The report examines the crisis in labour markets of both advanced economies and developing economies. The epicentre of the crisis has been the advanced economies, accounting for half of the total increase in unemployment of 28 million since the onset of the crisis.The report estimates the quantitative and qualitative indicators of global and regional labour markets and discusses the macroeconomic factors affecting the labour markets in order to explore possible policy responses. In examining the impact of macroeconomic developments on labour markets, the report looks at negative feedback loops from households, firms, capital markets and public budgets that have weakened labour markets. It finds that macro imbalances have been passed on to the labour market to a significant degree. Weakened by faltering aggregate demand, the labour market has been further hit by fiscal austerity programmes in a number of countries, which often involved direct cutbacks in employment and wages, directly impacting labour markets.
SINCE WHEN DID THE ICEBC ABOLISH THE ENGLISH / KISWAHILI LANGUAGE TEST FOR PARLIAMENTARY AND SENATORIAL ASPIRANTS IN KENYA?
Commentary by Leo Odera Omolo
The concerted effort recently made by the Independent Electoral and boundary Commission{IEBC} to ensure that the candidates aspiring for the elective positions of County governorship have obtained university degrees from the recognized institutions of higher leaning and universities is commendable.
However, we have so far not been told of what happened to the National Language Board, that has always been tasked with the responsibility of conducting tests and interview for the purposes of assessing the communication skills of all those aspiring to be elected into our legislators system.
Have only heard and witnesses candidates aspiring for the parliamentary and senatorial seat being cleared by the IEBC officials to contest the election minus the compulsory certificates of proficiency in both English and Kiswahili languages.
What has happened to the National Language Board. It been abolished? Long before independence in 1963 these language boards were always constituted at the Provincial {PEOs} levels under the supervision of the Provincial Education Officers, whose duties were recently changed and transformed to be the Provincial Directors of Education {PDE}
The Provincial language boards were later replaced by the National Language Board. There were categories of candidates who were automatically exempted from sitting before the board, particularly those armed and equipped diplomas from learning institutions and colleges.
The idea behind these tests were mainly to ensure that those who seek for elections into our legislative bodies were people capable of fo0llowing the proceedings and debates in those bodies.
I have gone through the new constitution, but failed to locate any clause within the sacred document that speaks about the abolition of the National Language Board. And now that under the new constitutional dispensation, Kenya has returned to the tri-cameral parliamentary system, it would be prudent for the IEBC to ensure that those elected to the next parliament and the Senate, should be men and women of high integrity and communication skills.
There are special cases when our legislators are sent to represent Kenyan in the regional and international forums at which communication skills are most essential and compulsorily required to enable our delegates to actively participate in the deliberations of such forums.
In this context, am aware of the |Nyayo eras, during which politically correct individuals were exempted and nominated to serve in parliament and in other bodies irrespective when they were able to follow the proceeding or not. This were the period when the likes of Mulu Mutisya, Ezekiel Bargetuny, Joseph Leitich and other were made MPs by KANU big-wigs.
I happen to be privy and regular attendance at the various regional and international forums including ministerial councils of the African Union or other regional bodies. Kenya had became the laughing stocks attracting derogatory comments by delegates from our neighboring countries, who were wondering why a country like Kenya which is reputed for having excelled in producing more intellectuals and technocrats could send team of mediocre to represent her I n such important forums.
The way I see things happen and in the absence of a competent National Language Board I can accurately predict that the next [parliament could be filled by MPs with half-baked education, academically dwarfs and semi-illiterate legislators. The same could be said of the Senate.
It is only the IEBC which can rescue our country from the impending bug shame. I have heard some of the parliamentary and Senatorial aspirants speaking while arguing their individual cases in connection with the recently flawed political parties preliminary nominations exercises, and I have come into conclusions if these are the same people expected to be voted into our legislators system on March 4, 2013
I am sure for certain that the likes of Mike Mbuvi {Sonko] of Makadara, Mary Wambui of Othaya constituencies just top mention a few example are not sufficiently qualified to sit in the August House.
The 10th parliament had its share of semi-illiterate MPs who sat there fir five years and left without even framing one single question or the supplementary question, leave alone making their maiden speeches in the House owing to language handicaps.
In this age of the dot-com generation we need to move a high notch and deviate from the couture of electing to our supreme legislative bodies people with questionable academic background.
In the 10th parliament we Kenyan should be grateful and thankful to the Speaker of the National Assembly Kenneth Otiato Marende whose skills got us where we are today, because the last parliament faced myriad of constitutional problems during the constitutional dispensations and debates of hundreds of most complicated and important bills related to constitutional advancement.
The former Emuhaya had succeeded in guiding the House to the higher scale of debates despite of the intrigues of the coalition government. I wish the next MPs would be compelled to re-consider Mr.Marende to be given a second chance to serve Kenyans in the same capacity
There only a few regular contributors to these constitutional debates, with good numbers of MPs who sat there and earned millions of shillings from the public coffers without making any meaningful contributions to the debates and deliberations in the House. We should therefore not allow similar situation to arise again. Kenya is not short of the technocrats therefore the voters should be sensitize to cast their votes for only the mature and
The time is also ripe for Kenyans to desist from the political culture voting for heavily moneyed aspirants. It has became evidence that in this country anybody who come u with ill-gotten drugs money makes it easy to Parliament even if such a person have no leadership quality. This makes it clear that Kenyans have become money worshippers.
Let us go for men and women whose integrity and performance would portray our country as the land of dissent men and women. We should know that communication skills is power Anyone who cannot communicate well in any of the two official languages, namely English and Kiswahili has no business seeking to be elected an Mp or a Senator.
This paper is a revised and substantially expanded version of a background note that was prepared for the report on the Youth Employment Crisis: Time for Action that will be presented and deliberated at the 101st session of the International Labour Conference (1 – 14 June 2012).
The authors highlight salient empirical regularities. First, the youth unemployment rate is typically twice the adult unemployment across low, middle and high-income countries. Second, youth employment is much more sensitive to business cycles and policy-induced economic downturns than adult employment. Third, short-run demand shocks mutate into long-run ‘scarring’ effects manifested in reduced employment and earnings opportunities that can last decades. Young people with limited skills and from disadvantaged backgrounds are particularly vulnerable to ‘scarring’ effects.
Walmart’s treatment of its workers is terrible–and now those workers, 70% of whom are women, are fighting back. On Black Friday, an unprecedented strike of Walmart workers will go national. Let’s show Walmart’s workers that we’ve got their backs. Sign our statement of solidarity today.
http://act.weareultraviolet.org/go/362?t=2&akid=229.6000._nbI57
Dear Reader,
Black Friday, the biggest shopping day of the year, is just a few days away. With your help, it could be a huge day in an ongoing workers rights struggle affecting nearly a million women nationwide.
Here’s the back story: In October, 70 Walmart workers walked off the job, the first strike of Walmart workers in the company’s 50 year history. They walked after facing retaliation–threats, suspensions, and firings–for complaints about rock-bottom wages and poor working conditions. But despite having no union and no protections, these brave workers took action.1
On Black Friday, organizers are taking the strike nationwide–to thousands of stores and the nearly one million women who work for Walmart in the U.S.2 An estimated 70% of Walmart’s hourly workforce is women–women like, Monique Velasquez, a single mother of five children. Monique’s hours were cut from 30 a week to eight after becoming active with the strike organizers. As she told the Huffington Post, with those hours, she “can’t even pay one bill. It’s very, very hard.” 3
Now, UltraViolet members can stand with Monique and the hundreds of thousands of other women and men standing up to Walmart this Friday. No company is impervious to public opinion–and for a company like Walmart, which relies on Black Friday to make up a significant portion of its entire holiday sales, bad PR is a killer. By joining the fast-growing movement, led by OUR Walmart and The United Food and Commercial Workers, and supported by Color of Change, Credo Action, and others, we can show Walmart just how many of us stand with their workers–and how many of us won’t be shopping there on Black Friday. It could make a huge difference.
