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Tuesday, October 31, 2006

The Choices For The Kenyan Economy In This Debate: More Of The Same Or A Brave New Direction

Why The Kumbafu Hawkers Are Our Best Hope For A Super New Economy

The recent announcement by Safaricom of record unprecedented profits, never before achieved in East and Central Africa has hardly been taken with the impact it deserves.

The leading mobile phone company in the region reported a staggering profit of a whooping Kshs 12.2 billion before taxes. Those earnings for their financial year ending March 2006 were equal to about 63% of the entire profits of the banking industry. In other words the profits made by the big four, Barclays, Standard Chartered, KCB and Citibank put together. Profits rose by a huge 44.6 per cent from 8.4 billion the previous financial year.

This unprecedented achievement by Safaricom proves one thing beyond any doubt. And that is the fact the economy is crying out for a change in direction and a change in policy. For starters the main diving force behind the extra-ordinary Safaricom profits was… you guessed it, the Kumbafu hawkers and small road-side kiosks and small tiny traders. Those are the people who sold the bamba 50 shs airtime scratch card like crazy. The sell phone company openly admits, that it was the bamba 50, more than any other single factor that caused the exceptional financial performance.

This is clear evidence that the country has a large force of persons who do not need to be persuaded to be a working nation. They just need the opportunities.

But Safaricom is not the only company that has been smart enough to see the potential in the mass market. You will have heard of a small bank called Equity Bank (opps it is no longer small, thanks to the Kumbafu riff raff).

When all mainstream banks were behaving the way the government is behaving now and basically saying that they had no time for the kumbafu riff raff. Equity concentrated on serving this ignored sector of the market. The big banks laughed at their stupidity and concentrated on putting all their money in government paper (treasury bills). You know the story, today those same guys who were laughing then are desperately trying to play catch up with Equity.

Safaricom or Equity would have chosen to sing the song I am sick of hearing Kenyans sing and said that growth in profits takes time. And they would have been nowhere today. What we need are government policies that are designed to bring in ordinary Kenyans into the action.

Sadly many readers of this blog do not see any problem in having a growing economy side by side with growing unemployment. I understand these kind of people very well. Empathy is not one of their strengths. They have either been brought up in a life of privilege and comfort and have probably never used a pit latrine in their lifetime. So they would hardly understand that almost half of the Kenyans living in Nairobi do not even have the luxury of a pit latrine. They use paper bags and then dump them where the rest of the garbage is. This blogger uses pit latrines regularly to keep his feet firmly on the ground.

How would such people appreciate the fact that no economic policy that does not have the creation of jobs right at the top of the list will work in today's Kenya? How will they see the grave danger in security and peace when we continue to give only lip service but basically ignore the massive unemployment situation in the country? How will they realize that economic policies that were used in the 60s and 70s when Kenya was a young growing nation will not fly today, at least not for long? How will they realize that the vast majority of Kenyans are crying out for real change and are so desperate that if change does not come soon, something will have to give?

What is urgently required is for us to restore opportunity to the rapidly disappearing middle class and low-income earners in Kenya.

I appreciate the fact that my posts are getting read by people who sound like they are seasoned economists who understand the issues very well. But many of them seem to believe that it is unrealistic and downright untenable for low-income earners to be brought into full participation in the economy so quickly. To them anybody who says they can make an attempt to bridge the widening gap between the rich and poor in Kenya is nothing short of a hopeless dreamer.

Here is what the next government should do as a matter of urgency;

i) Put employment creation at the top of the list of priorities of government policy.
ii) Apportion a certain percentage of all government procurement to small businesses and micro-enterprises. If it was upto me, I would say at least 50% for starters.
iii) Guarantee a hefty amount in small business bank loans with leading banks so that small traders and entrepreneurs can access bank loans to establish and expand small business.
iv) Create small business "incubators" countrywide and identify talented hawkers and small traders who can be assisted to quickly expand their businesses into the next level, thus creating employment.
v) Support the establishment of websites to promote and sell juakali products worldwide.

These are just a few of the many things which can be done, including passing the necessary legislation, which can help boost small business.

It is not a bad idea to encourage many small traders to come together to form things like co-operatives of sorts and lobby groups to fight for better opportunities (as has been suggested), but this will not have a serious impact if these small traders are not coming together from a position of strength.

P.S. We can learn yet another important lesson in the Kencell/Safaricom saga. Early on Kencell (which has now been bought off by Celtel as a result of business policies that did not work out too well) made a deliberate decision to go upmarket where all the money was (exactly the thinking of the current government). Safaricom decided the money was with the Kumbafu riff raff. The results speak for themselves.

P.S. 2: Bill Clinton made the same bet in 1993, the crux of his economic policy was to reduce the government deficit while restoring opportunity for the middle class. The result was unprecedented continuous growth of the America economy for 10 straight years.

To do what must be done, we need a change of government. ODM Kenya can't do it either (it's the same guys). I don't know who can do it yet. But what I know is that the time for change is now, and that person (or group of people) will come forward before election day. Anybody out there whom this blog can support to carry forward this economic policy that is the only chance for Kenya?

I rest my case on the issue of the Kenyan economy.

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Monday, October 30, 2006

Why Clever Positioning Means That Kibaki Has Already Won Re-election… Barring Extraordinary Circumstances

Clever Positioning Of Their Man By The Kibaki Think Tank Led By An International PR Company Means That Barring Extraordinary Circumstances Kibaki Has Already Won Re-election

…But It's Going To Be A Very Violent One

Here's Why…

To Understand What Has Been Done, You Must Understand What "Positioning" Is.

Two gentlemen by the name of Al Ries and Jack Trout wrote what in my view is the most important marketing book ever written in the 60s called Positioning. This book changed marketing forever and every Kenyan needs to understand the basic principle behind positioning as presented in this book before it is too late. This is because the Kibaki campaign machine is about to steal an election based on this simple principle of marketing and human behaviour.

I want to remind you of something… Remember all the noise we all made when it was reported that the government was hiring the most expensive public relations outfit in the world to improve its' image? Remember how we all said that it wouldn't work, and that they didn't know enough about Kenyan politics. And then remember how we all just dismissed them and forgot about them?

Well, these guys have been working overtime and they've just pulled off something that is going to guarantee a Kibaki win in 2007, unless we all wake up to what is happening before it is too late.

Bear with me for a minute while I explain what positioning is.

The book by Mr Ries (pronounced Rees) and Mr Trout broke new ground because it changed the way we look at marketing. Until then people always knew that marketing wars were fought out there in the field in the marketplace. Trout and Ries told us that they are fought in the minds of people and suddenly it dawned on everybody how true that was.

Mention the product "soft drink" and the first name that comes to mind is Coca-cola, mention "toothpaste" and the first name that comes to mind is Colgate. Those two are positioned at the top of the minds of consumers. So to sell a competing soft drink or a toothpaste successfully, you must first be able to "position" your new product properly and not in the field or marketplace but in the minds of consumers.

So this guys comes up with Uncola or a non-Cola and positioned their soft drink directly opposite Coca-Cola and their marketing has proved to be very successful. But probably the most successful positioning was that of Avis rent-a-car in the US. Everybody knew that Hertz was the number one rent a car outfit so to positioning themselves as number one was not believable. (This is one of the most important aspects of positioning. And that is, it must be believable to occupy a position in the mind). So Avis deliberately positioned themselves as No 2 and they said in their adverts that they were number two, but there was a kicker to that statement. What does a number two company do that a number one company doesn't do? They try harder of course. So that implies that customers will always get a better service and a better deal from a company that is trying harder because it is number two than from a usually arrogant market leader who is already number one. That clever position caused an unprecedented rise in sales.

So positioning is very important to marketing and it is even more important in politics. George W. Bush did not win in 2004 because he was popular. He won because his clever handlers positioned John Kerry as the candidate Osama Bin Laden preferred to win the presidency because he was not as tough as Bush was. That was enough. When Osama himself released a tape on cue shortly before election day, I knew Bush had won. Images of 9/11 were still too fresh on the minds of Americans and nobody wanted Osama taking over America, which is exactly what was being implied in the George W. Bush TV ads.

So what is Kibaki's expensive PR consultancy and his handlers doing?

They have simply positioned Raila as the only chief opponent of the Kibaki government, with his ODM Kenya party. Have you noticed that the minute you criticize Narc Kenya or president Kibaki, you are labeled a Raila sympathizer. This positioning has been done so well that even if Kalonzo Musyoka were to win the ODM nomination, it would be impossible for him to shake off the Raila label. If he loses and defects, he really won't matter because the race "in the minds" of voters is between Kibaki and Raila, yes and also between Kikuyu and Luo. The Kikuyu with their sympathizers and the Luos with their sympathizers. All those politicians who crowded into ODM are finished as far as the Presidential race is concerned. Yes, even Uhuru Kenyatta has lost a golden chance to position himself as an alternative candidate under a unified Kanu. So now, whoever wins the ODM nomination, it really doesn't matter because the presidency will be a fight between Raila and Kibaki in people's minds.

The effect has been dramatic. Most Kenyans no longer look at issues. The whole thing has already degenerated into a tribal thing. It is now simply what that Jaluo is saying or what lies that Okuyo is telling this time. If you doubt it, just try and take a middle position in any debate, or even those online discussion forums. You will find that it is impossible.

Notice how this is in sharp contrast to the original Narc (National Rainbow Coalition) in 2002 whose strategy and famous summit was under the full control of Raila, but nobody saw those elections as Moi versus Raila. We all saw it as Moi versus a united opposition. Or Moi versus the rest of Kenya.

I keep on warning about this, and I will never get tired of doing it, because I see real danger here. Kibaki was warned about the referendum in November last year, he ignored the warnings. To date, almost a year later, the wounds of that November Referendum are yet to heal. Let the President take the warnings seriously this time round, because the result could be catastrophic and the bucks stops on his desk.

