It is 10 years now since I committed to contribute an article every Wednesday for the Ideas & Debate section of Business Daily, and out of 520 weeks I have written 505 articles, a 97 percent delivery rate. Many have asked me how a Chemical Engineer domiciled in the energy sector got interested in writing, and how I manage a diverse coverage beyond my petroleum comfort zone. They also wonder where I get time to do all this writing while maintaining a tight consultancy schedule.
My fascination with newspapers began in early 1960s. My father who was active in politics always had newspapers in our Karatina home, and these gave me a special craving for general knowledge which has continued to this day. Those were exciting years of high octane independence politics. Specifically, I have maintained a special loyalty for Daily Nation ever since it first appeared on March 20, 1960. It has remained positive and progressive. In 1966 when in Form Three, I wrote two “letters to the editor” in Daily Nation, and I still keep the cuttings.
