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Martha Sinoe is the new OLM President

By
Tom Gitaa, Editor-in-Chief
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Twin Cities entrepreneur and community advocate, Martha Sinoe, staved off a stiff challenge from her former campaign manager, Henry Fahnbulleh, to emerge victorious as the new president of the Organization of Liberians in Minnesota (OLM). Elections were held on Sunday, November 20. The tone of the campaign left no doubt that it will be a close race but few predicted how tight the race was, as only twenty votes separated the contenders. Mr. Fahnbulleh was Martha Sinoe’s campaign manager in the last OLM elections.

 

 

After the manual process of counting the votes was done at the
United
Lutheran
Church
in
North Minneapolis
, electoral commission chairman, Benoni Grimes announced to both camps’ observers present that Martha Sinoe garnered 479 votes to Mr. Fahnbulleh’s 459. Martha Sinoe’s running mate was Jackson K. George while Henry Fahnbulleh had Mr. William D. Towah.

 

 

Voter participation this year saw a 33% drop from last year. The total of 938 votes cast for president is a significant drop from the January 2004 election where 1,403 ballots were

 

accepted in what was equally a charged environment. Martha Sinoe came in second to Wilfred Harris in the 2004 elections. In a sign that the new president has her work cut out for her

 

in terms of igniting more enthusiasm for OLM and its activities, the number of registered voters was about 10% less compared to 2004 at 1,289. Some voters obviously decided not to show

 

up even though they took time to register. 812 of those who cast ballots registered on election day ensuring an equally busy time at the registration desk.

 

 

The population of Liberians in
Minnesota
is estimated to be over 20,000 with a significant number

 

of them residing in the northwest suburbs of the Twin Cities. The polling took place at Northview Junior High School in Brooklyn Park. Among the first to vote were the two presidential candidates and for most of the morning there was light traffic as expected as most Liberians attend church on Sunday mornings. The two candidates and those vying for board positions then accosted prospective voters to solicit their votes. The pace picked up as church services concluded during the lunch hour and the venue was a beehive of activity until polls closed at 7PM. As in the previous OLM elections, the venue for counting the ballots had not been confirmed and

 

there was a last minute rush to secure a location before the United Lutheran Church pastor offered his church located in North Minneapolis.

 

 

Transporting OLM election ballot boxes is not for the faint hearted. The election team as in previous occasions had a hard time removing the boxes from the polling station to the counting venue without raising loud objections from supporters and campaign officials of the two camps.

 

A frustrated Mr. Grimes, the elections commission chair, was on the verge of calling law enforcement officials before being prevailed by others to “keep it in the house”.

 

 

Ballot counting started promptly at 9:30PM Sunday evening. The Sinoe and Fahnbulleh team each had four representatives to observe the counting. Also allowed in to observe was the former Union of Liberian Associations in the Americas (ULAA) President, Mrs. Roberta Rashid and

 

Mshale newspaper. Counting of the board ballots took close to three hours and concluded shortly after midnight, allowing counting of the much anticipated presidential ballots at 12:15am Monday morning. With only two candidates on the ballot, the exercise went relatively smoothly with voter intent easy to discern as voters appeared to be extra careful not to make mistakes when it came to presidential ballots. Being careful did not mean lacking a sense of humor. One voter instead of marking “X” or a check mark next to the box of their preferred candidate instead circled Martha Sinoe’s picture and wrote in big letters “God Yes, bless you, Yes” to indicate their choice. A commissioner ruled the voter’s intent was to vote for Ms. Sinoe and caused one of the light

 

moments during the long night. All quickly agreed with the ruling.

 

 

Unlike last year, a much more collegial atmosphere prevailed at this year’s counting exercise and there appeared to be a determined effort by both sides to ensure a speedy resolution to contested ballots. Arthur Zakama, Jr., the strategic planning chair for the Fahnbulleh team led the

 

observer team for his side while Kerper Dwanyen, Sinoe campaign chairman led his team in observing the counting.

 

The two who command considerable respect from their respective teams and their opponents ensured none of the bitter exchanges that characterized last year’s counting exercise happened.

 

In the 2004 elections, opposing teams threatened to walk out and stall the counting exercise when they did not agree with rulings by the election commission. Given the fact that there

 

were four presidential candidates and four observer teams to satisfy, amid the contention, the counting took more than twelve hours and concluded late morning the following day.

 

 

The most tedious exercise is that of counting the ballots for board membership where there nine

 

candidates for the five positions in the board. A voter picks five out of the nine for the board elections. Georgette Gray emerged with the most votes in the board elections. She got 652 votes followed by Mr. Abdullah Kiatamba who received 625. J. Sackie Kennedy, a losing presidential

 

aspirant in last year’s election before losing had the third highest number of votes followed by Marie Y. Hayes who got 532. Ms. Hayes is the outgoing vice-president under the Wilfred

 

Harris team. Harris T. Meh is the fifth board member and received 531 votes.

 

The four unsuccessful candidates were Christian Harris (421), Ousley Natt Early (313), Chris Wisner (263) and Toungon Vonleh (241).

 

 

The five new board members will choose from among themselves who will be board chairman. Mr. Kiatamba was widely expected to seek the chairmanship but he told Mshale after the results were announced that he had no desire to do so but may go for the post of Secretary to the

 

board. The top vote getter, Mrs. Gray confirmed via a telephone conversation with this reporter that she plans to run to be chair of the board. Her main challenger barring a change of heart by

 

Mr. Kiatamba is expected to be Ms. Marie Y. Hayes, the current outgoing OLM vice-president. Mrs. Gray is the outgoing secretary to the executive.

 

 

Although it is the most visible of the OLM organs and the one usually attracting voters to the polls, the executive, which comprises the OLM president and his team, is in reality answerable to the OLM board.

 

 

Mshale could not reach Mr. Fahnbulleh for comment after the elections before this edition went to

 

press but there were reports that he called Ms. Sinoe immediately after his team informed him of the outcome to congratulate her on the win.

 

 

In an interview with Mshale at her home minutes after the counting exercise as supporters started to stream in, Ms. Sinoe said people should not read too much into the close race. She said the outcome should unite the community and concluded that the reason for the close race was because the community was presented with two competitive candidates and went out of her way to stress the results did not symbolize a divided community. She planned to thank her supporters

 

before leaving for a two week vacation. Upon return she plans a round of unity meetings bringing together all Liberian counties present in Minnesota and a series of church meetings.

