from Judy Miriga
Folks,
Tobiko has failed the test of vetting and so does not qualify for the job.
We have less women on the doc, why not take this opportunity and try Mary Angawa and see how she will do with public opinion.
We must be fair and respect the balance of men and women on the doc. people….after all, we know she is a work-holic and a multitaxing…she will help turn around and reduce heavily build back-log……….this woman can work miracles, why not……and what do you say people……?….add your voices as time is running out for us…….and if we are talking of good merits and to want to wipe out corruption and impunity, Mary Angawa is the person………no doubt………
Judy Miriga
Diaspora Spokesperson
Executive Director
Confederation Council Foundation for Africa Inc.,
USA
http://socioeconomicforum50.blogspot.com
– – – – – – – – – – –
Ghosts of the past haunt Tobiko
Uploaded by NTVKenya on Jun 8, 2011
http://www.ntv.co.ke
The appointment of Keriako Tobiko as Director of Public Prosecutions hangs in the balance after a former Permanent Secretary told the vetting panel that Tobiko had used friends to demand a 5 million shillings bribe. Sammy Kirui formerly of the Ministry of Local Government, named Ex- President Kibaki’s aide Alfred Gitonga and two others as having acted on behalf of the nominee. Earlier the anti graft chief PLO Lumumba had told the committee that Tobiko has great political connections and had undermined the 2005 constitutional review process.
Tobiko Re-Designation Row
Uploaded by kenyacitizentv on Sep 2, 2010
Law experts are now predicting a constitutional crisis, with questions being raised over the creation of the Chief Public Prosecutor office by Attorney General Amos Wako through a gazette notice. Wako re-designated Keriako Tobiko who had been serving as the director of public prosecutions under the previous constitution to the new office, in a move lawyers say is unconstitutional, goes against the spirit of the new constitution. Hussein Mohamed reports.
Tobiko on the spot
Uploaded by NTVKenya on Oct 23, 2009
http://www.ntv.co.ke
NTV news editor Joe Ageyo gets candid with Keriako Tobiko, the director of public prosecutions over the release of Thomas Cholmondeley and Maina Njenga head of
Mungiki.
CHOLMONDELEY REACTION
Uploaded by K24TV on May 14, 2009
no description available
Maina Njenga Exclusive Interview
Uploaded by kenyacitizentv on Oct 24, 2009
The leader of the outlawed Mungiki sect, Maina Njenga is asking politicians and wealthy businessmen who have been funding and supporting the sect to stop it. Njenga now says his main agenda will be to destroy the sect which has been credited with wreaking havoc in parts of the country and sending shivers of fear down many Kenyans spines. Njenga says he will transform the youths into Christians insisting that the best method is by stopping the funding. Njenga claims that politicians, some of whom are in government have been using the sect for their political mileage only to disown them later. Chris Thairu visited Njenga at his Kitengela home and filed the following story
Mutunga,Barasa,Tobiko vetting
Uploaded by standardgroupkenya on Jun 7, 2011
The House Committee overseeing the implementation of the constitution could tonight recommend the confirmation of three nominees to key posts in the judicial system. This follows the grueling vetting of Dr Willy Mutunga for Chief Justice, Nancy Barasa for Deputy Chief Justice and Keriako Tobiko for Director Of Public Prosecutions. Sources indicate that most of the 27 committee members have no objections to the three. But as KTN’s Noah Otieno reports, the nominees had to face close public scrutiny of their private lives.
DPP nominations/ CJ reactions
Uploaded by standardgroupkenya on May 14, 2011
Three lawyers have been proposed for the position of director of public prosecution. The names of chief public prosecutor Keriako Tobiko, state counsel Dorcas Oduor and lawyer Patrick Kiage have been forwarded to president Kibaki who is expected, after consultations with Prime Minister Raila Odinga, to forward the list to parliament for approval. The nominations came as the legal fraternity reacted to the nomination of Willy Mutunga and Nancy Baraza to the posts of chief justice and deputy chief justice.
DPP nominations/ CJ reactions
Uploaded by standardgroupkenya on May 14, 2011
Three lawyers have been proposed for the position of director of public prosecution. The names of chief public prosecutor Keriako Tobiko, state counsel Dorcas Oduor and lawyer Patrick Kiage have been forwarded to president Kibaki who is expected, after consultations with Prime Minister Raila Odinga, to forward the list to parliament for approval. The nominations came as the legal fraternity reacted to the nomination of Willy Mutunga and Nancy Baraza to the posts of chief justice and deputy chief justice.
MPs support choice of Mutunga
Uploaded by NTVKenya on May 17, 2011
http://www.ntv.co.ke
Even as parliament gears up to vet the Judicial nominees , several MPs have come out in full support of the candidates. This morning a section of MPs came out to endorse the nomination of Dr. Willy Mutunga for Chief Justice, Nancy Baraza for Deputy Chief Justice and Keriako Tobiko for the position of Director of Public Prosecutions. The MPs have dismissed those using Mutunga’s stud to oppose his nomination as anti reformers. Already the President and Prime Minister have endorsed the nominees.
Dr. Mutunga, Baraza Nomination Issues
Uploaded by kenyacitizentv on May 13, 2011
Well, both Dr Mutunga and Nancy Baraza have been leading lights in the civil society, and the Judicial Service Commission is crediting them for being independent-minded. The commission says the two are likely to deflect political pressure, and strongly defend the independence of the judiciary. Chris Thairu reports.
