trust each other and will leave the people behind.

As I said in my previous article, Kenyans should not settle for a boardroom negotiated outcome. This type of settlement excludes the Kenyan people and is based on a ‘give and take’ with illegitimate office holders (remember, we do not know who won the elections), not mandated by a clear majority in Kenya. My thought was that the purpose of the mediation should have been to work out a formula that allows for fair judicial process, that will ratify or nullify the elections and have the resulting presidential by-election in the most reasonable time-frame. The sooner decisions are taken away from the boardroom and brought back to the Kenyan people the better.

Mediation and Negotiations

2008-02-09T15:27:00.000-08:00

I have received very interesting remarks and comments on my previous article ' Raila should prepare for his day in court'. Most have had interesting things to say, but the most intriguing question is, how does ODM go to court? Or more specifically, how does ODM set itself up for a fair or rather a fairer outcome based on the current power structure, in which Kibaki controls both the judiciary and the executive? I don't claim to know all the legal/constitutional intrigues and machinations that may lurk in the process, but I believe that a lot of the pieces are in place for a legal resolution of this impasse.

I insist on a resolution based in Kenyan law for two reasons - one, once this issue is resolved, I would like this to be a source of national pride, a precedent, for Kenyan to say "Even when things fall apart, the center still holds” and this center is the basic humanity of Kenya’s silent majority and the impact of a rational population on an irrational system; where the people's justice eventually prevails. And secondly, to provide that indisputable framework for a resolution, which will stand within the existing law, thus robbing the PNU electoral bandits of their excuses.

First, ODM should not settle for a boardroom negotiated settlement. This type of settlement excludes the Kenyan people and is based on a ‘give and take’ with an illegitimate government, not mandated by the majority in Kenya. My thought is that the purpose of the mediation should be to work out a formula that allows for fair judicial process that will ratify or nullify the elections and have the resulting presidential by-election in the most reasonable time-frame. The sooner decisions are taken away from the boardroom and brought back to the Kenyan people the better.

Under the Kenyan Law, we have provisions where judges from other commonwealth countries can serve and work in Kenya. This is one of the colonial heritage hangovers that may be useful in this scenario. We could use our otherwise valueless membership in this organization by getting a panel of judges, under referral, who will judge the dispute under Kenyan law. My suggestion would be an Indian, Tanzanian and a Zambian judge. This selection is not of the exclusive counties to consider, but of a mix of countries that have had some experience and some success in developing a democracy in the developing world. These countries have legal structures that have their heritage in the British system of law, thus very similar to Kenya. Select judges from these countries would be impartial unlike say British judges who would need to balance the just out come with British/Western interests in Kenya.

Once this impartial arbitrating body of commonwealth judges under Kenyan law is constituted and ratified, the political impasse issue should be passed to this body for judicial resolution as soon as possible, and Koffi Annan can continue with the humanitarian and long term constitutional issues that will provide a launching pad for the new administration.

A boardroom negotiated outcome can only be useful in an environment where both parties are trustworthy and are in touch with the public's interest. Neither of which is true. Kibaki has proved to be unreliable. He will renege on any and all good faith agreements - MOU, IPPG, Election pledges etc - whenever it suits him. For Kibaki, the Machiavellian law, where, the end justifies the means, seems to guide his every move. This conscience less partner necessitates a legal framework with penalties for non-compliance. If Koffi’s process does not hinge on a legal solution, then we can be sure Kibaki and his goons will find a way to turn this arrangement into a nightmare.

Why Raila should prepare for his day in court.

2008-01-21T13:10:00.000-08:00

As I have said before, I am 'ODM damu' and I believe that this election was stolen by Mwai Kibaki and his cronies. I believe that this atrocity is unforgivable and those responsible should be charged in a court of law, for treason against the Kenyan people and receive the due penalty. Having said this, I am only open to peaceful means to resolving this impasse. My objection of violence is based on the same reasoning that demands that this electoral fraud must be resolved. The instance we perceive options outside participatory democracy, as viable means to obtain political power, be they electoral fraud or coercive means, opens a Pandora's box that offers legitimacy to illegitimate means. I am of the opinion that ODM should prepare for its day in court. I know this is an unpopular opinion in my ODM circles, I recently polled some of my colleagues on this question and a solid 85% were categorically against the idea, understandably so, because this opinion does not guarantee success and involves significant risks.

