Appreciating Friendship

Henry (L) and Kevin Kimtai (R)

Time has indeed swung by so fast I looked up and behold August had arrived well and indeed. I fell particularly good about this month for the reason I had a feeling deep down that something good was going to happen. I have been getting goosebumps just thinking about it. So yes where have you been? So many friends  and acquaintances have asked, I have seen friends' texts and messages, tweets and inboxes asking for my blog posts... I do apologize for the delay but here we are..

So many decisions have been made, so many changes in my life all I can say is that I am a better person and I give thanks to God. I have learnt so many things that need to be shared with friends. I was just about to write on a totally different topic but then I stumbled upon something today that I thought was absolutely profound to share.
particularly good about this month for the reason I have a feeling deep down something good is going to happen, I get goosebumps just thinking about it. So yes where have you been? so many have asked, i have seen friend's texts and messages, tweets and in-boxes asking for the blog post... I do apologize for the delay but here we are..

How many times have we seen in our lives, a pattern a cycle of sorts. We go through the same things the in the classroom of life, you do not move to the next class simply because you are persistent and have failed so many times, you only move when you have learnt.
It's amazing that we often miss the point, we often fail to take notice of those who really care for us, those who are anchors of our lives and leave the best to go for the rest, that we fail to realize that we ourselves are a priority not an option! I tell you what once we look into the mirror and like the person on the other side and realize that they deserve the best, our perspective on life will change.

The people in our lives are diamonds. Let's cherish them because they are there for a reason, but no matter the situation the person or the event, please do not miss the point. Live, learn, love...there is power in you not to make a difference but to be the difference..
same hurts and all and then we seemingly recover, only for it to recur. We get our heart broken again, we relapse into that addiction, we go back to that friend we know is bad for us, we go back to that relationship we know is hurting us yet we remain convinced that it will work out. We continue with a habit we know is wrong. Think about it then realize that maybe all this time we have been missing the point. Someone once told me that

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The Kenyan Shepherd

The Kenyan Shepherd

It is a dream until you stop dreaming, wake up and get to action. So in the past few days, I decided to stop dreaming. I woke up and got to action. It is almost surreal. When I first shared my plans with a couple of friends, I thought they would actually laugh in my face!No, they all seem to think that I have pretty solid business plans. Their confidence gave me courage to proceed.

For God to bless the work of my hands and to walk in his will even as I approach this venture is crucial for me. So I keep looking out for signs, keep listening to hear His voice. I'm so glad I have a shepherd that is fail proof.

There is not day I'm not thankful! So as I cautiously proceed with my ambitions and great stuff for business, prayers will be appreciated. I can't wait for this to come to fruition. I might actually make my first million by age 35. Now that will be something. Yet, I have so many more things that depend on the success of the project that I have in mind- orphanages to be funded, schools to be built and even TV programs to be written and directed. I'm not contented with just the success of one. One who is successful must help elevate his/her community.

Success must be shared otherwise it will turn into loneliness.

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Kenya Needs a Parliamentary System of Governance

A parliamentary system of governance is one whereby the Executive derives its legitimacy from the Legislature. In a few parliamentary republics such as South Africa and Botswana, the head of government is also head of state, but is elected by and is answerable to the legislature. 

Unlike these nations, Kenya has embraced the presidential system of governance since it got its independence in 1963. This system, however, has been compromised by electoral malpractices and irregularities in the history of our nationhood. The 2007 general elections which was marred with grand-scale electoral malpractices marked the climax of this trend of impunity that almost brought the country to its knees.
To date, party politics have been characterized by money factor which has always had a corrosive influence on national politics. The so-called tyranny of numbers as witnessed on the March 4th general elections best suits this category. Such elements have a direct implication on the outcome of the elections. unfortunately, the implications are all negative in the spirit of democracy.

