Prime Minister Raila Odinga shot down calls for a Diaspora Ministry

BLOOMINGTON, Minn – Prime Minister Raila Odinga of Kenya has shot down calls by Kenyans abroad for the creation of a ministry in charge of Diaspora affairs. Instead, the prime minister said the Diaspora desk in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will be strengthened.

The prime minister made the remarks when he addressed about 700 Kenyans that packed a ballroom at a local hotel here.

Mr. Odinga said the new constitution the country adopted last year places a limit on the number of ministries that can exist and besides government was “already too big”.

After many years of successfully lobbying for dual citizenship, the Kenyan Diaspora has slowly taken up the cause of a ministry dedicated to them as the next big challenge.

The prime minister however did reveal that a voter registration exercise for the Diaspora is on a pilot stage at the Kenya High commission in London and that Kenyans abroad should ready themselves to vote in next year’s general elections.

The prime minister was in the US for an official visit to the United Nations for a Horn of Africa Crisis meeting where he presented the report of the “Nairobi Declaration” following a meeting of the East African countries. “I am happy to report to you that the UN adopted the report”, he said.

The prime minister who has had an “on again and off again” type of relationship with Minnesota Kenyans was making his first visit to Minnesota as prime minister. He was last here in February 2007 for a campaign stop, just months before the disputed December 2007 general election that plunged Kenya into violence.

He has come full circle with Kenyans in Minnesota. He was met with a hostile crowd in 2000 during his “cooperation years’ with then president Daniel Arap Moi. By 2007 when he visited again, he was back in the good books of the predominantly pro-reform Kenyan crowd that resides here. Among his critics at the Town hall was one Judy Onsomu who nevertheless said she would keep an open mind and hear Mr. Odinga out.

A noticeable difference with this visit was the Secret service protection that he enjoyed which prevented the backslapping, vigorous handshaking and photo opportunities that a Raila visit provided in the past.

Late start

The meeting got off to an inauspicious start. Advertised on the Kenya embassy website with a start time of 1:00 P.M., the meeting did not get underway until two hours later. When it got underway, speeches from numerous local personalities as well as three members of parliament in the prime minister’s delegation took another two hours. With the ‘Town Hall’ meeting advertised to end at 5:00 P.M., it was not until 5:10 P.M., that the prime minister took to the podium to address a now restless crowd.

After giving a laundry list of the accomplishments of the coalition government he is a part of with President Mwai Kibaki, the prime minister seemed to be in his element when he segued into what many in the audience believed brought him to Minnesota – next year’s general elections. “He only came here to campaign period” declared Ali Mohammed, a nine year Minnesota resident from Kenya, as he waited an agonizing two hours for the meeting to begin.

To that effect, Mr. Martin Ogindo, the Member of Parliament for Rangwe constituency who was in the prime minister’s delegation, had set the tone for him. MP Ogindo told the audience that “his people” had prayed to God for PM Odinga to “get a promotion” and the “almighty instructed us to go forth and vote accordingly”, he said to sustained laughter from the audience.

Mr. Odinga likened himself to a pilot in a plane on the runaway about to take off, with the plane being Kenya in this instance. He dismissed as irrational the fear some Kenyans have of a Luo president “I do not want to be president for the Luos but for all Kenyans”, he told a cheering crowd. He said Luos are Kenyans like everyone else. Mr. Odinga who represents Nairobi’s Langata constituency in parliament said the area is one of the most cosmopolitan in the country “and all those people have voted for me.”

“We are not crooks”

At one point, Assistant Minister Richard Onyonka, who commanded the podium for a period of time tried to explain the reasoning for Kenyan members of parliament not paying taxes. After proclaiming he was a product of the Diaspora, he used the America is a democracy argument as the now exasperated crowd got ready to shout him down for what they called “lame excuses”.

He told the crowd that the MPs have been misunderstood and that the country including the Diaspora should look at it from their point of view “as we are not crooks,” drawing derisive laughter from sections of the audience.
Another Member of Parliament, Mr. Hussein Ali of Mandera East looked on quietly as Mr. Onyonka made his case.

Town Hall? which Town Hall?

