An Age of Convinience

The age we are in is often referred to as the information age and rightly so since today information is all you need to move anywhere. but information has become so much availble that it is nolonger really an age of information. Another thing that is more important in this age is convenience. I think we are currently living in an age of convinience. people want what they want but conviniently. Take phones for instance. who wants to keep on looking for keys to press to click and so on? People want touch phones with sensitive screens and shortcuts. And it doesn't matter the kind of phones the conveniences must be there.

Luckily all sorts of phones which are preferred by the majority are available with all these conveniences be they nokia touch phones or sumsung touch phones. What would you say to additional convinience of getting all this in all the colors you prefer, networks that you prefer and also in convinient monthly payments? When you add the free gifts that go with this purchase you get the absolute convininence on a variety of touch phones

The more they change ...

They say that the more things change the more they remain the same. But this statement may be exaggerated or maybe meant only for those who never look for the change or see the change. I have been reading a lot of comments about UKs budget proposal last week. I have also heard those comments or watched them. For starters the media stations were almost predictable in their reactions. KTN and group were almost expected to punch large holes into the thing. They did not disappoint. Another station Kiss Fm which has successfully converted into a book of lamentations also did us proud and went the pessimist way. they are these days good at telling us all the bad things that are happening in our country and why we can never be any better. am tired. just tired. Nation media as is charasteristic was middle ground and reserved but it was citizen which was full of optimism. In fact citizen has introduced a new refreshing segment for the weekend which talks a lot about wealth creation and who owns Kenya. its a very uplifting segment.

But what do i like about the UK budget? mostly the CDF. every time I think about it. CDF is a master piece and a silencer to those who always blames marginalization for the lack of development. granted it aint enough but like it is said in the bible, those who cant budget with 10 bob can also not budget with 100 bob. They are the people who always see the glass as half empty all the time as opposed to half full. in fact in Kenya there is a third group who say that the glass is too big else it could be full!

its all about making the most with what you have and so probably the whiners will whine for kingdom come and the optimists will prosper even in times of peril.

On another note, my catholic church is of late getting very high media attention for its dogma on celibacy and priesthood. they say priests need to marry so that they become sexually responsible. that argument makes me sick because it reduces the institution of marriage to a mere sexual union. there is more to marriage than sex and any one who gets married to have sex has lost the plot by a long shot and will not be faithful even if he were married!!!

Beating the Slump

What is the one thing you would urgently and willingly pay for during these hard economic times? For me that would be some decent piece of information on how to go against the tide and make some good money. But what if that information was available to you for free?! What if you had an information repository that gave you fast and reliable Wholesale news and even iced it with real good tips on Wholesale sources some tips of which are as hidden to the naked eye as a needle in a hay stack?!

Well it would be just the information you would want to grab and own. And with the fiber optic cable being launched this month by our good old president, the opportunities will be amazing. With super fast internet access and real time access to vast overseas markets for e-commerce, e-support (or is it i-support). ideas on Drop ship are for sure priceless.

Like they say success is made up of some good quality education but also the kind of gut feel know how that only matures with age which calls for time. But time is what you don't have especially if you must survive the slowest economic growth since the mad days of wars, coups and counter coups. That experience from traders and business people from all the five continents on Wholesale sources would be truly invaluable. Now imagine all this is all but a click away!

What they Say and What They do

Yesterday I got a long mail forward about the risks of employing a 'housie' (or maid, house help, mboch, domestic servant etc) The story told of a girl from meru who almost killed her employer in the process of robbing her of all the household valuables. It even had an ID and photo attached. Indeed recently I have been hearing a lot of stories about these very much needed workers doing all manner of wrong things and my good friend tells me of how he used to buy extra soap every week due to this pilferage. We have always avoided having an extra help in the house and have tried to do most things ourselves but sometimes it becomes just too difficult especially with the traffic jams of Nairobi. These days the earliest you can get home is 1930hrs and the earliest you must leave the house is 0600. This means that the housie is as necessary as your own job and also that they have all the time in their hands to do all that they want in your house. You basically rely on one simple thing only: their integrity.

Integrity is a word I have blogged about several times. When I saw the mail about the meru girl, I wondered why she was being sacrificed that much. I was sad because it was the same time, the PM was being cleared of maize scandal, Uhuru was going on clean about the 'error' which her has since repeated. But why am I going on about politicians now? closer home at the place I work, I was getting sad stories of senior managers who cannot keep their hands clean and who spend all their time and skill trying to outwit the company and thereby do the same as the meru mboch, kill the company in the process of robbing it of all its valuable things. one friend confessed to me how jalous she was of a former school mate. a mere 27 year old who she was telling me was already driving a range rover sport and owning his own apartment in Kileleshwa all because of 'connections with the right people in the right places!'