Sign our statement of solidarity with Walmart workers.
http://act.weareultraviolet.org/go/362?t=3&akid=229.6000._nbI57
Walmart is notorious for treating its workers badly, from low wages and terrible working conditions to sex discrimination. Recently, a group of women filed a class-action lawsuit against Walmart, noting, among other things, that women fill 70% of the hourly jobs at the company but make up only 33% of the managers.4
And according to an article in USA Today, in the past two years, “Walmart has twice raised the number of hours that part-time employees need to qualify for health benefits. Wage caps begun about six years ago block raises for some longtime employees in the same jobs. And some workers say the company’s work-scheduling system limits their hours below what they need to qualify for benefits and produces such widely varying schedules that it’s difficult to take a second job to make ends meet.”5
Walmart is the largest retailer in the world, and a major employer of women in the U.S. Their policies impact millions of people–employees and their families. Thanks to the bravery of those 70 workers who walked off the job in Los Angeles, Walmart employees now have a chance to make a real impact on how they are treated.
And we have a chance to help them. Organizers are encouraging supporters to speak out on Facebook, Twitter, and other social network sites, and other organizations are circulating statements of support ahead of Black Friday. Let’s join them, and show Walmart that while they might be a huge company, they can’t get away with treating their workers this way.
Sign our statement of support for Walmart workers.
http://act.weareultraviolet.org/go/362?t=4&akid=229.6000._nbI57
Thanks for speaking out,
Nita, Shaunna, Kat, and Karin, the UltraViolet team
Sources:
1. Walmart Strike: Dozens Of LA Workers Walk Off The Job In First-Ever Strike Against Retailer, Huffington Post, Oct. 4, 2012
2. Walmart Black Friday Strike Being Organized Online For Stores Across U.S., Huffington Post, Nov. 9, 2012
3. Walmart Employs 1% Of America. Should It Be Forced To Pay Its Employees More? Business Insider, Sept. 20, 2010
Walmart Ruling is Major Setback for Workers’ Rights, Time, June 21, 2011
4. Ibid.
5. Some Walmart workers want better wages, affordable benefits, USA Today, June 8, 2012
A Kisumu based Non Governmental Organization has embarked on training of local journalists on how best to use media coverage as a means to secure fair and peaceful election ahead of the March 2013 general elections.
Local Capacities for Peace International LCPI which is funded by UKAID targets to train over 100 journalists based in Kisumu City in a bid aimed at ensuring the lake side City which was rocked by post election violence that saw many people lose their lives and several others displaced does not go through the same orgy of violence it witnessed in 2008.
Speaking during a one day workshop organized for the scribes at a Kisumu hotel the LCPI project officer Ms Rosemary Onunga said failure by the media to censure some of the statements made at political rallies to drum up support for various presidential candidate in the last elections by some leaders was partly the reason for the election related violence that rocked the nation in 2008.
Onunga called on those covering election to ensure materials that can whip up tribal animosity or constitute hate speech are not aired or published by media houses as a way of stopping rogue politicians from inciting people to engage in acts of violence.
The officers observed that although journalists are part of the society they work in, most organizations sideline them in efforts to bring peace and only invite reporters to their functions as away of transmitting what they have to say to the public.
” This approach is wrong because news men are part and parcel of the communities they live and work in and they should be fully involved in peace building initiatives throughout just like we do with other stakeholders;” she pointed out.
Its generally believed by most Kenyans that the media especially the vernacular radio stations and a section of the print media together with the electronic were reckless in the manner in which they covered events leading to and after the 2008 election whose results were disputed.
She said her organization was willing to sponsor journalists to do stories that will enhance peace initiatives in the region adding that apart from the media practitioners LCPI was already engaging with various security agencies in Kisumu and local political leadership to discuss how peaceful campaigns and electrons can be secured.
Kisumu has lately been in the news for the wrong reasons. Not long ago groups operating like those proscribed by the government were locked in a bitter war of supremacy which saw a number of their members hunted and arrested by the police.
And last week a prominent politician cum businessman Onyango Kwega was gunned down by three armed criminals an incident that sparked immediate protests throughout the City that left business and transport paralyzed for days.
Already there is fear amongst the City residents and the business community that if not checked violence is likely to rock the area as polls approaches with non confirmed reports indicating that some people are believed be considering or relocating for fear of the chaos .
The Judiciary is set to hold a two-day media workshop in Nairobi from today as part of its efforts to open up to the media and enhance effective reporting of the ongoing transformation in the Kenyan courts.
The two-day workshop will bring together more than 250 journalists drawn from the state – owned Kenya News Agency (KNA) and members of the Kenya Correspondents Association (KCA) drawn from all the 47 counties, Kenya’s new governance units.
In a communication to the journalists invited to the conference, the Director, Public Affairs and Communications at the Judiciary, Naim Yaseen Bilal said the workshop was part of the efforts “to make the institution more accessible to the public”.
“The Judiciary is transforming as part of its efforts to live up to the dictates of the Constitution of Kenya 2010. Many of its aspects and approaches are changing,” he added.
The workshop, organized by the Judiciary in collaboration with the Ministry of Information and Communications and Kenya Correspondents Association, is expected to herald the start of a sustained engagement between the Judiciary and the two institutions and journalists based in the counties to enhance effective and accurate reporting of judicial matters.
“We are convinced that a sustained engagement between the media and the Judiciary will enhance public confidence in the courts and improve service delivery to the ordinary Kenyans. Journalists will also have their capacity built to improve the reporting of court proceedings and related judicial processes,” said Oloo Janak, the KCA Chair in a statement.
During the two day workshop, media experts and judicial officers will discuss among others, the ongoing Transformation of the Judiciary, the Experiences, Challenges and Opportunities of Reporting the New Judiciary and Building partnerships between the Media and the Judiciary.
The journalists will also give the experiences and challenges they have faced in reporting the judiciary in the past and make recommendations on how to improve their interaction with and access to information from the judiciary.
Over 200 Chiefs and Assistant chiefs of Kisumu County took to the street of Kisumu City protesting to petition the government on their fate of work under the new Constitution.
“We want to know our job security from President Mwai Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga who were the team leaders during the referendum campaigns”, said the chiefs.
Lead by the Chairman of Kisumu County Chiefs ,Senior chief Mr. Peter Akeyo Nyambok claimed that the fate of provincial administration is yet to be restructured but the government have not declare whether the local chiefs will retain their jobs or not.
According to the new constitution, the law indicate that the “Provincial Administration system will be restructured”. This, however have not been clearly explained in the constitution whether the local administration system will be abolished or not.
“We were convinced and cheated by politicians during the referendum to mobilize the public to vote for the new constitution promising that our work will be safe,” said Nyambok.
The chiefs threatened to join national strike if the government fails to assure them of their work under the new constitution. “We demand the National Administration and Coordination Bill of 2012 be amended in parliament within 14 days,” they argued.
Nyambok said the provincial administration system should remain in the National Government to facilitate and coordinate effective work in the 47 counties.
“It is the chiefs who enable service delivery to reach residents up to the village level,” they argued adding that if the system is abolished then ordinary people especially the physically challenged persons will be marginalized.
The chiefs challenged politicians to desist from discussing provincial administration issues in public rallies and funeral gatherings to gain mileage but urged them to amend the issues in parliament.
