SABA SABA 2016 REFLECTIONS

Today is 7/7/2016. Saba Saba Day. An important day in the history of this country.

SABA SABA 2016 REFLECTIONS

BY Cyprian Nyamwamu

1ST LIBERATION: Was about liberating Kenya from colonial tyranny- we succeeded to an extent; Hongera to the independence heroes. We all need to learn the proper History of our nation so that we stop believing the fabrications- We need to know the true history of Kenya so that we know that it is the home-guards who took over power at independence and aborted the vision of independence. 

2ND LIBERATION: was to liberate Kenya from the devastating KANU autocratic misrule which dehumanized so many across the country. KANU's rule was bitter to so many. So many were tortured. So many died. Ethnic clashes. Theft of public resources and land. Poverty. Marginalization. Detentions without trial, assasinations, exiles;
This is how SABA SABA- EXPRESSION OF PEOPLE POWER became necessary. And in 1990 Matiba, Rubia, Jaramogi, Raila Odinga, Paul Muite, James Orengo, Shikuku and so many courageous men and women stepped forward to demand for change from the Single Party dictatorship.
The Mothers of Political Prisoners led by Prof. Wangari Maathai put so much pressure on the KANU regime which expanded the meaning of reforms beyond the repeal of section 2A and the return of multi-party. 

RESULT: KANU and Moi agreed the return of Multi-Party Democracy.

BUT SABA SABA continued because having many parties without DEMOCRACY was not enough. We needed a Democratic Constitution- KATIBA MPYA MAISHA MAPYA.
NCEC was formed by KHRC/4Cs to push for constitutional reforms. Moi and KANU said No. in 1997 NCEC ( Led by Willy Mutunga, Kivutha Kibwana, Maria Nzomo, Tabitha Seii, Suba Churchill, Leakey etc) employed mass action and civic education strategies to force KANU to accept reforms. NCEC used Saba Saba, Nane Nane, Tisa Tisa, Kumi Kumi, 11-11 and 12-12 vigils and rallies to push for reforms. IPPG was formed and minimum reforms enacted in 1997 to try defeat the resolve for comprehensive reforms. We held the 1997 elections and KANU rigged out Kibaki and Raila, Ngilu etc; In 1998 we re-engaged KANU using all tactics including Bishops and Sheikhs to negotiate with Moi. The women of Kenya were engaged and pushed for reforms. 1999 We launched the Ufungamano initiative and as NCEC we decided to go to the provinces and districts to mobilize the public. In 2000, KANU ( with Raila as SG) reacted by forming its Parliamentary process. We rejected it as Ufungamano and formed our Dr. Ombaka/Pheroze Nowrojee Commission. And Finally in 2001 the Yash Ghai Commission was formed. Views were gathered and a draft consolidated. 

In 2002 September KANU dissolved parliament and made it impossible for the Bomas Conference to be convened.
We held the 2002 election and kicked KANU out of power for their hard-headedness and anti- Wanjiku stance.

We convened Bomas with Kibaki as Head of State. Kibaki dishonored the MOU and undermined the Bomas Process even leading a walk out from the conference. NCEC went to court to call for a referendum and a more effective body that we called the Constituent Assembly. Any way we held the 2005 referendum and rejected the Wako draft.

As NCEC, civil society and the the opposition ( President Uhuru Kenyatta was leader of opposition that time) we formed Muungano Wa Katiba Mpya. We presented the 11 Points that formed the ESSENTIAL REFORMS. Kibaki/Martha Karua rejected the 11 Points and went on to appoint a PNU leaning ECK chaired by the Late Kivuitu. This was how the 2007 election was botched up.

In the wake of the Post 2008 election crisis, Kenya embarked on far reaching reforms under the AGENDA 4. Finally in 2010, the nation held the referendum and Kenya promulgated the NEW CONSTITUTION OF KENYA 2010. 

