Nairobi Sit-hi Can-soul: Wea Illiteracy “Rains” Soup-rim
You have to watch this video. The Nairobi City Council apparently has a list of houses that are built on illegal road structures, which they say have to come down, but if this is how they are going to “attack” this problem, then they are down right crazy! They almost demolished this family’s house, which it turns out, did not sit on an illegal road reserve!
This video is also interesting for a number of different reasons because it brings out all of the racial and class differences that exist within Kenya. The family in this video is Indian. They also appear to be quite well off (the house has a pretty big swimming pool in it) and you can just see the anger on the private investigators face as she confronts this Indian family, who are naturally fighting back.
The investigator (does she work for the council? ) is seething with anger and it’s not because she has been prevented from doing her job (who would enjoy destroying someone’s house?). It’s because these rich Indians are fighting her and she despises them for who they are.
Kenyan Indians are not my favorite people, but the way the city council is going about this is absolutely crazy. You can’t just send in bulldozers to destroy a families house if the court has told you to stop. If this family had not fought back, that crazy private investigator would have destroyed their home!
How is the city council carrying out this demolition process??? Is it going through the courts? is it evaluating the long-term infrastructural plans of the city & analyzing what needs to be destroyed and what doesn’t? is it looking at old maps? what?
They need to start requiring some minimum educational standards for these city councillor’s because the country cannot afford to rely on standard four drop – outs to implement it’s urban planning/vision 2030 policies.
Would the private investigator have reacted like this if it was a black Kenyan family?
** I still can’t get over these Indians accents. If they were born and raised in Kenya, why do they still sound like they just got off a plane from Calcutta? These people need to start integrating. They’ve been there for over 100 years now.
KE
Many houses belonging to Africans built on road reserves have already been demolished! Where have you been?
But I understand one of the other issues regarding this case is that they have been running a high class brothel in the compound. That is why the council sent in a private investigator.
******
Relations between African-Africans and Asian-Africans in Kenya have never been good. They are seen as exploitative and insular. However, things have recently improved – especially with the participation of African-Africans in many businesses that were previously dominated by Asian-Africans. There has even been an increase in intermarriages!!!!!!
I understand the only town in Kenya where Asian-Africans still retain absolute commercial control is Kisumu.
Josh:
I didn’t know they were accused of running a brothel
Why didn’t the reporter indicate that in his piece? Do you have a link to to that information?
Yes, many homes owned by kenyans have been destroyed and I think that too has been done in an ad hoc manner. The city council has been corrupt since it’s existence, whose fault is it if I as an owner ended up buying land that I believed was “clean”? should they just destroy my home without due compensation? or should they also blame themselves and the government for failing to clean up the mess at city hall for years.
Did Raila end up building the roads he promised after he destroyed people’s homes?
Are politicians homes also being demolished?
KE
The private investigator actually says it if you listen carefully.
Watch out for the Mt Kenya accent though
– or you will miss it!
KE: Puhleeze… enuff of the silly accent nonsense… did you listen to the Kenyan athletes in Beijing… as proud as I am of the medals… the interviews were atrocious… I could barely make them out…
If it’s a brothel… then shut it down but why destroy the house?
I think someone in the City Council wants the land… or someone high up… the ‘private investigator’ sounded like a kikuyu to me… and we know who is in power…
What really upset me was the destruction of the beautiful trees…
BTW, it seems that John Gakuo (City/Town Clerk) claimed that the City Council was not invloved in the demolition. BUT the demolition equipment had their logo…
Hmmm…. so I wonder what the real story is…
I watched the video again… how can the police and city council workers be ordered around by a ‘private investigator’… and was she flashing the badge or what?
WTF is a private investigator and how can they have powers approaching a judge?
Me thinks the kikuyu (from her plonounced accent) PI is part of a group that has been grabbing land since 1963… I could not make out the name on her badge but could it be kenyatta?
On the one hand, kwani private investigators are also the contractors? To me it just looks like someone flexing her muscles at ‘this mhindi’.
