Undecided…

During the US elections I often wondered how given all the media coverage and adverts available any voter would be undecided on whether to vote for Obama or Romney.

It is therefore funny that with three months to the Kenya elections I find myself being an undecided voter.

Do not get me wrong, I am decided on who I will NOT vote for. The indecision is on who I WILL vote for.

Courtesy | Google

I am tired of crap. 50 years of nonsense is enough for Kenya. I believe time is nigh for Kenyans to break away from the yoke of mediocrity.

The launch of Tunawesmake was a breath of fresh air. Issues appeared to have come to the fore-front of Kenya’s body politic. But two weeks later there is no sustained buzz from the Peter Kenneth campaign. Methinks this was a wasted chance to build momentum by his campaign team.

Enough about Peter Kenneth.

Let us talk about the ‘elephant in the room’: Martha Wangari Karua.

For a while, Martha was touted as the ‘change candidate’ for the demographic of Kenyans who are tired of the tribal nonsense and business as usual politics.

However her campaign appears to have lost team and direction. It feels to me that it has fizzled out even before it got started.

And now with the launch of Tunawesmake many of those who were Team Martha are slowly getting seduced by Peter Kenneth. Therein lies the indecision many pro-change voter are faced in. They have to choose between Martha Karua V Peter Kenneth.

This is reminiscent of Obama v Hillary duel in 2008 for the Democratic Party ticket. Hillary lost and had to settle for Secretary of State while she bids her time. She is said to be considering running for the US presidency in 2016.

Martha Karua is no stranger to politics. She has been in politics since 1992. Prior to that she served as a magistrate. She rose up to position of Minister of Constitutional Affairs in President Kibaki’s cabinet where she was referred to as the only man in the cabinet due to her strong-will. Her only blemish is her unequivocal support for President Kibaki during the 2007 election debacle.

Her political pedigree is not in doubt but the question begs, is Kenya ready for a woman president? Or is presidency a bridge to far for Martha? Should she swallow her pride and support Peter Kenneth so as not to split the reform-centred vote?

Kenya is a patriarchal society. This is even more pronounced in the rough and tumble of Kenyan politics. Just look at the hullaballoo over the two third rule. Despite women having the numbers it is highly likely that not enough women MPs will get voted into Bunge thus resulting in a constitutional crisis after the elections. Add to that mix what I call the Baraza-effect; Kenyans been averse to a strong confident women leader following the Baraza alleged nose-pinching incident. The odds are thus heavily stacked against Karua.

Folk have been saying that Kenneth can choose Karua as his running mate. I believe this will be problematic. A ticket that has Peter Kenneth and Martha Karua would be a hard sale due to the fact that both have Kikuyu roots and President Kibaki is Kikuyu. I know it should not matter but Kenya in 2012 is a tribal country and tribe cannot be ignored. Two Kikuyus seeking to succeed another Kikuyu would not go down well with ordinary Kenyans.

Since she has already said goodbye to Gichugu constituents, how about Martha borrows a script from Hillary Clinton? She can throw her weight behind Peter Kenneth and then negotiate for a Cabinet Secretary for Constitutional Affairs. With the new Katiba needing massive implementation, she will have mega visibility and she will be working on something she has labored for over the years –constitutional reforms.

Will she? Would she? I have no idea. That ultimately is Martha Karua’s decision to make.

Decisions, decisions, decisions.

It appears that I am not the only one who has to make decision concerning the upcoming 2013 elections.

Given the state of our country and our politics, the decisions are not black and white. It is about choosing lesser evils, been strategic, sacrificing individual desires for the greater good of many.

The only constant I can see in the midst of the ever changing variables is the love for Kenya.

Everything notwithstanding we all have to put KENYA FIRST!

GOD BLESS KENYA!

Tunawesmake

Tunawesmake is a crap slogan.

There are no two ways about it. But because it is crap it may work. Any kind of publicity is good. With everyone going on and on about how a bad slogan it is, everyone is talking about it and by extension the candidate which is what the campaign team wants.

Tunawesmake is Peter Kenneth’s campaign slogan. Kenneth has launched his presidential bid on a Kenya National Congress ticket.

In the recent past I have gotten cynical about the mundane nature of Kenyan politics and therefore I have been giving the party and presidential launches a wide berth. However I sat through the Kenneth’s launch and it availed some food for thought.

His speech was impressive. It was sober, issue-based and grounded. When he spoke of the fiscal discipline he will instil in governance it struck a chord, when he talked of his up-bringing in Bahati by a single-mum who struggled to take him to Starehe Boys, I saw someone who knows real Kenyan struggles.