THE 2ND REPUBLIC WAS BORN. SABA SABA HAD GIVEN BIRTH TO A NEW NATION, BUT the forces of IMPUNITY who benefit from bad governance were never going to allow the new nation to emerge: they want their corruption to continue; they want their impunity to persist so that they are not accountable; they want to rig, shortchange, steal and still be praised as great men and women.
Kenyans, we are the reason these unpatriotic dealers keep messing up Kenya. We support a Luo, Kalenjin, Kikuyu rich and powerful man without asking him questions; We have made these rich and powerful men our masters and we their subjects. We are the enemies of democracy. 

SABA SABA NOW IS FOR THE 3RD LIBERATION: For using the new constitutional order to secure the rights of every single Kenya. TO MAKE POVERTY HISTORY AND DIGNITY AND HUMAN SECURITY A REALITY. 

‪#‎EndExtraJudicialKillings‬
‪#‎AccountabilityForTaxes‬
‪#‎WeWantOurCountryBack

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Ababu, Musalia and Wetangula to form party

ODM Secretary General Ababu Namwamba with other leaders from Western region in a past event. Namwamba is secretly laying plans to start a new political party to rival Jubilee and Cord.

Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) party Secretary General Ababu Namwamba is secretly laying plans to start a new political party to rival Jubilee and Cord.

In what might rattle Cord, Ababu is reportedly convincing Moses Wetangula to ditch the coalition and team with him to establish a new coalition.

Speaking on Sunday during a meeting that brought together professionals from his community, Ababu talked of the ‘The Third Force’.

Those privy to the MPs political maneuvers said he is also targeting Amani National Congress party boss Musalia Mudavadi to bring in on board in forming the so called ‘TTF’.

“I am ruling out the option of joining Jubilee. We are in consultation with other partners to form a formidable third force to take on Cord and Jubilee in the elections,” he said.

“We have approached Amani leader Musalia Mudavadi, Ford Kenya boss Moses Wetang’ula and other leaders, including six MPs from Nyanza, to chart the way forward,” he added.

The Budalangi MP has been at loggerheads with ODM honchos citing frustrations in exercising his mandate. ODM refuted the claims.

Political pundits have already hypothesised major political fallout within Cord and Jubilee as politicians position themselves for the 2017 poll.

Kimani feared for his life a moment he was taken to Syokimau AP camp

                                         Lawyer Willie Kimani who was kidnapped and murdered

Human right lawyer Willie Kimani, his client Josephat Mwenda and their driver Joseph Muiruri were kidnapped as they exited the Mavoko law courts on June 23, 2016, and were allegedly taken into police custody at the Syokimau AP camp before tortured and their bodies dumped into oldonyo Sabuk River in Machakos County.

It was while in incarcerated that Kimani threw a note scribbled on toilet paper to a passerby through a cell window, instructing the witness to call his wife and alert her that his life was in danger.

The camp denied hosting the trio at their jail cell a denial that sent the Law Society of Kenya and the international community into overdrive, protesting the disappearance of the human rights lawyer.

So far three Administrations police officers have been arrested in connection to the torture and murder of three. According to a statement from the office of the Inspector General of Police Joseph Boinett on Friday, July 1, the behavior of the three was detested by the Service which distanced itself from the suspects.

“Their behavior is no representative of what the National Police Service stands for and they will be dealt with firmly according to the law. We assure the public that justice will be done to all,” read the statement.

Kenyan lawyers threatened to down their tools if government fails to produce people who killed Lawyer Willie Kimani, Josephat Mwenda and Joseph Muiruri

‪#‎KillTheICTBill‬ Sign the petition now by clicking the link below.

ICT players in Kenya are up in arms over a proposed bill called the The Information Communication Technology Practitioners Bill, 2016. The bill which will be introduced to parliament soon seeks to register and license ICT practitioners besides standardizing ICT practice in the country. To achieve this goal, the bill proposes the creation of the ICT Practitioners Institute which will be headed by a CEO. The Institute will be governed by a council with members including PS ICT, PS Treasury, an appointee by the ICT CS and 5 persons of good standing nominated by the ICT Association of Kenya.

