They still don't get it.

The verdict need not wait until all the proof has been adduced. The Government of Kenya and the Government of Nairobi City have proven that when it comes to running global talk-shops, they are in a class of their own. The veneer of civility that the two governments are capable of is a sight to see. Streets look as if they were a parade boot that has been spit-shined by a United States Marine. The bits of the city that are likely to be encountered by the visiting hordes are "flooded" with uniformed police bearing G3s, AK-47s and H&K MP5s. If you are white and visiting, Nairobi is an oasis of calm, clean and relaxing and, with the evanescent exuberance that comes naturally to Nairobians, a place that you will definitely want to revisit, again and again.

Behind the veneer, though, is a sad reality, harsh in its immediacy. You only have to venture east of Moi Avenue for it to become clear that Nairobi is schizophrenic, just like the two governments that call it home. The presence of uniformed armed policemen does not imbue that zone with a sense of safety or security, but fear. Further east, out of the business district, are mountains of garbage, rivers of burst sewerage, in the rain, muddy and potholed roads, muddy sidewalks (pavements), burnt-out street lights...These are not places that the delegates to the World Trade Organisation's Ministerial Conference will ever see, if they know what is good for them.

They will have been impressed by the cleared-off streets; Nairobians are best advised to keep off City Hall Way, Parliament Road, Harambee Avenue, Taifa Road. These have been reserved for the delegates. Nairobians simply can't be trusted by both their governments to put their best foot forward, even if these "security measures" inconvenience Nairobians and compel them to make unnecessary alterations to their itineraries. After all, as both governments declare, the conference will be good for us all and so we should sacrifice and "bear with them."

Promises were made to the residents of Nairobi; about the only one that has been kept is ever greater surveillance of the people. The billions being spent on the Safaricom network have gifted us hi-tech surveillance cameras that record our every movement, night and day. But the things that make the lives of residents bearable remain on the back-burner: surface drains need to be fixed; sewers need to be unblocked; public transport needs to be un-fucked; traffic needs an adults-only approach; and small-scale vendors and hawkers need a true market of their own. Both governments have failed nairobians. The visiting delegates, on the other hand, will enjoy all the things Nairobians really need. As it should be, I can hear the self-righteous in the upper echelons of the two governments. Pity.