SPECIAL REPORT The URBAN AREAS AND CITIES MANAGEMENT — Pages 14 & 19 SUPPLEMENT LEnhancingink governance for all THE PARTNERSHIP FOR PEACE PROJECT FUNDED BY THE EU DECEMBER 2011 Issue No. 086 Kshs 40/= — Pages 15 - 18 Know your Clarify legal status cancer status now of the Kisumu City By BRIGHTON KAZUNGU By GIDEON OCHANDA OPPORTUNITY has arisen for all Kenyans to know their cancer status HE newly en- immediately. acted Urban The government has launched Areas and cit- a rigorous countrywide campaign T to create public awareness on the ies Act 2011 has put in to question the le- prevalence of and dangers posed by gality of Kisumu City cancer, which has become a major as a County because health risk in the country. it essentially cre- The campaign kicked off in ates another County Mombasa recently. However, it’s expected to be conducted all over which is not provided the country in a tight racing against for in the constitu- time to tame the spread of the dead- tion. ly scourge. It all began on the In the coastal region residents night of 26th August are being educated, informed and 2011 when Parliament screened for various forms of the passed handful legis- disease, including the most com- lations to buttress the mon ones like cervical, breast and prostate cancers. constitution in line with Dr. Esther Getambo, the head of the year one listed as ‘a the Oncology Unit at the Coast Pro- must’ legislations. Ur- vincial General Hospital (CPGH), ban Areas and Cities Act, Aerial view of Kisumu City said 80 percent of cancer infections 2011 was in tow as required by the are curable if detected at an early Constitution – Article 184 and the fifth stage of development. The tragedy schedule which states that “a national From the provisions of the is that many patients only go for legislation shall provide for the govern- treatment when it is too late. “When they eventually come ance and management of Urban Areas Constitution and the Act Kisumu City for treatment, they are already in and Cities and shall in particular is either an illegal County or illegal City stages three and four which are very a) Establish criteria for classify- advanced and cannot be helped ing areas as Urban areas and Cities much,” she lamented. 2011, based on the requirement of the before the commencement of the Act b) Establish the principles of gov- Dr. Getambo said cancer is ma- Constitution established a criteria and shall be deemed to be cities established ernance and management of urban ar- jor public health problem not only different categories of urban areas and under this Act,” (Sec 60). And this is eas and cities in Mombasa but in the country as a Cities. where the problem begins. c) Provide for participation of whole. She attributes late diagnosis The status for both Mombasa and With the exception of Nairobi that trends to apathy, fear, and ignorance residents ………… may include mech- Kisumu have been retained in the Act becomes a Capital City, Mombasa of the disease. anism for identifying different catego- “………the municipalities of Mom- and Kisumu becomes City Counties. ries of urban areas and cities.” basa and Kisumu existing immediately 8 Turn to Page 2 Col. 1 The Urban Areas and Cities Act, 8 Turn to Page 2, Col. 1

School heads lack MPs gang up in Saitoti urged to financial literacy defense of CDF introduce policy on —Pg. 3 de —Pg. 13 police posts —Pg. 30 i Turkana schools Kenya Power moves Fish farming enriching face closure due to to light up slums communities insecurity —Pg. 8 Ins —Pg. 22 —Back Page The Link, December 2011 2 GOVERNANCE Clarify legal status of the Kisumu City From page 1 government there is another ex- ecutive head called a manager “City County means a city heading another independent which is also a County,” Sec- board. The net effect is that both tion 2 of the Act. The govern- the constitution and the Act ance and the management of a have created different parallel County City is to be in accord- governments for the same city ance with the law relating to counties. the County Governments- Sec- The executive committees tion 12 (3). and the governors have a role in From the foregoing, it is the establishment of the city or clear that we have three County municipal boards but thereafter Cities: Nairobi, Mombasa and the boards are not answerable to Kisumu. anyone. The boards are charged However, it is only Nairobi with overseeing the affairs of and Mombasa that are included the cities and municipalities, in the list of Counties (Sched- develop and adopt policies, ule 1) in the Constitution and plans and programmes, control- given full strength in Article 6 ling land use and development, (1). Nairobi and Mombasa fits implement national and county in their entirety with all their legislations, enter into contracts constituencies within one geog- and partnerships, prepare and raphy and by extension poten- administer the budget, collect tial distinct city county govern- Kisumu City Hall rates, taxes, levies, duties, fees ments. Kisumu City. ii) How does the City functions of the county admin- and surcharges, implement and On the other hand, Kisumu But the options are limited get its Governor, the executive istration and its departments monitor performance of man- County listed as Number 42 in since amending the Constitu- committee and County Assem- among other executive func- agement systems, etc. – Sect. the list of 47 Counties is not the tion to alter territorial divisions bly? tions. But the Urban Areas and 20. same as Kisumu City created by (Article 6 and first schedule) iii) How will the City share Cities Act, 2011 has first, placed The same functions are giv- the Act. will require both parliamentary in the National revenue distri- more or less the same roles to en to the executive committees As currently placed, Kisumu approval and a referendum (Ar- bution? city boards and two, has made of counties by the constitution City comprises of Kisumu East ticle 255). Changing the internal iv) If it remains under those boards’ body corporate art.183, thus, implement county and Kisumu West Constituen- division of the territory is one of Kisumu County Government, entities. and national legislations, pre- cies only but Kisumu County the protected clauses that par- how then does the City partici- The managers of the cities pare legislations and policies, includes Kisumu Rural, Nyan- liament alone can not amend. It pate in the election of County are answerable to the board and county planning and budget do, and Muhoroni, Nyakach as requires two thirds approval by Governor, the Senator and not the executive committee. processes, etc These indicate a well as the two town constituen- parliament and a national refer- Women representative to the City and municipal Managers clear contradiction or duplica- cies. endum both of which the coun- National Assembly? who shall be the equivalence tion of roles. What all this means is that try can ill afford before the next Management of Cities of the current city and munici- It behoves, the constitution the Act has created an additional elections. The management of the cit- pal clerks are to implement the implementation commission County that is unconstitutional. If Kisumu remains as pro- ies and municipalities is also decisions and functions of the and all the relevant bodies to Kisumu County City is there- vided in both the constitution headed for difficulties, tremen- boards and not the executive look again at the urban areas fore “illegal” unless the con- and the Act, there are funda- dous confusion and an affront committees of the county or and cities law. It also begs as stitution is amended to create mental concerns that must be on the constitution. The consti- City County. a reminder that legislations space for an additional County addressed. tution has created county ex- For purposes of pecking or- passed in haste and in shortened or the Urban areas and Cities i) Which County Govern- ecutive committees and charged ders, a governor is the head of a time that do not allow for public Act, 2011 is amended to provide ment shall Kisumu City board them with the responsibility corporate entity called a county participation would mean con- for a different special status for serve under? to manage and coordinate the government but in the same stant ridicule of parliament. Know your cancer status now From page 1 year. offers screening for cervical hospital. civil servants clinic is just a few Recently prominent person- About 10 to 15 new cancer cancer every Wednesday and This is still expensive for or- meters away. alities such like the late Nobel cases are reported at the Keny- Friday at a subsidized cost of dinary Kenyans, but parents who About 200 women turned up Laureate Prof Wangari Maathai, atta National Hospital (KNH) Kshs.100, but few women ac- can afford should take daughters on the first day alone, and Dr. Medical Minister Anyang each week, with 64 percent of cess the service. for the drug, he says. Soita says at least 1,000 women Nyongo and Jerry Okungu were patients ranging within 30 to 50 Vaccination for Human Radiotherapy sessions for ad- will receive the life saving test. diagnosed with the disease. Sad- years. Papilloma virus (HPV), which vanced cancers are only held at The Provincial General Hos- ly, Prof Maathai succumbed to Getambo says since the unit causes 80 per cent of cancers, KNH, with most Kenyans being pital is the largest referral hos- the disease. opened a year ago, at least 170 is also available at private clin- unable to afford the treatment, pital in the region, with only Available data shows that patients have been referred for ics for 13 year-olds who are not and residents have asked the one cytologist who serves the breast and cervical cancers are radiotherapy at KNH, with five sexually active. Government to set up a similar entire province. still the most common among deaths being recorded. In Mombasa, a complete unit at the Coast General Hospi- However, plans are under- women in Kenya. The two ac- Many of those who turned dose of the cervirax vaccine is tal to ease congestion. way to scale up screening in count for 59 percent of genital up for the screening had other available at Kshs.2,200, says At the high risk clinic, four other satellite public health fa- tract infections and between medical complications, ac- Dr. Musimbi Soita, head of the consultation rooms have been cilities for service to a larger 1,500 and 2,000 deaths each cording, she adds. The hospital Reproductive Health Unit at the set up to screen women, while a number of Kenyans. The Link, December 2011 EDUCATION 3 Union calls for doubling of Mukurwe-ini inches on salaries By JOEL JUMA THE Kenya Union of Post Prima- with adult education ry Education of Teachers (Kuppet) By JOSEPH MUKUBWA The education officer said enrolled for secondary education form. has petitioned the Government they have started a campaign commonly know as post literacy. They graduates are also plan- to increase by 100 percent allo- cations channeled to students in TWENTY- FOUR adult learners which will ensure men enroll for More than 600 adult learners ning to start income generating boarding schools to help address have graduated in Mukurwe-ini evening classes instead of engag- are also expected to report for the projects like dairy goat projects the huge budgetary deficits. district after attaining basic edu- ing in the consumption of alcohol education soon. and also start a social group for The Union officials said high cation. in the evening. Kabando said the Government entertaining people. The grandaunts who included Mukurwe-ini district has the is also supporting the learners as The group is also looking for cost of goods and the depreciating 22 women and two males gradu- highest number of adult learn- teachers are paid by Government. plot for demonstration of their shilling had destabilized opera- ated recently at their centre based ers in Nyeri County who have He promised to buy them uni- agricultural work. tions in most schools due to lack in Kiawaita Primary School of adequate funds. where they have been undergo- “The Government should there- ing training. fore increase the allocations from They passed the proficiency Kshs10,650 to over Kshs 20,000 test and were awarded with cer- as the cost of goods has gone up,” tificates by Youth assistant Min- said the union’s Secretary General ister who is also the area MP Akello Misori. Kabando wa Kabando. Misori said that parents were The learners started their free being forced to pay more as head training in May and some have teachers have started adjusting fee vowed to continue to another structures for next year without the level of learning. approval of the ministry of Educa- “They attained basic literacy tion. in reading, writing and numer- “The Government should re- acy. Most of them are women view the fee structures as parents since they are more interested in were being forced to pay more education,’ said the district adult from next year and yet the coun- education officer Lawrence