****
http://blog.jaluo.com/?p=1195
– – –
Date:  Tue, 22 Jul 2008 11:03:08 -0700 (PDT)
From:  Sande
Subject:   SCHOOL UNREST WAVE TWO – – More than Meets the Eye
   ****

– – – – – – – – – – –

Sande
 
Thanks for that call. This country needs such loud wake up calls.
 
Let me just share with you my notes as I listen to Prof Ongeri, Prof Karega Mutahi and Prof. George Godia.
 
It appears to me that the Ministry of Education has no clue what has happened.
 
These are still notes and I will appreciate comments and questions on the notes I have drafted.
 
Have an educated day brother.
 
Kukubo barasa

Read report;
SCHOOL_UNREST_2008.html
– – –
Date:  Thu, 24 Jul 2008 00:21:42 -0700 (PDT)
From:  kukubo barasa
Subject:  Re: SCHOOL UNREST WAVE TWO – – More than Meets the Eye

    ****
http://blog.jaluo.com/?p=1206
– – –
Date: Wed, 23 Jul 2008 20:27:50 +0300
From: Paul Nyandoto
Subject: Vs: Male circumcision is a political scheme to depopulate the Luos
    ****

– – – – – – – – – – –

>>> Jairus K’Onyiego 23.07.08 23:58 >>>

Paul,

This shows you how the unexposed African continue to be duped about situations. Instead of tackling the problem from the root cause, as you have mentioned in your article, some unscrupulous people have resorted to instilling fear and false myth amongst the people.
 
The way I see it is that there are a number of factors contributing to the spread of HIV in communities, and especially those in the region of Nyanza in Kenya. These factors have nothing to do with the circumcision myth. If that myth were to be true then a countries like Swaziland and South Africa would have the lowest rate of HIV cases. Yet those two countries have some of the highest rate of HIV cases. These countries predominately practices circumcision. So why would it be that they have a  large number of HIV cases?
 
1.The number one factor is the Stigmatization of this whole issue.
2.Cultural practices
3. Poverty
4 Lack of education, exposure or whatever you might wonna call it.
 
The single most largest avenue of transmission of HIV is through Sex. Most of the time through multiple sex partners. This then turns the whole issue to point to the fact that the person contracting the Virus through this avenue is promiscuous. Silence then follow because no one wants to be looked at as promiscuous. Therefore those infected already through this avenue do not open up, own up and finally change their ways. They continue silently in their ways and in denial of the whole situation. When finally they die, they will have died of some chest problem, malaria, a toe nail, diarrhea, and any other desease that can come into the illusionist relatives minds, but Aids.
 
Culturally then the “Wife inheritors will be ready “on their Marks” to inherit the deceased’s surviving wife at a whistle blow or the sound of a gun. In most cases these days you will find awhole bunch of guys whom, if put through an elimination process, you can end up with eight rounds. You see all these many young men will be ready to sign their “death warrants” in the name of inheritance because of those four major factors I have mentioned above. And whether they are circumcised or not once they go through this action then you can be assured as Night and Day that they will contract the decease.  Reason being that at the initial stage nobody, or the society did not make concerted efforts to inform the would be inheritor that the inheritee is an aids case, and as such engaging in sex with them is a sure way of catching the Virus.
 
Were the community to be brave enough to tackle this issue like that, then the rate would tremendously go down. The other worrisome factor is played by poverty. It is a well known fact that our Government has long abdicated its obligation of working to provide servic es to the people thereby creating employment opportunities foit is there is no employment for these guys. And as they say An Idle mind is a devils workshop. Since there in nothing to do and no money to indulge in other activities these young men end up finding then selves focused on Sex as a way to redeem their feelings of worthlessness. Sex then becomes a very important preoccupation. Mixed with Culture then the prowess of the African man of “having many women under his grasp rears its ugly head. This problem goes on and on and on.
 
What is the solution then? The answer will be found in making a concerted effort to inform the public, by enlightening them to what HIV Virus is and how it is transmitted, The Government, private sector and the community itself, must come up with ideas of how to create gainful employment that will keep these young people busy, thereby eliminating the idleness
 
Wife inheritance can be practiced, but the participants must be disciplined not to engage in unsafe sex, if at all one partner has been diagnosed with the Virus. All these can be accomplished using the DDC money. How long will MPS continue to blurt incoherent words about myths while in reality all they need to do is the most basic things, i. e. passing information to the public? Many victims might not be able to afford Western medicine, but at least an effort can be made to pass on relevant and right information to them. Many lives will be saved by this information as opposed to screaming myths like Circumcision, Wife inheritance and so on.
 