Mbutt…..I thought the post was about illiteracy at the City Council, haiya ii kube its about pipo’s aksents
Seriously, let’s get over other people’s accents and stuff. My accent is part of my identity. I hate people who try to mess up with who I am. Heck, if you’re think you’re special coz you can speak English like jungu, suit yaself. I’ll tell you this; if someone from uzunguni talked about me and my accent the way we talk about each other….like why am I still talking like I just got off the plan from the slopes of Mt. Kenya???…. I’d be crying racism. Get over it folks. Some of the stuff on this post/comments is as racist and tribalistic (??) as it gets.
On the third hand, how come poorer people’s property always gets to be demolished but not rich people’s?
PKW: R u in Kenya or in the USA?
Rich folks houses/properties do get demo’d like when Raila was Roads Minister… but most rich folks ‘buy’ their land which means they use lawyers who check the title… Of course, not all lawyers are diligent.
I said most rich buy their land… but the corrupt e.g. kamau wa ngengi just grabbed what he could. Many were allocated land by dan ‘the thief’ moi… this land should be returned to the State.
“Poor” folk may be squatters… so in reality they do not ‘own’ the land… I feel sorry for them yet… you can’t just plop your arse on a vacant piece of land just coz it’s there…
Coldtukser. Me I am in the US of A, have been for the last 3 years, but will be moving back nyumbani in a matter of weeks. I’m done doing what I came to do.
Thanks for the education. I’ll be sure to use a lawyer when the funds arise.
I differ with you on the issue of land being ‘returned’ (whoever had built the houses/structures had better make some good returns) to the State. It should be sold handsomely to some capitalist. If the State has not used what it has had at its disposal for close to 50 years of existence, I have no reason to believe the story will be any different 50 years on. They and their cronies will be still be preaching impunity (the other name for amnesty).
coldtusker:
The issue of accents (as it applies to Indians) is important because they are not indigenous to Kenya or to Africa. Therefore, the same standard used against someone with a Kalenjin or Kikuyu accent cannot be used with Indians.
If you look at 3rd or 4th generation Immigrants in places like America, England or Australia, they tend to speak the local language just like the natives. Why? because they have integrated and inter-mixed.
However, in Kenya, Indians have remained extremely insular. Living in their own walled in communities, going to their own schools, their own shops, etc, etc and the result has been to continue to hold onto a culture and country which many have never known (or even visited) and to withdraw from the only country that they know.
I’m not saying they should shed all elements of their indian roots (I like multicultural, diverse societies) but they do need to figure out where they really “belong” – in terms of identifying their cultural roots.
Could you provide the link where gakuo said he had never heard of this private investigator?
This is a very strange story.
Hi @ kenyantrepreneur i think five years from now u will be looking at your blog and you will want to hide under a rock some of the things u write
are just unbelievable u take a reasonable case of property rights and due process and make it into a an issue of illiteracy,race basically by the end of the post im left asking ? who are you to judge any of the characters in the story seeing as you have passed negative judgement on the ‘victim’ and ‘victimiser’
come one read books, open and expand your mind – i mean real books not those kiyosaki books – think, re read what you write
KE: I am in Kenya. I saw it on the news. He did not say he did not the PI. He said the NCC had not authorised the demolition. I think there is a court case.
I have a ‘poor & slow’ internet connection unlike you. Just try the you-tube or google searches and you might come up with the clip. It was either KTN or NTV. I boycotted KBC after the election debacle where they were the ‘favoured’ station…
Yeah, joe is right… we want opinions on “business” not issues of race or accents… when that is of no relevance…
PKW: Make sure you get a good lawyer. Not a hack. Otherwise, it’s no different then doing it yourself. Also buying an ‘old’ property means it is probably not grabbed. Do not buy if the seller is “kenyatta”…. coz then it was grabbed! Welcome home.
