Something very big happened in Kenya yesterday. Something that will inevitably change many lives over the next few weeks, months and years to come.
Safaricom launched an SMS money transfer service.
The service will initially be available countrywide and soon in East Africa and beyond. For as little as Kshs 55, anybody will now be able to transfer funds to any Safaricom subscriber countrywide. Actually up to Kshs 35,000 at a time.
This dramatically changes the ball game. It means that many business opportunities will suddenly open up to the enterprising and innovative. Many businesses that were unviable before yesterday will suddenly be hot new opportunities for those who can move fast.
It also means that the Postapay service by the Postal Corporation of Kenya is in big trouble. The marketers at the State corporation will now need to urgently reposition their service. Posta officials say the parastatal has been raking in Kshs 16 million daily.
What really promises to make the new service so attractive is the fact that folks can now pick up cash at major Safaricom outlets countrywide, which in effect takes this financial service deep into rural areas where banks have never been seen.
It also means a brand new profit center for Kenya's most profitable company. Actually catching up with Safaricom in terms of profitability will now be a very tall order and probably virtually impossible. Barring the unexpected, it also means that the expected Safaricom IPO will be extra sizzling red hot.
Late Extra
Nation Media group have today launched their brand new business daily titled, Business Daily. The giant newspaper company has decided to use the same colour newsprint used for the world renowned Financial Times of London and the price too clearly reflects the fact that it is not for everybody, retailing at a hefty Kshs 50. I will be reviewing the new business newspaper (actually the first business daily in the region) later. It can be viewed online at www.bdafrica.com
Urgent Personal Message To You From Kumekucha
Weekend special: Kenyan beauty complains to Kumekucha about her Kikuyu lovers.
Wednesday, March 07, 2007
Why Is Sally Kosgei Going Into Politics Via ODM-Kenya?
She was considered among the most arrogant senior government official during Moi's era and is said to have slapped a cabinet minister while she was a permanent secretary in the ministry of foreign affairs.
Through it all Dr. Kosgei managed to become fabulously rich through corruption and other dirty deals that were the order of the day during Moi's era.
Today, Dr Sally Kosgei is a worried woman. She has several cases pending in court including one where she is accused of grabbing a Kenya railways house and selling it at an inflated price to a parastatal organization and in the process making a tidy sum of money at the expense of Kenyans.
And there are other cases where they are witnesses who are more than willing to testify in a bid to exert revenge for her arrogance and brutality while she was head of the public service and secretary to the cabinet.
During her hey days as cabinet secretary, it is said that ministers feared her so much that they would not dare interrupt her when she spoke in cabinet meetings and those who differed in opinion chose other channels to make it known but not by addressing her directly.
Today, Sally seems to have been humbled and is contemplating joining politics in a bid to protect her vast wealth now being threatened.
She is considering contesting a parliamentary seat in her Kericho home district and her party of choice is ODM-Kenya which she of course believes will form the next government. And being an MP from the influential Rift Valley province, she could stand a fairly good chance of being considered for a cabinet post which could put her in a perfect position to protect her wealth.
What she really has to worry about are the numerous enemies she made while serving the previous government. For one, ODM-Kenya leading light Kalonzo Musyoka detests her. He was the minister she slapped while she was PS in foreign affairs.
There are plenty of others who would ensure that she does not get close to power again and will do anything and spend almost anything to make sure that she loses in the party nomination stage so as to suffer humiliation in public and snuff out her political career before it even begins.
Urgent Personal Message To You From Kumekucha
Weekend special: Kenyan beauty complains to Kumekucha about her Kikuyu lovers.
Through it all Dr. Kosgei managed to become fabulously rich through corruption and other dirty deals that were the order of the day during Moi's era.
Today, Dr Sally Kosgei is a worried woman. She has several cases pending in court including one where she is accused of grabbing a Kenya railways house and selling it at an inflated price to a parastatal organization and in the process making a tidy sum of money at the expense of Kenyans.
And there are other cases where they are witnesses who are more than willing to testify in a bid to exert revenge for her arrogance and brutality while she was head of the public service and secretary to the cabinet.
During her hey days as cabinet secretary, it is said that ministers feared her so much that they would not dare interrupt her when she spoke in cabinet meetings and those who differed in opinion chose other channels to make it known but not by addressing her directly.
Today, Sally seems to have been humbled and is contemplating joining politics in a bid to protect her vast wealth now being threatened.
She is considering contesting a parliamentary seat in her Kericho home district and her party of choice is ODM-Kenya which she of course believes will form the next government. And being an MP from the influential Rift Valley province, she could stand a fairly good chance of being considered for a cabinet post which could put her in a perfect position to protect her wealth.
What she really has to worry about are the numerous enemies she made while serving the previous government. For one, ODM-Kenya leading light Kalonzo Musyoka detests her. He was the minister she slapped while she was PS in foreign affairs.
There are plenty of others who would ensure that she does not get close to power again and will do anything and spend almost anything to make sure that she loses in the party nomination stage so as to suffer humiliation in public and snuff out her political career before it even begins.
Urgent Personal Message To You From Kumekucha
Weekend special: Kenyan beauty complains to Kumekucha about her Kikuyu lovers.
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