If anything, I pray that the speech heralds a new dawn of issue-based politics in Kenya.

The launch itself felt too pre-planned and airbrushed. One could see echoes of Obama ’08. Also many of the speakers did not move his agenda forward and some performances like Amani’s were painful to watch. While we are it, Big Ted and Jua Kali are really making a fortune out of the political launches without committing to any candidate.

19-year-old Andrew Kenneth’s speech was a bright spot in the launch. It appeared honest and real. He certainly will aid his dad lock down further the female vote. It also heralds a new fad in Kenyan politics were family are part of the package of the candidate.

Peter Kenneth spoke of the iron-discipline instilled by his mum and by Starehe Boys but for him to connect with voters methinks he needs to loosen up.

Politics is about emotions, liking & other non-tangibles. The launch and the Kenneth campaign so far have gone for logic and sense.

Clearly him (and his son) have strong appeal to young urban women voters. He also appeals to urban male voters who tend to be thinking voters.

His campaign team needs to figure out how to sell him to the emotional voters. The ones who vote due to euphoria, tribal reasons or our-man-said-we-vote thus. The kind of voters who have no qualms voting for the likes of Sonko or Waititu. Unfortunately they make the biggest number of voters in Kenya.

Some questions that Peter Kenneth will have to answer are;

His identity – In Central, he is derogatorily referred to as Kamuthungu with Muthungu being Kikuyu for White man. People are already asking what is his ‘Kenyan’ name.

His source of wealth – He was raised in Bahati by a single-mum, his school fees in Starehe was paid for by a well-wisher, how then did he became as rich as he is now?

Is he over-reaching – Gatanga Constituency Development Fund under his patronage has been run well. Many expected him to then run for Governor of Murang’a County. His insistence of being in presidential race raises eyebrows. Is he a plant? Is he just making a point and positioning for 2017?

All in all, his one-party, no alliances, no mention or name-calling of other aspirants and sticking to issues is different from regular Kenya political fodder.

Methinks, Peter Kenneth’s launch will occasion a rethink in strategy by other parties and presidential aspirants.

The ICC ticket of Uhuru and Ruto is court-prone. Its take-off is dependent on the integrity case lodged at the Supreme Court and its success is dependent Kenyans feelings about having a president and running mate entangled in the ICC court process.

Raila’s campaign is currently blunder-prone. He is a far-cry from the invincible candidate of 2007 who inspired mega-support. Cases in point – Why pray did he apologize to the Kalejin community and not to entire country? And exactly what is this mistake he is apologizing for? Also as a self-declared proponent of democracy and reforms how can Raila ask his brother Oburu and his long-time friend Orengo who are competing for the Siaya Senate seat to share out positions? Don’t the electorate have a say?

Martha Karua’s campaign appears to have currently run out of steam and she has fallen off the radar. She also has to contend with what I will call the Baraza-effect. Nancy Baraza’s alleged nose-pinching incident has shown women in authority in a bad light and Martha is unfortunately reaping this.

Musalia Mudavadi and Kalonzo Musyoka are non-starters. They are both KANU orphans who are so used to the Mtukufu Rais phenomena and thus cannot or have never learnt how to walk with their own two feet.

Enter Kenneth! Anawesmake?

I don’t know but it is shaping up to be an intriguing couple of months as we count down to March 4, 2013.

PS:  What if Kenneth and Martha were to set aside their egos and come together as one ticket?

GOD BLESS KENYA!

Christian Raving

The Lounge as defined by one of its organizers, DJ Soxxy of the Kubamba fame, is a Christian hangout with varying themes; DJs, karaoke, spoken word or featured artistes held every Friday at Petma Restaurant which seeks to provide Christians with an alternative to the club scene.

Courtesy | Google

Adawnage were last Friday’s featured act. In my previous post I shared what a pleasure and blessing it was to watch Adawnage perform LIVE at The Lounge.

It was my first time at The Lounge. As a student of human nature I was intrigued by what I saw and I had to share with you.

Let me digress, I had spent that Friday afternoon listening to the Adawnage’s Safari album in anticipation of their gig. This resulted in an interesting incident with my colleague.

My colleague is a young staunch Christian lady. Those who in days gone were called Dada katika Yesu (Sister-in-Christ). She was quite surprised nay shocked that a) I knew of Adawnage b) I was jamming to their music and c) I was planning to go for their concert.

Now while I am not by any stretch of imagination be a Ndugu katika Yesu (Brother-in-Christ), I do have a relationship with God. It may not be ideal or textbook but it is there. So I certainly did take offense at the judgement and I told her as much.

