---

Is this the end of the capital error in East Africa?

By Ronald Elly Wanda, Feb 27 2009
At the beginning of last year, whilst at a send-off party in London for a Ugandan friend that worked for Citigroup Bank in New York, I remember a Morgan Stanley employee, so tipsy yet confident of his abilities and apparent access to capital, bragging that he would one day buy the Central Bank of Uganda. “This lot are mismanaging the tills in Uganda. I am going to sort these guys out!” proclaimed the chubby banker amidst some hilarity. At that time the conversations revolved almost entirely on how good the times were.

On the eve of 2009, meeting the same East African expatriates in London and the mood is suddenly sombre and very nervy. You can almost smell the fear. Collapse, catastrophe and calamity this time round seemed to be dominant of all subjects financial.

Recently, I was at Parker Macmillan’s in Barbican, where well-to-do East Africans in the diaspora were busy boozing under the auspices of celebrating all things Bantu. Amidst the sizzling passions and ostentations on display of the most striking legs in the diaspora, the question: “will we survive?” somehow managed to occupy centre stage. One Kenyan banker recently made redundant by the situation summed up the mood to me using Nairobian slang: “Mambo ni Mbaya jama! kwahivyo sahi ni raundi mwenda tuu!” (The going is tough my friend!), staggeringly pointing to his jug of “DAWA”, a cocktail drink that was specially served aplenty on the night.  At nearby tables, punters seemed determined to discuss neither entrepreneurship nor new business ventures but to engorge enough nyama choma (grilled meat) and booze to put ancient Roman gluttons, the so called godfathers of capitalism, to shame. “Is this it?” I remember being asked by a Rwandese friend, a poet now based in London, as I sipped my chilled Chardonnay. So I began.

What if anything, the last few months have demonstrated to us all, even the staunchest defenders of the “free market” philosophy are now agreeing with me, is that the greed-driven neo-liberal system that for so long has been forced upon us has lost its charm and is now both fiscally and intellectually bankrupt. Last October Nicholas Sarkozy, the French President, as if to substantiate what I mean, conceded that “the all-powerful market is finished”; whilst at the same time the then US president George W. Bush faced mounting accusations from his fellow Republicans of being a ‘socialist’-  charged (this time round) with the crime of nationalising his country’s distressed financial system.

The economic situation we are facing, according to a recent Observer editorial, “is as serious as a war”. The total UK personal debt stands at an eye-watering £1.4 trillion, making Rwanda’s  $1.4billion external debt seem like a drop in the ocean, it has however led some analysts here to start calling for a nationwide “credit card amnesty”. Britain’s living standards have already begun falling at a rate faster than any other O.E.C.D (Organisation of Economic Cooperation Development) member states, its GDP per capita of $35,243 (£23, 913) exactly twenty times that of Kenya ($1800) and almost one hundred and twenty times that of Burundi ($300) looks set to reduce significantly.

In East Africa, where our economies are directly pegged into the international financial system has meant that we are directly affected by the squeeze in international liquidity, Stock markets in East Africa are already coming under pressure because of the continuing withdrawal of international capital. According to Professor Njuguna Ndung’u, the governor of Central Bank of Kenya (C.B.K) “projections shows that Africa’s real GDP growth rate is expected to decline from 6.2% to 4.6% in 2009, while in East Africa growth rate is projected to fall from 8.4% in 2008 to 6% this year”. 

Furthermore, the U.N (United Nations) has warned that remittances to Africa, worth $40 billion (which is coincidentally the same amount that Africa receives as Official Development Assistance {O.D.A}) a year could be an early casualty of the ongoing European and American financial crisis. In Kenya as is the case in other East African Community member States, remittances have been a powerful anchor for the economy. In 2007 alone, Kenya received 1.3 billion U.S. dollars in remittances. But the flow is already slowing down.

The decline in remittances has direct negative effects on household welfare given that, unlike other transfers, these remittances are directly used for covering basic needs such education, health and more importantly food. In August 2008, according to the C.B.K, Kenyans abroad managed to send home 36.5 million dollars compared to 44 million dollars which they’d sent in July, a difference of 38 % from what they’d sent during the same period last year. The drop in remittances, and dollar inflow, says the C.B.K, has affected the Kenyan shilling, which is now trading at a three year low.

Elsewhere in Sub-Saharan Africa, where the average per capita income is around $600-$700 in comparison to thousands of times over in the developed nations (for instance US $46,373 or Germany $41,531) the majority of wanainchi (citizens) live on the bottom end of the economic pyramid. Therefore the options for them (wanainchi), unlike their counterparts in the OECD regions where the ‘welfare’ state “protects”, the current financial crisis (brought about by greedy European and American bankers), is not a question of giving up luxuries, it means living in absolute poverty.

The decrease in demand of raw materials from Africa will result in cut down of supply of finished goods from rich nations; this in turn will invariably increase the prices of products. Aid and assistance that the developed countries give to Africa will now also reduce because they are trying to bail out their economies, this means that H.I.P.C (Highly Indebted Poor Countries) such as Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and Tanzania in East Africa whose budgets are heavily reliant upon aid will suffer allot more. Kenya, although not a officially a H.I.P.C, its economy is import-dependent, and is still nursing the effects of the post-election crisis earlier last year that claimed the lives of 1400 people and left hundreds of thousands internally displaced, has seen its inflation and food prices rise, partly because it relies heavily on the European, Asian and American economies for remittances, tourism and development aid and the sale of tea, coffee and horticulture exports.

Allot has and undoubtedly will continue being written about the current global financial crisis and indeed the state of capitalism.  However, for me, the analyses and commentaries of two imminent social scientists, Alex Callinicos and Dani Nabudere have stimulated my interest. I first came across professor Callinicos’s brilliant book ‘Against the Third Way’ whilst an undergraduate way back in 2002. In the book, Callinicos, who is now professor of European Politics at Kings College London, foretells the financial calamity that lays ahead, his simplifications of complex global politics, I have to say, makes him a master political theorist.  He developed a fundamental critique of the ‘Third way’ philosophy that was so promoted by the likes of Blair of Britain, Clinton of US and Schroder of Germany in the last decade.  In Africa, he links the said philosophy to the likes of the former South African president Thambo Mbeki and more recently by Yoweri Museveni of Uganda. Callinicos argues that ‘Third Way’ governments have continued the neo-liberal policies of their conservative predecessors, by promoting the interests of multinationals through privatisation, thereby allowing social and economic inequalities to continue growing.  Those who want to see ‘real’ change, argues Callinicos, should be challenging the logic of the market rather than, like Gordon Brown and George Bush, extending its domination.

Back in Eastern Africa, mounting food deficits, a sharp decline in living standards and rising energy costs are all tell-tell signs that the impact of the ongoing global financial crisis, has trickled down the East African political vein and is soon bound to also tickle labor unrest- especially given the World Food Summit’s latest worrisome estimation, that for every one percent increase in the price of food, there is an additional 16 million people who will go hungry. The European Union, Britain and the United States ‘s continued demand that African nations in the eastern region of the continent follow their purported “anti-terrorism” and pro-capitalist agenda, is exacerbating conditions for already poor wanainchis  as well as farmers. During the recent G8 summit in Japan, the major preoccupation of these imperialist states was the total isolation of Zimbabwe and the deployment of more military forces to the Darfur region of Sudan instead of dealing with what is already a desperate situation at hand.

Professor Dani Nabudere of Afrika Study Centre in Mbale, Eastern Uganda, as if to reiterate Callinicos’s contention, has also argued that the current crisis lays at the very foundations of the global capitalist system and thus emphasizes that it should be analysed from that angle. “What is at the core of the crisis is the over-extension of credit on a narrow material production base. This is in a situation in which money has become increasingly detached from its material base of a money commodity that can measure its value such as gold”, argues Nabudere. According to the professor, this is why the present financial crisis is also a reflection of the energy and food crisis, because oil and food products such as wheat, rice and other commodities have been subjected to speculative trading to back up paper money many years in the future. In Kenya, the largest economy in Eastern Africa, the tourism sector has already seen a 30% drop from KSh 49.3 billion to KSh 34.5 billion, also export produce such as tea, flowers and coffee have seen huge reductions in their demand, and given the government’s current budget deficit of KSh 127 billion, the future looks bleak.

Meanwhile at Parker Macmillan’s, with my Chardonnay at hand, the future, I told my Poet friend, remains anyone’s guess. One thing that I can perhaps say with certainty about the state of capitalism is that it will never be the same again.
Ronald Elly WandaMCIJ is a political scientist based in London.

---

Literary Criticism
The Writer and Development in East Africa

By  Ronald Elly Wanda, Jan 8 2009
The history of contemporary political ideas of Africa is a neglected field in the continent and more so outside of it. As we commence 2009, and near the first decade of what the UN has ambitiously termed “Africa’s century”, it is important as Africans to re-examine and discuss our plight in relation to our development. My capitulation as a concerned reader and writer places emphasis on none other than the young African writer, for it is he or she that is likely to stimulate and catalogue development and historical discourses as per se. This is because, when it comes to Africa, where African thought has been studied, expositions of metaphysical systems or discussions of critical or theoretical thoughts belonging to individual Africans are quite rare.

As a political writer, there are many moments that I can recall where I have encountered red-tape under the auspices of “editorial policy” sanctioning me from expressing a certain truth as certain publishers have feared exposing well-known dictators and other high-profile societal wrong-doers in Eastern Africa, often citing their own safety concerns. Concerns which are well-founded.

In East African society today, it is still common place for independent journalists and writers to receive death threats; face intimidation and harassment; face arbitrary arrest and detention; be severely beaten up and or tortured; while media houses risk being raided by state security agents and their publications and media equipments seized and destroyed depending on what they publish. More recently, the Monitor and East African Standard of Kampala and Nairobi respectively have suffered this fate. On the other hand, public media in the continent still remains a monopolised government propaganda machinery; New Vision of Uganda, Kenya Times of Kenya, NewTimes of Rwanda are one such examples of tawdry propaganda sheets.
For decades the need for analysts to look elsewhere for ‘unofficial thinking’, has been the motivation of newspapers and magazines such as the Eastern African Magazine or for that matter West Africa published by Africans for African readers here in the diaspora as well as those back home in Africa.

While I remain acutely aware of my status as a pan-Africanist in the diaspora, my role and that of fellow African writers in foreign shores, so to speak, is to normalize the spirit of promoting positive African intellectualism, in spite of obvious obstacles at hand. For a start, we must pester the corrosive ‘big brother’ culture of gagging African intellectualism for not only does it suppress the truth but it also disbands the very apex of political journalism, that of seeking thy truth and reporting it objectively without fear or intimidation.

In my view, one aspect that has continued playing a strong part against our development has been our history. Although not motivated by professional commitment to historical inquiry, nevertheless, I feel impelled to suggest that the recent past has everything to do with phenomena that are apparent in East African society today. As young African writers, we therefore need to engage with the history of contemporary Africa both as a way of throwing new light on our remote past and as away of understanding the present. For instance, we played no part at all in the formation of the so called ‘nation-state’. Our boundaries were drawn up by Europeans who had never even been to Africa disregarding existing political systems and boundaries. Fifty years later, we were given flags and national anthems, airlines and armies and told we were now “independent”. Five decades afterwards, that independence is now “dependence”.

 Ever since the British government (the chief predator in East Africa) bought into the aid agency view of Africa – “all Africa needs is aid” – it has reduced its capacity to further understand the region. Aid with attached conditions is pointless to Africa. According to a recent study by the University of Massachusetts, there is more money leaving Africa than is going to Africa as aid. It is estimated that the capital flight from 40 African countries from 1974 to 2004 stood at $607 billion in 2004 compared to a total $227 billion external debt owed by those countries. “While the assets are in private hands, the liabilities are the public debts of African governments”, said the report, also pointing a finger at UK and Switzerland as jurisdictions likely to enjoy embezzled funds from Africa.

While the EU has only 23 languages in use, Africa has at least 2,000, and in East Africa alone we have well over 150. So while tribalism is an issue in our society, it is not some weird atavistic African sentiment but a logical result of our “imposed history”. Most people I’ve met whilst in East Africa speak at least three languages, intermarriages are a common thing, and in normal times, there is little personal conflict between people of different ethnicity, thanks in part to a resuscitated and enlarged union of East Africa.

In Africa, the concept of the nation-state has failed us, because it has acted as a cumulative mechanism benefiting certain elites and foreign agents and not wanainchis (Africans). Naturally it is this reason that has led wanainchi, especially those in rural areas with little education, to identify more with their own people, language, culture and society than they do with the nation-state. Therefore, for me, at the risk of simplification, the answer lies in regionalisation. Thankfully, the East African Community is one such work in progress. We ought to laud this initiative as the first stage of setting ourselves ‘free’.

The notion that Africa is post-colonial is hardly satisfactory, not least because of the continuing reference to the colonial past in this epithet. Also unsatisfactory is the suggestion from the former South African president Thambo Mbeki that Africa is now in the age of renaissance of some sort.
As young African writers of newspapers, magazines, blogs, books etc, it is our task to construct a history that we can claim is ours, one that positively identifies the character of Africa in its present age. After all, history can only make its weight felt on living generations through mechanisms or expositions of the information that can become operation. The main task at hand is to inquire into the nature of recent times diligently and, above all, without the burden of past expectations. It may then turn out that, for all the terrible events and formidable problems of recent years, redundant discourses aside; it is an age of the young African writer to impact.

Ronald Elly Wanda MCIJ is a political scientist based in London

---

Obama: Rejected stone that became the cornerstone

By Ronald Elly Wanda, London November 15 2008

I am still trembling from the griping suspense of watching the so called “Bradley” theory demolished by the Obama phenomenon in the concluded US election. Barack Obama, the Democratic presidential candidate on Wednesday 5th November 2008 secured a resounding victory over John McCain- the veteran Republican candidate, overcoming the country’s bitter legacy of slavery and bigotry, matching straight into history books as the country’s first black president.

Earlier in the year, in a published piece titled “The Contrast of ‘Political Opportunity Structure between the US and Kenya”, I’d argued that one thing that fascinated me the most about Americans was their extraordinary sense of appreciation for ‘newness’- a factor that has so vividly been demonstrated by the outcome of this year’s historic election.

So historic is Obama’s victory in that even the country’s founding fathers, I am sure, would have been astounded by the very suggestion of a black man as the president. Their failure to tackle slavery, which the best of them acknowledged was incompatible with the values of the American revolution, remains the largest stain on their legacy.

However, one thing that perhaps deserves them our commendation is their construction of a flexible constitution that has survived their own failings and has been ‘sustainable’ enough to accommodate a man of immediate Kenyan origin (and undoubtedly many others like him still pending) to stand a reasonable chance of leading the world’s most powerful nation. As a person of African origin, albeit British, I feel immensely proud of his achievement made possible by Washington, Adams and Jefferson’s et al’s earlier sense of constitutional ‘fairness’.

Contrary to what we have in Africa, where constitutions are hardly ever upheld, and in some case scenarios, not even worth the papers they’ve been written on, because certain leaders have felt the need to extend their tenureships through systematic alterations. Yoweri Museveni of Uganda is one such a case in point. A White House snub would thus be his ultimate nightmare and others like him. Conversely, because for such leaders a White House pat on the back has been their ultimate legitimation they’ve need to continue their crimes against African citizenry.

The cornerstone of the assassinated civil rights movement leader Dr Martin Luther King was to elevate black people to a level where they would be looked at as any other person in society. This, he argued would lead to total emancipation from the bondages of slavery and racism that had plagued the black man in American society. Therefore, Obama’s victory is in part, a realisation of Dr King’s powerful “I have a dream” ambition. It is inspirational in nature and psychologically soothing for all men that have, for far too long, been classified as “others”, and whose relevance has been seconded in contemporary political discourses. Political culture in America has changed, the ramifications of which will be forever felt throughout the global political arena. “Change we can believe in and Yes We Can!” Obama’s slogans will be closely associated with this fundamental chasm of newness.

As Professor Ali Mazrui of New York University has recently pointed out in an East African daily: “It is now conceivable that the world may one day witness a Black Prime Minister of Great Britain, or a Black President of France, or a Black Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany.” By breaking the glass ceiling against Black ascendancy in the United States, the Professor said “Obama has increased the probability of Black Heads of Government in other Western countries before the end of this twenty-first-century.”

Elsewhere in Africa, others have been quick to down-play Obama’s victory in relations to Africa’s problem. “Why should America do anything for us? What Obama does should be important to Americans because he is an American citizen”, cautioned Professor Dani Nabudere of Afrika Study Centre, in Mbale, Uganda. And it easy to see why.

Obama comes to office at a time of grinding national and global economic difficulties, and when US is embroiled in two major wars. With these issues demanding his immediate attention, there is a real danger that an Obama presidency may not have much left to pay attention to Africa's debilitating problems that includes abject poverty, diseases, underdevelopment and social progress. Yet we have ample resources, which if properly exploited, could help alleviate wanainchis problems.

Our hopes and expectations of an Obama presidency ought to therefore revolve around us Africans as a people if not necessarily Africa the geography. For in the western prism, Africa has always been much more important than we Africans. ‘Africa’, Chinua Achebe reminds us, ‘is people’. And that is the problem. The philosophical basis from which Africa is approached has never moved beyond geography and resources.  The worst Mr Obama will do is to continue the practice of protectionism. However, I am hopeful that he will extend (AGOA) Africa Growth Opportunity Act, as he obviously has a clearer understanding of Africa's problems than George Bush resultant of his umbilical ties with the continent.
Ends… 
Ronald Elly Wanda MCIJ is a political scientist based in London.

---

Form coalitions before elections

By Antony Keya, Kericho, Sept 22 2008
After the disputed presidential results and subsequent post election violence, forming a coalition government was the only best option available to Kenyans.Kenyans had executed their Democratic obligation by voting for candidates of their choice.This was within their democratic context in which voting took place and preferred candidates got whatever they got.

The Kriegler commission has just presented it finds and that,according to the evidence so far gathered,they cannot determine who lost or who won the last year election.And I think that they could be right in their verdict.My question at this point is that,"Why should the Kenyan voters be subjected to an exercise which translates in ambiguity".Zimbabwe has had a similar scenario such as the Kenyan one.

The precedence has been already set on this continent of Africa.And I am sure that the trend will continue more often than not. The price payable before this form of arrangement is arrived at is heavy as well as disastrous to common citizens.Deaths,displacement and destruction to pieces of property was beyond measure. And as a result the Mwananchi wa kawaida is now shouldering the unbearable cost of living which can not be justified.All because the top cream in the society disagreed only to agree later after untold suffering on innocent poor voters.

In my on opinion, I believe that the Power-Sharing arrangement should be done well in advance of the actual presidential elections.The period towards campaigns,the would be strong presidential candidates are identified,and in most cases these fellows are nominated by their mainstream parties.Taking Kenya and Zimbabwe as an example, I can correctly assume that, at the end of the day,these main rival candidates will deputize or prime another in a Coalition government crops up eventually.

It is the hope of many people that this form governing and power-sharing arrangement works out successfully.In this case time shall be the best judge. Since post elections crisis has this tendencies of recurring here in Kenya, let there be a legislation by the ninth parliament on the framework upon which power will be shared among the would strong presidential candidates in 2012.

Wishing that all will be well is okay.But let every Kenyans remember that the politics in this land polarized along ethnic line and the playing ground remains crooked. Opinion polls from various poll's agencies can be harmonized to determine the would principles in forming future coalition governments which have overtaken the Democratic verdict of the electorate through fair and free elections.

---

ODM should elect Ngilu as deputy leader

By Phitalis Masakhwe,September 22 2008
As a young and life member of the ODM party, I feel disappointed by the ongoing squabbles over the position of Deputy party leader in the party. As a party for the future, ODM Party leader should Hon Raila Odinga should resist all tribally instigated demands over this position and appoint a woman for the same. Hon Charity Kaluki Ngilu, a renowned crusader for women rights and political icon in her own right brilliantly fits this position. Strategically that will add a lot of political mileage for the party in terms of gender dimension and regional balance. For ODM to remain a party anchored on reform platform and national outlook there is need to address gender, equity and regional, youth and disability related disparities and concerns in its top leadership and related structures.

ODM has huge potential to become a powerful political machine just like the African National Congress in South Africa, but that can only came from broad based thinking, visionary and inclusive leadership and not tribal, narrow minded and parochial thoughts that seems to be gaining currency in the party over mundane things; deputy leader of the party position. ODM should be preoccupied with winning over those groups and areas that did not vote for it and not who brought more votes on the table much as it’s important to keep its support base intact. How for instance can the party gain a foothold in central province and other areas as part of the national healing and reconciliation process? Appointing Hon Ruto or Mudavadi to the position of deputy leader in as much as we love the two ODM leaders, does not advance the greater good, interests and future aspirations of the party.

What happened recently in Rwanda where her parliament is now controlled by women should be a lesson and wake up call to male dominated political parties and leadership in Kenya. The world is fast changing and so should ODM and other political outfits in Kenya. Further a field we saw what the appointment of Sarah Palin as the running mate for John McChain did to his dull campaign. That move has electrified his campaign among women particularly white women voters, her numerous weaknesses not withstanding.

