Followers

Sunday, January 31, 2010

Lukeconomics: It is Your Fault to be Poor.....

.........in today's Kenya.

Read that post title again slowly this time. let it sink it.
Thank heavens we're now back to 4.5% economic growth but the question you must ask yourself is if you couldn't make money when the economy was 7% in 2007,what hope do you have at 4.5% in 2010?

Too many Kenyans spend too much time endlessly politiking,rushing to leave "comments" here on Kumekucha in the name of airing their opinions and seeking the political kingdom.During the few seconds it takes to angrily e-bang those keyboards you could have been harvesting off the rains pounding the country in Flash floods in Narok and plant maize with the new variety hybrid seeds introduced by the forward thinking minister for Agriculture.Farmers across the land are reaping bumper harvests and spending it all in one night in a bar while we are busy with endless "domo domo"

PRESIDENTIAL SECRETS
When will kenyans change their mentality from always politiking? learn the economist President Kibaki's secret:1%politics+99%money=success. See even how Post poll chaos commissions are raking in billions of fortune in shillings even as they seek so called Truth and Justice on behalf of Kenyans-why can't you do the same? PSC conducted expensive week long retreat at your expense to give us a constitution that could simply have been amended in Moi days. meanwhile you are busy saying "naomba serikali" Epuka tafadhali

It's your fault if you're poor in Kenya today. See young McDonald Maringa is earning mega bucks millions each week shrewdly kicking a piece of leather across the grass in Manchester-you think he begun that way?Drive with me to Muthurwa and see the humble "juniors" playing "mpira wa juala" in the open playing fields city council has refused to develop.That's how it starts-what are you doing still tarmacking in the name of joblessness?Kick something fool

EASY MONEY
Kenya is a great country you don't even need a job just invite tourist to look at natural landscape and pay you. you can even stand in your birthday suit as they pet the elephants across your fence.Even here at Kumekucha the blog is earning money while you read-Google ad sense is making Chris smile widely with post-molars showing at the back of his mouth.politics and money

Forget about seeking "justice"-this is Kenya just make money anyhow and you will soon be smiling with all the rest of us. the new constitution will not add ugali to your table or will it?so why do you want to be a footsoldier all the rest of your life for a politician who doesn't even know your name let alone care you exist?how comes the "new" constitution does not address job creation and getting rich?

FOLLOW THE LEADERS
Equity bank and Nakumatt holdings head honchos are among top 50 emerging new business leaders world wide-wacheni wivu please. Never mind nay sayers shouting about domination of business and government by ONE particular tribe-watch Citizen TV Sunday live every Sunday night to see who really "owns Kenya"-how comes no one is complaining of Kenyan Asians dominating the economy owning half of all companies in Kenya?

Forget the naysayers ati "Birates" of Somali are making a fortune dangerously guarding the waters of their coast and pushing up the local housing market. Let's come to our senses. 2012 is almost here.Like Jimmy Kibaki's Simama Kenya ask yourself-je wewe mwenywe umesimama aje?hebu simama before the economy hits 10% for vision 2030 and you're still broke.
A word to the wise is enough-WACHENI MPANGO WA POLITICS BILA PESA

Interesting presidential race already shaping up

The man having a word with George Saitoti (Peter Kenneth) wants to be your president.

One of the things I like best about the American system is how quickly pretenders to the presidency get eliminated out of the race. Alas, back home in Kenya they remain in the ballot to the very last minute some struggling to get a mere 100 votes countrywide. The good thing about the proposed new constitution for Kenya is that it means that a run off is inevitable between the top two candidates so as to enable them garner the 50% plus one majority required for one to be declared president.

Still having said that, there are some rather fascinating developments in the 2012 race for the presidency. Clearly what we are going to see is a struggle between the old and the new order of things. The old will be represented by the usual suspects, Raila Odinga, Kalonzo Musyoka, Martha Karua, Uhuru Kenyatta and William Ruto (if they escape Hague) etc. The new will have the kind of names that may cause you to laugh today. Eugene Wamalwa, Peter Kenneth, Mwalimu Mati etc. Yep, you may laugh now, but as the polls near one thing I am sure of is that tables will be turned and people will be laughing at the old order and wondering what the hell they will be doing using the same old tricks and tactics to try and land in State House when they should be trading good-old-evil-days stories with Daniel Moi and Mwai Kibaki at some goat eating party deep in the rural areas. Kenyans are clearly screaming for a brand new beginning. In fact I dare predict that the number of votes the old folks will get this time round will shock people in terms of how few they will be.

It may not be evident now but closer to the presidential elections you may want to ask yourself what people like Kalonzo Musyoka and Raila Odinga are doing running for the presidency when a brand new dawn and beginning is beckoning for the nation. I am still waiting to see the servant leadership that Kalonzo was talking about during his campaigns for the presidency in 2007. Surely he should have shown us something as VP that would convince us that he was serious. Raila Odinga is no better because every day he sounds more and more like Moi and behaves very much like the dictatorial and firm ruler who straddled the Kenyan political landscape for 24 long years. Interestingly I now see the Raila camp falling for the very same opinion polls that cheated Kalonzo Musyoka that he was popular enough to make a decent stab at the presidency in 2007. My sincere apologies to Raila and Kalonzo worshipers but let us wait and see, shall we?

Don’t get me wrong. I don’t see any presidential potential in the likes of Eugene Wamalwa and Peter Kenneth. But what I like about what they are doing is that it will provoke the candidature other new entrants into politics with true leadership potential.

A Kumekucha classic from the past: My encounter with Lucy Kibaki

P.S. One of the ways of checking the powers of the presidency that the COE and parliament may want to look at is to reduce the presidential term from 5 years to 4 years. Four years is long enough to bring positive changes but not nearly long enough to establish an effective self-serving power base. There are many advantages to having a short time as the most powerful man in Kenya including the fact that you remain very focused on what you were elected to do. A president of a country with so many nagging problems like Kenya has no business sleeping for 8 hours let alone 16 hours like one Emilio regularly does. 4 years means that the guy has to stay awake longer to maximize on their short time in power and if they do a good job they can then get elected for another 4 short years.

P.S. 2 My weekend special resumes next weekend. I will announce the hot topic I plan to tackle in the course of the week.

Saturday, January 30, 2010

The First Principle in Drafting a Constitution

By Mwarang'ethe

Everyone is crying out for peace, none is crying out for justice (Peter Tosh)


Almost all Kenyans fervently believe that, the executive branch of the Kenyan government is the root cause of the miseries in our land. Most Kenyans are sincere in this believe. But, the few who originate and propagate the idea, it is a necessary illusion to remove risk from democracy. We deny and reject with unmitigated contempt this believe because it ignores the FIRST PRINCIPLE of constituting a just and peaceful society that must guide drafting of a constitution. Those few who originate and propagating this idea, do so as to continue throwing sand into the eyes of mankind so as to shield them from seeing the self evident truth. They continue to do so in their monstrous but, failing expectation of finding a very huge fund of gullibility in today’s men.

Let the reader bear in mind the following Kenyan prayer/anthem:

O God of all creation
Bless this our land and nation
Justice be our shield and defender
May we dwell in unity
Peace and liberty
Plenty be found within our border

In denouncing these vulgar falsehoods, we assert that, our miseries stem not from failures of the executive, but, from the gross violation of the FIRST PRINCIPLE in our constitution that must be adhered to in constituting a just and peaceful society. This first principle flows from the command of the Creator whom we call upon in the above prayer. It is this. In the Genesis 3:19, the Almighty and Eternal God, declare that, "In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread." In this, God the Almighty has declared the Natural Law that, industry, intelligence and thrift shall be rewarded with wealth and idleness, indolence, ignorance and imprudence by destitution.

What this means is this. Without intervention of any law, agreement or contract between individuals as to what shall belong to each, Nature produces in each the notion of individuality, which extends to ownership, thereby, bestowing on each person and exclusively that which he produces or creates. Thus, before any man made law, Nature begets to all men the law an expectation that he shall be able to enjoy what he produces in commensurate to labour and skills he employs. This is the law or the first principle of NATURAL RIGHT TO PROPERTY that must be adhered to in constituting a just society.

Flowing from the above, it follows and must follow that the MAIN question in drafting a constitution is not the executive or the so called representation, but, this. Does the Constitution as drafted ensure that, the government to be constituted shall be for no other purpose, but, to guarantee the enjoyment of natural right to property? In other words, is it the sole objective of the government to be constituted to recognise, guarantee and protect the NATURAL relationship between labour and its produce? If not, haven’t such a law violated the corollary principle and Divine law that, thou shall not steal? And, if we have enshrined robbery in our supreme law, haven’t we done violence to justice that we invoke as our shield and defender? And, if justice which should be our shield and defender is dispensed with violently, haven’t we then, relinquished that which must come first before we can dwell in unity, peace and liberty? Finally, having casually relinquished the right to live in unity, peace and liberty, on what basis can we pray to the Creator for plenty within our borders?