Thank you and have an informed day.
 
K’Onyiego

– – – – – – – – – – –

K`Onyiego

Thanks, that is a very good, brave, brilliant and execellent NOTE you have put forward. You should just see that, the NOTE reaches luos down in Nyanza. Basic educators, persons who are really after the development of luos in the ground should have those ideas. Leave alone those exploitors who just want some money to be extracted from donors or people who are after getting money from anything proposed nowadays. Infact the NGO on HIV/AIDS problems have got money  poured into Kenya for now a very long time. You Know k´Onyiego what makes my stomach aches very much is this; despite  all the money NGO have been extracting from donors the best they can come out with is just this stupid CIRCUMCISION. Where the hell are Luos heading to?. Who should we put on the cross for this stupid thinking?, and who are these people putting youths to inherit windows from HIV/AIDS marriages?.. I do know that luos are mostly conservative lots in Kenya, though we sometimes critisise even the USA conservative party but we luos if we do not open our minds and look a head this HIV/AIDS might finish a generation.

Paul Nyandoto

– – –
Date:  Thu, 24 Jul 2008 08:32:49 +0300
From:  Paul Nyandoto
Subject:   Vs: Re: Vs: Male circumcision is a political scheme to depopulate the Luos

Double standards in reappointment of chief executive officers
Published on 20/07/2008
Gakuu Mathenge

The reappointment of Mr Joe Barage Wanjui as the Chancellor of the University of Nairobi adds to the suspicions President Kibaki only pays lip service to the war against impunity.

Wanjui, a former chairman of the Transparency International board, is among a group of senior civil servants who made it to the ignominious list compiled by the Kenya National Human Rights Commission, (KNHRC), and submitted to the Attorney General for prosecution over alleged indiscipline late last year.

They were listed as having been in violation of the Public Officer Ethics Act that was enacted by the Ninth Parliament to restore respectability to the Civil Service.

The list contained the names of what has come to be known as political CEOs, a select cabal of privileged civil servants, who conduct themselves in a manner suggesting they are not bound by the common law and the Civil Service code.

The KNHRC concerns was that the civil servants named in its election monitoring report titled “Still Behaving Badly” had violated the Public Officer Ethics Act, the National Assembly and the Presidential Elections Act by compromising the independence of their offices by getting mixed up in partisan political activities.

Other CEOs listed in the report include Mr George Muhoho (Kenya Air Ports Authority), Mr Nathaniel Kang’ethe (Director, Kenya Revenue Authority), Mr Eddy Njoroge (Kengen), Mr Titus Mbathi (Former PS and Chairman, Kengen Board), Mr James Kimonye (Then MD, Kenya Meat Commission), and Prof Nick Wanjohi (then Vice-Chancellor JKUAT) from involving themselves in PNU politics.

All of them were in the Presidential Advisory Board and the Elections Board, the two outfits behind the operations and activities of Maendeleo Resources Trust that operated under the slogan Kibaki Tena in the last General Election.

Blue-eyed boys of the Kibaki

Section 16 (1) of the Public Officer Ethics Act says no civil servant shall get involved in partisan political activities, as an agent for or so as to further the interests of a political party; indicate support for or against any party or candidate in an election; or engage in activities that are likely to compromise the political neutrality of his office.

The impunity with which the so called blue-eyed boys of the Kibaki regime also exposed the head of Public Service and Secretary to the Cabinet, Francis Muthaura, to accusations of doublestandards, after he kicked out other civil servants who wanted to join politics.

Early last year, he issued a directive for civil servants wishing to join politics to resign by June.

The conduct of the political CEOs is a throwback to the ugly 1960s and 1970s when certain members of the “Family”, some relatives and cohorts of the founding President Kenyatta got away with mischief.

Pioneer head of Public Service and Secretary to the Cabinet Duncan Ndegwa says in his biography that impunity by senior civil servants who enjoyed political patronage in the 1970s, poisoned morale of the rest of the Public Service.

—The writer (gmathenge@eastandard.net) is a senior writer with The Standard
___

Date: Wed, 23 Jul 2008 19:38:58 +0000
From: Nicholas Mireri
Subject: Kenya:Kibaki’s Political CEOs

Jameni,
Woman President Karua & Youthful PM Mungata,that is Narc-Kenya for Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu

Jagwassi

– – –
Date: Wed, 23 Jul 2008 18:52:24 +0000
From: Nicholas Mireri
Subject: Narc-K:President Karua & PM Mungatana

– – – – – – – – – – –

Mungatana rails at Kibaki, Raila over deputy PMs
Updated on: Thursday, July 24, 2008
Story by: By Joseph Mambili ……

Mungatana

Assistant minister for Medical Services Danson Mungatana yesterday hit out at the President Mwai Kibaki telling him to keep off from party politics and focus instead at fortifying his legacy.

