Media misleading on plastics use

For more than a century, plastic products have revolutionised the way we live. Polythylene terephthalate (PET) is particularly notable example of a plastic product, which provides an excellent medium and an ideal means of packaging products including edible oil, medicines, detergents, soaps, and confectionery.

Globally, PET has become a material of choice for bottling beverages, such as mineral water and carbonated soft drinks and alcohol.

Bodies such as the Kenya Bureau of Standards, United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) are responsible for the stringent regulation on its use to assure safety of our foods in plastic packages.

FDA, for instance, inform the public about nutritional content of food and beverages, alerting the public on food product recalls and ensuring the safety of materials that package our foods.

A recent media report on how the plastics have been misused revealed how media can fail to critique and censure material for public consumption. The particular information was misleading and distorted.

The report claimed that an extension of a court order by Justice Isaac Lenaola barring authorities from destroying certain alcohol labels has led to the return of illicit plastic-bottled liquor in central Kenya.

The report showed how youths from Kinoo were lacing drinks in plastic package with stimulants believed to ‘improve’ quality of the brews by piercing the bottoms of the containers with syringes. The youth who showed up to the article author admitted being paid Sh300 to perform the illegal activity.

Bad for business

"They have seen the light and were out to denounce the crime to protect their brothers and sisters affected by their previous activity," the article alleges.

Going through the pictures and the content of the article, one automatically reads mischief and foul play that the incident was either stage to put the plastic bottle manufacturers in bad light or there were conspicuous oversights by the author.

Going through the article, what comes into one’s mind is what savings one would make in buying syringe to pass the stimulant yet options of opening up the seal and cap in an ordinary way and adding foreign substance are higher yet without much damage to the pack or even making the buyer suspicious.

It is reported the young culprits were only hired to pierce the bottom of the plastic packs, inject the stimulant and re-pack the same in cartons for sale.

But, is it possible that after the damage on the plastic bottle by the syringe, the content would still hold for sale without being drained or reduced to noticeable levels? Or is someone being malicious – pushing to have a ban on packaging alcohol in PET bottles?

This is pure distortion of facts. Regulations on plastic packaging set limits for use based on available safety tests and manufacturers’ intended use of the plastic packaging. Companies that manufacture plastic bottles conduct much of the testing on plastic packaging materials. Additional testing is done at relevant Government agencies’ laboratories.

Piercing plastic bottles in itself is a criminal act and sabotage of all sorts. The damage is likely to cause negative image to the plastic manufacturers impacting on their growth strategies and contribution to our country’s development.

Plastic industry employs more than 70,000 people directly and indirectly. It is also a major source of revenue to the Government through taxes.

The companies have passed through the rigorous Kenya Bureau of Standards certification to operate.

Casting their business in bad light could only incite the public and their customers against them and give the real harmful and illicit alcohol business, which is consumed in drinking dens in used tin and plastic receptacles, an opportunity to thrive and cause real damage.

In a testimony, the culprits said they were revealing the whole story to protect their brothers and sisters from harm of chemically induced alcohol. Are they also willing to reveal the names of people or entities who paid them the Sh300 to lace the drinks with the chemicals, and by extension interfere with the plastic products?

{Concerned Kenyan, Nairobi}

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Are we ready to face social sites’ ugly face?

Social media is quickly turning into the cornerstone of modern communication.

Media houses have joined the bandwagon and are increasingly using social media to relay news. Information is now at the click of a button and is basically available at all times.

As is expected in the current political atmosphere leading up to the elections, politicians, political parties and their supporters have identified social media as a key vehicle for selling their ideologies.

Virtually, all politicians are on Facebook, Twitter and other social media sites ostensively to reach out to the voters, mostly the youth, who are the most active users of the media sites.

As progressive and advantageous as this may be to information delivery, it may be a disaster in waiting. Social media have no known system of gatekeeping and thus anyone can say virtually anything about anybody. A lot of discussions on these sites usually degrade into tribal hatred or insulting comments to this or that group or community.

Cost of regulation

The world has witnessed riots fuelled and propelled by the youth through communication on social media, with last year’s incidents in Egypt, Libya and the UK as the latest examples.

