Category Archives: africa

raila-kibaki feud continues over corruption

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The events of Sunday morning exposed the illusion that Kibaki and Raila had decided to bury the hatchet and do what is right for the Republic. Earlier the Prime Minister had suspended Ministers William Ruto and Samuel Ongeri over graft in their respective ministries. But the President quickly followed with a press release saying that the Prime Minister had no authority to dismiss the two ministers. Both cited sections of the Constitution and National Reconciliation Accord that midwifed the formation of the Grand Coalition Government after post-election violence in early 2008.

It is clear that corruption and the fight against it is being politicized by the two principals. It is also clear that the constitutional amendments that created the position of the Prime Minister did a bad job of defining the powers of the Premier and separating these powers from the President’s. And that is just sad. Parliament must do something in order to avert a full blown constitutional crisis in the near future.

Prime Minister Odinga’s move to suspend Ongeri and Ruto, in my opinion, was ill-advised and reckless. Justice is political, and sometimes the means matter just as much as the end. Is it wise to risk wider instability in the country for short-term political gains? I don’t think so Mr. Odinga. There are better ways of dealing with both Ruto and Ongeri. President Kibaki reaction to the suspensions was equally sub-par. I still do not understand how two men in such high positions find it reasonable to communicate with each other over the media instead of meeting and hammering deals with each other in person. The two should know that their power-politics games in the media do nothing but drive wedges between Kenyans. To quote President Moi, these nonsensical games will not increase the number of sufurias in Wanjiku’s kitchen.

intolerable intolerance

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Drastic changes in cultural and societal norms can be destabilizing. In light of this fact, when it comes to society and the  changing of values to reflect the zeitgeist I am aligned with the Burkean argument for gradualism. That said, such madness as was witnessed in Mtwapa, Kenya is unacceptable. This type of religious fascism should not be tolerated. I am all for church freedom, but only to the extent that churches serve their rightful purpose of catering to the spiritual needs of citizens while promoting comity in society. In cases where church teachings go against citizens’ interests – like in this particular case in Mtwapa or with regard to reproductive rights – I think it is imperative that the state steps in. Church leaders, and their followers, should know that issues to do with the after-life need not necessarily be put before security, order in society, and general well being in the present.

don’t forget about eastern congo

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The DRC might have a space program, but don’t be fooled by this rather strange choice of resource allocation in a country of nearly 69 million souls and per capita income of US $300. All forms of atrocities still take place unabated in the eastern regions of the country. When will those with the ability to stop this madness start giving a rat’s ass?

Mandela’s dream deferred?

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South Africans marked the 20th anniversary of the release of President Mandela from prison by South Africa’s apartheid regime in 1990 with a lot of pomp and celebration. It goes without saying that President Nelson Mandela belongs in the pantheon of the great sons and daughters of the Continent, and indeed of the whole world.

But after the celebrations are over and done with, South Africans should ask themselves what the life and trials of Mandela mean for them. Is Jacob Zuma the best they could do after decades of fighting for political representation? What role do they have to play on the Continent, being that they are by far its biggest economic and military power house? Should they sit and watch as Zimbabweans suffer under the tyranny of Rob?

low grade anti-malarials found in a number of african countries

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This might be why the last time I was down with malaria – back in the summer of 2007 in Uganda – none of the medication I got from a clinic in the capital Kampala helped me out. I had to go back home in Nairobi, Kenya before I got medication that completely cleared the plasmodium parasites off my system.

This finding means that someone is profiting from cheap anti-malarial drugs while at the same time increasing the disease’s resistance against existing medication. Now the next step should be to quantify the number of deaths that can be directly linked to these low quality drugs, round up those guilty and have them pay for their crime. People should never be allowed to play games with the lives of others.

awkward…

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Kenyan Premier, Raila Odinga, continued his call for the resignation of Education Minister Sam Ongeri – this time in the presence of the latter at a function in Nairobi’s Upper Hill district.