“We are aware that the public overwhelmingly supported the retention of the local administration for effective service delivery,” said the chiefs.
Nyambok further accused some members of committee of experts who have fixed negative opinion on the roles of provincial administration terming it bad taste on the line of their duty and department.
“Our detractors should know that we are also voters and have direct link with the Kenyan votes,” he said, adding that members of the public should be left to decide on their fate than few individuals with vested interest.
However, the Secretary General of Kenya Civil Servant Union, Kisumu County Mr. David Osodo said the union is fully behind the chiefs in demand to know their fate of work in the new dispensation.
Osodo said the government should come out clearly and address the plight of the Provincial Administration instead of giving conflicting statements over the matter.
“Let the government prepare for nationwide strike if the provincial administration issue is not well addressed before the end of strike notice issued,” Osodo reiterated.
We are headed to the right direction and President Obama is right……It cannot be said better than the attached videos….. Being the first Black President, having taken the country from the brink of collapse with a burden that accumulated for about more than 30 Years; he worked hard to put the country on the right track; benefits of which will be reaped for many years to come. The result is not showing perfection not yet because those plans that has been planted by President Obama and team has to take full turn to be effective. It has to permeate every fiber and tendrils and fizzle through every limb of economic veins to make alive parts that were already frozen and collapsed so that economy bounce can be fully felt by everyone and also that it in effect remain stable and sustainable even more effective for a very long time.
The driver of the Reform that provided the improvement cannot be thrown out to bring a new driver; not just yet…….Why?……….It is because the economy is still too weak to be played around-with by those who brought us into this mess in the first place. This is the very reason why President Obama should be given a second chance to complete what he started and so to give America a Clean Bill of Good Health. This must be done if we want the change to get better so life can be of meaning to all of us in a balance where every one has a shot for opportunity to improve their own lifestyles. This is a structure for Peace and Unity people……….it reduces reasons to conflict, hate and animosity because there is not need to fight when people have equal opportunity for access to what they need without discrimination racial biasness or the Rich get richer and the Poor Poorer…….
President Obama is offering the best leadership across the whole world effects of which will soon be felt and manifested by all immediately when Peace and unity abounds and conflicts conclusively resolved……This is why he is different from all other Presidents and may we all give Credit to where Credit is due…….Obama is working for all of us……..
Cheers everybody…….
Judy Miriga
Diaspora Spokesperson
Executive Director
Confederation Council Foundation for Africa Inc.,
USA
http://socioeconomicforum50.blogspot.com
– – – – – – – – – – –
Martin Bashir – Romney, job ‘truthers’ cry foul after positive jobs report
Published on Oct 5, 2012 by Licentiathe8th
Oct 5, 2012
MSNBC analyst Jonathan Alter and Democratic strategist Julian Epstein pick apart mounting conspiracy theories about today’s jobs report — promulgated by some Republicans and conservative pundits — that say President Obama somehow doctored the numbers.
very informative , and honest journalism. Thank? you.
storm10862 days ago
The ED Show – The death of a talking point….Bilo 8%
Published on Oct 5, 2012 by Licentiathe8th
Oct 5, 2012
For years Republicans have been attacking President Obama for not getting the unemployment rate below eight percent. But with today’s news, their attack is officially dead. Tonight Ed Schultz takes a look back at some of their greatest hits with Democratic strategist Chris Kofinis.
This? is 7.8% beautiful to watch
Tyrone Thrower44 minutes ago
We need to flush boehner and his henchmen out of congress to keep? unemployment on the low.
koukimonzta1 day ago
It looks like the Dem. will take the Senate. The House is a problem. Another lame duck Congress… you’d think people would be sick of seeing the Republicans blocking everything by now.
This was good news of course. ? But unless the Dem. take the House its all a moot point as nothing will get done even with Obama winning.
FuzzyBunnyCursing2 days ago
The Last Word – Rewriting the debate: Nobody won
Published on Oct 5, 2012 by Licentiathe8th
Oct 4, 2012
The political media covers presidential debates as if they are sporting events. MSNBC’s Lawrence explains why that’s a big mistake in the latest Rewrite.
OMFG ROFLMFAO!!!!
That was a perfect analogy and 100% correct!?
9753flyer2 days ago
This is truly a great video…Please listen and watch this one..all of it..But, watch the last 20 seconds…Those last 20 seconds are incredible…thanks for? posting…this is a great one..
quite outstanding..and I have seen hundreds of the….Stuart
stuartarticles2 days ago
The Last Word – Obama mocks Romney’s ‘crackdown’ on Big Bird
Published on Oct 5, 2012 by Licentiathe8th
Oct 4, 2012
Mitt Romney wants to try and balance the budget by getting rid of Big Bird which will save exactly a miniscule fraction of the federal budget. MSNBC’s Lawrence O’Donnell gets analysis from TheGrio.com’s Joy Reid.
Chris Hayes Takes Us Through The Looking Glass Of Republican (Mitt Romney) Fuzzy Tax Math
Published on Oct 6, 2012 by incitebytes
Clip from October 6, 2012, Up with Chris Hayes where Chris takes a moment to take us through the looking glass of Republican fuzzy tax math. Chris clearly explains why presidential candidate Mitt Romney’s statements literally don’t add up when it comes to the looming tax bonanza for rich folk under Romney’s policies.
The ED Show – Mitt Romney’s Big Bird problem
Published on Oct 5, 2012 by Licentiathe8th
Oct 5, 2012
Mitt Romney continues to feel the heat for saying that he’d gut federal funding for PBS. Ed Schultz and MSNBC analyst Karen Finney discuss what Romney’s cuts would really mean.
honor student since 1995, thanks Sesame Street?
devmanification2 days ago
The ED Show – Romney gets big boost from coal company
Published on Oct 5, 2012 by Licentiathe8th
Oct 5, 2012
Mitt Romney is getting a big boost from a major coal company. According to a new report from The New Republic, Murray Energy CEO Robert Murray makes his salaried employees give to Republican candidates as well as the company PAC. The New Republic’s Alec MacGillis tells Ed Schultz what he learned about this prominent coal company.
Nothing from Bob Fatass Murray should surprise anyone.?
MsZeitgeist852 days ago 4
poor coal miners? had to attend that shit rally for Romney..that is criminal.. the boss is a criminal
xadam2dudex2 days ago 2
For those who don’t know who Bob Murray is go watch TYT’s story on the Utah mine collapse. ?
MsZeitgeist8513 hours ago
Theres no such thing as “clean coal”. Thats? an outright lie.
obamasmomma691 day ago
Osama Dead? GM Alive -Obama 2012
JewsChristiansUnited11 minutes ago
Obama on jobs report: We’ve “come too far to turn back now”
By Lindsey Boerma /
CBS News/ October 5, 2012, 1:45 PM
President Obama speaks at a campaign event at George Mason University, Friday, Oct. 5, 2012, in Fairfax, Va. / AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster
Celebrating a September jobs report that showed the lowest unemployment level since he took office, President Obama on Friday tried to make the case at a Fairfax, Va., rally that “this country has come too far to turn back now.”
The Labor Department announced Friday that employers added 114,000 jobs last month, and the unemployment rate fell to 7.8 percent – a welcome gift for the president, up against newfound momentum from GOP nominee Mitt Romney. Positive news about Americans finding work could help to tip the scale in the incumbent’s favor, something Mr. Obama half-joked about Friday.