 

 

Her vice-president, Mr. Jackson George, told Mshale he is very interested in finding out why half the electorate voted for the other side. His hunch was that the opposing team went negative in the closing days of the campaign which may have taken away some votes from his team but that in the end the majority of the voters did not buy into the negative campaigning. He however did say that the results also indicated the Fahnbulleh team may have worked twice as hard as

 

the Sinoe team, negative campaigning notwithstanding. He was optimistic that the community will set aside the campaign spirit and move on.

 

 

One of his goals is to sell the idea of transforming OLM into a service oriented non-profit on behalf of the new Sinoe administration. With a goal to transform OLM to a service oriented organization, the new administration appears to be setting the stage for the envisioned

 

Liberian Cultural Center estimated to cost over a $1 million. The center will be partially funded by a $250,000 federal grant secured through the efforts of Minnesota US Senator Mark Dayton.

 

 

Elections Commission chairman, Benoni Tarr Grimes, called on the Liberian community to support the new administration and thanked his fellow commissioners for making the process credible and transparent. Mr. Grimes, a teacher with the Saint Paul Public schools and currently pursuing a Masters in Educational Administration at Saint Mary’s University is also the ULAA

 

Elections Commission chair. He said administering the OLM elections was not as tough as the ULAA ones even though there were a few frustrating moments. He said he expects to certify

 

the results within four weeks from the election date as stipulated in the OLM constitution.

 

 

The commissioners that did the counting were: Momolu Sirleaf, Jesse Fahngo, Edward Carter, Wisseh Geegabe, J. Clarence Yaskey II and Oblayon B. Nyemah, Jr. Ballot counting observers for the Fahnbulleh team led by Mr. Arthur Zakama were: Antoinette Beah-Towah, Edwin F. Kruah and Anthony A. Kanneh. Mr. Kerper Dwanyen led the observer team on behalf of the Sinoe

 

camp. The team included, George Saydee, Amara Kamara and Augustus Wrayee.

 

 

About Martha Sinoe

 

 

Martha Sinoe was born in Harbel, Margibi County, Liberia. She is an entrepreneur, a community advocate and a licensed professional nurse. She is the owner of a successful nursing business that employs Liberians and non-Liberians alike. Her Minnesota based business also serves parts of Wisconsin.

 

 

In 2004, she was elected Vice-President of the Northern Region of the Union of Liberian Associations in the Americas (ULAA). ULAA is the umbrella of all Liberian organizations

 

in the Americas. The Northern Region encompasses Minnesota, Wisconsin,Illinois, Ohio, and Michigan.

 

 

She received general business training at Essex County College, New Jersey (1982-1983), obtained a diploma in Secretarial Science at Essex School of Business (1985-87), and secured a

 

diploma in Nursing from Middlesex Vocational Institute (1990-92), in New Jersey.

 

 

She is the recipient of numerous managerial, professional and leadership certificates and trainings in the areas of non-profit management, community advocacy, business development,

 

para-medical services, among others according to her official biography provided to Mshale.

 

 

She has been married to Mr. Daniel Simbo for 22 years and is a mother of three children: Mars,

 

Tetee, and Danielle. Her eldest child Mars, holds an MBA in Financial Management from the New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT), and now works for the State of New Jersey. Tetee, her oldest daughter, presently works for a mortgage company as a loan-processing specialist. Her

 

youngest daughter, Danielle, is a freshman in high school.

 

Africa’s First Elected Woman President

By
News Agencies Mshale Team
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0
Africa’s First Elected Woman President

Liberian voters have become the first Africans to elect a female head of state. Liberians on November 8 elected Harvard-educated economist and former World Bank official, Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf to be president of that country.

 

“Just my own performance… is going to raise the participation of women not just in but also in

Africa . It’s a big challenge but I’m looking forward to it.” The divorced mother of four sons studied accounts and economics first at the

College of

West Africa ,

Monrovia , between 1948 and 1955. She married Mr James Sirleaf in 1957 before going on to the

University of

Wisconsin between 1961 and 1964. Before becoming a civil servant in , she also read economics at

Harvard

University between 1969 and 1971. Ellen and her husband were divorced before he died some years later.

 

 

 

 

 This was ’s first election since a 14-year civil war that left more than 250,000 people dead.

 

 

 

 

Mr. Weah immediately after the results were announced cried foul claiming the election was a fraud and submitted a formal complaint to the Supreme Court, which is still investigating. International observers said that while there were some minor irregularities, they were too small to change the outcome.

 

 

 

 

Mr. Weah’s supporters aired their feelings of betrayal with three days of protest, with one protest of more than 1,500 people marching up a main thoroughfare to the embassy in the heavily militarized Mamba Point area.

 

 

 

 

Mr. Weah, speaking to a crowd of supporters at his campaign headquarters, appealed for calm, but hundreds of supporters wielding branches marched through the streets in protest, chanting, “No Weah, no peace!”

 

 

 

 

They threw stones at police officers in front of the National Elections Commission, and United Nations peacekeepers fired tear gas to keep protesters from storming the United States Embassy, according to reporters in . Heavy tanks and armored personnel from the United Nations patrolled

Monrovia streets after the elections to calm down tensions.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mr. Weah, whose base was the young, discontented population who idolized him for his exploits on the soccer field and his rags-to-riches life story, was seen as a favorite because young voters make up 40 percent of the electorate.

 

 

 

 

But the women’s vote appears to have been stronger. There were slightly more women registered to vote in , and while there were no reliable surveys of voters leaving the polls, women appeared to be a strong presence.

 

 

 

 

Political strategy played a role as well. In the final weeks of the campaign, Ms. Johnson-Sirleaf formed crucial alliances with parties whose candidates had lost in the first round, which winnowed the field of 22 presidential contenders to 2.

 

 

 

 

The 66-year-old grandmother and former finance minister had 59.4 percent of the votes while the 39-yearold former FIFA player of the year George Weah had 40.6 percent, the National Elections Commission said. Voter turnout was 59.3 percent from 2,978 of the 3,070 polling stations.

 

 

 

 

Although international observers were unanimous in their observation that the election was free, fair and transparent, Weah claimed that the polls were marred by fraud and took up the case with the Supreme Court, seeking a rite of prohibition on the electoral commission.

 

 

 

 

But the electoral commission’s chief, Frances Johnson-Morris, said at the time “I have not received any order from the Supreme Court, (but) we will abide by what the Supreme Court says.”