Mungatana said it was time the youth and women took over the mantle of leadership since the current crop of leaders have failed to steer the country to prosperity.

He said Prime Minister Raila Odinga and President Mwai Kibaki failed to appoint women as Deputy Prime Ministers, opting for male politicians instead. He subsequently told the two that it was time for women and youth to lead the country.

“Prime Minister had the option of Charity Ngilu while President had the option of Martha Karua to appoint them as DPM for ODM and PNU, but they failed to do so instead appointing men,” said Mungatana. He also cited the likes of head of civil service Francis Muthaura and permanent secretary in the Office of PM Mohammed Isahakia respectively as old clique who should not be in the office.

Mungatana gave a strong assurance that Narc-Kenya would field women and youth to vie for top seats including presidential candidate in the 2012 general elections. He maintained that Karua would emerge as the winning presidential candidate during 2012 presidential election while he would be the Prime Minister.

Said he: “Karua will be the next President in the country and I will the Prime Minister.” The remark comes at a time when trouble was brewing in PNU camp after some affiliate parties including Narc-Kenya rebuffed Kibaki’s call for the strengthening of PNU as a party not a coalition of parties, which resulted to some officials in the coalition telling Narc-K to withdrew its membership from the coalition. On Nyamweya, the minister said he should not talk party matters.
____

It is unfortunate that with the new knowledge on male circumcision as a possibility of reducing spread of HIV, the Luo council of elders have consistently campaigned against it, spreading all sorts of misinformation and rumors hence denying people an opportunity to reduce the number of new infections.

This is despite the fact that the Luo council of elders is an abstract structure amongst the Luo youths and infants (the main target group of the medical intervention). Ask an ordinary Luo young man or woman (within child bearing age) about the alleged council of elders, they will tell you they know nothing: how it is formed, what they do, who chooses their chair and etc….

Their argument that they are promoting abstinence amongst the youth is baseless since medical male circumcision is not promoted on its own but is being promoted to be adopted to be used alongside other methods of HIV prevention namely Abstinence Condoms and Being faithful.

The young people of the Luo community are therefore against the stand of the unknown and unnecessary Luo council of elders. We have refused to be held hostage by a group of old men who have been overtaken by events and have refused to adopt the new ways of science and life.

LUO COUNCIL OF ELDERS GIN NG’A
Jothurwa.
Atimo mos ni an awuon an jaluo to ok ayango jogi ma luongore ni Luo Council of Elders. Ase bedo ka asomo barupe mogo mag jowadwa e mbui ni ka wuoyo kuom jogi to kata kamano pok ayude baruwa ma nyiso ni to yawagi to gin ji manade. Kuom mano daher mar kwaye ng’at mong’eyo mondo oyanga gi duoko kuom penjo gi:

Luo Council of Elders en ang’o?
Idonje gi pesa koso idonje nono?
Ji madonje oyier gi joluo koso?

Oyier gi nade (method)?
Nying’ no temo nyiso ni gin ji ma otegno (elderly). Ngato nyaka bed ja higni adi eka dobed ja kanyo?

Kaka sani giko ngima mar dhano (life expectancy) e Luo Nyanza en higni 29 kende, jodongo ma jo higni 25 kanyo nyaka 29 bende oyienegi bedo jokanyo.

E gweng’wa ma Kisumo Karateng’, jaduong’ mane ma jakanyo?

Gin gi mbui margi ma di asomie mondo ang’e mang’eny kuomgi?

Ka gichiwo puonj ne jotendwa kak Raila, kata Orengo, kaka aneno ka gise bedo ka gitimo, gichiwe ni gichung’ne (represent) gin giwegi, koso gichiwe kak joma ochung’ ne Luoduto?

Yie ukonya gi duoko jothurwa mong’eyo.

An jakuodho oyie dhaw)

– – –
Date: Wed, 23 Jul 2008 02:14:26 -0700 (PDT)
From: Riaga Ogalo
Subject: Male Circumcision and HIV in Luo Nyanza

– – – – – – – – – – –

Male circumcision is a political scheme to depopulate the Luos

By Rev Okoth Otura
www.eactmf.org

In the 1980’s the Kenya government under Ex-President Moi, perceived Luo wife inheritance, polygamy and ” Chira” traditions and customs cultural practices as the main cause and reason of high rate of HIV/Aids death in Nyanza, the theory which his regime use as tool to eliminates Luos dissidents and population through Health Care Services across the board.

