Monday, December 20, 2010

MINNESOTA TRAGEDY


NARRATED ON: 23 Dec 2010 at 09:00
MINNESOTA TRAGEDY

What I knew and When
I promised to put the record straight to all friends and relatives especially the Mwanyagetinge fraternity who actively participated in the funeral plans following the October tragedy where three lives were lost through murder in Minnesota.
At about 4 pm 13th 2010, my cousin Justus Ogendi Kebabe called me from Minnesota and left me a distressful voice message on my phone. I called him back immediately, and he started crying over the phone. I urged him to tell me what was going on. My first worry was about his mother (my aunt) who has been ailing in recent years.
He said he was fed up with life because of frustrations and that he didn’t see the need to live. He asked me to tell family members and friends that in case anything happened to him, it was because of the pain he has endured in recent years and would not stand it anymore.
We talked for about 30 minutes and during the conversation, he kept breaking and starting to cry over the phone. I asked him to calm down and tell me exactly the frustrations he was going through and if he had shared it with his immediate family, relatives or friends. I do not want to duel on these frustrations in this narrative. Without being specific, he asked me to convey to my mother (her aunt) that he loves her and she will dearly miss him. He further told me to tell family members not worry about him in case anything happened.
I tried to comfort him by reassuring him that all will be okay and that challenges are part of life. I requested him to take a break from Minnesota and come to stay with me in New Jersey.
I kept begging him not to hurt himself because my initial worry was about his safety.  It didn’t pass in my mind that he will end up killing his wife and two children.  I kept imploring him to trust God and reminded him that his life was precious than anything else irrespective of the pain he was going through. He was often distraught and incoherent; often breaking over the phone and wobbling with words during our conversation.
Finally, he promised that he would not hurt himself. He promised to call me the following day to let me know his plans especially my request of asking him to move to New Jersey. As we were talking, I would hear the sound of a child (children) and television from the background.  Finally, he told me that, he was feeling much better after talking to me.

Frantic efforts and contacting Police
I realized my cousin was on imminent danger and at about 4:45 pm, I called Justus’s brother who also lives in Minnesota, but his phone could not go through. I tried another cousin also living in the same state but would not reach her either. In New Jersey, I called two friends to seek their counsel. The first was Mr. Denzel Musumba, the owner of the E. A. Radio USA, who told me that best thing for my cousin was to change the environment and meet new people to talk to in order to share his frustrations.
Mr. Denzel even offered to contact a friend in Minnesota to accommodate my cousin. The second person I contacted was a Jamaican friend, who advised me to call the police, and. being a medical practitioner, she advised me that my cousin was on the last stage of committing suicide. I was extremely scared.
Immediately, I called 411 and requested the operator to route me to police in Minneapolis in order to report the matter. I spoke to a female officer who asked my details and those of my cousin and why I thought Mr. Kebabe was on the imminent danger to his own life. She also wanted to know the town where Mr. Kebabe lived but I didn’t know. However, I provided her with the telephone landline in order to pull out Mr. Kebabe’s residential address.
 After the said conversation, I called my cousin again just to know how he was feeling. He again promised to call me the following day to tell me of his arrangements to come to New Jersey.
At about 5.45 pm, I received a phone call from a male police officer who told me that they had called my cousin and asked him what the problem was but he told them he was taking the children out for dinner.  They asked him to wait for them so that he would tell them what problems he was having. After asking me a few questions about my earlier conversation with my cousin. The police officer promised to update me by phone on any development after seeing him. To be honest, I requested the police not to divulge to him that I was the one who informed them about his situation. They agreed to call me later and inform me accordingly.
I do remember requesting the police officer why they decided to call my cousin instead of going straight to him privately. However, I would not get a definite answer. After this conversation with the police officer, I tried calling my cousin several times on his mobile phone and landline, but they remained unanswered.
Finally, at around 9 pm, I received a call from one of my cousins I had tried to contact earlier, and she gave me the phone number of Mr. Evans, a brother to Justus. After telling him what transpired earlier between his brother, and me, as usual, he called his brother, but all his phone remained unanswered. He finally decided to call the police who actually told him that I had contacted them from New Jersey about his brother’s situation.
They told Evans that they were heading to Justus’s apartment.  After meeting, the police asked Evans to remain outside as they went into his brother’s apartment, where they spent approximately 45 minutes in the apartment. When they came out, they asked him to go home and promised to contact him after analyzing the documents they had gathered in the apartment. They told him they didn’t find anybody in the apartment.

Official confirmation of the murder by Police
In the early hour of 14th October 2010, I got a call from the police in Minnesota who officially conveyed to me that Justus was in custody and he had confessed killing his wife and two children. They informed me that the youngest child was alive and on government care. They congratulated me for the courage I showed to report the matter and from this point, the tragedy was officially pronounced, and the news was all over in blogs, social networks, radio and the print media in the US and Kenya. 

