Author: NLM Correspondent

By NLM Writer The concept that you can get ahead on your work and talents, also called meritocracy, is something we mostly agree is good. We also equate it with a fairer society, one where the social order is not determined by birth but one which gives us some sort of agency over our futures. However the term itself was coined as a warning. So why do we believe in it so strongly? Entire cultures and societies are formed around the concept of meritocracy. It has become a leading social ideal. Politicians across the ideological spectrum continually return to the…

By Dennis Ndiritu The High Court breathed life into the gasping war on corruption in July this year when Justice Mumbi Ngugi declined an order of revision from Samburu Governor Moses Lenolkulal which challenged a ruling from the magistrates court that barred his access to office pending the hearing and determination of his graft case. In the case, Lenonkulal is charged with five counts in ‘ACC No. 3 of 2019: R v Moses Lenolkulal and 13 others’ thus: four counts under the Anti-corruption and Economic Crimes Act (ACECA) and the offence of unlawful acquisition of public property contrary to Section…

By Chrispin Bosire “Being a lawyer is not merely a vocation. It is a public trust, and each of us has an obligation to give back to our communities. Do and act on what you believe to be right, and you will wake up the next morning feeling good about yourself.” For a long time now, public perception has painted advocates in bad light. Some people refer to the members of the legal profession as a “necessary evil” while others simply dismiss them as cardinal agents of Satan on dry land. Be that as it may, advocates actually play a…

By Shadrack Muyesu In July 2009, Kasama Kimani visited a traditional herbalist in a desperate attempt to help his ailing daughter. With the help of one Lydia Wanjiku, he visited the healer Felix Irungu Karamba who at that time had pitched tent at a Joska Hotel room in Ngara. Irungu performed some rituals and offered him some herbs which he promised, would cure his daughter. He then transferred some Sh900, 000 to Irungu as payment for services rendered and also as fees to facilitate the acquisition of more herbs. Despite the performance, Kimani’s daughter got worse – which fact prompted…

By Daniel Benson Kaaya The Premier League is arguably the best in the world – attracting the best players and managers in the game. The summer transfer window closed on August 8 but not without some nail biting moments for fans across the world. One of the most intriguing transfers concerned Argentine maestro Paulo Bruno Exequiel Dybala’s proposed move to Tottenham Hotspurs from Juventus FC. In spite of protracted negotiations running into the final hours of the transfer window, the transfer did not materialise. Fees and wages weren’t the issue as is the norm with other transfers; it’s Dybala’s image…

By Lord Jonathan Sumption Transcribed by Kevin Motaroki Human rights are where law and politics meet. It can be an unfriendly meeting. A few years ago the then Prime Minister, speaking to the House of Commons, described a recent Supreme Court judgment about human rights as “appalling”. The same Prime Minister, on a later occasion, said about another human rights decision that it made him “physically sick”. These are strong words. What’s the fuss about? There is nothing new about human rights apart from the name. A quarter of a millennium ago Sir William Blackstone, the author of the earliest…

At the end of the 20th Century, mobile technology in Africa was still a new, unknown product. As a result, only about one percent of the population owned mobile phones. As the years went by, this changed as the continent embraced the technology which saw it referred to as the mobile phone continent. According to the Digital 2019 report, as of the start of 2019, mobile subscriptions in the continent had grown to 80 percent, meaning out of a population of 1.3 billion people, one billion are now mobile users. Compared to most of the other continents, mobile phones have…

By Wim Delva The term “data science” was coined by scientists working at the social networks LinkedIn and Facebook in 2008. A few years later, they dubbed it “the sexiest profession of the 21st century”. This relatively new, interdisciplinary field is a blend of statistics, computer science, mathematics, engineering and subject matter knowledge. In fact, any and all subjects qualify. Its proponents believe it will transform every aspect of society. Many of the disruptive, game-changing innovations that are grounded in data science are intended to improve people’s quality of life as well as the efficiency of processes and services. Examples include autonomous vehicles; precision medicine and…

BY AGENCIES Chinese companies operating in Kenya created more than 50,000 jobs in 2018, a new report by Chinese companies in Kenya has showed. The report released on Tuesday indicates that there are 106 Chinese companies operating in Kenya, with nearly 95 percent of their workforce being Kenyan. However, the report does not indicate whether the workers were casual labourers or contract workers. Chinese companies, both private and State-owned, have been increasingly eyeing Africa for investment opportunities. Their direct foreign investment into the continent stood at $66.4 billion (Sh6.9 trillion) between 2005 and 2016, the report states. The study found…

By Federico de Nardis While some believe the point is exaggerated, it’s hard to argue against the idea in some basic form that increasingly, companies view their customers as valuable data sources. That data is to be harvested in lieu of, or in addition to, payment for products and services. This thought is made more convincing by the number of businesses that opt to rely on consumer data and achieve spectacular economic outcomes by putting it to use. The reason that consumer data is so valuable, and that companies are so keen to use it (even going so far as…