Obama on jobs report: We’ve come “too far to turn back now”
“For the ‘undecideds’ who are here,” he said to laughter in the crowd, “as well as those who are watching today – I’ve said before, this is a choice not just between two candidates and two parties, but a choice between two fundamentally different visions for America. And today, I believe that as a nation, we are moving forward again. We’re moving forward again.”
While the president acknowledged there are still “too many of our friends and neighbors” looking for work, he argued, “they were struggling long before the crisis hit.”
“Today’s news certainly is not an excuse to try to talk down the economy to score a few political points,” he continued after talking up the jobs numbers for a minute and a half. “It’s a reminder that this country has come too far to turn back now.”
Mr. Obama also continued to mock Romney’s performance Wednesday at the first presidential debate – which pundits have largely awarded to the GOP nominee – calling his policy arguments an “extreme makeover” from his primary platform.
Obama: Romney “fact-checked by his own campaign”
After Romney claimed in the debate that he’d cover preexisting conditions under his health care plan, the president said, “I explained, ‘Well actually your plan doesn’t do that.’ And then his campaign has to come out and say, ‘Actually, that’s not true, our plan wouldn’t do that.’ So Gov. Romney was fact-checked by his own campaign. That’s rough.”
And though Romney on Thursday night called “completely wrong” a remark he made privately that 47 percent of Americans are dependent on government and consider themselves “victims,” Mr. Obama didn’t let up on the comments, saying Romney proved he is “willing to write off half the nation” before even taking office. He also kept up his ridicule of Romney’s promise to cut federal funding to PBS as a way to bring down the deficit.
“For all you moms and kids out there, don’t worry,” Mr. Obama said, “somebody is finally getting tough on Big Bird… Elmo’s gotta watch out too. Gov. Romney plans to let Wall Street run wild again, but he’s going to bring down the hammer on Sesame Street.”
Romney to slam Obama foreign policy: ‘Hope is not a strategy’
By Holly Bailey, Yahoo! News
Senior Political ReporterThe Ticket
LEXINGTON, Va.—Looking to bolster his foreign policy credentials in the final weeks before Election Day, Mitt Romney will accuse President Barack Obama of “passive leadership” in the Middle East and will link last month’s deadly attack on the United States consulate in Libya to a larger critique of what he’ll describe as Obama’s failed leadership overseas.
“Hope is not a strategy,” Romney will argue in a Monday morning address at the Virginia Military Institute, according to excerpts released by his campaign.
Romney will use his speech to double down on his criticism of the Obama administration’s response on the attack in Libya, which claimed the life of Ambassador Chris Stevens. The Romney team is hoping to capitalize on what they believe is the Obama administration’s misstep in pointing to an anti-Islamic video as the trigger for last month’s attack as well as criticism over whether the attack could have been stopped in the first place by beefing up security at its overseas outpost.
“The attacks on America last month should not be seen as random acts. They are expressions of a larger struggle that is playing out across the broader Middle East–a region that is now in the midst of the most profound upheaval in a century. And the fault lines of this struggle can be seen clearly in Benghazi itself,” Romney will say, according to his campaign.
He will argue the attack in Benghazi was “likely the work of the same forces that attacked our homeland” during the 9/11 attacks 11 years ago.
“This latest assault cannot be blamed on a reprehensible video insulting Islam, despite the administration’s attempts to convince us of that for so long,” Romney will say. “No, as the administration has finally conceded, these attacks were the deliberate work of terrorists who use violence to impose their dark ideology on others, especially women and girls; who are fighting to control much of the Middle East today; and who seek to wage perpetual war on the West.”
Romney will also use the speech to offer new details on his overseas approach. Among other things, he is expected to call for more direct intervention in Syria, arguing that anti-government forces should have weapons. He will also call for the U.S. to be tougher on Iran, saying that if he’s elected president he will “not hesitate to impose new sanctions” on the country to stop the country from acquiring nuclear capabilities.
The speech comes as Romney tries again to gain advantage over what he has repeatedly described as Obama’s “weak” and “naïve” foreign policy approach. But it also comes as Romney tries to clean up his own perceived foreign policy missteps, including his own widely criticized response to the attacks in Libya, in which he accused Obama of sympathizing with those who had launched the attacks there on and on diplomatic missions overseas.
Romney is also still trying to undo damage from an overseas trip he took in July that was largely overshadowed by his suggestion that London hadn’t done enough to prepare for the Summer Olympics and by a swipe at Palestinians, whom he suggestion hadn’t moved ahead economically because of their culture.
On Sunday, the Obama campaign used the trip to preemptively attack Romney’s speech.
“We’re not going to be lectured by someone who has been an unmitigated disaster on foreign policy every time he’s dipped his toe in the foreign policy waters,” spokeswoman Jen Psaki told reporters aboard Air Force One as Obama launched a West Coast fundraising swing.
‘The only person who has offended Europe more is probably Chevy Chase,” Psaki added in an apparent nod to “National Lampoon’s European Vacation.”
Romney has come under criticism from both Democrats and Republicans for not offering enough details on what his foreign policy approach would be if he wins the White House. In previewing the speech Sunday, Romney aides argued he would offer “new details” on what his approach would be, but it was unclear exactly how far he would go in detailing exact policies.
“We’ve gotten various excuses about Benghazi, statements that (the White House) had to pull back from,” Eliot Cohen, a former adviser to George W. Bush who is now advising Romney, told reporters Sunday. “But you haven’t had an attempt to portray: What’s going on here? How should we think about it? What should we do about it? Gov. Romney’s going to do step forward and do the kind of things he would do as president–which is to lay out exactly those things.”
But the excerpts of his speech included points that Romney has previously made before on the campaign trail, arguing the country’s overseas leadership has diminished under Obama’s watch.
“I believe that if America does not lead, others will–others who do not share our interests and our values–and the world will grow darker, for our friends and for us. America’s security and the cause of freedom cannot afford four more years like the last four years,” Romney will say, according to excerpts. “I am running for president because I believe the leader of the free world has a duty, to our citizens, and to our friends everywhere, to use America’s great influence–wisely, with solemnity and without false pride, but also firmly and actively–to shape events in ways that secure our interests, further our values, prevent conflict, and make the world better–not perfect, but better.”
Olivier Knox contributed reporting from Los Angeles.
Obama: 7.8% unemployment rate means U.S. has come too far to turn back now
11:38 AM, October 5, 2012
Associated Press
President Barack Obama says an encouraging jobs report shows that the country has made too much progress to turn back to the policies that he says led the nation into an economic crisis.
Obama got much-needed good news today following his disappointing debate performance as the unemployment rate dropped to 7.8%. That’s the lowest it’s been since he took office in 2009.
At a campaign event in suburban Washington, Obama said the report was “a reminder that this country has come too far to turn back now.”
Cheers erupted from the crowd at George Mason University in Fairfax, Va., when Obama noted that the jobless rate is now at its lowest level since he became president.
Republican rival Mitt Romney says Obama still hasn’t done enough to create jobs.
Teachers are the backbone of any society, and education is the means to progressive development success story. Educational system must be handled with atmost due care engaging diverse opinion consultation and dialogue for its improvement and competitiveness but must not be allowed to be treated to serve divergence special interest or a short-cut to enrich some special interest aims…….
Cheers everybody……..!!!
Judy Miriga
Diaspora Spokesperson
Executive Director
Confederation Council Foundation for Africa Inc.,
USA
http://socioeconomicforum50.blogspot.com
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Chicago Teachers Vote to End Strike
By MATTHEW JAFFE | Good Morning America –
Chicago’s first teachers strike in 25 years will come to an end after a week and a half when the teachers union’s delegates today decided to return to school Wednesday.
