[kictanet] 140Friday. . . and I wept

Fri Mar 9 18:52:25 EAT 2012

Some of us are great supporters of your thought processes and the voice of divergence and reason many a times…

However, my brother this time I would like to be the first to disagree with you. KEPSA is a good forum and grouping that can be used to further sector growth and dialogue with the govt  and public sector. But to rubbish a gathering that has taken time out to deliberate issues of importance in our sector is to take the role of criticism to a level that belittles all of us and makes us look foolish – Which I think isn’t your intention. 

@ Yes, even Dr. Ndemo kept repeating it, lets stop talking and take action, I am propagating his sentiments, I can assure you that apart from the twits that have taken place there will be no follow-up to the "deliberations" if there is I will buy you lunch.

If KEPSA is such a strong solution provider how come the sector is still not in synch as we would like. Everyone has a right to air his/her views and to purport that KEPSA is the solution for all our ills is to revert back to the MAMA NA BABA days of old which we all are glad to have left behind. I say that we have all contributed in our own little ways to improve and expand the democratic space and let’s make use of it in a progressive manner.

@ Because the ICT Sector at KEPSA has no participation from the small players in the industry all the mobile providers are members and they diligently pay their subscriptions because they have seen results.  Just as a matter of curiosity, which industry association are you a member of?

The use of Twitter and other social media platforms (including I daresay this mailing list) can only improve our connections and ability to articulate our views and belittling them doesn’t really serve any purpose. I think sometimes we wallow too much in criticizing the view that multi-nationals, foreign companies etc are only here to skim off the top..Be that as it may, what we can do is take on the good and discard the bad. The very fact that we are only so happily using all the western tools at our disposal (the internet et al) and at the same time doing our best not to conform to certain standards then complain that we are losing out is a mockery of progress.

@ Please search through this lists past postings and see if all the issues raised at the forum are not already buried in its annals.  Dr. Ndemo did not request for a twit but a white paper with structure and form, lets not use technology to justify our laziness 

Robert, lastly I would hate for you to say a month/quarter from now that ‘I told you so’ that this ‘independent group’ never happened. I challenge you my brother to also provide solutions. Be part of the group, and impart your wise counsel that the industry can move forward in the right direction.

@ I have offered a solution, KEPSA or CSK because Mike's proposal to fund the process to me will be short lived not because he cannot afford it or will not be willing but because there will be no signs of progress a month down the road and the fatigue of dealing with twitter type suggestions will wear him down.  The term of what transpired today was "managed", the discussion was put down gracefully. 

Please note the post by Marie-Ann, reproduced below, on this list, as we where having dialogue the next big ICT project was getting signed off.  

Alert! Shameless plug follows... but I hope it will be of genuine
interest :-)

Yesterday IBM launched a white paper titled "A Vision of a Smarter City -
How Nairobi can lead the way to a prosperous and sustainable future" -
while it does not claim to hold all the answers for Nairobi, I think its a
nice starting point for more discussion on how technology can resolve some
of Nairobi issues.
I particularly liked one suggestion in the white paper - using mobile
signal density to track traffic flow.

You can download it here:
http://www-05.ibm.com/za/office/pdf/IBM_-_A_Vision_of_a_Smarter_City_-_Nairobi.pdf

What good can come out of Nazareth, before Nokia recognised Virtual City we never feted Waibochi what has changed after today's session I ask you Ali?

My five cents…

Ali Hussein|Managing Partner

Telemedia Africa
Azania Technology Group
Chaka Court, Argwings Kodhek Road
P O Box  14556-00100
+254 773/713 601113
Nairobi, Kenya

Twitter: @AliHKassim
Skype: abu-jomo

"You generally hear that what a man doesn't know doesn't hurt him, but in business what a man doesn't know does hurt.". - E. St. Elmo Lewis, member, Advertising Hall of Fame

From:kictanet-bounces+info=alyhussein.com at lists.kictanet.or.ke [mailto:kictanet-bounces+info=alyhussein.com at lists.kictanet.or.ke] On Behalf Of robert yawe
Sent: Friday, March 09, 2012 4:51 PM
To: info at alyhussein.com
Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions
Subject: [kictanet] 140Friday. . . and I wept

Hi,

I took time to attend the 140Friday session and at the end I wept first because as I sat there I realised that this was yet another talk shop activity in full swing but most importantly was the rubbishing of the late Evelyn Rono's efforts to give the sector a voice through KEPSA.

Evelyn spent many hours lobbying for the ICT sector within the government an effort that has come to nought as we, yet again, scatter off into our various selfish corners.  If all those tributes we kept sending around after she past away were genuine then lets honour her by continuing from where she left off instead of going off in a tangent.

It was suggested by Dr. Ndemo and echoed by Mr. Kokubo that a team be formed to prepare a white paper on the issues that arose during the session, it was suggested that this would be best handled through the ICT Sector of KEPSA just for one of the panel to wrongly imply that KEPSA was an association for manufacturers (that organisation is called KAM who are also members of KEPSA).

Dan Awendo of Investeq indicated that what is ailing us as an industry is the one man show syndrome and the leopard hunting mentality.  If we can not within us form a body that can speak in one voice then all the efforts are a waste of time and resources.

I will repeat what I raised a while back when I was not able to get a platform from which to take over the governorship of the ICT sector at KEPSA from Evelyn because the Computer Society of Kenya who I assumed would propose me had lapsed their membership.  Unless we as an industry can speak in one voice and become a constituency then we shall continue to wallow in the miasma of deceit that was the session we had today, together we stand divided we fall. 

Twitter town hall meetings will not resolve what ails the industry it is only if we learn to come together that we can make an impact.  KEPSA swings a sledge hammer on behalf of any of its sectors, it recommends who seats on government committees that require private sector participation and finally it has the machinery to draft and push through legislation. 

Forming small little talk shops will not make any progress and I read an ulterior motive to the proposal by Mr. Kokubo to form an "independent" group to prepare the white paper.  He is very well aware that such a group will never see the day of light but if it was under the umbrella of KEPSA well that will be another issue.

Regards

Robert Yawe
KAY System Technologies Ltd
Phoenix House, 6th Floor
P O Box 55806 Nairobi, 00200
Kenya

Tel: +254722511225, +254202010696
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