Last week saw the social media sites abuzz
when a web advert by Korean Air labeled Kenyans as a people with “primitive
energy.”
The ad read; “fly Korean Air and enjoy the
grand African savanna, the safari tour, and the indigenous people full of
primitive energy.”
As usual, Kenyans raised salvo reactions
and demanded an apology from Koreans. But you know Kenyans with their Kenyan styles-T.I.K
( This Is Kenya), many went on to tweet and facebook that indeed instances like
“uprooting rail tracks” are forms of primitive energy.
But if advertising is the science of
arresting the human intelligence long enough to get money from it, then Korean
Air ended up apologizing to the same intelligence they are meant to reap from! In
their statement, they blamed the mistake made on their part in translating from
Korean to English.
It is indeed, the crazy world of adverts
gone sour only in Africa!
Born in 1912 when a group of blacks bought land
from a white farmer who failed to find white buyer, Alexandra will be turning 100
this year (2012) with very
little to celebrate or party about.
This year (2012), one of Johannesburg’s most notorious townships,
Alexandra, known popularly as “Alex”, marks its 100th anniversary.
Many are still hoping the government will embark on revitalizing this slum that
has become nothing less than a symbol of inequality in South
Africa.
Despite its ramshackle
history, it is a township that is credited with being former president Nelson Mandela’s first home in Jo’burg.
The pride of its
over 400, 000 residents, mostly
migrant workers and a third of whom are unemployed is that Alex became and is
still one of the very few places where people of color can own property. This
is what has over the years cultivated its culture of resistance and one that
saw Alex survive the apartheid rule.
It is a township
whose accident of history, in line with her boycotts helped inspire Mandela’s
fight for freedom.
With the ambitious
renovation project launched back in 2001, set to revitalize Alex with building
of thousands of houses, tarred roads and putting up of street lights, it is yet
to be seen whether Alex will survive the bulldozers of modernization, of trying
to bring equality and attract investment.
THE AFRICAN WATCHDOG: WHERE DID THE RAINS ACTUALLYSTART BEATING US?
We are all guilty!
We all have failed and come short of grace, I included. What is wrong with our
society? My question exactly is what happened to the morals we once cherished?
The media, whether
electronic or print, is there to inform, educate and entertain. However, we the
users continue to be shaped by its content, and in these, and many other
factors, that help to mould and shape our behaviors, define our interactions
and inform our consumption habits.
Do you remember
the old days of watching the Foresters on their famous TV- show, “The Bold and
the Beautiful?” I never really had a chance to watch it due to my strict
parents. They always knew the time when it was schedule and they made sure
everything was done before that time, some few minutes before it started they
tucked us in.
I will never
forget the whack my brother got trying to peep and catch a glimpse of the
romantic action. Unlike today, where soap operas are family galore. But those
who follow these programs get angry by the day, as they cannot stand the fact
that a father can actually date a daughter-in-law. That’s absurd in the African
culture.
“A fan is the
unseen disciple of a team”, so goes a saying among football enthusiast. However,
that’s the depiction of how low as a society we have sunk. We uncomprehendingly
watch boring cheap TV- programs, rejects of Europe and America,
imported to fill our African vacuity.
What make a movie-
an Oscar or a great movie, I should ask? Is it only when it has a spice of romance,
passion, deceit, sex and nudity? But then again, isn’t this what is shaping our
ideas, thoughts, actions and behaviors. The whole idea about such a program is
to say to you- lower your status quo. Affairs are part of life.
Somebody once told
me that, “if you compromise any situation, you compromise the devil.” And once
the devil is compromised, he invites his legion. When our young girls started dressing
skimpily and indecently, we compromised and never said a word. Now, we are
reaping what we sowed- unplanned pregnancies, broken marriages, under-age gang
rapes and all those societal ills.
I stop, pause and
ponder again, where did the rains actually start beating us? As a society and a
continent corporately, we ought to sit down and reflect hard on this. About the
good old teachings of our fore fathers and mothers. Of our spiritual vocation. Because
if we don’t, history will judge us harshly but what will hurt us the most will
be that the coming generation will not forgive us!
Since Zumba’s
introduction to Kenya
in 2009, the trend has grown tremendously and has become widely accepted as a
genuine fitness programme continentally.
But in 2010, shakira’s “waka waka” for Africa
tune took the Zumba madness to a whole new level. Imagine a fitness regime that
has got tongues wagging and a body shaking in the keep-fit community, the trend
has now moved its popularity amongst men.