Kenyans should pray very hard that we do not go into the general elections in this kind of set up. Tensions will be way too high and there can only be one result, chaos. We are not yet ready for a Luo versus Kikuyu presidential race, which is exactly what the 2007 polls are shaping up to be.

Quick Question
Why would anybody want John Michuki dead? And if they were serious why wait until he has left the house to fire shots inside? Why not stake him out or ambush him? Why Is Michuki himself so sure that it was an attempt on his life, before any investigations have even been done? Citizen TV says that the slain chief met with people who at first identified themselves as policemen but shot the chief dead when he asked for further identification to prove that they were policmen. Oh... and the chief bumped into them totally by accident. Then at around the same time things steal Kalonzo Musyoka's secret game plan for election 2007. Oh please... what game plan is there in ODM Kenya that is different from everything that we have seen in the past and is valuable enough to be stolen?

It is the rapidly approaching general elections, stupid.


Tomorrow: The Exciting Alternative To Kibakinomics And What We Can Learn About It From Safaricom and Bill Clinton. Don't Miss It

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The Easiest Way To Make Money Online

There are many ways to make money online, but to be honest most of them require plenty of skills and a lot of hard work. Many others need a web site that already has tons of traffic.

Luckily there is a very easy way of making money online, by simply making posts at your blog. This has to be the easiest no-brainer way to make money online.

You receive a press release and then write a post in your own words following the instructions carefully. Already there are bloggers who are making some useful amount of money every week doing this. All you need to get started is a blog.

Saturday, October 28, 2006

Kibaki And The Economy: The Truth Please?

I appreciate all you wonderful folks out there who take the time to leave comments at this blog. Thank you very much. Even critical comments are very useful because they help me to stay on my toes and they improve the quality of information here because every time I sit down t write something I have to be sure of what I am saying.

I did predict recently that the Kibaki campaign team would go into overdrive over the improved economy and that is now already happening (by the way, I wonder how this campaign is being financed? Where is the money coming from? But that is a topic for another day.)

Today my question is very simple. What particular Kibaki policies have been responsible for improving the economy? Better tax collection, I hear you say. Ensuring that farmers are paid better for their produce, I hear somebody else say. My next question is, are this policy implementation moves or just administrative house-cleaning?

I hear somebody else say that the improved economy did not happen during the Moi era but has happened during the Kibaki one. I disagree. Former President Moi has in fact done much more single handedly to contribute to the current strong Kenyan economy than what Kibaki has done. Moi's contribution was the single move of handing over power peacefully and ensuring a smooth transition where the constitution leaves too much room and loopholes for abuse. And even when he and his much hyped "project" had lost the election badly. This is something Kibaki is yet to achieve and going by what is currently happening I doubt whether Kibaki would do the same if he happened to lose in 2007. I wait to be proved wrong. Regular readers of this blog know that I am rarely wrong.

What corrupt Moi did in December 2002, after running down the economy for 24 years changed the investment climate in Kenya virtually overnight. All of a sudden investors started seeing Kenya in a totally different light. The massive foreign exchange inflows that resulted and continue to date is what has changed everything. The results would have been more or less the same and maybe even better had somebody else from the opposition been elected president. I don't want to drop names as all hell will break lose, especially If I dare mention some names. So let me just say that things would have been a lot better if for example I had stood for and won the presidency. My biggest asset? I would not be thinking in the 70s.

The one attempt at improving the economy that I remember was the pitiful attempt to reduce interest rates, the idea being to promote borrowing amongst ordinary Kenyans. That one worked well in the 70s, it will never work today for obvious reasons. Interest rates crept right back to almost where they were. Which is just as well because that way the country is able to attract the tons of foreign currency that are mainly responsible for the much hyped 5.8% growth.

I am not the only one with this verdict on the Kibaki error. None other than former chairman of the Constitution of Kenya Review Commission Prof Yash Pal Ghai in a statement this week has called the Kibaki administration ineffective. That is putting it mildly.

Ladies and Gentlemen we have in our hands an administration that has blundered its way round things for 4 years, during which some of its' members have acquired vast wealth and during which Anglo Leasing happened (only to be blamed on the Moi administration, which means John Githongo should have his head examined for imagining a scandal that never actually happened). The most effective thing about this administration has been its' current well iled and well financed propaganda campaign that has almost convinced even me that the Kibaki administration has been responsible for the improved economy.

The choice for Kenyan voters in this election will be simple. It will be between going for real change or re-electing the wazees for another 5 years of blundering ineffective government (remember they had to call Moi in to help) and claiming credit for the hard work and sacrifice of gallant Kenyans.

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New Constitution For Kenya: Why This Is Our Best Chance Yet

This is the best time for Kenyans to get the new constitution that they so badly need.

This is the seduction stage where all politicians are suddenly all ears to what the electorate is saying, with elections so close. The moment we have cast our votes, the winners will promptly go back to their usual self-seeking ways and we will just see a repeat of what we saw with this Kibaki administration where they hijacked the process and emerged with an unworkable and "strange" document which Kenyans quite rightly rejected in the historic November referendum.

Kenyans should push with all they have for the new constitution to be enacted shortly before the elections as has been proposed.

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Friday, October 27, 2006

Kibaki's Vision For The Growing Kenyan Economy: Small Traders Not Included

Last night Finance Minister Amos Kimunya was interviewed on the NTV On The Spot show hosted by July Gichuru. The usual sms survey during the show must have brought wide smiles to President Kibaki's handlers because it revealed that a whooping 79% of those who were watching the show believe that the economy has grown by 5.8% and have actually felt the impact.

I do not want to pour cold water on this survey for no reason but the truth is it is a reflection of the kind of audience a show discussing the Kenyan economy is bound to attract. Company CEOs and generally the top 1% (to borrow from a fascinating new book about the widening gap between the rich and the poor worldwide and the dangers this poses.). These are the sort of understandably selfish Kenyans who speak the language of the Kibaki administration. Many play golf regularly at the Muthaiga Golf club (not far from starving Kenyans living in the most appalling conditions which few can imagine, in the nearby sprawling Mathare slums). These people (a significant percentage of them are not even Kenyans) are fully in support of the idea of getting the riff-ruff (hawkers) off the streets and as far as possible from the city.

What came out of the Amos Kimunya TV interview is the thinking at the heart of the Kibaki administration. The minister kept on repeating the same message over and over again during the entire duration of the interview.

The message was simply this;

The government wants to see many small independent traders merging to form bigger entities, which will have a bigger impact in the economy than many small micro enterprises. In the minister's book, "big" means more efficiency and more profits.

At first sight this may appear to be very sound and solid thinking. Except for one problem. An aggressive promotion of such a policy over the next few years will result in only one thing. It will sink the country into chaos and anarchy.

This is the thinking of the 70s. Modern management and economies are thriving on micro enterprises. It has been proved over and over again that the fastest and surest way of creating employment is to promote small business not encourage mergers that will form big enterprises that will use technology to limit their staff numbers.

The Kimunya interview proved conclusively that this government is only paying lip service to the creation of jobs.

We are fooling ourselves big time if we think that we can continue to ignore the growing gap between the poor and the rich in Kenya. We are being blind if we think that we can push job creation down the list of priorities and expect crime not to escalate beyond the current levels.

We must also bear in mind that the reason why most Kenyans live below the poverty line today is because of massive corruption and the implementation of policies that have always been designed to maintain the status quo. To keep on heading up the same beaten track will only lead to disaster.

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Why Both Kenyans And Tanzanians Are Victims Of Propaganda

Anybody who wants to understand just how deep a hole the nation of Tanzania is in, just needs to read the comments by Tanzanians in all articles in this blog that touch on the nation. Especially the most recent ones.

Tanzania is o the verge of a total blackout after months of a crippling 12 hour power rationing regime. Crime is set to rise to unprecedented levels after the government ordered the demolition of tens of thousands of structures near roads and even in poor estates that has wiped out sources of livelihood for hundreds of thousands of locals. The Tanzanian shilling is in a free-fall, and I could go on and on.

But reading the comments, it is clear that Tanzanians believe that their economy is still growing faster than that of Kenya and that hakuna tatizo katika jamuhuri ya muungano wa Tanzania (there's no problem in Tanzania).

That is exactly what propaganda does – it blinds or dramatically limits a person's vision so that they are able to see everything only from one point of view.

But Kenyans too are victims of years of propaganda. And his is in the issues of relating to our dear brothers from the DhoLuo community. If you are reading this blog for the first time, let me make it very clear that I have no connection whatsoever with the Luo community, except that one of my closest friends (now deceased) was a Luo whose death can be directly linked to this propaganda that I am talking about here.

Reading many of the ridiculous Tanzanian comments should be an effective mirror that should help us see ourselves better and begin to understand the reasons behind some of our short-sighted views when it comes to issues of tribalism in Kenya.

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Alnoor Kassam And The TradeBank Story: Proof That Many Prosperous Asians In Kenya Usually Run An Illegal Business On The Side...

...It Is The Only Way To Make Super Profits

Innovative Entrepreneur Who Crossed Swords With "Total Man" Nicholas Biwott Spills His Guts And Tells All...

To Heal His Conscience, he Says

The Standard newspaper has this week been carrying an exclusive series where their Washington correspondent interviewed Alnoor Kassam, now doing very well as an entrepreneur in Calgary, Canada.

Many younger generation Kenyans have no idea who Alnoor Kassam is. Yet behind this name is one of the most amazing Kenyan business stories of innovation, which I am about to tell.

Alnoor Kassam, as I remember him, was a short bespectacled man with a funny walk (almost a limp). But he built a Kshs 100 billion (annual turnover) business from almost nothing, in a very short space of time. That was the Diners Club Turnover shortly before his empire came crashing down.