According to media reports, Prof. Ongeri’s ministry has been involved in a corruption scandal that robbed the country’s free primary education program of millions of Shillings. President Kibaki remains characteristically quiet on this matter, perhaps waiting for Prof. Ongeri to see the writing on the wall for himself.

only in Kenya: milk oversupply, even as some Kenyans starve

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So the government and dairy farmers are not too happy with the current milk oversupply. Prices have gone down dramatically due to the milk glut, causing farmers to want tighter regulation of the dairy industry to protect local dairy farmers.

First of all, advocating for a contraction of the industry in order to boost prices is a silly move. Why don’t we export that milk to Uganda and Southern Sudan instead, or even down south to Tanzania? And there is also the minor detail about starving Kenyans in the Northern arid areas (why doesn’t the Kenyan government treat food insecurity in these parts of the country with the seriousness it deserves???). Why not increase output in order to provide enough even for these people at a lower price? Falling prices can be mitigated through higher output. Scale might be the answer.

addressing the political economy of conflicts

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It is no secret that the war in eastern Congo is a resource war. Indeed most wars the world over have economic dimensions to them. Even rag tag Somalia must have people who are accruing economic benefits from the war. The pirates are certainly among this group. Global Witness, the British watchdog, has a report out on this subject that can be found on the IRIN website. The report puts on paper some of the truths that the international community has been conveniently ignoring in their quest to stop civil conflicts in the various hot spots across the globe.

a link that i liked

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One more case for why we should think of development and democracy in terms of statist/institutional solutions and not do-gooder initiatives. The game should be all about getting states to do what they are supposed to be doing, and not helping citizens exit the state, thereby even weakening the accountability channels between citizens and the state. Strong states, regardless of their Polity Score (how democratic they are), are better than weak states.

And in other news I think it is time Kenya and the rest of the EAC signed a defense pact with Southern Sudan instead of playing this silly game. Southern Sudan is a natural ally for the five states and potential member of the EAC.

required reading for africa’s ruling elite

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The discourse on Africa in the West (and elsewhere) is laden with a lot of offensive stuff. And the offensive stuff is not restricted to plebes in the streets or newspaper articles written by ill-informed correspondents. Even more informed people still lapse into the default way of conceptualizing Africa. It is not uncommon to hear prejudicial and condescending comments about the Continent and its people in academic seminars and workshops.

Reading through Foreign Policy (FP) I found a piece that despite its tone and subliminal cues, should be required reading for Africa’s ruling elite. The article is offensive (may be innocently so) in the sense that the editors of FP thought it worthwhile to publish an article that seeks to tell the world that Africa is not a reincarnation of England circa 1200 A.D. The reason I suggest this as required reading is that sometimes I wonder if the ruling classes in some of the states on the Continent ever pose to think of the consequences of their actions in the wider setting of the globe. How do images from eastern Congo, Darfur, Somalia and other such places contribute to the definition of the Continent and its peoples?

jacob zuma: why crash so soon?

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Update: President Jacob Zuma agrees that he fathered a child out of wedlock with the 39 year-old daughter of one of his friends. Mr. Zuma is 67. In his statement the President said that he had done the “cultural imperative” of admitting to having fathered the child. A few suggestions for Mr. Zuma and those around him:

– having three wives is bad enough. Concentrate on the job. South Africans are looking up to you

– please fire your communications director. You are really bad with PR

– you are embarrassing the entire Continent. Not just yourself and your immediate family but the entire Continent. The whole 700 million of us.

The BBC reports that Jacob Zuma may have fathered a love child last year. The South African president just recently got married for the fifth time (he has three wives). He is estimated to have about 20 children. Recently when confronted about his rather colorful matrimonial situation Mr. Zuma shot back with the claim that anybody who was against polygamy was a cultural bigot.This is total horse manure. Mr. Zuma should know that culture is not static and that an attack on his wayward habits is not an attack on Zulu culture.

