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Saturday, May 22, 2010

Jomo Kenyatta and the witchdoctor link

Read Part 1 of the Kumekucha weekend book special

The early 50s were a time of unprecedented turmoil and violence in Kenya. The wind of change that was sweeping across much of Africa did not spare this previously peaceful terrain. Many people even at the time suspected quite rightly that these were the birth pangs prior to the birth of a new order, a different Kenya, and this included those who did not want to imagine in their worst nightmare a government run by “the natives” as they called them.

Jomo Kenyatta top and Louis Leakey participated in a public debate in London in 1935 that went on in Kikuyu. Kenyatta argued strongly in favour of the circumcision of women. Hardly surprisng for a man who had been brought up by a witchdoctor from a very tender age.

The violence in Kenya was provoked by the Mau mau who were fighting for their land rights after the colonial settlers had grabbed prime land mainly from Central Kenya.

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The man who was to later become Kenya’s first President Jomo Kenyatta always had a frosty relationship with the Mau mau. This is contrary to popular opinion. In fact the Mau mau threatened his life on several occasions. It was rather ironic that he ended up on trial trying to prove to a compromised court his innocence in NOT being involved with the Mau mau. Kenyatta was not only accused of being a member but of being one of its’ leaders. The only word that could come close to describing such an allegation against Kenyatta is preposterous! If the charges had not been that serious, even Jomo himself would have found that charge a big joke. And you will too when we dig deeper into the true character of Kenya’s first president. The chief witness in that sham of a trial Rawson Macharia admitted only in recent years that he had been bribed into giving false evidence against Kenyatta.

Obviously Kenyatta must have had some very powerful enemies in the colonial government. What had built up such hatred towards? One clue can be found in the fact that Kenyatta firmly believed in tradition and African customs like female circumcision. This disgusted many in the colonial administration and may have been the reason why he became a marked man, whatever he did or said. It is recorded that Kenyatta took part in a public debate in Kikuyu in 1935 over the issue of female circumcision (the irua of girls). Kenyatta passionately argued in favour of the brutal custom being retained against the like of Louis Leakey.

But Kenyatta was never a violent man at heart and did not believe in violent means and yet when he became president he worked hard to glorify the Mau mau as the chief freedom fighters of Kenya and always emphasized that independence was won with a violent resistance and he was at the centre of it himself. In a way he was insinuating that the colonials had rightly charged him with being leader of the Mau mau. He was telling the Kenyan people that he had been part of a violent struggle that had landed him in jail where he had suffered for many years for the sake of the people. All this was pure fairy tale. But it was undoubtedly very romantic and the kind of thing that gave the old man just the right kind of image to tower like a giant well above any other politician. It is the same image he retains in the eyes of many younger Kenyans who still greatly admire him as a man who fought violently for what he believed in.

It was all part of a very deliberate effort to lift the office of the presidency to a pedestal that Kenyans would look up to. One that nobody would dare challenge.

Kenyatta was born Kamau wa Muigai to parents Muigai and Wambui in the village of Uranus, Gatundu, Kiambu but his father died when Jomo was very young after which, as per Kikuyu custom, he was adopted by his uncle Ngengi, who also inherited his mother as his wife. But tragedy struck yet again and his mother died while giving birth. The young Jomo then moved from Ng’enda to Muthiga to live with his medicine man grandfather Kingu wa Magana. Magana was a very famous witchdoctor of the time. The two are said to have become very close. It is no accident that in later years Kenyatta called his son with Briton wife, Edna Clarke, Peter Magana. He was born in August 11th 1943.

And so the story goes that Jomo was told very early (when he was still a child) by his witchdoctor grandfather that he was going to be a very famous leader. I am not a superstitious man and the witchcraft story (told earlier) is virtually impossible to verify but this “knowledge” of him being destined to be a great leader seems to be confirmed by many of his actions including the launching of his Kikuyu newspaper. It was strange because although it was clear that Kenyatta was fighting for something he was too much of a moderate and was almost apologetic as he went about this business of liberation. Little wonder that the then extremely sensitive colonial government tolerated the newspaper that he briefly published from May 1928 called Mwigwithania (the Kikuyu weekly whose name meant, The Reconciler) since they found it mostly harmless.

In many respects the man was an unlikely first president of Kenya for anybody who knew his character well.

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

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The story and the reputation of Luhya men in Kenya is legendary. But what really is the secret of strong Luhya men and why do Kikuyu ladies find them irresistible?

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The Day Uhuru Kenyatta was conned out of a parliamentary seat by some very, very dirty tricks and conmanship.

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One of the Top 10 billionaires In Kenya grew door to door sales to buying a bank: The amazing story of a creative Kenyan entrepreneur who achieved the "impossible" by turning a failed company into a very profitable enterprise. Includes details of exactly how he did it.

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The Pauline Njoroge development in Watamu, is linked to the drama at Uhuru Kenyatta's son's house in Karen last night. And it is also linked to other shocking breaking news in the last few hours. It is a plan by the Ruto government that is bound to shake Kenya to its' very foundation. This Kumekucha video offers pointers to what is going to happen next in the tense country called Kenya.

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Why should Kenya, a key ally of the western powers most involved in spying on others be the most spied on the continent? Should it not be countries that pose danger? Actually part of the startling answer to this question was featured in an earlier Kumekucha video.

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Barely hours after the raid on the house of former President Uhuru Kenyatta's first born son Jomo, another person close to Uhuru is in trouble with Ruto's police. This time round popular blogger and political commentator Pauline Njoroge who has been arrested just a few moments ago.

Reports indicate that Njoroge seems to have been arrested at a holiday resort in Watamu

Read: Uhuru blogger Pauline Njoroge arrested in Watamu: Was it the Kisumu story or the bank transactions saga?

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Maurice Ogeta, the bodyguard of Raila Odinga who has been missing for 3 days re-merged in the early hours of Saturday 22nd July at 1am (in the dead of the night) after his captors released him and left him in his vehicle.

It is instructive that he was released hours after the end of the recent 3 day anti-government protests (more on that at the very end of this article).

Ogeta has confirmed that he was held by people who identified themselves as DCI (directorate of criminal investigations) officers. Shortly before his ordeal ended he was driven blindfolded

READ: The things they did to Maurice Ogeta, Raila's bodyguard in the 3 days before releasing him in the middle of the night on Kangundo Road

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Analysis of Kithure Kindiki statement on raid on Uhuru's son's house looking for guns

The most vital clue that may lead us to solving the deep mystery of the raid on Uhuru Kenyatta's son in Karen last night, was a stern statement from the government through Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki who is of course the man in charge of the Interior Ministry.

In a VERY hurried statement distributed to newsrooms minutes after a livid former President Uhuru Kenyatta had finished addressing the press at his son, Jomo's home in Karen (that is another clue, why the hurried statement? What was with the rush?) Kithure said a few very eyebrow-raising things.

Read: What may have really been happening as raid on Karen home of Uhuru's son was going down

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There are countless things that former President Daniel arap Moi did to his Vice President Mwai Kibaki that would have caused the latter to seek sweet revenge when he finally took office in 2003.

President Moi embarrassed Vice President Kibaki too many times to count. He was demoted from being Vice President to a mere health minister. Kenyans cringed, Kibaki soldiered on. Enter a different kind of character. We have often been reminded that Ruto is NOT Uhuru. And neither is he Emilion Stanley...

Read: Will Ruto bring down Kenya trying to get enough revenge against Uhuru?

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There was drama such as has never been witnessed in Kenyan history when on Friday night former president Uhuru Kenyatta had to rush to the aid of his first born son Jomo. Jomo's home in Karen was being raided by the police who conducted a search allegedly for weapons.

The former president then spoke to the media at the scene. Read Uhuru livid after raid on son

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Wiper Party Leader Kalonzo Musyoka, according to Azimio, has prevented from leaving his house in an effort to prevent him from participating in the ongoing statewide protests.

Minority Leader Opiyo Wandayi said in a media interview on Friday, July 21, that the State had coordinated the witch hunt and was trying to discredit other opposition figures.

Since the protests started on Wednesday, July 19, Kalonzo has reportedly spent two days "under house arrest", according to Wandayi.

All that we know, Wandayi said, is that His Excellency Kalonzo Musyoka has been held captive for the past two days and has been unable to leave his home.

The coalition has plans to retaliate against individuals responsible, including through the legal system. Wandayi observed that by deciding to forbid national leaders from leaving their residences, the State had turned rogue.

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Watch revealing Kumekucha video about how Ruto shot himself in the foot and continues to shoot himself in the foot.

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"Kalonzo is a respected national leader, but the government decided to lock him up and prevent him from conducting his business. "This is unprecedented," declared Wandayi.

Jeremiah Kioni, the secretary-general of the Jubilee Party, mentioned that some Azimio la Umoja leaders were still missing or detained without charge during the same press conference.

The idea that the State responded in expectation of violence as a result of the continuing nationwide anti-government rallies was rejected by Kioni.

The Jubilee secretary general added that it was now clear that the Ruto illegitimate regime had acquired tactics of the old past dictatorial order. "But they should know that we will not relent in our quest for a better Kenya," Kioni said.

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Raila Odinga, legendary politician and the head of the Azimio coalition, has raised concerns amongst many Kenyans after skipping out on the continuing anti-government demonstrations. He has now revealed that he has been feeling a little under the weather.

