Kumekucha Gets Waki List

It is the oldest trick in the book, although I can already see all my lawyer friends violently resisting my use of the word "trick."

The way it works is that as all eyes are focused on a particular part of the legal contract like the amount of cash that you will get paid, a killer clause is sneaked in somewhere in the middle. At a place where you are bound to scheme through without really “seeing” it. You hurriedly sign, little knowing that you have just signed your own death warrant. That is the reason why we are always told repeatedly; “read the small print.”

Well earlier this year, the political class, some of the smartest, most evil guys in the land hurriedly signed the so-called Anan document without reading it properly. Well, they did read it very carefully, but only that part that talked about who would be in State House and who would wield what power. The assumption was that it was business as usual and that whoever occupied State House would as always do what they wanted to do.

Actually I am reliably informed that the fate of Kenya’s political class was sealed the minute we invited the African Union into Kenya to help sort out the post-election violence mess. The minute those guys came into the picture the whole matter moved into the jurisdiction of International courts and that now dreaded place where long suffering Kenyans may just begin to see justice—the Hague.

But nobody should bring out the Champaign yet, let alone the glasses. The political class as always have a game plan to ride out this crisis. The idea seems to pretend to accept all the recommendations of the Waki report, get a local tribunal in place and then do everything to influence that tribunal. This is Kenya where files disappear and evidence and witnesses vanish into thin air. Due process of course demands that you prove a person guilty and that can be a very tricky thing indeed, even when a person’s guilt is so obvious. Just ask the legal experts who were trying to get at the infamous Chicago crime lord, Al Capone.

The saddest bit in all this is that people died. Mostly innocent Kenyans. But who cares?

Kumekucha has obtained the full list of names in the secret envelope handed over to Kofi Anan. The list is published in Kumekucha Confidential our weekly email newsletter. If you are not a subscriber yet, subscribe now by sending an email to:- kumekucha-subscribe@yahoogroups.com


Bodies of post-election violence victims piled up at a Mortuary: Their blood is crying out from the ground. Will they ever get justice?

A tribute to Miriam Makeba- The departed songbird Africa will never forget

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Why This Drive To Surrender Our Sovereignty?

Forgive me for being naive, but I thought Kenya was a sovereign nation. After years of white rule, our founding fathers fought hard, shed a lot of blood and did away with certain comforts,whatever little they had, so that they'd replace white rule with black rule in Kenya. In 1963 President Jomo Kenyatta and his colleagues achieved that feat for us all. Every year we come together to celebrate the turn of events that placed us squarely in charge of our destiny...for better for worse.

At this point, we are going through one of the most challenging times in Kenya. With the Waki Report causing increasing anxiety in the nation, there have been loud calls by sober and thoughtful Kenyans to turn over our destiny and place it in the hands of the ICC. Just like the IMF and the World Bank, which have perfected the art of control of Africa's emerging economies and the Continent's people, the ICC is now being courted to do what the Westerners think the dumb Africans can't do for themselves.

And we are cheering!

I've always said we need homegrown solutions to our problems. We need solutions that are a reflection of our troubled political history, that respect our dignity as people with brains, and places us in equal footing with out Western brothers. Can anybody look me in the eye and tell me that the judge at the ICC will better accomplish this than our own judges? What makes him more qualified than our guys here? Is it the color of his skin?

Once again I'm aware of the unpopularity of what I'm saying here, but I reject this headlong plunge in the direction of placing the destiny of my nation in the hands of foreigners. Let me explain. Are we now happy that yesterday nearly twenty five ambassadors took to the hills to tell our leaders how to run Kenya? Are we excited that some Western security officials may jet in here to arrest our native sons? Where is our self-respect?

No, I don't condone what our leaders did. I don't condone the fact the elections were stolen, that the ECK is still playing games, that the constitution has not been brought in compliance with the prevailing realities in Kenya, that the question of land distribution is not being handled. But even in the face of all that, I can't surrender my dignity by calling on foreigners to help me figure out justice in my own land. I don't pretend to have the answers, but I know that if we soberly put our minds to it, we can come up with mutually acceptable ways to handle Waki and the future.

I commend the Cabinet for going easy on this matter yesterday. I may not see eye to eye with President Kibaki and all the men who planned the murder of Kenyans, but I must stand by my President to defend the right of this nation in deciding what's best for Kenya. If we carry out a nonpartisan investigation and find out which people actually funded and abetted the violence, let's crucify those people right here. That's what Independence means, folks.

Uhuru.

Jamhuri.

Tell me where I'm going wrong, my fellow countrymen.

Let the ambassadors shut up. Let's figure out how we can best handle this matter as Kenyans.

A tribute to Miriam Makeba- The departed songbird Africa will never forget

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