FINGER POINTING & THREAT TO MY LIFE
I’m equally sorrowful
Brothers and sisters, the above narrative depicts what I knew before the demise of my relatives. It’s extremely tragic to lose two productive adult lives; one gone forever and the other awaiting sentencing to waste behind bars to pay for his crime. Two innocent beautiful children are gone forever. They hadn’t lived even half of their father’s age.  It’s hard; it's tough to endure and both families need prayers.
I believe today that if someone would have acted in a timely version, the two beautiful children and their mother will be with us today. I personally tried my best several hundreds of kilometers away, but it was too late. However, in Godly realms, whether we are in sorrow or in joy, we give God all the Glory.
From October 13th to November 19th, 2010, when the victims were laid to rest, I never made any efforts or plans to frustrate the grieving family. I am personally griefing because the victims were my relatives. The late Kinley and Ivyn, wiped out by their own father, who is my maternal cousin, were my nephew and niece respectively. Here was Bilha, a wife to my cousin who also called my cousin. I remember a conversation we had this August when she invited me to visit them in Minnesota. She sounded a caring mother with a good heart; very pleasant to talk to. She wanted me to talk to the kids, but they had gone to bed. Moreover, today, the three are not with us anymore.
Mass hate
Today, on the eyes of many, especially the bereaved family, I’m viewed from a negative prism; almost compared to the one who committed the crime. I have tried to take stock of the mistake I did to become the subject of malice, blackmail, finger pointing, curses insults and threats to my life but I don’t see any.
Crime is never and will never be a collective matter for a family. A driver who causes an accident is judged individually; excluding passengers.  I manage to be a cousin to Mr. Kebabe and I leave this to God. Justice will be served in January 2011, during the sentencing and I Lister Nyaringo or any member of Kebabe family will not be standing alongside Justus. He will be judged individually excluding his mother, father, siblings, relatives, and friends.
My original intent to call the Police from New Jersey was a swift response to a cry from the wilderness. Here was a man sounding suicidal, distraught and frustrated. Here was a man who was in harm's way and mine was to try and find a way to help him. In addition to trying to reach the relevant people to talk to him, I realized that contacting the police was the best option. Moreover, I’m accused of having known every detail that culminated to the demise of the three.
I’m not writing this as a defense because I haven’t hurt or offended anybody. I haven’t broken any law related to this matter whether in Kenya or the US where the crime was committed. I’m generally putting the record straight to the Kenyan community especially (Mwanyagetinge) who worked hard with the bereaved family on funeral arrangements. This also goes out to Kenyans who have been fed with lies and falsehoods about me since the tragedy became known. Reputation is jewelry that every person always strives to protect and defend especially when one is being accused wrongfully.
How can you do good, sensible and humane and still be accused and labeled as a beast, killer, and murderer yet the real the killer is in custody awaiting sentencing for the heinous crime he committed? Did I ask God to make the Kebabe family my relatives?
Why should fellow Kenyans (Kisiis) hatch a plan to hire thugs to kill me, saying I was frustrating the mourning family when I actually made concerted efforts to avert the tragedy after sensing its imminence? I was personally in the mourning stage. However, being an outsider, it will be purely hypocritical to say I was mourning more than the bereaved family. Nevertheless, the fact remains they were all mourning and are deeply touched by the heinous crime committed to the three innocent lives.
From a humanistic sight, the two murdered children were my blood relatives killed with their mother by a man who is my blood cousin now in the dungeon. I’m deeply affected, and this one applies to my cousin Mr. Evans Kebabe in Minnesota who like me has been a subject of negative cycle talk since the tragedy occurred. Mr. Evans lost a sister-in-law, a niece and a nephew and his own blood brother are now wasting behind bars. In fact, he has received unprintable epithets from people he is supposed to reach out to for comfort because he is equally traumatized by the tragedy. Like everybody else in his family, Evans his innocent and does not know why his brother did what he did to wipe out his family.  
How will you feel when you go to condole a family (your relatives) and instead, you are questioned like a suspect in police custody and threatened to be beaten up?  Thank God, in the US, the law is strict and very protective; God forbid, it will be totally a different story today if it was in Kenya.
When I decided to visit the bereaved family in Jersey City, New Jersey, my intention was to spend time with them to comfort, reflect, pray and encourage one another. However, family members of the late Bilha accused me of having known about the killing four days earlier and that the phone call that I made to police was just a cover-up. I’m asking them for purposes of clarity to call the law enforcement in Minnesota to gather facts on these unfounded allegations.
It's disheartening that I visited the family as a relative but instead of appreciating my love and compassion, the voice recorder and pictured me without my consent; saying they were doing it to portray that our meeting was peaceful in case I left and later allege that they wanted to fight me.
My cousin Evans in Minnesota and I were accused of having been behind the denial of travel Visas for family members who wanted to travel from Kenya to attend the burial in The US and this was widely covered in the print and electronic media in Kenya and the US. These made me wonder how for heaven's sake, a Kenyan or any foreign national will influence the American government to deny or issue a Visa to people visiting the country. Visa issuance is a discretion of the US Department of State and me, Lister Nyaringo or anybody from the Kebabe family has no authority over it. All Kenyans should know this and many of those who made this wild allegation has lived in America for over 20 years and should know better.

Defiling the pulpit with hate
Truth must be told in order to set all of us free. The shameful experience I saw earlier did not deter me from attending a memorial service held for the victims and coordinated by a Kenyan led SDA The church at Saint Patrick Cathedral in Jersey City. During the service, I became the subject of finger-pointing and insults from the “pulpit” from fellow Kisiis.
Unprintable epithets were hurled at me as I sat pensively holding my cheeks in the parked Cathedral. In my lifetime as a Christian, I have never seen the pulpit turned into a den of such hate and rancour. Those who espouse the Christian faith must remember that in our age, The Body of “Christ is under attack.”
Until those who have been anointed to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ about the Kingdom of God change their tact and stop preaching water and drinking wine, our society at home and abroad will continue sinking in disunity, rumour mongering, backbiting, idle gossip, strife envy, and clanism. We need tranquility, fraternity, and brotherhood in sorrow and in joy. We need our Church leaders to be at the front line in championing societal tenets that brings our people together and not those tearing us apart.
During the memorial service, reconciliation, love, and forgiveness between the two families hit by the tragedy were a vocabulary from most Church leaders and mourners who spoke. About 500 people attended the memorial including dozens of Caucasian folks, Latinos, People from the Caribbean and the Mayor of Vadnais Heights in Minnesota where the tragedy occurred.  Since I would not bear the insults which were often followed by clapping and foot thumping from the mourners. I decided to walk out leaving the memorial service a halfway. 

The threat to my life
At midnight after the memorial service, an anonymous caller to my phone urged me to stop frustrating the bereaved family on the media failure to which, I will be shot to death. This was actually a confirmation to a plan a friend confided to me earlier, that was hatched by people who congregated in the brother to the bereaved in Jersey City to hire thugs to kill me.

My opinion on mass media
On the issue of the media, I’m not a journalist by profession but I do contribute clips which are occasionally featured in Blogs and the print media in Kenya. I’m also a great fan of the East Africa Blog Talk Radio which airs from Las Vegas. Secondly, during the circus over the burial place for the victims, my opinion was for the victims to be buried in Kenya to give the larger family chance to mourn and be able to come to terms with the tragedy.  I supported this idea as a personal opinion on the mass media in the US and Kenya and the verbatim, print and electronic clips are handy for whoever wants to get more clarity.
The second accusation on my part was why the tragedy circulated to the mass media before the bereaved family was informed. Truly for the right-thinking Kenyans, I’m a relative to the Kebabe family and, I didn’t know any relative of the late Bilha until later when I learned that her brother lives in New Jersey. Moreover, when the police discovered the murder, they brought my name to the picture has been the person who called them. This is how the media in Minnesota picked the news and started looking for me to provide them with information. The media out there always want to make news and everyone know this.  