 

 

 

 

Weah had alleged that more than 35 pre-marked ballot papers intended to be stuffed in ballot boxes in favor of his challenger Johnson-Sirleaf, were intercepted by his supporter and has presented photo copy of same to the electoral commission as evidence to prove his claims.

 

 

 

 

The football star pulled the highest votes in the first round with 28.3 percent from among the pack of 22 presidential candidates, while his closest opponent Johnson-Sirleaf got 19.8 percent in the first round on October 11.

 

 

 

 

Mrs. Sirleaf declared victory shortly after the results were announced but following Mr. Weah’s complaint, the investigation, and the timeline to release results in accordance with Liberian electoral law, prompted a warning from NEC chairwoman Frances Johnson Morris against premature celebrations by supporters of the Harvard educated economist. “Madame Sirleaf has no right to declare herself the winner,” she told reporters. “Only the NEC does.”

 

 

 

 

The electoral commission officially announced her as the winner on November 23. With all the votes counted, the Election Commission said the former banker pulled nearly 60 percent of the Nov. 8 run-off votes compared to the 41 percent of former soccer star, George Oppong Weah. The commission said she received 478, 526 votes while Mr. Weah got 327, 046. Top officials from Mr. Weah’s party have said they will take their case to the Supreme Court if an electoral commission, which is still investigating, finds no evidence of fraud. The election was organized and its security guaranteed by a UN peacekeeping force.

 

 

 

 

Ms. Johnson-Sirleaf’s victory propels her into an old boys’ club unlike any other. From the Cape to Cairo , from Dar es Salaam to

Dakar , men have dominated African politics from the earliest days of the anti colonial struggle.

 

 

 

 

“There are so many capable women,” said Yassine Fall, a Senegalese economist and feminist working on women’s rights in

Africa . “But they just don’t get the chance to lead.”

 

 

 

 

Indeed, when supporters of Ms. Johnson-Sirleaf, 66, a onetime United Nations official and Liberian finance minister, marched through the streets of

Monrovia in the final, frantic days of the campaign for ’s presidency, they shouted and waved signs that read, “Ellen – she’s our man.”

 

 

 

 

So far, only three women have been head of state in

Africa . None was elected. Ruth Perry was appointed chair of the Liberian Council of State in September 1996 after the overthrow of dictator Samuel Doe. Sylvie Kinigi acted as president in following the murder of President Melchior Ndadaye in October 1993 and Carmen Pereira acted as head of state in for two days in May 1984.

 

 

 

 

But in recent years, African women have gained power and visibility. In 2004 a Kenyan environmentalist, Wangari Muta Maathai, won the Nobel Peace Prize, while ’s finance minister and feared corruption fighter, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, has emerged as one of that country’s most respected officials.

 

 

 

 

Women have also made gains at the ballot box. The prime minister of , Luísa Dias Diogo, is widely seen as a likely future president. In , there is a greater proportion of women serving in Parliament than in any other nation; they occupy nearly half the seats.

 

 

 

 

Indeed,

Africa leads the developing world in the percentage of women in legislative positions, at about 16 percent, according to the Inter-Parliamentary Union , an organization of parliamentary bodies worldwide.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

’s presidential election came two years after the nation emerged from a brutal civil war that claimed more than 250,000 lives and displaced a third of the population. Pushed from power by rebels, Charles Taylor, the warlord who became ’s president and fomented bloody wars that racked the region for more than a decade, went into exile in 2003 and is now in .

 

 

 

 

The issues Johnson-Sirleaf will have to contend with are reconciliation among Liberians and reconstruction of basic social services such as schools, health care facilities, roads, safe drinking water, electricity as well as reintegrating thousands of excombatants and the creation of job opportunities.

 

 

 

 

Illiteracy rate in the West African state, blessed with diamond, gold, timber, iron ore and rubber as well as fertile soil, stands at about 85 percent and unemployment is put at 80 percent. The country also owes an external debt around 3 billion dollars.

 

 

 

 

Most Liberians were quoted by media as believing a free poll in their war-ravaged country would have been impossible without the UN presence.

 

 

 

 

The head of the UN mission says the task at hand now is reconciliation and reconstruction.

 

 

 

 

Johnson-Sirleaf’s inauguration on Jan. 16 will make her one of Africa ’s longest serving political opposition leaders that will have finally come to power, along the likes of Nelson Mandela of , Abdulaye Wade of and Laurent Gbagbo of . 

Smart Year-End Tax Maneuvers

By
Chuck Chuckuemeka
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0
Smart Year-End Tax Maneuvers

Pay Deductible Expenses Now
If you expect to be in a higher tax bracket or owe taxes this year, it may be more valuable to pay deductible expenses in this year rather than the next. Alternatively, if you expect your income to be higher next year, putting you into a higher tax bracket then, putting off paying deductible items until next year may reduce your tax liability. Here are some deductible expenses you can pay before year-end:

* Mortgage payments due in January can be paid in December, which includes deductible mortgage interest.
* State income taxes should be estimated and paid before year-end.
* Real estate taxes due in January, February or March can often be paid now.
* Charitable contributions you expect to make early next year can be paid this year.

Give Away Your Tax Bill
As a general rule, the market value of stock owned at least a year or more that’s donated to charity is deductible. Neither you nor the charity will pay taxes on the gain when the charity later sells it.

Also, don’t give your children cash or pay their college tuition bills with cash. Instead, give them shares of appreciated stock or funds and have them sell the shares to pay for school. The result is that the gains could be taxed at their lower capital-gains rate of 5 percent, rather than the parents’ higher 15 percent rate.

Buy Home Office Gear
If you run a business outside or in the home consider buying your computer, phone system, copier, furniture and other fixtures now. Business owners can deduct up to $105,000 of such expenses in one lump sum without stretching the cost over time. That’s especially helpful when one spouse is receiving a salary from an employer and the other’s self-employed.

Defer Income
Ask your payroll department if you’ve reached your contribution percentage or dollar limit for your company provided retirement plan for the year. If not, ask to change the contribution from your remaining pay this year (salary and bonus) if possible so you can contribute the maximum allowable into your plan. That accomplishes two things: It increases your retirement savings for this year and reduces your income reported on this year’s tax return.

Consider delaying the exercise of any more stock options until after year-end. Of course be mindful of the expiration date and be careful not to wait until then. If self employed, wait until January to send bills to your customers.