Kassam bought the local Diners Club franchise when it was struggling. Those running it then saw it as a headache business where collections were quite often difficult. Kassam saw it as a legal way to "print money" because the 5% per month interest rate on Diners Club credit card balances actually meant a 60% per annum rate.

Kassam's first business on graduating as a Chartered accountant and returning to Kenya in 1979 had been a book match company called Empire Match Company. Book matches are those small matches that open like a book and often have advertisements printed on their front. With the sort of margins he was making from this small business, Kassam must have been very excited about the prospects in Diners.

However like a vast majority of Asian business persons in Kenya then and now, the match company was his legitimate business or cover, but he had another much more lucrative illegal business on the side that was his main cash cow. Kassam was an illegal foreign exchange dealer. In those days, it was illegal to hold or trade in foreign currency. Kassam found ways, using his foreign contacts of obtaining foreign currency, which he sold at a premium in the forex-starved local market.

On purchasing the Kenyan Diners franchise and with a little help from an American program that uses retired professionals and entrepreneurs to give technical advice to businesses in third world countries, Alnoor Kassam was able to build the local Diners Club franchise into one of the fastest growing and most innovative organizations ever seen in these shores.

Employees were motivated with huge cash rewards for performance and ideas that would improve customer service and profits. The workplace at Diners became one of the most exciting places anybody in Kenya would be privileged enough to work in. Some of the innovations that resulted included 24 hour round-the-clock banking services and drive-in banking amongst a host of other very innovative ideas that had never before been seen in these shores. A major subsidiary, Diners Finance quickly followed.

But the problem subsidiary that brought everything crashing down was TradeBank.

Kassam bought the bank from an Israeli national by the name of Gad Zeevi and was informed that TradeBank had loaned HZ construction Shs 400 million. That money actually went directly into the pockets of the then all-powerful cabinet minister and Moi confidante Nicholas Kipyator Biwott. Kassam came up with all sorts of schemes to recover this colossal amount owed to TradeBank, including acquiring the building that almost cost him his life, Yaya Centre as an asset against the cash owed, but the loan was never recovered. In fact it caused the collapse of TradeBank and Alnoor's business empire in Kenya.

The other big mistake Kassam made was to get mixed up with politicians. Kassam's life was threatened many times and this was how he finally had to flee the country for dear life through Tanzania after some security officers turned up at his office one day to arrest him.

In his account of how he escaped, published in the Standard this week, Kassam says he invited the arresting officers for lunch while he made good his escape through a back entrance they probably did not know about. Or did he just bribe them, as is widely believed?

Kassam claims that he has told all in the Standard, but there are a number of mysteries that linger like this one. How do you get arresting officers to allow you out of their sight? By just inviting them to lunch? Or did he mean he invited them to "chai?"

Read the fascinating Standard newspaper articles on Alnoor Kassam;

Alnoor Kassam Confessions Part I

Alnoor Kassam Confessions Part 2

Alnoor Kassam Confessions Part 3

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Why Kenyans Have No Time For Hawkers: We Admire Thieves And Big Time Crooks Instead

It is interesting that this has come up at a time when the government seems to have declared war on hawkers ad small traders in general.

Alnoor Kassam admits in the Standard articles that he cut his business teeth selling his book matches door to door and quite often he would set up temporary street stalls to sell the matches to passersby. That is hawking.

One of he reasons why the government and many Kenyans have no time for hawkers is because of the culture we have promoted that is really a bad hangover from the colonial era. Kenyans have no respect for the small trader or hawker who starts small and grows their business to success.

In the minds of Kenyans (and especially the current government) these are petty (nuisance) traders who take ages to grow their business. Or to quote my favourite regular lady commentator and supporter of this blog, who recently told a story about how she had somebody referring to the whole hawker issue; hawkers are riff raff that need to be cleared from the streets. These are actually stupid people who are not serious business people.

I will tell you the kind of people Kenyans respect. They respect thieves of public funds and corrupt entrepreneurs who give a bribe and make their money overnight. These business people, in the minds of many Kenyans will dress smartly and have flashy offices and cars.

Sorry guys. Those are not business people. They are not entrepreneurs. They are thieves, thugs and the real riff raff that Kenya does not need. Period.

But it was clear from the President's speech last night on KBC TV that "his government" (as he is always so fond of referring to it) prefers big business. Small traders should operate as far away as possible from the city and pieces of land have in fact been purchased for them in the furthest outskirts possible. The whole idea is so that the "riff raff" can do their business as far away from the city center as possible.

The situation has been made worse by the fact that in Kenya we allow senior government officials to do business. They use their positions to make quick money at the expense of the public and then call themselves businesspersons. These are the businesses that want all riff raff taken as far away as possible from the city.

I am not saying that hawkers should be given a free hand in the CBD (Central Business District). What I am saying is that we need to be a little more creative than the colonial government (those are the bylaws being used here) and what looks like a nuisance can be "the engine" to create jobs and turn Kenya into a major African Tiger. What's wrong with hawkers being licensed to trade in small side streets in downtown Nairobi? Or on major streets on Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning when other shops are closed?

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See also Problem Tribes in Kenyan politics

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Wednesday, October 25, 2006

Kikwete Blames God For Power Crisis

Breaking News From Tanzania


Is Tanzania On The Verge Of Shutting Down?

President Jakaya Kikwete was in the news this morning according to one of my sources in Tanzania, apologising for the power crisis to ordinary Tanzanians for the first time. But the real news was what he said after the apology.

The President says that the crisis is the Almighty himself, testing his government and it is not man made in any way.

This is NOT TRUE.

But I will get to that in a minute.

This latest development clearly illustrates the gravity of the crisis in Tanzania. The reason that the president is apologising is because there is worse to follow, possibly a total blackout in some major commecial centres in the country (as experts have been continously warning for sometime now). This is unprecedented because even in the darkest days of Nyerere's Ujamaa, the country did not have this sort of electricity shut down.

It is clear that President Kikwete's government is facing the sort of crisis that will definitely spill over and affect Kenya in one way or another in the coming weeks. The widely quoted (old figures) about Tanzania's good economic performance are about to start sticking out like a sore thumb.

Any of my Tanzanian brothers reading this who thinks this blogger is happy at being proved right (after blowing the whistle months ago) is badly mistaken. My closest friends live in Tanzania and most of the are Tanzanians. I love this beautiful country deeply (othewise why bother commenting?). What has happened is tragic and may have the effect of even slowing down Kenya's rapidly risisng economic growth. Foreign investors kenya will try to woe over the next few years will warily look at what is about to happen in Tanzania and get cold feet about investing in neighboring Kenya.

Anyway, here is to story of how corruption in high places played a major role in bring about the current Tanzanian crisis;

Impeccable sources in Tanzania close to the ministry of energy told this blogger the following fascinating story.

Immediate former President Benjamin Mkapa had forseen the coming energy crisis and had ordered two huge generators to help alleviate the coming crsis. However when Kikwete's new government came into power, the then Minister for Energy, Dr Ibrahim Msabaha, cancelled the order pointing out that there was corruption involved which the incoming government of President Jakaya Kikwete wanted to clean up.
My source said that the minister then went ahead and called in his Asian friends (from the kariakoo commercial area in dar-es-esalaam) and gave them the tender to supply the generators pronto. Apparently delivery for such big generators takes a little while - a couple of months at the very least (which his Asian friends found out later. Long after the Mkapa contract had been cancelled and the ordered generators sold to another client in South Africa. What this meant was that even as the crisis was starting to bite, the government was starting afresh the whole process of ordering generators.

But this sad story does not end there. The company given the contract does not exist in America where they say they claimed they were registered. To make matters worse something went wrong and the company ended up supplying some unservicable Boeing engines which cannot generate any power. (Read the revealing article that talks about this in detail).

So it is not God to blame as President Kikwete is saying, but corruption and simple human greed.

My source tells me that the Energy minister and his colleagues were eager to recover cash spent on the campaign trail quickly and were keen to get a huge contract to do this (almost identical to the Anglo-Leasing saga in Kenya).

I have made a decision to allow all the abusive comments by readers of this blog claiming to be Tanzanians that are heavy in empty rhetoric and abuse and lacking in facts and objectivity. I find it a very effective way to show evidence (in writing) to anybody (whether Tanzanian or Kenyan) that Tanzania is not ready for The East Afrian Federation and that with this kind of attitude there is a serious crisis in this nation that will virtually be impossible for Tanzanians to get out of in the near future. You can help somebody in trouble who wants to be helped, but how do you help somebody who is sure they are doing well?

The saddest thing about it all is that the vast majority of Tanzanians are convinced that Kenya is finished without the East African Federation or Customs Union. The truth is that Sudan beckons and dozens of other countries worldwide including the United States and Britain, two western powers that are desperate for Kenyan nurses and medical personnel. The evidence on the ground is that Kenya's huge well-trained idle work force is about to dissapear and became as precious as electrical power currently is in Tanzania.

History will prove that the very East African Union that Tanzanians are fighting so hard to kill (while giving hypocritical lip service in favor of it at Arusha) was the last boat that would have saved a sinking nation.

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Sunday, October 22, 2006

Why Charles Njonjo Should Shut Up

Somewhere in the up-market Nyali residential area of Mombasa, is a smart and yet huge residential home belonging to a Kenyan who likes to keep a low profile. It is whispered in the neighborhood that workers frequently leave after only a short time in employment. They complain that the bad tempered employer often scares them by threatening to kill them whenever they make a small mistake in the course of their work in the house.

The name of the foul-tempered employer is James Mungai. Some of the older residents in the area know only too well, who James Mungai is. Or rather who he was.

This man was once one of the most powerful men in the land. Yet he was only an assistant commissioner of police in charge of Rift Valley province during the Kenyatta administration. He was rumoured to have been related in some way to President Kenyatta. His arrogance was legendary. He would keep traffic held up for hours on end as his crossed a busy highway riding on a horse.

