29 February, 2008

Kenya Triumphs Over Post Poll Violence

The political impasse is now down and under after His Excellency the President Honourable Mwai Kibaki and His Premiership Honourable Raila Odinga signed a power sharing agreement that is to be entrenched in the Kenyan Constitution under a National Accord and Reconciliation Act .An almost euphoric celebration greeted the wider Kenya due to this recent development that will bring to an end two months of tension and violence.

It is my sincere hope that the International press the likes of Al Jazeera,CNN,BBC,SKY News will now feature this joyous news on a 15 minute basis to highlight that Kenyans are not just about machettes but co-existence ,perseverance, resilience,agreement,peace,love and unity.Dont just sell the negative.

There is afeeling of jubilation all around even right here at the office with people wishing each other a happy new year !but the real work starts so that it is not just Peace At Last but Peace That Will Last.With today being pay day many kKenyans will flock the carnivore for "Kenya Nite" to celebrate the beauty in diversity of the over 42 Kenyan Tribes.At a Nairobian Perspecive we join other bloggers around the Country in thanking all the Leaders who have been part and parcel of the process to ensure Peace prevails in our Country so that we can move on with our lives!

28 February, 2008

Kenya Blog Awards 2008

There are many notable Kenyan bloggers out there addressing serious issues and churning out useful information that is shaping the face and future of Kenya.However little attention is being paid towards rewarding and recognizing their efforts!

That is the subject of this thread and i hope the corporate industry especially the media fraternity will take the cue from the suggestions herein. The first and only time Kenyan bloggers were recognized and awarded for their efforts was in 2006 under the initiative of kenyaunlimited .The awards featured such categories as most innovative,creative and inspirational blog,best political, most humorous,best new blog,best blog not written in English,most interactive blogger,achievement award(for blogs started before 2005)outstanding membership to the kenyaunlimited blog aggregator website etc.The 2006 kaybee awards seem to have been the first and last thereafter little activity has been undertaken to recognize Kenyan bloggers.



The Kenyan blogosphere is rapidly developing and the bloggers are becoming more ingenious as is the case of blogs such as Mama Mikes,mentalacrobatics, jikomboe ,kumekucha...etc.

Many of us are indebted to the marsgroupkenya especially in its fight against corruption and whistle blowing yet it is sad to see that such efforts are hardly being recognized perhaps because there is no unity or unifying forum for Kenyan bloggers.The best efforts seems to be the Barcamps Kenya which are not limited to the blogosphere as an alternative medium for information and communication.I indeed invite Kenyan bloggers to a venture to recognize Kenyan blogs and i hope the media fraternity will support this initiative!I believe strongly the failure of what would be an annual event the kaybee awards was due to lack of support, a committed and resourceful secretariat,exposure and sponsorship.But that should not necessarily be the end of blog recognition in Kenya while the rest of the world prospers!


I am pleasantly informed to note that the journalistic group Reporters sans frontie`rs have an annual blog awards link here and recognize blogs defending freedom of expression which for the most part have been blogs in the Arab ,Asian and some few African (Egypt and Morocco)countries.Kenyan bloggers you need to arise don't read this blog and shelve the idea kindly contact me we begin something for posterity!

The South African 2008 blog awards are around the corner from 11 to 14 March 2008 .There is much we can borrow a leaf from them !Among the new categories include recognizing the best music blog,best sports blog,best website promoting blog,most controversial blog,best undiscovered blog,best podcast, best travel blog,best photographic blog(we produced Mohamed Amin of Camerapix we can do more!)best cookery blog .Participants and corporate well wishers are invited to contribute in kind towards the awards.The robust South African IT industry supports the events in a wholesome way donating laptops, computers,software ,money etc towards this event.The net effect is that blogging standards, innovation and blog quality in South Africa is rapidly developing and attracting a lot of investment from foreign markets.Same goes for the Nigerian blogosphere which is robust but slowly rising !

I am yet to see a Kenyan fashion blog yet blogging may just be the easiest way for our local fashion designers such as Anne Mc Reath of kikoromeo(fortunate enough to have a website),African Heritage,House of Brides(of Susan Omino),Betty Vanneti of The Wild Ones Creations,Sue Muraya,Rosemary Manyalla of Roma Designs, etc and those who are little known to showcase their works of art to the international fashion industry.A blog is basically a website that allows a user to post information whenever and wherever with little knowledge of web design,programming and development.

Kenyan bloggers should therefore take the cue.This should not be a mere part time activity or a forum for venting but should offer other significant opportunities.The nomination process should be fair and just since corruption seems to be a perennial problem in Kenya! The Kenyan corporate industry especially Google Kenya,Dell Computers,Microsoft East Africa, Wanainchi online,Safaricom,Celtel(K)Limited,Lowe Scanad.. etc should come out and support the Kenyan blog industry.