Read Full story

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The MP's defense further informed the court that during his incarceration, he had been refused access to food and drink and that he required immediate medical assistance as a result of two days without food and water. Read Full story

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I dug this out of the Kumekucha archives

How could she…?? That girl was yours, or so you thought. How could she fall for a player and a man who is NOT nice to women like that guy I can't stand?? What happened?

Read why every woman deep inside HATES nice guys

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Kenyan Woman Gets Pregnant In Remand Cells To Avoid The Hangman’s Noose

Judy (not her real name) is still serving time but is optimistic that one day she will be free. Her son who saved her life is now about 7 years old.

(From Kumekucha archives. First published WEDNESDAY, APRIL 2, 2008. This story-part of it- hit newspaper headlines in Kenya that year.) Forward this true story and share widely if you have a sister, daughter or some woman you care about who may fall in love tomorrow and throw caution to the wind with dire consequences.

Kumekucha weekend special: The book everybody is talking about

If you love surprises, you will love this weekend. My weekend book special today and tomorrow features sections from the book everybody is talking about; Dark secrets of the Kenyan presidency.

In this post I start with the book jacket, dedication page and introduction. Later today I will post more mouth-watering sections of this book many have told me is ground-breaking. ENJOY!!!!

Book Jacket

Dark secrets of the Kenyan presidency explores the office
the presidency through some rarely-told (and some
never-before-told) incidences surrounding this bigger than
life office created by Jomo Kenyatta and the founders of the
Kenyan nation. “This thing” they created grew and became
an enormous un-tameable beast that has caused untold distress,
suffering and death to Kenyans.

Kumekucha’s account is mostly angry and dissects this
subject ruthlessly without fear or favour. The tone is very much
that one of his blog which has received worldwide attention
sometimes in praise and at other times in condemnation but is
certainly a blog that cannot be ignored. The result here is a
thought-provoking account that will forever change your
views about this all powerful office which has the kind of
powers under the constitution Kenyans have lived with for
decades that would be the envy of any god.

The Kumekucha blog was launched in May 2005 by a blogger
who only reveals his first name, Chris. The site continues to
shape political opinion for many Kenyans locally and spread
all over the world. This is the first in a series of books that
will be published from information researched and written
by the blogger known to his adoring readers and sharp critics
alike as Chris Kumekucha.

Book Dedication

To all my very dear readers of Kumekucha especially the very early ones who left comments and helped me continue on the journey to discover that I could actually write politics in my own unique way. Folks like Taabu, Phil, Vee, Luke, Vicky, Kenya one and all the others whose names I cannot remember. But also am indebted to those who came later like Beth, Mugo (M.G.), Mrembo wa ODM, Wanjiku Unlimited, tnk, Sam Okello, Mwarangethe etc.

Special mention to JG my biggest fan and supporter.

This book is to you and all Kumekucha readers. Read it proudly knowing that without you it would never have happened.

CONTENTS

Introduction.........................................................................Pg 7

Chapter one: The old man who stopped drinking..........Pg 11

Chapter two: The early bloody years..............................Pg 23

Chapter three: Suffering Moi..... ......................................Pg 43

Chapter four: Without a president for 12 hours....................................................................................Pg 62

Chapter five: A brand new Moi is born..........................Pg 70

Chapter six: Professor Kimya..........................................Pg 82

Chapter seven: Proud Makerere Don.............................Pg 89

Chapter eight: Who is Mwai Kibaki?...............................Pg 108

Chapter nine: Raising cash for a presidential
campaign.............................................................................Pg 126

No Conclusion..................................................................Pg 154

Introduction
I cannot quite remember how old I was when it happened (but I was not yet 7).
And yet the memory is still so vivid on my mind. Very telling because I have forgotten so many other things from my childhood but this little incident.

My dad had come from work at the end of a long hard day and was changing from his imposing police uniform to casual wear so that he could go our for his usual drink. I questioned him persistently over something that had been disturbing me for a number of days.

I wanted to know how many steps he was in the hierarchy away from the presidency. He tried to explain that the president was not a policeman (he was an assistant commissioner of police then) but I insisted that he give me a number which he finally did. Many years later I learnt that the number took into account the parliamentarians and the policemen above him in rank but was given more out of desperation so that I give him peace. It was the kind of answer that you give a child when the question they ask is too complex for their young immature minds to grasp.

Still the point is, like many Kenyans, even at 7 years old I was awe-struck by the Kenyan presidency. I had watched many times on TV as the president arrived for various functions. Complete with a motorcade with numerous motorcycles and vehicles. I watched as the military parade stood to attention and the smart respectful salutes. Even as a naive youngster it blew my mind away. There and then I decided that I wanted my dad to be president of Kenya and then I would take over as president myself from him when I grew up.

Although the presidency was has always been an elective office at the beginning, many African presidents modelled it after royalty in a kingdom and did everything to surround the office with mystique and grandeur. As well as spilling plenty of blood to ensure that they remained in office until death snatched them away. They succeeded big time and quickly became life presidents and gods who straddled the entire way of life of their countries. To this day too many Kenyans still look at the office of the president with awe and will be quick to remind you that not anybody can be president. If the second coming were to happen today it would be found that most Kenyans fear the presidency more than they fear their creator God almighty. Very sad but true. As a result numerous things remain hidden about the presidency past and present.

In writing this book I hope to begin a journey of discovery for Kenyans. More so in discovering how we have suffered and been held in bondage by some mystique created for mostly selfish reasons.

I have been to State House Nairobi. Once.

It is such an anticlimax this revered house on the hill. The sacrifices, the murders, the killings and all the crazy things Kenyans have done in the name of wanting to live at this address (or remain there definitely); you would have thought that it would be a much grander place than what you end up seeing. Alas the red carpet is clean and well maintained but it is rather old. In fact the whole place looks like it needs an interior designer badly.

In the 46 years that Kenya has been independent only three men have called this place their official residence and held the office of President of the republic of Kenya. Johnstone Kamau (aka Jomo Kenyatta) for 15 years, Daniel Toroitich arap Moi for 24 years and the rest of the years to date, Emilio Stanley Mwai Kibaki. Interestingly whatever happens Kibaki will be the man who has occupied that office for the shortest time and yet history will record that his presidency has caused the most damage. His supporters will be quick to argue that Kibaki was only a victim in that he bore the brunt of all the cumulative evils of the presidency before him that boiled over during his watch. Others including this writer will think otherwise.

But even more fascinating is the fact that these three men have all been very ordinary simple good men who were transformed into something very different shortly after taking office. Kenyatta was a humble teetotaller after publicly promising church elders in the 1920s that he would never touch alcohol again in his life. 30 years later there was evidence that Kenyatta not only kept his vow to the church but detested alcohol and strongly believed that the drinking of beer was hindering the coming of Uhuru. Moi grew up walking extremely long distances to school and developed into a strong patient and tolerant man who could forgive almost anything. Emilio Stanley Mwai Kibaki was a staunch Catholic and brilliant economist who attracted the attention of the young Kanu party because of his educational background at a time when it was very rare for an African to have a high school education let alone be a university lecturer. This prompted Tom Mboya to drive from Nairobi all the way to Makerere University in Kampala, Uganda in an air cooled VW beetle to persuade Kibaki that his country needed him more than Makerere University did. Mboya is said to have come back with Kibaki in the VW. Always the reluctant politician and determined to retain his dignity and stick to his principals, Kibaki became a very different person when he entered State House. Kenyans got a glimpse of his other side when the post election crisis of December 2007 and January 2008 unfolded. A friend of mine was so shocked that he just kept on muttering under his breath… This is not Kibaki, this is not Kibaki, over and over again.

In this book we shall try to understand these three men intimately and the magical transformations they underwent better. Because in understanding this we will understand our beloved country and the institution of the presidency completely. Trust me on that and hold me to account for it when we finish our journey right at the end of this book. We shall dig into the true characters of these men and reveal many never-told-before secrets in their lives.
This book is deliberately written to be a quick entertaining read. It is my hope that this will provoke huge readership amongst Kenyans and get all of us thinking very deeply, more so as we prepare to usher in a new constitution which despite our best efforts still has a powerful presidency. It is my sincere prayer that later somebody will be inspired by my work to do a much more detailed thesis.

Go to Part 2

Dark secrets of the Kenyan presidency currently retails at Kshs 1,350. Email me right NOW to get instant payment instructions.

Or if the above link does not work for you send an email now to: kumekuchaspecialoffer@gmail.com.

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Friday, May 21, 2010

YES, Even Dead Fish Goes With the Flow

By Mwarang'ethe

In his latest piece, Chris has written this: “how long do you think we will be able to flout our cash around even as our fellow countrymen starve and struggle to survive”? The implied meaning in this statement is that, the yawning gap in wealth between the few rich and majority dirty poor will be reduced or eliminated by the “new constitution.” As we have stated previously, a constitution is an economic document. As such, a constitution drafted without clear understanding of economics, i.e. natural laws of wealth creation and distribution is rubbish. We shall demonstrate with real examples.

Let us first note two crucial, but, little known facts. In the “classical age” politics and economics were studied under the rubric of political economy as the science of wealth. Science in this manner meant the systematical classification and arrangement of the natural laws of social prosperity. However, so as to produce one dimensional idiot who cannot see the whole picture, this subject was divided into political science and economics. The reason given by Neo Classical economists was that, economics had now become a science like physics and astronomy. However, the main aim was to fool mankind for the benefit of few.

