The Cutting Edge

By THE WATCHMAN
Posted Saturday, March 12 2011 at 17:18

TOO LATE: The government’s about-turn and declaration that it will now challenge the ICC’s jurisdiction to try the Ocampo Six is not only absurd, but also time barred, says P. Kamau. He poses: “Did they, when they were pledging to co-operate with the ICC, think that prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo and his investigators had come to Kenya for a joyride and to exchange pleasantries? They were here to collect evidence and build their cases! The government should have challenged them then. Now, it is too late to object. They should, therefore, let the matter go on at The Hague.”

------------------

SCRAP POSTS: What use is it having assistant ministers if they cannot act for their bosses? asks Kennedy Abade. In any workplace, he adds, whenever the chief executive is away, his deputy steps in to fully discharge his duties. “Even in football, if the captain is not on the field, the deputy takes charge. Remember Nelson Mandela went on holiday and his then deputy, Mangosuthu Buthelezi, became the acting president. But not so in Kenya, where suspended ministers’ deputies have not been given a chance to act. Scrap the post of assistant minister.”

------------------

DRINKING SPREE: With the apparent waning of the initial excitement over the implementation of the Mututho Law regulating the opening hours of bars, it is back to the same old business in parts of the country, reports Maurice Ochieng. During a spot check he carried out in the lakeside town of Kisumu and in Kisii town, he claims, he found that “many people still enjoy their favourite beer and other alcoholic beverages” from as early as 10 a.m. and continue to do so until the wee hours. For more details, his contact is mwochieng@gmail.com.

------------------

KEEP LEFT: What disgusts Swahili Michael is that many people seem ignorant of some basic but unwritten rules. ‘‘While walking, you should always keep to your left. But what do we often see, someone keeping to the right and confusing everyone else. Should the owners of buildings put up ‘Keep Left’ signs in their corridors? Also, when queuing, the minimum space generally allowed between you and the person in front is your elbow length stretched out. Your personal space is something you are entitled to. Stop squeezing the person in front to get to the counter!”

------------------

POINTLESS DRIVE: The National Environment Management Authority (Nema) is a disgrace, remarks Ken Okemwa of Eldoret. To him, Nema, which is well funded by taxpayers, has not only failed Kenyans, but also the world in ensuring a clean environment. “Instead of spearheading the campaign to ban the use of plastic bags, it is engaged in a pointless campaign of installing litter bins in matatus. In fact, the bigger priority should be how to rid the public transport sector of noise, which is harmful to their lives. How do these people justify their monthly salaries?

how to rid the public transport sector of noise, which is harmful to their lives. How do these people justify their monthly salaries?

------------------

MISSING DOSSIER: Having been treated to the hilarious contents of American diplomats’ secret cables in which they had some unflattering things to say about top Kenyan officials they interacted with during Michael Ranneberger’s tenure, Tony Gee wishes the period of one of his predecessors, the nyama choma-eating Smith Hempstone, had also been covered. Says Tony: “The Ranneberger cables have amused and informed us. But how much more enlightening would the Hempstone dossier have been?

------------------

REAL DEVIL: While the various commercial banks appear to be falling over themselves to dish out unsecured loans to Kenyans, including those who do not even hold accounts with them, Charles Mwabili doubts their genuineness, warning that the real devil is in the minute details. Says Charles: “For instance, the questions in the application forms are ridiculous. And one has to fill in a four-page questionnaire that requires the attachment of various documents. If these loans are, indeed, unsecured, why can’t they make them available through the ATMs?” His contact is cmwabili@yahoo.co.uk.

Have a truthful day, won’t you!