Believing the above to be true, let the reader bear this in mind. By the Natural law, no man has or shall ever willingly shoulder the curse of his brother that he can only eat bread from his sweat of his brow. It is from this Natural Law; man has and will forever resist any attempt to burden him with his brother's curse. It follows therefore, that, so as to fasten his curse on the resisting brother, the man running away from his curse, retorts to oppression. Therein, we see that the attempt by man to run away from his curse, that he shall eat his bread from his own sweat, is the root cause of all kinds of oppression devised by man against his fellow man and the attendant slavery, ignorance, poverty, discord and misery that continues to inflict our society. In short, our ability to live in unity, peace, liberty and plenty is totally and absolutely dependent upon the preservation of natural rules of appropriation.

Let us now recall briefly, the Kenyan history. When the barbarians who knew no art or trade but plunder, calling themselves silly and blasphemous names like lord Delamere arrived on our shores, the first thing they did was to appropriate our soil by the means of the sword. To prevent Africans from challenging their barbaric acts, though legal means, their lawyers who look at words like a usurer looks at money, came up with the monstrous doctrine that, public international law could only apply only to “civilised” states. Since Africans were not “civilised” to constitute a state, this law did not apply to them. With such a devilish fiction concocted by European lawyers, the fate of African soil was sealed. Interestingly, this monstrous doctrine is still propagandised to international lawyers even today, but, without the historical context of its bloody origin. However, to protect their corporate tyrannies i.e. private powers in the name of multinationals which James Madison warned will eventually demolish the experiment in democratic government by becoming “at once its tools and its tyrants,” these monstrous absurdities and unintelligent fictions are over looked. What a miserable contradiction in the name of law?

This is the key point. By appropriating our soil, they effectively reduced Africans into slaves because whoever appropriates the soil, must as the night follows the day, pocket the surplus produced by those who must labour in agriculture and manufacturing in accordance with law of rent. In other words, to appropriate land means to claim everything that must be made using its help. In simple words, those who sweat can only pocket only a small piece of the bread that is just necessary to ensure bare survival. The bigger part of the bread they bake with their blood and sweat is thereby, pocketed by those who appropriated land, but, who do not sweat. Hereby, we now see that, this LEGAL/ARTIFICIAL RIGHT TO PROPERTY which grows not from natural causes, but, by the law of fraud or what men in wigs call the law of the land is founded on the negation of the first principle of a just and peaceful society, i.e. the NATURAL RIGHT TO PROPERTY.

Having appropriated our soil, they did not sheath their sword. Still dripping with the blood of the innocent, they kept it on their hands and proceeded to engrave the law for the conquered and vanquished. As anyone knows, these first law makers and their descendants had one thing in their mind. To preserve in perpetuity the power and privilege so established. Thus, we have a law founded on oppression, upheld by force and fraud, and intended solely to preserve ill gotten power and ill gotten wealth, i.e. land so as to maintain dominion of the soil by the aristocracy so as to perpetuate slavery, ignorance and poverty.

However, since the natural right to property is ingrained in the heart of all men by their Creator, whenever this right is violated, they revolt. It was revolt against the appropriation of wealth of those who labour by those who are idle contrary to the Divine Law, i.e. negation of the first principle, which is implanted in the hearts of all men that drove Kenyans to fight to be free. Here is another key point to note. It is the origin and meaning of constitutions. Since the governing and legislating class have throughout history, sought to annihilate the first principle of society, i.e. the natural right to property as in the case of slavery, in the case of colonialism and apartheid the victims of this robbery, have always sought to guarantee against such violation via constitutions. Thus, the constitutions are not and cannot confer any rights. Their purposes are twofold. Firstly, to affirm previously violated natural rights of man. Secondly, to be a testimony to the future generations of how law makers have sought throughout history to annihilate natural rights of man and thereby, call for eternal vigilance.

Unfortunately, when we gained independence, all that changed was the colour of the law makers. The principles of oppression and plunder were left as the foundation of our political and legal edifice. Consequently, it is this unjust appropriation of wealth after the so called independence that has been the source of revolt ever since. Thus, the objective of a new constitutional order was and should be the re-introduction and affirmation of the first principle of constituting a just and peaceful society.

Unfortunately, what should have been about recovering the natural relations between labour and rewards, has been turned into matters of preservation of power by the law makers in the name of executive and so called people’s representation. It is because of these frustrations we have witnessed the unprecedented bloodshed in Kenya of late. Sadly, when men revolt without understanding fully the source injustice they feel in their hearts, they revolt in a manner that harms themselves and others in their blind efforts to correct the great injustice.

It is from this view; the violence among Kenyans and the government response we have seen of late in Kenya must be understood. So as to maintain order in a society where men are revolting against unjust appropriation of their sweat, the government retorts to barbaric means to combat the lawlessness. Unfortunately, such police measures as we have witnessed against Sabaot “rebels” and Mungiki guarantee one thing. More massacres by the police and the military of both the active participants and the innocent bystanders. All this, leaves a society drenched in blood while retarding its moral, social, economic and political developments. This goes on until the final breakdown. Kenya has now entered this vicious cycle and it seems appropriate to warn that this new constitution may be the last trumpet. If it does not address this first principle meaningfully and comprehensively, all other “reforms” shall be in vain and we would have reached the end of road as it concerns peaceful reforms.

Thus, let us stop chasing shadows looking for the cause of our tribulations. We need only look at political institutions that were originally founded by the sword and have since been maintained by the sword of the majesty, injustice of the judge and an army of black myrmidons. Unfortunately, these institutions can only breathe hatred, discord and bloodshed. In simple words, as long as we seek to maintain principles flowing barbaric aggression, mutual oppression and plunder decreed by dead mad men whose highest and most noble vocation was slaughter of the innocent, using the hocus pocus and the mystic interpretation of law by lawyers, we shall be forever be tormented by open theft, fraud which destroy confidence which makes men act for themselves alone, instead of mutually exchanging their services and goods in mutual exchanges which is the basis of order in society and not police.

We reiterate that in the face of reason and facts, the imposition of artificial or legal right to property or that idle coinage of the brain which has no basis in the laws of nature, which therefore, violently overthrows the natural right to property, is the root cause of the Kenyan mess. It must be the root cause because it servers the NATURAL CONNECTION between LABOUR and its REWARDS. This artificial right to property creates a class of idle rich men who are not inventive. More so, since their natural wants are already met, and are idle, out of their low imagination capacity they come up with fancy and unreal wants and expensive vanities to meet their whims. Unfortunately, since they occupy the highest positions in society, their love of expense sets the fashion or the example which is copied by those below them. To copy these idlers is the beginning of corruption which eventually corrupts the whole society as it falls into vice and crime.

In conclusion, what we have sought to explain is this. Law makers are only known to invent new taxes and only conquer the pockets of their subjects. It is for this reason; they have diverted the need for reforms on right of property into creation of offices which will preserve their power (read 349 mps idle mps to be paid by those who labour). However, on our part, we insist that, the distribution of wealth in terms of wages, rent and interest which is the most critical issue in the stability of a nation should have been the priority. Without addressing this matter, we shall still be with a governance system dedicated to unjust appropriation of wealth of those who labour. From this parent theft, it shall surely flow all the theft, fraud, all vanity and chicanery that shall surely torment Kenyans worse than a pestilence and famine. This is because, it is impossible to violate the decree of the Creator we call upon in our national prayer with impunity.

Wednesday, January 27, 2010

The Simama Kenya Rally that Never Stood


In this YouTube clip, Alex Chamwada of Royal Media has a one on one interview with the Simama Kenya Patron Jimmy Kibaki ahead of the much talked about big political announcement on January the 31st. President Mwai Kibakis elder son jimmy praised Saboti member of parliament Eugene Wamalwa as presidential material. He referred to him as the embodiment of the leader Kenya needs.
----------------

Breaking News (Updated 1700 hrs EAT, 28/01/10)

As if the organisers had read this Kumekucha post, the much publicized Simama Kenya Rally has been called off. Jimmy Kibaki told reporters earlier today that "police had already withdrawn a licence earlier issued to them". You can read more on Jimmy's press conference here.

---------------------------------------------------------
According to the self confessed tribeless Jimmy Kibaki, first time parliamentarian and Saboti MP Eugene Wamalwa is the best presidential material there exists to succeed his father come 2012!

Keen observers of Kenya’s political landscape are not convinced. Indeed, the general view amongst most residents and leaders of Western Province and the country at large is that Wamalwa’s unholy dalliance with proponents of still-born KKK alliance, his open flirtation with the amorphous Simama Kenya and his declaration to run for presidency are premature, ill-advised and bound to fail even before they start. Most people reckon Eugene is a mere pawn in the wider Kibaki succession intrigues and a clever scheme to chip away some of ODM's support base ahead of 2012.

To begin with, who or what is Simama Kenya? It should be recalled that inside the tenth parliament, PNU is not really considered to be a political party and was in fact just a vehicle for Kibaki’s abortive re-election through a coalition of various parties. In other words, there is no political party for Jimmy Kibaki to manouver himself and join the high octane succession politics, hence the idea of Simama Kenya. Observers opine that with the prospects of being elected in Othaya dwindling by the day it is only a matter of time before Simama Kenya is swiftly transformed into a political party to be used a springboard by Jimmy Kibaki into parliament, even if as a nominated MP.