---

Plot to remove Mudavadi myopic

By Tom Mshindi, Sept 12 2008
It is myopic and dumb for some ODM supporters to argue that Agriculture minister William Ruto should replace Mr Musalia Mudavadi in the Number 2 position within the party because “the Kalenjin community has sacrificed a lot” and hence deserves a higher perch on the hierarchy than the Luhya community. Dumb because such an argument is glib and weak, shortsighted because the thinking is not strategic.

Would occupying the Number 2 position play any part in winning the ultimate prize – the presidency – and adequately respond to the logic coalitions in politics? It does not answer the question: What do other communities want? No group within ODM should be seen as having played a bigger or lesser role because the objective of the aggressive campaigns in every part of the country was to win, especially those communities in which ODM was not guaranteed support.

So, the Kisii, the Kamba, the Meru and even the Miji Kenda communities are all central to its future success. To argue that Mr Mudavadi be lower down the pecking order, is to imply that people like Mr Omingo Magara, Mrs Charity Ngilu, Mr Joseph Nyaga and Mr Najib Balala should feature only peripherally because their communities did not sacrifice as much as the Kalenjin or the Luhya!

Mr Magara will tell you, this is pure humbug. His people suffered great pain and loss because of the support they gave to ODM and they, in fact, more than anyone else, should be nicely treated when sharing out the goodies, if indeed the senior party positions are rewards to go to the various communities, according to the level of sacrifice each made.

Mrs Ngilu and Mr Nyagah will ask whether their contribution as individuals should be trivialised and indeed, whether more emphasis should not be put on winning over those communities yet to fully embrace ODM? Why, they would ask, should ODM leaders behave like hunters that see the end of their assignment in the killing of the animal, rather than warriors who see one successful battle as a learning experience to feed into the next battle? For avoidance of doubt, a combined Luhya vote is numerically superior to the Kalenjin vote.

The message to the Luhya leadership is that review your strategy to take full advantage of the numerical strength at the national level. Only those communities – Kikuyu, Luo and now Kalenjin – that have internalised this basic political truism will continue reaping from it as the tradition of coalitions entrenches itself in Kenya. But back to the ODM issue – what is the party’s key motivation?

Clearly, capture and retention of absolute political power in 2012 and beyond. It will achieve this partly by how well it is seen to execute its responsibilities within the Grand Coalition government, and significantly, how well it builds the tribal coalition that forms the party. How it conducts its party polls will provide a useful insight into its game plan. Rather than make Mr Mudavadi and other ODM leaders and their supporters uncomfortable by classifying them as inferior, the party leadership should be thinking about how they can position him and others to leverage even wider support from their communities.

Support from two communities is good, but support from more than three numerically significant communities is infinitely better. ODM should also be looking at keeping political power over the long run and hence planning to involve the communities at all levels of public affairs management long into the future. In this way, they avoid the short-term, corruption-prone worldview that plans its relevance over a brief period and hence seeks to maximise whatever rewards it can accrue from a position before it is removed.

Source: Nation Media

---

DIASPORA TALK
A Question of Morality: Kenyan man says he pissed in English tea

By Ronald Elly Wanda, August 26 2008
What a dramatic Sunday I’d had. First, in the early hours of dawn a bizarre SMS landed on my GSM reading: “I’m preg.” I’d had a cushy evening during the latter part of the weekend and understandably as you would expect, I didn’t take much notice of the message until much later, when I’d delicately detoxed with a rescuer’s cup of Kenya’s finest KETEPA pride that the communication sunk in. Following a brief and panicky inquiry, it turned out that it was Mary, an Irish girl living in Londonderry (Northern Ireland) who’d mistaken my digits with those of Tunde, her intended Nigerian recipient (presumably her boyfriend) also supposedly living in London.

Nevertheless, my delight was obvious, having been exonerated from Mary’s shocking excitement and Tunde’s apparent paternity, I did not envy, even for a moment, the bigotry and culturally calculated intolerance that awaited their interracial domiciliary in today’s pretentious yet Brutish Britain. Determined not to let the episode halt my usually habitual Sundays, later that afternoon, I caught the Piccadilly line and meandered London underground exiting at Marble Arch, I then legged it through to Hyde Park and I arrived at my intended destination- Speakers Corner.

I’d come here to witness British freedom of speech in action.  I dissected several speeches by various characters, some of whom included an Islamic woman rumbling about hijabs; a bearded white man arguing for European protectionism; a hard-looking, mixed-raced woman on the masculinity of feminism etc. However, it was the last speaker, I must confess, that engrossed me the most.   It was an interesting Kikuyu-looking gentleman (fair skinned, decayed teeth, hairless, short, wearing a green buttoned sweater), who’s subject was the depredations of imperialism. “I tell you”, the Kenyan mwanainchi proclaimed. “When I slaved on the tea estates during the Emergency, I did my bit to help my brave brothers in the bush fighting imperialism. Yes I did!” Referring to the legendary M.A.U M.A.U (Muzungu Aende Ulaya, Mwafrika Apate Uhuru) movement in Kenya.  “Do you want to know what I did?” he asked us.  Of course I (and I imagine the rest of the congregation) wanted to- we were transfixed. “Every single sack of tea that passed through the shed where I worked I pissed on it. Yes I did, I pissed in it liberally, and satisfied that it would be ending up in your mouths!”

Amidst the civil laughter that ensued from the crowd, I couldn’t help but think the old man had a strong point. He played a crucial role against British imperialism, however minuet others might consider his contribution; the key thing is that it had an impact- it left a bitter taste in the mouths of the colonial hooligans  who consumed KETEPA at the time…

Later, I allowed the old man’s dialogue to encircle my mind as I commuted northbound the Victoria line. Disembarking at Seven Sisters and eventually settling at the East African living room (The Three Crowns), hopping to unwind with the ideal formula of relaxology.  I mean a warm Tusker- with the Observer- as well as African music bouncing politely on the background.

My mathematical configuration didn’t last long. It was abruptly interrupted by a loose Kigalian Interlocutor. The character rumbled endlessly like a mad politician at Kamukunji grounds in old Nairobi. A few months back, this personality suffered embarrassment after she was accused of husband- snatching and home wreckage by a Tanzanian who was once her best friend. Naturally, she expected me to respond “aah, bambi, sorry!” It was not to be, much to her disappointment. .. “Where is the morality in her application?” I wondered. Affairs are an emotional botox. They make you feel better about yourself in the short term, but leave an ugly mess in the long term. What a day! ...

Ends…

The writer is a political scientist living and working in London.

---

New constitution must address disability issues

By Phitalis Masakhwe, August 22 2008
Addressing at an international conference on constitution making in Nairobi, recently, Kenya’s principals, President Mwai Kibaki and Premier Raila Odinga for the umpteenth time assured Kenyans that they will get a new constitution, most probably next year 2009. And they better rise to the occasion and truly facilitate statesmanlike role that will lead to the delivery of this much sought after document. Their place in the annals of Kenya’s history will to a great extend depend on how they divorce personal and sectarian interests and patriotically guide this process.

These our leaders have a constitutional moment, courtesy of the scuffle that bedeviled the country after the ill-fated 2007 poll. They therefore have to strike now when it is still hot or should forever keep their peace! If there are Kenyans that feel impatient and rattled by the procrastination that has attended the delivery of a new constitutional dispensation, that group is none other than Kenyans with disabilities, they need this document like yesterday! Why do they want it and what are their issues that they want firmly entrenched in the supreme law of the land? But, even before that, what are their views with regards to the review process so far or how do they want the process to proceed, if indeed it has to be seen and judged to be inclusive, together with the final product?

After the publication and tabling in parliament of the Constitution of Kenya Review Bill, 2008 by Martha Karua, Minister for Justice, National Cohesion and Constitutional Affairs, members of parliament are expected to commence robust debate on this issue when they return from recess, early October. Hopefully, this issue will be accorded outmost priority leading to the development of a clear roadmap with inbuilt measurable and time bound targets and benchmarks that will effectively complete the long overdue review process. But, first things first.

Kenyans with disabilities must be involved and included at every step of the review process; for no one other than themselves can best identify with and articulate their concerns in the process. In this regard it would make sense to demand that the so called committee of “experts” as espoused in the review bill, article 6 (1) should include an expert with a disability. This expert with a disability will hold brief and negotiate for the disability fraternity and ensure that their interests, including the enormous gains that the group got, especially in the Bomas Draft constitution are not tampered with by anyone. Out of sight out of mind and so persons with disabilities will not take it kindly to any attempts to once again marginalize them in this life and death process. The current constitution of the republic of Kenya is exclusive, insensitive and even abusive of Kenyans with disability.

It does not outlaw discrimination on the grounds of disability, as it does for instance, on religion, race, and gender, name it. It does not in fact have the words persons with disability in all its phrasing except under the penal code where it refers to those with mental disability as “idiots and imbeciles” Now you see why persons with disability have issues with the ultimate law of the land? The same constitution has a clause that outlaw inconsistency or opposition to it by any legislation or subordinate law. In this case, Kenyans with disabilities are not out of the woods, as yet.

Even though Kenya has the Persons with disabilities Act 2003 and has indeed ratified the UN disability rights treaty which awaits domestication into her laws, all these initiatives can be rendered null and void, if they are found to be in conflict with the existing constitution. The need therefore of a new disability friendly and enabling constitutional architecture, upon which the entire policy and legal framework can be anchored, cannot be overemphasized. Persons with disabilities want a new constitution that appreciates and recognize their varied means of communication.

They want the state to promote the development and use of sign languages, Braille and other appropriate modes of communication for persons with audio, visual and other impairments. Persons with disabilities should have a right to receive information through their languages and modes of communication and should demand for public information to be provided in such formats. Our national values, principles and goals should ensure full participation of women, persons with disabilities and all other citizens in the political, social and economic life of the nation. This provision will ensure that the state is guided by national values that are non-discriminatory and involve all persons including those with various forms of impairment. The bill of rights in the constitution should ensure that Persons with disabilities are entitled to enjoy all the rights and freedoms spelt out in the Bill of Rights, and fully participate in society. Some of the examples include but not limited to:

• Ensuring that planning and resources are allocated taking into account various circumstances and needs of the Kenyans with disabilities. • No discrimination by the state against anyone directly or indirectly on any grounds including disability. • Introduction of affirmative action to mitigate any disadvantage occasioned by any type of discrimination at any given time including disability. • Special protection for children with disabilities by state and society.

• Provide for treatment of Kenyans with disabilities with respect and prohibit use of derogatory or demeaning terms.

• Ensuring access to information and all educational institutions and other public facilities, including transport.

• Recognize and require use of appropriate communication for persons with disability and access to devices that will enable overcoming of constraints occasioned by disability.

• Ensure effective participation of disabled persons in decision-making processes at all levels.

• Establish equal treatment of Persons with disabilities on equal basis with others.

• Require legislation and policy measures to ensure enjoyment of the above rights by Kenyans with disabilities.

The question of political self representation is key to the overall empowerment of Kenyans with disabilities. A new constitution should be comprehensible on the issue. Long and short of it is that Kenyans with disabilities want to be in parliament, local authorities and other grassroots planning and decision making organs. They therefore wish to see unambiqous paragraph and mechanisms in the constitution and electoral laws respectively, on how that shall be realized. It could be via temporary measures such as affirmative action as it obtains in Uganda, where we have special interest groups’ constituencies or mixed political party proportional representation as in South Africa. Kenya’s experience is interesting though; political parties here are not exceptionally keen on voters with disabilities, hence the South African model may not help much, especially in the interim period.

In South Africa, the ruling African National Congress (ANC) for instance deeply values the disabled people’s constituency and has nominated a record 21 persons with disabilities to the South African parliament! After last year’s election, no Kenyan with a disability was picked by a political party to represent their interests in parliament. Other areas that persons with disabilities will want addressed in the new law include their visibility in financial management, procurement of public goods and services to ensure the protection and advancement of persons or groups previously disadvantaged by unfair competition or advantage. This provision should provide for affirmative action for persons with disabilities in procurement and disposing of public goods and services as it happens in the United States of America.

You cannot win US Government business/tender without detailing the extent to which your business will ensure that accrued services and products will be inclusive and accessible to Americans with disabilities among other marginalized groups. Last but not least the new law should ensure that the public service including all constitutional offices represent Kenya’s diverse communities, persons with disabilities and minorities and marginalized groups in their composition at all levels. Kenyans with disabilities should be employed at all different levels of the civil service. Currently this representation is almost nonexistent especially at the top levels.

The writer, a sociologist has a physical disability and regular commentator on disability rights and development. He works for Leonard Cheshire Disability-International. He can be reached on Phitalis@lcd-enar.org/mphitalis@yahoo.com

---

History as Kenya ratifies disability convention

By Phitalis Masakhwe, August 13 2008
On the 19th of May 2008, Kenya made history by becoming the 27th country in the world, to ratify the new international law on disability rights. The convention on the promotion and protection of the rights and dignity of persons with disabilities got the required 20 countries’ ratification on the 4th of May 2008, thereby effectively coming into force from that date. This is indeed historic moment for the more than 650m disabled people around the world. Historic in the sense that it has taken great struggles and intense lobbying and negotiations spurning over decades to get the world to appreciate and recognize disability rights as essential and integral part of the large family of human rights.

But, why disability rights when we already have a plethora of human rights instruments?  Persons with disabilities have overtime suffered discrimination socially economically and politically, existing human rights instruments notwithstanding.  Disabled girls and women continue to be hidden; raped and denied education, yet the convention on the rights of the child and one on the elimination of all forms of discrimination against women have been with us for such a while now. Parliament and other organs of decision making around the world are conspicuously missing disabled peoples representatives while we have very strong protocols and treaties on people’s participation in planning and decision making.  That then partly makes attempts at explaining why the new comprehensive and integral international convention on the promotion and protection of the rights and dignity of persons with disabilities. A convention that Kofi Annan, former Secretary General of the United Nations described thus, “This is a historic achievement for 650 million people with disabilities around the world. People with disabilities have hitherto lacked adequate protection and I hope that this long overdue convention will mark the beginning of a new era in which they will have the same rights and opportunities as everyone else. I urge all member States to ratify the convention and ensure its rapid implementation.”

So what is the significance of the signing and ratification of this treaty by Kenya or those countries that ratify it for that matter? What are the implications for the country and to the more than 2m Kenyans with various forms of impairments? Does the ratification herald a new era or the continuation of the status quo?  I wish to submit that it can’t be business as usual with disabled people, never again!

For beginners, one thing is clear. We must note, that this is not, the first time that Kenya, has acceded to but not done much in terms of domestication and implementation of such an important piece of international law. That indeed the disability rights treaty may not be an exception, especially when one analyses past government responses and actions with regards to those amidst us with disabilities. That then calls for constant vigilance and policing from the disability fraternity and from all men and women that truly subscribes to the ideology of inclusion. That is only way that persons with disabilities will live and enjoy the benefits of the new treaty.

It is therefore important for the government to focus on domestication and implementation of the convention in order to translate this treaty into reality and to change the landscape for disabled persons. This calls for putting in place the machinery that will operationalize this process. Rafts of recommendations to guide this process are essential. This includes but not limited to the following:

The UN has shown, in it’s response to the worldwide HIV/AIDS problem that affects close to 45 million people, that it can act quickly and effectively to tackle global issues.  It established UNAIDS as a global secretariat to coordinate international support on the issue, including specific in-country actions with regard to HIV/AIDS.  It has also held summits with heads of states and governments to discuss the issue and actively work to combat the issue.  Evidently, when it wants to it can act.

Why, therefore has it failed to act on disability?  Does it not see disability as an important issue?  Yet how can this be when over 650 million people worldwide are disabled, over ten times the number of people affected by HIV/AIDS?  This is not playing down the impact of HIV/AIDS in the world and the importance of effective programmes to combat it, but it seems a valid question to ask considering the number of people living in poverty as a direct consequence of their disability.

How can the UN justify having specialized agencies and funds on almost every key global issue of today apart from disability?  We regularly hear and read about the state of the world with regard to the environment, children, poverty and women, for example.  But where is the report on the world’s disabled people?

I therefore urge caution as we go about celebrating the coming into force of this treaty and Kenya’s ratification of the same. A lot of hard work still remains a head.

The writer a sociologist with a physical disability is a regular commentator on disability rights and development. He is a senior Manager in charge of Resource Development Advocacy and Campaigns at Leonard Cheshire Disability LCD-ENAR regional Office and can be reached on Phitalis@lcd-enar.org/mphitalis@yahoo.com   

---

KENYA – A WAY FORWARD

Statement from the Executive committee of ODM-UK on the Amnesty Debate in Kenya

London, June 12 2008
Soon after the country descended into anarchy, following the disputed  presidential election  in December last year, there were still people who felt that  the way forward in restoring peace was through a judicial process.  This view was wisely declined by the Kofi Annan team, which took the political angle, and, within two months salvaged the country from a deadly quagmire.  The post-election cabinet was dissolved and the new political angle took shape in the form of a Grand Coalition Government.  An aura of normality was restored among Kenyans.

The Amnesty Row Continues to rage daily within the Grand Coalition.  This sensitive issue of huge political significance is causing a great amount of political turbulence and appears to potentially threaten the stability of the Grand Coalition.  The rising tide of animosity generated as a result of this never-ending row is fuelling political ‘venom’, which, if not dealt with, is likely to ‘poison’ the life of the Grand Coalition.  Since this is such a delicate matter of great magnitude that is capable of wrecking the coalition, it thus demands an urgent political solution to prevent any future carnage to our beloved nation.

It is now recognized that a prudent way forward for Kenya is through National Dialogue and Reconciliation. The success of the Grand Coalition hinges upon reconciliation. The same principles of dialogue and reconciliation should be applied in dealing with those accused of participation in post election violence. While we accept that those who are guilty of serious crimes must not go without punishment, we are also concerned that the judicial process has been abused. Nothing has apparently been done to charge the accused in court as per the law.

Justice delayed is Justice Denied!  This is why the Amnesty row is entirely a political issue which should be addressed by the Grand Coalition chiefs in order to find a political solution.

It is against this background that the Orange Democratic Party UK - independent of but affiliated to the Orange Democratic Party of Kenya - demands an urgent political solution as opposed to judicial intervention.

It is therefore vital that this sensitive matter which is tinkering with the survival of the Grand Coalition ‘be nipped in the bud’ by the two main Principals - President Mwai Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga.   This Amnesty row should be resolved as a matter of urgency before the country degenerates to the same state it was in five months ago.

We as concerned Kenyans in the Diaspora urge the President and the Prime Minister to accord this matter the attention it deserves due to its sensitivity - before it’s too late!

 

ODM UK’s role in the Diaspora
We wish to restate that while we are an affiliate of ODM, we are not a branch of the political party.  ODM is registered under Kenyan law, while ODM UK operates in the UK, and is subject to UK law, and must therefore abide by UK law.
We are Kenyans who will not shy away from participating in the wellbeing of our motherland, Kenya. Currently, we are happy to be associated with the party's manifesto.
We acknowledge that ODM is the majority party in Kenya, both in Parliament and among the voting public. Nevertheless, our support for the party does not prevent us from offering constructive criticism as and when due, and for the wellbeing of Kenyans.
We are committed to playing an increased role in shaping the future of Kenya for the benefit of Kenyans in the coming days.
ODM UK National Executive Committee is currently comprised of the following:

---

Raila should treat Kibaki with caution

By Fred Chesebe Kapondi

The sacrifices by Mr Raila Odinga for this country were prompted by last year’s General Election. Knowing that we were besieged, he gave up legitimate claim to the leadership of this nation and submitted to the Grand Coalition Government. He has further downplayed the portfolio imbalance in the Cabinet. The appointment of permanent secretaries stands out as the biggest betrayal.

I fear that Raila’s insistence on resettlement of Internally Displaced Persons, despite the discomfort of his national political constituency and his apparent trust in the Kibaki administration may be nudging him towards paying the ultimate prize - political suicide albeit with patriotic intentions.

As an honest reflection on the life and times of the Prime Minister, a look at his historical processing and packaging, a recollection of the many who have fallen by his ideological wayside and those who have perished in our march to a better Kenya, two things must be said in his honour.

Mungiki leader, Mr Maina Njenga, asked his followers to ‘give Raila a chance to do his part for this nation’ when the PM extended an olive branch to the sect, bringing their violent acts to a stop.

The other is a statement made in honour of Senator Barrack Obama by an American white politician as ‘a once in a lifetime leader’. Raila alone stands a chance today of rising to those heights of honour.

After my release from prison, where Mount Elgon IDPs are now packed in hundreds, the media rightly quoted me as singling out Raila as my inspiration. This was inspired by his rise to prominence through defending the public good and leadership, despite being a consistent opponent of and victim of the state.