The bill further proposes that all members involved in the sector must register with the body to be eligible to practice. To register one must be a holder of a degree/diploma in ICT or have 3 years experience in the field or prove to be a member of good moral standing! This means that a huge number of individuals who do not possess these qualifications cannot get involved in the thriving sector.  It further states that one has to pay a fee to register where they will be issues with a certificate which serves as their license.

This is valid for a period of one year where members have to renew.  It locks out individuals without certificates from the craft while at the same time stating that individuals cannot operate firms not unless one of the partners or principal shareholders has a valid license from the body. The proposed bill also has provisions on enforcement with individuals found to have given false information in their registration fined Kshs. 500,000 or risk 2 years in prison. In addition, registered members who are convicted will have their licenses canceled.

You can read the entire document here, which to say the least is ambiguous and excruciating. There is also a petition to President Uhuru Kenyatta on Change.Org asking the president to say no to the bill for which you can also sign up. If passed, the bill will stifle innovation by locking out a large number of individuals who despite the lack of formal training in ICT have managed to acquire the necessary skills such as coding. ICT players lead by Nanjira Sambuli have put up a Google Doc to discuss the pertinent issues that arise from the bill.

If the amounts charged by the ICT Association of Kenya are anything to go by, members will be charged Kshs. 5,000 annually which is a large amount for no particular reason. At the same time, the bill does not offer how it will work with institutions of higher learning to issue accreditation for various ICT programs taught or provide the criteria to be used in determining if an individual is of good moral standing. So why do we need this bill?

Cheruiyot out to light up Day 1 in Olympics Trials

Kenya’s Vivian Cheruiyot celebrates winning the women’s 10,000m world title in Beijing on August 24, 2015. 

NAIROBI, Kenya, June 29 – World champion Vivian Cheruiyot will headline a nail-biting contest as the star-studded Olympics Trials gets underway on Thursday with the women’s 10,000m final at the Kipchoge Keino Stadium in Eldoret.

Another final in Day One will see the men’s 5000m battle for slots where world silver medallist Caleb Mwangangi Ndiku will take on world half marathon champion Geoffrey Kamworor, who intends to compete in the 10,000m.

As is tradition at any Kenyan Trials, reputations will be sustained, others made and the mighty will fall especially in the distance races where all attention will be focused in an event termed as ‘mini Olympics’.

Cheruiyot, who is yet to win an Olympic gold medal will face a deep field of world class athletes that include All Africa Games champion Alice Aprot as well as USA based duo of 2012 Olympic silver medallist Sally Kipyego and Besty Saina.

Also in the fray are world half marathon champion Peres Jepchirchir, bronze winner Mary Wacera, 2009 Berlin world champion Linet Masai and Joyce Chepkurui.

Fresh from being crowned Africa champion in Durban, South Africa, Aprot is expected to be the biggest threat as she is on form this season winning all the races she has competed.

But having won bronze behind Kipyego and gold medallist Tirunesh Dibaba at the 2012 London Olympics, Cheruiyot is more determined this time to add the most prestigious silverware in her cabinet. 

-Kamworor-

Geoffrey Kipsang Kamworor, winner of the 2014 world half marathon title in Copenhagen.

The men’s 5000m will witness the renewal of rivalry between Kamworor and friend Bedan Karoki with the two having already represented the country well at the World Half Marathon Championships and World Cross Country Championships.

The two will face competition from Commonwealth Games champion Mwangangi, Beijing bronze medallist in 10,000m Paul Tanui, Isaiah Kiplagat Koech and Edwin Soi who won bronze at the 2008 Olympic Games.

Thomas Longosiwa, who is the sixth fasted man this season and Leonard Barsoton are also in the starting line-up in the race that will wind up the opening day.

Other eye catching races in Day One will see world record holder David Rudisha compete in the men’s 800m semi-final.

Rudisha, who is placed in the third semi-final, will be hoping the upset of the World Championships Trials where he was floored by Ferguson Rotich does not reoccur as he seeks to clinch the ticket that will give him a chance to defend his Olympics title that he won at London 2012 in a world record of 1:40.91.

