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Tuwakenya is Re-Branding to Kinyaa.Com

by 1327459133

Posted on Saturday, April 22, 2017 07:08 PM

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It has been a long time, Tuwakenya has posted since 2013, we were even offline from sometime in 2015, but now we are back, and ever more refreshed. We are calling ourselves Kinyaa.Com and our refreshed mission is simple, to share and learn.

Let's share and learn from each other on Business, Tech, Facts, Sports, Science and most importantly, Elections. Don't be afraid to ask the difficult questions, we shall be here to answer them.

In case you are wondering what Kinyaa means, Kinyaa is the original spelling or rather the correct spelling of our beloved country Kenya, for more details, check out this wikipedia page.

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Miguna Miguna Says - 15th July 2012

by simon

Posted on Sunday, July 15, 2012 01:55 PM

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Next book to be launched early December (WHY KENYANS ARE BITTER WITH RAILA)..

Why I Know Raila Will Never Be President of Anywhere

· Our only beacon of hope, Jaramogi Oginga Odinga, had not only failed to clinch the presidency, but had miserably performed disastrously, in 1992. Outgunned and outpaced, Jaramogi was beaten to a poor fourth behind Daniel arap Moi, Kenneth Matiba and Mwai Kibaki respectively. The Luo voted to a man. We had learnt our lessons and in 1997, the excitement was measured. Come 2002, we were happy, we had avenged Jaramogi Oginga Odingas defeat by voting a winning candidate; but then again, the euphoria outplayed a prank on us, we were blind, so much that we forgot His Excellency The President and Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces of The Republic of Kenya, Hon. E. Mwai Kibaki wasnt a Luo, nay, he wasnt an Oginga, he was not one of us

· Come 2007, Raila Odinga lucratively rallied the support of the populous Rift Valley Province and was faring well in opinion polls against the incumbent Mwai Kibaki. We were sure to win; areas that had hitherto not voted with the Luos had shown they were willing to do business. Nothing could stop our grand march to State House. Then something went wrong, very wrong, mathematics laws were somewhat defied by the then ECK (Electoral Commission of Kenya). For instance, in Nithi, the announced poll results exceeded the registered number of voters; the numbers just failed to add up, Mwai Kibaki won. Raila couldnt believe it, and refused to accept defeat, refused to go to court, setting the country aflame! The rest is history

·Yet again, Raila is making a stab at the presidency, and we Luos are being rallied to vote in, one of our own. Anybody of a contrary opinion or dares oppose our tribes candidate is a traitor. This is our time, our hope and our dream; our only chance to throw out the yoke of poverty and start the march to prosperity and opulence. We are also told, that the march will not commence until and unless we win the presidency, and we shall only commence this march upon Raila Odinga, and not Onyango Oloo, not Raphael Tuju nor James Orengo, nor Othis nor Othat winning the presidency. Any other win is fake and not truly Luo. Or so we are told