The first risk is one of principle - in going to court, in petition, one is accepting even though partially, or in interim, the legitimacy of this executive and allowing it to function, and exercise its full constitutional mandate as appointed by the people, and we all know this is not the case. The fact that the position that is disputed is the head of government, head of the military as commander in chief of the armed forces and the ceremonial leader of the nation, demands that this leader draw his mandate from the people and this be a true mandate. Therefore, as the court runs its course, we as Kenyans, ODMers would be in principle accepting this unpalatable fact, even in the interim.

The second risk stems from the fact that the individual, who occupies the sit of the presidency, even if in interim, wields an inordinate amount of power. This authority can be used with devastating effectiveness to consolidate power and obliterate any opposition or challenge to self perpetuation. This was masterfully displayed by Daniel Moi, in the constitutional ninety days, he was president, after Kenyatta’s demise in 1978. Moi was able to contain a powerful and wealthy opposition and proceed to rule for more than two decades, after witnessing the demise or conversion of all his opponents into his supporters.

A third risk is based in the concern that the executive has undue influence in the matters before the judiciary. Kenyan history is inundated with a prodigious number of issues that have met their conclusion, without resolution, in the Kenyan judiciary, through executive interference. Be it charges of assault by the first lady, to complex cases like Goldenberg. Amos Wako has reigned supreme, over justice, with his nolle prosequi and I do not know enough about the law to conclude that there any way to stop Mr. Wako from playing his trump card again. This position is supported by the AG’s lack of independence. He recently proposed a way out of the impasse after the elections. This proposal involved independent tallying of the vote, but one imagines, that the proposal was not cleared by his superiors, before it hit the media. The proposal was withdrawn a day later, I believe under the same pressure that Samuel Kivuitu had to announce the flawed results.

A final risk that I see, is specific to the Judiciary itself, independent of the Executive’s influence. We have had a large number of botched cases that are still unresolved and justice is still pending for the victims. Pinto, Mboya, JM, Ouko are just a few of the high profile cases, that have not been resolved to the extent where, we can say, justice has been matted in to an unrecognizable outcome. Thus, it is not clear that these courts can actually dispense justice. My thoughts are that these courts, where judges and lawyers wear white men’s wigs are designed to oppress the masses not dispense justice, but that is content of another article. In addition to this inability of the court to dispense justice the system places limits on the public debate on an issue that is before the courts. This restriction presents the threat that all meaningful discussion may be halted, while court proceedings continue.

Petitions fall in their own class; it does not take much to loose a petition in Kenyan courts. Kenyan legislators have, out of their own interests, made it very difficult to have a successful petition. Filing a successful petition requires a stringent adherence to rules and regulations that precedent has upheld, the following of letter of the law and not the spirit of the law. The precedents in Matiba and Kikabi’s own petitions against Moi have almost proved that the incumbent has the upper hand in any petition.

Hey, wait a minute, you must be saying, this article was why Raila should prepare for his day in court, yet all my arguments are re-enforcing the well entrenched idea that ODM should stay away from the courts. The primary reason I go into great lengths to outline the risks is to communicate my keen awareness of the risks involved, in employing this court strategy to overcome this illegitimate government. My argument is that court should not be relied on or discarded, but maintained as an option amongst a quiver full of arrows.

Now, let us explore the current options, with a view of determining who has the ace in each of the peaceful strategies employed by ODM. I in on no way claim to have their play-book. ODM may have someone with an infinitely larger strategic acumen; I am only calling it as I see it.