James Mungai made the life of one Daniel Arap Moi (then vice president) hell. It is said that once when Moi arrived from a foreign trip, he insisted on searching the Vice President for "concealed weapons” he had brought into the country. The search called for the then VP to strip naked and bend over (I kid you not). Little wonder that Mungai fled the country when Moi took over power after the death of President Kenyatta in 1978. He later returned and after being briefly held, was released. Whatever people want to say about Moi, the former president has a big heart to have forgiven Mungai for the terrible things the man did to him.

This was the kind of behaviour going on in Kenya when Charles Njonjo was the powerful AG and a member of Kenyatta’s kitchen cabinet. Njonjo more than anybody else promoted the propaganda politics against the Luo community that promoted tribalism and kept Raila Odinga’s father, the late jaramogi Oginga Odinga from making a political come back shortly after the death of Kenyatta.

Charles Njonjo is the one who looked the other way as Mungai harassed the Vice President of the Republic Of Kenya. He looked the other way as massive landgrabbing and looting was carried out by those close to the centre of power.

How he can have the cheek to emerge from retirement to start talking about his concern for tribalism in the country is not only ridiculous but the stuff of dark comedy. What is Raila Odinga upto chasing after Njonjo? It is a well known fact that President Kibaki and Njonjo have never liked each other, so is Raila trying to goad the President?

Whatever the reason, Njonjo should shut up and be grateful that he is not in some prison for sins committed against the people of Kenya… at least not yet.

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Jakaya Kikwete's Tanzania In Deep Crisis: Prepare For The Worst

This blogger has been deeply criticized in the recent past (see the post in this blog with the highest number of comments by far) for being biased against Tanzanians and the government of Jakaya Kikwete. I have taken this very seriously because despite whatever shortfalls this blog has, one thing that it has achieved is a reputation for accuracy. Biased views and news are not consistent with accuracy.

It is for this reason that I have remained tight-lipped on any Tanzania news or comment for an extended period of time now. I have even resisted the urge to comment on the current phase of collecting views from citizens of the three nations on the proposed East African Federation (my view is that the nation of Tanzania holds the key and at the moment they all see integration and a federation as a threat).

The truth is that I deeply love the nation of Tanzania and my closest friends are indeed Tanzanian nationals. It is a nation that I understand very well. My conscience has been eating away at me as I have remained silent in the wake of unprecedented events which have been unfolding in that nation. Events that will soon explode into a full-blown crisis for all to see.

Considering the numbers (albeit rapidly dwindling) of Kenyan nationals in Tanzania and the fact that Kenya is the second largest foreign investor in the country, anything that happens in Tanzania is of deep concern to Kenyans and this Kenyan blog.

It is said that President Kikwete receives hundreds of SMS's on his cell phone every day from ordinary Tanzanians and sometimes even finds time to reply to some of them. If this is true then it dismisses the widely held view that the man is a victim of bad advisors because it would mean that he is directly getting the views of ordinary folks on the ground.

Recently the government has gone on a massive unprecedented campaign to demolish all illegal structures in a move that has ruined many small traders and entrepreneurs, not to mention the livelihoods that have been affected. There is of course nothing wrong with cleaning up a city except for two critical issues in this case;

1) The timing
2) The Implication on the Tanzanian economy

Coming at a time when the country has been going through a crippling 12 hour dawn to dusk electricity rationing regime, the demolitions which have been simultaneously carried out in every corner of the city, including low income and slum areas have caused untold suffering to millions of ordinary Tanzanians who have been depending on them for a livelihood.

The implications on the Tanzanian economy go way beyond dramatically increasing the unemployment numbers. In a country where there are no supermarket chains or units targeting ordinary folks, the demolished structures have always been the main sales outlets for a wide range of fast moving consumer items. What this has meant is that industries grappling with power rationing have also found themselves facing a sudden drop in sales caused by the elimination of tens of thousands of distribution outlets across the city.

But by far the most worrying aspect of the whole Tanzanian crisis is the reaction of the administration. There has been a deliberate effort in recent times to release positive economic figures and news on the performance of the economy. Most of the figures are from last year and not the last 10 months that President Kikwete has been in power. There was a unique exception last week when it was revealed that the government's debt had in 9 short months (from January to September, this year) shot up by a staggering $302 million to a total of $9.383 billion. The main culprits, experts say are "unrestricted domestic borrowing and unnecessary foreign debts."

With all due respect to the highest authority in the Tanzanian nation, the governments' lukewarm response to the deepening crisis has caused many, including this blogger to arrive at only one chilling conclusion. That there is a lack of understanding and grasp of fundamental economics, and the impact of decisions being made on the economy of the nation, at the highest level of decision-making in the country.

How else would you explain the following;

a) A deliberate and aggressive campaign against foreign domination in various areas of the economy including hunting and mining, at the beginning of the year, that clearly sent jitters across the investment community in the country. Did nobody see the impact this was going to have on investor confidence? Has nobody in this government been able to link this to the rapidly depreciating Tanzanian shilling (caused mainly by capital flight?)

b) The decision recently to have the BOT (Bank Of Tanzania) release massive amounts of foreign currency into the market in a bid to stabilize the Tanzanian shilling. Did nobody in government understand that this was a futile exercise without dealing with the structural causes of the depreciating shilling? Like restoring investor confidence amongst those investors already in the country, and dealing with the power-rationing crisis? As it is, a day after the release of massive amounts of dollars by BOT, there was a shortage of dollars, a tell-tale sign that there were massive transfers of forex out of the economy still going on.

c) The decision to go ahead with the demolition of semi-permanent structures in every corner of Dar-es-salaam when the economy was already reeling from the crippling power rationing regime. Did nobody in government see the impact that this would have on the economy?

What To Expect In Tanzania Over The Next Few Months
a) Rate of crime will shoot up dramatically triggered by loss of income from both the current electricity rationing and the demolishing of structures used by traders.

b) Tanzanian shilling will weaken further against major foreign currencies.

c) Many foreign investors will continue their strategic retreat, causing further weakening of the local currency as a result of capital flight.

d) A political crisis of sorts will result that will put enormous pressure on President Jakaya Kikwete’s government.

(Tomorrow: How The Current Power Rationing Was Caused By Corruption In High Places.)

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Saturday, October 21, 2006

Kenyan Presidential Race: Why Latest Poll Is A Fraud

Somebody somewhere is very determined to push forward Kalonzo Musyoka's candidature for President. Poll after poll has put him way ahead of all other candidates. The strange thing about these polls is that they contradict what we all know about Kenyan politics.

In western countries polls like the Gallup poll have impeccable reputations, which they fiercely guard. Gallup have done such an excellent job over the years that polls are generally taken very seriously these days. The problem is that sometimes people forget that the poll that they are looking at is not a Gallup poll. Indeed it is instructive that the guys who have been churning out these controversial presidential polls tried to affiliate themselves to Gallup without the proper accreditation. Gallup would not have it and to date Steadman remains unaffiliated to Gallup. Chances are high that they are unable to match the standards required.

The biggest question mark about this latest poll is why the option of those unsure has not been included. This would reflect the real picture as my own quick sampling shows that at least 40% of the electorate are unsure of who they are going to vote for. This is understandable because ODM Kenya (no doubt the most popular party currently) has yet to name it's presidential candidate.

The other thing that makes me suspicious is the fact that surveys of this nature are horrendously expensive. So who is financing Steadman's quarterly surveys? Could it be some political grouping? This would make the most sense because the power of surveys like these ones is well known by politicians. The vote will always swing in the direction of the candidate that voters feel is most likely to win.

So the big mystery is who is behind this poll and what message are they so keen on selling to Kenyans. One message that has clearly and consistently come out of this poll is the fact that Kalonzo Musyoka is the most popular opposition candidate. Much more popular than Uhuru Kenyatta and much more popular than Raila Odinga. This does not quite make sense. My quick survey puts both Raila and Uhuru ahead of Kalonzo.

It would probably help us in our attempt to answer some of these questions if we asked ourselves a simple question;

Who would stand to gain the most from Kalonzo Musyoka being the main opposition candidate?

All answers point to President Kibaki's camp. The biggest nightmare amongst the president's handlers is a Uhuru Kenyatta candidature. This would split the massive Kikuyu vote (sorry folks, Kenyans still vote along tribal lines). And this time chances are that it would be in favor of the younger Kikuyu candidate.

But there is even a more compelling reason to keep on pushing Kalonzo Musyoka's name as the most popular opposition candidate. The thinking is that any candidate wining the ODM presidential nomination, other than Raila Odinga will split ODM right down the middle. Those who lean on this kind of thinking are quick to point to the last time that Raila was seeking a presidential nomination. This was in the run up to the 1997 presidential elections. The party was Ford Kenya and Raila was running against the late Michael Kijana Wamalwa. The late former Vice President won that one, but Raila did not want to accept the results and moved on to NDP, the party which he used to stand for President. And he in fact ended up surprising everybody by coming a strong third behind Moi and Kibaki in that order.

The truth of the matter is that once Agwambo has set his sites on something, he is unstoppable, an unstoppable tractor (hence the nickname Tinga). So far Raila is the single presidential hopeful who has spent the most campaigning. Not even President Kibaki comes near. Remember the expensive DSTV ads?

Sadly it is not in the interests of the country to have a Kikuyu/Luo face off for the presidency (see the debate on the Luo versus Kikuyu prejudicial rivalry). By the grace of God this has been avoided so far and should continue to be avoided. Kenya is not yet ready for this, temperatures would run too high and any hope of having an issues-centered campaign would vanish.

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Kumekucha General Election Scheduled For End Of October

Kenyans Go To The Polls On October 31st At Kumekucha

Readers of this blog and other Kenyans have a chance to exercise their democratic right here in this blog starting October 31st when we will launch a poll/general election here to find out who is really the most popular Presidential candidate.

