African Blog Review, July 9, 2008

comments on the resignation of Kenyan Finance Minister, Amos Kimunya, following allegations of financial impropriety in the sale of the Grand Regency Hotel in Nairobi:

“… it is important to understand that history was made yesterday. Never in the history of the nation has parliament on its own volition or initiative caused the resignation of a cabinet minister in defiance of the executive… In the often quoted case of former Vice President and now deceased, Dr Josephat Karanja, the plot to censure him was hatched in State House as crafty former President Moi wanted to get rid of his VP without risking a fallout amongst the powerful Kikuyus whom Moi greatly feared throughout his reign. So he got some MP to move the motion in parliament and gave the necessary instructions through the house which was then a mere rubber stamp of the executive.

This was not the case this time. In fact, if truth be told, the house was packed yesterday because members were expecting fireworks. Kimunya’s hurried resignation just before parliament’s first session of the week in the afternoon was no coincidence. The timing speaks volumes and tells me that State house is getting a little anxious. And the main reason has more to do with the naming of certain names that State House does not want to see named in connection to the Grand Regency.

But Kenyans need to be even more vigilant now. Will we get to the bottom of the Grand Regency saga? That should be the top priority that we must pursue now with all diligence.

To answer that question, there is an ominous sign to look out for. That sign is who gets appointed to replace Kimunya... If the new Finance Minister is from the ODM arm of the Grand coalition government then Kenyans will need to head to the hills because that will be a ‘grand bribe’ to ‘maliza hio maneno ya Grand Regency’. We can breathe a wee bit easier if Kimunya’s replacement is from PNU.”

Expose Uganda Genocide
Reacting to praise heaped on Uganda’s national policy on the displaced by Mukirya Nyanduga, Commissioner for refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Africa, Expose Uganda Genocide argues that the camps for IDPs in Uganda have caused more deaths than the LRA, and describes the Commissioner’s statement as “Aiding and Abetting Genocide” and “Distorting History of IDPs”:

“In a stunning pronouncement this week, a visiting diplomat has hailed the IDP policy created by government officials.

In reality, an extreme lack of water, sanitation and health care has cultivated disease epidemics, caused thousands of preventable deaths and produced thousands of highly malnourished children unable to enjoy their right to protection, health and education.

Conditions in these camps have caused the most deaths in the long-running civil war been the Ugandan Government and the Lord's Resistance Army.”

Palapala Magazine a recent addition to the African blogosphere, interviews Abidemi Olowonira, a Houston-based Nigerian visual artist, about the role of artists in reviving and preserving collective memory in Africa. According to Olowonira,

“Remembrance has always been a binding factor in African societies. A lot of Africans are named after their ancestors and events that occurred around the time the child was born. So, as the child grows, he or she becomes a walking reminder of a particular incident or a particular ancestor. In contrast to the West where everything is fast, Africa retains its past.

When you consider the trauma of slavery and colonialism on Africa it is very difficult for the African artist not to make remembrance an aspect of their work. Personally, even though I address 'in-the-moment' experiences, I still pull a lot of inspiration from my childhood experiences and my parents experiences, retained through stories. In fact, I also get inspiration from my grandmother's experiences. For instance, I use the 'bush lamp' in my paintings as a symbol from a parable my grandmother shared with me: ‘The person who turns on the light is a hero but the one who turns it off is the villain.’ At night in African markets, people use the 'bush lamp' to sell their wares. I think it is a way for us to retain our humanity in spite of our circumstances. Light becomes a significant symbol in our experience. When you see a bush lamp at night it symbolizes life, security and hope. So, if those lights are extinguished, they'll be chaos because that is the only way people can identify a path on which they can walk. I use light in my paintings to illustrate its importance in the African experience.”

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