Is it an attempt to slow down the peace deal and resist change?
Recent Comments
tnk on RIP Hon KONES,LABOSO n CR… tnk on RIP Hon KONES,LABOSO n CR… Maru Kapkatet on RIP Hon KONES,LABOSO n CR… Maru Kapkatet on RIP Hon KONES,LABOSO n CR… Maru Kapkatet on RIP Hon KONES,LABOSO n CR…
Raila Odinga's Weblog 
We’ll soon find out – after today’s parliament session…and if we don’t….the secretariat should tell us, or better still, the pentagon or RAO. Only they know the exact details of the deal that was signed…..
Muthaura’s goof came a little too late. He should have advised Kibaki and his Panua hardliners long time ago not to sign the deal in broad daylight and in front of the world.
Muthaura is part of Kenyas problems the same same old guys meesing up the country. He is part of the status quo simply out to protect their illegitmate positions in the Kibaki rule. He wants business as usual to continue marginalising majority of Kenyans even in his own backyard and vomitting in our shoes. We shall not accept any shortchanging tactics. If anything, he should have resigned long time ago. Time for hardliners in managing Kenya like zoombies is up. They should pack and go home so that Kenya can be led by progressive leaders working together as a strong team.
Selfless Kenyans will always stand by Raila and his ODM team of leaders.
To hell with Muthaura and his hardliner coleagues.
Agent4change, what do you mean asking us such a question. what are you telling us? does it mean you guys are just as clueless and have been caught flatfooted by kibaki again?
Get this, Muthaura’s statement was not a goof. at least I haven’t heard Kibaki come out to clear the air. this statement was made at kibaki’s behest.
Give this message to Raila, We are not going to continue supporting him if he keeps getting into half baked agreements which lead to heartbreaks later on. we are waiting for ODM to deliver that knock-out punch to the hardliners. we are tired of these intrigues every week. If RAO cannot lead decisively then let somebody else take over the reins and lead us to battle. we shall call Raila to be our president when the time comes. but as for now it is war-time and we need a warrior filled with vengeance to lead us, not Raila who is too trusting and forgiving.
this is not a goof unless Kibaki states otherwise. If kibaki remains silent on this, then its no goof. Annan went one on one with Raila and Kibaki after the negotiators failed to agree. We still do not know what they failed to agree on, and then several hours later, the principals MK and RAO agreed on some document and appended their signatures to it.
Muthaura is the authoritative govt handle and his appearance together with Mutua solidly suggests the govts (read kibakis) position, although for good measure to allow squirming out of hot issues, there’s also the PPS that can counter such statements. i.e the good guy bad guy all in the same pot.
we cannot keep giving the benefit of doubt to deception. please note in his statement he states/quotes the law in its present form against the agreement. reading between the lines he consulted the AG chambers before he made the assertion. But we also know the AG has drafted the bill. I think ODM need to widely consult with PLO Lumumba and Paul Muite and any other objective thinking lawyers including Law Society to identify loop holes and other pitfalls in the agreement.
it is naive to assume that a gentlemans agreement can in its own right form a legally or constitutionally binding and enforceable document. We have somehow transitioned or digressed from the position called for by all local and international interested organs for a “political solution to the crisis” (which I understood to mean that it may not necessarily be constitutional i.e legally correct but dependent on goodwill and some nominal constitutional changes) and instead bogged the spirit of the agreement with the “nitty-gritty” of legalese.
What this agreement needed was for Kibaki to use the executive authority that he’s hanging onto dearly, to proclaim and without mincing his words, create the position of an executive Premier with specific executive authority transfered from the presidency and presumably some ministerial posts etc and then let the AG, parliament or whoever work out the finer details, just like he did while campaigning and creating new districts. there were no negotiation teams defining borders etc, what we have is an imperial presidency, and if kibaki made that call even from a roadside, the muthauras, wakos, karuas et al will be scrambling to make it happen, lets stop kidding ourselves.
Its Never done until it is done. So guys hold your brath. Lets see what the parliament does. Lets see what the president does on ministers. We should be ready for anything and everything. I dont think we are dead and burried yet.
If some people want to take us back, so be it , we should be ready. If they want us to proceed we will together. RAO has given enough goodwill for this to work. If somebody thinks accepting to share power that you have been robbed is stupid then so be it. They should soon be told its sacrifice and not stupidity.
Spot on TNK. it is time for kibaki to stop hiding behind surrogates. let him make a statemement either upholding or denouncing Muthaura’s. and it should be done in person, not through some third party. until then we will take muthaura’s statement to have been made at kibaki’s call.
what this means is that unless things work themselves out in Parliament, (I’m waiting to see what will come out today) we will probably be back on the streets by the end of the week. and this time I propose that Raila makes no agreement till these tribalists are routed completely. we have had enough of kibaki and his games. he can go and play them as the dictator of Lesotho, but we the people of Kenya want to have a democracy free of intrigues.
Latest from parliament, anybody?
just received this alert from Nation: there has been 50/50 sharing of seats in the House Business Comittee btw PDM and PNU. both sides got 10 seats each.
They haven’t started debating the constitutional ammendment bills yet. Idon’t know if they’ll do it today or tomorrow.
Rafiq,
You wanted to know why the police are not using the same tacts on Mungiki as in SLDF. i agree with right thinking Kenyans that all militia groups must be disarmed. The idea of negotiations should not be entertained unless the groups lay the munitions and ask for forgiveness. I am one of those in total support of military operation in Mt. Elgon. If these were sincere in their quest for justice, then it is not through the use of arms but negotiations. If we allow these groups to thrive, then we will be a nation of militias.
Put more pressure on Raila if that will help the course of Kenya as a nation. Let us discuss issues that partains to employment, distribution of resources, governance etc
People like Muthaura have to go home surely! Wwe are sick to the neck with old pretentius men in funny accents lording it over us!
A friend of mine sent me an e-mail in the evening yesterday which cooled me down. I believe what he is saying could be true bcoz most of the mails with sensitive materials that he sent me in the past always turned out to be true. The mail read as follows:
ODM emerged from a crisis meeting moments ago with both guns blazing
and poured cold water on the shocking Muthaura statement made earlier
today saying among other ridiculous things that the Prime Minister
would Be third in command in the new government structure (after the
president and vice president) to accommodate the Anan peace deal.
Speaking on behalf of ODM, legislator Amukoa Anangwe quite rightly
pointed out that the only people who could issue a clarification of
the peace deal were the two principals, namely Hon Raila Odinga and
President Mwai Kibaki.
He added that it was hardly surprising that the historic peace deal is
witnessing some “resistance” from civil servants who will be
drastically affected by the Anan brokered peace accord.
Although some of our readers had already panicked and viewed this
latest development as a clear sign that President Mwai Kibaki is doing
his favorite thing of reneging on signed agreements, keen observers
believe that what we are seeing are the “kicks of a dying horse” as
PNU hardliners fight to derail things and for attention in a situation
where the previously easily accessible president is no longer
reachable.
Only time will tell where the truth lies.
Railkamuodho,
I am in agrement with you however where are the facts. Can you see that its a one sided thing? Do you want to tell me that police didnt see the Mungiki in town, that they could areest them, that they couldnt arrest those who ferried them? This was a distinct group of people not an amorphous group in a constituency.
I wish them well if they do it tactically. However history tells me violence begets violence. Otherwise LRA, FARC, DARFUR wouldnt be there. Why not try diplomacy? These are Kenyans! For how long will they kill them? What about our mothers soisters and brothers already fleeing Kenya? Why dont we adress their concerns?
I am waiting for parliament to give me the verdict. Not NMG not Muthaura Not Mutua certainly not Karua. I want to hear from parliamentarians.
Guys dont worry about tomorrow. God will take care of it. He has given us RAO to lead us there. Lets all pray for him and focus on what he says. Please for peace’s sake-your own peace.
Read the distractors speech/clarification but look at the prize we need. The consequences of failed implementation is too great for Kibaki to contemplate. If he does so ie retreats we have an answer which will be immediate and supported by our international friends. So again dont wory guys our leaders have our interest in their hearts.
that’s right. let’s wait and see what will come out of Parliament. then we can take a stand. for the time being we are behind Raila and have faith in his judgement. that’s why we voted for him.
if we didn’t know what a nasty and shameless character kibaki was, we could have dismissed muthaura’s statement offhand. but we know better. let’s give them time and then take it from there.
Mr. Odinga,
My First Point
According to the English Dictionary, the term “Designate” means “appointed but not yet installed in office”. You are neither “the appointed PM” nor “the elected PM” but not yet installed as the Prime Minister of Kenya. Please, advice the public to take note of the fact that you are not the PM-designate & stop referring to you as such. I am not saying this because I don’t like you, I am saying this because we can not be sure that PNU Chauvinists will honor the Grand Coalition Accord that was meant to make you the PM of Kenya. It is simply misleading and careless to use the title PM-Designate while referring to you. Sir, your official PUBLIC title is MP for Lang’ata.
read more here..
http://mweusi.wordpress.com/2008/03/11/river-nyando-is-not-navigable/
Thanks Kip,
I wish everyone would also learn that. He is not yet there.
We need to come up with something to kill tribalism, how to lift our economy, how to fast track and tackle constitution.
Agent of change and tnk lets see how we can start and grow this movement for we will be the leaders tomorrow.
nb. Unless RAO or MK comes with a statement lets not work ourselves up for
no reason, can we start building a new kenya where moderation/logic are the
work of the day but not killings/confrotation.
As for my post above i mean forums/discussion.Lets see if we can start small groups with our friends in our own locations moving up nationally.
I’m trying to start one in muguga and then kabete division all the way up to nyeri.
Obviously, Muthaura must have been speaking for some people who do not want to see Ho.n Raila Odinga ever become the president of Kenya. What Muthaura said may not have been approved by Kibaki.
Whatever the truth is, Kibaki must provide leadership and show the world that he is principled, fair, and above petty politics. I do not believe that Kenyans will be happy to see Raila become the PM of Muthaura’s job description. Raila has to be the number two leader behind Kibaki. That is what Kofi Annan mediated and that is what the world believes will be done.
If parliament does not amend the constitution clause on the VP by deleting it, the Kenyans must demand that Kibaki ensures that there is fairness by dissolving his current Cabinet and then intentionally leaving the VP post vacant but have Raila perform the duties of that office as well as his PM ones.
Kibaki should then appoint Kalonzo as one of the deputy PMs. If Kalonzo agrees to accept the VP post as outlined by Muthaura in a scheme meant to not only to stop Raila from ever becoming president of Kenya but also to humiliate him, then Kalonzo will pay dearly for it in the next presidential elections whenever they will be held.
Kenyans will not forgive him for it. Hon. Raila Odinga garnered over 4 million votes while Kalonzo had less than a million and which almost came exclusively from his own Kamba people. If Kalonzo agrees to become a player in a disdainful and humiliating scheme to Raila, Kalonzo will be sacrificing his presidential ambitions to foster evil in Kenya.
Kalonzo will compete favourably with Raila in the next presidentail elections, which will be definitely free and democratic, if he maintains honour and dignity in the formation and running of the coalition government.
I would advise that we ignore Muthaura’s statement and take it as contemptuously as possible, This Deal MUST go through, Come what May!
