By Dr Samuel Ndogo In this article, I share with you a childhood journey through music, memory, imagination, faith and the enduring magic of Dolly Parton, who passed on at the age of 80 on 25 August 2026. Beneath the nostalgia her music brings, I offer you, my dear reader, a deeper reflection on fatherhood, childhood, cultural transmission, family memory, artistic legacy and the mysterious ways in which seemingly ordinary experiences become formative narratives in our lives. There are some musicians we deliberately discover, perhaps through recommendation from a friend, a record we happen to encounter in a music shop,…
Author: Special Correspondent
Norway’s King Harald V has died at the age of 89, after he was taken to hospital last week for treatment for a rare blood condition. The palace in Oslo said he passed away peacefully at 06:35 local time (04:35GMT) on Friday at the national hospital in Oslo. The royal flag on the roof of the palace has been lowered to half-mast. In the 24 hours leading up to his death, members of the royal family had visited the king, and crowds had laid flowers at the palace. Harald was Norway’s first king born in Norway since the 14th Century.…
In the courtroom, criminal defense lawyer Ding Ning methodically presents evidence and points out uncertainties she has uncovered in a rape case. Rather than simply accepting a guilty plea, the young lawyer works to protect the legal rights of her client, a young nursing home caregiver accused of rape. The scene appears in the first episode of the suspense drama The Trembling of Cicada. Starring Hong Kong actor Francis Ng, Chinese mainland actor Zheng Yunlong and actress Zhong Chuxi, the drama premiered on Zhejiang TV on Aug 20 and is also available on streaming platforms including iQIYI, Tencent Video and…
Eddie “Papa” Musi was a South African-born boxing coach who found a home in Kenya. Born in Soweto in 1940, he entered Kenya in 1967 via the Namanga border in a group of young South Africans who had fled the brutal Apartheid regime. Kenya welcomed him, and he gave back immensely including being a part of the Kenya “hit squad” to the Commonwealth Games in Brisbane in 1982. Eddie settled in Nairobi and built a stable of champions and stars in Kariobangi, shaping generations of Kenyan elite boxers. Kariobangi with Eddie, Madison Square Garden in Nakuru under the Nakuru Amateur…
A goat herder from a remote area of western Kenya has told the BBC his discovery of a golden nugget has sparked a gold rush, overwhelming his small village over the last few weeks. When people found out that 33-year-old Manasse Lomachar had sold his three grams of gold for 36,000 Kenyan shillings ($280; £205) several weeks ago, he believes this led to the arrival of thousands of prospectors in Cheporor. And it is true that what last month was just bushland and rough grazing ground near the village is now scarred by pits, mounds of earth and makeshift mining…
Zambia’s President Hakainde Hichilema has been re-elected for a second five-year term after securing a 60% share of the vote, the electoral commission has announced. Hichilema’s win was widely expected, with his closest challenger Brian Mundubile getting 38% of the votes cast. The remaining 12 candidates trailed far behind. The result came after a contested process, with 55-year-old Mundubile earlier claiming victory and alleging, without providing evidence, that there had been voting irregularities. It also followed the arrest of some leading opposition figures in a raid on Friday who the authorities accused of plotting an insurrection. Mundubile called the claim…
The Sports Journalists Association of Kenya (SJAK) has adopted a new constitution, replacing rules in place since 2014. Members approved the changes at Friday’s AGM in Nairobi, including term limits, revised roles for officials and new rules on elections, disputes and finances. The Sports Journalists Association of Kenya (SJAK) has adopted a new constitution tailor-made to strengthen governance, accountability and member protection. The document, prepared by a seven-member constitution review committee led by SJAK Treasurer Mukami Wambora, was ratified during the association’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) held in Nairobi on Friday. The new constitution replaces the one that has been…
Security forces in Zambia have seized weapons and arrested 11 people, including senior opposition figures, allegedly involved in an insurrection plot, the government has said. The leading opposition candidate in last Thursday’s presidential election, Brian Mundubile, was also found at the scene of the raid in the capital, Lusaka, according to the country’s top civil servant Patrick Kangwa. Mundubile described Friday night’s raid as “an attempt on my life” adding that “colleagues were shot” in his presence. With results from more than half of the constituencies, he is trailing incumbent Hakainde Hichilema. Mundubile had earlier claimed victory and alleged there…
The Sports Journalists’ Association of Kenya (SJAK) belatedly marked World Sports Day, which falls on July 2, with the second edition of its Indoor Sports Day at Best Western Plus Meridian Hotel in Nairobi on Friday. The event, incepted last year at Goan Institute, is aimed at helping members of the sports media fraternity appreciate and understand the dynamics of indoor sports beyond football and athletics, which dominate headlines. SJAK President James Waindi said the indoor games were introduced to complement the association’s longstanding outdoor sports day and to promote all-round journalism. “Apart from our outdoor sports day program that…
President Donald Trump has confirmed that he secretly swapped planes as he left a Nato summit in Turkey last month due to a possible threat. “I go by Secret Service and the military. They wanted me to go in a different flight, different plane,” Trump told reporters. “I just have to do what they say.” The revelation comes after reports that Trump boarded Air Force One on 8 July in view of television cameras, before hiding in a catering truck to be transported to a military aircraft. The last-minute switch has raised questions about whether those left on the decoy…
