What's up!!

I have not been around these parts for a looooong time!  I have not posted since June 2013.  I have been up to plenty but just to give you a snap shot, here goes.

I got really active in politics, joining a Political Party and becoming part of a Presidential Campaign team for one of the candidates in the last general elections.  Politics is a roller coaster, and I still remember the days and nights spent at Bomas of Kenya observing the goings on during the tallying of the presidential vote, it gives me the chills!

After the elections, my candidate was unsuccessful by the way, I went into Political Analysis, doing weekly analysis on K24's State of the Nation with my learned Senior Ms. Jennifer Shamalla and the charming Richard Kagoe.  After one season, the show mutated and so we moved on to other things.  I kept working on the EACLJ's main agenda which is legislation and policy monitoring.  This takes up most of the energy and time, with so many bills being debated and passed before the constitutional deadlines.

EACLJ found ourselves in court for the Church after the State required more than was necessary with the enactment of the Marriage Act.  The threatened regulation of Church by State, clearly contradicting the notion of separation of Church and State has also got us scrambling to restore some sanity and civility between the Church and the Attorney General.

In that time as well, while I was away, Stephen and I were blessed with a brand new daughter, Persiah Elaine.  She is a miracle and a blessing that the whole family is continually rejoicing over.  The pregnancy and birth and last eight months together have been tough but worth it.  I have found that I am not coping as well as I did with my older children, I am more sluggish and mummy brain is real people, it is real!!!! And Evil!!!  Simple cure for it is time, as baby grows and the worries ease, I am getting my mojo back, slowly and surely.  In the words made famous by the Terminator, "I will be back!"

Now that is you caught up on the important parts of the last two years.  Now back to blogging.  You know this current political climate cannot be ignored any more.  I have to say something!!  Beginning with a recap of where I left off.  Check out the next blog post for more on this.  Meantime, read this so you know what I am referring to in my next blog post.

http://joymdivo.blogspot.co.ke/2013/06/put-up-your-hand-if-you-are-fed-up-with.html

Cheers!!

FROM KATIBA MPYA TO KENYA MPYA

The new Constitution has been developed in a spirit of “for Kenyans by Kenyans”.  Now that it is in force, how much of it will benefit Kenyans will be the true test of the success of our efforts as the Kenyans responsible for the ushering in of this new Constitution.

In 1963 during the Lancaster process, Kenyans were represented by the elite of the day. They brought the different concerns that ruled the day, and they were able to have a document negotiated to suit all of us.  Surprisingly under the KANU regime all this was barstadised and we were left with a constitution designed by the ruling class for their own benefit.  This made it impossible for a level playing field to be achieved in all spheres of life, politically, socially, economically, culturally; the perfect breeding ground for all manner of ills to thrive.

The New Constitution in spirit has changed most of that, and its similarity to the 1963 document on many issues is notable.  One major similarity is the notion that some form of regional autonomy, to ensure that people had a say in their region’s progress and governance.  The new County system will address this to a certain extent, although the notion of autonomy is clearly ruled out by the size of the counties, too small to be viable on their own.  We no longer have the “Majimbo” of 1963.

How do we translate the spirit embodied in Uhuru Gardens all those years ago when our flag was raised for the first time, and bring it to today?  The new Constitution has wonderful provisions for every citizen.  The implementation of the Constitution right now is at the Institutional Level.  However, it is necessary for this to be extended back to Kenya’s citizens.  The number of times you hear “Tunaiomba Serikali iingilie kati” tells you, for the majority of Kenyans, change is still something that the Government ought to effect.  None sees it as their personal responsibility, which is given to the people by educating them on what is expected of them.  Many Kenyans voted for a new Constitution, few still understand what is in it.

It is time the Middle class of Kenya woke up from their stupor.  The power game in Kenya has been played mostly between the Super-Rich ruling class manipulating the very poor masses.  The formula is “POLITICS = MONEY + NUMBERS.   Therefore, those of us in the middle class feel we have neither the ability nor inclination to bother with politics.  The middle class has intellect.  We waste it being part of “Think Tanks” or “Strategic Teams”.  Time has come for us to take the fight to the Ruling Class turf.  The campaign by President Obama was successful because the working class took it upon themselves to set the agenda.  Why not us?  Why do we help people of questionable credentials in their quest for public office?  Individuals whose track record in their occupations is less than mediocre, how are they able to suddenly develop the policies to govern us?  Why are we satisfied to have gross incompetence be the trademark of our generation?

Nationhood is promoted if people believe they have a real stake in the country.  Right now, most people are trying their best just to stay alive.  Civil Society sets the tone for the legislative agenda by holding endless workshops and seminars whilst wananchi are oblivious.  It is time the real co-relation between governance and their daily life was made apparent.  Until now this means “vote for me and the road will be tarmacked.”  We must evaluate candidates based on track record, not future promises. That is why we buy insurance; the promise of safety “just-in-case”.

Up until this point in our Nation’s history, the common thread has been one of treachery, deception, betrayal, cunning, stealth and corruption.  Political parties are some of the most secretive organisations, whose workings are a mystery even to those in them.  Leaders make the most promises, and break them at will and whim.  Gentlemen’s agreements mean nothing; back stabbing is the order of the day. (Remember the infamous Kibaki-Raila MoU?)  This has percolated to society, even Sacco elections are marked with such intrigue, it is comical.  Once one is successful, then they do their best to reap the whirlwind.  Impunity goes all the way to the Mama Mboga, who overcharges you simply because you “look like money”, or a matatu tout who doubles the fare because it has started to rain!  Kenyans have bought the lie, that power is the only means to get and safeguard wealth.  That is why groups like Mungiki thrive, they gain power by terrorism, and use that power to extort.  

Someone needs to press control-alt-delete, and reboot this Nation’s psyche. 

The leader must be redefined as a servant, not a king.  The leader must be seen on a regular basis actually rolling up his sleeves and getting stuck in it.  Now that we have leadership all the way from the county assembly, we can start showing good governance from our local level, and capillary action will see it ascend to the top.   The participation of the citizen has to be not only at the stage of voting, but also in the contribution of ideas and expertise.  Executive Committees offer a great opportunity to do this.  With the introduction a few years ago of performance contracts, consequences must follow dismal showings.  Accountability must be a verb, not a noun in Kenyan vocabulary.

Change does not come from the Constitution as a document.  Indeed the document we have has grave shortcomings, oversights, and overkill.  Real change will come from Kenyans themselves having a complete change in attitude.  A paradigm shift that will see us reject the notion of mediocrity from our own dealings, and translate this higher standard to leadership.  We must each stand up to be counted, as our National Anthem so aptly puts it

“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!”

Put up your hand if you are fed up with the 11th parliament already!

I said it before and I shall say it again, Kenyans passed a new constitution that did away with the notion of one man becoming a dictator, and instead exchanged it with a dictatorship by 350 people, namely, members of the National Assembly.  This is particularly worse in my opinion, because there is only so much guilt one person can handle before his conscience kicks in, or his heart stops beating.  Whichever way, once that one changes his mind or his ways, we are saved.  However, 350 people act like a mob.  Anyone knows if one dog attacks you, chances of you subduing him are high.  If a pack of two or more dogs attack you, find a tree and stay up there.  The pack mentality means, the timid ones feed off the energy of the high strung ones.  Those high strung ones get buoyed by the fact that the others are enamoured by them, and so showmanship takes over.  The evil ones, camouflage themselves in the argument, and advance their evil schemes hijacking the process to achieve their own malevolent ends.

We are to have a National Assembly with 350 members.  The recurrent expenditure is so high, that we are now faced with a real dilemma.  Seeing as Parliament has been left with all the major cards, of making budgets, approving expenditure, vetting Presidential appointments and other such things, no Parliament quite simply means no Government.  This muscle is what they are flexing, trying to force the rest of us to starve so that they may eat.  They don’t want a piece of the cake, they want the whole of it!  The hapless Senate is left to make protestations and try to assert their authority.  They then come to the realisation, they were given the car, the keys, a full tank, but the wheels were taken off.  They seem like they have work to do, but they are all dressed up with nowhere to go.  One member of the National Assembly even said “if the Senators have nothing to do, let them talk nicely to us, we will find them something to do!”  That was the weakness in our constitution making process in 2010.  The people responsible for making it happen, were themselves direct stakeholders in the same, and they took care of their interests to the exclusion of all others.