Considered earlier
as a women’s thing, a walk around Nairobi’s
street’s stalls proves otherwise. Men are giving women a run for their money,
purchasing the zumba DVDS and practicing it out at the comfort of their living
rooms.
Zumba couples a
warm- up session, high and low intensity dance routines followed by a
cool-down. It also incorporates a series of traditional strengthening
exercises, including lunges and squats, so as to complete a full body work out.
Unlike aerobics, Zumba
does not involve body movements or terminology that might deter newcomers.
Music is the central guiding element in Zumba that guides a person’s body
movement.
Apart from physical fitness, Zumba offers a
medley of dance moves that lead to an invigorating workout as you learn the
basics of other popular Latin American dance styles such as the Cumbia, Merengue,Salsa and Samba.
Zumba owes its
origin to the Colombian aerobics instructor Alberto Perez. It is derived from a Colombian word that means to move fast and have fun.
The fitness
programme was accidentally developed by Alberto
after he had left his aerobics music tapes behind while hurrying to the gym to
teach an aerobics class. Alberto decided to get creative and came up with
innovative dance moves that were much appreciated by his class.
Zumba, however,
did not gain ground until 1999 when,
thanks to globalization, Alberto exported it to Miami, Florida in the USA.
There, he teamed up with two other Colombians to form Zumba Fitness LLC. They trademarked the word zumba and began a
mission to spread it across the world.
Whether in Nairobi, Lagos, Cape Town or Cairo,
fitness-conscious people have taken to Zumba with near- fanatical zeal and
following. Today, almost every gymnasium and health club worth its name is
offering Zumba sessions.
Zumba is not only
enjoyed by young people but it also appeals equally to older people who are
less supple and find it hard to cope with the rigors of aerobics. Beginners can
learn quickly and while at it, its benefits range from weight loss as well as
improved muscle tone. But the greatest appeal of Zumba lies in the fact that
it’s fun.
The only drawback
now is the lack of proper Zumba instructors.
Born Zackary Kimotho in kigumo division
Muranga county back in 1968, zack attended Karinga primary school and from
onset he was poised for academic achievement, coming top of his class during
exams.
He went for his ordinary level education at NyeriHigh
school. His star was shining from the onset and
in 1988, after his 0-levels, he was accepted in NakuruHigh School
for his A- levels (advanced level). As mandatory, Zack joined the National
Youth service in 1988 to give back to the society in service.
Then January 4th 1994 and zack graduated from
the University of
Nairobi attaining a
Bachelor of veterinary medicine.
The year 2000 saw him marry the love of
life-Doris wawira, with whom a year later God opened her womb and they were
blessed with a bouncing bay boy Daniel.
The same year 2003, zack lost his wife and
his job too. And in 2004, while in the nairobi-nakuru highway junction, an armed
man approached Zack's car and rudely in Swahili piped,"Kwani huoni ni nini
nimebeba?" (Can’t you see what I am carrying?)
The man had a gun and at close range opened
fire calling zack "stupid”.
Now zack is on a mission only he himself can
accomplish. Zack is heading to South
Africa on a wheelchair because that's where
the nearest spinal cord injury rehabilitation centre is located. even as many
hope that Kenyans will unite in their donations and quest to raise Ksh 250
million to build a facility here and
hence bring Zack home.
The journey to South Africa on a wheelchair is
tiresome. We need to bring Zack home before he gets to South Africa on a wheelchair.
That's the appeal.
So,
yesterday was Father’s Day. Happy belated Father’s Day guys! I thought to
myself what I’d write concerning this particular day. As I took time alone, I
felt God urging me to strive, not merely by my words but also by my action, to
live each day as though it was a Father’s Day.
I came across a special archived message from
a Saturday Magazine pullout of the Daily Nation from way back in 2010. I’d like
to share this African woman and a columnist’s story, which she titled; “honoring
our fathers.”
June 21st is a day that gets scant
attention this side of the planet. It is a day set aside to celebrate the
fatherly figures in our lives- Father’s Day in short!
Ruth E. Renkel, a writer, once said that,
“sometimes the poorest man leaves his children the richest inheritance.”
The world can be unfair. How better can we
demonstrate this unfairness than from the way we rave about our mothers’
goodness more than we do our fathers’?
We are usually reminded with prompt and pomp
that Mother’s Day is round the corner way in advance, but what happens on
Father’s Day?
It often goes by without mention. True,
fathers might not always be there for us, and so we grow closer to our mothers
as we grow up.
But is he not the one who toiled to ensure
our needs were met? Thank goodness there are still some of us who are
thoughtful enough to acknowledge the role our dad’s played in our lives.
