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• Open email letter to Ocampo: Kenyans want you to go straight for these 3

  Posted: April 3, 2010, 5:05 pm by Chris

  Hello Luis,
  
  You don’t know me and we have never met but I have some very important things to say that should greatly help you in the colossal task ahead of you.
  
  Since this is an open letter I am aware that many Kenyans will read it and passionately agree or disagree with me. My appeal to them is simple. The future of our country depends on us getting to the bottom of the mystery behind what happened in December 2007 and January 2008. This is a good time to clear our heads of all the propaganda that has been flying left right and centre and all the tribal emotions that have been very deliberately whipped up inside us. We need to get rid of all this excess baggage and focus on the truth. The whole truth and nothing but the truth.
  Kenyans celebrating
  
  But before I tell you what you probably already know, let me tell you a little story. Kindly oblige me, because Kenyans who have been reading my blog over the years will tell you that I love to tell stories. And sometimes I like to think that they help folks to get to the gist of things quickly. You be the judge, sir.
  
  There was this father of many sons who though of himself as a genius. He hardly needed advice from anybody because he KNEW that he knew everything and nobody could outthink him or give him advice.
  
  One day his first born son committed suicide. He left a detailed note explaining why he had taken his life. You see unknown to anybody else, a long time ago the old man had wanted to be a medical doctor but he did not quite qualify to go to university to study medicine. And so he purposed that before he dies his son must achieve what he had failed to achieve so many years earlier. He did everything in his power to make this happen. But all the time the genius did not realize one simple truth. He was trampling on the dreams of his first born. The boy was an excellent artist and he had the makings of being a great painter. But alas, the genius could not allow him to paint. Paint!!! What kind of stupid career was that? Somebody had to be really stupid to take up such a vocation. It wasn’t even a proper career, the genius KNEW.
  
  And so when his first born defied him one day to follow his dreams, the old man cursed him. And after that there was no way that the poor son could make it in life, even where he was gifted. When the first born son discovered this truth (very late in life when he had become so frustrated) he despaired and quickly took his own life. What else could he do, he reasoned.
  
  The genius decided that he would now transfer his big dream to the second born son. And so he went on and on through all his sons (and even his two daughters) without quite fulfilling his dream. He ended up a bitter and disappointed old man. But guess where the biggest damage was done? It was with his children. Everybody is born with a certain talent and gift and the worst thing anybody can do is to shut down somebody else’s dream. In many cases it is better just to murder them and get it over with. It is a lot kinder.
  
  Even after all the damage that had been done, “the genius” did not believe he had done anything wrong. After all he had wanted the best for his children and never delayed in paying school fees. So what mistake had he done?
  
  The moral of this story is that damage will continue to be done until the day somebody identifies the root cause of the whole problem and dares to deal with it. And many times it may not be so obvious to the casual observer who fears to dig deeper.
  
  Kenya is at a very dangerous time of her history. What we need most at this stage is to identify the root cause of our problems (especially the more recent ones) and call them out by name without fear or favour.
  
  And that is exactly how I will identify what really caused the problems that almost shut down Kenya in December 2007 and January 2008.
  
  There are three people most responsible for what happened to us as a nation. Some of these people are convinced that what they did was for the good of Kenya and Kenyans, whatever the price that was paid.
  
  Mr Ocampo, even if you do not haul these three people to the Hague to face charges it is in the best interests of Kenyans that these folks are completely kept out of Kenyan politics. More on that at the end of this open letter to you.
  
  To understand what happened we need to remind ourselves of the events following the heady 2002 presidential elections where Kenyans finally got rid of an animal called KANU (or so they thought) from State house. You have never seen serious celebrations like the ones we saw in December 2002. A poor chap who couldn’t even swim dived into the murky waters of Uhuru park in sheer ecstasy and emerged muddy and wet but he didn’t care. (Remember the amazing footage of the swearing in of president Kibaki while he was still on a wheelchair that memorable December?
  
  Actually if that man who dived into the waters at Uhuru park could have gotten a peek into the future and seen what was coming he would have stayed in the dirty waters of the Uhuru Park pond and drowned himself.
  
