‘Shackles of Doom’s Day’ At The 2013 Kenya National Drama Festival

MOMBASA, KENYA: The day started with amber sun rays piercing through the large Arabian windows that ventilate the Aga Khan High School auditorium. And as the clock ticked, theatre lovers continued to troop in numbers never seen before during the Kenya Schools and Colleges Drama Festival.

It was as if a Broadway Production was coming to town from Manhattan, New York City.
The fete’s organisers had their crowd control skills put to the test, with a huge battalion of police officers brought in to help maintain order as the sea of humanity turned out to watch Shackles of Doom. For an auditorium with a capacity of 400, it was obvious some of the over 2,000 people gathered outside the auditorium would be disappointed.

“Haki Yetu! Haki Yetu!,” was all they could say after realising their efforts to secure seats failed to bear fruit.And finally the time for Butere Girls’ students to take to the stage came as the adjudicators’ bell rang.The usually easy air turned tense and the arrival of human rights advocate and Mombasa Senator Hassan Omar did not make things any better.
“We have been good to you but you are so heartless. You came and took away our land as our husbands veins drains in labour,” came one of the stinging lines from the play as the young thespians got down to business.

This is the acid reaction by True Kanas to Mrs Kimani’s announcement of the new employees of the newly established Mafuta Oil Company.All plum jobs but those of labourers go to members of one community. Kimani, the proprietor of the land bought from the True Kanas, tries to assuage locals by appointing Lopush, a resident, as a watchman.This does not go down well with the residents, but Kimani cannot hear none of their complaints.Kimani’s meanness is further highlighted when he forcefully demanding to ‘sleep’ with Lopush’s bride on the eve of their wedding.

 Deafening applause
“Let me explain. I didn’t have anything with Kimani,” tries to explain Wamaitha, Lopush’s bride, after the groom busts them in his house. By this time, the audience is silent and their empathy for Lopush is manifest in the applause and deafening cheers. But payback time comes when Mafuta Oil Company catches fire and Kimani’s wife and the rest of the management from his community are trapped inside. Ironically, the person with key, Lopush, had just been unceremoniously expelled by Kimani. Kimani starts begging and as True Kanas realise he is helpless, they corner him. “Lynch him! It is payback time!” “Please for the sake of humanity, let me free, and open the gates!,” cries subdued Kimani.

“But when you took all position and left as slaves didn’t’ you think of humanity? Or when you denied us time out of work, or too all the land and siphoned all the profits, or even when you let effluence into the environment and our women miscarry and men die of Cancer?” asks a True Kana woman as the audience applause. But a voice of reason comes in and one of the community members pleads for forgiveness on his behalf. As the curtain falls on this controversial and much awaited piece, there is a standing ovation and in the Nigerian style, they all go Igwe! Igwe! Igwe! Banning of the play “This play is about us why ban it in the first place? What the drama committee was to have us burry our heads in the sand,” observes John Paul Wafula, a producer at the festival.

Senator Omar concurred: “These children are not destroying society, they are building it. They have raised fundamental issues afflicting us such as police brutality, tribalism, and unequal distribution of resources.”The National Cohesion and Integration Commission Vice Chairperson Milly Lwanga urged those who took offence with the choice of names to face reality and join other Kenyans in appreciating the root causes of national conflict.

“We are glad the play was finally staged,’ she said after watching the play. She denied that NCIC had any hand in the ban as had been earlier rumoured.
And the girls themselves were a proud lot. “I felt we brought it out well. I am happy we drove the point home,” said one of the actresses Mercy Mulama.

The Expected New Kenyan Cabinet - A Closer Look By Dikembe

By: Dikembe Disembe

CharityNgilu

Reports appearing in the mainstream media that Hon Charity Ngilu, Najib Balala and Chirau Ali Mwakwere, Prof Sam Ongeri may miss out in the cabinet slots seem to reverberate well with the public, considering how the media has packaged the position of secretaries as ‘technocratic’, professional and requires very ‘high’ integrity standards.

However a keen observer of the political developments cannot miss too see the hypocrisy in the move. The strategy to use NSIS and Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) clearance as an excuse to bar the two from appointment will only serve to remind Ngilu and Co of the use and dump that was perfected by rtd president Moi.

The Supreme Court’s verdict on the election petition that validated the victory of Hon Kenyatta is testimony that no institution is bigger than Uhuru and his handlers and hence certification that Uhuru is simply not going to reward the Ngilu group. The NSIS and EACC are only being used by the president’s handlers as a shield; otherwise, if they delivered the presidency, getting Ngilu and Co to the cabinet will only take a less than one minute telephone call!