Clean Out Flexible Spending Accounts
If you’re using a flexible spending account, be careful to incur enough expenses and receipts to submit against what you deposited into the accounts. You’ll lose any unused funds in flexible savings accounts.

Now is the time to find out what your balance is and spend it on out-of-pocket health care and child-care costs. Those expenses must be incurred before the end of the year, even though the receipts can be submitted next year, to receive reimbursement from your account.

Get Tax ID Numbers
Get a Tax ID for any of your babies born in 2005. You must put your child’s social security number on your 2005 tax return, unless the child was born in the month of December. Complete IRS Form SS-5 Application for Social Security Number.

Hold Off Investing In Mutual Funds
Most mutual funds distribute taxable capital-gains distributions at year-end. Call the mutual fund and ask for the record date of the taxable distributions and invest after that date. Remember, that doesn’t apply to tax-deferred retirement accounts such as IRAs because gains aren’t taxed until you take the money out.

Also, look out for these tax traps that could snare you:

Pretax Cutbacks: Many employers are informing "highly compensated" participants in their 401(k) and flexible spending plans that, due to regulations requiring broad use of these plans by all employees, pre-tax contributions of certain employees must be reduced or cut back. In some cases, several thousand dollars must be returned and included in these individuals’ taxable income.

Received Non-Wage Income In 2005: If you received a bonus, exercised stock options, vested in restricted stock or were paid income as a contractor chances are very high you’ll end up a tax casualty. That’s because income taxes are withheld on non-wage income at 25 percent or in some cases not at all. If your tax bracket is higher (28, 33 or 35 percent) than what’s withheld, you may be in a shortfall situation.

From now until the end of the year you can make some financial moves to lower your taxes If you have any questions, please call your accountant.

 

Chuck Chuckuemeka is partner at Chuckuemeka & Associates of

Bloomington, Minnesota . He can be reached at [email protected] or 952-814-9292.

 

 

 

Epitome of Rural Politics

By
Jeremy O'Kasick
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Epitome of Rural Politics

East African Traveler

 

 

It’s near midnight, and the calabash of honey beer keeps being filled up and passed around the circle of elders in a grass hall, illuminated by firelight, somewhere out in the Great Rift Valley of central .

 

 

I am in Barabaig country. The Barabaig are cattle herders, semi-nomadic, and the traditional enemies of the well-known Maasai people. All has been relatively peaceful between the two groups for years, as they now face more common enemies: drought, strained resources, and the ongoing struggle to hold together any semblance of their traditional societies in a globalized
Africa
. 

 

 

The pack of American travelers, whom I have joined on a cultural tour program, have all gone to bed while the elders and some warriors sing until the last song is sung, the last drop of honey beer swallowed. It’s not only the local swill, however, that changes hands and enlivens spirits.

 

 

The whole nation is abuzz with campaigns and political hullabaloo in the run-up to ’s third democratic multiparty elections. That includes the vastly dispersed Barabaig villages, even though I found some old folks out there who told me that Julius “Mwalimu” Nyerere was still the country’s president.

 

 

The campaigning even stretched into the grass hall that night, as one young man, who contended for a local councilor seat, talked vote-getting strategy with the elders in between songs. He even passed around printouts, complete with every candidate’s photo, for every pertinent election to the area up to the presidency. Those sheets spread around the room like they were coupons for free cows. The elders held them up to the flickering firelight, studying each candidate, discussing opposition politics, democratic reforms, and even making jokes and impersonating their own favored politicians. So politics out in the bush? 

 

 

Coming into these arid, dusty lands, I had a hunch that it was a place that politicians had forgotten on their campaign stops and where politics could be boiled down to the bare-bone essentials. I thought of it as “bush politics”. That’s not as in George W. Bush, but as in the bush where hyenas howl and lions roar at night. 

 

 

After all, what should a Barabaig woman care about privatization and foreign direct investment (FDI) in Dar-es-Salaam if she has to walk 25 kilometers or more a day to get four or five jerry cans of water?

 

 

True enough, but the night with the elders showed me how some Barabaig have more political savvy than most fellow Tanzanians would ever grant them. At least during the campaigns, a few politicians paid more attention to such traditional groups. After all, the villages across mainland are still almost entirely ruling party, Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM), strongholds. The likely next president of , Jakaya Kikwete, even came through and addressed the area’s dire water needs among others.

 

 

The grievances of the Barabaig are undeniable. They have been pushed off their lands and their rights have been abused for years. Even though the particular clan I visited lived in a district represented in parliament by the current prime minister himself, the rocky roads in the area are so atrocious that travel times by vehicle there depend upon the number of flat tires suffered.

 

 

For an intense moment, I wondered on whether or not any of these grievances would be addressed after the vote counts and after many of the politicians have returned to their plush residences in Dar-es-Salaam. How would Barabaig society and Tanzanian politics take shape in the next five years to come?

 

 

The moment passed, and then the last calabash of beer went around, and the Barabaig struck up a tune that their people have been singing for centuries.

 

 

The writer is a Twin Cities resident currently visiting
East Africa
on a cultural exchange program. He will share his perspective and observations while there in this column which will appear in Mshale through early 2006 when he returns to the . You can reach him at [email protected].

 

 

Hip-Hop Colony

By
Nelima Kerre - Mshale Staff Writer
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Hip-Hop Colony

With the advent of MTV Africa the spotlight is now on African music. 27 year-old Kenyan director and producer Michael Wanguhu’s critically acclaimed documentary Hip Hop Colony is at the helm of a revolution that is moving African hip-hop towards the center stage. As emerging genres of music like reggaeton, the Latino version of dancehall, continue to gain international repute Wanguhu is determined that African adaptations of mainstream music are not left behind. “Our musicians have so much to offer and even though I am in the industry to make a living I want to share ’s story”, he explains.

 

 

In the documentary, Wanguhu compares the effects of hip-hop on to the pervasive nature of the British colonization of the country as he chronicles the Kenyan contemporary hip-hop scene beginning with its pioneers like musicians Kalamashaka and Hardstone, music producer Tedd Josiah and the Homeboyz Djs.

 

 

Wanguhu was inspired to do the documentary when on visiting for the first time since he left the country to study in the U.S he met with a vibrant yet financially strapped local music industry. He managed to secure some financial assistance and in December 2003 started shooting the documentary until March this year.