· Until recently, it was noticeable that nothing was stopping Agwambo from winning the coveted trophy. After all, two of the leading presidential candidates Uhuru Kenyatta and William Ruto had been enmeshed, heavily chained by the International Criminal Court (ICC) development. Their fate was apparently sealed. Kalonzo Musyoka was considered weak against Railas campaign juggernaut, water melon. But then, yet again, something went wrong, very wrong! The ICC watered down our (Luo) sky-scraping ambitions, by confirming that nothing, not even the confirmation of the charges against the two would bar them from the contest! Coupled with Railas steady collapse in opinion polls, the numbers may just refuse to add up yet again as they did in 2007 and 1992, but this time round, indisputably and obvious, within mathematical laws. It is thus my opinion, which I know is right and I wouldnt care to be punished by the family for being right to tell my community that we have to awaken to reality, it is now time and imperative that we Luos start thinking and voting like the rest of Kenyans. Not by tribal enclaves. Arent we seeing Maasais, Luhyas, Kalenjins, Kikuyus, Kambas and the Swahili combining forces in various forums and platforms, business, political or otherwise, just to mention a few of the 42 ethnicities of Kenya. We couldnt be more myopic than to imagine we Luos voting for a Luo as a president for the simple reason of being a Luo; we couldnt be more tribal than others to hate 2007 presidential aspirant Madam Nazlin for being a non-Luo, or Eugene Wamalwa and Musalia Mudavadi for being Luhya, ole Kiyiapi for being Maasai, Ruto for being Kalenjin, Peter Kenneth, Martha Karua and Uhuru Kenyatta for being Kikuyus, Kalonzo Musyoka for being a Kamba and Kamlesh Pattni for being a Hindu. Consider this, other Kenyan communities are already strategically placed should Raila, Uhuru, Ruto or Kalonzo win. A case in point is Kikuyus carpooling with us; For the Kikuyu, the likes of Peter Kuguru, Mark Mwithaga, Wambugu Ngunjiri, Charles Njonjo, Joe Wanjui, Royal Medias Samuel K. Macharia, and Stanley Githunguri are pitching in Railas camp. No one has exclusivity, save for messianic descent, to save any community from its economic and social afflictions. Didnt someone say that freewill is for all but freedom is for they that deserve it? Let it be known that even though the Kikuyus and the Kisiis may be said to be affluent, many of them are still shackled in dire paucity, and though we Luos may be termed as poor, some of us are incredibly wealthy, point is, a Luo president wont sort us out, not every rich Kikuyu has shaken hands with Mzee Jomo Kenyatta or His Excellency the President and Commander in Chief of the Republic of Kenya, meaning that whether you will live in poverty or wealth is usually a question of individual efforts. Let no one associate our poverty and misery with Luo inability to win the presidency. If that be the case, are the Luhya, the Meru, Kisii, Maasai, or Swahili, faring worse, just because they have not held the presidency? And can somebody explain the whereabouts of the famed half loaf of 2008! By that I mean, why then would we be having poor Luos living in slums and shanties, and others squirming in hunger and lack in our rural Luo Nyanza when we have our very own exceedingly wealthy father as the Prime Minister? Nothing could be as odious and egregious as taking advantage of your own kinsmens ignorance after they sacrificed a lot to take you to school to get educated and voted for you to represent them; it is akin to predating on your own family. Whats in it for me or, for you as a person, if he becomes the president? How has he helped you as a Luo, now that he has been in the government and powerful for 10 years, since 2002? What reforms will he invent overnight that he hasnt for 10 years in the government? Nothing to add! Everything is in black and white

· In 1992, the Kikuyu had both Matiba and Kibaki. In 2002 they had Kibaki and Uhuru and come next year they already have not less than five candidates from different parties. The rest of the country has several candidates. They are at peace and very amicable with their campaigns, except us, Luo land, where hooligans break up meet-the-people tours with our trademark missiles-style (stone throwing, or could someone correct me if it was in a dream or real I watched in dismay, shame and embarrassment as our youths pelted our brother and son Raphael Tujus political rally for the only crime of not being born in the right family)? I say, lest we develop selective amnesia, Luo Nyanza has slightly over one million ( approx1.2million)votes against GEMAs estimated voting strength of 4.5 million votes, the Kalenjin and Kamba had slightly over a million votes each, the Kisii about 600,000, and Luhyas above 1.4 million among others. Kikuyus have an idiosyncrasy of their youths taking polls lightly, and a majority completely shunning elections and not even registering as voters, unlike us Luos who vote seriously, enmasse, sick or healthy, rich or poor, young or old. It is statistically and so factually feared that if the over18years pure Kikuyu youths alone were tribal to register and vote en bloc, their vote count would tally to 12 million votes (excluding the Mbeere, Embu, and Meru youths who also dont vote seriously) A Raila presidency could as well be a pipe dream This added to the fact that the Constitution requires 50% plus one vote to clinch the presidency in the first round, failure to which the best two would compete in a simple majority basis. And what if Raila does not hack it then? It is high time we Luos integrate politically with the rest of Kenya before its too late and implosion catches up with us. We are educated and we jolly well know our Kenyan map, Luo Nyanza is an iota, if we may choose to argue for presidency as our rightful portion as Luos. Kenya is much bigger than any single ethnicity be it Kikuyus, Maasais, kalenjins or we Luos. In other words, must a Raila, Uhuru or Ruto presidency have the Luos as senior members of their administration? That nobody will employ you in a company or appoint you to high political office if you do not support their political cause is a fallacy. We Luos are stacked with Agwambo. What if he fails as he has done before? We should hedge our bets and allow some of us Luos to walk with Uhuru, others with Ruto, others Kalonzo, as the rest of Kenyans are, without disclaiming ostracizing or victimizing them? Let all men be in the know. We have to work hard to reach out to other communities and integrate with the rest of Kenyans before its too late for Mzalendo Kibunja to help us out of ignominy, long after we got outcast as pariah