27 February, 2008

Will Kenya Burn!

The lapse and failure of the Koffi Annan mediation talks leading to their suspension brings to the fore the selfish nature and hypocrisy of Kenyan leaders.They have chosen the path of death and destruction under self deceit that they will not be harmed personally!It is indeed grim to arrive at such a conclusion and sincere Kenyans dont want to accept this as the eventuality.

Kenyan leaders please dont squander this moment of peace,later on the chaos will take a life of its own that even you will not be able to control!The fact that Militia have been found training under the guidance of police reservists and February 18 Movement militia should down on the leaders that we are not looking at a situation that will simply pass by.No blood should pour because of selfish and tribal decisions!May the protagonists wake up from their drunken stupor lest our lives and the posterity of your children be sacrificed for because of your selfish ambition and ignorance of reality. War knows no civility!

26 February, 2008

Improve Your Technorati Rank and Blog Traffic

More than a hundred thousand blogs are generated each day which means that extra effort must be employed for one's blog to remain competitive and retain visibility!That poses a fundamental challenge for African bloggers!For one we are not really blogging,two even our best blogs rarely generate good traffic and three most of the new blogs are coming from the developed countries where there are a lot of resources and information sharing on how to blog effectively!

I am a Nairobi University law graduate and it surprises me just how many of my colleagues maintain a personal blog even those who graduated from faculties dealing with ICT. At the same time i know of only one or two of my friends who have a web blog but i encourage more and more Kenyans to please start a blog!Truthfully speaking access to the internet and internet based facilities in Africa is severely limited (im only seeing a pleasing level of ingenuity's in South African,Nigerian and Egyptian blogs and websites)however that is no excuse for the disinterest in the blogosphere by many well educated Africans who have access to the internet.

Theres quite a limited number of African bloggers who appreciate the usefulness of Technorati or Page ranking(google, alexa etc).Few even know the benefits of link baiting or commenting on other peoples websites!I intend to post links to items and posts that i have found beneficial around the blogosphere henceforth.I believe as a continent we should not fall far behind from our contemporaries in this modern information sharing portal!

It is essential that one generates good traffic for his or her blog a useful website is http://www.seomoz.org with an article 21-tactics-to-increase-blog-traffic
that i have found to be pretty useful.

It is essential also that one sumits his blog to a number of directories for a list of 50 free directories one can submit his blog to please visit this link: www.bloggingmix.com

Theres also a nice article here on how to improve your Technorati rank: www.openjason.com

To get a honest review of your website and genuine traffic dedicated to reading your blog try linkreferral

I will add more useful articles to this list soon,dont just google you will end up visiting sites that have no useful content but desire to get traffic.Getting good information on blogging resources is like searching for a needle in a haystack!

23 February, 2008

Oscars this Weekend!


After a week full of routine work stuff,one always wonders what the weekend portends!Will it be the usual wine and dine,watching movies,house cleaning,going out on a date,if you are a notable blogger and take delight in blogging, well weekends may just create the time for you to blog or do something else thats interesting(for now traveling about and vacationing in Kenya is out of question!).

Well for me i may just catch one cold Tusker at Buru Buru but what im most definately looking foward to is watching the 80th Anniversary of the Oscar awards!The first Oscar academy awards was handed down on May 16,1929.From quite an early period Americans appreciated the art manifested in their film industry by their local actors.I wish the same could be said of the African film industry!

I hope that MNET will broadcast them live this Sunday Evening!.I love good movies and good acting,too sad that there is not much hype about the local movie industry.At least for the music industry there is Kisima Awards,if our local productions(including Riverwood Productions) are to develop and progress then we need notable local film and movie festivals to reward and recognize talent.Interestingly the only Oscars not to have been broadcasted live was the 1929 one,ever since all the rest have had almost fever pitch media broadcast.For local film industry to prosper the media must play an exciting role educating the masses on the talent that is out there,we need to recognize our producers,directors,screen writers,actors and actresses,authors and other key personnel that contribute to good entertainment.The local actors also need a a feel of the red carpet.At the same time a local film award ceremony may just create a market for the local fashion industry and designers to showcase their products through celebrities.

Well for now im going through the nominee list at least to see what i've watched and it seems i have poor movie habits.I can trace movies like Bourne Ultimatum which is slotted in Best Sound Editing,Best Sound Mixing and Best Film editing categories.Ratatouille is nominated in the Best feature film category,Pirates of the Caribean:At Worlds End is slotted for best make up and visual effects.In the Leading Actor role category we have the perennial giants,Johhny Depp,George Clooney,Tommy Lee Jones,Daniel Ray Lewis and Viggo Mortensen!Now thats action to look foward to.Have a nice weekend!