As a country which has since independence fought for democracy, Kenya needs to change it's system of governance to pave way for the parliamentary system. Time has come for the electorate to practice mature politics and elect competent leaders in the National Assembly who will effectively carry out their legislative functions- including the President's election. The current National Assembly is simply a representation of mediocre persons who cannot distinguish matters of national interests from their own. It's against this backdrop that the electorate need to eke countries like the USA and bring on board persons of impeccable personality who will play a crucial role in the governance of this country.

Unless we are conservatists, which in my opinion we aren't, we need to champion the proposed amendment that will ultimately lead to a referendum lest we fall off the slippery slope.

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I’ll run for top seat in 2017, says Raila

Adapted from the Daily Nation

Former Prime Minister Raila Odinga on Sunday broke his silence over the 2017 elections and declared he would take a fourth stab at the presidency.

The Cord leader assured supporters he would be on the ballot paper, contrary to perceptions by critics he is already out of active politics.

Mr Odinga, who spoke at the family cemetery of freedom fighter Ojijo Oteko at Kanjira in Rachuonyo North, was urged by residents to stay in politics.

Earlier during a fund-raiser at Adhiro Secondary School, which was renamed Ojijo Oteko Memorial High School, Siaya Senator James Orengo maintained that Mr Odinga was not going to abandon active politics.

“Why are they preoccupied with Raila’s age now when they are aware of the ages the late Kenyatta and retired presidents Moi and Kibaki were when they took office?” he said.

For the second day in a row, Mr Orengo and MPs Gladys Wanga, John Mbadi, Silvance Osele and George Oner maintained that Cord won the March 4 polls.

The lawmakers reiterated that they had lost faith in the polls team and urged all commissioners to pack up and leave before it is too late.

“Let the current IEBC commissioners pack up and go home because we will do everything to see them leave. If we managed to send the late Samwel Kivuitu and his team home, who are the current commissioners?” said Mr Orengo. The leaders once again predicted the collapse of the Jubilee government within two years.

Mr Odinga urged Kenyans not to allow the current government to frustrate devolution, saying it is their only hope.

He urged the government to put infrastructure in place before rolling out the primary schools laptop project.

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100 DAYS

I believe the worst thing about Jubilee government is that the expectations on it are very low. They were elected as a result of ethnic supremacy battles, hot air politics of the young vs the old, money factor, Railaphobia, Luophobia and the biggest reason-ICC.
The last time there was a regime change(NARC,2002) there was great expectation on what was to happen. But such expectations lead to disappointments. By late 2003, discontentment was very high.

This is the good thing about Jubilee. Kenyans voted for them not because of what they could do but for smaller olitical reasons like those enumerated above. Thus there won't be disappointment. Expect a reelection unless Kenya deteriorates to a true failed state

NOKIA ASHA 501

While maintaining its plum as a leading global mobile manufacturer,
Nokia this month unveiled the first of a new family of Asha smartphones with the introduction of Nokia Asha 501. The device is the
first one of its kind to run on the new Asha platform, which is designed to make the Nokia experience faster and more responsive.

The Nokia Asha 501 makes high-end design and quality accessible to more people. The device comes in six striking colours that compliment itsdesign: bright green, bright yellow, cyan, white, black and red. Red is the signature colour of the Nokia Asha 501.

The device has taken the design elements from Nokia Lumia 920 and built
over to get a premium experience in budget friendly hands. Moreover, you get a pair of red earphones along with the Asha 501 unlike the default black-coloured earphones that come with most phones.

A big pulling point of the new Asha 501 is its refurnished features. It's 1200 mAh battery promises 17 hours of talk-time and 48 hours of standby. Asha 501 has a durable, removable casing and a scratch-resistant glass display. The glass display features a 3-inch capacitative duol touchsceen with a 320 by 240 pixel avGA resolution.The compact Asha 501 has a single back button and a 3.2 Mega Pixels rear end camera.

Nokia Asha 501 comes in single or EasySwap dual SIM models with WiFi and bluetooth weighing only 98g. This offers ultimate portability, perfect for users upgrading from feature phones.

