SWAHILI’S AFRICA BLOG

I put my finger on it today - Kenya is a country in a state of emotional depression. Naivasha really made me think. It’s a mess up there; people are in shock. There are two new large refugee camps that are a result of the turmoil. The numbers for the death toll and people displaced are a blatant lie in the media. I have heard first hand that the death toll could be as high as 10,000, not 1,400 as stated in the press.

NO one knows what their neighbors are thinking anymore. Luos and Kikuyus who have lived side by side in harmony now turn on each other. There are gangs of bandits called Mungiki that roam the countryside disrupting the peace and killing targeted people. These guys are either drunk or on drugs and seem to have no conscience. In Naivasha there is an army presence and police everywhere stopping all cars and trucks searching for the troublemakers.

Anyway, Kenya is a country in depression and not healing. There is much denial that nothing is wrong coming from the upper class, as their paychecks have not been disrupted. Most are not so privileged and are out of work. There are truly no outside people coming in - hotels are closed or closing. Most of all the future is gloomy as the leaders continue to play games and not get along.

I was telling one of our female suppliers how I saw things today and she started to cry. I think they can’t verbalize depression but if you suggest emotional trauma and lack of routine and everyday life everyone really gets it.

As was Kofi Annans wish for a birthday present, he got his wish, Kenyan leaders, Mwai Kibaki and Raila Odinga did form a coalition government between PNU and ODM. Thanks to Kofi Annans efforts and the help of President Kikwete of Tanzania.

After a shaky start they even agreed on a cabinet comprising of 42 ministers !!!The constitution was amended to make Raila the Prime Minister in the power sharing agreement between PNU and ODM. We are both grateful and in debt to the efforts of Kofi Annan in bringing about the end to the crisis in Kenya; now its up to the coalition government to salvage the country and put it back on track.

In gratitude to Dr. Kofi Annans efforts, Kenya should declare Kofi Annans birthday a national holiday, in remembrance of how close we came sinking into the black hole of political and economic turmoil. Happy Birthday Kofi Annan.

What happened in Kenya?

This is the country that was seen as the promise for Africa, due to its many years of economic and political stability. In a matter of a few weeks this whole picture was shattered. The tourism industry came to a standstill. Products such as soapstone, which is carved into many shapes and objects, and supports thousands of families all across Kenya, could no longer be transported safely , therefore affecting the lives of hundreds of artisans and their families.

The result of the “stolen” elections, was violence and a rampage by the poor citizens, who reacted out of anger and frustration. Then there were those who took advantage of the chaos to practice violence on minority groups living amongst them. Of course the most affected were the poor and they are the ones who had the most anger to vent. As we used to hear from the speeches of our first President, Mzee Jomo Kenyatta; “when elephants fight, it is the grass the gets hurt.” How right he was.

Today Kenya is at a crossroads. A coalition government has been agreed upon, but we are yet to see a new cabinet. Instead we are seeing the two parties practice “brinkmanship ” that is making it difficult for the healing process to start. The one thing the two parties, PNU and ODM have agreed on, is the size of the cabinet; and what a bloated cabinet; 40 ministers!! The citizens of the country are aghast at this number. Kenya has some of the highest paid Members of Parliament in the developing nations, even surpassing some in the developed nations.

Nevertheless, if this is what it will take to form a coalition government, then so be it; but the politicians should come to an agreement now, so that industries such as tourism can be in operation again, giving back the artisans and traders a chance to make a living and thus pay taxes that will contribute to their fabulous salaries. Tourism is one of the country’s main earners and every sector of this industry has come to a virtual standstill as the citizens of Kenya, the rest of the world , chiefly the US and the European nations wait to see if the coalition government will share power of a 50-50 basis. Kenyas citizens are on standby as they wait for the process to be finalised. In the meantime, artisans who cater to the tourism industry are left with no customers as tourists and importers to the US and Europe wait for the outcome of the coalition government before daring to venture back into the country.

During the turmoil after the elections, there was no movement of soapstone between Kisii and Nairobi, except in convoys of 10 trucks or more. Even when they succeded in getting the soapstone to the market in Nairobi, the market had evaporated, there were no tourists . Of course, there always exceptions. Two years ago the Tabaka Classic Carvers from Kisii land, become the official merchandisers of the Simpsons television show in the United States of America. This has proved to be a lucrative contract, but during the political turmoil in Kenya, even their supply chain from producer to the market was disrupted.