All eyes however, will be focused in Bungoma this weekend when the political future of Saboti MP Eugene Wamalwa is put on the line when he hosts a Simama Kenya financially backed rally in Bungoma. The rally has been called ostensibly to launch the young Wamalwa’s so-called grand march to State House. An endorsement from Jimmy Kibaki may not mean much to casual observers, but remember it is one Gideon Moi – then known as ‘Chairman’ and a powerful member of Moi’s kitchen cabinet - who convinced his father, retiring President Moi, to pick up and support Uhuru Kenyatta as successor in 2002, at the expense of a much more experienced KANU line-up.

Simama Kenya Patron Jimmy Kibaki says they want to use the Bungoma rally to make “a strong political statement”. Apart from being Kibaki’s son, and whose father’s tenure is the most disastrous since independence, one wonders what other qualifications does Jimmy Kibaki possess to even suggest a presidential candidate to Kenyans.

Fast forward to 2009 and the Kibaki’s succession - not due until 2012 - is being fiercely contested behind the scenes that it has already claimed the political futures of the likes of Amos Kimunya and Martha Karua, and now threatens the delivery of an acceptable constitution. After ignoring the plight of Wamalwa family - moreso his late mother and widow - for the better part of Kibaki’s first term, PNU never even considered Eugene for any cabinet posting following the NARA agreement. In fact PNU chose to reward the likes of Wakoli instead of Wamalwa.

Then Jimmy Kibaki walks in with one of the most outrageous proposals since Kibaki was declared presidential poll winner. Wonders never cease. What would motivate Jimmy Kibaki to become so desperate to spend a substantial part of a family fortune looking for a possible Kibaki successor then unexpectedly fall on to support a rookie MP as presidential candidate even before he himself has established himself a front runner in succeeding his father President Kibaki as Othaya MP? Even as this happens and quite interestingly, the final constitution has yet to pass the referendum test and the executive set-up of the country is still unknown, not to mention that Eugene has no public service record worth talking about!

The answer probably lies in the activities of Simama Kenya in 2009. Prior to anointing Eugene Wamalwa, Jimmy Kibaki had struggled for to be front runner in succeeding his father’s political province in the face of being rendered irrevant by one Mary Wambui in Othaya, which has been formed the bedrock of his father’s support for more than three decades. The same Jimmy Kibaki has reportedly spent huge sums of money in attempting to rope-in so called young leaders to his side, where he managed to get firm commitment from Kamba political minion Kiema Kilonzo and perennial parliamentary race loser Tony Gacoka.

Jimmy then set his eye higher; Identify a worthy presidential candidate from one of Kenya’s populous communities. The carrot was dangled in the faces of not less that than five leading politicians who were promised an endorsement from President Kibaki if they accepted to be the torch bearer although Simama Kenya is not a registered political party in itself. Well informed intelligence sources intimate that Jimmy Kibaki has prostituted Simama’s support to Musalia Mudavadi, Uhuru Kenyatta, William Ruto, Peter Kenneth and Eugene Wamalwa. All but Eugene politely declined, choosing to play their cards close to their chests. The inexperienced and obviously excited Eugene was found to be a willing partner but the rest of these politicians were non committal. None was ready to ditch their political parties for an unknown entity like Simama. Remembering his own brother’s poorly organised and ill-fated presidential campaign in 1997, Eugene’s acceptance of jumping into bed with Jimmy Kibaki has largely been driven by promises of substantial funds being injected into his presidential campaign, expected to take off soon after the forthcoming referendum.

The reality though for Eugene Wamalwa is that his political ambition is not to actually win the presidency, but an acceptance to be used to split the Western Province vote and thereby frustrate Musalia Mudavadi’s and by extension ODM’s fortunes. ODM’s enjoys a huge support base in the Western Province where it also hold 18 of the 24 parliamentary seats.

Apart from former Bundalangi MP Raphael Wanjala who has come out openly in support of Eugene (read – hopping to cash-in on Eugene’s pay-cheque), the rally has sparked confusion in Bungoma District where there are two other presidential candidates (Moses Wetangula and Bufwoli Wakoli). Wakoli and Wetangula presidential charades complete a three pronged attack on ODM’s support base in Western. Most of the other leaders in Western are wary of the real intentions of Jimmy Kibaki who is seen as a front stooge for the KKK alliance which wants to test the Western political waters through Eugene Wamalwa.

Eugene Wamalwa has a remote chance of dislodging Musikari Kombo from the Chairmanship of Ford Kenya, which he claims is his vehicle to the presidency. In an instant, Eugene- who is a trained lawyer - has proposed various amendments to FORD-K’s constitution most of which are aimed at giving him a soft landing amongst party delegates. Among the amendments he has proposed is one to allow any member to contest the presidency and not just the party chairman. Eugene knows he has to elbow out senior party stalwarts like Kombo and Wetangula so he has been quick to also proposed the creation of the ceremonial posts of party leader and party patron, in the hope of accommodating and appeasing other president wannabes’ in FORD-K.

However much they try, Eugene’s rally in Bungoma this weekend has already been seen to have all the hallmarks of a KKK rally. Sources intimate that to avoid this satanic name hanging over their heads Messrs. William Ruto, Uhuru Kenyatta and VP Kalonzo Musyoka are tacitly planning to send their lieutenants to ‘endorse’ Eugene in Bungoma and at the same time introduce a catchy “One Kenya” (OK) slogan.

The race for 2012 is on!

Tuesday, January 26, 2010

Who Do Terrorists Work For?

Guest Post by Blogger Mwarang'ethe

In the recent past, we have rejected the common wisdom that terrorists are Muslims fanatics working on behalf of their fellow Muslims, i.e. “framework of orientation.” Some readers of this blog have refused to take these assertions seriously. We revisit the story of the “Nigerian terrorist” who “attempted” to bomb the plane on the way to the USA on 25th December, 2009. We hope by the end of this piece, many will be more enlightened as to who these “terrorists” work for and why.

We start with an article appearing in the New York Times by Eric Lipton, Eric Schmit and Mark Mazzetti on 17th January, 2010. The title of the article is “Review of Jet Bomb Plot Shows More Missed Clues, available here.

Firstly, they tell us that, worried about possible terrorist attacks over the Christmas period, Obama met with senior security and intelligence officials on 22nd December, 2009. In a separate meeting, on the same day, Obama was informed of disturbing intelligence from Yemen that Al-Qaeda operatives were preparing to attack the USA especially on Christmas day. However, as we are told, for “unknown reasons”, “no one could connect the dots.”

This was despite the fact that, a UN expert on Al-Qaeda had in September warned USA policy makers that the same device that had been used in Saudi Arabia in an attempted assassination could be carried aboard a plane. More so, in November, 2009, the USA intelligence learned by “intercepting communications” from Yemen that a man named “Umar Farouk” had volunteered for a coming operation. Please note that these two names are the first two names of this Nigerian.

Furthermore, in later December, these so called “Al-Qaeda operatives in Yemen” mentioned the 25th December as the “good date” and suggested that they “looking for ways to get somebody out” or “for ways to move people to the West,” according to one senior administration official.

Going further, according to Michael Isikoff and Mark Hosenball of the Newsweek, “A White House report on the foiled Christmas Day attempted airliner bomber provided only the sketchiest of details about what may have been the most politically sensitive of its findings: how the White House itself was repeatedly warned about the prospect of an attack on the U.S. homeland by Al Qaeda operatives in Yemen.” Furthermore, they tell us that, “Still, the report refers, obliquely, to what appear to be significant information that had not previously been disclosed by the White House: U.S. intelligence analysts had “highlighted” an evolving “strategic threat” that Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula or AQAP (as the group in Yemen is known) “posed to the U.S. homeland.” See the story here.

However, the “shocker” came during hearings before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee when current Director of the National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC), Michael E. Leiter, made a startling admission. According to the Congress Daily, it was reported that on 22nd January, 2010, the intelligence officials “have acknowledged the government knowingly allows foreigners whose names are on terrorist watch lists to enter the country in order to track their movement and activities."

Leiter is reported to have informed this Committee that: "I will tell you, that when people come to the country and they are on the watch list, it is because we have generally made the choice that we want them here in the country for some reason or another."

Furthermore, according to Congress Daily reporter Chris Strohm citing unnamed "intelligence official" confirmed that Leiter's statement reflected government policy and told the publication, "in certain situations it's to our advantage to be able to track individuals who might be on a terrorist watch list because you can learn something from their activities and their contacts."

When this saga started, the USA officials disclosed to the world that the Customs and Border Protection agency learned about Abdulmutallab only after the manifest for Northwest Flight 253 had been generated and the plane took off.