22 February, 2008

Social Website Link Promising Money In Kind!

Theres a social website called qassia! currently on Beta stage that is absolutely marvelous for bloggers who aim at making money on the side from their venture.Unfortuantely to access it one must be invited.The site promises qassia dollars 500$ per referall if one refers a new blogger within 12 hours from signing up.For an invite please click on my link and submit your site otherwise you cannot access the website.Try and you will find that to be true!The link is http://collinsom92.qassia.com/ thereafter refer as many people as you can.

Thats just a cool thought for Africans who decide to Pro Blog!

20 February, 2008

Queer Activity in Mathare Slums!

Violence has returned to Mathare Area 1 following what residents are claiming to be forceful evictions of tenants belonging to certain ethnic communities allegedly for non-failure to pay rent. It is stated that this was done yesterday under police supervision although this allegation is uncornfirmed!

This latest event has sparked the anger of residents from the communities concerned and is threatening the peace that was prevailing due to the Koffi Annan mediation talks.Certain actions are ill advised and illegal.As the Government insists"the law must be followed".As far as i know of ,there is no provision of law that requires a resident to be forcefully evicted out of a premise save under police supervision following a Court Order which is not the case herein.

This selective application of the law and capriciousness threatens the stability of Kenya and the East African Region.It may as well lead to despondency and scuttle the talks if not closely watched !The Citizenry is charged and nothing should be undertaken that could result in more violence and or tension.Life is just too precious to be handled in a carefree manner.The pain and suffering is just too much but all responsible will be held to account before the universal court that God has been constituted to judge human governments(Dan 7:9&10,11,13&14,2:44,) and the result is fatal.This prophecy is certain and must be fulfilled.In fact in Mathew 6:10 Jesus as the King designate urged his disciples to pray for God's Kingdom(Government) to comewhich is the true solution to human governments since they have failed and are beyond repair.Too bad Christendom masses and their leaders have no faith and keep on turning attention to entities that are bound to fail!

19 February, 2008

Pakistan Elections Results-Lessons for Kenyans

When it became apparent that "all the Kings Men had gone{fallen}"the head of the Pakistan Muslims League -Q conceeded defeat!This basically meaning the militant Pakistan President Pervez Musharaff will be sitting on opposition benches.

One would expect seeing that he is a hardliner he would stick to power and use all the tricks in the book to stay put,but thats not it.Any lessons for Kenyan leaders...............???????I hope so though quite too late.Of the official results for 137 seats in the national assembly:
  • Pakistan Peoples Party of assasinated former prime minister Benazir Bhutto had won 39 seats
  • Pakistan Muslim League-N of former prime minister Nawaz Sharrif had captured 39 seats also
  • Pervez Musharaffs Pakistan Muslim League -L party had 33 seats,

Unnoficial results place Pakistan Peoples Party with over 149 seats out of the 272 National Assembly seats.The final results are expected later this evening!With due certainty "the peoples voice had spoken and needed to be respected".

Election related death in Pakistan is officially confirmed at a minimum 24 deaths.But one can imagine the level of mayhem were Mr Musharaff to interfere with the electoral process!He is on record promising to work with whoever wins and rather than practice confrontational politics to practice conciliatory politics.There is definately a lesson Kenyan Leaders can grasp here.The blame game doesnt work accross bare facts.The peoples voice is sacrosanct and should be respected!

16 February, 2008

CNBC LAUNCHES SERVICE IN AFRICA


On the 1st June 2007 the first 24 hour live international business channel in sub saharan Africa began broadcasting in Johanessburg, South Africa.Come the 21st of February 2008 CNBC Africa will begin airing from its Kenyan Bureau to local and DSTV subscribers through channel 47 .

Africa is rich in economic resources and has a robust and diverse financial market that needs to be tapped into.However unlike Russia,America,Australia,Britain,Japan, China and other leading economies there is no common pull or denominator to interlink dynamicaly the various economic facets and players of the Continent so as to benefit all the economic actors singurlarly and collectively.Information sharing and transfer is severely hindered due to the partitioned nature of the continent into its various regional trade blocks and individual country forums.Getting authoritative ,accurate and ready information about the different markets accross the continent has been a challenge.That is about to change drastically with the entry of CNBC Africa !

The CNBC media group has set itself as the worlds leading financial information portal reaching around 200 million households worldwide!According to Mr Zaffar Siddiqi Africans will for the first time be able to receive a truly global view of each business day as it unfolds.The group has launched Bureaus in Nairobi,Lagos,Abuja and capetown in Africa and will definately be opening more Bureaus.

