It’s three days into the dawn-to-dusk curfew. Kenya is in panic, having announced its first coronavirus positive case just two weeks earlier (Nation, September 4, p.6). No, Kenya is not under a dawn-to-dusk curfew. That would mean a daytime curfew. Rather, it is a dusk-to-dawn curfew.
For the first time, Ruto said he could ditch the ruling party, which he claimed is dysfunctional and has been hijacked by conmen, brokers and busybodies. (Star, August 31, p.4). Deputy President William Ruto has for the first time declared that graft has been rife in the ruling Jubilee since 2013, producing overnight billionaires (Star, September 3, p4). To the scribes at Lion Place, the DP is always saying things for the first time, which is rather strange, isn’t it?
Wanjiru’s friend, identified only as Shiro, was the one who informed police that the 26-year-old had been kidnapped by two men (K24 digital, September 3). “Was the one who informed police” sounds like direct vernacular translation: ndiye aliwaambia polisi kuwa… Why not simply write: Wanjiru’s friend, identified only as Shiro, informed police that the 26-year-old had been kidnapped by two men?
After teaching primary schools for 21 years, Mr James Kung’u had had enough (Nation, Powering SMEs, July 28, p.3). How does one teach primary schools? Oh, it’s direct translation: Alifundisha primary school.
There is the common misnomer that one has to break the bank to enjoy the natural sights that Kenya has to offer (Standard, September 4, p.2). Misnomer means a wrong/inaccurate name or designation. What the writer meant to convey was that there is a common misconception.
Anne Murungi, a career hotelier and lead consultant at Hospitality Consult, says touring the country on a budget has to do with planning, budgeting and ensuring one gets value for their money (Standard, September 4, p.2). Planning, budgeting and ensuring one gets value for their money all mean the same. Or are they three different things as implied here?
A latest study has added weight to claims that the cure of Covid-19 lies in steroids, a group of drugs used to manage inflammation (September 4, p.6). “A latest”? Any adjective in the superlative always takes definite article “the”. The latest study; the finest player; the best writer, etcetera.
The bloggers who thrive on innuendos and malice were caught on the wrong side of the law after they published a recent scandal involving a famous tender scandal (People Daily, August 31, p11). What was being communicated here? Published a recent scandal involving a famous tender scandal?