Question of my truthfulness
I want to remind those who said that I have some issues to answer as the last person who spoke to Mr. Justus Kebabe before the murder was unraveled to remember that in any country, there are rules that govern investigations once a crime has been committed. I made a call hundred of miles from Minnesota to alert the law enforcement to help a human being who needed help. Anybody who suspects foul play should call the Ramsey County Sheriff's Department to get more information on my wrongdoing. On Earth and in heaven, I did what I did think that it was the right thing to do by responding to a distress call.

Forging ahead with forgiveness and reconciliation
I want to confess in words that I didn’t do anything wrong to deserve the spiritual agony, mental torture, and psychological ordeal that I’m going through. Before my God, my friends and my enemies; God his my ultimate witness in what I have done, and will do in the future. Despite the insults, accusations, epithets, and curses, I live everything to God because he knows man’s intentions and he is the perfect reader of our hearts.   
I never told my cousin to kill his family or run away from the authorities. I didn’t behave inhumanly to the bereaved family because reaching out to them with humility, love, and compassion after the tragedy was a reflection of my understanding their pain.
Most importantly, calling the police was a search for help for my cousin who sounded suicidal. To me, it was an act of love and compassion and being a brother or sister’s keeper. If I didn’t take any step after learning that his soul was almost losing its purpose and that he was engulfed with amnesia on the utility of human life, I will be the most tormented person in the globe. However, when humanity does not acknowledge the good we try to do in the world, I shake off the dust, move on by thanking and accepting what God has instilled in me.
I don’t care whether you are a friend, relative, enemy, sibling, parent or employer. If I discover that you are engulfed with what my cousin was in, I will repeat the same thing for the rest of my life and I will never be derailed by those whose intention is to soil my name through innuendo and blackmail.  
As far as I am concerned, I did all I could for the sake of humanity. I have written these words not to elicit another debate or flare up tempers after the three victims have been laid to rest but to shed light by putting the record straight especially to those in the Kisii community here in the US whose negative view on me must be re-corrected. I am telling them the original version of what transpired before and after the tragic murder.
May this matter settle and may those out there who tarnished my image by uttering curses from the pulpit remember that I have forgiven them from the deep bottom of my heart. The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob knows my heart. Let us join hands to appreciate each other as human beings to forge for reconciliation and build avenues for fraternity, sisterhood, brotherhood, common bonds and unity in joy and in grief.
For mistakes, whether conscious and unconscious related to the tragedy if any, I believe and trust that God has already forgiven me and that I rejoice in his name.  I confess before humans and God that as the sun continues to rise and set, very soon, many will discover that I was right and that as I trample on this earth, I will always try to be right.
Finally, in my oneness with God’s will, if there is one out there holding me negatively, hating me or reflecting me on bad light during and after the tragedy, I kindly ask you to forgive me. I ask God who is behind our presence in this world to strengthen all of us and use us as vessels and lovers of humanity instead of haters of humanity. God bless all.

Joseph Lister Nyaringo





Saturday, November 13, 2010

Legislators should not trash the IIBRC recommendations

By Joseph Lister Nyaringo
New Jersey, USA
The recommendations of the Independent Boundaries Review Commission should be respected and any anomalies addressed with sobriety and not through reactionary tactics being portrayed by political leaders, since the Chairman of the commission made the report public.

How long shall we see politicians trashing tax payer funded programs especially when it doesn’t serve their political interests? This is egocentricity, lack of leadership and a waste of resources should they demand for the reconstitution of a new IIBRC to start the same job Mr. Andrew Ligale’s team has completed.

If the IIBRC may have violated certain provisions in the current constitution in the apportionment of the constituency boundaries, threatening to trash the entire work of the commission will mean pressing for the reconstitution of another commission but this will be a toll on the Kenyan tax payers. We are tired of seeing taxpayers’ money being wasted on jobs which although not perfect, have been fully completed by the experts the country has been able to produce.

Many of our people are living from hand to mouth while others are languishing in IDP camps almost three years after the post election violence. Therefore, when leaders talk about expenditures that will drain the exchequer with no benefit to the lives of Kenyans, to me, it’s a poor show of leadership.

We need to be watchful on MPs out to frustrate the IIBRC recommendations that will be tabled in Parliament and this time, we are not going to condone threats like the one uttered by Limuru MP Peter Mwathi, who predicted violence if the Ligale commission recommendations are not handled with care.

Elected leaders who evoke violence to drive a political point when Kenyans are reeling from the violence that engulfed the country in 2008 is totally in bad taste and a sign of incitement. Such leaders should be picked by the law enforcement to record a statement.

We can’t trust leaders who are fond of raising eyebrows on issues that they think are detrimental to their political survival. This trend has turned to be a form of compulsive psychiatric disorder where political leaders are obsessed with rejecting what is beneficial to scores of millions of Kenyans each time a commission comes up with recommendations after wrapping up its work.

We saw the same trend in the Ndungu Land report, the Waki report, and Kriegler report and now it’s happening on Andrew Ligale’s boundaries review commission. Indeed, even if the Chairman of the IIBRC rescinded the recommendations of his commission to appease those against it, we shall still have those who will feel short changed because you can’t please everybody in the society.

Electoral boundaries are there to facilitate effective service delivery to the citizens of any Country and therefore, I believe Andrew Ligale’s team did consider local population demographics during the apportionment of 80 constituencies.

For instance, in the United States, California which is the most populous with 37 million people has an apportionment of 53 Congressional Representatives, while Wyoming with a paltry population of 50, 000 has only one. I believe that Mr. Ligale’s team did use these criteria to arrive at 80 constituencies.

Finally, this trend by politicians to try and paralyze the findings intended to shape the destiny of our country should cease. I do believe Mr. Andrew Ligale has impeccable credentials in public life and many Kenyans will trust the job he did as Chairman of IIBRC.

Its not a norm to do all the Romans does

By Joseph Lister Nyaringo,
New Jersey, USA
The rate at which Kenyans are adopting Western culture is alarming. In fact, practices like Halloween with no benefit to the spiritual and moral fabric of our society are being celebrated like any merry holiday. In our urban centres, there is a big shift in the modes of dressing, communication, and general attitudes especially from young people.

These negative social transformations have caught our society by a storm, which is a negation of the values and tenets we need to uphold as a God fearing nation. In fact, what I see in New York, Los Angeles or London is exactly what's happening in the City of Nairobi.

I shudder at the thought of how our society will be in 20 years as the liberal lifestyle we see in the West is penetrating deep in our society and not only eroding our Kenyan heritage but slowly destroying our moral values. It's extremely frightening that these days, we are experiencing these: poor dressing habits, open profanity, vulgar language and open talk about sex.

