Post by job on Mar 24, 2007 19:39:48 GMT 3
Folks,
A series of Kibaki re-election campaign meetings was planned for the US and is currently being executed by Ambassador Rateng' Ogego (who perennially peeks at Jukwaa), Foreign Minister -Tuju and Finance Minister-Amos Kimunya at the expense of our public coffers.
This blitz has covered the US cities of Baltimore, Washington DC and is currently in Atlanta and also scheduled for Minnesota and later Texas.
Can someone read between the lines and see Amb. Rateng literally following and attempting to counter the trail of Raila Odinga's recent US tour and projecting the cleverly dubbed message,...." Building a Working Nation : Forum for Business and Investment in Kenya".
In the name of facilitating investments, these guys are pretending to show concerns for Kenyans in the diaspora whom Karua does think have a right to vote.
Ok my curiosity led me to the DC event last Thursday, despite fatigue from a long journey from Bangkok, Thailand, (just hrs earlier) where I have been for the last three and a half months.
This is I disagreeessment of the so called Building a Working Nation: Business and Investment in Kenya Forum - March 22, 2007
A lavish forum titled "Business and Investment in Kenya" was held on Thurday March 22, 2007 at a downtown Marriott Hotel in Washington DC, featuring a big delegation led by Kenya's Finance Minister Amos Kimunya and hosted by the Kenya Embassy in Washington DC.
I will first give a preamble of the forum planning and expectations before delving into the actual big Thursday dinner event at the JW Marriott Hotel in Washington DC that was graced by at least 500 people mainly diaspora based Kenyans ranging from diplomats, professionals, students, businesspersons, and visitors.
It was earlier announced that the entourage expected to attend the gathering as part of a four stop US promotion and showcasing of investment opportunities in Kenya for diaspora-based Kenyans, was to comprise a delegation of key and prominent businesspersons, educationists and government officials who were expected to provide a broad overview of Kenya's economic situation. This was basically touted to be a major investment-courting-mission tailored for Kenyans in the diaspora.
Listed to accompany Amos Kimunya were Dr. Kamau Thugge, Economic Secretary; Esther Koimett, Investment Secretary; Ms. Susan Kikwai, MD, Kenya Investment Authority; Mr. Lee Karuri, Chairman, Kenya Private Sector Alliance (KEPSA) ; Mr. Samuel Mwaura Waweru, CEO, KEPSA ; Mr. Jimnah Mbaru, Chairman NSE; Mr. Fred Mburu, Old Mutual Assets Manager; Ms. Lilian Maremma, Old Mutual Manager; Mr. Benson Wairegi, MD, Britak ; Mr. Martin Oduor-Otieno, MD, Kenya Commercial Bank ; Mr. James Mwangi, MD, Equity Bank; Dr. Bitange Ndemo, PS, Information & Communication; Dr. Achieng Ong'onga, MD, Kenya Tourist Board ; Mr. Eddy Njoroge, MD, KenGen ; Prof. Olive Mugenda, Vice-Chancellor, Kenyatta University ; Prof. Sperling, Vice-Chancellor, Strathmore University ; Mr. Frank Ireri, MD, Housing Finance ; Dr. Evans Kidero, MD, Mumias Sugar Company ; Mr. Mugo Kibati, MD, East Africa Cables ; Dr. Wahome Gakuru, National Economic and Social Council ; Mr. L. Tiampati, MD, Kenya Tea Development Agency ; Mr. David Nalo, PS, Trade & Industry.
The delegation was expected to unveil a diverse range of investment vehicles and products geared to
Kenyans overseas, in line with future expected economic growth in the country, with opportunities ranging from buying a home in Kenya, investing in stocks and shares to investing in the upcoming Initial Public
Offerings (IPO's) on the Nairobi Stock Exchange and other wealth and investment products.
Coming to the actual event, I must also acknowledge that the event was well organized which probably means a lot of money from Kenya's public coffers was infused into it's planning towards traveling and accommodation costs for all these dignitaries, a check for the dinner luncheon host, the JW Marriott, Washington DC, and a thorough public relations overdrive by the Embassy to reach out to Wananchi (most embassy staff and their families were in attendance). This could well pass to have been yet another of the government's very expensive public relations and Kibaki re-election campaign exercises costing possibly more than tens of millions of shillings.