About a hundred years ago, a group of socialists established a society called Fabian Society. Taking their name and strategy from Quintus Fabius, the Roman general who advocated a war of attrition against Hannibal of Carthage, they sought to impose socialism on mankind by stealth. To do so, they founded the London School of Economics and Political Science in 1895 (by the way, isn’t Kibaki and many other economists not graduates of this prestigious school?). For those of us who are awake in these dangerous times, we can see their dream of socialism is close to realization all over the world. Yes, we hear the right to food, decent housing and everything else to be provided by the government. The masses completely ignorant of long historical plans are deceived by this monkey language. In this collective ignorance, we hear them say hallelujah. We say woe unto you for we are on the road to serfdom worse than any other in the human history. While at it, remember this. It is socialism for the rich and free markets for the poor. If you doubt the definition of socialism, please tell us what you make of this.

This year Citigroup just announced that its profits for just the first three months of this year totalled an incredible $4.4 billion, Goldman Sachs' haul was $3.5 billion, JPMorgan Chase grabbed $3.3 billion, and Bank of America took $3.2 billion. How did these geniuses make this fortune? It is this. The Fed has deliberately held short-term interest rates to historic lows -- less than one half of a percent. Meanwhile, the Treasury Department is paying almost 4 percent interests on longer-term loans that banks make to the government. This might sound complicated. However, it's really a very simple transfer of public wealth to the giant banks owned by a few thousand people out of 6 billion people. The Fed loans, let's say, a billion dollars (public money) to a bank at a half-percent interest. The bank then turns right around and loans that billion dollars to the Treasury Department, collecting 4 percent interest. In short, the banks take citizen’s money and loan it back to them for a sweet 3.5 percent profit. Apart from loaning the citizens back their own money at interest, they are using the same funds to short including naked short selling shares and government bonds in Greece, Europe and globally. To prevent the collapse of land values, shares and government bonds and currencies (which is a futile exercise where we are now), governments must come up with money bailout (more public debts on the shoulders of the poor) and the game goes on and on. Sheer genius!

Question for YES people
Have we entrenched such a system in your wonderful constitution? And, if yes, can we be educated how such a piratical monetary arrangement will help in bridging the wealth gap you talk about when we know as a matter of fact, that, it is a means of transferring wealth from the poor to the super rich, i.e. the rentier class?
In a recent article on this blog we stated something like this. “The productive activities that can make a nation wealthy must meet two tests. (a) Such activities should lead to production of valuable tangible/intangible stuff. (b) Such activities should be surplus generating economic activities that can be made available for future re- investment. Ignoring the distribution aspect of this surplus for the moment, we can say that, since our economic activities do not meet test (b), in other words, we specialise in unproductive economic activities (special EPZ's and coffee growing - Malthusian activities) we are going NOWHERE. “

We added this. “Furthermore, even if there is some little surplus revenue for re- investment we also have a major problem of its distribution. Under the private land ownership (absolute title to land), land absorbs almost all of the surplus revenue in form of rent. In addition to this, we have piratical monetary system that also extracts a very large portion of the surplus revenue from our economy. This extraction of wealth by the idle class is at the expense of the class that create real wealth. This class is composed of the labour and the real economy/industrial/agriculture economy. Once the industrialist/farmer who creates commodities we need and exchange with each other is starved of revenue for future investments, it follows that, there are no jobs for the labour. And even if there are jobs, so as to meet the unjust demands of land owners and the financial capitalists, the wages must be low as we see in the EPZ’s. Low wages cannot create an environment for industrialists to invest.”

Question for YES people
So, if this is the condition of our economy and the “new constitution” has not fixed it, how do you meet the economic and social rights as well as devolution demands?
More so, there is something else we seem not to understand. It is the real meaning of “free trade” under which we are operating. This is a simple analysis. The imperial nations export capital to our nations for two reasons. These are the development of low cost sources of food (coffee, tea, fruits) and raw materials required by developed nation’s factories (copper, oil etc). By exporting capital to us, these nations can keep wages for their labour a bit low because basics/food is cheap. This ensures that, their profits for future investments are not squeezed too much. If free trade for the rich is meant to preserve their profits, what do we seek to preserve on our part? We answer debt, poverty and ignorance and conflicts over shrinking cake.

Question for YES people
To what extent does this wonderful constitution come even close to appreciating this reality, and therefore, come up with innovative means of escaping these arrangements? And, since it has not done so, can we be taught how prosperity of the poor will come about when wages must be kept low such that, we lack purchasing power and the profits for future investments?

We seek to write as little as possible, but, we are attempted to say more. In Article 41 (3) of the proposed constitution, we read this: “Every employer has the right – to form and join an employer’s organisation, and to participate in the activities and programmes of an employer organisation.” May God save Kenya. In the USA, we hear that, lobbyists make it impossible to make the necessary reforms. However, here we are, seeking to entrench such rights in our “new constitution.”
Let us see what Adam Smith said about employers and let the reader judge whether the drafters of this document and the Kenyans in general know anything they are talking about. He wrote this:

“People of the same trade seldom meet together, even for merriment and diversion, but the conversation ends in a conspiracy against the public, or in some contrivance to raise prices... The interest of dealers ... in any particular branch of trade or manufactures, is always in some respects different from, and even opposite to, that of the public... The proposal of any new law or regulation of commerce which comes from this order, ought always to be listened to with great precaution, and ought never to be adopted till after having been long and carefully examined, not only with the most scrupulous, but with the most suspicious attention. It comes from an order of men, whose interest is never exactly the same with that of the public, who have generally an interest to deceive and even to oppress the public, and who accordingly have, upon many occasions, both deceived and oppressed it.”

In the end, it seems as if one thinker who also a journalist was right. He argued that, people, including journalists were more interested in believing the pictures in their heads (housing for all, wealth distribution etc) rather than come to judgment by critical thinking. He added that, the function of journalists and news in this sense is only to signalize an even while the function of truth is to bring to light the hidden facts and thereby, set them in relation with each other so as to make a picture of reality upon which men can act. The news is that, we have a new constitution. The truth is that, it is the same old wine in new wine skins. In this case, news and truth are not synonymous. Even worse, he noted that, even if journalists could be effective in educating the public about important issues, the masses are never interested in learning and assimilating the results of accurate investigations. Thus, like a dead fish, they go with the flow.

In conclusion, no, we are not motivated by fear, but, the truth. However, we are aware that, today, there is little regard for the truth, little access to it and even little ability to recognise it. Truth is unwelcome entity. It is very disturbing. Truth is an inconvenience for governments and the interest groups who benefit from so called governments. Even worse, those, whose goal was once discovery of the truth about just wealth creation and just distribution thereof, are now paid very well to hide it. In other words, truth has fallen to the gods of mammon.

Thursday, May 20, 2010

Dangers of NOT Passing the New Constitution

In my eventful life so far I have seen how devastating fear can be.

Fear is a terribly powerful emotion. It causes people to be desperate and to behave in very strange ways.

I have seen people freeze in fear even as imminent danger hurtles towards them. I have seen intelligent people freeze in fear and stage fright and make a complete fool of themselves trying to speak in public.

And so I really fear fear itself. That is probably one of the reasons why I have always tried hard to fight fear in all its’ forms. Many times I have ended up making decisions which have horrified others. Don’t you fear this and that, some have asked me?

Currently in Kenya I see fear in many of our dear brothers and sisters who are going to vote No. Some people fear (quite rightly) that they will lose their ill-gotten wealth. Many of the older folks just have a fear of the unknown. Many others fear change and prefer to remain suffering rather than to risk change.

But the truth is that what Kenyans should really fear is the draft constitution failing to be passed. You do not want to imagine the consequences of that happening.

For years I have talked in this blog about the growing hopelessness in Kenyans. Hardly anybody has linked the election troubles of 2007 to this hopelessness and yet it was a major catalyst. Not many people appreciate the daily struggles most Kenyans have to go through just to get by. Most fascinatingly church leaders have failed to appreciate this important point in their decision to campaign for a no vote. It is probably the best illustration of how the prosperity gospel has taken over so much so that church leaders living in great luxury have failed to fully appreciate what their flocks are up against in their daily struggle for survival.

My analysis on the ground is that the International community was absolutely spot on in their determination to do everything in their power to ensure that Kenyans do not go to the polls again without major reforms first. To them this was a recipe for disaster and the kind of trouble that would have made 2007 look like child’s play. The pressure thye have brought to bear has done a lot in helping Kenyans reach where they are today, literally on the verge of a brand new constitution.

I am well aware that in writing this post I have lost many avid Kumekucha readers and so let me end it with just one every day illustration to drive my point home.

In a supermarket in Nairobi, a man walks in on impulse to pick a few things and ends up spending Kshs 10,000 just like that. He meets at the counter with another harassed looking Kenyan who has walked all the way from Kibera to town to purchase an item costing less than Kshs 30/- because it is Kshs 5/- cheaper in town (a 40 minutes walk) than it is in his local neighborhood duka in Kibera. The man has never handled Kshs 5,000 as a lump sum in his pocket in his entire miserable lifetime and is amazed that anybody should spend Kshs 10,000 in a supermarket and would have probably fainted if he realized that it was spent impulsively without any pre-meditated plan.

Simple question; how long do you think we will be able to flout our cash around even as our fellow countrymen starve and struggle to survive? It does not matter how high the fences are around our exclusive apartments in good neighbourhoods and it does not matter that we use the latest technology and security electronics and then swagger to our favourite watering hole on Saturdays wearing designer red t-shirts to look intelligent arguing with friends why we will vote NO, without fail.