Mu- try’s inflation rate is still high,” riu. said Misori. A joyful 77-year-old Martha Misori remarks comes barely Wanjiku who is a mother of five a day after the Kakamega County children said she was happy that Officials led by the branch secre- despite her age she has been able tary Harison Otota and the branch to take home the certificate. chairman Johnstone Wabuti said Most of them are drawn from the union was against the fees in- Kiawaita, Kiuu, Thangathi and crement in schools. Kaharo with an age bracket of Many schools have already is- over 40 years of age. sued new fee structures for next Muriu said the willing group year with some now charging will continue to the next stage between Kshs30,000 and Kshs where they can go up to the uni- 43,000 per year. The amount ex- versity level. cludes the allocation from the The group is being supported Government. by the local CDF and the office Joyful Agnes Maina is handed a certificate by Youth Assistant Minister Kabando wa Kabando after she At Mwihila boys high school of their MP. graduated recently in Mukurwe-ini district. Photo/Joseph Mukubwa in Khwisero district, parents were issued with new fee structure that reflected an increment of fees from Kshs 27,000 to Kshs 33,000 start- ing from next year. School heads lack financial literacy The school’s principal Na- musende Musonye said that the By AGGREY BUNCHUNJU been no Government initiative to per No. 1 of 2005 on government school was still faced with debts equip head teachers with the req- policy guiding programmes in the ALTHOUGH some public totaling to Kshs 6 million. uisitive skills for effective man- education sectors. “We have managed to reduce schools’ head teachers lack mana- agement of the monies. Areas to be covered in the gerial skills in financial matters, our debt portfolio which initially Quite a good number of head course include effective resource stood at Kshs12 million to save they continue to be entrusted with teachers across the country have management, human resource colossal amounts of money. the school from collapse,” said been interdicted for allegedly mis- management, project manage- Musonye. In the last 8 years the Govern- appropriating or mismanaging the ment and financial management. ment and other donors have been Area MP Evans Akula released funds. Other areas of interest in the over Kshs 30 million to the school disbursing funds to Public Prima- Aware that the Government programme are; - strategic plan- which has been elevated to a cen- ry and Secondary schools, the ca- is part of the problem, Education ning procurement and stores tre of excellence to improve on the pacity of head teachers to handle Minister Prof. Sam Ongeri recent- management, integrity and good the cash notwithstanding. ly launched a free diploma course governance in schools, ICT Inte- facilities. The cash that has been and still in education management for all gration in education, and conflict Misori and Wabuti said the un- being disbursed to public schools head teachers in the country. resolution and disaster manage- ion wants the minister for Educa- include funds for Free Primary Education stakeholders in ment. tion Sam Ongeri to order schools Education (FPE), Free Second- Bungoma County have welcomed The course will be offered by to stick to the fee guidelines issued ary Education (FSE), Constitu- the Government’s new initiative the education ministry through the by the Government to stop over- ency Development Fund (CDF), saying that it is appropriate and Kenya Education Staff Institute loading parents. bursary grants and Kenya Educa- long over due. (KESI). The officials explained that the tion Sector Support Programme Led by the Kenya Nation- Prof. Ongeri It will be delivered through cost of fuel and sugar was high (KESSP). al Union of Teachers (KNUT) open distance and flexible learn- and thus the need to allow schools In some schools across the Bungoma South branch executive schools”, he says. ing modules in regional centres to purchase sugar directly from the country the monies are not being secretary Mr. Ken Nganga, the Mr. Nganga at the same time to be established in all parts of the factories to avoid relying on sup- used to the donors’ and other edu- stakeholders say that the course expresses optimism that after suc- country. pliers. cation stakeholders’ expectation. would minimize indiscipline cas- cessful completion of the course This course is anticipated to “Most of the suppliers keep on Failure by the funds to meet es among head teachers. concerned teachers will be moved improve management of school adjusting their quotations and this expected impact in some recipient “The mandatory diploma to the next grade. funds and will be used by the has made schools to strain finan- institutions is attributed to head course in managerial skills for The 10 months course which Teachers Service Commission cially,” said Wabuti. teachers’inability to manage fi- all head teachers will streamline will be sponsored fully by the (TSC) as a competitive tool in ap- He was speaking to the press nances. accounting procedures and en- Education Ministry is part of pro- pointing and promoting teachers after the Kakamega County branch Until quite recently, there has hance prudent use of funds in our posals contained in Sessional pa- to managerial positions. monthly meeting held at the union offices in Kakamega town. The Link, December 2011 4 GOVERNANCE Siaya County school dropout rate alarming THE school dropout rate in out rate has been linked to Boda “I appreciate the work of completion was high and must Siaya County is rising at an COMMENT Boda operators who lure the Administration Police who ar- be quickly addressed. “It is true alarming rate due to high pov- young girls with petty cash and rested operator of a video show the drop-out rate is high and erty levels. By JOHN NYAMBUNE end up impregnating them at in the area which poisons the there are several factors caus- The District Education Of- tender age. minds of the youth,” said Mr. ing the situation in the County, ficer, Ms. Jane Omogi, says He says the school is missing “I take my education very Mola. poverty among other issues but many factors had forced youth at least 2 pupils a term which is seriously and would one day The District Commissioner we in Education sector have ap- to drop out of school, with pov- relatively high in a spurn of a wish to be a teacher, and noth- (DC) Mrs. Carolina Onyonka, plied necessary measures to re- erty being the biggest cause. given time frame which should ing else will deter me because who is the chairman of District duce the menace and we have She says most families sur- be checked. I have seen some of my best Education Board (DEB) said collaborated with local chiefs vive in less than Kshs.95 a day The Deputy Head Teacher of friends in school getting preg- the Government would regu- and their assistants to help us and therefore can hardly afford Got Omalo Primary School, Mr. nant and lead miserable life,” late video shop and arrest those arrest parents who do not want basic needs. “Many are leaving Charles Obia, says the commu- says Daniela. There are many showing indecent material to their children to go to school.” school and as the line ministry nity should use the available re- challenges facing girls but that pupils. He said the Government involved, we are putting every sources to invest in education. should not be a ticket of mess- He said at Sega location, initiative to offer feeding pro- measures to see them back into He also cites lack of role ing around. residents were employing un- gramme had helped improve school,” said the DEO. models to inspire the children The area Education Officer der-age children to collect scrap the retention of students in The head teacher of Yenga and advises the local commu- in Ugenya District (AEO) Mr. metals instead of letting them schools and fight illiteracy. Primary School, in Ugenya nity to be steadfast in ensuring William Mola also cited the attend school and warned that The practitioners have called District, Mr. Michael Ochieng, that the students are educated pornographic video operator perpetrators would be charged. on the Government to ensure says other than the high poverty on the importance of education. who was arrested by the police The Ugunja District Educa- sex education is introduced at levels, teenage pregnancy was The Wendy Daniela, a pu- recently in the area as those fan- tion Officer (DEO), Mr. Fran- early stages and have urged par- also a contributor to the drop- pil at Siror Primary School, in ning teenage pregnancy in the cis Kiplagat, said the rate of ents not to fear discussing sex out rate. Ugunja district, says the drop- area. pupils leaving school before with their children at home.

By KAVYU-KURA

WORRIED by poor academic standards, leaders in Mwingi Mwingi leaders plan to Central district have agreed to come up with a five-year strate- gic plan to improve the situation. The resolve follows revela- tions that about 17,000 pupils in assist KCPE graduates the area who completed their pri- mary education over the last five dubbed “Friends of Education”. that high illiteracy levels among years have not been able to transit The meeting that brought to- parents had also had a huge bear- to secondary schools due to deci- gether professionals, educations ing in the dropout rates since they mal academic performance. experts, businessmen and cler- were not committed to educating According to the District Edu- gymen was called to seek ways their children as was drug abuse cation officer Mohammed Go- to fix the declining educational that was prevalent in schools dad, out of the cumulative 7495 standards. around Mwingi town. candidates who proceeded to sec- Godad further told the meeting The meeting consequently re- ondary schools during the period that a total of 1,165 pupils largely solved to raise nearly Kshs 2 mil- under review, 3576 performed drawn from primary schools had lion that would be used to formu- dismally with grades ranging dropped out of school due to ear- late the five-year education plan from D plus and below. ly marriages and the prolonged to address all the issues ailing The DEO spoke at a consulta- period of drought that ravaged the local education system with tive Education stakeholder meet- the area. improvement in examination per- ing at Mwingi town Catholic hall The Education officer said formance as the cardinal priority. The leaders who included the acting Mwingi DO 1 Sarah Gichamba further agreed on the need to improve the existing di- lapidated structures in schools to create a conducive learning envi- ronment. In addition, the leaders agreed to ensure that parents and the community at large played a role in uplifting the disheartening education standards by actively participating in decision making processes instead of remaining passive by-standers as the situa- tion worsened. Tarbaj District Agricultural Officer Fidelis Mwini Mwaniki INSET: The Mwingi DEO Mohammed Godad addressing the who hails from Mwingi, attribut- education stakeholders meeting at the Mwingi Catholic Hall. ed the ailing education sector to Photo/Kavyu-Kura the absence of a drive to achieve results. onzo expressed dismay over the the need by parents to encourage “It is high time Mwingi resi- grim picture painted by the DEO. their daughters to pursue further dents were sensitized to demand He said that it was sad that lo- education. results from key education play- cal schools lacked the capacity “Parents should know that ers in order to improve perform- to produce personnel required to completing standard eight for ance. This can be achieved if all steer development in the district. their daughters is not enough. If stakeholders get involved instead The DO 1 lamented that many they want them to have a prom- of relegating their responsibili- young girls who have just cleared ising future they must scale the ties to the DEO and teachers,” their KCPE examination in education ladder to University. said the agriculturalist. Mwingi were being transported Allowing them to work as maids The Kilifi District Develop- to Nairobi in hordes to work as in Nairobi will be highly detri- The acting Mwingi central DO I, Sarah Gichamba, addressing ment Officer, Alex Sammy Kil- the education stakeholders meeting. Photo/Kavyu-Kura house maids. She underscored mental to them,” said Gichamba. The Link, December 2011 EDUCATION 5 Kilifi wins UN award promoting education Mwingi school poses By BEKADZO TONDO KILIFI County Council has won the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) award for its relentless ef- danger to pupils forts in promoting educational ac- tivities in the area. By KAVYU-KURA The council was selected the best among all the 175 local authorities DISASTER is looming at Kanzui in the country during the exercise Primary school in Mwingi cen- coordinated by the United Nations tral district. The gaping cracks Development Program (UNDP) on the classroom walls portend a with support from