The late Jaramogi Oginga Odinga security intelligence established under classified information in 1990’s, that all Government Hospitals and Clinics in Luo Nyanza were supplied with un-sterile Medical Instruments and thus, many HIV/Aids infections were spread through Un-sterile Medical Injections, Dental/Surgeon Instruments, contaminated multy-dose vials, maternity delivery rooms,( luo children umbilical cords were cut by un-sterile instruments)

A part from other HIV/Aids contraction super highway in luoland, the Kenya government significantly contributed through Health Care Services of transmission and spread among the Luos in Kenya as a persecution due to their opposition stand against the corruption government system.

Despites all these the Luos still overcame this atrocities, and latter Moi had to declare the HIV/Aids a disaster after other tribes were infection increased in alarming rate.

Meanwhile, I support the Luo Counsel of Elders stand to resist the current attempt by the Kenya government to impose male circumcision a health policy on luos. The scientific experience which has failed elsewhere should not be used on the luos just for the sake to please the West. We are perplexed with perpetuation of the Kenya government to have the Luos whip out on the Kenyan map. Let consider:

· Uganda is the leading country in prevention against HIV/Aids in world, with the entire tribes not practicing circumcisions except the Bagisu and the Muslims, and yet they rejected the male circumcision, even threaten to ban the tradition and practice.
· South Africa is the hardest hit with HIV/AIDS despite male circumcision as customary practice by all the tribes and with provision the best Health Care system in the world.

Some luo elites heads the most busy body NGO’s in Kenya under the influenced of the west and therefore, instead of majoring on the major cause of spread of HIV/Aids which is mainly cultural sexual behavioral, poor Health Care Services and poverty, they decided to have Luo community to be their ‘money bag’ ‘Ginny pig’ (By trial and Error) for west.

In fact the HIV/Aids among the west is currently spreading in threaten pace, and yet they are not circumcised. Why don’t they have their people frog match for forceful circumcision before imposition fail system on the Africans?

It devastating for the Luos MPs to keep silent

The battle on the HIV/Aids needs political will, the Luos MP’s and Leaders must step up campaign against this busy body NGO’s trying to intimidated and spread stigma among the luo community.
http://majimbokenya.com/home/2008/07/23/male-circumcision-is-a-political-scheme-to-depopulate-the-luos-in-kenya/

– – –
Date: Wed, 23 Jul 2008 06:19:44 -0700 (PDT)
From: ndebele okoth
Subject: Male circumcision is a political scheme to depopulate the Luos

– – – – – – – – – – –

Fellows:

This circumcision theory does not fit very well into the scientific world. We do know today a lot how people get the HIV-virus (the virus causing AIDS). There are societies which does not practise circumcision and are still having the lowest number of HIV/AIDS affected people. Take for example Finland, the country does not practice male circumcision and still they have the lowest number of HIV/AIDS almost in the whole world so how do you explain that.

We do know that HIV-virus is transmitted through sexual contact with an infected person, by sharing needles and syringes (primarily for drugs) with some one who is infected. You get HIV through transfusion of infected blood or blood clotting. Babies born to HIV-infected women may become infected before or during birth or through breast feeding after birth. In health care workers have been infected with HIV after being stuck with needles containing HIV-infected blood . We do know that HIV is found in blood, semen, vaginal fluid, breast milk, saliva, tears, urine, feces, vomit of an infected person ( saliva, sweat, tears have low quantity of HIV).

Remember in all the above I have mentioned these words: OF, OR, WITH AN INFECTED PERSON`.

Male circumcision should ONLY be considered s AN ADDITIONAL means of preventing HIV in a region with high prevalence of infection. Circumcision alone DOES NOT prevent from getting the HIV/AIDS. So how does circumcision works: It is believed that the minor surface of the foreskin contains Langerhan`s cells with HIV receptors, these cells are likely to be the primary point of viral entery into the penis of uncircumsied. I personally and some other doctors do not believe this theory as such. What we do know is that men who are not circumcised do have soft skin penis head or the region where the forskin joins the penis is soft and during sexual intercourse some end up getting injury easily and through those injured points or vessels the HIV enters the blood stream. The circumcised individual loses almost all these soft sensitive skin and in life the outer part of the penis head get to be just as hard as the ordinary outer protective skin which hardly get injured during sexual intercourse.

We do know today that you cannot get HIV/AIDS through food, drink, you can not get it through towels, or sheets, you can not get it from swimming pools, toilet seats, in social contact, hugging, touching.