When will the rain stop beating us as Kenyans? why must we continue this way and who is benefiting? There is a popular saying in kenya: Where you work is where you eat. and people have taken it literally to mean you have a carte blanche to steal from anyone and anywhere as long as you are not caught.

Away from things corruption. Yesterday I saw the news about the group of Kenyan Luo elders visiting Southern Sudan to be in touch with their brothers and sisters who remained behind and I was strangely reminded of the unity thing. the strongest unifying factor is often a common threat or even common hater. M7's careless outburst about the luo may just give a good reason for the now diverse community to unite. all the way from DRC, to TZ to uganda, Sudan, Kenya and Ethiopia. Now that is one unity M7 may not really want to encourage.

But what are people saying about the Kenyan diasporians coming back to Kenya and wanting dual citizenship due to the economic downturn? They can never tough it out anywhere. They escaped to the west when things were thick in Kenya and even insulted Kenya and her governance. Now things are thick yonder and they are scampering back to relative safety!

Duty Calls

I got the now blog famous award called honest Scrap from Fanua a diasporian. And so i have to brag and do all that appertains to this degree sorry award.

1. For one I always find myself in the group of some of the most marginalized or discriminated Kenyans. Picture this: I hardly get a shoe that fits right, nor a trouser nor a suit. in fact during the Mater Heart Run last Saturday, I found out that Safaricom the shirt sponsors , had again forgotten to make a shirt that could fit me. I forced myself inside the almost 2-sizes-too-small shirt for the run. I think its time to start a maendeleo ya watu wakubwa organization.

2. Secondly I normally get that almost all my hosts cook beef for me or some beef based food. while I don't eat the stuff. Most times even in company events i get that among the snacks on the table are beef samosas, beef sausages, beef kebabs, nyama choma etc. They then claim there was a large variety of snacks!

3. Everywhere i go people always think am their tribesman. in college i even had a Kikuyu name, even at work some guys thought i was kiuk some , kamba others luhya and some even a coastal. when i went to Zimbabwe they thought i was a shona while when in down south they swore i was a Zulu. However i trust my parents.

4. Am actually a deep person and gain my strength in silence and meditation.

5. I hate Kenyan politics yet I hold two arguably political (elective) offices. I must be a walking contradiction! but the truth is i got myself into these offices by some sort of chance.

6. most people think am a great sportsman coz of my athletic build. i never help them to find out.

7. I met tribalism in its ugly sense for the first time during my first year at university. Before then I had lived in blissful ignorance in Kisumu for over 19 years. I struggled with it and it actually took me time to re-evaluate myself and accept that it wasn't me who had the problem but the tribalists who insisted on knowing my second name before having any form of engagement with me. somehow that never included asking me for my assignments!

What Others Say

This is a belated but Museveni of Uganda (ama is it ujanda) said that the jaluos will not be able to get any fish from Nam Lolwe but they could take the rocky island of migingo. But what my friends are saying is that the good old rebel was very categorical. He never said Kenyans wont be allowed to fish, he said Luos meaning the luhyas from Sio Port and other areas around the lake are welcome to continue enjoying the fleshy nile perch.

Some even say that M7 has every right to be angry with the jaluos in fact thats why he helped our own Emilio to kill those pesky citizens after the election fracas. Don't you remember him killing the jaluo president of southern Sudan Col Garang? Why, he also has first hand experience with another troublesome jaluo from Northern Ujanda. Whats more their nation of the republic of Uganda was founded by another jaluo called Obote who by his estimation plundered the country. But in another article, its reported that M7 has even bigger issues with these descendants of Sudan. And he says that it took the Ankole (meaning his ancestors) to stop the grand march of the luo. M7 asserts that anyone whose name starts with O is a luo. by extension it means nearly the whole of western Africa is luo.

But while M7 was saying that, our national chairman for maendeleo ya wanaume (someone cares for us :-)) came out to condemn the statue in front of the Nairobi high court. he says its unfair to men since its a sculpture of a young boy carrying fish (o dear fish again) and peeing in broad day light. He said that it was violation of our rights. To show that the law strips you naked and washes you clean! A woman accompanying him said it was a sinful sight. When did a picture of a naked baby boy become sinful? But others are saying that our chairman showed ignorance on national TV. He did not know the meaning of the sculpture which actually is that of the god of justice.