the Ministry of grave danger to the 269 learners Planning and National Develop- and their teachers. ment. Already, one classroom has The chairman of the local author- caved in following a heavy storm ity Mr. Anthony Kingi said the coun- in the area. The 49 learners in cil emerged the best for its outstand- class one however escaped un- ing support towards educational hurt as the damage occurred late projects and cited the construction of classrooms, digging of pit latrines, in the night. purchase of desks among other cru- “We were in the process of cial issues. mobilising resources to have the He said the projects have been gapping cracks in the standard undertaken in a transparent manner one classroom repaired but the with support from the school man- wall collapsed due to the heavy agement committees and respective downpour,” said the school head teachers. teacher Shifta Musyoka. “Residents drawn from the 31 As he accompanied the area wards under the Kilifi county council assistant Chief Nicholas Muasa have been prioritizing school devel- to assess the damage, the head opment projects in their respective teacher admitted that all the Local Authority Service Delivery classrooms in the school need Action Plan (LASDAP) meetings before the council approves fund- ing for the implementation of the projects,” said Mr. Kingi. Pupils at Kanzui primary school look as the local assistant The clerk to the council Mr. chief Munyoki Muasa plant a tree in the school compound. Leboo Ole Morintat said apart INSET: The Kanzui assistant chief Nicholas Muasa points at a from funding school development crack in one of the classrooms. Photo/Kavyu-Kura projects, the council has a bursary fund that supports needy students to be brought down and re-build million to oversee the rehabilita- from the area. afresh as they were in serious tion exercise. He said special committees have state of disrepair. “We have applied for support been set in each ward and with the support of the council staff they He said during heavy rains, from the Mwingi North Constit- identify needy students who are the pupils remained in their uency Development Fund (CDF) awarded the bursaries. classrooms at their own peril kitty but we have not received Mr. Morintat said education was because not only were the roofs any positive reply. We are still key to development and therefore leaking heavily due to uncount- hoping that a donor will one day priority must be given to initiatives able gaping holes but the walls show up and help us out,” said that support the learning process were likely to cave in if a mild the head teacher. such as the construction of addition- tremor occurred with disastrous He however said that he al classrooms. results. would soon write a report to the The clerk said the council recent- The roofs to most classroom Mwingi district education officer ly allocated Kshs 500,000 to aid in were aged while the walls were indicating the risks that pupils at the construction of a tuition block precariously bent, an indication the school are exposed to on a at the Kilifi medical training center. of poor workmanship. daily. He expressed hope that the But even as the council was feted The head teacher now says DEO’s office would help him get by the UNDP, transitions rates from that the school requires Kshs 3.5 the much needed support. Primary to Secondary schools in the area still remained low. The District officer, Kikambala Division, Mr. Justus Munyau la- mented that transitions rates between Oparanya roots for quality education Primary and Secondary school cur- rently stood at 40 percent. This was largely blamed on a By AGGREY BUCHUNJU create conducive environment for education is accessible by all Ken- a private primary school put up high drop out rate occasioned by a both local and foreign investors. yans,” says Oparanya. by a group of educationists from high incidence of poverty. PLANNING Minister Wycliffe “With the changing system of Article 53 (1) (b) of the Consti- Kakamega County. The administrator directed chiefs Oparanya has underscored the governance all counties must in- tution ,states that every child has Higher, quality and college to arrest parents who fail to take importance of quality education vest in education which is key to the right to free and compulsory education is increasingly be- their children to school and arraign in all the 47 counties in the coun- development in any region,” the basic education. coming a reserve for children them in court for abdicating their pa- try. minister says. The constitution is however, si- from well to do families due to rental obligation. Oparanya says the devolved Oparanya adds that to invest in lence on the accessibility of higher high fees charged by the institu- Meanwhile, the local authority governance system will require quality and relevant education is and college education which is tions. plans to set aside funds to rehabili- qualified personnel to run the the only sure way that can propel very vital to the success of county In public primary schools tate the damaged Rare River bridge counties’ day-to-day affairs ef- counties to high level of prosperity. Governments. where majority of Kenyans en- along the Kilifi -Ganze road. fectively. He points out that the Govern- Oparanya who was speaking roll their children, quality edu- The clerk to the council Mr. Le- The minister calls on well to ment is committed to ensuring that recently at Navakholo District cation is compromised by over- boo Ole Morintat said the council do Kenyans and other develop- education is accessed by all Ken- headquarters in Kakamega County stretched facilities. was currently consulting the Kilifi ment partners to invest in the ed- yans including persons with dis- urged all education institutions in Girls’ education is still un- District Roads Engineer to assess the ucation sector and other sectors abilities as enshrined in the coun- the country to provide quality and der threat in some communities. damage and estimate the costs. of the economy in order for this try’s constitution. relevant education to Kenyans. This may militate against the Mr Morintat said the bridge was country to realize vision 2030. “Through private and public The minister was the chief one third of either gender prin- crucial in connecting Ganze and Kil- He urges leaders and the entire partnership the Government is de- guest during the official inaugura- ciple when it comes to hiring of ifi towns and transport is paralysed populace in the counties to assist termined to make sure that quality tion to Tomliza Education Centre, personnel in some counties. when the bridge is in bad shape. The Link, December 2011 6 EDUCATION

Education system failing cohesion drive Don tells state By PETER MUTUKU ify the system to respond to fully engage the Ministry of gent citizens and only second- market demands. Education. arily citizens skilled in areas to invest in EVEN as the National Cohe- The Mackay report for in- This will in effect mean that the economy wants. This sion and Integration Commis- stance underpinned the impor- that the skills which the mar- crop of Citizens will think and early education sion (NCIC) strive to inculcate tance of technical and voca- ket wants are built on a firmer act responsibly and more im- By TITUS MAERO national values in the political tional education and dismissed foundation of the knowledge portantly, be tolerant and em- arena, the country’s education the allegedly elitist and intel- and appreciation of the values pathic to divergent opinion or THE Moi University’s Dean of system remains utterly inept in lectual Education system then of citizenship. difference in ethnic, class and Education, Prof. Peter Barasa has addressing citizen formation. in force and which did not, ac- The citizen should have a racial background. asked the government to recognize The education system cording to the report fit market common consciousness, com- The task facing NCIC is the importance of Early Child- which is critical in promotion demands of the modern econ- mon frame of reference and enormous. It demands a thor- hood Development and Education of national values has purely omy. approach to the policy prob- ough engagement with educa- (ECDE) as one of the most impor- focused on market needs and The report virtually ignored lems facing the society. The tion policy makers and social tant tools in accelerating the attain- left out more subtle issues the concerns raised in the Ga- citizens must understand the scientists in universities. It ment of Education for All (EFA) that underline the fundamental chathi report in relation to the many diversities that exist in may call for a review of or and the Millennium Development principles of stability, integrity education system. Similar the society, the nature of the clarification of our educational Goals (MDGs). and general prosperity of the reports have failed to iden- diversities and the shared val- goals. It involves review of Barasa said EFA goals obli- country. tify and promote values that ues and interests that unite all the quality of textbooks in our gates the government to expand Save for the Gachathi Re- are critical to addressing the despite these diversities . Such primary and secondary educa- and enhance comprehensive myriad challenges facing the goal does not undermine the tion. ECDE programmes that are es- port of 1976 which criticized sential for basic education adding the education system for lack- nation. need to provide technical and It is a worthy task. Properly that the number of ECDE centres ing in capacity to teach learn- And as the National Co- vocation training that meets done, it is likely to provide the had increased marginally in the ers on the values of society, hesion and Integration Com- the demands of the market. right foundation for the new country. subsequent reports have pri- mission undertakes to build a We shall have at any tier of structures of the government The Don further pointed out marily explored ways to mod- more cohesive society, it must education informed and intelli- the constitution has created. that with the with low enrolment many of the children between the ages of 4-5 years end up directly joining primary schools with- By KAVYU KURA out the relevant background thus negatively affecting retention and ABOUT 7000 primary school chil- Teachers also ate the quality. dren in Mwingi region consumed afla- Addressing students at the toxin infested Unimix distributed by Kakamega High School, the lectur- the Kenya Red Cross Society through er, however, noted that the country the Kenyans for Kenya initiative. poisonous Unimix has made remarkable progress in Information available indicate that increasing access to primary edu- seven schools in Mwingi Central dis- cation noting that the completion trict, 13 in Mwingi East district, 15 rate had improved drastically. in Migwani district, eight in Kyuso He observed that in spite of all district, seven in Tseikuru district and these regional disparities is evident five in Mumoni district with a cumula- adding that with regard to gender tive enrollment of 6944 pupils benefit- disparity in enrolment, the situa- ted from the contaminated unimix. tion has been improving and the The Link established during a visit disparity is relatively small in pri- to Kanzui Primary School in Mwingi mary schools. central district that received 277 bags “However a major factor con- that the teachers also took the porridge straining secondary school enrol- made from the flour alongside their ment is that growth in the number 269 pupils. of secondary schools has not “Although the authorities are con- matched the growth in primary cerned about the health of the pupils, schools,” he explains. they should not forget the teachers. All He said the imbalance in re- the teachers in this school consumed gional enrolment in learning in- the bad flour and are worried about stitutions is expected to worsen their heath,” a teacher who sought following the successful imple- anonymity intimated to The Link. mentation of the Free Day Second- The school’s head teacher Shifta ary school Education adding that Musyoka confirmed the teacher’s the demand is more acute in urban fears. He said teachers should not be areas. left out in the ongoing efforts to re- And touching on education verse the impact of the poisonous Un- matters in the public universities, imix, as they too, consumed the por- Barasa said transition from second- ridge derived from the bad Unimxi. ary to university stands at about 3 “If the government is going to per cent saying that the last decade carry out any screening on the ef- witnessed substantial growth in the fects of the poisonous Unimix on the university sub-sector. school children, they should not forget Barasa observed that the in- the teachers because they too had por- creasing number of universities in ridge prepared from the bad flour. Just the country has failed to meet the like their pupils, they too may have demand for university