The launch of the chanel in Africa and Kenya more particurlarly is a milestone in the region.The channel promises indepth analysis of the business environment in Kenya ,across the region and internationaly,real time financial and business news,commentary and programming among other positive facets.Kenyans will be able to see markets open and close accross the world thereby enhancing not only their local but international perspective of business on a global scale.The Kenya bureau chief will be Mr Richard Crompton who is set to lead a team of experienced and well trained local and international journalist in steering the local bureau to greater heights!Among the local familiar faces will be Terryanne Chebet former news anchor for KBC Channel 1.

Indeed excitement is rife amidst both the local and ointernational business community and investors as to the launch of the channel.The benefits will be definately immense and here at the Nairobian Perspective we bid CNBC Africa all the best in their endeavours to empower the African Business community and populace.Information is key in this information age!

15 February, 2008

Smiley Central Keeps Kenyans Smilling !

We 've been through tough times as a country and pretty seious faces around us.Its sad according to see that the comedian Walter Mongare will also be leaving Kiss Fm sometime next month after giving notice.Ths is according to todays Pulse Magazine meaning that apart from Papa Shirandula and other Comedies on tely we will not have much of local comedy!

Anyway from me i will always take delight in my smiley central avatars and smileys arent they cute!Get the latest 3g smileys from smiley central by just clicking on the advert to get some!


Kenya-Keeping the Hope Despite A Crisis!

Kenyan political crisis chief mediator Mr.Koffi Annan and his team are set to announce a partial agreement after a retreat at the prestigious Tsavo national park!However as the public and the international community eagerly anticipates an end to the current political crisis a segment of the Kenyan media and some politicians seems to be failing in their mandate to keep hope alive !

Todays Eaststandard Newspaper bears the title 48 Hours Later and No Deal Yet!whereas its counterpart and chief competitor The Daily Nation bears a more positive headline" Annans team strikes half -way deal in talks".Itis this kind of responsible journalism that Kenyans are looking foward to and proud off!We should not always paint the picture to be gloomy or grim!I would advise the same thing to Minister Martha Karua whose face potrays obstinancy and pessimism!Kenya is at crossroads on the brink of disaster!We are on a make it or break it state.It therefore stands to reason that the normal uphanded kind of responses must be toned down!We cannot afford to loose this country due to interests that countermand the will of the marjority lest we steer forth into a course of disaster.Failed states were once great !mistakes upon other mistakes are what often leads to failed states and so does arrogance.We need the Peace despite personal interest,ideo-pyschofancy,name calling ,grand standing amongst other things within the political class who will soon realise that like proverbial Humpty Dumpty they are sitting high up on a wall and can fall with fatal consequences if they forget the nature of Humans response to bad leadership!

The issue before Kenya is commanding greater international attention than ever before.The German Minister of State Mr. Gernot Erler is currently in the Country to assist the mediation parties not to have a grim picture of Grand Coalitions especially in times of crisis .Germany as a developed Country has had experience with grand coalition in times past with a measure of success and this seems to be the stand the international community is taking with regards to Kenya.American Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice is expected to butress this position in her visit next week .She will be here to lend weight to the position that the mediation must work and must represent the collective will and diversity of the Kenyan People.PNU and ODM-K and KANU the core members of the current government are perceived not to represent the diversity and face of Kenya in fact they represent a minority!That is the stark reality and perception of many Kenyans and more or less a precipitate for the current violence!If only the political protagonists could empathise and feel the pain in their own heart of the many people who have lost loved ones,property and belongings then the grandstanding,obstinancy,pursuit of power would cease!

At the same time certain precerpts and principles of Law such as equality of States,principle of Non-Intervention are a de facto fallacy!Kenya, the African Union and Countries such as China should come to grasp with it.Otherwise Saddam Hussein would be still in power,there would be no elections in Pakistan and Iran would be making use of nuclear power for militaristic purposes but that is not the case.If the Mwai Kibaki Administration stiffens its neck, it may just soon break under the weight of international"concern".

13 February, 2008

Tusker Project Fame 2008

Tusker project fame 2006 took reality tv in the east african region to new heights!Project fame 2008 is expected to be exceedingly better!Theres already too much hype surrounding the event that seeks to tap into the musical talents of young vibrant aspiring musicians from the East African region through a perfomance academy, setting them up for a record deal that can earn them international fame.But the audience this time expects better! 12 contestants will be chosen from a series of region wide auditions to participate in the closed house academy.


(NB: UPDATE ON WINNER AT http://siku-moja.blogspot.com/2008/06/ugandan-esther-mugizi-wins-tpf-2.html
)
Audition forms can be downloaded at the official website for the 2008 tusker project fame which is: http://www.tuskerprojectfame.com/

The last event was most definately mirred by well founded claims of bias and prejudice by the Judges who were predominantly Kenyan and favoured Kenyan participants prompting one of the hosts Ugandan Kate Gaetano(of Big Brother Africa Fame )to openly challenge the judges to show some objectivity!This year we expect better.Our eyes are seriously focused on the organisers and hope that they will this time recruit reputable ,non partisan and objective judges from both local and international music and entertainment industry to steer the event. The show will be produced by Endemol East Africa who have an impressive array of international experience portofolio to match up with the event which will consume a whooping Kenya shillings350 million from the main sponsor East African Breweries Limited (EABL)!