While we are on the subject, let me just say I am tired and put off by saved guys who throw judgement at me and preach to me. Let me also say I am truly thankful to my saved pals who show their Christianity to me by their actions. End of rant.

Back to The Lounge. I have to say at first impression, the only difference between it and a regular club in Nairobi is that there was no sale of alcohol.

Every other element you expect to find in a club was present. Beautiful women, all dressed up and made up. Couples. Ladies and gents on the prowl. A DJ playing very loud danceable music. Folk dancing provocatively.

Let me be clear. Adawange did NOT dance or sing provocatively. During their performance guys were mostly seated except the random person seized of the spirit who would stand and sway to their music.

The dancing happened before Adawange went on stage and during the interlude of their performance lead by Zionists dance group.

This resulted in a big culture shock for me.

I may not be Ndugu katika Yesu but I was raised Anglican and church in my mind is solemn and reflective.

In this I am not alone. Muslims have women and men praying in different places at the mosque so as to reduce temptations. In ‘conservative’ churches women are required to wear long dresses and cover their hair. These measures are put in place so as to ensure that when worshiping, distraction and temptations are reduced to a minimum.

I wondered where Jesus was in the crazy dancing which in all honesty was no different from that happening in the pub next door. I was also trying my best not to have sexual thoughts while in ‘church’ but the ladies shaking what they mothers gave them were making it quite hard for me.

For me, it felt awkward and not right to dance and party like that in ‘church’. I stayed only for as long as Adawnage were performing and left immediately after.

For the regulars, they were in a zone. It was a ‘party don’t stop’ kind of situation with Adawange’s performance seeming to be a blip in their raving. When I left at midnight, DJ Sanch was getting ready to take the party to the next level.

With the provocative dancing, high energy levels and relatively young age of party-goers/congregation, it was not far-fetched to imagine hanky-panky situations ensuing.

This got me thinking.

The Lounge is meant to take Jesus to the people and provide clean wholesome Friday entertainment for those who are saved. But I wonder whether in taking Christ to the masses, the message is getting diluted. Whether the ‘cool gospel’ which is all the rave now may be doing more harm than good.

Or whether like my aforementioned colleague who did not think that as an unsaved guy I could listen to gospel I was being judgmental on saved folk who want to party and shake their booty till morning.

I am aware of an instance in the Bible where King David danced for the Lord in joy. I am also conscious that Christians were asked to be the salt and light of the world.

From what I saw at The Lounge, I was left with question marks.

I have written previously on Gospesecular music but to see the Christian raving for myself was pretty unsettling. Hence writing and sharing my experience at The Lounge with you.

Maybe out of the ensuing discussion I will get enlightenment.

GOD BLESS KENYA!

Adawnage!

Adawnage are AWESOME!

I stumbled on their music recently and I was blown away. Their album Safari is worth a buy. Just listen to Uwezo and you will be uplifted. A review of their album can be read here.

Courtesy | Google

When I learnt that Adawnage would be performing at The Lounge this past Friday, it was like Christmas had come early. The Lounge is a Christian hangout which happens every Friday at Petma Restaurant (directly opposite KFC) on Kimathi Street. It is organized by DJ Soxxy, he of the Kubama Krew fame.

The event which was sponsored by Coke Zero was highly publicized online. However there was conflicting information. Some places said it would start at 7pm, others said it would start at 8pm. I was there at 7pm. In future, if you read conflicting start times for an event in Kenya, take the later time and even then be sure that the said time is not an exact start time but rather an ambiguous marker of the neighborhood when the event may start.

The event started at 9pm.

Adawnage who sound awesome in their album sound even more amazing performing LIVE.

They performed for two hours (two one hour sets) and their pure unbridled energy was infectious, uncommon and wholesome. They sang songs out of their Safari album, sampled tracks from their soon to be released album and did covers of songs by Zidi the Band. They were also joined on stage by Number 8, Makena and Carlisto for an explosive show.

I was blessed, entertained and ministered to.

Their lead singer Rosemary whose stage presence was a marvel to watch took time out from performing for a one minute sermon which was my take home: It may be the days of microwave solutions but it pays to wait on the Lord. Whatever you are trusting Him with, He will come through for you, at the right time.

It was totally worth my time and worth the wait and sideshows that The Lounge entailed.

Be sure to grab a copy of Safari as you await the release of their new album.

If you would like to watch Adawnage perform LIVE, they together with ZIDI the BAND and Dann NumberEight present Ziada Nairobi at Parklands Baptist on December 12, 2012.