Public school teachers emerged from a delegates meeting this evening and revealed that a huge majority had elected to suspend a walk-out that had dragged on for seven school days and featured bitter disagreements between teachers and the city of Chicago.
It had appeared that the strike was nearing an end Sunday, after both sides said Friday that they had settled on the framework for a new labor agreement. But to the surprise of many, the teachers decided to stay on strike Sunday, claiming that they needed more time to assess the deal.
The move infuriated Mayor Rahm Emanuel, who filed an injunction Monday to end the strike. However, Emanuel’s move was not successful and it took until the delegates’ meeting today for the union to call off the walk-out on their own terms.
The strike, the city’s first in more than two decades, had kept some 29,000 public school teachers and 350,000 students out of the classroom. For the last week and a half, students had gone to “safe haven” sites during the school day.
The two main sticking points in the talks had been the city’s new proposed teacher evaluation system and the process for re-hiring laid off teachers.
The teachers’ union had argued that the proposed evaluation system would emphasize students’ standardized test scores too heavily and unfairly penalize teachers, while the district countered that the system already includes input from teachers and can be adjusted to change the weighting of the test scores.
In the end that is just what the district did, reducing the emphasis on student testing and making the evaluation system more forgiving for teachers.
The negotiations featured a bitter back-and-forth battle between Emanuel, whom the teachers portrayed as a bully, and union president Karen Lewis, whom the city denounced for overseeing what they felt was an unnecessary strike.
After the teachers elected to return to school, Lewis told reporters that “we feel very positive about moving forward” and “grateful that we have a united union.” Lewis said “98 percent” of the delegates at the meeting today wanted to return to school.
Lewis said that while the strike is suspended, teachers have not officially signed off on the new deal. It could take up to two weeks for the union’s members to do so, she said, but the decision to end the strike was a clear-cut one.
Emanuel praised the proposed contract as one that will really help Chicago’s children.
“This settlement is an honest compromise,” he said at an evening press conference following the teachers’ announcement. “It means returning our schools to their primary purpose: the education of our children. It means a new day and a new direction for Chicago public schools. In this contract we gave our children a seat at the table.
“In past negotiations taxpayers paid more but our kids got less,” he said. “This time our taxpayers are paying less and our kids are getting more.”
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Karibu Jukwaa la www.mwanabidii.com
Pata nafasi mpya za Kazi www.kazibongo.blogspot.com
Blogu ya Habari na Picha www.patahabari.blogspot.com
Tension is building up in the small farming town of Awendo in Migori County after the dozens of the Council workers threatened to down their tools in protest against the newly posted Town Clerk.
The workers had mobilized themselves and locked the gate to the Council offices ,which are located in Awendo Town. They insisted that the new Town Clerk a Mr. Alia was not welcome in the Council on allegation and accusations that he is a non-performer.
Alila a former Mbita Town Clerk swabbed the position with the former long serving Awendo Town Clerk who has been transferred to Luanda Town Council in Western Province.
According to impeccable sources within Awendo, the issue had divided the civic leaders in Awendo Council right in the middle with half of them in solidarity with the protesting workers, while the other half had accepted the new Town Clerk.
There were unconfirmed allegations and rumors that money had changed had. Three of the Councilors said to have been compromised, it was reported had secretly traveled with the new Town Clerk to Nairobi where hey pleaded with the Ministry of their acceptance of the new chief officer. While the other were I solidarity with the chairman of the Council Johnson Omolo Owiro
The Councilor who were reported to have traveled to Nairobi to persuade the Ministry to stand their ground and withheld their posting included Adera Awene {Nominated]. Roselyne Arucho [ [Sakwa East} and Martin Ondong’ {Sakwa South}
Both teams made hastily arranged trips to the Ministry headquarters in Nairobi and after what is e believed to be widely consultations it was resolved that the new Town Clerk be accepted by he Council. This, according to sources was only after the intervention of both the Awendo D.C. and the Minister for Public Services Dalmas Otieno, who is the incumbent MP for Rongo constituency in whose jurisdiction Awendo Town Council falls under.
But finally the new Town Clerk Alia was driven into the Council offices by he Nyanza Provincial Local Government Officer {PLGO} who is based in Kisumu under tight security.
Alila, who hails from Suna East near Migori, according to reports had previously served in the same capacity in the nearby Migori Municipality was served in the same capacity, but was ejected from there under very controversial circumstances following the allegation that he is a non-performer . Alila had also served in Rongo Town, Kehancha and other local authorities within the region.
The Awendo Town Council workers are also up in arms demanding for the immediate transfer of the Town Treasure Pete Aoro arguing that he was another non-performer and that the positions of the Councl the Chief officer could be filled with’ Deadwoods”.
The have workers urged the Ministry to post the right men for the job or else they would what they termed as the mother of all protests and strikes in the near future if the government continued dumping only chief officers who have already been rejected and rejected by other local authorities.
Find email below that may be of interest to you or your family and friends. Kindly circulate widely.
Carol
– – – – – – – – – – –
Begin forwarded message:
From: Ivan
Date: 14 September 2012 17:05:09 GMT+02:00
Subject: Teaching jobs in Rwanda
Teachers needed In Rwanda
The government of Rwanda is recruiting teachers for the mentorship program in public schools . Interested qualified teachers visit this link for details. http://www.tutorsinkigali.com/government-jobs.html
Also private schools are currently carrying on recruitment. Interested candidates can visit this link.
http://www.tutorsinkigali.com/teaching-vacancies.html
If you’ve had to call a major company for a service repair or to get an answer to a question about your cable bill, chances are you’ve probably spoken with a worker in a different time zone or on a different continent.
That’s because big companies have been shipping U.S. call center jobs overseas for years. But when these companies send call center jobs abroad, they don’t just frustrate consumers—they hurt our economy as well.
With so many unemployed citizens right here in the United States, it just doesn’t make sense to ship these jobs overseas.
According to an analysis conducted by the Communications Workers of America (CWA), there are at least 167,000 call center jobs in Ohio. We have an obligation to take care of American workers and American industry first. It’s commonsense, and it’s the best way to move our economy forward and reduce our deficit.
That’s why I’m supporting the United States Call Center Worker and Consumer Protection Act of 2012. This bill would help both American workers and consumers.
Consumers have the right to know where their call is being handled, just like consumers know the country-of-origin for products. That’s why this legislation would require companies to disclose to callers when their calls are transferred abroad.
This legislation will also stop giving American tax dollars to big businesses that ship call center jobs overseas. Why should we hand over federal grants or loans to companies that hand over American jobs to other countries?
By directing the Department of Labor to provide the public with a list of companies that shutter their doors in America to hang up their “open-for-business” signs overseas, this legislation will allow Americans to decide for themselves which companies will receive their business.
Finally, this legislation would require federal agencies – including the Department of Defense – to give preference to U.S. employers that remain open here at home.
We aren’t powerless when it comes to creating American jobs. And that’s what the United States Call Center Worker and Consumer Protection Act of 2012 does. It’s an important and simple step that we can take to continue turning our economy around.
The stakes are high. We must do everything we can to support American workers.
Sincerely,
Sherrod Brown
U.S. Senator
Senator Brown’s Offices
Washington, D.C.
713 Hart Senate Building
Washington, DC 20510
p (202) 224-2315
f (202) 228-6321
Columbus
200 N High St.
Room 614
Columbus, OH 43215
p (614) 469-2083
f (614) 469-2171
Toll Free
1-888-896-OHIO (6446)
(or at least you could be if Romney and Ryan are elected)
Possible reasons for termination:
The Romney-Ryan budget would kill 1 million U.S. jobs in 2013
To give more to the rich, Romney and Ryan would raise taxes on the middle class—tanking the economy and killing jobs
Romney is proposing to give even bigger tax breaks to corporations that outsource jobs Will you help us share 1 million pink slip messages today so voters know what to expect if Romney and Ryan are elected?
Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan are the dream ticket for the 1%. But their plan to give even more to the rich would be disastrous for the economy. We’re distributing 1 million pink slips this week to show voters just how many jobs Romney and Ryan would cost us in the first year alone. Can you share this pink slip message with everyone you know?
Romney & Ryan: Don’t hire them, unless you want them to fire you.
Sources:
1. “Ryan’s budget cuts would cost jobs,” The Economic Policy Institute Blog, March 21, 2012
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=278656&id=49016-21095459-CJjhZVx&t=3
2. “Five Times Mitt Romney Has Embraced The Ryan Budget,” ThinkProgress, August 11, 2012
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=278984&id=49016-21095459-CJjhZVx&t=4
3. “Study: Romney tax plan would result in cuts for rich, higher burden for others,” Washington Post, August 1, 2012
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=278241&id=49016-21095459-CJjhZVx&t=5
4. “Romney’s Bain Capital invested in companies that moved jobs overseas,” Washington Post, June 21, 2012
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=278985&id=49016-21095459-CJjhZVx&t=6
5. “Romney’s Tax Plan May Cost U.S. As Many As 800,000 Jobs: Report,” Huffington Post, July 17, 2012
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=278610&id=49016-21095459-CJjhZVx&t=7
Want to support our work? We’re entirely funded by our 7 million members—no corporate contributions, no big checks from CEOs. And our tiny staff ensures that small contributions go a long way. Chip in here.
BY MOVEON.ORG POLITICAL ACTION, http://pol.moveon.org/. Not authorized by any candidate or candidate’s committee.
As Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has been practiced in many different ways, this book tries to present Asian context by investigating how CSR activities has been impacting people on the ground. The book provides case studies from China, South Korea, India and Indonesia, disclosing the ugly face of CSR. The biggest problem with CSR is not that it has limitations, nor is it concerning its questionable ability to sufficiently address the problems it intends to ameliorate. Rather, it is the fact that it takes people to a completely wrong direction.
For many large corporations, CSR is primarily a strategy to divert attention away from the negative social and environmental impacts of their activities. In the Asian context, CSR mostly involves activities like adopting villages for what they call a ‘holistic development’, in which they provide medical and sanitation facilities, build school and houses, and helping villagers become self-reliant by teaching them vocational and business skills. Such corporate strategies have been effectively hegemonic, providing a strong legitimacy and license for corporations to sustain the exploitation of human and natural resources. More importantly, it leads people to wrongly assume that the business houses, and not the states, are responsible for citizens’ basic rights to better education, clean water, healthcare, etc. It disciplines the un-informed poor motivating them to behave in ways that make state regulation obsolete, while leaving them at the mercy of market forces.
Ohio is home to more than 890,000 veterans, making our state the nation’s sixth-largest population of veterans.
Despite their service, an unacceptably high number of veterans struggle to find work. Just as we invest in our servicemembers while they’re on the battlefield, we should do the same when they return home.
That’s why it’s imperative that we do a better job of connecting veterans with the support resources they deserve.
Among them is the Veterans Retraining Assistance Program (VRAP), a joint Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and Department of Labor training initiative that is a component of the recently passed VOW to Hire Heroes Act. VRAP provides unemployed veterans between the ages of 35 and 60 the opportunity to pursue training for new careers in high demand occupations. From welders, to paralegals, to teacher’s aides, VRAP offers wide ranging opportunities for veterans seeking work.
However, as the program is limited to 99,000 participants through March 31, 2014–and with the first wave of enrollment closing at the end of September– it’s crucial that Ohio’s veterans apply quickly for these vital benefits. It’s our duty to Ohio’s heroes that we spread the word to all eligible participants.
Eligible veterans must be at least 35 but no more than 60 years of age; unemployed; received an other than dishonorable discharge; not eligible for any other VA education benefit program; not receiving VA compensation due to being unemployed; and not enrolled in a federal or state job training program.
Veterans can also find work through the Justice Department’s new initiative, “Vets to COPS” (Community Oriented Policing Services). This program, which is a component of the Department of Justice’s Cops Hiring Program (CHP), requires that all new officers hired through the program must be military veterans that have served at least 180 days of active military service, any part of which occurred on or after September 11, 2001.
While too many police departments across our state have had to lay off police officers due to budget challenges, too many recently-returned veterans have struggled to find work. These men and women who fought to keep our country safe shouldn’t have to fight for a job when they come home.
“Vets to COPS” is a critical investment in the people who devote their lives to protecting Ohioans—both as members of our Armed Forces and as law enforcement officers. Finally, it’s crucial that word spreads regarding the U.S Department of Transportation and VA’s new websites designed to help military veterans find jobs in the transportation industry. The websites will link to the Veterans Transportation Career Center, where veterans can enter their specific military work experience and see how it translates to jobs in the civilian transportation industry.
The site will guide veterans to jobs in five positions from aviation pilot, aviation maintenance technician, air traffic controller, commercial motor vehicle driver, and emergency medical services. Veterans seeking work can find what training and certification is needed for civilian jobs, determine what career fits best with their background, and search for available jobs in their field. The portals are available at www.dot.gov and www.va.gov.
Our servicemembers and veterans deserve our nation’s full support. And at the very least, they deserve elected officials who are willing to put partisan battles aside to ensure that returning veterans have jobs to ease their transition into civilian life.
My constituent services office – which you can reach by calling 216-522-7272 – stands prepared to help Ohio veterans receive the support they need. As a member of the Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, I’m committed to ensuring veterans have the tools they need to find employment.
Sincerely,
Sherrod Brown
U.S. Senator
Senator Brown’s Offices
Washington, D.C.
713 Hart Senate Building
Washington, DC 20510
p (202) 224-2315
f (202) 228-6321
Columbus
200 N High St.
Room 614
Columbus, OH 43215
p (614) 469-2083
f (614) 469-2171
Toll Free
1-888-896-OHIO (6446)
TOP UNION OFFICIALS IN Kenya have scathingly lashed out at a scribe who was recently involved in posting clandestine, concocted and subversive article to the websites ad social media sites which meant deliberately aimed at to tarnishing and discrediting the name of the hard working COTU {K} Secretary-General Francis Atwoli.
The anonymous author of the article which was posted to the African Press International {AIP} which is published in Oslo, Norway by a Kenyan journalist.
The author alleged that Mr Atwoli had taken street urchins and bogus journalists with him to Geneva during the annual convention meeting of the International Labor Organization purporting them to be genuine journalists fro Kenya, and his action had disappointed the authorities in Switzerland.
I further alleged that the bogus journalist were never sanction by the Kenya Union of Journalist {KUJ} the main umbrella of journalists in Kenya Our investigations has revealed that KUJ is an affiliate of COTU {K}.
The author of the maliciously damaging article had cowardly hidden his or her true identity while masquerading as the KUJ spokesman exposing his or her ill-motive towards Mr. Atwoli a highly respected unionist who has since taking over the mantle of COTU {K} has turned around the workers welfare.
Atwoli has contributed a lot the workers welfare making COTU {K} to be one of the most vibrant labor movements in Africa. This is who he is now wearing several hats in the labor movement not only I African continent, and beyond but also in the international labor movement. All the achievement and gains made in Kenya’s labor movement is as the result of Mr Atwoli’s untainted reputation, nearly all top unionist from all over Africa had travelled and conserved in Kisumu to witness the occasion during which Atwoli and his ea of lineup were returned to the9r offices unanimously and unanimously re-elected unopposed, signifying how the COTU [K} boss enjoyed the confidence of workers in Kenya and beyond.