Those elected to Parliament often warm up to the establishment. But Raila is an exception. Like a fully grown Elgon tick which takes years to mature, he must be protected. The PM is a rare instrument in our toolbox, and I fear that political pangas are being maliciously wielded in his direction by certain leaders.

It has been said that ‘in a besieged fortress, dissent is treason’. Kenya’s torn national fabric, the prevailing social conflicts exhibited by the Mungiki and Sabaot Land Defence Forces menace, the imbalance in regional development, crime and the overall breakdown of security make this country a fortress under siege. This knowledge is at the moment the preserve of those in ODM who have done all in their power to protect the fortress.

We have sacrificed elite gains through loss of positions and finally, the President wants us to sacrifice our constituents. Our discomfort as affected MPs is being considered a threat to the physical integrity of the fortress. How can the President embrace peace at the national level and agitate for resettlement of IDPs as he continues to kill and create more IDPs through an illegal military operation in Mt Elgon? How can he expect our cooperation?

Raila does not seem to realise that this is a fault line in the ODM comradeship.

So far, we have demonstrated appreciation of the situation we are in as a country. To guarantee survival, rejuvenation and continuity, a government has been reconstituted in a manner informed by our historical experiences. This is despite the portfolio imbalance and the controversial regional representation in the Grand Coalition Cabinet.

Compromises have been made and we have transformed our disgusting electoral crisis into a heroic project. Our country is now considered a laboratory in which an antidote for the cure of political conflict is being developed, and truth be told, we have tried.

We have similarly distilled our national agenda items to a few guiding beacons and benchmarks of performance for us all under the grand coalition. These include the need for a Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission, the National Peace Accord and a new constitution.

The new-look government, led by the two principals, should have given us hope especially the overall mix that boasts of vision, youth with sufficient education and perhaps experience. The level of mass awareness and the recent crisis play the natural twin roles of providing checks and caution.

Founding President Jomo Kenyatta is widely quoted to have advised the Kikuyu elite not to let the presidential motorcade cross River Chania.At the time, this may have been his way of saying that Kibaki was not his competent successor. Kibaki’s leadership style has been, in our circumstances, better in that he has more belief in delegation of power and responsibility, than his predecessors.

His conservative background and disposition aside, that quality makes him a useful president in the current situation, if he can share the view that we are in a fortress under siege.

The writer is the MP for Mt Elgon constituency

---

Conspiracy to isolate disabled Kenyans

By Phitallis Were Masakhwe, April 23 2008
Finally the much hyped Grand Coalition Government has been formed. Forty ministries have been established, ranging from Forestry and Wildlife to Nairobi Metropolitan. Forty ministers and over 50 permanent secretaries and technocrats have been appointed to drive the new, so called, reformist government.

But as usual, disabled Kenyans are shining with their absence and the word disability does not even appear anywhere in the long list of government portfolios. Disability does not seem to be a word that exists in our Government’s vocabulary.

All this despite a spirited media campaign and representation by the disability community. So, what is next for Kenyans with disabilities? Where do they go from here? What must they do for the Kenyan government to listen and hear their pleas? Are they talking to a stone?

Kenya with disabilities are at a historical crossroad. They are at loss, confused and feel that their country does not want or need them. That is a feeling that hurts badly. If Kenya and its Government does not recognise them, take them seriously or even want them, where should they go? Where should they turn to now?

Idi Amin Dada, the infamous former president of Uganda is alleged to have rounded up Ugandans with disabilities and dumbed them in Lake Victoria. As primitive and inhuman as these acts were, this man was at least honest with disabled people. He did not hide his disdain for them! He was brutally honest. Obviously nobody is excusing and blessing the obnoxious acts by the self-styled king of Africa, but times do not seem to have changed much since then.

Closer home, Kenyans listened with disquiet as former President Moi once wondered aloud as to what we would tell God about “allowing” the likes of late Dr.Oko Ooko-Ombaka, a visually impaired MP to lead. Never mind that Dr. Ombaka, despite his visual impairment, was ably serving as the Vice-Chair of the then Constitutional Review Commission. We still witness these sorts of abuses on disabled people on a daily basis. Street beggars with disabilities are often rounded up and hidden away whenever a major event, particularly one that involves foreigners is planned. This happens all over the world.

But, for how long can Kenya and the world allow this to continue? Why did the world unite to fights so hard to end slavery, apartheid and other inhumane systems? When we have come so far in terms of social justice, why allow such blatant prejudice and institutional discrimination against disabled people to continue?

Disabled people worldwide, and in Kenya in particular, are still considered second-class citizens. What is the Kenya Government’s honest view on disabled people? A sore, a nuisance? If not what can they show for it? Why not just own up? Why the pretence?

The Kenyan Government has established ministries, offices and departments on virtually everything under the sun, except, of course, on the more than 3 million Kenyans with disabilities. It seems to be able to appoint anybody to public office except disabled women and men! It can allocate resources to cater for the protection and survival of fish, trees, and monkeys, but not the disabled population. This must be a real special country! How can it enforce marine and wildlife policies and not see the value of the implementation of the Persons with Disabilities Act 2003?

I am not for one underestimating the value and sanctity of wildlife and our natural heritage. They play an important role in a modern Kenya and contribute to our economy by attracting tourists and visitors. But how can we forget the potential economic contribution and well-being of over 3 million disabled Kenyans?

One of the reasons why Africa continues to be poor and backward continent is the fact that the ratio of people who depend on others for survival is disproportionately higher than on any other continent. Human resource development continues to be skewed and exclusive, leaving a lot of people unprepared for, and excluded from, economic development.

By deliberately excluding disabled people in mainstream development, the Government of Kenya is not taking poverty eradication seriously. By excluding disabled Kenyans from public policy, the Government is slowly “breeding more poverty” as people with disabilities have to rely on others for survival. With this kind of thinking, the Millennium Development Goals (MGDS) and its own vision 30 and others remain just pipe dreams.

It is impossible to realise these goals without due consideration of the needs of all men and women; otherwise known as engendering the development process. Disability issues must be mainstreamed in the planning and execution of a country’s development process. If for instance the President says he wants to see 30% of all public appointments and especially those to do with planning and decision making to be women, one would be keen to see how many of those women would be women with special needs.

One would also like to hear the Government’s policy on such major public appointments with regards to Kenyans with various forms of impairments. Disabled Kenyans cannot just be bystanders, onlookers or passengers! They need to be given a chance to take a place in the driving seat.

Having had their demands for more visibility in Government go up the smoke, disabled Kenyans must now go back on the drawing board. They must retreat to a serious soul searching and reflection period. They must reassess and re-evaluate their engagement and advocacy strategies.

That is what black Americans did, it is what black South Africans did and indeed what women did in their long quest for recognition and emancipation.
If dialogue, petitions and writings like these cannot help move governments and the world what else can they do? What is missing in their advocacy jigsaw and strategy?  Could they be pressing the wrong button and engaging the wrong gear? Is the disability community too naïve and too saintly in their engagement? Could it be that disabled people need to do some rattling of the cage?

Maybe the disability movement needs to learn and borrow a leaf from some of the most successful freedom movements around the world. They may have to bring in civil disobedience or other mechanisms that can reinvigorate the struggle and get people to listen and seriously engage them. In other word it cannot be business as usual.

Man has learnt to shoot without missing and so the disabled must learn to fly without perching. They need to collaborate and network more with those in power, the international community in Kenya, media, the larger civil society, which at the moment is conspicuously quiet about their agenda, private sector players and development partners. Women for instance had to globalise their agenda to receive the attention and recognition that the Kenyan Government gives them today.

With the new UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities coming into force this May, Kenyans with disabilities must seize the moment to petition and engage the international community to apply sanctions and pressure on the Kenya government to stop discriminating on the basis of their disability. That pressure could be the spark needed to spur and galvanize Government into action.

It can be done and must be done. For somehow, someday, they shall overcome!  Kenyans with disabilities must do this or face extinction. 

 

The writer, a sociologist has a physical disability. He is a senior Manager with Leonard Cheshire Disability, East and North African Regional Office and a regular commentator on governance and disability issues. The views expressed in this article are, however, personal. mphitalis@yahoo.com. 

---

 

Kenya ready for Majimbo

By George Wajackoyah, March 12 2008
It is good resonance to note that our political system has been sick since independence (read the Ndungu report and Mama Ngina Kenyatta’s ill gotten land which is equivalent to Nyanza province). One must also refer to the 1963 agreement between the then Kenyatta government and KADU where the late Hon. Ngala was promised that the Coastal people’s land would remain under their autonomy. Later, the late Jaramogi had to tell Kenyatta in his face that he was a land grabber. Jaramogi was banished for ever and Ngala died in mysterious circumstances. The Waswahili tribes became squatters and probably this could have been one of the reasons that they voted for Raila and Majimboism. Many of these people are also refugees in the United Kingdom and I have represented their asylum cases on many occasions in the UK.

The Kalenjins are second on the list. Both Kenyatta and Moi grabbed and dished farmlands that were left by the Europeans to their friends and relatives rendering the majority of them landless. Even though recent clashes where innocent people died on both sides (the Kalenjins killing the Kikuyus and Mungiki killing other tribes) was all but a reaction due to land issues. The land demarcation in Mt. Elgon is another big issue and the current bombings and killings of peasants by the Kenya army should be condemned wholesomely. People are tired of a few individuals who thrive on corruption and it is perhaps good for Kenyans to be given a chance to debate on Federalism. Three to four years could be a good time framework. I am glad that Hon. Ruto has suggested that the issue of land be addressed comprehensively with resettlement of victims of violence.

  The five year development plan is constituted by very few individuals at the center of power. They appease the west by inaugurating development projects that sometimes fail to take off the ground. People continue servicing foreign debts without accountability and good governance. We need  a devolved structure which will be organized along Majimbo lines, cater for basic necessities such as health care, clean water, affordable schools, micro-economic structures in terms of light industries to contain rural urban migration, cultural identities and moral ethics, reduction of crime and drugs and self realization and sufficiency, pride etc. Land grabbing, ethnic manipulation, inequitable distribution of resources, nepotism and corruption, systematic salary increases, lack of regional and structural adjustment programs based on collective sharing of knowledge could be worked upon and improvised with talented skills which are available on the market. The politics of one finger (centralism), the culture of Mungiki, and tribal mediocrity of our own son or tribe and so forth has been sleazed beyond human comprehension. Majimboism (federalism) is increasingly becoming a new world order as it is detaching itself from the central axis which has been crippled by corruption. Equity requires clean hands. Kenyans are crying for accountability.

Kenyans have rejected the centralized and corrupt system of governance. It does not require one to be an academic or learned to understand these basic concepts. The ruling class is composed of professions and yet they have failed the country.  The questions that need asking are: can we learn from the successful micro-economic revolution in Bangladesh? Are we not a great country with vast virgin lands, water resources, beautiful animals and a good people? Have we not shared classrooms, teachers, worshipped dinned and wined together without identifying ourselves along tribal lines, can we rise above ethnic lines and build a market friendly atmosphere? Why did Kenyatta, Moi, and Kibaki (and who perhaps knows whether Raila…) create tribes, theft and hate? If federalism has worked in the rest of the world (please note the recent devolution of power in the UK where the Scottish and the Welsh held a referendum and overwhelmingly voted for their assemblies respectively) one may realize that all this was done to devolve political and cultural autonomies for generic efficiencies. The European integration on the other hand was initially constituted to fight the Russian influence. After the fall of the Soviet Union, the Europeans realized that the only way to check on Russia’s influence would be to build a strong economic and political manpower. Since corruption cannot be wiped out by the central government, I take this opportunity to congratulate Raila and Kibaki for understanding the importance of devolution of power.

---

Kenya is ripe for a Constitutional Court

By Prof George Luchiri Wajackoyah, March 10 2008
At least Hon. Kibaki has done what he ought to have done.  However, I have a few suggestions. In order to achieve neutrality, I suggest that devolution of our political system should be tailored along the Indian, US and perhaps the South African systems. Kenya should be divided into nine or ten States each with an elected State governor complete with political autonomy similar to the Cantos in Switzerland. Foreign and national security should be left to the federal government with its seat in Eldoret a strategic city which will do well for the capital. Nairobi should remain the commercial capital, whereas, Mombasa and Kisumu the port cities. Nairobi is currently congested with a miniature of economic activities that favors the economic output of central and eastern regions.  We should borrow a leaf from Nigeria and learn from its experiences with Abuja.

Kenya is ripe for a Constitutional Court. South African constitutional court has served as a neutrality to check the balance of power between parliamentary and state action as far as fundamental issues are concerned. The same thing occurs here in the United States where, the United States Supreme Court has often invalidated State actions that interfere with fundamental rights protected by the constitution. There are various examples that Kenya would borrow for guidance. The Kenya Police Act needs an absolute overhaul. The Act allows the police to thematically and systematically abuse the very rights that they are mandated to protect. The police can stop, search and arrest anyone without probable cause. Here, this would violate the FOURTH AMENDMENT right requires a search warrant which might be accompanied with probable cause unless exceptions apply.

It would be prudent if we copied bits of the Indian Constitution and the sabbatical ruling of the Supreme Court of India. The Kasavinanda case as presided by Justice Bagwati eliminated locus standi. In that case, the Supreme Court overtook parliamentary role when it ruled that one need not to have an injury in order to sue. This ruling opened and widened the gap giving rights to non parties to sue on behalf of the injured something that would not happen here in the United States. One can imagine how many wrongs imputed on Kenyans by state agents but for the stated reasons above, injury contuse to occur.

Kenya should have three ties, metropolitan, rural, urban or city police.  A diversity police college should supplement our traditional GSU and Kenya Police Colleges in Kiganjo. The Diversity Police College should be manned by a group of civilians where subjects such as law, psychology, philosophy and morality should be taught. This would weed out the Macho teachings of Kiganjo. I trained in Kiganjo twice and the instructions there were too colonizing with the Afande mentality. In the alternative, Kenya is ripe for a police university where police officers should be encouraged to pursue a degree in police work including intelligence. The Department of National Security Intelligence spends millions of shillings on training its personnel overseas. This process is flawed and rife with nepotism where a selected few and high ranking officers are given the privilege…….. (to be continued).

George Luchiri Wajackoyah is an adjunct professor of comparative constitutional and criminal law at American Heritage University in California.

---

DISABLED PEOPLE NEGLECTED IN THE GRAND COALITION

By Phitalis Masakhwe, March 6 2008
Last week Kenyans and the international community alike applauded the power-sharing deal between ODM and PNU, brokered by Kofi Annan. Over the next few months we will see what is likely to be the most comprehensive policy, legal and constitutional reform in Kenya for 45 years. This is the time for the political parties to stay true to their election promises and act decisively for the rights of over three million disabled Kenyans. For too long have they been sidelined in favour of other interest groups.

When the ex UN-Secretary General  Annan arrived to mediate the political situation he set out terms of reference. First were the short term issues such as cessation of hostilities and violence. Second were the political issues around the disputed election. Finally, were the long term issues, the root causes of what triggered the violence. These were historical injustices, imbalances in access to resources and opportunities, inequalities, exclusion and poverty and unequal distribution of land.

The root causes, centering around poverty, exclusion and inequality all affect disabled people far more than non disabled people. For example, disabled people are twice as likely to live in absolute poverty than non-disabled people. Because they lack access to appropriate education and work they are forced to sell or beg on the street.

Disabled people experience oppression, discrimination and violation of basic human rights on a daily basis. Most disabled people, regardless of their age, gender, where they live or disability type are prevented from making decisions that affect their daily lives. They are treated unequally and with disrespect by their families, communities and public authorities.

If the long-term issues facing the country discussed by Kofi Annan and the mediation teams are to be resolved, this must stop. Disabled people must be included in the solution. We therefore firmly urge the political parties to prioritise disability rights in public policy and government and firmly anchor the rights of Kenyans with disabilities in the constitution. The following steps need to be taken urgently:

Move disability issues to a cross-cutting government department

The currently under-funded and lowly regarded disability desk at the Ministry of Gender Sport, Culture and Social Services should be moved to the Office of the President or a newly created Office of the Prime Minister. The latter will be more appropriate since it will be tasked with coordination and supervision of government departments and ministries.  Disability is multi-dimensional and cross-cutting agenda that cannot be pigeonholed in a single ministry. All policies and procedures enacted by government have an impact on disability and as such it should be taken seriously by all ministries.

This progressive measure will give disability in Kenya much needed visibility, resources and political good will. It will also enhance its monitoring across all government ministries. Alongside this, the new government should appoint a disability advisor to provide technical backstopping and advice to government, the president and premier. This model operates well in a number of African countries such as South Africa, Senegal and Namibia.

Fully implement the Persons with Disabilities Act 2003

The Persons with Disabilities Act 2003, has been in place for almost five years, yet, very little progress with regards to implementing and enforcing it has been made. For example, section 22 of the Act says that ‘A proprietor of a public building shall adapt it to suit persons with disabilities…’. Section 23 says ‘An operator of a public service vehicle shall adapt it to suit persons with disabilities…’. This has not been enforced and new buildings are as inaccessible as ever.

The Act also stipulates the establishment of the National Development Fund for the Disabled (NDDF) whose income should directly go to disabled people; to support them engage in enterprise development and poverty reduction schemes . No such fund has been established.

According to Section 39 of the Act, ‘All television stations shall provide a sign language inset or sub-titles in all newscasts and educational programmes, and in all programmes covering events of national significance.’ This has not happened.

With regards to equality of opportunities, the Act says ‘No parent, guardian or next of kin shall conceal any person with a disability in such a manner as to deny such a person the opportunities and services available under this Act.’ However, this is still common practice all over Kenya today.

In Section 12, The Act exempts employees with disabilities from income tax to help mitigate the extra costs that disability present: ‘An employee with a disability shall be entitled to exemption from tax on all income accruing from his employment.’ This is not enforced.

Implementing and enforcing the Persons with Disabilities Act 2003 is a necessity if we want to create an inclusive and accessible society. It must happen now.

Finalise the development of the National Disability Policy

Finalise the National Disability Policy (NDP) and put in place mechanisms towards the ratification and domestication of the new UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Very little work remains with regards to the completion of the disability policy, yet it has been put on hold.

Ensure that disabled people are given positions of influence

People with disabilities should be given effective participation and representation in planning and decision-making organs. Special interests can only be guarded by those directly affected and so inclusive policies and legislation will only be implemented if persons with disabilities are involved.

We would wish to see persons with disabilities employed across board, but also  appointed as permanent secretaries, to constitutional offices, foreign service, parastatal and to planned review/reform committees. This is will be a great incentive and motivation for parents of disabled children to take them to school. Why educate disabled children who nobody will employ?       

Free education for children with disabilities

A major contributing factor to the higher levels of poverty and deprivation among disabled people is their lack of access to education. For example, in developing countries children with disabilities, especially girls, are five time more likely to miss out on education than their-non disabled counterparts.

Many parents of disabled people choose not to educate their children due to the costs involved. As a result, the new government should make education for disabled children free and compulsory, in boarding or non-boarding and private or public schools.

Amend the constitution so that it does not discriminate against disabled people

The Kenyan constitution contains provisions that could be seen to discriminate against disabled people. Section 12, for example, says that ‘a person who is incapacitated by reason of physical and mental infirmity while exercising the functions or office of the president should be removed from that office’. This could imply that people with intellectual or physical disabilities cannot stand for president.

Section 34 (c) says that for a person to qualify as a member of the national assembly, he or she ‘…must be able to ‘speak and read Swahili language well enough to take an active part in the proceedings…’. We do not know whether sign language is also a ‘language’ within the meaning of the Constitution and whether Braille is also ‘reading’.
Affirmative action initiatives such as creation of special interest groups constituencies in the constitution will fast- tract political representation and participation by disabled people.

These measures are essential to ensure that the lives of disabled Kenyans are improved and to enabled them to contribute and play an active part in society. They are also essential if the new government are going to realise the long term goals of creating a just, healed,inclusive,equal and prosperous nation as envisaged by Kofi Annan.

The writer, a sociologist has a physical disability. He works for Leonard cheshire disability East and North Africa regional office based in Nairobi. Contacts: Phitalis@lcd-enar.org 

---

45 year struggle for justice

By Shad Bulimo, London Feb 29 2008
Although the country is in a celebratory mood following the signing of a power sharing accord between President Mwai Kibaki of PNU and Raila Odinga of ODM,  spare a thought, just a thought for thousands who perished in the last two months of senseless political-cum ethnic violence that engulfed the country following last year’s botched presidential election results. The wounds are still far too fresh to be wished over and those orphaned, widowed or simply robbed of a brother, sister, father, mother, auntie, uncle, must still be hurting even to fathom the ramifications of yesterday’s peace accord.

Families are torn asunder, ripped apart at the altar of tribalism. Hundreds of thousands are languishing in refugee camps and to Kenyan lexicon has been added the term IDP (internally displaced person). Dogs of war have taken over and machete wielding pick axed gangs are roaming the land establishing fiefdoms based on the rule of the jungle. It’s a chaotic life which 19th century English political theorist, Thomas Hobbes described as too nasty, short and brutal. 