PREVENTION:
-Condoms have been proved to be very effective during sexual contact with an individual who has the HIV or any person you are not sure of.
_ Avoid unpretective sex.

-Luos should just avoid wife inheritance, especially widows whose husbands have died of HIV/AIDS, This is the major TABU in luoland and can be one of the major reason why in Nyanza there is relatively higher rates of HIV/AIDS disease. Or many wives where one man hardly satisfies all, therfore some women end up looking for passion outside the marriage.
– Frunkness, being just and telling the truth about HIV/AIDS, and people who have the disease should stop infecting the innocent ones. Some shot of punishment to those who go on intesionaly infecting others.
– Mothers with HIV should be identified earlier and incase of pregnancy should be given anti HIV drug and bresat feeding should be prohibited on these infected women.
-Hospitals should be provided with dispossible needles, scapels, gloves,paper clothes, syringes etc.
_Physicians or nurses who have HIV should be prohibited from carry delicate operations where it is easy to cut himself and his blood end up entering the patients blood . Or Doctors operating on HIV patients should also be very careful not to get cutting themselves during operation or stuck by the same needles they have used on patients.
– Drug addicts should be provided with free sterile and dispossible needles and syringes etc.

CIRCUMCISION ALONE DOES NOT PREVENT FROM GETTING THE HIV/AIDS; PEOPLE JUST NEED TO WAKE UP AND KNOW THAT AND IT IS THE TRUTH. having sex with an healthy perway or avoiding having sex with people you do not know their HIV status.

I will leave you with these words; `Do not worry that others have failed to appreciate your talent; worry that you have not yet discovered and eliminated your own faults. Further, to recognize your own faults without working to eliminate them is truly WRONG`. So luos forget about circumcision but remember to eliminate your FAULTS. Mps can only make sure that the hospitals are equiped with dispossible, needles, operative instruments, syringes etc, arrange for sexual education in schools or in public places etc. BUT the MPs will hardly tell you who your sexual partner is or with whom you should go to bed with. Each and every man or woman will have to carry his/her own cross on this issue.

Paul Nyandoto

– – –
Date: Wed, 23 Jul 2008 20:27:50 +0300
From: Paul Nyandoto
Subject: Vs: Male circumcision is a political scheme to depopulate the Luos

Why do you guys allow people to use this site to express their hatred of other people based on the difference in tribe. So what the government may/may not have rigged the elections. But for crying out loud people should get over it. Whatever tribe the President comes from does not make people in that tribe rich. Don’t allow people to use your site just for their own personal issues. We are Kenyans first before Luo,Luhya,Kamba or even Kikuyu.

– – –
Date: Wed, 23 Jul 2008 01:04:01 -0400
From: Michael
Subject: Tribalism

— On Sun, 7/20/08, BOB-K BOB-K wrote:

From: BOB-K BOB-K
Subject: Kisumu experiences love for Hummer
Date: Sunday, July 20, 2008, 5:02 PM

Kisumu experiences renewed Railamania
Published on 21/07/2008

BY Harold Ayodo

A butcher who wrapped a quarter kilogramme of meat in a newspaper with the picture of Prime Minister Raila Odinga narrowly escaped death by lynching in Kisumu recently.

Irate residents of Manyatta bayed for the blood of the seasoned butcher who was only rescued by police.

“How could he wrap a quarter kilo of meat with bones using a newspaper with a colour picture of a national leader like Raila? It¢s unheard of,” says Oloo Otieno, a resident of Kondele.

Ouma¢s harrowing experience has made butchers cautious when serving clients after he closed shop.

“Now we usually confirm that the old newspapers we use do not have pictures that may offend our customers,” says a butcher.

Vendors of groundnuts at the Central Business District (CBD) also say they vet newspaper pages before using them to wrap the delicacy.

Matatus in Kisumu have pictures of Prime Minister in order to attract passengers . PHOTO BY James KeyieSmall-scale businessmen and women say the same applies to pictures of Illinois Senator and Democratic Party candidate Barack Obama.

It is for reasons such as this that the late Vice President Kijana Wamalwa coined the term Raila mania.

Residents say elevation of Raila to the second Premier of the country is no mean achievement considering the hardships he underwent fighting for expanded democratic space.

Bar patrons who have mastered the politics of Premiership usually get free rounds of beer from the people who listen to the tales.

Dwellers of the lakeside town even dismiss mainstream newspapers that do not bear his picture or story on the cover.

Vendors concur that selling a newspaper without either a front-page coloured picture of or a story about Raila in the region is similar to marketing pork in Saudi Arabia.

“Kuuza gazeti hapa bila maneno ya mzee ni ngumu,” a vendor says. (Selling newspapers here that is not about the old man is difficult.)

