Essays, Politics, Security, Socio-cultural

Nyumba Kumi And Institutional Failure In Kenya

Brenda Wambui

After the Westgate attack of September 2013, Kenyans were forced to perform a post-mortem of the situation, and many questions came up. The one thing that was agreed upon was that the number of institutional failures that led up to the attack was jarring.

The terrorists were said to have rented a shop in the mall, and have transferred ammunition there over a period of time. It was said that some terrorists came in through the Kenya-Somalia border disguised as refugees, and that they registered at Daadab before travelling further south. It was said that one of the terrorists may … Read More

Economy, Essays, Internet, Politics, Socio-cultural

The Revolution Will Be Written In HTML

Brenda Wambui

After the Westgate attack, an American friend who works as a freelance journalist based in Kenya tweeted that he was tired of listening to a government that spouts lies and a nation that was unwilling to question it. To which I responded that several questions were being asked daily, minute by minute even, especially online – all he had to do was check on Twitter. He responded that we can’t change a government via Twitter – that it’s lazy – and we should get our media to ask real questions.

This got me thinking. Countries in Africa, Latin America and … Read More

Economy, Essays, Politics, Socio-cultural

Death By VAT

Brenda Wambui

In 2013, the Value Added Tax (VAT) Act passed by parliament increased the number of taxable goods – by reducing the number of exempt and zero rated goods. The government hopes to raise an additional Sh. 10 billion per month in doing so. The standard rate of VAT remains 16%.

In theory, this is what we should aim for. VAT has several advantages: it covers both goods and services. It is also less risky when it comes to revenue leakage. VAT is self-enforcing – it uses an invoice-based credit mechanism in its administration, which facilitates collection and enforcement; even if … Read More

Essays, Religion, Socio-cultural

God Will Save Us

Brenda Wambui

I was heading to Ngumo from South B sometime last month, and Route 33 matatus were charging Sh. 50, up from the usual Sh. 30. The makanga said it was because of the traffic jam on the South C route; they were going to have to use Mombasa Road. This is more expensive as they have to bribe the police so as not to get arrested for using the wrong route. They also add a little extra for the “added convenience”.

People were visibly shocked; some complained loudly, others sighed and many refused to board the matatu. Being in … Read More

Africa, Essays, Sexuality, Socio-cultural

Why Don’t You Want Me?

Brenda Wambui

One of the few things we can agree on about Kenya is that we are a deeply religious nation. Kenya is listed among the world’s top 10 religious countries, with 88% of its people ascribing to religious teachings. 47% are Protestants while 23.5% are Roman Catholics, meaning that 80% of Kenya’s religious population is Christian. Many of our beliefs as a people are anchored in religion.

We are also keen on our traditions, and we mainly identify with our ethnic groups. Many traditional practices within these ethnic groups are still practised, like payment of dowry, circumcision, marriage and … Read More