Unlike the previous versions of Asha series, Asha 501 enable users to access everything they love, with a simple swipe and a choice of two main screens: Home and Fastlane. Home is a traditional, icon-based view for launching individual apps or accessing a specific feature such as Phone Settings. The new Fastlane, which is the default home screen, stores and presents recently accessed contacts, social networks and Apps. It provides a record of how the phone is used, giving users a glimpse of their past, present and future activity. It helps users in multi-tasking thereby providing easy access to favorite features.

Applications available in the Nokia Asha 501 include Nokia Xpress browser, Twitter, Foursquare, Line and Nokia Here maps which feature places of interest and public transport. The pre-loaded Nokia Xpress browser compresses internet data by up to 90%. This makes mobile browsing faster and more affordable. In addition, the user has a choice of forty free EA games downloadable from Nokia Store.

On the memory front, the device comes bundled with a 4GB memory card in a slot that supports up to 32GB storage capacity.

The new Asha 501 gives users the best possible mobile experiences at an affordable price. It's expected to be available in the country by June at a retail price of Ksh. 8,000.

OCCUPYING PARLIAMENT

Civil society groups unleashed squealling pigs at the entrance of parliament buildings in protest of MPs' demands for hefty pay. Their noisy but peaceful protest begun at Freedom Corner in Uhuru Park as they marched through the parliament buildings.

At parliament buildings, the protesters offloaded fat, well-fed pigs and poured blood in what they said was to end the MPs' demands. In response, police officers dispersed them with teargas canisters and sprayed them with water canons.

However, despite the teargas canisters being fired at them, the protesters did not relent. They engaged the security officers in running battles along the Harambee avenue as severals roads remained 'no go zones'. The police formed a ring around parliament buildings, some on horsebacks, others with dogs and others in plain clothes.
Thirty pigs, however, could be seen hovering outside parliament.

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THE LEOPARDS

It is said that in football, everything is complicated by the presence of the opposite team. I bet this has been the experience of AFC Leopards since the beginning of Tusker Primier League season.

The Leopards have had the worst starts in the league. Sometime back, they dreamnt fire, winning all matches and dwarfing all teams that came their way. Last weekend's win against Ulinzi stars aside, things will never be the same again as their current form has made it hard to convince any fan that upcoming matches are going to be any better.

Coach Eymael is currently inducing a new kind of play at AFC Leopards. The antics involve quick passes and movement of the ball, quick reflections and decision making. Leopards, however, have one of the worst concentration records in the league. You look at how they fell to Gor the other day and wonder what really transpired. Having failed to utilise the numerous chances in the entire game, Leopards crumbled like the Berlin wall.

As I reflect over last week's 1-0 Leopard's win against Ulinzi stars, I would say that victory is portrayed in continuous performance, not a one-time show of prowess.

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Spurs Held Up in a Draw at Stamford Bridge

It was what it was. Chelsea's 2-2 draw with Tottenham Hotspur was an exercise in the best and worst traits of the English Premier League.

The two London rivals gave close to their all in attempting to strengthen their claim for the first four league positions.

The hosts, Chelsea, looked seemed the strongest side from the opening whistle. After 10 minutes, the Blues led their London rivals thanks to Oscar's header at the far post from Juan Mata's corner kick.

Upfront, Spur's Emmanuel Adebayor shone brightly with his all round work ethic and marvellous attack that restored level terms in the 26th minute with a spectacular goal (of own effort) as keeper Petr Cech watched on Helplessly.

Ramires put Chelsea back in the driver's seat with a 39th minute score and it came as though the Blues woul cruise to a comfortable win. A late fightback, however, delivered an enterteining final twenty minutes of football that culminated in Sigurdsson's equaliser after collecting a back-heeled pass from Emmanuel Adebayor.

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The Digital Kenya

With the increase of the number of Members of National Assembly, inclusion of the posts of governors, senators women reps in the constitution it’s obvious the budgetary allocation to the salary of the civil servant must now increase, and within the past weeks, Kenyans have witnessed the cold war between our elected leaders and the Salaries and Remuneration Commission over the issue of salary increment as well as the delivery of cash meant for the devolution.
 With this, it baffles me where the government might start generating more cash to cater for the purchase of pupils laptops.