How many of us smile when we think of our own
papa as well as all other men who have played the role of a father in our
lives?
Do you remember when some of us looked forward
to our dads visiting us in high school, always coming along with a bag full of
goodies? While our peers dreaded their fathers’ visits, since they only carried
a newspaper with them, we always looked forward to our dads visiting us.
My father has been a friend and above all a
source of encouragement throughout my entire life. I know I can talk to him at
any time. I say “thank you”, I say “gracias” to him for guiding us in the
issues of spirituality.
Everyday, regardless of what I am going
through, I am at peace because I know I can call on him and ask that he say a
prayer for me.
He sacrificed a lot to ensure we get the best
education, and has been selfless in ensuring that we lack nothing basic as we
grow up.
You have taught us the greatest value in life,
integrity. You also taught us to save for a rainy day.
Thank you for taking time to talk to my
brothers and sisters to help them become better fathers and mothers in future.
Thank you for being free to discuss with us
even about girls, AIDS and sexuality- you have made us realize that love is
real.
Looking at you and seeing how you have
treated our mama for over 30 years, and the kind of support you have given her,
makes me smile boldly.
Thank you from the bottom of my heart for
always being so open and welcoming to all the different types of friends we
bring home. I know I have never been at ease saying this, but thank you also
for being a great disciplinarian, who wanted nothing short of raising
responsible children.
I can only pray sincerely that God gives you
many days ahead to see us pass on good things to our children as well. May God
continually give you good health?
I have made it my agenda to visit my parents and
mentors in appreciation of the role they have played in our lives. This year’s
theme is;” to honor our fathers,” and whatever goodies we carry with us, are presented
to the father- it is up to him to share his gifts as he so wishes.
We decided this when we realize that we had somehow
sidelined our dads. Many a times we’ve appreciated our mothers more than we have
appreciated our fathers.
Don’t get me wrong. It is not wrong to appreciate
our mothers, but I believe our fathers too have played a key role in our lives.
I have come to realize that, no matter what some
people say, or may say, taking care of a father means the entire family stays happy
too. Honor your daddy today-won’t you?
During the world
cup in South Africa, fate
brought two super-powers in an encounting battle of titans and the day went to
the Germans’ glory when they hammered England 4-1, in an encounter many
termed as the repeat of World War 2. Let me take you back to a bit of history
journey and fill you in…
See, Bloemfontein is a city which honors South Africa’s
difficult history with pride. The Free
State, of which it is the capital, is the heartland
of the Afrikaners- better known for their passion for rugby- and was the main
battleground of the 19th century wars between the Boers and British.
bloemfontein city
In 1912, the
African National Congress-ANC was founded in Batho, Bloemfontein and it led Mandela to the 1994
election victory. Infact, Bloemfontein
is often referred to as: “the city of roses.”
Bloemfontein city- known in the Sotho
language as: “the place of cheetahs”, was the convenient place that fate chose
to unite rugby fans and the 2010 world cup football fans.
the battle ground
The old racial
divide between rugby and football has been changing as white fans, who would
never normally dare venture in Soweto,
were welcomed hands wide by residents during a rugby cup final in the township
prior to the commencing of the world cup.
Add caption
the soweto township
Even the war
museum of the BoerRepublics, a splendid
collection of artifacts on the Boers’ struggles against the British, was one
stop visitors for the world cup were treated to a special display. A display
that detailed some of the history of football in the region, with an account of
Scottish soldiers taking a team of Boer prisoners and other regimental matches
between battles.
It also highlights
other nationalities involved in the war, among them, world cup participants:
the French, Italians and Germans, on the Boer side against the Australians, New
Zealanders and Portuguese.
“A lot of
foreigners fought on the Boer side,” museum director John Zyl said in an
earlier interview.
“Europe was
envious of the British Empire and was very
interested in seeing small republics give the British Lion, a punch on the
nose.”
And those words, England did bear in mind, when fate, as always
this thing called fate, brought them to Bloemfontein
in the second round and they faced the Hitlers’ alias the Germans’ humiliation.
War, war and war!
The other day it was Sierra Leone,
then southern Sudan, then
the DRC, Rwanda, Uganda,
as in the list is endless. Now its Kenya
fighting the terror based Al-Shabaab in Somalia.
Wars would cease
if the will to make them was there. There is no substitute to stabilize any
government like war. It provides any government with a means of dealing with
rowdy youths. Yes! These are the same youths who are recruited from our estates
and hoods to join the army and serve their country. But during wars they are
placed upfront- that’s how you deal with the rowdy youths, giving them responsibilities,
even if not of honor and having them upfront at the most dangerous war zone
spots.