Chapter 8 of the Constitution establishes our Bi-Cameral House.  Article 97 sets out that we shall elect 290 MPs, 47 Women, 12 Special interest nominees and the Speaker.  Let us see what this means for Kenyans.  Already, the recent salary increase clamour for Teachers has meant that some projects will have to be scaled down, or shelved altogether, maybe the laptop project, maybe not.  There is also the possibility of tax increases to cover the same.  There are rumours of the re-tabling of the VAT Bill, and other means of Uncle Sam getting his pound of flesh.  Never mind we lose one third of our GDP to corruption and wasteful spending.  Now, in a situation where we have 350 Members of Parliament, it means current estimates of Kes 4 billion per year in salaries and allowances will go up.  Put this more accurately, that is more for office space, drivers, secretaries, security detail, offices, fresh flowers and all the Daily Newspapers delivered as of right to the new Constituencied and Constituency-less Waheshimiwa.  It does not take/require a genius to see that we cannot afford this, and more importantly, we do not want this.  So where do we go from here?

The New Constitution has tried to make the Executive lean and efficient by even prescribing the maximum number of Ministries the President must work with.  The intention therefore of Kenyans is not to have a larger Parliament, but to have a more representative one.  The 10^th Parliament was not famous for being sufficiently philanthropic to the ordinary Mwananchi’s plight, and apparently, neither is the 11^th parliament.  On this one, our hero must be an outsider.  Like Zorro did for the villagers in the movie, we may need an intervention so radical that will achieve what we want notwithstanding the members of the 11^th Parliament and their machinations.

My suggestion to get out of this quagmire is simply this.  The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission should use its powers to delineate the Constituency to be synonymous in size with the County.  Under the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission Act No 9 of 2011, Section 4(c)

4.   As provided for by Article 88(4) of the Constitution, the Commission is responsible for conducting or supervising referenda and elections to any elective body or office established by the Constitution, and any other elections as prescribed by an Act of Parliament and, in particular, for—

(c) the delimitation of constituencies and wards using appropriate technologies and approaches;

If we look at the Constitution of Kenya, then we see where this power originates from. Article 89 is specific on this power.  There is a proviso that the review should be completed at least 12months prior to the elections.  However, desperate times call for desperate measures, and I believe, if ever there was a time for the case to be made for Kenyans by Kenyans, it is now.   If we will have Wards,  each ward will have a Representative in the County Assembly.  This means that bread and butter issues of the Citizens will be dealt with closer to home: In the County Assembly.  Therefore the role of the Constituency of mwananchi representation is not central, Parliament’s role and structure has also changed.  A lean and mean parliament can do just as well as a bloated one, if not better.  A constituency should be delineated to become the size of the County for purposes.

Level Playing Field

This theory makes sense as well in the quest for free and fair elections.  Elections are hard fought in Kenya.  For them to be fair, everyone must be playing in the same arena.  Women Representatives, Governors and Senators seek their mandate from the whole County.  To level things off, members of national assembly should seek a countywide mandate as well.  Currently, a woman MP with the whole county behind her should have more clout than an ordinary MP in the current set up.  Why not round everything off nicely?  Each County therefore should produce one Male and one Female Member of Parliament, and we still retain the 12 special interest seats.  That way, the gender rule will be progressively achieved.  This means we will have a national assembly with a total of 107 members made up of 47 male, 47 female, 12 special interest group nominees and a Speaker.  Not only can we better afford 107 members, as compared to 350 members, the playing field will be levelled for all persons seeking elective posts, since they will have countywide support.

Given the vast powers that the National Assembly will have, it is vital for the people going there to have the widest mandate possible as is with the Senators.  Each Party only has to nominate one man and one woman to go on the ballot, and each stand equal chance of being elected.  It is time for the Members of the 11^th Parliament to wake up and smell the coffee.  We did not get rid of dictatorship by the President to swap it with dictatorship by Parliament.  We are not interested if some of them "lose" their seats since they are not theirs to keep, but ours to give to whom we please.  Time has come for them to put Kenya ahead of their own selfish interests and make the right decision for Kenya.  

However, we know they will not, since they are too interested in making the chairs more cushy for themselves.  That is why the Constituion availed the possibility of amendment of the constitution by popular initiative.  We need to get this idea down into a Bill, present it to all the County assemblies.  If at least 26 assemblies adopt it, then we present it to the national assembly.  If they decline to listen to our views and amend the law accordingly, then the IEBC will put the question to Kenyans in a Referrendum.  If the Kenyans adopt it, it stands so amended.  While we are  changing representation to the national assembly from the constituency to the county, we might as well also amend the constitution to give the Senate teeth over the national assembly.  They have clearly demonstrated they cannot police themselves, so time for us to go ahead and tell Senate to wield a whip over them.  These measures will not only save us some money, but will release what we need to move this country forward.  It is strike season already, we need to pay the teachers, and doctors, and nurses, and lecturers and civil servants.....

Haya Basi Tushatuliza, Kisha?

What do we do between 4/3/13 and 14/5/13?  This is one of the most oft asked question in follow up to my last blog post is, since we have such a long wait, what will be happening in the mean time?  There are few scenarios that would play themselves out, but instead, let us concentrate on the most likely ones.

I will start with the thought I left off on the last blog post.  We need to be more vigilant over who we vote for come the general election, especially those who will be in charge of the County Government.  Pay very close attention to who you choose for your Governor, since he is the first "president" you will have, incharge of your immediate domicile.  Also choose your county representative carefully, he will be the one who determines if the local primary school gets the extra classrooms it needs, or whether they will push for tenders to give themselves business.  As per the Constitution, the county government will be the primary service provider of governance for the common mwananchi.  This being the case, if there is no challenge to the election, the Governor and his county representatives should be sworn in within 14 days of the election.  This means, they will start the business of governance at least two months before the President takes oath of office.  The county government will have its own cabinet, referred to as Executive Committee, which will start the process of deciding how much we will pay to do business in that county, what we will need in order to have a good time in the local pub and such mundane issues.  if they so want, as stipulated in the schedule, they can even decide to have all dogs registered and the owners required to have collars for their mongrels.

We also must choose the member of the National Assembly carefully.  In passing the new Constitution, we did away with dictatorship by one person, and legislated dictatorship by 350 people.  One only see how powerful and unstoppable the 10th parliament was after the constitution passed.  They will vet all presidential appointees, they will decide how the 15% that is to go to Counties will be dished out (though thankfully there is a formula they must use to do this)  They will decide how the equalisation fund will be used.  They will make laws concerning the land.  In this vein, we must also look carefully at the choice of the Super MP.  This is who is commonly referred to as the Women's Rep.  She is the only member of the National Assembly who will have a countywide mandate rather than a constituency only.  These are the women who will be like free radicals in the house, the swing vote if you wish.  If we have an impressionable lot, we can be sure they will not do what sent them to the House.  Since the Senator's role is quite sedentary in the early days of government, we can pick the candidate we see potential in, since the role of Senator as per the Kenyan context is very unlike what we had post independence, and quite unlike what it is in other jurisdictions with bi-cameral houses.

We need to be extra careful who we choose to vote for, and how we conduct the polls.  If there is a fall out prior to the results being announced, the tensions will make it more difficult to await an outcome.  If the Presidential race is tense, we may find the county governments unable to operate because the politicians are still haggling over what will happen in State House.  In fact, we are in graver danger of the elected county reps and governors failing to start work, rather than the electorate revolting.  We need to ensure that we are vigilant enough to let them know, that they must start work immediately so that we are able to have a smoother transition.

What will happen after March 4th? On March 5th we will be back to work, since the Government only gave us one day off to go and vote.  The Governor will take over from the County Commissioner.  The assets and liabilities of the County will now have custodians, and so the process of sharing this out will begin.  Civil Servants will be re-deployed, and the big shift will happen.  The transition from the former constitution to this will be in its final stages.

One thing we must remember, violence needs opponents facing off.  If we refuse to face off physically, the transition should be interesting to watch and maybe even smooth.  The thing that should be consistent, is the obstinate refusal to yield to the temptation of running the streets to "agitate" for what we perceive is ours to have. We have prayed, we have talked peace, we have pledged peace and it is almost time to practise what we have been preaching.  As it says in Ecclesiastes 8, there is a time for everything and a season for every purpose under heaven.  This Election too, shall come to pass.

Tushatuliza, Kisha?

