Thursday 30 August 2007

SAFCOM IPO TEAM

Lead Transaction Advisors:

Dyer & Blair Consortium - Morgan Stanley, Faida & Asbhu Securities, D&B Inv Bank - Ksh 0.05

Legal Services:

Muriu Mugai - Ksh 2.4M

Receiving Bank:

Citi Consortium - Citi, Equity, K.P.O.Savings Bank - Ksh 94M

Advertisers:

Red Sky - Ksh 2M

Public Relations:

Gina Din Comms



General Motors Kenya Launches Hummer 3 into the market.
('suddenly nothing seems good enough' is the call)

CMC launches New Polo and New 2008 Touareg.

A MILLION FOR LUNCH?OR ONE MILLION LUNCHES?

PRESS RELEASE ON 29TH AUGUST 2007

A MILLION FOR LUNCH?OR ONE MILLION LUNCHES?

‘Those with money have access to the president… those without have
the votes to elect the president” Civil Society, Nairobi Kenya

The Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC) has today (29th August 2007)
given the OCS Central Police Station notice, under the Public Order Act,
on behalf of the Kenya Human Rights Network (K-HURINET) of a public
event to be held at Jeevanjee Gardens on Saturday the 1st of September
2007. KHRC has also obtained the necessary consents from the Nairobi City
Council and the Friends of Jeevanjee Gardens.



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Say NO! to poor service and substandard goods in Kenya.

Visit here and make your complaint at www.complain2me.wordpress.com

Fighting to have service that is our money's worth.

Join the fight.

*******************************************************


The meeting shall be held from 10.00 am to 3.00 pm. Activities will
include a public forum where snacks will be offered to an approximated
1000 people.

Please note that the function shall be preceded by a procession from
the Globe Cinema Roundabout to the above mentioned venue. We shall
assemble at the Globe Roundabout at 8.30 am and start the procession at 9.00
am.

Sourced from Mars Group updates and posted here by assidous.

Wednesday 29 August 2007

SAFARICOM-THE LAST WORD

I blogged on this issue last November.I notice its been the top content on this blog ever since.It never leaves the top 10 list.After many comments on my blog i.e. Patriotic Kenyan,Gathara and many others, i give you my final thoughts on it in a Q & A format.

How many shareholders does Safaricom K Ltd have?
Two,-Telkom(K) Ltd(60% of Safaricom) and Vodafone (K) Ltd(40% of Safaricom).

What about Mobitelea?
Mobitelea is a shareholder in Vodafone(K) Ltd which is a Private Limited Company.

What about Mobitelea's stake in Safaricom?
Its an Indirect stake, Mobitelea owns 12.5% of Vodafone(K) Ltd while Vodafone Plc holds 87.5% of Vodafone(K) Ltd.Vodafone(K) Ltd main asset is the 40% shares in Safaricom(K) Ltd.
If you take 12.5% of 40% you get the 5% indirect stake Mobitelea has in Safaricom.

How was business was done in the Third World during the 20th Century?
In those days there were no worldwide Mergers and Acquisitions firms,lawyers or clients to perform proper due dilligence and show you the ropes.Think Morgan Stanley,Citibank,PWC and lately Rennaissance.Most firms were based in the WEst and 1 or 2 Asian Capitals i.e. HongKong and Tokyo.Mumbai was the name of some exotic perfume.

If you wanted to take over a local firm or go into a joint Venture with a Third World Government,you allied yourself with a local political operative and he did the 'due dilligence' opened the right doors and he got a stake in the new firm as his Partnership contribution.

********************************************************************************

Say NO! to poor service and substandard goods in Kenya.

Visit here and make your complaint at www.complain2me.wordpress.com

Fighting to have service that is our money's worth.

Join the fight.



********************************************************************************

If you doubt me just look at the list of top civil servants and politicians of the 1960s Kenya and compare that with their business interests.

Why the IPO must go own
The Safaricom IPO will ignite significant foreign interest that will grow our markets and put Kenya in focus of all the top markets.The market Growth will create more jobs for everyone and grow the economy.

If we stop the IPO we can get back Mobitelea's stake
Ha, Not a chance the Mobitelea stake is parked in a private company Vodafone(K) Ltd.Government cant interfere with private property that is unconstitutional
Let me put the point across using a story:
There was once an old mzee who had 10 acres of land.He sold 4 acres to his Best Friend.The Best Friend then sold 1 Acre to a stranger the Mzee didn't like.The Mzee wanted that particular 1 Acre(that was sold to the stranger back).Do you think he got it back?

This is unfair Mobitelea's owners are getting away with free money
Life is unfair that why some people have first class degrees and are clerks while others have Certificates and are millionaires.Thats the case whether in USA or Kenya.
Apparently,this is the crux of Muthoni Wanyeki's Article in this week's East African.I respect Muthoni and she is one of the people i admire but i doubt her capacity to look at the big economic picture.
This is the best time to list Safaricom, you can never wait for the best time to do something..that time may never come.