Orengo on CJ, AG, DPP appointments
Uploaded by capitalfmkenya on Jan 28, 2011
Court of Appeal Judge Justice Alnashir Visram has been nominated the new Chief Justice of Kenya.
Vetting of Nominees on Hold
Uploaded by kenyacitizentv on May 23, 2011
Parliamentary debate on the suitability or lack of it, of nominees for the positions of Chief Justice, Deputy Chief Justice and Director of Public Prosecutions is headed for an imminent delay following wrangles in the parliamentary departmental committee on legal affairs. The process of vetting Dr. Willy Mutunga, Nancy Baraza and Keriako Tobiko who have been nominated for the 3 positions was expected to kick off Monday was a no-show, following the stand-off in the legal affairs committee. A majority of the committee members have insisted on the ouster of their chairman Ababu Namwamba, while the parliamentary Liason committee, which supervises the operation of all house committees, maintains that Namwamba remained the recognised leader of the legal affairs team.
KACC Receives Requests Over Okemo, Gichuru
Uploaded by kenyacitizentv on May 24, 2011
The Kenya Anti – Corruption Commission has confirmed that it had also received a formal request from Jersey Island, in the United Kingdom, seeking assistance in the form of evidence in the money laundering investigations the Island’s authorities are conducting against Nambale MP Chris Okemo and the former Kenya Power and Lighting Director Samuel Gichuru. Attorney general Amos Wako, who has also confirmed receiving warrants of arrests issued against the two, is in the meantime, awaiting communication from the Office of the Public Prosecutor in order to proceed with the extradition cases. But what exactly does this mean for the two suspects? Willis Raburu reports.
Mutula on Okemo and Gichuru
Uploaded by standardgroupkenya on May 24, 2011
Mutula on Okemo and Gichuru
Kacc & Mutula on Okemo, Gichuru extradition
Uploaded by standardgroupkenya on May 24, 2011
The Kenya Anti-Corruption Commission says it will co-operate fully on the extradition of former Kenya power and lighting managing director Samuel Gichuru and Nambale member of parliament Chrysanthus Okemo. The two are accused of taking kickbacks and concealing the proceeds of crime. Meanwhile justice minister Mutula Kilonzo has asked those implicated in the scandal to step aside from any public offices they may hold until their names are cleared.
Iteere on Okemo, Gichuru arrest warrant
Uploaded by capitalfmkenya on May 23, 2011
DPP to Decide Fate of Okemo, Gichuru
Uploaded by kenyacitizentv on May 23, 2011
Attorney General Amos Wako now says the fate of Nambale Mp Chris Okemo and the former KPLC managing director Samuel Gachuri, over warrants of arrests issued on them by the Island of Jersey, lies with the Office of the Public Prosecutor. Wako says he formally received a request from the Island, which is part of the United Kingdom through the British minister for Africa, Henry Bellingham whom he met Monday. Wako also says he has received the same communication from the police.
Madawa ya kulevya jijini Mombasa
Uploaded by standardgroupkenya on May 23, 2011
Juhudi za kukabiliana na uraibu wa madawa ya kulevya katika mkoa wa pwani zinaonekana kugonga mwamba, baada ya kuonekana kwamba visa na idadi ya watumiaji wa dawa za kulevya havijapungua. Wakati huo huo yaonekana walanguzi wamegundua njia mpya za kuuza bidhaa zao, huku vijana wanaorekebishwa wakisalia kunaswa na uraibu huu. Huyu hapa damaris kitavi na taarifa zaidi.
AG: Arrest warrants may be with Police
Uploaded by NTVKenya on May 21, 2011
http://www.ntv.co.ke
Attorney General Amos Wako has given a strong indication that warrants of arrests for top government officials during the Moi era may have been transmitted by UK authorities to Kenya through the Police Commissioner. Former Finance minister Chris Okemo and former Kenya Power and Lighting Company Managing Director Samuel Gichuru are wanted by a court on Jersey Island to answer to charges of allegedly concealing and transferring proceeds of crime amounting to over 900 million shillings.
Nominees to know fate on Tuesday
Updated 4 hr(s) 5 min(s) ago
Related Stories
Rumours cannot fly; facts do not lie
MPs unite to pass Supreme Court Bill
Tobiko in a spot of bother over graft allegations
Chief Justice nominee Dr Willy Mutunga
Consider family values in vetting, civil society urges
Straw-man arguments have pervaded political debate
By Martin Mutua
The fate of Willy Mutunga’s nomination as Chief Justice, Nancy Baraza as his deputy will be known on Tuesday.
Also to be announced is whether Keriako Tobiko would be the first Director of Public Prosecutions.
Chairman of the Parliamentary Oversight Committee on Implementation of the Constitution Abdikadir Mohammed moved to the House on Wednesday to seek the Speaker Kenneth Marende’s direction.
Abdikadir told the House that his committee had now concluded interviewing the three nominees.
He told Marende that his committee required more time to compile its report before tabling it next week.
Earlier, at the hearing former CKRC Secretary PLO Lumumba told the committee that Tobiko who was a member of the commission disliked Prof Yash Pal Ghai, who was the chairman “with a passion”.
Ghai had on Monday appeared before the committee and presented a memoranda on why Tobiko was unfit for the DPP position.