However, we now know this not true. We now know that the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Agency had information about alleged terrorist Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab three days before his departure from Amsterdam to Detroit. This is in accordance with the U.S rules that Under U.S. rules, airlines must transmit "passenger name record" data on passengers 72 hours before a flight leaves for the United States. According to Chris Strohm of the CongressDaily, the United States, and Delta, parent company of Northwest Airlines, met that time line for Abdulmutallab, according to officials. In fact, the Delta spokeswoman Susan Elliot was emphatic, "We were compliant with all requirements for submitting passenger information as it relates to the vetting process."

Now, considering that the names Umar Farouk were clearly known before hand from “Qaeda chats,” by the intelligence, further considering that contrary to earlier information, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency had information about Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab three days before his departure from Amsterdam to Detroit, furthermore, taking into account that we now know it is the policy of the USA government to allow well known terrorists to fly into American for “some reason or another” where does that leave the theory concocted by Obama that it was a of “failure to connect dots?”

More so, can one deny that it is entirely possible that these ruthless “choices” made for “some reason or another” which facilitate murder or attempted murder of innocent people while spreading fear are nothing but cynical ways of getting pretexts for advancement of imperialism's geostrategic goals around the world? Let the reader recall what we wrote about Yemen and the, African and Indian Ocean great scramble for big powers.

However, all this is always done in the name of protecting peace, freedom, justice, human rights and such jazz. More so, can we be assured that, the “expected terrorist attacks” by “Somalis terrorists” that Chris has been warning us about, will not be allowed for “one reason or another.”?

In Mein Kampf Hitler said that:

“The great masses of the people in the very bottom of their hearts tend to be corrupted rather than purposely or consciously evil... therefore ... they more easily fall a victim to a big lie than to a little one, since they themselves lie in little things, but would be ashamed of lies that were too big.”

It was a high-breed system that got us into the mess

I have been very pleasantly surprised.

My faith in miracles happening in the land called Kenya has been rekindled.

This has happened as I have watched in utter amazement at the unfolding events in Naivasha where the parliamentary select committee on the constitution has been building consensus over the draft constitution.

Still it is too early to pop the champagne yet. Just watch carefully the politicians who spring up controversy over parts already agreed on. The truth is that there is a small clique of politicians who are very determined that Kenya will NEVER have a new constitution. Their motive is simple. They will be completely unable to operate under a new constitution. They can only thrive and prosper under the current mess.

Which brings me to some words and phrases from Naivasha that I just loved. These words made me want to kiss such known crooks like Ababu Namwamba. I am talking about phrases like “pure presidential system” and “leadership that is accountable.”

Those two phrases ran very deep.

Firstly many Kenyans are not aware of it, but our current system is a high breed system picking from both the Westminster and US models. Is it any wonder that we ended up in such a mess? And the horror of it all is that we were going to jump from the frying pan into the fire proper with another high breed system (eti prime minister and president. My foot!!!). That is why the words “pure presidential system” was music to my ears. Wouldn’t you get nervous when somebody who has not learnt how to use a wheel )or a loaded gun for that matter) properly started attempting to modify it?

Usually pure systems already have inbuilt checks and balances. In a pure presidential system the powers of the president are checked by an independent judiciary and independent legislature. In fact these three key arms of government check each other by remaining independent of each other. Remember I said that I am great believer in keeping stuff simple, I always avoid the temptation to complicate things so as to show off just how much I know about a particular subject (a very common disease in Kenya).

And while every Kenyan is repeating the mantra that has been picked from a certain political party (down with an imperial presidency) we need to pause and think a little more about this imperial presidency thing. What we badly need in Kenya right now is a strong presidency able to get things done. And this brings me to the next phrase that got me all excited. And that is “accountable leadership.” Surely Kenyans do not expect to create a weak presidency and then hold it accountable. It just doesn’t work folks.

We do not need to fear the office of the president in a new constitution as long as we have a strong and independent legislature and judiciary.

I am aware of all the brilliant arguments in favour of a highbreed system with a two-pronged executive. This would have been perfect for a developed nation like South Africa. But not for Kenya where we have hardly scratched the surface of our enormous potential.

I never thought I would ever write the words I am ending this post with… but here I go.

Kudos PSC. You are doing Kenya proud. Finish what you started and Kenya will forever remember you.

Why is your blood boiling Kenyan?

Monday, January 25, 2010

Profiling Makes Us All Less Safe

By Mwarang'ethe

Without even informing us whatever the so called national security really means, in the last few months, Chris has informed us that Somalis are a threat to the Kenyan national security. Thus, while evoking such an ambiguous term, he has now implored us on the wisdom of “supporting” Saitoti in his crack down on Somalis in Eastleigh in Nairobi.

Anyway, the main issue here is not how to define the meaning of so called national security, but to show that, this kind of profiling we have adopted in the name of “fighting” terrorism, and which Chris is cheering in the name of fighting terrorism can only make us less safe.

Now, there are two kinds of profiling. We can use behavioural profiling which is based on how someone acts. The other profiling is automatic profiling which is based on names, nationality; the way one may the way a person buys a plane ticket etc. As an example of automatic profiling, in December, 2009, the USA government designated 14 nations whose nationalities must be subjected to more screening. The meaning is that people from these 14 countries are more likely to be terrorists than all other nations.

The behavioural profiling can be the most effective way of profiling. However, it is extremely hard to get it right. Consequently, national security people and media people, retort to automatic profiling as we see now in Kenya against Somalis. The question is, does this kind of profiling really work?

As a matter of evidence and reasoning, automatic profiling does not work. It does not work because the so called terrorists do not come in a neat profile that computers can pick. For instance, Timothy McVeigh was a white male American. The recent “terrorist,” by the name Mutallab, was a Nigerian. The shoe bomber, a Mr Richard Reid was a British with a Jamaican father. Germanaine Lindsay one of the alleged 7/7 bombers was an African from the Caribbean. Jose Padilla was an Hispanic American. The terrorist who blew the Russian planes in 2004 was a Chechen female. From this list, it is rather obvious that, terrorists do not come in one brand.

More so, this kind of profiling creates two paths through security system. In one path, there is less scrutiny and the other one there is more scrutiny. Once you have this two path security system, you invite the terrorist/criminals to use the path with less security. These criminals no doubt have the capability of analysing a profiling system and then adapt accordingly.

For instance, since Uganda is not among the 14 nations designated by the USA administration, what would stop a criminally minded person to relocate to Uganda for some time and then start his journey from Kampala to the USA?

From what we have said above, it seems more reasonable to have a system where we can randomly select people to be screened. For instance, if it is at the airport, why not have an idea whereby, every 20th passenger, unless is a toddler, will be subjected to a more through screening? With such a system, anyone could be subjected to security checks at any time.

The beauty of such an approach is that it does not anger the ethnic groups that we may need on our side if we are to be secure against criminals. Otherwise, with automatic profiling, you alienate the same people you want to cooperate.

Saturday, January 23, 2010

Kenya’s security: Stuff that Kenyans don’t want to know

My sincere apologies to all foreigners residing in Kenya either legally or illegally who are going through a terrible time of anxiety just now. I have lived in many foreign countries myself and I know exactly what you are feeling.

But please allow me to lay bare the bleak situation facing the country you have chosen to be your home either temporarily or permanently. A country that you would not have wanted to live in if it was not peaceful and secure for you to bring up your children in.

The truth is that Kenya will never be the same again. If you read my predictions for this year you will know that I predicted a successful strike by the Al-Shabab in Kenya. And if you have been following the news then you will know that so far this year there have already been at least two attempts to blow up something (and we are still in January).

But the questions that we should all be asking ourselves now is how did we get to where we are now?

Our intelligence people have known for years now that hundreds of Somali nationals stream into the country daily. Yes, DAILY. Kenyans have seen these foreigners arrive to start businesses in major towns in the country. Even without reading the numerous warnings that have been penned here in Kumekucha since 2005, we all watched Eastleigh change dramatically and start to grow at breakneck speed and we all knew that the people driving these changes were NOT local Somalis. One sure sign was their inability to speak or understand either English or Kiswahili.

Let me cut the long story short and say that we all knew a lot of stuff. And yet nothing was done.

Why?

I have no idea. But there are a few pointers that would need further investigation.

One is especially disturbing, at least to me. I strongly suspect that the government decided that the economic benefit of the illegal Somali immigrants was much greater than the immediate danger posed. If this is true then I can only shake my head in disgust and say that that was a very big mistake that Kenyans shall long live to regret and suffer. I have had the privilege of traveling to many hardship areas of our country. Courtesy of being the son of a policeman who got posted all over the place and always moved with his family. I have known Somalis for many years and I see ignorance in the minds of many Kenyans especially where they underestimate the capabilities of these people. I feel really sorry for all those “well educated” Kenyans who are sure that because they look stupid and slow in terms of mental capability then they are exactly that. Others believe that anybody who cannot speak English is surely not intelligent.