Up for grabs this time will be a recording contract with Galo/Johnic records,Kenya shillings 5,000,000 and a state of art luxurious Mercedez Benz among other goodies for the winner!The winner this time is expected to exceed the talent that was captured in Valerie Kimani whose debut album Baiskeli is actually doing well in international markets but receiving fairly limited play and recognition in the domestic market.This is both good and bad, good because it stems Piracy ;bad because she has limited exposure and her talent is burried down under.Our entertainment buds are watered and eagerly awaiting and anticipating this seven week event!


LOL
The contestants are now in the house, 5 Kenyans, 5 Ugandans and 5 Tanzanians.The official grand opening was yesterday the 13 April, 2008.Somehow there was this feel that Tanzanians can hardly sing but rap! I hope the entrants in the academy will correct this misconception.

Citizen Tv will be bringing us live daily updates in Kenya ,while Star tv is the channel to wartch in Uganda.So lets get the conversation going and comment your views here as you can see this site has a high page ranking and im certain the contestants will be reading!LET THE SINGING BEGIN!

LOL

I have updated my post on the ongoings at the academy,here is the link>
http://siku-moja.blogspot.com/2008/04/tusker-project-fame-faces-to-watch.html


LOL

After the 4th may,2008 project fame show im sure most most viewers will agree with me, the judges need to go home! they seem to be pursuing a personal vendetta rather than being objective about the "elimination competition".If Ian reads this let him remember to stick to the issues and remain fair!Being egocentric never did anyone good in the long run.Non performers really must go and nobody should be put on probation in place of another who deservedly needs to be there!Probation puts one on the elimination list first and foremost,the issue of improving ones performance is secondary!Ama ?????



Need business leads?




12 February, 2008

Neverblue ads versus Ad sense

Its not in doubt that Google blazes the trail when it comes to internet marketing!But smaller firms are now getting up their game !I particurlarly have found Never blue Ads the perfect partner when it comes to affiliate marketing!

Ever since signing up with them the experience has been fruitful and the commision checks are my way out to hosting this site on its own domain name.It is ultimately the goal of any blogger not only to generate traffic but also derive appreciation from the target audience.In this venture key ,trustworthy partners are essential.The neverblue advertisement interface is quite easy to use and has customised ads that incorporate well with a websites content.This may not be the blog with the most traffic in Africa but certainly with its current share of traffic and partnership with neverblue ads,i can handle my own!

11 February, 2008

African Pro Blogging!

Blogging is not just a part time activity but serious business and good bloggers are able to rake in millions!The reality that blogging can be a source of good income is starting to gain ranks in Africa especially in South Africa where a few pro bloggers are starting to emerge!
234x60

Blogging as a source of alternative information outlet and business market had its start and genesis in the early nineties with such renowned persons as Justin Hall,Brad Fitzpatrick(publisher of the Live Journal)Jerry Pournelle,Markos Moulitas Z`uniga(Dail Koz) Anna Marie Cox(Wonkette)among other pioneer bloggers getting prominence from their weblogs which often featured political articles.Pro blogging however is a recent phenomenom gaining prominence as from 2001 where certain bloggers have began to generate revenue through affiliate marketing, product review ,endorsements etc.The January 2005 fortune magazine listed some eight bloggers that Business in Europe and the USA cannot afford to ignore including Peter Rojas,Xeni Jordin,Ben Trott,Mena Trott,Jonathan Schwart,Jason Goldman,Robert Scoble and Jason Calacanis .This illustrates the power and pull that effective market oriented blogs can have!

Another story of succes in blogging is illustrated in the Life of Greek born pundit Arriana Huffington( of huffingtonpost) who prior to 2005 was the usual day to day author with an opinion on almost everything.Her blog generates at present a massive three million hits a month and has a full editorial team to match up the consumer expectation.While her previous political background,hollywood associates and high ranking friends definately gave impetus and recognition to her blog,the ulimate success of the blog came fromher adept skills at social marketing.

However making a succes out of blogging is easier said than done!Great skill and strategy is needed since competition in the blogosphere is stiff.Technorati monitors over 12 million blogs and yet hundreds of thousands are being churned daily focusing on different niches.