Ghai alleged that Tobiko had even received some sitting allowance even though he was not at some of the sessions. But on Wednesday Lumumba, who is also the KACC director, defended Tobiko on the issue of finances saying he never took allowances for sittings that he did not attend. But in his book, Kenya’s Quest for a Constitution, the Postponed Promise, he wrote on his experiences at the CKRC, describing Tobiko as man with high connections within the Kanu regime, a system man and that he never gave his all for the commission.
At this point Assistant Minister Kilemi Mwiria sought to know from Lumumba whether by that description he could consider Tobiko an opportunist.
“It is a decision for you to make because I have given my assessment and that’s all,” he added.
Groups want Tobiko probed before House approval
Updated 4 hr(s) 31 min(s) ago
Related Stories
Nominees to know fate on Tuesday
Mutunga: I am not gay
Public scrutiny-for-jobs not for the faint-hearted
Chief Justice nominee Willy Mutunga
Parliament to vet judicial nominees
House Business Committee to approve judicial nominees
By Lucianne Limo
More than 30 civil society groups have said the moral and professional conduct of Keriako Tobiko disqualifies him from being appointed Director of Public Prosecutions.
The lobby groups on Wednesday said Tobiko is not fit to hold such an office after allegations of bribery, incompetence, and lack integrity were raised.
They said they would move to court if the Parliamentary Constitution Implementing Oversight Committee (CIOC) forwards his name to Parliament for approval.
“In our opinion, the multiplicity of deeply troubling allegations from several of sources indicate that Tobiko is highly unsuitable for the office of the DPP,” said Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC) Rights officer Esther Waweru.
The lobby groups under the Kenyans For Peace with Truth and Justice said allegations raised against Tobiko should not be ignored, adding that by approving his nomination without an inquiry risks subjecting him to unrelenting oppositions and may compromise his performance.
Allegations
They cited allegations made by Former Constitution of Kenya Review Commission (CKRC) Chair Yash Pal Ghai that Tobiko acted as a mole to former President Moi’s Government. Suspended Local Government PS Sammy Kurui claimed Tobiko extorted money from him through proxies.
“These are disturbing allegations. CIOC must make every effort to get to the bottom of them before making recommendation on Tobiko’s candidacy,” she added.
They further said the criteria that led to his nominations was questionable and did not meet the constitutional requirement of transparency and public participation.
“The process of selecting Tobiko was not transparent as and as a result, Kenyans have no idea how it was conducted, on what basis he was picked as the best candidate, and the criteria of selecting him,” said Kweheria Nduta, programme officer at KHRC.
Tobiko in a spot of bother over graft allegations
Updated 10 hr(s) 50 min(s) ago
Related Stories
Rumours cannot fly; facts do not lie
Groups want Tobiko probed before House approval
Lobbying for studies on environment in school
Straw-man arguments have pervaded political debate
Student to pay KU for expulsion suit
A student working on animation characters during a class.
By David Ochami
Allegations of professional misconduct including soliciting for a bribe were made against Mr Keriako Tobiko, who has been nominated as Director of Public Prosecutions.
On Tuesday, Tobiko admitted that errors were committed in the prosecution of Eldoret North MP William Ruto on fraud allegations, but blamed police and state counsel for failing to locate crucial witnesses and not calling others.
He alleged that Attorney General Amos Wako has ordered an investigation of “what exactly went wrong (with the Ruto case) and decide what to do.” “Our performance at the State Law Office has been below par,” admitted Tobiko.
Gichugu MP Martha Karua accused him of not ensuring full investigation and prosecution of the Ruto case. But a tense Tobiko who says he has an estate worth Sh80 million pleaded innocence terming the allegations product of lies by enemies and rivals.
“I have no doubt you will be able to see through these allegations,” he told a panel of MPs and added that “I have many enemies and friends who make these kind of allegations.”
After a three hour questioning the Constitution Implementation Oversight Committee (CIOC) extended its sitting last evening to decide whether to investigate the extortion allegation.
Illegal allowances
The committee was also proposed to delay presenting Tobiko’s name to Parliament for approval and investigate his new accuser, former Local Government PS Sammy Kirui who said he is ready to testify, or recall Tobiko for re-examination.
Kirui wrote to CIOC on Tuesday accusing Tobiko who is also facing new claims of uttering false information to a court in a land case, of soliciting a Sh5 million bribe to end or influence a corruption case against him.
Kirui writes in a letter read by nominated MP Rachel Shebesh said “Tobiko is a gatekeeper for people in high places” and added that there is an SMS which Tobiko allegedly sent him threatening to prosecute him if he did not give Sh5 million.
He also faces allegations of receiving illegal allowances as a Constitution of Kenya Review Commission (CKRC) commissioner and visited State House to force his way in the land dispute besides instigating suspension of judge Moijo ole Keiuwa.
Budalang’i MP Ababu Namwamba said there are perceptions Tobiko and AG had turned the State Law Office into “a theatre of incompetence” unwilling or unable to prosecute cases against influential people.
Tobiko had unkind words for Prof Yash Pal Ghai, his former chairman at the defunct CKRC who ignited the torrent of misconduct allegations against him.
He claimed Ghai was bitter for standing to his intellectual arrogance and attempt to throw out CKRC’s former Secretary, the late Prof Okoth Owiro when he led the commission.
Mutunga,Barasa,Tobiko vetting
Uploaded by standardgroupkenya on Jun 7, 2011
The House Committee overseeing the implementation of the constitution could tonight recommend the confirmation of three nominees to key posts in the judicial system. This follows the grueling vetting of Dr Willy Mutunga for Chief Justice, Nancy Barasa for Deputy Chief Justice and Keriako Tobiko for Director Of Public Prosecutions. Sources indicate that most of the 27 committee members have no objections to the three. But as KTN’s Noah Otieno reports, the nominees had to face close public scrutiny of their private lives.