What we need to understand ODmers is that the agreement bettween RAO and Mwizi kibaki ruffled many feathers and many in PANUA illegal govt doesnt want to see it.
we havent surrended our quest for big office, what we did was for the good of kenyan that we cant win if all our supporters are dead and all buildings turned ablaze, but it can happen anytime soon as long as mwizi kibaki doesnt realise that he lost the goodwill longtime ago.
kibaki just wantd recognition, he already has got it even in this blog, for me he will remain a THIEF but i will suport ARAP MIBEI not a thief ya kura.
so what muthaura said is what kibaki believes in, as coward as he is, he wont come out to correct the impression but will let Karua do the dirty work for him.
i hope he understands what awaits him if he fails the test he is been given.
To assume that Kibaki will honour this thing is wishful thinking.
we are dealing with a perenial liar and somebody who cant be trusted.
but i also know ROA, he knows wheer to deep his feet and in all cases, he can come out without burns, so kibaki must know that he has no legitimacy but goodwill to finish his stolen presidency so that we can Redeem it
PNU INSIDER CONFESSION:
Author Anonymous: for his safety
Kenyans should thank God for what they never knew or don’t know.I have been introduced into this site by a colleague who blogs here often and I have a story to share. I’m an officer with the administration police based at the coast now but was in rift valley until few weeks ago and will not divulge my rank here for anonymity purposes. I have anonymously written to various international and local organizations about what i saw but many have been either skeptical or afraid to act. Anonymously, because in my line of duty, the reality of dying by a dirty colleague’s riffle is closer than that of natural death. I am from one of the GEMA sub-tribes
I have a lot of information i’d like to share but for now, i will only use such forums to say what i know. Yes it’s true that mungiki were called in to revenge and the plan was to consequently use it as a tactic to maim or kill Ruto, Nyong’o and Sirma. The plan was met with a lot of resistance and squabbles between vigilance and state house almost got ugly until some rouge senior officers in nairobi decided to let the mungiki out for a field day at naivasha and nakuru.
It became apparent that when members of the kalenjin and some moderate maasai heard that the mungiki were on a revenge attack, the kalenjin, who are way superior and tactful in bush combat, decided to meet them at rongai and molo and that is when the mungiki lords called muranga for reinforcements.
The police were told to sit back and come in when the objective was complete. The infighting that pitted the organisers saw some hasty decision to send a lorry full of mungiki youths to Burnt forest with GK escort to meet the raiders but the whole lot of them, 43 in number, were met with heavy resistance and the last one of them died two hours later.It was devastating.The lorry was burnt and the two riffles the gang had were stolen by the attackers.
This was never reported in the press. I remember we were dispatched to the scene three hours later yet we were in a post nine kilometers away. three local press members took pictures and interviewed witnesses who accounted every thing they saw, we never heard of in in any news. When Nairobi heard that the mungiki strategy could not work in riftvalley and parts of nyanza that is when state house decided to recall them by pretending to carry out arrests.
I know, we were there. Ladies and gentlemen, some of us uphold the oath we took to protect the sanctity of life and maintain law and order.I love my job and actually it has enabled me propel my family’s financial status, but some thing that go on within the corridors of power have impacted negatively on the spirit of the force. Unnecessary civilian interference threaten to kill the force entirely as we are already witnessing rifts between the regular police and the administration.
A fact that many do not wish to admit is that, more than 2,000 people died and 65% were in the hands of police. More than 34 police officers lost there lives to fellow officers who found them a stumbling block to the executive order to kill rebels within the citizenry.15 officers were killed by civilian attackers.In a place like kericho and eldoret, we were given shoot to kill orders and those officers who defied or reluctantly obeyed were shot in the back by colleagues in the line of duty, to stem rebellion within the force.
MOREOVER, many mungiki were killed, but instruction prevented the police and media from auditing the death tolls. Something the minders under estimated was the fact that not everyone fear the mungiki.Some tribes, especially the Nilotic ones are hardened war mongers who rustle cattle on a daily basis.
These kalenjins and samburus do not fear the mungiki, and are adapted to rugged terrain and are very tactical.the mungiki are only relevant in towns and small communities, but outside their territories, they need police escort, as the only thing they use are pangas and guns.It never scares away the morans of kipsigis , nandi, samburu and maasai. A full scale war was about to break and since the casualties were the unprepared kikuyus, then Kibaki would have tried to use the police who were already squabbling .It was really bad.
A friend told me sometime in January that mungiki old guard had made a deal with state house to release maina njenga ,the son of the founder of the sect on condition of cooperation. But there is a section of Kibaki’s old guard who feel that the mungiki are bad for there business and have been against the sect for years now, and these are the ones organizing a total wipe out of the sect.
Now with the peace pact, many mungiki die hards are not pleased with kibaki as it now seems that the section against mungiki have won the round.With aRaila as prime minister. Many fear that the deal with mungiki over maina njenga will not be honoured.
The sec t was meant to kill some MPs, journalists, Human rights activists, and various personalities from the Agikuyu who refused to ride with them. I am one of them, but like Githgongo and Kiai, I have refused to let evil be.I may not be brave or rich enough to hold press conferences from London, but I believe that through such forums and avenues, I can share my bit.
There are many other officers willing to share their insight, and what you will find out will really confirm that our president had become desperate and resorted to taking advice from criminals. When he was left to decide on his own, he chose to work with raila.
Kibaki should not worry about ODM, he should worry about his friends. GOD BLESS KENYA
kenyans deserve better leadership
Kube, you do not have to paste the same gossip on two or more threads, Lets us save this precious time we have by avoiding duplications on this blog. I hope you’ll act accordingly.
I think the criminal activities are already known. That is why its so hard to accept the peace deal by the same guys who organized this crminal activity. RAO promised to clear mungiki in a short duration. Hope he does it not by the sword but by word ie diplomacy as soon as possible. These guys dont need to destroy their own future for the sake of some tycoons elsewhere-I wish somebody would open their eyes! Can you imagine if 90% of any community in Kenya were Mungiki or any other violent militia group. I think it will perish! We need the GEMA in a united Kenya. We dont want their remanats to be mungiki tupu.
I know the mood on the ground has changed a bit following muthauras and mutuas comments/clarification. For me it was simple. Testing the waters for his masters. The answer I believe has been found. Its something like “Please dont try this in kenya” especialy now. The deal has to pass through parliament then we will deal with the consequences thereafter.
No matter what each side believes once the Bill is passed Kenya will NEVER be the same again. Those who think otherwise are dreaming.
Without appearing to instill fear confrontation or threats I think the consequences of a failed coalition at this stage would be worse than where we had come from. So guys Nairobi may be calm but it is not like that everywhere. It is conditional calmness.
What is this happenning in Laikipia. Are waiting to bomb the place again! Why cant the elders meet and stop this. I cant bear thoughts of another group of IDPs when everybody is going back to their homes. Can somebody please stop to think about innocent people dying OR do these all have to wait for RAO?????
I do not think muthaura was goofing when he made that statement.First off,the man is not known to speak unless he has the direct authority of MK.i also do not think he would be very willing to loose his job by making such a statement. a leopard cannot change his spots nor can he become a vegetarian.but a leopard can be caged.and that is how we need to look at things.
i believe MK and his friends will try to wiggle out of that deal.they will bribe and force MPs until they render RAO a lame duck.This is my view of the situation.MK will use such indirect tactics to fight RAO.
let us be wary of PNU and MK.
Can we stop talking about things we don’t know unless RAO himself or MK says anything to this effect, then we will know.
This blog has been turned to posting unclarified stories and remarks which will only remove us from fighting tribalism and poverty.
We need to understand and respect each other if we have to move forward to the more pressing issues.
Karanja I agree fully with you. I keep on telling people that we have to be cautiously optimistic but also realistic. As things stand now until the bill is passed Kibaki is still the CEO of the country at least per the agreement. We need to see the agreement through first then handle dissent appropraitely. However these things by muthaura should not be ignored but condemned.
Nevertheless if we doubted our leaders then I dont think we would have voted for them. Lets encourage them and not dismiss them as if they dont know what they are doing. RAO is smart enough to handle the challenges ahead.
And I think all want a united strong Kenya devoid of negative ethnicity. We will soon achieve it.
Kube,
In this age of propaganda and technology, it is very hard to distinguish truth from lies. I do not know whether to believe what you have posted above and whether it is indeed from a reliable source. During the last campaigns, I read a lot of stuff from both PNU and ODM and was left almost confused. It is obvious the article seems to portray one side as the aggressor and the other side as the heroe. This is the continuation of the Kenya tribal agenda. You will also realize that blog(g)ers here favour their tribes with dedicated loyalty. If indeed this was a PNU insider, he would have come out in the open and declared his name. I seriously doubt anonymous sources. Again on the issue of division at state house, how can a simple police officer have such details which in any case seems to be more of speculation rather than factual?
Tha tragedy about this blog(g) is its lopsided view of things. For example, it is as though PNU is the criminal (Kibaki referred to as Mwizi even before the independent commission begins its work and if it comes with a different view it may not go well with ODM). ODM on the other side is viewed as the infallable god of the moment. Infact the party and the leader has been lifted to the deity position. It is as though he will never die and if he does dies, then the nation will come into a halt. But let me remind all of us that we are mortal and soon will be no more.
Three positiions are Key: Chief executive officer- CEO- Kibaki
Three positiions are Key: Chief executive officer- CEO- Kibaki, Chief Operating officer (COO)- Raila and Chief Financial officer- Kimunya. All the three have executive powers in terms of discharging their duties. The VP is the guy behind the president and gets the executive powers only when the president assigns.
RailKamuodho,
Just out of curiosity, What if the CFO refuses to give funds to the COO. What happens? You know thats what happened in 2003-5. The system may be paralysed. Can security be swopped for finance? Any thoughts?
By the way all the pentagon members are able to stand as presidential candidates unless all of them die at the same time. So we support the cause because of the suffering we have gone through NOT an individual.
RailKamuodho: I dont know where you are from and how far you have travelled in Kenya. But if you want to know that there are more than one country in Kenya try going beyond nakuru or garisa by road. And imagine what people go through every time they live nrb. Try mai mahiu narok.
Not to compare but ML king died but his dream lives on. It may not be realised tomorrow but the reasons for which people love odm will live forever. Even if MK was to have a change of heart and give equity a chance he will have nationwide support.
Kikuyus claim to be hardworking and to have high business acumen if that is the case why are we still a 4th world country yet the were in power for 15 yeras and now ten more out of the 45 we have been independent.This means that half time we have been independent these guyz have been at the helm of leadership yet no evidence of high business acumen, it is time for REAL CHANGE!
http://www.eastandard.net/news/?id=1143983225&cid=4
distributing such lealets by an MP considering the mood in the country is an insult to the people of kenya, the annan team and all those genuinely involved in seeking lasting solutions as well as the principals.
when will guys understand that this is not a game, people have died, others injured, many traumatised and almost a million displaced and needing to go back or move on and settle.
its very insensitive of Thuo
What is this animal called CHANGE CHANGE. For the change debate to move forward effectively calls for change has to be supported by FACTS not mere rhetoric. what are the pros and cons of the much talked about change and what is this change exactly about. Are we going to die if we do not get this change?.
Politicians should be confined in parliament. After all, they have all the comfort and everything there from swimming pools, saunas etc. So they should stop interfering with our little confort through spill over of their fights. Let them fight ( only lucky there are no chairs at their disposal in parliament), shout, yell, kill each other, etc. After all they have nothing to loose and their salaries flow to their bank accounts every second.
Politicians recently acquired habit of mixing politics with everything including our livelihoods is extremely bad behaviour. RAO already knows this and he should punish everyone in his camp who attempts to do so.