It doesn’t matter because if we succeed it will come back to haunt us. Guaranteed!!!

I will be distributing a summary of my hot new book, Dark secrets of the Kenyan presidency, plus a handful of chapters from the book for free to Kumekucha readers only. Get it by subscribing to my list for the book. Simple send an email now to; Dark-secrets-kenyan-presidency-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

Why Christ Would Vote Yes

With tears in my eyes, I want to state here that the Christian leaders who have taken a hard line stance against the new constitution are no better than Islamic fundamentalists in the mold of Osama bin Laden; men and women who will never compromise unless one hundred percent of their demands are met. I don't understand where such men and women get their marching orders from. The Bible? It can't be; the Bible is a sober, reasoned book that calls on each of us to exercise tolerance. Indeed, in one of my favourite verses it says, "How wonderful it is when brothers live in harmony." Ever read that verse? If you have, tell me how harmony can be achieved when the dictatorial whims of the pastors must be shoved down our throats for the nation to move forward.

The danger with fundamentalism is that it always degenerates into demagoguery. I have been to various forums where my dear brothers and sisters who wish to see the constitution defeated have behaved in very unique ways. They behave as if listening to the reasoned arguments of those in the YES camp amount to listening to the devil himself. Why are they afraid of reason? Does not the Bible say, "Come let us reason together?" Why then are our church leaders insistent that reason can only take shape on their terms? And while they choose such intolerance, what makes them think the other side won't match intolerance with intolerance?

Of course the NO team will say that the YES team is just an intolerant, and they maybe right. There was absolutely no excuse for the supporters of the constitution to boo the Vice President on Saturday. The VP has been a man that is difficult to understand because of his brand of politics. By now, however, Kenyans should have leanrt to live with his double-speak. At Uhuru Park, we should have let him play the only game he understands best...taking no binding decision. To have booed him only made him subject this nation to whining of the kind we can't afford to entertain at a time we have pressing matters on our mind.

So, what would Jesus do were He a voter?

I know for certain that He would vote. It was Him who said, "Render unto Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God." Because of this profound statement, I know that Jesus would recognize the fact that Kenya is a diverse nation where a spirit of give and take is absolutely essential. How could Christians want a constitution that accommodates the sensitivities of a Judeo-Christian tradition while denying the Muslims a chance to carry out justice in Kadhis Courts? Where is justice in that? And how could Christians elect to shoot down this document on the basis that it permits abortion? After reading the way that abortion clause is structured, what an open-minded christian must ask is this...would Christ support this?

The answer is YES!

Christ would support this constitution because He would recognize the fact that what we are about to vote on is Caesar's, not Gods. It is my guess that after He would have voted for the document, He would then go to the synagogues and cathedrals and churches across Kenya to urge His followers, who we all are, to live within the confines of the Ten Commandments. If we did, He would say, issues like abortion, land grabbing,sectarian disunity and other divisive elements would either be minimized or not arise at all.

As we approach voting day, fellow Kenyans, let us be tolerant of the worldview of our fellow countrymen whose views we don't share. they are just as patriotic as we all are; just that they have a different vision. Indeed, there may come a time in future when they may persuade some of us to support their vision. I just hope that the vision they have does not come anywhere close to a Theocracy because that would be a recipe for permanent disunity...endless religious war-mongering.

That's not Kenya.

Let's campaign peacefully and urge love, justice and peace wherever we are.

God bless Kenya!

Referendum: Draft Choking in Shameful Errors

It may sound trivial or even an exercise in hair-splitting. But going through the draft leaves you wondering what a shoddy job of editing it was. Even cutting and pasting in any MS word document would highlight these shameful errors.

Sample this:

24 (2) (b) ...fundmental freedom....

92 (i) ....politcal parties.......

95 (4) (c)...expediture.

115 (3)......emendeds the bill.......

173 (4) .....judicary.......

216 (4).....comission shall determine.....

250 (8) ....an indepenedent.....

254 (3)...a commisssion....

260 county legistlation 'under under'- repeated word ppg 182- oath or Solemn Affirmation of Due Execution of office for a cabinet secretary.....Presidentfor.....

Monday, May 17, 2010

Why Kalonzo Musyoka is NOT a Real Politician

It is extremely annoying that at a time when Kenyan minds should be sharply focused on the new constitution the side show provoked by one Kalonzo Musyoka has shifted all the attention to the wrong place. My firm belief is that Kenyans have not put this petty incident in its’ right perspective and yet it is important that we do.

The most important point to note is that it proves beyond any reasonable doubt that Kalonzo Musyoka is NOT presidential material and seems to lack the very basics of politics. Here’s why. Picture Kalonzo Musyoka as president after 2012 and then imagine a situation where wananchi get impatient with him and his presidential speech as they often have with president Kibaki. What will he do? Call a presidential press conference to say that Raila is finishing him politically? Or that he has instructed his followers to embarrass the president? Or maybe ask the presidential escort to arrest the rowdy youths immediately? Come on!!!

If Kalonzo Musyoka doesn’t have the very basic political skills to handle a small section of the crowd at Uhuru Park how the hell is he going to be president? And to make it worse with a new constitution that will require smart folks who can think quickly on their feet?

Admittedly the fact that Kalonzo does not have the very basic “kindergarten political skills” of dealing with a hostile crowd is hardly surprising. The man cut his teeth as a Kanu politician where the most important credentials were how loud you could shout mama na baba while waving the one finger salute. And of course the ability to kneel before one Mulu Mutisya. Hardly the kind of skills that require much mental strain.

When you add the style of politics in Ukambani during the Kanu era into the mix, Kalonzo Musyoka’s behaviour after a few rowdy youths asked him to wind up his speech is not surprising at all. Many younger Kumekucha readers may NOT be aware of the kind of terror that Kalonzo Musyoka and his Godfather Mulu Mutisya used to visit on anybody in Ukambani who did not acknowledge their power. This is definitely not the kind of environment that would promote any skills for competitive politics.

Now you understand why the VP goes ballistic every time some rowdy schoolboy jeers at him from the crowd. How dare they?!!!! Remember the incident in Mombasa in 2007 when the VP reacted by trying to grab a hammer from a rowdy Raila Odinga supporter during a ODM rally? Remember how William Ruto at the same meeting quickly gauged the mood of the crowd and changed tact to his advantage?

Politicians are booed all the time. Jomo Kenyatta faced a very hostile crowd in Nyeri in 1952 but soldiered on with his speech (details are in Dark secrets of the Kenyan presidency). At another incident a rowdy crowd threw rotten eggs in the face of Jomo Kenyatta. President Barack Obama faced rowdy hostile booing crowds a few times during his recent successful presidential campaign. Mostly from radical African Americans who felt his campaign was a betrayal to the black race. Tom Mboya had a very difficult time when he arrived at the Limuru Conference centre in 1960 and was loudly booed by a section of the crowd while another section cheered him on. It was obvious which of his many political enemies had organized the booing and the whole scheme was to exclude him from the formation of a new national political party that came to be known as Kanu, but Mboya did not call a press conference to castigate his enemies. How the hell do you expose yourself in that manner? Interestingly Mboya always did his homework and knew in advance that he would face a hostile reception and so he prepared his counter strategy (the section of the crowd that wildly cheered him so that everybody would know that he was not unpopular and that only a section of the crowd was hostile. Now that is how a politician plays his cards. And I can go on and on.

You see politics is about thinking quickly on your feet and turning a bad situation to your advantage. As well as lots of damage control behind the scenes. That is the very nature of competitive politics anywhere in the world. Sadly all this must be Greek to the VP, as well read as he is.

I have just been reviewing tapes of the booing incident and I must say that Musyoka looks ridiculous waving back the time out signs that the youth were flashing in his direction. Every presidential candidate needs to look "presidential" all the time. The VP amazingly played right into their hands. Burly Fred Gumo gave him a perfect exit strategy when stood up and pointed out that the youth were complaining that it was about to rain and that is why they wanted him to hurry his speech. A smarter politician would have grabbed the que and quickly just laughed off the whole situation and sat down, apologizing about the rain. If the VP was stung, there are numerous other ways he would have dealt with the rowdy youths and those he is sure sent them.

Let us for a moment assume that the whole thing was a smear campaign organized by his political rival Raila Odinga with 2012 in mind (I still don’t see what Raila would gain from organizing such a childish charade, somebody please make me see it). What would be the right response if you were Kalonzo Musyoka? I would certainly not handle it the way the VP has. Assuming that I did not think fast enough on my feet at Uhuru park when it happened and I was taken completely by surprise (terrible for a seasoned politician) instead of calling a press conference to whine and attract attention to my own embarrassment I would have completely ignored the incident and worked hard to show that the youths had achieved nothing and my feelings were not hurt in any way. Instead I would have concentrated all my energies into repositioning myself as a more firm and resolute member of the YES campaign camp. Voters hate indecisive politicians especially after the Mwai Kibaki presidency in Kenya.

Instead, by behaving the way he did Kalonzo has portrayed himself as a whining coward who is easily cowed by a few heckling youths. And in the minds of many kenyans his stand on the new constitution is still Yes, No, No, Yes. It seems his stand would be firmer if Raila odinga was in the the "NO" camp. Kalonzo seems to be obsessed with the fellow. And if I was a heckler I would now have a field day at every opportunity in future knowing how sensitive the VP is to some little heckling. If I was his political opponent I would organize a heckling campaign through the 2012 presidential campaign just to unsettle him. You don’t show people your weakness in politics like that. You just don’t. It is suicidal.