Jicho Pevu: Dawa Za Karaha pt.1a
Uploaded by standardgroupkenya on Mar 6, 2011
Mengi yamesemwa kuhusiana na ulanguzi na matumizi ya dawa za kulevya nchini lakini hadi kufikia wa leo hamna jawabu dhabiti la kutoa suluhu. Ni aibu kwa serikali kushindwa kuwakamata wahusika na badala yake kuambulia kuwakamata watumizi. Hii leo katika sehemu ya kwanza ya Jicho Pevu mwanahabari wetu mpekuzi Mohammed Ali amelizamia suala lote nzima pasi na woga na kuibuka na mengi yaliyokuwa katika ripoti zote mbili za bunge na ile ya Rannerberger. Kwa ngoma kamili kaa mkao wa tahiyatu na ujionee na kusikia mengi usiyoyajua.
Jicho Pevu: “Kirindanda cha Uhalifu” pt.1
Uploaded by standardgroupkenya on Jun 7, 2011
Visa vya uhalifu, mauaji na ubakaji hapa jijini vinazidi kugonga vichwa vya habari kila kukicha. La ajabu ni kwamba msururu wa mauaji na visa hivi vyote hutekelezwa na genge la majambazi linalohusisha vijana wadogo chini ya umri wa miaka 25. Na kama anavyotueleza mwanahabari wetu mpekuzi Mohammed Ali ni kwamba hata maafisa wa polisi sasa ni walengwa wakuu. Kwa ngoma kamili ya jinsi mambo yalivyokuwa katika patashika ya kwanza tunakusihi utulie tuli na ujionee jinsi ngoma ilivyosukwa.
Jicho Pevu: Dawa za Karaha pt.2
Uploaded by standardgroupkenya on Mar 7, 2011
Licha ya serikali kuyumbayumba kuhusiana na masuala ya ulanguzi wa madawa ya kulevya huenda sasa vizazi vijavyo vikaathiriwa zaidi iwapo hatua kabambe haitachukuliwa dhidi ya walanguzi. Baada ya taarifa yetu ya jana, tayari jamaa mmoja aliyetupa habari amepokea vitisho kutoka kwa watu asiowajua. Ni vitisho ambavyo vinalenga kuzuia ukweli kujulikana bila kujali athari za ulanguzi wa dawa za kulevya kama anavyoelezea Muhammed Ali kwenye sehemu ya pili ya makala ya dawa za karaha hii leo.
Jicho Pevu: Fulusi za Nuhusi – pt.1
Uploaded by standardgroupkenya on Mar 17, 2010
Mawaziri, wabunge, kina mama, wazee na hata vijana wameachwa mdomo waa wakitaka kujitajirisha kwa njia ya haraka kupitia matapeli wanaodai eti wanaweza kuzalisha pesa zaidi. Wengine wanasema ni mazingaombwe huku wengine wakidai zoezi hilo ni sawia na wizi wa mabavu. Je, ni kina nani hawa wanaowatapeli wakenya kila kukicha? na je, ni mbinu zipi wanazotumia? waswahili husema gota gogo usikie mlio na ndiposa hii leo mwanahabari wetu mpekuzi Mohammed Ali kama kawaida yake aliamua kuzama na kuzuka kubaini ukweli wa mambo kuhusiana na sakata hii yote ya uzalishaji pesa al-maaruf kwa lugha ya kimombo wash wash . kwa ngoma kamili nakusihi usibanduke wala kubonyeza kidude.
Kenya’s fading economic fortunes
Published on 16/05/2011
Related Stories
Next year need not shake our economy
Is Government budget deficit sustainable?
Budget to be read on Wednesday, June 8
Uhuru walks tight rope as deficit widens
Our tax regime is self-defeating
Road traffic audit timely, needs implementing
By Patrick Githinji and James Anyanzwa
The Government is expected to table the country’s economic performance data for last year (2010) today amid growing wave of concern over another round of shocks to the budding economy.
Drought, rising inflation, skyrocketing fuel prices, a weakening shilling and civil unrest in North Africa and the Middle East have fuelled reservations over this year’s economic outlook with analysts, investment bankers, fund managers and international development partners downgrading the initial ambitious growth forecasts.
The grim economic outlook comes on the back of the economy’s rosy performance in the first three quarters of 2010.
Provisional results for the first nine months of 2010 showed Kenya’s economic performance could be better than earlier anticipated and perhaps hit the level reached before the 2007 post election crisis.
Government figures shows average growth rate for the first three quarters of 2010 rose to 5.4 per cent compared to 2.1 per cent and 2.3 per cent for similar periods in 2008 and 2009 respectively attributable to favorable weather conditions, increased liquidity in the banking system, and prudent macroeconomic management.
But a sense of uncertainty is slowly creeping amongst economic agents owing to a spiraling cost of living that has hit the nation since the beginning of the first quarter of this year.
Economic shocks
Temporary shocks such as exchange rate volatility, rising fuel and energy costs, and seasonal food shortages persist to adversely affect pricing structures to conspire against any growth momentum.
Little has changed with commodity and fuel prices surging forward as the shilling continues to face immense pressure from major currencies.