Rafiq,
The CFO cannot deny the COO money to go about his business unless he does not want parliament to pass some of his bills. For record, the current parliament will be very independent as will be seen in the coming days. They will exchange ideas and realignments will be on the way. I cannot wait to see my heroe proff Nyongo go back to work and discard the heavy stuff that has been loading him down in ODM secretariat.
Let me tell you a story about comparing a Kikuyu and a person from another tribe. Imagine two people graduate from high school in Nairobi. One a Kikuyu and another a Luo. When both graduate, the Luo begin looking for a job in all offices without success. He continues to search for one and wait for fate in Nairobi. On the other hand, the Kikuyu man looks for a job for a few day and does not succeed. He decides to go to his rural area (grand parents) to greet them. His grandfather gives him one goat. He feeds the goat daily and sells the same for Ksh 2500. He takes some of the money, goes to a neighbour and buy a tree to burn charcoal. When he gets the charcoal to market, he sells 12 bags at Ksh 700. This translates to Ksh 8400. He puts some of the money in a KCB savings account. He continues to burn charcoal and also sell parafin in his new business premises. Soon, the Kikuyu man opens a kiosk at Kibera and start selling food or Mitumba at Toi market. He may even buy a second hand pick-up truck.
All this time, the Luo man and other kikuyus complain about the government and how its favouring the Kikuyus. They will even start giving examples of this Kikuyu man and how he has gotten rich through corruption within two or three years. They will say, “How come we finished form four together and now he is doing better than me? The Kibaki governement is very corrupt and tribal”. They will assert. But tell me blogers, is there corruption here really? Has the Kikuyu been favored by the government? Wouldn’t the Luo, Luhya, Kalenjin or other Kikuyus do just as well?
Rail wacheni ukabila hapa the problem with you is that you never own up.
This is not propaganda but something that happened to me and my partner whom we operate a business of selling car spare parts. As we needed to expand our business we approached a bank that i will not name for to offer as loan but due to the fact that we did not come from that superior tribe, we were denied the chance to have the loan we wanted despite meeting all the requirements.
I thought this was normal but when i inquired from a friend of mine who hail from “those side” and compared his qualification with ours, I wondered why we could not be granted the loan.
So to me I made my conclusion on that matter but for now we need to go ahead of our tribal thinking and doing things. We should forge a head and be united in what we do coz even as we talk this arrogance is still there.
whether we like it or not,history has taught us that there are things that happen that are done specifically for a purpose which may not necessarily be right.no one in his right mind would want these documented.so when we say we want change it is based both on fact and the manipulation of the same.
for example,during the post election violence was there or was there no shoot to kill order.
all actions seem to indicate there was.
another example.the botched recruitment of police cadets from the NYS.how is it that majority hailed from one region.Simply because there was a token maasai and borana fellow does not make that right.but it was done.and someone had the guts to do it.
there are many things that happen that do not make sense.they disenfranchize and alienate the rest of the populace from government,business and other areas.
kenyatta practised kikuynisation of institutions.this is a fact.
moi did the same and so did kibaki in the 5 years that he held the helm.this is fact not rhetoric.that our institutions are also not strong enough hence manipulable is fact.
look at what happened to the eck.look at what happened to the civil service when security of tenure was removed.It become a tool for the executive to play around with.
look at the development of stereotypes over time.they have their history on socio economic issues that affect those in those communities.
politics is a way of life for kenyans and this was entrenched by successive governments.that is why baba Moi said siasa mbaya maisha mbaya.he could make life difficult if one did not practice siasa mzuri as prescribed by him.that is why people went to detention.this is fact.
are we going to die if we do not get change?yes we will you may not loose your life personally but someone else will.people have died before.maumau died for it and many others since,including those that passed away just recently.that is fact.we might as well ask whether it was right for RAO to have stuck to his guns all through as we bask in the little freedoms that his struggles have given us.
is it possible to confine MPs to parliament?wishful thinking.politcs is entrenched in everything we do.that is why we need mps and leaders who are visionaries.whatever they do transcends time and regional biases and positively affects the nation.
let us not try to belittle situations or give simplistic scenarios to justify certain issues.
let us look at how best we can use such blogs to put our positive thoughts across,how we can influence certain decisions that are made on behalf of kenyans so that they feel included in one way or another in the responsibility of nation building.that is the best way for us.that is change.that is what will enable government to run,IDPs to go home,equitable distribution of resources to be done,based on needs assesment of various regions.And lastly,a change in our own attitude and thought processes.why should anyone try to make another a second class citizen.why should the nation and ourselves be held hostage through selective manipulation of issues.let us move a bit beyond bystander politics and appreciate the real issues at hand
i wonder what kenya will become if we allow leadership to rule thro proxy.
with the kind of blind leadership of mwizi kibaki, can u expect any good thing from this illegitimate govt?
thats why even if raila actually becomes PM which these thieves are really afraid of, then they will make the hell for him and will always try to underrate him.these ple deserves the same treatment kivuitu is going thro now
It is time for real change and no amount of derailment will ever stop it so whatever Muthauras say it is to their own interest. I mean it amazes me when will these bladdy Mt Kenya folks learn, it is not a matter of being tribal but they should learn to be Kenyans they behave like pple who live in planet Venus. I wonder even after all their nakedness have been exposed beyond repair they are never ashamed to try confuse Kenyans. Pls.They must know that Kenyans are wide awake and no one will accept being used as a rubber stamp let them hold their horses as they watch change taking its course effectively with or without their liking. Kenya plus Kenyans must change we cant keep on living in the past we must use the past to strengthen our future and the road has just began well if anyone is unresistant to change the the change will change him/her
Rail,
I am a Luo. When I left College, we were very busy busy looking for jobs. All of us…including Kikuyus. Kikuyu’s may be more inclined to business, Luos to careers and Kalenjins to agrictulture but none of those is superior. In fact they all need each other. Problem is: when the colonial masters left: Kenyatta put Kiano in charge of africanisation, Michuki in National Bank, Kibaki/Ndegwa in Finance and other kikuyus in AFC, KCB etc. Those names are exactly the names of the first officials of GEMA. They bought land cheap and divided through land companies. They gave loans out which were never repaid. They plundered. And over the years, Central was classified as high potential and fast-tracked in development (courtesy to Mboya’s brilliant sycophancy) Those are the facts. When we started working, I had to live with and support 5 people (a sister, friend, inlaw, distant cousin, didtsnt step-uncle etc). My Kikuyu friends had no such burdens. We live in different countries. But we all work hard and desire to live well.
Caution: Read with an open mind please!
I think Railkamuodhos comments are taken out of context and the attacks are not waranted. I symapthize with such ethnicised arguments. What he said has some truth and the soooner you confront it the better. Of course there are major historical injustices which will take a long time to correct incase they are ever corrected.
My question is Mboya fast tracked central yes, was he Kikuyu? As far as I remember he was Luo. He was used to fight his fellow Luo odinga then he was damped and killed. When Luos are given a chance they would rather fight their own than employ them, actually they sack them. I gave an example of Omolo Okero with his long service in KQ, he only sacked Luos , didnt employ any! Do you need to blame Kikuyu for that? Blame your forefathers. I know of Luo professors who have frustrated their own kinsmen-denying them scholarships. Actually a friend- Luo doctor was denied a distinction by you guess it fellow Luo until a Kikuyu said that is unfair-he wanted to fail him completely. Luckily he got distinction from another clinical examiner-a Kenyan Borana, but sadly overall grade was credit.
Secondly the bank you were talking about must have been equity. I hold no brief for them. This was a private venture by an individual. How comes other communities cant have their own banks. Have they been denied? Have they asked for donor funds and somebody refused. Another true story. Am told of a Luo who comes from some place near Nyakach constituency who once served in National Bank. He gave his people loan with some security to improve their lifestyle. Then a villager-intellectual, went to the former president and said this guy is wasting govts money. He was dismissed courtesy of a fellow Luo. A kikuyu would not have done that.
Summary: In terms of development especially economical Luos are their own enemies. Kikuyus work harder especially in money generating ventures. If Luos could unite economically the same way they do politically they will not be beaten.
Kikuyus also dont live with extra unnnecesaary relatives. This helps them to develop. Luos are communal and would spend lots of money taking care of long long distance relatives even if its beyond their means. Do you need to blame a kikuyu for that NO. Luos like raha and get AIDs dying young leaving dependants. Whom do you blame for that?
My experience from and with my friends from the Luo community is that Luos need a pradigm shift and a generational change. What they need is business /economi unity-in addition to govt support-to avoid the maoris and arborigins lifestyle. Interestingly people like Hon Yinda MP Alego married to a Kikuyu is damn rich and many more like him.
The rich Luos are contented. They dont want more. Instead they fight their own. I wish they could learn.
This is not condemnatinof an entire communty please its an observation from an outsider with experience in Luoland. This doesnt mean we dont support ODM we still do. But peole should not be extravagant and wait to be given things on asilver plate. They need to be creative, work hard and unite economically.
I think this is what muthaura wamted to test and for which he ha an answer!
http://uk.news.yahoo.com/rtrs/20080313/tpl-uk-kenya-politics-c3c492c.html
Rafiq, your analysis is just as full of atereotypes as Railkamuodho’s. I do not care who your friends are, but please let’s respect each other and desist from making tribal generalisations.
the principle here is equity in national resource distribution, after all every region in Kenya pays taxes, why should some regions be net recepients of govt expenditure while some receive almost zero despite remitting a lot to the govt.
this is what we are talking about, not tribal stereotypes picked up from bar-room talk in dingy joints.
Rafiq,
I refuse to believe that you have to start a business to work hard. That you must use your position to employ fellow tribesmen, that you have to give grades to fellow tribesmen. These things will kill Kenya. All we want is merit. If Kenya is looking for a carpenter, a doctor, an accountant, an athlete: let there be a fair interview…and you will find that Luos will do just as well as other Kenyans. Luos 9and other Kenyans fail because they reluctant to blatantly bend rules. That was Kaggia and Jaramogi’s consternantion when Kenyatta asked: what have you done (read stolen) for yourself!
RAILKAMUODHO,
That’s RUBBISH you are giving us! You trying to prey on sill stereotypes that have no place in Kenya, going forward. Upuzi mtupu! Look, these Luo, Kikuyu, Luhya and I don’t know what else don’t even have much meaning except in election years. Majority of Kenyans are poor, period! There are even people receiving food aid in Nyeri. So, what’s the difference between a Kikuyu receiving food aid and a Kamba receiving food aid? Absolute rubbish logic.
Johnny-come-latelies trying to preach warped thinking. We needed you to say such things in Nov, Dec when this blog was on fire before the election was stolen. The matter is simple – indisputably, there has been intense corruption in govt from 1963. There has been exclusion of large swathes of Kenyans from proximity to The Kitchen. When govt was parceling out RV land in the 60s at throwaway prices, which indigenes did they ask consent of?
Needless to say, it is impossible to compare macro institution position with those of micro ones. A societal arrangement is much more different from a firm, if you have any basics in economics. Early last year, the strategy guru Michael Porter reminded us that societies tend to be competitive in conditions of effective POLITICAL GOVERNANCE, sound MACROECONOMIC policies, a trusted, fair & fair LEGAL, and conducive, functional SOCIAL sector.
So really, the analogies of CEO, COO, CFO ad nauseum don’t really cut. What we are discussing is improved POLITICAL GOVERNANCE. In many respects, RAO is sharing political governance responsibility with EMK. We are fixing governanace so that it doesn’t remain a burden to wananchi.