One thing Jubilee did not tell is how will the syllabus be co-designed to fit this new technology and do we have enough skilled manpower? For the fruits of ICT to be realized, there is need to tackle the challenge of ICT-illiterate teachers by equipping them with the requisite skills.
 This raises the question of whether funds have been allocated for such training.

Kenya is working hard to meet the MDGs more specifically, eradication of poverty, diseases and ignorance within the marginalized communities within various regions like the North Eastern, Eastern and part of Rift Valley. When will these goals be achieved? Therefore, why should the government not consider provision of the basic needs before the laptops?
 These are communities that languish in poverty.

The government MUST start by putting measures in place to ensure that there is equity in allocation of resources for all regions before embarking on the laptop agenda.
Politics notwithstanding, the promise comes with a risk of how safe our children will be in possession of the laptops and how secure are the same laptops? Or maybe they shall be kept in school. Who knows? We’d borrow a page from Rwanda.

Dear Kenyans, before we get overwhelmed with excitement and anticipation in wait for the laptops for our class one pupils come January next year, we need solutions to the above issues.
If such can be handled on time then, we all are longing for next year to see our children get solar powered laptops

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Real Events That Led to Mutula Kilonzo's Death

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Source: Daily Nation

 
According to a housekeeper who found Mutula’s body in his bedroom,
the politician arrived at the farmhouse about 2pm and appeared okay. The late Senator retreated to his bedroom after having his favourite meal of githeri and roast meat at 7pm.

A worker who did not wish to be named said his boss was in a jovial mood when he arrived home driving himself: “He parked the vehicle at the parking bay and walked into the house after greeting us.”

Sources said the late Mutula usually showed up for his breakfast between 9.30 and 10.30 whenever he is on the farm. But on Saturday he did not, prompting his long-serving cook to go and wake him up.
The aged cook said he knocked on his boss’ door several times without reply. He then turned on the door’s handle and went in: “He appeared deeply asleep with a lot of foam coming from his mouth,” he said adding that he immediately called for the farm manager.

The manager then called Mutula’s son Mutula Kilonzo Junior and a brother in law, Chris Musau, who were the first to arrive at the scene. Police officers led by Machakos Deputy OCPD Wambugu and DCIO Kavete Kuloba visited the homestead after being informed by the late minister’s family.

He was the only one in the main house, as the rest of the family was said to be in his Muthaiga home, in Nairobi. According to the police, the deceased had vomited on his bathroom sink, a pointer to the fact that he woke up at some point to vomit and went back to sleep.

A leading Nairobi based medical practitioner who did not want to be named explained that The cause of death is difficult to determine without a physical examination.
“Right now the best way to find out the cause is to wait for postmortem examination. There are many things which need to be evaluated before commenting on the cause”. said the doctor
“But I can say that the house help’s narration that the Hon Senator was
frothing in the mouth. This happens mostly in poisoning and drug over dosages because of the piled up secretions in the airway and aspiration. The prior vomiting could have led to dehydration” the doctor added.

“A Post Mortem report will be able to confirm the cause of his death” the doctor concluded. Pathologists led by Chief Government pathologist, Dr Johansen Oduor performed preliminary examination on the body before removing and taking it to Nairobi’s Lee Funeral Home.


Kindly comment with an "RIP" to salute this legend.

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Blues Extend their win at Stamford Bridge

Chelsea kept up its push for a Champions League spot by beating Swansea 2-0 on Sunday afternoon with both goals coming shortly before the halftime break.

Oscar put Chelsea ahead at Stamford Bridge in the 44th minute and Frank Lampard then doubled the lead from the penalty spot a minute later for his 201st goal for the club.
 Lampard began the game on the bench but came on because of a thigh injury for Ramires and scored his 15th goal of the season.


The hosts' opener came after John Terry intercepted a long ball forward before striding purposefully into midfield. He fed Lampard, who in turn found Oscar, and the Brazil forward drilled a shot across goal inside the far post.

