Summer Heat....

Noooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!The summer heat is here!Today it was so hot that when I made the 3 block walk to the store I felt like I was swimming against a tidal wave of sheer humidity!I miss Fall and Spring temperatures where you could take a walk.
The first purchase I am going to make is a nice mountain bike!No more walking for this brother!Then to save on the aircon bills I am going to buy some big ass fans!Then Ice Cream, Sodas and Beers for the fridge are a must!
With the amount of air pollution these Americans do with their SUVS and Muscle Cars Summers are only going to get hotter and hotter and hotter!
It is seasons like this that make me miss Kenyan weather, I would give an arm to be at the Coast right now with the warm summer breeze running through my locks (yes I went to get my hair locked a few weeks back!Pics coming soon) and to have a cold Coke in my hand as I wade in the Indian Ocean.Ah the good life!You don't know what you have until its' gone!
But this heat cloud has a silver lining!All the summer plots and the gals putting on skimpy summer wear!Wooo Hooo!!!!!!!

I am not amused!

No this is not a rant per se.I leave that to the proffesionals like Kenyanmusings.But I read this story in the EA Standard, and it made me raise an eye brow in concern.It is amazing how not one or two MPs can afford to jet set around the country each carrying 1,000,000/= while their constituents suffer making ends meet (while they complain that they need to be paid well for the work they do!) as the country trudges under the load of corruption and innefectual public policies.
This is an excerpt of the conversation of when the inadvertent bag swap was discovered and the bags returned to their rightful owners.

Sunguh: Oh my money…where is my bag? What will I do? I am going for elections and I had all my money inside it.

That raises an interesting question.Why would an MP be carrying 1,000,000 to an election?I think that some of that money may be used to buy votes.It's sad that wanainchi only get to see their elected officials and their ill gotten gains come polling time.Amyway I am sure there are bloggers who can comment on the above issue far more eloquently then I can hope to.


Seeing as today is Africa day (I am ashamed that I didn't know that seeing how few public holidays I am privy to once I came here!), I read this story about how much Africa is losing when its' productive youth leave the mother land to do odd jobs abroad as they have no hope in their respective countries of origin.The writer then tells of an incident that occured on his flight to Nigeria

At the very last seat in this Jumbo plane was a young Nigerian man, definitely not more than 25 years old, sandwiched between two bully-built White British immigration officers and handcuffed to both of them. I made enquiries from the air hostesses since my initial attempt to talk to the man’s captives was rebuffed.

The BA air hostess casually informed me that it was nothing unusual, that these things happen fairly regularly, that the man was being ‘removed’ and assured me that his noise would reduce as soon as the flight settles in the air.

Even sadder still was the general indifference of most of the other largely Nigerian passengers. Many of them have become inured to this kind of routine humiliation of fellow citizens. One even advised the wailing young man to ‘shut up and try again when you get home’.

It is a sad state of affairs, but you have to admit his fellow passenger's comment was funny,‘shut up and try again when you get home’.Although the thing is that some and many do try and get back.An American friend was telling me how he has friends in Immigration and how they had deported this Nigerian dude from the States 4 times and each time he had a different alias and a different passport.The dude himself said that he has so many aliases that he no longer knows which is his real name!

Then to round things off here is an article about how you can fake it till you make it!

Pic Of The Day:Tony Njuguna as El Presidente!

Nice and Short!

I think after the last 3 super long, serious posts some fun is needed.I got this on Mashada and decided to share it!I don't know the answers so lets have some fun with this!

We are in a big bash.lots of Africans;Nigerians,Cameroonians,Ghanians,Botswanans,Zimbaweans,Kenyans,Ugandans,South
Africans and Tanzanians.

Lets see who can spot who in the crowd.

crowd A

Sharing the same chic who haz been shagged by most of the men she's dancing with.they are really dirty dancing but good dancers.All of the dudes are friends and they all shagged this chic knowingly that their homeboy waz currently tapping that.and the homeboy knows what's going down but doeznt care. Morals dont live here!

crowd B

Talking about business.and how to get rich real quick without breaking sweat.

crowd C

Discussing soccer loudly and how their country is potentially better than all other african countries in soccer and politics.Very cocky.

crowd D

Sitting next to where the alcohol is,some of them trying to pursade the gals to come closer but none of them are venturing too far from the alcohol.not even for the flyest honey in the bash.

crowd E

Complaining about home.the economy at home.the F8cked up situation at home.cursing the white folks.

Crowd F

Think theyre better than most other africans in the bash.Infact,we all should be priviledged they attended.

Crowd G

Competing with Crowd D on drinking but they cant do it quietly coz they're as loud as Crowd C.talking animatedly about the upcoming World Cup.

Crowd H

Mixing and socializing freely.not standing in bands of their own nor have a common agenda.some are drinking,some are pimping.some are just chilling.

Crowd I

Very courteous and polite.soft spoken and bear a sharp contrast to their african geographic neighbour country pples character.


Identify each country accurately.