“…. trusted, fair & timely LEGAL SYSTEM…”
JANE,
What’s your problem with CHANGE? What facts do you need beyond the fact that Kenya has severely underperformed compared to its peers? Many of Kenya’s peers of the 60s now are newly industrialised. Where have we been for 44 years? Why do people, including those in some parts of Nyeri still get food aid? Why are we killing each other over land, yet we should be more bothered by industry and ICT? Did you know that in one of the Samburu constituencies, there has never been a construction of a govt hosp, school or anything else?
Please don’t be lazy and realize that, for instance, 60% of Nairobi’s population lives in the slums. Nairobi generates something around 58% of Kenya’s GDP. So, in what conditions are the rest of Kenyans living?
This thing is very simple – We need CHANGE from the mediocre wat we have been doing things. We can’t have a situation where Kenyans direct the construction of some of Africa’s best roads (in Botswana), are some of South Africa’s best doctors, continue to contribute to top world economic policy, have Prof Ngugi wa Thiongo & Ali Mazrui etc yet we live in the penury of the average in the motherland. We CANNOT let the smallness of our little achievements derail us from The Real Prize and Picture…
Change is it, Good Lady!
Governments dont make money and jobs. They implement policies that make it easier for the private sector to thrive and provide jobs. In America, the private sector is the engine of the economy. Too much expectation on the government to provide all our necessities is retrogressive. We must work hard even when the government cannot provide jobs and food. Maybe we should ask the government to aid majority of us living in the slums to go back to our rural areas and work hard.
Most Kikuyus dont inherit land from their fathers like the Luos and Luhyas do. They work hard and buy their own land and plots and develop it. This hype about Kikuyu dominance is only meant to propagate a political lie. I am sure all Kenyan tribe (including muti-ethinic like me) would do very well if our leaders encouraged us to work hard instead of looking for people to blame.
OTI and others remember i cautioned you to have an open mind and finally said this should not be generalized. The problem is if you dont view it with an opn mind but anger and bitternes you will be very frustrated!
What do you need to get a bus onto the road from Nairobi to Kisumu. Money of course and passengers. Do you want to tell me that per constituency you cant find a group of say young 1,000 professionals contributing just 10,000 each to buy a nyanza line to start with. Then get loan from KCB under Anyangs Sister Mudhune to get two on loan? All the vehicles going to kisumu are largely owned by nonluos. Guys I ask what does tribe have to do with this?
Secondly failing a person is different from awarding per performance. Do you know the VC of UON was declared unteachable by a fellow luo Prof when he was doing his masters. He had to go to Nigeria to finish. Another prof now a urologist – kidney and related organ system surgeon was also declared the same by the same first (Prof . ) You have to treat people equally but also dont sit on your community.
Unfortunately people would rather share politics and a glass of beer-which is not bad-but not ideas to help build them economically.
Mine was a challenge. If I have offended you fine forgive but whoever buys my idea may come out of poverty and be the next tycoon!
People can be poor in Nyeri yes but even in the west there are people relying on aid. Its all due to capitalism! How do you get yourself from that I dont know, how long it will take I dont know either? So how do you address these? Change may not be enough, change in mentality may just be enough?
When people moved from GEMA areas with their children to Nyanza they couldnt find private schools. What if somebody saw the opportunity and began one? These are the things we are talking about!
Most rich people like Bill gates Cyril Ramaphosa and others are businessmen, Thats why when you talk about wealth business has to accompany it!
Auki,
Sometimes we hide ignorance and impracticality in the garb of intellectualism, like in your above case. Kenya problem is not one of lack of ideas but one of laziness. We have so many people with multiple degrees but all they can do is go to governement offices and campuses and hang their jackets and walk out. Ours is a country that thrives on blame game and negative ethnicity. I am paturbed by the Kikuyu bashing and kikuyu phobia going around especially in the ODM fraternity.
We should be encouraging the Maa to discard their old fashioned pastrol life and engage in modern method of daily farming. I dont think a Zebu cow is more of a cow than is jersey or other. I dont think living in Kibera slums is better than living in Kisumu rural and doing some little farming. I better live in the rural area with enough to eat than live in Nairobi jobless and without clothes.
But all we hear today is Ole Ntimama and the rest blaming the Kikuyu for draught and enequality while Ntimama has Meru roots.
@ duncan march 13 6:44
@ auki ollows 3:17
excellent contributions which espouses what many of us blog here for. thanks for returning the intellectual capacity back to this forum.
the hekaya za abunwasi stereotyped story telling was beginning to drag us down to juve levels we thought we could not sink to.
rafiq, building on what Duncan states and looking at some of the examples you quote
we have to stop propagating stereotypes, look back at the civil rights movement in US, you see deliberate attempts to enforce stereotypes with African Americans consistently portrayed as incompetent, lazy, chronic criminals etc, yet this was very far from the truth.
take the case of someone denied a job or business opportunity. lets oversimplify and evaluate the facts, there are for brevity three segments in the profile in assessing the right fit for the opportunity which include a demographic profile, a professional profile and a mutually agreeable socio-economic consideration.
for a fair and equal opportunity evaluation one must necessarily remove the demographic profile and only evaluate on merit the strengths of the professional profile and the socio-economic profile (also known as financial or competitive value)
as you correctly point out, there are some bigots who start with and whose only interest is in the demographic profile and are unable to move beyond that. this is played over many times in different scenarios but all revolve around the same stereotype themes.
if a qualified entity is denied opportunity then lets call it what it is, discrimination based on gender, race, nationality, ethnic, religion or physical (physically challenged) which are typically found listed in the demographic profile. it does not matter which of those flavors of discrimination is the actual cause.
it should be punishable through removal of such officers and/or criminal proceedings against such because in the modern world this is unnacceptable and if necessary such companies need to be wound up permanently
if an organisation does not immediatley remove a staff member or director that practices discrimination then the corporate culture of that organisation condones discrimination and the public have every right to be informed so that they can choose to conduct or not conduct business with that entity whether through employment or provision and purchase of products/services.
one such organisation we are having problems with is a PNU govt.
Railkamuodho,
Forget this working hard NONSENSE! You can’t expect people to work hard in a dysfunctional political system. Dysfunctional means whichever direction one looks, there will be immense inefficiency! Inefficiency means there will be an inordinate burden on the wananchi, as there has been since independence.
And don’t give us American stories – It’s the American businessmen who say ‘Govt is Big Business’. SA businessmen pressured for the end of apartheid because ‘it became bad for business’. Kenyan businessmen pushed for the end of the post-election violence because their crystal ball was showing them disaster in the making. Please, don’t underestimate the power of politics in national life.
The hugest supplies in any country are to govt and the US is any different. The difference with the Kenya situation is that politico-businessmen want to be in govt so that they can supply govt. What horrible incest! This is what we are challenging. Michuki can’t be in govt and then his hotel is the biggest supplier of hospitality to govt linked conferences.
Even as we work hard, we have a divine right to ask where the proceeds of the work are going. The problem with Kenya is that we want people to work hard and then not to ask what’s happening to the proceeds. Total crap!
Rafiq, it is you who has a closed mind. you are all fixated on this copy-cat model of development. so if everyone started a bus line on nairobi kisumu route, would there be any profitability. nobody is blaming anyone for having a bus plying whatever route. we are just saying, SPREAD THE GOVERNMENT RESCOURCES EQUITABLY!! what part of that don’t you understand? when north of Isiolo there not a single metre of tarmac road except the 10m stretch the Ethiopian govt generously donated while Kiambu district is over 80% tarmacked, there is a problem. will a guy from Kiambu start blaming the Moyale guys for being poor because he is lazy. we all pay taxes, government services and infrastructure are a right for all taxpaying citizens regardless of their ethnic affiliation. but you are propagating some silly argument here that the guy from Nyanza somehow needs to build his own infrastructure using his personal resources while the guy from Nyeri just sits there and waits for the government to build a superhighway near his village then they both can work hard to grow rich. Pure nonsense.
secondly, you seem to know a lot of Luo professors and doctors and their sad stories. I do not understand why you assume that a Luo failing to pass a fellow Luo is malicious. these are just figmets of your sterile imagination.
or just because Omolo Okero is the boss of KQ, any Luo sacked can only be because of tribal vendetta. now this is difficult. just a few months ago i had heard some KQ employees complaining that Omolo Okero had hired too many Luos into KQ. Now here we are told he fired too many of them. this is just crazy. why can’t hiring and firing be looked at without reference to tribe.
“…. and the US isn’t any different…”
Some of these arguments are just filled with tribal stereotypes and generalisations and are not even worthy of attention.
One thing for sure though, a Luo person will never because of his position confer unfair advantage to a fellow Luo man just because they speak the same language, or come from the same village or went to school together.
If this is what Rafiq through his infantile arguments is advocating against, then he is sorely misguided.
-Equity has broken all the rules of conventional banking and is still allowed to operate for tribal reasons. Rafiq wants Luos to start another fraudulent bank to compete with equity and fleece Luos this time. CRAP
-appointments in many government offices are done on tribal basis and most boses turned their departments into tribal enclaves. Rafiq wants Luos to revenge by also misusing their positions by bring their village council of elders to work their offices. BULLCRAP
– PNU govt has just compromised the integrity of even the KNEC by doctoring results to favour schools in Central so they produce good results. Rafiq wants Luo professors to revenge by indiscriminately passing all Luo students that ever pass under them.
Railakmuodho,
“Sometimes we hide ignorance and impracticality in the garb of intellectualism, like in your above case”… Don’t make sweeping statements – Pick the fault in the logic. That’s all we ask. You know very well there’s no fault in the logic so you want to hide in generals.
So, who are lazy? Do you feed their children or pay their rents? You certainly don’t. In any case, we aren’t discussing people’s lives but ‘mali ya umma’. The monies from the collective pot. The ones we all contribute to. This is what will generally interest this forum. You can’t purport to lecture people on how to lead their private lives.
I further want to debunk the myth that everyone is interested in accumulating capital. Some people just aren’t. Some people are interested in fishing, others studying philosophy, others practicing engineering, others doing business etc. The important point however is they all pay tax. This what unites us. The next thing that unites us is how the tax is used, for what purpose.
Next, for us proud ODMers, our penultimate worry is how EQUITABLY that tax is used. In fact, even if I was lazy, and you take my taxes to build yourself a bridge is a non-priority area, from a Kenya perspective, expect the true ODMer to FIGHT!
ODMers, when you say, “the electorate should demand service and fulfilment of the promises that your MP made to you instead fighting pnu for the next five years ” the statement is not understood. The same electorate complain there has not been a healthy facility in a constituency in samburu. BUT ask yourself, what did the MP and constituents do with the CDF funds?
Life is tough for everybody and everybody likes change. comparing Kenya with newly developed countries is great. But citizens of these countries do not burn, destroy businesses, destroy their livelihhods, kill each other, chase their ‘perceived’ enemies from their houses, burn those houses, vandalise others, block roads, and destroy the infrastructure when they get annoyed. They use civilised means to sort out issues.
why are Kenyans using violent to sort out issues, consequently destroying whatever gains may have been made. Is it true that in Nyanza province our people vandalised water pipes for a water project put up by a former MP, Tuju saying RAO was going to put for them new pipes for the water project? How many vehicles for the Kisumu water project were burnt?. If this is the CHANGE ( destroying what has been put up by previous governments), then we have some way to go to reach the industrialised nations and we better pull up our socks. Tell the politicians to stop telling lies, lies, but to show action.