Mass action has been the predominant approach employed, and it has been fairly successful, to this point, though at a very high cost. I view success as maintaining this issue as a problem, and not allowing the illegitimate government to proceed with business as usual. My assumption is that ODM's goal is to ensure that the countries systems do not take on a post election stance, pending true resolution. The more Kenya looks like business as usual, the more the electoral fraud will be an event in the past. But this strategy can only keep the issue as current in the eyes of the media, international community, Kenyans and all other concerned parties. There are no power transitions that have been made in the streets; the streets only apply pressure for other measures to affect the actual goal. The mass action has taken the form of street protests, these have served the purpose of wining the perception war, the government, through its police action, is now widely perceived as a draconian and repressive regime. But who holds the ace in street mass action? If the Kibaki regime were strategic thinkers as opposed to reactionary buffoons, they would have stolen ODM’s thunder by allowing the rallies at Uhuru Park and asked ODM to guaranteed that the rallies are peaceful. I would even go further and have the police provide security for the rally. ODM would have had its national rallies, I am sure masses would turn up, possibly the one million people Raila promised, there would have been fiery speeches, then people would go home, and wait for ODM’s next move. If the rallies turned violent then ODM would be called to account as the violent faction. Therefore, the illegitimate administration holds the ace and is able to change the perception dynamics here. The fact that the government has not changed this dynamic, has more to do with the absence intellect, than the absence of the opportunity. Like a brutish ogre that swats a fly on its head with a club, and dies in the process, this government shoots itself in the foot, along with innocent Kenyans.

A more direct approach of mass action would be non-violent civil disobedience, imagine work go slow n critical industries, or all ODM members sit in the roads of all major cities, on railways and obstruct ports. Police would be overrun with arrests and the cells will not be able to hold the volumes. This approach allows ODM to hold the ace and raise the ante at their time and place of their choosing.

Parliamentary pressure is the most viable approach in my opinion. Here ODM have a both the ace and the constitutional platform to change the illegitimate government. ODM holds a majority in the house and both the Speaker and the Deputy Speaker position. The most direct approach would be would be a vote of no confidence in the president, followed by the necessary dissolution of parliament, then a new election. This would prove to Kenyans, more so than the world, that peaceful democratic processes can reflect the 'voice of the people'. The challenge here, is good old greed. As much as I love our ODM Members of Parliament, I know they are not selfless leaders and Raila would be hard pressed in appealing to the MPs to loose their seats to provide Raila with a chance to recapture his. The financial cost and the real possibility of losing both your seat and Raila not capturing the presidency, are perceived to be too huge a risk to undertake. The MPs would rather fight for democracy riding on the backs of mwanainchi as they do on all other issues. It would be a pleasant surprise if this option is given much thought and actually carried out. It would warm this skeptic’s heart.

A more plausible parliamentary option would be legislative gridlock - no bills, no budgets, and no business in the house. The true cost for this grid lock would be on the Kenyan people, as usual, because this will stop the schools and medical supplies, there will be government layoff and no contracts - development would come to a halt. But this like mass action, this approach would not hold any aces against the PNU bandits because they could dig in and wait this out, and at a certain point Kenyans will want their life back and this strategy could backfire with long term effects for ODM.

International pressure is the other option available. This option, though effective in rational environments, where the despot has some goodwill towards his people, and values his or her image in the global arena, has some flaws. In this scenario the despot opts to sacrifice his personal gains for the good of the masses and for the good of his image. Kibaki seems to be to far removed from the cause of the common Kenyan, as displayed by his Nazi like massacre of innocents, in Kibera and Kisumu. He also appears to be too morally inept to care about his legacy. But this is not the greatest weakness of this approach to resistance. For international pressure, one has to rely on a fickle international community. Who will change their pressure depending on what is politically expedient in each nation’s political climate, today it will be Syria- tomorrow Burma - the follow in will be Zimbabwe, depending on what’s hot for the week. ODM should not place all their eggs in this basket. Further more international pressure will only be sustained if the tripartite nexus of media, foreign national interests and a champion is sustained. The media needs to keep the issue alive; Kenya needs to be of some special interest to the international community; and one nation needs to champion the cause. These factors are all outside ODM’s control; therefore making the international community a necessary, but an unreliable partner. Mugabe has shown that inspite of a most concerted effort by the international community the despot still holds the ace and he has dig in and has remained in power like a nightmare in an endless night.

This brings me back to why Raila should prepare for his day in court. Taking this issue to court in petition moves the ace from either Kibaki or Raila and places it on the Judiciary. A legal strategy does not preclude the use of mass action, parliamentary pressure, and international pressure in concert with a court petition to this illegitimate I believe with all the challenges, the courts are a direct strategy that gores at the heart of the problem, the Kibaki presidency, and has a constitutional framework that can support a positive outcome and an actual change in government. All other options with the exclusion of parliamentary action will lead to a suboptimal outcome, as a result of give and take negotiations. For me a negotiated outcome will not honor the people’s voice of a Raila presidency, Kibaki as only the member from Othaya, and a shift in roles in parliament. Without this fundamental shift in the status quo, ODM can not effect the systemic changes of a Federal system and uprooting corruption systems and structure from the Kenyan society. Therefore, Raila must do what he is doing but also prepare for his day in court.

