Benvictor Makau

The Kenya Broadcasting Corporation veteran journalist and news presenter, Khamis Themor, has been a renowned top voice in the media industry for quite some time. Having started his career in the late years of the 1970s and gracing our TV Screens even during the 1990s, his voice has been heard by many ears in the country. "They tried me in the...

While the ever-growing conversation on Mental Health continues, statistics from the 2016 Global Burden of Disease research named Depression as the leading cause of disability worldwide.  The silver lining between depression and stress is so thin that prolonged stress may lead to depression. The effects of depression may then cause stress and lack of concentration.  Research has estimated 264 million people to...

Success stories about overcoming different life’s stumbling blocks have always been a psychological forward push to those facing similar or related setbacks. The story of how Violet Wanza Mbuvi, a cancer warrior, veteran journalist and former head of Mwatu FM radio station, was diagnosed with cancer and how she fought it, is one that every ear should hear. In May 2020,...

In his short story, “The Voter”, novelist Chinua Achebe paints the African image of the electoral process, from staging campaigns, all the way to the ballot box. Rufus Okeke, the protagonist and a poor African, is used by two politicians during their campaigns. Being a former bicycle repairer’s apprentice and well known in the village for his political influence, he mobilizes...

Sometimes, life may feel scary, demanding and disorderly. Infrequently, it may be easy to smell the coffee when things aren’t adding up and enquire from within, “I’m I having a mental disorder?” This is a common rhetoric which not only needs the right approach, but also a quick one. Having the signs and symptoms up your sleeves positions you at a vantage...

According to Gender Violence Recovery Centre, Gender Based Violence is any act that results in physical, sexual or psychological harm or suffering. This includes threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary deprivations of liberty, whether occurring in public or private life perpetrated against a person based on socially-ascribed (gender) differences between males and females. Donah Sarange, a Gender Based Violence survivor,...

As Good Health blog puts it, "Many people find themselves personally involved with the topic of mental health. We may be affected when a loved one experiences a mental health issue." Understanding what to say, how to act, or what we can do to help is not always clear. Other times, we might be the one who is struggling. Anxiety, depression, trauma—these...

Author: Alfred Nyagaka Nyamwange Publisher‏: ‎ The Writers Pen (November 2020) Price: Ksh. 800 Reviewer: Benvictor Makau A mother's horrifying dream opens the pages of "The Blood Stains" novel. She hears screams from her dying baby, writhing in excruciating pain. She wakes up, only to realise it was a dream and the screams were actually hers.  Emotions and deep pain from past memories snatch her sleep...

It has always been a headache when parents face the reality of schools re-opening as the need to pay fee confronts them.  Even though the larger number of parents in Kenya have been willing enough to pay the school fee and see their children continue with academics and change their future, the sting of Covid-19 and hard economic times has...

Beyond every iota of doubt, child upbringing is one of the toughest experiences parents face. As in the words of Maria Shriver, a journalist, “Having kids- the responsibility of rearing good, kind, ethical, responsible human beings - is the biggest job anyone can embark on." With the fragility of the children's attitudes and approaches to issues, parental presence in different facets...