Wars everywhere
help the society to be busy, reduce population and kills boredom. All over the
country, in our little “Mtaani Barazas” and “jobless corners”, the topic that
has elicited debate is our troops in Somalia. Infact there are leading
panelist and experienced experts who take charge and give their views despite
them never even coming close to an army camp in their lives. But don’t we have
them in our society? They that pretend to know everything, even more than the
men on the ground. These guys can give government intelligences a run for their
money,
Indeed, wars give
the older generation a more visible approach to deal with the younger generation.
Here the old remember the glorious days where there was no war and how things
have changed and will continue to change. They call the younger ones “the
cursed generation.”
Whether
politically, socially or economically, there is no subsidiary substitute for
war. In the political realm, war can only be abolished if there is a substitute
to social-economic stats. Economically, the government budget will continue to
allocate billions of taxpayer’s money to the defense and socially, our people
will ask questions, but they will do so in the safety and comfort of their
homes and social circles. And they will forget!
Zimbabwe has currently been on the headlines for
the wrong reasons. But anyone who mentions the 1980 summer Olympics never
ceases to mention the Zimbabwe
all white field hockey team that defied and defined history.
2012 is here and many are looking forward
to the London Olympics. The Olympics fever is here and Africa
as a continent has had remarkable historical moments at the Olympics. I can go
on to talk of the legendary Kipchoge Keino but that is a story for another day.
1980 saw Zimbabwe
participate for the first time at the summer Olympic games under the name Zimbabwe from its previous colonial name- Rhodesia.
Despite being the one of the country’s
proudest moment, even after her 1980 independence, it is the circumstances that
led to the inclusion of Zimbabwe
at the Olympics that really baffles many. One of the hockey players then who
was the goalie recounted to the BBC in an interview of how they were not even
suppose to go to the Olympics in Moscow, but when the American led boycott
wiped out most of the field hockey entries, Zimbabwe, the new nation borne out
of the turmoil Rhodesia, became a last minute substitute.
Mind you, the invite came 5 weeks before
the start of the games and after the rigorous training sessions, no one could
have predicted let alone imagine what happened. Zimbabwe swept through 5 games
undefeated.
Two identical twins, sandy and sonia Chick
both playing for zimabwe and the only identical twins to ever have won gold
medals recount how despite being white, they all chanted; “ forward with the
rooster,” which is Mugabe’s party slogan in their 4-1 thrashing victory over
Austria to bagg the coveted gold medal.
daughters of zimbawe-the twins sandy and sonia
As the Zimbabwe
players partied and drank champagne in Moscow,
back in Zimbabwe,
fans took to the streets singing zulu songs. It did not matter what colour
one was-all that mattered was the
unifying factor, a team that had unified both the whites and Africans into one
proud nation. When they touched down, the reception at the airport was
overwhelming, the twins recall. All that mattered was that they were all proud
Zimbabweans together.
And if you thought politics and sports are
like water and oil- they do not mix, then you are wrong. Mugabe in a
congratulatory telegram to the team, he addressed them as “the daughters of Zimbabwe”.
Infact Mugabe went on to urge the country to forget the war struggles and
unite.
And just like the 1980 olympics, the 2012
slogan will remain the same credo for Africa-“
it is not the colour that you go in with, but the one that you comeout with
that matters.”
“THE SLAVE NATION”-
LESSONS FROM THE “KABOGOS” AND “SONKOS “OF AFRICA
An American
satirist Dorothy Parker was full of sayings wasn’t she? And I got one that
really got me thinking a lot. “I don’t know much about being a millionaire, but
I’ll bet I’d be darling at it.”
Kenya now has green horn Mps-
swimming in money called William Kabogo and Gideon Mbuvi Kioko alias Mike
Sonko.
THE FLASHY KENYAN MP MIKE SONKO
PARTY LEADER-MARTHA KARUA, MP KABOGO AND MP SONKO
They are the new
walking ATMS- similar, as both are fabulously rich, staged dazzling campaigns
and won, ran on the same party ticket and their opponents claim they could be
distant relatives, who share a multi
billionaire friend in politics and in business.
MP KABOGO
But then again,
hasn’t Africa seen this? Ask any African
statesman and he / she will tell you that this isn’t new. I do not know what
their merchandise is but I respect the mere fact that they are astute
businessmen and if we were all like them, maybe Kenya would have no need for vision
2030.