Time: 3pm – 6pm.

Charges: Free.

Theme: One nation under God.

Featured artistes: Makena, Mercy Wairegi, Carlisto, Nasara the poet.

Reason: Spreading the message of Peace, Love and Togetherness in our lovely Nation.

Methinks it is quite a plan for Jamhuri Day.

GOD BLESS KENYA!

Beauty of Concours d’ Elegance

Check out here for more info on  Concours d’ Elegance.

GOD BLESS KENYA!

Safaricom Sevens 2012

Safaricom Sevens is billed as Kenya’s and to some Africa’s premier rugby event. It celebrated its 17^th birthday this past weekend.

Since 2000 I have not attended the tournament but this year I broke my hiatus and was at Nyayo Stadium all of Sunday to sample the rugby and atmosphere.

Image | Google

These are my reflections:

The Good

1. Nuturing of talent. It was great to see Under-12, Under-14 and the University teams.

2. The coach has a bigger selection of international quality players available to pick from going by the standards of Morans (2^nd placed) and Shujaa (3^rd placed).

3. The expression of patriotism was amazing. Folks donned national flag colors, got painted, carried flags. In a country where tribalism is rife, that was refreshing to see.

4. I was socialized into rugby on Ngong Road. Therefore I was skeptical on the move from KRFUEA. Also wondered on the security. After Sunday I was sold on the move. Nyayo Stadium has potential. It just needs to get nurtured.

5. The security has intense, had to endure six body searches before entry into the stadium.

6. Safaricom did try to relieve the fans of the torture from the sun by providing branded mini-umbrellas, big umbrellas, helmets and hats. For that I applaud them.

7. Russia (the stands directly opposite the VIPS) was ROCKING! It was a-laugh-a-minute.

The Bad

1.  The KK guards were pretty rude.

2. The rule about no food and drinks from outside was not uniformly enforced. The group I was with have to give away fruits and water. Imagine our surprise when we got into the stadium and folk had sandwiches, bottles of wine, vodka and all manner of food and drinks from outside.

3. Speaking of food and drinks, the vendors at the event charged exorbitant prices. Seeking to take rugby to the masses should also include vendors being considerate to mwananchi.

4. On Friday and Saturday there was limited coverage on mainstream media as Gor v AFC grabbed all the headlines. This was slightly remedied on Sunday though.

5. A well-manned social media account preferably twitter would have come in handy to enable fans plan their day by providing match day fixtures and times.

6.  Only VIP and hospitality sections were tented. The fans in the rest of the stadium were left to open to the vagaries of the intense sun. How much would it cost Safaricom to provide tenting for all?

8. Got into Nyayo at 9.30am. Matches were already on-going. Fans were steadily streaming in. However mounds of garbage from the previous day were gathered at various points around the stadium awaiting collection. This finally happened at around 11am.

9. Also noticed that the Coke vendors directly in front of Russia had tattered branded umbrellas. Not a good look for a major event.

10. It was ironic that Safaricom sponsored the tournament but Safaricom cellphone internet was a matter of chance. Half the time I could not log on.

11. This was the first major rugby event that I have attended that I did not see Arigi, the staple of Kenya rugby for the last 15years. What happened to him? Who are the new people running the cheering squad? They are not cool. Ministry of Rugby do something!

12. In related news, Come baby come is now a rugby chant. How now?????

13. 90% of folk there are clueless about rugby and are there for the carnival. The carnival fans are great but wish the numbers of folk who get rugby would get to at least 50% of the crowd.

The Ugly

1. The dispensing of the branded merchandise was handled badly. Officials threw the Safaricom merchandise at fans in the stands who then scrambled for them, this would easily have led to a stampede.

2.Most fans are clueless about old school rugby songs. Aren’t they being sang in school, uni or club rugby matches? It would be very sad if the songs which are our heritage were to die off.

3. The women in minis, heels and makeup. Honey, it is rugby. Jeans, shorts, sandals/sneakers will do.

Bonus

This was my 7s moment (the two were seated next to me in the stands and were speaking in Kiswahili):

Chic: (Sips beer, puffs cigarette) Do you understand the rules of this game?

Guy: Kinda

Chic: I have no absolutely idea. I just come to look at the well-built guys in tight shorts running around.

Me: HAHAHAHA!

GOD BLESS KENYA!

My Unspoken – Premiere review

In many cultures across the world, problems concerning matters of the heart, family disputes and habits were discussed behind closed doors and mostly by elders.