To participate, all you need is a functioning email address. The other option will be to leave a comment in this blog specifying your preference. I will try and make this election as issue oriented as possible and there will also be a "none of the above" option.

The main objective is to get all of us Kenyans, including Kumekucha himself focused on issues rather than on personalities and tribes. This usually proves to be increasingly difficult as the elections draw closer.

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AG Anglo Leasing Prosecutions: A Lesson From The Devastating Steam Engine

Kenyan AG Amos Wako is some survivor. The proverbial cat with 9 lives, if you like. However it is now very clear that those extra lives are rapidly running out.

As pressure mounts for the government to prosecute some big fish Anglo-Leasing-scandal culprits, Hon Wako has suddenly found himself soaking in most of the pressure.

But before I go into Wako's current problems and where I believe they will lead, it is useful to get the background behind the current situation.

You may not like or enjoy physics, but bear with me for minute as I use this complex scientific subject to illustrate an important point about the Kibaki administration.

For many years steam was used to run trains and major industrial machinery. The concept behind steam engines is in accumulating pressure and then releasing it in a controlled manner to run your engine. The worst and most dangerous thing you can do is to accumulate the pressure for long periods without releasing it. The explosion that will inevitably result will be devastatingly damaging.

President Kibaki's way of running things is to postpone decisions for long periods of time thus accumulating the pressure in this "steam engine" called politics. This is no secret and those who have analyzed the president's management style for many years have often accurately labeled him the "fence seater."

Here is an example to illustrate this point;

When it was clear that President Kibaki was faced with rebellion within his coalition government, he delayed his decision to sack LDP members. Led by Raila "Kibaki Tosha" Odinga, they were the main rebels over the president's failure to honor the infamous memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed before the elections and which was the "glue" that held the fragile coalition government together. By delaying the inevitable, the president built up enormous and unnecessary pressure for himself so much so that when he finally acted, his government almost came crushing down with the unprecedented situation where politicians were turning down cabinet appointments.

Had he acted earlier, it would have been a lot easier to gain public support and sympathy over his decision to rubbish the MOU. LDP would have clearly looked like the "spoilers" drawing first blood in upsetting the opposition unity that had removed Kanu and President Moi from power.

A replica situation is about to play itself out with the Anglo Leasing prosecutions.

This administration has been postponing its' decision to prosecute Goldenberg and Anglo Leasing big fish. Actually decisions have been postponed again and again. Now with the general elections knocking on the door, it is clear that issues of corruption and this government's failure to prosecute the "big fish" will be a major campaign issue. So the pressure that has slowly been allowed to build up is about to explode.

You see the big names that the government is seeking to make sacrificial lambs out of are very powerful people with political and financial clout who will not just sit around and do nothing. Most are already fighting back in anticipation. The result is that we will have one hell of a fall out.

All this would have been avoided if decisions were made much earlier and decisively. As it is, even now the decisions being made at this eleventh hour over this highly sensitive matter are not decisive. One can't help feeling that this entire circus between AG Amos Wako and Anti-corruption boss, Aaron Ringera is a gimmick to buy time and delay prosecutions indefinitely.

Currently the main "pressure valve" holding all the "steam" in place is one Amos Wako. What are the chances of him surviving when the inevitable explosion happens?

You tell me.

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Hawkers In The Streets Of Nairobi: A Time Bomb Waiting To Explode

Chances are that you have often gotten very upset with vendors on Nairobi streets who tend to block the entire sidewalk meant for human traffic and thus make it very difficult for anybody to walk the streets comfortably.

But let me introduce you to another angle of this problem that few have talked about. A family's sole breadwinner leaves home for work as usual one morning and does not return in the evening. The family searches for them in all police stations within the city and in the mortuary also. They never find them. One month later they appear on the door step of their home with clean shaven heads. It emerges that they were arrested by City Council Askaris and thrown into a cell in one of the two notorious police stations in the CBD, namely Central Police Station and Kamkunji. The spend the night there and appear in court early the next morning where they are charged with hawking and sentenced to one month in jail or a fine. Since no relative is in court and the money they had has been stolen by the Askaris who arrested them, the breadwinner ends up spending a month in the "cooler" with hardened criminals ad if they happened to be women, you can be sure they will be raped. And yet their only crime was trying to but bread on the table.

Do spare a thought for hawkers next time.

The really interesting thing here is that when the Narc government swept into power, one of the first things that was done was to attempt to deal with this hawker menace. However this attitude did not last very long.

It is quite likely that if the next government is formed by ODM Kenya, history will repeat itself. Campaign rhetoric followed a brief period of pretending to be doing something.

There are a few basic facts the government seems to have ignored in their attempts to deal with the so-called hawker menace.

1) No attempt has been made to deal with the ailment so far by either the current Kibaki administration or the Moi administration before it. Instead the government has concentrated all its' efforts on the symptoms.

Why do we have a hawkers' problem in the first place? Why is there such a huge unstoppable migration from rural areas to Nairobi? Answering these questions will lead you directly to the real ailment that produces the symptom called hawker menace. The entrepreneurial spirit in hawkers can be tapped and used in a positive way by investing heavily in small business 'incubators' where the best of these budding entrepreneurs can be given facilities under which their businesses can incubate and grow to create employment and wealth for the country.

The old 1960s idea of throwing them to some field that is too small and too far away from their regular clients to be of much help will not work. We now require lots of creativity and imagination which can easily turn this menace to a major asset.


2) Major industrialists the world over including Kenya's own biscuit baron, Mandatally Manji of House Of Manji started out as hawkers.
Kenyans have been taught to admire people with massive wealth without caring how that wealth was accumulated. The result is that we have little respect for honest entrepreneurs, let alone budding ones who have got no contacts to bribe for big government contracts and who my have not been around during the coffee boom to make huge overnight wealth smuggling coffee.

Kenyan industrialist, Mandatally Manji started out as a part-time hawker in the Karatina market (near Nyeri). The best future Kenyan entrepreneurs are now hawkers. So why do we choose to hit them in the head with heavy clubs and throw them into police cells with dangerous criminals, instead of finding a way to nurture their entrepreneurial zeal?


3) Whatever approach is decided on by both the government and those enforcing it must be consistent.
We have heard stories of hawkers stabbing and even killing City Council Askaris. It is important to try and find out why it sometimes comes to this. City council askaris are known to be very corrupt and it is not unusual for one to demand a bribe just hours before a major raid which they are already aware of. Thus the same officer you bribed with your day's sales a few moments earlier, after being assured that you will be able to operate in peace for the rest of the day ends up arresting you a few hours later. Imagine how you would feel. Personally I don't condone bribery and this principal of mine has been put to the test many times. It is very difficult to live in Kenya without having to remove a bribe, but it is not impossible, as I have proved.

There would be a lot of respect for city council askaris and the government of the day, if both were not corrupt ad were consistent in the way they dealt with hawkers. As it is both have a different approach when they are either soliciting for a bribe or for votes and when they are not. So why would we not expect hawkers to fight back?

Quick Question: Remember the elite Kanga squad that was credited with the infamous Standard newspapers raid? They've now been disarmed (asked to surrender their weapons). This effectively means that the once dreaded police unit is now no more.

But why now, and so many months after they carried out that shocking raid on the Standard offices?

It is the approaching general elections, stupid.

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The Damage The November Referendum On The New Constitution Did To Hopes Of Healing The Luo Versus Kikuyu Problem

It is now very clear to me and should also be to other regular readers of this blog that the vast majority of Kenyans prefer to ignore tribalism believing that if they do, it will go away - one day soon. It is the old proverbial ostrich burying its' head in the sand and firmly believing that the rapidly approaching bush fire will go away as a result.

If you carefully read the comments at our (ongoing discussion on the Kikuyu/Luo prejudicial hatred) you will notice that some folks even get upset that I have mentioned the subject at all. There are those who strongly believe that by discussing tribalism, I am being a tribalist.

But as the November referendum over the proposed new constitution proved, tribalism and more specifically the Luo/Kikuyu prejudicial rivalry can be catastrophic in Kenyan politics. Actually the damage that the referendum did towards any future hopes of healing this politically motivated hatred and mistrust between these two major Kenyan tribes was major.

What was most worrying was how the simple issue of voting "yes" or "no" over the proposed constitution got so emotionally charged and divided even younger generation Kenyans who until then had found a way to ignore the Luo/Kikuyu nonsense and were working and living together as Kenyans. The result is that the two communities voted on opposite sides with few bothering to read and judge the constitution on its' merits or flaws. The result is that things have never been the same again since the referendum.

I urge you in the interests of our beloved country to leave a comment at our (ongoing debate over the Luo/Kikuyu thing), preferably one that suggests possible solutions or ideas to help heal this serious ailment that the nation of Kenya suffers from.

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Saturday, October 14, 2006

ODM Kenya's Thorny Membership Issue

All is not well with the one political party where most Kenyans have placed their hopes on. Indeed the main problems now threatening the stability of this political force all point to one basic and fundamental principal of a democracy which the government of the day continues to ignore for obvious reasons and nobody wants to address.

The issue is wrapped up in the following simple question;

Can democracy thrive and mature when the electorate and its' leaders are allowed to belong to more than one political party at the same time?

The answer to that question should be obvious. It is a resounding "NO".

But what can anybody do when even the President has been linked to several different political parties who all claim that he is their candidate for 2007?

ODM Kenya is a political party. But at the same time it is a coalition of sorts bringing together a number of political parties including LDP, a faction of KANU, numerous MPs formerly linked to NARC etc. Yet in the dictionary political party does not mean the same thing as political coalitions. Coalitions of parties are usually hastily put together after an election that produces no clear winner.