Things fall apart Part III

Warning:Super long post ahead!Sit down with a cup of coffee...
Now where was I in this long story of mine?Oh!Unpaid bills!Now what happened is that the donors that the Big Guy was counting on were not delivering and were not too impressed that this super site was taking forever to go up (It would have gone up a long time ago if he stopped tampering with it!).Oh let me not forget how the rest of the dutch folk would cower in fear at the Big Guy.They would agree to everything he said even if they had offered us a dissenting opinion earlier.When I knew things were are at an all time low is when one of the graphic designers was asked what he thought of the Saturday night meeting he attended.Well this chap was one of those soft spoken,laid back church going people (he was a staunch SDA), he gave his open opinion and said that he didnt like the meeting much.This guy used to have a jovial relationship with the Big guy, they would often crack jokes and hang out for sometime whenever the big guy came to see our work.So the next day the Big guy is looking at this dude's work with the Second in Command aka Pirelli in attendance and all of a sudden Pirelli pips, "Dude did not like the Saturday night meeting!"(WTF!Talk about being a tattle tale!).Of course what happened is that the Big guy asked the dude why he did not like the meeting and dude gave his honest opinions about what he had seen, how the people there were acting, the music, the presentation etc.This lead to their relationship going sour and him falling from favour, from that day on whenever the Big guy used to come to our office, he would never talk to that dude.Anyway back to the story.
So quite a few of the houses that he and the crew had been renting in Runda were in arrears.There was the house we worked in and the one the chics lived in across us and the house he lived in.They were two to three months in arrears.The other folk I think used to pay their own rent as far as I and the rest of my network new.Let me not forget about the friction with the neighbours.These folk had a band that would play at their Saturday service/bash and this band was loud!So the neighbours complained and at first the Big Guy with his arrogance paid them no heed.He forgot that he was in Runda that has a residents organisation.He promptly received a visit from them and had to resort to sending the band to practice at Pirelli's (Second in Command's) House.His house had a large compound and was far from the neighbours' houses, the fact that he had a family didnt deter them from all night practice sessions.During the Big Guy's birthday they held a bash for him and decided as part of the celebration to set off fire crackers
The allowances for the langas (prostitutes) who were to be rehabilitated (which only turned out to be an hour or two of bible study per day and singing training) began to evaporate.The drivers told us that some of the chics had gone back to moonlighting as prostitutes and would lie to their minder that they were going to see their families.Oh lest I forget there were astronomic phone bills as these chics would stroll into our office with scrolls that were filled with cell phone numbers and yak half the day when their minders were away.I too became shameless and called a pal of mine in Kisumu twice, but the Personal Assistant mama won; she called her sis in the States!
Then to add salt onto the wound, the big guy had a post paid account with Kencell.He let his arrears pile up to almost 1M.You ask how this could be done?Well he was very prompt in paying his bills during the early months and was with them over 2 years, so they kept raising his limit and giving him grace periods during which he paid.At one point when Kencell sent debt collectors, half of the time he couldnt be found as he was out of the country trying to swindle people and the rest of the time he would tell the watchmen to say that he was not there.The 1000/= per day cars and the drivers pay was also in arrears.
Then for some reason Pirelli used to think that if we were laughing as we talked that we were doing nothing.One evening we had an interesting discussion and were laughing among ourselves, he passed by our office looked at us and said nothing.The next day he came into our office and gave us a long talk about how serious our work is, how many people are counting on us and how the cash funding the project is almost over (despite the fact we went on working for the next few months).
Let me not forget that he used to hire people to perform at the bashes ie The Longombas, Deux Vultures and he would pay top dollar for them.With the wild nature of the services even they expressed their reservations at the piety of this church.I never went for one of those meetings and watched a video instead, I asked one of my colleagues to go and he said; "If I want to dance with hoes I'll just go to F2 instead of pretending to go to church!"When the Marketing chic left he hired one of the chics for Tatuu to be his assistant of sorts and she used to make good cash (100k or so) but then her pay began to be delayed and she quit.I am sure you all remember her telling the reporters of Pulse that she was considering sueing them.There used to be two chics whom they hired to be doing their housecleaning and cooking but as the funds began to dry up they were fired.Who replaced these chics?Well what the Big Guy did is that he picked some more chics off the street in the name of rehabilitation and made them do that work!
At this point in time most of us knew that the bells were about to toll.So most of us would come into work, pretend to work and look for new jobs or in my case a grad school.
So one afternoon one by one, we were each called in and told that the project was being scaled down.Other then the accountants, one of the networking people, 2 of the graphic designers (the site dummys were the cash cow) we were all told good bye and given a nice golden handshake (It helped pay off my plane ticket!).
Anyway after that we all went on our own ways.People got other jobs and we would find out from people the level of corruption that was going on and how the Big Guy would morphing the church into something else.
I had forgotten about the Church and the company and used to keep in touch with my close pals who worked their once in a while until one of them sent me an e-mail that was supposedly written by the Second in Command.Seems things had come to a head.
Please note that the letter has been written by someone who speaks english as a second language.
I did some research of my own and found some dutch sites where the story continued.I have had the contents translated (thank God for translation sites and will include them after the letter).


LONG LETTER WORTH READING !!!

FROM PASTOR GLENN SIEGERS

January 18, 2006

Hello Dennis, (pastor in the Netherlands, Leiden)

I'll start off right away, because there are a number of things I must absolutely get straight.

Last time has been for me a period of intense pain and extreme rage. Intense pain because I have been witnissing people's lives being messed with in the name of Christianity. Extreme rage, because at times I'm utterly frustrated that I see these practices continuing as before.

This is eating me up and sometimes thrives me to despair. This same despair recently made me commit an act which made me feel sick about myself.

I presented myself on the ‘GCCI abuses site’ as Dennis and I'm disgusted about this deed. I have been sick of it and realise how low this is and how I have done you wrong. I'm deeply ashamed of it and ask you for forgiveness because I have sinned against you in doing so in a backward way. I have been sick of it and I’m really, really sorry!! Please forgive me.(I have tried to find this site but it seems not to exist!)

I am very shocked about where this church war can lead to. It pushes people beyond borders which lie only millimeters from a real armed struggle in which true victims may fall. It has all become an incredibily great mess without precedent. I'm completely done.

Nothing of that which I'm about to write may derogate what I've said above. I very much regret what I've done to you, and this is a standing statement.

My time in Kenya and the period before that has had a devastating influence on my spiritual, physical and emotional well-being. Consequent to the heavy stress, my muscles cramped causing sinews to be jammed. This came up for the first time more than a year ago in Kenya. It seemed like a knife had been rammed in my shoulder. The pain was unbearable and demolishing. Up till now such a pain still sucks me empty. Although the 'knife' has vanished, thank God, my sinews are still painful and burning jammed. I cannot sit too long on a chair because evrything at my left side from the lower back cramps up and the pain extends through my buttock in my left leg and as far as my foot( I think it also has something to do with the uncomfortable cheap ass chairs we used to sit on!Those chairs are one reason I began doing yoga, they really screwed my back and I was not alone.Some people used to bring cushions to work). When I have been walking for less than an hour, my left leg 'switches off' and I return limping. The pain can be compared to when you've been hit with sticks. I have insomnia, and when I'm in bed, my shoulder burns screamingly and both my hands are swelling up painfully red. I’m seriously messed up. This mainly as the fruit of my co-operation with Gert Jan.

After my return to Holland I wanted to make you clear how I was doing and that I had a nervous break-down because of the way Gert Jan treated me and my family. Already in Kenya I broke up completely with Gert Jan, because I was raging mad with him and I still am. I don't want to have anything to do with him again, not now or never. When you 'subtlily' tried to roll over it with your statement that you thought I was just very tired of 'all the other things', I was actually already fed up. It was fine with me; if you wanted to make that from it, it would be your responsibility. You asked me if I would like to personally address the church in order to prevent panic because of my return. I refused, because i just couldn't share the stage with Gert Jan. I did want to write a letter. Because Gert Jan had rubbed it strongly in with me several times that my return to Holland would be the mortal blow to the church in Leiden, I wrote a pacifying letter. Not for Gert Jan but for the church members. I was afraid that things would enroll as described above by my fault. That was the last thing I wanted, therefore my letter.

Shortly after my return to Holland people from outside the GCCI, being very much interested in my story, crowded around me. I have rejected all requests for interviews and I'm still glad I did. I have remained at the side from GCCI and people outside GCCI. Thus I had time to think and draw conclusions for myself. Slowly I began to awake from a dark and confusing illusion. The conclusions I've been able to make rest on my own experience, not on rot talk of others.

Because of my self-drawn conclusions all my fear has turned into rage and total indignation. Indignation because of the fact that I let myself being manipulated outrageously, and rage because I see GCCI just continuing betraying people and wrecking their lives. I'm no longer afraid to tell the truth. If it is the truth that can do harm to a church, that church must be wrong in the first place. And if they would be lies, the lie would be stronger than the truth. Only that what comes from man will be destroyed and if it comes from God, it cannot be destroyed. My aim is not to destroy, but the truth must be heard so that it may bring lies to silence.

I see that Gert Jan consequently keeps all responsibility away from him and blames everyone but himself for the mess caused everywhere. Back-stage he, directly and indirectly, pulls the wires, and woe him that refuses to follow up his commands! When it finally has become a big mess, those who followed up the commands get the blame and Gert Jan thinks himself to be inviolable.

I cannot judge everything completely correctly, but where I myself have been closely involved nobody else can change it. I cannot possibly write a detailed letter about everything I have been going through and therefore will only show you a tip of the iceberg to give you an impression.

