21 March 2008
column
Nairobi — Those criticising the ongoing military operation in Mt Elgon to smoke out the dreaded Sabaot Land Defence Force militia should shut up, says Antony Alex Irungu. He adds: "These people are not only armed and dangerous, but operate with military precision. There is, therefore, need for more than equal force for them to be smothered before they evolve into an unmanageable terror group like the ones wreaking havoc elsewhere. You do not dispatch scouts to dismantle dangerous criminal gangs, do you?"
Who will tell head of Public Service Francis Muthaura that the problem in Kenya is not simply about certain individuals being hell-bent on advancing their own interests? poses Joab Apollo. "The country is just recovering from weeks of uncertainty and such outbursts are bound to spark fresh violence. On whose behalf was he speaking when he purported to interpret the accord?"
Patrick Oboka says he was not amused by Mr Raila Odinga's recent remark that "football is played by gentlemen and watched by thugs, rugby is played by thugs and watched by gentlemen, and that golf is played and watched by gentlemen". According to Patrick, this is a great insult to soccer fans all over the world who happen to be the majority among sports lovers.
Some people can really shoot themselves in the foot, remarks Jim Webo, reacting to Raila's assertion that the beautiful game that is football, which incidentally, is the most popular in the world "is watched by thugs". Jim adds: "I know Raila himself to be an ardent lover of football, who has in the past turned up at stadiums to cheer local teams. So, what could he be insinuating about himself?"
Safaricom CEO Michael Joseph should stop giving peculiar excuses as to why his firm's loyal subscribers should not enjoy making free calls on weekends, says Mark Evans Ondari. "Blaming 'network dynamics' is a rather queer excuse for a company that rakes in Sh17 billion in profits even in a bad year! If Safaricom are afraid the network will get swamped with a mad rush for free calls, they could use the cash to revamp it."
Last December should be officially declared the "Season of the Grand Fraud" to commemorate the rigging of the December 27 General Election, that nearly plunged the country into civil war, and the errors in the 2007 KCSE exam results, that will traumatise a number of students for years to come, says Mark Evans Ondari. Mark adds: "But being the steely Kenyans they are, nothing short of a real Armageddon could make officials at the ECK or KNEC resign!"
With the transition from analog to digital broadcasting, and to safeguard the rights of consumers who might not be conversant with the technical know-how about the digital TV sets (with digital tuners), it will be necessary for the Government to enact a law to compel TV dealers to display alerts on every TV set being sold, urges Boniface Oyengo. "Maybe it should read something like this: Consumer Alert - This TV receiver has only an analog broadcast tuner and will require a converter box . . . ."
Have a futuristic day, won't you!
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