KE
Yes Asians are insular and keep to themselves as you said…you admit you particularly dont like them…Of course you have done your reseerch..they do not even come from this continent
Of course the natural thing now is to EVICT them out of kenya:/Nairobi
**** I still can’t get over these Indians accents. If they were born and raised in Kenya, why do they still sound like they just got off a plane from Calcutta? These people need to start integrating. They’ve been there for over 100 years now.*****
You will be quoted as a reference in future WAKI/KRIEGLER commissions as a sponsor of genocide……..and of course YOU WILL RIGHTLY DENY…..
lord: I agree with you. Since GEMA are bantus who should return to cameroon and leave the dorobos alone…
There is a deep need in Africans to constantly want to “pull down” anyone they perceive as more successful.
I do not know why this is so pervasive in our culture.
Yes, I know it’s a problem found in other nationalities, but I have found it to be excessive amongst Africans.
I am willing to bet you that this demolition was fuelled largely by this attitude.
If they were indeed running a brothel, then the brothel should be shut down legally.
Why don’t we learn some things from Indians?
The success of Indians in many countries continues to be disproportionate to their numbers.
There are many reasons why I think this continues to be the case.
Firstly: their VERY STRONG AND LOYAL family ties. These ties create synergy. They allow family members to loan each other money, build businesses and share other resources with no written agreements! I cannot dream of sending my sister in Kenya money to do anything for me. She would steal it ALL!
I have also noticed that Indians get “pushed around” a lot more by their parents. This makes it is easier in their culture for elders to rein in the younger people. It is easier for their parents to impose a spouse on them.
Arranged marriages prevent people from other cultures (who may not be familiar with the culture) from disrupting these vital family ties.
This is just my “two cents”. I continue to watch Indians in business and I continue to be impressed.
It would not surprise me at all if the brothel allegation is found to be completely false.
This clip made me sad.
Coldtusker, with no rights to property in , say Kisium Siti, I have no choice but to get land from a Kenyatta? What to do, what to do? Maybe get a Mboya significant other and similar lawyer, have the land registered in their name? I’m just thinking….
Heck yes, if I were a Kenyan of Indian descent, I’d only go back to India if all of GEMA went back to the Congo (that’s what my primary school migration routes taught) and Nilotes back to the Sudan, or was it Nigeria beofe then? Lets face it everyone displaced someone to be where they are, physically, economically or otherwise. Too bad we are hung up on the Kenyatta era.
Proud Kikuyu woman:
The post is about a number of different things (as I mentioned):
It’s about ethnicity and immigration
It’s about class envy and inequality
It’s about illiteracy and it’s effect on the performance of governments
This is why I found this video so interesting because it highlights all these issues in just one clip.
Kim:
You’ve made some very good points.
Coldtusker:
I don’t know why you keep denying the underbelly of tension that exists towards kenyan/Asians and to deny that this did not come out in this video is to deny reality.
The fundamental problem with this demolition process is that the government really hasn’t planned out what it wants to do about infrastructural development in Kenya. This is not upto John Gakuo. He doesn’t have the power or the money.
I was watching a National Geographic special on how long the Chinese took to develop their infrastructure in time for the olympics. The planning, focus and work ethic was astounding and Kenya is joking if it thinks revitalizng Nairobi means sending city council workers over to people’s houses to demolish them with hammers. Absolutely pathetic.
KE: The issue/clip had little to do with ethnicity… It had to do with PROPERTY RIGHTS… you brought the accent thing into it… I think many of your readers are getting tired of your obsession with accents…
The ‘private investigator’ seems to be a land-grabber to me. Huh? She was ordering the cops around… Seriously, WTF?
KIM: Yes, Silicon Valley is full of Indian entrepreneurs. As is the UK with East African Asian entrepreneurs. If I recall, 4/10 on Forbes wealthiest list are of Indian origin. Amazing!
Cannot let your emotions get in the way of doing your job. That said, the woman was a real cunt.
She need to demolish a penis not a house. REAL VENOM.
I believe none of the parties is innocent.
I wonder how the Indian woman treats her workers. I am saying this because I had some horrible experiences with 2 Indian employers in Kenya. I am still bitter about it. On a positive note though, I swore I will never work for an Indian again (as an employee) – over my dead body.