One of the most oft asked question in follow up to my last blog post is, since we have such a long wait, what will be happening in the mean time?  There are few scenarios that would play themselves out, but instead, let us concentrate on the most likely ones.

I will start with the thought I left off on the last blog post.  We need to be more vigilant over who we vote for come the general election, especially those who will be in charge of the County Government.  Pay very close attention to who you choose for your Governor, since he is the first "president" you will have, incharge of your immediate domicile.  Also choose your county representative carefully, he will be the one who determines if the local primary school gets the extra classrooms it needs, or whether they will push for tenders to give themselves business.  As per the Constitution, the county government will be the primary service provider of governance for the common mwananchi.  This being the case, if there is no challenge to the election, the Governor and his county representatives should be sworn in within 14 days of the election.  This means, they will start the business of governance at least two months before the President takes oath of office.  The county government will have its own cabinet, referred to as Executive Committee, which will start the process of deciding how much we will pay to do business in that county, what we will need in order to have a good time in the local pub and such mundane issues.  if they so want, as stipulated in the schedule, they can even decide to have all dogs registered and the owners required to have collars for their mongrels.

We also must choose the member of the National Assembly carefully.  In passing the new Constitution, we did away with dictatorship by one person, and legislated dictatorship by 350 people.  One only see how powerful and unstoppable the 10th parliament was after the constitution passed.  They will vet all presidential appointees, they will decide how the 15% that is to go to Counties will be dished out (though thankfully there is a formula they must use to do this)  They will decide how the equalisation fund will be used.  They will make laws concerning the land.  In this vein, we must also look carefully at the choice of the Super MP.  This is who is commonly referred to as the Women's Rep.  She is the only member of the National Assembly who will have a countywide mandate rather than a constituency only.  These are the women who will be like free radicals in the house, the swing vote if you wish.  If we have an impressionable lot, we can be sure they will not do what sent them to the House.  Since the Senator's role is quite sedentary in the early days of government, we can pick the candidate we see potential in, since the role of Senator as per the Kenyan context is very unlike what we had post independence, and quite unlike what it is in other jurisdictions with bi-cameral houses.

We need to be extra careful who we choose to vote for, and how we conduct the polls.  If there is a fall out prior to the results being announced, the tensions will make it more difficult to await an outcome.  If the Presidential race is tense, we may find the county governments unable to operate because the politicians are still haggling over what will happen in State House.  In fact, we are in graver danger of the elected county reps and governors failing to start work, rather than the electorate revolting.  We need to ensure that we are vigilant enough to let them know, that they must start work immediately so that we are able to have a smoother transition.

What will happen after March 4th? On March 5th we will be back to work, since the Government only gave us one day off to go and vote.  The Governor will take over from the County Commissioner.  The assets and liabilities of the County will now have custodians, and so the process of sharing this out will begin.  Civil Servants will be re-deployed, and the big shift will happen.  The transition from the former constitution to this will be in its final stages.

One thing we must remember, violence needs opponents facing off.  If we refuse to face off physically, the transition should be interesting to watch and maybe even smooth.  The thing that should be consistent, is the obstinate refusal to yield to the temptation of running the streets to "agitate" for what we perceive is ours to have. We have prayed, we have talked peace, we have pledged peace and it is almost time to practise what we have been preaching.  As it says in Ecclesiastes 8, there is a time for everything and a season for every purpose under heaven.  This Election too, shall come to pass.

Wakenya Tulizeni Boli. Bado Tena Bado Sana!

One thing I have heard over and over again is, "I cannot wait for March 5th, then all the madness will be behind us."  Whenever I hear this I cringe because for sure, it will not be over on March 5th, indeed, it will have just began.  Let me explain.

When we voted in the Constitution in 2010, in it were some very prescriptive detail on how we are to conduct our affairs.  This is one of the biggest criticism I have of our Constitution.  It wants to be Constitution and statute all rolled in one.  One of the most prescriptive parts of the Constitution are those that have to do with elections.  Given our history, one can see why the Committee of experts felt they should go into overkill.  However, in their responding to the emotion of the day, we are now saddled with a reality that few of us had anticipated.

Kenya has elections slated for the 4th of March 2013.  She is going to the polls to elect a whole new system of Government, a return to bi-cameral parliament, as well as the establishment of 47 Counties, each with its own County Government.  However, all those other positions being contested are eclipsed by the presidential election.  It is so hotly contested, that the election fever is now burning us literally with people becoming apprehensive of violence. I wish Kenyans would realise how long a wait we are in for, they would realise we cannot sustain this high tempo momentum for long, because it will take us all of three months to install a newly elected President.

When we go to the polls on March 4th, the Constitution gives the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission 7 days within which the results must be announced.  Of course nothing stops them from announcing earlier than the 7 days, but if they stretch it to the limit, this takes us to March 11th when the final results are declared.  Once they are declared, Article 140 indicates, that there is a 7 day period during which time any challenge to the results may be lodged.  Since multiparty politics resumed in 1992, each and every election of a President has seen a challenge in court, so I think it would be safe to assume, based on similar fact evidence, that this would be the case this time around too.  This takes us to March 18th 2013.

After March 18th 2013, if there is a petition in court, the Supreme Court has 14 days to make a determination on it, this would take us to 1st April 2013.  If they determine the President-Elect was not duly elected, Kenyans have to go back to the polls to repeat the election within 60 days, taking us to the 1st week of June 2013.  IF the decision is that the election was good and proper, we would be headed for a second round.  The reason for the assumption that there would be a run-off, is simple.  Again, similar fact evidence.  Since 1992, the President has been elected by less than 50% of the votes cast, except for 2002 when President Moi was no longer running and Kibaki was declared as a joint ticket presidential candidate under the NARC coalition.  This means the threshold of 50% +1 would be near impossible for anyone to achieve, given we have 8 Presidential candidates.  There is the additional hurdle of 25% in at least 24 Counties.  Even recent polls demonstrate, no single candidate has this locked down.

Back to my timeline.  On March 18th,2013, if the Supreme Court find the elections were fine, the IEBC has 30 days within which to organise and conduct a run-off.  This would take us to the 16th April 2013.  On the 16th April 2013, we go to the polls and vote in the run-off.  The IEBC have 7 days to declare the election, so for the sake of argument if they take the full 7 days, that would take us to 23rd of April 2013.  Once the results are declared, if there is no petition filed, the President-elect will be sworn in on the first Tuesday after the 14th day.  The 14th day is the 7th of May, since it is itself a Tuesday that would go to the 14th of May as the day the President-elect will be sworn in.

If there is a petition filed, this is how the scenario will play out.  After 16th April we take 7 days to wait for a petition, and the Supreme Court again have 14 days to hear the matter, a total of 21 days, 7th of May 2013.  Once a decision is rendered on 7th of May, we have 7 days to swear in the President, that goes to the 14th May 2013.

Kenyans, this means we have between March 4th 2013, and May 14th 2013 to have a new occupant of State House.  We need to be extra patient, and to let things play out as they must.  If we keep up this election fever we have, we run the risk of suffering permanent brain damage as a people, making it a catalyst for the eruption of fresh violence.  When we go to the polls, we better be prepared for the fact that a new President is actually three months away, and in the mean time we can concentrate on setting up our County Governments so that our day to day life is not disrupted.

God bless Kenya, and I wish all of you a wonderful Lenten season.  On March 4th, let us Get-Out-The-Vote and make our voices heard, au sio?

Kenyan Traffic Police make Darwin's Case For Natural Selection

Thursday the 1st of October 2012 was an early day, I was scheduled to pick my parents up from the airport.  They had arrived on the 6:30am flight, and I was the designated pick-uper for the day.  As I approached the turn off from Mombasa Road to the airport, an 18-wheeler truck was making a U-turn from the other side of the road.  Rather than use the acceleration lane, he came straight for the outer lane where I was.  Being the experienced driver I was, I knew at the speed at which both my vehicle and his were going, a collision was going to be inevitable.  If this was a vitz, I may have been minded to hazard a crash, but this is a road monster, I would have been stuck between the trailer's front and back set of wheels, and would certainly suffer injury or possible death.  I decided to swerve off the road.  Since there were pedestrians also walking along the road, I swerved further left to avoid hitting them.  I ended up in the ditch.  Turns out, the driver relied on the word of his intoxicated turn boy that the road was clear.  When he realised it was not, he still decided to proceed.  Had he slowed down, I would have passed him by easily.  Instead, he decided to put his foot down and try and out manouvre me. 