This was not entirely to hide things (hiding did happen) but to ensure that the reputation and the feelings of all the parties involved were prudently looked after and to also tap into the wisdom of the elders.

Times are changing. It is now the norm in certain quarters to talk about these matters publicly and with no regard to age. Whether this new way of doing things is good or bad only time will tell.

With that background I want to talk about My Unspoken which aired last night on NTV at 10pm.

Image courtesy of Google

Its promo was quite eye-catching and it fueled my curiosity to watch.

For those who did not watch it is a counseling session where a group of women are helped by a counselor/life-coach to confront the demons of their past and live life anew.

It is normally run under the Alabastron programme and this was its premiere on TV.

Totally get the media sense for NTV to air the show. Women crying, opening up about their ordeals, being guided through how to make things better does make for great television which means audience numbers go up. This boosts ratings and by extension advertisers.

Ponder about the confidentiality aspect though. A woman may be strong and ready to go on national television and bare her soul to millions but we do not live in isolation. As individuals we are parts of a greater society. So if a woman goes on TV and accuses her husband of battering, what does that do to her children, her husband, her extended family? And even if now it seems a great idea to be on TV, 10 years from now will she be happy about the footage that will be accessible to all online?

Also asked myself where is the voice the accused? We heard of husbands who battered, uncles who raped, mothers who were negligent. None of these were giving a hearing. Balance is key in media. You always strive to get both sides of the story. So is NTV opening itself up for defamation suits?

Let me digress, defamation is the airing of content that soils a persons otherwise good name and causes them to be shunned by right thinking members of the society. You may say that no names were mentioned but if you say uncle who raised me, my husband, my mother then that is as good as naming them. And in defamation the burden is on ‘he who alleges’ so NTV by airing the accusations will be expected to provide evidence of alleged crime.

Moving on, to me counseling is meant to heal and bring closure. Confront the issue or the person and deal with it. How they will achieve this on TV is beyond me. Shouldn’t counseling be private and individual? How then do you have people with varying problems all in one room and then proceed to diagnose them and prescribe solutions?

The counselor also greatly matters. The show’s counselor comes across to me as trying to be mix of Tyra, Oprah and Dr. Phil. This leads me to the fact that the qualifications of the counselor were not presented for scrutiny. Who is she and what is her locus standi?

The fact that there was reference to auditions being held for the women who were then chosen to appear on TV based on the ‘gravity’ of their emotional hurt is something I found off. Emotional hurt or psychological trauma is not a joke or something to be trifled with.

Should counseling be a subject for Reality TV? The model has worked in Tyra, Oprah and Dr. Phil but will it work in our society? What is our culture? What is our world view? How do we address home/private matters? It is all well and good to say we are urban and sophisticated and that we can talk about everything in publicly now but is this the case in Mogotio or Nguruweni?

I am not belittling the women who bravely told their stories on national TV but all I heard was how other people’s actions ruined their lives. Thus I wonder should we encourage the culture of calling up someone to help you fix your problems instead of taking charge of your life and charting the course? Maina Kageni breakfast show is a long running example of where folk chose to hand over the reins of their lives to other people to make decisions for them.

Finally what is the utility value of the show? And what is the impact that it might eventually have to an audience?

Spoke to my psychiatrist friend and apart from him being appalled by the show he spoke of trend building. This is where bad things through gradually media acceptance are seen to be cool and they became a fad to the audience. Easiest way to illustrate is that through Maina’s breakfast show, cheating in marriage in Kenya has been made normal.

That is the power of the media.

From the show I got the fact that women (people) are carrying around incredible baggage. I totally agree that the issues raised need to be addressed. Regular readers will know how I am entirely against censorship or burying heads in the sand.

My concern is regarding the mode and means of doing so – Group counseling on national television.

Have several friends who are all praises regarding Alabastron.

Spoke to one today and she insisted that the society has been silent for too long and it is time we addressed the injustices visited on women (people) emotionally or psychologically.

She contended that while men are able to compartmentalize their issues women will carry their hurt into every aspect of their lives. Therefore she felt that Alabastron is a brilliant initiative.

Regarding the My Unspoken TV show she asked me to reserve judgment until I have watched all the 13 episodes. I shall do so but that does not mean I cannot comment on the first show that I watched. That is the spirit in which this ‘review’ is written.

This post has many questions because the show left me with very many questions. On media programming, on influence of churches and church leaders, on the rise of reality TV and on the state of families, marriages and relationships in Kenya. I am still musing over them.

As usual, this is a conversation.

What did you think of My Unspoken?

GOD BLESS KENYA!