Chelsea doubled their advantage before the interval after Juan Mata combined with Hazard before being pulled down by Leon Britton.
Lampard fired the ball low into the right corner and immediately Stamford Bridge erupted into chants of "sign him up". The midfielder's contract expires after this season, and he has not been offered a new deal.

The last season's European champions were unable to add to their total in the second half as Rafael Benitez's side moved into third place in the Premier League, one point ahead of Arsenal and three clear of rival Tottenham in the battle for a place in the top four. Swansea extended its winless run to six games.

Chelsea's next Premier League clash comes at Manchester United before the London derby with Spurs on May 8 which could prove decisive in the Champions League qualifying race.

For now they remain on course to achieve their two remaining targets this term and they will seek to confirm their place in the Europa League final in Thursday's semifinal second leg with Basel.


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Reds held in a 1-1 Draw At Emirates


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Reds Held in a 1-1 Draw at Emirates

Van Persie was making his first appearance back at Arsenal since last year's £24 million transfer to United and he was given a hostile reception from home supporters.

After Theo Walcott gave Arsenal a second-minute lead, the Dutch forward silenced the boo-boys when he fired home from the penalty spot after being fouled by Bacary Sagna in the 44th minute.

As the second half began, Tomas Rosicky's curling effort with the outside of his boot went close to restoring Arsenal's lead but United responded, with Van Persie's low cross almost finding Wayne Rooney inside the six-yard box.

Shortly after the hour mark, and with United becoming the better team, Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger introduced star man Jack Wilshere in place of Rosicky among his second-half substitutes.

But other than a curler from Santi Cazorla, which had to be saved by David De Gea, United remained the greater threat on the counter-attack and substitute Ryan Giggs saw a late effort deflected just wide as the game ended in a draw.

With the title already wrapped up, champions Manchester United were happy to settle for a draw, but the result was a setback for Arsenal, who dropped down to fourth place following Chelsea's 2-0 win over Swansea.



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Blues Extend their win at Stamford Bridge

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Makueni Senator Mutula Kilonzo is Dead

Shock engulfed the entire country on learning the sudden death of the newly elected Makueni Senator as messages of condolence started trickling in.

Former Deputy Prime Minister Musalia Mudavadi said it was sad that the country had lost a great man in legal profession and a committed leader especially in reforming Kenya.
“It is with deep sorrow that I have learnt of the untimely death of my friend and former cabinet colleague Senator Mutula Kilonzo of Makueni,” Mudavadi said.

“Senator Mutula was a consummate lawyer who was revered at the bar for his forceful legal arguments and mentoring of young legal minds. This is a person to whom convictions and logic were second nature. The country, Senate and the legal profession has lost a consummate policy maker and thinker,” he asserted.

Mutula had built an image of a man who always took strong grounds despite criticisms. He will be remembered for tirelessly convincing Members of Parliament to pass the bill seeking to establish a local tribunal when he served in the Justice Ministry. His name goes down in the history books for his important role in delivering a new Constitution.
 He will also be remembered for his unique stand when he served as Minister for Education where he proposed the 'above the knee skirts' for school girls.

The renowned lawyer was among the key leaders in the Coalition of Reforms and Democracy (CORD) party which was led by former Prime Minister Raila Odinga.

Born in Mbooni Constituency in 1948, the Senior Counsel was the first to serve as a minister in the Nairobi Metropolitan Development ministry.
Prior to his election as a senator, he served as Mbooni MP in the 10th Parliament.

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Shackles of Doom Synopsis

Shackles of doom is play that depicts a film shoot set in the land of the Kanas, who refer to themselves as the TRUE KANAS, their land is oil rich but they are ignorant of the treasure that lies beneath their soil….a delegation arrives to their land and offer a beautiful lady – Wamaitha, to be married off to Lopush who is “Kana” in exchange of land where they settle. Wamaitha is 3 weeks pregnant when they come and Kimani who is purported to be her guardian is responsible, she is married off against her will and her community with great determination and strong will construct “Mafuta Oil Refinery Company”.