The blogosphere is awash with numerous articles on how to make it big with bloggers such as johnchow, problogger generating money by boasting on how theyve made money via the web and how their readers can do the same.But the truth lies in the fact that blogs are social tools and the best way of generating traffic is through social networks i.e creating friends,links and ultimately a readership niche.There are no great secrets.Therefore if an african blogger intends to monetize he or she has to develop a localized readership base before they can make it big on the world wide web. Interestingly despite the fact that Africa is so extensive due to inadequate blogger activity most blogger awards have one category for Africa and the Middle East .That in effect details the amount of work African bloggers have to take inorder to gain a distinct recognition for their content.There is at present no notable African Pro blogger that one can easily refer to with a readership base and economic success accross the Continent.

The IT giants Microsoft and Google are constantly involved in technological wars over dominance of the blogosphere since as was experienced in the rathergate scandal ; blogs are a powerful source of influence and they are gaining immense popularity blogs are the next pitch.It therefore stands that the african blogosphere must rapidly expand and develop inorder to establish its presence on the world stage.The south african blogosphere is actually doing tremendously well in this regards! A number of African bloggers are getting due attention internationaly such as aquilaonline which has made it to the top 100,000 ranking on technorati afrigadget adii , cherryflava ,SArocks, vegandiet

There are several start up web companies doing well in South africa blogosphere such as:

  1. Afrigator exclusively African blog aggregator founded by South African Mark Stopforth,Stiaan Pretorious among others
  2. Amatomu South African blog aggregator
  3. Amagama blogging community for wordpress blogs
  4. Modelbase online photo portofolio for south african models and photographers
  5. Synthasite browser based Ajax website construction tool
  6. Blueworld south african based social network
  7. Muti South African Social bookmarking site
  8. Offerforge south african and US based affiliate ad network

The rest of Africa is yet to catch up with the trend!Make Money online with eBay


09 February, 2008

Online Cinema Booking-Nu Metro Cinemas

Its a weekend as usual many Kenyans will out and about nairobi maybe catching a bite on nyama choma at the local joints or going to watch a movie at their favourite cinema halls(village market,Nakumatt Junction,Prestige,Sarit Centre,Twentieth Century,Kenya Cinema..etc).Personally im moved to go watch a movie,however i cannot book online .Not only that ,i cant even get the listings via the web! what a shame!

Kenya has two screening rivals the Fox Theatre Group with nine screens and the Nu-Metro Cinema stores with 10 screens however none of the companies have embraced online booking meaning internet lovers cannot browse for the latest movie listings.The only way to go is by looking at newspaper listings,TV adverts or by physically going to the cinema halls.I find that to be archaic.With websites taking a huge chunk of movie advertisements i find the local competitors to be selling themselves short.

Futhermore im sure that most of the tourists visiting Kenya after being to Maasai Mara,Lake Magadi,Mombasa,Serengeti etc when back at the City from the confines of their hotel rooms would really love to surf the internet and get the latest movie listings and directions to the Cinema halls from the official distributors sites!As for now there left with little choice apart from kenyaclubbers site a website with local cinema listings!What they get at home should definately not miss in Kenya.

We have websites such as flixter having quizes,listing,new releases,movie previews ...etc .I hope the Local South african based Nu Metro cinemas and Fox Theatres will take this suggestions firmly.Advertise using the internet please...we are not that behind!


(UPDATE) from Frida's comment hereunder it seems in After a almost a year since this post my concerns have been addressed) now that's blogger power!Thanks Nu Metro we appreciate







08 February, 2008

Homeboyz Radio-Coming Home to Roost!

Kenya's premier Dj Group;the Homeboyz yesterday added a new addition to their homeboyz franchise:the radio chanel 96.5,homeboyz radio(complete with a new website found at http://www.homeboyzradio.co.ke/) and the new station has taken the media market by storm.

The radio station is churning out mad vibes that will definately keep most of the youth and middle ages listeners listening on!The move is likely to send the leading radio station such as Kiss 100.3 F.M(famous for its Caroline Mutoko and Walter Mongare alias Nyambane morning shows)Capital 98.4 F.M,Nation Media's Easy 96.4 F.M(with presentors such as Munene Nyaga,Talia Oyando etc),and Classic 105F.M (famous for its Maina Kageni and Churchill who doubles up as Mwalimu Kingang`i and Philgoneas) back to their drawing boards as the DJ's have vast experience and unequaled music resources to keep the crowd up and listening and the past one day has just demonstrated that! The Homeboyz group has grown in Leaps and bounds and now encompasses Homeboyz Radio,Homeboyz Eventing Company,the Music Technology Academy(MTA),Homeboyz DJ Agency,Homeboyz Record Label,Soundtraxx Limited,Beats Per Minute(BPM) Magazine,Club Bpm...the boyz are now men and surely going places.