What about the Privatization Act 2005?
It gives the Minister of Finance the power to Gazette it and decide when it shall come into effect.By the way Laws are never applied RETROSPECTIVELY.Do you know who the Minister of Finance is? i rest my case


The post above is by pesa tu and blogged here by assidous. I must give it to him, he has the real final word on the ownership controversy.

Tuesday 28 August 2007

BROADBAND COMING AT KPLC METER NEAR YOU

KPLC and Swedish power giant Asea Brown Boveri have signed a Ksh1.8B agreement to boost fibre optic installation on the main power lines. This is part of the ESRP meaning that broadband will reach us the end-users faster than anticipated. Its bound to bring the cost of connecting to the net down.

Work begins immediately and will be completed in the last quarter of 2009.

Monday 27 August 2007

HIV & PETROLEUM JELLY

This is cause for alarm!

Petroleum jelly makes you a target for HIV
BY DR. ALIKI MAHINDA

Dr Hulda Clarke, a Canadian biologist, has been doing research on HIV and other conditions and diseases for many years, mostly in New Mexico. To get the full benefit of her findings, it would be advisable to buy her books, "The cure for all diseases," and "The cure for HIV." She has another on the cure for all cancers. Her books recommend that you continue being in the supervision of a doctor and continue with the medications that the doctor is giving you. Then she explains how you can help yourself by avoiding toxins and killing all the parasites in your body.
Dr Clarke did numerous tests before she came to the conclusion that all diseases have a parasite and or a toxin behind it. When you remove them, the diseases go away. Clearly, the diseases need them to thrive in a patient. A very good example is the parasite needed for diabetes to thrive in the human. The "Pancreatic fluke of cattle" is a big parasite and should not be in humans in the first place. When it attacks our much smaller pancreas, it renders it incapable of producing its own insulin. This causes the blood sugar to go very high, making the human being ill and unable to defend the body.
For HIV, the parasite is a human fluke that likes to attack the thymus gland. This parasite, fasciolopsis buskii, is actually quite common in human beings who are supposed to carry only the adult stage of this fluke. It was not intended to hatch in our bodies, but in snails. Unfortunately, due to our "modern life" our bodies are loaded with toxins, thereby allowing these parasites to hatch inside us. This creates a big problem because the parasites are small enough in their other stages, they can travel and attack the other organs instead of sticking to the bowels where they belong.
The toxin you need to become a HIV virus host is benzene. This clearly explains why there are couples where only one of the spouses has contracted the disease even though they were having unprotected sex. This has been a mystery for the medical field. Benzene is a petroleum product that we all have in every Kenyan home. We apply benzene daily on our lips, our children's bodies, our cows tits for milking, we even use it as a personal lubricant.
This toxin, which gets to us as petroleum jelly, works so beautifully on our skin that it took me a long time to find an alternative. I wish they could come up with the same product minus the benzene, the way they decaffeinated coffee. It is all very well to use petroleum Jelly if you are celibate, or can vouch for your partner not playing outside the marital bed. However, if you have HIV or you are at risk of contracting it, then avoid getting in contact with all petroleum products. If you are working in a petroleum filling station, or you are a mechanic, change career if possible. Do not use paraffin for cooking or apply liquid paraffin.
HIV patients need proper detoxification. The programme should kill parasites and also empty your bowels well. Eat foods and herbs that are good at boosting immunity. This will help your thymus gland to start fighting for your body again, thereby restoring your much needed health. Parasites are nasty creatures and know how to survive in the worst of conditions, so be vigilant in your fight and take nothing for granted.
One round worm in our brain is enough to make you go schizophrenic. I believe our people are getting more and more dementia and epileptic cases because the toxicity levels in our food, air and body chemicals have risen alarmingly. It is good to get out of the city from time to time to the villages and live as naturally as possible. This will give your body a chance to rest and rejuvenate itself. This is too large a topic and cannot be covered in one column, so watch this space for other crucial tips on this.
Dr Hulda Clarke advises the use of a "zapping machine" to help get rid of the fasciolopsis buskii and other opportunistic parasites and bacteria. The Zapper needs to be used correctly for it to be useful, so we shall expound on this later.
This article is intended to give information, but not to treat or diagnose any disease or condition. Do not neglect to see a healthcare professional if you have a problem.


Sourced from SmartBiz Africa and posted here by Assidous.

Thursday 23 August 2007

TWO MAJOR CLAUSES.

The first notorious clause that brought the media against the government:

' When a story includes unnamed parties who are not disclosed and the same becomes the subject of a legal tussle as to who is meant, then the editor shall be obligated to disclose the identity of the party or parties referred to.'
Mutahi Karue.


The one that spoiled the broth of Karue, Karua @ Co.

' The clause can be construed to include subjects of a story as well as sources of information. This could act as a great inhibition of press freedom and undermine the democratic strides we have made as a nation' President Kibaki.


