/OpEd/-/434748/434748/-/9qmqgg/-/index.html http://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/OpEd/comment/Hype+over+East+Africa+oil++gas+discoveries+requires+reality/-/434750/1404624/-/q49oq8z/-/index.html In the past 50 years, East Africa has never been completely off the radar screen of the international oil and gas industry, but apart from some small gas discoveries in Tanzania in the 1970s and ‘80s, exploration efforts in the region were unsuccessful until the discovery of commercial quantities of oil in Uganda in 2006. 2012-05-12T14:04:21Z http://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/OpEd/lastword/Sprinkle+with+olive+oil++lemon+juice+and+pepper+then+toss+babies/-/434754/1404620/-/yn9u0l/-/index.html In a bizarre ritual, Hindu priests in the south Indian state of Karnataka toss babies from the rooftop of a temple onto a cloth held by waiting men, believing that this will make them grow stronger. The UK Telegraph reports that large crowds of devotees gathered at the Marutheshwara temple near Mudhol town in Bagalkot district to observe the ritual, locally known as Okali. Eager parents presented their babies, who were between the ages of three months and two years, to priests at the temple who tossed them from the temple roof onto a cloth borne by a group of men standing below. Though the ritual often evokes criticism, it is defended by devotees and priests, who feel that their belief that the children will be stronger justifies the ritual which puts babies at such huge risk. 2012-05-12T13:35:52Z http://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/OpEd/-/434748/1404618/-/7233jf/-/index.html Austerity, thank god, Is dead: The new French Prez Will resurrect   The need for spending, Jobs and growth And exorcise Sarkozy’s ghost.   So Socialism’s Back in vogue And Europe’s once more On the road   To something like Old liberté, égalité, fraternité!   The Right, though strong, Could not defeat This groundswell for Démocratie.   2012-05-12T13:33:02Z http://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/OpEd/letters/Obama+support+for+same+sex+marriage++a++new+immoral+era/-/434756/1404616/-/xo84fi/-/index.html THE DARING affirmation by US President Barack Obama that people must respect the rights of homosexual has become the developing world’s worst enemy currently. This affirmation has been termed Obama’s political and moral suicide by his challengers. 2012-05-12T13:32:30Z http://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/OpEd/editorial/Stubborn+Bashir+a+threat+to+all/-/434752/1404614/-/5m32q3/-/index.html Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir’s obstinacy could endanger the entire region. He maintains that the United Nations and the African Union cannot impose their will on Sudan vis a vis the continuing clashes with the newly independent Republic of South Sudan. 2012-05-12T13:31:38Z http://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/OpEd/editorial/Heed+Raila+warning+on+ethnic+violence/-/434752/1404612/-/125gue4/-/index.html The warning by Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga that ethnic violence could recur during next year’s general election should be taken seriously by all political players. 2012-05-12T13:31:17Z http://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/OpEd/comment/-/434750/1404610/-/45976xz/-/index.html On a visit to Kenya last week, the National Democratic Institute — a Washington based lobby group — pronounced Kenya not ready to hold a democratic and violence-free general election. This was not — as we often claim when criticised — yet another example of Western imperialism; the delegation included respected human-rights advocates such as Martin Luther King III and former Botswana president Quett Masire. 2012-05-12T13:29:50Z http://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/OpEd/comment/Mysterious+billions+for+grain+imports+turn+out+to+be/-/434750/1404608/-/ysol0yz/-/index.html Had the finance minister opted to explain “fiscal risks” clearly in Annex 10 itself, he might have avoided parliamentary and media misinterpretation.” 2012-05-12T13:28:52Z http://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/OpEd/comment/-/434750/1404606/-/45977nz/-/index.html So, we have a new Cabinet. Congratulations to those who made it back, it is always nice not to get demoted, isn’t it? And good luck to the brand new appointees who are going to get blooded in the arena of the executive: may their skills and competence match their ambition and their promises. 2012-05-12T13:27:20Z http://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/OpEd/comment/How+to+end+poverty+just+arrest+all+those+lazy+poor+people/-/434750/1404604/-/x3htryz/-/index.html At first it struck me as rather funny. Then I spent a few minutes reflecting on it. I decided it wasn’t so funny after all. According to a report in a local daily, Uganda’s Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs, Major-General Kahinda Otafiire, had finally lost his patience with poor people in his home district of Mitooma. “I have long held you with soft hands but this time I am changing tactics,” he told a group that had gathered to take part in Labour Day (May Day) celebrations. 2012-05-12T13:26:34Z http://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/OpEd/comment/Jambo+Jet+If+it+does+not+charge++100+Kampala+Nairobi/-/434750/1404602/-/3wrnit/-/index.html People who travel around the region recently had their hopes raised by the news that Kenya Airways was planning to establish a low-cost carrier to be called Jambo Jet. Not knowing the business dynamics of the air travel industry, we can only comment from a consumer’s point of view, and hope that our view also matters. 