education been adversely affected and worried,” adding that access to marketable said Musyoka. degree programmes remains lim- Musyoka said that parents with ited due to high costs. children at the school were worried He said the phenomenal de- about their children welfare as a result mand for university education has of the bad Unimix scandal. “They are Pupils at Kanzui primary school being served a lunch of beans and maize. I couple of weeks ago they were resulted into expansion of univer- very much worried considering that served porridge lunch prepared from bad Unimix and parents are worried about their health. Photo/Kavyu-Kura sities through opening of satellite the effects of small levels of aflatoxin campuses most of which lack the are not felt immediately. They want all contaminated flour to Kanziu primary poisonous food,” Ms. Mathuva, in her pupils who consumed the bad Unimix requisite infrastructure and person- the children screened and those found school where her children and those of sixties, said. but his office was on high alert to de- nel. sick given medication,” said the head relatives attend classes. The Mwingi public health officer tect any early symptoms of infection. The Don also noted that the teacher. “I do not know what to say. Where David Munyoki however said that “I have sent out officers to the af- expansion is likely to stifle the di- A parent Nguno Muthuva ex- did this bad food come from and who even after consuming the Aflatoxin fected schools but no reports have versified university system and the pressed disgust that the government can we hold responsible. I am worried infested Unimix, no child had suffered emerged of an infection or pupils hav- goal of creating “centres of excel- had in the first place allowed the bad that my children, those of my sisters any adverse effects. ing signs or symptoms of Aflatixico- lence” thereby affecting the quality food to be consumed in schools. She and brothers may suffer stomach com- He said no immediate case of Afla- sis. We are closely monitoring the sit- and relevance of education at this questioned the motive of distributing plications and fever from taking the toxicosis has been reported among the uation,” said the public health officer. level. The Link, December 2011 GOVERNANCE 7 Saitoti warns communities over cattle rustling MPs to grill By JOSEPH MUKUBWA fuelled by cattle rustling saying it was Minister for livestock development has given us an international airstrip in an issue of disagreement between Abdi Kuti, MP’s Rafael Letimalo, this region,” he said. Kimunya over INTERNAL Security Minister communities. Simeon Lesirma and Abdul Bahari. He said those involved in cattle George Saitoti has warned that the “About this issue, we have re- Others were the PS Internal security rustling activities who should not be government will not spare individu- solved the leaders spearhead recon- ministry, Eastern Provincial Commis- allowed to hide in their tribes adding Kakamega als or communities involved in cattle ciliation campaigns in their areas and sioner Claire Omollo and her Rift Val- that the issue of land had also fuelled rustling in the country. also empower the peace committees ley counterpart Osman Warfa. NCIC ethnic clashes in the region. The minister spoke in Nanyuki that already exist,” he said. chairman Mzalendo Kibunjia also at- Lesirma said those who supply Airstrip town after chairing a peace and recon- Saitoti stressed the new constitu- tended. and sell guns in the area were known ciliation meeting attended by leaders tion was emphatic on protecting hu- Kuti urged the pastoral communi- individuals who should be brought to By JOEL JUMA from Isiolo, Samburu, Turkana and man rights of all individuals in the ties to focus on matters of education, book. health and development instead of Saitoti however assured the lead- Meru Counties. country while at the same time pro- PARLIAMENTARY Trans- He said the government was tak- tecting the right to own property pri- relying on cattle rustling and ethnic ers that the disarmament exercise will fightings. He said the government was be conducted fairly in all the commu- port Committee is set to sum- ing the issue seriously adding the vately. mon Transport Minister Amos meeting had resolved that communi- He regretted that cattle rustling keen on initiating development in the nities after they had raised concern had greatly affected learning in the areas which he said had been sidelined that some communities were targeted Kimunya and other Government ties which had stolen animals must officials to explain why the reha- surrender them to their rightful own- area and advised pastoralists to take by the past regimes. while leaving out others. ers as the government would pursue advantage of the County governments “I think we should now focus on He urged the leaders to shun politi- bilitation of Kakamega Airstrip them to ensure they are returned. to develop their areas. how we can export meat products in cians who spread hatred through poli- has stalled. “We all know that lives of in- The meeting was also attended by other countries since the government tics. The Committee said it was nocent people have been lost during disturbed that the expansion of cattle rustling incidents and the gov- the airstrip which was set to cost ernment will not allow anyone or any Kshs76 million had stagnated community to break the law and go despite the fact that the demand unpunished,” he said. for the flights to Kakamega have Saitoti said the government will risen. recruit afresh members of the Kenya “We have received complains Police Reservists (KPR) while at the and the committee will be seek- same time vetting afresh those who ing an explanation from people are already members under the newly concerned,” said the committee enacted police act to ensure only those chairman David Were. who can be entrusted with guns are re- Were, who is the MP for Ma- cruited as members. tungu, explained that Kimunya, He revealed the government Kenya Airports Authority of- would also provide the KPR members ficials and Transport PS Cyrus with uniforms so that they can be eas- Njiru will be grilled over the ily identified by residents and be dis- project. Were noted that the com- tinguished from criminals. “The meeting also resolved that mittee has already alerted those the disarmament exercise which had who will be grilled. been halted to allow passage of the Were said he is shocked that constitution resumes immediately to after a tour of the facility early ensure guns and other weapons in the this year, construction works are wrong hands are seized,” he added. still behind schedule. He said The minister reiterated the govern- delays in completing work is ment would also act sternly on parents inconveniencing operators and who fail to enroll their children in residents. schools as the issue was also fuelling The legislator was speaking cattle rustling due to idleness among in his Matungu Constituency youths adding some cultural believes during an inspection of develop- were also contributing to the vice. Some of the herders and provincial administration who attended a peace meeting at Nanyuki town ment projects. He however dismissed claims recently. The meeting was chaired by Internal Security Minister George Saitoti. Area DC Otieno Kwatch, that the recent killings in Isiolo were Photo/Joseph Mukubwa District Education Officer Wil- liam Sugut and the Matungu branch ODM Secretary Raphael Welimo accompanied him. The Kenya Airports Author- Groups unit to promote rights of women ity manager in-charge of Western Region Peter Wafula however By AGGREY BUCHUNJU ers will also be sensitized to seize the mentation of the new constitution. tion in law, customs and practice re- said works slowed down due to opportunity presented by the new con- Godia cautioned politicians lated to land and property. heavy rains pounding Kakamega CIVIL Society Organizations (CSOs) stitution and the National land policy against hijacking the process arguing l Encouragement of communities and it environs. have teamed up to popularize the of 2009 to them lay claim to their land that the media is the only tool that can to settle land disputes through recog- Wafula said flights to the air- provisions on women and property rights. give correct information relating to nized local community initiatives. strip will resume soon, as the ownership as provided for in the new She observes that for Kenya to women’ land and property rights. Further, article 2 (4) on the su- expansion programme is almost constitution and National Land policy. reach equality, women must obtain Another speaker, Mrs. Dorothy premacy of the constitution, says that adequate land rights that are both so- Awino, Women’s assembly convener, any law, including customary law, being finished. “The contractor The CSOs that have joined hands is doing his best to recover lost in this noble cause include The Afri- cially and legally recognized. Kisumu county dismissed the Luo inconsistent with this constitution is “Women must seize the opportu- culture as punitive and crystallized by void to the extent of the inconsistency. time,” said Wafula. can Women and Child Feature Serv- He explained that KAA is also ices (AWC). ALDEF Kenya, Caucus nity in the constitution and land policy propaganda. It is important to note that women to confront the deeply entrenched cul- Awino said that widows in Luo contribute 80 percent of the agricul- inspecting the facility on regular for Women’s leadership, and the Cen- tural barriers, and other obstacles such land have experienced gross dispari- tural labour and provide about 60 per- basis to ensure that the contrac- tre for Land, Economy and Rights of as poverty traps, ignorance of the law ties in land and property ownership. cent of farm-derived income. tor does not delay the works. The women (CLEAR). and illiteracy that hinder access, con- She claimed that widows’ ties to In spite of this only 5 percent of manager explained that some Others are Great Rift Valley De- trol and ownership of land”, she says. land and property have been mediated land in Kenya is registered jointly materials were being sourced velopment Agency (GRVDA), Kituo She points out that the eight-month by dowry payment and their relation- with men and why 1 percent is regis- from far areas. While touring cha Sheria, The women’s research pilot project aims to enhance partici- ship with in-laws. tered by women alone. the airstrip earlier, Njiru said the centre and development institute and pation of women in decision-making However, the new constitution has The denial of equal property rights Government intends to put up UN Women –Kenya. over land management and use, and clear provisions that guarantee wom- puts Kenyan women at greater risk of airstrips in all the 47 counties. Through a pilot project on enhanc- accelerate legislation and implemen- en’s land access and ownership rights. poverty, disease, violence, and home- ing women’s Rights and access to land He said development matters tation of gender sensitive laws regard- The constitution specifically pro- lessness. must be improved in the coun- and property in line with the new con- ing land and property. hibits gender discrimination in law, However, the 2010 constitution stitution, the CSOs are set to conduct ties to encourage tourism. He Nyambura was speaking recently customs and practices related to land of Kenya and National land policy explained that some regions are public education on gender sensitive at a Kisumu hotel in Kisumu city and property. of 2009 guarantee the protection of provisions governing ownership of lagging behind economically during a media workshop on women Articles 60 points out that land women’s rights to land and related due to lack of air transport facili- land and property. land and property rights. The one day should be held, used and managed resources, including the provision for Caroline Nyambura from UN training was facilitated by the Afri- in an equitable, efficient, productive joint spousal registration and docu- ties. women- Kenya says that civil society can women and child feature service and sustainable manner in accordance mentation of land rights. Were said the committee groups should work together to pro- (AWC). with the following principles of land If effectively implemented in its wants KAA to ensure that air- mote civic engagement and awareness Speaking at the same forum Jane policy; full intent, the new constitution will strips are kept in good condi- due to their experience and interest in Godia, editor AWC Feature service l Equitable access to land bring a significant change towards tions. He said some airstrips had women and land ownership issues. challenged the media to take the com- l Security of land rights equitable access to land, suitable land been ignored and become graz- Nyambura adds that women lead- munity to the next level in the imple- l Elimination of gender discrimina- use and secure land rights. ing fields for animals. The Link, December 2011 8 EDITORIAL & COMMENTARY The