Can The Real Kalonzo Musyoka Please Stand Up?

2008-01-08T21:21:00.000-08:00

I ask this question having already seen what this man is made of. Kalonzo has shown his true colors and they are not pretty. When president Moi attempted to impose Kenyatta Jr. on our good nation, through his failed project, we saw what we thought was a new Stephen. He seemed to have seen the light and come out from behind the veil that had blinded our leaders and covered the country. We even thought he was ready for primetime and before Raila led us down the Tosha road, we thought mmmmh …. interesting …. Kalonzo has grown himself a pair of nuts, we like those nuts, this could just be the guy. We even shouted his name “Kalonzo” “Kalonzo” hoping we could drown the tosha drum beat.

Looking back, I see a number of judgment errors on our part; Kalonzo was a strong defender of KANU and the KANU record of corruption. Kalonzo defended the man, the system and the regime; he fought tooth and nail and only parted ways with Toroitich when Toro could not be of personal political gain to him. Naively, we may have seen this stand against the status quo as Mr. Kalonzo reflecting our values, our ideals, our hopes but we were mistaken. Kalonzo may have excellent strategy and political expedience, he may have nine lives and he knows how to make Kalonzo relevant beyond his support, but I am now convinced he is a just a politician, a self interested politician, I will even go further and say a selfish politician ‘bila msimamo’.

One may say, KANU years are KANU years, and that you can pin that KANU monkey on a lot of our politicians - Ruto, Mudavadi, Kibaki, Nyachae the list is long and I agree, we do not know about these individuals, but Kalonzo is now exposed. Let us look at his record, his post KANU record. Kalonzo seems to never have gone past the Kibaki tosha moment and like a scavenger with no standard he has waited for Raila to toss him a bone. Knowing that Raila was the wind behind Kibaki’s sail home, Kalonzo waited for Raila to make his Tosha 2 declaration. To earn him some marks, Kalonzo even tried to be on the right side of history during the Referendum, and Kenyans, wanting to believe that Kalonzo’s conversion was real assigned their values to his actions. He even would have died for Raila at one time. An interesting turn of events happened once Kalonzo knew that the declaration and impending coronation was not forthcoming, with nothing to personally gain, he orchestrated night time burglary, of the ODM Kenya registration papers, with his accomplices Daniel Maanzo and Julia Ojiambo, thinking that, the papers equal votes (This is how far the concepts of democracy are foreign to this self interested politician) Kalonzo was ready for the big time. No agenda, no vision, no following, by hook or crook, or what he called a miracle, he was going to be President. Well, we know how that story ends, a distant third, single digit percentage, was the value people assigned to his antics.

But wait, Kenyan politics has a funny way of rewarding losers, I just read that the hyena has his bone and is proudly gnawing on it. With the patience of a crocodile, this dinosaur has reinvented himself not only as pro Kibaki, but as his VP. Hongera Bwana Kilonzo, but it must be amnesia on your part or are you counting on amnesia on our part. Do you remember your own words “I will die for Raila” Do your own words mean anything? Or is it too much to expect some consistency on your part? Three, no even two months ago, you were Kibaki’s harshest critic. Where did this new found love come from? Learn a lesson from your predecessor Uncle Moody. He was hailed as chairman of the Summit at one point, he now is on the political trash heap, rejected by his own.

I am not disappointed that Kalonzo would take the position offered to him by this illegitimate government; I am disgusted, that to this date he has not stated his position on the flawed election. He has not condemned the rigging; he has not called it free and fair, he has not even put forward a road map for peace. Like the ruthless opportunist he is, Kalonzo has no stand on this loss of property, life or democracy and if asked about it, I am sure he will give you the answer that gives him the most personal gain. Everything else is just trivial. When Kalonzo was asked if he was surprised with the appointment, he said “I not surprised by the appointment,” “I have been consulting before the announcement.” This man will use any situation for personal gain.

Where are our leaders??