P.S. I laugh heartily when I read all these tribal theories being peddled in the comments section here in Kumekucha on how the new constitution will be defeated in the referendum because of Raila this and Raila that. Or because of this tribe supporting it and that other tribe opposing it. Every Kenyan has a right to an opinion even if it is grossly ignorant and outdated (I dare say this right is better covered in the draft constitution). I will say no more. Let’s just wait for the results after August 4th and we’ll see just how tribal Kenyans really are. And how ignorant the people of Kenya are on the ground. And who told you Raila will win the presidency in 2012?

Poor ignorant armchair analysts they won’t know what hit them.

ABUSE OF POWER AS STATE FUNDS YES CAMPAIGNS

Guest post by Daniel Waweru

In 2005 referendum campaigns, one of the biggest complaint of the politicians behind the then NO group now ODM was the fact that the YES campaigns were bankrolled by the government. Raila and other politicians in the then NO campaigns called this ABUSE OF POWER and FRAUD. Their argument was that the taxpayers monies should not be used to support a cause that was was not yet constitutional and which in addition was not supported by a majority of Kenyans.

Fast forward to 2010, the ODM party which is now in government has joined hands with the then government and has CLONED AND ACTIVELY PROPAGATED THE SAME SINS they preached against 5 years ago. State funds are now being used to bankroll the 2010 YES campaigns which are being led by Kibaki and Raila. This is a clear case of HYPOCRICY and it should be called out and condemned. Unfortunately, the public kitty is not just being used for the referendum. It is an open secret that these campaigns are being used as a platform to market the 2012 presidential candidates. Most speakers in these rallies are spending more time glorifying their presidential candidates of choise and very little on the constitution. The sad reality is that accountability of these campaign funds is almost impossible and knowing our politicians, it means that most of the monies are being siphoned to private accounts. If Kenyans were shocked by Goldenberg and Anglo leasing, they should then be very afraid since the YES group is a congregation of WHO IS WHO in the CORRUPTION HISTORY OF KENYA.

Kenyans need to demand more of civic educators and less of political rallies since the former are the ones mandated with teaching about the contents of the draft constitution. Its sad that even the money for hiring, training and commissioning these civic educators have been diverted by the government to bankroll their YES campaigns. The time to demand fairness and sanity in this constitutional process is yesterday. But will Kenyans listen or are they already intoxicated by their favourite politicians?

PS.
Have you noticed the same politicians enjoying unlimited access to the public Kitty to fund the YES campaigns are the same ones accusing the church of using DONOR funding in their NO campaigns?
As they say, Nyani haoni Kundule.

Referendum: Green-eyed YES Faces Red Card

Kivuitu and his defunct ECK made us beat two fruits, oranges and bananas, to pull. And now the interim independent electoral commission (IIEC) has gone a notch higher by giving us GREEN and RED as the colours to hug or kick. And the choices couldn't have been more telling

Green is the universal colour of acceptance. But red is love and danger depending on your take. So is IIEC playing games or they are already irreparably partisan by inadvertently stroking the tension of 2005 back? Either the IIEC is a genius or suffering acute intellectual laziness depending on which side you support.

The colour RED is universally associated with danger. Either the IIEC is giving YES camp the green light or wants NO supporters to see red. Better still IIEC is simply painting Kenyan streets red. IIEC had all the time to come with authentic symbols and their superlative wisdom directed them to the two primary colours.

One only hopes and pray that the busybodies will not take IIEC to court in regard to colour blindness. Wikipedia will tell you most men are colour blind to the two colours.

And oh! MELLOW YELLOW is the intermediate colour separating green from red. Any takers out there?

Sunday, May 16, 2010

The drama at the Yes and No rallies yesterday

Why is Kumekucha a new fan of Caroline Mutoko?

They say that in politics anything is possible. And this was proved yesterday when the likes of William Ruto enthusiastically shared the very same platform with church folks like the respected Pastor Mark Kariuki of Redeemed Gospel church Nakuru.

Even the extremely unlikely alliance in the UK after the recent general elections, between the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats does not compare. By the way for those unfamiliar with UK politics, this would be like Daniel arap Moi returning to politics and forming an alliance with Martha Karua’s Narc Kenya. Or Moi forming a government with the likes of Mwalimu Mati.

Meanwhile at Uhuru park an equally unlikely alliance of PNU hardliners mixed freely with ODM diehards selling exactly the same message. Admittedly the gathering at Uhuru park evoked poignant memories of the epic National Rainbow coalition (Narc) rally at the same venue in 2002 where Raila Odinga uttered the two words that decided the presidency; “Kibaki Tosha.” So in a way it was not so strange. At least not as strange as the gathering at Mulu Mutisya grounds in Machakos.

In my view the church would have done a lot better campaigning on its’ own rather than having respected church leaders freely brushing shoulders with some of the characters that have caused our beloved Kenya just too much grief in the past. William Ruto and Cyrus Jirongo’s Youth for Kanu 92 (YK92) was responsible for dishing out tons of Kshs 500 notes unleashing unprecedented inflationary pressures which will still affect your great grand children 100 years from now. I think the church has completely lost it this time. For instance in Machakos yesterday a few speakers told blatant lies about the new constitution and the respected church leaders did not stand up to correct the lies or tell their flock the truth. One speaker (A Kamba politician) told the Akamba people that if they voted YES to the constitution all the numerous Kamba people living at the Coast and elsewhere would have to pack their bags and come back home to Machakos.

Church leaders are also putting themselves in a very tricky position bearing in mind the dodgy sources of financing being used in the NO campaign. I am reliably informed that the money proper is yet to come. Hii ni kionjo tuu, mambo bado. Kenyans (including those who are going to vote NO on principal) need to understand a couple of things about those leading the No campaign. They need to be informed even as they vote NO. Without boring you with too much detail, you need to ask yourself when is the last time that Cyrus Jirongo teamed up with William Ruto and what the results were for the Kenyan people. It was in 1992 and I have already told you what happened (and continues to happen). I have a feeling that our fragile economy which is just starting to recover from the post election troubles is going to be hit very hard in the next two months or so as money is literally poured to deny Kenyans the best chance they have had to make good since independence in 1963. Although all the money in the world will not dent the resolve of the Kenyan people, it will certainly affect the economy.

Incidentally something else that I found very interesting happened at Uhuru Park yesterday. The crowd got bored with Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka’s speech and urged him to finish pronto and take his seat. It is easy to start making accusations and suggestions that somebody organized this or somebody’s supporters wanted to embarrass the VP. But the truth is that the Kenyan public on the ground are a lot wiser than they used to be. Don’t forget that we have been fooled too many times and have these days gotten a lot wiser with the hypocrisy that has been the trade mark of Kenyan politicians. Remember the words of that young Rookie who became president in 1960 called J.F. Kennedy. He said you can fool some people all the time and you can fool others most of the time but you cannot fool all the people all the time.

It is clear that the general mood on the ground is that Kalonzo Musyoka is NOT really settled and comfortable in the YES camp. Indeed William Ruto started his speech in Machakos yesterday by telling the people that he was bringing them greetings from “wiper”. Wiper was the slogan Kalonzo Musyoka used in his presidential campaign of 2007. Ruto then added that there were many in the YES camp who were really in the NO camp. Wow!!!

This brings me to yet another interesting development I have recently noted. My antennae is still very much on the ground and unbelievingly the so-called second draft has had the unexpected reaction of causing a number of “NO” voters to switch camp to the YES side. It is as if they were waiting for a signal that the rich and powerful are truly against the draft constitution to hurl all their doubts out of the window and shift camps to the YES side. In a way this is should not be surprising because the level of poverty in the country is such that there are way too many Kenyans who always wait to see where the sentiments of the rich and powerful really lie for them to take the opposite position. As I have said many times here, if this situation is not checked, the next trouble we will have in Kenya will be the poor looting the homes of the rich.

By the way I still don’t buy Phil’s explanation in his post in this blog alleging that Daniel arap Moi and those in the No camp like William Ruto were responsible for the alterations in some copies of the draft constitution. He finishes his long-winded claim by saying that the culprits cannot be arrested at this time for political reasons. Sorry but I don’t buy that. I believe I am fairly familiar with the operations of the NSIS and have been familiar with those of its’ predecessor the Special branch for many years. I don’t believe that Moi or anybody else other than the president is capable of giving the NSIS orders. And if they are, then we have an even more serious crisis in our hands because my next question would be who is running Kenya? Do we have a defacto president operating from behind the shadows? Quite unlikely. I still stick to my story that the alterations were ordered from the highest authority in the land. As to the motives, only time will tell but if you have read my landmark book Dark secrets of the presidency, you will know of many other bizarre actions ordered by past presidents of the republic of Kenya and executed by the intelligence community that have impacted Kenyans tremendously. So it is nothing really new.

I will end this post by paying glowing tribute to Kiss FM’s Caroline Mutoko. I have not been listening to this radio station for years, but these days I am an avid listener of Mutoko’s breakfast show where she has been regularly digesting the draft constitution for Kenyans. And she does it in an ingenious way. By comparing the current constitution to the draft. For example a recent show compared the current constitution where all executive powers are vested in the presidency with the draft where executive powers are with the people to be exercised by the president (with limitations and checks by parliament).