The result of course was a lavish gathering that proved to be a meeting place of Kenyans where good food and all sorts of alcoholic beverages were served. It should however be noted that not all invited guests listed above attended, with only about half making the trip.
On the substantive note, some wonderful presentations were of course made. I was particularly impressed by the Permanent Secretary of Information, Dr. Bitange Ndemo, a former Minnesota based Kenyan who's efforts to ensure completion of both undersea and terrestrial broadband infrastructure development are already rolling on course. He gave an account of his concurrent efforts to initiate call center and data processing hubs within Kenya. Ok he seems to be doing what he actually is paid for which is a good thing.
For keen followers of local Kenyan news regarding telecommunications and ICT matters, Dr. Bitange's recent brush with colleagues from the Ministry of Justice, notably the Solicitor General, Wanjuki Muchemi over procurement procedures must have come to mind during and after his power-point presentation. The PS must have convinced many that he is indeed focused towards bringing positive change in this sector despite the well known interference by contract-hungry colleagues with vested interests in the Justice Ministry.
allafrica.com/stories/200703121439.html
Susan Kikwai of Kenya Investments Authority (another former US resident of Baltimore) did give a good presentation on various avenues and opportunities for business and investments and the US representative of Postapay Kenya which was recently launched as a money sending avenue, also gave an albeit timid presentation of their newly unveiled products.
Enter Amos Kimunya and his rosy economic growth figures which were carefully juxtaposed with Kibaki re-election campaign-rhetoric and opposition-bashing. Granted, the man craftily articulated economic gains achieved under the current regime carefully avoiding the touchy subjects of poverty (close to 60% of Kenyans live below the poverty line according to latest UNDP figures), and corruption.
What came out significantly during the event was Kimunya's hyping of election-year rhetoric which was akin to the old phrase "I(we) will transform your lives if you elect me(us)". Election-year rhetoric can sometimes bring false hopes and leave people chasing mirages, that is why I only searched for objective and substantive messages.
Kimunya's political maturity initially appeared to be in full display when he craftily made a strong effort to tie the policy paper "Kenya Vision 2030 : Transforming National Development" into a political affair purely dependent on Kibaki's 2007 re-election, giving projections of 10% economic growth rates for the next 23 years, which is projected to ultimately transform Kenya into an African economic tiger.
He scarred some folks stiff when he proclaimed "in the unlikely event that Kibaki loses re-election, all these economic gains will go up in smoke". His clever mission could have been the fact that when mixing policy and politics, it becomes sometimes fuzzy trying to discern and separate wheat from chaff, reality from fantasy, and facts from rhetoric. I gave him a head start for easily drowning lay folks with economic figures, estimates and projections that could easily sway undecided voters towards Kibaki.
It was only when the questions started flooding the podium, that the same folk were brought back to reality with the glaring facts that poverty was not anywhere near Kimunya's concerns, and corruption was not even a priority or a problem in his perception and mind. On this account I will choose to judge Kimunya and by extension his boss Kibaki not through the visions they promise, but through their past record which is right there for all to see. For them, visions-for-the-future cannot substitute past-record. Since Kimunya peddled the fear that Kenya's economy will go up in smoke if Kibaki is not re-elected, his statement warrants some record-based appraisal.
His failure to address questions regarding massive corruption, the 50-plus billion shilling Anglo-Leasing scandal, Nakumatt & Tusker Mattress tax evasion scams running into 18 billion shillings, the competitor Uchumi's fiasco, money laundering claims at CharterHouse Bank (now under receivership), claims of illegal procurement cartels, and irregular public assets acquisitions by one investment company which has shown interest in all of Kenya's parastatals set to be privatized left a lot to be desired.
Needless to add, he failed to address reasons for his failure to legislate laws against money laundering and his role at the CBK including whether he had a hand at Jacinta Mwatela's removal as Governor. I did not also expect him to forthrightly address the twin issues of corruption and tribalism (raised by someone) and how they directly contribute towards poverty in our case where close to 60% live below the poverty line. That spoke volumes. These are all record-based facts that can not be wished away through choreographed showcasing of economic "successes" that only percolates within the upper class of Kenya.