2008-01-04T23:27:00.000-08:00

Let me start by coming clean, I am an ODM supporter, a Raila man, who believes that that a serious injustice has taken place and this has set Kenya’s electoral process back to the stone age. I believe that the current administration is at best improperly constituted and at its worst illegitimate, and what has happened is unforgivable and the responsible individuals must stand and account for their actions. Having said this I am appalled at the lack of leadership, wisdom, and sincerity displayed by our so called leaders, where is our Mandela, Mahatma or Martin Luther King Jr.? Who will stand and be counted amongst the greater men/women in society for a time as such as this?

The Aggrieved

I have heard PNU members shout in their characteristic arrogance that they won the elections, advising the 'aggrieved' to go to court for resolution. My anger burns against this group for the aggrieved are not Raila, Mudavadi or Ruto for they will be fine with or without the presidency. The true aggrieved are the Kenyan people who have lost their brotherhood, their innocence and their lives. We will never be the same again. Ms. Karua, Uhuru, Nyamweya - please note I have left out the honorable because there is nothing honorable about these individuals - tell me, which court of law will restore brotherhood, what judge will confer trust back to us, and can even chief Gicheru in his highest court resurrect our fallen? So let us be clear, what is at stake here is more than your little egos, this puny competition or your war of words. Remember humility is hard and arrogance is easy.

The Prime Movers

For Kibaki and Raila I reserve my highest disdain - one is like a hyena on a stolen carcass he sits on his throne unaware of the stench and filth around him. He is like a pillar of salt cursed by God. You are the alleged president so act like one, even if it is just a performance, the EU, the US, the UK, the LSK, the AG, the ECK and even that ECK chairman who announced you king, all say something is amiss. Observers both foreign and local all say all is not well, but like the proverbial ostrich you bury your head thinking, "if I close my eyes long and hard enough, I will truly live in my dream." Wake up, put a plan on the table, negotiate, have mediators foreign, local, rural anything to stop the madness. Didn't you just swear on the good book protect the citizens? I say again, humility is hard and arrogance is easy.

And to Raila please follow your own words. Where is the 'Mandela like figure' you so often mentioned? Were these just words? Did you just want to charm us? Remember Nelson was "aggrieved" for 27 years yet he sat and negotiated with his foes, for the good of the masses. How can you be the people’s president if you cannot look beyond your own pain and see the people are suffering, the people are scared, and the people are lost in a wilderness? You are like a man walking backwards, a Paul turning into Saul. Shake off the scales from your eyes, before we find you hurling rocks at Stephen. Wake up and lead your people to safety and the 'Voice of God' will call you forward. Remember, anyone can claim their rights and be brave about it, but one who lays down his rights for his fellow man and is humble in doing so, shall be exalted for humility is hard and arrogance is easy.

The Father Figure

One other 'leader' who has squandered his inheritance on worldly pleasure is Moi. They say wisdom comes with age, but this is not always the case. Like him or not, President Moi is the one man in Kenya uniquely placed to act as a father figure at this time, when the nation desperately needed a father to give kind words of advice and counsel, but fearing irrelevance and like an alcoholic who just cannot have enough Moi had to involve himself in partisan politics in this election. "Just one more drink, this will be the last" you said, but now you have lost it all. Remember to whom much has been given much will be required. What will you say when you are before the Judge, when he asks " I raised you for such a time as this" Woe unto to you, for you set out to build a lasting legacy, but now that you look back all you see are ruins, with both you and yours rejected and irrelevant.