During appointing of human resource, job opportunities are given with biasness and nepotism! The people of Kana demand for equal opportunities but are dismissed; only one person is considered from the marginalised community but as a watchman. On the eve of Lopush and Wamaitha’s wedding, Kimani who is the CEO of the refinery company has an order to deliver 600 barrels of oil and dictates that everybody works on the night shift including those who were on duty during daytime. Lopush is not spared either because of his wedding that is coming up at the break of dawn; he is forced to be on duty as a security officer.

 Kimani invades Lopush’s house demanding for intimacy from Wamaitha, of which she declines and they are caught up in the argument by Lopush who has absconded his duty in rebellion. Kimani hides in the children’s bedroom but unfortunately Lopush finds him, Wamaitha insists that the daughter can bare her witness that she did not fornicate. As a matter of bad fortune she finds the daughter dead, still and lifeless when she goes to wake her up. Kimani is accused of her demise. A technical hitch occurs in the Mafuta Oil Refinery Company and there is a fire breakout at about the same time, angry villagers are summoned and just when they want to deal with the accused murderer (Kimani), his wife calls and says they are trapped in an inferno and Lopush has the keys to all the exits.

The whole village rush to help but they find a tragic scene, everyone has been consumed by the inferno, Wamaitha breaks news that her dead daughter was Kimani’s child.

The film director calls for cut and signifies end of their shooting, one member of the cast however retorts that the film has no credible resolution and cannot compete favourably, she suggests that all the communities be equally represented in employment opportunities for good relations, harmony and peaceful coexistence. Cameras were rolling in the meantime and the director terms the resolution to be credible.

(Shackles of Doom staged by Butere Girls is a play written by award winning play-wright Cleophas Malalah, the Kakamega MCA for Mariakalo Ward. The play won Zonal, Divisional, District, Regional levels but banned from being staged at the National Drama Festivals set for Mombasa this month on claims that play is hate speech)

Source: Group Kenya...

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Politically Correct?

Forget the Ngilus and the Balalas and open your eyes:

Former MD of Kenya-Re, Grace Wakhungu happens to be Moody Awori’s sister. Grace’s son, Paul Wakhungu played a pivotal role in the YK’92 campaigns. Grace is married in Bungoma. Grace herself has also been a key stalwart of KANU both pre and post KANU era. Moody was a KANU stalwart and played pivotal roles in the Jubilee campaigns. What a clever and a nice way to payback by fishing Judy Wakhungu who is a daughter to Grace and younger sister to Paul.

Second there is Rachel Omamo, daughter of the late Odongo “Kaliech” Omamo. A lot of symbolism draws in this case. When Jaramogi Odinga fell out with Jomo Kenyatta, Odong Omamo was brought in to checkmate him. With the demise of Jomo, Kaliech checkmated the Odinga’s until his demise. 

Rachel’s father also played critical roles in Uhuru’s 2002 campaigns. With the demise of Kaliech, her daughter rose to become the first Lady chair of Law Society of Kenya (LSK). Former President Kibaki was later to reward her with several Ambassadorial posts, most probably because of close ties with the Kenyattas.

It is also said that during Jomo’s days the Kenyattas used to fly to Trans Nzioa to visit the Wamalwas, and this is the reason why the two scions of Jomo Kenyatta and Senator William Wamalwa, have a close affinity.

There are also the close ties between Musalia Mudavadi and Uhuru Kenyatta, the two drinking buddies of Panafric have never severed their friendship.


KANU rules for 100 days!




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Tenable?

Tenability is simply the ability to be justified in a fair way or rational way.
The constitution gives the president a maximum of 22 and a minimum of 14 cabinet members and this is quite a rationale size. However, what surrounds the ability to justify the rationality of the cabinet size?

Former president Kibaki had a cabinet of 44 members which was considered quite a chunk. Some ministries were split to create room for the coalition partners; the ODM side. This size of cabinet made government very redundant as ministers overlapped each other in duties while some simply lacked a clear operating niche. What resulted out of this kind of government were continuous squabbles, slow implementation of policies, reduced development rate and so much more towards the negative end.