The violent visitation on the God fearing Kenyans must surely be a piece of historical accident as Tanzanian president, Jakaya Kikwete put it yesterday.  After several decades of oppression and dictatorship under Kenyatta and Moi, Kenyans have matured politically and nothing was going to stand in their way to achieve justice “shoot-to-kill” fiats notwithstanding. Yes the price for yesterday’s historic accord is over a thousand dead and at up to 500,000 persons displaced. But if we must die, let us die not die sheep; slaughtered without a whimper.

Nonetheless, it is to these bereaved, displaced and disillusioned families that our hearts must reach out to. The message surely must go out that the dead of now are martyrs in a long line of political struggle for justice that started 45 years ago and which along the way has seen killed heroes like Pio Gama Pinto, Bruce Mackenzie, Tom Mboya, Ronald Ngala, Argwins Kodhek, JM Kariuki, Robert Ouko, Bishop Alexander Muge and just last month ODM MPs Mellitus Were (Embakasi) and David Kimutai Too (Ainamoi).

As part of the national reconciliation and healing process, the names of these individuals need to be immortalised and inscribed on some national monument so that like the fallen unknown soldier, the future generation shall know that the freedoms of speech, assembly and political persuasion that they enjoy without let or hindrance came at a price and as such should not be taken for granted but protected like the gates to heaven. We cannot bring back the dead but in their memory, a national fund should be set up to provide basic sustenance and support to the families of these political martyrs. It is pointless to talk and look straight into the future without acknowledging the past or at least learning from history which has vital lessons that can inform better choices for our future endeavours.

The Kofi Annan brokered deal is a culmination of the efforts of all those whose lives were cut short fighting or agitating for better governance, equitable distribution of resources and equal access to economic opportunity. That journey has lasted 45 years somewhat nudged along by our friends in Africa and foreign lands of America, Europe and Asia. Those who started this journey in the early sixties like the late Jaramogi Odinga Oginga are long dead and it’s to their memory and courage that yesterday’s power sharing accord should be dedicated.

For sure change will not occur at a stroke of a pen. The forces of evil, tribalism and corruption are far too powerful. However as Kenyans we can again rise above ethno-centrism and think Kenyan first and tribal second. We can earn respect across the globe like our Tanzanian neighbours if we begin to think and act national. But first a few rituals are needed to exorcise and intern the ghost of tribalism that so permeates through the fabric of our society. This accord is an historical achievement for which all men and women of goodwill across tribes should support.

Shad Bulimo is the editor of www.abeingo.org, an online portal of the Luhya community.

---

Think Kenyan first, tribal second

By Rose Ochwada, Feb 29 2008
We may not be in Kenya, but we in the diaspora deserve to give ourselves a pat on the back. If nothing more, just for the fact that our constant Correpondences and actions through demonstrations and lobbying put that much more pressure on the demagogues who kept referring this very serious
situation to the 'Courts of Justice' knowing very well that these 'Courts' do not dispense justice especially not in an African political impasse.  The international community not recognising the stolen election was the biggest endorsement of our cause.
 
The first major step towards creating consolidating our nation has been made, and we must humbly thank the efforts, and indeed the determination of Kofi Annan.  He made it clear he was not going to give up and now we know why he was the most successful UN Chief ever.  He had a team worthy of
the role they were given.  Respect to Mama Machel, President Mkapa and the entire mediation team. Not least amongst these is the ODM team who were constantly provoked by Mama Intransigent who has now rendered herself irrelevant to the whole agreement. 
 
Mama Intransigent had the best opportunity to promote herself as a leader whose focus is beyond tribal.  Instead, she was so drunk with power, she started hurling insults at everyone and anyone. Starting with ODM, the British, Americans, and incredibly enough, ending with a display of total 
disregard for the work Kofi Annan and his team set out to achieve.  Which was not for his benefit, after all he has already established himself as a respectable diplomat, but for the sake of peace in Kenya, and the credibility of Africa as a continent capable of having governments that are more interested in the well being of the entire nation as opposed to a small political clique.  My sympathies (tongue in cheek) to this lady (I shall still refer to her as a lady since I believe she just misled herself as to how much power she had), because she has lost international credibility and local respect.
 
We have a huge task ahead of us.  Many of my friends and former colleagues in Kenya are now looking at their neighbours differently because they now wonder if they see them as Kenyans or as Luos, Kikuyus, Luhyas etc.  I believe some of the steps necessary to restore trust amongst Kenyans include drastic steps such as:
 
1  Banning of tribal radio stations.  They played a major role in raising tribal tensions which resulted in ethnic violence
2  Promoting Kiswahili as a language of national unity.  One only needs to look with envy at Tanzania.  The late President Nyerere's policy of African Socialism may have failed (and this by his own admission), However the great man left behind a legacy unsurpassed in any othe multi-ethnic African country.  He left them unified by Kiswahili.  Tanzanians think in Kiswahili first and then any other language.  They are the closest we have to and intergrated and cohesive society in Africa.  We need to learn from the best and take it from there.  We need   to encourage Kenyans to identify first as Kenyans, then as Luhyas, Kikuyu or whatever.
3  Regional relocation of Government Departments. Agriculture should be based in the Region of its major activities.  The same applies to Toursim, etc.  We should even have some Departments headquartered in Garissa, they are, after all, Kenyans as well.  That way, no part of the country will be feel neglected and jobs will be provided in the said Regaions both by direct and indirect employment (via spill over effects). 
4 Equitable distribution of National Resources.  You only need to try and drive from Mombasa to Busia/Malaba or Garissa to appreciate the deliberate neglect of infrastructure.  The number of deaths on these roads speaks for themselves.  Why do we not have a dual carriageway on a road that serves the major parts of the country?  Why does the dual carriageway only reach just outside of Nairobi while the heavy traffic continues up to the
 National boarders?  This is a major cause of discontentment because majority of Nairobi residents come from upcountry but travelling there is a near death sentence.
5 Revival of a National Rail line.  The British left us with a thriving Rail network.  How long are we going to continue blaming the British for our failures.  45 years after independence and we still blame the British for tribal animosities? What have our leaders done to eliminate these feelings?  More importantly, how much are they to blame for our tribal animosities.
 
I could go on and on but we all have a clear idea of what needs to be done.  Let us keep lobbying for the right thing to be done. The one positive aspect of this whole terrible crisis is the expansion of our networking.  We are now sitting at one table and discussing matters of national interest that lie very dear to our hearts.  We all have a role to play.  Let us maximise it for the betterment of our nation.  We have been given a lifeline no other African country ever had.

---

Majimbo is best for Kenya

By Dr Eusebius J. Mukhwana
I read with interest the articles by Macharia Gaitho (Daily nation, February 5, 2007) and William Ochieng (Daily Nation, February 18, 2008) about what Kenyans want and what their leaders give them in return. But the question that they both ask but they do not answer is “is majimbo a solution to the current Kenyan political problems”.  The problem with power in Kenya today is that it is concentrated in the hands of a few elites (nay tribal chauvinists) that are determined to keep it to themselves at all costs, including human deaths. I have watched Kenya trying to develop a new constitution over the last 18 years without success because of the country being held hostage by the ruling class. It has been a classical example of the struggles between those who have and those who do not. In the end the former have always “won” because they complicate the matter by bringing in their tribal followers and thereby compounding a fairly simple problem. We have seen the bomas draft, Kilifi draft, Naivasha draft and so on, but at the end of the day we are still stuck in the mud with no new constitution. Over the last 10 years we have had the Kiplagat commission, IPPG and Now IPPG 2, and yet we still have the same document that we started off with in 1992, a whole 16 years ago. And it seems to me like we are still prepared to continue going round in circles.

When Moi was in power, Kibabi and his team were busy fighting for a new constitution. When Kibaki came to power, he promised to give Kenyans a new constitution in 100 days. This was never ambitious because, already the bomas draft at that time was almost ready. But, once Kibaki was in power he became the main saboteur to Kenya getting the new constitution that Kenyans wanted. He wanted to give us his own which Kenyans rejected during the referendum in 2005. What does this tell us?, that the leaders and Kenyans know the constitution that we all need, but those in power try to pent in to favor them. Unfortunately it is these kinds of games that have now landed Kenya into the trouble that we are today.

I have been to Australia and South Africa where “majimbo” seems to function well. The argument that parts like North Eastern province will be disadvantaged by “Majimbo” is both sterile and stale. Even the people of this province themselves want Majimbo. It is easy to pass a law that each of the 8 or 9 other states will contribute 5% of their revenue to the disadvantaged states (s). The advantage with majimbo is that people will be given power to govern themselves, plan their priorities as well as projects and implement them. The national Government can then play a quasi-supervisory role of making sure that resources are well utilized, projects implemented up to standard and even reward those states that respond well to the wishes of their people while punishing those that are performing badly. The current situation where projects are planned centrally, implemented centrally, monitored centrally is not only time wasting, but encourages corruption and skewed distribution of national resources.

My submission is that Kenya is ripe for “majimbo” and we need to give it some serious thought on how it can be implemented.  It is unfair to have 60% of all our national income concentrated for example in Nairobi, alone. Leaving the rural areas impoverished and in the process encouraging rural-urban migration and proliferation of slums in our major urban centers. Majimbo will allow Kenyans to ventilate their problems at their own level, plan projects that can address their problems and put in place structures that will enable them get where they want to go. Funds such as CDF should then be channeled through these regional states, rather than tying them around one man or woman called an MP who then calls the shots and continues to look down and even harass poor local people, deciding for them who can and cannot sit on the CDF committees, deciding which projects can and cannot be funded. Can you call this devolution?  My belief is that Majiombo will partially sort out some of the problems that we have such as inter-tribal competition, the land issues, inequalities in distribution of national resources and so forth.

It is my submission that Kenya is ready and ripe for majimbo and anybody standing in its way is deluding themselves. What we need is to move the discussion to the next level where we can debate the kind of majimbo that we want that will serve our people and bring prosperity to all Kenyans.

Dr Mukhwana is an agricultural specialist. Email: ejmukhwana@yahoo.com

---

Yet to see a Luo business in Kikuyuland

By Nancy Mburu, Jan 17 2008

A colleague had a chilling experience. A boy, 14, who is her neighbour, stabbed her daughter, 11. The woman, too, shocked confronted the boy’s parents, who were perplexed by their son’s behaviour. The children are from two communities that have been engaged in violent clashes following discredited presidential election results.

This is how far we have taken this thing. Politics is a poisoned chalice. The hate propaganda we sowed prior to the General Election has yielded fruits. Instead of watching the grandstanding and tribal chauvinism with wry amusement, we have become active participants. The Church, civil society, scholars and the legal fraternity are split by ethnic-inspired politics. We have become suspicious of each other. All we care about is tribe and political party.

I hate to imagine that I might lose friends simply because they are from the ‘enemy’ tribes. I hate to imagine I might start looking at Chirchir, who washes my car differently. Yet I trust Chirchir, who is polite to a fault, with money more than my Kikuyu brothers. I hate to imagine that I will no longer revel in those theme nights with friends simply because they are from other communities.

We were duped. Politicians exploited tribal biases, working them to a feverish pitch, resulting in mayhem. That is why we need mass action of olive branches, lest we slip into the doldrums of a failed State. But then there is a cry for justice and truth. And what is that truth and justice? It is said violence would still have erupted even if another leader had been declared winner. There has to be a deeper reason some communities feel disenchanted to gang against another.

It all points to the much-touted historical injustices. For instance, why do other communities feel the Kikuyu dominate the economy? Is it because the community members are aggressive in business and owning property in any part of the country? And is it because the Kikuyu are accused of not being accommodating?

I am yet to see a Luo or a Kalenjin who owns property or a successful business in Kiambu, Murang’a or Nyeri. I also get dismayed when I hear Kikuyus make derogatory remarks about other communities, and insinuate that their language and way of life are superior. Yet I learnt in linguistics class that no language is inferior. If its speakers can express themselves and communicate effectively, then the language is complete, no matter how ‘unpleasant’ it sounds.

Governments have perfected the art of nepotism. When Kenyans voted for Kibaki in 2002, they expected radical change. But disillusionment soon set in. We began hearing reports that some regions received more resources than others, and that the President and cronies had rewarded their kin and relatives with plum Government and parastatal jobs.

The Government has failed us miserably, by creating the impression that a community has to have its own in the presidency so they can get a share of the national cake. Given that we are 42 tribes and the Kikuyu and Kalenjin have served their tenures, we have 40 tribes to go. If each tribe served a term, it would take 400 years for the presidency to go round. Is this how long it will take us to realise the democracy of tribal equality?

We have to come up with a less myopic solution. We need radical change, to ensure there is equality and justice, such that never again, would a community be punished for the sins of a power elite clique. We need laws that fuse merit, tribal balance and affirmative action, so that nobody, in any corner of the country, will ever feel left out again.

We need laws that ensure anybody can live and own property anywhere without intimidation. We need laws that fuse capitalism and communism, to address the glaring gap between the rich and the poor.

Source: Standard

---

FRIENDS CHURCH IN KENYA     REG. NO. 13113 PO BOX 465 KAKAMEGA
RELIGIOUS SOCIETY OF FRIENDS (QUAKERS)    
 

 

8th January 2008

PASTORAL LETTER FROM FRIENDS CHURCH (QUAKERS), KENYA.

“Righteousness exalts a Nation, but Sin is a disgrace to any People” (Proverbs 14: 34)

TO THE LEADERS OF THIS NATION

His Excellency the President Hon. Mwai Kibaki
Hon. Raila Amolo Odinga

Receive Greetings in the Name of Christ Jesus.
At this time, of pain, horror, sorrow, suffering, insecurity in our beloved country, We as Friends Church in Kenya, being a PEACE church, are deeply concerned for the safety of ALL Kenyans and friends visiting Kenya during this time of Political and Social Instability. May we start by referring to our Quaker values which have guided us over the past four centuries.

Quaker Peace Testimony
“We actively oppose all that leads to violence among people and nations, …. Refusal to fight with weapons is not surrender. We are not passive when threatened by the greedy, the cruel, the tyrant, and the unjust. We will struggle to remove the causes of impasse and confrontation by every means of non-violent resistance available. We must start with our own Hearts and Minds. Together, let us reject the clamor of fear and listen to the whisperings of hope.

Our Principle is, and our practices have always been: ”to follow after righteousness and the knowledge of God, seeking the Good  and welfare of humanity and doing that which tends to the peace of all”

As Friends Church, our Goal is to have a Peaceful Society anchored in and as a consequence of the process Truth, Righteousness and Justice (Ps.89v14).
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    Our basic Principles and Values that under-gird our concerns compel us to make this call to you, our political leaders.

These include:-

 

 

 

 

In view of the above, we make the following proposals:     

1. An independent audit should be done.

2. Re-run
Following the gazzettement of the MPs elect, parliament should convene and elect the Speaker so that business can be conducted to facilitate a mechanism for the urgent re-run of the Presidential elections.           

3. Interim arrangements

The interim government is advised to source expertise from recognized international institutions such as A.U, Commonwealth, European Union and others to assist in supervising the re-run. Due to the failure of ECK, the commissioners should immediately step aside to pave way for the  re-constitution of the  ECK, along the Principles of IPPG, to organize presidential re-run within the three months.
Commissioners of credibility with integrity should be sourced from LSK, ICJ, eminent persons from professionals, civil society and religious groups.

            4. Activities during interim period and thereafter

5. New Constitution
All presidential candidates have affirmed the need for a new constitution. We Kenyans are in dire need of a new God-centred and people based constitution. All constitutional institutions have failed us: the presidency, parliament, ECK, Anti Corruption, Political Parties, Civil Society, Civil Service, Constitutional Commissions and especially the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs. The only institution that is still functioning faithfully is the people:  they voted peacefully and in earnest, now they are in disarray because the existing constitution does not address the people’s needs.
In conclusion, we as a Peace Church are committed to the process of national healing. Already we have institutions and programs in place such as: Alternatives to Violence Program (AVP); Trauma Healing; Change Agents for Peace International (CAPI); the Quaker Peace Network, all with the necessary skills, knowledge and experience to help bring about healing and transform relationships.

We call upon the wider Body of Christ and other faith based institutions to share in the restoration of a healthy, peaceful and just Society.

God bless Kenya.

On Behalf of Friends Church in Kenya (FCK)

 

Midikira Churchill Kibisu
PRESIDING CLERK
Friends Church (Quakers)
Nairobi Yearly Meeting

 

cc. - Chairman ODM
      - PNU
      - Chairman ODM Kenya
      - Attorney General
      - ECK Chairman
      - NCCK
      - All Other Parties with Presidential Candidates
      - Transparency International
      - Kenya National Commission for Human Rights Chairman
      - Citizen coalition for constitution
      - Hon. Musalia Mudavadi

---

Hear our cries, Oh Lord

By Muniini K. Mulera, Jan 14 2008

The irony rips through the heart.  The double-standards are astounding.  A public servant allegedly steals a few million dollars from the public purse to pay his bills. As usual, the victims, the great mass of the Wretched of the Earth, remain silent, accepting their fate. But politicians and scribes, diplomats and money lenders, and the blessed custodians of public morality call for his immediate dismissal, prosecution and just punishment.

A sitting president of a said country corrupts state organs to help steal an election and a government.  The victims of the crime, hungry for democracy and change, take to the streets in protest. The genuine winner of the stolen election, claiming what is rightfully his, refuses to recognise the usurper in the State House.  The masses, shocked at the betrayal, filled with explosive anger, with an unstoppable desire to lynch the traitor, lash out at his ethnic kinsmen, and presumed political supporters. Violence breaks out.  The cameras are rolling.

Images of blood and human corpses are brought into our living rooms.  Local and regional economies are threatened. Investors suffer panic attacks. Their profits are in peril. Neighbouring lands suffer the indignity of fuel shortages.  

So the same politicians, scribes, diplomats, money lenders and our blessed custodians of public morality call for peace, an end to the hostilities and reconciliation. The victims of the crime, especially the man whose presidency has been stolen, are told to humble themselves before the one who stole the election, and negotiate a settlement.  Why, they even imply that the victim of the crime will be held responsible for the violence!

Not that they are ignorant of the facts. They know, better than most, that the usurper at the State House has committed armed robbery.   Yet they will not call for his immediate apprehension and prosecution.  There is too much at stake to dwell on small things like democracy and justice, morality and fairness. So the din of voices calling upon Raila Amolo Odinga, Kenya’s president-elect, to negotiate with Stanley Emilio Mwai Kibaki, the coup-leader in the Kenyan State House, continues unabated. A flurry of high-profile diplomats jet in and out of Nairobi. Their mission? A search for a peaceful resolution of a criminal act by one who swore to uphold the constitution.

First it is Archbishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa, well travelled and experienced a peace-maker all can trust. He says his piece, and urges negotiations.  Kenya burns.    Then it is Dr Jendayi Frazer, representing US President George Bush, he who promised years ago to stand in solidarity with citizens, anywhere in the world, who search for freedom and democracy.  The good lady from America urges Mwai and Raila, the rival presidents of Kenya, to negotiate a settlement, that includes power sharing. She leaves with her head down. Her mission is incomplete. And Kenya burns.

Next is Ghanaian President John Kufuor, Chairman of the African Union, imposing and graceful, a man who looks like his blood is made of peace.  He urges an end to violence, and dialogue between the two rival presidents, but soon gives up like the rest, and returns to his turf in Ghana. And Kenya keeps burning. Kofi Annan, former chief of the UN, arrives this week to urge Raila and Kibaki to search for a settlement that should include  power-sharing. Soon he will be done, and Kenya may keep burning.

Trouble is that these distinguished messengers of Kenya’s elusive peace are yet to ask the Kenyan people what they really feel and what they really want. We know what Kibaki wants. We know what Raila wants. But what do the Kenyans want? And whose claims to the presidency enjoy the popular support of those who ought to choose in freedom, their leader and how they are ruled? Yes, we have heard from the violent ones.

 Their machetes have served their demons, of ethnic hatred and cleansing. Kenya burns and bleeds anew, with each day that dawns and sets. And our hearts are rent apart by man’s destruction of man. We have heard from Electoral Commission of Kenya (ECK) Chairman Samuel Kivuitu, a sad man who continues to distance himself from the election “results” he read under great distress.

But the silent majority of Kenyans are yet to be heard from, for nobody has asked them what they think and wish to do. We know they spoke loud with their votes on December 27, 2007. But their voices were betrayed. 
Some seek to give them voice through a recount of the December 27 ballots.  Others still talk of an audit of the now infamous Form 16-A, where the tallied votes were recorded.  

Truth to tell, the ballots have been corrupted.  Ghost votes abound. A recount will not make them genuine. The Form 16-As have been corrupted, with fraudulent totals that exceed reality. The election was a farce. The only solution to the betrayal and the violence that has engulfed the land must surely be to give the people of Kenya an opportunity to express their collective opinion and judgment on their political crisis and leadership question.