“Everybody is worried because certainly these parameters affect not just our customers, but even ourselves because our projections are affected,” explained Peter Kinyanjui, Family Bank of Kenya Chief Executive.
Analysts at the Standard Bank of South Africa forecast Kenya’s headline inflation to peak to 18 per cent by the end of this year and cautioned of a looming slow down in economic activities with the economy projected to register between 4.3 per cent and five per cent growth rate, which is still favourable compared to 2.3 per cent recorded in the previous year.
“The major threat to our optimistic growth scenario comes from the rising commodity prices. This has implication obviously on inflation, interest rates and exchange rates,” said Stephen Bailey-Smith, Head of Africa Research at the bank, which operates as CFC Stanbic Bank in Kenya
Bailey-Smith reckons that resumption of higher global oil prices is likely to sustain an upward pressure on the Consumer Price Index (CPI).
Fund managers at Pinebridge Investments downgraded Kenya’s forecasted growth on the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) from around 5.5 per cent to 4.5 per cent citing high inflation, a weak shilling, poor agricultural produce, politics and the recent happenings in North Africa and the Middle East, as factors that have slowed down growth momentum.
Last week, the World Bank’s Country Director Mr Johannes Zutt said the bank would weaken the 2011 growth projections for Kenya in its economic update report to be released in three weeks time.
Zutt warned that the economy could further decelerate if the country’s imminent 2012 elections are not handled cautiously.
“It is true global food and fuel prices have been transmitted into Kenya’s economy. It is going to make it difficult for Kenya to meet its growth targets going forward,” explained Johannes Zutt, World Bank’s Country Director.
Mr Paul Mwai, chief executive of African Alliance Kenya Investment Bank also acknowledged that the economy would under perform or even stagnate below the five per cent mark in the course of the year.
Growth momentum
“The recovery process is losing momentum due to high inflation, high consumer demand and poor weather conditions,” Mwai said adding that, “The fact that we are nearing election may also affect the growth since many investors normally freeze investment and capital during this charged political environment.”
According to a local analyst Mr Aly Khan Satchu the risk for the economy to stagnate below five per cent beyond 2011 is high.
“Historically, we have showed an extraordinary degree of Incompetence around the Election Period. 1992, 1997 and 2007 that is three out of the last four Elections has seen the economy essentially crash and burn. The risk is clearly there for all to see and therefore the ICC, the lack of forward motion on the Constitution will turn the economy defensive,” Satchu explained.
Satchu proposes that in order to correct the situation, the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) need to grit its teeth, bite the bullet and catch up with the curve which means tightening interest rates at this time.
“Kenya can build on its track record of strong macroeconomic management,” he said.
He contends that if the economic turbulence continues or intensifies, several measures could help Kenya to navigate the storm, such as tightening monetary policy if inflationary pressures persist and keeping the fiscal deficit within current targets.
The 2011 fiscal deficit is projected to reach 6.5 per cent, and to come down to four per cent by 2014.
This gradual fiscal consolidation, he says, would provide the right balance between public investments, especially in infrastructure, while bringing the debt-to-GDP ratio below the Government’s official target of 45 per cent.
Food and fuel prices have been on an upward trend in the region, without any sign of a let up in the near future.
Inflationary pressure is expected to further intensify with manufacturers passing on resultant costs to consumers.
The economy fell to 1.7 per cent in 2008 from a high of 7.1 per cent in 2007 after a disputed presidential poll pushed the country into a brutal post-election violence, which killed 1,350 people and displaced thousands others.
The economy then registered a growth rate of 2.6 per cent in 2009/2010 boosted by a resurgence of activities in the tourism sector and resilience on the building and construction industry.
After a remarkable growth in 2010 the Nairobi Stock Exchange (NSE) 20-Share Index, a measure of the country’s economic performance, plummeted by 8.3 per cent from 4,240 points in February 2011 to 3,887 points in March 2011.
The Consumer Price Index (CPI) increased by 3.2 per cent from 114.62 points in March 2011 to 118.29 points in April 2011, while the rate of inflation increased from 9.19 per cent to 12.05 per cent in the same period.
Corruption, violence, security impact on development
Published on 05/05/2011
Related Stories
A great pair of boots is a must-have if you want to be stylish in the cold season.
Clashing axle-load limits raising cost of living in EAC
Firms rush to cash in from Sh2b male cut
CMA’s investor compensation fund shrinks
POSITION RECURRENT EXCHEQUER ISSUES
World must act to forestall war in Sudan
Obiageli, Mo & Naidoo
Corruption is a growing problem that hobbles development and robs poor people of opportunities for economic and social advance. That much is well known.
Less well evident, however, until recently were the more insidious effects of corruption in spawning violence that not only threatens the viability and stability of whole nation states, but can engulf them. “Conflict, Security, and Development,” the World Bank’s just-released 2011 World Development Report sheds new light on the intractable, age-old problems of weak governance, poverty, and violence.
The new report’s findings are unequivocal, and make for sober reading:
• Some 1.5 billion people live in countries affected by political and criminal violence — causing human misery and disrupting development;
• Over 90 per cent of civil wars in the 2000s occurred in countries that had already experienced a civil war in the previous 30 years; and
• Coercion and patronage may be seen by some governments as ways to preserve stability, but this is a mistake – corruption, human rights abuses and low government effectiveness make countries 30-40 per cent more vulnerable to violence.
The new report’s findings are particularly poignant for Africa, home to 23 out of the world’s most conflict-affected and fragile economies. And conflict impacts negatively on development.