Do not even think about Muthaura. He could be right.Think about what the MP you elected is doing with CDF funds to improve your welfare.
OT
PNU has compromised the integrity of almost all public service delivery institutions (ECK, KNEC, police force, civil service, etc)
has compromised the integrity of the genuine hardworking business entities from central
and now is threatening the integrity of culture of respect for the grey haired and senior citizen as a bastion of wisdom, understanding, truth and justice. Looking at the Kivuitu, Muthaura, Michuki, Kibaki, etc we only see deception, treachery, hard headedness, high handedness, no compromise, discrimination, bigotry and everything else.
Many years back, Kenyans would fall over themselves to lend a hand to a police officer or any other public servant/officer, Cabinet ministers, PSs and MPs were held in awe, but years of nepotism, cronyism, ethnicism have led to utter disrespect for these institutions and officers. At this rate in a few years no one will ever pay attention or respect to the president. Let these leaders be real wary of what culture they are breeding in the society.
Even now I think if the VP issued Michuki a stern directive, I can almost imagine Karua and Mungatana rolling all over the floor laughing derisively.
OT,
We may disagree to agree unless you dont understand my point. Fixing the Isiolo road is good but what difference will it make to the local community? Easy and faster movements of vehicles and probably decreased cost of transport. Who will run the vehicles there? Can they organize their own transport. The problem is you despise the little profit you will make but thats what an Indian or kikuyu will go for. So even if there is sever ccompetition people will still put their vehicles on the same road, then improve on customer care. The story of Uchumi and Kakumatt should make it easier to understand.
I grew up in Nyanza. I know how it was hard to get vehicles esp when the roads were bad. When some of them were fixed by RAO the cost was slightly reduced but all the matatus were locally owned and were few and far apart with a lot of usual arrogance. After 2003 many vehicles came cost reduced further and it benefitted everyone.
Fish is more expensive in Ksm than nrb or thika. There are no storage facilities yet there is CDF money!
I somehow is related to medics and thats where I can give you examples from. The stories I gave are true ask anybody esp Luo who has been to nairobi medical school you will be surprised at what they will tell you. I can give you names but I dont want to for now, unless you insist.
Unfortunately I am multiethnic and multireligious in origin. So my approach is different from say a pure Luo Kyuk Luhya Hindu Somali et al. Can you ask yoursely why Indians do business all over kenya with some modest succeess. What is their secret?
Personally I have suffered in the hands of your fellow people OTI. My family member was denied a transfer when critically sick had been ICU for more than a month by her tribesman only for a person from a different tribe to give it. So I dont look at people this days in terms of tribe but performance and ability to help.
What I am trying to say is with RAO as PM, doors will open and our people may enter them only to close for their people. OT tell me at least 2 luos in senoir position that Okero left behind. Utatafuta milele.
Most senir Luo profesionals are selfish! especially to their own.
OTI,
For your information its oburu who cleared equity. Not kibaki kimunya or mwiraria. They are opening branches in bondo and mbita i hear.
You cant tell me that five senor people can examine the same individual and only one desperately fails him. He goes to UK gets a distinction and comes back to Kenya then performs excellently well and becomes a prof. That is not rational by any standard.
I dont say you pass your tribesmen. Dont fail them out of jealousy or selfishmess so that you remain the ONLY professor in the village!!!
Finally my friend there is an opportunity to show what you are worth as soon as RAO becomes PM. We will see how much you will grow with that kind of attitude!
rafiq
it is a permanently flawed reasoning to judge, categorise and/or classify an entire community based on your experience (negative or positive) with a handful. this is known as and is the genesis of stereotyping.
i know this is not your mien so please step back a little and introspect
Tnk,
I am not stereotyping here. I dont mean it affects the whole Luo community. There are many hard working Luos who just need an opprtunity to show what they are worth especially in business. They are hindered by capital and poor governance deliberately engineered by previous regimes.
My question is when we get the power and resources what will we do with it? I just dont to be a happy ODMer coz i can drive from Runda to my rural home without stress coz the road is good. I want the road to be good so that a fisherman can get his fish and a farmer his proceeds to the market.
My thinking here is that we need to know what next? How to use the resources once they are available to all. Not to envy others even if the ground is even. I hope people get me clear on this.
Jane,
We dissected this CDF argument last year and you have returned us there. Let me recap. CDF is 2.5% of the national budget. Why do you want to bog us down discussing pocket change when the real kibunda (97.5%) is right out there? Are you now telling that the govt has ceded responsibility of doing its work with 97.5% of OUR revenue? Please let’s ground our argument sensibly. If 97.5% of what you wrote didn’t make sense, I wouldn’t bother much with the remaining 2.5%…
Your argument about Kenya vs the newly industrialised is more attractive. However, swali langu moja nikuwa: Over the last 44 years, how often have Kenyans done the following things you accuse us of:
“burn, destroy businesses, destroy their livelihoods, kill each other, chase their ‘perceived’ enemies from their houses, burn those houses, vandalize others, block roads, and destroy the infrastructure”
Put it in the form of a percentage so that we can assess your point properly.
In addition, why are you so obsessed with Nyanza Province? Is Nyanza Kenya? Politicians the world over tell lies. Why do you want Kenya to be different? It’s your works as a responsible citizen to sift through the lies and evolve a polity that you can live with. Further, do not confuse politicians with implementers. Implementation is executive work. There are people who are paid to implement. If their supervisors, who tend to be the politicians in govt don’t do their work, we are supposed to firs. We did in Dec but they became violent and stole.
Now, don’t go on and on about ‘violence’. It is the threat of, or actual violence that holds society together. We have a political settlement today because of the violence that had taken root in Kenya. The deal was brokered under the watchful international with a thinly veiled threat of violence from The Powers. US is the world’s only superpower today because they have the highest firepower. USSR was their equal because they had roughly equivalent force. Leave violence alone – It is the human’s last resort when all else fails…
Forget Muthaura. He has no new ideas to offer. He is showing us just why he is long past retirement age. Who asked to clarify for us anything? If you noticed, the guys from ODM who answered him, immediately, were former MPs. Current MPs were rather busy elsewhere…
Guys
If I cant convince anybody to think out of the box and get ready when the opprtunity to enjoy the cake comes, I REST MY CASE. I know it will take a paradigm shift and a lot of resource mobilization to help our people once RAO becomes president. I hope we will not wait for him to do everything for us but give us the opportunity to do everything for ourselves.
But since my approach seems to be different from most bloggers here, I REST MY CASE!
“…If their supervisors, who tend to be the politicians in govt don’t do their work, we are supposed to fire them. We did in Dec but they became violent and stole…”
tnk,
@ 6.02pm on mar 13… This is why you are my kind of person…
At this rate some of us are better of working than sharing our so considered inferior infantile ideas here. Thought we would make a difeerence but seems not. Hope some sanity prevails and people share some big and small economic development agendas too.
Rafiq,
Poa bwana! It is clear that econ dvpt is a serious agenda for Nyanza. The only issue that you may make us grapple with is why you think only Nyanza requires these rich ideas. You may argue that it is an ODM stronghold but so is Coast, Rift Valley, North Eastern, and Western with a solid showing in Nairobi.
I think what is causing discomfort is the fact that you have singled out Nyanza from the rest of Kenya for your econ advise. This kowtows with PNU thinking that Nyanza inhabitants are lazy and require the benefit of hard sought advise, in ignorance of the real structural problems and roadblocks placed there for the last 40+ years.
There would probably be more ease if you now gave ideas of how the rest of Kenya can improve their econ status….
Auki,
Nimepoa. You only talk about what you know and have attachment for. I grew up in Nyanza so its like a second home. Other provinces also need genuine resource allocation and distribution. May be I unfortunately took the que from Railakamuodhos story and wanted to see the positive side of his argument!
I have probably failed to put it forward in a better way and thats why i have since rested my case. I would rather keep out of the topic. But I hope one day we will have a site dedicated to ways of improving economic devp for ALL kenyans. However you look at it if there was economic equality there wouldnt have been the kind of ptential violence or that already witnessed.
Auki,
Nimepoa. You only talk about what you know and have attachment for. I grew up in Nyanza so its like a second home. Other provinces also need genuine resource allocation and distribution. May be I unfortunately took the que from Railakamuodhos story and wanted to see the positive side of his argument!
I have probably failed to put it forward in a better way and thats why i have since rested my case. I would rather keep out of the topic. But I hope one day we will have a site dedicated to ways of improving economic devp for ALL kenyans. However you look at it if there was economic equality there wouldnt have been the kind of violence seen or yet to be seen.
Rafiq
you got that exactly right, and am glad you are totally sober minded enough to finger the source of the problem or bone of contention as it were.
as for a dedicated forum for those econ devp ideas, its coming up real soon. just remember to differentiate between the macro economic vs micro based strategies and portfolios as you did previously.
am still surprised to find a number of PNU guys who still like to equate the economy of a country to a checking account balance, they are too used to accountancy book-keeping and general ledger principles and therefore unable to tell the forest for the trees.
Thanks Tnk,
Looking forward to such a forum.
Ask, even if CDF funds allocation for constituency development is the 2.5% in percentage terms. How much is it in quatitative or numerical terms. What ‘little’ has been done with the ‘little’ funds in your constituency. In addition , what is done with the council collections. if people cannot manage the ‘little’ at their disposal, how would they manage the ‘alot’ they want.
Most successful developments start small.
Sometimes in a football, baseball, volleyball or any other matches, we get worked up so much such that we see foul play whenever we looses a match. We talk about match fixing or such instead of doing our work to improve our games. We sometimes riot and end up being suspended from international competitions. I see guys getting angry instead of addressing issues.
One thing I have decided to do is to get to work while you guys spend endless time arguing about things you cannot change. And if you cannot balance your personal check book, I doubt your ability to balance a national economy. Full stop. Domestic economy is the beginning of the national economy.
Jane
CDF funds
how much is it in quantitative or numerical terms? am not sure I really understand what that means or what exactly your point on the CDF for that matter is. it also appears that you do not understand the functioning of CDF or its philosophy and why or how the CDF came about.
if you took time to visit
http://www.cdf.go.ke
you will find a lot of useful information. The project status info may be dated for some constituencies but generally the budgetary allocations are available for the public at any time and are fairly recent.
whoever set up this site at the ministry deserves credit because i visit this site to appraise myself of the various proposals. you can easily tell which MPs or constituencies have running projects and which do not. The allocations are mostly flat figures but its up to the constituencies to prioritise the use/projects
Jane, whats your point?
TNK,
Before the last general election, I argued with somebody in ODM about CDF and who allocates the money. He was of the view that it was Kibaki who allocates and he favours Central province. I told him that there are constituencies outside Central Province that recieved more cash than sometimes combined constituences and that certain creteria is used in determining who recieves what. Even Kibaki’s constituency did not recieve the most money. Right? It seems that we are hiding behind big words to cover our ignorance and lack of research. I applaude you at least for taking time to understand issues and for being at least 3% objective and impartial.
It is up to Raila and his colleagues to move ahead and try to allocate the said 60% to the rural areas. I will for one be excited to have my constituency get a chunk of this free money from the government (though I do not believe untill I see).
rafiq,
I do understand what you are talking about.The general populace in nyanza would have to work just a little bit harder in order to take advantage of the new dispensation.We must help the people back in our rural homes through enterprise.RAO cannot do everything.But we must press our politicians to impress upon their people to take these things a bit more seriously.we also need a channel through which to create sound businessmodels and plans and access funds for such things.I would be the first to do this if i was all knowing.This is why we need such forums as this blog.we must go beyond getting our point across to actually creating networks that can do lots of things within the next few years.Please note that this is not an exclusive nyanza party as it does not exist in a vacuum.