But that god, others say did not provide justice to Mrs. Njoya whose husband was shot dead by an aristocrat in the latters ranch. What was he doing there in the dead of the night? He was poaching. Poaching is a polite word for stealing wild animals. Only that this time the wild animals belonged to the aristocrat who keeps them for game meat and tourism. Others are saying that Njoya was doing an equivalent of cattle rustling. The young man got 8 months for his efforts, Njoya who is dead for ever will tell no tales. Though his wife was disturbingly quiet and some are saying she was promised life long financial support by the aristocrat.

Support is what one Prime minister needed to clear his and his family's names from the maize scandal. By the way in luo culture, Raila's sin of stealing maize is very bad. (raila okwalo oduma (or raila okwalo kuon))!!! sounds terrible especially when your people are starving. But he had to get support after helping another present day aristocrat a Mr. Uhuru to escape the noose!

Of city bylaws and church charges

I learn new things everyday but I wasnt a bit prepared for what I got to learn this past weekend.

That there is a city council by-law that prohibits fixing a clogged sewage system. you have to report it to city council and even though they take a month to get fuel for their car to come and inspect so that they can assign a technician to fix it, you must not try and fix it yourself. You have to put up with the threat of diseases, foul smell and everything between for that long.

That all roads and by ways belong to the council and you must not try to level them, or fill the portholes or do anything equivalent or close to making the roads passable.

That you must not plant a tree or flower on any place outside of your compound unless with express authority from the city council.

That if the grass outside of your home is grown or if the bushes are dangerously thick and could harbor car-jackers. That you mustn't touch it. (my cousin tells me in the US of A you can be arrested for not mowing your lawn :-) )

That You cant dig a flood trench or repair a clogged one unless you are a charity organization authorized by the city engineer.

That getting the city engineer in his office requires loads of prayers, good luck charms and precision timings all rolled into one!

But on another note, the new Catholic Cardinal Njue has taken church fund raising to a new level. They started by charging faithfuls to use the basilica toilets (though we actually raised funds to construct them) and I made all the noise I could about how inane this idea was. But now they are actually charging the faithfuls to pack in the yard. So its as if you have to pay gate fees to attend mass!

Real Human Body Exhibition!

Right about the time our principals were arguing about who could pack where at parliament and who had the constitutional power to take 2 spoonfuls of sugar, Gunther von Hagen , a 'mad' scientist and artist fondly called Dr. Death in Germany was mounting what is now billed as the most highly attended exhibition in the world. A unique out of this world exhibition of real human body parts stiffened and shaped into various life forms. its simply put, making art with cadavers. Using a process called plastination, Dr. Hagen basically replaces human body fluids and fatty tissues with active plastics to preserve body tissues in their real forms and also get to shape them however he wills. The bodies are donated to him by er hmm their owners!

More images of this bizare exhibition are also available here. I wish he would hold one in Kenya but the Milwaukee Public Museum has meanwhile advised those interested in attending the expose to book in advance otherwise tickets are not gauranteed.

Awuoro!

Under one Roof

You need it , we got it. A major retail chain in the country normaly boasts that way and the other day a guy asked whether you can actually buy a dream job there since hey you need it! Yet its true that they really do stock quite a bit and in one advert they even show how you can get a sweetheart there. Meaning you would have a great shoping experienec. But sometimes you never know what you need until you are told. Sometimes you may just want to shop around and find out what you are really missing.

Am thinking of new technologies for instance. How would you know the apple iphone accessories available to you unless someone actually told you or unless you saw what you were missing? Like they say, if indeed it were true to get everything under one roof life would become just more fun and more adorable. I often enjoy visiting such sites to be able not only to get what am looking for but also know what else would spice my experience be it ring tones, chargers, wallets or iphone accessories. And while at it, I like just staying on a little longer to learn the new sweet things available. It also helps sometimes to visit the online community of other consumers and get to learn about their experiences and preferences.

Peer review always works and helps you quickly decide on things quickly like what iphone accessories fit your lifestyle Or the games that engage your brain and so on.

Kenyan Public Universities: Something got to be done!