The biggest thorn of contention with ODM Kenya right now is whether the party should accept corporate membership or insist on individual membership. Raila Odinga believes that individual membership is the way forward.

It will be ironical if this issue of membership and not the presidential nominations does the most damage in the widely predicted demise of ODM. In my view the cause will still be Narc Kenya.

Quick Question:

Why are all these grand plans about the future of the Kenyan economy, blah blah, coming out now and not in 2003 when there was enough time for us to have seen the implementation being carried out?

It is the general elections, stupid.

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EIU Confirms Kumekucha Suspicion About Real Heroes Of The Kenyan Economy

It is interesting how my comments on the economy seem to get such wide readership and heavy traffic via search engines. (Even the presidents’ advisors are hurriedly trying to implement some ideas suggested in my blog in the recent past – it could be just a mere coincidence).

I say this because in my journalism days everybody knew that boring economics does not sell and hardly ever gets read. But I guess times are changing.

In a recent report by The Economic Intelligence Unit Limited (EIU), they estimate remittances from Kenyans abroad to be somewhere in the region of Shs 50 billion. Past Central Bank of Kenya projections show that tourism generates about 48 billion.

Interestingly we have to thank the man we all fought so hard to remove from power, former President Moi for this. He made life in Kenya hell but at the same time rapidly expanded university education. The result is that today, Kenya probably has one of the highest expatriate community of any African country (yes, competing neck to neck with Nigeria and even white South Africa)

But the main comment I wanted to make was on this issue of most Kenyans being worse off now than when Moi was leaving power.

My view is that the generation of leaders in government now does not have the imagination or the political will required to implement creative economic policies that will enable the majority of Kenyans to participate in the economy. For instance they promised 500,000 jobs a year without understanding or caring about the fundamentals required to achieve such a number. It would have to be heavily dependant on small and micro business and entrepreneurs. It also must include the de-centralizing of things from crowded Nairobi. We need to develop our other cities and towns. Parliament in Kisumu, government head offices in Nakuru and the man State House in Mombasa, DOD headquarters in Garissa. Instead this government spent a lot of time trying to revive old factories and luring foreign investors. These are good things and they worked very well in the 70s but their impact in 2006 will be minimal at best. The correct approach now is to get a rapidly growing domestic economy going, and the investors will soon start beating down the doors to be let in. That is exactly what happened in China.

That is why I have always said that Kenya needs a new younger generation of leaders to carry her to the next level.

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Join in the raging debate here at Kumekucha over this thorny Luo-Kikuyu relationship issue
(Please scroll down to the bottom of the page (and click on the "Post A Comment" button) to post your comment.)

========================
See also the 2 Problem Tribes in Kenyan politics

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Tuesday, October 10, 2006

Improved Kenyan Economy? What Improved Economy? Here's Why The Government Can Not Claim Credit

There is a lie that you are about to start hearing a lot of, now that the President's campaign has gone into overdrive, so let us clear a few things here and now.

It is now clear that one of the major campaign strategies of President Kibaki's re-election campaign will be the dramatically improved performance of the economy. Zambian President Levy Mwanawasa has just won re-election in a closely contested campaign that was heavily pegged on the improved Zambian economy.

Let me just add here that it is time Kenyans refused to be intimidated into silence during debates an discussions on the economy. As economists vomit their per capita, GDP, GNP etc figures, there is nothing wrong with non-economists talking about the unfulfilled election pledge by Kibaki's campaign team of achieving 500,000 new jobs a year. There is also nothing wrong with ordinary folks asking the simple question; if the economy is doing so well, then how come most Kenyans are doing so badly?

To understand what has been happening to the Kenyan economy, it is important to go back to the year 2002. In the run up to the elections, there was a lot of anxiety and very few people believed that it was possible for there to be a peaceful transition of the opposition won the election. Many big businesses were busy getting money out of the economy to reduce their exposure should anything go wrong.

After the victory of Narc, there was lots of hope and renewed confidence in the stability of Kenya. But nobody quite expected what followed. There was actually such heavy investment into the economy from Kenyans working abroad. The money just kep pouring in hard currency, to finance mainly construction projects.

Funds from money laundering also poured into the Nairobi stock exchange and other investment instruments (no wonder the government is dragging its' feet passing any anti-money laundering laws). This coupled with other traditional strong performers like tourism all combined to strengthen the Kenyan shilling to such an extent that some exporters, most notably the horticultural industry and sections of the tourism industry started feeling the heat of a strong Kenyan shilling.

Well, you can't win them all, what resulted were massive layoffs in the horticultural industry and there is now clear evidence that many big players have started looking at the possibilities of relocating some of their operations to other neighboring countries, most notably, Ethiopia.

But the real benefits of a strong shilling were fully appreciated when oil prices hit the roof and yet there was minimal negative impact on the Kenyan economy.

To date the shilling has continued to defy all predictions of it's ever weakening substantially.

The real heroes of the Kenyan economy are not the government or some brilliant economist President. If anything, the government has done everything to get in the way. Political squabbling and continued corruption in high places have hurt the country and kept away major investors.

The real heroes of the Kenyan economy are ordinary Kenyans who when the opportunities have dwindled at home have ventured into foreign countries all over the continent and beyond. In fact foreign exchange inflows from Kenyans abroad are now widely believed to be the number one forex earner. Those who have remained at home have turned to Saccos and raised money, which they have re-invested in all sorts of businesses and projects across the country to keep food on the table for their families. Ordinary Kenyans have done this against a backdrop of deteriorating security and rapidly rising crime. Gallant Kenyans have also achieved so much despite government policies that are insensitive and actually against the small business – the biggest creator of jobs in the world.

Well done Kenyans. You have proved that you don't need handouts. All you need is a government that creates a genuinely enabling environment and then you can make your own opportunities.

Kenyans are like ace Arsenal striker Thiery Henry, all they need "to score" I half a chance.

Quick Question:
How is it possible that the government was unable to finance Charity Ngilu's sweepimg healthcare reforms, about a year ago but are now able to finance free healthcare for millions?

Answer: It is the coming general elections, stupid.


==============
Join in the raging debate here at Kumekucha over this thorny Luo-Kikuyu relationship issue
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========================
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The Most Famous Kikuyu-Luo Tale Of Romance: SM Otieno lawyer and Wambui and why Kikuyu lasses continue to fall for Luos

Love, they say, is blind. But it seems in Kenya it is only partially blind. I say partially-blind because certain tribes will rarely fall in love with particular tribes.

However in the 50s (the decade that tribalism was probably at its' lowest ebb ever in Kenya. Because Luos were getting elected to parliament in Nairobi by an enthusiastic Kikuyu electorate and Luo men were falling head over heels in love with Kikuyu women.)


And that was the decade when the most famous and yet unlikely Luo-Kikuyu marital union was consumated. A tough freedom fighter and strikingly beautiful daughter of Mumbi called Wambui met, and got swept off her feet by, a brilliant criminal lawyer from Luo Nyanza called S.M. Otieno.

Now, everybody I asked why they thought the prejudicial hatred between Luos and Kikuyus existed, said it had a lot to do with the fact that Luos did not circumcise. According to me this is nonsense and more evidence that this hatred has been fanned by a lot of propaganda and falsehoods.

Because if we were to believe this widely held view, then Wambui would never have become Mrs Wambui Otieno (she has recently remarried a much younger fellow called Mbugua in a marriage recorded by the media at the AG's chambers in 2003 that hit the headlines across the continent). All young Kikuyu ladies from Wambui's days were circumcised. And virtually all DhoLuo men from Mr Otieno's days were NOT circumcised. But the sparks still flew between these two Kenyans. And Mrs Wambui Otieno is just the sort of tough cookie that would have told off any jeering fellow Kikuyu with the words like; "it is non of your business and if you try anything I will show you that at least one of us is cut."
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The Kikuyu circumcised their women (until very recently) to reduce their sexual drive and desire. It was a way of ensuring that their women did not wander away from the marital bed. Which just goes to show you that Kikuyu men have never really been the romantic types, historically (it is said they are always busy thinking about money-making ideas and schemes). Wambui seems to have known realized this and she therefore chose well, because men from the DhoLuo tribe are known to be extremely romantic and know how to treat a lady.

By the time the Otieno's marriage ended in the late 80s with the tragic death of Mr Otieno who by then had distinguished himself as probably one of the finest Kenyan criminals lawyers to ever walk the corridors of the high court, the couple had been married for over 3 decades. But sadly the end was far from being a happy one. Mr Otieno's Umira Kager clan from Nyalgunga, Luo Nyanza insisted on burying Otieno in his ancestral home following all traditions to the letter, including the dreaded Tero Buru. Tough former freedom fighter Wambui Otieno, said "over my dead body." She pointed out quite clearly that her sweetheart had indicated to her that he wanted to be buried at their Upper Matasia home (near Ngong). What followed was the mother of all legal tussles. Sad that Mr Otino must have helped write many wills in his time but never wrote one for himself which would have averted all the heartbreak and suffering for his wife, Wambui.

In my opinion, this court battle further divided Luos and Kikuyus and must have been used as a stern warning to many young people hit by cupids arrow (flying from the wrong direction so to speak) for many years.

I can still imagine those stern parents saying to those poor love-struck youngsters; "Do you want us to go to court when one of you dies?"

Wambui won the sympathy of many Kenyans across tribal lines but lost the court battle and her right to bury her own husband.

I dare add that I believe that many Luos took the opportunity presented by this case “to get back at the Kikuyu.” In other words, those who have always promoted this hatred (on both sides) are constantly spoiling for a fight and looking for every opportunity to further their evil cause.


Wambui and Mbugua at their wedding reception.




To many Kenyans, Wambui Otieno embodies the dilemma Africans face between the old African ways and the modern Western lifestyle that is rapidly becoming the dominant culture across Africa. Wambui caused a public scandal this week by marrying a stonemason 42 years her junior in a short civil ceremony in the Attorney General’s office. ‘Love is what matters. Love is blind,’ she said, ‘women should be liberated so that they can marry men younger than them.’