Forgive me,
however, I must confess, like framed English cleric Charles Caleb Colton; “many
speak the truth when they say that they despise riches, but they mean the
riches possessed by others.”
But again, I want
to be rich as Kabogo and Sonko, but I am constrained by the mortal fear of what
Leonardo Da Vinci warned; “he who wishes to be rich in a day, will be hanged in
a year.”
But then, how many
of those who have tried to be overnight millionaires have we hanged? You
guessed right-none! That is why we have commission of inquiries almost the age
of our forefathers that have inquired nothing. Because I ma unaware of any who
has been hanged, I am still tempted to push my luck through.
I suspect,
however, it would be burdening God too much trusting Him to walk me up this
ladder to the honey- pot in a year or two. It may take the rest of my life waiting
on God to bless me to the point I do not hanker for sh. 1 million and to make
myself the “mister IMF” for the less fortunate.
You see, in my
pride of Africa land- Kenya, money really does earn one respectability, a place
at the high table, the choicest meals, the choicest sitting places, powerful
friends, human nature which is like a prostitute in the Dark continent as only
those who can pay the bed get it and a million fanatical beggars praising you
as they wait eagerly for the bread crumbs.
As a former
colleague asked another; “will KBC play martial music when you die and how many
shops will close in your village when you die?”
The “Sonkos” and
“Kabogos” of Africa are greenhorns. They
always eye what is ahead of them, even before they attain what is before them.
Vying for an Mp seat, you will hear them say that they are now eyeing the
senate or governor. They claim they won’t pocket a cent of their salary but
will instead divert it to the projects in their constituencies. They come with
promises of free education, free electricity connections- all in the name of
wooing the voters.
MIKE SONKO-AH RASTA MAN
This brings me to
the question which if I had an opportunity to seat with them I would ask. But
since I am not seeing that happening anytime now, I will ask it here; what is
this God-blessed business that makes sh. 1M equivalent to the sh. 10 coin we
grudgingly throw to street beggars?
But then again, I have
2 worries about the “Kabogos” and “Sonkos” in politics; first, money and
generosity do not necessarily make one a better leader and we need leaders who
can “uncurse” us from the curse of depending on the being fed fish to teach us
how to fish on our own. This is because; the dependence they create will make
us their own beck and call slaves.
This is because
many such leaders will live in gold- encrusted homes, cry about how poor the
poor are, and still scramble for C.D.F and other state largesse and fruits of
corruption.
So, until Africa stops being dazzled by the rich man’s and woman’s
‘chapaa’ (money), and bartering our votes for cash, we shall remain one big
slave family pretending to be free. We shall even lynch the pickpocket but
sprawl over ourselves on the ground when our legislators pass by.
“Forgiveness is the fragrance that the violet
sheds on the hill that has quested it…..”-anonymous.
Do me a favor. I
want you to think about the trouble makers, drug addicts and mostly those who
don’t fit in our view. But mostly, think about them in your family. Believe me
they are thinking of you and not somebody else.
When you take these
great teachers who have come into your life to teach you to love them even
through what they are struggling with, then there is a need to love them even
if it is hard.
Peace Pilgrim was
an elderly woman who walked around the country, and all she did, dressed in
white, was to talk about peace. Nobody knew her name; she was just called Peace
Pilgrim.
One day, she was
walking to another street when an accident took place and she was knocked down
by a car and she died.
But she left a
journal that I believe would return spirit to that place in your heart where
there is pain, sorrow , worry, fear, agony and hurt.
In the Bamemba
tribe in South Africa,
when a person acts irresponsibly, and unjustly, here he is placed at the centre
of the village, alone and unfeted. All the work ceases, the entire village
gathers around the accused individual and each person of every age begins to
talk out aloud to the accused. Each person, one at a time, talks about all the
good things the accused at the centre ever did in his lifetime. Every incident,
experience that can be recalled with any detail and accuracy is recounted. All
positive attributes, good deeds, strengths and acts of kindness are recited
carefully and at length.
BAMEMBA UNITY
No is permitted to
exaggerate the compliments or positive attributes of the accused. The tribal
ceremony often lasts several days, not ceasing until everyone is drained of
every positive compliments that can be mastered.
At the end, the
tribal circle is broken, joyous celebration takes place and the person is symbolically
welcomed back into the tribe. Necessities for such a ceremony are rare.
What if we can
teach those who we hate to immerse in a culture of acceptance and love, then
that spirit has to rise? No doubt!
I've been intrigued by this tribe ever
since I heard about them while listening to Dr. Wayne Dyer speak on their
unique tradition. Take a moment to read about it...