Until recently Mr. Zuma had exceeded expectations. His cabinet appointments (i thought) signaled his pragmatism. He stayed clear of the incendiary demagoguery that characterizes the ANC’s youth wing leader, Julius Malema. Even the media had warmed up a bit to the man who had to wiggle out of corruption and rape charges to become president. For a moment I thought that Mr. Zuma was going to be the nice blend of populism and realistic politicking that had so much eluded the intellectually aloof Thabo Mbeki. South African land reform, a fairer redistribution and creation of wealth (through a more transparent BEE and faster job creation), a reduced crime rate, etc etc seemed somewhat doable because the core of his base was the working class. But as is fast becoming apparent, it appears that the man has decided to let his personal life interfere with his job. I hope this latest incident will embarrass the ANC enough for the party to ask Mr. Zuma to go easy on the distractions and concentrate on his job.

Update: This is the last thing that SA and its ailing economy needs. The tabloid-like headings are soiling the SA presidency.

kudos to the pharaohs

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The Egyptian national football team beat their Ghanaian opponents 1-0 to win a record seventh title at the African Cup of Nations tournament in Angola. The Egyptians however did not qualify for the World Cup that will be held in June in South Africa, having lost to rivals Algeria in the qualifiers. Egypt beat Algeria in the semis of this tournament. I must confess that due to the time difference and a rather busy schedule I did not watch a single game of this tournament. That said, I was disappointed by the performance of the teams that qualified for the world cup. Nearly all of them struggled in the groups stages. They will definitely have to polish up if they expect to get somewhere in the World Cup tournament later in the year in South Africa.

zuma defends polygamy at davos

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Yesterday South African president Jacob Zuma defended polygamy at Davos, adding that those who think their culture is superior have a problem.

This is absolutely ridiculous. The fight against polygamy is not a cultural war. It is a war against the unfair treatment of women. It is very irresponsible of Mr. Zuma to set such a sad example for his countrymen.

in defense of swahili

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Update: the ministry of education has disowned the directive discussed here. Apparently there are still a few sane people under Prof. Ongeri’s docket. Now if only they could also tell us where they took the free primary education money…

When it comes to Swahili I suddenly go nationalist. I think there is something to be said about a people having their own language through which they can package their historical and cultural experiences over time. Kenya has 42 languages and many more dialects. As a nation we can’t use all of them to store our collective experiences. However, unlike most other African states, we are lucky to have a Bantu language that is widely used and that we have appropriated to be our national language. Through Swahili and effective government we can make everyone who speaks Pokot, Sabaot, Kikuyu, Luo or Maragoli Kenyan by creating an imagined community of shared experiences.

The reason I bring this up is that the busy bodies at the Ministry of Education have decided to make Swahili optional at KCPE level. Pupils will be given the option of taking Swahili or sign language. This is madness. I am not against people learning sign language. My concern is that those who will readily place out of Swahili are the very pupils who ought to be learning and speaking more of the language. My conjecture is that the only schools that will afford good sign language teachers will be the pricier ones in the urban areas. These schools have students who can barely speak Swahili because English is the only language they can truly claim to speak. This is a shame.

While we continue trying to Kenyanize people in West Pokot, Suba, Mogotio, Maragua and Garsen, we should not forget the youngsters in Nairobi. They need to be educated in Swahili too. In fact I think it is time we had subjects like religious and social studies (at the primary school level) taught in Swahili – along with English, Math and the Sciences which would obviously still be taught in English for practical reasons.

some good news from Guinea

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Abubakar  Diakite, the guy who almost assassinated Guinean dictator Moussa Camara, should be handsomely rewarded. Well, unless he was actually responsible for the massacre of more than 150 pro-civilian-rule opposition protesters last year in which case he should be tried for crimes against humanity and locked away for life. Either way his actions may have put Guinea on the path towards civilian rule. Capt. Camara has agreed to “voluntary exile” (yeah right) in Burkina Faso. His henchmen (now led by his second in command) have also agreed to hand over power to civilians after a six-moth transition period. All active members of the armed forces are barred from running in the elections to be held in six months. This is a good start, although things may yet change.

In other news, the Senegalese President (Abdoulaye Wade) is not smart. Haitians do not need Senegalese land. Haitians need to get their act together in Haiti. He is like the bleeding hearts who are willing to help strangers in foreign lands while their own relatives starve. Senegal has an income per capita of $1600. Life expectancy stands at 59 years. The country also has the 40th worst infant mortality rate in the world. Mr. Wade’s nonsensical grandstanding is an embarrassment.