Preliminary estimates suggest that CÙte d’Ivoire’s post-election conflict has cost over 1,000 lives of men, women and children, displaced another one million, reduced GDP by between 3 to7 per cent, pushed up poverty between 2.5 to 4 percentage points, and created additional fiscal needs of between 4 and 5 per cent of GDP.
Building strong, legitimate institutions and governance that provide citizen security, justice, and jobs are all crucial to break cycles of violence.
The report points out that it took the 20 fastest-moving countries an average of 17 years to get the military out of politics, 20 years to achieve functioning bureaucratic quality, and 27 years to bring corruption under reasonable control.
Put another way, tackling corruption and violence is a generational task requiring sustained effort, and is not for the weak or those prone to wavering. It crucially requires dogged commitment to improving confidence between citizens and the state.
For governments, this means accepting, for example, that ruling parties cannot tackle violence successfully alone, but need to build citizen engagement and coalitions in support of change.
And confidence-building involves signaling a break with the past — through credible early results and measures that convincingly lock in commitments to change.
Shared values
Countries like Ghana and Mozambique have shown that this is possible.
That is why Robert Zoellick, World Bank Group President, recently noted that good governance will not happen without the active participation of citizens, and why the new strategy for World Bank engagement in Africa has governance, and institution — and capacity-building at its foundation.
That is why African Union’s efforts to define and promote “shared political, economic and social values” and behaviour are critical and deserve support.
That is also the reason we must continue to measure and promote progress as done by the Ibrahim Index of African Governance and its four indicators: Safety and Rule of Law, Participation and Human Rights, Sustainable Economic Opportunity and Human Development. It is no coincidence that conflict-affected countries in Africa are relegated to the bottom of the Index.
Much of the economic news from sub-Saharan Africa has been increasingly positive — pre-crisis growth of about 5 per cent per annum for a decade in many countries; poverty reduction at a faster rate than anywhere else in the world; and a speedy return to pre-crisis economic expansion because of exemplary domestic policies.
Africa is now poised to take off much as Brazil and India did some decades ago if only it can make the structural links between citizen security, justice and jobs in conflict and violence prevention, and include mechanisms to build confidence between citizens and the state. Africa must also strengthen governance while curbing systemic corruption.
Citizens, investors and the rest of the world are taking note.
Need we say more? Writers Obiageli Ezekwesili, Mo Ibrahim and Jay Naidoo are World Bank Vice President for Africa Region, Chairman of the Mo Ibrahim Foundation, and Chairman of the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition, respectively.
Mutula roots for death penalty for those found guilty of corruption
Published on 27/05/2011
Related Stories
KACC on the trail of money hidden abroad
MPs probe Sh1.2b military tenders
Rogue contractors on notice as Bill sails through
Is it that bad? Kenya Anti-Corruption Director Patrick Lumumba (left), Presidential advisor on ethnic relations and medi
Kacc to audit council books
Rampant corruption blamed on poor training
By Steve Mkawale
Justice and Constitutional Affairs Minister Mutula Kilonzo has proposed that those found guilty of corruption should be punished severely, including being sentenced to death.
Mutula said the punishment will serve as a great deterrent to those who intend to engage in theft of public assets.
He observed that countries like China have managed to eliminate corruption because of death penalty.
Minister for Justice and Constitutional Affairs Mutula Kilonzo addresses the Press during a stakeholders’ workshop on the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Bill, 2011 at PanAfric Hotel, Nairobi, Thursday. [PHOTO: Jonah Onyango/STANDARD]
“The Philippines have a similar penalty for plunder of public resources. It is high time Kenya comes up with more severe penalties for corruption, so that we make it a life and death affair,” said the Minister.
Mutula made the remarks on Thursday when he opened a stakeholders’ forum on Ethics and Anti-Corruption Bill 2011 at the Sarova Panafric Hotel, Nairobi.
He observed that one of the reasons people engage in corruption is because the punishment prescribed does not befit the crime.
“I feel there is a need to increase fines and custodial sentences,” said Kilonzo.
Prosecutorial powers
The anti-corruption Bill has already been crafted but stakeholders, including those in private sector, were supposed to improve on the final draft during the meeting.
After deliberations, the Bill that seeks to make the Kenya Anti Corruption Commission (KACC) have prosecutorial powers will go for a round table discussion with the Attorney General, Ministry of Justice officials and the Constitution Implementation Committee (CIC), which will be the last stage before it goes to Parliament.
On Thursday, Mutula said the structure of the anti-corruption machinery in the country needs to be streamlined. ” We are aware that currently there are a number of anti-corruption institutions each with different roles to play. These institutions have existed without much harmony. The resultant bickering has been a source of shame to us as a Government and as Kenyans,” said the Minister.
He observed that lack of synergy in conducting investigations, gathering evidence and prosecution has led to the acquittal of suspects who evidently were guilty of corruption.
“I hope we will be able to come up with a lean structure that taps into the experience and expertise of various agencies,” said Mutula.
The Minister further said the country needs more than Sh1billion to establish a world-class Witness Protection Agency. He said currently the Government has only been able to allocate Sh50million, which is not enough to protect witnesses.
Lost their livelihood
Mutula further observed that the biggest obstacle in fighting corruption in the country has been lack of evidence when matters were being prosecuted in courts.