LinkEnhancing governance for all Call al-Bashir’s bluff instead of panicking

HEN President Hassan Omar al-Bashir of Sudan sneaked into Kenya to celebrate with WKenyans the birth of a new constitution, lit- tle did he know that the courts in Kenya would use their newfound freedom and independence to rattle him. What al-Bashir’s reaction has announced to the whole world is that court decisions in Sudan are made COMMENTARY at his behest. It means Sudanese judges just read out what Al-Basir has approved. That is why he thinks Kibaki is the one who gave Justice Ombija green light to issue a warrant for his Turkana schools face arrest. He was wrong about that as he is wrong on many issues affecting Sudan and the region. But that is not the ugliest part of this diplomatic fi- closure due to insecurity asco. What is more worrying is Kenya’s kneejerk re- action that has been defined by panic and paranoia. the role of peace in development The speed with which Wategula was dispatched to NUMBER of schools in Turkana District are faced COMMENT is critical,” said Nick Wasunna, Khartoum made the whole affair look like Kenya is with imminent closure ow- World Vision Kenya’s senior advi- a banana republic that would collapse the minute al- A ing to the increased cases of cattle By MALACHI MOTANO sor. Basir sneezes at it. rustling. Joyce Emanukor, Oxfam’s How can the President allow himself to be bullied Parents in Nakwamekwe and education officer in Turkana, is and browbeaten by al-Bashir over an issue he does Kanamkwemer villages have al- sponse, the community has em- concerned by how the prevailing not have control over? When will we as Kenyans de- ready started transferring their ployed the services of a police re- insecurity has uprooted children fine and defend our national integrity and pride? children to schools in the neigh- servist, who accompanies children from schools, particularly those on Kenya is not the keeper of South Sudan to the ex- bouring areas in fear of attacks by to and from school. the Pokot border, forcing them to tent that we are ready to kneel before al-Bashir un- raiders. Reservist Salim Iro, rifle at the relocate to facilities in other areas, der the pretext of maintaining the peace in the region. Nelly Loree is a parent of three ready, follows the children to play resulting in massive overcrowding. “These facilities are over- We are pretty sure South Sudan can defend itself by pupils. “Our children are afraid. on the school’s field, to the River There are armed bandits hiding stretched. There are no additional standing up to al-Bashir as they have done for the last Turkwell to draw water. “I escort with stolen animals in the thick- them every day. I cannot take books, classrooms and other learn- 30 years. ets behind Nawoyaregae Primary chances, because when the bandits ing material to care for the extra We cannot violate our own constitution just to School in Kaputir Location. Cat- come, they attack all our people in- pupils; the quality of education is please a known despot who came to power through tle rustling and the gory battles cluding the children.” quite low,” she said. the barrel of the gun that he will not spare to use between these two neighbouring Standing alert, gazing at the Insecurity is not the only factor against his people in Darfur for which heinous crimes communities (Turkana and Pokot) pupils from a distance as he ca- compromising education in Turka- the ICC wants to try him. is the order of the day. It has been resses the weapon, Iro says, “This na. A gross shortage of teachers is a Wategula, a lawyer by profession, should not be sharpened by competition over place is volatile. But children must concern. For example, Nawoyare- overzealous in his quest to please his boss to the point grazing land and water. learn; and we must do all we can gae Primary School, with an enrol- of advising the executive to ignore its own constitu- “Pupils cannot attend classes to ensure their safety when learn- ment of 350 or more school-aged children, has only three teachers. tion. daily. Sometimes you may go to ing,” he says. Oxfam reports that a classroom and find just a hand- “This is a great challenge, espe- The dragon of impunity is already critically in- as many as five pupils are killed in ful of them. This may go on for attacks by raiders every year. cially when we have more pupils jured and Kenyans will not allow the likes of Waten- months. Again, school lasts just Even though a 2007 presiden- coming back to school after fight- gula, al-Bashir and their like-minded cohorts to re- four hours so that children make tial directive led to the recruitment ing has subsided. The teachers get suscitate it and unleash it on them once more. it home early because of insecu- of Kenya Police Reservists in ban- overloaded, and this is not good for We only have time and energy for making sure rity,” says the school’s headmaster, dit-hit areas, this has not addressed the pupils,” Omukaga, the school’s that the dragon is completely dead and buried and James Lamukaga. the security situation because of head said. He said he would need those who oppose that will be buried with it come Primary school net enrolment inadequate numbers. about nine to be comfortable. next elections. is just 26 percent in the Turkana Only one police reservist is de- The situation is replicated in Who gave al-Bashir the audacity to give our gov- South District where Kaputir is ployed to each of the three schools neighbouring East Pokot District, ernment ultimatums anyway? found, compared to a national ratio in the region, which are about 10 where the majority of schools 76 percent. Kenya’s Free Primary kilometres apart. This, says the have just two or three teachers Education programme has its work area’s chief, Charles Lopuya, is serving over 200 students, accord- cut out for it here insufficient to provide adequate ing to Mutuku Mwenga, the Dis- Nawoyaregae is a school get- protection. He wants about six re- trict Commissioner. He noted that The Link is published ting by with what it can, its mud- servists for Nawoyaregae. teachers had been shying away from being deployed in areas such monthly by the Institute walled makeshift classrooms al- Development organisations in ready crumbling. Nursery lessons the area say the communities face as Turkana and Pokot, largely due for Civic Affairs and are conducted under a tree, with a dilemma: insecurity keeps chil- to the insecurity. Development (ICAD) the young learners, 30 in number, dren away from school, but educa- Even though the government crowded into the available shade, tion is the key to solving such con- has announced plans to deploy peering at instructions drawn on flicts with traditional roots. more teachers in these regions by the battered blackboard. “To address this, we need to enticing them with additional al- P.O. Box 7438-00200, Nairobi, Kenya. According to Lamukaga, the achieve some level of education lowances, analysts contend that uneven progress on education will Tel: 020 6001776 / 020 6001274 school had more than 350 pupils, and use it to build peace in com- but this has fallen to 125. The munities. Providing opportunity leave remote rural communities - Email: [email protected] figure fluctuates, but the trend is for education to the young genera- who need it as much if not more steadily going downwards. In re- tion and helping them understand than anyone - behind. The Link, December 2011 GOVERNANCE 9 LinkThe Enhancing governance for all DC’s stitch in time EDITOR DANIEL OTUNGE SUB-EDITOR saves nine children FAITH MUIRURI By KAVYU-KURA ASSOCIATE EDITOR OLOO JANAK KYUSO District Com- missioner in Kitui County recently ordered force- WRITERS ful treatment of nine sick MORRIS GITHENYA Central Kavonokya Sect children 0735 855586 after another succumbed to measles and died. Kyuso DC Peter Maina JOSEPH MUKUBWA Central acted to save the children 0724 039787 from Tyaa Kamuthale vil- lage in Kamuwongo divi- BEKADZO TONDO Coast sion after their parents failed 0728 341240 to take them to hospital as it was against their Kavonokya PETER MUTUKU Eastern sect faith. 0721 455048 A contingent of armed police officers led by Kyuso KAVYU-KURA Eastern AP commandant Michael 0721 000000 Wambua stormed the af- fected homes and forcefully BOB OMBATI Nyanza took away the sick children 0728 435255 who were hospitalized at Kyuso district hospital. OJWANG OGOCH Nyanza Since the rescued chil- A Kavonokya sect member and her sickly children walks away after police led by Mwingi OCS Jonathan 0725 690223 dren belonged to two fami- lies respectively their moth- Wafula stormed her home in last September and forced her to accompny the children to Mwingi district hospital for treatment. Photo/Kavyu-Kura NYAKWAR ODAWO Western ers were also arrested and 0726 264153 locked up at the Kyuso po- lice station where they were over the last three months home of Mbevo Musili in MPs told to rise LUKE KAPCHANGA Western interrogated before being ar- who have been treated a the Kyamwenze village of Mui raigned in court. Mwingi district hospital for division following a tip off 0723 622136 The rescue mission comes the disease. by Ngoo assistant chief Ju- above parochial in the wake of a sustained In September police offic- lius Musyoka Mukiti after AGGREY BUCHUNJU Western campaign by public health ers staged a raid at the home parents became adamant and interests over 0733 537002 officials in the neighbor- of a Kavonokya sect adher- refused to take the children ing Mwingi East district to ent in Mwingi East district to hospital. CDF projects JOEL JUMA Western have measles struck children and rescued three measles Following the rescue of 0723 622136 from Ngoo village treated struck children and took the nine children, Kyuso DC By BOB OMBATI after nine succumbed to the them to hospital. A day earli- declared an all out war on FORMER Kitutu Masaba legislator LAYOUT AND DESIGN: disease. er, a sibling who was a form the sect members within his Samson Okioma wants measures put in The district Public health three student at Mui second- jurisdiction. place to ensure projects initiated through WALTON DESIGNS the Constituency Development Fund officer Joseph Nyaga said ary school had succumbed to “This cannot be allowed (CDF) are completed even after the ex- 0725 903 938 since the death of the chil- the ailment. to continue. It is a sad story piry of a parliamentary term. dren whose parents belong A contingent of police of- that such primitive acts are Okioma who lost his seat during the [email protected] to the Kavonokya sect, we ficers led by Mwingi OCS taking place in the 21st Cen- last General Elections said that most of have rescued 22 children Jonathan Wafula raided the tury,” lamented DC Maina. the projects he had initiated during his term had become obsolete as his suc- cessor refused to allocate more funds to oversee their completion. The former lawmaker challenged all incoming legislators to rise above paro- Disquiet in Butere council over alleged graft chial interests and give projects initiated by their predecessors a priority before By LINK CORRESPONDENT net Minister Wycliffe Oparanya was that the council was set to ensure that funding new ones as incomplete projects protecting the chief officers and the all projects are completed before the were becoming an eyesore in most con- BUTERE/MUMIAS County coun- council chairman Mondekai Nandwa County Government becomes opera- stituencies. “As much as the MPs want This Newspaper appreciates cilors want the Government to probe from accusations of financial im- tional. to be seen to be working, it is logical that propriety. Keya urged Oparanya to “We are implementing our strate- the facilitation accorded by how Kshs20 million obtained by chief they complete old projects before start- intervene and take action instead of gic plan and we shall achieve it before ing new ones since they are all under the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung officers as a bank overdraft was spent. The councillors said it was sad the keeping silent as the council fails to the next General Elections when op- their jurisdiction,” stated Okioma. (KAS) in Kenya funds have been exhausted within two implement projects approved during erations will shift to the County Gov- He said CDF was a public fund weeks leaving the workers salaries this financial year. ernments,” said Odundo. which should finance projects meant to unpaid. The workers have already is- The Council Clerk Maurice Odun- The Kenya Local Government benefit respective communities regard- sued a seven-day strike notice to the do and the Treasurer Reuben Wan- Workers Union Western Regional less of whether legislators lose their seats All correspondence and council if the chief officers fail to pay yama however dismissed the allega- Secretary Juvenus Orao said the union or not. “Incoming legislators should stop tions as cheap politics being fanned was monitoring the performance of all blocking completion of projects started them their salaries. by their predecessors as this was counter- enquiries to the editor, Civic leaders led by Michael Keya by Keya and his colleagues. councils to curb on the mismanage- Odundo and Wanyama said they ment of funds. productive and disfranchised taxpayers and Concilia Pasi said the Minister for who have to contend with wastage which P.O. Box 7438, 00200, Local Government Musalia Muda- were ready to account for all the funds Orao said that the union has en- used by the council during their term tered into talks with the chief officers was negating the purpose and intent of vadi must deploy auditors to probe the the fund,” he added. Addressing jour- Nairobi, Kenya. council as the chief officers and the in office. “We are trying our best but to explore ways through which work- some councillors want to remain in ers are paid their arrears amounting to nalists in Kisii, he challenged members Tel: 020 6001274 chairman had hatched a plot to loot the of the public to monitor projects funded local authority ahead of next year’s the opposition throughout their politi- Kshs6 million before the next General by the government in their respective cal career,” said Odundo. Elections. Telefax: 020 6001776 General Elections when civic bodies localities. The lawmaker implored the will be replaced by county govern- Odundo said the council has al- Orao said talks are ongoing in We- electorate to vote for visionary leaders located over Kshs68 million for the buye and Kimilili Municipal Councils e-mail: [email protected] ments,” said Keya. with a proven track record instead of ex- Keya and Pasi claimed that Cabi- completion of all stalled projects where the workers are operating on perimenting on leaders who, he claimed initiated by the council. He explained salary arrears. sought the seat for selfish interest. 10 The Link, December 2011 GOVERNANCE