  What followed was squabbling over an MOU (Memorandum of understanding) that was signed between Raila Odinga and Mwai Kibaki. President Kibaki may have done a terrible thing to dishonour the MOU but I dare ask what did Raila want or expect? To share power with Kibaki? To have Kibaki run back to him before he made any major decisions? Or perhaps he wanted acknowledgement from Kibaki that the man would never have gotten elected president without him (Raila). Whatever his real motives this man Raila Odinga began a war to discredit the Kibaki administration from within. At one point Raila openly told Kenyans to expect a general election soon.
  
  So I put it to you that the person who put in motion the chain of events that provoked the deaths of so many Kenyans in December 2007 was in fact Raila Odinga.
  
  I can already feel the stones being hurled at me. But engage your brains for a minute and put yourself in the shoes of Mwai Kibaki. What would you have done under the circumstances? Would you have quietly given in and let Raila have his way?
  
  Indeed let historians record that the biggest mistake Raila Odinga made in 2007 was to ignore a proverb that founding father President Mzee jomo Kenyatta had used years earlier in response to a “change the constitution group” whose clear objective was to make sure that Vice President Daniel Moi never took over power from Jomo Kenyatta. Kenyatta quietly called them fools and advised them that when you want to subdue a bull, you NEVER show it the rope you are going to do it with. You just don’t. Mr Ocampo sir, I know that you will be able to identify with this proverb because I happen to know you are familiar with bull fighting.
  
  Kenyans will remember what ODM was doing in the run up to the general elections in December 2007? It was as if Raila was already living in State house. Well you can call it the usual way with politics but I pray that you try and wear Mr Mwai Kibaki’s shoes there for a minute. What would you have felt if it was you? What would you have done? What would you have been pushed or provoked to do?
  
  So the first guilty party in the mess we found ourselves in is Mr Raila Odinga. He is guilty of provocation. He provoked one Mwai Kibai to commit murder. Now in law Mr Odinga is NOT guilty of any criminal offence. However his actions allow some sort of mitigation from the person who went on to commit murder. If he has some good lawyers they can ask for the charges to be reduced to manslaughter. However there is only one little problem here. The man did not murder one or two people. In fact the Kenyan government still (officially) insists that about 600 people lost their lives in the dark events following those presidential elections. The press has stuck on the figure of about 1,000. Kumekucha sticks on the figure of close to 5,000 souls.
  
  Now the next thing that happened was that Mwai Kibaki had to do something. Wouldn’t you? And so he rigged the presidential elections. If you have the newspapers that reported the general election tallies then you have valuable evidence that Mr Ocampo needs to look at to prove that the elections DID NOT reflect the clear will of the Kenyan people and that was part of the provocation to the troubles that followed. There is even more evidence to the effect that shortly before the delayed presidential elections was announced a number of highly “suspicious” things happened. The then police commissioner had what has to be his lengthiest press conferences ever where he dwelt on the issue of folks accepting election results without resorting to violence. Then many Kenyans also witnessed riot police surrounding and sealing off the city mortuary. Were they guarding dead bodies? Let me just stop there.
  
  My point is that by simply reviewing the events that resulted from orders given by somebody from government shortly before “the results” were announced a lot of things will become very clear. And that is the president and his aides “knew” he had “won” the elections before the results were announced.
  
  Mr Ocampo for Kenyans to see that justice has been done, somebody has to take responsibility for those lethal “orders” and that person should not be the then police commissioner Maj Gen Hussein Ali only. Not even the then minister in charge of internal security only.
  
  The third person most responsible for the loss of life is one William Ruto. He fanned up emotions amongst the Kalenjin people mainly for his own political gain. Have you ever seen a person become a political kingpin for a whole community virtually overnight, unseating somebody like Moi who has held sway over the community for over half a century? Things happen suddenly in an election when people stir emotions. I am reliably informed that the evidence that would link this man to direct involvement in the violence is the kind that would not be admissible in a court of law in Kenya. But the Hague might be a different ball game altogether. Only that I fear this smart man has made a deal with those who have access to this evidence and therefore it will never be released to you Mr Ocampo.
  
  Kindly excuse me for a minute, Mr Ocampo and let me address myself to my fellow Kenyans very directly for a minute.
  
  Fellow Kenyans put your party and tribal affiliations aside for a minute and put on your thinking caps.
  