Couldn't have been put better.

SOME 45 QUESTIONS.......

1. Why does the sun lighten our hair, but darken our skin?
2. Why can't women put on mascara with their mouth closed?
3. Why doesn't glue stick to the inside of the bottle?
4. Why don't you ever see the headline Psychic Wins Lottery?
5. Why is abbreviated such a long word?
6. Why is a boxing ring square?
7. Why is it considered necessary to nail down the lid of a coffin?
8. Why is it that doctors call what they do practice?
9. Why is it that rain drops but snow falls?
10. Why is it that to stop Windows 98, you have to click on Start?
11. Why is it that when you're driving and looking for an address, you turn down the volume on the radio?
12. Why is lemon juice made with artificial flavor and dishwashing liquid made with real lemons?
13. Why is the man who invests all your money called a broker?
14. Why is the third hand on the watch called a second hand?
15. Why is the time of day with the slowest traffic called rush hour?
16. Why isn't there a special name for the tops of your feet?
17. Why isn't there mouse-flavored cat food?
18. If you throw a cat out of the car window, does it become kitty litter?
19. If you take an Asian person and spin him around several times does he become disoriented?
20. Is it OK to use the AM radio after noon?
21. What do people in China call their good plates?
22. What do you call a male ladybug?
23. What hair color do they put on the driver's license of a bald man?
24. Why do they sterilize the needle for lethal injections?
25. Why do they call it a pair of pants, but only 1 bra?
26. Why is it called tourist season if we can't shoot at them?
27. Why do you need a driver's license to buy liquor when you can't drink and drive?
28. Why isn't phonetic spelled the way it sounds?
29. Why are there Interstates in Hawaii?
30. Why are there flotation devices in the seats of planes instead of parachutes?
31. Why are cigarettes sold at gas stations where smoking is prohibited?
32. Have you ever imagined a world without hypothetical situations?
33. How does the guy who drives the snowplow get to work?
34. If the 7-11 is open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, why does it have locks on the door?
35. You know that indestructible black box that is used on airplanes? Why don't they make the whole plane out of it?
36. If a firefighter fights fire and a crime fighter fights crime, what does a freedom fighter fight?
37. If they squeeze olives to get olive oil, how do they get baby oil?
38. If a cow laughs, does milk come out of her nose?
39. If you are driving at the speed of light and you turn your headlights on, what happens?
40. Why do they put Braille dots on the keypad of a drive-up ATM?
41. Why is it that when you transport something by car it is called shipment, but when you transport something by ship it's called cargo?
42. Why don't sheep shrink when it rains?
43. Why are they called apartments when they are all stuck together?
44. If con is the opposite of pro, is Congress the opposite of progress?
45. If flying is so safe, why do they call the airport the terminal?


Sourced from mimi pekee and re-blogged here by assidous.

Wednesday 22 August 2007

GIRL vs GROWN WOMAN - SERIOUS STUFF THIS ONE!

Girls leave their schedule wide-open and wait for a guy to call and
make
plans.
Grown women make their own plans and nicely tell the guy to get in
where
he fits.

Girls want to control the man in their life.
Grown women know that if he's truly hers, he doesn't need controlling.

Girls check you for not calling them.
Grown women are too busy to realize you hadn't.

Girls are afraid to be alone.
Grown women revel in it-using it as a time for personal growth.

Girls ignore the good guys.
Grown women ignore the bad guys.

Girls make you come home.
Grown women make you want to come home.

Girls worry about not being pretty and/or good enough for their man.
Grown women know that they are pretty and/or good enough for any man.

Girls try to monopolize all their man's time (i.e., don't want him
hanging with his friends).
Grown women realize that a lil' bit of space makes the 'together time'
even more special-and goes to kick it with her own friends.

Girls think a guy crying is weak.
Grown women offer their shoulder and a tissue.

Girls want to be spoiled and 'tell' their man so.
Grown women 'show' him and make him comfortable enough to reciprocate
without fear of losing his 'manhood'.

Girls get hurt by one man and make all men pay for it.
Grown women know that that was just one man.

Girls fall in love and chase aimlessly after the object of their
affection, ignoring all 'signs'.
Grown women know that sometimes the one you love, don't always love you
back-and move on, without bitterness.

Girls will read this and get an attitude.
Grown women will read this and pass it on to other Grown women and
their
male friends.

Monday 20 August 2007

MICROSOFT IN KYUK! Huh!

1. Ndirisha ngiri igiri na ithatu cia mutumikiri wa minyamu ya mbumbui (Windows 2003 Web Server)

2. Ndirisha ngiri igiri mutumikiri (Windows 2000 Server)

3. Ndirisha ngiri igiri - mutaalamu (Windows 2000 Professional)

4. Nduti wira ya gukuonereria njira (Active Directory)

5. Nyamu hinyu ya kurora na nja (MS Outlook)

6. Kurora na nja guteng'eretio (Outlook Express) - Ngai kurateng'erio nu!!!!!! ni thigari cia Kanju ya Nyeri ii kana ni kuguruka?