Forget the economy for a moment, be it of Kenya or the neighbourhood.  Think of the stolen rights of the Kenyan citizens, to choose their government and governance. It is a human right that must be restored without delay.  The only sure way to do this is to hold another presidential election, this time under the aegis of the international community.

 It is a win-win proposition, for Kibaki and Raila, and for Kenya most of all. If Kibaki is the popular man he says he is, Kenyans will re-elect him by the millions. If the truth is the other way round, he will retire to his farm and wealth, and be saved, along with Kenya, from the disaster that awaits him should his stubborn streak get the better of him. This is the message that Kibaki needs to hear, not just from Raila and his party, but from all who claim to care about Kenya. 

Source: Daily Monitor, Uganda

mkmulera@aol.com

---

Luhya unity - the Bukusu factor By Sumba Snr, Dec 24 2007 If the Luhya expect to regain their poise ever, then it is time they (Thought beyond 27th Dec. 2007) set aside their various allegiances and thought as one grouping.  After this election my prediction is that Ford-K as a party will cease to exist and so will many loyalties. Regardless of political affiliation, the Luhya must begin to recognise that they belong to one grouping and that if they hope to achieve anything in any Government coming (ODM, ODM-K or PNU), they must seek it as one.  Unity of the entire Luhya kingdom is paramount and must not be compromised if the community hopes to alleviate itself from the poverty that has been created in their midst by past regimes since independence- despite the fact that they supported them all.  It must be seen for what it is that the current clamour for political patronage will come to an end on the 28th December soon after the President and other parliamentary winners are announced.  And that is when for most of the people reality will set in.  That is when we shall all remember that we had a life that we must live.  Children that must be fed, clothed and taken to school.  And when you look at those hungry eyes, you will not see any colours.  There will neither be the orange of ODM, nor the blue’ white of PNU.  It will back to basics.  The reality that is our lives, for yet another five years! Ever since Independence, the Luhya have agreed to disagree when it comes to political affiliation. The other tribal enclaves in the country have taken advantage of this and harvested enormously as and when they required support from this community. And that’s why some pundits have said, that Western Province should surely go down in History as the most democratic region in the whole of Kenya.  Despite being dominated by one tribe (the Abaluhya), this area is so politically divided that almost all political parties vying for seats in the forthcoming elections will get a representation from there. The political division is squarely attributed to the Babukusu who reside in Bungoma and Tarns-Nzoia Districts.  They have been accused by the rest of the Luhya as refusing to allow some flexibility in their political affiliation.  They follow their leadership almost blindly regardless.  This it is believed may be largely because as a tribal entity, folklore has it that they will once rule the country.  Because of these mythical legends, the Babukusu have clung together in the hope that this time it will be their turn. From recent developments on the Kenyan political pano, this appears to be a bridge too far.  Not only do the Bukusu have no party, but they are split in two and maybe three, as to who they will vote for this time around. According to one observer from the community; “I do appreciate the patriotism that our people portray, but let it be said, Ford-K remaining a viable entity after the elections is a dream. I don’t see that happening. A quick look at the voter profile in 2007 will give you the possible trend of politics in the next few years.  In 2007, 68 % of the registered voters in Kenya are below the age of 40, with 60% being below the age of 30. The older generation that still clings to archaic and mundane tribal politics makes up only 32% of today’s voter and this generation is fast diminishing. That’s why it was very easy to sell Raila as a candidate despite cultural objections.  Times are changing too fast and that’s why it is being said that the future is now with national parties as opposed to Ford-K yefwe (Our Ford-K).  After this election my prediction is that that Ford-K as a party will cease to exist. Can someone tell me who is standing on the Ford-K ticket?   The larger scenario currently has almost every political party having a Luhya as a running-mate; Mudavadi for ODM, Julia Ojiambo for ODM-K, and possibly Uncle Moody Awori, Dr. Kituyi or Musikari Kombo for PNU.  Do I see someone having a laugh or something? The pain of losing Masinde Muliro in 1992 and Vice President Wamalwa Kijana in 2003 was painful enough for the Luhya (read Bukusu), but then playing second fiddle like the Kombos and Mukhisas of today are doing borders in the region of two wrongs never doing a right. The recent saga in Kimilili portrayed immaturity beyond; when Mukhisa Kituyi and Musikari Kombo supporters heckled each other endlessly until the intervention of the President.  Sounded more like two girlfriends fighting for the bride-groom at a wedding that neither is the bride! The Luhyas (Bukusus included), must wake up and smell the coffee.  These temporary stop-gap measures are not going to help the community.  It is ‘Unconditional Unity’ that is required for the community.  The kind of Unity that will see them vote as one in parliament and be able to demand for their share of the National ‘cake’ rightfully, otherwise that boat and all the ‘leopards on board is heading for the bottomless pit of Lake Nyanza (Lake Victoria or worse the Indian Ocean).  They can kiss goodbye to the famed ‘Bubwami Kimiandu’ (Power is Wealth) slogan coined by the late Elijah Mwangale another son of the Babukusu. The concern in Luhya today should be more on who they are voting for at constituency level rather than at national Party level.  Field the proper candidates who will be able to represent you well in the 10th parliament.  Party affiliation should be secondary.  Although change of Government will certainly be a better option for the community.  But sense and purpose shall only prevail with a good grass root any which way. Source: Kenya London News Your vote counts: use it wisely By Phitallis Masakhwe, Nairobi, Dec 14 2007 In a little over a week Kenya goes to the polls.  Faced with a choice of three main parties with charismatic leaders voters may be swayed into making a choice based on style rather than substance.  However, when standing in front of the ballot box on December 27th Kenyans must think carefully and remember that their vote really does count.   One of the most important issues during these elections is that of economic growth and development.  Politicians know this and make countless promises on how they will improve Kenya’s economy, infrastructure and education system. However, voters must read between the lines to discover politicians’ real intentions with regard to Kenya’s economy.  They must be confident that their elected leaders genuinely intend to grow Kenya into the strong economic power it has the capacity to be. There are many reasons why economies in Sub-Saharan Africa, such as Kenya’s, have failed to produce moderate to high growth rates.  A major problem is that the majority of these states lack the factors necessary for real growth and development.  During this election period voters must scrutinize the promises of politicians to see if they really plan to fill these gaps, or whether they are once again only making hollow promises. Voters must, for instance judge their policies on education.  A growing economy requires a skilled, educated population.  The more skilled a country’s workforce is, the higher its rates of productivity, earnings, job mobility, entrepreneurial skills and technological innovation.  Moreover, states need a skilled population with a wide range of skills.  Studies have shown that although education has improved in Sub-Saharan Africa countries, including Kenya, these states have not improved in terms of growth, whilst countries like Japan with modest growth in human capital are deemed to be ‘growth miracles’. Education for the sake of it, therefore, does not necessarily lead to a productive labour force.  Kenya needs a population of workers educated to a high standard with a range of different academic and vocational skills.  This should be accompanied by a fair job market, where ability, not connections, and a strong work ethic is recognized and rewarded.   A real problem in countries like Kenya is that even when we produce highly skilled individuals, we lose them to competing markets in the West.  This is known as the brain drain factor and is a result of skilled workers fleeing low paid work, a lack of self-improvement opportunities and poor education and healthcare for themselves and their families. These issues are not new.  Some policies, such as free primary education have been introduced, yet overall the present Government has made little progress in tackling the systematic problems facing Kenya’s education system.  Primary education alone is not enough.    Kenya has mass potential for economic growth, yet the Government seems determined not to recognize or act upon this.  Kenya’s infrastructure, for example, is in a unique position of looking backwards rather than forwards. A massive 41 per cent of Western Kenya is inaccessible due to the lack of and poor maintenance of roads.  Kenya’s railway system is archaic.  There are no airports outside of Kenya’s major cities, whilst Kenyatta International Airport is a mere airstrip, hardly fitting for one of African’s largest states.  Whilst the state of the country’s marine ports, both coastal and inland needs no mentioning. Electricity and telephone lines are distributed along what seem to be political or ethnic lines.  The spread of the mobile phone has improved communication across Kenya significantly.  However, due to the high costs, mobile phones remain out of reach to the majority of lower to middle income earners who form the bulk of the population and who potentially have the most to contribute to the economy. Technology is another area in which Kenya lags behind, but which is essential for the country’s growth and development.  Some improvements are currently underway, such as investment in fiber optic cables, which will widen access to the internet across Kenya.  However, how useful will this really be when only four to five percent of Kenyans have access to computers? The Government must develop a comprehensive strategy to give all Kenyans access to technology.  This must be conducted in an equal and fair way, not based on political patronage.  Transparency will be key, therefore, in ensuring that the money for technology goes to the areas where it is really needed.   An important element of this strategy will be the need to invest heavily in national research and development programmes.  At present Kenya’s research budget is miniscule in comparison with those of our closest competitors.  Consequently, even Kenya’s leading researchers and scientists are unable to carry out any meaningful work. Voters must also think carefully about which politicians are best setup to fairly distribute Kenya’s wealth.  For one of the factors that has contributed towards Kenya’s poor growth is a failure to successfully distribute income across the country fairly. Taxes collected by the Government from across Kenya should theoretically be distributed evenly across the regions, yet the majority is spent in Central Province.  In 2005/2006 43 per cent of the road funds were spent in Central Province, although only ten per cent of the population lives there.   This unfair distribution of income hinders Kenya’s socio-economic development.  As a result of current Government policies growth is confined to Nairobi and Central Province, already the most prosperous areas of Kenya.  The next government should focus on fair and equitable distribution of wealth across all regions. Similarly, any government should take a multi-ethnic approach to governance and ensure that all communities are represented fairly within Kenya’s political system.  At present this is not the case, with certain communities, and often individuals, occupying an un-proportional number of positions of power. This cronyism is another way in which the current Government has failed Kenyans.  Corruption is rampant.  Efforts to build institutions to fight it have failed due to a lack of commitment and interference.  The constant corruption charges faced by the Government are a strong indicator of how its attempts to window-dress democracy have failed catastrophically.   Kenya’s next government should introduce, as a priority, structures that recognize and promote professionalism within government.  These must be put into place in every aspect of public life, and politicians must lead the way in upholding democracy and transparency.  Kenya’s political system needs to abandon political patronage, and embrace a merit-based approach.  Only then will Kenyans really begin to see real change. When Kenyans go to the polls on December 27th they must remember to choose political candidates who are serious about tackling the issues facing Kenya’s economic growth and development.  Remember, your vote really does matter for Kenya’s development Careful how you pacify Mt Elgon Deadly violence in the Mt Elgon region has by now become old hat, and very few people besides the perpetrators and the victims, seem to pay much attention to it any more.  Unfortunately, this attitude of resigned neglect could turn out to be very costly in an area which a militia seems to have hived off the rest of the country. This will never do. And it appears our security machinery has come to the same conclusion and decided that only a strong-arm tactics will bring about the desired result – peace in the region where, according to some accounts, at least 300 people have already been killed and 65,000 displaced. When such a level of violence occurs, development suffers. Children do not go to school, land is not tilled, trade comes to a standstill, and human rights are routinely violated.  The violence in Mt Elgon is about a land settlement scheme in which one community felt shortchanged, hence the rise of the Sabaot People’s Land Defence Force (SLDF), a murderous outfit that has been giving the authorities a nagging headache. Violence breeds retaliation, and the security machinery has, at long last, been unleashed to try and contain this chaos. However, there is danger that the so-called rapid deployment unit may resort to using indiscriminate force, making the situation worse. Already, the result has been cataclysmic, with at least 3,000 people said to have fled the region to neighbouring districts. Why would the Sabaot stay put despite the malevolent presence of the militia and take off in their thousands as soon as the rightful law enforcers rush to their help? It would be tragic if the Mt Elgon people feared their own Government’s security personnel more than the marauding bandits. Already, there are reports about the security squad burning houses. Very soon, we may hear of other ‘‘security’’ measures like collective punishment. In closed societies, ‘‘scorched earth’’ methods of containment are the norm; in a democracy like Kenya’s, other methods like dialogue and concessions must be explored first. Let there be no accusations that the cure proved to be a lot worse than the disease. The people of Mt Elgon deserve to live in peace like the rest of Kenyans. Source: Nation Editorial How Kibaki could rig elections By Dominic Odipo, Nairobi, Nov 26 2007 When you travel around the country, you get a pretty good impression of how the people in the different towns and provinces are likely to vote in the coming presidential elections. If you go to Nyeri you will notice that the people there are not likely to vote for the ODM presidential candidate, Mr Raila Odinga. If you go to Kericho or Kapsabet, you will get the impression that the people there are not likely to vote for President Kibaki. This feeling, this ‘message from the soil’, is very different from the message the Steadman Group is trying to convey through its latest opinion polls. My take, which I believe many hard-nosed political cognoscenti share, is that, if free and fair elections were held tomorrow, Raila would get about 55 per cent of the vote, beating both President Kibaki and the ODM-Kenya presidential candidate, Mr Kalonzo Musyoka. Yet there is a crucial difference between Raila being able to win and his moving into State House on December 29. And that difference can be reduced to just five words: The Electoral Commission of Kenya (ECK). Make no mistake. This election could be decided by the ECK, not necessarily by the people. The Raila onslaught could be broken by the logistical mechanics that ECK puts in motion on election day. Perhaps this point is best captured by turning it into a question: If I were a top official in the Kibaki Government determined to rig him back into office come what may, how would I proceed? I would move very deliberately but very ruthlessly along the following lines. First, I would convince the President to appoint as many commissioners as possible to the ECK who are sympathetic to our cause and can do our bidding on or before election day. I would then get these commissioners to appoint returning and presiding officers who, in turn, can do as we say. Second, I would prevail upon the President to renew the term of the long-serving ECK Chairman, Mr Samuel Kivuitu, for both diplomatic and tactical reasons. After all, a lone chairman would be virtually powerless against all the other commissioners who would be working for our side. Third, I would prevail upon the chairman to put some of our most trusted commissioners in charge of the printing and packaging of the ballot papers. These commissioners would then be sent to Britain, or wherever the ballot papers were being printed, with one very clear instruction: Make sure that the ballot papers destined for Opposition strongholds like Rift Valley and Western provinces have as many errors on them as possible. The idea here would be to have as many Opposition votes as possible declared spoilt. Fourth, I would prevail upon the chairman to put one of the commissioners most sympathetic to our cause in charge of all the transport logistics of election day. This man or woman would be given the final say over how, when and where the ballot papers, election materials and personnel would be transported. I would then instruct them to make sure that, on election day, everything goes real slow in the Opposition strongholds and real fast in Kibaki’s strongholds. Returning and presiding officers would be secretly instructed to ensure that no voting starts in the Opposition strongholds before 1pm on election day. Fifth, I would secretly designate one of our most trusted commissioners as the commissioner for propaganda and confusion. His main task would be to ensure that there is as much confusion as possible in the Opposition zones on election day. For example, the ballot papers for Belgut constituency would deliberately be flown to Mandera in the morning of election day. The returning officer in Mandera would then be instructed to ‘go slow’ while awaiting further instructions. The papers would finally be flown to Belgut at 2pm. Sixth, I would ensure that all polling stations in the whole country were closed at 5pm, regardless of when voting started nor how many people were still queueing to vote. This instruction would be more strictly enforced in the Opposition areas. Finally, I would get a friendly opinion polling group to keep spewing out figures indicating that the election was too close to call. That would create the appropriate pyschological atmosphere within which to operate. In one word, this election is not yet in the bag for the Opposition. The latent power of incumbency and the totalitarian powers of a sympathetic ECK could yet do Raila in. Source: Standard Voters don’t like plans to forgive past corruption By Gladwell Otieno Over the decades, Kenya has accumulated a mountain of economic crimes which has largely remained unaddressed. The most serious attempts yet were made by President Kibaki’s Government, under the leadership of Mr John Githongo, then Governance and Ethics Permanent Secretary, but they eventually foundered. Debate on this issue continues and has been an important aspect of the present electoral campaigns. The Africa Centre for Open Governance, a civil society initiative that focuses on anti-corruption and governance, commissioned a survey to find out what people think about grand corruption and what they want done about it. Presidential candidates have made various declarations on how they intend to treat past economic crime. ODM-Kenya’s Mr Kalonzo Musyoka promotes the unconditional "forgive and forget" line. ODM’s Mr Raila Odinga has at times promised radical action and at others offered the possibility of forgiveness after restitution of stolen wealth. President Kibaki, on the other hand, has generally maintained distance from discussions about corruption and preferred to focus on the achievements of his regime. Responses to the survey made it clear that Kenyans do not support a "forgive and forget" strategy. It would be difficult for politicians to sneak a backroom elite bargain past voters, if any is contemplated. The survey reveals that people view corruption as the issue of greatest concern. Fully 89 per cent of them rate corruption as a national priority concern: 97 per cent think that corruption is a "big" or "very big" problem. A commentary on the Government’s below par communication skills is the 25 per cent who are still unaware of official efforts to address corruption. Only 13 per cent of respondents spontaneously reported knowledge of the National Anti-Corruption Campaign.Only 23 per cent were aware of institutional efforts such as those of the Controller and Auditor General. However, 98 per cent knew about the Artur Brothers. Demonstrating the futility of efforts to suppress information was the 39 per cent of Kenyans who are aware of the Government-commissioned Kroll report and had strong opinions about it. Asked to assess the performance of various Government efforts and initiatives on a scale of 1 to 10, many were uncompromising; none of them scored above the halfway mark. While 92 per cent were aware of the existence of the Kenya Anti-Corruption Commission they were so unimpressed that they gave it a score of only 3.7 out of 10. Questioned as to what should be done about various corruption offences, people’s responses ranged from confiscation of assets to prosecution and lengthy jail terms to the dismissal, or barring from public office of those guilty of corruption. Most think that wealth stolen and kept abroad, should be returned and used for health, education and other social welfare purposes. This shows that people attach a clear cost to graft and, indeed, see corruption and the loss of development opportunities as closely interlinked. There was a marked perception of inequity and impunity in the treatment of prominent corruption offenders: 77 per cent said that there are sacred cows or "untouchables". Of the tiny minority (six per cent) who believed that there should be untouchables, fears on the potential for open ethnic conflict if prominent cases are pursued were cited, given the penchant of some suspects to seek refuge in their communities. A full 93 per cent of Kenyans claim that they will not vote for a candidate who is widely perceived to be corrupt. Paradoxically, 48 per cent also said they would accept a bribe. Poverty and cynicism seem to be important motivators. However, 80 per cent said they had no intention of voting for the candidate whose bribes they would accept. Respondents listed the types of bribes they were aware of as money, clothes, jobs and, interestingly, title deeds which only the Government can offer. From their comments, voters seem to be well aware that the goodies being lavished on them by the Government in various voter-mollifying packages come with a price tag. All candidates should be aware that money spent on bribes is very likely money wasted, provided polling conditions are free and fair. The aspect of the poll that receives the greatest public attention is people’s assessment of which presidential candidate is most committed to fighting corruption. Perhaps inevitably this directly reflects the results of various polls to date on voters’ preferred candidate overall. A regional breakdown of the results shows all the candidates generally enjoying the "homeboy" advantage. However, Raila also leads in North Eastern, Western, Rift Valley, Coast and Nairobi. Raila’s support base is strongest among younger voters who are particularly riled about corruption. Interestingly, the poll shows that the candidates’ positions are sometimes at variance with those of their own supporters. For example, 77 per cent of Kalonzo’s supporters disagree with his "forgive and forget" stance; 36 per cent want the corrupt to face the full force of the law, lengthy jail terms and confiscation of property, 41 per cent were prepared to accept restitution and an apology. Forty-six percent of Kibaki’s supporters also support the more radical options. Only a small minority are willing to contemplate the "forgive and forget" option; 7 per cent of Kalonzo’s supporters, 6 per cent of Kibaki’s and 5 per cent of Raila’s. What do they want the new Government to do about corruption? First, 94 per cent say the next President should not appoint any individuals who have a corruption record. Respondents also demanded the repossession of all illegally acquired property, the introduction of tough terms such as lengthy jail sentences; the immediate resignation of all those under investigation on corruption cases; proper vetting of Government appointees and "radical surgery of the Judiciary". Strong, focussed leadership will be necessary to respond to and manage these demands in an accountable and transparent manner. The writer is the Executive Director of the Africa Centre for Open Governanc Party nominations were a sham By Peter Wanyonyi, Middle East, Nov 19 2007 For a nascent democracy with a desire to ground the principles of fair play and popular acclaim in its party and national politics, Kenya’s recent party nominations for the General Election were a disappointing exercise and an open sham.  