I'm sick of the whole Kenya 'adventure'. It was my burden to help the prostitutes, but when I saw how all the promises and contracts were shamelessly broken this was a total sanp off for me.

I was there when during the first Badilika group Gert Jan openly from the stage and in front of the cameras declared that when GCCI would not comply with the contract, the girls could sue GCCI in court. The second group was also given beautiful and big promises by Gert Jan.(What we were told is that the first group of girls had become hard headed)

Let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil.

None of the 11 girls has ever seen what had been promised. They got deeper and deeper in financial problems because their everyday costs, such as the care for their families, school money, rent, etc, etc just went on. Because they received money from GCCI only scarecely, they had to borrow money to stay alive. With all due consequences. When they were about to leave GCCI because of the financial pressure and their desperation Gert Jan said to me: "At least we get rid of them, then." I was very much concerned but Gert Jan accused me of being more concerned with people than with the ministry.(Isn't Ministry about people?)

At some moment, their financial situation within GCCI became even worse than when they were in prostitution, before. Not one of the girls has remained. They all left and a great number of them have been obliged to take refuge in the sex industry again and are wrapping themsleves around a pole in the club in their lingerie again. Contracts have been broken, but we didn't have to care about that, because the girls didn't have the money to take a lawyer. The word of the man of God appeared to mean nothing at all and their total confusion because of this deceit has resulted in bitter disappointment in those who present themselves as messengers of God, and in God himself. This is the fruit of GCCI.(I bet none of those girls will take an offer of help seriously any time soon!)

My heart is torn to pieces up till now because of all this.

The practice of breaking contracts appeared to be 'business as usual' for Gert Jan from the fact that what happened to the girls was not an incident in itself. The (church) musicians that have been to Holand also had contracts which have been broken by Gert Jan. They didn't get their money and got into financial problems as well, but they too didn't have the money to take a lawyer. Tatu, the Kenyan pop group with the three girls also had a contact with Gert Jan. This also was broken and they too didn't get their money. This is called deceit. Tatu, therefore, actually started a law suit against Gert Jan.(I wonder how that went?Dont forget he also had a hand in Sema breaking up.The fact that he took two of them two Holland minus Pam led to much tension in the group!)

This misery has not been restrained to Kenya alone, but at the moment also takes place in India.

Moses Ebenezer, the National Director of GCCI in India had been prosperous in many areas before he joined GCCI. He had sponsors from America who supported him financially. I've seen many pictures and some videos of his sixty orphanage children. Contrary to many other orphanage children these were happy, well-cared-for and well-fed children in decent clothes. His minsitry had been successfull and flourishing before he joined GCCI. When Ebenezer started working for GCCI he had to give up all his former sponsors and started working for Gert Jan. He had to start up a GCCI office with 12 employees and also to organize meetings to stimulate churches in India to affiliate with GCCI. For a year up to today he never has seen a penny of the money promised to him. This also caused him to go down financially. The amount contractually determined which GCCI (Gert Jan) owes Ebenezer has reached the sum of about 60,000 Euros. He had to borrow money to be able to coninue all GCCI activities. The employees threaten him with a law suit because they have not received their wages and Ebenezer is faced with potential jail-time.(Talk about being screwed!)

Because of all the (financial) pressure he recently suffered two heart attacks and had to send half of his orphans away because he could no longer support them. His wife has left him because he had been as foolish to join GCCI while previously they had been functioning financially prosperous and had no financial troubles.

In this affair I see you (Dennis) also lying and manipulating. It makes me sick. Breaking contracts and not coming up to promises. Deceit.

Param & Yesaiah, former National GCCI Directors in India, got into trouble in comparable ways. Gert Jan had promised them that GCCI would take care of them financially. I have been personnally involved in the monthly transmission of money they needed for their life support. Because GCCI was in financial problems itself, all the promises couldn't be lived up to either, but Param & Yesaiah were kept on a string all the same. The promised money would come, but they had to be patient. Consequently, the brothers also had to borrow money themselves to be able to support themsselves. On advice of Gert Jan they were incited to build an enormous tomb for their deceased mother.

It is rather a cottage with an inner court of 7 by 7 yards, surrounded by a brest-high wall. The grave itself has been shut off by a gitter and there is electricity for lighting inside. They had to borrow money for this also, also on advice of Gert Jan. A capital sum for a tomb for Indian notions. None of the promised money arrived and the brothers and their families went deeper and deeper into trouble. Because they couldn't pay back the borrowed money (up till now), their children had to leave school and Param had to flee to another place because the money-lenders had hired people to kill him. Param has been beaten up with sticks and fists and has been arrested many times by the police.

I personally spoke with pastor John Panicker when he was in Holland. John Panicker had offered part of his land in Trivandrum (Kerala) in India to Gert Jan to build a bible school on it.

300,000 Guilders had been sent by GCCI. With this money immediately building materials were bought and the framework of the ground floor was constructed. The idea was to raise a building of three stories in one go. Because, however, the money was not enough to realise this, pastor John Panicker asked permission to first finish the ground floor so at least this part could be optimally used. Gert Jan told me he didn't want that and that he wanted the building to be finished in one go because it looked better that way. Because, therefore, it was not allow to continue the construction, in the mean-time all the materials worth 300,000 Guilders rotted away by wind and weather and became absolutely useless. Three hundred grand thrown away bluntlessly for nothing.

Pastor John Panicker told me he cried his eyes out, every time he saw the material rotten away lying on his estate. It’s a crying shame.

These are only a few examples which make me stagger when I see the 'I'm so happy' web sites of GCCI. The church members cannot help it, but you know too much to keep the puppetry up. GCCI acts as if nothing has happened and as if everybody is lying to you. And in the mean-time GCCI is busy destroying peoples' lives and leaving a super bitter taste for Christianity.(Talk about how churches pull screens over people's eyes!)

When I recall the last time I had to address the church along with you because Eelko & Erwin (He was the money man ) had left the church and had decided to stand up for themselves, my stomach turns itself.

I had been told that Erwin had stolen a company of Gert Jan on paper. When I heard this, I really went baloney. I had never expected such a thing from Erwin. I didn't see at all why you reacted so timidly to Steve van Deventer who had in fact carpeted you, while they indeed stole a company. I was really fed up and wanted to make short work of it. Gert Jan told me that in the spiritual exactly the same had happened to him as to Jozef Mazereeuw in Kenya. This was because Eelko & Erwin were fighting against him.

I was there when Jozef lay hopelessly dying in a pool of his own blood, croaking on the streets of Nairobi when he was intentionally hit by a car. It was a murder attack. Jozef had a gushing wound in his forehead and I could see his skull; part of his bone came out of his arm and he had broken almost everything one can possibly break. While he was lying there croaking, bystanders ran away with his shoes and had stolen his wallet, money and watch. In the panic they started pulling him because they wanted to bring him to the hospital. Jozef screamed from the pain, I nearly had to fight with the pushing crowds to keep them away from him. They would have killed him out of ignorance. We had to fold him up in a private car while he screamed from the pain in order to carry him half upright to the hospital. Jozef screamed a loud cry from the pain and the shock and thus I brought him to the hospital.(I was told about this but I never knew it was foul play)

This event has been a traumatic experience for me up till today. With this picture in mind and the thought that this was also going on with Gert Jan in the spiritual area, plus the 'knowledge' that Erwin would have stolen a company, I went to Holland to once and for all put an end to all the church rottenness. In addition to that I was already totally lame from my Kenya adventure, so these were all the top ingredients for a true battle.