Now, the GSU officers manning that area (its in the flight path, so it is heavily secured) together with officers from the Kenya Wildlife Service, apprehended Mutinda, the driver of the truck registration number KAR 814 W and forced him to return to the scene of the accident.  I was not hurt at all, just a little shaken and irritated since I was going to be late in picking up my parents.  Anyway, cut a long story short, the truck owner, a man called Meshak, was called and instructed to M-Pesa some money to ensure my car is towed out of the ditch and that the damage, mainly scratches and a small dent, is repaired.  He agreed to do so.  After waiting in vain for his M-Pesa, we called the Traffic Police to come and do the paper work so we could go to the Police station.  Now this is where things get weird.

The traffic policeman PC Ntulele (or something like that, but he was force number 84651), comes to find us at the scene with the three GSU officers who have been keeping the driver under watch.  He says, according to him, it is the duty of the vehicle behind to avoid a collision with the vehicle ahead.  The GSU officers indicate the reason they held the driver was because his driving was so reckless, that he was a danger not just to me in the ditch, but to other motorists, and besides, his turn-boy was drunk and possibly under the influence of some narcortics.   Apparently, the Traffic Policeman had been on the scene two minutes when an emissary of the owner of the vehicle, who goes by the name Mutava, arrived and had a brief word with him.  No one had noticed this fellow's activities until then.  Anyway, it gets weirder, I assure you.

I insisted that the situation was not as the policeman had indicated and that I was not satisfied with his verdict of the situation.  He said we should go to the Police Station so his boss, the Embakasi DTO, Inspector Marigi, who can decide the way forward.  When we finally get there, the driver of the truck is no where to be seen, neither is the emissary of the owner of the vehicle, neither is the Constable who visited the scene.  I see the DTO (District Traffic Officer) and explain to him what happened.  He radios for the Constable to come who tries to make out how I landed in the ditch on my own and I'm trying to blame the poor helpless truck driver Mutinda for my carelessness.  The DTO tells him off for letting the Truck driver go and demands he be called back to answer charges of careless driving.  He also calls the owner of the vehicle and asks him to make an offer to me to see if we can settle the matter amicably or he issues me with an abstract to enable me to claim from his insurance.  

Twenty minutes later, Mutava arrives.  He goes straight a secluded corner just outside the DTO's office and leaves us standing there.  He makes a quick phone call, then he rejoins us.  We enter into the DTO's office.  When we get in, I could hardly believe my ears when this Inspector Marigi, with all the stickers of service and integrity pasted on his wall, started speaking total and utter nonsense!  He rambled on in this boring monologue of how no one leaves their house in the morning wanting to cause an accident and how I should thank God He spared my life.  Long and short of it was, as far as his mind could process, the worst offence the truck driver committed was causing me obstruction and that the fact that he ran me off the road was unfortunate but was not a traffic offence.  This with the new tougher traffic rules we have today!  He further indicated that the damage to my car was caused by my own issues and I should thank the truck driver for stopping.  I told the DTO to talk to the GSU officers who apprehended the driver, since I was in a ditch, I did not do it, and get an independent view of the same.  He said, he had considered all matters and was satisfied that I just preferred the ditch to the open road.

He flatly refused to give me an abstract saying if I insisted on one, he would issue one saying I caused my own accident.  I indicated even when one hits a dog on the road, the abstract says he hit a road, I insisted his abstract must indicated my ending up in a ditch was in an effort to avoid a collision with KAR 184 W.   The Inspector said he would do no such thing.  I then asked for a copy of the obstruction charge sheet so I could sue the truck driver and his employer in my own capacity.  He flatly refused, and indicated I should go to court if I wanted, court belonged to all Kenyans, but he would give me no copies whatsoever.  If I wanted, I should attend the arraignment and apply for copies of the Court File.  I realised at this point that my rage was a point where my words and actions would have left me in danger of hell's fire, so I left his office in a huff.

I called a Superintendent of Police based at the CID headquarters and had a word with him regarding the matter.  He indicated I should pursue it, since the force is keen on weeding out such Officers who give the force a bad name.  He said I could have a criminal file opened against the PC for investigation, and a complaint against the DTO for his complicit behaviour in this saga.  When I got home that evening, I realised, if I pursued it, it would consume my time and energy and quite frankly, I had no guarantee that the woeful pedigree displayed by the hapless officers in Embakasi Police Traffic Office was not generic in the force.  

That police constable and his Inspector just stood in the door of justice and refused me to go in.  I am a lawyer, a former Magistrate, quite honestly if I wanted to find a way to climb over them, I could.  But I chose to let it go.  What of an uneducated Kenyan?  What if I had suffered grave injuries?  What if it was a fatal accident?  Yet PC no. 84561 and Inspector Marigi are pleased that they were useful in helping that funny Meshak to leave an incompetent driver and a drunken turn boy with an 18-wheeler truck on the road, to wreak whatever havoc they can get up to.  This is why we need Police Reforms.  We cannot be decrying the death of thousands of Kenyans on our roads, yet have officers like these wearing the Crown.  We cannot have corruption being the currency, the language, and the norm in our Police Stations.  Having bumper stickers and posters on our walls and Police Service Charters will not eradicate corruption.  We have to get a new mindset.  If the current breed cannot change their minds, then they must be changed.  It is useless to purge the Judiciary and corruption is still endemic among other players in the criminal justice system.

I sent Meshak a text and in it I stated one simple truth, "Malipo ni papa hapa duniani."  What goes around, comes around.

Selah.

Forget the two thirds rule, lets split this 50-50!

A while back I wrote a blog post on an issue that is proving to be thorny. In case you missed it, read it here  http://joymdivo.blogspot.com/2011/06/one-third-two-thirds-what-is-difference.html.  The Constitution of Kenya 2010 in Article 81 introduced an interesting concept in this East African nation:  Gender Parity by Law.  This meant that society did not have the luxury of time in deciding to accept women as capable leaders.  They did not have the option of giving women a chance and seeing them prove themselves so that they can get another chance.  They were told, that from August 27th 2010 henceforth, no appointive or elective office shall be occupied by more than two thirds of the same gender.

When it comes to appointed posts, achieving this is easy since the appointing authority just has to remember their mathematics class on fractions and division.  However, elective posts are more tricky since they depend on the adult suffrage to make this decision, and not all of them are good mathematicians.  Therefore there is need a formula to ensure that even when the public do their math, it adds up to the principle of not more than two thirds of one gender being elected.  The members of the 10th parliament were so keen on consolidating their position that while they provided for mechanism to ensure this is achieved in the Senate and in the County Assemblies, they left the National Assembly open.

Chapter 8 of the Constitution establishes our Bi-Cameral House.  Article 97 sets out that we shall elect 290 MPs, 47 Women, 12 Special interest nominees and the Speaker.  This week a meeting between the Commissions responsible for implementing the Constitution as well as the Parliamentary Committee agreed on a "formula"  that we proceed as put in the constitution, and if we fail to make the numbers, then parties should be allowed to nominate more women to make up the difference.  The net result is that we have potential to have a lower House of more than 500 members.  This plan was rejected by Members of Parliament in their Speaker's Kamukunji, but the stalemate remains, what do we do about this?

My suggestion to get out of this quagmire is simply this.  The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission to scrap ALL constituencies.  If we will have Wards each with a Representative in the County Assembly, the bread and butter issues of the Citizens will be dealt with closer to home in the County Assembly.  Therefore the role of the Constituency is not as central as it was before.  Since Governors and Senators will be seeking mandate from the whole County, so too should Members of Parliament.  Each County therefore should produce one Male and one Female Member of Parliament, and we still retain the 12 special interest seats.  That way, not only is the Constitutional Provision preserved, we will have a House with a total of 107 members.  Not only can we better afford 107 members, as compared to 350 members the playing field will be levelled for all persons seeking elective posts, since they will have Countywide support.

Given the vast powers that the National Assembly will have, it is vital for the people going there to have the widest base possible as is with the Senators.  Each Party only has to nominate one man and one woman to go on the ballot, and each stand equal chance of being elected.  It is time for the Members of the 10th Parliament to wake up and smell the coffee.  We did not get rid of dictatorship by the President to swap it with dictatorship by Parliament.  We are not interested if some of them "lose" their seats since they are not theirs to keep, but ours to give to whom we please.  Time has come for them to put Kenya ahead of their own selfish interests and make the right decision for Kenya.  Let us go 50-50, one man one woman.  And save us some money in the process, we need to pay the teachers, and doctors, and nurses, and lecturers and civil servants.....

