Rebirth: Poverty in the African Kingdom

Happy birthday. As we commemorate 50 years of the African Union we should also evaluate how we have survived in the years. It will be justified to be happy on this day if happiness is what we have sought for and achieved through the years. I know I might be wrong in my logic, but lets assume this logic is undisputed. An Africa independent, self functioning economically and politically is what they foresaw. Are we there yet after 50 years of an idea and a dream? Let us look at politics.

I am right in my conclusion that we are still running the politics of the 20th century, the politics of the 1980′s to be precise. It is not as beautiful as it sounds. The leadership has managed to drive us into the worst of economic positions since its installment.

Most of the leaders are still in power and are still holding onto it despite the undeniable fact of old age. These countries claim the brand democracy as part of their standing. I hate asking the wrong questions, so I am going to ask “How have they been able to stay in power for so long? Are they so loved that the people think these should be their leaders for over 40 years?” I hope to answer later.

Dambisa Moyo, a renowned Zambian economist said in her book Dead Aid that Africa is going to house 75% of the worlds poor in 2050 and we have doubled our poverty rates. She also explicitly sates that Africa was doing twice better economically in the 1980′s than what it is doing right now. She says that aid from the west is the problem to all this downfall.

I remember being told in a history class that in the 1980′s Kenya’s economy was, in our language today, an emerging super power. I agree with Moyo and as much as she blames aid I blame the leadership. This is not a blame game, however, it is all about the truth and so we shall be free.

The following list substantiates my claims;

1. Teodoro Obiang- President of Equatorial Guinea since 1979 to present(age 70)
2. Denis Sassou Nguesso – President of Congo from 1979-1992 again from 1997 to present (age 69)
3. Paul Biya – President of Cameroon since 1982 to present (age 80)
4. Jose Eduardo dos Santos – President of Angola since 1979 to present (age 70)
5. Blaise Compaore – President of Burkina Faso since 1987 to present (age 62)
6. Idriss Derby – President of Chad since 1990 to present ( age 61)
7. Robert Mugabe – President of Zimbabwe since 1987 to present (age 89)
8. Yoweri Museveni – President of Uganda since 1986 to present (age 69)

This is just a small list of a continent with over 45 nation states, the list is actually longer. I agree that different states have their own ways of ruling and have different interpretation of the rule of law and of democracy. I also implore you to look at this list in the light that I have not presented to you the economic outlook of the commanders of the listed countries.

The facts show that we are still playing by the same old rules in a world that is changing. Our leaders are worn out and those of the old, we need fresh blood to govern us into a future that they will be physically present in at least. The politics of the old are dirty, full of bad deals and there is the dire need for rebirth. We need to imbibe laws that govern our people better, eliminates poverty and makes each and every citizen prosper.

If this is out of our grasp we desire, at least, a happy birthday and many more to look forward to. In order for Africa to improve, we need to change the way we are governed.

by Dennis Kariuki

- See more at: http://awakeafrica.org/archives/593#sthash.4M6KrKtF.dpuf

Rejecting the Western narrative

The person or group of people who came up with this expression must have just said what we all wanted to hear. They nailed it. This group of words were neither rehearsed nor intended for the use that they have acquired. I do not dispute that words evolve and they change their shape and forms to mean things different from what their birth outlined. Some words, simply, cannot be compromised to pass through this little fate. Africans need to understand that there is nothing like a “Western Narrative”. This was just a quick formation of words that should remain so else be left out to disperse into the air.

It is important that we understand the the West can be likened to capitalism and this means that most of the things that they engage are for profit maximization. This means that all the stories that they post about the continent are just for their benefit.

They seek to define us in areas where they have market and then continuously repeat this concepts to the people so as to brace them to take their money away. We are that thing in between and if at all this protest should be for the west against the imprisonment of their minds.

International media does not represent the views of the majority. They want our attention and once they have acquired it, that is a possibility for making a profit. Silence is golden, too. This is lesson that the young African needs to learn. Nobody can make you feel inferior without your own approval.

What about the investors image about us? What about the money that could have improved our economy but the stories have dimmed this possibility? What about our children’s future? Will they get jobs?

I will answer a question at a time.

It is flawed to think that an investor first reads some newspaper stories in order to understand how he is going to make it in the country of interest. There is a shortage of this kind of ignorant entrepreneurs and that is the truth.

The reason why investors will be attracted to your country will be when you, friends and family work hard and elect sensible policy makers who will ensure the country is improving its economic outlook. Stories do not improve the economy and are not accountable for bad decisions made by investors. Misinformation on itself is not a crime but I am sure somewhere manipulation is outlawed.

The view that we ought to blame ourselves for the bad economic performance is in order. We have elected leaders that have corrupted us since they were elected but they are still in power. This will surely be an issue for scrutiny later. Let us seek profits too if it agrees with our cultures and morals else do the things that will better ourselves. Let us fight for our voices at the top of the table otherwise we will just be the old us, bogged down with questions thinking that there is a narrative that holds us captive.

It is fine for a western friend or acquaintance to be unaware that Africa is a continent made of many countries. It is fine. It is not appropriate to think that you are the only person in the world that desires the attention and is in the position that you need to understood by everyone. It is wrong to even harbor such thoughts even about an enemy. The fact is knowledge is infinite and there is a lot we do not know.

