Cotu secretary general Francis Atwoli has addressed the legal use of a catchphrase associated with him.
Speaking to Jeff Koinange on JKLive, Atwoli said there is nothing wrong with him having the rights to the phrase ‘alaa, alaaa and alaaa” but he is not involved in the decision.
During the interview, Jeff asked, "What happens with this phrase, do you want to copyright it?"
"No. I told you, it is my lawyers who said I should have a trademark for it. Everything has a trademark and lawyers from our offices thought it was unique to me and it was a unique thing that you [Jeff] prompted me to come up with," Atwoli explained.
"My lawyers were happy about it just like others. The other day I was in Mombasa at a nyama choma place and everyone was coming to me saying 'alaa' and wanted to have photos with me saying 'Alaa!' So it's a unique thing."
A few days ago, in an application letter to the Kenya Industrial Property Institute, Atwoli said he intended to use the slogan on clothing, footwear and headgear.
He said the slogan is publicly attributed to him and has no English translation.
"Alaa has no English translation. It is more of a slogan, chant or an exclamation specific and attributed publicly to myself," he said in the application.
Jeff further asked, "So we can use that phrase?"
"Yes, obviously you can. It was here when you, Jeff, was asking questions. That is how it is," Atwoli responded.
The slogan originated during an interview where he was talking about Kenya’s upcoming general election.
"I told you Jeff, I don't know who is going to be the President but I know who is not going to be the President, Alaa Alaa Alaa," Atwoli said.