NOW back to the MISSION of Kimunya's trip here (with all those many dignitaries) "investment opportunities in Kenya". However much investment opportunities are showcased, Kenyans and foreigners alike, who want to invest in Kenya always have the same questions about the local environment with regard to; bureaucratic bottlenecks, regulatory climate, corruption, and insecurity.
What regulatory bottlenecks will be faced? What conditions must be met? Must you bribe to complete the process? What is the current status of security? Will pre-tax conditions be imposed? etc.
Granted, the questions came through none other than a diaspora based Kenyan who has unsuccessfully tried to invest in the telecommunications sector in Kenya under Kibaki's era. John Maina (who intends to vie for Kamkunji's parliamentary seat) sent these questions along with his personal experience. Kimunya refused to answer.
Ironically, long-long before Amos Kimunya's sh 100 million public relations exercise abroad was groomed, a group of patriotic Kenyan investors including John Maina, calling themselves KTIG came up with a brilliant investment idea and applied for a wireless phone license in Kenya. They made the positive and bold decision to actually invest in Kenya's growing telecommunications sector.
Here is basically what they met : Bureaucratic walls, overtones for bribery, and massive corruption. Before they blinked an eye, highly ranking government officials in the Kibaki government had cheated them out of their proposal, instead awarding the license to what was described by many as a "briefcase" entity called
Econet. The rest is history.
Amos Kimunya, head of the delegation promoting investments in Kenya, and well aware of this case, deliberately ignored answering John Maina's questions regarding the hostile investment climate on ground stifled with bureaucratic gangsterism, hostile take-over of investment ideas, and massive corruption......He seemed to have forgotten what his mission was in the first place....that is "explain how the government has made it easy to invest in Kenya". Refusing to address such a specific case-example is exactly not how to court investments but rather how to create fear among other prospective investors. He thus failed badly in convincing anybody that their investments would not suffer such consequences as done to KTIG.
Also since Kimunya also failed to grasp the conceptual benefits of -dual citizenship- vis-a-viz investments that was well articulated by Mkawasi Mcharo, ( President Kenya Community Abroad-KCA) his mission became a little too one-sided rather than a two-way dialogue. If you are citizen to both Kenya and say USA, then you could enjoy the "local" status in both respective countries, which makes investments obviously easier (for instance in the highly regulated telecommunications sector). I thus didn't like the casual manner in which The Finance Minister treated the dual-citizenship subject, basically saying ati it took the same path as the Wako draft and died.
If Kimunya is serious about promoting investments by Diaspora based Kenyans why doesn't he integrate this call for dual citizenship as part of the minimum constitution reforms that Kibaki has acceded his willingness to support?
I also took issue with the Minister's wild claim that "it would be retrogressive for the government to keep pursuing past corrupt individuals". Kimunya seems to have let the cat out of the bag with that and was beginning to loose out, despite an earlier impressive showing. It is no wonder corruption proceeds unabated with full impunity under Kibaki's government if people actually think they will be forgiven if they steal from the public, ati because past culprits were also "forgiven". This clearly exposes the lack of political will under this administration to fight corruption genuinely and one wonders why we have to pay exorbitant salaries to the Ringeras if they are just on a public relations exercise.
This vicious cycle of corruption and protecting corrupt public officials must be terminated once and for all by a regime that is willing to take the heat on behalf of its suffering citizens largely impoverished through corruption. That regime, as Kimunya has clearly stated, is definitely not Kibaki's! They have no business chasing after Goldenberg looters and other past economic crimes, so says the Finance Minister.
Kenya has numerous avenues and opportunities of investment as was enumerated by Susan Kikwai but until such problems met by akina John Maina and KTIG are addressed, then some lingering ambivalence may still exist, unless when talking of small scale ventures which may actually not need much regulatory considerations.
It would be nice to hear from Kenya's Finance Minister, talk addressing poverty, corruption, tribalism especially in the Finance Ministry itself ( including Kenya Revenue Authority), inflation and escalating costs of basic commodities like unga, sugar and paraffin, all which have either tripled or doubled under Kibaki's four year regime.
Finally, better use of scarce resources in addressing Kenya's poverty concerns should become a priority for the Finance Minister rather than exorbitant spending in politically motivated overseas trips by huge delegations of loyalty-pledging public officials.