  Everybody fears the next general elections and there is a lot of anxiety that violence could break out yet again and this time it could be a lot worse. Now what if something was done to stop these three people exercising any kind of political influence over the elections in 2012? For starters they should not even be allowed to run as councilors. Don’t you think it would magically diffuse all tensions and guarantee a very peaceful election?
  
  Mr Ocampo I am sure that many Kenyans will agree with me over that last statement I have just made. And this is yet another reason why you must make sure that your investigations focuses on these 3 people (before anybody else) and that they are held responsible for the loss of life of so many innocent, poor Kenyans whose blood is crying out from the ground and no doubt this may be one of the reasons why you Mr Ocampo appear to be so driven to see justice done in Kenya.
  
  Good luck sir and one last piece of advice. It is critical that at all times that you are involved in these investigations that you imagine yourself in a pit full of the most poisonous snakes in the world. And actually sir, that is exactly what you have done sticking out your neck to investigate this matter. Take every little precaution when you are in the country. Never use the same car, instead rely on the available excellent car rental services in Nairobi, even for limousines. Be careful when you eat in restaurants (kindly compare notes with one retired Detective inspector John Troon. But whatever happens be sure that the vast majority of Kenyans across political affiliations are cheering you on. Go Ocampo, go!!
  
  Good luck sir, turning stones that are way too heavy to be turned and have NEVER EVER been turned.
  
  Wakaribishwa Kenya nchi ambayo hakuna matata.Kumekucha

  
  

• Esau and Jacob Story at James Gichuru Road

  Posted: April 3, 2010, 6:00 am by Taabu

  By Mwarang'ethe
  
  From the Sunday school story of Esau and Jacob, we know that, Esau contemptuously surrendered his birthright for he was hungry after long days of hunting. All he wanted was rest and food, i.e. the stew of meat and vegetables which Jacob had in his possession. Simply said, Esau sold his birthright for miserable messes of pottage.
  
  With this story in mind, let us take a walk along James Gichuru road which runs from Westland, cutting through Lavington, near Kawangware slums which then end up at Dagoretti corner. This walk more than anything else, reveals that, we are a nation of Esau and Jacob. Now, as you walk along this road, if you are a keen observer of man and society, you will notice two very interesting things.
  
  On the paved road, you will see very well dressed and well fed or over fed Kenyans/foreigners sited on their big fuel guzzlers as they cruise to and fro. Also, on both sides of this road, which are dusty or muddy depending on the season, you will see a lot of shabbily poor men and women walking in very hurried manner. These poor Kenyans, are either going to work, or coming from work. But, where do most of these poor Kenyans work? They work for the Kenyans/foreigners in the big cars. The walking masses represent Esau and those in big cars represent Jacob.
  
  Now, the reason you will see a lot of poor Kenyans walking as we describe above is because we have chaotic, inefficient, dangerous and expensive transport system made of matatus. We know Michuki tried to improve it, but, we ask, how do you improve a perversion? The question then is why is it so damn difficult for Kenya to develop a well integrated transport system? We are taught, it is very expensive. But, is it so? We deny these falsehoods which Kenyans have swallowed for 50 years.
  
  However, before we do so, let us say this. Whenever the development of Asian nations like Singapore is discussed by our politicians and scholars, including Professor Ali Mazrui, we are told that, it is because a nation like Singapore has been led by malevolent dictator. Is it so? Mazrui is an eminent thinker, but, we deny his answers as utter rubbish. So, how does Singapore provide its citizens with world class integrated transport system? It boils down to bidding for land/space. Sample this genius in integrated transport policy and compare it with the stupidity and madness of the Kenyan transport system.
  
  Due to lack of space in Singapore, they have developed a unique market mechanism that equalize everyone's ability to share in the benefits of that scarcity. In this scheme, motorists are free to determine the road rents they are willing to pay. They do this in auctions where they compete to secure the right to drive on the highways. Those who fail in their bids or those who do not wish to own a car, share in the benefits of the road rents which are spent on providing first class public transport.
  