Lend your leg and join the world by saying NO MORE landmines

Lend your leg and join the world by saying NO MORE landmines: Joy Mdivo also lent his leg, Leg Number: 780 International day for mine awareness. On april 4 th lend your leg

The Gay Debate: Simply Different Strokes for Different Folks!

KTN has been airing a series titled "The Muffled Killer" an expose on the world of male prostitution in Kenya and an insight into the men having sex with men (MSM) society.  It has caused a real uproar in Kenya.  Here is a link to a clip, a part one, you can follow the trail if you want to see more http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IDJkd7J3SBU.

Today society has a unique situation.  The world view is increasingly that the individual knows what is best for himself and his pursuit of happiness is supreme.  Human Rights now includes allowing this process to proceed unfettered, the qualification being "It does not hurt anyone else"

The extent of the hurt, is quite relative, since is it physiological, emotional, financial, where does it start, where does it end?

Many of the issues today being pushed as Human Rights are actually not human rights.  Human rights include those inalienable rights given to all of us, by God.  They are necessary for life and health and well being.  However, human rights have morphed to include even that which is not necessary for life, but is deemed crucial for living.  That is how Education, Culture, Religion come into the human rights stratosphere.  Once those became accepted, the realm was expanded further.  Pursuit of happiness, accumulation of wealth, self expression, protection of an individuals ideas and intellectual property, these too entered the realm of human rights.  Man has an inbuilt need to subdue, conquer and have dominion.  If you have a fight and win it, you start spoiling for the next one.  If you do not win, you still don't give up, until you have won.

Back to the issue at hand.  This whole "Gay Debate" stems from another primal desire:  It is the desire for acceptance that is at the core of every human being.  You see it when a child takes two steps then waits for you to cheer that they have done well.  It is a scientist waiting to be feted as an acknowledgement of years of hard work in a lab peering down microscopes.  Well, today we want to follow every rabbit trail thought in our heads and do whatever we put our minds to.  But that is not enough, we also want for others to look on our progress and hail it as admirable or at least, acceptable.  If they fail to do this, we feel "excluded" or "discriminated against", less than the rest of society.  Finally it boils down to this; is exclusion on the basis of behavioural differences really discrimination?  Or is it simply differences in taste, Different Strokes for Different Folks.

Let me give you a visual example.  To put it crudely, if you are at a table with a date who chews his food loudly and open mouthed.  Or you are sitting across a lovely lady at a high priced restaurant, and she sucks and slurps up her soup noisily and messily.  Some of you will have no problem with that, after-all, you may be a loud and open mouth chewer as well.  However, some of you will cringe at the very thought.  Whether there will be a second date, will depend on how you respond to this situation.  Are you a bad person because you are a loud, messy eater?  No.  Are you a bad person because the thought of "see food" in someone's else's "food processor" brings up everything you swallowed in the last 24hours?  No.  The solution in this instance is to find a date who will generally not leave you uncomfortable with how they chew their food.

Same scenario with social issues.  LGBT individuals express their sexuality in a way that is not usual for some of us.  I daresay if the only way to experience sexuality was in the manner in which LGBT people express it, some of us would choose to do without sex altogether and remain voluntarily celibate.  Simply because, it does not ring our bell, it is not our cup of tea.  In the same vein, the notion of rejecting the practise, cannot be held synonymous with rejecting the person.  I am personally a very affectionate individual, I make friends easily, laugh loudly and strike up conversations with perfect strangers several times a day.  I do not consider myself a homophobic individual, because even if you came out to me that you were a gay person, I probably would have an AC/DC joke about it.  However, I find the practise, very much not to my taste, and would not hesitate in pointing that out.  I would love to share all of life's experiences with a gay person, except sexual experiences.  That is one little English word, "Preference".

Now this is where the whole cookie crumbles.  The fact that I reject the practise and refuse to acknowledge it as a norm, makes those who live the lifestyle feel the rejection of the practise as being the rejection of them.  Separating the practise from the individual then becomes impossible, since offence has been taken by both sides.  I think this is where we all lost the plot.  The the pro-gay and anti-gay  movements, this is where the rubber meets the road.  Time has come for us to accept that we must agree to disagree.

Homosexuals should practise what they preach, be inclusive of the dissenting voices and leave this debate alone.  I say this because I have been subjected to seriously harsh judgements for expressing my opinion, to which I am as entitled as the people who believe I am wrong.  In Kenya today, I am in the majority with my opinion of same sex relations.  However, I am sure one day there will come a generation that will not mind so much, but this is not that generation.

Let me spin this top a little more.  Same sex marriages, that is a contradiction in terms.  How do you have the same sex and then you have a marriage?  Marriage is an institution, not a frame of mind.  It was established since the foundations of society, as between a man and a woman.  With the main aim not being companionship, but procreation.  Other same sex relations did exist, but not as marriage, but as just that, external adventures.  Many homosexuals in african society still maintain a home with a wife and children, and the homosexual relationship was recreational.   Women have sexual relations with other women but still have a Home.  There are women who even marry younger fertile women to have children for them.  A complex form of surrogacy, since the surrogate must source her own sperm donor sometimes but the children are considered the 'husband's'.  But I digress.  Even if you consider yourself monogamous in a homosexual relationship, what you have is not a marriage. It is loving companionship, it is deeply satisfying, but since procreation is impossible it is not a marriage.  Technology helps overcome this deficiency but left on its own, it is impossible to sort itself out.  Evolution notwithstanding.  If what people need is same tax benefits as married people, then clearly what we need to change is the tax laws, not the marriage laws.

My thinking leads me to think thus.  Time has come for us to grow up and get honest.  If you choose to live your life a certain way and I do not really like it, I should let you live your life uninhibited.  However, you also must stop expecting me to eventually come round and embrace it, it probably will never happen.  The old adage is actually true, "Live and Let Live".  All the labels we give each other create invisible walls that make it difficult for us to move forward.  Sometimes, the trick is in realising, that being immiscible is not a bad thing, in fact it may very well be the spice of life.

"You Lazy Intellectual African Scum!" ::::: "You called my lord?"

If you have not already done so, start by reading this:  http://mindofmalaka.wordpress.com/2012/01/18/you-lazy-intellectual-african-scum/.  Are you done?  Now, let us talk honestly.

I am grateful for this perspective, and I do contend, we cannot just call African Intellectuals lazy.  They do their thinking best, and it is up to government to fill in the gaps.  The shilling plummets, and it is because Banks are speculating.  People are dying of hunger and it becomes there is a famine, no mention of the new bumper harvests prior.  They blame the weather, violence, famine, disease, many excuses to help us explain why we are failing miserably.  However, one thing I want to point out, is that thinking in and of itself, clever papers does not translate to anything.  Many of the innovators who are credited with "discovering" or "creating" anything usually faced stiff opposition or despondency from their governments.  In fact, for most of them, it was after their passing that the full extent of their contributions were discovered and felt.

Move over to people like Henry Ford.  He had not the mind, but he had the business sense to put the mind to use.  A famous story is told of how top scholars of that day confronted him about his mass production of vehicles whilst knowing nothing of how the car runs.  The countered he was dabbling in something dangerous.  He replied he knew all he needed to know.  The panel shot questions at him "how does the combustion engine work" "what of the braking system" "can you explain about the process of ignition"  With each question, Mr. Ford would pick up his telephone and ask someone the same question and relay the answer to the panel, he could answer none of the questions asked, without help.  Exasperated, the panelists felt they had made their point, and as they rose to storm out. As they shuffled their papers and feet, Mr. Ford calmly pointed out, that he did not need to KNOW anything, as long as he had hired the people who DO know, to do the job, he was fine.  As they say, the rest is history.  Cars now are commonly mass produced everywhere, and he made his money.

What am I saying?  African Innovators and Intellectuals need each other, it is a symbiotic relationship, mutually beneficial.  Intellectual thinks, and the Innovator builds.  Add another group here called Investors.  If we use the money we already have in circulation, and help those with the ideas to find people with the skills to convert the ideas from blue print to reality, then we will have hit the jack pot.  What Government participation was involved in the innovation that is M-Pesa?  Time has come for us to stop hiding behind our excuses and own up.  Look at our education system, book smarts is given preference, nay, pre-eminence over the arts, talent and "blue collar skills".  The people who may not excel in book smarts but can do magic when given a screw driver and some wires, those are the guys we should be building up, with as much gusto as the guys who make up the formulae.