Well, did you know that in the infamous Jamia riots of last week, the CCTV (Close circuit security TV cameras) that cover most of the CBD were disabled by somebody who knew exactly what to steal at the National Archives area. And whoever it was knew exactly what they were doing because whatever they removed disabled the entire system. What that meant was that not only did looters have a field day but security personnel hardly have any footage to study so as to understand just how well co-ordinated the chaos at the Jamia incident were. Interestingly stones carefully targeted any journalist seen to be carrying cameras. And so it was easy for some of the protestors to carry firearms and use them.

Yep, just keep on underestimating Somalis at your own peril. These are the guys who made short work of the dreaded American Marines and the Navy seals as well in Somalia during the Clinton administration.

I appreciate the fact that shortly after my post last week, Internal Security minister George Saitoti moved with speed and did what should have been done 15 years ago. However I dare add that it is way too late.

Somali nationals have infiltrated into Kenya and most of them have Kenyan identity cards (meaning that they can get voters cards and strongly influence our politics as they have done in Kamukunji constituency, just ask former MP Norman Nyagah). Somalis also have lots of cash. It would not be impossible for them to field a presidential candidate in the next general elections and using their numbers (estimated at over 2 million together with local Somalis) and their cash, they have a fighting chance of getting their man into State House and changing Kenya into another Iran before your very eyes.

Folks, now is the time to bury all our political differences and to give full support to Internal security Minister George Saitoti in the imposible task he has ahead of him. We desperately need to deal with the immediate danger otherwise we may not have a country left to squabble over amongst ourselves.

I believe that this is the final warning you will see in this blog concerning this extremely serious threat. I have already been branded a Somali-hater by some of my valued readers here and therefore I will now fall back to my usual tactic of remaining silent even as stuff unfolds. Or perhaps discuss the weather and other things. What more can I do now?

God help Kenya.

See previous article; Do those making decisions know enough about Somalis?

Friday, January 22, 2010

The New Constitution is Void AB INITIO

Guest Post by Blogger Mwarang'ethe

INTRODUCTION

Kenyans have spent a fortune in search of a new constitutional dispensation. It is thus in order that we are now witnessing fretfulness and feverishness in expectation of change. However, we wish to warn Kenyans that all this expense shall be in vain. This must be so because, every new law must of necessity be injurious which is not adapted to that form of society which perfectly agreeable to nature and justice. Thus, any law that is drafted in ignorance of natural law principles, as this Draft Constitution has been, instead of being a staff of honesty and shield, must become a two – edged sword of craft and oppression.

In expressing this uncompromising and bitter truth, we are addressing the court of reason. However, at the same time, we are aware that there are few judges in this court. Furthermore, these already a few judges are too indolent to inquire diligently into the causes of present misery in Kenya. Nevertheless, we must address them because blessed are those who hunger and thirst for justice, for they shall be satisfied. More so, they are not only the salt of the earth, but, they are also the light which places the lamp of knowledge in the dark places.

SOLE OBJECTIVE OF LAW REFORMS

Let go straight to the point. The sole objectives of any law reform are twofold. It is to assure safety of our property and the security of persons. Consequently, all the political commotion we see is all about right to property, i.e. who shall own the wealth generated in the commonwealth. Thus, without addressing this matter conclusively, we are wasting time. Furthermore, to the extent that safety of our property is not assured in any constitutional dispensation, it must follow as the day follows the night that, even safety of our persons is not assured.

RIGHT TO PROPERTY AS BASIS OF SOCIETY

According to Locke while agreeing with Cicero taught us that:

“That the great and chief end of men’s uniting into commonwealths, and putting themselves under government is PRESERVATION of their property.”

Also, Mr Mills expressed the same opinion taught us that:

“The end be obtained through government as the means, is to make that distribution of the scanty materials of happiness, which would ensure the greatest sum of it to the members of the community, taken altogether, preventing every individual or combination of individuals from interfering with that distribution, or making any man to have less than his share.”

In simple words, what these wise men taught us is this. It is for reasons of preservation of property which existed before any government is formed, do men unite under a government. What this means is that, the right of property is the KEY – STONE of a society. Therefore, the right to property is the basis of the political edifice. What this means is this. To the extent that, right of property is a natural right, not created by legislation and therefore, a principle derived from the laws of the universe, all its results must be determined at all times by those laws. Consequently, the legislator ought to ascertain these laws before he legislates. This means that before he takes any step to protect right of property, he must find out by serious study what are the first principles of this right. Let us now demonstrate how this important step has been ignored.

RIGHT TO PROPERTY IN NATURAL & DIVINE LAW

Among the African, Red Indians, Maori of New Zealand, Aborigines of Australia, the traditions and customs of right to land/natural resources are these. Land is a gift from the Creator and therefore, a common property. This meant that, one could farm, graze his animals and hunt on the land freely. However, the fruits of one’s labour, i.e. his millet, his cows, goats etc and the dear he shot, were his private property. This was a remarkable distinction between common property and private property which a modern lawyer and a philosopher has no clue.

In the Bible, we find similar message. The Lord told Moses in Mount Sinai that:

“The land shall not be sold for ever: for the land is mine; for ye are strangers and sojourners with me.” (Leviticus 25:23) Also, in Psalms 24:1, the Lord says, “The earth is the Lord’s.” What this meant is simple. Israel’s were to hold land in fee from Him. Thus, the ground itself, then, was not a proper object of sale, but only the result of man’s labour on the ground. It is for this reason, the wise man Solomon taught us that: “Moreover the profit of the earth is for all: the King himself is served by the field.” The similarity between African, Indian, Maori and Aborigine people and Mosaic Law is striking.

In England during the era of Saxons and Normans, and up to the end of feudalism, land was held along these lines. All land belonged to the Crown who held it as a trustee or a steward. Those who held land directly from the King were called tenants in capite (tenants in chief). The land these tenants in chief occupied was called demesne land. The rest of the land which was called mesne was granted to others who held it indirectly from the Crown on similar conditions. These mesne tenants could also grant others land under similar conditions. However, the most important point is that, all these people, held land for rent in service or in money or in kind. As a result of these arrangements, the cost of the government was from land rent.

CORRUPTION OF RIGHT TO PROPERTY

However, with time, the tenants in chief refused to remit the rent to the Crown. However, they forgot to stop taking rent from their sub tenants. This was the start of an era where privilege started to be divorced from obligation whereby, land was being treated as unconditionally owned private property in fact, but, not in law.

This development had very grave consequences. One, the Crown was starved of funds to run the government. This required introduction of taxation of citizen’s labour. The imposition of tax on the poor who had already lost their land resulted in poverty and crime in England. To hide this problem, the English government introduced Poor Relief law and punitive punishment of using modern prisons and capital punishment. Today, they call the Poor Relief the so called Welfare, but, it is the same Poor Relief law which was enacted when many people lost their birthright to land. The other consequence was that, having retained land free of duty, i.e. rent for public purse, the few grew very wealthy. From this wealthy generated from rent which rightly belongs to the Crown, they started lending the Crown loans with interest. To pay these loans, the English government had to incur further public expenditure which increased taxation even further.

UNHOLY TRINITY OF MODERN STATE

It is this corrupt and inequitable system which developed in England, we cheerfully and ignorantly inherited. As a result, we now have an unholy trinity of TAXATION of incomes, POVERTY and WELFARE. Under this trinity, taxation causes poverty because it falls hardest on the poor. Poverty necessitates Poor Relief which is euphemistically now called welfare. The funding for welfare calls for more taxation which further increases poverty. This creates a vicious circle which is broken by borrowing.

However, since it is impossible to repay these loans and interests, the governments must sink into more debts to be met with more taxation. As we all know, this leads to serious inflation which again bites the poorest most. And, mark you, this borrowing is from those who hold land, but, do not remit rent that is due to the State although they continue to collect rent from the poor. This is one the worst defect of modern state and without its reform, poverty and conflict will be with us.

MODERN LAND LAW

In the modern English law on land, we find this. There are two basic doctrines in the law of real property. These are known as:

  • (a) The doctrine of tenures: all land is held of the Crown, either directly or indirectly, on one or other of the various tenures, and
  • (b) The doctrine of estates: a subject cannot own land, but can merely own an estate in it, authorizing him to hold it for some period of time.

What is crystal clear, but, not to a modern lawyer, is that, under the current land law in England which we have accepted is this, all those who call themselves land owners in Kenya, as a matter of law are not land owners. They only own an estate in that land. The question that we must ask is this. So, who owns the land in Kenya then? The answer is obvious. It is owned by all Kenyans as a common property. It is remarkable that, the modern English land law takes us back to where we started about African traditions law and customs of land. The question is, if those who call themselves land owners are tenants of all Kenyans, where is the rent due for holding this land? Or, what is the consideration for holding this land?

The answer is that, those who call themselves owners of land in Kenya have not been paying their dues to those who own land. This means that, the government we had since 1963 did not meet the requirement that the chief end and aim of a government is to preserve the existing property of those who form a government. This being the case, one the major aim of the current constitution reforms should have been about securing the birthright to land i.e. property, that a few robbers have dared rob for so long. The question is, has the Draft Constitution done this?

