Dear Friends,  

If you have been following the news from Kenya, then you know that our country is at an important crossroads.  The fate of democracy in Kenya will likely be decided in the coming months, if not weeks. 

Despite growing evidence that Raila Odinga won the presidency by 120,000 votes, Mwai Kibaki, the current and illegitimate president, is desperately attempting to solidify his grasp on power.  Nonetheless, the opposition has defeated his strong arm tactics in the parliament and continues to win the battle for public opinion on the streets, on the web, and on the airwaves.  The majority of Kenyans are demanding one of two things: that Kibaki step down immediately or that a new election be held.  The Coalition of Kenyans and Allies for Democracy is committed to representing the interests of Kenyans.  We, therefore, join our brethren in making these demands.     

Although a new election remains possible, the results of such an election will not be credible as long as the government continues to suppress freedom of expression. Toward this end, CKAD demands that UN troops be deployed throughout Kenya to protect the populace from the brutality of Kenyan police, organized gangs, and foreign military elements.  In light of numerous reports of the presence of the Ugandan military in Nyanza and Rift Valley provinces and due to the high death toll of residents credited to Kenyan police in these areas, CKAD demands that special attention in the deployment of UN troops be given to these areas.  We cannot allow the police and other elements to disenfranchise Kenyans of their vote again through the use of intimidation or force.  A new election will lack legitimacy unless it is conducted in an atmosphere of democracy–that is, where freedom of speech, freedom of assembly, and freedom of the press are restored and respected by all levels of government.  CKAD will, therefore, continue to demand that Kibaki step down until these conditions are met and the mechanisms for conducting a new, free, and independently monitored election are put in place.     

We believe that the tide of public opinion is on the side of democracy.  With your help, we hope to channel the energy of this tide toward a victory for the people of Kenya.   

Despite the United State’s deafness to the “made in Kenya” solutions that Kenyans are screaming and, in too many cases, dying for–that is, despite America’s obliviousness to the majority consensus that Kibaki must step down or that a new and independently monitored election must be held–international support for democracy in Kenya is gathering steam.  In a unanimous vote, the European Union Parliament declared that if a “credible and fair recount” is impossible, then a new election must be held.  This international body, which represents twenty-seven countries, also voted to freeze aid to Kenya “until a political resolution to the present crisis has been found.”  Unfortunately, this resolution is nonbinding.  It is, therefore, up to us to demand, even more loudly, that Kibaki step down or that a new, independently monitored election be held once democracy is restored.   

We call on the EU and other western powers to put the funds that would have gone toward aid to the Kibaki government toward a new election.  We also call on all Kenyans in the diaspora to contribute to this effort.   

Our demand that either Kibaki resign immediately or a new and independently monitored election be held as quickly and in as democratic a fashion as possible is necessitated by the deplorable record on human rights and respect for democracy that Kibaki and his government officials have amassed since illegally seizing power.  In Kisumu, Kenyan police shot live bullets at protesters, killing at least forty-four people last week and twenty-one in the past few days.  Police have also beaten or whipped people who were simply commuting to and from work—an embarrassing sight for all Kenyans and for the black community, in general.  On a national level, Kenyan police have been responsible for more than half of the 700 deaths attributed to election-related violence.  Among the dead are women and children.  Witnesses report that police have even killed those who were not taking part in demonstrations.  Joseph Karoki blogs about one such Kenyan, James Odhiambo.  This young man, the sole bread-winner for his family, was shot by police while walking to work.   Truthfully, all Kenyans are victims of this national injustice, of Kibaki’s derailment and destruction of democracy.          

As a signatory to the petition “Kibaki Must Step Down,” you have already played an important part in ensuring the survival of democracy in Kenya.  The time has come, however, when we must either accept the demise of Kenya’s fragile democracy or stand in solidarity with those who are breathing life back into that democracy through nonviolent mass action.   

So how can you take action to restore democracy in Kenya?   