As a Kenyan intellectual, I stand guilty as charged in http://mindofmalaka.wordpress.com/2012/01/18/you-lazy-intellectual-african-scum/. I want my intellectual property protected.  I want for every thought, every contribution, I want the monetary value clearly spelled out, otherwise I am reluctant to get involved.  Sometimes I even hold off sharing a simple solution staring at me simply because I think my idea will be "stolen" and someone else will reap the whilrwind.  Infact I not only want it, I usually demand it, and very uncompromisingly so.  Our society now is very "Haki Yetu" oriented.  Haki Yetu means "Our Right!"and is usually accompanied by varying degrees of toddler temper tantrums displays, depending on the group chanting it in the street.

Time has come for us to put common good ahead of private gain.  We must protect our intellectual property, I agree, but can we move from only using the big money ideas to help our own families, and move to doing what we can wherever we can.  As we are doing this, then the one big money maker will land and sort out our money issues.  What happened to Job Satisfaction? Bragging Rights? Distinction and Recognition?

It seems, African Intellectuals, much like American Gangster Rappers, have fallen into the trap of "Get Rich or Die Trying"  Problem is quite literally, many are dying, as we are busy trying.

Let's make 2012 sing us a better song, 2011 was off-key!

Kenya has had one tragedy after another, there is no day that passes by without a new report of fatal road accidents, massive deaths from fires started at leaking fuel pipelines.  The latest has been the KCPE results fall out.  Children committing suicide because they have "failed" their end of primary school examinations.  Teachers who also do likewise, since they perceive they have failed as teachers.  Principals and teachers being chased away from schools with sticks and stones, irate parents shutting down schools.  I read in a local daily, that there was a suggestion to turn the worst performing school's facilities into a brick making business, since clearly it cannot be used as an institution of learning.

There is talk of changing the education system.  My opinion is, we must realise, when people feel the need to end their lives, it is very rarely because of one event.  Usually, the event is the final straw that breaks the camel's back.  The cost of living is so high, most of us are wound up as tight as a guitar string.  Many of the comforts we occasionally enjoyed have long been forgotten, and now even what we considered bare necessity, we have to do without.  Many families are down to one meal a day dinner.  Many now use charcoal because LPG and Electricity prices are unbelievable.  The festive season has just ended, characterised by high prices of everything, the fuel, the food, the fun, everything cost twice as much, and many did not bother to celebrate at all, they simply sat it out.

Add on top of this the threat from the Al Shabaab.  No fireworks, no street parties, because we could be bombed any time.  There are families that had Christmas without their daddies, because they are in Somalia in Operation Linda Nchi.  Now the year has begun, and we are all waiting to hear the decision from the Pre-Trial Chamber of the ICC on the fate of the "Ocampo 6" as they are now famously known.

This is an election year, parties are being formed every morning, and then there is the new Political Parties Act, (that is a whole topic on its own I tell you) that has changed the ball game completely.  Everyone is scrambling to hold party elections to remove politicians from office.  The politicians don't seem to get it, they cannot "own" or "run" parties legally anymore.  Their mistake my gain, since I belong to a newly registered party too, and all our ducks so far seem to be in a row.

We need to pray for this land.  We need a newness, a freshness, so that all we hope to achieve in the implementation of the Constitution as far as Institutional Strengthening is concerned, is actually achieved.  I voted No during the Referendum in 2010, but I have since realised, I had more interest in seeing real change than some so-called "Reformists"  who do things more out of personal gain and political expediency than real genuine love for this land.

This is the year folks, we sink or swim.  Unless we get fed up with all the man-made tragedies and disasters around us, we shall keep having the same issues plaguing us over and over again.  Let us take stock, stand up and be counted.

Welcome 2012! (2011 exit Stage Left)

Happy New Year Everyone,

I have really neglected writing for a while, mainly because towards the end of last year, my life became such a roller coaster that I wanted to get off the ride, but it was going too fast.  I have started this year by trying to de-clutter my life.  That is easier said than done, because everything I do is important, every commitment I make I have every intention of honouring, and I still want to be a wonderful mother, and a fit wife for Divins.  This makes the decisions that I have to make this year all the more difficult. "Should it stay or should it go?"

There's a very disturbing show on TV called "Hoarding, Buried Alive"  The programme follows the life of hoarders, who have the urge to acquire everything and throw out nothing, until their homes are as full and as dirty as the Dandora garbage dumping site.  Some collect new stuff, but most get the stuff from buying other people's junk.  Others take it a notch hire and don't clean at all, so the clutter is mixed with their own waste.  They literally bury themselves alive in their sub-urban homes.  Worst part is, they do it to themselves, they go for shopping, they spend all their life's savings on junk, they drive away family and friends, and die slowly in the cess pool of stuff accumulated.That show always amazes me, and saddens me.  Crazy, but makes for good television reality show, better than the Kardashians for sure! But I digress.

I do not have a problem of physically hoarding stuff, but I do have a problem with hoarding commitments.  I am swamped, but I still say "Yes" to requests to join this committee, become that trustee, look at this document for me, I have a case and I think only you can help me, can you pray with me?  On top of all I take on, I have guilt over friends who have been bereaved that I have not visited, others who have new babies, or recently got married (and I missed the wedding)  I have more guilt over stuff that I have done and not given my best, since I had no time to be thorough, or I had no more energy.  The cherry on the top is the family.  Whenever I walk through the door, mummy has to be on top of everything, and wifey knows how I like my dinner.

Don't get me wrong, this is not a whining post, there is a point in there somewhere (I promise!)  Point is, now that I have a new year, I have a chance to actually pass go, and collect $200 (hope you play monopoly) and maybe get me a get out of jail free card.  Instead of taking every single module in the order they are put out, I shall do one and skip one.  Masters will take me twice as long, but hey, what is the hurry?  I shall say "No" to any request that is being made.  Of what is already on my plate, I shall start trashing anything that increases aggravation, and reduces productivity.  However, the biggest change I will make, is people.  Anyone who does not add value to my life, or actually causes me stress is going.

I am 35 years old this year (so when my birthday rolls round, you now know).  Like Miguna Miguna famously said, I am not seeking acceptance, I am comfortable in my own skin, I have faith in my abilities, and in the favour bestowed upon me by God.  I do not need anyone to affirm me, yes, not even Divins.  I know my worth and my pedigree.  I have learned how to love and keep and how to let go.  I have seen what is really important in my life is my God and my family.  The rest  are details.

Yep, 2012 is MY year.  I had declared 2010 the year of Joy, but the Constitution review process, and run up to the August Referrendum made me rethink that position.  So this year I have decided to declare it the Year of Joy.  Not joy the feeling, but Joy, me, the person.  I shall take the whole year putting no one before me but God.  He is the only veto power.  Everybody else, get in line!

I know, I have cheated you out of a real post, but hey, I said it was my year, didn't I?  However, not too long now, I shall resume regular posts, because I have realised, posting on Joy's Musings is part of my emancipation.  Now, off to get me a cup of tea.  Happy New Year once again!! Make it Count, won't you?

Arab Spring: After the momentum and the bounce where will North Africa rest?

Today I must admit I am writing about something of which I know nothing.  I write as an observer, not an authority on the matters at hand.  When the Arab spring started in grand fashion, I think none of us would have predicted the outcome.  It has sometimes felt like when one has those dreams that they are falling in a hole, you keep falling and falling and never land.  Somehow, mercifully, you wake up before you hit the ground.  However, in several North African States, it was not a dream and the falling has come to a stop and they have landed with a thud.  Since I have not lived under the rule of Ben Ali, or Mubarak, or Gaddaffi, I shall not be one to discuss whether or not they deserved what was coming to them.

