Heavy Rains Pound the City and Other Parts of Kenya

Of late heavy rains have been pounding the city and other different parts of the country. It has caused havoc in some parts where people and animals have lost lives and there has been a lot of damage to crops and the environment in general. All this has been caused by flash floods.

In our capital city Nairobi, the rains have cased havoc in the following ares:

a) Intermittent black outs – of late in most estates, the residents have suffered so much from black outs such that they have resulted to mpango wa candle, others are forced to rely on mulika mwizi. Any time there is a drought in the country, KPLC starts rationing the electricity and when the rain falls the lights go off, the reason we are yet to be told. I believe the money they collect is enough to solve these blackout problems once and for all. If they can't be able to deliver, then is it possible to have other companies being allowed to operate so as to stop monopoly?

The inefficiency of KPLC to deliver quality services to their customers should be a wake up call to other investors or innovators who should came up with other reliable technologies like the solar energy, wind energy and others which can rely help the people of Kenya as they struggle to achieve the vision 2030 goals.

b) Fare hikes – when it rains, who told the matatu owners, operators and cartels that it rains money in our pockets? The first signs of a drizzle and the fares are doubled. When it rains cats and dogs like of late, they quadruple the fare. The sad thing is that this money never helps them.

c) Heavy traffic jam – don't even mention it, the heavily rained on Nairobians, their pockets and stomachs empty, are subjected to heavy traffic jams which the traffic police like to refer to as a gridlock.

Some of these traffic jams last for hours making the hard working citizens alive home at ungodly hours. Mind you, they have to wake up very early the following day (no, the same day because they sleep past midnight) and board the same extorting matatus, spend several hours again in morning traffic jam before reporting to their places of work looking tired and haggard like someone who has escaped from a horror movie. This is as a result of being tossed up and down on the roads that resembles gnu tracks. Roads covered with deep and dangerous potholes.

Rain is a blessing since the country depends mostly on agriculture. So we can not blame the rains for all these problems. We only need to be innovative and proactive. Like now, we should be trapping the rain water that is going to waste so that we can use it latter for farming during the dry seasons. But now, we are busy politicking for 2012 elections. Nothing else is in our minds.

FRUSTRATING INTERNET SPEEDS IN KENYA

Who knows what is happening with internet speeds in Kenya? I have been experiencing a lot of problems with internet connection. The speeds have suddenly become pathetic and the internet itself is also very unreliable. Sometimes it is on and good and other times it is down and out. You can try to image how frustrated one becomes when running a cyber cafe. Worst still, some customers think you have throttled your speeds so that you can steal from them. Anyone out there who knows what is happening, am I alone or other people are suffering too?

Kenya is a country that boosts of having four fiber cables for linking it with the internet hubs, but I can't believe what we are going through. The four fiber cables are for the following bandwidth suppling companies:-

1. SEACOMS
2. TEAMS
3. EASSY
4. LION

Many Kenyans are nowadays relying heavily on internet especially for communication and conducting their online businesses. With the introduction of these four fiber cables, one expects to see very fast internet speeds but it is actually the opposite. I wish to know what is happening with our Internet Service Providers. Are they asleep or they have been incompetent in their service delivery?

In order to achieve vision 2030 goals and daydreams, we need fast, reliable and affordable internet so that we can be able to communicate and conduct our online businesses without seeing this nagging message of server not being found. My question is, which ISP do you thin is the best, offering reliable services and excellent customer support?

US warns of an impending Al Shaabab strike.

The US Embassy has issued an alert of impending Al Shabaab attack in Nairobi's hotels and prominent government buildings. Kenyans are on high alert following these new fresh threats. The Kenyan Defense Forces late last year were deployed in the volatile Somali country after being continually provoked by the armed militia.

Since the Kenyan defense forces entered Somalia to contain the militia, there has been spontaneous grenade attacks that have rocked the country and which have been attributed to the Somalia's Islamic group Al-Shabaab.

Kenyans will not be cowered by these threats and attacks. They want peace between the two countries so that the people can live in harmony. Read more on Kenyan defense forces attack Somali's Al Shabaab.

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The Shame That Is Muthurwa Market And Bus Terminus.