1)       Please email this information to as many people as you can and ask them to sign the petition “Kibaki Must Step Down.”  We must all take ownership of the fate of democracy in Kenya.  We are calling on you and everyone you know to promote this petition anywhere and everywhere that you can, including on Facebook, Myspace, Reddit, Digg, Del.icio.us, and on various blogs and search engines. The petition “Kibaki Must Step Down” can be signed at http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/kibaki-must-step-down.html  We are at over 14,000 signatures and counting…   

 2)      Please contact the following elected officials: 

Senator BARACK OBAMA  (D-IL) — Congressional Black Caucus; Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on African Affairs
 

713 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
Tel: (202) 224-2854
Fax: (202) 228-4260

Congresswoman CAROLYN CHEEKS KILPATRICK (D-MI) — Chairwoman, Congressional Black Caucus

2264 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515-2215
Tel: (202) 225-2261
Fax: (202) 225-5730

Senator RUSS FEINGOLD (D-WI) — Chairman, Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on African Affairs 506 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510-4904
Tel: (202) 224-5323
TDD: (202) 224-1280
Fax: (202) 224-2725 We need your help.  We cannot rest until the number of people standing up for democracy in Kenya grows exponentially worldwide.     

Asanteni sana, 

Annah, Tavia, Philister

Coalition of Kenyans and Allies for Democracy

For more information about CKAD, please visit our blog at http://kenyansfordemocracy.blogspot.com/.   

    Date: Mon, 21 Jan 2008 07:39:39 +0000
   

The situation in Kenya is one I do not want to live under. The violence is such that I do not want to raise my children in. My dilemma does not matter to many especially the cream of the society as long as they are safe in their fortified fort jesuses’.  My eyes are glued to the TV with dismay but even TV does not portray what I have witnessed with my naked eyes for the last two days. Naked eyes because you do not need a microscope to see a child born three years ago ripped by a directionless bullet. A bullet fired by someone who has a child that breaths the same air.

Where is the norm my brethren? Where is the love? All I see is hate.

Hate written on the walls of my heart. Darkness has subdued my heart and do not blame me if I forget that light exists for a moment. For those who speak of the light are in essence extinguishing the light that took us too long to light up. Which way is the democracy of Kenya is a question I no longer have an answer for? But the question I ask is: at what cost? At what cost does Kibaki want to persist in holding onto power?

All over suddenly language has become stronger and important than life. An assasin came to my house the other day. They asked me “where are you from?” My sister answered “Othaya” just to defend me from the wrath of the enemy. The answer was correct but the accent was wrong. Indeed our mother is Luo but her father is a Kikuyu from Othaya. She was was shot just because the soldier thought their intelligence was betrayed but I did it finally when the next one asked me. I spoke fluent Kikuyu and told them that my sister was a real Kikuyu and I was a real Luo but I speak real Kikuyu. They had no words to defend themselves. The stupidity surfaced.

Here were a couple of men with grown beards but no brains. They were fighting over who could speak Kikuyu better.

The state has the machinery. They have killed many, however, based on what? It is time soldiers, police officers or a general service unit personell think before they fire shorts.

Kibaki will never be on the streets firing shots but he is well aware of the reason why he is ordering them to “shoot to kill.” He is making money for his children and his close associates. Many of the Kikuyus will not see even a single cent. Kikuyus’ best bet is democracy where even the small man has a chance.

Do you as a soldier know why you are shooting to kill? I bet you you don’t know.

However, Kibaki knows why.

The reason is simple and stupid. He simply wants to keep power among the Kikuyu elite. And who are these? The Michuki, the Karume, the Martha Karua, etc, etc, etc. I thought the gikuyu had broken ranks with the Kiambu and the Mount Kenya mafia, unfortunatly not.

We are fighting and killing our own children for what we will never see the fruits of. The harvest is going to be shared amongst the Kibaki elites. Don’t ever call it Kikuyu elites. Kikuyus are infected by jiggers just like the Luos while the children of the elite are with me here in America.