I will speak of Moi and Kibaki and Raila instead.  As an outsider looking in, it is difficult to miss the happiness, the euphoria, the joy at common folk finally bringing down the Tyrant and winning Freedom.  We had our own "jubilation" in 2003 when Kibaki came into power and we saw the back of Moi.  People were literally drunk with happiness and giddy with anticipation of a better Kenya without Moi.  Our favorite chant was, "Yote yawezekana bila Moi" meaning, all is possible without Moi.  In hindsight, I think we can all agree, not everything is possible without Moi, and the absence of Moi has not seen the demise of some of the things we attributed solely to his rule.  We still have blatant impunity, corruption, scandal after scandal from the highest office to the lowest.  A  new ingredient we have now is a hands-off President, and so we now have added to the primordial soup, wrangles, infighting, power struggles and politics without end.  I guess to a certain degree "yote yawezekana" (all is possible!)  We have two governments rolled in one, its a PNU/ODM sandwich complete with two centres of powers fondly referred to as The Principals.  Moi had big governments, but this one is now epic.  We have seen the construction of many new roads and the repair of some neglected ones, and a New Constitution has also been delivered.  I hear this is called Legacy.

Why did I bother to delve into Kenyan politics yet I am supposed to be writing about the Arab Spring?  Simple, a principle called "Similar Fact Evidence."  There is a worn out cliche` that there is nothing new under the Sun.  This is one of those I know is true, because even the Bible says so.  If it has happened before, it shall happen again somewhere sometime.  Same script, different cast.  I was glad when we had a change of guard, the Moi era had its good bits, but it also had many bad bits.  However, when we embarked on almost deleting everything Moi, labelling people according to KANU regime remnants etc, we lost an opportunity: To take what was good with the Moi regime and to remove the bad and build new cultures there to grow new good parts to replace the old.   My African brothers in North Africa are now in the same spot, albeit with a much bigger bang and at a higher price than we paid in Kenya.  Three major "Tyrants" have fallen, and there is a vacuum that needs to be filled.

The Tunisian people led the way and keep leading, since they have now concluded an election.  The winner of the election is the Islamist party, Al Nahda, is all set to form the next government.  Tunisia has been fiercely secularist.  That was one majority Muslim state where polygamy was outlawed, that is how progressive it was.  However, religion and power are now back in the same saddle.  How will this play out for Tunisian women? Human Rights? Should we turn back Iranian pages to learn how this may go? Or will Tunisian people write us a new script?  I am still an observer, time will tell, I do not know, and I will not speculate.  One Tunisian lady said on interview, (I paraphrase) that the new government has seen what they did to Ben Ali, so they know to not mess with any of the gains the women have.  If I could have a conversation with her I would tell her, that they know how Ben Ali was toppled, but they will not be caught flat footed like he was, they will be ready for you.

The Egyptians followed suit not far behind.  Mubarak and his sons are on trial, being locked up in a cage in a show of public humiliation, and jubilation for their detractors.  The power vacuum left by Mubarak's exit has seen the rise of the Salafists, a radical Islamic group, as well as the Muslim brotherhood.  This has left ties with Israel and the USA in real jeopardy.  The army is stretched with weekly protests.  One protestor complained that he has been protesting since he was 14years old, he is now in his mid thirties.  He claims he has been chased and beaten more times in the last 8 months than in all his time protesting against Mubarak.  The elections are slated for late November, and predictions are that there is less than a 20% chance of a secular or non-Muslim government taking the election.  Coptic Christians have already had a run in with the Salafists, and several churches were burned and about 120 people lost their lives.  Again, I pose, "yote yawezekana bila Mubarak?"

Finally the latest news of the October 20th demise of Col. Muammar Gaddaffi.  This has been the loudest bang of them all, with the end of over four decades of power, wound up in a storm drain.  The National Transitional Council, NTC has provisionally declared Sharia law to take over as they lay in place modalities of drafting new laws and a new constitution and organising elections, and handing over power..........The NTC at their launch in February 2011 insisted that they were not a caretaker government, but were only the political face of the resistance.  However, this did not stop the Africa Union, and other Countries around the world from acknowledging them as the legitimate representatives of the Libyan people.  That made it easier for them to take over as the government until the Libyan people have a chance to elect the leaders that will see Libya into the future.

The momentum is waning, the bounce is becoming weaker.  Soon it must rest, and stop.  Where will it stop?  What does this mean for the region?  Tunisia had made overtures towards the European Commission.  Will the new regime continue this trend?  Egypt was a strong ally to the United States and an important factor in maintaining peace in the Middle East.  The most recent is the prisoner exchange that occurred in the last two weeks, which was mediated by Cairo.  What does this mean for the Peace Process?  For the minority Christians living in Egypt?  What about Libya? The elections are projected to be in 2013, in the meantime we have Sharia.  Will there be the transition from religious to secular?  Will that bode more freedom, or it will be two steps forward, three steps back?

I drew an analogy of change with Kenya.  My north African brothers, its a mixed bag.  Change sometimes means exactly what you want it to mean, but sometimes you will find what you thought was Change will mean the exact opposite of what you meant.  Take time to rebuild, to recoup, to regroup, then you can relaunch.  Africa knows struggle well.  We know pain and suffering first hand.  We will walk the journey with you, not observe you from across the Oceans.

My prayer for all those in the Arab Spring, is that they are granted the desire of their heart, so that they too, can have the fruits of Uhuru, Freedom.  May you find rest in favourable places, and may it give you and your children rest.

Amen.

Tribute to the Late Prof. Wangari Muta Maathai: I will be a Humming Bird.

"In degrading the environment, we degrade ourselves" - Prof. Wangari Maathai


This morning I woke up to find the news of the passing of the First African Woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize being aired on Network Africa, the BBC World Service Breakfast show.  I was stunned, and at the same time, I was filled with a sense of gratitude that I lived in the lifetime of such a great woman.  One day I shall tell Nicole that the main difference between Prof. Maathai and other mortal women was one, she dared to break barriers.

She dared to earn a PhD.  She dared to stand up to her husband, who divorced her for being "unable to control her", but she fought him for the right to keep his surname setting a precedent in use till today!  She dared to stand for Presidency.  She dared to ignore the dangers and perils of defying the Moi Regime, and therefore managed to save Karura Forest & Uhuru Park, among many other projects some of which I'm sure I shall never hear off.  She was a Member of Parliament, an Assistant Minister, but she received news of her Nobel Prize win whilst in wearing gumboots working in a garden.  She was an extraordinary woman, and she definitely left her mark not just in Kenya, but around the world.

I have spent the day looking at her pictures with Nelson Mandela, Oprah Winfrey and other world leaders.  I listened to the radio as Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf gave her tribute to her friend and colleague.  I listened as Gladwell Otieno, reminisced on the Late Maathai comparing her with her own late mother, the legendary Wambui Otieno-Mbugua.  All these have helped me understand, what a resource and a treasure the Professor was, and also made me alive to the fact, that one never knows what he has until he has lost it.

She wanted to be our President.  What if we gave her that chance?  Let her steal that First Democratically Elected Female President in Africa from her friend.  She was in government, but was made an Assistant Minister.  If she was our Commander in Chief, would we have had the Maize Scandal?  The arguments about GMO?  The Free Primary School Education Scandal?  Would it have been business as usual for Kenya Pipeline, Kenya Power and others who endanger people's lives everyday, just as long as the bottom line remains healthy.  What if the people of Tetu had elected her, what would have been the legacy she would have left on the Constituency?  Even without ever being elected, she has done so much for the whole Nation, what if we gave her mandate and backing?

We have taken so much of our time in politics barking up the wrong tree, and wondering why the country is in the quagmire it is.  It is because the same old names keep being recycled in the August House and in State House.  At the end of the day, we are doing the same thing and wondering why the results are not different.  I keep telling guys, I have exorcised the spirit of politician past from my psyche, and no one in this current or former parliament is getting my vote, no matter who he or she is.  None of them have earned that privilege from me.  Time has come for us to look at the alternatives.  Those who have proved themselves in their little corner, those are the ones who deserve our vote.  And if  you are out there, and you know you have integrity and purpose and God has given you ability to lead incorruptibly, please stand up, we need GOOD men and women to challenge those who have so spitefully used us through the years.

I leave you with a clip from Prof. Wangari Maathai, and I too like her, choose to be a Humming Bird.  What about you?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IGMW6YWjMxw&feature=share

Joy B. Mdivo

Abortion: Women's Rights or Big Business - Part II

This Post started out as a reply to a comment left on http://joymdivo.blogspot.com/2011/09/abortion-womens-rights-or-big-business.html.  After numerous attempts to try and post it as a comment, I decided to just make it a new post, a part II rather than fight with the mouse clicking furiously for an hour to no avail.  The comment was left by "Lugalia" and it read as follows:

Reproductive decisions, options, health access are a women's/ families' right and an opportunity for business. 

