Move fast to stabilise the volatile shilling
The economy is clearly facing trying times.
The biting maize shortage that has seen supermarkets in some parts of the country resort to rationing is a sign of the times. The price of maize flour has hit the roof.
Although the government has responded by reducing duty on maize and wheat imports, the indications out there are that these reductions are unlikely to influence consumer prices downwards in any significant ways.
With the Kenya shilling depreciating wildly, we will have to pay much more for the maize than we would have paid had it remained stable.
Worse still, there is just not enough maize in the region. Tanzania has been restricting exports for a long time.
And, South Africa, where most of our maize imports come from, does not appear to have enough non-GMO maize stocks.
Zambia has a large surplus of maize, but moving the product all the way to Mombasa will be expensive and time-consuming.
With all predictions pointing to low rainfall and a poor harvest, Kenyans must brace themselves for the twin problems of high food prices and scarcity of staple foods.
If the government wants to prove that it is, indeed, ready to cushion the poor from the impact of high prices, it must take bold decisions.
If the currency does not stabilise soon, we could end up under much more inflationary pressure.
From an annual average of 4.1 per cent in 2011, the inflation rate has climbed to 13 per cent.
Granted, the rising prices have been largely caused by factors beyond the government’s control — high oil prices and drought.
Nevertheless, the high consumer prices are a recipe for social unrest. The government must move fast to stabilise the shilling.
Discipline this minister
Embakasi MP Ferdinand Waititu is also an assistant minister for Water and Irrigation.
It follows that all his actions and utterances must express the policy and programmes of the government.
Now, Mr Waititu is the typical Nairobi MP who rose from humble beginnings in ward activism to City Hall and onwards to Parliament and ultimately to ministerial office.
Such politicians are accustomed to the politics of violent confrontation, and Mr Waititu has demonstrated on numerous occasions that he can throw stones with the best of them.
His disgraceful actions on Wednesday, however, must surely be the final straw. The minister blocked City Council of Nairobi officials from marking unapproved buildings.
One such building only recently collapsed and killed four people in his own constituency. A few days later another building came tumbling down in Lang’ata constituency, injuring six people.
The exercise to identify the death-traps that are unapproved structures in the city was blocked by the brazen impunity on display.
Mr Waititu must be sacked from the government forthwith, and also be made to face the law.
The cutting edge
DO YOUR MATHS. As he eagerly waits for the court to lift the injunction blocking the swearing-in of the Supreme Court judges as part of the judicial reforms the country badly needs, Martin Tairo Maseghe is disappointed that some activists sued the Judicial Service Commission over the composition of the recent appointments. Says he: “A third of seven is 2.33, which can be rounded off to two since we can’t have a 0.33 of a human being. Technically, therefore, the JSC was within the constitutional requirement of ensuring a minimum of a third from either gender.”
CLEAR THE MESS. The City Council of Nairobi is extending its parking fee collection to the suburbs, but some of the outskirts, including Kawangware, have been flung into confusion, reports Ken Simon. Since the City Council introduced the charges, he reports, parking has become more haphazard, with some motorists leaving their vehicles on the pavement on Naivasha road to avoid paying. He is, therefore, appealing for the deployment of traffic police to clear the mess and restore some order. His contact is Tel O720076371.
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DISAPPOINTED. A long time Cussons customer, who really loves their popular Ushindi soap and detergent, Maureen Mumbi, says she is beginning to feel cheated. It is because the price has been rising in the recent past and the products getting harder to find at the various outlets sometimes. But even more disappointing, Mumbi adds, is that “the bar has been getting thinner, and producing less lather, as the price continues to rise”. She poses: “Is there any justification for this?” Her contact is mumbingari@yahoo.com.
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THEY,TOO, WANT AN ATM. Barclays Bank customers living in the Kahawa area on Thika road, Nairobi, have to travel long distances to reach an ATM, moans James Gonzaga. They either have to go to Ruiru or all the way to Ruaraka to get one. The alternative, for those who have Visa cards, he adds, is to go to Pesapoint outlets, but this, of course, costs more. James has done his own survey and is now appealing to the bank to consider installing ATMs at the Engen petrol station at Kahawa Sukari. For further discussion, his contact is gonzagajms@gmail.com.
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GOOD PROJECT FOR CDF. Misemwa Primary School in Eugene Wamalwa’s Saboti Constituency was fortunate enough to attract donors who have generously enabled the upgrading of the classrooms and offices. And they didn’t stop there. They also donated some computers, says Hasheem Mohammed. However, without electricity, the computers are not of much use to pupils and teachers, who should be enjoying the benefits of this technology. Wouldn’t this be a good CDF project? His contact is h_jmod@yahoo.com.
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SHORT-CHANGED. For the past one month or so, Lewis Mwenda says, DStv has been short-changing him by not providing adequate information on scheduled movies in the TV guide. “This may sound like a small issue, but it’s quite irritating when you can’t find information on a movie you intend to watch later,” says Lewis. On calling the Multichoice office in Nairobi, he was told they were aware of the problem and that it would be fixed soon. “To date, nothing has happened,” says Lewis, whose contact is aritho@yahoo.com.
Have an informative day, won’t you!
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