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Kenya is Not the Worst Thing that Happened to Africa

by simon

Posted on Saturday, May 26, 2012 02:16 AM

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Kenya has seen leaders that disregard MoUs and go for second terms, leaders, who reportedly order killing of potential opponents, leaders who change the consititution to to the benefit of their own without a shade of shame but Believe it or not, there are countries in Africa that have experienced worse than this.

For example, Ivory Coast: Prior to the October 1995 presidential election, in a move that was viewed as being intended to prevent Ouattara's potential candidacy, the National Assembly of Côte d'Ivoire approved an electoral code which barred candidates if either of their parents were of a foreign nationality. What was that? This barred Outtara from running for the Top post in both 1995 and 2000.

Then come 2005, the sitting president, Laurent Gbagbo, postponed the presidential elections fisrt to 2006 then 2008 then 2010. Stealing an election is occasionally expected, but postponing it?!! That is going overboard.

Following 2010s elections, Ouattara, now eligible to run since they could not really prove the country of birth of his parents, was announced the victor after a second round with a 54% win. The Electoral Commission of Côte d'Ivoire however missed the deadline for declaring the results as papers were snatched from an official who was about to read the results on live TV. Gbagbo nullified the results of the major Outtara regions claiming there was cheating, despite both local and foreign observers agreeing it was a clean election. This gave Gbagbo a 51% win but put the country into war.

Gbabo was arrested by Outtara's forces in April 2011 and is due for trial  by the ICC for crimes against humanity. Reportedly he ordered massacres that saw big numbers in Outtara's mainly Muslim strongholds in the north killed.

Outtara is the current president.

Nevertheless, there is a lot of improvement required for us Kenyans. I know all good citizens know them all already so to just point them out for those in political offices, now and in future, they are:

1. We dont want another 2007 election scene, that was enough drama to last centuries
2. Kenyatta said Ignorance, Disease and Poverty are enemies, lets find out why he was unable to do something about it and pick it up from there.
3. Read 1 and 2

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2012 update - Kalonzo back in G7

by simonndunda

Posted on Sunday, February 19, 2012 02:30 AM

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Is this good or bad?

Is he going anywhere?

Is G7 a serious group?

Can we trust a Uhuru-Ruto-Kalonzo governement?

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ITS OUR TIME!

by pykuta

Posted on Sunday, January 15, 2012 10:03 PM

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In a period of five years we have no say wahtsoever in the governance of our country. Its only in the election year they come to  us and pretend to listen.

Four years of looting public coffers and using the money in expanding their empire and wahtever remains is for bribing voters. This has become a pattern fro so long, when will it stop?

Can we overturn the expectations? Can we really do it? Can we put words into action. Who suffers most by ignoring facts and embracing tribalism. One  interesting thing is; our leaders esp MPs are the ones propagating tribalism! Why? They can only lead and loot if the country is divided into 47 parts.

Let no lie to you, there is no tribalism in parliament, they are one with one mission to suffocate us and fornicate with our resources. What would happen if the country would be one: we would wake up one day, one day, and wipe them and never again allow the repeat.

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Political Parties

by wanderikinyanjui

Posted on Sunday, January 15, 2012 09:39 PM

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This is the time that you can create a party and become a millionare. Do you remember how ODM-K was formed in the run-up to 2007 elections to harbour the VP, where is Daniel Maanzo and VP's running mate in that election?

Currently parties are formed every minute. Do we have a poitical parties act which prohibits members of parliament from publicly joining another party apart from the one which made them elected.

The blackest man in Africa is really wondering waht is happening!  Kwani at Anniversary Towers are just paid to sit and do nothing, or that woman cannot just handle the party hoppers?