At the end of the day, when Kibaki is overwhelmed, he will become my neighbor here in Florida.  His house will be the best. The best because he misused you.

Kenyan people do not let this continue. Kibaki has no interest of Kenya at heart, eject him. He is using your God-given language to make sure his friends loot your resources. Wake up and see the light. It is not the Luo or the Kikuyu affair. It is the Kenyan affair. If Kibaki has your interest at heart, ask him to order for a new presidential election, otherwise the streets of Nairobi will be a waste dump for rotting Kenyan people’s bodies.

Dr. Barack Abonyo

Anyone who tells me that Kibaki has his or her interest might have to tell me a very long story. 

    Date: Sun, 20 Jan 2008 04:41:31 -0800 (PST)
   
 TODAY, SUNDAY 20th 
 
 
 ODM Schedule ………………………………………….Geoffrey 
 
 
 ODM has once again set Thursday to be its day for a peaceful protest at the Uhuru Park grounds while Monday and Wednesday will be for prayers for those who lost their lives in the post election violence in Kisumu and Nairobi respectively.
 
 
 The party will then proceed to carry nationwide prayers for peace on Friday as was revealed today the party’s leader and MP for Langata Hon  Raila Odinga after attending a  Sunday mass at the Holy Trinity  ACK Church in Kibera. 
 
 
 Adding that the party will help in supporting all those affected during the three days of mass action including bailing out the ones arrested during the protests.
 
 
 At the same time he lamented that he is ready for a re-run since recent elections were flawed.
 
 
 Raila was accompanied by his wife Idda Odinga, ODM Nakuru activist pastor Mike Brawan, former Makadara Mp Ruben Ndolo, Bondo Mp Oburu Odinga and former comedian turned politician Joe Kiarie.
 
 
 END
 

    Date: Sat, 19 Jan 2008 17:10:57 -0800 (PST)
   

The one major reason why Kenya is at war is the stolen election. We elected Raila Amolo Odinga to bring democratic change that would ensure equality, justice, accountability and fairness. The man won big because we turned out to vote in big numbers.The incumbent, Mr Mwai Kibaki decided to manipulate figures using the Electoral Commission of Kenya whose members are his appointees. Now, that is why we are at war in Kenya.
  
  Retrospectively, the current situation is a product of over forty years of corruption, nepotism, favoritism and partiality in hiring, allocating of resources and land, firing and promoting civil servants abuse of human rights and ostracizing of the politically incorrect people.
  
  When Kibaki got overwhelming support in 2002, Kenyans expected him to prosecute architects of Goldenberg rip off but corrupters and corruptees in his own government made their own corruption and money siphoning machine called Anglo-Leasing. Kenyans further expected Kibaki to improve efficiency in the civil service and put in place a working impartial government. He began by firing senior civil servants from Kalenjin tribe replacing them with men and women from his tribe, the Kikuyu. By so doing doing, Kibaki was not fighting corruption as mandated by Kenyans but replacing Kalenjins with Kikuyus who were well known as corrupt.
  
  Kibaki did not only fire Kalenjins replacing them with Kikuyus, he made sure that judiciary, civil service, parastatals, army, police and virtually every governmental organization was run and controlled by his tribesmen. On top of this, Kibaki made sure that his tribe controlled businesses by availing to them low interest loans. The same was not extended to the other tribes.
  
  On the other hand, any cabinet member who comes from outside Mt Kenya, Kibaki’s home region, heads a low key ministry.
  
  In view of this, Kenyans chose to use one lethal weapon they possessed: The vote. Kenyans chose to use democratic means to usher in change and they did it overwhelmingly on December 27, 2007. Kibaki on his side decided to steal the election through his hand-picked electoral commission.The voters defeated Kibaki and the electoral commission manipulated the votes to appear as if he won.
  