7. Mashini yaku ni irateng'era na igathirirwo ni hakiri iria ciihithite (Your system is running low on Virtual Memory)

8. Nyihia tutumikiri turia tuhingure, yaani hinga tumwe! Reduce the number of open applications)

9. Mashini yaku ni ngoroku muno, ni jishi ta gikuyu kiria kingi na kwoguo ni ikuhorio.Iria cioooothe iiyite itekuiga fengi ndigaciona ringi jishi ino. utafungwa ( This application has performed an illegal operation and will close down, all unsaved work will be lost)

Ni thengiu muno .

Hilarious huh?

Saturday 18 August 2007

SAY NO TO SLOPPY SERVICE AND GOODS IN KENYA

I found this blog and thought it wise to share with you my readers. I think its a noble initiative.



My dear readers, after much thought and contemplation after getting sloppy service and mediocre goods from assorted sellers, some of whom claim to be the best of the pack, i realised that we need to come out and literally turn the tide against this charlatans. Otherwise how does one explain a lack of a consumer agency to fight arbitrary price rises, sloppy or non existant customer service?

In this category dear readers are shops, dukas, grocers, supermarkets, government agencies, politicians and anyone and everybody who is tasked by virtue of being in business, to serve the public but deals with them , us, like we are scum yet we pay fro the services and goods they are dealing with.

This is the place to rise against them, slowly but surely. For i have a dream that we are going to ensure that we only get the best from them otherwise they close shop.

And this is how you are going to do it easily:

1. Create a comment to this post.
2. Let the subject/topic/title be the company/individual but the company name is much better in this case.
3. Post the complaint - (get your facts right about the person/company/product/attendant and any other relevant info.)
4. Be as brief, detailed and to the point as possible.
5. If you have the contacts of the culprit, post them as well as how they can get in touch with you so that we can try to get in touch with them and get their attention to your complaint.
6. If you have evidence, photos, documents, just send them over to our mail address: complaintome at gmail dot com
7. The rest, you leave to us.

With time, its my dream that we can grow to a formidable website that will fight for the consumer interest and ensure that we get the best.

In any case, i believe that we sincerely deserve it for we aren’t on a witch-hunt mission.

Complain2me

complaintome at gmail dot com


Posted in complain2me blog and re-blogged here by assidous

Friday 17 August 2007

BAMBURI AND EAPCC MERGER

This was in last week's EastAfrican paper and was redone by pesa tu blog in a way that is easily understood.

Bamburi/EAPC merger

Lafarge is a large and clever company.It has stakes in its Kenyan competitors' Athi River Mining(15%),East Africa Portland Cement (41%).Its main regional company is Bamburi Cement(63% stake).For a while,the Government has been eager to stop its ownership of competitors.It has been proposing the sale of the Lafarge stakes in EAPC and ARM, especially EAPC since only 6.3% is listed on the NSE contrary to listing requirements that 25% of a company should be listed.
Regionally Lafarge have other holdings in the region i.e.Mbeya Cement-Tanzania(62% Lafarge held) and Hima Cement-Uganda(71% Lafarge held through Bamburi).
The industry
Right now there is a construction boom in the Middle-East so Eyptians are selling their cement to their brothers in the Gulf,at the same time the high freight rates and Port efficiencies make it expensive to import cement to East Africa.For now the two factors are saving the hides of our local cement producers.
At the same time local cement demand is rising installed capacity in Kenya is at 3.3million tonnes(actual capacity is probaly 2.5-3.0 million tonnes),Annual cement demand excluding what we send to Sudan,Rwanda and Uganda is at 1.8million tonnes and rising at 10% per year.
Eastern Africa
Cement demand is rising all over the region DRC,Rwanda,South sudan, Uganda and Tanzania are all consuming more cement.So unless, we have more factories we will have a supply constraint sooner rather than later.Unless,the boom in China and the Gulf explodes and we have a glut coming our way.

The issue
The Government of Kenya wants to introduce more competition in the Kenyan cement market by forcing Lafarge to sell its stakes in EAPC and ARM.On the other hand,Lafarge sees the Eastern african region as a growing economic area and doesnt want to sell the stakes.

The Proposition
Lafarge offers to merge Bamburi and EAPC and add Mbeya and Hima Cement to the deal to create a super East african cement company to fight external competition.(think of it as an East African Breweries for cement).
win-win for both parties i.e. Lafarge consolidates its holdings in the region and Government gets a large stake in a succesful East African Cement company.

Other players
The other players in the region such as ARM,Tororo Cement and Tanga may have to consolidate in order to achieve the size and scale necesary to compete with the new entity(if it happens)

My take
We should take the offer but ask Lafarge to add their other companies in Malawi and Zambia to the deal.



