@The Real shaft,i want to agree with your obsevations on this matter entirely. The measure of a failed Sate is not whether there are people in that country and can hold an election and/ or so called elections every five years but rather whether institutions in that particular country work.

Do our institutions work and for the benefit of its citizens? well am afraid the answer is rather obvious.

Look at the Judiciary,Police,Universities,Parliament,Health Institutions,Local Authorities the list is endless all rotten inside out,one does not get the picture of a functional state in those institutions.




wote

@Kanobi

Why is it that u have to mention Saudi Arabia everytime u send us ur piece of mind? Have u been there? How is it like? Many Kenyas r working there and are praising the country even saying that Kenya is of no comparison to Saudi.

Wikipedia defines failed state as:


The term failed state is often used by political commentators and journalists to describe a state perceived as having failed at some of the basic conditions and responsibilities of a sovereign government. In order to make this definition more precise,the following attributes,proposed by the Fund for Peace,are often used to characterize a failed state:


loss of physical control of its territory,or of the monopoly on the legitimate use of physical force therein,
erosion of legitimate authority to make collective decisions,
an inability to provide reasonable public services,and
An inability to interact with other states as a full member of the international community.

Common characteristics of a failing state include a central government so weak or ineffective that it has little practical control over much of its territory; non-provision of public services; widespread corruption and criminality; refugees and involuntary movement of populations; and sharp economic decline.

The level of government control required to avoid being considered a failed state varies considerably amongst authorities. Furthermore,the declaration that a state has 'failed' is generally controversial and,when made authoritatively,may carry significant geopolitical consequences.



.......from the above,me now thinks Kenya is a failing state (e.g due to indecision in cabinet,indecision on Migingo )


It's not where yu are,but where yu want to be.

@SUSU

If you feel I have misrepresented any facts about Saudi Arabia,feel free to factually correct me.

Otherwise I will refer to them whenever I feel its relevant.

And I also detest it as a country because of the hypocrisy that it stands for.


I've noticed the youth in particular coming in to a workplace with a completely outsized notion of their own value and importance... just a thinly-veiled arrogance. May be the credit crunch induced recession is whats needed to remind us all about the value of hard work.... By Anonymous

@Made

Surely you are not suggesting that we should have gone for an all out war with UG over Migingo without first attempting to arrive at an amicable solution (which is currently being done).

That list of failed states is quite interesting,I wonder from where the author would prefer to make his list,Kenya or Gaza.


I've noticed the youth in particular coming in to a workplace with a completely outsized notion of their own value and importance... just a thinly-veiled arrogance. May be the credit crunch induced recession is whats needed to remind us all about the value of hard work.... By Anonymous

Yes we are almost a failed state,if not yet,we are moving at lighting speed. Sample this:



- 90% of a country’s wealth in the hands of 10 families while slums continue to expand…..



- Stinking corruption and we pay Ringera more than obama! Yes,thats what we hav become..



- Unga is priced depending on which side of town you live in.



- The peoples vote is never respected. Preoccupation is with creating dynasties….you know why.





- Tribalism is the language. Ministers pack their departments with their people,energy sector and treasury is controlled by a single community,some say we cant’ be ruled by Jaluos! How sad. BTW am not a Jaluo.



- Hypocritical political class– some used catchy phrases during campaigns,ati the peoples servant,promising 24 hr economy,where?



- Justice is only served on the rich no wonder we support local tribunals!



- When the international community tries to intervene,we r quick to hide under sovereignty…it is obvious even to a mad man that we have become a greedy narrow minded society incapable of solving basic problems!



- Expensive ads ati proud to be Kenyan,what,in a country with no food,water,electricity,crime ridden,killer roads and lacking basic infrastructure! Where are our priorities?



- And the list continues…….

@Obi n Tea
This topic is quite wide and interesting.....i like it. Every state in the world has failed in one way or another. What matters in the ranking is the degree of perceived failure. Theupdated index of state classification was published in the Journal-Fund for Peace which is highly recognised by the UN.


In a nutshell,failed states can no longer perform basic functions such as education,security,or governance,usually due to fractious violence or extreme poverty. Within this power vacuum,people fall victim to competing factions and crime,and sometimes the United Nations or neighboring states intervene to prevent a humanitarian disaster. However,states fail not only because of internal factors. Foreign governments can also knowingly destabilize a state by fueling ethnic warfare or supporting rebel forces,causing it to collapse.





It's not where yu are,but where yu want to be.

