Kikuyus owe nobody an apology!

I was told it's Kenya against kikuyus... I guess we are no longer Kenyans.

That we have been stacking up for ourselves for far too long. Need I remind anyone that a kikuyu has led Kenya for 5 out of the last 29 years?

That we are greedy, we are all over Kenya. Last I checked it was a free country. And next time you want to accuse kikuyus of being rich because they steal, think about the fact that they are "everywhere" as you call it. It is how they get rich. They see an opportunity and they follow it. And you? You? You get mad and remain poor.

Did you know Indians don't have shops in most central province townships? The kikuyus have learnt the art of business and have run with that knowledge. Is this the same for your hometown? if not, ask yourself what the implications of that are.

About that they have old money, who owes you an apology that they settled in the highlands because they are farmers by nature,suffered the greatest personal losses from colonization, reaped the benefits of education from the same colonialists, fought for their freedom and took back their lands with enough knowledge to farm; in a primarily agricultural economy, prospered and continued to build themselves up. How do you feel that you have been wronged by this?

Did you know there are poor kikuyus?

And that we are not all related to Kenyatta?

But are all largely related to a freedom fighter somewhere?

Why not your people, you ask? I don't know. But remember, none of us chose where we were born. Plus, you could start by looking inwards instead of outwards for the problem.

Such as choosing to change, adaptability, edification and common sense. And some risk taking. personal growth too.

Recall the closest tribes to the colonialists were both the Masai and the kikuyus. Look how that turned out. Yes, yes, yes, Attitude is everything! And so are cultural influences. Maybe the greatest gift we got from the white man as kikuyus was an absolute dilution of culture, so we could be free to prosper, devoid of cultural chains.

And taking to stoning and burning investments in your local area when aggravated and wondering why there is never any progress is not smart. Rebuilding is costly and that money could have been used for prosperity.

Unless you think a kikuyu who comes across money should turn away because they are kikuyu so that they let the other person have it, shut up about this rubbish.

Why would I post about kikuyus and apologies? Because I wish everyone would stop pretending this isn't a tribalistic situation. Actually it's a step away from Rwanda. This is not about Kibaki or his government. This is about the kikuyu tribe. Which explains why the local kikuyu has already had their business burnt and perhaps their home and is probably in hiding as we speak. let's attempt open dialogue for a change. It might improve things.

I'm ashamed at the extent of educated, I would have thought sophisticated persons, calling for or condoning or quietly supporting calls for war.

Go to war. Let it rid you of kikuyus. Then you can all sit in that country, all 41 tribes of you, and love each other. You will always trust each other. It won't be over, the liaison that is; after the common enemy is gone. Nooooo. You'll all always be friends and can get along great forever and ever.

There ends the fairy tale.

We the kikuyus have had to shelter relatives after Molo. We now have relatives whose lives are in jeopardy. But we're all human. And this crap has gotten old to us too. Stop the damn madness. No one owes you an apology! If you're failing, it's probably because of something you did wrong; unless your parents failed you. If your village is, same thing. And that applies to kikuyus as well. Killing kikuyus will not build schools for you, or put money in your pockets. Grow up already!

Should we as a country kill Americans next because they are so damn successful? And always feeling a step ahead of us? And economically vibrant, hence able to influence events? Or does this argument end with kikuyus?

If it doesn't make sense one way, it doesn't make sense at all, period!

****Feel free to get as blatantly honest as you need to should you want to comment. Just not abusive.****

Peace above all else!

And these goes to both ODM and PNU supporters.

There are posts such as this calling for bloodshed should Kibaki win. Why? What does democracy mean to all of you people? It means that as far as voters go, some will have favorable outcomes and others not so favorable outcomes. democracy always has victims. And you should always be aware of this as you head out to vote.

These results are not shocking. They agree very much with preliminary polls that were carried before the elections were held. We all knew it was going to be close. So grow up and wait for the ECK.

Those claiming rigging, if you don't have tangible evidence, stop propagating propaganda! You're directly contributing to any bloodshed that will occur here next!

Please note that most ODM supporters were ok with the results when Odinga was ahead by far. Truth be told, his strongholds had been tallied and Kibakis had not yet. This current figures following those should not be surprising, shocking or alarming to anyone with any common sense and understanding of the process. if you must edify yourself about the process then do so, but don't make it your place to create victims of this elections.

The counting stations are filled with observers from all over and have every party and candidate represented. So if you're claiming rigging, once again, I say prove it. Otherwise shut up and promote peace.