“It has often been said that corruption fights back. Nobody knows the viciousness of the purveyors of corruption but witnesses and whistleblowers themselves. Many have lost their livelihood and their lives,” said the Minister. Deputy Director of KACC Dr John Mutonyi said the Bill had a lot of input from various players but is still open to suggestions for the country to have a solid mechanism to fight graft.
He observed that over the past years, the public has been made to believe that those engaging in corruption were igneous individuals.
“We need to make the public realise that they are committing serious crimes that need to be punished,” said Mutonyi. Present during the meeting was Mr Gichira Kibara, Dr Smokin Wanjala and Mr Kathurima M’Inoti, Chairman of the Kenya Law Review Commission.
War against narcotics to be stepped up
Updated 6 hr(s) 46 min(s) ago
Related Stories
Woman on Obama list held over drugs in Dar
Robber officers to be arraigned in court
Officers nabbed in botched hijacking of Sh30m drugs
Nigerian allowed time to ’emit’ drugs
Fake drugs destroyed
Return of Mombasa drugs
By Isaiah Lucheli
The Government has finalised plans to form an independent authority to deal with increasing cases of drug trafficking.
Internal Security Minister George Saitoti conceded that combating the menace had become a major challenge to the Government.
“The authority’s main duty would be to handle drug-related cases and launch fresh investigations into some of the cases linking prominent personalities that are under investigation. The Government is committed in the fight against drugs,” he said.
The minister explained that the action by the US Government to name some Kenyans in the drug scam was based on the evidence the country had, and expressed optimism that the US would also share their dossier with the Government to facilitate necessary action.
“The police conducted investigations following the naming of several prominent personalities in the drugs scandal, but the report did not implicate them and we are sure that we will take serious step ones the US shares with us their evidence,” he said. He was speaking during the Kajiado North District Education Day held at Ngong Stadium.
The minister said the Government had also finalised plans to secure the country’s borders following attacks by Ethiopians and incursions by foreign forces. “The President outlined the Government’s commitment to safeguard our border with neighbouring country. Security measures have already been put in place. I do not want to preempt the strategies to be employed,” said Saitoti.
Mwau hits out at US over drugs claim
Published on 03/06/2011
Related Stories
Farewell message to the Kenyan people
Speaker Kenneth Marende presents a gift to outgoing US ambassador to Kenya Michael Ranneberger at his residence in Nairo
Kenya sliding down slippery road to drug haven
One-on-one with Ranneberger
Ali Mohamed, Khan Mohamed, Abdul Baseet and three others were Monday charged at the Nairobi Law Courts over drug traffic
Sh800m US funded project launched in Turkana
By Cyrus Ombati
Kilome MP John Harun Mwau has termed as a threat to his life, his naming by American authorities as a drug kingpin.
He said the authorities in the US want him to withdraw a case he has lodged against former US ambassador to Kenya Michael Ranneberger for linking him to drug trafficking.
Mwau spoke to a local TV station at Parliament Buildings after his name was published among the wanted international kingpins.
“This is a threat because of the case in which I sued Ranneberger, they want me to withdraw it. If they have evidence let them table it. They could be looking for me to kill me. Sometimes they kill people because they don’t want the truth to be known,” he said.
He challenged Americans to table any evidence that they have on him.
Maligning people
“If they have evidence they should table it, because I think the American President cannot write something when he has been told lies, so if it has reached that level, we want that report to be given our Attorney General here so that the matter can go to court. If there is a case, instead of maligning people.”
He denied claims that he sells drugs.
“I don’t sell drugs, I don’t sell cigarettes and I have no interest in doing that kind of business. You know when they want to snatch your business that is what they do.”
“You know they say they uphold human rights and the law, you can not uphold human rights and write dirty things about someone for the whole world to see before you talk to him.”
He said he would not take any action but urged the US to table evidence so they could start a formal case.
“If they want money let them ask me to give them, if they want my property let them ask me to give them, but let them not take it by force,” he said.
Woman on Obama list held over drugs in Dar
Updated 14 hr(s) 36 min(s) ago
Related Stories
Mwau and Nyakiniywa on Obama list of narcotics kingpins
MP sues US envoy over drugs ‘dossier’
Ali Mohamed, Khan Mohamed, Abdul Baseet and three others were Monday charged at the Nairobi Law Courts over drug traffic
Iteere roots for stiffer laws to curb drug trade
Iteere on drug trafficking
Lessons from UK in dealing with the vice
By Cyrus Ombati
The Kenyan woman who was named by the President Barak Obama as a suspected drug kingpin alongside Kilome MP Harun Mwau was charged in Dar es Salaam after being arrested with hard drugs. When Tanzanian police burst into Nyakinywa Naima Mohamed’s residence in Dar es Salaam’s Mbezi suburbs beach on Wednesday morning, she did not know she was on a list of international drug kingpins. Nyakinywa, who is also known as Mama Lela, was arrested on Wednesday morning alongside two other Kenyans while in possession of 5kg of cocaine valued at Sh22 million, hours before the US authorities cited her.
Kenyan offi cials in Tanzania said the woman and two other Kenyans identified as Anthony Karanja Asa Kibunja, and Ben Ngare Macharia appeared in court where they were charged with drug trafficking.
In her house, where the drugs were, police said they found documents identifying her as Mwanaidi Ramadhan Mfundo.
Head of Anti-Narcotics Unit Sebastian Ndaru said Friday, Mama Lela, as she is known, had evaded police dragnet for long.
“She has many names and she never leaves traces that can lead to her detection or arrest. It was after a long trail that she was arrested in Dar-es-Salaam,” said Ndaru.