2012-05-12T13:25:50Z http://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/OpEd/comment/Now+Kikwete+has+sacked+his+naughty+ministers++will+he+prosecute/-/434750/1404600/-/m76egl/-/index.html Finally, last week, President Jakaya Kikwete fired a number of ministers who had been accused of either corruption or incompetence and appointed new ones in their place. In other circumstances, this action would have assumed dramatic proportions and given rise to excitement, but, in the event, it hardly raised eyebrows. Why? 2012-05-12T13:23:27Z http://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/OpEd/comment/Has+our+new+Constitution+already+failed+us/-/434750/1404598/-/9sbn9i/-/index.html It is now May. We have no indication from our two principals as to whether they intend to dissolve the Grand Coalition Government to hold elections this December. Or whether they intend to sit it out until, as per the old Constitution and transitional clauses of the new Constitution, elections are held by March 2013. 2012-05-12T13:22:21Z http://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/OpEd/comment/Oil+curses+work+in+mysterious+ways++just+ask+the+Nigerians/-/434750/1404596/-/deseh5/-/index.html Now that every deep hole in East Africa seems to yield oil or gas at the bottom, there is a growing smell of money in the air in the years ahead. 2012-05-12T13:21:38Z http://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/OpEd/comment/Stop+manipulating+and+bullying+the+EA+court+/-/434750/1404590/-/hvapauz/-/index.html The East African Legislative Assembly passed a resolution on April 26 calling on the ICC to transfer the cases of Kenya’s “Ocampo Four” 2012-05-12T13:18:27Z http://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/OpEd/letters/Prof+William+Kasuja+death+marks+the+passing+of+an+era/-/434756/1400172/-/10pckrhz/-/index.html THE SUDDEN death of Prof William Senteza Kajubi, 86, on May 2, came as a shock to the Makerere University community. The world and Makerere University in particular has lost a distinguished alumnus, a renowned scholar, mentor, great grandfather of education in Uganda and two-time vice chancellor of this great institution. Prof Kajubi’s love for Makerere was unquestionable as demonstrated through his dedicated and exemplary service, even amidst turbulent times and the ever-present threat of death. 2012-05-05T14:14:10Z http://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/OpEd/-/434748/1400170/-/7207hj/-/index.html Mudavadi’s defected. Well, so what!? At five-per cent His prezzo bid will flop 2012-05-05T14:13:33Z http://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/OpEd/editorial/At+last++a+human+rights+law+for+EA/-/434752/1400168/-/un4fqm/-/index.html The move by the East African Community Legislative Assembly to pass the EAC Human Rights Bill, 2012 is welcome in a region that suffers from widespread human-rights abuse. 2012-05-05T14:12:29Z http://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/OpEd/editorial/At+last++a+human+rights+law+for+EA/-/434752/1400166/-/un4fqk/-/index.html Kenyan Members of Parliament appear to have become too lethargic to take their duties seriously. Parliament last week failed to pass two crucial Bills because of lack of quorum, as MPs were either attending political rallies or were about in their private business. 2012-05-05T14:11:53Z http://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/OpEd/lastword/Bikers+tall+tales++The+motorcyclist+who+turned+into+a+satyr/-/434754/1400164/-/ux1ttlz/-/index.html WHAT HAS a motorcycle got to do with aphrodisiacs? Well, a San Francisco man has sued BMW because his motorcycle seat has left its driver with a two-year erection. 2012-05-05T14:10:31Z http://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/OpEd/comment/I+envy+Zuma+his+many+wives++but+I+am+not+president/-/434750/1400160/-/35p59fz/-/index.html It has been official for some time: South African President Jacob Zuma has married his fourth wife. The wedding is his third in just over four years and the second since coming to power in 2009. He has fathered 21 children and counting, a robust performance by even the standards of polygamy. In an interview with CNN’s Fareed Zakaria a while back, Zuma defended his polygamous lifestyle, saying it was part of his culture, and there was no conflict between it and his presidential duties. Then sitting back in his chair, Zuma smiled broadly and assured Zakaria that he loved all his wives greatly and equally. 2012-05-05T13:48:10Z http://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/OpEd/comment/Are+Western+donors+more+interested+in+workshops+than+work/-/434750/1400158/-/6dl523/-/index.html The past few weeks have seen harsh attacks on Western donors in the Kenyan press, with writers extolling the virtues of the Chinese approach to aid. The basic argument seems to be the following: China cares about infrastructure and wants to invest in real development projects, no questions asked. The West is obsessed with good governance and only provides aid with lots of conditions attached. The conclusion is facile: China rules. 2012-05-05T13:46:51Z http://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/OpEd/comment/May+Day+needs+a+makeover+in+the+new+millennium/-/434750/1400154/-/ohfje4z/-/index.html Like many of my contemporaries, I find it hard to say what feelings May Day inspires in the present day, from a heartfelt perspective. There is a point at which inherited traditions are carried out by rote, with a large dose of faking it. If you haven’t lived through particular times, embracing the ethos of the age in question becomes challenging. 2012-05-05T13:42:37Z http://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/OpEd/comment/Museveni+regime+suffering+multiple+personality+disorder/-/434750/1400152/-/4x455o/-/index.html With its five-tier local government system, Uganda has easily the largest number of elected officials in the region.” 2012-05-05T13:41:54Z http://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/OpEd/comment/and+women+are+still+lured+into+sex+slavery/-/434750/1400148/-/8rxiwnz/-/index.html So, when are we going to get serious about the trafficking of girls from East Africa? Recent reports indicate that 600 young Ugandan ladies who were lured to Iraq with promises of jobs like working in supermarkets are now unaccounted for. And who is so naïve as to imagine that so many black women who cannot speak Arabic just merged into the crowd like they would in America? 2012-05-05T13:39:37Z