Dr. Job Obonyo
A series of Kibaki re-election campaign meetings was planned for the US and is currently being executed by Ambassador Rateng' Ogego (who perennially peeks at Jukwaa), Foreign Minister -Tuju and Finance Minister-Amos Kimunya at the expense of our public coffers.
This blitz has covered the US cities of Baltimore, Washington DC and is currently in Atlanta and also scheduled for Minnesota and later Texas.
Can someone read between the lines and see Amb. Rateng literally following and attempting to counter the trail of Raila Odinga's recent US tour and projecting the cleverly dubbed message,...." Building a Working Nation : Forum for Business and Investment in Kenya".
In the name of facilitating investments, these guys are pretending to show concerns for Kenyans in the diaspora whom Karua does think have a right to vote.
Ok my curiosity led me to the DC event last Thursday, despite fatigue from a long journey from Bangkok, Thailand, (just hrs earlier) where I have been for the last three and a half months.
This is I disagreeessment of the so called Building a Working Nation: Business and Investment in Kenya Forum - March 22, 2007
A lavish forum titled "Business and Investment in Kenya" was held on Thurday March 22, 2007 at a downtown Marriott Hotel in Washington DC, featuring a big delegation led by Kenya's Finance Minister Amos Kimunya and hosted by the Kenya Embassy in Washington DC.
I will first give a preamble of the forum planning and expectations before delving into the actual big Thursday dinner event at the JW Marriott Hotel in Washington DC that was graced by at least 500 people mainly diaspora based Kenyans ranging from diplomats, professionals, students, businesspersons, and visitors.
It was earlier announced that the entourage expected to attend the gathering as part of a four stop US promotion and showcasing of investment opportunities in Kenya for diaspora-based Kenyans, was to comprise a delegation of key and prominent businesspersons, educationists and government officials who were expected to provide a broad overview of Kenya's economic situation. This was basically touted to be a major investment-courting-mission tailored for Kenyans in the diaspora.
Listed to accompany Amos Kimunya were Dr. Kamau Thugge, Economic Secretary; Esther Koimett, Investment Secretary; Ms. Susan Kikwai, MD, Kenya Investment Authority; Mr. Lee Karuri, Chairman, Kenya Private Sector Alliance (KEPSA) ; Mr. Samuel Mwaura Waweru, CEO, KEPSA ; Mr. Jimnah Mbaru, Chairman NSE; Mr. Fred Mburu, Old Mutual Assets Manager; Ms. Lilian Maremma, Old Mutual Manager; Mr. Benson Wairegi, MD, Britak ; Mr. Martin Oduor-Otieno, MD, Kenya Commercial Bank ; Mr. James Mwangi, MD, Equity Bank; Dr. Bitange Ndemo, PS, Information & Communication; Dr. Achieng Ong'onga, MD, Kenya Tourist Board ; Mr. Eddy Njoroge, MD, KenGen ; Prof. Olive Mugenda, Vice-Chancellor, Kenyatta University ; Prof. Sperling, Vice-Chancellor, Strathmore University ; Mr. Frank Ireri, MD, Housing Finance ; Dr. Evans Kidero, MD, Mumias Sugar Company ; Mr. Mugo Kibati, MD, East Africa Cables ; Dr. Wahome Gakuru, National Economic and Social Council ; Mr. L. Tiampati, MD, Kenya Tea Development Agency ; Mr. David Nalo, PS, Trade & Industry.
The delegation was expected to unveil a diverse range of investment vehicles and products geared to
Kenyans overseas, in line with future expected economic growth in the country, with opportunities ranging from buying a home in Kenya, investing in stocks and shares to investing in the upcoming Initial Public
Offerings (IPO's) on the Nairobi Stock Exchange and other wealth and investment products.
Coming to the actual event, I must also acknowledge that the event was well organized which probably means a lot of money from Kenya's public coffers was infused into it's planning towards traveling and accommodation costs for all these dignitaries, a check for the dinner luncheon host, the JW Marriott, Washington DC, and a thorough public relations overdrive by the Embassy to reach out to Wananchi (most embassy staff and their families were in attendance). This could well pass to have been yet another of the government's very expensive public relations and Kibaki re-election campaign exercises costing possibly more than tens of millions of shillings.