I had to open the session and was the first speaker. After my first address Gert Jan had called you with the information that if we didn't jump in now, we wouldn't have a bishop any more. It would mean the end for Gert Jan. You told me that if we would be speaking on the level I had started, Herman probably wouldn't leave, so everything had to go in highest gear now. Gert Jan had to be saved and Herman had to move. After your 'speech' you asked me if you had not been too much in the flesh. I said, yes, but it didn't matter because we now had broken that 'thing' and the bishop was saved. When I recall how I and you behaved, I cannot but say we profiled ourselves as true morons.

The shock was even bigger when I recently discovered that Erwin didn't steal a company at all, but that your (Dennis) autograph appears on the papers. You just "tacticly parked" the company yourself and Erwin never had anything to do with it. You have managed perfectly in setting me up with lies. Up to now, you nor anybody else has rectified this lie towards me. Abuse, deceit and lies. I'm sick of it

Through this deception I have done wrong and injustice to Erwin. I have asked him for forgiveness in the mean-time. In Holland Eelko has been indicated as the scapegoat for all the financial chaos and as to Kenya Erwin is the wrongdoer. He would never have given financial reports. I was there in person when Erwin wanted to inform Gert Jan that things couldn't go on like this. Gert Jan didn't want to listen and accused Erwin of wanting to pull the plug and that this would mean the end for GCCI. I was there when Erwin wanted to hand over a financial report to Gert Jan, but he didn't want this because it would not help his faith. I was there when Erwin for a last time wanted to make it clear to Gert Jan that it really couldn't go on like this. From pure misery, because Gert Jan refused to hear it, Erwin broke into tears and collapsed on a table in a hotel. Gert Jan didn't care at all and again didn't want to listen.
(When the money man left we only lasted like 2 months before we were put out to pasture as he used to manage the cash flow)

Now it is said that Erwin has embezzled money in Kenya that was actually intended for others.

In Kenya anything can be bought, also signed statements. Making people sign false statements are mafia practices.(Nice image we have....)

Because in Kenya anything can be bought, many times we were able to turn an infavourable newspaper article about GCCI into a favourable one, simply by shoving money. And that was convenient, because the articels really weren't fair at the time. Gert Jan is co-operating with Francis Omondi in Kenya. This man is no more than an intelligent thief with connections in the right places. He put money in his own pocket I had given him to pay someone else. Thus much more stuck to the fingers of this guy, while girls in the women's house never saw a penny. Gert Jan told me one day regarding Omondi that he knew how to deal with mercenaries: "You had to pay them."(Seems the fact our press is easily influenced is a well known fact, we had always wondered how come very little of what went on made it to the papers)

When I see how everything in GCCI has become one big marketing campaign to the detriment of people, it makes me sick. Big numbers and success stories are thrown around only to show that GCCI is fantastic and real in order to collect money. Whether this happens at the cost of people doesn't matter at all. If only it yields money. One evening Gert Jan and I had gone into the streets of Nairobi and came to talk with two male homosexual prostitutes. We talked no longer than 10 minutes. They said there was a network of about 1,000 homosexual prostitutes in Nairobi. The two boys didn't have any function or position in the organisation at all. Gert Jan said to me, after the conversation with the boys, "It may not sound nice, but we may make money out of this." Now we had to try to get the homosexual organisation on board of GCCI because it made a good story you could make a lot of money with. Following this short conversation with the boys, terrific circular letters were sent with the announcement that GCCI co-operated with a network of 1,000 homosexuals. A big lie based on air.
(Talk about pumping up the numbers!)

In Nairobi existed a church organisation, the ‘Women Of Faith’ supervised by pastor Johnson, an elderly Kenian man. His organisation existed of 300 (ex) prostitutes. Gert Jan had held a number of seminars for these women, but pastor Johnson and his women never were part of GCCI. Yet, in flyers and in Holland it was said that this group of 300 women were part of GCCI. Pastor Johnson was very upset about this and even threatened with a law suit. Gert Jan made Erwin and I excercise pressure on him so that he and his organisation would beome part of GCCI on paper. As pastor Johnson still refused, Gert Jan organised a seminar for the Women Of Faith in which he handed out forms on which the women had to fill out all their data, such as telephone numbers and e-mail addresses. These data made it possible for Gert Jan to contact these women without the help of pastor Johnson and to lure them into GCCI with money. When I told Gert Jan that this was stealing, he swept this away by saying he would make out for himself whom he contacted.

I found my personal stay in Kenya to be a nightmare. Gert Jan’s all-overruling and high-handed meddlesomeness has driven me and my family to frustration and despair.

Contradicting or alternative thinking is not tolerated. In order to come 'in line' with Gert Jan’s mind, regularly one is talked unto for hours and hours, sometimes until deep in the night. From pure misery and exhaustion in the end one starts squinting. One is talked unto until you are in line with Gert Jan. These are pure ‘interrogation techniques’ which make you to psychically break and confuse you. Gert Jan doesn't shrink to manipulate and intimidate one in order to get what he wants. His will be done.

In everything one is made silent with remarks of being natural, egocentric, proud or soulish. Gert Jan in the process uses his position as man of God, the prophet who indeed feels and sees much more than you yourself. Even if you don't see it for yourself, you finally choose to accept it because contradicting the prophet is disrespect and rebellion. In the end it totally breaks your own personality and you are no more than mentally broken and brainwashed

None of his direct co-workers really dares to contradict him and who says he can is just not honest. Nobody within GCCI dares to act normal to Gert Jan except his sister Donate. For the rest all the co-workers are afraid of Gert Jan, including you, Dennis. And if you deny it, you know you're lying.

One day we had an office meeting in Nairobi with Gert Jan, Maria Charles (then Gert Jan’s personal assistent), my daughter Sylvana (offie assistant) and myself. We were talking about the backpayments still open for the rent of the hotel where we had church service each Saturday. Gert Jan asked what measures the hotel management could take about this. I said: "Well, they can refuse us and throw us out." Yelling and in the presence of the above mentioned, he warned me to keep my big mouth shut and shouldn't talk about things I had no knowledge about. You don't need much knowledge to know they can throw you out when you don't pay. It was ashaming and humiliating.

In another incident I had made an error regarding the GCCI web site. Screaming like a pig he was outrageously going out against me while throwing office supplies. The atmosphere was heavy with agressiveness and it seemed that he was about to use physical violence. I know myself in this area and if that would happen I would have caused a serious accident, the more because I was already upside-down of everything. I didn't want this ever to happen, so through time I have learned to put everything aside under the factor ‘not relevant’. If I would have stayed in Kenya the possibility would have been great that, out of pure frustration and despair I would have killed Gert Jan or someone else instead, just to take it out to someone.(The screaming about the errors was regular occurence and what would happen is that the second in Command would be hard on us in return)

These are only some of the highlights typical for relationships with Gert Jan.