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Election Dates

by ojstephen1

Posted on Sunday, January 15, 2012 08:16 PM

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The ruling by the three judge bench on the election date has been surprising to most Kenyans. The judges ruled that will be carried out at the end  of the parliament's term or two months time after the two principals have  dissolved the parliament. Therefore Kenyan elections could be held March 2013. However, most members of parliament must be very happy because they will benefit more due to their increased  tenure and their unquenchable and unsatiable self interests.

Although they are claiming to be ready for electins anytime, we all know they are happy about the judges rulings.

We should wake up and defend our constitution by might and blood, or we start our own revolution.

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Miguna Miguna vs Raila the PM

by simonndunda

Posted on Thursday, January 05, 2012 09:59 PM

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Well, Miguna Miguna (Miguna*2) has lately sparked lots of attention with the drama which has been evolving over his disagreement with the PM's office follwoing his dismissal. 

Well, I have to admit I had recently grown into a Miguna*2 fan but am off now. Untill you go for deeper facts, you will think Miguna * 2 is genuinely seeking for better treatment from a bigger force, a reinstatement into the job and clearing of allegations that led to his dismissal. That looks good to me and I would support him any day given that there were no serious crimes that were found.

But then, we need all the facts. Miguna is not only complaining of been inappropriately dismissed, he is also accusing the PM's office of gross corruption. And when he got a reinstatement, he dismissed it on because it required him to report to a  'juniour officer'. That does not look good at all. He has served this office for 3 years, why has he not talked about the corruption in the office all this time. Secondly, the officer he was supposed to report to might have been his juniour before, but if he were to go back today, the Chief of Staff, Caroli Omondi, would be his seniour, and there is no debate about it. It is just the content of the contract, either take it or leave it but keep quiet Miguna*2.

Miguna has demonstrated that he is very arrogant and holds too much pride to fit into his head, and its now spilling. Well, I have the evidence. The  PM's office has confirmed that three of Miguna *2's drivers had to be redeployed after complaining that they could not work with him and (warning: this is bad) Miguna*2's secretary has been admitted to hospital at some point for depression. Well anybody who has seen Miguna talk on TV would agree with me that Miguna looks like the kind that does the above. I quoted him saying 'Miguna can not be ignored', and I pictured him saying the same to his secretary and I see her getting depression.

All Wanjiku can do now is thank the PM for re-considering Miguna*2 with the reinstatement, but now that Miguna*2 does not seem to like reporting to Caroli, am sure the office would run perfectily without Miguna. And to Miguna, next time you experience corruption, do not just go on TV, go to Integrity Centre, where the specialists dwell.

Finally, I wish to for the first time to support the PM's office on dismissing Miguna. The office has confirmed that Miguna antagonized other goverment officials which painted a bad picture on the PM's office and disobeyed seniour collegues and the PM himself.

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Who is Raila Odinga?

by simonndunda

Posted on Wednesday, January 04, 2012 08:18 PM

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Raila Amollo Odinga (born January 7, 1945), also popularly known to Kenyans as Agwambo, is the Prime Minister of Kenya in a coalition government. Odinga, a Member of Parliament for Langata since 1992, served as Minister of Energy from 2001 to 2002 and as Minister of Roads, Public Works, and Housing from 2003 to 2005. He was the main opposition candidate in the 2007 presidential election. Following a violent post-electoral crisis, Odinga took office as Prime Minister in April 2008, serving as supervisor of a national unity coalition government.

Odinga is the son of the first Vice President of Kenya, Jaramogi Oginga Odinga; Raila's brother, Oburu Odinga, is also currently a Member of Parliament (MP). Raila is commonly known by his first name due to coincidence: he was an MP at the same time as his father between 1992 and 1994, and is currently in the House with Oburu. Raila was a presidential contender in the 1997 elections, coming third after President Daniel arap Moi of KANU and Mwai Kibaki, the current president of Kenya and then a member of the Democratic Party. Odinga campaigned to run for president in the December 2007 elections on an Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) ticket.