 

 

During Kenyatta Day celebrations last month in
Minneapolis
, an audience watched a special screening of the documentary, witnessed Kenyan musicians and citizens a like discuss all the aspects of Kenyan contemporary music, from opportunities it has created to the controversy it has brewed. For example in response to the charge that contemporary music and culture is not Kenyan, musicians argue that they have taken a foreign concept and infused it with local beats, lyrics and lifestyle to make it their own.

 

 

Just as Tanzanian contemporary music is called Bongo flavor and South African hip-hop has been dubbed Kwaito, Kenyans have Genge music (music for the masses) and Kapuka.

 

Some people from the older generation however seem to dismiss the music as meaningless and cite its influence as the main reason Kenyan youth have gone awry. Whatever the case, Wanguhu argues that the government needs to support and harness the potential in the neglected music industry and hopes his film will revolutionize both the Kenyan music

 

and film industries.

 

 

Michael Wanguhu studied graphic design and film at the

New York
Film
Academy

and upon graduation teamed up with long time friend and writer Russell Kenya, through their company

 

Emerge Media Films to work on Hip Hop Colony. His earlier experience includes work for Kenyan Comedians Redykulass in 1999, the 2000 Atlanta Classic and Kenyans in Exile filmed during the 2004 Rugby tournament in
California
. His primary audience for Hip Hop Colony was the U.S because he knew he would always have the support of Kenyans and wanted to create a niche market abroad. Already the film has gained critical acclaim; it beat media mogul, Russell Simmons’ film to claim the number one award at the Houston Black Film Festival and was nominated at the San Francisco Black festival where it came in second to Simmons’ film. It was officially selected for the Zanzibar film festival, Vancouver film festival, London’s BFM International Film Festival, Cape Town World Cinema Festival and Hip Hop Odyssey Film Festival where it will compete against Fifty Cent’s ‘Beef II’.

 

 

Wanguhu is happy with the recognition, but says the highlight of the whole process was listening to the Kenyan musicians Bamboo and others freestyling and finally accomplishing a goal he had visualized since 1999; completing the documentary. He was pleasantly surprised when the film sold out in London, 20 minutes after the tickets went on sale, but equally dismayed by the ignorance about Africa in at the American film festivals.

 

 

Nevertheless, everyone is impressed and there is great demand for a sequel to Hip Hop Colony, which Wanguhu wants to expand beyond the borders of to include other African nations. As he reflects upon the challenges he faced securing funding to start the project Wanguhu laughs and says, “Before the film I looked for money, now they (donors) are looking for me.”

 

More info on the film can be found at www.hiphopcolony.com

 

MYLA Awards Scholarships to Six Exceptional Students

By
Tom Gitaa, Editor-in-Chief
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MYLA Awards Scholarships to Six Exceptional Students

Scholarships provide $15,000 to support college education

Six college students are the recipients of scholarships totaling $15,000 from the Muslim youth Leadership Awards (MYLA) for the 2005-2006 academic year. All winners this academic year are from the University of Minnesota . The scholarships were announced in September by MYLA, a young Minnesota based non-profit in its third year of formation that seeks to encourage a spirit of community service in the youth along with their educational endeavors.

This academic year for the first time, the grand prize was more than doubled, from the previous years’ $2,000 to $5,000. Sumaiya Mamdani, a child psychology major in the University of Minnesota ’s college of liberal arts was the winner of the beefed up grand prize. The other five winners each received a $2,000 scholarship. The $2,000 is also a significant jump from last year where the winners received $1,000 each.

The winners constitute first and second generation immigrants from various parts of the world such as Asia, Africa and the Middle East . All six are active in the community in various ways, from organizing a Somali sports and youth organization in Rochester , teaching Arabic at the various cultural centers around the Twin Cities to being a youth leader at an Interfaith Youth Forum started by the Archdiocese of Milwaukee for select teenage Muslims, Jews and Christians.

MYLA invited noted Muslim scholar and Imam of the Masjid At-Taqwa mosque in Brooklyn, New York, Imam Siraj Wahaj to keynote the award presentation ceremony on October 9 held at the Maple Grove Junior High School . The ceremony took place in the school’s auditorium following prayers and iftar (A meal served at the end of the day during Ramadan, to break the day’s fast). Elated MYLA officials marveled at the crowd of people that filled the auditorium saying they had not anticipated more than 200 people going by their previous two award ceremonies. Every seat in the 500 capacity auditorium was taken with a few people having to stand. The award ceremony also served as a fundraiser for MYLA’s scholarship fund.

The Imam’s talk was entitled ‘The Future of Islam in ’. Imam Wahaj also has the honor of being the first Muslim to have delivered the daily prayer in the U.S. House of Representatives in June 1991.

Imam Siraj Wahaj said for Muslims to succeed in , they must not forget their primary objective of caring fro everyone.  The Imam said Muslims should care about the welfare all of people but especially the weak and poor so that no one can say that Muslims “don’t care about Black people, or the poor” a reference to Kanye West’s accusation during hurricane Katrina that president Bush did not care about Black people. Imam Siraj said if one is a true Muslim, people will have no difficulty feeling your compassion.

The Imam said his concern with Muslims currently is that “95% of Muslim children (in ) go to public schools” because many parents who wish to send their offspring to Muslim schools cannot afford it, a state of affairs that should concern all. He told the audience that all of his nine children went to Muslim schools. He also expressed disappointment that a quick search on the web will quickly reveal the dearth of Muslim educational institutions as compared to Jewish and Christian ones. He commended MYLA for taking the first important step in securing the future of Islam by enabling today’s youth to pursue higher education. He exhorted those present to give generously to further advance MYLA’s work. After his presentation, he skillfully and entertainingly led those present in raising money for the scholarship fund. In the style of a seasoned auctioneer, he solicited pledges and checks from the receptive audience which quickly obliged.

The Imam said for Muslims to get ahead, resources will be needed because as Martin Luther King, Jr.  said “he who gets behind in the race must forever remain behind unless he runs faster than the man in front”. Muslims should also not be driven by the media but with their knowledge of information, truth and justice. Imam Wahaj said though there are many in the community that may not approve of Hollywood stars and their ways, the likes of actress Angelina Jolie, should give one food for thought on the spirit of giving that is incumbent for those in the Muslim faith. He told those present that Ms. Jolie gives a third of her salary to charity and has also adopted children from and .

The winners of the 2005-06 MYLA scholarship awards are as follows:

Grand Prize ($5,000): Sumaiya Mamdani, University of Minnesota – College of Liberal Arts . Major: Child Psychology. 