******
By the way, I am no Indian hater. I have just come from the pub where we were having drinks with my Kenyan-Indian and Jewish buddies – as brothers!
coldtusker: (you need to start reading my responses more carefully)
Why do Kenyans always like to dilute issues into their most simplified form? It has to be about ONE topic or else…
No.
Property rights are one issue, but they’re a host of other issues that this video brings out.
The law (which is what property rights really are about) – does not operate in a vacuum. The law is a reflection of a societies morays and if you look at the history and law of property rights in Kenya, you can see why it is so disorganized and chaotic – it’s because the law, reflects what’s happening within it’s society and Kenyan society is really a history about tribalism, colonialism, corruption and inequality.
All these morays of our society are reflected in this video. So, it’s not just about “property rights”, it’s about “society”. Why? because the law is not a science. It’s really a sociological construct, that aims at it’s core, to define how a society should live and how people should treat each other.
So, if the fundamental society itself is disorganized and chaotic, this will be reflected in it’s laws, which are derived from that societies chaotic culture.
Josh:
It’s interesting: Your reaction to this story reflected your biases and anger towards Indians and so did mine. I suppose we’re just more honest about admitting our biases. Many others are not, but they’re not fooling me.
KE,
the private investigator says that the chutes have been running a brothel. You may not get it coz she literally says something to the effect : “You ‘ve been brotheling for over…years…”
KE I’ve always wondered why indians still had accents, I remeber asking the same very question months back on this blog.
PKW:
Accents is a big deal my sista. A mzungu will not mind your accent in the U.S. Coz they know and understand that you are an immigrant.
These chutes have lived in kenya for over 4 generations, born and raised and yet they sound like they straight from new delhi.
Remember during the election fracas in kibera when zain verjee was trying to interview a kibich guy in swa but it sounded so awful ?
Accents are big deal, they show us that chutes in kenya have not integrated and prolly will never. Most black kenyans have a hard time identyfying chutes as “kenyans”
It’s true, we just love to simplify issues or sugar coast to avoid sounding controversial, but the truth has to be told.
I started questioning the kenyan chutes when i came abroad and met many peeps from variuos cultures. I was most surprised / impressed when I met chinese jamaicans-They speak the jamaican language fluently, you’d think it was a black jamaican speaking.
They xplained to me that they were brought to JA by the british as workers to work on the variuos farms and other projects and finally decided to stay. They’ve been in JA since the late 1890’s just the way indians were brought to kenya to work.
The only reason I see indians stil having their accent is that they simply just don’ t want to mix, and particularly the chutes in kenya.
I see the indians in TZ more integrated who speak fluent swahili.
Ias for the city council, they have never changed.
KE i right about the whole class vs race vs privilledge thing, it is very evident.
CT for you to simplify this as just “property rights” WTF ?!! Seriously ??!!
at the end of the clip the black woman is mumbling something about mathare residents, just proving the point that class isue is at hand
mzeiya: U got to be kidding!
The issue at stake should be PROPERTY RIGHTS…. which is what ignored in Rift Valley. A kikuyu farmer who BOUGHT his/her land 40 years ago was being evicted!!! That is bullshit.
I was against the RV evictions for those who BOUGHT the land. As for the kenyattas… well, kamau STOLE the land… so why were the kenyattas not evicted from RV or Coast?
CT
There you go again about Kenyatta. For your information, Kenyatta is very popular and he will get millions of votes if he decides to stand for president in 2012
Back to the topic:
After some thought, I have come to the conclusion that the chuta woman may have defaulted on protection payments to her Kenyan Godfather. This brotheling business is very lucrative in Kenya especially if you are catering for the elite. And she has clearly done well, judging by the house she has built – yawa!
It is payback time for her as probably ordered by some untouchables. And this is by no means my far fetched imagination. She must have thought that she could operate such a business without high level protection in Kenya.
No way Jose! Someone is out to teach her a lesson.
Coldtusker: gotcha now. But tell me, other than you, when it comes to the ‘wananchi’ ‘evicting’ people from their legally acquired land, who cares to know whether you bought it? They are as hang up on Kenyatta as you are. Your logic would not apply to the RV after the elections when the wrong person ‘wins’, or any other trigger for that matter.