Originally by pesa tu blog and re-blogged here by assidous

Wednesday 15 August 2007

Warren Buffet

This is a forward that landed in my inbox:

There was a one hour interview on CNBC with Warren Buffet, the second richest man who has donated $31 billion to charity Here are some very
interesting aspects of his life:

1. He bought his first share at age 11 and he now regrets that he started too late!
2. He bought a small farm at age 14 with savings from delivering newspapers.
3. He still lives in the same small 3-bedroom house in mid-town Omaha , that he bought after he got married 50 years ago. He says that he has
everything he needs in that house. His house does not have a wall or a fence.
4. He drives his own car everywhere and does not have a driver or security people around him.
5. He never travels by private jet, although he owns the world's largest private jet company.
6. His company, Berkshire Hathaway, owns 63 companies. He writes only one letter each year to the CEOs of these companies, giving them goals
for the year. He never holds meetings or calls them on a regular basis. He has given his CEO's only two rules. Rule number 1: do not lose any
of your share holder's money. Rule number 2: Do not forget rule number 1.
7. He does not socialize with the high society crowd. His past time after he gets home is to make himself some pop corn and watch Television.
8. Bill Gates, the world's richest man met him for the first time only 5 years ago. Bill Gates did not think he had anything in common with
Warren Buffet. So he had scheduled his meeting only for half hour. But when Gates met him, the meeting lasted for ten hours and Bill Gates
became a devotee of Warren Buffet.
9. Warren Buffet does not carry a cell phone, nor has a computer on his desk.

His advice to young people: "Stay away from credit cards and invest in yourself and
Remember:
A. Money doesn't create man but it is the man who created money.
B. Live your life as simple as you are.
C. Don't do what others say, just listen them, but do what you feel good.
D. Don't go on brand name; just wear those things in which you feel comfortable.
E. Don't waste your money on unnecessary things; just spend on them who really are in need .
F. After all it's your life then why give chance to others to rule our life."

Tuesday 14 August 2007

KENYA'S 4TH PRESIDENT

This is a dated post by kumekucha which is quite revolutionary by Kenyan standard, and he rightly says so. For this blogger, its not really so farfetched. The qualities i must say are what we really need to get to the next level.

Here it is:


The charade in Mombasa involving presidential hopeful Kalonzo Musyoka and a highly charged jeering crowd and the rest of the high drama revolving around ODM's selection of a presidential candidate is really occupying many Kenyans. One of the reasons for this is that many believe that if ODM sticks together and supports one candidate for the presidency, they will win the presidency hands down.

What we have all failed to do is to soberly look at the work that needs to be done so that we may seek the candidate best suited for the office of president. Many Kenyans choose to be "realists" instead and in the process we fall neatly into the plans of the political ruling class. I urge all you "realists" out there to spare a moment to read this article and also our guest post by a Michael Mundia Kamau. It is my hope that your eyes will be opened.

At the very least I beg you to think outside the box. Because we have some extraordinary challenges and problems facing us in Kenya just now, which cannot be solved using the same old tricks which have failed us in the past.

Many times, my ideas here have been dismissed and I have been called a dreamer. And yet the saddest thing that can ever happened to a human being is for them to stop dreaming. I once met an old man in his late 60s at a jua kali garage where I had taken my ramshackle of a vehicle for repairs. It was a time in my life when I was facing so many problems and auctioneers were around the corner waiting to pounce on my car at any time. The man looked at my car admiringly and said to the mechanic in Kikuyu that in his entire life he had never owned a car. That’s statement struck me and I realized that every little kid dreams of owning a car, but what happens along the way? Many of them become "realists" and they lose the dream and in many cases the chance to own their own car. I hope I am not getting too deep when I say that life gives only that which you demand and nothing more, nothing less. What a man can dream of having, deeply desire and even imagine having, life will always give. But "realists" true to their realism receive only what is within their realistic reasoning.

My question here has always been; even after the harsh reality and hard knocks of this life, can you dare dream? Are you man enough to dream of something bigger than a car? Can you dream big dreams? Like a just government led by a fearless courageous president (preferably not older than 45) ready to give all for the cause of a better Kenya? Can you dare dream of playing a part in installing such a president as the fourth president of Kenya?

But let us start with a job description. What is the job on hand waiting for the 4th president of Kenya? Here is a short list;

1) Must be courageous enough to constitute a truth and reconciliation commission to bury all the skeletons in Kenya's closet because that is the only way we can have a truly new beginning.

2) Be courageous enough to take some tough decisions that will be politically unpopular but will be for the greater good of the country, like 1) above which will mean various popular tribal chiefs confessing their terrible sins and thus destroying their future political careers to stay out of prison. Others will refuse to confess and will have to be jailed or punished according to the law.