With the incoming of a new president, he promised a leaner government that is focused on delivering the promises and pledges they made. Slightly over ten days after being sworn in, the president and his deputy have released their desired structure of government which is made up of 18 cabinet slots. What has been witnessed is mainly merging of most of the ministries in order to create a smooth operating platform.

An 18 member cabinet is quite small and one is left to ask whether all areas of concern will be governed smoothly. Some ministries have been changed in terms of names while others have been completely restructured, while a few have been newly formed so as to facilitate efficient delivery.

Most importantly, the president has ensured that issues that affect the country most are put under his office and the office of the deputy president which is actually a new step in ensuring that government serves the people in the best way possible.

Personally, I am pleased that the president and his deputy have considered the expenditure of running government. In his speech during the opening of the 11th parliament, he emphasized the need to cut down on expenditure by government and channel the funds towards development projects. He has indeed walked the talk by trimming the size of his management team and he is without a doubt going further to stamp the SRC’s decision to cut down the legislators’ salaries.

However, the most important aspect to consider when analyzing whether the new cabinet is tenable is the ability of the ministries to touch on all agendas laid down and whether merit will be considered. Well, the latter is yet to be known but the former is clearly visible.

The cabinet formations have been structured to ensure that all the agendas that the president laid down during his maiden speech in parliament and on his swearing in will be attended to. He has gone to the extent of forming a ministry of devolution that will allow the national government to interact at an official capacity with the county governments.

What is left is to wait and see if merit will be considered so as to inject professionalism in the government affairs. The president and his deputy will have to consider a number of things alongside merit and professionalism:  ethnic diversity, gender equality, consideration of persons with disabilities and lastly, for political survival, their political friends who have helped them secure the right to govern this country.


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Spurs Hit City

Tottenham struck three times in the space of seven second-half minutes as they overturned a 1-0 deficit to defeat Manchester City 3-1 at White Hart Lane.

Trailing to Samir Nasri's early goal, Tottenham with 15 minutes remaining flicked the switch and blasted their way to a vital victory which keeps them in the hunt for Champions League football next season as they are now just one point behind Chelsea in fourth spot.

The defeat for City means if Manchester United collect three points from Aston Villa at Old Trafford tonight, they will clinch their 20th league title. 

 

After bitter North London rivals Arsenal opened up a five-point gap, it was imperative Tottenham made a positive start to the match. However, they endured the opposite as City silenced the home crowd by going a goal in front with only five minutes on the clock.

Carlos Tevez was the architect down by the corner flag. Seemingly pinned in with nowhere to go, the Argentinian played in James Milner, who cut the ball back to Nasri in the penalty area to allow the Frenchman to divert his well-controlled shot into the back of the net.
City's counter-attack play was putting the pressure on Spurs, and Andre Villas-Boas' men tried to conjure up an immediate equaliser.
 However, City were value for their lead as Tottenham could not mount a challenge on Hart, with England's No. 1 having a relatively comfortable first half.

City were in control, but Tottenham raised their game and battled in the second period. Clint Dempsey netted the equaliser in the 75th minute, sliding in from close range after being picked out from a wonderful cross with the outside of his foot from Gareth Bale, with City captain Vincent Kompany caught out.

The lacklustre Emmanuel Adebayor was replaced by Jermain Defoe, and the substitute made an immediate impact as he cut inside onto his right foot and fired his shot beyond the outstretched Joe Hart.

Bale would stamp his mark on the tie late on by completing the Spurs blitz, neatly lifting the ball over Hart in Lionel Messi style to seal the victory.


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The Too Ambitious Kenya

During the campaigns, nothing was left to chance as politicians promised heaven on earth once elected. From an improved economy to free laptops and free maternal health care, the elected government made huge promises that in reality might raise huge questions.



Recently, during the opening of the 11th parliament, the president made a maiden speech where he promised to implement the manifesto in the fullest meaning of the term. However, one is left to wonder, with the current state of affairs, how much will be achieved? Will the whole manifesto be realized?