The result of course was a lavish gathering that proved to be a meeting place of Kenyans where good food and all sorts of alcoholic beverages were served. It should however be noted that not all invited guests listed above attended, with only about half making the trip.
On the substantive note, some wonderful presentations were of course made. I was particularly impressed by the Permanent Secretary of Information, Dr. Bitange Ndemo, a former Minnesota based Kenyan who's efforts to ensure completion of both undersea and terrestrial broadband infrastructure development are already rolling on course. He gave an account of his concurrent efforts to initiate call center and data processing hubs within Kenya. Ok he seems to be doing what he actually is paid for which is a good thing.
For keen followers of local Kenyan news regarding telecommunications and ICT matters, Dr. Bitange's recent brush with colleagues from the Ministry of Justice, notably the Solicitor General, Wanjuki Muchemi over procurement procedures must have come to mind during and after his power-point presentation. The PS must have convinced many that he is indeed focused towards bringing positive change in this sector despite the well known interference by contract-hungry colleagues with vested interests in the Justice Ministry.
allafrica.com/stories/200703121439.html
Susan Kikwai of Kenya Investments Authority (another former US resident of Baltimore) did give a good presentation on various avenues and opportunities for business and investments and the US representative of Postapay Kenya which was recently launched as a money sending avenue, also gave an albeit timid presentation of their newly unveiled products.
Enter Amos Kimunya and his rosy economic growth figures which were carefully juxtaposed with Kibaki re-election campaign-rhetoric and opposition-bashing. Granted, the man craftily articulated economic gains achieved under the current regime carefully avoiding the touchy subjects of poverty (close to 60% of Kenyans live below the poverty line according to latest UNDP figures), and corruption.
What came out significantly during the event was Kimunya's hyping of election-year rhetoric which was akin to the old phrase "I(we) will transform your lives if you elect me(us)". Election-year rhetoric can sometimes bring false hopes and leave people chasing mirages, that is why I only searched for objective and substantive messages.
Kimunya's political maturity initially appeared to be in full display when he craftily made a strong effort to tie the policy paper "Kenya Vision 2030 : Transforming National Development" into a political affair purely dependent on Kibaki's 2007 re-election, giving projections of 10% economic growth rates for the next 23 years, which is projected to ultimately transform Kenya into an African economic tiger.
He scarred some folks stiff when he proclaimed "in the unlikely event that Kibaki loses re-election, all these economic gains will go up in smoke". His clever mission could have been the fact that when mixing policy and politics, it becomes sometimes fuzzy trying to discern and separate wheat from chaff, reality from fantasy, and facts from rhetoric. I gave him a head start for easily drowning lay folks with economic figures, estimates and projections that could easily sway undecided voters towards Kibaki.
It was only when the questions started flooding the podium, that the same folk were brought back to reality with the glaring facts that poverty was not anywhere near Kimunya's concerns, and corruption was not even a priority or a problem in his perception and mind. On this account I will choose to judge Kimunya and by extension his boss Kibaki not through the visions they promise, but through their past record which is right there for all to see. For them, visions-for-the-future cannot substitute past-record. Since Kimunya peddled the fear that Kenya's economy will go up in smoke if Kibaki is not re-elected, his statement warrants some record-based appraisal.
His failure to address questions regarding massive corruption, the 50-plus billion shilling Anglo-Leasing scandal, Nakumatt & Tusker Mattress tax evasion scams running into 18 billion shillings, the competitor Uchumi's fiasco, money laundering claims at CharterHouse Bank (now under receivership), claims of illegal procurement cartels, and irregular public assets acquisitions by one investment company which has shown interest in all of Kenya's parastatals set to be privatized left a lot to be desired.
Needless to add, he failed to address reasons for his failure to legislate laws against money laundering and his role at the CBK including whether he had a hand at Jacinta Mwatela's removal as Governor. I did not also expect him to forthrightly address the twin issues of corruption and tribalism (raised by someone) and how they directly contribute towards poverty in our case where close to 60% live below the poverty line. That spoke volumes. These are all record-based facts that can not be wished away through choreographed showcasing of economic "successes" that only percolates within the upper class of Kenya.