The point we must all bear in mind is that if you vote NO in the referendum on August 4th you will be saying that the current constitution is better than the draft. Mutoko’s show is clearly giving plenty of evidence that that is not the case. Whatever you do don’t forget that.

In a way I wish we could record the names of all those who will vote NO so that our great grandchildren can be shown one day many years from now those who hindered change. I believe that 200 years from now people will have access to this blog and its’ posts and it will be recorded that Kumekucha and Caroline Mutoko amongst many others not only voted YES but campaigned vigorously for the YES camp and for change in our beloved motherland.

P.S. I have been looking everywhere for a statement from the VP distancing himself from Ruto's remarks in Machakos yesterday that implied he was secretly in the NO camp. By the time I posted this I had yet to find one. Take careful note my brothers and sisters and don't be fooled by what you hear politicians say. Not even Kibaki or Raila. Politics is the art of lying convincingly in broad daylight.

Saturday, May 15, 2010

Advertiser's Announcement

Fellow Kenyans,

frustrated by powerful unchecked moribund presidency?

sick of bloated expensive cabinets?

angered at inability to recall ineffective unproductive loudmouth MPs?

tired of countyless regions and essential services being far from you?

unamused by televised city council wrestling matches?

disillusioned with centralised decision making?

fed up with trampling by state of your human rights?

unsatisfied with your ability to demonstrate haki yetu peacefully without police brutality?

disgusted with run away institutionalised rampant corruption?

unhappy with ineffective prime ministers?

troubled with past decisions made by President Kenyatta/Moi?

Then vote YES for the draft constitution on August 4th 2010!

YES-You Excel Successfully

This Announcement has been paid for by the friends and supporters of the YES campaign

Referendum: All YES Systems Go as NO Plots

A random survey at Machakos Airport, KENCOM/Ambassador Square, Gikomba/Toi and Kawangware markets plus other notorious hotspots in Nairobi this week reveals that the current wet weather appears not to be a threat towards getting Kenyans attend tomorrows YES rally in large numbers. Many people have vowed to attend whether it rains cats and dogs. It is possible a million man march may be seen in Uhuru Park tomorrow. That is how important young Kenyans view the reform battle.

Even the IIEC has surpassed its own target of registering 10million voters. They have so far registered 12.5million voters, and still counting as the e-voters are still getting registered in select constituencies including ODM nerve-centre in Nairobi, Langata constituency.

In my view, the bigger threat to the constitutional reform (not just the YES rally only) is the resolve by the NO camp to use whatever method they will to win this political war (read referendum). Powerful and very rich unseen forces are sponsoring the NO camp, whose political face is William Ruto, Cyrus Jirongo and most of those misguided ODM and ODM-K Mps from Rift Valley and Eastern provinces. Apart from guerrilla tactics, the NO camp is sparing no efforts and are employing under hand methods, fear-mongering, propaganda and incitement to achieve their goals.

The first shocker was when Amos Wako was accused of producing two drafts. Contrary to allegations published earlier that the NSIS were involved, this move was actually clinically conducted by the NO camp. The extensive networks established by former president Arap Moi during his 24 year tyranny still exist in the civil service, the provincial administration and security apparatus. You underestimate Arap Moi’s KANU machinery at your own peril.

William Ruto should stop fooling Kenyans on the two drafts. He knows precisely where the second draft came from. In case many of you have forgotten, Ruto was once an Assistant Minister at OP (in charge of Government Press) during which time he employed a Mr Simotwo ( current MD of his insurance firm AMACO) as Under Secretary in charge of Government Press! Ruto has used his own network in the abortive attempt at subverting the review process by printing a fake draft and thereby setting the stage for confusion that would make it easier for a court ruling to halt the review process.

Interestingly, and believe it or not, two of Ruto’s surrogates are already in court contesting the referendum question alleging that the questions released yesterday are infringing their rights to freedom of expression which is enshrined in the current constitution. As you can see at that link, depending on how the judge views the argument, a stupid lawsuit like this can actually put the brakes on the whole referendum process, and return Kenya’s protracted reform struggle back to square one!

The NSIS know who the culprit is and have given the information to the relevant authorities. You can take take to the bank. However, the fact that Ruto is currently a pawn in the explosive grand coalition politics chess game as well as that the delicate referendum is Kenya's last card for peace or for civil war, all these factors make it impossible to take the culprit out. But believe you me, Ruto is a marked man.

As a matter of fact, Ruto and Simotwo are currently running Salanic Printers in Eldoret, a firm suspected of printing leaflets in North Rift warning ‘outsiders’ to move away from the area ostensibly because North Rift is not their ancestral land. During the duos tenure at OP, they vandalised Government Press just as they did KTMT (Kenya Times). One does not need to be a rocket scientist to figure out where hundreds of NO paper caps, posters and other printed stuff came from during the NO crusade at Uhuru Park, which first begun as a prayer meeting before being hijacked by the political class.

As if all this is not enough, today no less a person than president Kibaki, his V-P Kalonzo and Local Government Minister Mudavadi were thoroughly embarrassed in front of media cameras by councillors who chanted NO! and PESA! at a meeting called to educate them on the need to support the Katiba. Kibaki struggled to control his anger, but the damage had already been done. NO campers must be rolling on the floor with laughter.

Apparently, Ruto and some NO side MPs had already met the councillors last night and poisoned their minds (read bribed them). They asked the councillors to demand for a payrise and also protest their long neglect by the national government. The trick worked. The councillors even rejected an impromtu payrise announced by Mudavadi of Kshs. 5,000/-. It did not occur to the YES strategist (currently operating from Muthaura’s office in Harambbe House) that upcountry councillors in the city would be vulnerable to being poisoned by political forces just as political party delegates attending NDC meetings. I wonder why the ODM cannot take charge of these arrangements!!! Is it because it is currently being seen as a presidential function? Perhaps even more importantly, both camps had received intelligence that the councillors would behave the way they did this morning. Is this the reason the sly PM kept away and let Kibaki feel the heat from grassroot leaders? He normally would not miss a prominent political stage as this and the fact remains ODM councillors were the majority at this meeting.

Time will tell, especially tomorrow when the compromised councillors are expected to be outnumbered by hundreds of youth currently making their way from all over Kenya to Nairobi to attend the inaugural YES rally. Security will be tight given the president is expected to be in attendance together with the PM and the VP and other prominent persons.

Looking at all the propaganda coming from the No side, especially the lies on the LAND and ABORTION clauses, it is clear that the NO side wants to use propaganda to get as much support to No side as possible.

The unfortunate thing is that the campaigns for the referendum have not officially started and events of this week are already raising temperatures, prompting the YES organisers to carefully vet individuals who will be allowed to address the gathering without stoking passions.

Whichever way you look at it, the NO side means business and they have the money. The YES side, which has brought back strange bedfellows PNU and ODM into one camp, have yet to get their house in order. Allowing PNU’s Muthaura to head the YES secretariat is suicide. ODM, of all people should know this. Defeating impunity and reforming this country was never going to be child’s play. 30 years and counting. Jaramogi, Anyona, JM, et al (RIP) must be turning in their graves.

Friday, May 14, 2010

Kibaki ordered changes to draft constitution | Kenya politics | Kenya presidency | The evil in Kenyan presidency

AG Amos Wako has always been a very careful man. But recently the pressure was so much that he was forced to name names. By doing so he has put the executive on the spot and probably saved Kenyans from a lot of grief.

Folks, judging by how the government has reacted to some very serious allegations, it is more evidence that the changes made in the draft constitution at the government printers were ordered by President Kibaki himself. This is hardly surprising when you consider that the NSIS cannot do anything without executive approval, more so if that particular thing is illegal. (Sadly these kind of executive games happen all over the world with spy agencies. Remember the recent case where Mossad assassinated somebody in a Dubai hotel?)

If anybody else were responsible the NSIS officers who approached Wako to make changes and he declined have already committed a criminal offence and should be arrested immediately. Those less naïve Kenyans know that this will never happen. Instead fraud squads and all kinds of smoke screens have been put in place (if they had their way yet another commission of enquiry would have been appointed to investigate the matter).

And yet it should be an open and shut case. If the altered document had been printed in River Road that would be a different matter. But the fact is that it was printed at the Government press. Who has access to the government press? ONLY the government of the republic of Kenya and the messenger in this case was from the NSIS, and so it is crystal clear where the order came from.

We brought out the champagne way too early my dear fellow reform-minded Kenyans. We forgot about the powerful and terribly wealthy anti-reformists. These guys will do anything. And I mean ANYTHING, to ensure that the new constitution is NEVER passed.
You see as I have said here many times before, the new constitution is NOT about Kadhis courts or abortion as some of our extremely naïve brothers and sisters have been fooled into believing. That explosive document is about changing the status quo and way of life of the filthy rich and influential in Kenya.

Indeed William Ruto’s “No” campaign needs to be looked at in new light. For those who look to make money during political campaigns, kindly note that the money is not going to be in the YES camp. It is in the NO camp and the sly Ruto may just have found the perfect way to raise funds for his 2012 campaigns. Just watch and see the kind of money these guys will pour to defeat the new constitution.

So what is Mwai Kibaki’s motive this time? Could it be that he is under considerable pressure from those who own Kenya and will lose grip with the passing of the new constitution? I am currently digging around in search of the answer to that question.