  As I have said, the current situation has been over forty years in the making. When Jomo Kenyatta became president in 1963, he acquired and donated former settler farms to his tribe the Kikuyu in disregard of the people the white settlers forcefully took the land from. Kenyatta used two means to acquire settler farms. He took them forcefully or gave money to his tribesmen to buy the farms from the settlers. Soon after independence, Kikuyus were all over Kenya occupying lands they acquired from white settlers who had earlier on forcefully dispossessed the indigenous people. This affected Rift Valley Province in particular where the Maasai and Kalenjin lost most of their ancestral land to Kikuyus.
  
  Most people who are not Kikuyus cannot be hired in government, let alone be promoted. Business  and civil service positions are mainly reserved for Kibaki’s tribe. This is why the whole country turned against Kikuyus.
  
  Likewise scholarships, best schools,best infrastructure,best hospitals and efficient government services are only found in Mt. Kenya Region where Kibaki comes from.
  
  We are living in a country where one tribe is colonizing us.
  
  When Kibaki appointed Kalonzo Musyoka as Vice President, he did what everyone expected.He appointed him because he is from the Kamba tribe, the Kikuyu’s cousins. The message he is passing across is simple and clear. He is saying “I have a new weapon in my arsenal. I am not interested in dialogue. I’m ready to fight”
  
  Tribe defines everything in Kibaki’s government. He treasures tribal dominance and would rather hang on to power as long as his people reap profit in business and key positions in government. While remaining aloof, the man effectively uses his hardline sidekicks such as Karua, Saitoti, Michuki and Kimunya who are his tribesmen.
  
  If Kibaki hangs on regardless of anything, How is he going to rule when 6/8 of the country is against him? Where is he going to generate revenue when the regions that generate big money from agriculture, tourism and fishing is on fire? Kibaki’s ministers have often said that Kenya can survive external financial freeze but have failed to know that regions that generate much revenues are now opposed to government. The regions in question seem to say they are fed up with paying taxes to a government that has ignored them.
  
  We have yet to see where the government will get money to pay the police who are now killing people indiscriminately. The police that are unleashed on peaceful demonstrators today may turn against the government in future.
  
  By using police to kill, the government has worsened tribal relationships and future leadership will have to spend much time and money to reconcile tribes. Kibaki and his home boys will never unite Kenya and the injection of a concoction called Kalonzo is of no benefit to the current chaos. God help Kenya!
  
  THE CURRENT STRUGGLE IS FOR THE SURVIVAL OF NON-KIKUYUS IN KENYA AS OPPOSED TO TRIBAL CLASHES.
  
  J.K. LELEITTO SANG
  
  
   ——————————–
  
  
  
 

ngeny wrote:

           Kemei,
Yours is well put, however, i wish to deviate from your last para, where you say we need to defend democracy.  Really, in the case of Kenya, there is no democracy to defend after  the event of  30/12/07.  What is left is fight to restore or to redefine the boundaries.

ngeny

———————-

kemei wrote:      

Ladies and Gentlemen we as kenyans should not negotiate with the terrorists. The Kalonzos, Kenyattas,Kimunya’s, Karua’s, the wetangula’s and the Wako’s plus the Saitoti’s have no moral authority to seat and discuss issues relating to the current political fiasco and stalemate that we have in our beloved country.

They have leashed terror on innocent Kenyans and are now being sent to the negotiating table. The people’s court should move in and judge them and send them behind bars.

If they are not contained now, they will strike again in 2012 and the damage will be greater. We need to listen to what one of the great son’s of Africa former Ghanian president Jerry Rawlings has said. We need a re-run of the election to solve the problem in question in our country.

The world powers should use the money that they had allocated the kenyan Goverment till 2013 to be used to protect Democracy by helping finance the re-run. They will have then proved to us that they are for democracy and will always stand firm to defend
democracy when terrorists like Emilio Mwai Kibaki are a threat to the same.

Now is the time to defend democracy for anything before now is subject to change in the now hence the need for us to go by the now principle. Let the bells of freedom ring to infinity.

Kemei

Edited by Jaluo Press

http://www.thisdayonline.com/nview.php?id=100826 

 “Kenyans are demonstrating that enough is enough in neo-colonialism. If we have done away with coup d’etat, then let us preserve the integrity of the electoral process. And if we cannot count on the integrity of the electoral process, where do we go? This is happening in many countries in Africa, including my own country.”