Which part of of our healthcare and lifestyles is not an opportunity for anyone to make money?
Are an overwhelming amount of infertility cases linked to abortions?
Does planned parenthood and company make people choose abortion?
Is there a conspiracy between fertility experts, "abortionists", black market embryo traders?
Like I asked before: what are the root causes? What, who...creates an environment where abortion is consistently chosen?
Fertility experts? Embryo traders? Abortionists?
Is the solution to take away the choice the best option?

The following is how I wanted to respond, and do hereby, to Lugalia's very legitimate questions: -

You keep making reference to abortion as a family's right, and yet it has been built on the suggestion that it is purely a woman's right and no one else's.  

Abortion is directly linked to infertility, cancer, mental health instabiltiy (80% of women who have had an abortion report mental health issues, with 10% of these becoming chronic conditions i.e lifelong)

Documentation shows that only 1% of those who walk through planned parenthood's doors actually get referred to offer their unborn child for adoption.  If the emphasis was women's health, ALL options would be availed for a woman in crisis in a PP clinic.

Is there a conspiracy?  Your guess is as good as mine.  From the facts I can see how one feeds off another, but if they made a conscious plan for this to happen, I cannot say.

The root cause is unwanted pregnancies. (the PC term is unplanned for) When a woman is in crisis and is pregnant, she has a time crunch to make a decision.  However, due to hormonal changes resulting from pregnancy, she is also very susceptible and suggestible.  Lack of support from lover, family and friend is also a factor.  My take is that by offering abortion you do get rid of the pregnancy, but at the same time, you create many more problems for the woman that last much longer and will affect her entire life.  

Abortion is not consistently chosen.  Studies have also shown that many women who have abortions regret it and do not repeat the same in another instance of an unplanned for pregnancy.  Many pro-life activists have had an abortion and do not want others to go through what they have gone through (ie the aftermath)  Notably one of these is Dr. Aldeva King, Martin Luther King's niece, who has had two abortions.  What it is, is that it is marketed and trumpeted as a triumph, so much so that when a 15yr old is in crisis pregnancy, she does not think of asking her mom for advise on how to deal with it, she will just look for her nearest abortuary and "get rid of it".

Abortion is not the best option, it is the worst option for the woman as well as for the child who will most certainly end up dead, and sometimes in very gruesome fashion.  The price one has to pay if they chose abortion will affect every facet of their life, it is a ground zero.  Women commemorate their abortion like we celebrate our children's birthdays.  Some walk around seeing other children who would have been the age of their aborted child and feel the pain. Those who do get infertile wish they could turn back the hands of time.  Those who die early from cancer of the breast or uterus or ovaries, sometimes don't even know where it came from, totally blindsided.  Those whose mental health becomes dependent on drugs for some normalcy suffer untold anguish.  It is a silent epidemic, because it is not politically correct to admit, that what has been touted for years to be one of women's greatest gains is actually their biggest pitfalls.

I reiterate, I AM PRO-CHOICE, BUT THE CHOICE HERE IS TO NOT GET PREGNANT IN THE FIRST PLACE. If one is in crisis pregnancy, then she should have a choice on whether to keep the child or give him up.  If she cannot raise him, then she should not be forced to keep him, the society should take over. Women should be empowered to prevent pregnancy when not needed/desired.  Since abortion was allowed in the USA in Roe v Wade, the instances of unplanned for pregnancies have actually risen since there is the perceived get out of jail free card.  Instead as of 2009, 50million Americans never saw the light of day, as a result of having been aborted.  That is 10million more people than Kenya's current population.  If they had lived, they would now (Roe v Wade was a 1974 decision) be aged 38years and less, one of the most productive age bracket in a person's life.  They would be paying taxes, that would help the American GDP especially during this recession.  But alas, they do not exist, and migrants have taken up their space.

Think about it.  Is abortion really the best option for women, society, the GDP?

What do you think?  Please leave a comment and let me know your honest opinion.

Abortion: Women's Rights or Big Business?

Today started really early for me, I am not an early morning person, so when I get to see the sunrise, I marvel at how lovely the world is.  Creation is a thing of beauty I tell you!  Big bang theory ain't got nothing on God's wonderful creation!!  Today was a gray morning so I saw no sunrise, but I did get to listen to the first edition of "Network Africa" the BBC World Service for Africa Breakfast Show at 0330hrs GMT.  Getting up early takes a toll on me by around 11am, my batteries run down before they recharge again in the afternoon.  I tried to recharge my batteries by reading articles I found interesting but had no time to finish reading.  One of them is a post from a link sent to me via twitter,  http://www.lifenews.com/2010/10/23/nat-6787/.  It was a commentary by a surgeon discussing the link between Breast Cancer and abortion.  I have talked about this so many times, but I must admit, the science still eluded me, and I wanted to learn more on the issue.  When I read this article, it had the desired effect, I started thinking, the slow clogs coming unstuck.  This too as we hurtle towards the month of October, recognised world wide as being the month to highlight the issues surrounding Breast Cancer.  (This month September is dedicated to Prostrate and Ovarian Cancer, just as a by the way.)

Most of you will recall my last post was an angry, indignant one, caused by Kenya moving closer to legalising abortion on demand.  I was to write a follow up blog once the tears stopped clouding my eyes, but after praying about it, the Spirit of God within me indicated that I had said quite enough and should shut up already, so I did.  What Life News' article did is to bring back to my mind the reason why I do what I do.  Why I say what I say.  I was convicted of just peddling rhetoric and put a human face to the issue.  Abortion is never about saving life.  Not even the mother's life. It is all about Big Business.  Let me qualify this statement.

Planned Parenthood, the largest abortion services provider in the USA has an annual budget in excess of $1B.  Their core business is abortion services.  In Capitalism, once a market is saturated, one looks for fresh markets.  Latest research instruments show abortions are on a slow but steady decline in the States, with the use of emergency contraception increasing therefore reducing the need for abortion on demand.  Planned Parenthood is also the provider of these emergency contraception kits.  Planned Parenthood recently lost up to $363M in federal funding.  This gap must be filled somehow, whether it is from the Federal government, or from new frontiers.  Each pregnancy carried to term offers more protection against the risk of developing Breast Cancer.  Every abortion interrupts the physiological developments that take place during pregnancy, childbirth and nursing.  This in turn increases the risk of development of Breast Cancer in women who have had one or more abortions.

During the whole month of October, the activities that aim to help women more about Breast Cancer include screening, testing, promotion of preventive regimen and showcasing the latest treatments available even on experimental stages to show the progress towards getting a cure.  The season is also filled with a lot of merchandising to help raise awareness, and also funds for more research and treatment.  This is big business each year for the pharmaceutical companies, research institutes, and producers of anything pink.  Other businesses join in the cash bandwagon too, with specially branded products to sell during the whole month.  Hospital's well woman clinics also keep busy during the whole month, with many who walk in getting follow up appointments.  The initial clinic may be free, the subsequent follow up tests and visits certainly are not.  All this is a multibillion dollar venture, a tried and tested module of making October a very successful financial month for all with the acumen to take advantage of the opportunity that comes wrapped up in this terrible disease.

It is unfortunate therefore to think that Kenya is headed down the same rail road.  Our health care systems cannot cope with pre and post natal care, and post birth complications still claim an inordinate number of lives, of both mothers and babies.  Our health care services cannot provide adequate pallative care to Cancer patients currently, never mind an increase in the number of cancer cases.  I have a close female relative who recently went to India for cancer treatment simply because she could find no hope of treatment in Kenya, save for an you've-got-8-months-to-live prognosis.  It was a combination of obsolete screening and treatment options, as well as the limited health care expertise on her type of Cancer.  Her two month treatment in India was successful and the cancer is now in remission.  She had money to go for treatment, how many Kenyans can afford this?

Capitalism gives us all an opportunity to be all we want to be, be all we can be, because we can make as much money as is there to be made.  The unfortunate bit with Capitalism, is that some of us get ideas on how to make money in the most unscrupulous way, and when it works out, it only hardens the resolve.  But as the adage goes, Evil prospers when good men do nothing, and my personal favorite, Those who don't learn from history, are duty bound to repeat it.  Its not too late for Kenya, the writing though, is clearly on the wall.