P.S. President Kenyatta played similar “executive games” in the late 60s when he at one point heavily financed both the Jaramogi Oginga Odinga camp and the Mboya camp within Kanu. He was of course with the Mboya camp but did not want the Odinga camp to know what was happening. And so Kibaki is not the first Kenyan president to publicly support something and secretly route for something else. My book Dark secrets of the Kenyan presidency talks about aspects of the Kibaki character and presidency that many Kenyans have never known.

Thursday, May 13, 2010

EPZs and Modern Slavery: Who Shall Tell Wanjiku the Ugly Truth - Part II

By Mwarang'ethe

Continued... But, what makes USA such a high cost nation which forces the industry out? The natural cost of a product is dependent on land rent, wages plus taxes, regulatory costs and profits. On may 1 2010, the DN reported this. "Revealed: How Kenya lost Sh700m in embassy land deal". Ignoring all other juicy stuff, let us focus on this statement. "On February 10, 2009, a valuation report by Teresia Kimondiu of the Ministry of Lands put the value of the land on which Kenya’s mission stands at Sh1.392 billion and the buildings at Sh129 million". Mark you, this after the land speculation disaster of the late 1980's which made Tokyo land more valuable than all of the real estate in the USA. We can see that, the land rent is almost 10 times the value of the bricks and mortars. So, who pockets this rent? The land lord (read land devil). Has he toiled so as to demand this tax from investors and workers? No. It is to afford this private rent the worker in Japan must be paid very highly which makes him unable to compete with Haitian worker. Consequently, so, as to avoid this private taxation, the investor moves his manufacturing to Haiti. It is for this reason, Singapore, whose land tenure is according to the natural law, is the magnet for capital from Japan, USA, Germany etc. (see Esau and Jacob Story at James Gichuru Road.

Likewise, in the USA, this offshore guy contracts a marketing company to sell the baseball in the rich American market. Just like the Haiti manufacturer, the American marketer is tasked to do the very least. As a result, the American marketer gets little payment as well. However, if the USA, UK governments collects VAT, it makes a lot of money when the sellers sell expensively stuff that costs cents to make in Kenya or Haiti. More so, since the UK government is a beneficiary of these arrangements via VAT, they can come around and fund the free education programme for children of the EPZ's worker. What a cruel deception is this?

So, we can see that, in this triangle, only a few guys sitting in the offshore who get over 80% of wealth produced are benefiting in the so called globalisation because via these complicated arrangements since these offshore guy pockets around 80% of the $ 15. If you have been asking why the top 1% dogs in the USA now control over 55% of wealth, the formula is here. In 1995, the Gap sold shirts "made in El Salvador" at $ 20 with El Salvadoran slave getting $ 18 cents. When the El Salvadorian slaves tried to ask for more in commensurate with their humanity, the Asian slaves called Gap.

The story does not end here though. In the USA, when a manufacturer moves to Haiti, he must sack some American workers. Simply, this is economic insanity of capital destroying capital. When they lose jobs, they either remain jobless or get other low paying so called service jobs of washing each other dogs, massaging each other and may be prostitution. For others who have jobs, wages must remain stagnant which has been the case since 1973 as Greenspan, the high priest at the FED confirmed at the "boom" time of Mr Clinton. This is nothing new though. The more slaves Roman Empire soldiers brought to Rome as prisoners of war, the more wages fell and more difficult it became to find work for “free citizens.” Who said history does not repeat itself?

To keep up with rising cost of living (remember that question of energy, money capture for speculation at the source which brings inflation?), the American worker has been forced to go into debts to buy the baseball, jeans etc from 3rd world. However, now, the American worker finds himself committing much of his income to debts given by the same bankers who finance outsourcing such that, he cannot consumer industrial goods. When this happens, the whole ponzi scheme collapses and these debts gets transferred to the already tired taxpayers in the name of public debt as we see now in the USA, Europe and elsewhere. What is interesting is that, the money given to these bankers is loaned again to the government at interest. In this scheme, we have witnessed the GREATEST TRANSFER of wealth in human history from the poor to the rich. In Britain, the 1,000 super-rich saw their wealth increase by one-third – or £77 billion – to a total £334 billion during 2009 alone. In other words, Labour Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s £1,000 billion stimulus package all it achieved was stimulating the assets of the already wealthy. Translated, this is socialism for the rich, free markets for the vanquished masses.

As the Americans capacity to consume evaporates, some workers in the EPZ's must lose jobs. For those who are lucky to retain jobs, they must compete, i.e. further lower their wages to get the few jobs available. And, since our governments must pay their dollar loans which they take to buy local stones or create jobs for the restless young men, they must create more special trace zones to facilitate export of new clothes so as to import mitumba later. How can we call these free markets when the power of the state is used to vanquish workers? We are back to the age of mercantilism.

When all this is going, the American worker cannot see the reality because he spends more time in the shiny shopping temples of godless capitalism buying jeans and ipods to stick in his ears to drown his sorrows. Nothing new here once again. As the Roman Empire collapsed, the Roman citizens had a lot of bread and entertainment. By the time the masses woke up, around 1800 men were holding the wealth of the whole world as the world plunged into Dark Ages. After all, the Havard economist/priest preaches daily on the BBC, Fox News that, this is the most efficient way of conducting our affairs. In this "efficient" way of doing things, we sack the American worker and we transfer his work to a Haitian. In other words, we have capital destroying capital. However, since the Haitian worker has no need for pension, health care or education for his kids, which the American worker would have been paid, the guys sitting in Switzerland pockets the difference.

With a straight face, the pocketing of what in front of man and God and in justice and in equity belongs to the poor workers, they call this profit. That’s why the Forbes Magazine can announce to the mesmerised humanity how many billionaires we have created in the last two- three decades. Using these "profits" these evil men who eat bread of sorrow start speculating in stocks, commodities such as oil, food (as you talk about debe, another food crisis is on the way by the way) and land. In the midst of such orgy of speculation which completely neglects and destroys the real economy, the G7/8, World Economic Forum and other such useless gatherings where a few of African leaders are invited to add the dark colour, they announce to the struggling masses that, "we have high sustainable economic growth." We have read the same nonsense on this blog. Never mind that, we are wasting valuable energy as we noted here, to transport toys from China to the USA. But, who cares, the new technology is around the corner to enable the continuation of this economic insanity.

In the midst of this madness and ECONOMIC GENOCIDE, we are assured that, with the new constitution combined with Vision 2030, we will be a wealthy nation soon. For every reality, there is a fantasy. Let us investigate these claims. Let us recall the division of labour we mentioned above. In this sense, the productive activities that can make a nation wealthy must meet two tests. (a) Such activities should lead to production of valuable tangible/intangible stuff. (b) Such activities should be surplus generating economic activities that can be made available for future re- investment. Ignoring the distribution aspect of this surplus for the moment, we can say that, since our economic activities do not meet test (b), in other words, we specialise in unproductive economic activities (special EPZ's and coffee growing - Malthusian activities) we are going NOWHERE.

Furthermore, even if there is some little surplus revenue for re- investment we also have a major problem of its distribution. Under the private land ownership (absolute title to land), land absorbs almost all of the surplus revenue in form of rent. In addition to this, we have piratical monetary system that also extracts a very large portion of the surplus revenue from our economy. This extraction of wealth by the idle class is at the expense of the class that create real wealth. This class is composed of the labour and the real economy/industrial/agriculture economy. Once the industrialist/farmer who creates commodities we need and exchange with each other is starved of revenue for future investments, it follows that, there are no jobs for the labour. And even if there are jobs, so as to meet the unjust demands of land owners and the financial capitalists, the wages must be low as we see in the EPZ’s. Low wages cannot create an environment for industrialists to invest.

So, if this is the condition of our economy and the “new constitution” has not fixed it, how do you meet the economic and social rights as well as devolution demands? With all honesty, it is impossible to meet these demands. To believe otherwise, is to be stupid for it amounts to asking the question without bothering to answer it. We say it again. We are going NOWHERE until our Constitutions, Vision 2030's are constructed with this reality in the mind and not delusions and wild fantasies. Cheki vile huyu supuu wetu anacheka akisoma mambo ya economic and social rights.

Let us make some issue absolutely very clear. No form of government including so called welfare state can create wealth. All these systems of government do is to redistribute wealth. However, redistribution is not creation of wealth. It only shuffles wealth around from its most economically suitable uses toward purposes that serve the needs of the political class. If any property is forcibly made to serve anything other than its first most suitable purpose, its value is reduced. When it is channeled into purposes that serve the interest of the state, it is done at the cost of freedom as well. Now, we have crafted the economic and social rights. Fine, but, let us think through these delusions.

In introducing economic and social rights all we are saying is that, all should be wealthy for to have a decent house is being wealthy. We have also devolved some funds to the local areas. We are 100% in favour of devolution. But, it must be done in a more thoughtful manner. This calls for two things for sure. Massive taxation and debt pyramid. For the moment, don’t mind that, taxation and debt (public curse) are inimical to wealth creation. At the same time, we know this. Prosperity that will be taxed to build decent houses does not depend on having a saintly president or devolution, but, well thought out economic structures of a nation. If this is so, have we created the necessary economic structures? We have answered this question with emphatic No. If so, how do you provide decent houses? It is a delusion.
We know that, fools love their calamity and they call their prophets lunatics. Nevertheless, we must give you a stern warning. We are giving thee, a hint of the past and the future that awaits us or even better, which is with us. In 1770, the East Indian Company starved 10 million Indians in a cruel famine made worse by the company's hoarding of limited grain stocks and its decision to raise the rate of taxation to maintain its revenues. With London (read Kenya/Africa) facing financial difficulties, it had to get bailout from this monster. This meant the government takeover by this monster of a company. It was in horror of things to come when in 1773, one American in the America colonies warned that: "America is faced with the most powerful trading company in the universe, an institution well versed in tyranny, plunder, oppression and bloodshed." And, whose tea was dumped in Boston in 1773 at the start of the American Revolution? It was this monster's tea.