MPs urged to Poor medical services use roads money diligently appall Busia residents By JOEL JUMA THE Government has released By NYAKWAR ODAWO pital has no medicine for treating patients are harassed and denied only get the prescribed drugs after over Kshs 1.4 billion meant for the patients suffering from snake treatment if they complain. money has exchanged hands. the rehabilitation of roads in all PATIENTS seeking treatment at bites. “The situation has forced ma- However, efforts to get com- the 210 constituencies. the Busia district hospital have ex- Scores of patients frequenting jority of patients to seek medical ment from the Medical Superin- Each constituency has re- pressed dismay over the poor serv- the health facility for treatment attention from private clinics ma- tendent Dr Roselyn Atieno over ceived over Kshs7 million in the ices offered at the facility. have pointed an accusing finger jority of which are owned by the the allegations did not bear fruit first tranche. The remaining bal- Allan Salano Simwa, a resident at the nurses especially those sta- medical officers working at the as she was not in the office neither ance will be disbursed before the says that he was recently forced to tioned in Room number four and Busia district hospital,” said one could she be reached through her end of this financial year. seek treatment from a tradition- at the reception where they claim of the victims, adding that one can cell-phone. Parliamentary Transport Com- al herbalist after he was bit by a mittee Chairman David Were snake after nurses at the hospital said contractors awarded the jobs treated him badly and declined to should start working immediately. attend to him when he complained “Any MP who has not re- of neglect. ceived the money should report to He said he was rushed to the the committee so that we can fol- hospital in pain but the nurses al- low up the matter,” said Were. legedly refused to attend to him Were said the committee will even after he pleaded with them start going round to asses the state that he needed emergency atten- of roads soon after the release of tion as he had been bitten by a the funds. “Some MPs leave the poisonous snake and his toe was money to waste in their accounts swollen. and the trend must not continue,” “The nurses declined to attend said Were. to me claiming that they were not The chairman explained that properly equipped to remove the contractors who have benefitted poison from the affected part of from the jobs before will not be the body,” said the victim. awarded other contracts in the Sources at the hospital who constituencies as priority will go sought anonymity said a female to new applicants. patient who had been admitted at Were was speaking at Emana- the hospital recently after she was ni Primary School in his Matungu bitten by a snake passed on when constituency where he presided the nurses declined to attend to over a funds drive meeting. her. The MP explained that the “Last month a female patient committee wants to ensure road who was brought in here after be- network in the country is im- ing bitten by a snake, passed on proved before the introduction of after the nurses delayed to accord County Governments. her emergency treatment,” said “Some provinces are already the source, adding that the hos- ahead. We need to have the funds Patients patiently waiting to be attended to. Photo/File released on time to balance devel- opment matters in the country,” said Were. He explained that his commit- Kibujia team to train police on hate detection tee wants Roads Minister Frank- lin Bett to ensure the Kenya Ru- By PETER MUTUKU General Elections,” adds Dr Kibun- “We call for total accountability ral Roads Authority, the Kenya THE National Cohesion Integra- jia. from all Kenyans and we shall deal Urban Roads Authorities and the tion Commission (NCIC) plans to The chairman singles out the on- firmly with any acts of impunity. It is Kenya National Highways Au- train police officers to enhance their going ethnic profiling of the Cushitic our collective responsibility to decide thority come up with programmes capacity to investigate cases of hate communities that targets the Kenyans what is legitimate and exercise the that will balance development of speech ahead of next year’s General Somalis following the abduction of enjoyment of our freedom of expres- roads. Election. foreigners and subsequent military sion without infringing on the rights Were’s remarks came as According to NCIC chairman campaign launched by Kenya against of fellow Kenyans,” Mr Ndegwa Cabinet minister Soita Shitanda Dr Mzalendo Kibunjia, the training the Al-Shabaab militia. says. expressed the need to dispatch programme targets police officers in- He says the profiling is mainly Meanwhile, the Vice President auditors to Kakamega County to cluding station commanders, inspec- being fanned using the social media Kalonzo Musyoka has urged Ken- ascertain how the Kshs300 mil- tors and crime branch officers . networks, broadcasts and short text yans to discard tribalism and embrace lion released to the nine constitu- Dr Kibunjia reveals that the train- messages which amount to ethnic national unity in order to sustain the and racial discrimination of the So- country on the path of peace and encies during the last financial ing will first take off in Mombasa be- year were utilised. fore being replicated in other parts of mali Community. prosperity. “We have received many com- The VP cited tribalism as one of Shitanda who is the minister the country. He says that hate speech for Housing lamented that some monitors will also be trained in all the plaints of victimization of Kenya the biggest impediments to national Somalis, including allegations of unity and development and which roads in Kakamega town were in counties during the initiative which is a pathetic state. women in buibuis being spat on,” Mr. Kibunjia should be eradicated through the set to end in March 2012. Shitanda explained that the Already a task force that com- he laments adding that discrimina- available legal provisions and social tion against Somalis has extended and Communications Commission of programmes. most of the roads in Kakamega prises of NCIC, the Director of Pub- Kenya (CCK) to obtain information town were impassable and blamed lic Prosecution (DPP) and the police to public transport vehicles and even Mr Musyoka called upon Ken- schools. “Kenya is increasingly pre- that could be used to prefer charges yans to shun politicians who seek to assistant minister Manyala Keya force has been set up to identify gaps against the perpetrators of the hate that may derail the enforcement of paring the ground to make Somalis divide them along ethnic lines, point- for not pursuing the matter with targets of xenophobia and violent propaganda. NCIC has also raised ing out that the new Constitution has the Kenya Urban Roads Author- the law relating to hate speech. alarm over rising sectarian tensions The NCIC Chairman says that it attacks. NCIC shall not allow this to empowered the people to chart their ity. happen,” he affirms. due to political competition ahead of destiny. Keya later went to the au- unfortunate that even with the laws the 2012 poll. in place, the commission is still wit- Dr Kibunjia says that people In this regard, he appealed to thority and complained to the of- choose to become members of ex- “Every Kenyan should be able Kenyans to embrace and support the ficials about the state of roads in nessing high levels of political intol- to go to any part of the country and erance in the country and cited the tremist groups like Al Shabaab in law, terming it as one of the best in Kakamega town. their individual capacities and not as express their opinion without fear or the world. Keya said the officials told build up of religious animosity, intra favour as long as their sentiments do ethnic and inter ethnic tensions in ethnic, religious or racial entities. Dr “We should all defend the new him they have developed designs Kibunjia says NCIC has at the mo- not violate the Constitutional rights of Constitution because, besides provid- different parts of the country. other Kenyans,” Dr Kibunjia said. aimed at decongesting the town. “We are deeply concerned about ment launched investigations into ing for the respect of the rights and the origins and spread of hate propa- At the same time a Deputy Com- equality of all Kenyans, it also allows He said more other routes will the rising levels of intolerance and missioner of Police Julius Ndegwa be opened up to ensure that pas- hate speech in the country based on ganda against Cushitic Communities the impeachment of a President who , particularly Somalis . warns that the government will deal fails to live up to the call of his office sengers who have no business in ethnic, political, religious and other firmly with individuals who engage the Central Business District are differences as we move towards the He says the Commission is liais- and thus eliminates dictatorship and ing with Media Council of Kenya in hate speech. bad governance,” Mr Musyoka said. not forced to enter into the town. The Link, December 2011 CITIZENS’ WATCH 11 @