It is fitting that they were called “nominations” and not “party primaries”, for the latter implies democratic election processes that were completely missing from virtually all the three major parties. Most galling of all were the so-called “direct tickets” – cases in which ostensibly “vital” candidates were given automatic nominations to contest on their parties’ tickets in their constituencies. This arose out of an amorphous “realisation” that these candidates were “essential” to the fortunes of the party, and that they thus “must” be given a direct go at contesting the elections without having to undergo the hassles of contested primaries. These direct nominations were a clear attempt to, not only defeat democracy, but also pervert the course of natural justice, especially since virtually all involved former MPs. They generally occurred in regions that are seen as strongholds of their respective parties, and in which, therefore, whoever contests the election on the given party’s ticket is almost guaranteed re-election. The paradox would be funny if it wasn’t so tragic. In an area in which a party is guaranteed to win, why not win with the strongest candidate instead of foisting an unpopular person on the electorate? But what if the voters, as was evident in contested primaries all over the country, wanted to be rid of their MP? Many of these ex-legislators have been nothing but empty cans in Parliament, and some have delivered practically nothing to the people that elected them five years ago.  By nominating such candidates directly, the parties effectively took this choice away from the voter – negating their trumpeted claims to be “democratic”, and effectively behaving like dictatorships. Not content with such unfairness, the parties then went on to doctor the results of the primaries themselves, wherever such contests were tolerated by the party machinery. This was directly counter to the actual results: cases abound where party members elected one candidate, only for a different candidate to be cleared by the party’s election board. It is clear that this was done on the basis of “we cannot afford to lose so-and-so, and the top knows better” – which is surprising considering that such a candidate had been considered unworthy of a “direct nomination”. Why bother with the polls when you know you will rig in your preferred candidate? Even though all three major parties engaged in this charade, it is ODM that stands to lose most from the bungled-up primaries. ODM have held themselves up as the moral alternative to the PNU. By assuming the moral high ground, ODM should, naturally, be held up to more scrutiny than PNU or any other party. After all, ODM’s campaign posters declare that they stand for equality and fairness across the board, regardless of one’s station in life. They state that they will, should they get the chance, govern Kenya in a better manner than President Kibaki has, and ensure that economic and other development is enjoyed by all parts of the country. It all sounds rather hollow now, with the party’s shambolic primaries.  Maybe an ODM government will decide, similarly, that some constituencies – belonging to those worthies who received direct nominations, naturally – have a higher development priority over other, “lesser” constituencies.  Maybe they will decide that some MPs or ministers, having benefited from direct nominations, are more important than others, setting the stage for a repeat of the Narc fiasco in 2003 when some ministers were allegedly denied access to the President.  Maybe ODM will just turn round and decide that the reasons for which we elected them were no longer overriding, and that the top knows better, and hence propound a different agenda from the one they are preaching now. Most worrisome of all, of course, is the possibility that we are changing nothing. That it is all a sham. That we will end up, having merely exchanged one lying government for another, one false liberator for another.  This risk runs through all the parties, not just ODM. But the President’s style of government is already well-known. It is in the ODM’s chaotic nominations exercise that some voters will see cause for concern, with the possibility that the claimed party of change and accountability is, in fact, just as bad as the one we want to kick out. In which case, sticking with the devil we know suddenly starts looking very attractive. Mr Wanyonyi is an information systems professional working in the Middle East. AM SORRY KENYANS, I LIED By Shad Bulimo, London October 23 2007 Look at me. What do you see? A corrupt, lying loony of a president or an accomplished, successful statesman of international repute? Don’t rush to answer. Look again more closely. This time, focus on my eyes. What do you see? Do they reflect one ordained of visionary leadership or someone who has something of the night about him. Again, for sanity’s sake, don’t answer just yet. Let us now turn to my mouth; not its shape because that is stuff for Madd and co. For the adventurous and discerning lot, try to trace the history of what my mouth has said or not said over the last 15 years. Quite frankly, you may never discover the really me for I don’t know myself either. I accept that in politics, mugumo tree can after all be uprooted if that accords me survival for another term. I   have sacrificed mama na baba to the point of leading them to the slaughterhouse of the volatile political theatre. Am not in politics to make a name like Mandela or Gandhi. And although I call myself a Christian, am not saintly. I live life to the full; I enjoy my cognac; I play golf. Am quite an ordinary bloke like you really. I have my moments of turmoil in my household especially during the volcanic eruptions of mama watoto. That is where am coming from. But where am I going? To understand where am going, it’s instructive to look at this journey through the prism of my lieutenants. Let us start with the deputy captain. Dr Moody Arthur Awori belongs to the pedigree stalk of that fabled family of Canon WWW Awori. Although a septuagenarian, Dr Awori is a smooth business operative and helps me run the affairs of the state like a business empire in which the winners are the directors themselves and losers are wananchi because they are pumbavu. I brought him in to continue being assured of the Luhya support after my other trusted lieutenant, Wamalwa Kijana died. Let me be honest for once, although I love uncle Moody to pieces, he failed to deliver the “Yes” vote to the banana camp during the constitutional referendum last November and the way things look he commands no influence in Western Province where ODM has camped root and branch. I stick with him because wazee hukumbuka. Am aware that he lies to me that things will change but he is by no means the only one. Forget the watchmen and cooks. I have strong faith in the sons educated with the miraa economy of Meru. Although arrogant and drunk with power, they delivered killer punches that helped me neutralise Agwambo and his brigade seen sniffing around the corridors of power. Remember the famous words from my other political nemesis, Charles Mugane Njonjo. They are my guard dogs and would devour anyone contemplating, imagining or plotting to overthrow the legitimate government of Emilio. That is why I put garrulous Kiraitu Murungi in charge of all matters legal and my dating mate, David Mwiraria in a position where he could provide the financial firepower to ensure Agwambo continues to eat omena in political wilderness. Sadly some jealous souls travelled to Liverpool and discovered a company going by the name Anglo Leasing was ghoulish. I blame a clever but stupid young man, John Githongo and regret why I ever met him. Whoever educated him, should have told him to read my lips; rather the lips of my trusted friends. I now accept that mugumo tree can be uprooted after all and some things won’t go away. Not just yet anyway; this being election year. Although the spectre of Anglo Leasing consumed the rumbustious, Dr Chris Murungaru, Mwiraria and Kiraitu along with other small fish swimming in the ministries as permanent secretaries, I have had to help my friends to help me. That’s why I sent the first lady to Meru to re assure my cousins that we cannot let Agwambo win and they’ll return to the cabinet with or without Anglo Leasing.  After all, this is my original dream team; the drivers of my political vision; although arrogant and tainted. Did someone say the old guard? Njenga Karume is my heart and soul. He doesn’t need the money; he just needs recognition. For years he was my financial kingpin; financed the Democratic Party of Kenya almost single-handedly and although, he goofed with the “project” when all Kiambu leaders rooted for Uhuru Kenyatta during the disastrous Elections 2002, he quickly made amends and I brought him back to the fold. You see what a true friend I am? My fellow countrymen, let us be honest with each other. Who can fault my choice of transport minister? You should all be grateful to John Michuki, the flamboyant, rich, snake-like fellow from Kangema in Murang’a for bringing order to the matatu industry. I admit my mistakes. I should not have reshuffled him from transport docket. As the minister in charge of internal security, he has sat by as a spectator as mercenaries besieged the country unleashing terror to a legitimate publishing business but he took lessons in honesty from me: He conceded the raid on the Standard Group was a government project. Two weeks ago, I heard Agwambo describing Kenyans as ants marching to evict the serpent. This man from the lake has a sick swagger about him; how dare he belittle my people. Just let him try. Remember “if you rattle a snake, you must expect that the snake will bite you back”. Because he can't be trusted, we copied a leaf from him and as Matere Keriri has confirmed, treated him with his own medicine (read MOU) to reward him for "KIbaki Tosha" buy my clever master strategists. Of course you have to be clever in politics; which politician keeps his promises? Because of lies that the so called mercenaries has strong personal and business links to persons allegedly close to me, I decided to convene a commission of inquiry to dig out the truth. I appointed renown, ex police commissioner, Shedrack Kiruki from Meru to sift the truth from the lies. Honestly, I choreographed the inquiry after the usual noise from the international community when they hear sounds of gun fire in Africa, especially at the airport. I wanted to demonstrate that Kenya is not Somalia. As an accomplished economist; I put the alleged culprits (read key witnesses) on the plane to Dubai to save the country money through expensive and lengthy legal processes. I hear the Artur brothers are writing X Files on their dealings with my government. Rest assured that book will be banned as we want to focus our attention on development rather than fitina. As for Mungiki, these are not people you can take serious. I heard some cabinet minister suggesting that my government should hold talks with them. I just laughed. If you take Mungiki seriously you must not be serious yourself. If they kill a few people here and there so what; my government is dealing with bandits across the country. I want to say thanks to my immediate predecessor, Daniel arap Moi for volunteering to campaign for my re-election and also the son of the founding president of Kenya, Uhuru Kenyatta for tearing the rule book as the leader of the official opposition in parliament by supporting rather than standing against me. He’s well bred to respect his elders.  But wait a minute did someone mention the “project?” Pumbavu that was in the past; right now I need the support of everyone, saint and satanic.   Even Pattni and Biwott are welcome. After all Goldenberg has been dealt with in a commission of inquiry. The report is with me. The Ouko inquiry has been dealt with by Troon Report as well as Sunguh Parliamentary Commission. Let bygones be bygones. It’s the future that matters. Only Kibaki can guarantee the status quo where the rich shall get richer and the poor poorer - because, ahem, they are pumbavu. What you see is not always what you get! CONFESSIONS Am sorry my dear Kenyans. Spare me a Saddam Hussein-type of ending. I now know that Kanu is not mama na baba and  that mugumo tree can be uprooted. Way back in the early 1980s’, me and Charles Njonjo had to stop Agwambo’s father from taking over the government by forming another party. Njonjo proposed the repeal of Section 2(a) of the Constitution and I seconded it to make Kenya a dejure one-party state (Kanu). Five years ago, I made a few lies to which I want to beseech forgiveness. I cheated the Rainbow Coalition on the so called Memorandum of Understanding. I lied when I promised the creation of 500,000 jobs per annum. I lied when I promised a lean cabinet. I lied when I said corruption would be a thing of the past. What I meant was do as I say but not as I do. And when I said the era of roadside directives was over what I meant was I’ll follow Nyayo za Moi who followed Nyayo za Kenyatta. I’ll maintain the status quo which protects the corrupt, promotes ethnicity and turns the country into a private club. This is me. What you see is what you get. Pumbavu. JUDGEMENT: Dear Mr President. I have taken into account your honesty and somewhat feel that perhaps you do not always get the credit you deserve. I have noted in particular the growth in the gross national product from negative five years ago to the current 6%. I have also taken into account your policies in free education and Constituency Development Fund. It’s cleat to me that yes there has been some change; positive change. However, I am not satisfied that the benefits of your policies have filtered through to the common mwananchi. These changes have happened in spite of not because of you. The country looks like a private club where the moneyed swim in luxury while the poor roam the land in empty search of economic survival. For that reason, Mr President, I feel that you have been here long enough for any good that you may have been doing. Depart, I say. In the name of God, Go! Shad Bulimo is the editor of Abeingo.org, an online portal of the Luhya Community. One man and politics of danger By Wafula Buke When Mr Musikari Kombo said Mr Raila Odinga was "one dangerous man" during the Kibaki Tena launch at Nyayo Stadium, he brought to the fore the issue of divergence in outlooks by those who get involved in politics to a new level. I recalled my dealings with the two gentlemen in relatively similar situations at different times. In 1992 when I arrived in Bungoma from exile, in an effort to integrate me into local politics, Dr Mukhisa Kituyi took me to Wamalwa Kijana and Mr Musikari Kombo. "I think it will be necessary for us to move around with Buke. This is the only way we can ensure that the Government does not pounce on him," said Kituyi. He argued that my association with them would draw the requisite solidarity in the event of an arrest. Kombo quickly spoke: "Chairman, it is dangerous for us to move with him. Let him go back to his hiding place as we await the State’s reaction to his home coming." Wamalwa had to agree with Kombo, the richest man in their midst. Wamalwa added that it was not "safe" for them to tour the district with me. Kituyi tried to convince them to no avail. Needless to say, I was confused. What kind of democrats were these who were not prepared to defend one of their own? Between the Government and I, who was dangerous? The driving force behind our reformist political efforts had all along been hinged on the notion that the Government was endangering the social integrity of the nation. My victimisation during the 1995 Fera crackdown led me to see the difference between Raila and Kombo. While in prison, Kombo and his regional colleagues made no efforts to secure my release or safety under the pretext that it was "dangerous" and "unsafe" to show solidarity with me. Having failed to secure support from those she considered my allies, my wife sought the intervention of the man Kombo recently referred to as "one dangerous man". I had never talked to Raila or met him in person. My wife paid him a visit in his Kisumu office, where she poured her heart out about my frustrations and how I had been let me down by those I trusted. Raila told her to wait for his call as he left for Nairobi. He called her the following day and told her that I would be released in three days. She did not believe him but true to his word I was released. That ended my 49 days ordeal in custody. To this day, I have never known the magic he played to secure my release. I am also reminded of what Titus Adongosi’s mother asked Raila when he visited her in the company of Mr Kenneth Matiba in 1997. "I am told you were with my son in prison, who killed my son?" she asked crying. When Raila pledges to institute the Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission, he speaks for those who were determined enough to cut the Mugumo tree with a razor blade. Kombo and Mr Simeon Nyachae, on the other hand, are still prisoners of fear and incapable of seeing Kenya under Raila. Raila’s footprints on the history of the struggle for a better Kenya should not be a basis for subjective accusations. As the establishment struggles to tag reformers with distasteful labels, other questions must be asked. Where were Kombo and Nyachae during the struggle to return this country back to multi-partism? An American black political activist Mumia Jamal succinctly says: "When you don’t oppose a system, your silence becomes approval for it does nothing to interrupt the system." If these alliances of conservative individuals under a conservative Head of State can achieve the little or much we see today, how much more shall Kenyans achieve under a crusader for social change like Raila with his team of "dot coms"? The stories of Kombo and Raila can be likened to those of the vulture and the leopard. He should be warned that in the absence of the leopard the vulture must learn the ways of the leopard or perish. To those who deride strugglers for social liberation, take heed from Mandela’s epigram: "To overthrow oppression has been sanctioned by humanity and is the highest aspiration of very free man." bukewafula@yahoo.com Moi, Kenyatta and Kibaki - axis of evil By Solomon Gakungu, Sept 25 2007 After waiting a long time, we have seen a circus of tribal chiefs supporting President Kibaki's re-election as they launched PANU, a coalition whose aim is to maintain the status quo at all costs. By their speeches it was quite apparent that they live in morbid fear of one Raila Odinga. Ministers Chirau Mwakwere and Simeon Nyachae captured the frustration and fears of the ruling class against the indomitable ODM flag bearer. On June 7th last year I had predicted in a local daily that a Moi/ Kibaki/ Kenyatta axis would inevitably emerge if ODM flag bearer Raila Odinga clinches the ODM ticket. In light of this, the dramatic endorsement of Mwai Kibaki by Moi and then Uhuru Kenyatta did not come as a major surprise. I have deliberately mentioned the two since they are the main pillars of this reactionary group. Ironically, most analysts seem to have entirely missed the point. Some argue that Moi's decision is informed by the 2002 loss of power by Kanu, which fact has led to this revenge mission against the man who plotted Kanu's 2002 defeat, Raila Odinga. For Uhuru Kenyatta they cite ethnic interest. Closer analysis shows that nothing could be further from the truth. Before my analysis on the opportunistic move made by the two leaders, it is my considered opinion that Raila Odinga remains the most misunderstood and vilified leader in Kenya , largely due to moves engineered by a class of political buccaneers who have expropriated the country's wealth with outright abandon. If his name featured in the Kroll and Associates report, that would have been big news but as one will realize, there is symptomatic silence over the criminal theft of 130 billion Kenya shillings by the political class as expressed in that report. This money is enough to run the CDF kitty for close to 15 years at a rate of Ksh.50million every constituency per annum.  A  Kenyan slum / Raila's development record Raila Odinga is blamed for poverty levels in the Kibera slums but few remember how the Treasury torpedoed his visionary move to build 150,000 houses for the poor. To make matters worse, after coming up with the much-acclaimed housing policy, none other than President Kibaki himself took this docket away from the control of Hon. Raila and put it under Hon. Kimunya, the then Ministry of Lands. The question is founded on faulty reasoning in any case given that Kenyans do not pay taxes to Hon. Odinga. Why are we praising Mwai Kibaki for his governments successes but looking to pass the buck onto others when the government has failed to address the most abject poverty as seen in these slums? And if Raila Odinga is to blame for Kibera, how will one explain the poverty levels in other slums like Mathare, Soweto and Majengo which are not in Lang'ata constituency? The media is also culpable for this skullduggery. Early this month, a small caption in the inside pages of a local daily captured my mind. Pictured was a lorry that had been loaded with donations of medical supplies worth Ksh. 7 million from the Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Foundation. There's little attention given to these efforts, in stark contrast to that given to the self-righteous Hon. Raphael Tuju. The media have taken to portraying the Rarieda MP as the one who is 'working' among the Luo leaders even as others politick endlessly. Let me now go back to the gist of my analysis, is ex-president Moi's opposition to ODM really driven by revenge? Under Moi's watch, Raila spent a cumulative 8 years in detention due to his relentless crusade for good governance, democracy and social justice. During the confinement, the indefatigable freedom icon lost his mother and only came to know of it 4 years later. His family also went through a profound anguish during this period of detention as police harassing them incessantly. It is also worth noting that Raila Odinga's opposition to Moi did not spring from poverty, or a lack of success. He had already curved a niche for himself as one of the young pioneer industrialists in Kenya and was a senior manager at Kenya Bureau of Standards which he had played a critical role in establishing in the early 1970s. Few people will abandon that kind of comfort to fight for the down-trodden. In the same vein, few will forgive their tormentors or even have the tolerance to face them after losing the prime of their life in solitary confinement. So the question remains, is it Moi that ought to forgive Raila because of a simple thing like an electoral defeat which in reality benefited the man he is backing today or is it the Raila that suffered the greater wrong? It is rather curious that the media also claims that Moi was so instrumental to the Orange win at the 2005 referendum. They fail to cite the government defeat at the Bomas conference despite Moi issuing an anti-bomas draft statement which was almost similar to his anti-Wako draft sentiments. His stand on the two could only be informed by his anti-reform credentials and love for the current authoritarian constitution. Also, you need to note that Moi has hit the ground running this time round to campaign for Mwai Kibaki unlike the referendum where he was content with providing a mere statement of support. This explains one irrefutable fact; the stakes are higher this time than they were in 2005. In my view Moi's move is informed by class interest. Kenya 's bourgeoisie have no time for the scion of Jaramogi despite his being a man of means. He has flatly refused to join in their conspiracy to subjugate the poor, a moral stand just like his father's i the 1960s. His altruism echoes the stands of other prominent global personalities from wealthy backgrounds who espoused pro-poor ideals like Fredrich Engels, Col. Gadaffi and Fidel Castro. It follows then, that with an entrenched interest in the status quo, Moi will not sit back and watch a somewhat revolutionary brand of leader seize the reigns of power. I feel insulted when Moi dismisses ODM as a tribal grouping and a party without a vision or a manifesto. Don't forget it is only Kalenjins he is asking to remain in KANU and heed his 'advice'.What classical double standards! Needless to say, he will not be appearing in a talk show and articulating his vision as Kenyans field their questions. But what I even find laughable is the assertion that Uhuru Kenyatta has endorsed President Kibaki's re-election in a bid to preserve Kikuyu interests. As one of those Kikuyus, I must say count me out of this. Uhuru Kenyatta did not represent Kikuyu interests in 2002 and to this day, he does not. Moi tried to force him down the throats of Kenyans in 2002 so he could rule by proxy as a self-preservation trick. If the media could accurately flash back to the events of 2005, it was William Ruto who literally drove KANU into the ant-Wako draft campaign, Uhuru was giving mixed signals. The short time Uhuru defied Moi over the ODM party was out of realization that majority of his members, and especially his powerful Secretary General was for ODM. But finally he has joined his benefactor in campaigning for Kibaki. Were these two not also together in their insistence that KANU would go it alone in the polls? What has changed? If I was an adult in 1966 I would have voted with KPU and not