Category: Public Square
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The Cost Of Human Error In The Aftermath Of The Earthquake In Turkey
Two disturbing things have been highlighted by the devastating earthquake that hit Turkey, which has so far claimed nearly 30,000 lives. The first thing is that most of the more than 12,000 buildings that collapsed did not meet engineering standards to withstand earthquakes. According to a BBC report, Turkey’s construction industry regularly flouts building codes…
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On Peter Anyang’ Nyong’o’s Invocation Of Vladimir I. Lenin
In the freak-out following a State House visit by a bunch of ODM MPs the other day, Kisumu County Governor Prof. Peter Anyang Nyong’o implored the ODM leadership on Twitter to remember Vladimir Ilyich Lenin’s rule; “In a revolutionary situation: Better fewer but better.” The tweet was picked up by the mainstream press, which got…
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Go On, Risk It All And Ask Someone Out Properly
I had a conversation with a friend recently. He wanted to start dating again. “I have a tip for you, if you want,” I said “Ok, shoot,” he said. “Ask her out properly,” I told him. “Don’t be vague. Say when you would like to meet and where. How she responds will tell you whether…
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A Three-Step Guide On How To Create A Political Sideshow
A former British politician once told me “Decoys and distractions are a government’s number one strategy to keep the populace from demanding accountability.” I have been reminded of this quote on numerous occasions over the years, and with it I have come to learn that the number one resource a politician has access to is……
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The Day The Supreme Court Played Marriage Counsellor
“The great marriages are partnerships. It can’t be a great marriage without being a partnership.” – Helen Mirren On 27 January 2023, the Supreme Court of Kenya (SCOK) delivered two judgements with far reaching implications on marriage in Kenya. More precisely, the court’s decisions addressed disputes that arise long after Cupid has left the room,…
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Hustlers, Upper Deck Folks And The Real Children Of David Ndii’s Cruel Marriage.
We are living in strange times. Scrolling through the Twitter handle of Dr. David Ndii makes for some disturbing reading. Responding to a tweet by Njeri Thorne in which she shares the view that President Ruto might be a great president if he “rid himself of fitina folk, D grade ministers… and village thugs in…
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Tyre Nichols Was A Victim Of Systemic Racism
Parents of young Black men in the United States live with constant fear, wondering whether or when their sons will be killed by white police officers. As a result of this, African-American fathers and mothers must then have “the talk” with their sons, to ensure they do not antagonise a white police officer in any…
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Mama Ngina Kenyatta Has Spoken. Now What?
There are national subjects that require assemblage of evidence and closure. The land settlement deals with the British and the fate of the Mau Mau are prime candidates as we continue to write the official history of Kenya as a nation. The origin of our upper economic echelons is another. So, I believe, it is…
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Every Move Into A New House Is A Reinvention
I’ve been renting in Nairobi for nine years now, and in that time I have lived in nine different houses. My first was a bedsitter at Alsopps on Thika Road, so new the window caulking was not fully set and you could still smell the fresh paint, and so small that once your feet left…
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An Election Results Dossier And Old Political Stories
Either politics is Kenya’s chakula cha moyo (soul food) or it is a way of life. Because we are back at it! Kenyans (at least just over 14 million of them) went to the polls last year in August and elected their preferred leaders in what was considered by many better elections than the previous…