On September 1, 2007, Raila Odinga was elected as the presidential candidate of the ODM. He garnered significant support in the 2007 General Election, with majority of the votes in Rift Valley, Western, his native Nyanza, Coast, Nairobi (Capital) and North Eastern provinces. Kibaki led in his native Central province and beat Raila in Eastern province. Out of the 2007 elections, his party, ODM, got 99 out of 210 seats in the parliament, making the ODM the single largest party in parliament.

On December 30, 2007, the chairman of the Kenyan election commission controversially declared Raila's opponent, incumbent president Kibaki, the winner of the presidential election by a margin of about 230,000 votes. Raila disputed the results, alleging fraud by the election commission but refused to adhere to the constitutional procedure and present an election petition before the courts. Most opinion polls had speculated that Odinga would defeat president Kibaki. Independent international observers have since stated that the poll was marred by irregularities favouring both PNU and ODM, especially at the final vote tallying stages. Many ODM supporters across the country rioted against the announced election results.

Raila Odinga was born at Maseno Church Missionary Society Hospital, in Maseno, Kisumu District, Nyanza Province on January 7, 1945 to Oginga and Mary Juma Odinga. He went to Kisumu Union Primary School, Maranda Primary and High School where he stayed until 1962. He spent the next two years at the Herder Institut, a part of the philological faculty at the University of Leipzig in East Germany. He received a scholarship that in 1965 sent him to the Technical University, Magdeburg (now a part of Otto-von-Guericke University Magdeburg) in the GDR. In 1970, he graduated with a degree in Mechanical Engineering. While studying in East Berlin during the Cold War, as a Kenyan he was able to visit West Berlin through the Checkpoint Charlie. When visiting West Berlin, he used to buy goods not available in East Berlin and bring them to his friends in East Berlin.

On returning to Kenya in 1970, he worked as a lecturer at the University of Nairobi. In 1971 he established the Standard Processing Equipment Construction & Erection Ltd (later renamed East African Spectre), a company manufacturing liquid petroleum gas cylinders. In 1974, he was appointed group standards manager of the Kenya Bureau of Standards, in 1978 he was promoted to its Deputy Director, a post he held until his 1982 detention.

Detention

Raila was placed under house arrest for seven months after being suspected of collaborating with the plotters of a failed coup attempt against President Daniel arap Moi in 1982. He was later charged with treason and detained without trial for six years.

A biography released in July 2006 indicated that Raila was far more involved in the attempted coup than he had previously claimed. After its publication, some MPs called for Raila to be arrested and charged, but the statute of limitations had already passed and, since the information was contained in a biography, Raila could not be said to have openly confessed his involvement. His mother died in 1984, but the prison warders told him about it only two months later.

Released on February 6, 1988, he was rearrested in September, 1988 for his involvement with human rights and pro-democracy activists pressing for multi-party democracy in Kenya, which was then a one-party state. To his political followers, he is also referred as "Agwambo" meaning difficult to predict, or "Jakom" meaning Chairman.

Raila was released on June 12, 1989, only to be incarcerated again on July 5, 1990, together with Kenneth Matiba, and former Nairobi Mayor Charles Rubia. Raila was released on June 21, 1991, and in October, he fled the country to Norway alleging government attempts to assassinate him.

Multi-party politics

At the time of Raila's departure to Norway, the Forum for the Restoration of Democracy (FORD), a movement formed to agitate for the return of multi-party democracy to Kenya, was newly formed. In February 1992, Raila returned to join FORD, then led by his father Jaramogi Oginga Odinga. He was elected Vice Chairman of the General Purposes Committee of the party. In the months running up to the 1992 General Election, FORD split into Ford Kenya, led by Raila's father Jaramogi Oginga Odinga, and FORD-Asili led by Kenneth Matiba. Raila became Ford-Kenya's Deputy Director of Elections. Raila won the Langata Constituency parliamentary seat, previously held by Philip Leakey of KANU.

When Jaramogi Oginga Odinga died in January 1994, and Michael Wamalwa Kijana succeeded him as FORD-Kenya chairman, Raila challenged him for the party leadership. The elections were marred by controversy after which Raila resigned from FORD-Kenya to join the National Development Party (NDP). In the 1997 General Election, Raila finished third after President Moi, the incumbent, and Democratic Party candidate Mwai Kibaki. He retained his position as the Langata MP.