2nd Place
($2,000):  Liala Helal, University of Minnesota – Journalism and Mass Communications. Major: Journalism & Mass Communication and English Minor: Management.

3rd Place
($2,000):  Abdul Basit, University of Minnesota – Institute of Technology .

4th Place
($2,000):  Harris Khan. University of Minnesota – Institute of Technology . Major: Biomedical Engineering.

5th Place
($2,000): Khaled El-Sawaf.  University of Minnesota – College of Liberal Arts .

6th Place
($2,000): Nasra Giama. University of Minnesota – School of Nursing .

(More detailed information showing the community involvement of each recipient can be found on the MYLA website – www.mylawards.org).

The award and fundraising ceremony on October 9 raised $13,000 and $17,000 in pledges, according to Mr. Irfan Ali, MYLA’s president.

More information about MYLA can be found at www.mylawards.org.

From Bongoland to Tusamehe

By
Swallehe Msuya
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0
From Bongoland to Tusamehe

Movie Review

 

 

You would never have imagined that there are talented Tanzanian actors and actresses in
Minnesota
who can advance the production of Swahili movies until Josiah Kibira burst into the scene with Bongoland. If you liked his first movie, you will be mesmerized by his second motion picture Tusamehe, literally meaning Forgive Us – as he raises the bar of Swahili movies to a new level – the digital age.

 

 

Tusamehe is a highly emotional movie dwelling on the subject of the world pandemic of AIDS skillfully put together by Josiah Kibira who hails from Bukoba, , on the shores of
Lake Victoria
; using a carefully selected cast of potential film-stars, most of whom are making their first screen appearance.

 

 

Josiah Kibira wrote the script, directed the movie, produced it and provided sub-titles to enable Swahili and English speaking viewers to remain on the same page when watching the movie. The final product is a touching family story that sails through the ups and downs of love, cheating by way of having multiple sex partners and the dangers of unprotected sex leading to tragedy causing great devastation on an otherwise happy couple.

 

 

The leading roles in the movie of Salome and Moses – cast by Blandina Donald and Fundi Kibwana – as the HIV afflicted couple, will grab your emotions from A to Z. You start from a point of happiness on the wedding day to the grieving on the graveyard as Moses dies of AIDS moments before his first child was born. I was so involved in the story when I previewed the movie that I saw tears dripping from my eyes in one of those uncontrollable instantaneous reflex actions!

 

 

The motion picture is shot on location mainly in the twin cities of Minneapolis and
St. Paul
. It brings to the Minnesota audiences a fresh angle to a global problem of a pandemic that has been responsible for loss of lives of all age groups in the millions especially in Sub-Saharan African region The pandemic has hit hardest where levels of poverty are very high due to the inability of those in abject poverty to access the life-prolonging drugs that have enabled the industrialized world to bring down AIDS-related deaths by early diagnosis and quality health care.

 

 

The dialogue in TUSAMEHE will enhance your AIDS awareness and compel you to reflect more soberly on how to avoid being entangled in the pandemic of AIDS which is preventable. Those looking for life partners but ignore testing before striking an engagement may most probably be jumping from the frying pen to the fire itself like Salome and Moses. Happily, Mama Kurusumu’s message of “all that glitters is not gold” is an appropriate tonic for the youth rushing into unsafe sex and marriage deals. This character with the movie’s million-dollar-message is cast by ’s well-known journalist, Chemi Che-Mponda.

 

 

Film Director Josiah Kibira, the 45 year old son of Bishop Kibira, now living in
Minnesota
for the last 17 years has brought in a new dimension to the Swahili movie-making industry using the technology of digital equipment with gratifying results. For him filmmaking is a hobby that has stuck with him ever since he was a teenager after reading former Tanzanian President Julius Nyerere’s Swahili translation of Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar.

 

 

He holds a masters degree in Business Management and has a rewarding job at Best Buy, but his passion for movies coupled with the support that he enjoys from his American wife LuAnn Marie and his three lovely children Abela, Namara and three-year-old Babu Mutabuzi – already engrossed in the trade at his tender age, all these add to his strong motivation. The premier screening of TUSAMEHE will take place at the Oak Street Cinema at the campus of the

University
of
Minnesota

on November 12. Check out for screening time and other vital messages by logging onto www.kibirafilms.com.

 

 

Director of Photography is Jeff Green, Mark Fischer is Audio Engineer, Onesmo Kibira is Casting Director, Namara Kibira is First Production Assistant, Sara Akari is on First Camera and Bethany Krause is Stage Manager as well as Wardrobe and Makeup in-charge.

 

 

Fadhili Nkurlu, Valerian Rugalabamu, Mukama Morandi, Lucy Nombo Lutabanzibwa and church choirs from have provided the magnificent music that adds flavor to the movie with a strong Swahili touch.

 

 

Josiah Kibira is a rising powerhouse in the film industry. He combines creativity, message-laden themes and a deep understanding and appreciation of home-grown stories with a befitting cultural inclination. In his movies, he exhibits patriotism for his land of birth and carries forward the Swahili movie industry to international standards. There is more to come from this emerging super movie hero, including plans for Bongoland (2) to trace Juma Pondamali’s life disposition after returning “home”.

 

 

Having seen Kibira’s family and their devotion to movies, I strongly look forward to seeing three-year-old Babu Mutabuzi’s first movie before the year 2020! I hope the title will be Nakumbuka – Longing to See Tanzania! I foresee Namara Kibira’s anticipated first movie Women Empowerment Zone (my title prediction) should be in the streets of African cities and the United States in the next five years (again my very conservative forecast). The Kibira family is a movie-making coalition!

Abdul Kimbugwe is the new Ugandans in No. America

By
Kemunto Namunyak
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0
Abdul Kimbugwe is the new Ugandans in No. America

Minneapolis, Minnesota – Abdul K. Kimbugwe of Boston, Massachusetts is the new president of the Ugandan North American Association (UNAA).

 

He overwhelmingly beat Margaret Musoke of Seattle, Washington by garnering 65% of the votes cast in a hotly contested election held during the annual UNAA convention that was held in this city for the first time. He is also the immediate outgoing treasurer of the 2003-2005 board under the leadership of outgoing president Rosette Serwanga.

 

The results were announced by the electoral commission chairman, Mr Patrick Ayota, at the conclusion of the three day convention yesterday that was also attended by cabinet ministers from the Ugandan government. A formal banquet dinner was held to conclude the successful 17th annual UNAA convention at the Downtown Minneapolis Marriott.

