Folks,

A carefully-planned and realistic budget is like a road map plan for a take off to fulfil needs in a Domestic House, Start a business, run existing business or lead a management team in a Government or get on to a journey. The budget therefore include considering what you already have in your hands or within your resouce as a tangible point you may want to negotiate from. Most likely, e.g. in Business, you may want to consider Manpower resources, Natural Resources and financial resources that are quantified to make a Realistic whole Budget Cost and Expenditure. Without which, you may have problem in knowing how much petrol/Gas you may need for your driving on a journey, or how much money you may need to pay for your transportation to and from your journey. How much pocket money you need to spend for food and other expenditures. In case your are driving, you will need to know and draw details of where to start and end, which more convenient and shortest route will take you to your destination without overspending or running short in the midway….in the event, you may want to avoid taking too much loan which causes Economic Crisis and fall-out.

To run a deficit, is to have shortage in fulfilling your planned objectives in a budget, where you realize you are falling short on the required amount to succeed in your obligations.
A Budgeting excersise is therefore a monthly, half yearly or yearly budgeting plan evaluation and assessement to keep the balance of activities so there are control and limitation of spending to avoid deficit.

In a Government perspective, a balance to incorporate all areas are necessary so to avoid falling into deficit or surplus but have their finances spread out on a Collective Burgain Rights of all stakeholders.

In Africa, Leaders are soiling into debt and have fallen into serious financial problems because of poor budgeting allocation that are leading the people of Africa into serious financial collapse as a result of accummulative debt, which is a burden on the Public to make a repayment. Most importantly, the ordinary Kenyans and the rest of African poor have no idea why and how they got into debt expenses, why they are paying high cost in buying foodstuff, in rent, in education fees, in Health, in transportation, in energy and water etc., These are the most fundamental basic needs for an ordinary Kenyan or African in Africa.

For those retirees, their retirement benefits are used by the Government in loaning businesses who take Government Contracts to do business and these are equally included in the budgeting. As a result, the poor are the ones paying Taxes while the rich who uses public funds do not spend a penny to boost the tax.

In Kenya, workers have been contributing from their pay check to pay NSSF, National Social Security Fund, Pay As You Earn (PAYE), Ministry of Labour Employers tax on LEVY for training workers, Value Added Tax on commodities and food (VAT) paid to the manufacturers and Sales Tax. The Employee Share Ownership Plan (ESOPs).

The Kenya Revenue Authority collect Employers Deducted income tax, Manufacturers and Traders, including the International Taxes by Deloitte.

Public Taxes are seen to be paying salaries to Mungiki who have been crafted into Police Force, Special Interest Lobbyist who loot in the money from the World Bank, IMF, IFAD etc., and paying the dead who are included in the monthly pay-rolls, the retirement benefits that are given out to politically right businessmen and women in terms of soft loans without incorporating taxes on the loans, while denying the general public money to start and operate small loans for private self-employed business to create the Middle-Class. These and many other need to be investigated. These are some of the reason why the Budget is fake and does not represent the true facts of reality, the reason Uhuru must step down and the Ministry of Finance investigated. We demand for Authenticated true reports of the Budget.

In the Government Money Management, and according to the New Constitution, Collective Burgain Rights and Information, DEMANDS that Public get involved into their business. This is the reason, the Kibaki Nomination of the three is contentious. It is for part of this factor that women have to play a bigger roll since their DOMESTIC BUDGET and spending is heavily affected. It is for this reason why DEVOLUTION, the Majimbo Federal Government is fundamentally important, where Revenue allocation for distribution according to Resource and manpower potential is crucial, where land ownership by the peasant farmers are the Stakeholders and must be represented by their regional Cooperative Sector for Social Entrepreneurship management including the consulting professionals and the skilled self-employed are contributors whose interests are equally incorporated in the Budget. These and many more including Employee Unions who are Representatives of the employees protective interests are also stakeholders.

It is fundamentally important that all Collective Burgain Rights are included in the Budget Design and the Stakeholders participate in the design of the Budget to cross check the budget while ensuring that all personal spending needs and distributions are accounted for. To also ensure that the rich also pay taxes for their goods and services. As a result, we feel Public Interests are in Jeopardy.

Why I am troubled, and What I have as a problem with the two Principles is how Kibaki and PNU including PM Raila believe that the nomination problem involving the hand picked candidates is an easy matter and can be solve by two Principles. This is wishful thinking. It has been observed that the current Leaders have personal interests and have personal business being run utilizing public resource and facilities, and this puts them on a Compromised state-of-affair. They are all engaged in Conflict of Interests, the reason Kibaki Nominations has been dominated by rejection and has acquired a big reaction from professionals and the public.

With the kind of potentials that Kenya and Africa have, I see no reason why African are in serious poverty situation. I believed, Leaders have failed to provide Leadership in the Management of Public Affairs. It is time there be instituted people of leadership and special talents to reinforce the driving principles of success in the Governance and within the elected Policy making bodies of Ways and Means who will represent public needs, demands and mandate and see to it that as Stakeholders, their interests are fairly looked into.

People feel their TaxPayers money is not being handled under safe hands, but are being run to satisfy corrupt dealings, the reason there are too much Graft and Impunity taking high toll. The reason 2007 election fell-apart. The reason there was heavy casualty as a result of Genocide, the reason why Moi is still rulling remotely, the reason why Government is in pain to utilize public money on Lobbying for corrupt deals and for Ocampo Six, the reason the Government is in the business of “Obstructing Legal Justice” to achieve the Status Quo “Business as Usual” so to keep “Birds of the Same Feather” co-joined together in their Mission, the reason why Kibaki is furiously rejecting Marende Nomination to suffice their autonomy of their business in the utilization of Public TaxPayer funds.