If there was a low point in the ‘Town Hall’ meeting other than the late start, the Onyonka explanation on MPs nonpayment of taxes was one of them. The other was an attempt by the local organizing committee to redefine a Town Hall meeting as Kenyans here have come to understand it in the American context and from previous such meetings.

By the time the question and answer session came around, more than an hour after the meeting was supposed to have ended, the audience was quickly told that time constraints would not allow for “many questions’ said Mr. Onyonka. Additionally, the audience was to limit their questioning of the prime minister to the themes that were projected on the PowerPoint in the hotel ballroom screen. The themes included among others security and agriculture.

In the intervening period as the Q & A format was being discussed at the high table, an impromptu Harambee (fundraiser) for Mauryn Masire Moore, a Kenyan stabbed to death by her Liberian husband in Minnesota, was contemplated. The local community is planning to send her body to her parents in Mombasa.

The fundraising idea was quickly discarded but the disarray along with the Q & A format disgusted enough of the audience for almost a third of them to empty the ballroom. Some were already running late for evening work shifts.

The prime minister however gave a donation of $2,000 towards the harambee to be held later. The MPs and civil servants accompanying him gave $100 each.

Ida Odinga

Making her first visit to Minnesota, at the urging of her “Facebook friend” was Mrs. Ida Odinga, wife to the prime minister. Mrs. Odinga who received loud applause from the ladies in the audience gave brief remarks. Saying she did not want to make a long speech as “kazi yangu ni kuchunga mzee (my role is to take care of my husband)” she nevertheless shared the audience the various community development efforts she is involved with.

The 48th County

Source: http://www.mshale.com/article/News/News/Raila_shoots_down_Ministry_for_Diaspora_Affairs/18688

Eight donkeys have been found slaughtered in a bush in Kabuku, Limuru district, Kiambu county. Donkey owners say criminals are breaking into their homes and driving the donkeys out at night. Among those found yesterday, three belonged to 20-year-old Wilson Karanja who is the sole breadwinner in his home.

Karanja said the thieves broke into his home but he did not hear any commotion outside as donkeys rarely make noise at night. “I think I was deep asleep when they broke in the homestead. But as usual, I woke up at 4am and headed to the shed. A look at the door told me that my donkeys had been stolen as the door hinges and the door chain had been cut,” said Karanja.

He said that he woke his neighbours who searched for the donkeys to no avail. They later received a message that some donkeys had been found slaughtered at Kabuku. They went there and found the eight dead donkeys, five whose owners are yet to be known. Karanja narrated that two of the donkeys were pregnant and he was they were expecting in three months tome.

He said that the male has been very helpful especially during the time the others are expecting. “Two of the donkeys were pregnant and I was expecting for the babies in a three months time. I have been using the male but now I have been left with only a foal which would take a couple of years before gaining strength to be put to work. I am concerned that the colt is only feeding on milk and only uses that of a donkey not a cow. So it might be hard fro it to make it,” said Karanja.

Karanja said that his wife gave birth to their first born baby boy a month ago and had high hopes that he would work hard to win their bread and later put up a business for her in Limuru textile market. He said that he has now been left with nowhere nor anyone to turn to. “We just received a blessings of a baby boy and I have no work because what was my hope is now gone. I have no one to turn to but God would always avenge for us,” he said as tears welled his eyes.

Karanja is among many youths in the district who have been rendered hopeless. Donkeys in Limuru are used in the transport business. The owners are calling on the police to tighten security in the villages to curb the menace.

Source: NAIROBI STAR

Prof Wangari Maathai did not wish to be buried in a wooden coffin.

She thought, with the high rate of death from Aids, an alternative to the traditional coffin was needed in order to protect forests.

And the Nobel Peace laureate had prepared for a smooth transition at her beloved Green Belt Movement, the organisation she set up to champion her passion for environmental conservation.

Prof Vertistine Mbaya, the treasurer of the Green Belt Movement’s board, told the Nation that Prof Maathai had led the organisation in approving a new constitution expanding the membership of the board and set in motion the process of bringing in a new chairperson.

In starting those changes, Prof Maathai wanted the management of the movement and that of the Wangari Maathai Institute for Peace and Environmental Studies based at the University of Nairobi to work closely together.