  Given the land scarcity, Singapore has a sophisticated way of controlling car growth (in Kenya, we can use scarcity of oil). The government constrains the growth of vehicles to 3% a year. To do so, it uses a range of tools which include the Certificate of Entitlement (COE), the Vehicle Quota System (VQS), road taxes and Electronic Road Pricing (ERP). Each month, a certain number of COE's are released. The vehicle entitlement is valid for ten years from the date of registration of the vehicle. Bidding is done electronically whereby, people determine how much they will pay in competition with other would be motorists.
  
  The electronic road pricing is based on the pay - per - use principle that reflects the true cost of motoring. Singapore has extended this to points of congestion on major highways and it has been credited with having reduced the volume of traffic during peak periods. The consequence of this is that, the cost of motoring in Singapore is staggering.
  
  In Singaporean dollars, in 2006, an Audi A 41.8 is $ 182, 000, for a BMW 328 (2.8 cc) $ 238, 000, for a Mercedes 200E: $ 201, 902, for a Volvo Estate 2.0: $ 160, 753. The alternative is you take the bus or train. Interestingly, the demand for the COE’s continues to rise and their prices in auctions that are open. This means that bidders can see what others are bidding for before they submit their offers. This reduces massive speculation.
  
  What is the verdict of the World Bank on Singaporean transport system? It has concluded that:
  (a) This system has helped attract foreign investment and there are no major negative side effects on economic growth or on the welfare of people on the lowest incomes.
  
  (b) In addition, by rationing scarce physical space by price mechanism, Singapore has generated funds for investment in improvements much beyond transport and enabled reductions of other, less desirable taxes.
  
  Thus, using a scheme that equalizes all citizens’ access to road/land, Singapore has been able to come up with a truly integrated transport policy. Those who cannot afford to run a car benefit from higher - quality public transport and lower taxes. In this scheme, there are no losers because road rents facilitate a sophisticated approach to sharing scarce space.
  
  The collateral gains of this system include a dynamic economy at the frontier of technological progress and wage levels that employees of the West can only envy. No wonder, the OECD is always complaining of Singapore as an offshore since they want to hide the link between road rents and Singapore's low tax rate. However, Singapore government is keenly aware that, its success in the global economy depends on recycling rents back into its infrastructure so that equity is associated with efficiency. This policy has placed Singapore at the forefront of global commerce. Yes, fortunes are made in Singapore, but, they are not made in land speculation. That’s why in building highways, they do not reward landowners at the expense of the taxpayer as the African nations are doing.
  
  Something to ponder about
  (a) When Singapore gained independence which was at the same time as Kenya, some areas looked like Kawangware. Today, this tiny island is among the largest sovereign investors with over $ 247 billion as sovereign fund/assets. Mark you, this fortune has not been made from commodities as some suggested about Botswana. How much do we have as Kenyans in 2010? We answer mounting debts, poverty and senseless tribal conflict over land.
  
  (b) In Kenya, if anyone wants to import a Hammer (remember the battle of Hammers in Kibera) or a Range Rover, we just allow them to import without questions and then allow them to blow dust on the poor Kenyans who fund these roads as they walk on the dusty pavements. Is this the way to build a just and peaceful nation?
  
  (c) Does this sound like malevolent dictatorship, or a sound land policy as the foundation just like the one we have been advocating at work?
  
  In a nutshell, if we had institutionalised this kind of land policy, we would be able to provide safe, efficient, affordable and accessible transport system for women who constitute the majority of those who walk to and from Kawangware slums along Gichuru road so as to go and clean the houses of bwana kubwa, i.e. bwana jinga.
  
  Instead of such a simple policy, we come up with weird ideas of affirmative action to "uplift the welfare of our women." How do you separate the welfare of men from that of women? These are mere delusions which will ironically, cost these poor women even more in terms of tax to pay these so called "women leaders." Kenyans may go ahead with these schemes, but, we shall keep on shouting, yes, we know you are tired and desperate having waited for 20 years for the new constitution, but, just as Esau was tired and hungry, you have opted to denounce your birthright for miserable messes of pottage for we know he asked, behold, I am at the point to die, and what profit shall this birthright be to me? And, Jacob said, swear to me this day; and he swore unto him and thereby, he sold his birthright unto Jacob.Kumekucha

  
  

Blah blah blah

Fish cakes

Alas a fish cake.

Yet more fish cakes

Guess what ... yeah ... fish cakes.

The end of the fish cakes