@findel

- When the international community tries to intervene,we r quick to hide under sovereignty…it is obvious even to a mad man that we have become a greedy narrow minded society incapable of solving basic problems!



what basic problems are you referring to here? I also do not think Kenyans are narrow minded as you say.



In all honesty,I do not support a lot of what our policitians/leaders have put us through.



On the other hand I would also wish that we realize Africa's issues and Kenyan issues for that matter are not just surface matters. They run deep.



Our problem solving SOPs (Standard Operating Procedures) may not 100% be like what the western world presents to us. Africa is unique,with a unique culture from the west. Only we can fully and ably understand our own problems and come up with homegrown solutions,as complex as it may seem.



In Rwanda today,they have realized that they,and not the west,hold the key to their own success. You wont believe it but,they have preferred to offer forgiveness to guys who killed others. How did they reach that conclusion? They looked deep into their own lives and concluded that demanding justice which would mean that those who killed be also killed will not have a lasting solution or even heal their wounds. The west advocates 100% for that kind of remedy,thinking that it is what will bring a perfect solution. I do not think so.



After we have gone back and forth about all the problems that plague us,one day there is going to emerge a prophet like leader who will unite all Kenyans and will say one thing and we will all follow. The stage is just being set for such a leader.



Those who think Kenya cannot be a state on its own and only believe what the West tells us,that we are a failed state,will be disappointed.


each day is a gift from God; I dont know if I will be here tomorrow; should I be,I'll make the most of it for God's glory; should I be not,pick up and keep the legacy

Hiding Africa's Looted Funds: The Silence of Western Media

From Wikileaks
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June 17,2009

By Lord Aikins Adusei (Modern Ghana)

Quite often when you read newspapers,listen to radio and watch television in the West you learn how poor Africans are and how corrupt African leaders are. But you will never watch,read or hear anything in these media outlets about the role being played by Western banking institutions; property development and estate companies; the big corporations; and the western political and business elite in promoting corruption in Africa. When it comes to Africa and the developing world the Western media pretend to be doing a good job only when there is an embarrassing story or a scandal that undermines their credibility as the watchdog of the state.

It is not uncommon to see poverty stricken Africans in poor living conditions being shown in documentaries,movies,and television screens in the West but the same documentaries and movies are always silent on the role play by the institutions in the West. Bribery as we all know involves a giver and a taker but it is always the taker who is reported in media. In many instances as we shall soon see bribes are offered in order to secure contracts,secure official favour or to induce officials in order to influence the out come of a government decision. In other instances people become corrupt because of the existence of favouring conditions as can be seen in most western countries with their banking secrecy laws.

The media in the west tend to ignore the role of western institutions for many reasons. One main reason why they would like to show the poverty level in Africa but refuse to show the role played by the western banking,property,multinational corporations is the fear of loosing revenue through adverts. Many of the media outlets survive through advertisements from the property,banking and multinational corporations so while would they want to incur their wrath? Another reason is that the editors,programme directors and the other bigshots in the media are themselves shareholders of these banks and property companies so why would they want to jeopardise the source of their own wealth? The enthusiasm with which CNN,BBC,ABC,CBS,ITN,SKYNEWS and other television producers portray Africa as poor and least developed; the same cannot be said about the way they report on the role played by the Western banking and other institutions. They fail to tell the world that the looted funds that make Africans poor are indeed sitting in Europe,America,Australia,New Zealand and the offshore Islands controlled by the West. They fail to tell the world that Africa would be a different place if all the stolen monies are returned,but would they ever raise a voice in support of such a laudable idea? Why would the media change the way they report when for centuries they have been the source of all the misinformation and misrepresentation of anything unwestern?

Corruption is rife in Africa because there are banking institutions in Europe especially Switzerland,France,Jersey Island,Britain,Luxembourg,Liechtenstein,Austria,US and many others who accept money from African leaders without questioning the source of the money. According to the UN around $148 billion are stolen from the continent by the political leaders,the business elite and civil servants every year with collusion and connivance of banking industries in Europe and North America.

Even though it is a common knowledge western banks are acting as safe havens for looted funds from Africa,very little attention is received from the western media to expose them. The media tend to focus their energies on the corrupt leaders with little or no mention at all as to where the monies they have stolen are being kept. There has not been any concrete effort to expose the banks that collude and connive with these corrupt leaders who are impoverishing the people. No effort has been made by the political elite in Europe and America to force the banks to return these stolen monies to the poorest of the poor because they are often the shareholders and beneficiaries of profits made by these banks. They talk about corruption because it is embarrassing to them but they have no agenda to fight it as that would mean no fat dividends for them and no cheap credits for their citizens.

