[kictanet] Kibaki signs Bill into law

Mon Jan 5 19:19:09 EAT 2009

Maybe we should start educating media practitioners on how 
e-transactions contribute to transparency in governance, trade and 
reduce crime and corruption - without any propaganda (half truths) that 
can cause civil war for that matter. The media did a very good job in 
pointing out what was wrong with the bill while we focused on what was 
right with it. We support both media freedom and regulation and 
rejecting the amendment bill was not going to get section 88 deleted now.

Our media professionals know best what our politicians are up to. Is it 
not better to have e-transactions codified in Kenyan law while waiting 
for sanity to prevail?

dmakali at yahoo.com wrote:
> Throughout the deliberations and of all the  critiques about this comm. amendm. bill I have read, I have never come across anybody from this, well, ict sector, point out anything wrong with that bill or how it is dangerous to broadcasting,  media freedom, democracy or privacy or freedom of expression. The ict sector is basically commerce driven, and motivated by selfish interests period. Unless it acquits itself of that tag or shows at least some passing interest in public good, I don't see much sense n the prodigious lamentations. And am not defending the press for its failings, which are not few. 
> Its a matter of which is the fair devil to keep. For me, I would stand firm and preserve the media even with its folllies. Ict didn't help rescue this country from bad governance, corruption and tyranny. The media, or the more resilient sections, did and continue to. I can't see any replacement for it, esp in our current political situation.
> David
>
> Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: alice <alice at apc.org>
>
> Date: Mon, 05 Jan 2009 17:47:32 
> To: <dmakali at yahoo.com>
> Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions<kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke>
> Subject: Re: [kictanet] Kibaki signs Bill into law
>
>
> I agree and for Pete's/Jane's sake could media drop the  "media bill"  
> reference. It is the Kenya Communications  (Amendment) bill 2008, which 
> covers much much more than broadcasting issues. and much more 
> importantly it finally deals with issues of convergence from a 
> technological, content, regulatory, as well as economic perspective. it 
> is important that the communications "sector" adapts to this global 
> convergence trend/scenario, because it will provide for expansion of 
> universal access to ICTs,  in terms of reducing costs while stimulating 
> economic and social growth. This can only be done through appropriate 
> ICT policy and regulatory mechanisms, which the bill provides for.
>
> What we should be focusing on are the challenges that will come with 
> this dynamic because adaption to convergence is not the end point.
>
>
>
> best
> alice
>
> p.s. views are personal and not a reflection of any of the 
> institutions/organisations I am affiliated with.
>
>   
>> Great suggestions,
>>
>> I feel we can support the media but not in-toto.
>>
>> First, it would be nice of the MoA et. al. to let go of the negative
>> "Media Bill" campaign and engage constructively with other players.
>>
>> Secondly, media should consider calling ICT advocacy personalities to
>> a forum where they can share how ICT issues have successfully been
>> incorporated without the animosity that is common when advocating for
>> media issues.
>>
>> I believe the media needs to feel secure that if their arguments are
>> valid, they'll have our undivided support....issue by issue.
>>
>> Wainaina
>>
>> On 1/4/09, Bill Kagai <billkagai at gmail.com> wrote:
>>   
>>     
>>> The 4 fundamentals;
>>>
>>> 1. When the Media fraternity suggested the bill be rejected in-toto, ICT
>>> sector players felt this was akin to pouring the birth water together with
>>> the baby. Personally I am happy the ICT issues did not go down the drain.
>>> And I think that was what many of us were asking for.
>>>
>>> 2. The Media has genuine concerns as Haron Ndubi articulated in his legal
>>> opinion on the probibity of the bill. However, the Media completely blacked
>>> out ICT sector concerns during our campaign to have the bill signed. We even
>>> went out of the way to show the remedies to the issues through the
>>> miscelleneous amendment bill as suggested in the very fast legal opinion