KANU. Ordinary Kikuyus were duped into rejecting Bildad Kagia while those they embraced so sheepishly were actually responsible for their squatter-status. In fact, KPU leaders had a vision to end landlessness which was comparatively more rife in Central Province than elsewhere. For strange unfathomable reasons, land-grabbers got their way under the guise of catering for tribal interest. I for that reason dispute assertion that Uhuru will safeguard my interest as a Kikuyu. The Kibaki/ Moi/ Uhuru (add Biwott axis) is difficult to beat in terms of resources but it has its greatest weakness in the people's power at the ballot. Only one man in the current political set up has a strong ideological case against these forces of the status quo. This is none other that Raila Amolo Odinga. He has courage of conviction, passion, charisma, valour. He has awesome networking skills and a strong character to turn tables on these forces of darkness. If he succeeds, Kenyans of all walks of life must prepare for a paradigm shift. But for the Moi/ Kibaki/ Uhuru axis, Raila Odinga must be stopped at the cost of billions of shillings. Hyenas feast as Kenyans bleed By Emma Salano, Sept 30 2007 It is no secret that for a collective total of nearly 30 consecutive years, Moi and Kibaki have placed Kenyan public assets on Sale, literally at throw-away prices, to their kin, personal companies, and friends (locally and abroad). Sometimes, the fortitude and patriotism shown by forthright Kenyans have succeeded in stalling their bid to throw away our public assets for a song, and in other instances , we have failed to stop their discounted give-away of national jewels - through their use of state machinery including a corrupted parliament. History repeats itself in quite interesting ways. We can remember how the Kenyan public lost its 49% stake at Firestone EA (held under the state corporation ICDC) to one scrupulous "enterpreneur" called Naushad Merali and his so called Sameer Investments company in 1995. In 1995 Moi ordered the now defunct PRC (Parastatals Reform Committee) to recommend that ICDC offloads its49% Firestone shares at the NSE. That was just a gimmick because according to the Auditor General, Corporations 1996 report,.... Naushad Merali and his Sameer group got pre-emptive rights and bought all those shares for sh 100 million. (for source see below) Their true value according to the Auditor general was Sh 500 million ( gross undervaluing). BUT WAIT A MINUTE. Three years down the line in 1999, the same shares were re-floated and sold at the NSE for sh 1.5 Billion. Merali made a 1500% profit in 3 years. Merali's genius here is the genius of grabbing and looting since he could have still made profit by buying the shares at their regular value. Merali's Sameer then used the money to buy East African Cables from a British Holding company in 2000 for sh 110 million when Moi refused KPLC & KenGen from buying the British company's electric cables (economic sabotage). EA Cables true value at the time was sh 274 million. FAST FORWARD to 2003. The first acquisition by Kibaki and his cronies at Trans-Century was the purchase of East African Cables from Merali. Kibaki had by then simultaneously appointed Trans-Century's god father Eddy Njoroge as KenGen's Managing Director (overt & unveiled conflict of interest). The rest is history,.......you know how EA Cables & KenGen are performing at the NSE. Track down the business interests of Trans-century and you will see the Sharks, Homeguards and Sultans partitioning and selling Kenya under the guise of privatization. In the twilight months of Moi's Presidency, just before Kibaki came to power, Moi had a rush to dispose off ( sell for ten pieces of silver) Kenyan public assets in a frenzy that astounded many. In the twinkle of an eye, Kenya-Re and Telkom shares were being offered for sale at exorbitantly discounted rates. The disposal of these Kenyan public assets was riddled with overt corruption mainly through gross undervaluing of the entities. Coincidentally, at the epicenter of the privatization exercise in the late 90s, early 2000s was Nicholas Biwott's daughter, Ms. Esther Koimett, the then Investment Secretary -whom Kibaki found prudent to serve as Kenya's new Investment Secretary thanks to his renewed political dalliance with Nicholas Biwott. In 2000/1 Esther Koimet almost facilitated the sale of Kenya-Re ( a public asset) to Zim-Re (of Zimbabwe ) in partnership with Monarch Insurance (owned by Gideon Moi) for less than one-third it's value. Gideon Moi and his shielders Zim-Re of Zimbabwe almost bought the entire Kenya-Re for 800 million shillings when it was valued at more than 2.5 billion shillings in 2001. Who halted the sale? After the Parliamentary Investment Committee (PIC) failed to stop the sale on procedural grounds, three MPs filed a successful court injunction blocking the sale: Prof. Anyang Nyongo, Wafula Wamunyinyi and Musikari Kombo. The ruling was made by Justice Hayanga.http://www.nationaudio.com/News/Dail...usiness65.html Thanks to the three MPs, we were luckily to have survived the transfer of Kenya Re into the hands of Gideon Moi in exchange of ten pieces of silver. But we were never always lucky, we lost some battles to the Moi privatization frenzy. Telkom had off-loaded much of it's shares in Safaricom (the mobile phone giant) to Vodafone, and within the shady transaction, a secretive entity known as Mobitelea ( Moi Biwott Telecommunication East Africa ), controlling 5% stake in Safaricom was born. Kenyans failed to read and pre-empt the illegal transfer of public assets into the hands of political families without their paying of a single dime. The Moi family and their two little partners in Mobitelea raked in Shs 850,000,000 last year alone thanks to that illegal transfer. The money is at their disposal to bribe weak and unprincipled political leaders, to create further confusion in the country, the perfect environment to enable their continued milking of our coffers. Gideon Moi's Mobitelea is now subject to yet another controversy, since the government wants again, to offload some more Safaricom shares to the public in an attempt to further hide disclosure facts. History is repeating itself. This time around, it's a Kibaki privatization frenzy! This time yet again, some patriotic and forthright Kenyans like Raila Odinga, are demanding full disclosure about ownership of Mobitelea and strict adherence to the provisions of the Privatization Act 2005, before any Safaricom IPO's are floated. Finance Minister Kimunya's own floatation rules are quite suspect, listing only 47% shares available for the public, with 50% shares going to the so-called high net investors, the likes expected to occupy Kibaki's re-election fete - the million-per-plate dinner. Kenyans are being taken for some dumb fools here. Raila has threatened to file an injunction in court halting the offer citing both procedural issues -failure to abide by the Privatization law and the failure to comply with the full-dislosure requirement of privatization. On privatization, Kibaki has specifically succeeded in hoodwinking many unsuspecting Kenyans when he releases public reports citing "successful" privatization efforts and IPO floatation. This he did with the recent KenGen and Mumias offers, where his government craftily pretended to offer 97% shares to the public -when in essence they had a huge pre- allocation for high net investors (friends of Kibaki coming in names like TransCentury Investors and Baraka Afrika) who ended up acquiring huge stakes, 30% and 25% shares respectively,......from the two companies. This my dear friends is what is called transferring (giving away) public wealth into the hands of a few politically connected individuals. This largely contributes to the astronomically increasing gap between the rich and the poor in Kenya . It grossly undermines our economy in the long-run despite the short-term busy season it offers at the NSE. I'll quote Macharia Gaitho's Jan 24th, 2006 Sunday Nation editorial piece quote from article......... "one of the Ministers involved in the (Anglo-Leasing) cover-up is quoted as saying that 'President Kibaki is above money' and 'does not touch money'. The problem is, he depends on others to worry about how his political projects will be funded. And he asks no questions about the source of funds. Some of those fellows (he depends on) are now running some key state corporations, and are also linked to the investment groups that seem to have the inside track on a very opaque privatisation of public corporations. " end of quote. (Mr Gaitho is the managing editor, Sunday Nation) Do the names TransCentury or Baraka ring a bell? The companies that have questionably acquired within four years under Kibaki's presidency : major stakes in all recently privatized parastatals besides, 20% stake in Rift Valley Railways, majority stakes in East African Cables, 2.13 million shares of Kenya Power (KPLC), 10% of Development Bank of Kenya, and a sizeable chunk of the mortgage giant HFCK. What about Kibaki's friend Moi and Mobitelea? What about Kibaki's friend Biwott who's Kobil company also recently secured a Shs 3 billion oil supply deal to KenGen? Githongo's own insight, has told us in Kiraitu's words & admission,...that the very Kenyan taxpayer, was to be robbed in excess of Shs 5 Billion,..to fund Kibaki's 2007 elections. According to Githongo, more than 200 billion shillings has been lost under the facilitatory watch of these two Wazees Moi and Kibaki. COMMENTARY Raila to fulfil Luhya dream of ascending to presidency By Wafula Buke Focus on prophet Elijah Masinde’s legacy and prophesies on the electoral politics of the Luhya is a welcome session on discussions going on in western Kenya.The theme under focus is his credentials as a prophet. Dr David Owuor, a Christian preacher, recently treated Kenyans to a prophesy about earthquakes that would reduce Nairobi to debris. When the city experienced tremors recently, focus went to him. In the ensuing national reflections, geologists gave data showing that Old Donyo Lengai, the epicentre of the quake, has been erupting every 45 years. Owuor’s prophesy was therefore in line with the predetermined geological processes involving the movement of tectonic plates. A look at the Masinde prophesy suggests that prophesies that come to pass are in harmony with scientific analyses and propositions. While it may be debatable as to whether his prophesies were God send, and consistent with prudent analysis is beyond question. He predicted the departure of colonialists consistent with the growing social forces in his time that ensured the realisation of this prophesy. At independence, Jomo Kenyatta’s many years in prison, age and the centrality of his community in the liberation struggle had prepared him to be the first president of Kenya. Masinde had similarly served a prison term hence more inclined to support Kenyatta’s bid for the presidency. He, therefore, disagreed with Masinde Muliro’s Kadu front in the contest for leadership in 1963. He threw his weight behind Kenyatta’s Kanu. Indeed, it did not take long before the argument for consolidation of national unity compelled Kadu to cross over to Kanu. Additionally, if one ranked national leaders at independence based on age, profile in the struggle and numerical strength of their ethnic communities, the following was true. The most deserving was Kenyatta, followed by Jaramogi, the radical nationalist then the liberal Muliro would come third in that succession. Masinde’s prophesy was therefore consistent with a viable succession scenario after Kenyatta. If one foresaw Kenya’s ethnic voter bias, one could picture a scenario where solidarity among small communities was going to serve as a ladder to presidency for their aspirants. The logic that informed the prophesy of Masinde on when the presidency would go to the Luhya holds water today more than it did at independence. Therefore, Musalia Mudavadi’s presidency after Raila Odinga is a viable venture than any Luhya bid after President Kibaki. The God who gave Masisnde the prophesy of a Luhya winning the presidency after a Luo understood the electoral dynamics of post independence Kenya. Yet Masinde's politics transcend this narrow pre-occupation with power politics. Perhaps that’s why his ideas and legacy are being embraced by the youth in relation to this year’s General Election.The Dini ya Musambwa leader’s input in the Luhya political psyche is his heroic struggle for liberation from British colonialism and decolonisation of the African mind. He epitomised pan-Africanism, nationalism, social justice and the determination to pursue ideals however unpopular. Indeed, in him the region has a representative on the African chart of no-nonsense social justice crusaders. He is only comparable to the likes of Oyangi Mbaja and Absolom Ingen. Ingen was Field Marshal John Okello’s second in command in their revolutionary insurrection in Zanzibar in 1964 according to his autobiography, Revolution in Zanzibar. His distinct ideological identity is historically evident. For instance, while Muliro was a convert to the British version of independence, Masinde's was more revolutionary and that is why he launched a guerrilla campaign. The Bukusu, who were more loyal to the ideals of Masinde, were hesitant to respond to Muliro’s advice that they buy land from the departing white settlers in Trans Nzoia. Masinde instead mobilised them to repossess the land by force asking "How do we buy our own land?" As the elite advocated for mass enrollment into formal schools, he cautioned against the colonial content of the said education. On religion, he cross-bred Christianity with the African religion and produced the hybrid Dini ya Musambwa with Mount Elgon being the equivalent of Zion. His prophesies in 1960s about the Luhya presidency provided the package that enabled Wamalwa Kijana and team to sell Jaramogi to the Bukusus during the 1992 elections. At this particular time, his legacy helped the Bukusu rise a rung higher than others when they supported the deserving doyen of opposition politics for the presidency in 1992. This exploitation of the Masinde prophesy deepened the people’s faith in the authority of his pronouncements. Masinde’s radicalism earned him space in history but denied him appreciation from conservative leaders from his community. Unlike the late Muliro, who has been celebrated as national hero, the prophet’s legacy has only been selectively exploited by politicians without any honour accorded to him. It would have made more historical sense naming a university after Masinde rather than Muliro because unlike others who embraced colonial education, Masinde interrogated western ideas and values and institutionalised opposition to colonial education through his brand of religion. As the wheels of history continue grinding on, it will not be easy to find fault in his pronouncements. bukewafula@yahoo.com The writer is a political commentator ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- OPINION: Luhyas closer to power through ODM When it comes to succession politics of 2012, Mr Uhuru Kenyatta comes top on the list. Where does this leave Luyha leaders supporting President Kibaki’s re-election? Why should the likes of Mr Musikari Kombo, Dr Mukhisa Kituyi, Dr Noah Wekesa and VP Moody Awori agree to play second fiddle? It is because they are only interested in benefiting themselves and their kinsmen at the expense of the Luyha community. In ODM, Luhyas have a chance to ascend to power come 2012. Joseph Kwimba, Nairob Published in Standard of 19/09/07i ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ FORD KENYA SHOULD NOT REPEAT THE REFERENDUM MISTAKE As Kenyans prepare to go to election towards the end of this year, the positions taken by the various leaderships of political parties will determine whether the specific parties will be in the next government or in the opposition. So far as many parties strategize to make alliances of political convenience, Ford Kenya remains in unpredictable situation with contradicting statements from its national leadership. While the party constitution endorses the chairman to be its presidential candidate, it’s so disturbing that up to date the party has not made any concrete or official communication on whether Hon.Musikari Kombo is seeking presidency, supporting president Kibaki or looking for another alternative. It’s not long ago that in November 2005 the party delayed making a decision on the constitution referendum about which side to support and when it made that decision, it came out to be one against the wishes of the majority of Kenyans. So as a party we voted for the yes (banana) side which the majority of Kenyans rejected. The leadership of that time has not changed and it’s hard to believe that that leadership will advice its membership to vote for the popular presidential candidate that majority of Kenyans will support. It must be understood that majority of Ford Kenya membership has not tasted any benefits of being in the Kibaki government; a few appointments shouldn’t be used to hoodwink the party to support the incumbent for the second term, unless comprehensive reasons are given. It must also be noted that Ford Kenya as a party has been given a raw deal as far as the Vice Presidency is concerned since the demise of our beloved Michael Kijana Wamalwa in 2003.we voted overwhelmingly for the banana hoping that the president was going to reciprocate our support for the government by appointing either Hon.Musikari Kombo or Hon.Mukhisa Kituyi as his vice president. It’s therefore obvious that the party membership can not take another false promise of vice presidency in the Kibaki administration. All that the party got were a few positions for a few individuals. It’s so disappointing that the party chairman was contented and so proud of those appointments whose impact to the party membership is yet to be seen. The party chairman has perfected the art of horse trading by getting appointments of a few people to government positions and therefore proclaiming to be part of the government. Its saddening that in 2002, we supported Kibaki with an understanding that president Kibaki was the first among equals; including Hon. Wamalwa Kijana and Hon. Charity Ngilu (while forming NAK), but unfortunately the developments immediately after the 2002 general elections, indicate that Ford Kenya has always been treated as an inferior partner in the ruling coalition tubned government of national unity and can only get left overs. That is why it’s important for the party leadership to explain to the members on under 7hat circumstances should we support which presidential candidate. It’s therefore important that the party leadership focuses on an alliance that can respect the party and also assure members that we are NOT being pushed to be in the opposition from January 2008. It’s a known fact that the party will be the main loocer in the forthcoming election if it doesn’t consult its membership before making a decision to support any presidential candidate or field its own. The wishes of party members should be given priority. Therefore it’s wrong for the chairman to proclaim sup`ort of any other presidential candidate without formally consulting the party membership. Ford Kenya through Hon Noah Wekesa and Hon.Wafula Wamunyinyi have already initiated talks with other “like minded” parties to form a coalition for the re-election of His Excellency president Kibaki while the party chairman sometimes claims to be in the presidential race and sometimes claims to be supporting the incumbent president. Which one is the right direction for the party members? Is Kombo running or supporting Kibaki? If he is supporting Kibaki, under what kind of agreement is he supporting him? Is it merely for horse trading? Given the developments in the Kenyan political landscape, Is Kibaki the right horse for Ford Kenya? Kibaki’s presidential campaigns are said to be already in full gear. Narc Kenya has already overtaken everyone in campaigning for Kibaki. The Ford Kenya party leadership should make sure that the mistakes during the referendum are not repeated. It’s important for the party leadership to make a decision that is consistent with the majority of Kenyans and in favour of party members, lest we repeat the mistake we did during the referendum. So, who is the Ford Kenya horse? FWAMBA NC FWAMBA BOX 41046-00100 NAIROBI +254721779445 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- VIEW FROM HOME AWAY: DETRIBALISE KENYA THROUGH LANGUAGE EDUCATION By Shad Bulimo, London, Sunday 26 August 2007, Politics has been described as a dirty game best left to seasoned political pugilists to spur against each other through sound bites. That has pretty much been the case for many years in Kenya even during the tyrannical reigns of Moi and Kenyatta. But for this fight to permeate into ordinary social life is extremely regrettable. The Nyeri hotelier who chucked out Raila Odinga from his dinner table is adamant that she did nothing wrong and perhaps she might even be a heroine of sorts locally. But therein lies the problem. Where people take law into their hands in the name of fighting the corner of their political god father, must be condemned in the strongest terms. Management reserves right of entry in hospitality outlets but this is normally on account of unacceptable standards of decency such as dress code or drunken behaviour. It’s criminal and discriminatory to refuse to offer service on account of race, religion, ethnicity, sex or political persuasion. I know it’s election year and temperatures are likely to run even higher than the barometer we saw in Nyeri. But for heaven’s sake, we are Kenyans; we love our motherland; we travel freely across the land, we live and work wherever life’s circumstances might take us. We are a mixed nation of some 43 tribes. We are a rainbow nation, to paraphrase Nobel Laureate, Bishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa. Like the beautiful colours of Benetton, this rainbow nation is glittering with beauty, style and energy. We owe it to ourselves to tap into the strengths of all Kenyans to enrich all Kenyans. Only recently, William Ruto told how Raila Odinga cannot be elected because of his tribe – Luo. That individuals should be seen in terms of their tribes rather than Kenyans is a testimony to the narrow mindedness of those aspiring to national leadership. As a country Kenya is a big shame and a bad example to Africa. Our leaders keep squandering opportunities to rise above the tribe and demonstrate continental leadership. Instead, they preacher messages such as “it’s our turn to eat” or let’s hold onto the cow at all costs because other tribes want to rob us. This was certainly the case with Kenyatta who turned Kenyanisation into Kikuyunisation especially following his inglorious exit from Kisumu under a hail of stones in 1969. Moi too retreated to the tribal corner to wage war against real and imagined tribal enemies. In Kibaki, Kenyans had finally chosen a leader of great political experience and intellectual ability and whom, it was hoped, would rise above the tribe and perhaps even “kill” it. Sadly, the LSE graduate chose to follow “Nyayo”. In the early days of his helmsmanship, readers may recall that he received world acclaim from none other Bill Clinton, the popular ex-US president. Asked on a TV news programme which world leader he admired most, Clinton singled out not “Madiba” Mandela but Kibaki; citing his universal free primary school education program as admirable. In an instant, Kibaki became not merely an African president but a world statesman laden with tonnes of political capital. How did he invest this capital? His choice of investment portfolio unmasked him as an opportunist rather than one divined of visionary leadership. For sure he had many Kikuyu friends who had supported him through thick and thin over the years and needed to reward them somewhat. At first he seemed reluctant to travel that path telling his people in Nyeri not to expect hand outs from the government but to apply for loans from the banks. That was a perfect beginning but he quickly retreated to the relative comfort of the tribe once political temperatures began rising in the governing coalition organ – Narc. So yes he might survive and rule for another term. But Kenya’s Mandela he is not. The country is yet to produce a visionary leader who can “kill” the tribe so that Kenyans see themselves as Kenyans first and whatever else as second. So how do examples from other countries in Africa inform Kenya’s struggle against the tribe? TANZANIA Under Mwalimu Julius Kabarage Nyerere, Tanzania may not have achieved pride of place among its economically prosperous neighbours. But hats off to Nyerere, his Ujamaa philosophy achieved something Kenyans covet in private: nationhood. Tanzanians speak of Ndugu na Dada rather that Jaluo, Baluhya, Kikuyu, Kamba, Kisii, Kalenjin, Masai – and they have 120 tribes (three times as much as Kenyans). These tribes co-exist peacefully and are culturally active but no one frowns against the craftsmanship of the Makonde or the business skills of the Chagga or indeed the dancing rhythms of the Sukuma. These are celebrated across the land. Nationalism is Tanzania’s greatest asset which somewhat makes Tanzania richer than Kenya in the sense that it’s easier for government to disseminate messages across they board without certain tribes feeling crowded out.  