Similar displays have caused an uproar with some people feeling that it is inappropriate for women to dance topless. Others however, feel that it is no more than a display of African culture.

I figure Mardi Gras must be something like this!

Every day we wake up to the sound of vuvuzelas in the streets. It is like a clarion call for all football fans to wake up to another day of electrifying games. South Africa has been swept away by the vuvuzela tide. Always the radical, I promised myself that I would not conform to popular culture. I detested these vile, offensive noise makers. But eventually, I let my hair down and puckered up. Still, many shops here now advertise great deals on ear plugs or “anti-vuvuzela devices”. Read full story here.

Ghanaians cheering at the 2010 World Cup.

It is 4.30pm on a very cold Sunday afternoon at the Rugby Football Union of East Africa grounds. In fact, it has been raining and has only just subsided to a bearable drizzle. The referees begin to trickle, in wrapped up warm, teeth chattering. Everyone is pensive; probably because they have not had a fitness test since June 2009 just before the Safari Sevens.

As the game of rugby makes positive leaps and bounds, the referees are determined not to be left behind, especially on the pitch. Today, several of Kenya’s top referees have come for the bleep test organised as part of the process to vet the referees who will finally be called upon to officiate in the upcoming Bamburi Rugby Super Series 2010.

Referee Development Officer and seniour referee, Sammy “Karis” Kariuki, is here, as is the Bamburi Rugby Super Series Tournament Director, Herbert Mwachiro. Mini-rugby training has just ended and now the children settle at the stands to watch the referees take the pitch, so to speak. A total of 13 referees are taking part in the bleep test today; among them, arguably the top female referee in the country, Sarah Otieno. A good number of the referees seem to have been kept away by the rains.

Karis boasts of having gotten to level twelve once. Godwin begins to doubt this story because the last time Karis told it, he talked about level twelve and a half. Victor Muniafu has found a strategic spot from which to watch events unfold. Today he strictly here to give the guys morale support and looks quite shocked at a suggestion that he should take part in the bleep test. The official record holders seem to be Karani, Cap and John Bosco, tied at level twelve although John Bosco claims to have gotten to level thirteen once and is hard pressed to prove it.

Osborne Bulemi, another seniour referee, arrives, amidst a cloud of smoke, like a genie from a bottle. While Karis attempts the bleep test with his juniours, Osborne opts to light up again. But not before he blows the whistle to sermon the participants to the pitch to begin the test.
After a short briefing on the general rules of a bleep test, the process is soon under way and it seems as if no man, or woman, will be left behind. Everyone is neck to neck. “Karis” fights a brave fight before just falling short of level six. He moves to the sidelines and begins to egg the rest of the team on. One by one they reach their limit and by level nine, only six referees are left.

Streaks of sweat are now visible, even in this deplorable weather, and strain is written all over their faces. The crowd is cheering them on and clapping them out. John Bosco, Cap and Karani make the final three. John Bosco falls just short of his (official) personal best leaving Cap and Karani to battle it out. Karani is scheduled join other match officials at the Junior World Rugby Trophy 2010 in Russia later this year. Fitness definitely contributes to his high level performance as a referee. But today, it is Constant Cap who draws the curtains on the bleep test at level 12.8.

Osborne and “Karis” are happy with the performance today and are looking forward to assessing another batch of referees expected to take the bleep test next weekend. They are positive that the referees are making great progress and that with continuous assessment on application of laws, control of the game, communication and fitness, they will be more than ready come the Bamburi Rugby Super Series 2010 in April.

Similar criteria for qualification of tournament referees are expected to be used in Uganda and Tanzania. “We are also looking for qualified referees from Uganda and Tanzania. We want Ugandan and Tanzanian referees to officiate matches between Kenyan teams. Where Uganda plays Kenya, a Tanzanian referee will officiate the match while a Kenyan referee will officiate any matches between Uganda and Tanzania. This will serve to raise the profile of the tournament”, said Osborne.

Marriage comes with so much sacrifice and hard work. It takes a lot of patience and humility to be married. And that is a great, great challenge. Why would any man in their right mind want more than one wife? And why would any woman want to share their husband with another woman?

Some people argue that with polygamy comes a larger workforce and more income – relative if you ask me. Other people argue that the ratio of women to men is quite large, which makes it necessary for men to take more than one wife. Otherwise most of us women would die lonely old spinsters. For some, the fact that polygamy is part of our cultural heritage is a compelling argument.

Granted, polygamy has been a tradition in many cultures. And it may once have made a lot of sense to be polygamous. Men went off to war and were killed, a lot of field hands were required to cultivate the acres of land owned by families, widowed women and their children could be cared for in a period when women could not fend for themselves, wives from different communities gave men political mileage.

It seems that polygamy was more of a survival tactic back then because men and women had clearly defined roles and personalities. While men solved problems and protected the family, women nurtured children and kept the house clean. Today, women and men cannot be defined by these traditional roles. Today, most women believe in individual freedom and personal responsibility. Women are no longer passive or voiceless but rather assertive and confident and independent. Women’s social roles have expanded greatly. Women have been drawn out of the home and into the corporate world; into public life. Marriage has seized to become a means of survival for women; it is now an optional means to have companionship and legacy.

So what is the justification for polygamy today? Some people feel pride in having large nuclear families; others are seeking sexual gratification with a variety of mates. In other cases men live their wives in the rural area and travel to the city to look for jobs and while in the city, marry again. Are these valid reasons to practice polygamy? Is polygamy a deterrent to infidelity?

While some may argue that polygamy is better than unfaithfulness, serial marriage or divorce, nothing beats the core relationship of one woman to one man. It is impossible for a man to love each wife equally and to commit to each wife equally-unless of course each wife is cared for less than adequately.

Polygamy today is about ego and over sexuality. It is no longer obligatory for anyone to marry more than one wife. It is an archaic practice in this era of equal opportunity and a dwindling economy. It is a barbaric practice carried out by some in the name of tradition, and by some, in the name of religion. Female genital mutilation and ritual killings were cultures practiced (and are still being carried out) in some cultures but have been openly denounced as morbid and heartless acts. Polygamy should be denounced as baseless and immoral and psychologically abusive to women and children.

Polygamy has been said to conform to man’s natural instinct for more than one woman. This only serves to reduce the human race to that of wild animals where heinous behaviour is excusable. This argument is a poor and desperate excuse for people seeking to hold onto prehistoric ideals.

While different cultures continue to embrace polygamy, it is not enough to practice it just because one can. The fact of the matter is that, there is no single valid reason for the practice of polygamy today.