The four politicians stuck with candidate Uhuru and Ruto even when it was clear doing so was signing a political obituary. It was Najib Balala who first ‘predicted’ the future of Kenyan leadership as revolving around the ‘high-table’ where Uhuru and Ruto sat side by side. Even when Kwale County was openly showing signs of hostility towards the Jubilee alliance, Mwakwere stood out for Ruto, later ‘allowing’ Uhuru to navigate the murky land question in the coastal region.

Ngilu made a passionate appeal for Uhuru, even sacrificing her presidential ambitions and her party to join Jubilee. Had she not crossed over from CORD, she would be in the senate today, because, most kambas credit Ngilu for doing so much for Ukambani more than, surprisingly, CORD’s David Musila her competitor in the Kitui senate race.

But more than the small Kamba constituency, Charity has been in politics more than Uhuru and Ruto. She vied for the presidency at a time Uhuru could not address a political rally of 200 ‘kenyans’ drawn from all the 42 tribes. Her name was on the ballot when Ruto was terrorizing Rift Valley residents using KANU youths-jeshi la Mzee-and preparing ground for one of the biggest ethnic orgies of our time in 2007. These are facts, and facts are stubborn things!

Ngilu is a senior Kenyan politician with a proven track record. Politicians like Charity are more precious for the president than hawk-eyed bureaucrats and status quoists like Kimemia and company because they not only bring merit to the table but also a unique political experience nurtured over decades in elective politics. They understand real politick.

To call her a political reject, like Charles Keter was quoted saying, simply because she lost her seat campaigning for the president in a region which, after the frustrations Kalonzo Musyoka went through, in the hands of the very same president and his deputy, then presidential candidates with the heavy baggage of the ICC, is to perpetuate the enduring culture of use and dump which is Kibaki’s legacy.

To use the NSIS and the EACC to project these individuals as having integrity issues is to hoodwink the public. In fact, the president and deputy have global ‘integrity’ issues more than the three. The NSIS raised no objections when these leaders vied in the last elections. The EACC gave these leaders a clean bill of health.

Political reciprocity is important in a multi-ethnic democracy such as ours. Merit in politics is a very controversial topic. For example, which yardstick is the president using to bar these three from leadership? Rejection at the ballot? Poor service delivery?

Let me be clear, I’m not holding brief for Ngilu, Balala and Mwakwere, Prof Ongeri. These are politicians who never got my vote. I come from a region which views the three of them, especially Balala and Ngilu, as traitors who turned their backs on Raila Odinga when he needed them most, yet, my refusal to accept the poisoned chalice we are being treated to, that the three are not worthy of being in the cabinet of Uhuru and Ruto, stems from the fact that we in Kenya are trying to legalize politics.

We have so many agencies and commissions telling politicians what to do, when to do what and with whom to do what so much so that the art of politics is losing its meaning.
Politics is no longer dirty in Kenya. Politics is being sanitized at a speed this country, and indeed no country under the sun, has ever endured. Our political arena is an expanded supreme court where decisions are immutable. This is not what popular democracy is. This is what popular idiocy is!

Politics is how peoples’ expectations are handled. If the new president bungles these expectations by using laws and agencies which want to manufacture ‘angles’ for Uhuru’s cabinet, then we are staring at a future where all political deals will have to be deposited in courts to give them life.
The president and his deputy must go beyond their high octane rhetoric of uniting the country in funerals and churches and be seen to be doing so.

Ruto Orders Audit of Audit of Raila's and Kalonzo's Former Offices.

William Ruto

 In what is shaping up to be an interesting chapter in the Kenyan History, The Assistant Vice President; Hon. William Ruto has ordered for a full Audit of the Offices of his former boss turned foe; Raila Amolo Odinga. 

Raila odinga

And to stretch the rod further, He has equally ordered for full audit of the Office of the Former Vice President, Stephen Kalonzo Musyoka. 


The motive of the Audit is not yet known, however wheather it is stock taking or serious Audit, time will tell.

Why Luos Must Redefine Their Politics

By William Makora.

 

I feel duly compelled to make this humble appeal to my people, the Luos, to consider diversifying their political belief and embrace flexible factors that favor change. Their faith in political patronage has done the community and, by extension, the country a lot of good by propelling it on course of definite popular political paths. The benefits reaped for the nation over the period of time are far fetching yet the community lugs behind in everything including academics where it was a powerhouse at independence.