Wambui is a descendant of the great Chief Waiyaki, patriarch of an important Kikuyu clan, whose descendants included Kenya’s first president Jomo Kenyatta as well as cabinet minsters, high court judges and leading industrialists. Wambui was one of the only women to join the Mau Mau rebellion against the British in the 1950’s and later became a Nairobi politician and vocal activist for women’s rights.

By the time she married her first husband, SM Otieno, Wambui already had three children by two fathers. Both families opposed Wambui’s wedding to SM because marrying outside one’s tribe was highly unusual at that time. For a Kikuyu to marry SM, a member of the Luo tribe, was like ‘mixing oil and water’ as her uncle later testified. SM’s clan opposed the marriage because marrying a Kikuyu woman with three children born out of wedlock was nothing short of a scandal.

The Kikuyu despise the Luo as kihii, uncircumcised fish-eaters, while the Luo see the Kikuyu as arrogant and greedy westernised Africans who have abandoned their cultural traditions. Wambui did not care that her family did not see her uncircumcised husband as a ‘real’ man and she refused the traditional dowry between families saying ‘ I am not going to be married under any bride price because you know women then become property of the clan. I am worth more than a few goats.’ The couple took advantage of a 1931 statute, the African Christian Marriage Act ‘making it clear they were not bound by tribal customs’ as Wambui’s lawyer later described it in court. They had married for love.

By the time SM passed away from hypertension in 1986, the couple had fifteen children. According to Luo tradition, when a man dies, his relatives inherit his possessions. Since the Luo consider a wife and children as possessions, a deceased man’s brother inherits his wife. But the immediate problem was not the fact that Wambui was now deemed the potential wife of SM’s brother but the more pressing problem of where to bury SM’s body. This issue became one of the most hotly contested debates in Kenya’s legal and social history and brought about a clash of opinion between African traditionalists and modernists that has risen to the surface again seventeen years later with Wambui’s new marriage to Steven Mbugua, who was seven years old when SM died.

SM did not leave a will because he knew as a lawyer that wills have been overturned in Kenyan courts in favour of clans claiming a relative’s body. He relied instead on the evidence of 15 of his children, his wife, friends, neighbours, lawyers, journalists and leading members of society who he instructed specifically that he wished to be buried at his farm in Upper Matasia near Nairobi. He expressly forbade his wife and children to allow his other relatives to bury him in his ancestral village Nyalgunga in Siaya district some 300 kilometres away from his house, saying that to do so would be ‘to throw me away’.

Upon his death, Wambui ordered a grave to be dug on the farm only to discover that SM’s relatives had taken out a court injunction barring her from doing so. Wambui and the Umira Kager clan went to court and within three weeks, the court decided that SM was ‘a metropolitan and a cosmopolitan….it is hard to envisage such a person as subject to African customary law and in particular the customs of a rural community,’ overturning the injunction. The clan appealed immediately.

The Court of Appeal over-ruled the lower court’s verdict, arguing that despite SM’s education, marriage, professional success and verbal instructions, it was wrong to assume that ‘the deceased had thereby lost his tribal identity and could not be governed by customary laws, traditions and culture.’ A full trial was ordered.

According to testimony in court, recently deceased Luo are a bridge between the living and the ancestors. The ‘living dead’ therefore have a direct influence on day-to-day matters. Great importance is attached to burial rites. A cast of characters gave evidence on behalf of the clan including witchdoctors and the gravedigger who had buried SM’s father, who testified from his hospital bed. SM’s brother told the court that unless he was allowed to bury his brother in the prescribed way, SM’s ghost would ‘sabotage his life’ and ‘make his clansmen spit on him.’ The Professor of Philosophy from Nairobi University testified that an improper burial meant that ‘your children or your livestock may die and if you sire children they may be born without legs.’

Wambui’s lawyers presented evidence from many well-known members of society who confirmed SM’s wish to be buried at his farm and his distaste for traditional custom. The judges conceded that there was no doubt that SM had expressed a desire to be buried on the outskirts of the city hundreds of miles from his ancestral home. What was at stake was not his wishes but the importance of the old ways against the new, whether customary laws of the village and tribe could take precedence over the laws of the Kenyan nation and constitution and most importantly, which of them should govern the social institutions of marriage, birth and death.

Thousands of Luo men surrounded the high court each day and newspapers reported the trial verbatim. Newspapers with headlines like ‘Luos have no homes in Nairobi’ and ‘We’ll be haunted if we don’t bury him’ sold out by mid-morning. The case was the talk of Africa.

On February 13th 1987, six months after SM’s death, the court decided that SM was to be buried by the clan in his ancestral village against his own wishes and those of his wife and children. The Appeal Court Judge said that Wambui ‘chose to be married to a man who was not of her tribe. She knew she was marrying a Luo. She cannot now complain that the Luo are uncivilized…they did not force her to be married into their clan…times will come when circumstances dictate that Luo customs with regard to burial be abandoned. Change is inevitable but must be gradual.’

The clan mobbed the city mortuary where SM’s body remained under police guard and carried the corpse on the back of a truck to SM’s ancestral home in Siaya district for the funeral which was attended by three cabinet ministers and thousands of Luo tribespeople. African tradition had won on the day, a decision praised throughout Kenya at the time. Wambui and her family including SM’s children chose to boycott the funeral deliberately breaking the taboo that dictates that Luo children should visit their father’s grave to lay a cross as a final part of the burial ceremony.

Wambui’s new marriage has reignited the debate about the degree to which African traditions and customs are important in modern life. SM’s clan have objected to Wambui’s ‘sham and repugnant marriage’ saying, ‘Wambui is still married to SM Otieno’ and reiterated calls for her to go to Siaya to be inherited by SM’s relatives. ‘Even if Wambui died today, the Umira Kager clan will ensure she is buried at Nyalgunga, next to SM Otieno's grave.’

Cabinet Ministers have described Wambui's marriage as ‘a golden opportunity’ for Kenyans of all walks of life to consider the meaning of the institution of marriage as the country moves towards a new constitution. ‘I don't think there would be so much fuss if an old man married a much younger lady, ’ said Wangari Maathai, head of the Culture Committee at the conference on Kenya’s new constitution.

Home Affairs minister Moody Awori said: ‘Love has no boundaries’ but added quickly that the two consenting adults must be of opposite sexes. The opposition secretary for Labour, Ms Orie Rogo-Manduli differed, describing the wedding as ‘an isolated case of Kenyans in mid-winter madness. Women must continue to play their role as role models and be cradle rockers and not cradle robbers.’

Wambui’s story brings together many elements of the African dilemma; the old traditions versus modern living, a British legal system dealing with an African cultural case, tribalism versus an individual’s rights in a democracy, traditional beliefs versus modern science, women’s rights in a chauvinist society and the role of a wife, the family, the clan and the tribe in modern African society. It also raises fundamental and sensitive questions about identity and what it really means to be African.

Kenyans of all persuasions debate the Wambui case in an effort to find meaning and significance in a society where the ancient and the modern have difficulty in coexisting. Urbanisation, westernisation and modernisation have not bought prosperity and harmony but sowed the seeds of discord.

Eminent African scholar Colin Turnbull commented on this ‘disconnect’ for Africans by saying ‘there is a void in the life of the African…. to go forward is to abandon the past where the roots of his being have their nourishment; to go backward is to cut himself off from the future, for there is no doubt about where the future lies…there is no bridge and this is the source of his terrible loneliness’.

In a final twist, Wambui’s new mother in law Florence Nyambura announced after Wambui’s wedding that her son had another fiancée called Mugure, who he was scheduled to marry next month as a second wife. This development came as a surprise to the Wambui the modern politician and women’s rights activist. Then events took a rapid turn for the worse when her new husband’s family announced that Wambui’s mother in law had taken ill and died quite mysteriously.

Kenyans remain divided into modern and traditional camps on who is to blame for the tragic death. Some blame the press for harassing her and others blame the Umira Kager clan who they believe cursed Mbugua for marrying Wambui, ‘their wife’. Either way, Wambui remains a heroine for women in Kenya and a flag-bearer for modernist Africans in the 21st century.
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I dug this out of the Kumekucha archives

How could she…?? That girl was yours, or so you thought. How could she fall for a player and a man who is NOT nice to women like that guy I can't stand?? What happened?
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Babu Owino in court at the Milimani law courts cracks a very funny joke that has Gaucho in stitches.
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Analysis of Day 1 and Day 2 of the protest against high cost of living reveals a Ruto UDA secret that will blow your mind and explains why the two days are so different. But where is Raila Odinga? Some insights including a story from the past is more than revealing.
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Addressing a press conference in parliament buildings a few minutes ago in a presser that is still ongoing as I write this, Minority Leader Opiyo Wandayi while commenting on Raila Odinga's whereabouts said that they are the face of "Baba"  Read article
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Maandamano 19th July 2023 Day 1 of 3: Protesters engage police in running battles in Mathare during Azimio demonstrations.
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On day 1 of the 3 day maandamano led by Azimio and Raila Odinga, protests are witnessed in over 15 counties country-wide. Even as Ruto's Kenya Kwanza response predictably remains the same despite clear indications that they are not doing any good to the cause of the Ruto presidency and regime. But where was Raila Odinga, even as he gave instructions for the protests to end at 5pm and resume on day 2 in the morning? Was it a case of the arrest of Raila that failed to happen?
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Raila Odinga, the leader of Azimio, has denounced the use of live ammunition during the anti-government protests on Wednesday 19th July 2023.
Raila said that this was unjustified in a statement issued that was accompanied by a video of a small boy who was seen shot in the leg.
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Is the end of the Ruto presidency and his administration, just around the corner?
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The following information was first released on the Kumekucha Chris YouTube channel in early 2016. It makes for super fascinating reading because of what has ended up happening 6 years later.
Ruto secretly purchased POA from his colleague in Jubilee Raphael Tuju and changed its name to Party for Development and Reforms (PDR) and then later changed it to UDA. Was all this to mask the origin of this party? Did he see the future before it happened?
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self made millionaire business ideas 

Very revealing make money secrets from real life situations that unfolded. This Brian Tracy and Kumekucha Chris nuggets of information are nothing short of game-changing.