The minority side of the legislature has sworn to put the government to task so as to ensure nothing they promised is left undelivered. This is already a tight grip on the neck of the government since the next campaigns might bring about a fatal crush if it fails to honor its word.

Within 100 days, the president has promised to roll out the free laptop program and ensure all expectant mothers access free maternal health care. Well, with the current situation, there are pupils and students around the country who lack books and uniform to enable them access education like their counterparts in the cities. More so, there are students who have no classrooms and food to keep them focused in class. With all these loopholes and shortcomings, how well will the laptops help these less fortunate class one pupils?

Around the country, we have health centers that are not operational while some lack enough staff. In addition, some are far away from citizens who are in need of their services. How well will understaffed medical officers and practitioners who in the first place are underpaid and not motivated perform free services with little or no government funding? Will they have to bill the government later as the Director of Public Health was heard saying? Such a system will automatically bring about fraud and corruption as doctors, nurses and clinical officers who are underpaid will overbill the government in order to cover for their poor pay.

Already the rainy season is coming to a close, fertilizer is yet to reach the farmers. It is rather obvious that middle men might land their hands on these bags of fertilizer and ensure they make a huge gain from the transactions. The president promised to stamp out corruption but with middle men landing the bags of fertilizers in their custody, corruption is bound to flourish at alarming rates. Not only will we see corruption flourish in agriculture sector but also in the procurement sector.

The president has promised to set aside 30% of government contracts for the youths. How efficient will government officials be to ensure that the youths actually get these contracts? It is obvious that they will gather their cronies and buddies and register them as youth organizations and societies so as to land these lucrative contracts. With the current crop of officials in government departments, I don’t see transparency being achieved.

His Excellency has good plans that smell brilliance; however, he has officers who have served in the Moi and Kibaki administrations without being prosecuted for corruption allegations and charges. How then will corruption be swept off the government corridors?

We have children without basic education facilities while some cannot access schools easily due to  distance; how will laptops aid them?

Insecurity is rife and on the rise; will these laptops survive a year in the hands of these vulnerable pupils?

The manifesto is achievable but the president has to start from basics to ensure the huge plans do not come crushing and cost him a cool second term.

The opposition is on his neck and he needs to play his cards very safe since the country is watching keenly.


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Tunnel bust-up as Arsenal face Euro fight after Everton Draw

Arsenal 0 Everton 0. No goals, a point each and the result neither club wanted. Nor will either club be particularly pleased to wake up this morning to discover the main talking point from Tuesday night's disappointing encounter was the half-time tunnel bust-up between Jack Wilshere and Everton's Kevin Mirallas.
 

 

It is believed that it was Wilshere who threw the punch, the final act of a bad-tempered first-half in which two Everton players were booked for wild challenges. One of the men cautioned was Darron Gibson and the defender was a lucky man to make it to half-time after a second reckless challenge went unpunished by the referee.

Asked afterwards if Gibson should have been dismissed, Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger replied: "Yes. I don't know why [he was not], honestly."
That brought a tart response from Everton manager David Moyes, who rubbished suggestions his side had come to the Emirates with the aim of roughing up Arsenal.

Both Moyes and Wenger weren't privy to what unfolded in the tunnel but the FA might want to take a closer look at the fracas after a week in which hooliganism has once more blighted the English game.

In the meantime Arsenal must regroup ahead of Saturday's visit to Fulham. Though the draw moves them two points clear of Chelsea and Tottenham, the Gunners have now played two more matches than the Blues and one more than their bitter north London rivals. But with Spurs not playing until Sunday (against Manchester City), Arsenal could increase the pressure with a win over Fulham.

Tottenham not only have City still to play, but they must travel to Stamford Bridge on 8 May, a game that could well decide which two clubs join Manchester United and the Sky Blues in next season's Champions League. Everton are still in with a shout despite last night's draw but they have only five games remaining to make up the four-point deficit on Arsenal.

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