After the election, Raila supported the Moi government, and led a merger between his party, NDP, and Moi's KANU party. He served in Moi's Cabinet as Energy Minister from June 2001 to 2002, during Moi's final term.

In the subsequent KANU elections held later that year, he was elected the party's secretary general. In 2002, the then President, Daniel Arap Moi, pulled a surprise by endorsing Uhuru Kenyatta – a son of Kenya's first president Jomo Kenyatta to be his successor. Moi publicly asked Raila and others to support Uhuru as well.

Raila and other KANU members, including Kalonzo Musyoka, George Saitoti and Joseph Kamotho, opposed this step arguing that the then 38 year old Uhuru, was politically inexperienced and lacking leadership qualities to lead government. The Rainbow Movement went on to join the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), which later teamed up with Mwai Kibaki's National Alliance Party of Kenya (NAK), a coalition of several other parties, to form the National Rainbow Coalition (NARC) that eventually defeated Moi's protege, Uhuru Kenyatta.

Dissent from within

President Kibaki did not appoint Raila Odinga Prime Minister on assuming office as perceived to have been agreed in the memorandum of understanding (Kenya's current constitution does not recognize a Prime minister); neither did he give LDP half the cabinet positions. He instead sought to shore up support for his NAK faction by appointing MPs from the opposition parties (KANU and FORD people) to the cabinet.

The perceived "betrayal" led to an open rebellion and a split within the cabinet, which culminated in disagreements over a proposed new constitution for the country. The government-backed constitutional committee submitted a draft constitution that was perceived to consolidate powers of the presidency and weaken regional governments as had been provided for under an earlier draft before the 2002 Elections. Raila opposed this, and when the document was put to a referendum on November 21, 2005, the government lost by a 57% to 43% margin. Following this, President Kibaki sacked the entire cabinet on November 23, 2005. When it was formed two weeks later, Raila and the entire LDP group were left out. This led to the formation of the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) - an Orange was the symbol for the "no" vote in the constitutional referendum.

In January 2006, Raila Odinga was reported to have told police that he believed his life was in danger, having received assassination threats.

2007 presidential election

On July 12, 2007, Odinga alleged that the government was withholding identity cards from voters in places supportive of the opposition and that the intended creation of 30 new constituencies was a means by which the government sought to ensure victory in the December 2007 parliamentary election.[14]

In August 2007, the Orange Democratic Movement-Kenya split in two, with Odinga becoming head of the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) while the other faction, the ODM-K, was headed by Kalonzo Musyoka.[15] On September 1, 2007, the ODM elected Odinga as its presidential candidate in a National Delegates Conference held at the Moi International Sports Centre in Nairobi. Odinga received 2,656 votes; the only other candidates receiving significant numbers of votes were Musalia Mudavadi with 391 and William Ruto with 368. Earlier, Najib Balala had withdrawn his candidature and endorsed Raila.[16] The defeated candidates expressed their support for Odinga afterward, and Mudavadi was named as his running mate.

Odinga launched his presidential campaign in Uhuru Park in Nairobi on October 6, 2007, which saw a record attendance in this or any other venue in independent Kenya. The police estimated an attendance of close to 50,000.

Following the presidential election held on December 27, the Electoral Commission in controversial circumstances declared Kibaki the winner on December 30, 2007, placing him ahead of Odinga by about 232,000 votes. Jeffrey Sachs (Professor of Economics and Director of the Earth Institute at Columbia University, and Special Advisor to former UN Secretary General) faulted the United States' approach to the post-election crisis and recommended an independent recount of the vote.

Odinga accused Kibaki of fraud, and violence broke out in the country as ODM supporters attempted to make the country ungovernable.[20] Following two months of unrest, a deal between Odinga and Kibaki, which provided for power-sharing and the creation of the post of Prime Minister, was signed in February 2008; it was brokered by former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan. Odinga was sworn in as Prime Minister, along with the power-sharing Cabinet, on April 17, 2008. Previously the post of Prime Minister had not existed since 1964, when it was briefly held by Jomo Kenyatta following independence; Odinga is thus the second person in Kenya's history to hold the position.

