The "not so good" happenings in Kenya...

There is good stuff happening in Kenya but the bad overshadows the good... I know we can turn the corner but we need accountability from politicians & public officials. Wananchi lack the means to challenge silly rules, laws or regulations. We are taken for granted.

Water cost to rise coz of a tax on water! We have no say. I don't mind the tax if I knew a) what the money was used for b) if the money was used effectively.

Increased cost of electricity. KenGen will eventually raise its rates to KPLC which will in turn bill consumers. KPLC has to deal with vandalism that increases the cost for the rest of us. KPLC is not allowed to adequately protect itself & our police are not motivated since KPLC does not bribe them!

Where is NEMA when a lead smelter is being built in the middle of Nakuru? Where are the safeguards? Why does NEMA not provide information to the public? I don't mind the investment but will the benefits outweigh the risks? Are the chinese investors in Kenya for the long haul? While we are it, it is suspected that lead poisoning was the cause of death of 3,000 waterbucks at the L.Nakuru national Park. Sigh...

Where are kimunya, murungi & kibz who have been trumpeting the elusive benefits of 'chinese assistance'? The chinese got the oil exploration blocks they wanted then turned around & told Kenya to shove off... The loan of KShs 5.3bn has been reduced to KShs 2.2bn. Oh, I expect the chinese will insist that the materials, trucks & labour be imported from china!

kibz speech read in absentia in India highlights why he should have gone for the India-Africa Summit with some tough negotiators ( e.g. martha karua) to help ease Kenyan exports to India. Instead he (& karua's) are in Nairobi...

Venture Capital funds are renowned for their flexibility but the idiots at the CMA want to shackle them! How does a new VC firm provide 3 years of audited annual reports? Furthermore, I can understand protecting investors but the minimum capital requirements for VC funds is too high!

Mobitelea... need I say more... dan 'thieving' moi has been uncharacteristically quiet. Maybe he is counting his stolen safaricom/mobitelea earnings?

While politicians dither - but earn undeserved salaries - the ordinary Kenyan pays the price. Mortgage rates expected to rise since title deeds hold no value in many clash-prone areas. This will lead to a slowdown in economic activity where it is needed most!

Well... it turns out that SafCon (erm, I call it SafCon in my postings for a reason) might be lying to us... well, ooh lah lah... there is mobitelea... now it turns out that their definition of 'subscribers' includes inactive subscribers... Celtel has 2.1 'active' subscribers based on a 'chargeable' even in the past 3 months. So how many 'active' subscribers does SafCon really have?

The real subscriber base differential between Celtel & Safaricom might not be as high as we were led to believe. Celtel has a better quality network & attracts more business users with a much higher ARPU.

Revelation that the 9.2 million subscriber base includes active and inactive clients turns this figure into a reflection of the total number of people who have ever owned a Safaricom line since it was founded seven years ago. “Celtel has maintained its grip on the high revenue post-paid customers since its launch. That means it could have a high migratory flock of pre-paid users who join to enjoy cheaper tariffs,” said the analyst. He said the company makes its money from a stable number of post-paid, high grossing customers.