Bad Choice

While decisions determine what you do, choice answers what you have. When one makes a good decision he lives doing something he likes. One makes a bad choice he lives in regretful sadness. It is, therefore, worthwhile for mankind to think properly before making any choice.

After independence of Kenya in 1964, the Luos were provided with two choices in their leadership; politics and development. These were presented to the people through J. O. Odinga and T. J. Mboya respectively. Both the leaders served in the first government. Odinga was the Vice President while Mboya was the Minister for Economic Planning and Development.

As a community, the Luos could take both, or either of, the two packages. Unlike the Kikuyus that took both, the Luos opted for politics and politicking have hence become their duty in the nation of diverse competitions. This has endured in respite of the factors that face it and the around it have limited the area of influence or diversified national dominance. In short, competing forces have since confined it to the lowlands while the real wealth is shared at the top. In simple sense, it has denied the people access of national health and vibrancy. The Kikuyus with whom the Luos formed the first government as principals have enjoyed both and their population has grown tremendiously.

Before his exit from the government in 1966, Odinga asked the people to wait until he ‘became’ the president in order to see how ‘his government’ would, responsibly, ensure amenities and infrastructure. The Luos are still waiting to date. At his assassination in 1969, Mboya had mobilized the people of his region in the divide to ensure notable amenities and infrastructure. Odinga enjoyed the rest of the period till he passed it over to his son, Raila A. Odinga. It has never shifted elsewhere.

We are still in politics; eating and living politics by choice! A political community! Politics is the life of majority of us who fall within the bracket of ordinary fellows. Opponents have made it the bait on the trap. They cast it on a dirty rock and name it ‘The Luos”. Whatever they say about us in that same shadow sounds loud! Whatever fashion they give us suits us! We have no defense. We have chosen politics against development. We are given politics minus power and we take it. Bad choice bad life!

Not Lost

Political essays about the Luos may not be good either. Apart from many key persons lost in the game, a lot of resources and assets, especially; academics, economical wealth, health, et cetera have dissipated in the miry bog. Although we are blessed with good brains only a few Luos manage studies by capricious chance over a long period of time. We have some of the worst amenities in the nation and our children have limited chances to access any advantages in the prevailing scarcity. We always think it is the failure of the government to provide them while our competitors use their strength to move ahead of us. The government will respond but we shall not be able to catch them that leaped ahead over the period.

I think all is not lost. We can play politics. It has become our birthright. But we can diversify it. We can spread it all over the land and let everybody own it. That way it may not be easy to cage. The opponents may not easily arrest it and say; “We don’t want Raila” to mean “We don’t want Luos”. We may break loose and release ourselves for a moment. Then we will be able to think and act freely.

Political Power

That the Luos are a political powerhouse is not secret. We have agile politicians. Ours are accurate political analysts and movers. But demerits put us in a can of vulnerability. If we gather ourselves in a valley and overlooking mountains fall over us, we crash. We can build our political power by according ourselves common playing ground. We owe our sons and daughters every space for sowing of their seeds now and in future. If we do what is right with our advantages, we raise our stakes in the national socio-political and economical divide. We can only opt to make political capital if we all value it. If we don’t we can leave it to the Odingas, especially, if they seem to believe in opposition leadership, or that we are the shield that protects the nation. It has hurt us over the years as the arsenals hit pearls like Tom Mboya, Robert Ouko and Odhiambo Mbai in the first, second and last regimes respectively. We do not want to lose more for that reason. We can avoid regrets. A stitch in time saves nine!

All Ministers Elected to Various Positions in The March 4 General Election Ordered To relinguish their Cabinet Posts Immediately

President Kibaki has directed all ministers elected to various positions in the March 4 General Election to relinquish their Cabinet posts immediately. Below is a copy of the letter:

Pursuant to Article 126 of the Constitution of Kenya 2010, His Excellency the President shall appoint a place and date for the 1st sitting of the new House which shall not be more than 30 days after the General Elections held on 4th March, 2013. On the first day of the sitting, the first Order of Business will be Swearing-in of members and election of the Speaker of the National Assembly and the Speaker of the Senate. The date of 1st sitting of Parliament is tentatively scheduled for Thursday, 28th March, 2013.

Under the new constitutional dispensation, one person cannot hold two State Offices. Indeed, all elected persons were contained in a Special Gazette Notice dated 12th March, 2013. In essence, this formalizes the appointment into the elective offices save for the swearing-in.

At the advice of the Hon. Speaker and the Attorney General, His Excellency the President has, therefore, directed that all Ministers and Assistant Ministers who were elected during the recent General Election to the positions of Senators, Governors, Members of the National Assembly or Women Representatives should resign, with immediate effect, so as to qualify to be sworn in by the Clerk of the National Assembly.