Newspaper vendors reveal that they sold the highest number of copies ever when Raila and Obama toured Kisumu together on August 26, 2006.

A vendor says the front-page picture of Raila and Obama in the Sunday Standard waving to crowds in Kisumu sold out before 8am on August 27.

Some residents keep copies of newspapers that carried banner headlines when Raila made ¡landmark¢ political statements like warning of a ¡political tsunami¢ four years ago.

Mama Milka Akoth has newspapers with stories of Raila since he was arrested over the 1982 coup, upon his release, his election as Lang¢ata MP in 1992 to elevation as Premier.

Weighty speeches

Akoth says she has kept the papers because there are times Raila speaks in parables and it requires time to unravel his speeches.

“Many did not understand what Raila meant when he warned of a political tsunami four years ago until the Government side lost the referendum,” recalls Akoth.

The philosophical grandmother of six says the tsunami was not spent until it swept several Cabinet ministers and Vice President Moody Awori from office last year.

“Agwambo ndio mchuzi ya magazeti. Kama hayuko kumekauka,” says Akoth. (Raila is the spice of newspapers and without his stories the papers are dry.)

Akoth is among many Kisumu residents who still have on the walls of their sitting rooms the posters Raila used to campaign for President in the last polls.

Many matatus have posted huge photos of Raila inset on a US dollar bill on the back windows of their vehicles to attract passengers.

Matatus and boats on Lake Victoria have pictures of Raila, Obama and former United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan.

Witty cab operators have miniature flags of the United States to attract the many foreign journalists who troop to the ancestral home of the Illinois Senator in Siaya.

Mothers have named their babies after the Premier in the belief that they would follow in his footsteps.

It is the same reason why the Executive Prime Minister Hotel attracts several clients at the lakeside town.

Bob-K

Enquiring mind wants to know

– – – – – – – – – – –

— On Mon, 7/21/08, Fred Osewe wrote:

From: Fred Osewe
Subject: Fw: Kisumu experiences love for Hummer
Date: Monday, July 21, 2008, 4:45 PM

In politics, if you want anything said, ask a man- if you want anything done ask a woman.

– – – – – – – – – – –

— On Tue, 7/22/08, nimmos waweru wrote:
From: nimmos waweru
Subject: Re: Fw: Kisumu experiences love for Hummer
Date: Tuesday, July 22, 2008, 2:36 PM

Dont you see this as a nonsense? Raila is just a politician but not God. Politicians are tricky and they deceive a lot expecially when citizens becomes very poor they possess a demonic low esteem, they forgot when they vote politicians its their right to demand services, but not promote Kingdomship. Development cautious leaders are the hero to the poor not empty rhetoric leaders who win by hypotinizing the unfortunate. Well it takes time for people to realise that this politicians all they do is to steal from the country for them to acquire the power to control.This is exactly all politicians im not singling anyone .

– – –
Date: Tue, 22 Jul 2008 20:09:39 -0700 (PDT)
From: nimmos waweru
Subject: Fw: Re: Fw: Kisumu experiences love for Hummer

The White Man’s Burden.

Many years ago, someone wrote a book by that title. The White Man’s Burden . The premise of the book was that the task of bringing the world up to speed on civilization was on the shoulders of the white man. For primitive people like the Africans to see the light, the white man had to act. Then there was the book Out Of Africa, by Ms. Blixen, which went on to become a blockbuster in Hollywood when it was adapted into a movie. All you have to do is read the condescending narrative of that story to get a glimpse into the mindset of the whites in Kenya back in the years. If I say they thought we were savages, no better than the animals that roamed the vast savannah, I’m being generous.

Now, before I plod into my thesis, let me warn that this is not a piece written to bash whites. No, a nice guy like me wouldn’t do that. The whites have done a lot to help us make sense of this world, and in many cases have saved us from ourselves. The least we can do is be grateful. That said, I bring this matter up because this question needs to be answered: How Long will We remain The White Man’s Burden? It’s understandable that some of the difficulties Africans have had to endure have stemmed from forces outside their control, like the dreadful experiments of the Structural Adjustment programs in the eighties and early nineties…and the weather-related acts of God. But on matters of self-governance, who do we have to blame?

Take a walk with me across the continent today. Let’s start in South Africa. Out there, one of the world’s most inspiring figures just celebrated his ninetieth birthday. Nelson Mandela is a symbol of African resilience and latent genius. Yet you go down a notch from him and you meet Thabo Mbeki. This is the man who battled the global medical community about the physics of AIDS. He’s presided over an administration that has failed to spread the vast wealth in South Africa…make it trickle down to the lowly people of that nation. Is it any wonder that anti-immigrant sentiment in that country is palpable these days? One can only hope that South Africa is not about to go down the path other African nations have. But before we walk away from this magnificent nation, we must call it, as of right now, one of the brightest spots on the continent.