We answer with bitter disappointment that, it has not come even close to this. This is not surprising for lawyers who are like priests of the Middle Ages, blend technical competence with plain and fancy hocus-pocus to make themselves masters of their fellow men. Thus, they are only versed with technicalities of conveyancing which is a means of attaining reputation and wealth to understand what they are doing. Being what they are, they can only amend some of these technicalities and some trivial discrepancies of detail. They do this while blindly assuming to be correct that which reason teaches is an error. Thus, since they are experts in what is law and not what law ought to be, they can only recommend the continuation of an error while only pruning the most revolting consequences of the same.

To the extent this draft has not addressed the lost birthright to land, i.e. right to property; we are still stuck with the unholy trinity of taxation, poverty and welfare. The only way to end this vicious circle that bleeds ignorance and conflict is to require the King to live on his own as they expressed in England when land rent was collected to run the affairs of the government. It is in accordance with this doctrine, Sir John Fortescue (Lord Chief Justice 1442) expressed in clear and unambiguous terms that, it is only in case of overmuch exorbitant for suppression of rebellion, the defence of the realm to repel invasion was it thought right and necessary that people should be taxed.

To many Kenyans, the problem is the executive. To this we answer. This is mere delusion and fantasy borne out of confusion of thought fostered by brainwashing of modern education if one can call it education, the pulpit, the legislature and the media which are all under the control of the land lords. We say this because, political organisation very much depends on the mode in which property is distributed. Whenever the right to property is placed on the proper foundation, the oppression and its offspring’s, i.e. ignorance and poverty it with all their dreadful consequences are unknown. However, whenever the foundation of property is rotten as this draft proposes, freedom cannot exist and justice cannot be administered. This is so because history bears witness to the following facts:

The rules which regulate the manner in which land can be owned, and used, and disposed of, must always be the very greatest importance to the state. The STABILITY of the state and the WELLBEING of its citizens at all times depend, to no small extent, on its land law. This is true today as it was in the earlier period of history.

For heaven’s sake, if you have not secured the foremost natural right i.e. inalienable birth right to land, how dare you deceive humanity that you can secure those other so called human rights you call right to food, clothing, access to justice and shelter among others that you put so nicely in this constitution?

Therefore, concurring with Chief Justice Coke, we call upon all men of reason to join us, in saying that, when any man made law is against common right and reason, the common law will control it, and adjudge such law to be void. Therefore, as demonstrated in this short essay, this so called new constitution is in utter violation and in fact in contempt of both Natural and Divine Law. Thus, it cannot assure the safety of our property and our personal safety. For these reasons, it is void ab initio and the nation cannot claim not to have been forewarned. In God’s name, stop this robbery of the poor and weak.

Presidency: Reducing Institution to Personality

By Guest Writer

Come on Kenyans, let us get our priorities right for once and have the cart behind the horse. This animal called the presidency is the singular source of all the ills afflicting Kenya and until we rectify and straighten that institution we will only succeed in bandaging a festering wound with devastating consequences.

The constitutional order was never the problem for Kenya. Rather, the problem has been and will always remain the abused institution of the presidency, debased by tribal shenanigans and left to rot by a "below-the-threshold" civic consciousness, low energy and rudderless political participation by the Kenyan people.

To create a proper constitutional presidency takes thorough-going measures to establish formal permanent structures to manage the presidency. These structures must create a process for how the presidency functions; develop goals and action plans for achieving presidential agenda, time frames and a reporting mechanism for the accomplishments of the presidency. Kenyans can then begin to make sense of the institution, weigh its actions against its goals and agenda and, evaluate its excesses based on a known set of parameters referencing constitutional provisions and limits of presidential action.

As things stand, the presidency in Kenya operates by rule of the thumb, has a limited executive apparatus consisting of a state comptroller, a press secretary and a security details. Think about it, how can this outfit effectively manage presidential programs?! The president's involvement in national issues, under these circumstances, becomes residual and the presidential routine includes such mundane roles as signing legal notices, receiving ambassadors credentials, attending ceremonial functions etc.

Lords of Impunity
There is much more that a broadened presidency can do. It can act as a centre for the expeditious implementation of important socio-economic agenda that meets the expectations of the people.

Institutions that are not held accountable never reformed or restructured in any way become derelict. If Kenyans can separate the presidency from the president, the executive, as an institution, from the president and, if focused attention can be paid to the structure and facility of these institutions, they have a chance to function as organs for the pursuit of the integrity of the state.

Instead, we have a presidency without a structure, an administration that functions as the superintendent of the permanent bureaucracy, a government that reels under the disruptive impact of new dynamics associated with new administrations, absence of transitional structures to anchor the bureaucracy from the degenerative effects of administration change. The presidency has, historically, produced political impunity and hawkish ethnic power centres. All these elements sour the political landscape and make good governance untenable.

A president that knows he/she functions under the watch of an institutional rather than an individualized presidency, will, in most cases, be controlled and limited in what he/she can arbitrarily do or allow to be done.

Return of Imperialism
Any constitution, old or new, that does not guarantee the rule of law, that allows the president to feel and act as an omnipotent deity, that tempts tribes to want power so desperately, will never be a good constitution. Anytime a good constitution is combined with bad institutions the resultant practices and political behaviours will undermine the rule of law. This will often create the impression that the constitution is the problem. Nothing can be further from the truth.

In a nutshell we are not starring hell in the face for lack of preachers. Far from it, we have collectively and unwittinly allowed pretenders and little devils to lead us by the hand to hellhole.

We must hold our leaders to account so that they match the letter and spirit of our laws, period.

The Big Question of the Week

Was an expensive retreat really necessary just to give Kenyans the same current constitution but dressed up in colorful distractions?

Now joking has acquired a new meaning altogether. But we must have sen it coming, didn't we? Well, welcome to JOKERS REPUBLIC.

Bottom line, the LAW IS AN ASS. What is more, man was both EVIL and the law is to keep him on a tight leash. Until we get cultured as a nation defined by values, the written law's spirit will be shredded by the living devils ruling us.

Thursday, January 21, 2010

325 MPs: PSC's Paradox of Presidential System

It must be such an obtuse paradox to have parliamentarians as authors of a presidential system of governance. Well, if the imperial presidency is synonymous with impunity, then the parliamentary system is a poor acceptance of tribal tension among Kenyans.

Kenyans have been unanimous in demanding one centre of power. Consequently, the PSC meeting in Naivasha have taken cue to settle for presidential system of governance. So far the whole PSC business smacks of smartly-disguised mischief.

What a lucky and privileged lot? Not only do they set and increase their own salaries, this time around they have upped the game by creating more constituencies for themselves.

Now we have PSC members determining a cap of 325 MPs. Which leaves you wondering what were their parameters in their hurry to jump the gun. Here we have people enslaved with the present political dispensation selfishly prescribing a future manual and structure of governance.

It appears the Kenyan voter hasn't seen the last of these scoundrels. One would be forgiven for believing the MPs when they shamelessly wax patriotic and pseudo objective until they start voting on weighty matters using their stomachs and mouths.

But you cannot blame the MPs who are only flying their Principal's flag. Lack of leadership from the TOP proved a clear abdication of responsibility. This saw the PSC being entrusted with an enormous task that the real power men never even pretended to solve.

Well, plastic patriotism may make us shout in denouncing those classifying us as a failed state. But the reality remains we are in the same cesspool as that hosting Mugabe and Tsvamgirai.

Kenya may not be Zimbabwe (spelling and pronunciation) but the common thread through both countries is the beautiful MIRAGE of a new constitution.

Wednesday, January 20, 2010

Xenophobia and Mau Unites Karua and Ruto

They play in opposite sides of the political field occasionally throwing choicest epithets at each other. But on demanding humane treatment of victims of official harassment, Hons. Karua and Ruto play on the same team for the same goal: FAIRNESS.

While Ruto took the PM head on demanding HUMANE EVICTIONS from Mau forest, Karua is roasting Saitoti for allowing police to use excessive force in breaking last Friday's protest. True to the hen-egg adage, which came first: the floods/trees for Ruto or human rights/security for madam Martha?

Here are two presidential candidates walking the talk. And Karua should know when she barracks Saitoti for a failed intelligence gathering. Her fidelity to the law can only earn her more admirers if not more voters. She stands tall and tough when no man dares raise his neck as evident during the post-election storm.

As for Ruto, his focus and bare knuckles approach to matters he consider close to his political cause can only raise his standing. After defying Moi and succeeding against all odds, nobody knows better how to fell a political giant.

These two presidential candidates have introduced a breathe of fresh air to political competition based on ISSUES. Karua knows human rights must not be compromised at whatever cost. Even Al-Shabaab sympathizers have rights and what is more, they are Africans and Kenyans to boot. Eastleigh and Kenya would be much poorer without these enterprising lot.

Meanwhile Ruto's selfless fight for the downtrodden sets a new standard for true leadership. Nobody could have been far-sighted than an Agriculture Minister promising a nationwide tree planting instead of selective actions media tokenism witnessed in Mau last Friday. Ruto has reminded us that tree planting is like infant immunization that can be postponed till the right time.