Political role

Raila Odinga has progressively transcended beyond his original base support among his native Luo mainly occupying Kenya's Nyanza province, to wield considerable support in the Coast, Western, North Eastern, Rift Valley and Nairobi provinces. A Gallup/USA poll taken in September 2008 found him to have an 85 percent approval rate.[22]

Further to this, there have been recent calls from the Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs, Martha Karua, for Raila to answer allegations regarding impropriety in the purchase and subsequent sale of land on the Kisumu Molasses Plant.

Political positions

Homosexuality

Odinga has called for the arrest of homosexuals. In November 2010 he said "If found the homosexuals should be arrested and taken to relevant authorities". He also stated that homosexuality is unnatural and it is mad for men to fall in love with each other while there are plenty of women available. Odinga retracted his statements days later, saying he only meant that same-sex marriages are illegal in Kenya.

Economics

Due to an economic downturn and extreme drought, Odinga suspended taxes on fuels and certain foods that disproportionately impact the poor.

Personal life

Baptised as an Anglican in his youth Odinga later became a Born-Again Christian through an Evangelical church in Nairobi.

Odinga is married to Ida Odinga (born Ida Anyango Oyoo). They live in Karen, Nairobi (but have a second home at Opoda Farm, Bondo District). They have four children—two sons and two daughters: Fidel (born 1973), Rosemary (1977), Raila Jr (1979) and Winnie (1990). Fidel is named after Fidel Castro and Winnie after Winnie Mandela. Winnie is currently studying Communication and International Area Studies as a double major student at Drexel University of Philadelphia, PA.

In a January 2008 BBC interview, Odinga asserted that he was the first cousin of U.S. president Barack Obama through Obama's father. However, Barack Obama's paternal uncle denied any direct relation to Odinga, stating "Odinga's mother came from this area, so it is normal for us to talk about cousins. But he is not a blood relative."[31] Obama's father came from the same Luo community as Odinga.

He briefly played soccer for Luo Union (later known as Re-Union) as a midfielder.

Raila Odinga is an industrialist with interests in liquefied gas cylinder manufacturing (the East African Spectre), industrial ethanol production and Petroleum import and distribution.

Mr. Odinga has been appointed by African Union to mediate in Ivory Coast between Outarra and Gbagbo.

Controversy

During his premiership Raila appointed Prof Miguna Miguna as Adviser on coalition affair who he later Suspended (Aug 2011) citing "gross Misconduct". Daily Nation quoted reason for suspension as... "...is accused of misrepresenting the Office of the Prime Minister, possibly a reference to his having aired strong views which may have embarrassed the PM."

His suspension came at a time when electoral body (IIEC) was in is in uproar and unsettled by anonymously authored complaints which the commissioners characterise as a hate campaign but which raise troubling questions on corruption and nepotism. Later Miguna MIguna after suspension issued a statement that "I was instructed to write my article on the IIEC chairman and the position he had taken with respect to the party's decision to kick out rebellious MPs and Councillors." He later denied According to the Nairobi star

In 2001 December, Raila incited resident of Kibera to stop paying rent until the it was reduced by 50%. what followed was clashes between tenant vs Landlord. score were injured and many died

 

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Facts about Kalonzo Musyoka

by simonndunda

Posted on Wednesday, January 04, 2012 07:46 PM

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• Full names: Stephen Kalonzo Musyoka
• Birth date: born December 24, 1953 (58 Years Old) 
• is the currentVice President of Kenya.
• Has been an MP since 1983 (28 years)
• Has served as a Minister for Foreign Affairs, Education and Environment.
• He also serves as Chief Commissioner for The Kenya Scouts Association.
• Has never been associated with corruption.
• And Finally, he is a 2012 presidential Candidate.

Early life

He was born in Tseikuru, in a remote part of Mwingi District (then part of Kitui District) in Kenya's Eastern Province. Between 1960 and 1967 he studied at Tseikuru Full Primary School. Then he went to Kitui High School in Kitui and eventually to Meru School in Meru from where he graduated in 1973. Kalonzo Musyoka graduated with a Bachelor of Law degree from the University of Nairobi in 1977. He continued further studies at the Kenya School of Law and Mediterranean Institute of Management inCyprus.