If the average Joe in America was not spending all his time in the shopping temples, buying with borrowed money "cheap" stuff, he would have saved the humanity by dumping the jeans from special Athi River EPZ's into the Boston sea. Unfortunately, if the Western average citizen is not in the shopping temples, he is watching the American idol; Britain has Talent and Desperate Housewives. Consequently, he cannot hear the trumpet warning of the coming economic strangulation issued by the gods of money at the IMF. The Fund has calculated that almost all advanced economies need to tighten fiscal policy (increase poverty) significantly in the coming decade in order to stabilise debt at 60 per cent of national income by 2030 and the tightening needed in the US, Japan and the UK is just as bad as that required in Greece, Spain, Ireland and Portugal. In other words, Greece is the opening short of coming feudalism for we are back to the past. This we see in the FT "Dangers loom beyond eurozone.

From this, we see that, the American independence was sparked as much by hostility to corporate monopoly which included money monopoly as it was to taxation without representation. Are we today not dominated by modern corporate monopolies which are nothing but the East Indian Company? Doesn't the Kibaki/Raila/Kalonzo, Uhuru, Musalia, Obama’s government constitute taxation without representation (read taxation with impoverishment)? Therefore, since the conditions that fuelled the American Revolution have been met, let us perpetuate an honest indignation against these enemies of mankind.

Humanity is at crossroad for financial capitalism has killed its host, i.e. industrial capitalism/real free economy. If the ongoing economic collapse is not handled with appropriate wisdom which unfortunately Nero, oh, no, Obama has completely failed to show, it will plunge humanity in to a deadly 3 World War. The consequences will be too devastating to contemplate with so many nations armed with nuclear weapons. Just watch how the Euro zone is now jumping from the Titanic ship to Lusitania ship. There is nothing new here because; we saw these same games in the 3rd century after Christ with the monetary collapse of the Roman Empire.

In these uncertain times, there is too much to say, but, let us end with the wisdom of Martin Luther King who said, that, it comes a time when silence is betrayal. Time has come for men and women of goodwill to be maladjusted to an economic system that takes the necessities from the many to give luxuries to the few as Martin Luther said. See his speech here.

While at it bear in mind two very important things:

(a) The fight against Moi, Kibaki, Raila, and Mbeki is all in vain. What we have in place is an Invisible Government of Monetary Power which is worse than monarchical power for it is well versed in tyranny, plunder, oppression and bloodshed. Moi, Kibaki, Raila’s are mere figure heads. In other words, politics and political analysis dominated by personality analysis is a total waste of time and energy which only leads to frustrations.

(b) How is your wealth portfolio? Do you own fictitious wealth (stocks, derivatives, inflated land/houses in London, New York, Nairobi) or real wealth (food, fuel, timber, cows etc).

You can't educate us
For no equal opportunity
(Talkin' 'bout my freedom) Talkin' 'bout my freedom,
People freedom (freedom) and liberty!
Yeah, we've been trodding on the winepress much too long:
Rebel, rebel!

Babylon system is the vampire,
Me say: de Babylon system is the vampire, falling empire
Suckin' the blood of the sufferers

Building church and university,
Deceiving the people continually
Me say them graduatin' thieves and murderers
Look out now: they suckin' the blood of the sufferers

Tell the children the truth
we've been taken for granted much too long
Now we know everything we got to rebel
Somebody got to pay for the work
We've done, rebel.

By the late Bob N. Marley

Shocker: Could this be the person behind the illegal changes in the draft constitution?

Who does this man report to?

What do bank robbers do when they want to rob a well-guarded bank? They divert attention from their target. They could for instance start a fire in a nearby building so that when everybody’s attention is diverted they go about their mission. About three years ago I was in Mombasa during the annual Diwali celebrations where lots of fireworks explode in the night sky. Some robbers robbed a night club right next to the Mombasa Sports club and they actually went in when the fireworks were loudest. So when they fired into the air to scare patrons. People nearby assumed it was all part of the fireworks.

Methinks that somebody is trying to pull off a similar move with the draft constitution and as usual Kenyans have fallen for the bait and ignored the really important issues.

So somebody sneaked in two words into the draft constitution. Legally that sentence is NOT correct. Actually what happened is that somebody produced an illegal version of the draft constitution. The law is clear. The only legal draft is the one produced by the COE, approved by parliament and published by the AG. In other words you can go ahead and produce 100 different versions of the draft constitution and it will not matter, except that those producing the different versions will be breaking the law.

So the questions Kenya should be asking is not how the latest move removed credibility from the draft constitution. Instead the questions we should be asking in order of importance are;

1. What was the motive of the person or person who did this?
2. The AG already has a suspect in the form of the NSIS so who gives the NSIS orders? In other words who do they report to?
3. Will the person who has thrown this spanner into the works succeed?

Let us try to answer these questions.

Could the motive have been to sneak in those changes in to the final draft approved by Kenyans? Although this is possible assuming that the NSIS are the guilty party you would also need to assume that they are idiots. This is because it would have been obvious that such a move would NOT have gone undetected. Not in today’s Kenya. We all know that the NSIS are many things but they are certainly NOT stupid. Admittedly our intelligence services like many others in the world have always had a history of coming up with very crazy schemes that are doomed to failure long before they leave the drawing boards. Still it is highly unlikely that this was the motive.

The more likely motive would have been to take away steam from the YES camp and somehow throw a spanner in the works as a first step to halting the new constitution. When you look around at the people who would love to stop the new constitution, this option becomes even more plausible. Family fortunes are going to be wiped out, family political careers brought to a ruthlessly rude end etc.

So who gives the NSIS its’ orders? The answer to that question throws in even more confusion into this bizarre development. NSIS takes orders from one person and only one person and that is the president of the republic of Kenya. Indeed it would NOT make sense for the NSIS to approach the AG without the blessings of the president. So the question now is, is the president playing games? Those who are familiar with the Kibaki administration will argue that the president has delegated part of the task of liaising with the NSIS to one of his cabinet ministers. That minister has been for a long time John Michuki (and not George Saitoti, interestingly). We know that despite his strengths, Michuki is old school and is capable of getting a fit just thinking about the kind of new Kenya that will dawn with the new constitution. Especially where matters of state security (whatever that means) are concerned. Still the question is, would a minister act on their own in this way without approval from the president. That is highly unlikely.

The last question is crucial. Will the person behind this mischief (whoever they are) succeed? Based on what I have seen on the ground the answer to that question is a resounding NO. What many old school chaps still can’t see is that this is a very different Kenya. Just ask the marketing department of any major company and they will tell you that they are mostly grappling to understand a market that has changed and continues to change too rapidly. Politically the writing is on the wall in bold. Kenyans are sick and tired of the old order and they will do anything, including selling their own souls to bring about change. Already the price that has been paid is colossal, so Kenyans have really put absolutely everything they have and more into the card called change. This focus is good and is probably what will save Kenya. Let us not forget that change is always resisted and the people resisting change in Kenya are pretty powerful. Fortunately stopping change this time will be a Herculean task.

The cheeky alteration in the draft constitution also brings out something else that is well worth noting. The minimal reforms that have gradually seeped into the country ever since the repel of the notorious section 2a in 1991 (allowing the re-introduction of a multi-party democracy) that was the beginning of the end of the Kanu monopoly on Kenyan politics hit the security forces in the country most. The intelligence community was at the top of that list. For many years the then Special branch was virtually above the law. They could pick up anybody and detain them endlessly and even make them disappear forever and there was very little anybody could do about it. This was an efficient way of dealing with threats without too much thinking. The truth is that our intelligence community has been struggling to find a new footing. The feeling amongst many within NSIS is that they have completely lost grip on things and when the draft constitution is passed, it will just make matters a lot worse.

My personal view is that minimal changes are sometimes much more difficult to operate under than the kind of sweeping changes that a totally new constitution will bring. The truth of the matter is that our spooks will now have to operate according to International standards. Admittedly the problems they have already had a taste of are the very same problems that have faced Mi5, Mossad, the CIA and others for decades now. They just need to put their thinking caps on and change tact.

In this entire saga one question remains at the top of my mind. Was AG Amos Wako aware of what he was implying when he named the NSIS as suspects in introducing the National security clause into the constitution? The NSIS is NOT the police or any other department. In fact the best way to describe the department is the president’s personal police. So Wako is telling Kenyans that the president’s personal police approached him and “ordered him” to make changes. Wow!!!

My book Dark secrets of the Kenyan presidency details some of the dirtiest presidential secrets involving the intelligence community under Kenyatta, Moi and Kibaki. I will be distributing a summary of the book and a number of chapters from the book for free to Kumekucha readers only. Get it by subscribing to my list for the book. Simple send an email now to; Dark-secrets-kenyan-presidency-subscribe@yahoogroups.com