No one can call this election yet. It is too close to call. So sit back and let ECK work. The process is slow because there are that many voices to be heard, from every party. And every dispute starts a counting vote all over.

Why the panic over the final result? Why not have the confidence that you're going to win? And the common sense to let peace prevail if you don't?

Don't forget, the poorer you are, the likelier you are to be caught in a skirmish riot or melee. You are likely to be injured or to die. And it is also highly likely that you are the sole bread winner, with no savings in the bank.

people with money incite, then they sit at home and are safe, some with body guards; and you do their dirty work. The results here today are of no use to anyone if there is bloodshed in the streets. you won't have a place to go to work, hence you can't eat and seriously neither one of these two candidtaes in power is going to be that bad for you in a peaceful environment, as much as they arent really going to do anything for you on a personal note should they win. So what it is, is "Isn't that serious." Get to understanding your priorities. It's an election, and it's overall effect on you personally unless you lose your life or a loved one is not going to be that significant.

That's the truth. Give it a chance to set you free!

It's D-Day

Finally, December 27th, 2007 has arrived.

It was my experience and countless others, as Kenyans who were not spending Christmas in Kenya, to call home to wish people a merry Christmas and end up engaged in a long conversation about elections. I don't quite think December 25, 2007 was that much Christmassy for many Kenyans, more like 2 days before they had to go vote. I found this to be encouraging. I hope that it means many Kenyans intend to go out and exercise their rights to vote, and with that, their rights to complain about all things wrong (not that they don't). hopefully, Kenyans after this, will learn to view their glasses as half full, a very elusive attitude amongst us as a nation.

I've been all over the web in the past 3 or 4 hours. I'm in search of a site that will be giving updates on the elections consistently throughout this process. No luck as of 11pm EST, Dec 26. Now I wonder why I don't pay for that service where for a certain fee I can get free access to news or something from some specific stations online. It appears I'm not the only one. I've made several calls to people I know who would be likely to have that service. Dead end as well. CNN is not talking about elections in Kenya at all. I guess they will be there as soon as some fracas and chaos breaks somewhere. Not a mention, not a whisper. there was a tiger zoo attack over Christmas and that's seems to be all they're discussing and periodic brief mentions of the upcoming caucuses. I haven't caught the BBC news yet, I hope they'll do better. If anyone knows where I can get some kind of consistent update please point me in that direction.

This blog has been clear about being a Kibaki, not necessarily PNU supporter. With that, I say may the best people win. I hope people have the common sense to vote wisely and accurately, including voting across political parties for candidates they feel are worthy to them. After all, if the politicians have taught us anything recently, it's that they have no loyalties to any parties. Hence, may all vote for the candidates not their parties. Perhaps I ask for too much!

I'd like to take a moment and applaud Kibaki's good work in the past 5 years. Obviously my personal opinion but one that needs to be heard. I hope he gets another 5. I quite sincerely don't see how anyone could lose from that. But in case the tide does not flow as I would like to see it, Asante sana bwana Kibaki. What you have done is still phenomenal!

I pray there will be no chaos and that this day will not be marred by the kinds of violence that were observed during the primaries. With that I send this prayer from our national Anthem

Oh God of all creation
Bless this our land and nation
...
May we dwell in unity, peace and liberty!

And all peace loving citizens said, Amen!!!!

*****Update(s)****
(all times EST... hope to provide opinions and reactions from accessible diaspora).

12:58am
I just called both my parents at 2 separate polling stations close to each other. The weather though a little rainy is favorable. They declare the glaring sun would have been much worse.

I'm told the voter turnout is phenomenal. - Kudos Kenyans!

Apparently there is a lot of tension in that particular area. Majimboism scares them and the hints of violence from ODM supporters have been loud and clear against kikuyus.

Not voting is being looked down upon. All stores are being opened only after their operators have a blackened thumb to show that they have already voted. Otherwise some hostile stares and comments would be witnessed. It is an unspoken rule that everyone should be voting.

So far so good. Voting is going well. Queues moving quickly. Security seems well planned.

Will be back with more as I get it. i wonder how many other Kenyans in the diaspora are finding it difficult to get as much as would feel adequate...

Best place for updates for kenyans in the diaspora so far seems to be BBC.com They are including some posts from people across the nation in polling stations.