Apart from the fact that I was totally fed up in Kenya, my children could no longer go to school, because the school money had not been paid for by GCCI for a year (7,300 Dollar for the school year 2004 -2005). My children have indeed never received their final results because of the backpayment. The only option for Yaleesa to be able to continue her studies was to return to Holland. To be able to start the new semester on time, we had to be back in Holland by August 2005.

My children Ezra & Yaleesa had a great time in school in Nairobi. This was used by Gert Jan to put my children up against me so that they would want to stay in Kenya. When we just had arrived in Holland Yaleesa had been in contact with Gert Jan via MSN. He told her that her father (Glenn) had left too early, because now he had the money to pay for the school. Of course I personally contacted the financial director of the school who described to me only recently that up till today not one penny has been paid for.

At the other hand, the school is kept on a string with the story that the business board of GCCI has to approve the expense first. Gert Jan does not live up to his promises. Gert Jan is even not afraid to use lies in order to put my children up against me.

At first, I wanted to go back to the church in Leiden but Gert Jan and you did not allow it. You didn't want two captains on one ship. Everyone who knows me only a little knows I don't have to be anything at all let alone a captain. It wouldn't have been difficult to serve you. I understood however that the story of the captains was a problem inside you. So it's fine with me. I never want to return to the church in Leiden again.

The same went for my daughter Sylvana, when she returned to Holland in June 2005. Gert Jan urged me to tell Sylvana that she had better find another church. He said to me that thus it could be prevented that Sylvana would have negative conversations with others in church about her experiences in Kenya.(This chic actually ran away due to the drama, she went back to Holland saying that she was visiting a pal and never came back!)

Against all previously made agreements Gert Jan kept me in Kenya against my will. He had already made clear to me that he didn't want to work with me any more if I would return. When I pushed on, I was accused of being a traitor, somebody choosing for himself, one who rebelled against the man of God. Gert Jan also accused me of taking responsibility for my own life and that I listened to my own heart in stead of to the word of the man of God, the prophet. This is outright scary and sectarian! My life has never been his and that will never happen. Gert Jan werden painted out cursing scenarios happening to me and my family should i return to Holland.

When it became clear to Gert Jan that I still would leave, I got screaming and manipulating sms's written with many sentences and capital letters. One of them read: "You are not my friend anymore … and you will never be anymore. BYE." So it had been a friendship based on slavely obedience, you liked it or not. Later, Gert Jan made a nice explanation of it on paper as to what was meant by the sms, but you can't throw handgrenades first and later act as if it was meant as a correction. Moreover, the other sms's where even more manipulative and intimidating.

Gert Jan affirms that he paid the tickets for my return. Another nice marketing story, but unfortunately this is a big lie too. Neither Gert Jan nor GCCI has paid one penny of my tickets. I had to do a lot to borrow money for the trip back for me and my family.

All the rent of the houses we lived in in Nairobi was behind. Stef & Bronwynne have been thrown out of their house for that reason. (Stef was the Big guy's bro in law and the muppet responsible for choosing the crappy comps we were using)My rent was three months behind, but as the rental contract was due to end in August, we had come back to one month backpayment in the weeks before that because of the increasing pressure & threatenings of expellation by the landlady. A number of landlords and the man we hired cars from (he still had to receive about 10,000 Euros) had contacted each other. They were afraid that GCCI would leave Kenya and leave them with the debt. Two days before I would be leaving for Holland, I received a letter from the authorities that I could not leave the country unless I paid the rent. During my stay in Kenya I never received any salary (I never really cared) so all payments like house rent, school money, etc, etc, was paid through GCCI Leiden, just like all other expenses for the rest of all GCCI Nairobi. I asked Stef (who was responsible for finance) what was going on and he told me that he was busy experimenting to see how long he could postpone payments(experimenting?!). I was not exactly charmed by the idea he had been experimenting with me and my family, with the result that we couldn't leave the country. I made it clear to him that it had to be arranged as soon as possible in any way whatsoever. GCCI Leiden, however, had no money left to send either. Gert Jan was the only one having money himself and has then paid one month rent for the house I lived in. Besides the fact that it is no more than normal that an employer takes financial care of his employees, nobody should act as if it has been such a great charity of Gert Jan. When I and my family first arrived in Nairobi in November 2003, I paid from my own pocket, among other things, the due rent for Gert Jan. So, no big deal.

The last time I was speaking to you from Kenya on the phone, I had been instructed by Gert Jan to coach you. God had said to Gert Jan that he had to utterly destroy Eelko and I had to make that clear to you. I really couldn't do that. If God has said that to Gert Jan, he should take care of it himself. I refuse. You told me that you had trouble with the idea that Eelko would have to be burned down. The only thing I could say to you was that I understood you very much. The very same evening I had a raging Gert Jan on the phone accusing me of not doing my job. But he would take over from me from now on. After your conversation with me, he talked to you on the phone and found out that you were lost. That was my fault, because I had not put it into your mind that it was the right thing to destroy Eelko. But after Gert Jan had been talking for two hours with you, you were all ready to destroy your brother.

One thing I know for sure, Dennis, is that if the curtain falls the damage will be vast for you too. The shame and the pain will eat you. When I see what kind of war scenes are enrolling within families and marriages, I get sick. This war is stirred up by Gert Jan. Like pastor, like people.

The only reason why all this madness can continue world-wide is at the grace of GCCI Leiden financing Gert Jan. You are one of the responsible persons and cannot hide behind ignorance any more. This can never end well. Because, if it does, God declares, so to say, a revolution in which anything goes; lying, intimidating, cheating, distortion, manipulation, brainwashing, spoiling, stealing, etc, etc. In summary, it is criminal behaviour which is created by Gert Jan and what he thinks he can afford to reach his goal. And it cannot be that God is going to reward it. Forget it. With all that, many, totally desillusioned church members will be totally lost . And you have been their pastor. You have been going before them and leading them into that area.

Back in Holland, it appeared clearly how much I am broke. Apart from my physical complaints I wouldn't be able to function correctly in society at the moment. I am more than allergic to anything smelling anyhow after dominance and a big mouth. From time to time I feel like decapitating someone. I'm not glad about that, nor do I excuse myself. This allergy expresses itself among other things in that I am in the clinch with Herman van der Lelie via the internet from time to time with my head full of rage. I still don't understand or know all things going on and wit all that his way of approach doesn't appeal to me, but apart from that I discovered one thing and that is that he, just like me, wants this sad comedy will soon come to an end to prevent more people from being hurt. I hope that Herman too will forgive my foolishness on the internet.

Suggestion would have been made that Glenn will co-operate with GCCI in the future again. If this is correct, let me rob you from an illusion. Even if the whole world turns GCCI, I will be the only one categorically to refuse. Forget about it. Leaving GCCI is the best thing I have been able to do in ages and i never regretted it even one millisecond.

In retrospect, I realised that with my hushing letter to the church I have cast a haze before their eyes. I know many people trust me and therefore couldn't make the right judgment. Therefore I feel obligated to send this letter to a large number of other people in church, for the truth must be heard. Then it is their own responsibility what they do with it, but they won't be able to hide behind ignorance either.

You may try hard again to distort this letter and to deny everything, but it won't change the truth. I'm not waiting for approval or applause. I'm not joining some group and don't want any group to join me at all. I only speak truth.