 

Politics

Musyoka vied for the Kitui North Constituency parliamentary seat in 1983, but was defeated. At the time, Kenya was one-party state and the only party fielding candidates was Kenya African National Union (KANU). However, only two years later, in 1985 the Kitui North seat was vacated and Musyoka won subsequent by-elections, thus becoming an MP at the age of 32. In 1986 he was appointed Assistant Minister for Works. He was re-elected at the 1988 parliamentary elections. He was KANU's National Organizing Secretary from 1988 to 1998.

 

 Kenya's first multiparty elections were held in 1992. Musyoka stayed in KANU, renewed his parliamentary position and was appointed Minister for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation. He also held couple of other ministerial positions while part of the KANU government. He was again elected to the parliament at the 1997 elections, but now from Mwingi North Constituency, since his former constituency Kitui North was split into new constituencies MP.

In the months leading up to the 2002 general election, under the leadership of then KANU secretary general, Raila Odinga, he decamped from KANU to join the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) under the banner of the National Rainbow Coalition, which went on to win the general elections.

Musyoka became Minister for Foreign Affairs for a second time under President Mwai Kibaki, but in a cabinet reshuffle on June 30, 2004 he was moved to the post of Minister for the Environment. In late August 2004, he was additionally removed from his position as chairman of the Sudanese and Somali peace talks and was replaced by John Koech. Musyoka was reportedly unhappy with President Kibaki's refusal to honour a pre-election Memorandum of understanding (MOU) which they had signed with the president's party NAK. He was one of the leaders of the successful "No"-campaign in the November 2005 referendum on the proposed new constitution. Following the referendum, he was dismissed from the Cabinet.

Subsequently Kalonzo Musyoka decamped Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) into the little known Labor Party of Kenya.

Kalonzo Musyoka was widely expected to vie for the presidency in the December 2007 election. Musyoka campaigned for the ODM-Kenya ticket, facing a number of other contenders. His rating for December 2007 election steadily dropped, and political analysts wondered whether he would make a significant impact. His relationship with fellow ODM-Kenya leader Raila Odinga, who was also after the ODM-Kenya presidential ticket, was the subject of much speculation. Many observers questioned whether the presidential hopefuls of ODM-Kenya, particularly Raila and Musyoka, could unite to support one common candidate for the general election.

The ODM-Kenya split into two factions, one gathered around Musyoka and the other around Odinga, in August 2007. Musyoka was elected by his faction as its presidential candidate on August 31, 2007,[6][7] receiving 2,835 votes in a secret ballot against Julia Ojiambo, who received 791 votes.

Musyoka has been quoted as saying "... the war against poverty could not be won unless environmental issues were addressed."

Musyoka launched his presidential campaign at Uhuru Park in Nairobi on October 14, 2007.

According to official results, Musyoka placed a distant third behind Kibaki and Odinga with 9% of the vote. Amid a violent crisis over the results, with supporters of Kibaki and Odinga disputing the outcome, Kibaki appointed Musyoka as Vice-President and Minister of Home Affairs on January 8, 2008. Musyoka expressed gratitude to Kibaki and, referring to the ongoing dispute and violence, said that he was "intensely aware that the appointment has come at a difficult time when our nation is going through a painful moment". He took office as Vice-President on January 9.

The political crisis eventually led to the signing of a power-sharing agreement between Kibaki and Odinga. In the Grand Coalition Cabinet that was announced on April 13, 2008, Musyoka remained Vice President and Minister of Home Affairs.

In 2010 Musyoka supported the draft constitution in the campaign for August 4th referendum but Members of the campaign team opposing the draft constitution claimed that he was secretly opposing the draft leading to a satirical comparison of Musyoka to a watermelon which is naturally green outside and red inside, the team supporting the draft constitution was represented by color green while the team opposing the draft constitution was represented by the color red hence the "green team" and the "red team", Musyoka's nickname watermelon was because of his alleged open support for the green team and secret support for the red team.

Personal life

Kalonzo Musyoka is married to Pauline. They have four children. He was baptized by pastor Masila Munyoki

 

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