Kenyan Idiot

It no longer comes as too much of a shock to Kenyans when we seen live and in Technicolor that our men in blue- those that are supposed to be securing our roads and keeping us safe- accepting bribes from matatu and lorry drivers whose vehicles they should be thoroughly scrutinizing with fine tooth combs, checking and rechecking for bombs, grenades, guns and other harmful weapons and   more recently parts with which to make explosives.       But instead of looking out for the people they seem to be skimming the cream off the milk and keeping it for themselves and thus possibly endangering thousands of lives across the nation.   This is not the only safety concern we have to worry about because those with ill intent do not just lie around and do naught, they like any others who make a living do their research, learning and thinking on their feet; those in wajir have now wised up to the idea that graves are not only for the dead but that they w...

The mouth and more importantly the words that emanate from it are very powerful tools which when used recklessly, is not harnessed or for any reason goes unchecked can land anyone in real trouble and situations more slippery than quick sand. This is even truer for Kenyan politicians whose angel (who sits perched on one shoulder) seems to have taken a semi permanent hiatus or whom these men of power consistently ignore. Good Advice: ‘Never pass up a good chance to shut up’ these were the wise words of advice passed down from a father to his son- granted that the two were actors in a Series remake of the most popular soap operas in television history: Dallas remade for a newer younger audience and that both father and son are ruthless and evil, -but one must admit it’s excellent advice that Embakasi MP Ferdinand Waititu would have done well to heed. The MP whose lofty ideals of ascending to the dizzying heights of political power by securing the Governorship of Nairobi may now be ...

For any Kenyan teacher, doctor or nurse life is more about the calling that these professions are. One should ideally be ready to give more than receive- even that which is by law due to them. They will give their time and lives first with many years of schooling, then even more in University, eager, finally to get down to the hard but rewarding and gratifying work of saving and moulding lives. This is the picture anyone dreaming of a future in medicine and teaching must paint for themselves, and painstakingly nurse in their minds eye. To serve humanity, impact and often change lives, a noble cause indeed. But this long nurtured and worked for dream is quickly shattered by the harsh working conditions and almost zero like pay these young optimists will undoubtedly have to endure. When it becomes increasingly difficult to feed themselves and pay for the roof over their heads, dreams do precious little to fill a hungry belly or -if they are fortunate enou...

The conflict in the Tana Delta began almost a month ago over a struggle for land between two clans: The Orma and Pokomo it became a bloody battle between farmer and pastoralist a fight that is nothing new. The always dependable government stuck to their old and much rehearsed script: stay really quiet and hang back until things bad and several lives are lost, then send in the riot stopping squad, who do so by any means; including tear gas and live bullets, with these guys the government can be sure that the noisy riot will cease with immediate effect. These are the guys you send in when things are truly awful. And they are with mostly women and children losing their lives the word Massacre has aptly been used in describing the disaster.   Now almost a month into the fatal game retaliation and counter retaliation the government has come out of their silent, protective, cocoon imposing a curfew and talking tough. The police however seem to be reading from their own entirely blamel...

This is war: must have been the general consensus amongst the teachers around the country when they decided last week to take most drastic action that would push and press a government of elaborate promises and silver tongues into a tight corner and into submission and finally giving in to a 15 year old demand that has so far been delicately pushed aside or swept into the grave yard of forgotten promises. So the public school teachers did what all Kenyans do when they are not heard; down their chalk and step away from both blackboard and class room to take to the streets shouting and singing their displeasure for all to see, thus creating a crisis for the standard 8 and 4 th Form candidates who under normal circumstances would be preparing for these crucial exams. On their list of demands is a 300% salary hike. The teachers union have chosen mass action and disobedience of a court order to return to work while turning a stone deaf ear to a tough talking government- who continu...

Ones youth is a time like no other that bridge between child hood and irresponsibility and adulthood. Some may approach this time with maturity and common sense eager to make a smooth untroubled transition where as others see this time as one last chance and passport to lose the compass and life map one last time. This lot were perhaps the motley crew that took to the streets of an otherwise peaceful peace loving Mombasa City on Monday to protest the killing of Sheikh Aboud   Rogo Mohamed   over the weekend. Having no clues as to who sleighed the well known Al shabab sympathiser the mostly young mourners took to the streets to demonstrate their displeasure at the polices’ speed- lack their of- in solving the killing. Now there’s absolutely no problem with a group choosing to protest all that they see as wrong with the world they live in, in fact this mostly peaceful method of civil mass action has been a common and effective means to an end for many groups of disgruntled...

Cheap and illicit brews or- home made poison as they seem to prove themselves to be- are nothing new as are the dire consequences of downing these hazardous concoctions: blurred vision, severe pain, blindness and most likely death. All for a quick drink for a few hours of drunken bliss then endless hours/days of pain before death comes calling the apparent logic here in completely eludes me as I am sure many non drinkers or home brew fanatics. This must have been one of the reasons why phrases like if the deal is too good think twice or cheap is costly –or something along those lines- were coined. In the past week or so a more startling revelation was brought to the attention of those foolishly not in the know around the country when a shockingly informative investigative piece was beamed into living rooms country wide. The peace showed how a group of HIV positive women in Nairobi’s Korogocho slums use their life saving drugs to lace alcohol they brew within the slum then set loose on...