[kictanet] Kenya opens door to foreign telecoms investors - From Ugandan

[John Maina]

Kenyans and other Africans,
 
Yes, I agree. We have the money. But we need to organize to stop
the hemorrhage of our resources. This is our moment to make our voices
heard about our countries' economic sovereignty. What many of our
leaders are doing giving away our tangible and intangible assets
is treasonous and inexcusable. 
 
In Uganda, my country, the president, his family and their lackeys
have turned themselves into a veritable mafia of commission agents
carrying water for all sorts of foreign interests. They proclaim from
the rooftops how indigenous Ugandans are too poor and dumb to own and
manage businesses. Yet, there is plenty of evidence to the contrary.
Some of that evidence points to how foreigners, including South Asians
who arrive in the country with only the shirts on their backs, are
provided with multi-million dollar loans/grants to finance pet
enterprises. Ugandans can only dream of such largesse. Understandably,
many of those foreign "investors" take the money -- pausing only long
enough to wreck the business -- and run. A good example is Tristar, a
textile firm that government set up as a showcase of a successful
Africa Growth Opportunity Act inspired business, was handd on a silver
platter to a pair of Sri Lankan briefcase businessmen with a $2.5
million loan from the state-owned Uganda Development bank. Their only
qualification was that they were "Indian", a nationality that Museveni
equates with a natural entrepreneurship. 
 
In addition to the free business and loan, the conmen were
vigorously and publicly supported by the President's office in
exploiting an all-female workforce (including sexually), recruited
deliberately from rural Uganda and kept in apartheid-era like hostels,
ostensibly because they would be too docile to rebel against their poor
working conditions. A parliamentary investigation was sparked when the
"Agoa girls," as the workers were patronizingly called, organized and
downed their tools. That's when the sordid details of the sorry venture
emerged.
 
The adage that "if you want to look for traitors, start at the
top" is all too true for our countries. With leaders such as these (and
silent lambs as us), is it any wonder that nearly every race holds us
in contempt and reaps fortunes out of our losses! 
 
Vukoni
 
 
-------- Original Message --------
Subject: [DigAfrica] Re: [africa-oped] Fwd: Re: [picta-kenya] Re: Kenya
opens door to foreign telecoms investors

- Show quoted text -
From: "Robert Alai" <alai.robert at gmail.com>
Date: Mon, October 13, 2008 10:34 am
To: digafrica at yahoogroups.com, picta-kenya at yahoogroups.com


- Show quoted text -

Matunda

Kenyans have the money.

France
Telekoms came to Kenya and bought Telkom Kenya but is being supported
by the Kenyan government. It doesnt have money upto now.

Kencall
and all these foreigners claiming that Kenyans have no money came and
borrowed in Kenyan banks. Tell me which foreigners brought their own
money. Including Safaricom which went to the NSE and put up a bond. 

Lets
not be cheated. Matunda, me and you and all people in Dig Afrika and
PICTA wont have the opportunity to set up our ICT companies if Dr Ndemo
is allowed to go ahead. We must insist on local partnership and its not
something we should be begging for. We must insist on it

Regards
Alai

- Show quoted text -
On Mon, Oct 13, 2008 at 5:34 PM, nmatunda <matunda at hotmail.com> wrote:

- Show quoted text -

--- In picta-kenya at yahoogroups.com, "Mike Theuri" <mi.ke.the.u.r.i at ...> wrote:


Matunda,
 
I concur with your views and completely agree with the way the
Canadian banking industry has weathered the financial storm. During a
brief visit to Canada I noted that there were 5 major Canadian banks
and one major international institution (Europe's largest institution
by way of assets) operating in Canada. According to the WEF: "Canada
has the world's soundest banking system, according to a more recent
report released by the World Economic Forum. Canada's banks received a
score of 6.8 out of possible seven, ahead of the banks of five other
countries which received a score of 6.7 per cent." We are now seeing
the US rushing to regulate the banking sector and even going as far as
taking ownership stakes in both US and foreign banks because Americans
interest and not that of foreigners is at stake. There are lessons to
be learned from this about the consequences of unplanned deregulation
ie ownership, operational etc in sectors key to the economy.
 
That said we must closely focus on the issue of Kenya and the PS'
plan to invite foreigners with no conditions on local ownership. My
original posting on this issue covered a number of varied issues,
it appears the discussion has taken on a life of its own after it was
shared on other forums and has morphed into a protracted battle between
pro-PS types engaged in a concerted effort to silence the issue and
individuals who despite their rather harsh and tough ways of getting
the point across raise valid points that are apparently unpalatable for
some. 
 