Tragically, these negative trends are spreading rapidly even in schools where many young Kenyans are struggling to look modern by imitating everything Western under the allure of looking modernised.

I fail to understand why we're failing to maintain our societal norms and only accommodate foreign habits which are of no benefit to our lives. Our people need to be reminded that foreign is not necessarily good or applicable in our society. Just because it's working elsewhere, it doesn't mean it's suitable for Kenya.

Our people are wrong by embracing events like Halloween which has its roots in the US, Canada, Ireland and Scotland. Most homes looks like graveyards with human skeletons dangling on doors, as children and adults roam around in frightening costumes.

Kenya is home to almost all races - Asians, Europeans and Americans, but most of them have continued to retain their identity and values. In fact, most well-to-do individuals or those on short assignments especially diplomats take their children to schools which offer their country's education curriculum.

In fact, the tourists who visit Kenya do not go back to their countries and start practicing our customs for instance wearing the popular Maasai shawls or singing the popular Isukuti folklore.

Wherever Westerners go, they carry their culture, education, religion, norms, and values. And when we allow ourselves to be a dumping ground for obscenities we forget our true identity.

There are numerous examples showing that our society is ready to accommodate anything originating from the West while burying our original identity. Our musicians want to rap like Jay Z; while others want to sing like Janet Jackson or Madonna.

Many want to dress like lady Gaga. The popular Benga Music that spread up to Central Africa has faded away and may never be heard again because if it doesn't sound American. Where shall be our identity for years to come?

We should not become copycats to foreign habits which are not only destroying our values but also ruining our families. Currently, many of our women have become less virtuous; men don't care about nurturing lifelong relationships. Amongst our youth, profanity (Western) epithets are on the rise. The types of music they play contain vulgar language with unprintable lyrics.

Many of us who speak fearlessly against negative western lifestyles ends up being labelled or accused of being anti-modern and traditionalist. However, it's high time we kept the tenets that forms the basis of our upbringing but only accommodate the Western culture which is vital to our society.

Tuesday, September 28, 2010

America is better off with Obama than a Republican

By
Joseph Lister Nyaringo
New Jersey, USA
President Barrack Obama faces tough challenges than most American Presidents in recent history despite working hard to address the impediments he inherited from his Predecessor, President W. George Bush.

He is hassling to resuscitate America’s dwindling economy through job creation, restructuring the Country’s financial system and to rebuild the broken diplomatic relations that went sour during Bush’s Presidency, a Republican.

It’s ironical that the party that was in power before Obama took over inherited a budget surplus from former President Clinton, a democrat but messed up the economy. They now expect Obama to fix things overnight even after he forewarned them before taking office of tough times a head especially the economic downtrend and job creation for many unemployed Americans.

Obama critics must know that to lead a country of more than 300 million people is not easy. In fact, even if John McCain had won, it would have taken him time to turn things around especially the economy.

In the international scene, Obama has tried to thaw the animosity towards America from the Arab World reassuring them that the US is not their enemy; which is a great stride for reconciliation and global peace.

To the contrary, this gesture has made the Republicans brand Obama as a sympathizer to Islam; a religion they link with terrorism. In fact, John McCain’s Vice Presidential running mate, Sara Palin have used placards in their Tea party rallies with inscriptions that brands Obama as a terrorist, a fascist, a racist, an a Adolf Hitler and an anti-Christ. This is the same woman who would not even differentiate between South Africa as a Country and Africa as a Continent in the 2008 Presidential elections.

How do you brand a legitimately and genuinely elected US President a dictator and still exercise freedom of assembly and speech in rallies, TV stations and on the internet? These Republicans need to wise up. I wish they knew what goes on in Zimbabwe and Iran.

The US President’s diplomatic approach has angered many evangelical Right wing Christian leaders; notably, Pastor John Haggee of John Haggee Ministries of Texas, whose sermons have persistently portrayed Obama, as not doing enough to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon. This is a clear demonstration that if Obama was a Republican, they would advise him to invade Iran, the way they did to Bush before America invaded Iraq.

Pastor Haggee and Pat Robert of Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN) amongst others accuse Obama for socialising America; an ideology they link with Satanism. Truly, if signing a medical bill to benefit millions of uninsured Americans is communism (socialism), and also extending unemployment insurance to benefit the Americans out of job is satanic, then these Church leaders do not know the true meaning of being “Christ like.”

We of the Kenyan descent living in America cringe with disgust on seeing how Obama’s presidency has ignited racist remarks coming from Christian Preachers whose sermons are watched on TV by Kenyan Christians at home. Instead of challenging him on policy matters, they’re using racial slurs, an indication that the question of racism in America is far from over.

Recently, a former Republican House Speaker Newt Gingrich, who is mulling a bid to run for President in 2012, said that Obama’s animosity toward the West is influenced by his forefather’s resistance against the British rule in Kenya. What type of a President Mr. Gingrich will be if he doesn’t get it that like Kenya, the US was once a British colony and that Obama is an American, born in the West despite his mixed race?

How gullible is the Republican Party leadership that even after Obama’s two years in the Oval Office, they are still pressing him to produce his birth certificate in order to be convinced that he is an American and not a Kenyan? It’s only in America where you have the freedom to insult a sitting president with unprintable epithets without repercussions.

I believe that, those who elected Obama were not ignorant to vote for a Kenyan or some one whose origin they didn’t know in the 2008 Presidential elections. They will exercise the same right to either vote him out or for a second term in 2012. And therefore, questioning his citizenship is not only an insult to those who came from diverse political backgrounds- republicans, independents and democrats and overwhelmingly voted for him, but also recipe to dent America's respect and image abroad.

The role of a political opposition in a democracy is to keep the government on its toes with fairness without malice and prejudice while sticking to policies and issues that benefit the ruled. The Republicans are racists and they want to ensure that the Obama Presidency is a disaster so that in future, a person of colour will not be entrusted with the US Presidency.

The Republicans have stooped to low and if they think by trying to dent the image of a legitimately elected President because of his colour will catapult them to take the White House in 2012, they are blinding themselves. In fact, their behaviour towards Obama has set a very grim picture to the US which is seen globally as the epitome of democracy, justice and freedom.

Finally, America is better off with President Obama than a Republican. His management of the US affairs is in tandem with the American constitution which has been exercised by his predecessors.

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Kenyans should change their habits as we promulgate a new law

Our Country will transition to a new constitution on Friday to end the historic journey that began over 20 years ago. As a nation, we welcome the new the new dawn with hope and optimism.