NOW back to the MISSION of Kimunya's trip here (with all those many dignitaries) "investment opportunities in Kenya". However much investment opportunities are showcased, Kenyans and foreigners alike, who want to invest in Kenya always have the same questions about the local environment with regard to; bureaucratic bottlenecks, regulatory climate, corruption, and insecurity.
What regulatory bottlenecks will be faced? What conditions must be met? Must you bribe to complete the process? What is the current status of security? Will pre-tax conditions be imposed? etc.
Granted, the questions came through none other than a diaspora based Kenyan who has unsuccessfully tried to invest in the telecommunications sector in Kenya under Kibaki's era. John Maina (who intends to vie for Kamkunji's parliamentary seat) sent these questions along with his personal experience. Kimunya refused to answer.
Ironically, long-long before Amos Kimunya's sh 100 million public relations exercise abroad was groomed, a group of patriotic Kenyan investors including John Maina, calling themselves KTIG came up with a brilliant investment idea and applied for a wireless phone license in Kenya. They made the positive and bold decision to actually invest in Kenya's growing telecommunications sector.
Here is basically what they met : Bureaucratic walls, overtones for bribery, and massive corruption. Before they blinked an eye, highly ranking government officials in the Kibaki government had cheated them out of their proposal, instead awarding the license to what was described by many as a "briefcase" entity called
Econet. The rest is history.
Amos Kimunya, head of the delegation promoting investments in Kenya, and well aware of this case, deliberately ignored answering John Maina's questions regarding the hostile investment climate on ground stifled with bureaucratic gangsterism, hostile take-over of investment ideas, and massive corruption......He seemed to have forgotten what his mission was in the first place....that is "explain how the government has made it easy to invest in Kenya". Refusing to address such a specific case-example is exactly not how to court investments but rather how to create fear among other prospective investors. He thus failed badly in convincing anybody that their investments would not suffer such consequences as done to KTIG.
Also since Kimunya also failed to grasp the conceptual benefits of -dual citizenship- vis-a-viz investments that was well articulated by Mkawasi Mcharo, ( President Kenya Community Abroad-KCA) his mission became a little too one-sided rather than a two-way dialogue. If you are citizen to both Kenya and say USA, then you could enjoy the "local" status in both respective countries, which makes investments obviously easier (for instance in the highly regulated telecommunications sector). I thus didn't like the casual manner in which The Finance Minister treated the dual-citizenship subject, basically saying ati it took the same path as the Wako draft and died.
If Kimunya is serious about promoting investments by Diaspora based Kenyans why doesn't he integrate this call for dual citizenship as part of the minimum constitution reforms that Kibaki has acceded his willingness to support?
I also took issue with the Minister's wild claim that "it would be retrogressive for the government to keep pursuing past corrupt individuals". Kimunya seems to have let the cat out of the bag with that and was beginning to loose out, despite an earlier impressive showing. It is no wonder corruption proceeds unabated with full impunity under Kibaki's government if people actually think they will be forgiven if they steal from the public, ati because past culprits were also "forgiven". This clearly exposes the lack of political will under this administration to fight corruption genuinely and one wonders why we have to pay exorbitant salaries to the Ringeras if they are just on a public relations exercise.
This vicious cycle of corruption and protecting corrupt public officials must be terminated once and for all by a regime that is willing to take the heat on behalf of its suffering citizens largely impoverished through corruption. That regime, as Kimunya has clearly stated, is definitely not Kibaki's! They have no business chasing after Goldenberg looters and other past economic crimes, so says the Finance Minister.
Kenya has numerous avenues and opportunities of investment as was enumerated by Susan Kikwai but until such problems met by akina John Maina and KTIG are addressed, then some lingering ambivalence may still exist, unless when talking of small scale ventures which may actually not need much regulatory considerations.
It would be nice to hear from Kenya's Finance Minister, talk addressing poverty, corruption, tribalism especially in the Finance Ministry itself ( including Kenya Revenue Authority), inflation and escalating costs of basic commodities like unga, sugar and paraffin, all which have either tripled or doubled under Kibaki's four year regime.
Finally, better use of scarce resources in addressing Kenya's poverty concerns should become a priority for the Finance Minister rather than exorbitant spending in politically motivated overseas trips by huge delegations of loyalty-pledging public officials.
Dr. Job Obonyo