For example ,you rafiq.what do you know about business models.if a blogger on this site came and said they had a great idea,how would we be able to help him up to fruition.this is how i think we should help our brothers and sisters.
lets face it.You and I are at a an advantage over the average folk in the rural area.if we can be able to deliver viable enterprise at that level,we would be doing our areas justice.
This however does not mean that we shall be taking over the role of the government.It is there to do big things.things like cdf can only supplement and deal with immediate other issues.That would mean that we,in conjunction with our area mps and cdf managers have to do a needs analysis of our different areas,know what government has planned in its fiscal year and see where to prioritize the cdf.it would then be up to the populace and ourselves to pressure the politicians to implement accordingly,otherwise they would be too busy taking trips on our tab.
let us strive to think of solutions and not waste too much time lamenting or regurgitating defeatist issues.i throw this as a challenge to all of us.
Guys,
Good debate. I just want to say for the record: Luos are not lazy. I grew up in Luoland. I know how hard people farm those tiny unproductive lands. I know how hard fishermen work before the hyacyncth covers the lake. I know how hard Luos work in school and in Jua Kali and in private sector. What has been lacking is called ‘enablers’. Luos have some other traits: they tend to be cautius with investments, they share their wealth with vulnerable members of the community, they like to celebrate, they are unduly attached to ‘home’ and they are not afraid to speak their minds. These are all positive things which Kikuyus need to learn. Luos must also learn teh following from the Kikuyu: It is a capitalist world; your brother has to make his own money to deserve living, do not overcelebrate, take some risks to suceed in business. All these are positive Kenyan traits and in the last 40 years, there is evidence that Kenyan communities are really learning from each other hence the clamour for matatu-type investments among the Kisii, increasing love for fish, serious mugiithi partying, domestic tourism etc
The best thing that would happen to marginalised areas such as parts of Nyanza that I know, for example, a certain constituency has no Tarmacked roads nor does it have electricity. So ask Rao’s gava to put elec there and sort out the road and I will be there rearing chicken like a problem.
In a nutshell, put the enabling environment and see the folks get to business. Lots of theories of how to do it never helps, just get down there and do your thing. Period.
Abok, Duncan, Jamabinju et al,
I just wish the discussionup here took the same angle yesterday. I dont know how far we would have gone. Honestly I almost gave up on the idea, but I think we would be far.
Its one thing to be denied resources and its another to be given resources and not make good use of it. I will complain biteerly and thats why i voted for genuine change to have a good road from Karen to say nyalgunga but it should not end there. I should be able to get products from Nyalgunga to the market.
By the way RAO within his short stay in govt has done alot ina all parts of Kenya, despite being denied funds by the powers then, He brought Sondu Miriu hydroelec power project which shlould now be tapped by the local community to get electricity to the beaches for instance. Thats where our MPS should work hard.
In Rongo for instance there are bridges washed away months ago which were not fixed so sugarcane farmers cant access Sony. The MPs should fix the bridge even with CDF money and people should farm.
Ask yourself should vegetables eaten in KSM only come from LARI, cant we do some farming along the streams or lake shore and take the same to kisumu? If Nakumatt can make profit in Kisumu then any other business should.
To help our friends and brothers from Nyanza al least where I grew up , I would contribute anything especially ideas and goodwill. But the people guys have to learn to put in more effort and expect minimal returns initially and a lot later. Be patient and dont despise initial 2% profit-it wiill turn to say 10 and eventually 50 or more %.
If we had a forum where we give business options: possible ways of accessing cash: training on management -you will be surprised what the additional little input of RAOs govt will make.
There are however things that will have to eventually be done differently to change the course of things. There is a bus company i admire called Nyaugenya. Just before the elections somebody challenged them on radio to get to Nairobi-they did it and as they say the rest is history. Can people agree to start a Kisumu line matatus-market and support it? By the turn of the year you will have more than 10x starting capital, employing at least 50 people especially those who are busy tarmacking form your house. It might only need you to invest 5000sh instead of the 10,000 you spend on them in your house in say 3 months.
Am sure there are economists in this blog who can give us the deatils once such a forum starts. But all it will call for is teaming up together, putting some capital down and starting the project for a while then asking for funds from a friendly govt as the infrastructure is put forward by RAO and his team.
Any ecomoists in the blog please start a forum! By the way such ideas should be reflected across ALL the constituencies.
Mr. Muthaura by the crook and nook of you mouth we know where you are speaking from. This is the angle i once heard from a guy who said “its like raping a woman who is already to willing”. Or the other guy who said that “It is time to deal with the big fishes”- (the two million per month salary guy). The only genuine thing about you is your white hair. In Africa it is said that is a sign of wisdom. So do me a favour next time you plan to issue such a statement at least DYE YOUR HAIR.
I agree with you on one issue though, jobs should not be distributed on the basis of party affiliation. Jobs in ministries,and parastals should be left untouched. We therefore expect you to come up with a rigourous and thorough system of vetting, recruting, training, employing and apprasing the govt and para employees. Then MERITOCRACY will set in. Imagine the quagmire you will put us in if u
Proffesionals serve every body, A doctor will attend to a Turu the same way as a jeng. A lawyer will………………(okay forget lawyers) Engineers need security of tenure to develop plans that may be slated for years to come. My advice then would be to ask you to stick to your dutiess. Otherwise you should have resigned from your seat last november and vied for south Imenti.
mr. Kube,
Thanks for the angle from a PNU sympathisers. A great piece of art, or researched finding i dont care…..He captured the feeling that is there with the police. Other sources also attest to his Eldoret story. It is sad that this should happen in the cooridors of the protectors of justice. One thing i must say that evry Kenyan that loses due to his ethnic background is not acceptable. That is why we will not take it sitting down we must protect our own(no tribe mentioned) without being the aggressors. Like the Masai Elders did in Athi river and Kitengela.
My concern today and for the last two weeks is that no one has mentioned anything about the innocent dying in mount Elgon.
A war starved army is reigning havoc by fumigating the SLDF. Was this a job that the police could not do. Remember earlier this year about having a Somali as the police Comm. Well now we have a Minister of Defence. At this rate war will move down the equator faster than than the sahara desert. So once everybody has been killed and maimed , who will sit on the peace table.
Agent for change, is there a forum we can address such issues ?
Muthaura owes his employment to politics and so do many more. He should have retired but he is not because of the same. Kenyan professionals treat their countrymen with decorum by and large. Competencies should be considered as the primary qualification but fairness and equity should be put in place. By the way one can choose to staff all the schools in nairobi with teachers from one community. Yes they are qualified but is that fair. All the civic servants are supposedly nonpartisan but we saw some of them campaign for PNU and were not sacked. Maina Kiai has their details.
@TNK,
I asked about it , seems only their MP is talking about it. I wish we had the ODM western/RV chapter talk about it too in uncertain terms. There is actually massacre going on there. No learning, farming, people especially men are SLDF unless proven otherwise. Its sad. Same story in Laikipia. I know our MPS are busy with the BIll but they should also know they are loosing their peopla at an alarming rate.
What I doubt though is whether this will give permanent solution-which i believe is only political.
“…A lawyer will………………(okay forget lawyers)…” Hahahahahahahahahaha!
Jane,
The money which you describe as ‘alot’ is ours. We are not asking anyone for any favours! It belongs to us, period. So, we aren’t just asking, we are DEMANDING that it be accorded to us in the most efficient and equitable way. I repeat, FORGET IT!- We will not only be interested in the 2.5%, we will first ask – Lakini, how is our 97.5% being spent? And, note, we will put 39 times more effort in asking about the latter (because 97.5/2.5 = 39). This is called using (analytic) energy productively. So, we will not WASTE precious time with the PNU approach… Luckily, we are now in govt together so, we will teach them such things, for the benefit of Kenya….
CHUNGWA!
Railkamuodho,
You say:
“…Before the last general election, I argued with somebody in ODM about CDF and who allocates the money. He was of the view that it was Kibaki who allocates and he favours Central province…”
Now, now… There is nowhere we have said there will be no ignorant ODMer. If in your circle there are only such ODMers, pole! Don’t hide in generalities. Just tell us where we have failed to research or where we are ignorant and we will happily grow. We are not trying to win. That ODM already did in very many ways in the last election.
We really couldn’t care less if Kibaki’s constituency got the least CDF or whatever! What we are interested in is that it was a just allocation based on set criteria. However, as I like to say, CDF isn’t the issue. It is the national resources that constitute 97.5%. That’s the one we want to see being distributed EQUITABLY. That’s the ODM interest.
Rafiq,
I am aware there are several groups trying to mobilise for this purpose. I will try to find out more and let you and all know. I also believe we can have viable transportation, agriculture etc businesses in Nairobi. We need a trust, run by trusted people and may be even quoted in the NSE. Thanks for raising this issue.
Jamabinju,
Thanks, Hope you Keep your word Jamabinju and get back to us. Just get a few people on board. By the way I have shared this with guys in many places informally. Once it starts it will grow pretty well. Most of us feared venturing bcoz of poor govt policies but now with our own premier I think we will take the risk across all communities. Remember change begis with you and me and thats why we networked to elect an ODM govt.
The playing field should be leveled and then we will be able to seperate the peas from the pod. It amazes me that people assume luos are lazy! Remember..ukimwamsha anayelala utalala wewe mwenyewe. White people in general believe that Africans are poor because of laziness, is that true?
c’mmon guys…
I have been foolowing this stereotype about luos with the contempt it deserves….i would like to say the following…
1.Who are the best minds in this country health sector and law…luos
2.Who are the best soccer players and short distance learners (100m)..luos
As for economy and other issues i think they are up there it’s just because of marginalisation of all govts since indepedence.
Unfortunately the previous blogs took at out of the muthaura goof which has since well been handled.
The moment you try to demonise or worship a whole community you miss the point and you will be lost for ever. If you are contented the way you are and your people its ok.
KK those positive attributes are fast fading by the way. For reasons you may find hard to accept- because of parallel education system in this country all those courses and many more are filled by those who have money. If I give you the statistics you will be surprised. While what you said would have been true in the past, now its abit different.
Nevertheless my thinking having lived in central for a while is that education should not be the end in itself but the means. But my bro, life is full of choices and you cant force guys to choose what they dont want. We had to choose btwn peace and justice vs war. If we chose war we could have still gotten something but after how long and at what cost? Thats why our leaders chose peace and justice.
Reminds me of the book Rich dad poor dad!
The civil rights activists have been complaining of the marginalization of black people in America by the whites for now close to 40 years. Instead of the black folks encouraging their people to go to School and also get a college education (One black TV actor has stated this fact to their anger), they seem content with working in the convinient store. Yesterday during a talk radion show one angry black woman was mad at Barrack Obama saying that he is not black and his interest in gunning for the presidency is to help his country Kenya. She demostrated ignorance of the greatest order. What she forgot is tha Barrack and his wife Micheal used their opportunity to get the best education that the country offers. Others like Condi Rice and Collin Powell did not complaint but used their opportunity to develop themselves.
Majority of our people have complained of certain tribes instead of seizing the opportunity to improve themselves. All tribes in Kenya have an equal opportunity to do whatever they want to do and only need to be shown the way by their leaders. What is the difference between two tylors who make suits? One improves and the other one does not buy more materials and machines and yet they operate on the same street?