9:48am
Absolutely no coverage from the huge media outlets. Pakistan's Bhutto has been assasinated. With this sad turn of events, no eyes are on Africa and hence there's no coverage of any kind of elections in Kenya. Also no hope that there will be any coverage, unless of course the situation turns into one of violence and bloodshed. So maybe it's a good thing that the elections are not being covered.

Still relying heavily on texts and opinions from the ground via bbc.com. The problem with these methods is just how different each person's tale seems to be.

12:24pm
Still barely any news coming in which is in itself good news - it means that there is no violence. It seems that I could actually go ahead and applaud Kenyans on a peaceful voting day without seeming to have spoken too soon. I pray and hope that the same peaceful, mature attitudes will be maintained as the election results come in and are broadcast to the public. While kazi iendelee is a PNU slogan, I insist that no matter what, "kazi iendelee". That means maintaining the peace and ushering in another prosperous 5 years for the country, regardless of the president elected today.

CNN and BBC are now streaming text at the bottom of the screens about Kenya having elections. No actual coverage; Benazir Bhutto's death and related broadcasts will continue to dominate the news channels throughout this day (may she RIP). Hopefully, they'll take a moment and announce the Kenyan election results after they are officially announced. BBC.com continues to be the best source of news.

3:31pm
Provincial results have started streaming in slowly.

You can silently watch the results here.

Once again, I'm extremely proud of the peaceful day Kenyans observed as they cast their votes.

Ory explains the "missing names" in this post. They weren't really missing but better communication needed to have been exercised.

11:12am
Is it possible that this has been the slowest tallying of votes in democratic elections history anywhere, ever? I need a good nights sleep...

Some serious ballot box inconsistencies noted ina few places including Kajiado North. What does it mean when ballot boxes are open and found to be empty?

When a helicopter drops some more ballot boxes, I personally declare it absolutely stupid to set these ablaze without deciphering if they are coming in late from a legitimate polling station; maybe after being wrongly delivered to an incorrect counting station. And to further burn ballots that were on the table? Stupidity has to cease!


kenyaelection07

Far from adequate!

The most disappointing thing any Kenyan can watch is NTV on youtube. Bull's eye makes it worse, but just watching our politicians creates a sad day indeed. And age is no factor. Ignorance surely is bliss when it comes to knowing exactly what it is these politicians do and say. I allowed myself to log into youtube.com and watched NTV's bull's eye. I had no idea just how bad the political scene in Kenya is. It is so bad. I know it's possible that the situation looks much worse for those like me who haven't had to deal with it that directly for years, still I declare, words from a written column don't capture nary 25% of the drama. The way I see it,if this situation were to get worse down just one notch, we'd be about to be extinct by virtue of stupidity. If you ask me, something's gotta change!

I doubt it will though. Because the cheers that come from the crowds get louder as the deeds and words of the politicians or aspirants get more random and less professional. Quite frankly, the more inappropriate and borderline abusive they get, the louder the cheers get. I guess the politicians are just giving the crowds what they want. How sad that is, you have no idea.

Does no one demand and or expect professionalism from their leaders? And with these shenanigans as part of their daily campaigns and local addresses, how then do the citizens appear shocked that these same people are incapable of managing their daily situations to improve livelihoods? Nobody speaks of what they can do, they all speak of where they have been and the beefs they have with the other rivals. Stupid stupid stuff. Tactics that std six students might use to settle scores. Where is the substance? Where is the measure of intelligence? Where is leadership? Where is someone to spire to be like? Where is motivation? Where is hope? Where is a worthy person?

One after another they rise, they sing stupid songs, they say even dumber things. They incite stupid joy from a crowd that is to me amazing by their responses. And at the end of they day, they say nothing. A whole lotta words with nothing said. Their time would have been better spent washing dishes in their own homes.The crowd is well entertained and we all go home and start another day of campaigning, come sunrise the next day.

All well and good if this was a comedy tour!

Which it isn't.

And thus the sad part.

Somebody needs to start a "professional addresses: manners,etiquette and diplomacy" training program in that country. A secondary class will be issues that pertain to Kenya, locally and globally. And it should be mandatory for all politicians and aspirants to attend.

Quite frankly, the situation is so desperate that were anyone to actually start this training program, and suggest that elections be postponed until the courses were taken by all involved, they would have my vote.

What an entire disappointment. It is debated that there is an argument for dictatorship and colonization. Many of these clips support that statement! Kenyans you can do much better! Stop aiming so low always, Get better, do better and demand better!