In fact the annual gathering convened by COTU was a true Pan-Africanist Trade Union’s Convention in he true sense of the word, because all members of the Organization African
Judging from the crude language and poor English with which the article is written, its presentation and style is telling a lot about the academic background and professional ethics of the author.
One might be credibly tempted to suspect that the author is working in cohort of some disgruntled elements from within COTU hierarchy. If not so then he is a yellow scribe of the fifth column, who is envious about the few journalist whom ere lucky enough to have been picked by Atwoli and sponsored for the Geneva trip.
Alternatively this article could be attributed to be the work of one uncouth scribe within Kisumu who is well known for thriving on extortion. The semi-illiterate scribe his had to brush shoulder with the forces of law reinforcement for his lust for free money which has on occasions has landed him in courts for varied offences ranging from extortion, demanding money with menaces, attempted. The scribe’s excessive lust for fee money has put him in a very awkward position and at odd among his professional colleagues.
The suspect journalist is a frequent visitor to Kisumu Airport, especially during weekends where he always laying ambush to politicians returning home for the weekends. He is also the most regular at the departure lounge on Sundays sweet-talking to politicians, particularly moneyed MPs from Western Kenya trying to lay his hands on the residues left in their pockets after tiresome weekend activities in their respective rural constituencies.
Maybe Francis Atwoli the generous top trade has put in place some kind of economic embargo and no longer parting with handouts money, thus inviting the wrath of his former friend turned enemy. Who knows? However, leading players in labor movement in Kenya interviewed roundly condemned the author of this article describing him as some one ho has perfected in the arts of telling pack of lies.
It a case of misrepresentation, miscalculation and underestimation of the intelligence of the Kenya workers. It also calls for the thorough medical examination of the mental state of the author of this article. It could be the work of someone who is mentally deranged a needed treatment.
One politician who has seen the article described as the work of an insane writer who can simply wake up and imagine hoe to write silly and dirty thins bout M Atwoli a man who dedication to the cause of work and is clean record of selfishlessness serving in the labor movement in this country speaks for itself.
One union leader who request that his identity be hidden was bold enough by saying tat M Atwoli is held I the highest esteem by Kenyan workers in particular an the public in general and could even win the presidency of the Republic of Kenya if so wish or when he choose to stand and contest for the presidency, no body will stand on his way.
All the accusations and allegation contained therein in this articles are nothing, but the work f devilish and cocked minded.
Mr Atwoli is a happily married man with grownup children. The COTU boss has a well kept family and or anyone to portray him as someone who is sex-maniac and a playboy is out of bound.
What this article should be intended to achieve has flopped. Shown a copy of the article downloaded from a computer, one of the Kisumu based journalist who had travelled with Atwoli to Geneva last year jumped to he roof,
Jeff Otieno Aguko one of the scrbes who had traveled with Arwoli in Geneva with was full of praise of the COTU boss. He said to the Geneva was one of the most pleasant time he had ever enjoyed in his life time.He could no figure it out as to what prompted he author to write such rubbish o Mr Atwoli
“What this coward writer has written is full of phantom and fiction. The author appeared to be having fertile imagination and only deserves to be a fiction writer. He should direct his fertile imagination of fiction elsewhere, but leave Mr Atwoli alone.,” said Mr Aguko.
Young people around the world are deeply concerned about a lack of job opportunities and are calling for an increase in investment in this area, according to the latest World Youth Report, issued today by the United Nations.
In the aftermath of the economic crisis, the global youth unemployment rate saw its largest annual increase on record in 2009, resulting in around 75.8 million unemployed youth. “Today we have the largest generation of young people the world has ever known,” said UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. “They are demanding their rights and a greater voice in economic and political life. We need to pull the UN system together like never before to support a new social contract of job-rich economic growth. Let us start with young people.”
The report reveals that young people are worried about the quality and relevance of their education, as mentioned by Amadou, a 24-year-old man from Senegal: “Today it should be easier to find a job because our generation is the most educated but there is an inadequacy between the training offered and the needs of the labour market.” Other subjects of concern include job vulnerability, labour migration, delayed marriage, and the rural divide, as well as age, gender and racial discrimination.
http://social.un.org/index/Publications/tabid/83/news/220/Default.aspx
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Karibu Jukwaa la www.mwanabidii.com
Pata nafasi mpya za Kazi www.kazibongo.blogspot.com
Blogu ya Habari na Picha www.patahabari.blogspot.com
—
Karibu Jukwaa la www.mwanabidii.com
Pata nafasi mpya za Kazi www.kazibongo.blogspot.com
Blogu ya Habari na Picha www.patahabari.blogspot.com
– – – – – – – – – – –
The Government has noted with concern, the increasing number of Kenyan citizens who have sought employment in the Middle East as domestic workers (Housekeepers/maids) and ended up in distress.
The complaints received range from mistreatment, lack of payment of salaries, overwork, and denial of food and lack of communication with their relatives in Kenya.
In some cases, the Kenyans are lured by unscrupulous and unregistered agents who promise non–existent and supposedly lucrative jobs to desperate and unsuspecting Kenyans.
The Government wishes to reiterate its commitment to the protection and welfare of all its citizens, including those outside the country.
The Government is therefore working on a mechanism, including but not limited to, vetting of all recruitment agents afresh and signing of Labour framework Agreements with various countries, to address some of the concerns raised by the distressed Kenyans in the Middle East.
In the meantime, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs wishes to inform that the Government has temporarily suspended recruitment and export of domestic workers (Housekeepers/maids) to Middle East Countries with immediate effect.
AMB. P.S. Wamoto, EBS
Political and Diplomatic Secretary
Ministry Of Foreign Affairs
6th July, 2012
There’s an old cliché that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, and expecting different results.
Well, if that’s the case, then our trade policy represents insanity. Though NAFTA was signed nearly two decades ago, a trade deal with China was inked about a dozen years ago, and CAFTA was signed some seven years ago, we still haven’t seen any change.
The time for a new direction in trade policy is overdue. For decades, we’ve seen our trade deals undermine good-paying American manufacturing jobs. We’ve lost more than five million jobs to our so-called “trading partners,” and new export opportunities have not been enough to offset the jobs lost. So, as the United States begins negotiating the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), we must take a new approach to trade policy.
But instead, the TPP –as it currently stands – is nothing more than a case of déjà vu all over again. This proposal would take the NAFTA model and create one of the largest free trade zones in the world with the U.S., Mexico, Canada, Australia, Brunei, Chile, Malaysia, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, and Vietnam as the initial members. And just when the American auto industry is making a strong recovery, Japan—a nation that has notoriously closed off its market to U.S. auto markets—is seeking to join the TPP.
It’s time for an honest assessment of what our trade agreements have yielded, and it’s time to recognize where changes are in order.
The TPP is an opportunity to learn from the past. And that means demanding that our trade partners uphold the same labor, environmental, and human rights standards that we do. This means that Ohio workers – be they employees at auto companies or small manufacturers – have a chance to compete on a level playing field.
But as we’ve seen with past trade agreements, U.S. negotiators are not demanding that American manufacturers receive the same ability to sell their products abroad as countries like China and South Korea have in our nation.
We need trade, and we need more of it. I’m committed to doubling our exports by 2015. But what we don’t need is to rush head-long into new trade agreements without protecting our own interests, gaining real market access in foreign countries – especially for autos and manufactured goods – and getting the rules right.
Americans know that when it comes to new trade deals, the choices are not limited to free trade or protectionism.