On The Making of the New Cabinet – In a family you disagree and you fight (verbally, that is, no loss of life) and then you let things cool, reconcile and then move on.
It is good to see Kenya putting all the sad cirmumstances of the last three months behind them and coming together for the good of Kenya. For Raila, there is tomorrow and if it is God’s will that he becomes the president of Kenya his time will come.
The foremost thing on the minds of Kenyans now is not what happened but what form of government they will get. While Raila and Kibaki should be equal to the task of forming a dream Cabinet, wananchi should be forgiven for “suggesting” which is what I about to do.
I do not care who becomes the minister of what ministry except for three key ministries – Security (Police), Finance, and Foreign Affairs. I ask Kibaki and Raila to give the first two of these ministries to the most senior of the ministers – the Deputy Prime Ministers. I am sure that Kenyans will feel at ease to see a senior person in charge of the police.
My support of Mudavadi as the best candidate for the Finance ministry goes back to the days when he was appointed Minsiter of Finance by President Moi. At that time, there was much criticism that Moi had appointed a person who was not qualified as Mudavadi’s degree is in Building Economics and not Economics or Finance.
It did not take long for Mudavadi to show Kenyans and the world that he was the right man for the Finance ministry. Mudavadi achieved a lot within a short time mopping up the excess printed money and putting Kenya’s economy back on track.
The thing that I heard from a very reliable source at that time has stayed with me to date. Mudavadi took over from George Saitoti, whom one would have expected to fit very well like hand in glove, considering his academic qualifications, had performed disastrously as Minister for Finance.
The source told me that Mudavadi had not been on the job for long before donors were so delighted that they commented that “Moi has now given us somebody who understands us and the game as the previous holder had a lot of difficulty understanding finace issues”.
I also learned from the same reliable source later tha Mudavadi was so focussed that it did not take the thieves in Moi government long to understand that with Mudavadi at the helm, there would be no more 10% cut. Mudavadi was moved from the Ministry of Finance despite his stellar perfomance.
I am not a fan of the current temporary Minister of Finance. He made sure that his assistant, the permanent scretary, the financial secretary, and the governor of Central Bank were all from his tribe. You cannot build a country that way and that arrangement is for stealing purposes. In terms of growth, there is not a policy that Kimunya has put in place that has moved Kenya forward.
Kibaki has never had, apart from Kalonzo whom Moi trained, a good Minister of Foreign Affairs. Wetangula is the worst Minister of Foreign Affairs since independence followed by Chikwere. At a time Kenya was facing the worst crisis in her history, Wetangula had the audacity to tell off the British and the USA governments and the EU.
Even after serving as an Assistant Minister for five years, Wetangula has not learned the language and tools of diplomacy. When he was still new as Assistant Minister for Foreign Afairs, Wetangula made reckless comments on the use of the Nile river waters that put Kenya on a collision course with Egypt.
Considering the crisis that she has gone through, Kenya now, more than ever before, needs a strong and intelligent Foreign Affairs minister. My leading candidate would be Sally Kosgey who showed during the Kofi Annan negotiations what a seasoned diplomat she is after serving in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Nairobi and as High Commissioner in London for several years.
@Railkamuodho
Why is white America so intent on not letting Obama win? It is because so many of them have consoled themselves that the black man is angry, stupid, lazy and upto no good and having someone who can change that perception is not a good thing. Those are the facts and that is why they are taking cheap shots at him. The idea that he will ship all Kenyans to the US came from his competitors. I have seen that in a couple of websites. It is also safe to say that Americans are mostly ignorant of anything non American.
White america now claims that Black people only make it in entertainment and sports(read non wall street stuff) and that Obama has his white genes to thank for whatever he has got. Did you ever read about Oprah being denied entry in a trendy fashion store because she is black and we know that she could have bought the whole store?
True, Black America has suffered and I always assumed that they just did not want to grab opportunities until I had a long chat with my African American friend. She said that while part of the accusations are true alot of it is based on old strereotypes that are reinforced by the media that children grow up knowing that to make it rich they have to be rappers. Thats why Obama is a do or die for the black community..they want their boys especially to grow up knowing that it is possible to achieve the American dream.
My point…..systematic alientaion just like in Kenya. Funny how both Kenyans and the civil rights have been fighting for over 40 years. Wake up and smell the coffee.
In addition, I watched the Bill Cosby clip and read all his interviews about the subject. I thought most of it was hilarious. Talk to your African American friends and you will discover that the reason they are mad is not becuse he is pointing out the “truth”. I am assuming that you live in the US and you know what it means to be a black person. If there is an alert on a theft, you know you will become an automatic suspect because of your skin colour. How fair is that?
Why are you so afraid of having a level playing field? Are you worried that you will lose business? let everybody have an equal chance and then we will evaluate after 10 years if stereotypes still hold.
Anon 1:52 and 2:11
classic piece,
had started a response then gave it up. our friend Railkamuodho will deliberately distort and deface facts/truth, mostly out of context and then mixes these with personal prejudices (and perhaps a tint of bigotry) and rendering any semblance of logical summation or assertion made thereafter irrelevant at best, but mostly absurd. and as pointed out recently, enjoys masking the entire charade by crowning it with near incredulous sweeping statements.
Anon,
Sometime I am offended by the claims that I do not want a level playing field. Nothing can be further from the truth. I, like all common Kenyans was brought up like everybody else. None in my family is rich. We have all struggled to be where we are today. I went to a multitribal school (students from all tribes) and our performance was not based on our tribal affinity. I have kept contact with some of the former classmates majority of who did education and were employed by the ministry of education ( I took a different line and never worked for government). None of those were dinied employement in the military or education because of their tribal background.
The biggest problem in Kenya is corruption. Corruption has eaten into the moral fibre of our society to the extent that processing the most basic government certificate in Kenya demands that you part with some cash and this goes across the political and tribal divide. We surely need to clean our entire system of governance and not just exclude one tribe for the blame.
With regard to racial problems in the US, did you realize that even Latinos cannot vote for Obama because they do not believe that USA is ready for a black president? Yet they do not have as much opportunities as black Americans do (they do all kinds of jobs and do not spend time complaining about the inequalities of the 60s). Infact the kind of jobs they do cannot be done by blacks and will soon overtake blacks as the second largest monority group.
If blacks do not wake up and take College education and investment seriously, they will continue to complain for many, many years to come. Obama has stated clearly that they will have to work hard and also positively contribute to the society to pay back for the College vouchers and other free things
People like personalizing issues like TNK instead of dealing with reality. You have to give up your Kikuyu phobia and hate to understand where I am coming from. Why do yo think ODM has a monopoly of truth? Fortunately Ideas are in the air and none of us can dominate them. We have equal share and the one with the courage to scoop as much as he or she can benefits the most
railka
explain the link btwn the phobia you mention and the issue under discussion. seriously, for once.
Railakamuodho,
I think you are worth chatting with seriously. In as much as some of your views may be considered flawed, some are worthy of consideration. But can you explain the hurricane Katrina and its revealing of black/white isssues?
What I dont understand is if Obama can at least compete with the best, what makes it impossible for others to try. The other thing though is level playing ground. As it stands now in Kenya esp if the ground has to be level the education sector has to be overhauled completely.
Since when did you hear that results are changed massively after release esp for people coming ODM zone. That means affecting a whole genration negatively. So the changes we are asking for must be across the board.
The university of Nairobi advertised postgraduate positions and will shortlist only if you have money. As it stands now you know who has more money. Even in the MOH the scholarships are tribe based. How I wish we had complete change!
The link between ODM hate for one tribe and using that to galvanize other tribes is what lead to the birth of ODM in the first place. The fallacy that it is the Kikuyu who are the enemy of Kenya for dominating business and politics. Your continued use of words “level playing” to mean that Central province have an advantage compared to other tribes or that they took land from Rift Valley (hope you are monitoring as I type) while Kalenjin were denied (Playing a historical trick). The truth will be told because actually it is the British who took Kikuyus to Rift Valley by force (maybe they should compensate them for that injustice). No Kikuyus were ferried to Rift Valley by Kenyatta when he became President- they were already there.
You want blog(g)ers to spend a whole week discussing about Muthaura goof? I do not have ideas about that because that was just speculation with no basis to back it up. This blog is like a football match where players employ all kinds of tactics to score a point.
Railakamuodho,
Please just give a simple explanation and please dont generalize things. Level playing ground means equity in infrastructure, education , economic opportunities etc
Can you explain the results fiasco? Can you explain the employment at the senoir level at the ministry of finance and KRA? Surely unless some of us are stupid which I dont believe that is not fair playing ground! Because even the many at the top of these organizations do not represent their communities but a clique of friends/business partners. So they are making life hard for ordinary Kenyans irrespective of tribe.
Level playing ground is not necesarily being against a specific tribe but making it possible for any Kenyan child to be what they desire and are capable of in their motherland.
As for land check the Land alliance report and you will get the whole story.
When I look at hurricae Katrina, I see a deplorable response to a national catatrophy. But then, the major culprit was the disaster response unit and the casual manner in the way they handled the pre-Katrina crisis. The the president has apologized to the gulf states and how they handled the crisis. The same can be said about the Kenya crisis last year. Instead of our leaders taking the responsibility and apologize to the victims, they used human life, wars and war mongering as a bargaining chip to political positions. That is why I sympathize very much with people who put so much faith in a political class.
The only way to get Kenya out of the woods is through a people driven comprehensive constitutional review. How much has been achieved since Kibaki and Raila signed the pact? How many IDP have been ressettle to Eldoret and Naivasha?
The just concluded KCPE exams was a total disgrace to our nation. Nobody in his or her right mind would support a process that questions an integrity that puts at risk an entire generation like you say. Those reponsible should take reponsibility for their actions. I do not support a national exam. We should embrace a continous assessment process that will be averaged at the end of fourth form. Competitions in academics is not the best way to assess the ability of a student. Rigt?
I have checked the web pages you are talking about and unfortunately were the lopsided ones that did not bother to tell the whole truth about the issue of land. These are the ones I call “playing tricks on the dead”. If you look at the distribution of Kisiis in Rift Valley, you will also see same pattern as the Kikuyus. They moved from Kisii due to land problems as the web pages state. But what the said professionals did not bother to straighten was that land acquisition in RV was not forced but on a willing buyuer/willing seller basis.
Another issue was that Moi was not a Kikuyu agent, infact a lot of Kalenjin were employed in the military and police forces during Moi’s time (maybe 60%) while KPTC is 80% Kalenjin. Yet now people talk of KRA and finance ministry. I am a major proponent of encouraging the private sector to thrive so that people will no longer view government as a mojor source of employment.
I did not mean KCPE but KCSE
Railk,
When a leader has the courage to apologize for neglect and wrong doing of his government it deserves praise and probably forgiveness. What of our country where we are told that even if you dont get shares at the NSE due to biased offe system, you are told its not a fish market, Title deed are papers etc I think some people need to apologize. I respect the former president for asking for forgiveness.
The ECK put us in trouble and they are staying put. The IPPG agreement was betrayed. So many ills were committed by Kibaki regime with the sole motto of what will you do-UTA DO? The peolple felt robed ,raped ,abused -i cant desribe it. They all resorted to violence because their rights were betryed irrevocably. I am not for the IDPs going back yet because as you probably read Muthauras goof and Thuos leaflets it isnt done until its done. And the mood on the ground is that if things are not implemented properly – probably the vilolence will recur. Its a risk I would not advice any right thinking IDP to take.