The Cheerleaders

Uhuru, Kombo, Mudavadi, Kalonzo, Saitoti, Kaura, Ruto the list is endless, - a group of non-leaders sitting on the sideline, and like the proverbial hyena following and watching as the arm swings hoping it will fall off, so that they can have a bone to gnaw on. Like cheerleaders in their little skirts they jump up and down and all their words just say "look at me, look at me". Be careful! You will go in the way of Gideon and Nyachae, leaders who refused to read the times and be relevant. Here is my advise, you have less to lose in comparison to Kibaki and your pain is not as great as Raila's, you have an opportunity to whisper a third way into their ears. "Let us consider the people, let us think of those in the cold, the grieving, the hungry," you should say. Pull them down from their hard-lines, help to make a way where there is no way. And maybe you may raise and be counted in their stead.
The Worst Kenyan Ever
The winner of this repulsive title is Mr. Kivuitu, the ECK chair, big boss, earning top dollar from the taxpayer. This man does not realize what he and his 22 witchdoctors have done. Let me make it plain for you - the 300 plus lives lost are for you to account for. Kenyans are taxed every month, money that they could feed and educate their children. This money is given to you and your brood of 22 vipers to avoid what just happened in Kenya. How dare you say 'you were pressured' into announcing fraudulent results. Did the pressure from the phone calls hurt as much as the church fire in Eldoret? Was your fear of being called 'a coward' more than the grief of the mother who lost her three children? What were you thinking? How were you thinking? Were you thinking at all?
It is, or at least was, your job to set up structures to stop election fraud. So when you say there was rigging, who are you telling and what do you expect us to do about it? When you announce that you do not know if Kibaki won, who do you expect to know, if not you. It would have been okay if we were disappointed, if we knew you tried, but failed, but we are disgusted, for it was out of personal consideration that you sold your country, like Judas, and for what, so that we do not see your cowardice? So that the TELEPHONE PRESSURE can stop? Take my advice, go to your God and ask for forgiveness, that he may show you mercy, plead with the Kenyan people for forgiveness, refund all the income you have earned as ECK chair, then visit each of the 300 families that lost their lives and commit to restoring the country's faith in the electoral process. Such is your lot and that of the 22 you lead.
That Silly Spokesman
I could not end this post without mentioning that silly spokesman. Can someone do us a favor and silence that government spokesman (no violence please). His comments and statements are extremely infuriating. Like a robot, he follows his basic play book as though he was talking about the budget. If you cannot find it in you to stop the spin when the nation is in turmoil, then you lack judgment. It was insulting for you to stand before the Kenyan people and trivialize this tragedy. You claimed that there were, I quote "few trouble spots.....that the government is dealing with ..... and we are in control". For your information we do not care about the perceptions you want to create, these are well good, and part of your job in times of peace, but at this time find it in yourself to serve the people and tell the truth. Can you console a mother who has lost a child by telling her there are many other children. Please! learn some empathy. We are learning of this grave situation from BBC, CNN, Al jazeera, while you flap your gums peddling lies like a paid professional. Stop reading from your playbook and empathise with the situation.
The Violent
To the violent causing mayhem my only words to you are stop, repent and turn from your wicked ways.

Why Kivuitu must be held accountable for poll chaos

2008-01-04T19:11:00.000-08:00

This is one of the more reasoned opinions in the Media.

Why Kivuitu must be held accountable for poll chaos

Story by DONALD B. KIPKORIR
Daily Nation: Publication Date: 1/5/2008

About 5.30pm on December 30, Electoral Commission chairman Samuel Kivuitu and two other commissioners huddled in a tiny room and, exclusively through state-funded Kenya Broadcasting Corporation, announced President Kibaki re-elected. Within an hour, the President was sworn in at State House at a function in which the national anthem was not played and in the absence of the diplomatic corps. Then the country was thrown into chaos.

In the fullness of time, history will apportion culpability over the current anarchy. At the moment, however, Mr Kivuitu should take full responsibility. But as he tries to run away from this responsibility to blame the chaos on pressure from PNU and ODM Kenya, I wish to offer the correct legal position over the whole saga and how the country can wriggle out of it.

The Electoral Commission of Kenya (ECK) was created pursuant to Section 41 of the Constitution and thus has security of tenure and independence. Section 42A sets out its mandate to be mainly two-fold — the registration of voters and the maintenance of the voter register, as well as directing and supervising civic, parliamentary and presidential elections.

The National Assembly and Presidential Elections Act, Cap 7, and its subsidiary, the Presidential and Parliamentary Elections Regulations sets out the legal framework that enables the ECK to effectively and fully conduct elections. The election of political leaders is a key component of any nation state that claims to be a democracy. To be legitimate, the electoral process must not only be free and fair, but also be seen to be so.

The regulations clearly set out the road-map for conducting elections, voting, votes counting and tallying, announcing results and challenging the process.

Presidential, parliamentary and civic elections are conducted at the polling stations, which are so located that voters have access to them with the least inconvenience and such that the ECK and the Government provide the logistics, the materials and security. At the moment, there are nearly 27,000 polling stations.