 

Mr. Ayota told conventioneers that he was very pleased with the 71% voter turnout for the UNAA elections. He said there were no complaints of rigging or any voter intimidation. The main challenge that the election officials faced was in trying to figure out the intent of some voters who had not clearly marked the ballots. In that they checked more than one box or did not clearly erase the choice they did not want. In such cases if the there was no unanimous agreement as to the voter’s intent then the vote was nullified and declared so. The Commission had included independent observers to monitor their activities; these were people not affiliated with the electoral commission who had been randomly selected to examine that the proceedings would occur in a fair and free democratic manner. Mr. Ayota also commended Mr. Kimbugwe and Ms. Musoke for running professional and civil campaigns that elevated the quality of UNAA elections to a “new level”.

 

Moses Ocen Nekyon retained his post of vice president of UNAA after bagging 62% of the vote. He is a resident of Boston, Massachusetts where he is a marketing analyst with a local company.

 

The closest contest appears to have been that of secretary that pitted California’s ex-US army soldier, second Lieutenant Frank Musisi against Minneapolis’ Francis Ssennoga. The latter however emerged victories by getting 57% of votes cast. Mr. Ssennoga was also the publicity chair for the Minneapolis convention. He benefited greatly by a strong endorsement from famous Ugandan artist, Roy Kapale, a star attraction at the convention. Kapale used the stage during his performances to urge conventioneers to vote for Mr. Ssennoga.

 

The formal dinner, had gathered a spectacular audience of well-dressed, bedecked and bejeweled Ugandans and friends of Uganda, that were all ears and eager for the results of the polls which were held, that Sunday from 11am till 4pm. The program provided cultural entertainment in the form of music and live performances as attendants partook of the evening menu, which included the staple matoke and groundnut soup. So it was to a satiated audience in high spirits that Mr Patrick Ayota, the Chairperson of the UNAA Electoral Commission came on stage to address.

 

Ms. Musoke in a short concession speech said the “the people have spoken” and pledged to work with the new team to achieve UNAA’s goals. He asked the new president to call on her anytime whenever her help was needed. They both later hugged during an emotional moment.

 

These are the results as certified by the Chairman of the UNAA Electoral Commission, for the officials to serve on UNAA International for the next two years.

For President, Abdul Kimbugwe with 65% of the vote.
Moses Nekyon as Vice-President with 62% of the vote.
Francis Ssennoga as secretary with 57% of the vote.
Brenda Kalema as treasurer with 67% of the vote.
Board Member from Uganda was Henry Nsereko Busulwa with 69% of the votes.

The Board Member from Canada, Johnson Mujungu had 56% of the vote.  The two Youth Board Members: Flex Kabuye Kayanja and Grace Lubwama Sebugwawo were voted in with a tally of 58% of the vote.  Also in by majority vote are the five General Board Members, Omara Ben Abe, Michael Miti Kavuma, Benon Mukasa, Patrick Iga Musisi, and Tom Mutyabule.

 

The crowd responded with jubilation to the results. Many got up from their chairs to cheer and dance. The atmosphere was positively charged and the excitement was palpable. Many of the officers in the newly elected board also served on the 2003-2005 UNAA International Board, so it is most likely as a credit to their track record that members chose to re-elect them albeit to serve in different positions. Below is the roster of the out-going UNAA International Board

 

President Rosette Serwanga
Vice-President Moses O. Nekyon
Treasurer Abdul K Kimbugwe
Secretary Olivia Bahemuka
Youth Board Member Michael Kimbugwe
Youth Board Member Flex Kabuye Kayanja
Board Member 2LT Frank Musisi (USAR)
Board Member Michael Miti-Kavuma
Board Member Ben Omara Abe
Board Member Kyama K. Kabadaki
Board Member Opiyo Oloya
Board Member David A. Tenhwa
Board Member-Uganda B M Kibirige
Preceding Past President Sam Kiggwe

 

About Abdul K. Kimbugwe

 

The new UNAA president was born to Mr. and Mrs. Abbey Kimbugwe Kalema in Kampala, Uganda. He attended Nakasero Nursery School, Namilyango Junior Boys School, Namilyango College School and Makerere High School. He pursued higher education at Nakawa College of Business and later at University of Massachusetts in Boston where he received a Bachelor of Science in Management.

 

He has since lived in Boston, Massachusetts where he was appointed Manager of Production and retail for FedEx Kinko’s in Cambridge, MA. He also works as a manager for digital production and desktop publishing for Duplicate Management in Woburn, MA.

He is also the founder and current vice-president of the mosque in Waltham and president of the African Orphans Relief Fund, a non-profit organization that is partnered with the Global Evangelical Church in Waltham, Massachusetts.

 

UNAA can be found on the web at www.unaanet.com.
The 2005 UNAA convention website is at www.unaaminnesota.com.

Visit our picture GALLERY for images from the 2005 UNAA convention in Minneapolis.

Bongo meltdown happens in Minneapolis

By
Kemunto Namunyak
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0

Bongo Flava Meltdown, a mix of music genres from East Africa, featuring genge and bongo flava, took place at the Crystal Ballroom and Event Center in Crystal, Minnesota this past month. August 27, 2005 was the launch party for bongoutlet.com a website to promote hip-hop music and artists from Tanzania. Bongo Flava is a Tanzanian hip-hop music style that blends Swahili lyrics with all sorts of dialects, melodies, beats, rhythms and sound.

 

The billing promised live entertainment, up and coming Hip-Hop Artists from Kenya and Tanzania, music from DJs I Dub and Nasz.
The site launch was a collaboration between Atlanta based Kenyanese.com and Robinhood productions, owner of bongooutlet.com. Present was Robinhood Productions CEO, John Mahundi who is based in Iowa. Tim Waindi, Kenyanese LLC CEO flew in to represent his organization. The earlier launch of Kenyanese.com and now Bongooutlet.com is part of a wider strategy to provide legal distribution means for music from the East African region.

 

There was a slow start to the festivities. The 10:00 P.M. start as promised in marketing materials did not quite materialize but the DJs on duty kept the guests entertained while they waited on the liver acts to start. The live artists had a receptive audience as they hit the stage at around midnight. The audience took to the floor as soon as the live acts began. Bantu Man was first with his Swahili flavored Raggamuffin style. He was followed by Lil Zone who wowed the crowd with his free-styling rap. Next up was King Daddy and Tango who invigorated the crowd by actively calling for participation from them, and calling the ladies on stage as they
crooned.