Even the Pope knows that the monies stolen are in Europe and America as is seen below. Within five years of his reign (1993-98) Sani Abacha of Nigeria according to official figures was able to stash four billion dollars and between 12 and 16 billion dollars in unofficial terms. After his death in 1998,investigators in Nigeria,Europe and America stumbled on over 130 bank accounts in abroad where some of the money stolen was kept.

The banks that received Abacha's stolen funds are: Australia and New Zealand Banking Group,ANZ,London Branch; Bank Len,Zurich; Bankers Trust Company,London; Bankers Trust Company,Frankfurt; Bankers Trust Company,New York; Banque Barring Brothers,Geneva; Bank in Liechtenstein A. G. Vaduz; Barclays Bank,New York; Barclays Bank,London; Banque Edouard Constant,General; Banque Nationale De Paris,Geneva; Banque Nationale De Paris,London; Banque Nationale De Paris,Basle; Citibank N. A. London; Citibank N. A. New York; Citibank N. A. Luxembourg; Citibank Zurich; Credit Lyonnais,New York; Credit Suisse,New York; Credit Suisse,General; Credit Suisse,Zurich; Deutche Morgan Grenfell,Jersey; FIBI Bank (Schweiz) A. G. Zurich; First Bank of Boston,London; Goldman Sachs and Company,Zurich; Gothard Bank,Geneva; LGT Liechtenstein Bank,Vaduz; Liechtenstein Landesbank,Vaduz; M. M. Warburg and Company,Luxembourg; M. M. Warburg and Company,Zurich; M. M. Warburg and Company,Hamburg; Merrill Lynch Bank,New York; Merrill Lynch Bank,Geneva; Midland Bank,London; National Westminister Bank,London; Paribus,London; Paribus,Geneva; Royal Bank of Scotland,Leeds; Standard Bank London Limited,London; UBS AG,Zurich; UBS AG,Geneva; Union Bancaire Privee,Geneva; Union Bancaire Privee,London; London Branch; Verwaltungs Und Private Bank A. G.,Vaduz; and ANZ,New York; ANZ,Frankfurt. Source: Tell Magazine,October 7,2002.

On February 2009,a French court had Omar Bongo's 9 bank accounts containing several millions of Euros frozen. In confirming the court's decision lawyer Jean-Philippe Le Bail said,'This concerns Crédit Lyonnais,in which the president of Gabon has two current accounts,two savings accounts and a share account,and BNP,in which he has two checking accounts,a savings account and a share account'.

These are the banks whose shady dealings with the political and business elite in Africa continue to impoverish African countries but which for profits sake the media refuse to tell the world about. The banks know these corrupt leaders have stolen the money yet they pretend not to know until there is a scandal before they begin to act as if they are responsible institutions. Most of the above named banks have also been implicated for receiving billions of dollars of looted funds from the lates Mobutu of Zaire; Lansana Conte of Guinea; Eyadema of Togo; and a number of dictators and tyrants such as Omar Bongo of Gabon; Obiang Nguema of Equatorial Guinea; Dos Santos of Angola; Denis Sassou- Nguesso of Congo; Paul Biya of Cameroon; Arap Moi of Kenya; Jerry Rawlings of Ghana; Ibrahim Babadjinda of Nigeria and a number of sitting and ex-presidents in Africa yet western media are silent about where the funds are being kept.

According to a 110 page report prepared by international risk consultancy firm Kroll,Arap Moi and his family have banked £1 billion in 28 countries including Britain but the media in the west will not expose the banks involved.

Apart from the banking sector,the property sector in Europe,America and Australia have also colluded and connived with the political and business elite in Africa to impoverish the people. It has been revealed that several African leaders have bought properties in Europe and America using the monies stolen from their poor countries. It is on record that Mobutu of DRC (Zaire)bought several villas in France,Switzerland,Belgium and many European Countries. Yet again the companies selling the villas have been kept secrete. They will not be exposed by the media. Why would they? According to AFP a French police investigation has established that Bongo and his family own at least 33 luxury properties in France,including a villa located at Rue de la Baume,near the Elysée Palace,in Paris bought in 2007 for 18.8 million Euros. The French President Nicolas Sarkozy has been spotted greeting Bongo in this villa bought with funds looted from Gabon. However,other investigations have uncovered that he and his family have at least 59 properties,several bonds and stocks in France alone. French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner was embarrassed when it was revealed that Bongo's government paid his consultancy firm a staggering 2.64 million Euros for advice on health policy drawn up by Kouchner before he took office. It has recently come to light that Arap Moi of Kenya and his family bought several multimillion pound properties in London,New York,South Africa including 10,000-hectare ranch in Australia and bank accounts containing hundreds of millions of pounds. While majority of Kenyans live in slums and in rural areas,with little roofing on their heads and lacking water and other basic necessities of life,Moi's family live in a £4m home in Surrey and £2m flat in Knightsbridge yet the media will not expose the estate companies involved.