In this regard, Ministers/Assistant Ministers who did not compete or qualify for the said elective posts will remain in Government, until the swearing-in of the President and appointment of the new Cabinet Secretaries.

Secondly, your attention is drawn to the provisions of Article 134(2) of the Constitution forbidding the nomination, appointment or dismissal of State or Public Officers during the transition period referred to by the Constitution as the‘period of temporary incumbency’. Consequently, all appointments effected after the 4th March, 2013 are illegal and, therefore, null and void. The appointees and affected State Corporations should be notified accordingly.

Thirdly, by a copy of this letter, Permanent Secretaries/Accounting Officers have today been directed to:

(a) ensure that this directive is implemented immediately; and

(b) ensure, as earlier directed, that all major contracts and payments in excess of Kshs.500,000 are suspended forthwith. Any exemption to this particular directive must be sought from the Office of the President by the Accounting Officer on behalf of the Ministry or the State Corporation/Parastatal concerned.

Please give this matter your urgent and personal attention and confirm full and immediate compliance.

FRANCIS T. KIMEMIA, EGH
PERMANENT SECRETARY, SECRETARY TO
THE CABINET AND HEAD OF PUBLIC SERVICE

Copy to:

The Attorney General
Chairman, Commission for the Implementation of Constitution
All Accounting of Officers

Part Of Evidence CORD is set to table before Supreme Court

In what promises to be a Titatic battle at the supreme court, CORD has officially announced that it is officially filling its petition against IEBC presidential figures released . and as part of their evidence, here is a sneak preview of their inside argument.

' IEBC cannot do simple addition! The standard newspaper today on pg 5 published the total presidential votes from the 47 counties. The total given for Raila is 5,407,889 against Uhuru's 6,173,433. The total voter turnout was given as 12,338,667. If you are a mathematician you will find  that IEBC concealed 67,343 of Raila's votes. This figure would have pushed the voter turn ... to 12,406,010. 50% of this gives you 6,203,005. This figure is higher than Uhuru's 6,173,433 which apparently gave Uhuru  50.07%! The actual score should have been 49.76%!'

Meanwhile, CORD received a boost when Leaders drawn from Kisii and Nyamira Counties have vowed to support the petition filed by CORD to have the election of President Elect Uhuru Kenyatta nullified.

IEBC FAILURES AND THE ROLE OF THE COURTS

I am taking the liberty to post my following comments and observations for your perusal, hoping it will be helpful in assessing whether the elections management process met the reasonable standards of integrity, efficiency and cost effectiveness.

It has been rather unfortunate that IEBC messed up the electoral process, right from the outset, starting from the flawed and irregular procurement of the BVR (biometric voter registration kits), Electronic Voter Identification Devices, Ballot papers and even general electoral materials such as indelible marker pens, solar powered lanterns, polling station banners etc.

Moreover, all appeals (I believe numbering 5) made by aggrieved parties (bidders) before the Public Procurement Administration and Review Board were thrown out on basis of the overriding public interest (that the elections were round the corner) with the exception of the case of supply of solar lanterns where the appeal was allowed as there was a clear element of impropriety and fraud involved concerning the company awarded the tender.

The courts have also delayed the finalisation of the appeals and then used the same excuse of public interest as was in the case of the appeal by AVANTE INTERNATIONAL (USA) for the supply of Electronic Voter Verification Devices and in case of the supply of ballot papers and where the court process was delayed.

In another instance, again the proceedings were delayed and the Judicial Review (JR) application dismissed on grounds that the matter had been overtaken by events and which was due to delivery orders being placed by IEBC while the JR proceedings were on going. This was contrary to law which requires that procurement proceedings come to a halt once a JR application is filed by the aggrieved party as was in case of an appeal involving the supply of general electoral materials, including supply of indelible marker pens, solar lanterns, tally printers , polling station banners, etc.).

When I challenged in court the fraudulent supply of BVR kits I met a similar fate. Mr. Justice David Amilcar Shikomera Majanja's court blocked me and even made a mockery of the law when it certified the case urgent but fixed the hearing of the application several months away. In all instances the judge ensured that the IEBC got away with its schemes despite glaring irregularities and anomalies and led to the country spending tripple the amount had the tender award been made to India's 4G Solutions as per the original recommendation. There is more than meets the eye as vested interests have been at play, including inn the courts. I have voluminous documentation to support my stand.

Some have described the huge budget as a gravy train to be exploited.