Recently when I was in Eldoret, I took time to go and pay a courtesy call to my former campus of Chepkoilel which I had left 10 years before vowing never to ever return to it again. This time I wanted to probably relive the beautiful moments and also thank it for the trouble that strengthened me and made me a better man. I hoped I would see some of the lecture theaters and also attend the famous evening prayers if only for memories sake. The front of the office block where Margret Kamar, then principal of the campus sat is pretty much the same but equity bank has a branch just next to her office and beyond I noticed that the passages have been built and students are only allowed to use the paved walkways. The lawn where we used to bask is out of bounds. Just before i could turn and go back, I noticed the old campus photographer who was called Msafiri. He remembered me quite well. He should have since he took pictures of me for four years! He was rather unchanged and even this time he had clients to whom he introduced me proudly and told them I had been there 10 years before.They proceeded to the front lobby where Msafiri took their picture as he had done to thousands who had passed here. Surprisingly the cost had remained largely the same at 30 bob but msafiri told me these days he uses the digital cameras so there were no negatives. I bid my goodbyes and turned to go but just then my cousin who had cleared here a year before called and told me it would not be right to leave before I bade good bye to his fiance who was a fourth year student of education. The lady came and took me to her room insisting that since I was the first major in-law (lol) she had met, I had to take tea. So I got my chance to visit golden 'box' one more time.

Block F which used to be the senior girls hostel used to be a very posh hostel compared to the rest. This time it surprised me. It looked more like an emerging slum. The room meant to house 2 girls is now housing 4 and they are cooking in their rooms. Each with her own electric stove! I also learnt as i sat there that they were also selling eggs in the room. Customers kept on coming one after another. I wondered loud how they were able to read with all that disturbance and now that the room was so crowded. But they told me reading was only possible in the library or lecture halls. I remembered that I was never a library person. I never liked the absolute seriousness that was always in the library. Chepkoilel was meant to be a teachers college for about 1000 students. Well now the campus of Moi University is housing close to 7000 according to my hostesses. No wonder they had to squeeze 4 girls in a room meant for two. Am told some rooms for the first years and second years house 6 roomates. Meaning that accommodation at Moi Girls high School in Eldoret is better than at campus! Whats more, getting a seat in the lecture halls is a dream and you have to take the lecture on your feat. standing for over 2 hours!

And the other day, I went to visit my brother at chiromo campus! A sorrier state. first the regular students take up the rooms then sublet them to in service students who often come during holidays. They then share one small cubicle of about 5 x 6, the 4 of them. Secondly most of the students are married. or something like that. meaning they stay together girl and boy. Now since they have rented out their rooms, 2 couples are sharing one cubicle. 1 couple on the 2 X 6 bed and the other couple on the floor. to make matters worse, they are all cooking in the rooms! When I went there, I found most girls seem pregnant.

What I wonder is, are we as Kenyans losing the meaning of everything? Yes I appreciate the need to have more people go through university. But should it be for its own sake. The simple truth which does not require a commission of inquiry is that the colleges are overcrowded. We either stop further admission or we build more lecture halls, hostels and even play grounds. secondly, the loan given to the students is simply not enough and thats why they endanger their lives cooking in the rooms, waste time going to market to buy veges, renting out rooms etc. About the coupling and pregnancies, i will leave that to sociologists to advice but something really needs to be done!

Occupational Hazards

A cruel rumor has started in our office. I call it cruel since I find it interfering with everyones job but also because it is dragging my priceless name into murk. The rumor suggests that a lady who recently got opportunities for growth was in a big way favored because of some inappropriate liaison with me. But that is a gentle way to put it , the rumor mongers are saying that she is sleeping with me! The funny part is that when I heard the rumor, I believed it myself. All the reasons and proof fit like a straitjacket! I was simply dumbfounded. In fact if it wasn't me involved, I would have sworn it was true! Its sad but this is not the first time anyway. Another case also came up when I got some favors and a manager suggested that her PA was uncharacteristically active in fronting my cause. She concluded that it was because we knew each other in biblical terms as well. These things disappoint me since it shows a lot of disrespect for women. That people believe that women can never climb the corporate ladder conventionally other than on their backs. And also that a man and woman sitting together cannot discus anything other than procreation. In campus I was likewise linked to a many women in the same breath. ( I dint discourage all of the rumors since it was also a little flattering to be linked to some drop dead beauties lol) However a lot of it could easily be explained. Firstly in campus people never slept if they had a major exam or assignment with lots of marks. They would move from room to room until they got the best paper to 'dub and compile' the winning assignment. Our room was one such stops. (But you see I didn't even say it). The other reason was that my roommate was the chairman of Catholic Students Association. So the room was a mini Vatican. Many people would come just to talk to the chairman or to see how he lived. He was such a good man too. And finally I was also directing people on drama and choir. In fact talking of drama, one time in Kisumu our drama practices almost caused a divorce! And the bad part was that I was totally unaware that the said husband was looking for me for hugging his wife. Said he: "dirama manadi mokwakonago dhako?!" (what drama that makes him hug my wife!) Its all about occupational hazards I guess