Even in “poverty” Tanzania’s are proud of being Tanzanians. When the government’s spokesman, Dr Alfred Mutua issued his stickers “NAJIVUNIA KUWA MKENYA”, these quickly turned into a national joke “NAVUMILIA KUWA MKENYA”. He hastily withdrew them in a major public relations flop. It’s joked that if you asked a Tanzanian what tribe he is, he would retort that “you must be  Kenyan”. GHANA: Under Kwame Nkurumah, the tribe was “killed” through the education system. Nkurumah decreed that all pupils must proceed, for their secondary education, to a different province of Ghana. This meant that an Ashanti child would leave his village and go to study in Ewe or Afante. This was  a master stroke. The child learnt not just academics but also vital social skills – the language and culture of his hosts. Language here assumes a stature bigger than a mere communications tool. In the case of Ghana, language empowered Ghanaians to roam freely across the land and build a strong foundation of shared national ethos. There is no such thing as a superior tribe. ZAMBIA Again, the government of Kenneth Kaunda tackled tribalism through his humanism philosophy. Most Zambians speak more than one tribal language. SOUTH AFRICA: In addition to English and Afrikaans, South Africa has officially recognised and elevated six formerly Bantu languages into national languages. You can speak in either of those in Parliament. HOME-GROWN EXAMPLES In the 1980s, one Luo man settled in Murang’a and taught Kikuyu how to eat fish. They loved him so much they elected him counsellor. Athletics, once a preserve of the Kalenjin has now attracted the Kisii and Kikuyu. And in football where once it was a Luhya/Luo affair, it is not uncommon to hear of Mutua na mpira. The village shopkeeper at Vigina in Vihiga is Mr Mwangi. He speaks Luhya, his children go to local schools; they too speak Luhya. These are the dynamics of social change. No one can stop them including our Nyeri hotelier. Every tribe has skills that others can learn from and together prosper as a nation. Primitive behaviour, name calling, extremism and  tribal swaggering reduce our collective pride as country and make the task of nation building that much harder. WAY FORWARD: I was in a meeting recently where a linguist, Dr Kipnyango Seroney suggested the teaching of Kenya’s languages in the national curriculum. I thought the idea was really brilliant. This means that as a Luhya, I would be expected to learn one other Kenyan language in addition to my mother tongue, Swahili and English. For instance, Luos would learn Kikuyu while Giriamas would learn Kalenjin etc. This sounds to me quite a realistic suggestion that can kill tribalism certainly within a generation. I remember when  was a pupil at Mulwakhi primary school, English was promoted at the expense of my mother tongue. If you spoke vernacular, you would be given a disk; a large wooden gadget worn around the neck in shame. But why should it be shameful to speak your mother tongue? Only now I realise how the colonial education philosophy was meant to brainwash the natives to hate their language and culture and hence start life on a weak point. I now also agree with Ngugi wa Thiong’o that writing in Kikuyu is a good thing. The Kibaki government has grand designs in education. Primary education is free and soon secondary will be as well. However, as a nation we need to clearly define what sort of pupils we are nurturing – tomorrow’s tribalists or nationalists. I sympathise with our lady in Nyeri. I see her as a victim of the colonial mindset that taught you to hate the other tribe in a grand dive-and-rule conspiracy. She needs education and I support Dr Seroney that all Kenyan pupils be required to learn at least one other Kenyan language besides their mother tongue as a first step in bridging the cultural divide and “killing” the tribe. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Shame of selfish Luhya leaders By Fwamba, Bungoma, August 25 2007 The ejection of ODM presidential hopeful Raila Odinga and his entourage from a hotel in Nyeri owned by a relative of President Mwai Kibaki was a primitive act that should not only be condemned but has no place in  modern civilization. Whatever the reason, this action underlines just how polarized our country is along tribal lines. Raila proved that he was not a tribalist when he declared ‘Kibaki tosha’ in 2002. But it seems some people in this country believe that the seat of the president is their preserve and whoever else seeks it is an enemy who doesn’t deserve any hospitality even if he is paying for it. It is shame if at all Raila’s ejection was as a result of a tall order from a senior family member of Hon. Mwai Kibaki as its being speculated. Such primitive characters have not had an opportunity to learn consequences of such primitive actions. Many will remember, the Nazi holocaust, racial hatred, the infamous Rwanda genocide which emanated from hatred between Tutsis and Hutus and the scenario where celebrated author and lecturer Prof.Ngugi wa Thiong’o was ejected from a hotel in California purportedly meant for whites only .Those ignorant of history and global political trends do not know repercussions of such actions. If Raila is ejected from Nyeri because he opposes President Kibaki, why would Luo’s welcome him in Kisumu?  I have been watching events in the Kibaki camp for the last few months and I can tell you that a government of national unity is a sham as only one community tends to get the lion’s share of top jobs. Its time for political realignment and we must only go where we are respected and recognized. Not where we are going to rubberstamp other peoples fortunes. We have less than 100 days to election and that means we need to make a decision that makes sense to us and our interests, especially we the young people both in western province and other parts of the country. If Kibaki team will be such a group, well if not we will certainly decide. Kibaki has cancelled debts for coffee and tea farmers but when he came to western province he dilly dallied on the plight of the sugar cane and maize farmers.  A lobby group to re-elect Kibaki has been formed in Western but then coordinator is from Central Province. We are certainly against this kind of behavior and condemn our political leaders like Musikari Kombo, Mukhisa Kituyi and Moody Awori who have decided to auction Luhya on the cheap. All our networks in western province should share this information. Let us not rubberstamp the benefits the ministers have gained at our expense. FWAMBA NC FWAMBA KENYA YOUNG VOTERS ALLIANCE BUNGOMA ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ VIEW FROM HOME AWAY: TRAGEDY AND POLITICAL OPPORTUNISM By Shad Bulimo, London August 17 2007 Even before the mud dries in Khuvasali village in Kakamega, yet another tragedy hits Budalang’i in Busia. Within a week, more than an estimated 40,000 people may be misplaced; thanks to the flush floods occasioned by the bursting of the banks and River Nzoia while at least 18 are dead or missing in the Kakamega mudslide. The two incidences are calamitous and illustrate just how useless we as a country in general and Western Province in particular are in disaster management. In the case of Khuvasali, rescue efforts were at best shambolic; the response too slow and too little too late for victims. President Mwai Kibaki was touring Western last week when the tragedy happened. He sent shs 100,000.00 in donations while area MP, Soita Shitanda (Malava) who is also the Minister for Housing, donated shs50, 000.00. I know the president’s trip was planned in advance and he was as always on a tight schedule. I am disappointed the President did not break his journey to visit the area and commiserate with the people of Khuvasali. His advisors should have spotted a window of political opportunity that presented itself. One man’s poison is always another man’s meat, so goes the altruism and in politics more than any other filed of human endeavour, shrewd politicians exploit whatever opportunity presents itself to gain political mileage – be they funerals, weddings or tragedies. It’s an election year for heaven’s sake and moreover the president had arrived in the Province with fishing rod and baits. But in Khuvasali, nobody would have noticed how large or small the bait was. His face in Khuvasali would have gained him more fish than perhaps his entire effort for the four days he sojourned in Western. It was left to the Special Programmes minister, John Munyes to rescue the government. Mr Munyes made a quick visit to the area and promised heavy mechanical equipment from the army to speed up recovery efforts. Day after his promise, nothing had come of his promise. Neglected and abjected, the people of Khuvasali received some help from local sugar companies – West Kenya, Mumias and Nzoia – who sent in their diggers. Although these diggers attracted controversy as to their appropriateness, at least the gesture from the sugar giants was recorded in the rescue mission largely coordinated by the International Federation of the Red Cross assisted by the National Youth Service. Photographs of NYS personnel digging into the sludge with spades illustrated the crudeness with which the rescue efforts were being handled despite warnings from the Western Deputy Provincial Geologist, Mr Duncan Lizunella that water was still flowing from the soil and the tragedy could be escalated. The Vice President, Dr Moody Awori, sent condolences to the families of the bereaved. It was left to presidential aspirant, Musalia Mudavadi to spill the beans. He visited the victims and donated shs50, 000.00 and blankets. From him though, we learn that apparently the government has a Disaster and Emergency Fund of shs 2billion meant to deal with such acts of God. Not a penny had come from this fund as we go to press begging the question: If Khuvasali Incident is not a disaster to merit help, then what is? Flooding in Budalang’i is not new. It’s predictable and measures have been taken to lessen the impact when River Nzoia bursts its banks such as building of dykes. However, these efforts are uselessly too little and need to be revamped by building larger dykes or barriers. Reports indicate the current spate of floods have misplaced up to 40,000 people who are without shelter, clean water and toilets. The area is marooned and fears are growing of an outbreak of waterbourne diseases and cholera. Predictable or not, it is crucial that a lot needs to be done in disaster preparedness. There is a strong argument that Western Kenya is too far away from Nairobi to matter and is only good as a fishing ground for votes.  It’s incidences like the above two that we expect the government to grab the bull by its horns and demonstrate that every part of Kenya is important and no one is marginalized. Members of Parliament from Western Province met in Nairobi last Thursday to plot their political future and raised questions about the government’s handling of the mudslides, floods and insecurity in Mount Elgon. The people of Khuvasali are still searching and mourning the dead. As the dead are buried we owe it their memory to put in place measures to avert and deal with such visitations in future. Shad Bulimo is the editor of Abeingo.org, an online portal of the Luhya people. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- WHO WILL SPEAK FOR WESTERN? By Shadrack Bulimo, London August 6 2007 As President Kibaki turns his campaign machinery to Western Province, it is worth asking ourselves just what role Luhya people are playing or are expected to play in the unfolding political dispensation in Kenya. Though populous and second only to the Kikuyu, Luhya land is one of the most backward parts of the country. Successive governments have only seen it proper to use Luhya as cheer leaders and dish out hand outs to a few individuals or kingpins to whitewash the masses of Luhya land. During Kenyatta days, we had Joseph Otiende, Kenya’s first minister for education and the first Luhya graduate from Makerere University. Otiende was fiery in his delivery of political salvos. The late Jaramogi Odinga once told me that if there was one person Kenyatta feared most in his government, it was not him but JD Otiende. Otiende, like Bildad Kaggia from Murang’a were ideologues and shunned ill gotten state lucre stolen from the lumpen proletariat of Kenya. The man is still alive and tills his smallholder land in Vihiga District. A visit to his home reveals nothing of the stature of the man in the early sixties. But that is a moot point. What is relevant in the case of Otiende is that in him, the Luhya had a leader capable of fostering and nurturing the spirit of entrepreneurship totally lacking in Western. In him, the Luhya had a direct link to the inner sanctum of the government; and where loans were easily facilitated by Kenyatta to the Kikuyu to purchase settler farms, the Luhya merely flocked to Nairobi and Central province to labour on the coffee plantations. There is absolutely no evidence that Otiende used his position to hoist the lot of Luhya people. It was a time of Kenyanisation of the economy but this largely turned into “Kikuyuinsatrion” of the economy with majority of ministers happy to get hand outs from Kenyatta as individuals. His material condition pretty much illustrates all that is wrong with Luhya. Exit Kenyatta enter Moi and in Western enter one Substone Budamba Mudavadi. The late George Mbugguss sent me on a special assignment to interview Kenya’s first cabinet during the silver jubilee of independence in 1989. One, Harvester Jackson Angaine refused to be interviewed in Nairobi. He demanded that the interview take place in Meru. I did not mind where the interview took place so long as I got my story. On the appointed day, I found that Mr Angaine had laid out an elaborate ceremony at what he called “ikulu” with choirs, women groups etc drafted to entertain the King of  Meru. The activities took place from around 10am to around 7pm.  All the time, Mr Angaine insisted that I must sit next to him and watch the entertainment. It was not until 8pm that he finally relented and agreed for the formal interview. Exhausted and frustrated, I had to get my story. It then transpires that the reason he kept me so long was to use me to send a message to all those who doubted that he was the King of Meru. In particular, to debunk the myth that besides Moi only Mudavadi enjoyed the near-kingly status. That was amusing but underscores the influence Mudavadi had in the land even among his peers. So how did his power help the Luhya?  Ask untrained teachers in Western at the time and city council sweepers. He employed them by the busloads and nobody dared question why only Luhya. Besides that act of economic empowerment, I am disappointed that Mudavadi’s influence did not filter through where it’s most needed – large scale industrialisation and commercialisation of Luhya economy. There is no economic edifice in Western that can easily be identified with Budamba which has changed the lives of thousands of our people. Another great Luhya emerges in the name of John Osogo. It is rumoured that Webuye Paper Mills was originally earmarked for Thompson falls in Murang’a but Osogo cannily sneaked in Broderick Falls in Webuye while he was minister for commerce and industry. Sneaky and undefendable but perhaps understandable given the economic and political climate prevailing in Kenya at the time. At least, Webuye was born, jobs and auxiliary services created. It’s a town of nearly 80,000 people all directly or indirectly involved in paper processing activities – thanks to one man. The current government does not really have a pointer man who commands the whole of western. The only person who came close to that stature was the late Kijana Wamalwa. In his absence, Musikari Kombo, the local government minister comes close by virtue of the share of his political vote (30%) in Western. However where strength of character and leadership has been needed, it has not been found in Mr Kombo. He seems to busy himself jostling for handouts from the state largesse for his cronies. Which beggars the question, who will speak for the Luhya? We have had great leaders of yore. The people’s watchman, Martin Shikuku, a priest by training, was largely a man suave in parliamentary procedures and horned debating skills. His record on economic matters is wanting. Musalia Mudavadi, the short-lived vice president and for many years minister for finance, has been described as lacking in go-getting skills; waiting to be spoon fed is more like it. He disavows all that criticism and describes himself as patient and calculative. He is now one of the presidential aspirants on an ODM-K ticket. History will either absolve or swallow him. But while in government, I never saw him reach out to Busia, Bungoma and Kakamega in an effort to kick start economic regeneration of Luhya land. Then we have buccaneers like Cyrus Jirongo; he of the YK ’92 fame (or is it infamy?). He started the Luhya unity drive, a very positive effort, but that seems to have petered out and the Luhya are once again back to the degenerative state they have always found themselves. Kibaki begins his tour of Western on Wednesday this week taking in largely opposition zones. Housing Minister, Soita Shitanda has rolled out a wish list for Kibaki on top of which is the stalled sugar factory in Busia. But seriously western is bleeding. In Nyanza, Kibaki came with a shs12billion election bribe. He promised the elevation of Kisumu airport to an international airport, he chucked funds in the roads construction projects and talked of reviving fishing and cotton industries. Who knows what he has in store for Western. Whatever he has, it is not going to come out unless we make noise. We are far too fatalistic and contented to be noticed. Western needs industries. Yes sugar is one of the mainstays of our cash economy, principally around Mumias and Butere Districts. But it is by no means the only one. Western, taking in the Rift Valley areas of Kitale has been described as the granary of Kenya. Maize farmers need extension services from the government. Initiatives taken by community leaders such as Dr Eusebius Juma Mukhwana of SACRED need support from the top. SACRED recently hosted the former UN Secretary General, Koffi Annan at its demonstration farm in Mubanga, Bungoma. A university charter was recently granted to what was formerly Western College of Technology - Weco - (now Masinde Muliro University). The university needs investments to expand its research activities or expand on those currently being undertaken in Bukura Rice Scheme. A teacher training college is to be built at Kibabii, Bungoma at cost of shs1.7 billion and some roads have been tarmacked. All these is positive but more remains to be done. The potential in western has not been fully exploited yet. There is for instance Kakamega forest, one of only two remaining rainforests in Africa (the other being the Congo). The forest is disappearing fast due to illegal logging, tacitly sanctioned by corrupt government officials. The forest is internationally recognised as a sanctuary of rare birds and snakes. The forest needs intervention from Kibaki to stop it from total decimation. It has the potential to attract ten times the number of tourists currently arriving. But this calls for investment in security, infrastructure and training. In education, the ratio of our youth who gain admission to universities is far dimmer than that of say, Central. This is because the schools in Western are poorly equipped. In the civil service, a recent survey found out that despite being the second largest tribe in Kenya, the Luhya share of the top civil service and parastatal jobs was under 10%. Yes we are cooks. We accept that with thanks. We can cook for the whole country. But can we cook for ourselves? And yes we are watchmen. Thanks. We protect the whole country. But can we protect ourselves?  Someone please tell Kibaki that when cooks and watchmen down their tools, the whole country will be open to starvation and looting.   Shadrack Bulimo is the editor of Abeingo.org Website: http://www.abeingo.org (broadband) Or http://www.abeingo.org/luhya.html (dial up) Email: editor@abeingo.org --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- LAST CHANCE TO SAVE A VITAL RESOURCE OPINION The launch of the Lake Victoria Basin Commission this week by East African leaders marks a major turning point in the management of this vital water mass.   The lake is facing serious threats due to pollution, improper water use and general ecological imbalances that have led to marked reduction of water inflow. For more than a decade now, the lake has had to contend with the choking water hyacinth that destroyed marine life and stifled economic activities.  In setting up a commission to harness the water resource, the message the leaders are sending out is that time has come when countries living around it collectively managed it.  It does not make sense for one country to take care of its part of the lake, while the other parts are being destroyed through pollution or poor use.  When the lake dries up, and we are told that the water levels are declining fast, the entire eastern and northern Africa will suffer both economically and in ecological terms. In the past, the lake was a transport hub between Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania, and thus provided a vital link for business transactions in the region.  But this activity ceased when the then East African Community folded in the late 1970s. The ensuing loss is probably what prompted the East African leaders to set up the commission.  Through this body, lake transport ought to be revived, as ought other joint activities, including marine research, irrigation and patrols to ensure sustainable water management and conservation.  It is gratifying to note that President Kibaki, who presided over the launch, pledged that the Government would provide infrastructure — roads and electricity — to the communities living around the lake on the Kenyan side to enable them make better use of the water resource. For a region that is blessed with the continent’s largest fresh water lake, it would be inconceivable to sit back and watch as it dried up. Source: NATION MEDIA, Tuesday 12 June 2007 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sugar farming a fruitless pre occupation S R Athembo Onyuro Nairobi, Monday, April 16, 2007 In a recent newspaper advertisement, Mumias Sugar Company posed a very important question: Is the Kenya sugar industry ready for full liberalisation by 2008? As a long time sugarcane farmer and transporter in the Miwani zone, my answer is YES. But for this to happen, teething problems afflicting the industry have to be overcome. The cheap sugar from the Comesa region vis a vis local expensive sugar is the bone of contention. Kenya does not deserve an extension beyond the March 8, 2008, Comesa deadline. On March 8, 2003, Comesa member States allowed the Government’s request for extension — and by extension all the sugar factories — five years’ extension to put the sugar industry in order. Less than a year to the deadline, nothing tangible has been done to address the rot. The Government has just woken up from four years’ slumber with fire fighting methods. Agriculture minister Mr Kipruto arap Kirwa now wants to open Miwani Sugar Factory before December. Both Miwani and Muhoroni mills remain under receivership. The Busia Sugar Factory is a white elephant, while wild game ventures are being mooted to start a sugar factory in Tana River District and open the one at Ramisi. Mumias Sugar Company, the mother of all sugar factories, is calling for bids to study next year’s deadline, barely 11 months to the crunch. Four hurdles are the roadblock to the success of sugar farming. High taxes and levies are the number one enemy to the liberation of sugar farming. They make local sugar the most expensive in Africa if not the world. A couple of years ago, the Kenya Sugar Board published the numerous taxes and levies imposed on the crop. An analysis proves that local sugar can profitably sell at half the current price if the taxes were reduced by the same margin. With a stroke of the pen and a Kenya Gazette notice, the Finance or Agriculture minister can abolish or reduce the taxes and levies on sugar and it will compete with that from other Comesa states. Setting up commissions, calling for consultancy bids and passing the buck do not help. The second problem is the high cost of production. For example, ploughing an acre of land using mould bold plough costs Sh4,500 and Sh3,000 for second ploughing, harrowing and planting. Seed canes cost Sh2,000 a tonne and Sh150 to cut a tonne. It costs Sh750 a tonne to transport cane from Miwani to Muhoroni/Chemelil. These charges do not include various hidden charges and levies. The high cost of production and the taxes and levies make sugar a worthless venture. No wonder sugar produced and transported thousands of kilometres away from as far as Brazil, is cheaper even after the cost of insurance, freight and local taxes and levies. The explanation is true for sugar produced in neighbouring countries such as Sudan, Uganda and Tanzania. MPs from the sugar belt areas are the number three enemy. They have used the woes to make themselves sugar tigers for cheap publicity. The MPs know the Sugar Act is grossly flawed and defective, but have done nothing. Instead of moving Bills and Motions to amend the Act, some MPs raid supermarkets to confiscate ‘illegal’ sugar to attract cheap public attention. They have also become specialists in unsubstantiated allegations. Some have colluded with importers and connived with sugar factory directors to steal funds and to have their relatives and supporters employed. Some of the MPs who shout loudest about sugar are not farmers. At best, they are soiling their hands in the crop for the first time. They, therefore, do not share the physical, mental, emotional and economic tribulations of cane farmers. The MPs should lead cane farmers from the rear — not the front. Non-payment of sugarcane by-products is the fourth hurdle standing between the sugar industry and next year’s Comesa deadline. Most sugar factories do not pay farmers for and have no capacity to use cane by-products such as molasses, burgesses (fibre remains after milling) and cane leaves, among others. In Indonesia, for instance, sugar mills pay farmers for by-products and use them to make paper and spirits and generate electricity. In view of the above facts, legal and illegal importation of sugar are symptoms, not the disease per se, of what ails local sugar farming. The focus must be to destroy the four major hurdles. The writer is a sugar farmer and transporter onyuroh@yahoo.com. Source: THE STANDARD