Profiteers made Rebuff politics of violence and cost of living Lessons for Africa from stone-throwing more worse THE recent attack on Presidential aspirant Raphael Tuju’s convoy in A RECENT World Bank report Kisumu is worrying. restated what is already common our new Constitution With the general election just knowledge — global food insecu- THE self-immolation of a young a year away, the incident suggests rity and escalating poverty. With man, Mohamed Bouazizi, on De- there are some people who learnt widespread degradation of the en- cember 17, 2010 in Tunisia sparked nothing from the tragedy intolerance vironment and the negative impact civilian protests that led to the ouster and mindless disposition to violence of climate change, recent announce- of President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali visited on the Kenyan people. ment of world population hitting the 28 days later, ending his 23 year iron This country will be a wrung bet- seventh billion mark is bound to add fist grip on power. ter off the day when all compatriots to uncertainty over food security and Soon the whirlwind spread like and especially the youth learn that general poverty. bush fire across North Africa and violence only brutalizes, stains the Amid the apprehension, the gulf Middle East-leaving scores dead and country’s high standing and sows between the rich and the poor is wid- what once seemed like ‘indomita- seeds of retribution. ening. The message by anti-capitalist ble’ governments toppling down like The youth must vow not be used protestors occupying St. Paul’s Ca- dominoes. Another uprising soon by political players who more often thedral in London, New York’s Wall followed in Egyptians followed the than not are only driven by short- Street and Oakley in the US in recent civilian uprising where tens of thou- term agenda. weeks is that something is not right sands of protesters gathered at Tahr- The new Constitution is clear. and the state of affairs needs to be ir Square demanding change and The protests against Gaddafi’s 42 years dictatorial regime. Photo/File Political leaders have obligation to re-evaluated. What the world is wit- bringing to an end the 30 year-old preach peace to their followers. True, nessing cannot be explained away as regime of President Hosni Mubarak. desperation and joblessness have in mere expressions of neo-socialism The protests inspired similar ac- The aggravating factors towards the Safeguards and controls, includ- the past been blamed for youth ma- fervour. Truth is, the power of capital tions in Libya where the protests civil unrest are all centred on a gov- ing an elaborate and progressive nipulation. has been degrading the safeguards turned into a full-scale civil war that ernment that has continually sup- Bill of Rights ensure that unchecked And which is why civic educa- put in place by the International La- led to the tragic death of Muammar pressed any form of political activ- police brutality that would be un- tion must be stepped up. But even bour Organisation (ILO), the trade Gaddafi on October 20, 2011, end- ism, room for reform and freedom leashed on protestors, restriction of before that is done, is it not common union movement and consumer ing 42 years of his authoritarian rule. of choice. speech and the press and high in- sense that violence is counterproduc- rights lobbies. However, despite the civil unrest, In Egypt there were charges of equality index are now things of the tive? The rising cost of food and con- Gaddafi had ensured that his people graft, manipulation of the electoral past. This country marked a milestone sumer goods is not restricted to Ken- had access to free healthcare and ed- process such that Mubarak was the Unfortunately, many countries in by embracing a new Constitution last ya. A number of European countries ucation. In Tunisia, the people began only candidate of choice. Although sub-Saharan Africa are still saddled year. are edging towards the economic the protests in response to among he claimed to have won on an over- with similar heart-wrenching expe- That set of law spells out our turmoil that has engulfed America others curtailed liberties and high whelming majority, voter turnout riences. Civil unrest is stoked when responsibilities, privileges and also for well over a year now. Nobody corruption. In Egypt, similar factors was usually extremely low because people feel that their rights are not obligations. can claim that there are any quick fix were the cause of uprising, among of the lack of trust in the represen- taken into consideration by the gov- The assumption in competitive solutions so we should not expect the them, state of emergency laws and tational system. This low voter turn- ernment. politics is that every candidate has government to perform any miracles. political censorship, entrenched cor- out was in contrast with the voter The 2007/8 post-election vio- a right to sell his or her agenda and However, the government must be ruption, high unemployment and turnout witnessed during the March lence, though orchestrated by a few ideas. They must be allowed to do so on the lookout for profiteers and car- inflation. 10, 2011 constitutional referendum political elites in truth can also be without being harassed. tels who exacerbate Kenyans’ pain. Following in the footsteps of Tu- where over 18 million Egyptians interpreted as protest against per- Likewise, you the voter, has a We do not believe on command nisia, Egypt and Libya, quite a hand- cast their votes. ceived violation of the electorates’ choice to accept or reject such agen- economy where prices are arbitrarily ful of countries in North Africa and Kenyans can identify with such sovereign rights. da. The ultimate arbiter is the ballot fixed and market dynamics interfered Middle East are experiencing upris- scenario and thanks to second lib- Africa can learn from our own box. with. However, there must be sensi- ings demanding a change in the way eration hence and heroines, the laws that man’s spirit yearns for There cannot be an alternative to tivity on the part of oil merchants, those in the government conduct the new Constitution which was prom- freedom and rights which are God- this universally recognised arrange- landlords, PSV operators, manufac- politics in those countries. Yemen, ulgated by President Mwai Kibaki given. No individual should rule ment. Kenyans must reject in total- turers down to the retail chain. Jordan, Syria, Bahrain, Mauritania, last year puts Kenya at a level nearly without consent of the people. ity, politics of stone-throwing and This is not to say that firms Morocco and Algeria have all ex- all other African countries can only Pam Inoti, a repeat of the 2007/2008 violence should sell fuel at a loss, that PSV perienced some form of civil unrest. dream about. Via e-mail. — a chapter that stained Kenya’s crew and operators should be denied reputation as one of select Third profit but to appeal to them to accept world countries where elections are the guidelines rolled out by the regu- successfully held as scheduled every latory mechanism and even market five years. realities so that they pass on the ben- Kenyans earnestly hope that peo- efits to consumers. ple who resort to violence are not al- They must remember that in- lowed to get away with it. crease in fuel cost drives up the cost Sophiah Muthoni, of everything else disproportionate- Via e-mail. ly. For example, why not give Ken- yans a break when crude process fall at the international market? In any case market forces work best where competition is fair with reasonable latitude in supply options. This country cannot afford to be complacent and assume that social * upheavals only occur in other plac- The editor welcomes letters and es. In part due to historical reasons comments on a variety of issues. founded on colonial practices, ineq- The letters should be brief, uity is rife in our country. topical and issue based. This together with migratory The editor reserves the right to patterns from rural to urban to seek edit for brevity or clarity. relief, poverty is getting dredged. To their credit, these people have de- Write to: vised ingenious ways of surviving The Editor, but let’s not push our luck too far. The Link, Okello K’Ajoji, P.O. Box 7438 – 00200, Nairobi. via e-mail E-mail: [email protected] 12 The Link, December 2011 GOVERNANCE

Machakos poor Cattle rustling a in reproductive KMD decries low threat to peace health services efforts By PETER MUTUKU By BOB OMBATI MACHAKOS District continues to budgetary allocations lag behind in reproductive health serv- CATTLE rustling along Bo- ices with a large percentage of pregnant By JOSEPH MUKUBWA adaptation, Dr. Marigi said: so ignoring climate change will rabu Sotik common border re- women seeking the services of Tradi- “KMD therefore receives low erode economic growth and live- mains a major threat to the on- tional Birth Attendants (TBAs). LOW budgetary allocation is one budgetary allocation and experi- lihoods of many communities. going peace efforts in the area. According to the 2009, Kenya Inte- ences problems in developing its “Our actions over the coming North Mugirango Borabu grated Household Budget Survey, only of the major challenges facing 11.4 percent of the children in the Dis- the Kenya Metrological Depart- meteorological infrastructure (in decades could create risks of ma- Member of Parliament, Wil- trict are delivered by doctors while only ment. particular observational instru- jor disruption to livelihoods and fred Ombui says the cattle rus- 18.4 percent are delivered by nurses or Senior Deputy Director, Dr. ments and network, telecom- many socio-economic activities tling menace threatens to derail mid wives. 21.4 percent are delivered by Samuel Marigi of the Central munication and data exchange, in this century on a scale simi- gains made in promoting peace trained birth attendants while a massive Forecasting Office at the depart- data processing, forecasting and lar to those associated with the in the area. 37 percent are born through the assist- ment lamented that the depart- dissemination as well as human great wars and economic depres- He says Dairy farmers in ance of traditional birth attendants. resource development),”. sion of the first half of the 20th The District with a population of ment was experiencing problems Borabu were losing thousands 207,328 people has 17 public health fa- in developing its infrastructure He said the climate change af- century and it will be difficult or of cattle to rustlers from neigh- cilities, four mission hospitals and seven due to low budgetary allocations. fects the economy of the country impossible to reverse changes,” boring districts who killed any- private health centres. However, remote Marigi said the meager allo- by way of floods and droughts he added. body who resisted or answered areas within the District have no health cations in the department have resulting in destruction of infra- The training was officially to distress calls. facilities and rely on community out- been channeled towards address- structure, low agricultural out- opened by Ministry of Environ- “I cannot keep quiet when reach programmes organized once every puts, and inadequate electrical ment PS Ali Mohammed who my voters are being killed by month. The Machakos District Medi- ing the impact of climate change cal Officer of Health (MOH) Dr Jack which is a critical area. energy supply among others. said the Government is commit- marauding rustlers and crimi- Nthanga says that although no official Speaking at Great Rift Valley The officer said it is evident ted to address issues of climate nals. Something must be done survey has been conducted, most wom- Lodge in Naivasha during five day that climate change is real and is change and global warming at to address their plight urgent- en in the District still rely on traditional media training on climate change taking place in the country and global level. ly,” stated Ombui, birth attendants and hardly see any need Cattle rustling, noted the to seek hospital services in the second or Mp had impoverished area third pregnancy. He, however, says that the high lev- residents and scared away in- els of poverty push them into seeking vestors leading to underdevel- services of TBAS as some believe the opment. fee charged in hospitals is still far out The legislator now wants reach for the majority of them. the communities who share “Poverty and accessibility to medical the common border to discard facilities are some of the main problems that are discouraging mothers from go- the menace which may result ing to hospital in Machakos District. in ugly scenes witnessed at the Some far flung areas of the District height of the 2007 post election like Kimutwa and Kalama have poor violence. road network systems which inhibit The lawmaker appeals to their access to hospitals,” he adds. But the stakeholders to support Dr Nthanga believes that the attitude initiatives geared towards ad- of most health workers in the past also contributed to the disinterest for health dressing the problem to help services in hospitals. end hostilities in the area and “In the past maternity staff in most steer development ahead of the health facilities were perceived as in- 2012 general election. Ombui, sensitive to the plight of mothers when who is Culture and National they came to deliver. But over time, this Heritage assistant minister, de- is slowly changing and in the District we have been convening sensitization meet- plored the poor state of roads ings at the grassroot level to persuade along the border and asked people to discard this notion as well as the government to upgrade the prevail on them to seek skilled deliveries road network to enable resi- in our facilities,” he explains. dents trace and recover their The District has now established animals with ease. a community strategy where resource persons are trained as community health The MP who addressed Bo- workers. After the training , they be- rabu leaders in Keroka town come the link between the people and urged the government to in- the nearest facility. Within this system , crease administrative units the TBAs have also been integrated and along border and security of- taught on the need to advice mothers to ficers to enhance security. seek medical attention in hospitals. Ombui challenged all lead- The MOH explains that apart from the government, other organizations ers to support peace initiatives like Aphia Plus Kamili, the International spearheaded by elders from Centre for AIDS Care and Treatment Gusii and Kalenjin communi- (ICAP)have supported various repro- ties and stop politicizing them ductive health programmes in the Dis- to hasten the healing process trict and this has slowly increased the following the 2007 poll skir- number of children born through skilled Mr. Oburu Odinga, Mr. Uhuru Kenyatta, Finance minister