Nothing GCCI might 'achieve' will be able to pass what has been caused, nor excuse what has been caused already. Until Gert Jan starts taking responsibility for the pain he caused everywhere, even the quiet voices will be screaming for justice and thruth.

I hope with all my heart that you too will awake relatively in time, for it will otherwise crush you and your family. My heart goes out to you.

Take care.

Glenn Siegers

Ex-pastor GCCI.

I traced this on a dutch new site.Didnt want to be accused of peddling half truths, do I?Once again this was done using a translation site so there are many grammatical errors.

Leidse little finger star municipality GCCI made finances disaster of foreign help project Leidse church 'insanity' through Silvan clean courts continue of front page

LEAD - De Leidse church GCCI has a Keniaans project under prostitutes in a fiasco do end, says ex-predecessor Glenn Siegers. Church leader Gertjan Agtereek threw self in international concise adventures, made large debts and could not its appointments at the prostitutes comply with. Disappointed turned many of them back in the sex industry, declares Siegers. ,, The only drove that all this insanity world-wide through can go remain is that GCCI Lead Gertjan remains finance.''

The Keniaanse project is named by the Dutch GCCI-leadership regular as an example of the alleged international success of the church. That has in Lead about 150 members, but will world-wide meanwhile thousand church municipalities cover. According to Siegers however a farce is the world-wide size of GCCI and are the foreign adventures on a large drama run out. Someone else ex-leader that been is in Kenya, affirms Siegers story. Also newspaper The East African Standard writes over the failing of the work under street prostitutes. GCCI has paid tells money to hold further negative stories from Keniaanse newspapers, Siegers. According to him, Agtereek has broken hit the contract with the prostitutes 'glashard' then the money on. The girls have to take' remembers happened really no money a lawyer in the arm', Siegers Agtereeks words then that. ,, He said: Then we are at least of they af'.'' Not only the prostitutes in Kenya, but also church leaders in the countries where GCCI asset is will in money problems be come through the acting from Agtereek. Siegers writes that two Indian church leaders rent murderers behind self at got because she the debts, made on encouragement of Agtereek, could not redeem. The Indian of Moss Ebenezer, pastor and owner of an orphanage, was appointed as the head of GCCI India. That saddled up him on with a debt of 60,000 Euros, declares he self. A bible school in India for which Lead 300,000 tons in guilders had raised, has never been finished and in lapse hit. A bandlid of a Keniaanse music group that in Lead an action groomed, affirms that also they yet watch on payment of Agtereek. ,, If I see how everything in GCCI is degenerate until one large marketing campaign that to cost goes from men, then become I that nauseously of'', writes Siegers. ,, There is thrown with large numbers and success story round but at to show that GCCI tremendously is round so money within to get.'' As will Agtereek, after a street conversation in Nairobi of ten minutes with two masculine gay-prostitués the story spread that GCCI worked together with a network of thousand homosexual prostitués: A large lie'', concludes Siegers. According to him, Agtereek accepts however no argument. Then speaks he 'hours and hours on you in till deeply in the night' till you of tiredness differ sees' and until you on one line sit with Gertjan'. ,, Agtereek fences with its position as the man of God, the prophet that more knowledge then you yourself. On the duration, the you break total own personality and am you psychological broken and gehersenspoeld.'' Certainly 25 former co-workers and municipality members of Agtereek spoke out act opposite this paper in similar wordings over that one. On a website (http://mistandenagtereekgccileiden.punt.n ) that totally has been devoted to the states around the Leidse church, complain concerned over the 'poisonous atmosphere' around 'sect leader' Agtereek. A number ex-members that Agtereek want must become to save afgezet the municipality. About which we do not stop sigh normally with that dolls cupboard'', 'Monique' that GCCI leave has just on the webforum. ,, About which not back to the time that we in a canteen sat, simple only with a hungry heart to God, a simple music group, but with a passion: Do gods meet, without all that geldverslindende bombarie?'' Agtereek self is not accessible and GCCI Lead refuses to give comment.

Anyway that is the end of that tale.So the next time a European esp Armenian or American comes with an idea that seems too goood, it most probably is.I know this has been a long read so all comments will be appreciated!

Part II - Things fall apart

While I was strolling down memory lane I just remembered the other pal who was hired to help me do the HTML part of the project.Now this dude was hired like a month after me and he was a pretty stand up guy.Unfortunately come the second month his father who had been ailing passed away.So he took a week or two off to lay him to rest.On his return the second in command whom we used to refer to as pirelli (this was due to the phrase they had in their ads that speed without control is nothing to refer to his unending enthuiasm for ventures that were going nowhere!) mumbles about how work volume has gone down and tells him that his services won't be needed.That also reminds me of how for sometime he hired one of the past Miss Kenyas, (he actually hired two -Yolanda and another one whom I will not name, both for a short time). So when he met the other Miss Kenya, he had big plans for her.She came to the meeting with her boyfriend and he wanted to hire him two.But the boyfriend made the mistake of asking too many questions ie where is all this money coming from, who from, what are the future plans etc.This did not please the Big Guy.He offered the Miss Kenya a salo of 100k where abouts and rescinded the job offer to the boyfie, but the main condition for her was that she had to dump her boyfriend as he was "pulling" her down.The poor bastard was dumped like a pack of day old fries.The Big Guy went to the extent of having her move out of home and having her live in a hotel.But she did get to go to Holland, so it must have been worth her while.But talk about manipulation.
And then for his upcoming girl group, The big guy used to pick good looking girls; but one of his assistants picked a girl who did not meet his standards.So one day the Kenyan assistant comes and tells us that that gal was told to bounce.You know what the big guy had his people tell the girl?You don't smile enough.Please!I mean how do you go pick someone off the street tell them you will change their life then throw them back in the street because they don't smile enough?At least be honest and tell a mama that she isnt light enough and doesn't have the required quota of tits and ass!
Ah, much as the ministry seemed to have a money man who managed the big guy's numerous companies (whose names and locations we were never given) , the big guy and his people displayed the fiscal responsibility of three year olds.There used to be 3 cars that were rented with drivers.Each car used to cost 1000/= per day.These cars had been rented for 3 years plus.I think they would have been able to buy several cars with that money, don't forget that there was also the shuttle that cost around 10,000/= plus each journey which would have been lesssened if they had decided to set up shop somewhere closer to the CBD.
Let me not forget to point out how arrogant the big guy used to be.I already pointed out how him and his second in command used to refuse to listen to the opinions of people they chose for their expertise.One of the best cases was the computers we used to use.Close to 1M was spent buying the clone PCs we used to use.One of the people hired in the IT section before the comps were bought told the yes man in charge of purchasing that those comps would not be good for work like graphics and web design as they were too slow.The yes man seemed to take it into mind but when the Indians who were selling the comps told the yes man and the Big guy that they would throw in flat screem monitors to sweeten the deal; the IT pal was crushed off and the deal went through.Let's just say that when I used to open high pixel ratio graphics (or whatever you call those very large pics) my comp used to act like an IBM 486.That was when I would go to the bathroom or brew myself a cup of coffee.
Then there was this chic who was hired to do marketing.What she used to market?Me and her had no idea because other then making a few calls and subbing for the Big Guy's assistant she used to doze on her desk most of the time.
Anyway as I had said the Big Guy had quite an ego and a temper to match.If you did something wrong he would shout at you until he turned red.But there was a day his ego and temper ran into a wall.He decided that he would go to a Minister's office and get him to attend one of the Saturday night meetings.So he had the Kenyan assistant make a call so they went to the Ministers office with her and the Money Man.So they sit down and say the had called and wanted to see the Minister.Any of us who have ever dealt with government secretaries know how flippant they can be, she tells them that they cant see him as she doesnt know who they are and she wasnt informed about them coming.So this raised the Big Guy's ire and he started shouting at her and told her that he would report her.The matronly lady stopped filing her nails for a second, raised her eyebrow and told him that he could go ahead.The Big Guy walked out of the office in a huff and that was the end of that.
I see I am going off on tangents.Another thing was the amount of lies that the Big Guy had.In addition to the many companies he owned.This is a snippet from the site
GCCI is an international Christian non-profit organization that consists of thousands of churches, schools and charity organizations in Europe , Africa and Asia .
If the above was the case.Some friends and I did a search when we began working their and not even one result about these churches came up.Lets be logical, if you had thousands of churches and schools, you would be mentioned on news websites somewhere online; correct me if I'm wrong.
Then comes his qualifications
He is an ordained minister of Jesse Duplantis Ministries, and has a D.D. and PhD in philosophy.
Thing is that he met Jesse for the first time to get his endorsement and automatically becomes ordained.Interesting and the D.D and PhD were not always there and he did not want to say where he got them from.One of my pals who was putting down the info asked the Big guy about that and he said, "At times you need to lie".
While all these big plans were being hatched and money being leaked in one direction.Lots of bills were in arrears....
Part 3 - coming tommorrow.