Rudisha’s semi will feature Jackson Kivuva, Job Kinyor and Bernard Kipyego among others while on form Ferguson Rotich headlines semi-final 2 alongside Timothy Kitum.

Former world junior champion Alfred Kipketer leads semi-final 1 that has fast rising youngster Willy Tarbei, Leonard Kosencha and Boaz Kiprugut among others.

-Kiprop-

Asbel Kiprop pumpshis fist in the air after crossing the line to win his third world 1500m title at the IAAF World Championships in Beijing.

The men’s 1500m semi-finals will also be in action where three-time world champion Asbel Kiprop is expected to light up the stadium.

Kiprop, who is in a blazing form, will face a strong line-up that has world silver medallist Elijah Manangoi, Silas Kiplagat, Ronald Kwemoi, Timothy Cheruiyot, James Magut, Robert Kiptoo and Abednego Chesebe.

Most of the finals will be held on the final day where a showdown in the men’s 3000m steeplechase will be a cracker.

World leader Conseslus Kipruto will be looking to disappoint four-time back-to-back world champion Ezekiel Kemboi.

Also in contention are Brimin Kipruto, Jairus Birech, Paul Kipsiele Koech and Commonwealth champion Jonathan Ndiku.

The team to represent Kenya at the Rio Olympic Games will be named on Friday and will be expected to camp in Eldoret as the country seeks to better the London performance where they only won two gold medals courtesy of Kemboi and Rudisha.

VID 20160701 WA0013

Kidero, Sonko ‘dirty fighting goes digital’

Nairobi Governor Evans Kidero and Senator Mike Sonko spat continued yesterday after the two were involved in exchanges through their twitter handles. Though the two were cautious not to mention the other by name for fear of being sued for libel, they however, made libellous exchanges in the tweets which attracted responses from hundreds of their followers.

This came a few days after the two were involved in a scuffle during senate committee meeting. It was Kidero who started it off, writing on his tweeter handle, “Remember to vote in leaders who are sober, focused and well educated to serve in both the County and National governments. People who are educated are civilised.

There is a huge difference between being educated and being learned. There are people who claim to have gone to school but they do not have certificates to prove this, education and proper upbringing is key in shaping ones’s life and interaction. I also call upon our leaders to realise that there is a responsibility to be role models and opinion shapers in the society.

They should also strive to build a cohesive society and nation,” Kidero wrote. But in a rejoinder Sonko hit back saying: “Great leaders are born, they are not made. I urge Nairobi residents not to elect leaders because of the fluent English they speak, do not elect leaders because of the PhDs they hold. Some PhDs are used to fleece and loot institutions.

We all saw what happened to…” “Let us not misuse our PhDs to suppress our loyal taxpayers through land grabbing and stealing properties by raising fake rates claims then auction them to your relatives, friends, personal advocates at a throw away price, even after auctioning the properties the proceeds are never remitted to the Nairobi City County bank accounts but ends up in individual pockets and stomachs.

“He continued: “Let us not intimidate and chase away investors through unethical management styles then transfer their properties illegally to yourself and wife. Fictitious payments to lawyers (majority your personal lawyers) to the tune of billions of shillings is a clear demonstration on how PhDs can be used to milk public coffers.

Whenever I raise issues pertaining to corruption at city hall some people change the story that I am playing politics because of the Governorship race but I have sufficient documentary and video evidence to prove my allegations. They say do not release all your arsenals when going for a war but in shortly going to release them all through an affidavit I’m going to swear without any fear coz mimi niko ready for anything.”

“Let me remind the Nairobi City County Executive that the task of the leader is to get his people from where they are to where they have not been, let him be as well reminded that leadership is the capacity to translate vision into reality and with or without a PhD, a great leader can deliver services and fulfill pledges made during electioneering period.

What happened to the nine pillars and your vision for Nairobi? This is yet another proof on how we can be good in paper work with zero implementation.” And he concluded: “Finally, I will not apologise to any person or institution on my remarks I recently made in senate. I’m ready to adduce the evidence I have before any court of law.”