I get shocked at how marketers have turned antibacterial soaps into this cool thing. When did the normal soaps stop being effective? Or did the number of bacteria in the world suddenly multiply?
Do you know that not all bacteria is bad for your skin? Infact some bacteria held your skin in every way.

I am told they are not good for bathing coz they kill even the good / necessary bacteria found in the airport and this can cause infections. Only good for hand washing.

While bacterial soap may not be necessary, making money and increasing wealth may be deemed as necessary. Or to keep up with the Jones's.

So far, it's either you make the money, or you be made the money.

Exactly what Euge has said, they kill the gpod bacteria too when they kill 99.9% germs.

load of bullcrap! sabuni ya kipande is sufficient for all your washing needs. Hizo antiseptics wameongeza then the colour and fragrance (soory to burst the bubble it is not antiseptic that you smell but fragrance) only increase chances of allergic reactions and skin inflammations and infections the latter especially by eliminating good symbiotic bacteria that survive on the skin. they leave the skin vulnerable. In fact most dermatologists recommend sabuni ya miti/kipande for those with allergic reactions. lotions ndio zingine. NKT! Sabuni ya kifande na Arimi's for life

I once bathed with Axion for dish washing and nothing happened.
Another time I used omo,and became white but still ok.
I love dettol, but I won't lose sleep if I don't have it,Sabuni ni povu.

And just how did people stay clean in old soapless days?

Something is definitely wrong when antibacterial soaps advertise more than telecos. You are more likely to see a Dettol, Protex, Safeguard soap tv ad than a Safaricom, Airtel or Yu ad and that is very unusual.
That tells you the idea is to play on our health consciousness' fears into making these soaps part of our lifestyle and it's really working. This is so not the norm in developed countries.

Well, I used to have a friend who swore by the purity of showering with water ALONE. He stunk a bit, I must confess - and when he scratched his skin his fingernails left marks of a light shade of gray. But he is still alive. Maybe he will outlive us.