Talking of occupations and hazards, every one seems to be focused on Marende today and wondering how he will make the delicate balancing act. Me thinks there is nothing delicate here. Marende will need to just apply the law. Kibaki remains the HoG. He can appoint Kalonzo to HBC chair. Raila should just accept that he was once again hoodwinked by Kibaki. Honestly how many times can you allow one man to play around with your mind? And after you are conned why should you shout to others including the House Speaker to help you recover your lost ground. ODM should by now have learnt that they need better negotiation skills and more shrewd leaders. After all you cant hate the player, if you are also playing the game!

Economic Meltdown: Not for Kenya Real Estate?

Am just back home from an impromptu scan of real property for sale and letting in the Lower Kabete area of Nairobi. This is a plush area neighboring the real lower kabete where I once lived. I had promised myself that if I worked hard enough, saved well enough and the stock market kept its promise, I would reward myself with a plot in this area and put up a dream house amongst the whos of Nairobi. Michael Joseph and his long serving CFO would be some of my neighbors whose wives would be coming occasionally for salt or a few chit chats with my own.

The landscape has started to change markedly with most houses that stood on 1 acre plots being pulled down to give way for community living made of town houses. I went to couple of these and what I saw left me dumbfounded. Generally the houses are quite beautiful and spacious. only thing is that the gardens are pretty small and even though the units are sitting on a half acre each, the area left for afternoon lazy reading in open air is pretty confined. Secondly most constructors have not respected the eco system at all and area basically turning the area into another concrete jungle though this time with more beautiful concrete than say Kileleshwa or umoja. secondly the construction is done even on top of streams or very close to stream. Price guide? introductory price of 50 million for most. 50 mi? yes fifty million Kenyan Money. The persons who are selling somehow refused to judge me from my cover and even started negotiating with me and telling me the area was prime and the houses would appreciate further.

But but. I mean err. I thought there was economic melt down globally and so property prices were depressed. In fact in US people are now able to buy houses they never dreamed of. No correction. Economic melt down only affected hao wazungu. In fact I was being told that those very plots were going for about 6 million shillings early last year but were now only available at 24 million. 24 mil? yes 24 million per acre and since they are mostly foreign owned (in fact even these ones had strange looking specimen) no one was selling. So its 24 million and unavailable.

On the other side of the city , Southlands the houses which were about 7 million last two years are heading towards 15 million. something doesn't seem right and my smart friend has suggested to me that the pirates money is finding its way into Kenyas prime estates and if we don't watch out, Kenya will soon be a Somali state and all our poor souls will be sent to the Kiberas of this world. Now he warns that Mungiki governance is a walk in the park compared to what the war lords of Somali would be able to subject us to!

Getting Your Way in a New City

My friend told me the other day of the horror story of how he traveled abroad and went into this restaurant. He ordered what appeared as the most exotic and tasty meal but when the dish came it was to say the least inedible! He was totaly not prepared for the taste. Which reminds me of when I accompanied a friend into an Indian restaurant and was totaly at a loss on what to order. Its the same way that the prospect of travel normally excites me as much as it scares me . Thinking of meeting new people. Seeing new things getting to know new ways of doing things. However it often starts to get scary when i get to the finer details. Since travel is often for a short time and in these days quite expensive, I often get scared of the prospect of missing out on the fun because I did not choose the best restaurants get the best hotel or did not get the best entertainment. Even my own security really bothers me.

Even in a restaurant I always ask the waiters or whoever it is to recommend a dish. in a big city it can be more tricky but these days for instance you can get to know what others recommend as the best Indian restaurants London even before you plan your trip. You can even review the best and affordable hostels London and even cinemas London . Which actually does save you quite a bit of trouble trying to source the best and safest places in this grand city and its all trustworthy given that it has been reviewed by millions of people like you with varied tastes.