People expect of us to be more accepting and understanding. This should be coupled with hard work and positivity then we will invest in our own economies and our children will benefit. We are the makers of tomorrow, if there is to be one.

by Dennis Kariuki

- See more at: http://awakeafrica.org/archives/513#sthash.bmIZkemO.dpuf

ICC without Africa

Let us jump the gun into the prospects of this possible occurrence. There is a meeting scheduled to discuss the option of opting out of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in Addis Ababa today. The Kenyan government which has two of the highest commanders implicated, the president and the deputy, is rethinking the pledge to adhere with the ICC. The ICC has been under scrutiny by most of the developing nations to be a tool for neo-colonialism and imperialism because all the cases that it has pursued since its founding have been African.

The ICC, located in the Hague in the Netherlands, is a court that seeks to hold accountable the highest people in the power hierarchy in the country over their involvement in crimes against humanity. They have a mandate to intervene on the basis that the involved country lacks the required institutions or has a constitution that allows for impunity for these commanders. This is a just cause but all the name calling from the developing world can surely be substantiated.

The ICC has on various occasions failed to bring to justice the heads of states of developed nations who have been involved in the innocent killings in Afghanistan, and other strategic places where the west has developed interest in their national resources.

The Bush administration of the United States of America should have been prosecuted for the Afgan killings. A different perspective drives the current conflict in Mali to the Obama government where, with authority from the United Nations, he sought for colonel Gadhafi while arming the Tuareg rebels. These Tuareg rebels were part of the groups causing the mayhem and later loss of lives in Northern Mali, the town of Konna.

There should at least been a sign to tell the world that the court is not as inefficient and not a tool for imperialism but they failed. It is worth noting that the reason that the USA has not been sought for is because of their refusal to be a member of the ICC. They hold the view that the American judicial institutions are better than those of the ICC and as such they are afraid that their citizens will not be in good conditions.

This gave rise to American exceptionalism. This is the view that America is in the position of pursuing justice, equality and peace and as such is not liable to and crimes they commit in the interim. In common language they not accountable to internal laws. This is the same view that can be traced back to the “white man’s burden” with regard to races in this space. This should be eliminated else all African and other involved  countries should boycott involvement with a country upholding such ideals to heart in this new world order. If one country is immune then there certainly will never be order.

It is time Kenya withdraws from ICC. There is a well established judiciary and legal system that was not there before the compliance with the ICC to hand over the perpetrators of the 2007 post-election violence. The country has moved on to put in place institutions that are independent of the government which removes the need to have the ICC handling its cases.

Although it seems unusual for a country to question the president and receive proper evidence when he is in office, and if found guilty to subject him to the rule of law, I believe that Kenya and many countries in Africa can now enjoy this luxury. This said, I support the move to do away with unusual high expenditure on an institution that is losing and will lose its reason for establishment. The ICC is struggling to define itself and to prove itself worth the millions of money spent on just countable single digit achievements. I suggest this money to be channeled to develop ways to elevate the worlds poor and bridging of the wealth gap.

Maybe we are just part of those that expect too much of an institution born just a decade ago but we prefer to be part of those who expect nothing at all.

by Dennis Kariuki

- See more at: http://awakeafrica.org/archives/456#sthash.86LCDB99.dpuf

The pathetic bloody pig strike

I find it very disappointing that Kenyans decided to use pigs as a scape goat to the legislator’s uncouth behaviour. It seems very appropriate that greed can be substituted for the character of a pig but public prosecution of these lovely animals is also uncouth. I am not an environmentalist but I know that pigs have rights that should be accorded without any hesitation. It is against the Kenyan culture, religions and ideals to prosecute animals as a means to an end.

Am I the only ‘pig person’?

The members of parliament, governors and county governors since their swearing in have been in the witch hunt for more pay. This has been an occupation of the past legislators and the same as any just cause, the fresh regime have vowed to fight to the end. The Kenyan people seem not to be digesting the facts correctly because if it were so, this topic would have been put out of the public discourse ages ago.

Kenyan legislators are among the most paid in the world and also do not pay taxes. The past pay increase was of the logic that they will give into public demand of paying taxes and then risk being financially unstable to do their job and survive. As such a pay increase is in order (?).

It is certainly time to “Occupy parliament” and demand the resignation of any such greedy individuals because they are not in office for the service of the Kenyan people. (The lack of creativity for the name of such a just cause will be for scrutiny later.) This is the statement that prompted the pig idea. The pig symbolized the legislators and their prosecution would symbolize the consequences of their greed, if I am not wrong. It goes without saying that the pigs were outnumbered putting them at a docile position subject to any manipulation.

This can be the greatest metaphor to have been taken literally and also the greatest genocide to have ever be fall the Kenyan pig society. They surely get killed for the purpose of the food demand on a day to day basis but at least not with the same brutality and anger. If more brutality is used at least we never get to see it. According to me the agenda for the protest was never achieved.

This pig bloody prosecution cause can be interpreted to be religiously driven. Without any bias and incorporating full objectivity we are a country made of other religions apart from Christianity and the pig is Halal for the Muslim. Whether we took to the streets to publicize our religious animosity and intolerance or even exclusion of particular religions in decision making is for you to decide. When thinking about it remember that there are consequences for our actions and you also have to step out of your comfort zones to understand our behaviour better.

Kenya is not a protesting nation and this could be one of the reasons that Barack Obama is not stopping by on his latest tour to Africa. We just need another protest to prove our legislators wrong. We have the energy.

by Dennis Kariuki

- See more at: http://awakeafrica.org/archives/383#sthash.2C4uJR8a.dpuf