Another area often ignored by the western media is the role play by western companies and corporations in encouraging corruption,bribery and thievery in Africa. It is very common for western companies looking for lucrative contracts to pay bribes and kickbacks to induce officials into awarding them contracts. For example on 17th September 2002,a Canadian firm called Acres International was convicted by a High Court in Lesotho for paying $260,000 bribe to secure an $8 billion dam contract. In 2002 Halliburton a company once controlled by Dick Cheney former US Vice President,Harliburton,was accused of establishing $180m flush fund with the intent of using it to bribe Nigeria officials in order to secure a $10 billion Liquefied Gas Plant contract in Nigeria. Achair Partners a Swiss company and Progresso an Italian company have been accused of bribing Somalia Transition Government officials in order to secure contracts to deposit highly toxic industrial waste in the waters of Somalia. Such corrupt practices by western companies seeking contracts in Africa are one of the reasons why poverty and diseases are rife in the continent.

The catastrophic environmental damage being caused by Oil,mining and timber companies such as Shell,BP,Total,Elf,Texaco,Mittal,Anglo-America Corporation in Nigeria,Ghana,Gabon,Equatorial Guinea,Angola,Congo,DR. Congo,South Africa,Guinea,Sierra Leone,Liberia,Senegal do not make the news in the West. How often do we hear about the huge environmental price Africans are paying to satisfy the west insatiable appetite for energy and technology? Apart from the huge profits being made by these conglomerates which we often hear in the news,do we hear also their complete disregard for environmental rules; the pollution of rivers,lakes,streams,wells,and the environment?

In October 2002,after a three year investigation a UN Panel of Experts implicated Cabot Corporation (Boston),Eagle Wings Resources International,and George Forrest's OM Group (Ohio) for arming rebel groups and collaborating with them to traffic from DR. Congo gold,diamond,timber and most importantly coltan (columbo-tantalite)-a precious ore essential to Sony playstations,laptop computers,and cell phones. Coltan is often spirited out of DRC to U.S.,Swiss,Belgian,and German clients by Uganda and Rwanda army officers,rebel groups and through a network of criminal syndicates. In all 85 companies were implicated by the report. Except the wars and the stranded faces of hungry refugees,do these illegal activities by the corporations make the news in the Western media? Definitely not. Even when local journalists and writers document these for broadcast in the western media they refuse because it does not serve their interest in the wider scheme of things. These are the hypocrisy and the double standard of the western media. They want the world to know how poor Africans are but fail to tell the world that Africans are poor because Western banking institutions,property development companies,defence companies and defence contractors,oil,mining and technology corporations are major stakeholders in promoting Africa's poverty and underdevelopment.

Corruption and bribery in Africa and indeed the developing world could be reduce tremendously if the media for once put aside the pick and choose journalism and attach the same importance to show the degree of involvement by western capitalist institutions in Europe,America and Japan and their role in keeping Africans poor.


Source documents

@Kamlesh Pattni

Insightful piece. I have said it before: CNN,BBC,Reuters,AFP etc are at the CIA's and MI6's beck and call. Intelligent propaganda using a 'trusted' source is extremely effective in achieving your interests without the need to revert to bullets or sanctions.

On the issue of failed states:

1. I have never been one to support the idea of being defined by the West. Unfortunately,the list by the Fund for Peace gets probably the most publicity on this subject and informs the decisions of many people or organisations as they do country risk profiles. I do not like it but that is the way the world is right now.

2. As is evident in this thread,it is quite difficult to arrive at an absolute definition of a failed state. Understandably because a country is a complex animal. There is no nation that can be said to have failed 100% or to have succeeded 100%. Even Somalia has certain things that are working and Norway has its problem areas. To their credit,the Fund for Peace seems to have recognised this because they are careful not to clearly refer to any nation as completely failed. Rather,what they present is a 'failure' scale. Meaning,each country has some element of failure based on the 12 parameters they use.

3. This not withstanding,let us not get bogged down with definitions. Truth is Kenya has alot of good things going for it but also a number of issues it needs to deal with. It is upto each of us to understand what ails our country and how we can best contribute toward sorting out our own problems.