Category: Public Square
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My Mother Told Me: Why Everyday Is Mother’s Day
The first time my mother told me the name she gave me means love, I cringed. “Ifunanya, so that love can follow you wherever you go and you can bring love to others too.” As a fairly tom-boyish child, this saccharine, odd-sounding name didn’t sit well with me. It took my young mind a while…
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On Issack Hassan’s ‘Referee Of A Dirty Ugly Game’
Ahmed Issack Hassan, the former chief of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) has written his memoirs (more of an expose in my view) of his tenure in a newly published book Referee of a Dirty Ugly Game. This is a must-read for anyone who is interested in understanding the gang-ho political on-goings of…
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Parliament Should Publish All Its Voting Records
When the Finance Bill finally makes it to Parliament, do you know how your MP will vote? For most Kenyans, the answer to that question will be “No”. For a law that promises much more than a 3 per cent housing development levy, you should be concerned. Kenya has a freedom of information law but…
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Has Kenya Surrendered Its Economic Sovereignty to the IMF?
It is now clear that the promises made by Kenya Kwanza leaders to bring down the cost of living were just hot air, and that they had no intention to fulfil their election pledges because they and their economic advisers knew very well that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) would be imposing stringent austerity measures,…
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The Perils of Today’s Consumer (With Lesser Rights?)
The ongoing Hollywood writers’ strike has drawn attention to just how far businesses can go to eliminate humans and the cost of their labour from production. Here in Kenya, tea-picking machines were introduced to the great chagrin of workers. One change that still seems far from Kenya is the cashier-less supermarket, where money leaves your…
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You Split (the bill), You Lose…
Today I am inserting my nose into married people’s business because I feel like if you (married folk 😀) put your business out there, then it becomes fair game for hot takes. Hollywood superstar Gabrielle Union recently went on the record saying she splits bills 50-50 with her hotshot basketballer husband Dwyane Wade. Like everyone…
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Has The President Jumped The Gun On Shakahola?
Has the government lost confidence in its investigation into the cult of Paul Mackenzie Nthenge even before it has concluded the exercise? How else does one explain President William Ruto appointing a commission of inquiry into Mackenzie’s cult on the same day the first phase of post-mortems was concluded? On May 5, Government Chief Pathologist…
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Why Proposed Housing Fund Needs To Be Scrapped
It is mind-boggling that the Kenya Kwanza government believes it can get away with raiding Kenyans’ salaries through the proposed Housing Fund, which will see salaried employees part with as much as KSh 5,000 a month (with the matching amount paid by their employers) to contribute to a fund that may or may not benefit…
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I Have Always Been A Cat Person
A three year old has just moved in with me. Her name is Rosie. She has orange hair, a spicy attitude and startling gold eyes. Rosie is a ginger cat with a healthy suspicion of people – unsurprising, given her difficult beginnings in this world. She was rescued from Mombasa two years ago after some…
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Multi-Level Marketing Cults Need To Be Called Out Too
The country is still reeling from the ongoing investigation into the Shakahola Massacre where the congregation of the Good News International Church in Malindi led by Pastor Paul Mackenzie Nthenge were convinced to starve themselves and their children to death in order to meet their maker in heaven. As this tragedy unfolds, one recurring question…