Church Or Business - No Difference!

I have always been a cynic whenever it comes to churches and ministries, especially these new age/pentecostal churches that seem to revolve more around signs, wonders, certain doctrines and the individuals who head the church as opposed to the Bible.
I had the good fortune or should I say misfortune of working for one run by a Dutchman.I am sure those of you who were in Kenya in late 2004 onwards heard of a church that was mainly ministering to prostitutes and street people in Nairobi.
The church used to meet at the Grand Regency and then moved to the 680 hotel for its weekly meetings that were held every Saturday night.Saturday nights were chosen as they were convienient for the girls, they could get ministered to and then continue with their whoring uninterrupted.
Well the head honcho of the company hired me and some other people to set up a portal.The idea that he had sounded very good on paper and he even went to the States where he got an endorsement from Jesse Duplantiss that you can see here and From Pastor Lai (the guy in Mombasa who has the very large church) see here.But the problem was that he seemed to had bitten off more then he could chew.
The whole concept would be like lets say MSN but much larger and the content of the articles would be family oriented/christian.Yes that sounds good, so writers were hired and were expected to do 6 articles a day.I kid you not!6 articles per day!I am sure we have seen how writers who churn out on article per week ie Oyunga Pala often have writers block and these people were expecting 6 articles per day!Of course some people tried to write them but in the end resorted to cut copy and paste!
I was part of the web design and graphic department.Our job was to do the different websites that would fall under the main site.The worst thing about this job is that the head honcho would not listen to the opinions of the designers and the html people (me and my colleagues).To add insult to injury we used to be made to re-do and scrap work so many times!A website would often have a life span of two or three days after you tweak it due to changes being recommended by the head honcho and his yes men.And then at the end of the day he would see something interesting on the net and that would mean the end of that and something new!
And of course a design had to be approved before we had the pleasure of turning it into html.So after having enough free time to delete spam from my email address and to chat to all my pals on yahoo msgr/msn, rack up over 100 posts on some forums or the required number so that I became a guru or was allowed to change avatars (yes I used to be that bored!) and that is when I began blogging.Imagine going to work and having to think of ways to keep busy as the higher ups will not give you any extra work (well I did want more work so I could be paid more!).As a result of having to sit 6-8 hours in front of a comp doing jack, my attention span was shot to hell.So the only way I keep busy nowadays is by doing two things at the same time.It is still apparent nowadays, this weekend I went to visit a pal and she asked me, "do you always do 2 things at the same time?"This is because I was using the laptop and watching tv at the same time!If I am only using the comp I usually have like 10 windows open!Anyway enough about my ADD!
Then the worst thing is come 5pm when the staff bus was coming to pick us, is when one of the yes men would run in with a design to be turned into a web page!Aaaaaaaargh!And then we would be taken home at midnight or later!But on the plus during the earlier days when suckers' money was flowing we used to be bought food from village market.The Thai food from Village Market rocks and so do the pizzas!One of those medium sized pizzas could feed you for 3 days and they tasted great, not like the flavoured pieces of cardboard sold here!
Oh did I fail to mention that we worked in Runda?Good thing there was a staff bus as the house we worked in was miles away from the main gate.But on the plus that ride gave me something to aspire to.You need to see the houses in Runda!My Lord!Veritable Castles and Villas!Runda is a good sight to motivate you to work or steal hard!Then again so is Muthaiga but that is a story for another day!
We used to work in this big ass house that had the insulation of a box.So it used to be strange to come from the heat of nai to freeze in a big empty ass house!Then these cheap Dutch folk did not provide lunch or a microwave to heat your packed lunch.But they did used to provide Britannia biscuits, milk powder, coffee and tea leaves.The first few days we being the enterprising young folk we were, many would not have breakfast at home as you had to be in town by 7.30am for the bus and would fall upon the bikkies first thing we got to the office.A box would be emptied at arrival and another by lunchtime.But the thing is that the taste of biscuits gets real old, real fast so the same people who used to eat 2 handfuls of brittanias were now eating 5 per day.But lucky for us, the money man who was also dutch had a personal assistant who would be sent on errands and we used to send her for fries (sarah ebu holla at a boy umepotea huko UK sana!), but her return times were erratic so you could find yourself eating fries and sausage from Kenchic (damn those greasy fries were good!) at 11 am or 3 pm!Then to counter the cold in the office Aco borrowed one of his mother's shawls that he would wrap around his legs to counter the heat (Shawls rock!).
Oh I have almost forgot, there were chics who were hired to do fashion designs.Their target was 20 fashions each by the end of the day.All they had to do was draw pictures.They were told that materials and the rest of what they needed would be bought for them from India so they could start work. When we were talking this over with one of them, I made the observation that a design is nothing without a pattern and fabric samples (but what did those girls know?They were just designers!).
The strangest thing was that of the 8 or so dutch folk (The big man, his wife, brother in law + wife,his second in command + wife, his money man + wife, his dutch worship leader) is that they used to live and breathe their work and the church meetings!The furthest they used to go was Village Market and of course the once a week meetings at the 680. Other then that they never used to bother to travel or even know more about Nairobi or even bother to meet the other Dutch people in Nairobi!
One of the big Man's new ideas was to get a group of prostitutes, take them off the street, house them and their children and turn them into a singing group that would be flown around Europe to raise money for the battered women's shelter they were planning on putting up and other ministry activities.So a group of girls was chosen and the mansion across the road that shared the compound with the one we worked in was rented for them to live in.
These girls were given a small allowance and given singing lessons and bible study.That reminds me, there was this girl who was hired to write songs and record them with their funding.Well they took their time arranging for her to record so she was made to be writer (despite the fact that wasn't her field of expertise!). And then the shameless people that they are a few months later they asked her if she could be staying back to teach the girls how to sing!They wanted her to be doing that double work instead of just having her teach them from the oneset.
Working with these folk also did away with the oft held belief that white folk are more organised then us.These were the most disorganised people I have ever met!Every Saturday meeting was an excercise in chaos!The personal assistant to the money man used to tell them it would be easier if they started organising such things in advance but you know what the big man told her?"You africans dont know how to think fast that is why you have to start organising early" or something like that, it isnt verbatim.
Ah, that reminds me one more time of how during the launch things were do disorganised that the big Man didnt have the proper shoes and some had to be bought at the neigbouring Bata.They hired this guy who used to organise events to be doing their events under the understanding that this was to be a full time job and after him doing two events they fired him.To make things worse he had gone on hiatus from his own business as this job was well paying.He was having none of this and brought his lawyer and they managed to come to an amicable arrangement.It was heart warming to see his story a few weeks back in the Nation, as his business seemed to be doing really well and he had even managed to put a 6 figure capital in it and it was paying good dividends at the time of the story's publication.Same thing happened to the chic who was the head of our department.She used to call things like they were and used to knock heads with the Big Man's second in command who used to veto many of her decisions, so push came to shove and she was shown the door; I too used to think she was hard headed but she used to be fair so I think that decision was uncalled for.She went into business for herself and last I heard she was doing really well.One of the workers in the IT section got a job offer that seemed more concrete (he was to be a lecturer at Daystar University), when he told them he was leaving they offered to double his pay, he refused so they offered to triple it but he did the wise thing and walked away.In hindsight it was a very very wise move on his part!
The way the employees were treated was really pathetic and those are not the only examples, that was when we knew that things were not as they seemed with this ministry.
Part 2 - Things fall apart....