Prof Maathai, a courageous environmentalist to the point of getting on the nerves of former President Moi, had proposed a ban on wooden coffins arguing that their continued use was a danger to the already endangered forests. (SEE IN PICTURES: Wangari Maathai)

The family and members of the Green Belt Movement said they were looking for an alternative to a wooden casket.

Prof Maathai openly declared her wish not to be buried in a wooden coffin soon after she won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2004. And she is likely to be granted her wish to remain green to the grave.

“She was one of those who did say that we better think of something else besides cutting down trees for caskets,” said Prof Mbaya.

“We are thinking about that. We will try to circumvent using a wooden coffin. That is one of the reasons that we are not ready yet to inform you how she will actually be interred. But we are thinking about that.”

However, she said they were not aware if she had included it in her will.

“I am not aware (of a will on how she wanted to be interred) right now. The family will make it known to us too,” said Prof Mbaya.

She spoke as tributes continued to stream in from all corners of the world. The Norwegian government and the Norwegian Nobel Committee condoled with the family.

The messages were delivered by the Norwegian Ambassador to Kenya Per Ludvig Magnus, who addressed a joint news conference with Prof Mbaya at Green Belt offices.

“Some said she only planted trees. How could she get the Nobel Peace Prize for planting trees? True, Wangari Maathai planted trees, millions of trees, to prevent the spread of the desert and to strengthen the environment.

“Planting trees was also one way for her to combat the country’s dictatorship,” the Norwegian Nobel Committee said in their message.

Prof Maathai, 71, died on Sunday night at the Nairobi Hospital. She had been diagnosed with ovarian cancer in July last year. (READ: Wangari Maathai dies in Nairobi)

She is survived by her three children—Waweru, Wanjira, and Muta, and her granddaughter, Ruth Wangari.

Prof Maathai will be remembered for her courage and tenacity in seeking social justice, conservation, democracy and in fighting corruption.

She paid a heavy price for her courage that comprised of repeated beatings, incarceration, harassment, and public vilification by the Moi regime.

Several activities have been lined up to honour the fallen icon. There will be daily prayers at St Andrews PCEA Church in Nairobi starting at 5.30 pm until she is buried.

The Green Belt Movement has organized a special musical tribute on Friday at the same venue. Prof Mbaya condolence books have been opened at various places, including district offices, the Freedom Corner, Kencom bus station and the University of Nairobi’s Lower Kabete and Main Campuses.

Meanwhile, the government will meet her family to make burial plans.

Source: http://www.nation.co.ke/News/Wangari+Maathais+last+wishes+/-/1056/1244136/-/ej30lj/-/index.html

Kenyans are divided about whether the increase in sexually explicit advertising in recent years is a good or bad thing.

By Caasi Sagalai, Nairobi

A caller rang into a local radio station recently and recounted an incident in which his vehicle rammed into the back of someone else’s car on a busy highway. He claimed he was distracted by a giant billboard of a scantily dressed woman.

This may sound like an isolated incident, but in what is increasingly becoming the face of Kenyan advertising – bolder images of sex are being used. Be it giant billboards, glossy magazine pages of skimpily dressed women or bare-chested males, radio adverts with plenty of sexual- innuendo and television images exposing a lot of flesh.

‘ I’m afraid it is the trend, but it’s good from a business perspective. It’s all about branding. That is what our clients want, to grab the attention of more customers,’ responds Maria Wanja, when asked if advertising in Kenya is becoming too sexually oriented. She is an employee of a leading Nairobi outdoor advertising firm.

Extra edge
Opinions about the use of sex in advertising is divided amongst Kenyans. Some argue that business is competitive; they say in order to gain that extra edge over the competition one needs to employ all tactics.

‘ What does buying a new phone, body lotion or a car have to do with nudity and sex? Poses Anne Wacera, a Nairobi resident. Wacera believes this trend is offensive.

‘ It is sheer sinful exploitation of women especially.’ Says Omiku Peter, a local pastor

‘ There is nothing wrong with the images, the problem is people’s twisted perceptions. Once you start imagining beyond the images, then you are the problem,’s ays Seth Okoth, a university student.
While opinion is divided what remains evident is that more advertisements with sexual overtones are appearing in the Kenyan media.

Watch this video about the use of sex in Dutch advertising:

http://www.rnw.nl/nederlands/video/seks-reclames-wordt-onze-ondergang