If the funds arise I might consider going by a pseudo name,acquiring a fake twang, and learning another language. Property rights protected and identity issues solved just like that.
Mzeiya:
Brothering? LOL!
That private investigator was so furious, she couldn’t speak straight. What’s the correct verbiage to describe the act of running a brothel? Heidi Fleiss, the former madam, once named one of her whore houses, Casa pussy (casa being the spanish word for “house”).
I re-watched the video and did hear her say something to this effect: “just one family, one family! in the whole mathare that’s doing this!
She must be bringing in prostitutes from India and her Godfather must be a politician. Did he refuse to pay up?
Did anyone catch the family name? is Najmuddin?
KE
Her Godfather is either a politician or someone in the security services. The person must be very powerful judging by the firepower deployed on that day to intimidate her.
And you are so right, this woman may also be involved in trafficking of women from Asia.
Actually, the private investigator says “Kibagare” and not “Mathare”. Kibagare is somewhere in the neighbourhood of westlands. So my guess is that the brothel is somewhere in westlands.
The private investigator says that the chuta family has been doing this brotheling business for more than 20 years!
Yawa – this is interesting.
WTF ..cant believe it ..that private investigator needs to be shot dead like BOOM!!!!
Their accents were entirely acceptable, and certainly no worse than the English or Swahili accents of many non-Asian Kenyans I know. The complaint about integration and accents is racist BS I’m afraid.
daniel waweru,
so you’d like us to believe that african americans in the U.S. should still sound like their African slave ancetors ??
Mzeiya,
I’m not sure how the African Americans’ (AA) ancestors sounded like. You may have noticed, though, that AA’s spoken English is quite different from that of ‘mainstream’ America? I say take people as they are of leave them be. The rest may well be plainly called bigotry.
shew, even african africans have accent and have lived in Kenya forever so the accent should be a non-issue
Kenyans from kisumu have a different accent form Kenyans from central etc, etc
Kudos Linda,Proud Kikuyu woman,Waweru
One of the complains Kalenjins had about Kikuyus were they were not Integrated enough in RV……
So Take care Mzeiya
Linda, PKW, DW & lord (tho ur earlier comment was serious or sarcasm… could make it out) are making way more sense than mzeiya or KE…
As lord said… were the kyuks in RV speaking Kalenjin or Swa or English – especiarry Engrish – in a different accent?
As Niemoller penned:
They came first for the Communists, And I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Communist;
And then they came for the trade unionists, And I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a trade unionist;
And then they came for the Jews, And I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Jew;
And then . . . they came for me . . . And by that time there was no one left to speak up for me.”
All
The point is not necessarily the accent. First of all, there is NO universal English accent. There are different accents even in England
!
I believe the issue is the perceived insular behaviour. There is also a perception of an observed superiority complex. This is probably rooted in the outdated and obsolete Indian caste system.
They treat their workers in an intolerable manner. I have experienced this.
I remember someone telling me a true story about a Kenyan (African) worker who went to complain to Kenyatta that his boss (a white settler) in Nakuru had formed a habit of slapping his workers. Kenyatta in his usual style asked the man whether the workers had hands with which they could slap the settler right back. Guess what happened next. The rest was history.
I know the greatest beef for Kenyans is the accusation that Indans dominate the economy. Perhaps what Kenyans could do is to give the Indians stiff competition in business like they are already doing. Respect is earned and not freely given.
well… kamau wa ngengi was one to talk… he used to cane his ministers or have those opposed to him… killed… we remember Tom Mboya, Pio Gama Pinto…
kamau wa ngengi is not a good example…
lakini as josh says… quit complaining and get into businesses as opposed to being mere watchmen or government employees… or be the BEST in what you do… even if you are a watchman… but its 45 years since independence…
I really admire Equity Bank… amazing… even Barclays is sitting up and taking notice… I think Family Bank is going the same way…
When I look at Kenya’s major businesses… they were formed AFTER 1963… when the Mhindis faced discrimination from Africanisation policies and corruption from kamau & moi’s regimes…
Nakumatt (really grew in the past 5 years)
Bidco (beat the crap out of EA Industries in the past 10 years)
Chandaria Industries (bulk of it is post-1963)
Athi River Mining (who even knew it existed until it listed)
Diamond Trust Bank (now an East African bank)
Jubilee Insurance
Nation Media Group (bulk of the growth was post 1963. TV & Radio started in 2000s)
CT
You need to brush up on your Kenyan history.