The election management process was definitely flawed owing to dysfunction/ non-function of the various equipment/technology and that has not been addressed or captured at all.

My assessments in this regard are as follows:

The system for transmitting provisional results was procured in a hurry through IFES (and which procurement was funded by USAID) and the process was done at the last moment around Christmas/New Year with a bidding period of about 5 working days only, without going on a proper international open tender. Other more credible and well known systems (eg from AVANTE TECHNOLOGY of USA ) were apparently disregarded despite having been successfully used in Uganda.

The public needs to know how many bidders participated and what system was procured and from whom. Safaricom supplied the mobile phones and the connection network but who supplied the software system and who was the systems integrator? IEBC must answer these questions.

The other point is that the mobile phones did not have a power back up such as solar chargers which were missing and I suspect that was one of the main cause of the problems encountered and needs to be addressed in case of a presidential rerun to avoid the delays recently experienced.

The problem could have been solved if IEBC would have used the election transmission system employing satellite phones which procurement (under IEBC TENDER NO 1/2012-2013) was cancelled at the last moment when the item was surreptitiously removed from the list of items without IEBC giving any reasons.

Had the satellite phones been procured from THURAYA or IMMARSAT, the results could have been transmitted through the satellite system using the satellite phones without being dependent on SAFARICOM.

Why did IEBC leave everything till the last minute and why was the item deleted?

Also the procurement of the electronic voter verification device (EVID) was marred with irregularities, when IEBC bought the device from FACE TECHNOLOGIES of S.Africa which had never been used or proven and despite the fact that the sample given by FACE was completely different at the time of tendering from what was supplied - this was irregular and the tender awarded despite the fact that the device did not properly work at the time of demonstration.

Why was FACE again being favoured by IEBC? Please note that it was previously favored by the IEBC Tender Committee for the procurement of the BVR Kits, to the detriment of the more qualified and lower priced Indian bidder (4G Solutions), which was the front runner that was initially shortlisted as potential supplier and the other S.African bidder, Lithotech, which was knocked out using flimsy excuses.

It is the vested interests of IEBC which is the cause of the current failures.

The BVR kit supplied by SAFRAN MORPHO was not powered by a proper solar power back up system and that could explain the malfunction experienced in the elections and in this case the procurement was again questionable as the procurement process was compromised due to a hiked up price and the delayed procurement owing to the vested interests. This in turn caused a resultant delay in the voter registration process taking off and disenfranchised many voters due to the short time allocated for the process.

IEBC was captive to vested interests and was not properly prepared to take up this exercise.

There was also poor management in connection with the procurement of the ballot papers and which was done at exorbitant pricing.

I shall be happy to avail supporting documents to back up the above information which I am posting here in good faith, hoping that it may prove useful in demanding a complete forensic audit of the IEBC.

Best regards
Okiya Okoiti Omtatah

Uhuru's Case At The ICC to Proceed to Trial.

The ICC prosecutor, Fatsou Bensouda today re-affirmed that the case against Mr. Uhuru Kenya would proceed as planned. She equally confirmed that the withdrawal of a key witness; the popular witness number four, did not punch any hole on evidence against Uhuru

A Must Read Letter From Michela Wrong - Food For Thought

To be prudent is to be partial

NAIROBI — Over the years I’ve come to view the Kenyan media with a mixture of respect and affection.

In the 1990s, I watched in awe as Kenyan photographers dodged Daniel arap Moi’s club-wielding riot police. When their colleagues in the newsroom exposed financial scandals, ranging from Goldenberg to Anglo Leasing, I pasted their articles into my files. Like the press pack anywhere, Kenyan journalists liked their beer and could wolf down a buffet in a heartbeat, and the odd brown envelope definitely changed hands. But they were brave. “The best press in Africa,” I told anyone who cared to listen.

So Kenya’s recent election has been a baffling, frustrating time.

In the last few weeks, Western journalists — myself included — have become pariahs, lambasted by Kenya’s twitterati and Facebook users for our coverage and threatened by the government with deportation.

The fury seems exaggerated, given the relative rarity of offending articles. Western reports have attracted undue interest, I’m convinced, because domestic coverage, while increasingly slick, has been so lifeless. It sometimes feels as though a zombie army has taken up position where Kenya’s feisty media used to be, with local reporters going glaze-eyed through the motions.

This malaise was most obvious last week during briefings by the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission at the tallying center in Bomas, just outside Nairobi, when what had been billed as a high-tech, tamper-proof election began to unravel spectacularly. The Kenyan media of old would have gone for the jugular. But when the commission chairman, Issack Hassan, after describing yet another puzzling technical glitch or mysterious delay, asked, “Any questions?” the response was stunned silence.