 

The audience was also introduced to an up and coming Kenyan artist named, Jero who served up the latest in contemporary Kenyan Hip-Hop. The live performance concluded with hard-core rap from Attitude, a Kenyan-based artist who is in the US to launch this new album. After the show the DJs went back to spinning and keeping the guest on the floor. The producers chose Minneapolis as a venue to test the waters and experience the Minnesota Market, which they seek to serve soon.

PABA to Host African Business Fair

By
Tom Gitaa, Editor-in-Chief
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0

The Pan African Business Alliance (PABA), Minnesota’s pioneer African chamber of commerce, is scheduled to host its annual Business Fair in Minneapolis next month. According to the PABA President, Henry K. Ongeri, the main objective of the event is to bring visibility to last-growing African entrepreneurship in Minnesota.

 

“It (the Fair) will provide yet another opportunity for African business owners to showcase their wares and to network with others,” he says. Ongeri, a tax lawyer and consultant with ABC GROUP, LLC, noted that PABA had joined forces with other chambers in the Minnesota Ethnic Chamber Coalition to advance minority business interests. African business ownership is an emerging economic force, part of the estimated $11 billion ethnic purchasing power annually.

 

The event coordinator, Nathan White of Nextainment confirmed to Mshale that the Fair is scheduled for September 28, 2005 at the Profile Event Center in Minneapolis. “The program will feature African music, complimentary professional consultations and workshops and networking. PABA has invited civic and policy leaders, resource and community partners to the Fair.

 

“The Fair is a must-attend event for anyone who wants to be successful in tapping into the emerging market,” White says. According to Wycliffe Chakua, who serves as PABA Membership Activities organizer, there will be limited opportunities for vendors to display merchandise. 

 

Advance registration is required. Email Wycliffe at [email protected]

 

The Profile Event Center is located at 2630 University Avenue,Minneapolis. Doors open at 5.30 p.m. according to Mr. White.

2005 Genge US tour kicks off in Minneapolis

By
Nelima Kerre - Mshale Staff Writer
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0

DJ Joe from Alabama warmed up the crowd with a mix of various genres of music; he is then succeeded by DJ Stevo, the local mastermind of Kenyan music. Although the music is good, it is apparent that the crowd is eager to see a performance. Local musician Baraka comes on stage and hypes up the crowd for Jero, an Atlanta-based Kenyan hip-hop artist.

 

Next on stage is Kenyan-based musician Attitude (Malimo Andega), a surprise addition to the genge tour, who is launching an album on the 8th of October. Having been raised in the U.S until 2001, he raps in English but to an African beat, a style he calls ‘hip-hop in Africa’. He is engaged to Kenyan songstress Mercy Myra and comments, “There may be wedding bells a lot sooner than you think.” He tries to work the crowd, but his music is not familiar to them.

 

It is way past 12:30 pm and the restless audience starts to call for Nonini. Steve Mwele, who is standing next to me, says the concert started late and Nonini should come on soon because he is beginning to feel like the twenty dollar charge is a rip-off.

Finally Nonini runs on stage as DJ Xpektt of Mezesha Entertainment hits the tune of ‘Manzi wa Nairobi’, a song on the beauty of girls from Nairobi. The crowd is ecstatic especially the females who sing all the lyrics to the song. Next Nonini slows the mood as he sings ‘Walietuacha’ (those who have left us), which is dedicated to his late brother, and musicians E-Sir, Wikimosh and Krupt.

 

With DJ Xpektt working hard on the turntables, Nonini deftly works through the hits of his album ‘The Hanyaring Game’. From ‘Moyoni’ and ‘Hunipati’ to ‘We Kamu’ Nonini keeps everyone jumping, but judging from the response from the females it is evident that this album is primarily for the ladies.

The obvious favorites of the night were the controversial ‘We Kamu’ (loosely translated as come over), and ‘Keroro’ (Swahili slang for drunk). 2:00 am slowly creeps up amid shouts from the audience for repeats of their favorite songs and the crowd reluctantly leaves The Blue Nile.

 

Nonini whose real name is Hubert Nakitare, was born and raised in Nairobi’s Eastlands area in an estate called California commonly known as Calif. He has been seriously performing music for six years and released his 14-track album, ‘The Hanyaring Game’, last year. Though he has been to London thrice, this is his first time in the U.S and he is pleasantly surprised that so many people here know and like his music. This is the first leg of his three month tour and Nonini is already enjoying himself. Nonini along with Jua Cali and Clemo have been hailed as the pioneers of the blend of Kenyan contemporary music known as ‘genge’ music. ‘Genge’ is a Swahili slang word for many and thus ‘genge’ music, which is a mix of Swahili poetry and slang, is music for the masses or music for the people.

 

As Nonini’s music soared, so did the controversy about his lyrics. His hit song ‘We Kamu’ infuriated the conservatives for its sexually explicit lyrics as did his song ‘Keroro’ which was alleged to encourage over-indulgence in alcohol. In his defense Nonini tells me that his music does not influence, but rather reflects what has been going on in the Kenyan society. Aside from making music, Nonini works for Nairobi-based radio station YFM96 on the breakfast show. He also owns a clothing line called ‘Nonini Wear’ and a video shooting agency called Pro Habo.

 

The national Genge tour ’05 has been organized by Atlanta based Kenyanese LLC while Minneapolis based Kilimanjaro Entertainment was the local host in the Minnesota leg of the tour. Tim Waindi, CEO of Kenyanese has previously told Mshale his company’s mission is to ensure legal distribution of East African music.

Minneapolis was the first stop in a ten city US tour. Other stops the tour will make include Baltimore, Washington, DC, Boston, New Jersey, Atlanta, Houston, Dallas, Seattle and Los Angeles. For updated tour information, visit Kenyanese.

 

For more information on the company and it’s affiliated artists log onto www.kenyanese.com .

 

Meanwhile, Hip-Hop Colony, a new film by Kenyan Director, Michael Wanguhu, that looks at the Kenyan hip hop scene including genge will screen in Minneapolis on Saturday, October 22 during Kenyatta day celebrations. The California based Mr. Wanguhu will be in Minneapolis for the screening. He was in London last week and was interviewed by DJ Edu on BBC’s 1Xtra show.

Visit Kilimanjaro for details on Hip-Hop Colony’s screening in Minneapolis.

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