Soapstone is only one product in the tourism industry but the chain it supports, ranging from the miners, carvers, to the thousands of traders who sell it to the tourists in the big cities like Nairobi and Mombasa, supports thousands of families.Until the politicians from the two parties decide to compromise in order to get a cabinet, so that the government can start the business of guiding the country back to recovery; their politics will hold the soapstone artisans in Kenya hostage.

Written from Bamako, Mali on November 9, 2007:

All commerce takes place at one time and in one place in Bamako. Check out the Grande Marche de Mali. Anything you can imagine is bought and sold right here. Get ready, as it’s not always pleasant.

A person skinning a freshly killed crocodile started out my day. Right next to this lovely booth was an impromptu pharmacy where you can buy anything in 1’s. For example: all Tylenol bottles have been opened and dumped into a kind of clear pasta container. If you have a headache you can purchase only one new or antique Tylenol pill. Next to that stall was a man choosing fabric for his next grouping of lovely adorned clothing, while next door a chicken was having his neck wrung. NO worries, though, as this is kind of standard for the market.

Next to those booths was the beauty parlor where I found numerous women intently braiding one another’s hair. This was not a friendly gathering but a very professional atmosphere…next to them was a person selling mattresses that have crazy patterns on them and a man accosting me to buy a sack that said Paris on it that I didn’t need.

There is so much life and color in this market. Its insanely busy, crowded and everyone invades your personal space. Don’t go if you are claustrophobic or have smell issues! Just when I thought an aisle couldn’t hold one more person, a motorcycle would roar up and somehow makes its way through a crowd that one couldn’t navigate on foot.

Kenya now has a coalition government; but wait a minute have we not been here before! In 2003 after Raila had joined forces to oust President Moi, a coalition government was formed that eventually disintegrated due to results of the referendum on the constitution . We hope this time the results are not the same.

In the elections of 2003, Raila had made an Memorandum of Understanding with Kibaki, that would have created the position of Prime Minister and then a new constitution was to come about within 6 months to a year after the new government was in power. Of course non of this took place, and now we seem to have come a full circle.

Today, Raila is the new Prime Minister; the constitution was changed to make all this legal; however forming a new cabinet has been another matter. Soon after Kibaki “became” president he formed a partial cabinet of 17 ministers. Of course like any good leader who was the first to the prize, he took all the plum ministries.According to the agreement that Kofi Annan and President Kikwete helped bring about, the coalition government was to be divided 50-50; but the mechanics of how this was to be done was never agreed to. The result of this has been constant back-room jockeying and politicking by members in both PNU and ODM.

Depending on who gets what ministry, this will determine how much influence and change they can bring about in the country before 2012, the next election. The other question that has not been answered yet, is “how big should the cabinet be?” Wanagaari Mathai and others propose a lean cabinet of only 24 ministers; PNU looks as if it leans towards a cabinet of 44 ministers. ODM would probably settle for 34. In order to conserve the countries financial resources, a leaner cabinet of 24 performance accountable ministries would be the way to go.

Whatever number of ministries that is decided upon, the coalition government will still have to come with a way of how to pick them. A friend recently suggested a simple but fair way of choosing the cabinet. “Why not have Kibaki and Raila come together; toss a coin and whoever wins the toss picks first, and then they alternate until the agreed upon number of ministries is reached .” Now, politics being politics this is probably way too simple a way for them to take, and so we have to await the results of the negotiations going on between the two parties of PNU and ODM.

Here’s an excerpt of what is going on first hand from a friend in Kenya:

The situation is not great but I think portrayed badly in the press. The issues for the unrest are complicated and probably linked to:

a) History - i.e. Ralia Odinga’s father was almost given the driving seat at independence and robbed of it
b) Political stands - Raila and ODM are deemed to be more socialist; Kibaki and the old boys are more conservative
c) Corruption in the past - many of those involved in scandulous events I think are being protected by Kibaki i.e. from those involved in the Goldenberg case etc
d) A very close run election - which was probably rigged hence youth violence

What next - hopefully discussion between Ralia and Kibaki; an interim goverment led by Kibaki and a re-run presidential election in 3 months time, which would be managed by an independent team.

There is too much to lose for ALL of us Kenyans - even Ralia and Kibaki - so something has to be sorted! The economy and Kenyan’s have suffered and up to 300 unfairly lost their lives. There have been fuel and food
shortages but it is not that bad yet. I believe in Kenyans and the ability to become stronger in all of this - but I hope action will happen sooner rather than later.