>>> whose author requested we keep his/her identity anonymous.
>>>
>>> 3. ICT players and especially Kictanet ought to prove it's the bigger wo/man
>>> by showing solidarity in the front-line with our cousins in the Media
>>> looking for a way out of the quagmire. We do not have to ignore them simply
>>> because they refused to side with us in our campaign.
>>>
>>> 4. We are extremely careless in handling crisis. If you are familiar with
>>> Newton's method of factoring variable change and the Monty Hall
>>> Paradox<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monty_Hall_paradox>,
>>> then we can analyse the options the President had mathematically.
>>> 4a) Sign Bill
>>> 4b) Don't Sign Bill
>>> 4c) Do nothing and hold Kenyans in suspense.
>>>
>>> Each option had a 33% probability of being the 'right' decision. So,
>>> assuming he had not seen the bill earlier since he was not the author and
>>> had decided not to sign the bill following the Media owners petition, was it
>>> wise to change his decision from 'Don't Sign' to 'Sign'??
>>> Monty Hall <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monty_Hall_paradox> proves that
>>> changing the decision increases the probability of getting it 'right' to
>>> 66.6%. And that is proven by the fact that we [in ICT] feel content and
>>> support ways of also making our brothers in the media achieve 'State of
>>> Nirvana'. This bill will also give the Minister of Finance some head-up
>>> before he dismisses innovations such as M-Pesa without prior knowledge.
>>>
>>> Conclusion;
>>> For Makali, Openda, Kaikai and other leading Media personalities who I know
>>> are on this list, why don't you invite ICT stakeholders in to your media
>>> stations to engage Kenyans on what is good and what is bad in the ICT [not
>>> Media] bill so that we can fight together against what we feel is not good??
>>> This has nothing to do with whether the grand coalition will hold or not,
>>> since neither the Right Honourable nor His Excellency drafted this bill. We
>>> did and the buck should stop with us!!!
>>>
>>> --
>>> Bildad Kagai
>>> MD - MediaCorp Limited
>>> Nairobi Stock Exchange Authorised Information Vendor
>>> Suite B2, Tetu Court, State House Avenue
>>> P. O. Box 20311 - 00200
>>> Nairobi, Kenya
>>> Tel. 254 20 272 8332
>>> Fax. Rendered Obsolete
>>> S - 1°17'13.8"
>>> E - 36°48'22.7"
>>> www.mediacorp.co.ke
>>> ---
>>>
>>>
>>> On Sun, Jan 4, 2009 at 6:21 PM, alice <alice at apc.org> wrote:
>>>
>>>     
>>>       
>>>> Thank you Wainaina. Happy 2009.
>>>> Now that the bill has been signed, what does the ICT industry think about
>>>> this whole debate? especially those who have worked for such a long time
>>>> with government to introduce legislation for the sector?
>>>>
>>>> best
>>>> alice
>>>>
>>>>  Happy New Year for ICT development in Kenya.
>>>>       
>>>>         
>>>>> We can now look at the Media's concerns on the Kenya Communications
>>>>> Act and support whatever  amendments may be justified.
>>>>>
>>>>> Wainaina
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>         
>>>>>           
>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>> kictanet mailing list
>>>> kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke
>>>> http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet
>>>>
>>>> This message was sent to: billkagai at gmail.com
>>>> Unsubscribe or change your options at
>>>> http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/billkagai%40gmail.com
>>>>
>>>>       
>>>>         
>>   
>>     
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> kictanet mailing list
> kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke
> http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet
>
> This message was sent to: dmakali at yahoo.com
> Unsubscribe or change your options at http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/dmakali%40yahoo.com
> _______________________________________________
> kictanet mailing list
> kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke
> http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet
>
> This message was sent to: murigi.muraya at gmail.com
> Unsubscribe or change your options at http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/murigi.muraya%40gmail.com
>
>   

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/pipermail/kictanet/attachments/20090105/ab4569be/attachment.htm>