On Saturday, I received a message from an individual whom I shall
not name who has gotten rather cosy with the PS of late suggesting that
certain parties were out to reignite conflict in the nation through the
revelation of the PS' plan and the resulting debates on lists and that
I should play a participatory role in "helping them" squelch the
"dissent". I responded saying that the individual was digging in the
wrong place as there were no hidden dimensions to the issue other than
the policies mentioned and that Kenyans should be free to hold
individuals in public office to account without interference or
intimidation. It was disappointing to read such a message hinged
with hints to unsavoury moments in our recent history coming from an
individual who once strongly stood for freedom of expression and the
right to information. If other individuals have seen it fit to raise
the issues outside of Picta it is indeed within their rights as Kenyans.
 
Unfortunately the answer to Matunda's question is that there is
nobody standing up for Kenyans interests on this issue, we only read in
the media about plans to gazette following alleged consultations with
foreign stakeholders. There is hardly ever any justification made and
when it is sought, the PS has repeatedly used isolated but not
precedent setting incidents such as the one I mentioned. We all recall
the Ksh 100m tax payer funded trip the Finance Minister and the PS
amongst other made to the western hemisphere to court Diaspora
investors in 2007, only to display high handedness and refusal to
answer legitimate questions seeking assurances about the ability of the
Diaspora to invest in our own country.
 
As a writer observed:
http://www.kenyaimagine.com/Economy/Kenya-Finance-Minister-courts-investors-abroad.html
"Next was the matter of investment, especially that of Kenyans
abroad. However much investment opportunities are paraded, investors,
whether Kenyan or foreign, always have the same questions about the
local environment with regard to; bureaucratic bottlenecks, regulatory
climate, corruption, and insecurity"
 
When such questions were brought up the delegation brushed them
aside and refused to answer them. Today, we read about Ndemo appearing
to disregard the interests of Kenyans through his proposed policies and
calling for increased foreign participation in the Kenyan economy. This
is simply wrong, why is Ndemo rushing to make conditions better for
foreigners but not exhibiting the same level of effort for Kenyans to
have a larger stake in the economy? 
 
Ndemo should instead be taking on the issues his delegation
brushed aside when questioned by would be Kenyan investors. The PS
should put his country (Kenya) and its citizens first and that means
working for the common interests of Kenyans. Any Kenyan who asks the PS
or the Government to justify and explain its position on
such contentious proposals should be given the opportunity to express
their views, not condemned and counter attacked as seems to be the case
now on a discussion list serving industry interests. Kenyans should not
stand by idly as non-progressive proposals are quietly drafted and made
binding to Kenyans without the process being open to critique and
public input.
 
Mike
On Sun, Oct 12, 2008 at 7:14 AM, nmatunda <http://../../../../post?postID=Nwl_acszxFkN4z3b2uNtU8XlfkXWMi8l7FoVzSnzRChXPvqnkZb6vcvKEzgqRf67GjelW9IqJOAw> wrote:

Mike, 

I am with you 200% on this.

Every country must always act in its self-interest; this move by
the PS is deplorable and not in line with long term Kenyan interests,
especially in as a lucrative area as ICT.

In my books, we invite foreigners for such things as (a) financing
(which by the way Kenyans have shown can be raised locally), (b)
operations and management experience & knowledge transfer, (c)
relationships that we can leverage through any such joint ventures,
etc. Joint ventures can also cushion enterprises from predatory
illegalities, especially given our weak legal dispute resolution
structures! Of the latter, remember when heads of state corporations
used to queue up with money bags to state house to prop up the Moi
excesses! Or when companies could be shaken down for political
donations at a whim!

For me, a good (not ideal!) joint venture is one of the kind that
Kenya Airways went into with KLM, when KA had been run down by
politically connected individuals. KLM brought in management and
operations experience, facilitated KA's access to markets and routes
that KA otherwise couldn't easily access and in the process the KA
brand rose, as did profits and more! The investment has paid well for
Kenyans and KLM; a win-win. 

There is a lesson to be learnt from the current American financial
crisis with respect to experiences in Canada. This country has been
under pressure to deregulate its financial services sector for the
longest time. Banks have argued that they needed mergers to allow them
to compete globally; and that they needed global partners that would
help them grow and extend their reach.

Canadian government have constantly refused mergers or the kind of
deregulation the industry sought! Their argument: the interest of the
common person whose priority banks should be. 

Guess what? In the present crisis, Canada has come substantially
well ahead of the US and others. And for what reason: they stood
against unfettered deregulaion! and they stood up for the interest of
Canadians.

I ask all yee this question: who is standing for the interest of Kenyans in this open invitation to exploitation?

Dr Ndemo needs to be stopped, I am afraid!

Unedited.

Matunda Nyanchama


      
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/pipermail/kictanet/attachments/20081013/2c2eb420/attachment.htm>