Kenyans do not believe the Spirit of the signed National Reform Accord is fully embraced by the two Principles. It is my concern that women’s voices, the reason they ran to Court is not taken seriously by the two Principles and thereby, their sworn Oath Taking to Uphold and respect the Policy Legal Rights and MANDATE as contained in the New Constitution through the Referendum under their Leadership has been defaulted and severed, especially when anger and reactions begun to take hight toll after Speaker Marende gave the rulling on the nominations.

I believe and trust that, Speaker Marende gave a fair rulling and spoke according to the spirit of the New Constitution, and that Kibaki’s nominations are unconstitutional.

The Public have the right to take this matter seriously and make sure there is a fresh start to nominating the Chief Justice and Attorney General, the kind of person who can be trusted in protecting the interests of Citizen first and foremost.

Those accusing and contesting Speaker Marende are the enemy of the people, and the people must stand together to protect their interests, so nominations must be done from scratch, including background checks performed and Citizens are given opportunity to endorse a person of their interest. The threats that were sounded by Kibaki, Uhuru, Ruto, Kalonzo are foes are baseless and inconsequential.

Justice Angawa of the High Court Judge should be included in the list of nominations and allow popular vote to take presidence.

It is rediculous, embarrasing and shameful to see Kibaki and Team before public camera contesting Hon. Speaker Marende’s resolution. It is high time responsibility and integrity be the yardstick score for all nominees who must be entrusted with public affairs and who can be relied and trusted to deliver goods and services to the safisfaction of the People who are paying heavily for their salaries and upkeeps in terms of taxes and security.

We fought so hard for the New Constitution and we want to see reality of matters.

I conclude that the Ocampo six must have a place at the ICC Hague while the local Tribunal is also set up with trustworth credible people of sound background who will provide the spirit of Peace, Reconcilliation and Reconstruction in the Forward Strategy Plan to lead and direct business of the Kenya and Africa we all want.

Thank you all,

Judy Miriga
Diaspora Spokesperson
Executive Director
Confederation Council Foundation for Africa Inc.,
USA
http://socioeconomicforum50.blogspot.com

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Insist on integrity when vetting judges

The Vetting of Judges and Magistrates Bill now before Parliament sets clear thresholds for vetting judges and magistrates as required by the new Constitution.

It seeks to prevent the process from becoming a witchhunt, as happened with previous efforts to clean out the Judiciary; Judges; and restore public faith and trust in the office. The suitability thresholds for judges and magistrates include, but are not limited to, their “intellectual capacity, legal judgment, diligence, substantive and procedural knowledge of the law, organisational and administrative skills, and the ability to work well with a variety of people.

They are also supposed to have sufficient oral and written communication skills. But all these are useless without the most important qualification of all: integrity.

The Bill defines integrity as “demonstrable consistent history of honesty and high moral character in professional and personal life; respect for professional duties arising under the codes of professional and judicial conduct; and ability to understand the need to maintain propriety and the appearance of propriety.”

Unfortunately, many of our political leaders appear to have a totally different interpretation of what makes one suitable to be a magistrate or judge of the High Court. For them, the most important qualifications for one to hold any of these offices are allegiance to their party leader, being of the right ethnic orientation and a willingness to accept bribes in return for favourable rulings.

There is no point in skirting around the truth, which is that a corrupt Judiciary serves their interests better than a clean one.

If indeed our political leaders were sincerely keen on giving Kenyans a clean Judiciary, we would not have been treated to the circus over the recent nominations by the Executive to four key constitutional offices. Just the mere hint that the process was not above board, and the furore and indignation it has aroused among Kenyans would have been enough for them to demand that the list go back to the two principals.

The Vetting of Judges and Magistrates Bill seeks to address inadequacies in law as regards standards for members of the bench who are supposed to dispense justice equally and without favour.

Speaker’s wise ruling

The US system remains the best example of how to choose judges and magistrates.

The founding Fathers were appalled at the idea of a president who picks judges at will simply because of the significant power they wield from the bench, and ensured that every judge nominated by the president must undergo vetting by the Senate to determine their suitability for the bench

Which is why the ruling by House Speaker Kenneth Marende yesterday that effectively returned the list of nominees to President Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga is welcome. The Speaker took time to quote extensively from the law and precedents set by the House to show why it is important that not just the letter but the spirit of the law be followed in appointments to constitutional offices such as that of the Chief Justice, among others.

It is now important that both Party of National Unity and Orange Democratic Movement MPs step back from brinkmanship and focus on passing the pending Bills in Parliament that should anchor the new Constitution.

The matter of the nominees is now back in the hands of the two principals who are now expected to make the process more inclusive by involving the Judicial Service Commission and the Public Service Commission.

It was their decision to lock out the two institutions that threw a spanner into the entire nominations process.

This is a time for cool heads and compromise, not reckless utterances. And for this reason, the Kibaki and Raila should reign in their lieutenants and consult in the true meaning of the National Accord.

Triumph of constitutionalism

February 18, 2011 | 2 likes, 0 dislikes
http://www.ntv.co.ke
It is not the first time the speaker of the National Assembly Kenneth Otiato Marende has assumed the role of national arbitrator. Marende has been described by many as the de-factor leader of the coalition affairs. His latest ruling appears to have angered a section of MPs in parliament. Pamela Asigi reprots on the many Solomonic decisions the speaker has had to take over the years.