Mama Lela, born in September 2, 1962, is among drug lords whose assets the US President is seeking to seize.
In Nairobi’s Majengo area where she had been staying before moving to Tanzania, many knew her as a businesswoman.
The woman, married to a former city councilor, has a wide businesses empire, ranging from cyber-cafes, saloons, motor vehicle spare parts shops, and rental houses.
She is a mother of three and alleged to be doing business with the Government, especially the Ministry of Local Government, where she has several tenders.
Two-year imprisonment
Ndaru said she is also linked to a case in which a Kenyan is fighting extradition to German over drug trafficking.
Kenyan Victor Oduor Opiyo, formerly a resident of Uhuru estate in Eastlands, Nairobi, is wanted in Germany for drug trafficking. He is among those whose pictures appear in the document. He is serving a two-year jail term. He is also fighting the extradition proceedings in court.
Opiyo was first arrested on January 9, 2009, when he was found with several passports. Opiyo was arrested again on November 26, last year, after he jumped bail.
He was taken to court on January 12, 2009, and sentenced to three years imprisonment after pleading guilty for giving misleading information to the Immigration. Later, he was released pending appeal.
Opiyo was taken to court again in November last year, for jumping bail and committed to serve a jail term of two years.
Ndaru said Mama Lela was the owner of the drugs Opiyo is accused of trafficking.
“She has been elusive since the German authorities sought the extradition of Opiyo. She moved to Tanzania where she was arrested,” said Ndaru.
Obama used the US Kingpin Act to request for the freezing of the assets of all those named in the list released on June 1.
The US Act of 1999 freezes the assets in the United States of international drug traffickers. It denies designated drug lords access to US financial and commercial systems.
The Act requires that US Secretary of Treasury, Attorney General, Secretary of State, Secretary of Defence, and Director of CIA co-ordinate to identify drug kingpins and refer them to the President for sanctions.
Out on bail
The Anti-Narcotics Police Unit and the National Security Intelligence Service started to profile and publish details of suspects arrested for drug trafficking.
Since 2009, the two agencies and others have been profiling the traffickers’ cases and monitoring the progress of their court cases.
Those profiled include three Nigerians, a Guinean, two Ugandans, a Tanzanian, a Zambian, and eight Kenyans.
While some of the suspects are serving jail terms, some are out on bail pending determination of their cases. Others have jumped bail and fled Kenya.
Among those whose images appear on the police document is Scolastica Namuyu Imbiti, whose two cases of drug trafficking are pending in court. She is remanded at the Langata Women’s Prison.
Imbiti was arrested on January 26, last year, with 23kg of heroin concealed in leather jackets at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport. She was taken to court and bonded before being arrested again on February 5, with 3kg of cocaine and 645g of heroin.
The other suspects named in the dossier are Ugandan nationals John Mugisha alias King, and Anne Birungi Bisaso who were arrested on June 7, last year, in connection with 21.4kg of cocaine valued at more than Sh80 million at JKIA.
They are remanded at Kamiti Prison and Langata Women’s Prison. Their cases were to come up for hearing from May 20.
The team is looking for Tanzanian national Dickson Joakim Tengeneza who was arrested on October 21, 2009, for trafficking in 1.7kg of cocaine. His case is still pending but has since fled to Tanzania
Nigerian Emmanuel Abbabio Kwaku who was arrested on November 10, 2009, in Mombasa with 5kg of heroin is also featuring in the dossier. He is serving a life sentence.
Kenyan legislator on US drug kingpin list; US concerned about Kenyan drug trade
By Associated Press, Published: June 2NAIROBI, Kenya — The United States has added two Kenyans, including a parliamentarian, to a list of global drug kingpins who now face U.S. sanctions, a move that spotlights the East African nation’s involvement in the international drug trade.
The two Kenyans were among seven people that the U.S. added to the list of overseas narcotics kingpins on Wednesday. Under the 1999 Drug Kingpin Act, identified drug traffickers and their related businesses are denied access to the U.S. financial system and transactions with U.S. companies and individuals.
Associated Press – In this photo taken Sunday, Feb. 6, 2011,
Harun Mwau, a member of Kenya’s parliament, takes a new oath of office. The Kenyan legislator has appeared on a new U.S. list of overseas narcotics kingpins. Harun Mwau, a member of Kenya’s parliament, was among the seven people named Wednesday, June 1, 2011. A Kenyan businessman was also named. U.S. officials say they are worried about Kenya’s rising role in the drug trade. Mwau’s office did not immediately respond to calls seeking comment.
The Kenyans include parliamentarian Harun Mwau, who is among Kenya’s richest citizens. The other person named, Naima Mohamed Nyakiniywa, is said to be involved in business.
Kenya’s drug problem — primarily heroin — has been escalating for years and is partly fueled by corruption, former U.S. Ambassador to Kenya Michael Ranneberger told The Associated Press in an April interview days before he finished his assignment in the country.
“It is a very serious problem. We have seen a steady increase in narcotic trafficking in Kenya over the past five years and even before that … it is extensive,” Ranneberger said. “At this point it reaches to very senior political levels.”
Mwau resigned as assistant Minister for Trade in December after Ranneberger gave a report to Kenya’s security minister naming Mwau and three other legislators and asking Kenyan authorities to investigate them for drug trafficking.
A preliminary report from a police investigation conducted in the port city of Mombasa said it could not find any evidence linking the parliamentarians
…
[Message clipped]