Muthurwa Market was built for hawkers and a small portion of it was turned to a bus terminus for all Public Service Vehicles from Eastlands of Nairobi. The move of creating a bus terminus or stage was obviously to bring customers to the hawkers. Its construction was hyped as one of the boldest moves to control hawking and traffic congestion in Nairobi, but this has just turned out to be a mere dream.

Muthurwa Market.

Whoever had come up with the thought of Muthurwa market stage had a brilliant idea. Then whoever came up with the design should never have gone to school. Why? You may ask. The answer is simple, the Muthurwa design or plan is lacking and even someone who has not gone to school can be able to come up with a more better design. The owner of the company that won the contract to build Muthurwa market cum stage should be locked up tight in a maximum prison. The reason is that he/she did a shoddy incomplete work, just like the hundreds of other 'cowboy contractors' (this refers to a group of well-connected contractors who come up clever schemes of making money from the government without doing any work for it) we have in Kenya.

The Muthurwa Hawker's market was launched by his excellency the president,

A plaque commemorating the launch of Muthurwa market.

Hon,Mwai Kibaki on 11^th December 2006. It was designed to cater for needs of thousands of hawkers who had been flocking Nairobi streets and roads with their wares. The market actually employs thousands of individuals who sell their wares from makeshift stands.

The problem with the Muthurwa market is its design. The shelters or stands created for hawkers were not well designed to suit their work. The designers/architects failed miserably in their work. Most of the stands are not in use since most hawkers tend to compete for the open spaces being used by the pedestrians creating chaos and confusion in the busy market.

Total chaos

Not long ago, dealers or hawkers who sell farm produce like fruits and vegetables were brought in to occupy the unused spaces. Over the short time they have been there, they have created a mountain of ill- smelling waste. Luckily, this heap of malodorous waste is cleared after reaching a height of several meters. But even after clearing it, it leaves behind a stinking smell that even makes NEMA officials hide in their offices located in lush parts of Nairobi. Something else, because the waste is extracted by heavy bulldozers, they scoop even the top soil in the process creating a man-made dam. The best thing is that this dam is turning itself into a tourist attraction site. What with the increasing presence of white herons?

A matatu evades a deep hole

Muthurwa market also comprise a bus/matatu stage for most of the Eastland vehicles. It is a big shame that these people are required by the government to pay taxes. The road leading to Muthurwa is a pathetic very narrow single lane. There are no potholes because the initially paved road has been totally worn out, leaving deep holes that continually torture the vehicles plying these routes. The matatu owners are forced to drop passengers on far of places like Machakos country Bus, City Stadium roundabout and left to walk for the remaining distance.

During its construction, it was believed that it would ease the traffic congestion in the city. But there is nothing like that that was achieved. The deep potholed narrow feeder roads branching out of Landhies Road cannot be able to accommodate the vehicles entering Muthurwa stage. In times of rain, the place is all muddy. In times of dry weather the place turns more chaotic with dust blowing from all directions. 

Don't say Ohh shit!

Human waste scattered on Muthurwa foot bridge

If you are used to cursing like for example, 'oh shit!', don't say that while you are using the Muthurwa foot bridge. This is because if you don't look before you leap, you will find yourself in deepshit. The shoe cleaners will not want anything to do with you. The footbridge has been turned to a free open air public toilet. So, Nairobians have found it better to dodge vehicles on the ever busy Haile Selassie Avenue. If you are the reigning Olympic champion of hop, step and jump (triple jump), then you can use it.

Since Muthurwa market was built before 2007 elections to appease the hawkers, I suspect that something might be done before the end of this election year. Another shoddy contractor might be contracted to do some shoddy repair work before the coming general elections. Just to buy the hawkers and Eastlanders votes. Let us wait and see.

Human traffic as Nairobians slow down waiting for their time to go past a messy stretch at Muthurwa.

The best thing is that Kenyans are very good and understanding people. They don't complain a lot and they don't refuse to pay taxes like our MPs. They have surely adopted the slogan of walking nation and “wanajihurumia kuwa Wakenya.” In the same case, am not complaining. I am doing my work of writing.

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