It was the same when independent election monitors announced their findings. Given just how many anomalies were surfacing, the upbeat assessments of observers from the African Union, the European Union and the Commonwealth seemed inexcusably complacent. Yet once again, Kenyan journalists left most of the questions to their Western counterparts.

Lethargy should not be mistaken for laziness. Yes, rumors are swirling about payoffs and conflicts of interest. But this professional surrender, ironically, appears to stem from the very best of intentions.

During the violence that followed the 2007 election, when militias burned families out of their houses and executed members of rival ethnic communities, Kenya’s media played a not-entirely-innocent role. Hate speech spread by vernacular radio stations and via SMS egged on the men with machetes, just as they once had in Rwanda. One of the three indictees facing trial before the International Criminal Court in The Hague is Joshua arap Sang, who ran the Kalenjin-language radio station Kass FM.

Chastened by that experience, media executives reached a gentlemen’s agreement to avoid anything that might whip up ethnic tensions ahead of this year’s election. There would be no live coverage of announcements or press conferences by political parties.

“Last time,” the media “were part of the problem,” a Kenyan broadcaster told me. “They were corrupted; they were irresponsible. So this time there was a feeling that we had to keep everyone calm, at the expense, if necessary, of our liberties.”

But self-censorship comes at a price: political impartiality. The decision not to inflame ethnic passions meant that media coverage shifted in favor of whoever took an early lead, in this case Uhuru Kenyatta.

Hours after the CORD alliance of the opposition leader Raila Odinga announced that it wanted the tallying of ballots stopped and an audit conducted, Kenyan radio D.J.’s were still cheerfully assuring listeners that everything was on track. That may have prevented passions in Odinga’s Luo community from exploding, but it was a massive distortion of the truth.

The local media swiftly fell into the habit of brushing off CORD’s declarations. Television broadcasts of Odinga’s announcement that he would challenge the outcome of the election before the Supreme Court switched to Uhuru’s acceptance speech before the Q. and A. with Odinga had even begun. By this Wednesday, Kenya’s largest newspaper devoted more space to the selection of a new pope than to the lawsuits being prepared by CORD and civil society groups.

The Kenyan media’s self-restraint reveals a society terrified by its own capacity for violence. “What maturity is this that trembles at the first sign of disagreement or challenge?” asked the Kenyan cartoonist Patrick Gathara in a superb blog post, citing a national “peace lobotomy.” He went on: “What peace lives in the perpetual shadow of a self-annihilating violence?”

Shortly before handing Uhuru his winner’s certificate, the chairman of the election commission congratulated the Kenyan media on their “exemplary behavior.” As he did, the screen above his head was showing figures that did not add up.

Any journalist worth their salt should start feeling itchy when praised by those in authority. The recent accolades will chafe as more polling irregularities become public. The media should be asking themselves whether, in their determination to act responsibly, they allowed another major abuse to occur right before their eyes.

Michela Wrong has covered Africa for nearly two decades, reporting for Reuters, the BBC and The Financial Times. She is the author of “It’s Our Turn to Eat: The Story of a Kenyan Whistleblower.”

Do CORD Really Have A strong Case Against IEBC?

The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) has said Coalition for Reform and Democracy (CORD)  leaders are relying on rumours in lodging their election petition at the Supreme Court.

Speaking through a phone interview, commission Chairman said Isaack Hassan said CORD officials are now desperate looking for evidence, since they have realised they don’t have a watertight case against the IEBC.

Hassan claimed that his commission conducted the just concluded elections with professionalism and said he and his commissioners are ready to face CORD leaders at the court of law if they have a case to file.

He urged them not to shout on cameras but instead file a case at the Supreme Court to prove how their won.

Hassan, who is a lawyer by professional, said conducting elections in Kenya is a challenging job which needs support from across the political divide but not condemnation.

CORD Coalition has been challenging the outcome of the just concluded General Election, where Uhuru Kenyatta was declared the

Those Who Read This Also Read: THE HIGHEST PAID TO CLICK SITES

STATEMENT BY SAFARICOM ON WITHDRAWAL OF LEGAL PETITION BY CORD COALITION

Safaricom welcomes the formal withdrawal of the legal Petition filed against it at the High Court of Kenya by Mr. Eliud Owalo a representative of the CORD Coalition.

Pursuant to the withdrawal of the Petition by the CORD representative, Safaricom has undertaken to play its part in explaining and or providing to the IEBC for onward presentation to the Judiciary all pertinent information.