Latest tunes

The one and only...Jill Scott!


I just love the retro cover!


When you see that logo you know the music is going to be great!


Yes this cd cover looks whack but it has nice tracks on it!


This cd isnt as good as his earlier stuff but still makes for good listening!

To make up for the drudgery of my summer job, I have been beefing up my music collection.Other then the Alanis sounds that I mentioned in my previous post, above are the latest family members!
plus:The Ministry of Sound Annual 2006 (Australia version) is a jewel!It has a slight 80's dance/disco influence to the beats on most of the tracks and isnt too high tempo nor ambient slow!It just goes to remind me of how Americans have no business in the dance music business!The best dance/techno/trance or whatever you call this genre comes from Europe.If I ever get round to it I may even put up an audioblog so that people can listen to some of the tracks!

Alanis...

I still remember getting this album like it was yesterday!It didnt measure up to her first
effort but it still had its' sterling moments


I know some months back I posted about the Hard Rock that I love to listen to.But I do love to listen to alternative and soft rock.I am not in the mood to post about the many artistes that I do listen to but after downloading her Hits CD I felt I had to share my love for the music of...Alanis Morrissette.
I love her music because her songs always have a story.Most people would rather listen to music that has a beat that you can bob your head to and a catchy chorus (that is why Lil Jon has gotten away with making the same song like 20 times!). I dont mind listening to such music but lets just say some of those songs are the first to go when I have to clear out my MP3 player.
Anyway here are the lyrics to some of her songs that I was listening to this morning

That I Would Be Good

that I would be good even if i did nothing
that I would be good even if i got the thumbs down
that I would be good if I got and stayed sick
that I would be good even if I gained ten pounds

that i would be fine even even if I went bankrupt
that i would be good if I lost my hair and my youth
that i would be great if I was no longer queen
that i would be grand if i was not all knowing

that i would be loved even when i numb myself
that i would be good even when i am overwhelmed
that i would be loved even when i was fuming
that i would be good even if i was clingy

that i would be good even if i lost sanity
that i would be good
whether with or without you

Thank U

how 'bout getting off of these antibiotics
how 'bout stopping eating when I'm full up
how 'bout them transparent dangling carrots
how 'bout that ever elusive kudo
thank you India
thank you terror
thank you disillusionment
thank you frailty
thank you consequence
thank you thank you silence
how 'bout me not blaming you for everything
how 'bout me enjoying the moment for once
how 'bout how good it feels to finally forgive you
how 'bout grieving it all one at a time
thank you India
thank you terror
thank you disillusionment
thank you frailty
thank you consequence
thank you thank you silence
the moment I let go of it
was the moment I got more than I could handle
the moment I jumped off of it was
the moment I touched down
how 'bout no longer being masochistic
how 'bout remembering your divinity
how 'bout unabashedly bawling your eyes out
how 'bout not equating death with stopping
thank you India
thank you Providence
thank you disillusionment
thank you nothingness
thank you clarity
thank you thank you silence
(I am sure that we all remember the video where she walked through the streets naked)

You Learn

I recommend getting your heart trampled on to anyone
I recommend walking around naked in your living room
Swallow it down (what a jagged little pill)
It feels so good (swimming in your stomach)
Wait until the dust settles

You live you learn
You love you learn
You cry you learn
You lose you learn
You bleed you learn
You scream you learn

I recommend biting off more than you can chew to anyone
I certainly do
I recommend sticking your foot in your mouth at anytime
Feel free
Throw it down (the caution blocks you from the wind)
Hold it up (to the rays)
You wait and see when the smoke clears

You live you learn
You love you learn
You cry you learn
You lose you learn
You bleed you learn
You scream you learn

Wear it out (like a three-year-old would do)
Melt it down (you're gonna have to eventually anyway)
The fire trucks are coming up around the bend

You live you learn
You love you learn
You cry you learn
You lose you learn
You bleed you learn
You scream you learn

You grieve you learn
You choke you learn
You laugh you learn
You choose you learn
You pray you learn
You ask you learn
You live you learn

(Another classic from her first album!)

Ironic

An old man turned ninety-eight
He won the lottery and died the next day
It's a black fly in your Chardonnay
It's a death row pardon two minutes too late
Isn't it ironic... don't you think?

It's like rain on your wedding day
It's a free ride when you've already paid
It's the good advice that you just didn't take
Who would've thought... it figures

Mr. Play It Safe was afraid to fly
He packed his suitcase and kissed his kids goodbye
He waited his whole damn life to take that flight
And as the plane crashed down he thought
"Well isn't this nice..."
And isn't it ironic... don't you think?

It's like rain on your wedding day
It's a free ride when you've already paid
It's the good advice that you just didn't take
Who would've thought... it figures

Well life has a funny way of sneaking up on you
When you think everything's okay and everything's going right
And life has a funny way of helping you out when
You think everything's gone wrong and everything blows up
In your face

A traffic jam when you're already late
A no-smoking sign on your cigarette break
It's like ten thousand spoons when all you need is a knife
It's meeting the man of my dreams
And then meeting his beautiful wife
And isn't it ironic... don't you think?
A little too ironic... and yeah I really do think...

It's like rain on your wedding day
It's a free ride when you've already paid
It's the good advice that you just didn't take
Who would've thought... it figures

Life has a funny way of sneaking up on you
Life has a funny, funny way of helping you out
Helping you out
(No-one can talk about Alanis without mentioning this song that is still a jewel to  this day!)

Anyway time to get back to re-arranging my tracks!