Africans were not allowed to engage in any commercial ventures before independence in Kenya. This sector of the economy was actually reserved for wahindis. The whites were in administration and farming. The Africans were only allowed to do menial jobs. This is why there was a deliberate policy of Africanisation after independence.
Kenya had a policy of APARTHEID before independence. Did you know that?????
But you are right in saying that it is now 45 years after independence. May I also point out to you that it is now 30 years since Kenyatta’s death. We cannot therefore continue whining and whinging and blaming.
There is certainly no reason now why Kenyans cannot engage in serious business – except of course due to myopic majimboistic ideas.
And there is even less of a reason to whine because we have a coalition government. Therefore, even those areas that have always complained of marginalisation are NOW IN government. This is one of those moments in history when you have chance to lay a solid foundation for the nation.
But the question is this – are Kenyans ready to up their game and put the future of their country ahead of their stomachs???????
Josh: Erm… if you notice… I keep on saying post-1963. None of the businesses I noted were there (or what they are now) pre-1963. In fact most of the guys/gals who started (or grew) these businesses were born (or were infants) post-1963.
kuiba wa ngengi’s thieving caused us lots of problems. He was responsible for the culture of impunity. Then his sidekick – dan ‘more thieving’ moi continued the nyayo philosophy. kamau bailed out his friend paul ‘diversion’ ngei when the idiot was stealing relief goods/foods by changing the constitution.
We have a chance to take back the stolen land (hopefully more) from the kenyattas. Let’s do it. And send a message to any thief (and potential thief) that we will take what was stolen no matter how long it takes. No matter who your daddy is. No matter who you are.
Majimboism is silly unless we can be mature e.g. US has strong states’ rights… but for now I would reject majimboism.
KE,
I agree, however grudgingly, with the accents thing. a mhindi raised kenya will pick up the clipped london accent in the 3 years it takes to complete undergraduate studies. why not the nairobi accent? or the mombasa accent? or even the kisumu accent? despite having a lifetime to do so?
just an observation!
Why can’t this be about who has done wrong?
What do the accents have to do with the laws of the land?
No wonder the stars shine
And watch us live our little lives
And weep for us.
Shyte… I had no idea there was a Nairobi accent… ebu, you have to tell me… Nairobi is a fucking (sorta) cosmopolitan!!!
Mombasa is SWAHILI… shyte… WTF… kwani there is a coastal way to speak English…
Kisumu… well… I guess all the Mhindis shouls add ’sss’ to their speech…
Peter: I agree…
CT:
The “head start” the Indians were given by the British is what contributed to their economic dominance even after independence. To deny this, is simply to deny factual historical practices. The British placed the Indians on a higher racial rank than Africans and unfortunately, many Indians in Kenya have forgotten this (believing that they are simply “better” than the africans and that’s why they succeeded) and they have carried this colonial mentality into their present day thinking.
Again, the kenyatta land will never be forcefully taken from them. The only way to get that land would be to embarrass mama ngina into giving it up voluntarily to the thousands of squatters in taita taveta. However, that doesn’t look like it will be happening anytime soon. Move on and focus on creating new wealth.
Its a bit odd though, that they can pick up the British accent so quickly after leaving Kenya.
The other strange thing is that South African Indians have a distinctly South African accent. And Tanzanian Indians speak Swahili without a trace of any accent – lugha sanifu.
Perhaps the reason why they are still unable to speak even decent Swahili after living in Kenya for all their lives is because of their self-imposed isolation.