Each station is headed by a presiding officer, assisted by poll clerks. On the polling day, voters are given specific times within which they may cast their votes in person and not by proxy. All through the entire voting process, candidates’ agents, the media and accredited observers have free and unlimited access to the polling centre to witness the voting.

At the close of voting, the presiding officer and his clerks, in the presence of the agents, the media and observers, proceed to count the votes. Once the counting begins, the law stipulates that it shall not stop until it is completed. The results are then announced at the polling stations. The presiding officer then makes three packets each separately holding valid, disputed and spoilt ballot papers.

The officer makes another three packets holding spoilt papers, marked copy register and counterfoils of used ballot papers. He also prepares a statement that summarises the voting at the polling station, which he signs. It is countersigned by all the agents present. The packets are sealed and the agents are free to affix their own seal. The two sets of packets, the statement and the ballot boxes are transmitted to the returning officer at the constituency level.

The returning officer, once he receives the packets and boxes from the polling stations, proceeds to tally the votes. This is done in the presence of the candidates’ agents and the media. Vote recounting is not gone into, except for those disputed, and the returning officer has discretion to confirm or vary the disputed ones only. He shall never change the valid or spoilt votes. He then proceeds to announce to all present the results of both the presidential and parliamentary votes.

The returning officer is obliged in law to then fill Forms 16, 16A and 17A, which set out the results and the votes cast for each presidential and parliamentary candidates. The statutory forms are signed by the officer and the candidates’ agents. The agents, the media and observers are allowed to make and keep copies of the three forms, which are then physically delivered to the ECK headquarters in Nairobi.

On receiving them the ECK gives all parliamentary and presidential candidates 24 hours to lodge complaints, if any, including demanding a recount or retallying. The ECK is obliged to, within 48 hours, allow the recount or retallying. All candidates and the ECK therefore have 72 hours to resolve any disputes. It is only after the period that the ECK can announce the winners of each of the 210 parliamentary seats and issue a certificate known as Form 17 to each elected MP and Form 18 to the elected president. The results are then gazetted.

With due respect to Mr Kivuitu, it was irregular, unlawful and void in law to announce the results on December 30 and swear in the President on the same day. The ECK boss announced the results when he did not have the original Forms 16, 16A and 17A from each constituency, refused to allow the 24-hour period for candidates to lodge complaints and declined to allow retallying.

He told the world that his returning officers had gone underground, and that he did not have powers to order retallying. On the day the results were being announced, Special Gazette Notice No. 12612 was issued declaring Mr Kibaki the president. Mr Kivuitu deliberately misled the world and subverted the law.

Section 5 of the Constitution states that the president shall be elected in accordance with the Constitution and the National Assembly and Presidential Elections Act, Cap 7. Non-compliance with the mandatory provisions vitiates the process.

In law, the fundamental principle is that a void process does not confer legitimacy. A public officer acting in compliance with the law must comply with the substantive, formal and procedural conditions laid down and at all times act in good faith and for the public good. As a repository of these constitutional and statutory powers and duties, Mr Kivuitu was obliged to be faithful to the process and not be influenced by external forces, as he has admitted.

By his infidelity to the law, he has failed the country and must undo the mistakes. Section 5 of the Constitution states that a president duly elected is the one who has the highest votes cast.

The ECK can invoke its powers under the Constitution to retally all valid Forms 16 and 16A and retract the results and announce the valid ones. The announcement of results on December 30 was a ministerial act that does not invalidate the ECK’s constitutional powers.

The Constitution states that any other law that is inconsistent with the provisions of the Constitution is void to the extent of inconsistency. Thus, Mr Kivuitu must take the high road, invoke the ECK’s constitutional mandate and review the forms and give Kenyans the president they elected, be it Mr Kibaki or ODM candidate Raila Odinga.

The tough stands taken by ODM and President Kibaki’s PNU are theatrics which will not help the country. Neither party has any constitutional mandate that is the ECK’s monopoly. If he allows the status quo to stay, Mr Kivuitu will one day be held to account for the bloodshed and property destroyed.

The country’s unity and future rest on his shoulders, and he cannot pass the buck.

Mr Kipkorir is an advocate of the High Court.