Is this the return of Baba Yao?

As Nairobians wait with baited breath for the court ruling on whether city governor Evans Kidero’s win was legit, or there were glaring irregularities as former Embakasi Member of Parliament Ferdinand Waititu spectacularly claimed in his petition following his defeat six months ago, trouble seems to have pitched tent in the former’s hood.

First  came the city workers, up in arms over their dues, they chanted Waititu’s name claiming he could have solved their problems.

Then came a women Representative who claimed that the governor had spectacularly slapped her in the full glare of Television cameras.

And just when the governor was enveloped by a thick mist that the incident brought, the election court announced that it will deliver the ruling on the petition today.

What a terrible run of affairs it was.

Here are the possible scenarios that could come out of today’s verdict.

Ferdinand Waititu’s case might have convinced the judges that he did not lose fairly and that there were massive irregularities and therefore declare the election illegitimate.

Or, they might see that there were the irregularities, but not substantial enough to make the election null and void and thus throw out the petition.

Or, they might order a recount of votes and declare whoever wins as the duly elected governor,

Or none of the above.*

Whatever the outcome, we must say it was a tough week for Mr.Kidero.

In what many of the latter’s ardent fans describe as the return of Baba Yao, Waititu’s pseudo name, the question that needlessly bothers Nairobians is, Is this the return of Baba Yao?

*Let the courts decide lest we be hauled in for contempt of court.

Vanity as M.Ps plan to pull Kenyan cases out of I.C.C

Vanity of vanities. It is all vanity.

As Kenya’s top echelons of power depart for the Hague, Netherlands to fight charges of crime against humanity leveled against them by the International Criminal Court, Members of Parliament are running helter skelter, passing motions and preparing bills to stop the cases, in a last minute bid to withdraw from the international court.

It is gainsaid to say that their efforts are mere vanity and will not hold.

A law scolar intimated to this writer that despite the efforts to withdraw from the Rome statute, the legal provision that makes countries to be parties to the International Criminal Court, the cases at hand must continue to full trial, and their efforts can only be used to forestall any future contact with the Hague based court.

So, my million Dollar question goes;”What about the victims?”

Kenyan president and his deputy together with Radio journalist Joshua Sang, are facing charges of crimes against humanity and their cases have gone to full trial.

The International Criminal Court had given the trio a lifeline to be tried by Kenyan courts, and although the move was defeated in parliament where majority voted that the cases be heard at the Hague. It remains a surprise that the M.Ps now want to pull out three year later.

Perhaps reality has just given them a slap on the face and awoken them from their slumber, now that the full trial has started.

However, M.Ps allied to former Prime Minister Raila Odinga’s Orange Democratic Movement have vowed to reject, and rally some M.Ps allied to The Natianal Alliance side, the party that boasts of a majority in Parliament to support their causes in rejecting te bill on the floor of the house.

Pulling out of the international court raises serious questions on what will happen in future when the local courts fail to prosecute wrongdoers in case of a repeat of the 2007 post election violence, which claimed the lives of around 1000Kenyansand left hundreds of thousands of others displaced.

Kenya remains a highly polarized country and the events of 2007 can recur in an instant over a barrage of contentious issues dogging the population, from ethnicity to division of resources to nepotism and corruption, just what might happen in future in case one of these factors lead Kenyans to slit each other’s throats?

As we await the answers to the above questions, we hope that the trials will run smoothly and that justice for the more than 500,000 people who were displaced, and the blood of all those who were slain will be avenged, and that justice will be done, or will be seen to be done.

I rest my case.

Tough times as VAT law defiles Kenyans, condemns them to starvation

The stories of women roping their stomachs to appease the deadly pangs of hunger in far flung counties, of dying children and the blood cuddling pictures of starving, hunger stricken old women awaiting death now ring through the minds of most Kenyans as tough times reckon, this time round instigated by the same government that promised to shield its citizenry from starvation.

Tough times indeed for the common man.