3) Be courageous enough to end corruption from the top. President Kibaki sounded very determined making his acceptance speech shortly after being sworn in as the 3rd President on that unforgettable December day, 2002. So what happened after that? I will tell you. Powerful forces came into play and the president had to survive. He had to abandon the dream and be a realist. Kenya cannot afford a repeat in the fourth president, we are rapidly running out of time here.

4) Be courageous enough to tackle tribalism head-on. For starters by appointing persons from as many different tribes across the country as possible to key positions. And also by passing laws that will clamp down hard on tribalism and any future administration that will "want to do things the way they have always been done."

5) Courageous enough to tackle the huge land crisis which is a time bomb waiting to blow this country into many tiny fragments if it is not dealt with quickly, like yesterday.

6) Courageous enough to implement new creative (out of the box) ideas that will make use of the resources that we have in plenty lying idle in the country while Kenyans suffer. Resources like lots of idle land and idle labour (Kenya's labor force is the most highly skilled and qualified on the continent today). We also have plenty of sun that can be turned into electricity. Enough rain to end all our water problems with the right rain harvest and storage strategy and policies etc.

7) But most of all courageous enough to start their administration with one priority. To get Kenyans working whether it is abroad or locally, to create laws and policies that encourage existing employers to employ more people and also to grow small businesses dramatically with a lot of help from the government because small businesses are the largest creators of employment in the world (not big foreign investors establishing factories in Kenya. Did you see what happened with the EPZ's.)

With all due respect to my dear readers and their preferred presidential candidates, let us remember that what we are doing here is not the same thing as naming our favorite soccer striker in the English premiership. Or our favorite ice-cream flavor. This is a matter of grave importance. A matter of life or death for many ordinary voiceless Kenyans. In fact the lives of millions of Kenyans hangs on it and that of your children and great grand children many generations to come. We cannot afford to get it wrong this time. Resigning ourselves to 2012 is suicide because one wrong move and we will not have a country left by 2009 let alone 2012. Can't you see the writing on the wall?

With this in mind I respectfully disqualify the following candidates;

Raila Odinga: does not qualify because despite his demonstrated courage, there is no way he will be able to deal with corruption with the current structure in ODM because many (if not all) of his tribal chiefs he is relying on to corner votes in various parts of the country are suspects of grand corruption. William Ruto should tell us how he made his wealth. Sally Kosgei whom Raila has been warning up to also has scandals linked to her. Musalia Mudavadi knows a thing or two about Goldenberg (the single scum that impoverished and killed the largest number of Kenyans in the history of our country). The same thing that happened to President Kibaki's resolve is bound to happen to his come March 2008 when the pressure will be unbearable.

Kalonzo Musyoka: I do not want to repeat that it is a fact that he hid in the National assembly toilets to avoid voting on important matters of national importance in parliament. Mr Musyoka told the Sunday Nation that he is a revolutionary. I'm sorry but that is laughable. These are not the Kanu days when mere words and slogans were peddled countrywise as the gospel truth and Kenyans were forced to swallow it hook line and sinker or else… I have tried very hard to look for something courageous that this fellow tribes-mate of mine has done in his life and the only one that comes close was his attendance of the controversial ODM rally in Mombasa last weekend. And the fact that he asked a hammer wielding charged, emotional man in the crowd to pass the hammer to him. That was brave.

I can't imagine this guy driving out the influential drug Lords who control Kenya at the moment and have made the country one of the major transit points in the world for all sorts of illicit drugs. Or saying "No" to the corrupt moneyed and very dangerous individuals who are the real rulers of Kenya.

Let me stop there and drop names of two individuals who have proved their bravery and ability to risk everything on a matter or principal. This is what we badly need in Kenya today.

John Githongo: John Githongo's Dad is a close friend of the President. Imagine that! Githongo was so principled that he was willing to say "No" to his own family and close friends. In fact many Kikuyus view him as an enemy instead of the national hero that he is. Believe me it would have been very easy for John to just turn the other way and play ball and he would have been a very wealthy man today and comfortably living in his own country instead of in exile. And amongst other things his father's outstanding bank loan would have quickly been paid off a long time ago. It is not an impossible dream to get John Githongo elected the 4th President of Kenya. It can be done. All we need to do is agree and the means will be found quicker that you think.

I dream of a Githongo presidency that will give Kenya the true new beginning that we all seek.

Stephen Muiruri: The former Nation crime editor is an example of the kind of character that we should be thinking of for this high office. Don't laugh. Remember we agreed to think outside the box here. If you carefully study the kind of wars this brother of ours is fighting, you will begin to understand where I am going with this.

The 4th president will need to be a courageous fighter. This is not the time to dream of long motorcades and everybody calling you "your excellency" which is what the ODM brigade and everybody else is dreaming about.

I bet you none of them are thinking about the ordinary Kenyans who have lost all hope and now have to face the prospect of losing their head even when they are desperately confronting the challenge of putting food on the table amid record economic growth figures.