It is difficult to explain but perhaps they need to mix more. This would bring down the leves of suspicion between the two groups.
Sigh… I give up… the focus should be INTELLECTUAL, HUMAN and PROPERTY RIGHTS… not accents.
KE: Pole sana but get over it… forget Kenya… I was amazed at the success they have achieved in the USA & UK… well, the UK I knew but also in the USA & Canada…
Using your logic the Indians in the USA should not have been as successful as they are… after all they went in decent numbers from the 1960s… I believe success is as a result of many factors but the drive to succeed has to be there…
I have to give it to the Indians… in 60 years since Independence… they have become a force to reckon with esp in IT. Enuff said.
4/10 richest folks according to Forbes are Indians. Then there are firms like Tata, Infosys & Wipro… These are world-beating companies with Indian roots/origins. Did you know Tata bought the Jaguar marquee? Yikes… Indian-made Jaguars coming soon!!!
BTW, 1/4 of Sun Microsystems’ founders is a guy called Vinod Khosla…
Look at Kenya… the richest families might be the kenyattas & mois… hmmm… wouldn’t you agree the source of their wealth is pure theft?
Apparently the new CEO of Citibank is a also an Indian dude… the immediate past CEO of Vodafone… I think the same at Standard Chartered…
CT
Thanks..Its crystal clear….This indians are light years …Real light years
But was this the subject?
lord…. as i have said earlier as did many others… it was about PROPERTY RIGHTS… which got turned into the accent issue… which made no sense… I am anti-tribe, anti-race, etc since I grew up in Nairobi… which is way more cosmopolitan than the shaggs… Granted all is not perfect but… doesn’t what happened in early 2008 teach us anything?
It seems most of the comments are from non-residents… I live in Kenya… yes, in Nairobi. Most of the comments are from folks who are living abroad…
All I really care about when we discuss property is that the thieves (yes… the kenyattas on top of the list) return the land!!! And rent by the rent-seekers…
the list includes mois, biwotts, etc… kind of what pattni was forced to do… then we can lease/rent/sell this land (thru a TRANSPARENT process)….
CT
And we are saying that land reforms should begin with redressing the land stolen by the British before independence.
This means that you and many others will have to vacate Nairobi and go back to your family’s land in Nyanza and God know wherever else or do you think that Nairobi does not have its original owners?
We will not accept land reforms that start only in 1963 – we also lost out to colonialists and this land is now occupied by others including towns and cities. We would want it back.
Kyuk O: Your true colours. Finally. I am KENYAN. So there is no Nyanza, Doonholm or Kizingo for me… It is KENYA…
crooked was ngengi stole from KENYA ans KENYANS. My KENYA. And I am a Nairobian. Thru and thru.
And ngengi did not keep his filthy paws confined to Central… he acted patriotic and stole in Rift Valley & Coast. Equal Opportunity Theft.
Oh… and please feel free to take back what was stolen by biwott & moi. For that matter please add pattni & merali to the list. Also ruto & jirongo. Basically… anyone who STOLE… even if it is Raila… I do not care who stole…
CT
You claim to be Kenyan yet you label me Kyuk O. Yes, it is true I am a Kikuyu from Kabete. I am not embarrassed by that fact.
I will also tell you that my family owned a huge chunk of what is the city of Nairobi today. We know the extent of our land that was taken forcefully by the colonialists in the period 1889-1903. It is all documented. We never got this land back at independence because we accepted the new constitutional order of willing seller willing buyer. And we also respect the property rights you like to sing about.
However, if there are going to land reforms, we want them to tackle the land that was lost to the colonialists as well – not just beginning 1963.
I am sure the Maasai will be very much interested in recovering the land they lost in the dubious agreement of 1904 and 1911.
Bring back the short, nasty and brutish life.
Joe is very right – you will read your blog down the road and wish you had not written some of the things on it.
You are a tribalist a kikuyu I would hate to be associated with. You have lived in the states to long, you point a finger at the very country you were born and raised. Your 2 sence would better serve kenyans if you were actually participating in in nation building not spectating and criticising.
You are disgusting.