The traditional stations have one main disadvantage;they frequently and repeatedly play a song(dubbed local hit) until it becomes sore to the ears!The same can hardly be said of Homeboyz Radio except that they need to tone down on the scratching bit a little. Radio music is a different niche from a club gig.But here at a Nairobians Perspective we would like to congratulate the Homeboyz group for their innovativeness,creativity and entrepeneurship psyche that has seen them grow in heaps and bounds(now employing over 40 staff).

Word of caution though ,keep it real,keep it competive because the sky is the limit.We look foward to the launch of Homeboyz TV!

Pss:Just had to add this to this post,Homeboyz are really representing the streets with the likes of Sheila Rabala,G Money in the morning, Koi,DJ John,DJ Hassan,DJ Wesley,Dj Nruff,DJ Kaydee.I listened to DJ John on Friday evening and the musi was awesome!The station is really setting the standards in the industry, no overplaying of songs like kiss does.Its the place to tune @ for Well mixed grooves,Genge,latest Local remixes,Club H2O,Bongo...etc.Homeboyz keep it up, n if you are reading this express your appreciation for homeboyz mad beats by commenting here and letting them know u are appreciating nuff ! sawa....proudly Kenyan!

Tis also good to see that they are sponsoring this years Impala Floodlit Rugby Tournament(2008).Thats what we call giving back to society!The real Deal !

CallingAmerica.com Free USA Calls !


07 February, 2008

Chronicles to a Kenyan Catastrophe !

I verily agree with the Government and human rights organisation that nothing happens by accident.Often events happen due to premeditated steps and events.But there is alot of culpability on the part of those in authority towards the human rights abuses,death and mayhem witnessed in Kenya.The following is a chronicle of events that may have contributed to the current impasse:
  1. December 27,2002: the election of Hon Mwai Kibaki by a grand coalition on a platform of reforms and zero tolerance to corruption facilitated (at the time and as still is Kenya was ranked as one of the most corrupt nations on earth.With a growing level of the educated class corruption is least tolerated)by a Memorandum of Understanding(MOU)between the then opposition parties.
  2. January 2003, appointments of ministers and other civil servants against the spirit and content of the MOU signed by the Narc Constituent parties leads to mistrust and infighting within the NARC government.
  3. September 2003:Hastily done radical surgery of the Judiciary resulting in dismisal and resignation of a number of Judges(6 out of the 11 Court of appeal Judges,17 out of 36 High Court Judges,82 out of 252 magistrates suspended).The move aimed at instilling discipline in the Judiciary ends up creating a polarised partialised judiciary one which is poised to favour the political masters and lacks the overwhelming confidence of the opposition and major sections of the citizenry.Allegations of witch hunting permeate the exercise.
  4. November 21, 2005:The Referendum:Government side looses having sidelined the Bomas Constitution draft that was arrived at after a very thorough consultative forum of Kenyans from all walks of life.The then minister for security rubishes some of the insitutions proposed by Kenyans to devolve power stating that the same were not necesarry at the moment as they were aimed at removing President Moi.Negative ethnicity starts to set in.
  5. November, 2005:The demise of NARC(national alliance rainbow coalition) following defeat at the referendum,the Government sacked all renegade ministers.Tribal cabals begin to emanate leading to the formation of Orange Democratic Movement(ODM) party.
  6. January to May 2006:The Armenian(Artur Saga) that results on affront on Kenya Media(Standard Media Raid).This was not only a public shame but an insult to the sovereignty of the Kenyan people.Kenyans feel scorned by how the Government handled and facillitated the gross abuse of the Kenyan laws by the armenian duo.Signs of a government facing turbulent times.
  7. January 21, 2007"Compose mentis"(intent to commit felony)The unilateral appointment without any consultation of Nine Electoral Commisioners by the President against the spirit of the 1992 Inter Parliamentary Political Parties agreement(IPPG) that all the political actors be involved in the selection of commisioners .This done under the backdrop of a lost referendum and mounting pressure on the President to consult indicates something is aloof!and that there is determinedness by the political class to go against the will of the people at all costs.
  8. November to December 24 2007:Election campaign period marked by intense propaganda,shameless name calling,abuses especially from the Government side"with the domo domo"slogan being used.
  9. December,23, 2007 Dispatch of administration policemen through public transport and in civilian clothings to oversee the election under the cover of darkness!allegations of advance rigging are raised by the opposition through the media.A number of administration policemen are arrested and killed by mobs who claim they will not allow any rigging.Police Commisioner decries that these deaths were not really necessary and could have been avoided.Investigative journalism gets audio-visual statements from administration policemen about the impending rigging.This statements are aired on national TV.
  10. December 28, 2007:Election day marked by various irregularities especially in some stations such as Langata constituency.
  11. December 31, 2007 Election results announced declaring Honourable Mwai Kibaki as Presidential winner amidst protest from the Orange Democratic Movement of massive flaws.The President is hastily sworn in at state house shortly thereafter .
  12. The 2007 elections tallying process fail to meet the standards of modern democracy as per the international observes and domestic observers.ECK commisioners and chair allege that there could have been irregularities and that it is impossible to determine the winner.This being done after the fact.
  13. All hell breaks loose!Civil unrest,Police brutality,Ethnic cleansing,looting... etc
  14. January, 2008:ECK through paid newspaper announcements try to justify the results and through legalese(subject to interpratation)try to revoke the statements of the chair made after the election.