This information is limited to what can be legally disclosed, what is technically available and specifically only that which directly emanates from its contractual scope with the IEBC.

The above notwithstanding, we stand by our earlier public statement of 6th March 2013 and we maintain that our contractual mandate to the IEBC was fully and properly executed.

We would also like to assure the public and all interested parties in this matter that we are fully cognizant of the importance of this process and the need for transparency by all players involved and this is the basis upon which we have extended our full cooperation to the courts.

Nzioka Waita,
Director Corporate Affairs, Safaricom Limited

20 Councillors Defect From ODM and KANU To URP

URP has continued its expected harvest in the vast Rift Valley province by receiving into into its fold 20 Councillors from ODM and KANU in Samburu. These Councillors were received party chairman Mr.Francis Ole Kaparo and the URP presidential candidate Hon. William Ruto.

Could Sonko Be Warming Up To ODM?

As he entered the Nairobi politics for the first time, his original party of choice was ODM. However, he fled after failing to clinch the party ticket to contest the Makadara seat. Of late, He has tonned down his ever loud criticism for ODM and as pictured above in an ODM cap, Who knows?

What Next For Hon. Musalia Mudavadi?

Some people claim that Hon. Musalia Mudavadi has been left at a political bus station by some historical poli-entraprenuers. If the way current events continue to unfold, then perhaps one might be tempted to imagine that this could be a reality. I try to compare the Mudavadi on his last Moments while in ODM and the current Mudavadi; the difference is equivalent to day and night.

What Next For Musalia Mudavadi?

Since leaving ODM, Musalia has been portrayed as some ‘project’, a fact that looked real on wordings, but very different practically. Slowly by slowly, the people who were merrying with the Sabatia legislator have started their movements to where they feel at home. The biggest puzzle the whole world is now waiting see Mudavadi solve is seeing his name in the Ballot; come 2013 elections. This is the main agenda which drove him out of ODM.

Will He Succeed?

One thing I like about Musalia Mudavadi is his resilience and persistence. He is one man who follows his heart and all the courses he believes in. Right now, the only way for him through is through the trap set before him. He is still a force to reckon with come 2013 since it is time which judges everything. They way forward for Mudavadi is to be honest with himself; then to access and consolidate his support base. Then out of any inevitable political pact in future, he should bring on board his support base and use it as a bargaining chip.

Mudavadi is one of the very few  Kenyan politicians who cannot be written off come 2013. I bet on this.

The Kenya's Greatest Speech - A speech By Rt. Hon. Raila Odinga

It had been regarded as the Kenya's greatest speech of all time. A speech delivered by Rt. Hon Raila Odinga during the promulgation of the New Kenya's Constitution.

Here is the full speech .........

 

' SPEECH BY THE RT. HON. RAILA ODINGA, PRIME MINISTER OF THE REPUBLIC OF KENYA, DURING THE ENACTMENT OF A NEW CONSTITUTION FOR KENYA AT UHURU PARK, NAIROBI; AUGUST 27, 2010.

Your Excellency the President,

Your Excellencies Heads of State and Government

Your Excellencies the ambassadors;

Members of the diplomatic Corp;

Citizens and friends of Kenya:

Today, we mark the end of one journey, as we embark on the beginning of another.

On the Fourth of August this year, Kenyans stood one by one in the solitude of the polling booths and voted in favour of a new national Constitution. In that moment, so fleeting and yet so historic, decades of struggle for a better future were finally rewarded.

The Fourth of August will go down in history as the date on which we, the people of Kenya, formed a more united nation,  and established the groundwork for justice, unity and the full blessings of liberty for ourselves and for posterity.

No one could have thought that out of the bitter harvest of the disputed election and the violence that pitted our people against each other just two years ago, we would be witnessing today the birth of a national unity that has eluded us for more than 40 years.

Today, we close a long chapter in our history. We put repression, exclusion and heroic struggle behind us once and for all. We have opened a clean new page in our book. On that page, we begin writing the story of an equal and just society.

We gather here now to ratify the pledge we made to ourselves and to the world, that Kenya shall redeem herself and extend the frontiers of democracy and freedom. This freedom has eluded us for more than forty years. Each time we came close to attaining it, it slipped from our grasp.

Each time we missed it; ever-greater repression seemed to replace the justice we sought.

But a time comes in the life of every nation when citizens have to choose between the status quo and a future that is full of promise.

In dedicating this Supreme Law, we pay our respects to those who walked this land before us, who saw its beauty, and who fought for fulfillment for all its citizens.