It is now clear that Kenyan Members of Parliament (M.Ps) threw all caution to the wind and passed the now frowned upon and devastatingly unpopular Value Added Tax Bill (VAT Bill) that among other things sought to increase the prices for essential commodities like milk and flour, the staple for the common man. Consequently sending the cost of living to the rafters, and condemning Kenyans to a certain death knoll, death through starvation.

Death through starvation

It is common knowledge that most Kenyans live below the poverty line, or what the United Nations (U.N) describe as living below a Dollar a day.

And the move by the government can only sound like a sure death sentence.

The aftermath of the ripples created by the said law have been felt in every nook and cranny of the country, gripping a population with shock and disbelief.

The cost of everyday essentials, the basic needs like food has risen to unprecedented highs with a liter of processed milk now retailing for Shs.130, up from the previous cost of Sh. 75, the equivalent of one Dollar, while that of other commodities continue to compete on a free rise as unscrupulous traders connive with the government to rip off the already suffering Kenyan.

Majority of Kenyans eke out a precarious existence, some living off garbage while a raft of others sleep hungry hoping against hopes that tomorrow will be better, amid an avalanche of problems including run away corruption, high cost of living, poor sanitation due to a rise in population, mass unemployment, diseases ,poverty and deprivation.

Living below the poverty line

Unless the U.N redefines the popular cliché of “living below the poverty line” and sets it at three dollars a day, a colossal amount that most Kenyans will definitely not afford, it seems that one dollar can buy you nothing in Kenya now, save for a few rolls of chewing gum to assuage the dreadful pangs emanating from the empty stomach.

Or a  few rolls of toilet paper, a move which will be self defeating in that the trips to the lavatory will be infrequent and far between.

Tough times ahead

It beats logic to realize that a government cannot raise funds to finance its budget thereby resorting to hurting the already overtaxed Kenyan and subjecting him to untold suffering and hunger leaving him staring starvation, and death on the face.

And tough times are yet to come.

If Kenya Power, the company that supplies electricity decides to make good their threats of raising the cost of power due to the now effective VAT taxes, everything will shoot up, dealing the final and fatal blow to a population.

VAT Bill

The VAT Bill was passed in April 2013 and the president of the Republic of Kenya gave it the green light by assenting to its provisions, setting the stage for and seating as a judge in a case condemning Kenyans to” Death by Starvation”, and watching from the high table as the riffraff of the society, yours truly included, suffer from anguish and deprivation.

The Bill is reported to have imposed tax on previously zero rated items including foodstuff, bicycles, and a barrage of other basic necessities, only months after the new government assured Kenyans that the cost of living will be driven to an all time low and that essential goods will never be affected by the bill.

My crystal ball tells me that a hungry man is an angry man.

Kenyans are watching. Soon, push will come to shove and they will demand for justice.

Hut tax

A friend opined to this writer that during the colonial and postcolonial era, there were all sorts of taxes being levied to poor Kenyans, from the infamous hut tax, bicycle tax to a myriad of others, the government of the day defiled its populace left right and center, not only making life unbearable but also removing dignity from the very life, a scene that might sadly come back, half a century later.

I end where I started. The Kenyan scenario resembles the proverbial mother devouring her young ones.

The more things change, the more they remain the same. 

photo credits remain with respective owners.

Urinating problem seizes Nairobi City

The spectacular but few skyscrapers, the magnificently warm climate, crisp clear blue skies, the dramatic sunrise and the dreamy sunset are some of the features that throw the city into international repute.

Nairobi is truly, a city in the sun.

Away from the glare of curious tourists who frequent the city is a bleak picture of grit and sleaze, a delusion only too familiar to the locals that they have accepted it as common place.

It is a city grappling with a myriad problems, from an overwhelming influx of people who have made rural urban migration their past time, to the embarrassing problem of public urination.

