Monday, September 14, 2009

A Report on NextLevel: Interviews

Several weeks ago we launched Next Level, a mentorship program for the arts. We were overwhelmed and excited by the number of applicants.. and the range in talent. 

Published hereis a progress report on the process: the interviews of the finalists, and what next.

Kenya Should Invest in Sports

In his inaugural article for Kenya Imagine Nicholas Oyoo Ochieng makes a case for Kenyan sportsmen and women. Sports, he argues, is a very lucrative business, and Kenya should harness the opportunity since we have some of the world's best athletes. 

More

Tuesday, September 08, 2009

Major-General Ali demoted

Major-General Mohammed Hussein Ali, Police Commissioner since 2004, has been relieved of his duties and appointed to head the Postal Corporation of Kenya. (KBC, Reuters, Daily Nation). The new Commissioner of Police is Matthew Iteere, the immediate former Commandant of the General Service Unit.
Updates has a quick report and analysis of the Police Commissioner's demotion.

Monday, September 07, 2009

Our Negotiated Reality

He is quite possibly in this legislative reversal to ensure that he extracts from Lucy Kibaki, or any of her male relatives, the goat which the Njuri Ncheke adjudged to be his due. Thus, his Bill is compromised.

Eric Ng'eno returns; the red rag this time is Gitobu Imanyara.

Thursday, September 03, 2009

Pfizer

Pfizer has just been forced to cough up a couple billion dollars. The fine wasn’t because of a lawsuit, but because the company had been marketing drugs illegally. This is utter madness. What happened to the good old days when some idiot claimed that the writing on the labels was so small that he ended up taking Viagra instead of vitamins and almost… this and the other, you finish the line.

I watched Mau Forest go up in flames

This story is a true manifestation of stark cruelty towards natural resources and the environment at large. It gives a small window to examine the extent of damage that human beings can put themselves into while pioneered by greed and selfishness. It sheds light into the fast-growing culture that society; knowing or unknowingly promotes o ignoring impunity. The direct result of bad decisions, bad leadership and graft is evident in this story bringing forth complete destruction and environmental degradation. 
Boniface Gachugu narrates



Good Hair: My Life as an Expatriate

As a black woman living in England, I can never do that. Even the hairdresser at my university - and she was black- couldn't do my hair for my graduation until I had a weave put in (which she then washed and massacred).

Nanjala's hair enjoys, if that's the right verb, the expat life.


Kikuyus for Change, and Kalenjin collective responsibility

It is tolerably clear that the Kalenjin political class arranged the relevant bits of the post-election violence, tolerably clear that they were acting in their capacity as leaders of the Kalenjin nation in doing so, and tolerably clear that there is near-unanimous Kalenjin support for the consequences (if not, perhaps, the means) of PEV. That is why it ought to be conceded that Kalenjin bear collective responsibility for it.

Kikuyus for Change have argued that anti-Kalenjin ethnic bigotry is wrong, and that Kalenjin bear no communal responsibility for PEV. Only one of those things is true, I think.

What Kimani Maruge knew

Kenya Vision 2030 cannot result in development; it's just a script for our total re-colonisation.

Omtatah Okoiti knows what did Kimani Maruge knew that Kibaki doesn't.