Given the overwhelming majority of Kenyans who voted for the new constitution, we all feel that the new document will turn our lives around for the better.

I want to remind you that, the foundation of our national success are pegged in our hearts and minds, despite the new constitution. Even the leaders who shall be elected to rule under the new constitution shall operate following the thought pattern of their minds and the willingness of their hearts.

The great books we read about human wisdom and moral uprightness may not change us if we’re not ready to observe and learn to think wisely and make wise decisions or become morally upright. Our Country will only succeed when we take a collective responsibility through changing our characters, habits and behaviours.

Ralph Emerson, a famous US philosopher once said these words which have been used by theological scholars in many years: “you sow a thought and reap an action; sow an act and reap a habit; sow a habit and reap a character; sow a character and reap a destiny.”

This is a clear demonstration that Kenya’s success lies on the good character of every citizen- rich or poor, male or female. With good character, we shall reap good fruits and hence, a great destiny for Kenya.

If we plant hate, tribalism, greed, envy and strife, we reap the same. When we plant peace, harmony, love and treat others with fraternity and brotherhood, this will automatically trickle catalyse positive change in Kenya.

Accusing top leaders for practicing corruption when we knowingly do things that perpetuate the vice is a big betrayal to ourselves. Corruption is corruption even if it involves giving or receiving a cup of tea to extend or receive favours.

We can make our Country a haven to live in starting from our individuality as it moves gradually to the Villages, Clans, Sub Locations and Locations, Divisions, Districts, Provinces and mirrors to the whole Country.

We need to change by exhibiting the basic rules of honest and integrity. When you find someone's wallet, don't take it or ransack its contents, try to find the owner. Do to others what you expect them to do you. You can’t expect your MP or President who are all human to do things right when you knowingly do it wrong.

I live in the West and one day when I forgot my phone in a restaurant table, coming back the following day, my phone was handed to me. A Customer sited next to me handed it to the manager who kept it safe. Is this too hard to nurture as a value of honest? We can do more to make our Country better as we usher in a new constitution.

Avoid asking for “kitu kidogo”-someth
ing small, before moving a file belonging to a fellow Kenyan to another department for those in the public service. Don’t be driven by tribe to employ some one. Consider any Kenyan irrespective of their tribal background so long as they are qualified.

Offering a job position to a relative or friend without qualification is the surest way to destroy Kenya. And when we do this, we become the first to start whine and blame the leaders.

For matatu owners, ensure your vehicles comply with traffic rules to minimize request for bribes from the police. When you are convinced your vehicle is roadworthy, and a police demands a bribe, don’t bribe. It’s better to go to court and get justice that you cannot get on a highway. Short-cuts will deny us justice and delay the success of our nation.

In an election, vote for some one who has values and a passion to serve not because you grew up together. Ensure that anybody aspiring to become governor, senator, MP or Presidents his value driven and puts the interests of the nation above his.

Don’t vote for Wanyonyi for President just because he speaks your dialect and ignore Hassan who is vibrant and pro- people. Desist from being brainwashed by tribal kingpins who preach ethnic disharmony through deceit to catalyze their political ambitions.

Those giving you money, buying you a cup of tea, or a packet of Kasuku or Gorogoro, you can accept it but vote your conscience and not short-term material inducements.

For those who practice faith, ask God for wisdom when choosing a place of worship. Ignore lies from your Pastor, Rabii, Imam or Guru. Remember, God knows you and will deal with you individually and not through spiritual leaders. Let us stand up for what is popular for the nation and not our families and tribes
.
From this Friday, we shall wear a new wrist watch and please, let us nurture a new culture of conducting our public and private lives in order to build a better nation for future generations.

Sunday, August 15, 2010

ODM must discipline MPS

By, Joseph Lister Nyaringo
New Jersey USA
We want to build strong political parties which operate as tools of governance, a replica of Tories and Labour in Great Britain, Democrats and Republicans in the USA, CCM and ANC in the African continent. This will only be achieved through discipline from members and officials.
That is why the latest move by the ODM party to discipline their MPs who went against the party to campaign against the recently ratified constitution is laudable.
Violating a decree or agreement comes with consequences. That is why we have rules in every social, economic or political group. Therefore, you cannot be a member of a social club and fail to abide by the rules.
When Adam and Even reneged the decree of God in the Garden of Eden, they got a harsh discipline that dogs the human race even today. If they respected God’s rule, things would be different today for the human race.
I challenge William Ruto to tell Kenyans whether former South African President Did Tabo Mbeki, did parade his Xhosa tribesmen in the cabinet and in parliament to protect him when the ANC unanimously passed a vote of no confidence in him? Mbeki, is a respected freedom hero who fought against the apartheid in South Africa and despite this, he had to respect the constitution of his party. His presidency was cut short and he had to respect the decision of the ANC party. This is what we want to see in Kenya.
It’s very clear that the heart, mind, soul and love of William Ruto and his group is not in the ODM party. They are waiting for the rain to stop, form or move to another political party. Before doing so, they want to ensure that they have completely wrecked the party before the official exit.
The ODM party should move with speed for the discipline. We cannot continue to be wretched by people who want to play the tribal card in perpetuity when Kenyans want to confront the monster head on. They used it during the referendum campaigns and isolated their own community and still want to keep doing so.

Saturday, August 14, 2010

Improve curriculum instead of adopting American education model

By Joseph Lister Nyaringo
New Jersey, USA
It’s vital to restructure the management of our education systems in order to conform to the recently ratified constitution but the ministry of education should be careful about the plans of adopting the American model of education.