Malodorous stench

From the previously well kempt flower pots to walls and trees, everyone seems to be having a goodtime irrigating the city in the sun, painting the walls wet and suffocating East Africa’s largest city with the resultant malodorous stench emanating from their irresponsible escapades.

Backstreet lanes and parking lots are worst hit.

A walk down River Road reveals the rot.

Instant urinals

Kenyans have turned every street corner a urinal. At times it gets even worse.

Shop owners have to clean their premises doors every morning after drunkards and sober men, and sometimes women, turn them into instant urinals in their wake.

A bitter man who had parked his car in downtown Ronald Ngala found rivulets emanating from the tires of his prized asset, only to learn that a man had urinated on them.

And the problem is eating into the beauty of the city like a bad strain of cancer, slowly but surely.

A few flower beds along the busy street remain barren of flowers and stand out like sore thumbs.

Reserve for women

Although tens of public toilets dot the city, the problem persists. The toilets are increasingly becoming a reserve for the women folk as men seem to have finally adopted the natural and primitive run of affairs, urinating whenever the urge bites them.

:”I always look right and left before urinating since City council askaris are always on the prowl, then do my thing,” says Waura Kameni, a fruit vendor .

Keneth Atinda, a city salesman blames the menace on the few number of toilets.

“The toilets are not well distributed sometimes you feel pressed and there are no toilets around so you just pop into the backstreet allies and relieve yourself”, he says.

Alex Ochieng operates an IKO branded toilet near Tom Mboya Street. He says business is booming but majority of their customers are women.

“We charge a paltry Kshs 10 but I think most men prefer buying other things like cigars and chewing gum rather than pay to use a toilet” he adds.

Multiple sources from City Hall, the department obligated to deal with such misdemeanors say that every day is a field day as they nab men urinating in public, in broad daylight.

Runaway corruption

“The offenders’ favorite place is Uhuru Park and other public parks, every hour we arrest them here and charge them in courts,” says one of our sources who requested anonymity.

“However, not many of those arrested appear in courts, thanks to run away corruption,” another source intimates.

“Some part with cash whenever they learn that they will be taken to courts,” our source adds.

According to city Council by laws seen by this writer, urinating in public is an offence that attracts a fine of Shs.500 or a jail term not exceeding one day.

The torrid collusion between corrupt law enforcing officers and members of the public can only leave the city with a bad smell, low tourist numbers hence dwindling revenue, and a bad repute.

As Nairobi Governor Evans Kidero braces himself for the onerous task of transforming the city to a Metropolis and restoring its jaded past, we hope he will curb the teething problem that is bound to change the city from a beauty in the sun to a urine sodden blot in a magnificent landscape.

Why Mutula’s autopsy report will never be released

His demise was a complete shocker to Kenyans.
 

A cabinet minister is found dead in his bedroom. A nation mourns. Jokes, facts, truths, propaganda and theories saturate the air.

A daily spectacularly claims he was assassinated, another chips in with a sordid claim that Mutula Kilonzo could have died of a Viagra drug overdose, a drug used to enhance stamina during sex.

Thousands of Kenyans take to social media sites Facebook and Twitter where they milk their theories dry, making wild claims and trading sick tirades. The onslaught continues…

Bloated with theories

Kenyans had been bloated with theories, information and misinformation about the death, while gutter press materials flew left right and center, quenching the massive demand for information.

Their editors go on overdrive, serving the population with uncalled for information and pure hogwash, the twists and turns changing faster than a chameleon changes colors.

Surely, everyone knew something about the mysterious death.

The government assures of a quick and transparent autopsy.

A private pathologist is flown into the country to oversee the whole process, transparency looks a sure bet, not the elusive character it was before.

After a few hours post mortem the media reports that all the pathologists were in agreement over the cause of Mr. Kilonzo’s death but surprisingly the results were to be released three months later.

Kenyans went on a daze. They had time to prove their theories and speculations right or wrong.

Few gave up, They were sure the results will never be made public. Thousands forgot.

Pockets of others hoped and waited with baited breath. They wanted to know what killed their cabinet minister.