As for the changes, dont expect anything until RAO becomes the premier, he is still langata MP and remember one Ugandan Livondo is suing him in the Kibaki courts. So he cant implement anything yet. Changes will come after he is sworn in legally.
Even if you disagree with the exam system, what you should understand is that guys sat down and schemed a deliberate strategy to fail particular ethnic communities. That is tribalism and is perpetuated by Kibaki govt. Moi never did it!
railka
reason i find your arguments quite vexing
your opening statement
“The link between ODM hate for one tribe and using that to galvanize other tribes is what lead to the birth of ODM in the first place.”
i’m still trying to find any amount of truth in that statement. but do not bother with a reply
i once again have to bow out of any meaningful discussion with you and i really would have liked to.
@railakamuodho
Latinos are not voting for Obama because they say blacks used them before to get to political office but what they do not realize that when they want a latina in office they will need the black vote. It will come back to haunt them just watch!
I am living proof of tribalism. I applied for a job a while back and was told that I did not make the cut, infact the gum chewing HR lady told me to my face that if I was from Mt. Kenya region I would get the job. Fortunately, some expatriates who did not give two hoots where I came from gave me an opportunity elsewhere and I ran with it.
Right now I am in one of the best universities in the world trying to make my mark and hopefully contribute back home. It is a school that is 96% white so the realities of being a black person in a foreign land are so close to me. It is all about strereotypes and subtle systematic alienation.
Anon,
Interesting experience. The question is will you also be able to help another Kenyan in a similar circumstance?
Unfortunately most people with an experience like yours would rather keep it top secret so that the history you have made remains with them-the only foreign black in a white dominated university.
I am not accusing you but just stating what my observation has been. In the end even individuals are as selfish as are tribes.
I guess for the latinos the question is who is the lesser evil according to their interpretation
The April rains are fast approaching, i suggest that we engage on an affor/reforestation program in ODM controlled zones. I request that everyone viewing /usingthis blod should at least directly or indirectly contribute towards the building of 200 trees each year for the next five years till 2012. We call them the ANAN TREES.
Raila is a sell out….ODM has failed the leadership test.Raila has now been hired by Kibaki! The Pentagon too will soon be seen kissing ass in statehouse.What happened to being to ODM’s ideals or they were just a campaign gimmick?
By joining the government through the grand coalition,ODM has effectively killed the Multiparty democracy that thousands of Kenya fought for in the twentieth century.By agreeing to serve under one authority,ODM gave up their moral authority to be the official opposition in government.Now we do not have an opposition party in Kenya.We do not have a government in waiting! We do not have anyone to keep the government in check.The common citizen does not have an alternative.There is no one to spill the beans when necessary.
Why?
So that ODM can receive a few cabinet posts?
Is it really worth it!
ODM does not know the value of democracy!
They under estimated the position of the leader of opposition yet this is the same position that opened the door for Kibaki to be President.
Today the loser is the common mwananchi but the traitor is ODM!!
By agreeing to lay in the same bed with Kibaki,ODM lost an opportunity to continue representing the common Mwananchi.
Raila now works for Kibaki and not us,Ngilu and Ruto too will soon be hired by Kibaki.
The only person who saw this coming is Martha Karua.
She seems to be the only person with common sense these days.
Who will help protect our democracy
the way Raila is going by end of June he will be irrelevant and non-existent. He can count his political career over
Kip,
What is this tirade about.please take your time and try to look at things a bit soberly.
I put it to you that you are being emotional about this.
Leadership cannot afford such a mistake.We have been striving for change and concessions have been made to make sure that we get the changes that we so desire.
never mind the fact that we are not sitting in the big house.
How do you expect the leader of opposition to implement a manifesto if there is no control of the instruments of government?
the way it is,we cannot play all or nothing politics anymore.we need to accept that and move on.lets work with what we havefor all you know this could be the best thing that happened to ODM.
You remind of many years back when the NDP decided to merge with Kanu.Many of the sentiments that came out at that time were just as harsh as yours and even worse!!but that is what has brought us this far.
So my friend,take it easy and let RAO and his pentagon workout the bigger picture for us.Do not get hasty at this time.its too early.
The Kenyans supporting ODM and fighting for change were genuine in their quest. But many of the leaders have truly shown their were just but fighting for power and positions
Kip whats the alternative path to power now
ODM is starting to fight for Cabinet posts? ODM is beginning to show that it is no different from the greedy PNU? I am totally against this idea of “We also have to have a Cabinet Minister”. If Cabinet Ministers could serve all Kenyans without discrimination, then the best people for the jobs should be appointed.
It is unfortunate that Kenyans will never have real power-sharing between ODM and PNU as Raila hastened to sign a hollow “power-sharing” accord. Mr. Kofi Annan spent several weeks in Nairobi negotiating and mediating but in the end he came up with a worthless accord, as far as power sharing is concerned.
If ODM was to have a real share of power, they will be able to push through the agenda of serving Kenyans without discrimination as they had promised during the campaigns. Right now, that will not be the case and Kibaki’s aging friends and tribesmen will continue to occupy the key offices of government.
The apparent comraderie between Kibaki and Raila is not genuine and only resides on the surface. After the two “power-sharing” bills are passed by parliament, Kibaki will order Raila to be reporting to Kalonzo, who will be Raila’s new boss.
The strongest leaders with the best national and international outlook in ODM right now, apart from Raila and Mudavadi, are William Ruto and Sally Koske. Any of these four is fit to be Kenya’s president on day one. The strongest and ablest woman leader in the current parliament is Sally Koske.
ODM should fight for her to be a Cabinet Minister. I am also of the opinion that Kalenjins should campaign to have Dr. Sambili appointed to the Cabinet as one of the women ministers. She is ODM although she went to parliament on a different ticket. The Kipsigis do not have an MP of William Ruto and Sally Koske’s calibre and if they do not get a Cabinet minister, that is okay as long as both William Ruto and Sally Koske are in.
If I were Kibaki and I am determined to give Uhuru more leverage in the next general elections, I would not undermine Raila by humiliating him. That will backfire as Raila will gain a lot of symphaty. Instead, I would chip away at his base. The Uhuru people must be calculating how good Uhuru’s chances are if presidential elections were to be held today.
Most likely, they will find that his chances are small and it may be better for him to be Kalonzo’s running mate. They must also be realizing that, if Uhuru was to be Kalonzo’s running mate, then there is no guarantee that Kalonzo will keep Uhuru as his VP for long. If Kalonzo was to be elected president, he will waste no time reaching out to other Kenyans and he will not hesitate to sack Uhuru the way Moi sacked Kibaki. President Kalonzo will be President Moi re-enacted.
If Uhuru was to be sacked by Kalonzo, there is no guarantee that there will be another Raila to declare “Uhuru Tosha” to give Uhuru a good chance of becoming president. If Uhuru is looking to becoming president of Kenya through Kalonzo, then he may as well kiss the presidency goodbye for good.
Kibaki is president of Kenya today, thanks to “Kibaki Tosha” declaration from Raila in 2002 and thanks to Michuki, Kalonzo, the army, the police, mungiki, and some mercenaries from Uganda in 2007. This is the truth. You cannot subtract or modify this truth. You cannot successfully bury the truth that Raila won the 2007 presidential elections.
Uhuru should not ever dream of becoming the president of Kenya via a similar route to Kibaki’s. If I were Kibaki, the best way of chipping away at Raila’s current base, and helping Uhuru in his dream of becoming president of Kenya, is to revisit the Kalenjins-Kikuyus relationship.
Kalenjins and Kikuyus can be bitter rivals or strong allies. While this rivalry may be currently based on resources and especially land, it dates back to pre-independence days. During the colonial era and before the Second World War, many Kikuyus and Kalenjins worked for white farmers. They lived in separate camps and were as much rivals then as they are today.
They could also be friends then as they could be now. I have to date a photo my father took with his best friend, a Kikuyu, around 1940 before my father joined the army – King George’s King’s African Rifles. The photo was taken in Laikipia (they used to call the area Ndaika). My father’s friend was called Maina. My father used to tell me that some years earlier while they were younger men, they would waylay Kikuyus and Kikuyus would also waylay them for wrestling duels.
The Kikuyus-Kalenjins rivalry/partnership has been there for years now and will be there for many years to come. The rivalry needs to be managed so that it does not degenerate into deadly combats and loss of life. Just before Kenya gained her independence, Jomo Kenyatta was going around Kenya campaigning and he was to come to Kapkatet but Senior Chief Tengecha banned him from ever stepping in Kapkatet. Jomo Kenyatta ended up not coming to Kapkatet.
Later, after Jomo Kenyatta became president, he cultivated great friendship with Tengecha to the extent that the latter was free to tell Jomo anything. I was told that Tengecha used to visit Kenyatta a lot taking grievances of his people to the president. From rivalry, they became partners and friends even though they continued to disagree over Taitta Towett, whom Kenyatta had a lot of confidence in while Tengecha did not support him.
ODM failed to explain to Kenyans, during the campaigns, what they meant by equal opportunities or equity as opposed to equality. They may have triggered, albeit unintentionally, the ugly side of the Kikuyus-Kalenjins rivalry. I realize that some ODM supporters misunderstood equity as referring to equality and they proceeded to destroy other people’s properties so that they could all be equal – have nothing.
One way of switching off Kalenjins-Kikuyus rivalry and switching on Kalenjins-Kikuyus partnership is through making amends for the wrongs Kibaki’s government has visited on Kalenjins since 2003 and they have been many. Kibaki has a very good opportunity, right now, to do so many things to help make his legacy more positive than what it is.
As of now, the legacies of the three presidents that Kenya has had are as follows: Jomo Kenyatta’s legacy is land grabbing, Daniel arap Moi’s legacy is grand corruption, while Kibaki’s legacy is genocide. Kibaki, unlike his two predecessors has a chance to improve on his legacy.
Kibaki can do positive things that neither of his predecessors did like appointing the first woman vice president. If Kibaki was to appoint Sally Koske as his VP, he will have done a great thing for Kenya, giving women a role they have never played before in Kenya’s 45 years of independence.
Having somebody like Sally Koske as VP will achieve a numbers of things, namely:
1. Raila will not be humiliated as one of his ODM MPs is the VP
2. Raila, Kalonzo, and Uhuru will have somebody they can all work with
3. Raila, Kalonzo, and Uhuru will have similar starting points in the next presidential elections
4. Women have been recognized as one of their own has been appointed to the top office
5. Kenya will benefit from the services of an experienced diplomat and leader whose standing is at par with those of Condoleezza Rice, President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, Chancellor Angela Merkel.
Although the ODM supporters from Western Kenya already have Marende as Speaker, Mudavadi should be the automatic choice for the post of Deputy PM and ODM should fight to have him also appointed as Minister of Finance. ODM should not drift away from principled politics to petty politics of personal greed.
Maru,
I doubt ODM will drift from serious principle politics. You can already see that Ruto has moved quick to cool down that ‘Ruto for DPM discussion’ with the argument that ODM’s not really about cabinet positions. One thing we Kenyans have been slow to learn is that having a cabinet minister from one’s ‘Shags’ doesn’t mean a hell of a lot in terms of service delivery even to that particular ‘Shags’. The time has come for Kenyans to agitate for service delivery on a national equitable plane. Everyone stands a reasonable chance of experiencing service delivery that way. A national constituency is much more effective at dealing with putting pressure on politicians. Otherwise, they continue their games…