And at a time when too many Ohioans are still looking for work, we cannot sign a lopsided trade agreement that tips the balance against American automakers and workers. In a trade partnership, everyone should play by the same rules. And so when these rules are being established, the negotiations matter. Congress has a role to play, especially when trade agreements increasingly get involved in debates about provisions services, government procurement, worker conditions, and the environment.
That’s why I introduced the 21st Century Trade and Market Access Act.
This bill would require that the President submit reports to Congress detailing which countries are on track to meet the deadlines and commitments that we’ve agreed upon. We need to know if progress is being made and if our partners are playing by the rules.
Again, the TPP is a tremendous opportunity to get trade right. The President must have the authority to negotiate new and better trade deals, but first Congress needs to set the direction so that we can ensure that trade is free and fair.
We should be exporting American products, not American jobs.
Sincerely,
Sherrod Brown
U.S. Senator
Washington, D.C.
713 Hart Senate Building
Washington, DC 20510
p (202) 224-2315
f (202) 228-6321
Columbus
200 N High St.
Room 614
Columbus, OH 43215
p (614) 469-2083
f (614) 469-2171
Toll Free
1-888-896-OHIO (6446)
As many as close to 250 expatriate workers from India, Pakistan and Bangladesh could be illegally engaged on full time jobs inside several su on work permits which are suspected t have been issued irregularly for sugar mills in Western Kenya.
Impeccable multiple sources have told this writer that a source of recruitment of these unqualified foreign workers is a Hindu Temple located n the lakeside City of Kisumu. And that for these foreigners to access cheap jobs in Kenya, they are being made to allegedly part with colossal amount of money in bribery and kick-backs, which is paid out through an unnamed Hindu Priest who is allegedly acting as a conduit.
Transactions take place in highly secret hideouts, mostly inside hotel rooms at one of the city’s posh hotels or inside the temple.
Al this happens while hundreds of artisans of better qualified Kenyans are jobless. Kenya has trained hundreds of thousands of artisans and technicians ever since independence 48 years ago, and it is therefore shameless of the country to recruit and engaged this same illiterate Indians and Pakistanis.
The natural and common rule is that the county could only source and engage an expatriate worker in a specific case where there is no qualified Kenyan to fill the gap.
But what is happening in the sugar industry is a big same to the Kenyan nation. These unqualified foreign workers are being recruited through established agencies in India, Pakstan and Bangladesh.
Do we Kenyans need them really? The answer is a Big No. We have trained the sufficient number of highly skilled personnel who are better qualified to handle these jobs.
A common saying is that the “Sugar industry is a milking cow” and it is true to those who coined those words, the specification of jobs in which these foreigners are engaged could as well be competently and efficiently performed by local Form Four school leavers.
The practicalists said to be so common in the sugar mills owned by Asian investors. The management of these sugar mills are said to be working in cohort with some unscrupulous and nepatistic highly placed government officials and politicians, mainly in the Ministry of Immigration and Registration of Persons, which is charged with the sole responsibility of issuing work permits to foreigners in whatever categories
Truly speaking Kenya is not short of qualified welders, and fitters nor is the country experiencing acute shortage of artisans and office clerks?
Is the Kenya government applying double standard by telling the ordinary Kenyans that it was committed to creating hundreds of jobs for the youths annually, and on one hand issuing the work permits to people who do not deserve it?
The scam Is said to have spilled into our neighboring courtiers of Uganda and Tanzania. Indians, Pakisanis and Bangladeshis allegedly recruited in Kisumu are said to have flooded the jobs market inside Uganda sugar mills at Kanyira, Lugazi and Kakira and to an extent Kagera Sugar Works in South Western Tanzania.
One may be left to wonder why has the government has succumbed to pressure from the investors and allow them to import their unqualified kiths and kins from India, Pakistan and Bangladesh while our better qualified sons and daughters have remained permanently unemployed while the unemployment situation has been skyrocketing.
If the management sources these foreign workers to serve as experts in machinery installations in the factories, they should be ordered to leave the country as soon as their missions are accomplished.
The Sugar mills in Western Kenya where the imported unqualified expatriates are alleged to have infiltrated include West Kenya Suga Company, Butalii Sugar Company, Kibos Sugar and Allied Industries Limited, Sukari Industries in Ndhiwa in Homa By County. The fifth is the newly and recently established Trans-MaraSugar Company wihin Trans-Mara within the Nrok County where the company has engaged close to 28 expatriaes, and the figure could be s much higher than those mentioned above.
It defeats all the logic that Mumias Sugar Company in Mumias which is producing the largest quantity of brown sugar per day with close to 7,000 bags of made sugar per day is managed and manned by local Kenyans.
Bu that local Kenyans workers employed in the Asian owned sugar mills are just working as casual for peanuts and no letters of appointment ad from the top to office messengers and sweepers. Why should our government allow Asian owned sugar mills which are not even producing half of what Mumias is producing should be allowed to fill all the jobs in their establishment with foreign workers.?.
The other aspect of this shameful double standard policy by the Kenya government is that local Kenans workers employed in the Asian owned sugar mills which are not even producing half of hat Mumias Sugar is producing should be allowed to fill all the jobs in their establishment with foreign works.
The other aspect of this shameful double standard policy by the Kenya government is that local Kenyans workers employed in the Asian owned sugar mills are jus working as casuals and no letters of appointment with no workmen and health protection schemes.
Between Francis Atwoli ,the COTU {Kenya} Secretary General who doubles as the General Secretary of the Kenya Agricultural and Plantation Workers Union and the Immigration and Registrations Minister Gerald Otieno Kajwang’ who is sleeping on the job? I think the two senior Kenyans owed an explanation to the public over the issue o foreign workers.
Reached for his comments the Secretary General of the Kenya Union of Sugar Plantaon Workers Francis Wagara disagreed with this writer and categorically denied that Atwoli seemed to have been compromised.
Wagaa, however, declined to use more question why African workers in the sugar industry were being enslaved in modern Kenya and being discriminated the row motherland where they are paid only peanuts for the jobs done equal what he Asian were dong.
In the Sugar Mills the highest paid African workers ear between Kshs 12,000 and Kshs 20,000 but most of those working in the categories of clerks, store me ae within the Kshs 7,000 and Kshs 8,000 brackets. But most of them without letter of appointment specifying conditions and terms of services.
In one sugar mill, which close to Kisumu City even a cook who is making meals earn between Kshs 12,000 and Kshs 20,000 but most of those working in the categories of clerks, store men are within kshs 7,000 and Kshs 8,000 brackets.
In the same sugar mill which is close to Kisumu City a cook who is making meals for the expatriate India woekers is himself an expatriate blowing over Kshs 40,000. Surely is there a room for experienced cooks?
What has gone wrong with our outspoken parliamentarians? Has the John Mututho Parliametary Seet Committee on Agriculture visited some of these sugar mills and inquired about employment system?
Why has Dr Bonny Khalwale buried his head in the sand and yet some of those things happens within his home turf of Kakamega County?
The majority of MPs, especially those representing constituencies close o the sugar cane growing zones in both Nyanza and Western appeared o have been compromised and are aid to e the regular visitors ad callers to the dwelling houses of the very notorious Asian owners of sugar mills who are known to exploit fellow African workers to the maximum and as such can articulate anything like issues to do with the African workers plight. What is this? Is it not a total let down on the part of MPs.
Some of the MPs including cabinet Ministers have been seen quite often being picked up by sleek fuel guzzling four wheel drive cars owned by the same Asian tycoon a the Kisumu airport and being driven to unknown destination, perhaps while in search of handouts.