Of relativity and small memories

I was reminded of my birthday again as always by my kids who this time instead of asking me to give them a treat on my big day decided to instead throw me a surprise birthday bash. Everything went on surprisingly well and they managed to do their shopping, bake the cake and even craft some beautiful hand made cards for me. There was even entertainment in the form of poems, songs and dances prepared! However the funny part came when the age old happy birthday song was being sung and I had to mention my age. The part that goes, "...how old are you now" the last born volunteered instead and shouted 100! but his sister whom he follows corrected him, not hundred, 1 million! My wife and I burst out laughing and the visibly confused young people looked at us in disappointment and disapproval. The older kids told them it should be much less. That in fact they should divide the 100 by 3! the boy was very disappointed. How could dad have such few years. He said I had to have 100 years since I can change the light bulbs while standing perfectly on the floor. As in I don't even have to use a ladder or a stool! Second justification is that I always carry their bike with one hand and many other small proofs of my age. Its all about relativity I guess. But due to relativity again I was impressed at their organizational skills relative to their ages and even the idea of a surprise for 1 the million year old dad. no one betrayed their conspiracy, not even the young ones who I thought were always on my side!

But this year I got quite a number of birthday wishes from all over the world some from long lost friends. I thought I had suddenly become a celeb of sorts or that the stars had finally aligned in my favor. But my witty and up-town nephew blew my bubble and informed me that facebook was to thank for all those friends remembering my big day. Another great thing from innovation of the internet.

On another note; my thoughts go to those many families who lost their beloved ones in the senseless and chilling murder in Karatina yesterday. The sadder part is that their killers will never be brought to book and that the danger of their spreading to other parts of the country is growing ever more real given we indeed have an ineffective PM and a moribund President.

A moment With an MP

My friend has indicated to me that he will be in the running for parliamentary office come 2012 and he has told me (not requested) that I will support him in deed and spirit. (he doesn't come from my constituency). He doesn't have to be persuaded or dissuaded since politics runs in their family.

However for me any minute political ambitions I could have hitherto nursed evaporated last week when I went to see my MP and Minister for Lands. Because of the project in Urenga that I have been working on, the man has constantly sought to meet me and sent a number of people informally to me. I felt flattered to be sought by such a strong man. The other day when I passed by home, the school committee chairman insisted that we would use the opportunity to see the MP since he had also come the previous night. I was told the minister woke early and so we had to go by 9AM. However because of late breakfast and some other 'unavoidable' circumstances, we got to his home at about 11AM. I was surprised to find out that it was only 1KM or less from my home.

Getting to the home, I almost turned. The home was packed with villages of all shapes sizes and shades! old women, old men, young men and women. some sitting others standing. some in small groups and some alone staring pensively at some white house beyond the gate. I later learned that this was a new home and the minister still stayed in the old home. The chairman encouraged me to go ahead and enter the home. some helpful young man who I leter learned was the usher directed us where to pack.

The minister was still asleep and we were told he had come home in the early hours of the morning. The chairman told me the crowd would be dispensed of in a twinkle of an eye. The MP would see all of them and it would be very fast. I was told most of the crowd was people of 'gonya'. 'Gonya' is the term locals use to indicate to you to give them money either for being your relative, or your dads friend or the person who saw you when you were born or who came to visit you when your dad was working in Kisumu or because they told you that you are driving a nice car any other reason that is taxable. Its a sort of a relationship tax. For an MP every constituent is entitled to 'gonya'. I was told Orengo always has wards of new crisp 50 bob notes that he uses for that purpose.

I soon got tired of waiting and wanted to leave but a whisper went round that the MP was in the shower and would soon come. Soon there was another whisper that he was taking breakfast. Luckily the chairman knew the usher and told him who I was and what I was doing for the village. We were immediately taken to a waiting room next to the 'office' of the MP. We would be the second in once he came. We waited there and talked. Soon the man came and we went in. He looked apprehensive at first on seeing me but after while he oppened up and said he wanted us to work together. He even explained that he had stayed up late in Bondo the previous night and only got home at about 4AM. He was also scheduled to go to Sabatia to attend the burial of the sister of the Deputy Prime minister. However before that he had to see each of all those constituents in his compound! With that I stood to go after exchanging contacts and agreeing to call each other to make plans.

On our way back I couldn't help but ask the chairman what all those people would be seeking. He told me that the needs were varied. Some people would come to tell the minister to help them with school fees, or with paying dowry, or burying their father in law. Or that their house was leaking and needed a new roof or that their son got lost in Nairobi and they wanted fare to go get them. or that their neighbor who had borrowed their chicken when they had guests had declined to pay and so the minister needed to step in! At the end each person would get at least 50 shillings and also a meal of ugali with meat. The meals I was told were a daily thing even when the MP wasn't home!