We don’t to borrow an education system from any country but rather to restructure the prevailing system for improvement. The USA system is far from being perfect despite the Country having dedicated teachers and being equipped with modern learning facilities.
Currently, the Country is struggling with poor management and underperformance in their elementary and secondary schools. Many Parents are now opting to “vouchers” provided by the government to enable them pay tuition for their children in private schools after pulling them out of public schools.
Political leaders have conflicting views on the voucher program. Those who support the program argues that it gives parents freedom to choose schools for their children when they under perform in public schools. Those opposed to the program terms it as a destroyer of public schools. They strongly advocates for government support to underperforming schools through funding and retraining teachers.
Having been to College in American, lecturers opine that the standard of our education is superior based on the excellence of Kenyan college University goers. This is a clear demonstration that the model of education Kenya wants to adopt is not free of loopholes.
Firstly, the Ministry of education should focus on a plan to equip public elementary and secondary schools with learning equipments like computers to improve ICT and also facilitate the establishment of at least one library in every when established as stipulated in the new constitution. These will boost students’ performance.
Education is the citadel point that defines the success of any nation. Leaving the sector on the hands of counties will be a grave mistake. It will be fair for the central government to manage curriculum development, hire teachers and manage national examinations the way it has always been.
Secondly, there is need to entrench new study modules in the curriculum like, peace education, conflict resolution, corruption and human rights. These will give learners a good foundation in their psyche to become good citizens.
It will add value given the fact that the country has been through negative events which threatened peaceful co-existence. Regrettably, the Ministry of education hasn’t nurtured young school goers who saw the violence that engulfed Kenya more than two years a go with peace education.
To ensure that young Kenyans understand their background and heritage, History and Swahili should be compulsory subjects in primary and secondary schools.
In my view, to build an upright society, religious education should be compulsory in Primary and secondary schools. The Bible says: “Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” This stresses need to mold young school goers with integrity while young.
Our major religions like Christianity, Islam and Hindu teaches moral values that should be taught in schools to boost the ethical values of young Kenyans.
Kenya is a very small country compared to the USA. We recently adopted a constitution which borrowed heavily from theirs but the government of Kenya should let our education system be structured to suit our prevailing standards.
It’s unworkable to leave the management of our schools on the hands of devolved units- counties units which cannot address tackle even the rampant irregularities that the country experiences during national exams.
Finally, the management of our education system should remain the way it is today but focus should be on improvement at all levels. Let us not rush to adopt a foreign system when the existing one can be strengthened and improved to conform to the needs of Kenyans.

Saturday, August 7, 2010

A new chapter to transform Kenya is born

Kenyans voted for the new constitution with great enthusiasm, making a landmark for what they have been craving for in many decades.

This is not a victory for the President, Vice President or the Prime Minister, in the grand coalition government but a victory for democracy and the future of all ages whose ideas and aspirations are well captured in the new law.

Our hopes pegged on seeing a paradigm shift in the management of the Country’s governance affairs in the social, economic and political spheres, as the government moves towards the implementation stage for the new law.

The expectations from the Kenyan people are very high. Its reminiscent of the rainbow coalition of 2002.The resiliency exhibited in the way people voted during the referendum reflects a nation thirsting for a positive transformation.

The new constitution contains wonderful provisions which if implemented to the letter, will transform the Country into a haven for the citizens and non citizens. There is hope in many spheres for instance, dispensation of justice through the bill of rights, respect of freedoms, equity and equality to all cadres in the society, devolution and other pro-citizen provisions.

Those in the helm of leadership should unequivocally steer the nation through the new “bureaucracy” to positively change the lives of the Kenyan people. We want to see our governance systems and processes begin to change earnest, so that shouts of hurrah and jubilation that characterized the passage of the new law will hold water for the benefit of the people of Kenya.

We don’t want to heave a sigh of relief the way we did in 1963 after independence and still continue being manacled by civil strife, tribalism, disunity, injustice, corruption and other vices.

The new law should transform and restore our broken governance systems and processes for the benefit of millions of Kenyan people.

President Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila need to be commended for their spade work to ensure the passage of the new constitution but the biggest job they have at hand is ensuring that the aspirations of Kenyans that are captured in the document are implemented so that they can have confidence in the new law.

That said, the two leaders also need to reach out to the opposing camps during the referendum campaigns in order to bridge divide for purposes of national healing, unity, peace and reconciliation.
The Church and political leaders who opposed the law in the referendum should support the government by putting behind their differences because they all played a good game but one team had to win.

They need to shake each others hands, accept the verdict and focus on national interests as opposed to being hypercritical about the law which has already been ratified by the Kenyan majority through universal suffrage.

Political leaders and citizens who didn’t vote for the ratification of the new law are required to democratically respect it and pledge their allegiance to it to enable our country move on. This was well demonstrated when the “no” camp conceded defeated through their defacto leader honourable William Ruto. It was a reflection of political maturity and respect for the democratic process.

Implementing constitutional provisions is different from honouring political promises, which are often not binding. Therefore, the constitution being the new law of the land and binding must be implemented to the letter. Kenyans don’t their dreams and expectations shuttered but respected and fulfilled according to the new law.

Wednesday, July 28, 2010

President Kibaki and his Predecessor should be role models

President Kibaki and his Predecessor should be role models
By Joseph Lister Nyaringo,
New Jersey USA
While President Kibaki and his predecessor are exercising the beauty of our democracy in the current referendum debate, personal attacks does not augur well for the Country.
They are expected to exhibit decorum and statesmanship that the new generation should emulate.
Former President Moi has a right to take a position in the coming referendum over the proposed constitution but the aggressiveness he has exhibited in campaigning for its rejection has bee characterized by rancor, propaganda, falsehoods and misinterpretations of clauses.
It’s very rare for a retired President to openly pick a quarrel or throw words at a sitting president and vice versa but the latest between former President Moi and his successor has taken many Kenyans by surprise.
It’s imperative for the two leaders to remain as pillars of social harmony and role models. Our Country is still fragile following the 2008 tragedy. The peace we currently enjoy is likely to be put in jeopardy when two respected elders are openly washing their dirty linen in public.
Coming from a province which was the hot bed of the post election violence and where majority of the people are against the proposed constitution, Moi and Kibaki’s disagreements does not help to cement the peace that the multi-ethnic province desperately craves for.
Both leaders being in opposing camps, this might spill over to catalyse a collision between members of the public in the Rift Valley who are for and against the proposed law.
In Western democracies, most former presidents do not directly criticize their predecessors. When they do, it’s so veiled and usually touches on their party policies, or campaigning for party candidates.
The best example is the recent passage of the healthcare legislation by the Obama administration which sparked heavy criticism from the Republican Party, but not a single day did former President W. Bush come out to criticize his successor, President Obama.
In our Continent, we have never heard Benjamin Mkapa, Tabo Mbeki, or John Kufuor directly criticize their successors. In fact, despite the acrimonious debate that culminated to Tabo Mbeki’s exit from the ANC party leadership and South African presidency, the former president has kept his cool and given Jacob Tsuma the chance to lead the rainbow nation.
The die is cast and Kenyans must look far a head and choose between what is right and discard what is undesirable. I leave them to judge for themselves whom between the current President and his predecessor his standing for our national good or doom.
The beauty of our democracy should be exercised with caution so that we can build a united Country for posterity. Freedom can build or wreck a nation but when applied wisely to spread what is desirable, truthful and beneficial to the governed, it will go a long way to cement peace and tranquility in any society.