It is no coincidence that events of last Friday provided the platform on which these two great politicians launched their constructive campaigns against xenophobia and government harassment of her citizens.

Kenya can only get better. Kudos to the principled iron lady Karua and the indomitable honest Ruto. You have both painfully planted and the bounty harvest from your common constituency constituting the harassed will not disappoint.

Sunday, January 17, 2010

Deadly Police killers Part 4



Deadly Police killers Part 4

I will end this series with some very interesting information I have just gotten from one of my informants.

They start by refuting my story earlier this week where I said that Maj gen Ali’s survival outside prison is favoured by current International politics.

He assures me that sources close to the American embassy have assured him that Ali is a marked man by the Americans. He is sure that the only way Ali will possible ever gain access into the US is in handcuffs to face trial. Apparently the Americans are really pushing behind the scenes for Hague to indict Ali for crimes against humanity. Apparently it will be difficult for Ali to implicate his superiors and those he took orders from, even if he wanted to.

Interestingly the other two names that never leave Ocampos’ lips are those of Uhuru Kenyatta and William Ruto. However chances of a successful prosecution against Uhuru Kenyatta appear to be getting dimmer by the day. Three police executions have buried all possible evidence. Namely the two Oscar foundations executions and that of the Mungiki spokesman Njuguna Gitau. The Oscar foundation had a thick dossier on Ali and Uhuru that would have made Ocampo’s day. And Gitau was Uhuru Kenyata’s link to the Mungiki when he financed deadly attacks in Naivasha against non-Kikuyus in retaliation to what had been done to the community in the Rift Valley. It is widely recognized that the Naivasha killings ended eneded the post elections violence when it was realized just how devastating a Kikuyu retaliation could be. This is one reason why Uhuru is a hero to many in the Kikuyu community.

Ali and Ruto were not able to possibly ‘destroy’ all the evidence to cover their crimes and are definitely destined for an appointment with Ocampo.

The sad news is that as long as the current political class remains in power and for as long as state security continues to be an issue of national importance police killings will remain. Albeit maybe not at the scale that Kenyans have witnessed in the recent past.


Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

See previous weekend special

Deadly Police killers Part 3



Deadly Police killers Part 3
The very first thing that Mwai Kibaki did on taking over power was to ask for a detailed report from the major security agencies in the country. It was clear to the then delighted Kenyans that the new president considered fighting crime as one of his top priorities.

It was also apparent that the president had some very clear ideas on how exactly to go about combating crime and insecurity in the country. Increasing the number of police officers was one of them. However this hardly had the desired effect and the frustration of the new administration was clear as Mwai Kibaki’s first year in power dragged on. At one point the president even started threatening criminals in his public speeches.

From the various reports the government received it had emerged that the police (even with the injection of new ideas) was losing the fight against criminals. More drastic action was urgently required.

Now, during the Kenyatta administration whenever the spate of bank robberies increased in the country police would be ordered to hunt known bank robbers and to shoot them on site. One or two shootings later, criminals would start surrendering guns to the police and promising to behave themselves. It was clear that Mwai Kibaki’s mind was still firmly fixed in this long past era. And this is where the idea of using brutal methods to deal with crime in Kenya were first mooted. To implement this, a soldier was appointed to the post of police commissioner. And this is how the then Brigadier Hussein Ali ended up at Vigilance House. The minister in charge at the time was Chris Murungaru a close confidante of president Kibaki for many years. Soldiers are trained to kill whilst policemen are trained in law enforcements methods. The two are as different as night is from day. And this is the reason why Ali’s appointment at first puzzled many close security observers.

It is quite possible that Ali’s methods of fighting crime would never have been detected had it not been for the Mungiki menace. Still what remains puzzling to this writer is how Ali despite being a very intelligent man convinced himself that he could oversee the killing of so many people and still get away with it. More so in this age of satellite “spying” where it is virtually impossible to do anything major in the world and completely get away with it. Was it ignorance of the law? After all soldiers hardly get any training in legal matters.

The Kumekucha figures as to the number of people who were killed by Ali’s killing machine in clamping down on the Mungiki menace alone is close to 5,000. That is a figure many have sneered at here in this blog and has been ridiculed but I am still convinced that it is the figure closest to the truth. Unknown to many Kenyans Ali’s killing machine had also perfected methods of disposal of bodies. There were various tactics employed. One was to transport bodies to morgues very far away from where those people lived. A person could be killed in Nairobi and the body dumped at a Garissa morgue. Sometimes a Nairobi body would be dumped in nearby Machakos. But think about it for a moment, would you ever think of looking for a missing relative who lived in Nairobi even in nearby Machakos? Very unlikely although one lucky family was tipped off and found their loved one in Machakos.

The other method was to dump the body at the Nairobi national park. This one was ingenious. In 1975 the police dumped the body of the then Nyadarua North legislator, JM Kariuki in Ngong Forest where there are wild animals. All would have gone well but so determined were the police that he should never be recognized that they poured acid on his face and parts of the body to make positive identification impossible. In pouring the acid, this actually prevented most wild animals from feeding on the burning flesh (burning from acid), at least until a Masai herdsman discovered it. Incidentally JM Kariuki’s widow ended up identifying the body from a scar in his inner thigh, where the acid did not reach.

Now when you dump a dead body in the National park without pouring any acid on it, chances are that within a few days there will be no trace left. First the Hyenas will get to it. Hyenas even chew the hard bones of bigger animals and so imagine what they would do to supple human bones. And then when they are done there are the scavengers hovering all over the place. Not to mention the ants and worms in the bushes who usually clean up any remnants. In this way thousands of bodies disappeared without trace and without any evidence.

So experienced and efficient did the Ali killing machine become that by the time the post election troubles came in early 2008, the ingenious method of throwing some of the Kisumu bodies into Lake Victoria was quickly mooted.

Admittedly most of the stories told about the killings that Maj gen Hussein Ali supervised in his tenure as police commissioner sound like fiction straight out of a spy thriller. Indeed this is Ali’s best defense, to say that the stories are too incredible to be true. Sadly the truth is that most are true.

Still during the aftermath of the botched presidential elections a close informant of mine who lives in Nyayo High rise estate had an interesting encounter. They called me at about 8 am to say that they couldn’t sleep because there was constant gunfire in neighbouring Kibera. They reported that the gunfire went on the whole night without ceasing and only petered off in the early morning at around 5 am. Now there are no Somalis living in Kibera and therefore you can safely rule out the idea of anybody exchanging fire with the police. Can we assume that all those bullets were missing their mark? Or perhaps the police were shooting at rats (there are plenty of those in the slums)?

Also remember that the poor folks at Kibera have no idea where the newspaper offices are. Majority of them would be terrified after a relative is killed by the police. Who would protect them if they reported a police killing? It is this mostly innocent blood crying out from the ground that will definitely not leave Maj gen Ali and his superiors in peace until justice is done, however long that takes.

To be continued

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Previous Weekend special

Saturday, January 16, 2010

Deadly Police killers Part 2




Deadly Police killers Part 2

The Kenya police has a long history of being brutal and when one examines the very beginnings of the force it all begins to make more sense.

Press reports in Kenya have always maintained that Ali was the very first military man to be appointed police commissioner. This is NOT true. The very first commissioner of police was a soldier (Brig.Gen.F.S. Edward who served from 1908 to 1922). In fact as early as 1909 Edward himself noted that the military element had been promoted at the expense of police training, as a result of which a training depot was established in Nairobi in 1911 together with a small fingerprint section.

But perhaps the peak of brutality for the “Kinya” police (as the colonialists pronounced it) was during the emergency. The first thing that the colonial government did to deal with the Mau mau menace was to greatly expand the numbers in the force. Now you know where one Mwai Kibaki may have gotten his idea of how to easily deal with escalating crime when he took over power in 2003. The other thing they did was to stop playing things by the book. In other words this meant untold brutality torture and killing of many innocent people. This tactic was quite effective in snuffing out the Mau mau rebellion. And again now you know where the Kibaki administration may have gotten the idea of not playing things by the book of which Maj Gen Ali’s appointment as police commissioner was key.

There was a honeymoon period for the police when Kenya gained her independence in 1963. The injustices in the police that happened over this period were mainly to do with appointments. A handful of very able men including an excellent Luo officer were overlooked for the post of police commissioner in favour of a Kikuyu man who was hurriedly transferred from the Special branch called Bernard Hinga. You have to realize that until independence very few and carefully selected Kikuyus were recruited into the police or any armed force in the country. This is because they were mainly considered to be disloyal and unpredictable. Kambas were greatly favoured followed by other tribes like the Luo. So considering the numbers alone the chances of a kikuyu being the first commissioner of police were very slim indeed.

But even more instructive was the man appointed to take Bernard Hinga’s place at the Special Branch. His name was James Kanyotu.

Evidence that I have gathered seems to suggest that as 1964 came to a close the Kenyatta government had come to the realization that the celebratory honeymoon was over and they needed to put their house in order. Alarming developments in other African countries like frequent coups, including neighbouring Zanzibar (where there was a bloody revolution engineered by a Ugandan policeman) quickly caused paranoia in the Kenyatta administration and pushed security of the state to the top of the government’s priority list. What security of the state meant was really security of the president and indeed the very survival of his government.