I was dumb founded. What about his own privacy! When does he get to talk to his wife, kids, mother, brothers cousins , unties, etc!!! and when does he even get to take a walk around the home to enjoy the otherwise fresh breeze and the beautifully rolling land full of greenery? When does he get to sit under the shadows of the beautiful mangoe trees and put his legs up on a reed-made stool sipping busaa and catching up on the wars of the president and Prime Minister on Lolwe FM???!!!

If that is the life of an MP, obed!

Of Moving and Conviniences

Its often said that a rolling stone gathers no moss. Meaning in the converse that a stationary stone does gather moss. Maybe thats why when you are living in a house you tend to gather quite a bit of stuff which you dont realise until you attempt to move house. I realised this the time I was moving from the 10 by 10 servants quarter I rented in South C to a more specious house in Lower Kabete. I had thought all along that my greatest possession was my bed and mattress so I just got a taxi driver, dismantled the bed and set off to move! It was a serious miscalculation.

I find moving house very tiring , tedious and risky. Lots of things can go wrong. Delicate items can break, a number of things can be misplaced and so on. But thank God for his constant mercies and thank innovation for making life bearable. The internet has offered such easy services as finding a moving company at the click of a button. It makes the tiresome task a cinch and even if you are in a situation like mine where your stuff may not be so much as to require an elaborate plan. That by a click of a button you can get free removal quotes source a man and van to move you.

The second time I was moving from Lower Kabete, I had to be more careful. There were kids involved and they had many little things which while to me would have been better thrown away, were to to them very important and had to be taken very good care of. Additionaly I had to make sure I too never lost those small valuable gifts, souvenirs and so on. I had this time to just employ the services of a removal company to take the headache. plan the move, pack the stuff transfer, unpack and position them.

A Silver Lining,

A lot of good work seems to be happening in spite of the constant quarrels in the government of coalition. Driving to Western Kenya last week made me see sense. The road to Nakuru to start with is nywee all the way and Nakuru itself now has dual carriage from around lanet. the road is well lit with beautiful flowers planted in between the carriages. The road is good all the way past Kabarak, Eldama ravine, maji mazuri and onward to the Eldoret. There is a small section on Eldoret road which is very bad but the engineers are on site and its actually being fixed. However while the road constructors have done their part, the people who should manage it are probably sleeping on the job since the overloaded trucks have actually'dug' furrows on the road due to the load and you have to be careful when driving. Eldoret is as beautiful as it was when I was a student here though it has become more packed and populated. Very many cars and getting parking is as hard as in Nairobi. The hotels are of low standard though. Looking at people here, they seem very content and food is not one of their worries. They also look very healthy. Onward to Kitale, only about 20 kms of the road are kinda bad the rest is mteremko till the agricultural town of Kitale. Happy people. Small sweet town. It was my first time here. Actually when you are in kitale, its hard to imagine that some parts of Kenya are without rain or food.

The road from Kitale to Kimilili is very good. Even the one to Bungoma. Bungoma to mumias and mayoni are ish ish but mumias to mayoni itself is sweetly smooth. After mayoni it was rough road till my home but thank God for small mercies. Having 'one of us' in the government has made the road be nicely graded and leveled making the driving experience very good. From home I went to Kisii through Kisumu. Of all that almost a distance of 200Kms, only about 20Km needs work. The rest is very good. Kisumu Nairobi Road is now quite good and the drive is heavenly. I thought they could have made it a little wider though. there are too many large trucks on this highway so you have to go slowly on most parts.

Generally the road network has very good improvement and areas which are bad are being worked on. Something to smile about the coalition after all.

Of Weddings and Exploitation

Yesterday I got a rant-call while driving to Kisii. A friend of mine wanted to ventilate on what she said was blatant abuse of friendship by a mutual friend of ours from back in the day. The issue here was that our friend is finally getting 'hitched' as she put it and to do that she had invited her friends from college days to contribute generously towards realizing a dream fairy tale and celebrity wedding.

1. The chick in question wants all her designer wedding props and accessories bought in the US of A (nothing wrong with that)
2. Her bridal team should be chauffeured in a state of the art stretch mercs (nothing wrong at all)
3. The flowers should be the best of cuts arranged by leading celebrity florists in Nairobi(still very good)
4. Catering to be done by a five star hotel's outside catering dept (perfect)
5. There may be rain so the giant marquee to be hired and seats nicely decorated

Well the rain starts beating the whole arrangement when you consider that the budget is running into close to a million rare Kenyan shillings and our friend and her groom have between them about 250,000 only. The rest of the budget must be shouldred by the committee. Second contentious agenda item; These people have been working for more than 10 years and they are in some quite good employments!