We remember Pio Gama Pinto, Josiah Mwangi Kariuki, Jaramogi Oginga Odinga, Alexander Kipsang Arap Muge, Masinde Muliro, George Anyona, Katama Mkangi, Jean Marie Seroney, Henry Okullu, among many others who struggled for this day to come but did not live to see it.

We honour Kenneth Matiba, Charles Rubia, Martin Shikuku, Wangari Maaithai, Chelagat Mutai, and the Young Turks of the Second Liberation who pushed us closer to this day.

These are but a few of the Kenyan patriots who sacrificed to make today a reality. At great risks to their lives, they challenged dictatorship.

They paid great prices to liberate our country from impunity. Collectively, we owe them a debt of gratitude. In the words of the late Sir Winston Churchill…. “Never have so many, owed so much, to so few…” We thank and honour our President, Mwai Kibaki, who has today signed into law what we endorsed on the Fourth of August.

In 1992, when multiparty politics were restored to our country, Mr Kibaki joined hands with the Opposition. Ten years later, he led our country into a new era and towards the Constitution that we now unveil.

We thank the Grand Coalition Government for pulling together to deliver this critical item of our National Accord. We salute the women and the youth of Kenya for their heroic participation in the rebirth of our Nation.

We owe gratitude to His Excellency Dr Kofi Anan, a true friend of Kenya, and the team of Eminent African Personalities who stood with us at our lowest moment in our history and helped us trace our way back into sanity.

We proclaim this new Supreme Law in the firm belief that lasting peace and security and prosperity for all can only come if we all enjoy freedom and justice as equals.

The promise of this new beginning will be challenged by our traditional enemies; corruption and negative ethnicity. We must be vigilant and stop corruption from stealing our future and negative ethnicity from weakening our nationhood.

To those in charge of public affairs, may public service be what it is; public service; not self-service. This new beginning must mark the end of shallow political partisanship and herald the start of mature competition among political parties.

To all the people of Kenya, I say, thank you for taking your destiny into your own hands.

Among us today are representatives of the international community, some of whom have stood with us in good and bad times as we have continued our search for these new laws. We thank you. This Constitution is our humble contribution to the culture of democracy and human rights worldwide that you represent.

It is our solemn pledge that never again shall the laws of our land divide and authorise the repression and oppression of our people.

I have never said this with a fuller heart: God bless you all, and God bless Kenya.

Thank you.'

Source -Prime Minister Press Service.

The Kenya National Anthem - The Thread That Holds Us Together

Below are the two versions on our National Anthem ( Kiswahili and English Version).

The dreams and aspirations of our forefathers were coined in the wordings of the Anthem.

English Version of The Kenya National Anthem

O God of all creation
Bless this our land and nation
Justice be our shield and defender
May we dwell in unity
Peace and liberty
Plenty be found within our borders. 

Let one and all arise
With hearts both strong and true
Service be our earnest endeavour
And our homeland of Kenya
Heritage of splendour
Firm may we stand to defend.

Let all with one accord
In common bond united
Build this our nation together
And the glory of Kenya
The fruit of our labour
Fill every heart with thanksgiving.

 The Kiswahili Version Of the Kenya National Anthem.

Ee Mungu nguvu yetu
Ilete baraka kwetu
Haki iwe ngao na mlinzi
Natukae na undugu
Amani na uhuru
Raha tupate na ustawi.

Amkeni ndugu zetu
Tufanye sote bidii
Nasi tujitoe kwa nguvu
Nchi yetu ya Kenya
Tunayoipenda
Tuwe tayari kuilinda.

Natujenge taifa letu
Ee, ndio wajibu wetu
Kenya istahili heshima
Tuungane mikono
Pamoja kazini
Kila siku tuwe na shukrani

God bless Kenya 

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Explosions Rock Eastleigh

Breaking News Kenya;  explosions have been reported at Mlango kubwa area in Nairobi's Eastleigh Area. Sadly, A police officer is among those injured in the explosions. This is not good news for us a Kenyans.

Dear Kenyans, lets be each others keeper at this moment when the government is out fighting the way-ward rebel groups surrounding us. United we will forever stand and divided we will be destroyed.

Let us all have the Police Hotline numbers whenever we are and contact the police any time we suspect strange things or persons within our hoods.

A few Police Hotline Numbers in Nairobi:

Nairobi Central   020 - 220117

Nairobi Industrial Area - 020 - 557284

or visit  http://www.kenyapolice.go.ke   in order to access more hotline numbers.

 

We have a responsibility over each other. Be on the look and stay safe. God protect us and God bless Kenya.