Somebody has put it in the minds of Kenyans, and sadly including readers of this blog that to be president somebody needs to be very well known and already a politician. I put it to you that as per the current constitution anybody can become president. ANYBODY. All he needs are votes. Al we need is a people-driven wave to sweep our chosen candidate to victory. We can put anybody we want on that seat as long as enough of us have unity of purpose. All we have to do is reach across all the imaginary tribal boundaries like we are starting to do in this blog and seat down and agree.

I dream of a situation where the Nark-Kenya brigade will be busy fighting amongst themselves over parliamentary seat nominees for the party as ODM holds endless discussions over which one of them will be the party's presidential candidate (the reason why they can't decide is because of GREED, nothing else) and meanwhile we ordinary folks say enough is enough and make our own plans. After all it is we who have the voting cards, is it not?

The journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step.

There is nothing, which the mind of a man can imagine and dream about that cannot be turned into a reality.

Most of all my friends, I dream of the day when all of you will abandon your preferred presidential candidate for us to join together to change our country.

The above article was blogged by Kumekucha on July 10th 2007 and re-blogged here by Assidous.

Monday 13 August 2007

ROVE QUITS!

It seems that the Bush administration cookie is still crumbling. With Carl Rove, the master architect of the administration quitting, it looks like the end of the beginning of party has not only began, but is still on.

Here is the real story:

Monday, August 13, 2007; 4:57 AM

WASHINGTON - Karl Rove, a political adviser to U.S. President George W. Bush and a lightning rod for anger among Democrats, will leave the White House at the end of this month, Rove told the Wall Street Journal.

"I just think it's time," Rove said in an interview with the newspaper published on Monday.

"There's always something that can keep you here, and as much as I'd like to be here, I've got to do this for the sake of my family."


Article in washingtonpost.com blogged here by assidous

Friday 10 August 2007

POETIC WEEKEND

A Thought provoking poem.

I Wanna Be Yours

I wanna be your vacuum cleaner
Breathing in your dust,
I wanna be your Ford Cortina
I will never rust,
If you like your coffee hot
Let me be your coffee pot,
You call the shots,
I wanna be yours.
I wanna be your raincoat
For those frequent rainy days,
I wanna be your dreamboat
When you want to sail away,
Let me be your teddy bear
Take me with you anywhere,
I don't care
I wanna be yours.
I wanna be your electric meter
I will not run out,
I wanna be the electric heater
You'll get cold without,
I wanna be your setting lotion
Hold your hair in deep devotion,
Deep as the deep Atlantic ocean
that's how deep is my devotion.

~ John Cooper Clarke

Thursday 9 August 2007

TELKOM BIDDERS INVITED.

On Tuesday this week, there was the Telkom (K) bidders conference. The government incresaded Telkom's equity for sale from 26% to 51% to make the offer attractive. Among those interested in the former monoploy are British Telcom, Bharti Airtel, Reliance Commuincations, VTel Holdings. Later on, about 19% will be off-loaded via NSE with both shareholders reducing their %age considerably.

Stanchart has recorded a Ksh2.3B pre-tax profit for the first six months of the year. Its a 21% increase.

Wednesday 8 August 2007

KARUE vs MEDIA

The media bill pending presidential assent seems to have turned to a tsunami of proportions that cant be quantified at the moment. And trust the media and all goodwill Kenyans to milk as much political capital as is possible.

In yesterday's papers for instance, the editorial as well as the opinions were all about the bill as well as reasons why Kibaki shouldn't assent the said bill. One even told him that he was 'child of the media freedom', reminding him about one press conference in the early nineties when he went on holiday to Mombasa and returned to Nairobi as the DP chairman! Very True.

But its the man who sneaked the infamous clause on the 'news source' revelation if an article became a point of a court case. The man, Muriuki Karue is better known for the CDF bill that has indeed changed the way politics in Kenya is done as well as decentralising development financing.

Karue should not have sneaked the clause but since great minds are at times known to act irrationally, hence the debacle and fall out with the media. By his coming out and saying that he and the clause was misquoted reeks of the highest form of stupidity.

He has started to feel the heat on him and political embers licking at his heels.

He may have created the best form of decentralisation in Africa yet, but when matters of his political shenanigans with the media bill come to fore, the cloud an otherwise bright legislative job. And the good thing is that he has realised this and the danger he put himself to.

Unfortunately, no one in the world has fought the media nd lived to tell the story. For they represent the power of the masses which some say that is 'the voice of God! Its a lost war already.

What we need is a comprehensive list of the 27 MPs who were in the chamber on that day, then we the voters can show them who really has the final say on matters legislative!

Monday 6 August 2007

Yesterday was the last weekend that this blogger would experience peace as it were. But that was not to be. What with the Man U and Chelski as Smitta is wont to call that team that is owned by the Russian mobster Abramovich!