From South Africa, let’s climb up to the Southern African region. Most nations are doing relatively well here. But then there’s Zimbabwe. The latest embarrassment in Africa. This nation is emblematic of African failure. The economy has collapsed. No social life to talk about. People now worship God, but wonder about His power to save them. And in politics Robert Mugabe has found a way to pull a Kibaki. What you may not realize is that the solution President Mbeki took to Zimbabwe was crafted in capitals out of Africa. Thabo was the Kofi Annan of Zimbabwe. That’s why I ask, how long will we remain the white man’s burden?

Let’s not dwell on Zimbabwe, though. CNN and the BBC told the story in detail. So we come to the eastern Africa region. Tanzania is moving forward at a decent pace. Uganda is a stable, strong-man democracy. Djibouti, Somalia, Eritrea and Ethiopia are nations ravaged by hunger and wars. Because of their strategic insignificance, though, nobody seems to care what goes on there. Which leaves Kenya. The elections there were a sham. They left in place a deeply unpopular president and the worse tribal relations Kenya has ever seen. When the world bulked at the possibility of one of Africa’s most strategic nations disintegrating, Dr. Annan was sent in with ready-made solutions from washington, London, Paris and Berlin. Even the IMF and the World Bank weighed in. And this is the twenty first century? Just how long will it take for us to get our act together? When do we stop being the white man’s burden?

Let’s drive up to Central Africa. Chad, a mess. Sudan, under sanctions, a president that’s more murderous than the Nazis, a nation split between the North and South. In the end, the United Nation’s, under the thumb of the United States, has had to act to save the southern blacks. And the International Court has followed the UN lead by indicting El Bashir…that monster. The question is, why can’t this region’s leaders feed and lead its people well? Why do they have to wait for the white man to tell them what to do?

I’ll leave the Western and Northern African regions for another day. What you’ve witnessed as we’ve walked across South Africa and the wider sub-Saharan Africa is a continent that’s either in decline, as if we’d ever made any significant strides, or just running in place. The tragedy of what’s going on is that Africa is blessed with enormous natural resources and an abundance of human resources. But more than anything, the good Lord has seen to it that Africa’s sons and daughters are now well educated and capable of excellent leadership. So how do we explain the incessant decay in Africa? Why do we keep goofing around, looking to capitals outside Africa whenever we need solutions to our problems? If the African Union can’t move Africa forward, why have it? Why not replace it with a more responsive body?

The time for Africa to rise up is now. We may not successfully organize into a superstate like the emerging European Union, or the big kid on the block, the United States, which has been around for years, but we can start by strengthening the regional economic blocs, integrating the financial institutions, expanding the existing markets, having a military unit answerable to a single command, and moving steadily toward the eventual emergence of the African superstate. Am I a dreamer? Well, how did man get to the moon without dreaming? How did one man in a research facility somewhere give birth to the atomic bomb without dreaming? And how did our freedom fighters kick the colonialists’ butt out of Africa without dreaming of freedom?

We must dream.

Dream big.

The biggest dream of all must be that Africa has come to the point where continued reliance on the white man’s brain must end. We are capable of taking care of ourselves. So let’s thank the good people of Europe and America and Asian for the good they’ve done, but while at it, we must be firm that from now on, we’ll take care of our own problems. All we have to do is…the right thing!

How hard can that be?

God bless Africa.

Sam O. Okello

– – –
Date: Tue, 22 Jul 2008 18:26:30 -0700
From: samokello@ . . .
Subject: Will We Ever Stop Being The White Man’s Burden?

It is not a matter of desperation or self pity but we just have one country where we are all deaf and we have never learnt to be proactive. I want to believe our reactive nature is part of our African genetic disposition.

The issue of school unrest is a matter we debated exhaustively in 2000 – – 2003 and even proposed solutions as independent stakeholders. I do remember there was also a commission to that effect. Read your back issues of the Education Watch and Education Insight magazines where we espoused all the “disregarded wisdom’ at our disposal concerning school unrest.

We need not walk that route again and will not use this opportunity to espouse our “cheap wisdom’ that will not be heeded anyway. Because even if we do, the school unrests will not go away and our advice will not be taken seriously. Who doesn’t know that? This is Kenya where wisdom is only for those who know what they know and live in big cities.