Sinister motives

They accused the family of harboring sinister motives. Accusations were traded.

Fast forward to August 2013, more than three months later. Machakos senator Johnstone Muthama acting as the family spokesman drops the bombshell.

The family is going through a lot, including court cases and this is not the right time to release the results, he says. The results have to wait for another two months.

Deathly silence greets the announcement. Kenyans protest the declaration. Fingers are pointed at the family. 

 

Hushed tones claiming cover up start emanating from different quarters. Most whine and grumble. They had been shortchanged.

More mystery.

And the question goes unanswered, again.

What killed Mr. Mutula Kilonzo? Silence, more silence. Speculations.

And the anguish continues.

Where there is smoke there is fire. Maybe Kenyans were right. Maybe their speculations could hold water.

What if he was assassinated? We would like to know who did it and why?

And what if he had a visitor in the night preceding his demise, had fun but the reportedly blue drugs took the better off him? 

 

And what if some unknown assailant planted deadly chemicals in a bottle in his room and he drank the poison unknowingly?

And what if life had reached its natural run and it was his time to meet his creator?

Silence. More speculations.

The more things change the more they remain the same.

Someone tell us!

Not yet, Uhuru!: Fraud or blackmail? Tell us, Kethi

Not yet, Uhuru!: Fraud or blackmail? Tell us, Kethi: Her rise and fall read like a script from a Hollywood movie.  Many described her as a no nonsense young lady when she vigorous...

Fraud or blackmail? Tell us, Kethi

Her rise and fall read like a script from a Hollywood movie. 

Many described her as a no nonsense young lady when she vigorously argued cases at the Supreme court of Kenya, where she represented parties challenging the legitimacy of an Uhuru – Ruto presidential win.

She had made her name before. She had represented thousands in courts, was a daughter of a seasoned lawyer cum politician, but this particular case inked a permanent mark in her checkered career.

Three months down the line and her star is still shining bright. She was grooming herself to succeed her late father.

Her campaigns had hit feverpitch. What with denizens shouting and dancing themselves hoarse in praise of her name?

It was so clear she could have clinched the seat with a land slide win. But as fate would have it, she didn’t.

It was like De Ja Vu. Within weeks she was riding on an orgasmic wave, making news, chickening out her opponents in the race. But, within days, she was back in the courts, this time round, taking the stand reserved for the accused.

 A tribunal had to be formed to determine whether she had registered as a voter or not, a core qualification for anyone seeking political office.

It was helter skelter, the drama, the arguments, the heated submissions, the intrigues, and the hue by Kenyans who watched their inspiration being capitulated and annihilated on set. It was like a movie.

The Television cameras that made her a heroin were at it again, this time ready to undress and expose her to all.

It was a massive fall reminiscent of that from glory to grass.

Her political ambitions were hanging on a balance. Within days she had been declared unfit to run. All the political dreams she harbored were evaporating, and fast.

They say it doesn’t matter whether you fall, what matters is how fast you rise again and dust yourself up.

She proved her detractors wrong. She was made of sterner stuff.

She rose again, challenging the tribunal’s decision in the Court of Appeal which gave her the much needed lifeline.

Though she couldn’t seek election anymore, her party was given a green light to field another aspirant.

Her brother fitted the bill. He was made a king in a split second.

But her deterioration continued, it was like a bad strain of deadly cancer. Justice was after her neck.

She had helped thousands get the same justice, now roles have changed.

They say laws are cross cutting and apply to all and sundry. Sadly, the same courts that make heroes can also make villains.

Inasmuch as we loved you, there is this little thing you are not telling us. How and where did you get that voters card? You can opt to remain mum and wish the question away; unfortunately, the courts of law want the same questions answered.

Accusations of fraud, foul play, and mudslinging politics come at play. But the onus is on you alone to unleash the truth. Was it blackmail, fraud, foul play or mere poly-tricks?

We are listening……..