Friday, July 23, 2010

Dr Lumumba has heavy responsibilities at the helm of KACC

By Joseph Lister Nyaringo
New Jersey, USA
For the first in the history of Kenya, a plum and sensitive government appointment has been given to a professional without political leanings. This is a reflection that we are moving towards nurturing meritocracy in our Country’s civil service.

Dr. Lumumba, Prof Jane Onsongo and lawyer Pravin Bowry were approved by our legislators without any political or ethnic considerations.

Being at the helm of KACC, Dr. Lumumba is an inspiration and a motivator to many Kenyans. He has exhibited exemplary qualities in the reform platform. He has persistently challenged the status quo, terming it a recipe for the Country’s stagnation on democracy, political, social and economic development.

His intellectual Stimulation to those inside and outside the academia has motivated many Kenyans to strive and climb the academic ladder. From PLO the great orator to a chief anti-corruption tsar is not only a milestone to the Dr’s family but for all Kenyans.

He is known to be brilliant, knowledgeable and a forward thinker. Heading an organization charged with the responsibility of fighting corruption in the country is a tall order for the charismatic and eloquent lawyer. He has no political baggage and Kenyans expects him to operate independently with a paradigm shift from his predecessor, Justice Aaron Ringera.

Being young, energetic and creative, the new KACC director should fight the vice of corruption with zeal and determination. He knows that corruption is the genesis of the myriad problems that have bedeviled our country since independence.

The new KACC boss developed the vision, sold the vision to Kenyans, found his way and now he stands to be counted rather than saying I wish it was done this way and that way. The yoke is on his shoulders to translate his eloquence and ideas into practice. He needs to convince Kenyans and the world through service delivery because saying is one and dong is another.

There are high expectations from Kenyans for the new KACC boss. He needs to fold his sleeves to help the nation on the war against corruption. There is a general believe that new brooms sweep clean and although they don’t sweep all corners, a clean house is what Kenyans expects from Dr Lumumba.
May the new KACC team under Dr Lumumba make integrity, honest, and values their operational etiquette in anti-corruption watchdog body. Their appointment was done transparently, through vetting and finally approved by our law makers who represent millions of Kenyans.

We urge the new team to lay a firm foundation centred on professionalism, transparency and accountability so that those who will take over from them will perpetuate the same ideals in KACC.

Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Leadership perspectives Visa-vis World cup in South Africa

Joseph Lister Nyaringo
New Jersey, USA
The entire world was glued on television watching the world cup for the first time from the African Continent. Our two leaders in the coalition government President Kibaki and PM Raila Odinga travelled to Johannesburg for the tournaments’ opening ceremony. I wonder if they learnt any lesson while in a country which has enjoyed majority rule for only 15 years but has comfortably positioned itself in the global stage; surpassing the Continent’s power houses like Nigeria and Egypt.
When South Africa won the votes to host the 2010 World cup, it sent a very strong message to Africa and the world that the post apartheid nation was prepared for greatness globally. It was impressive during the matches … security, infrastructure and logistics to safeguard the comfort of fans who thronged the rainbow nation was well coordinated; a reminiscent of a developed country.
South Africa’s economic grid and governance practices are phenomenal; a sharp contrast with Countries which attained self rule more than a half a century a go like Ghana, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Sudan, Morocco, and Guinea. In fact, the Country’s GDP is 10 times that of Kenya despite being 3 years away to celebrate a half a century since we attained independence from Britain.
I don’t want to sound disrespectful to African leaders who took over after independence; but it appears like they were not ready for majority rule. May be things would be better today if the colonialists stayed longer the way they did in South Africa. The challenges we see in the DRC, Zimbabwe, Somalia, Sudan, Rwanda, or Kenya, are all homegrown as a result of poor leadership foundation laid upon by the founding fathers.
It must be remembered that if Neslson Mandela could have followed the path that most African leaders took after independence, South Africa would not have gotten the opportunity to host the World cup. Despite the horror of the apartheid regime and Mandela’s incarceration, the white minority rule laid a firm foundation that they passed to the freedom hero and this has continued to define country’s current stature.
Mandela inherited an economically viable Country from the minority predecessor, Fredrick De Klerk and ruled for one term; passing the baton to Tabo Mbeki who perpetuated the same ideals passing it to Jacob Tsuma. Mr. Tsuma recently shepherded the World cup to a successful end.
It’s paradoxical that Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, Zimbabwe and Zambia, despite sharing the same colonial heritage with South Africa, cannot measure up to the rainbow nation on good governance, democratic practices, infrastructure, and respect to the Country’s constitution. I’m not implying that South Africans are free from daily challenges but their Country stands on a better platform compared with many African nations.
Shall we conclude that African nations currently bedeviled by civil strife, corruption, governance malpractices and injustices achieved liberation from the colonialists too soon, or post independence leaders were caught off guard before they could set their minds on self rule?
In Zimbabwe, Robert Mugabe inherited a robust economy from the British, but today the Country is a shell. The citizens cannot even feed themselves, yet the Zimbabwean strongman keeps whining; blaming the West for his Country’s problems. Just recently, the DRC celebrated 50 years of independence from Belgium but there was nothing to celebrate when the country is riddled with poverty, illiteracy, violence, injustices and many other human rights violations.
If Nelson Mandela, suffered for over a quarter a century but after his release and ascendancy to the Presidency proved that political cronyism, tyranny, autocracy, corruption, ethnicity was not in his vocabulary, how come our own Jomo Kenyatta who equally suffered never nurtured the same ideals when he took over from the colonial leadership ?
Nobody thought Kenyatta will renege the spirit of the independence struggle. Nobody thought his reign will be compounded with land grabbing, political assassinations, detaining government dissenters especially those he fought with during the freedom struggle. The first President cynically and tragically aligned himself on ethnic identification through a cartel of tribesmen who misadvised him on key national decisions which is the genesis of Kenya’s present predicaments.
He passed on a devastating legacy to Moi, which has continued to roil our country making it hard to agree on issues that affect the nations especially getting a new constitution. How come former President Neslson Mandela was able to get a new constitution for his people in a span of two years after he became president when it has take Kenya more than 20 years to achieve the same?
My final challenge is for African leaders is to take stock of where they went wrong and devise home grown solutions if they expect to be at par with South Africa.
As we move to see our Country’s rebirth on 4th August, let us not be engulfed by utopia because our great success is dependent upon a transformative leader who will take over our nation under the new constitution. The future is bleak but very hopeful.