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Ruto had a plan and a burning desire to be president. That much is clear. He launched a crusade (in his mind) to achieve his ultimate goal, long before he actually vied. Read article

Read revealing Ruto article on this blog -----
Ruto withdraws the security of key opposition leaders, including governors and MPs.
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MAANDAMANO TOMORROW IN MT KENYA - FEARLESS KARUA DARES RUTO & GACHAGUA.
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“We don’t give a damn about state security,” Governor Ochilo Ayacko, Suna West MP Peter Masara say after their securities were withdrawn.
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The shifty body language of Kenya Kwanza legislators when asked about their recent meeting at State house Nairobi and what was discussed is a total giveaway. But what is that we t down that they are not willing to reveal. A surprising but hardly unexpected answer to that question in this Kumekucha video.
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Update 23/07/2021; Ruto purchased POA and changed its name to Party for Development and Reforms (PDR) and then more recently changed it to UDA. Was all this to mask the origin of this party? Impeccable sources say that DP Ruto has purchased a political party. What does this mean? What is he up to? More so now when a powerful wing of the Jubilee party from the Mount Kenya region is resisting his preparations for 2022. What will happen next?
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Firstborn children have many challenges that most are completely unware of. Especially challenges that have to do with stuff that may not be clear to most. It is therefore not uncommon for firstborns to give up in life or live a very frustrated life. But this can be avoided if one starts to understand the possible spiritual causes of their problems.
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The very first video posted on the Kumekucha Chris channel in 2013. It contrasts a typical humble Kenyan home with 20 registered voters and the neighbouring house with a satellite dish that only has one registered voter. Will help anybody understand some of the dynamics amongst Kenyan voters in any election.
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The real hidden strategy of William Ruto and the Kenya Kwanza regime is beginning to show clearly. It is visible in speeches and tweets by Ruto allies. It suggests that we are not too far from the last option that President Ruto will have. Even though it is whispered that insiders have already been pushing him in that direction for a number of weeks now.

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What is Ruto's real plan to stop Raila? Raila supporters fear that it is a terrible evil plan.

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Charles Njonjo And Daniel Arap Moi State House Drama: Difficult to believe but there was a day that Moi had to be persuaded by Charles Njonjo to accept the presidency of the republic of Kenya. Chris Kumekucha narrates from chapter three of his own best-selling eBook DARK SECRETS OF THE KENYAN PRESIDENCY. Some amazing facts that will enable you to understand Kenyan politics much better.
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Deep political analysts have confessed that they are puzzled at the self-destruct tendencies of the Kenya Kwanza government. The latest is the controversial Finance Bill 2023. However there is a very long list of examples from the week that William Ruto was sworn in as president. A revelation that will shock most in this Kumekucha Chris video that tells us the country called Kenya is in deeper trouble than we all thought.
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It's critical to be ready in case a gunshot wound emergency arises near you. This is of course much more important with the current situation in Kenya. And remember most of the victims in the country so far have been people who were not even participating in demonstrations. Also a gunshot wound that receives early medical attention frequently doesn't become fatal. 
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A celebrated boxing champion is among Kenyans who lost their lives during the anti-government protests on Wednesday 12th July 2023.


Read; Champion boxer Raphael Shigali was shot dead by Jogoo Rd Police station cop during Azimio protests

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The corporate empire of billionaire David Langat was driven into uncharted terrain this week when auctioneers forced the sale of his Mombasa office buildings and Nandi tea estate in order to pay a local bank more than Sh2.1 billion in back debt.

Read; Has David Langat fallen out with close buddy William Ruto?

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In controversial utterances in public, President William Ruto has accused his former boss Uhuru Kenyatta of instigating protests against his rule.


Does Ruto really know what he is saying and doing? Especially after he stole elections from Raila in August 2022? He says in this video Raila has failed to get elected 6 times but Ruto has not confessed that out of those 6 in 3 instances he played a key role in rigging out Raila and denying him his rightful victory. 

Does Ruto know that Vitu kwa ground are very different from this illusion he is trapped in?. Let time tell...
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Even as former Kakamega governor Wycliffe Oparanya was released this evening, after his lawyer recorded a statement, Kenyans are still reeling in shock as they try to digest the jolting revelations from Eugene Wamalwa on what Ruto and UDA are really up to against Raila, Azimio and the people of Kenya.
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Former Kakamega Governor Wycliffe Oparanya, according to Azimio La Umoja One Kenya Coalition Party Leader Raila Odinga, has been arrested by police. He was later released.

Just yesterday: Oparanya recounts how rowdy youths damaged his car during demonstrations in Busia

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Most leading analysts including Pro. Herman Manyora seem to agree that the government of William Ruto is on the losing end of the Maandamano duel with Azimio and Raila Odinga. It is as clear as day. 

Police brutality and the unprovoked attack on peaceful demonstrators seems to have attracted the wrong kind of attention (for Ruto) from the international community.
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So Ruto police had sharp-shooters in place...
Peter Munya: "We came here to engage citizens on the hardships they are going through and it is our rights as leaders to do so. That's what we came to do but police as usual mobilized to come and disrupt and to visit violence on us and you have sees every stop we made... teargas is being thrown. From Makutano where we started...

And it was needless because there was no violence. Citizens were responding because they are all facing the same problems everybody in the country is facing.

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Why was the Azimio rally scheduled to take place at the Kamukunji Grounds in Nairobi yesterday 12th July 2023 abruptly canceled by Raila Odinga, the head of the Azimio la Umoja One Kenya alliance? What was the real reason? Is it true that it was something terrifying? This Lee Makwiny video offers a few clues.
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There are key aspects of the Kenyan presidency that cannot be ignored and when they are not given the attention they deserve will always result in serious political instability. This is the same mistake a past president with great potential, Mwai Kibaki, made. But now once again in 2023 the tell-tale signs of 2005 are clearly visible In this Kumekucha video we go deep into this most fascinating and often ignored issue in Kenya politics.
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Over 600 individuals were detained and arrested at various police stations in Nairobi on Wednesday during anti-government demonstrations. Over ten people were shot and killed by police across the nation, and dozens more were hurt during the clashes that erupted on 12th July 2023. 


The 12th July maandamano country-wide will go down in the history of Kenya for special attention in any analysis of what happens going forward. And apart from the many bad things that happened, historians in future will also record it as a turning point for the nation called Kenya. One that the Kenya Kwanza government and the UDA strongman William Ruto are yet to see.
Rich Kenyans like Ibrahim Ambwere can be described as clean non-politician Kenyan Multi billionaire. That is something very rare in the country. His is the amazing and highly inspirational story of an orphan boy who started off sweeping the premises of a mason's premises when he was only 10 years old and ended up so rich that the government of Kenya in the 1980s felt threatened by his wealth. He has no prominent presence in Nairobi and lives a frugal lifestyle similar to that of the richest man in the world, Warren Buffet. This is the amazing story full of life lessons from the least known Kenyan multi-billionaire.

Patrick Shaw Untold Story: The inside story of the legendary Nairobi super cop Patrick Shaw. A biographical detailed documentary of the man starting with his early days and arrival in Kenya during the Mau Mau and emergency years to his deep involvement in Kenyan politics in the 1980s. In the end it is brutal Kenyan politics that killed him. He should have just stuck to being an extra-ordinarily good cop.
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Pamela Mboya now deceased, Tom Mboya’s widow wrote to Kofi Annan in 2008 as he was mediating peace in Kenya. Part of the letter read; “The assassination of my husband, like others after him, is a matter that has remained shrouded in mystery and speculation, and which has been avoided by successive regimes in this country...” Later she promised to drop the bombshell in an interview but later changed her mind. This is most probably what she was so hesitant to reveal.
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This is Uhuru's future from a man who has NEVER gotten it wrong (2013 prediction)


...Then in the midst of all these uncertainties an arrogant Briton came into the country for prayers and started making predictions and prophecies on the country's political future. Few Kenyans had ever heard of the London based preacher. But he spoke with such authority that some Kenyans even got annoyed.

Then he predicted Uhuru Kenyatta's future and I did not like it one bit....   This is Uhuru's future from a man who has NEVER gotten it wrong (2013 prediction)

On the shadow of the 12th July maandamano country-wide, UDA insiders are putting on a brave face and yet in the background are terribly worried about Azimio's looming check-mate move. A legal coup linked to the 10Million signatures taking advantage of a unique constitution that in their view gives too much power to the people.
Crazy BUT true reading;
The saying "the dead don't tell tales" has come to haunt police and a Kakamega town when the body of a lady who had been missing for more than a week was found after its location was revealed in a dream.
The strange episode has re-ignited the long-running argument over whether the dead may speak to the living and the applicability of "their messages" to those they may have talked to.

Police are unsure of whether to treat the person to whom the revelation was made as a whistle-blower or a suspect as the villagers speculate that the dream may be a testament to the deceased's desire for a proper funeral and her determination to see her killers brought to justice.


Watch related videos;

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Captivating read in the Sunday Nation this morning in the Weekly Review section on Tom Mboya. Confirms information available on this channel over 5 years ago on who killed Mboya and why.
Our series on Mboya: It was more than an assassination even gives you the name of the man who pulled the trigger and later died a miserable man full of regrets in Kenya (NOT Nahashon Njenga).
Victims of saba saba, some of them in serious condition.