And as we remain adamant, complacent and take on a fire fighting attitude, we shall continue to loose our young people and property in senseless infernos.

The whole thing about school unrest is to do with the national psyche and nation’s emotional temperature – – a simmering heat underneath. A hurting society.

We saw the simmering during the agitation for multi-party democracy. The young people usually bring out our hidden anger that as the older members of the society we only grumble about but do nothing about. In our grumbling, we do this within the hearing and precincts of our young people and trust me, with their energy and bronco energy, they will not take it “maturely’ just grumble and leave it there, they will do something about it.
Thank God for the energy of youth.

Just like most of the school unrest was in the parts of Eastern, Coast, Western and Nyanza during the first wave late 90’s and early 2000; this time round the wave of unrest is in Central province. Reason, there is an unresolved political issue there. There is a simmering of emotions there and the temperature is rising.

Second, since the Central province is where the President comes from, there is undue academic pressure brought to bear on the students top perform and even over-perform. This in itself is stressful and leads to emotional imbalance. Image is everything but image hurts sometimes.

And then guess what, our leaders and academics are advocating for official sanctioning of corporal punishment as if corporal punishment is a panacea. I pity them. For one, corporal punishment never went away; it has always been with us. It is just that it is officially not permissible and by the way we do things in this country, what is permissible or not depends on “circumstances’. So, corporal punishment is very much alive and we continue to get serious injuries and even deaths as a result of this inhuman and archaic approach to managing student behaviour.

A lesson for the Central province which is being hit hardest at this point in time; when you oath young people and ready them for civil war – – and by good or bad luck there is no war; you must be ready to carry the weight of the repercussions. That force or energy wil have to be spent somewhat. There is a price. These young men will torch schools, refuse to go back to school and your neighborhoods will never be safe again. SIMPLE.

Next time, before you are carried away by passion, think and think straight.

If The Right Honourable Prime Minister Raila Odinga aka Tinga was to go according to his heart, act in a rash and prematurely arm the youth in Rift Valley, Western and Nyanza who were crying out for guns, imagine where we would be today. Arming these young men with state of the art AK 47’s was not difficult. The money was available and the supply plentiful. Challenge is, how do you rein in young men armed with AK 47’s ? Control mechanisms n must be in lace first. Such armed youth actually become a law unto themselves. They are not a disciplined force to take orders from their superiors. and that is the route Liberia, Sierra Leone, Somalia and DR Congo took; they are still paying the price today.

And this is one point our friends in Mt.Kenya do not want to see. They suppose they can intimidate the rest of the country with thousands of armed youth with unkempt hair and red eyes. (You heard of the two containers of arms that disappeared from Mombasa port. Some of these arms are around Kimilili area from what we know. Oh Pleeeaaase! This is politics my dear brothers and sisters and the rules of the game changed in 1963.

There are times to follow your head and not your heart, especially in such sensitive matters involving security, young people and national interests.

I challenge the leaders of Central Kenya to rise up to the challenge and stem this monster that is going to eat them alive in broad daylight as the rest of the country watches the spectacle. “Pole sana’ is all we will be able to say and do. A monster they bred and nurtured by oathing these young men in readiness to fight. Fight whom? And true to the situation, the monster shall remain confined right within their own kraal. It is not a national problem but a local one so contained it shall remain.

The Minister of Education is giving it an academic solution which will not go far. He only has half the story.

This is an issue for Psychologists, Psychiatrists, Motivational Speakers, the Church and Politicians. If not, then trust me, we haven’t seen the last or the worst of this just yet. 2012 is coming.

Central leaders, search your souls. You already suffer the worst insecurity in this country and here you are creating yet another catastrophe with your own hands. Just stop this thing and work at undoing the mess NOW. There is no war you are preparing these young men for, Kenyans are not interested. And you couldn’t win even if you dared. Be realistic. And there is no way you can mobilize militias to conquer land in Kenya. Just wake up to reality and deal with the real issues politically. Mau Mau served its role then, now we fight different. Please reconsider your position; we are not fighting the colonial government. And remember, in any case, in this country we need each other as a team.

When you depend on the myopic leadership of this world to curve political direction for you, then you are in deep trouble and headed for the ravine of a social catastrophe. Choices good people, choices in life. And the tragedy is where the younger folk fall into line believing that that is the way it should be done.

Let us mull this over and find practical ways and means to stamp out the school unrest today!

Sande
HR Activist
VIHIGA

– – –
Date:  Tue, 22 Jul 2008 11:03:08 -0700 (PDT)
From:  Sande
Subject:   SCHOOL UNREST WAVE TWO – – More than Meets the Eye