Wednesday, July 7, 2010

Honour heroes through a new constitution

By Joseph Lister Nyaringo- New Jersey USA.

Those who love freedom and justice; those who cherish and relish democracy should be prepare to reward the heroes of Kenya’s second liberation through voting in a new constitution.
Truly, how can we reward these brave men and women who are still with us and the departed ones like- Bishop Alexander Muge, Henry Okullu, Manasses Kuria, George Anyona, Masinde Muliro and Jaramogi Odinga?
Shall we continue being manacled by the tentacles that deprived them off their freedom or we need to shake off and build a new order, look back and celebrate their zeal and determination to pave the way for Kenya’s second liberation.
Shall we reward these heroes by joining forces with those who subjected them to physical torture, spiritual ordeal and mental agony to deny Kenyans a new order?
Shall we reward these heroes through negative maneuvers through killing the dream they have always held for the Country and which is likely to change our leadership and governance systems for future generations?
While attending a discussion group sponsored by Amnesty International in New York recently, I was given accolades not because of doing anything for Kenya but through the respect one the key figures of the organization upholds for the Central Imenti MP Gitobu Emanyara, when they met in New York at the height of Kenya’s clamour for Multiparty democracy.
This reminds me of one key thing- true patriotism. Emanyara and his group fought passionately with zeal, bravery without looking at any gains. They loved Kenya during that time and they have continued doing so without giving up.
They didn’t mortgage or betray the course of the struggle but kept pressing forward fearlessly. Those days, there were no strong activities from the civil society like it is today but they used every means to ensure that section (2a) was changed. The public order act, the chiefs’ order, and the public security act all gave former president Moi the ammunition to make Kenyans forced refugees in the West and detainees at home.
Let us reward the heroes who paved the way for the freedom we enjoy by voting in a new constitution in the coming referendum.

Pursue what’s achievable before Referendum day

By Joseph Lister Nyaringo
New Jersey, USA

Let us not dream that we shall wake up one day to sing one chorus or dance in the same rhythm. That is why it’s futile to seek for absolute truth in the proposed constitution before the referendum day.
No leadership system or political ideology his perfect in the World. Not even the evolution of Democracy; the most preferred system of government.

Theocracy, the system Moses and his brother Joshua used to lead the Israelis from Egypt never lacked weaknesses despite giving World the 10 commandments. Reaching Promised Land, Israel’s leadership from King Saul to the present Benjamin Netanyahu has been riddled with turmoil after turmoil for many generations.

It has been said severally how hard it is to attain a perfect constitution. Personally like most Kenyans, I’m for yes not because the constitution is perfect but because it will help us run our country well than the current one.
A law that faces resistance is not necessarily a bad law. That is why many of the hard criticism being fronted by sections of the Kenyan society about the proposed law do not pass the merit test. Court petitions, suggestions to entrench an addendum to the contentious clauses before the referendum are clear moves to scuttle the constitution and prevent Kenyans from getting a new constitution.
Where were these people now coming with ideas at the eleventh hour as if they are from another planet? They had humble time to petition, propose or suggest ideas when they failed to provide inputs at the formative stages of the proposed law?
When a first time MP voted on a transformative platform is fighting to use Parliament to stop the referendum, many of us are left in a state of quandary about our nation’s young legislators and their reform credentials. It’s quite clear that Mr. Jamleck Kamau is for the retention of the status quo and an enemy for the reforms the country craves for.
Those who are against or are on the grey area on proposed constitution should take a cue from the recent passage of the health care legislation in the USA which never got any backing from the right wing Republicans, whom like many Kenyans in the “no” camp wanted to score political points when in fact the was for the benefit of millions of Americans without healthcare.
They should be reminded that even the law is rejected in the referendum, it will be elusive to achieve what is acceptable by all Kenyans at any given period. Besides, we’re fatigued with the quest for a new constitution. We don’t want to start from ground zero on the tax payers’ expense.
The IIEC has already hinted that they have run short of funds for the referendum and therefore, it will be a financial tragedy to subject Kenyans to another circus of coining another constitution if the proposed one is rejected during the referendum.
It’s too late to use unorthodox maneuvers through courts or punch holes on the contents of constitution. We need to focus for decision day on August 4th 2010.
However, those who feel there is time to try and engage the Church for a possible deal can do. Church leaders supporting the proposed law like Dr. Timothy Njoya and retired Bishop David Gitari should be prevailed upon and requested to reach out to their fellow Church leaders. You set a thief to catch a thief.
It’s never too late to unify the Country by bring the clergy on board to support the proposed constitution. This is a viable mechanism than what many on the “no” camp are pursuing.

Koigi Wamwere should be consistent with reforms

By Joseph Lister Nyaringo, NJ USA

The former MP for Subukia’s political credentials especially on the struggle for freedom and good governance in the country has been exemplary. That is why; I cringe with disgust when I see him sharing the same platform with his former oppressors who want to deny Kenyans a new constitution.

He must understand that the bigger percentage of those against the proposed constitution are not doing so because of patriotism but due to some clauses that are likely to disrupt their comfort zones but very beneficial to the Kenyan majority.

Koigi should reconsider his stand and support the proposed law; failure to which, his political resume will be dented forever. If he continues his negative campaign on the proposed law, he will never be remembered to have been in league with freedom heroes like: the late Jaramogi Odinga, Mukaru Nganga and George Anyona.

He needs to emulate the consistency of former Butere MP Martin Shikuku and Dr. Timothy Njoya who have continued to fight relentlessly for reforms in the Country especially on the attainment of a new constitution.

Having suffered detention without trial and being exiled, many Kenyans expected Koigi to be the last person to dine and wine with non reformers like Cyrus Jirongo, William Ruto and former President Moi especially on matters related to chatting the way forward for Kenya’s future.

I also call upon Dr. Wanyiri Kihoro and Rev. Mutave Musimi to reconsider their stand and join the league that wants to give Kenyans a new constitution. Like Koigi, the two suffered immensely during the Kanu regime as a result of their stand against dictatorship.
They need to remember that the good of today often overshadows the good of yesterday. Therefore, even though one has done good things in the past for the country; their future legacy is often tethered on the stand they take especially now that the Country is gearing to usher in a new constitution that will define the future governance systems and processes.

Give President William Ruto Credit where it's due

By Joseph Lister Nyaringo    In any democracy, voters make decisions based on the promises candidates make during the campaigns. Like all ...