There are suggestions on internet censorship, but this may take a long time and will, obviously, be met with a lot of resistance and obstruction from interested parties not to mention legal hurdles encountered in such an undertaking.

With the political violence that riddles Kenya in every election year, the social sites pose even worse dangers than the post-election violence of 2007/2008. The Government quelled unrest and panic through the ban on live broadcasts ensuring pictures and scenes that caused unrest were edited before being aired.

But with the social media pictures and videos can be shared right from a handheld device to millions of people in seconds and the Government will not be able to contain it. Worse still, the number of internet users has more than doubled in the last five years, and counting.

So, what measures have we put in place to protect Kenyans from the consequenses of negative effects of social media, especially its ability to spread propaganda, hate speech, political unrest, incitement and other social ills that we experience every election year?

It is not enough to expect Kenyans will exercise responsible social media use as political temperatures continue to rise.

{Jerioth Wambui Ndiritu, Nairobi}

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Mariga justified but decision unpatriotic

The decision by Kenyan mid-fielder MacDonald Mariga to withdraw from a national duty until his air fare is refunded was ill-advised and unpatriotic.

However genuine Mariga’s case may be, he should realise whenever a national interest conflicts with personal, patriotism demands that one should sacrifice self-interest for the national good.

Mariga’s withdrawal at a time his services were needed most sets a bad precedent to our young and upcoming players who look up on the Parma mid-fielder as their model.

Whichever the outcome of the pre-qualification match, it is not debatable that with the services of Mariga, the results would be better.

The local football governing body KFF is as well to be blamed for not honouring its part of the bargain with Mariga.

{Awich Achia, Nairobi}

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More cheers for KDF soldiers in Somalia

Kenya Defence Forces in Somalia deserve credit for job well done. It is evident to all, including westerners who earlier had remained adamant to fully support Kenya’s move to fight Al Shabaab, that indeed the militants’ threat is diminishing and strength deteriorating.

The mission, once perceived asfailing, has gained conspicuously on the ground since many key Al Shabaab strongholds were captured and scores of the militants killed.

Our soldiers have fought a good fight and kept the faith, though the battle is not yet over.

{Reuben Mmbaka, Via Email}

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Miguna’s release may shape up our politics

Miguna Miguna’s online article ‘Vile propaganda about my book will not change anything’ is a clear conviction that release of his ‘politically explosive book’ on secrets of Kenya’s political darkness would change the political set-up ahead of the General Election.

The 800-page manuscript delves into some of the most key ‘scandals’ in the Coalition Government and previous regimes. Many have predicted the ‘masterpiece’ could be a political game-changer.

I know Miguna as a swear-and-do scholar. The book, being in the hands of Dr Jerome Robert Corsi, the acclaimed author of The Obama Nation: Leftist Politics and the Cult of Personality will offer ordinary Kenyans knowledge of secrets in present and past regimes.

{Wanderi wa Kamau, Nakuru}

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Feedback

Provincial Administration should not be entrusted with politicians

Recently, we witness our MPs introduce a Bill in the Parliament that puts provincial administrators — the DCs, DOs and chiefs and their assistants — under county authorities.

The Bill may sound logical, but it is technically impossible and simply unworkable for administrators to report to a political office whose functions are different.

If the Bill is assented to, it is likely to be used by politicians like county governors to perpetrate electoral malpractices. For example, it will be easy for the incumbent governor, during an election, to influence votes as it used to happen during former regimes.

The Constitution is clear the county will only absorb the administrators within a period of five years from the date the new law came into force. Therefore, such a sensitive issue requires a lot of measures before it is implemented. It should not have been rushed by Parliament.

This is a clear indication there is ulterior motives behind it. It will also reduce the institution of the Presidency to just a mere figurehead with no powers to control national matters of security at county level.

Provincial administrators deal with national security matters and they report to their respective senior in the chain of command, but in the event such Bill is made law, security matters would be put under a political office which can easily be compromised.

Therefore, for the interest of over 40 million Kenyans, it is fair President Kibaki not to assent to the Bill and advise for its review.

Okwaro Oscar Plato, Funyula