The result was that all enemies, real and imagined, had to be identified and dealt with long before they made their moves. Bernard Hinga headed the special branch until the end of 1964 and at the time this police department mainly gathered and analyzed information and there were no “executions” as such carried out.

Advisors to the Kenyatta administration pointed out that even developed countries like Great Britain and the United States had state security organs that dealt with threats viciously and the young Kenyan administration could not pretend that such an arrangement was not necessary in these shores.

It is very telling that barely within two months of the appointment of James Kanyotu in February 1965, the first “police execution” took place. Pio Gama Pinto was reversing from his house when a lone gun man appeared from nowhere and shot him dead.

How was Pinto a threat to national security?

Many local writers have speculated that his leanings towards communism were the reason. Actually the real reason was that courageous Pinto had actually confronted the President at parliament buildings a few weeks earlier over his personal land grabbing and the corrupt ways of his government. Eyewitnesses say that Kenyatta retorted by calling Pinto a bastard and without thinking Pinto told the head of state that he too was a bastard. Everybody who was there was stunned. It is likely that Kanyotu felt that if Pinto was allowed a little room he would develop a formidable opposition to the Kenyatta government. In fact Pinto had been Kenyatta’s fund raiser at the most difficult time of the latter’s political career and there were few political fundraisers at the time that were as effective as Pinto. This is closer to the truth as to why Kanyotu gave the order for Pinto’s life to be terminated.

As I have said before in this blog, Pinto’s assassination and Tom Mboya’s killing 4 years later had a lot of uncanny similarities that point directly to the police, or rather the secret arm of the police being responsible. However there was one big difference. Kanyotu was an impeccable man who carefully covered his tracks and only started making serious mistakes many years later, late into the Moi administration and even then his mistakes were very few. Kanyotu must have noted that in the Pinto assassination a man who was not a police officer was used and it became clear that there were many problems with this approach including possible leakages later. And that is why I tend to believe information made available to me that the man who actually pulled the trigger to end Mboya’s life was in fact a police officer. The late Ben Gethi. The man later arrested for the murder Nahashon Njenga, a Kanu activist and youth winger who was personally known to Mboya, had an uncanny resemblance to Gethi.

All the assassinations done during the Kenyatta era were carried out by the Special branch and with the knowledge and nod from the director of intelligence James Kanyotu himself. Now when the Moi era commenced, there was again a honeymoon period where all political detainees were released and police executions stopped. It seems that while Moi still received regular briefings from his intelligence chief James Kanyotu, he shied away from authorizing killings. To Moi’s credit, even after the 1982 coup he favored detention without trial to killings. He was probably still too disgusted at what he had seen during the Kenyatta era. Even the Ouko murder was not really ordered but was rather a spontaneous thing that happened in the heat of the moment although the Special branch was used to track the foreign minister’s every move and to later to help cover up the murder.

You must also remember that it was during the Moi era that the Special branch was abolished and replaced by the National Security Intelligence Services (NSIS) which unlike the special branch has no legal arresting powers. Actually its’ predecessor, the special branch thrived on the arrest and brutal torture of its’ subjects to verify and get information. It is for this reason that many old hands wondered how the new NSIS would work.

This is very important to keep in mind because the Kibaki administration met this kind of arrangement when he took over office in 2003.

To be continued

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Invitation to all illegal immigrants in Africa (ad sponsored by Kumekucha)

Are you interested in living in a foreign country illegally without any headaches? Then Kenya has to be your country of choice. Come to Kenya where you can immediately start pretending to be Kenyan and even cause all the chaos and trouble you want without fearing deportation. Those who enjoy throwing stones at policemen are especially invited for a helluva time with the Kenya riot police who rarely fire back with live ammunition like some of you are already used to in good old Wild West Mogadishu and other non-nonsense African countries. Live at your leisure without any papers or visa worries. Buy property anywhere you want and even right in the middle of Nairobi CBD. Yes, you don’t believe it? I challenge you to come to Kenya and see for yourself. You certainly can’t do it in Tanzania, Uganda or even Sudan. In fact you can’t do it anywhere else in the world. But in Kenya anything is possible for illegal immigrants. The only papers you need are lots of liquid cash to smooth over any slight problems that may occur mostly from hungry immigration officers and policemen. Somalis are especially invited to see a capital city within a capital city called Eastleigh “little Mogadishu” that is better than Mogadishu itself (before it was bombed up and all) and where 99.9% of the population is made up of Somali nationals. And where you can get a forged passport to travel to any part of the world. Rush now, it is already getting very crowded.

Advertisement issued by Kumekucha in the human rights interests of settling Africans and illegal immigrants trapped all over the world who are keen on living in a foreign country illegally but safe from arrest or any harassment (in fact you are the one who is free to harass the citizens of your host country yourself).

N.B. If you have no passport to cross the border into Kenya, don’t worry, ready cash will do.

Previous weekend special

Deadly Police killers Part 1



Deadly Police killers Part 1

It was approaching mid 2008 and two different incidents happened in quick succession. The first was a warning that my true identity and location was known to certain persons hell-bent on hiding the truth from Kenyans at all costs. These people had been linked to various assassinations that at that point were only “rumours published in Kumekucha.” The second was when out of the blue one of my most impeccable and reliable security informants warned me to lie low and ensure that my identity was never known to this same group. My two informants did not know each other, I was sure of that. And so the timing of their warnings unsettled me greatly. I realized then that my life was really in danger.

Still I hesitated. What if both were wrong? Besides I had been very careful all along, surely there was no way they could find me. And so I did a little more checking and digging. Some sources assured me that all was well. But one or two others told me that I was a marked man because I had disclosed information that was way too sensitive in my blog and what made matters worse is that the information had reached the wrong “foreigners” who were now going to cause a lot of trouble. Since I knew too much and would most probably be called upon to help unearth the truth later, I could no longer be ignored.

Running for dear life can be a strange thing. The first thing that happens is panic. I did not realize how panicked I was until a friend who was helping me asked me a direct question; who exactly wanted to kill you? My mind went blank. It seemed that I had forgotten all the distinct incidents and happenings that had led me to that conclusion. It took two different lengthy dossiers for me to pinpoint the exact source of my fears with barely plausible motives as to why anybody would want to end my life prematurely.

In retrospect what happened in the weeks and months that followed confirmed that my information was correct as people who knew much less than I did ended up dead, execution-style. I am convinced to this day that had I not shifted locations when I did, things would have been very different.

It is important to remember that when I had my troubles almost nobody believed that there was a police execution unit at work in Kenya. And you really couldn’t blame them because they did not know as much as I knew on the subject.

This weekend I hope to help you dear readers of Kumekucha to understand a lot more about the reign of terror of one Maj Gen Hussein Ali and the reason why the Americans will not leave him alone even after he left the police to be postmaster general. His reign of terror as police commissioner is unprecedented although the truth is that police killings did not start with him.

And so let’s start in the next post with a history of the brutal nature of the Kenya police shall we?

To be continued

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

P.S. Warnings here in Kumekucha about the time bomb that is Eastleigh have been numerous and started at least two years ago. The government as usual ignored them. The violence yesterday at the Jamia mosque in Nairobi caused many Kenyan Muslims to hang their heads in shame. And there is very little that they can now do to cleanse their image in the eyes of other Kenyans. After all who will believe that the so called Muslim youth who caused chaos are all from Somalia and are resident in the country (mostly illegally)? Who can differentiate between them and the local peace loving Muslims? Some deaths were caused yesterday… and for what? For a radical muslim cleric who has suddenly found that there is no airline in the world willing to carry him (even those from muslim countries?) A man who came into Kenya through Tanzania and yet the same Tanzania refused to follow the usual protocol where the radical cleric should have retraced his steps back to where he came from? By the way Tanzania has majority of the population listed as being Muslims.

So how differently should have the Kenyan government handled this Faisal chap who promotes the killing of innocent women and children and claims that his is a religious crusade? Should he have been invited for a cup of coffee in State house? Maybe flown back to Jamaica on the presidential jet? Please!!!!!

It is really annoying for illegal immigrants from a neighbouring country to cause so much chaos and disturb the peace in our country after they have caused such serious problems in their own country so that it is now inhabitable. It would seem that they want to do the same to our beloved Kenya. How dare you come into my peaceful house as a guest and then start breaking stuff and behaving as if it is your house? Hon George Saitoti please wake up and do something drastic!!

I have personally witnessed a man of Somalian descent being denied entry into Tanzania by immigration officers at Namanga. That tells you why Tanzania will never have such silly problems.

If I was Saitoti I would literally shut down Eastleigh right away. As I said in a post over a year ago. It is probably too late to do anything sane now. And that means that the only way to solve the problem is to do it with radical and bold strokes (whatever the consequences). Unless of course we want Nairobi to rapidly degenerate into another Mogadishu soon.

Previous weekend Special