The madness that was exhibited yesterday yet it was only a friendly made me cringe. It has been a cool three months without premier league and assorted madness around. My friends cry, sulk, scream and do all manner of things that they would otherwise think twice before doing when their team is hit or when the coach does something that they consider to be bad, whatever that means. Yet we are talking about teams which are three thousand mile away. Advise me if am wrong!

But my simple mind fails to understand that leave alone hypothesise it.

So, for those like this blogger who are soccer-aloof, get busy somehow, someway or whatever.

Saturday 4 August 2007

HOT ECONOMY!

* KCB posts Ksh2.1B pre tax profit.

* Celtel International relocates its Africa Office from Netherlands to Nairobi.

* BBK posts a Ksh3.5B pre tax profit.

* KRA de-registers 200+ cars that whose duty and taxes was under-paid when they were having teething problems with the Simba Sytem. Most of the cars are KAU and KAV prefixed.

Friday 3 August 2007

GLAMOUROUS SAFARICOM IPO ATTRACTS GLITTERATI INVESTMENT BANKS

The Safaricom IPO which is billed to be the mother of all IPO's Kenyan has attracted some the most sophisticated Investment Banks in business. But what does one expect when the company is a Vodafone offspring raking in profits to the tune of billions per month?, has the fastest growning customer base in the region and has become the lifestyle of millions subscribers?

In other words, we are talking about a marketing behemoth which is why the government is trying to think of an IPO in Kenya and in another country like UK. Offloading the whole 25% of the stock in Kenya is bound to disrupt the local money market hence the LSE probable thinking.

With that in mind here are some of the consortia that have bid for lead advisors, lead brokers, receiving banks and public relations:

* First Africa Consortium:
StanChart, PKF Kenya, First Africa, Drummond, Goldman Sachs Int'l.

* Citi Consortium:
Sterling & Discount Securities and Citi NA Kenya.

*Dyer & Blair Inv. Bank Consortium:
Dyer&Blair, Faida & Asbhu Securities and Morgan Stanley Int'l Plc.

*SRK Consortium:
KPMG, Apex Africa & Africa Alliance Inv Bank and Renaissance Capital.

*CFC Financial Services Consortium:
Stanbic Kenya, Suntra Inv Bank, Kestrel EA, Credit Suisse Europe Ltd, Standard Bank Group Ltd and DCDM Advisory Ltd.

The Receiving Bank Shortlist:

* KCB, StanChart and Posta.

*CitiBank NA, Equity and Kenya Post Office Savings Bank.

Public Relations Shortlist:

*Gina Din,
*Ogilvy,
*Scanad
*Exclamation


Indeed, the very best are courting the most beautiful lass around and that happens to be none other than Safcom. May the best suitor win for there is an unprecedented financial as well as goodwill windfall coming ahead.

Thursday 2 August 2007

A FIRST FROM EASTANDARD

It all started with a full page with pencils and a sharpener. Actually, i thought it was an Ad Agency making some adverts on their company, product or vacancy.

Only yesterday did Eastandard unleash their latest in their magazine pullout stable The Eastandard Election Platform.

Clearly, five months to the election, they have started a noble project and they say it will go all the way to after the creation of the Cabinet. As they said, the decision on who will be in parliament starts with the inaugral issue of the pullout.

Its first page on Raila 'Can't Touch This!' by Mochama was as incisive as it was hilarious and informative. So was the Gender Agenda which showed what all along had been my observation - that women are their greatest enemies and giving them freebies in the name of seats is bad, bad, bad! They have to fight for them like Karua, Ngilu and others.

The pages on Nakuru constituencies was also well researched, so was their political crossword puzzle.

To say it honestly, EAStd has set the trail on the platform of the 10 General Election in Kenya's History. Am just hoping that they will in due course give Jeeh Wanjurah a political satirist in their Sunday Standard a page to pen some of his witty observations.

Wednesday 1 August 2007

How to recognize individual aptitude and recruit ..interesting !

This is a forward that is going round the net. I think it has a ring of truth to it.

HOW TO RECRUIT THE RIGHT
PERSON FOR THE JOB?

Put about 100 bricks in some
particular order in a closed
room with an
open window.

Then send 2 or 3 candidates in
the room and close the door.

Leave them alone and come back
after 6 hours and then analyze
the situation.

If they are counting the
bricks.
Put them in the accounts
department.

If they are recounting them..
Put them in auditing.

If they have messed up the
whole place with the bricks.
Put them in engineering.

If they are arranging the
bricks in some strange order.
Put them in planning.

If they are throwing the
bricks at each other.
Put them in operations.

If they are sleeping.
Put them in security.

If they have broken the bricks
into pieces.
Put them in information
technology.

If they are sitting idle.
Put them in human resources.

If they say they have tried
different combinations, yet
not a brick has
been moved. Put them in sales.

If they have already left for
the day.
Put them in marketing.

If they are staring out of the
window.
Put them on strategic
planning.

And then last but not least.
If they are talking to each
other and not a single brick
has been
moved.

Congratulate them and put them
in top management.