The former Ghanaian president said that the electoral process in many African countries is so weak, which in turn weakens the relationship between the African governments elected in such doubtful electoral process.

AND

Also speaking to journalists, the former Ghanaian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Victor Gbeho, who arrived at the airport with Rawlings, said unless the electoral processes in Africa are reviewed, the kind of crisis happening in Kenya would not end.

“This is a challenge to the A.U, they should get involved and organise a re-run election, otherwise the opposition party will never agree, they are prepared to shed more blood”, he said. 

See link for more… 

- Sent by Marselus

    Date: Fri, 18 Jan 2008 07:20:15 -0800 (PST)
   
  Folks,
  
  This is a big nonsense gimmicks. The Truth must be told. This is how many people know it.  KIBAKI and his Kikuyu allies, from confirmed informed sources, sent their MUNGIKI to train in UGANDA came back and settled in NYANZA and WESTERN NYANZA in camps with NRA government vehicles and NRA uniformed, when they were OVERPOWERED by the LOCALS they started CRYING FAUL. They went to seek more RAINFORCEMENT from UGANDA and the Ugandan LEADER sent some more 3,000 troops in full gear to Western Nyanza in support of MUNGIKI troops.  They were the ones who had the GUNS, and the MACHETEs.  REMEMBER, the MACHETEs were transported to NYANZA and WESTERN NYANZA by KENYA GOVERNMENT vehicles and were sported and reported and nothing was done about it. Locals do not have Guns.  This was an organized THUGGERY and HOOLIGANISM by Kibaki when he sensed DEFEAT – because all his action directs to that point. They did their THING which is KILLING and ACTED like KIKUYUs were the VICTIMS.

If every tribe will bring their foreign neibouring troops, WHAT WILL BECOME OF KENYA.  And IF FAKE POLICE or POLICE FROM KIKUYU/GEMA shoot other TRIBES what will become of OTHER TRIBAL GROUPS IN THE POLICE and IN THE ARMED FORCES? We cannot afford to allow situation like in Somalia with WAR LED TRIBAL REBELs in Kenya.  There is no REASON for this kind of STAND-Off just because KIBAKI cannot relinquish POWER -when IN ACTUAL SENSE the elections were FREE and FAIR, with an exception of KIBAKI along with cohorts STEALING Kenyan Votes.
  
  We get Angry and we sober out THEN Reason.
  
  So far, so Good for the planners.  EVERY sound-thinking KENYAN and sympathisers MUST look at this matter CRITICALLY and OBJECTIVELY.  All said and done, how would the problem be SOLVED. No Retreat/or giving up until solution is found. This is HOW:
  
   
   Existing vote cards having been tampered with, will not give the true picture and is fraudelent, so cannot be relied for a Re-Count.  Out of question. 

   Re-Run of the Presidential Candidates is a PREFERRED fair DEAL to all including the electorates to solve the stalemates. 

   We must donate and collect money WORLD WIDE for the Re-Run for a set date of between two to three months and apoint a NEUTRAL election Returning officers not the ECK  – BUT from the UN, African Community Organization, Human Rights, and the International Community monitoring groups – IT CAN BE DONE. So the candidates don’t have to spend money from their sources.  DISCUSSION IS GOING ON WITH SOME SENIOR INTERNATIONAL LEADERS. 

   Government Offices Must be controlled from the AG, the Parliament Kenyan Armed Forces (with assistance from the International Peace Keeping Groups for a period of six months).
 
   Funds could also be realized from sponsor groups like World Bank and IMF and be paid back inclusively in the taxpayers bracket. 

   Power-sharing should not EVEN be IMMAGINED since this will bring about more bloodshed.  Kenya will never be the same again.
 
 Yes, we MUST begin to talk.
  
  Judy Miriga
  USA

Post edited by Jaluo Press