The trail of events leaves overwhelming evidence of citizen discontent that cannot be wished away by even the die hard supporters of the incumbent.True nationhood however presupposes that Kenya must accept and come to face the glaring maladministration and eventualities that have led to the massive loss of life,inequalities ,pain and suffering of iits citizenry most of whom have no political affiliations and did not even vote!Failure to address the gross injustices is not only demonic but a recipe for future skirmishes, rebellion etc that will have greater fatalities and effects than has been witnessed.The Kenyan population is too educated to merely gloss over disparities and injustices that they witness from leaders of whatever political or religious affiliation.Corruption past and present must be addresed and just solutions be reached.

Political leaders must be reminded that it does not require one to pull a trigger to be judged a murderer.Any act or ommision that places Kenyan citizens in grave or fatal danger constitutes murder.The sanctity of the vote and the will of the Kenyan electorate must be respected.Anyhing short of that is a recipe for chaos.

The Biblical David sent Uriah to the front battle lines knowing so well he would die and for that he was branded a murderer.Hence things are not O.K or returning to normal,it is not business as usual, the religious clergy unlike the biblical prophet Nathan are bipartisan and hiding the truth away from the leaders who truly bear responsibility for the skirmishes,murder and untold suffering that Kenyans have experienced.All this could have been avoided and peace maintained if the electoral process had not been tampered with.The consciousness of the perpatrators condemn them despite grandstanding statements and machismo being propagated around.Our worst enemy and best friend is our conscious which will always condemn us even if we put up a front.

Maintaining the status quo against the background of the above chronological events will result in greater harm,entreching of enmity and hatred and a turbid future for this Country!That is hard talk and a reality that cant be wished way not even with the stringent critisicm and ignorance of facts!


05 February, 2008

Koffi Annan Mediation-Make or Break!

Today is the day when the Koffi Annan led mediation talks will make or break the stalemate between ODM and PNU over the disputed presidential poll!The future of this otherwise previously a peaceful haven hinges on the shoulder of the panelist which features politicians and lawyers alike e.g Mutula Kilonzo,James Orengo,Martha Karua,Moses Wetangula... etc.The panel is set to discuss the contentious Presidential election and agree on modalities to cure the current impasse with both ODM nad PNU having taken hardline stances in the media forum.

The panelist need to peer deep into their sub-consciusness and meditate on what a wrong move would mean for the stability not only of Kenya but the region.The international community has already expressed their stand"that Kenya is too important to be allowed to self destruct"as per Michael Rannenberger(U.S Ambassador to Kenya).This means that we are looking at international imposition of decision(diplomatic term "intervention" )if the Koffi Annan Mediation fails to break ground.The threat of intervention(economic,political or otherwise) should compel the mediation teams to accept a proposal that will be acceptable to the collective will of the people.As it stands you cannot rule over persons determined not to be led by you hence the decision must a priori be acceptable to the wider population.That being the concept of democracy!

01 February, 2008

UN Security Council on Kenya's Violence !

The UN Security Council deplores the ongoing violence witnessed after a deeply flawed Presidential Elections.The Current security Council President Mr Giadalla Ettalhi of Libya called on both Mr Raila Odinga and Mr Mwai Kibaki to do all in their power to stem the violence being experienced in most parts of the country and slowly edging the country towards civil war.

The fact that this matter has caught the attention of the security council(the most powerful organ of the UN )should shake the hardliners within both camps to relax their stances and adopt what is most suitable for the Country, which is a just and equitable solution to the problem.The U.N secreatry general Mr Ban Ki Moon is expected in the Country this mornng to bolster the efforts of Mr Koffi Annan in the mediation process aimed at breaking the stalemate and addresing the issues that gave rise to the violence!Mr Ban Ki Moon has called upon the leaders to"Look beyond individual interest,look beyond the party lines.Look towards the future,the brighter future of your country"

The Kenyan situation is quite critical for African stability and the African Union is poised to discuss the issue.According to UNICEF there are close to 80,000 to 100,000 children leaving in the internally displaced persons camps which goes to signify the extent of the catastrophe that Kenya is currently in.Indeed we hope that common sense,the desire for posterity should move the two leaders to arrive to a just settlement.

LinkWithin

Related Posts with Thumbnails