Last week at the sprawling Kongowea market in Mombasa (not far from the Nyali bridge) a puzzling incident took place and this writer is still following leads to see if there is any link with some of the theories behind the increased incident of violent crime and murder in the country.
Two smartly dressed men walked into a scrap metal workshop and requested that a heavy piece of metal be sliced into two. They claimed that there was mercury inside the sealed piece of metal. What followed was horrific to say the least. No sooner had the eager jua Kali artisans started cutting through the strange metal, the object itself exploded dismembering the legs clean off the body of the person who was nearest at the time it went off. Yet another person was thrown high into the high and landed over 10 metres away. A huge hole was created on the spot by the explosion which was very loud and was heard for miles around. Residents in houses several metres away said that they felt an "earth tremor" at the time of the explosion. At least two people died as a result of this bizarre incident and others are fighting for their lives at the Coast General Hospital.
As usual security forces have remained tight-lipped but say that they are aggressively looking for the two men who brought the strange piece of metal to the yard. Judging from the description, chances are high that the piece of metal was in fact a mine. The sort of explosion a mine causes resembles the one that was described by eyewitnesses to the Kongowea incident.
But this raises other pertinent questions. Why would somebody give out a mine with such a cock and bull story that there was mercury inside, knowing full well that any effort to drill through would result in an explosion? Were they trying to eliminate somebody or were they simply conning some poor ignorant fellow out of their hard earned money?
Whatever the explanation, this incident should cause a lot of anxiety and concern to Kenyans. It clearly means that not only are automatic weapons and guns easily finding their way into the country, but now we also have dangerous explosives like mines also coming in. And all this is happening at a time when violent crime and killings have spun out of control.
Meet the man who can give you a dream holiday safari in Kenya.
Tuesday, February 06, 2007
Prof George Saitoti And His 9 Lives
Can Kibaki Dare Appoint A Fellow Kikuyu As VP?
Former vice president George Saitoti has surprised friend and foe over the years by his ability to weather the storm and bounce back to the center of things even after being dismissed as 'finished' by his numerous detractors.
This time round, the Topology professor has not only bounced back to the cabinet but has declared his interest to vie for the Narc-Kenya chairmanship and in effect going for the post of vice president to Kibaki.
Many say it is impossible to have a president and his deputy from the same community as both Kibaki and Saitoti are Kikuyu's but the latter poses as a Maasai and has literally discarded his kikuyu names, Kinuthia Muthengi.
Saitoti can not be easily dismissed for several reasons including the fact that he is fabulously wealthy and has his share of friends in high places with the ability to pull strings in his favor.
Among the other candidates going for the Narc chairmanship, Saitoti is the only one who enjoys some form of support countrywide as a result of serving as Moi's deputy for several years. It is this perceived countrywide popularity and clout that President Kibaki's handlers are salivating about and want t take full advantage of. Apart from the man's ill gotten wealth of course.
Many Kenyans also sympathise with Saitoti following the treatment he underwent in the hands of Moi who discarded him in the last minute and picked Uhuru Kenyatta as his successor.
In Kenya, the president does not have a running mate in elections and usually appoints his deputy after occupying state house which makes it possible to have Saitoti being given the number two slot to the chagrin of Moody Awori who has indicated he is not about to retire from politics in spite of being about 80 years old.
Another school of thought says that Kibaki's intention is to groom Saitoti to take over from him in 2012 so as to ensure he is protected along with his wealth and will not be subjected to any annoying investigations, especially the Anglo Leasing scandal which has rocked his administration.
Unfortunately Saitoti also has his own excessive baggage he has to deal with including his arrogant and short-tempered nature, which comes out often, like when he is confronted with questions from cheeky journalists.
Besides, all these intricate planning could be in vain if Kibaki and Narc-Kenya lose the forthcoming elections and if the past four years is anything to go by, the London School of Economics trained economist and his arrogant advisors will have a very difficult time making it back to State house.
Meet the man who can give you a dream holiday safari in Kenya.
Former vice president George Saitoti has surprised friend and foe over the years by his ability to weather the storm and bounce back to the center of things even after being dismissed as 'finished' by his numerous detractors.
This time round, the Topology professor has not only bounced back to the cabinet but has declared his interest to vie for the Narc-Kenya chairmanship and in effect going for the post of vice president to Kibaki.
Many say it is impossible to have a president and his deputy from the same community as both Kibaki and Saitoti are Kikuyu's but the latter poses as a Maasai and has literally discarded his kikuyu names, Kinuthia Muthengi.
Saitoti can not be easily dismissed for several reasons including the fact that he is fabulously wealthy and has his share of friends in high places with the ability to pull strings in his favor.
Among the other candidates going for the Narc chairmanship, Saitoti is the only one who enjoys some form of support countrywide as a result of serving as Moi's deputy for several years. It is this perceived countrywide popularity and clout that President Kibaki's handlers are salivating about and want t take full advantage of. Apart from the man's ill gotten wealth of course.
Many Kenyans also sympathise with Saitoti following the treatment he underwent in the hands of Moi who discarded him in the last minute and picked Uhuru Kenyatta as his successor.
In Kenya, the president does not have a running mate in elections and usually appoints his deputy after occupying state house which makes it possible to have Saitoti being given the number two slot to the chagrin of Moody Awori who has indicated he is not about to retire from politics in spite of being about 80 years old.
Another school of thought says that Kibaki's intention is to groom Saitoti to take over from him in 2012 so as to ensure he is protected along with his wealth and will not be subjected to any annoying investigations, especially the Anglo Leasing scandal which has rocked his administration.
Unfortunately Saitoti also has his own excessive baggage he has to deal with including his arrogant and short-tempered nature, which comes out often, like when he is confronted with questions from cheeky journalists.
Besides, all these intricate planning could be in vain if Kibaki and Narc-Kenya lose the forthcoming elections and if the past four years is anything to go by, the London School of Economics trained economist and his arrogant advisors will have a very difficult time making it back to State house.
Meet the man who can give you a dream holiday safari in Kenya.
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