My friend ( the 'ranter') is angry and was wondering why Kenyans keep on wanting to depend on donors? Secondly, why do they want us to believe they are capable when indeed they aren't? And why do they want other people to shoulder their responsibility? And who said a wedding was an emergency that requires a harammbee? If they wanted such a fairy tale wedding why didnt they save for it for those past 10 years they have been in gainful employment? Or why cant they take a non secured loan from those banks hawking loans to get their dream??? Why her and her friends???

Well the rant-call lasted me the drive from Ahero to almost Oyugis a distance close to 80KMs. Somehow I surprised myself listening and driving. maybe coz I was otherwise bored on the road alone. But I only had a simple question: Why do people (Kenyans) allow themselves to be exploited and never lift a finger. Only choosing to rant to someone else. Why couldn't my friend (the ranter) tell her friend that she couldn't contribute to their wedding? I have a friend who never takes part in such committees and she says it plain and simple: "I will bring you a present but I wont give you money to get married. Its your responsibility and if you cant afford a wedding, please consider putting off the marriage coz marriage is more expensive than a wedding"

I gave my friend that option but she said it would look bad as such matters were sensitive. It was better to accept the exploitation!

Good Martha; Now Apologize.

The big news today is that one Martha Karua has resigned. there are analysts going over themselves trying to explain to us the significance of the resignation and what it portends to Kibaki side of ruins. My thinking is that after resigning, Karua has to do the next noble thing; apologize for two reasons:

1. contributing to the still birth of the second liberation and making us miss a new constitution in 2003. she was one of the very vocal supporters of the constitution she now wants changed.

2. For contributing immensely towards daylight robbery of an election in 2007.

And I put it to Martha that her resignation has nothing to do with us or the country, its all about her and a deal gone sour. Martha must have thought that by helping Kibaki go around the constitutional change and also working very hard to help Kibaki remain in power even after losing that she was inheriting the support and goodwill of Kibakis friends. she should have learnt from Raila himself. Moi told him KANU had its owners.The lady should have known that the succession has its owners.

However if she doesn't come out and apologize to all of us for bringing our country to near collapse for the sake of one man's desire to continue martgaging Kenya then her so called resignation is as strong as the shadow of the cockrel who had been starved to death.

KU Strike

I read somewhere that when former UN secretary general came to Kenya in 2008 to try and resolve the PEV crisis, he was genuinely sorry for Raila Odinga as he clearly could see that the man was hurting after his election victory was stolen, however his feelings for Raila were neutralized by the violence , death and destruction in most parts of the Rift Valley. He was reportedly saddened by the plight of the displaced people, the children burnt in churches and many other unimaginable acts. In short The violence meted by Raila's supporters mainly in Rift Valley sanctified Kibaki's heartless robbery of the 2007 election.

Last night when I heard of KU's strike, I felt like getting some good prime time to give those kids a lesson or two on life ,responsibility and how to manage conflicts. I wanted to tell them that their disagreements with their administration have nothing to do with innocent Kenyans using the busy Thika road to and from work. I wanted to tell them that no employer was interested in people who fought each time they disagreed with others. I was angry! But this evening I have seen very disturbing footage of the response of policemen on the riot and how they beat the defenseless students with abandon. the students were already seated in submission but the men in uniform went on hitting them with clubs like millet! The screams for mercy from the poor young men and women cut through my heart like a razor. The were then frog matched in two rows into a waiting lorry. In fact this team was not rioting, they were hiding in the womens hostel. (most probably from their other colleagues)

This picture immediately sanctified the actions of the students. Its now difficult for me to condemn them. They sinned yes. But was this the best response. In fact what I know is that in a university, the people who strike are often less than 10% of the population. Its therefore very wrong to let the whole population suffer such miseries for the belligerence of a few.

On another note, I have always asked myself why Universities must be headed by academicians. These people are in the best, book worms, research experts and basically people with little or no social skills. In fact back in college we used to see how they used to even struggle with such mundane issues as handling relationships and emotions and enough girls and their boy friends were penalized for turning down advances from lecturers or uplifted for playing ball. I used to see that as an example of poor social and people skills. Mainly due to too much isolation to focus on academics.

I therefore concluded that the administration of the institutions would be best left to industry professionals. who understand a thing or two about market dynamics, human and social trends and plain business management.