and Mr. Oparanya during the budget day. deliveries. Photo/File mishes. The lawmaker who was ac- companied by Abagusii Cul- ture and Development council chairman, Araka Matundura Union calls for investigation of councils and Borabu Kenya National un- By JOEL JUMA they have failed to pay workers despite gional Secretary Juvenus Orao. ers and the union on how the workers ion of Teachers Executive Sec- receiving the Local Authority Transfer Orao said it is shocking that Western salary arrears will be resolved. retary, John Matiang’i urged THE Kenya Local Government Fund two months ago. Regional Local Government Office al- He explained that he would be members from both communi- Workers Union (KLGWU) has called Nambale town Council owes work- lows councils to obtain bank overdrafts, forwarding workers complaints to on the Kenya Anti Corruption Com- ers over Kshs7 million in salary arrears. which do not settle salary arrears. Work- the union Secretary General Boniface ties to engage in joint peace ac- mission (KACC) investigatealleged The amount has accumulated over ers at Nambale town Council have not Munyao for action as the chief offic- tivities to hasten cohesion. misuse of funds in Nambale, Kimilili the last eight months. The union said received their salary arrears despite go- ers at Webuye, Kimilili and Nambale The legislator called on the and Webuye local authorities. KACC should act on the matter as the ing on strike. Orao asked the minister seem reluctant to address the matter. Ministry of Education to re- The Union officials also asked for trend amounts to corruption. for Local Government Musalia Muda- “The chief officers have signed place secondary school teach- a reshuffle of chief officers in local -au “Investigations must be carried out vadi to intervene and end the injustices performance contracts. Financial ers who fled the area during the thorities in Western Province. to ascertain why these councils have committed by the local authorities. management is key to their work. Post Election Violence to ad- KLGWU said the three local au- been unable to pay workers yet levies Orao said the situation at Kimilili Why should they fail to pay the work- dress the acute teacher short- thorities need to be audited to ascer- are collected on a daily basis from the Municipal Council is worse, as there are ers who collect the same money,” ages in the area. tain how they used devolved funds as markets,” said the union’s Western Re- no negotiations between the chief offic- questioned Orao. The Link, December 2011 GOVERNANCE 13 Anxiety grips members of MPs gang up in Kakamega SACCO By LINK CORRESPONDENT defense of CDF THE Ministry of Cooperatives has raised a red flag over none remit- By MORRIS GITHENYA tary budget committee said he country into a nightmare as coun- evidence about what the kitty had tance of over Kshs 800 million has received proposals from like ty governments will not be able done compared to other devolved workers’deductions by a local au- MEMBERS of Parliament have minded legislators who want the to handle the numerous expecta- funds and therefore the need to thority in Kakamega County. vowed to put a spirited fight to kitty retained. “We expect to tions from the public. restructure the management of Members of the Kakamega Mu- ensure that the Constituency De- marshal support in parliament as “CDF should not be abol- the fund instead of scrapping it. nicipal Savings and Credit Coop- velopment Fund (CDF) kitty is the kitty has managed to initiate ished but funds can be channeled “ The kitty has done a lot in erative Society are now worried that not phased out after 2012 polls. development in different parts of through the county government improving the local economy the council may not be able to remit A group of lawmakers who the country,” said Mbau. and be managed by parliamentar- as roads have been improved the funds before the next General included Elias Mbau (Mara- Mathioya MP said scrapping ians,” suggested Wambugu. classrooms built why have it Elections when the County Govern- ments become operational. gua) Muturi Mwangi( Kiharu), of CDF kitty will plunge the Kathuri said, there was more scrapped,” posed Kathuri. Many local authorities are carry- Clement Wambugu (Mathioya), ing out inventory of their assets and Maina Kamau( Kandara), Ab- liabilities in readiness for County dul Bahari( Isiolo North), Peter Governments that are set to take Kiilu (Makueni) Joseph Gitari( over their affairs after the next elec- Kerugoya Central), Nelson Gai- tions. chuhie (Subukia), Alex Mburi Western Provincial Cooperative (Tharaka Nithi) and Emilio Officer Nathan Mukhweso said the Kathuri (Manyatta) said they Government was considering en- will mobilize their parliamentary forcing Section 35 of the Coopera- colleagues and members of the tives Act to attach properties of the public to ensure the kitty remains Kakamega Municipal Council for even after the establishment of failing to remit the funds to the so- county governments after next ciety. year’s poll Mukhweso said the Government They spoke at Rurago ACK will not allow the council to transfer Hall during a meeting with CDF the debt to the County Government officials in Maragua constituen- when the term of the current may- cy. They said the kitty had helped oral leadership winds up at the end initiate valuable projects which of this financial year. would have cost the communities “The council is not willing to reduce the debt and yet it gener- a fortune. ates over Kshs500,000 every month The MP for Isiolo North said from traders,” said Mukhweso. the CDF kitty should be retained Mukhweso explained that the as it had transformed the rural set matter has been forwarded to the up and improved lifestyle of the Commissioner of Cooperatives people. Fred Odhiambo to advice how the “We as members of parlia- money can be recovered from the ment we are concerned with the council. effective delivery of service to The society chairperson Iris Ma- the people and that’s why we sambaga confirmed that the council want CDF to remain,” said Isiolo has not remitted the money despite North MP. intervention by the ministry of co- Mbau who is also the chair- operative officials. man of the powerful parliamen- Parliament in session. Photo/File Ms Masambaga said that money has accrued from 2004 as the coun- cil was not paying the interest on the principal amount. She explained that the council Former Busia council treasurer under fire has refused to remit any funds to the society despite getting over Kshs30 million through the Local Authority By NYAKWAR ODAWO the whereabouts of the said cash The County Clerk Mr George or else stern legal action will Maruti absolved the treasurer Transfer Fund early this year. be taken against him,” said the The Kakamega Central Coop- THE Busia County Council Fi- from the accusations saying that Cess committee chairman Jack erative Officer Andrew Opanda nance Committee members want the money in question was spent Wambulwa of Walatsi civic ward. said that councillors should allocate the Ministry of Local Govern- on civic leaders’ education in The Cess committee chairman funds to the society before their ment to reign in a former treas- Mombasa. at the same time sought to know term ends next year. urer who allegedly squandered “The treasurer never embez- the circumstances surrounding Kakamega mayor Mathias Kshs800, 000 from the civic zled any funds from the council the transfer of Kshs500, 000 from Sichere said he has instructed the body. since the cash was used to cover the fixed account to the general Town Clerk Newton Mukabwe to The irate civic leaders told the expenses incurred by civic fund without a resolution by the sort out members dues to the soci- a special full council forum that leaders during an education tour council as stipulated in the coun- ety before end of this financial year. the treasurer had allegedly with- in Mombasa,” said Maruti. cil by-laws. Sichere said that the council drawn the cash from the council The County Clerk assured the “As representatives of the tax- must remit workers deductions to kitty to pay employees who had civic leaders that the government payers at our respective areas, the society as the current scenario been transferred to other stations. has put in place effective machin- we want to know why the coun- undermined the welfare of employ- The civic leaders urged the ery to ensure that funding chan- ty clerk had decided to transfer ees. County Clerk George Maruti to neled to local authorities through sh500,000 from the fixed account Many councils which include move with speed and ensure that the Local Authority Transfer to general funds without follow- Mr. Mudavadi: Local the Kakamega County Council, appropriate legal action is taken Fund (LATF) is properly utilized. ing the right procedure as re- Government minister Butere/Mumias County council are against the former county treas- “Such funds are strictly moni- quired by the council’s by-law,” taking stock of their assets in readi- urer. used to finance a retreat for coun- tored through the deployment posed Wambulwa. ness to handing over to the County They also demanded that the cilors in Mombasa. of auditors from the Ministry of However, the county Vice Governments. official appears before the finance An effort to reach the former Local Government each financial chairman Egesa Sikoyo who was Kakamega County Council committee to explain the wherea- county treasurer on phone for year, therefore there is no cause by then the head of finance and Chairman John Shimaka said that bouts of the cash in question. comment over the allegation was for alarm as anybody involved general purposes committee said plots are being surveyed while il- “The former county treas- unsuccessful as he could not be any scam has to account for the that out the Kshs500, 000 that legal kiosks are being demolished urer should be recalled as a mat- reached immediately by the time same and appropriate legal action had been transferred to general to ensure that there are no disputes ter of urgency to explain to us of going to the press. taken,” said Maruti. funds account Kshs400, 000 was during the handing over process. MANAGER’S COLUMN

By JANE MURUTU The Link, December 2011 SUPPLEMENT 15

PARTNERSHIP FOR PEACE A monthly supplement funded by the European Union and Konrad Adenauer Stiftung Counting the gains made by the project

HIS may be the last is- therefore, a kuru areas is in the process of getting contributed with recommendations and sue of the Partnership MANAGER’S COLUMN d e l i b e ra t e registered. The network has also imple- also validated the final draft. The lack of Tfor Peace Supplement. strategy was mented activities as joint peace meet- National Cohesion was identified in the The project under the existing d e v e l o p e d ings. research publication, The Invisible Vio- conceptualization has officially to harness In Western the network has a more lence, to be one of the main sources of come to an end and when I By their individ- informal structure. So far the network conflict in Kenya. look back I am very pleased HANNA ual compe- has focused on Early Warning and When this project took off and I in- with the results that we have CARLSSON tencies and Early Response system for the General teracted with some of the researchers achieved through your con- strengths and Election 2012, using FrontlineSMS and who at that time had been contracted tinuous support to the entire this then led CrowdMapping. The work took off in to do the research for The Invisible process. to establish- August. Violence, I was told that considering In the region where we work ment of func- In Nyanza the network named Nyan- the task at hand we were paying them we have not had robust research on tional networks. za Partners for Peace Alliance, with sup- poorly. However they told me that they conflict trends and dynamics over the In Rift Valley three networks have port from a member of the expert pool, accepted the terms because of their years and one landmark achievement been established. Two of the networks has developed a regional Early Warn- love to Kenya. I hope that the CSOs that of this program has been the publica- are already legally registered and have ing and Early Response System based have been involved in this process since tion of The Invisible Violence, which executed activities as networks. For in- on FrontlineSMS and the Ushahidi plat- inception have had a transformative at- was published in the beginning of the stance, COPEN, the north Rift network form, https://nyanza.crowdmap.com. titude. You were not in the partnership year and has been well received by held peace meetings before and during The platform is also used to collabo- because you thought you would gain both national and international civil the ICC hearings. The hearings caused rate and coordinate peace initiatives in in monetary terms but you were in be- society organizations, universities, re- tension on the ground which was not Nyanza region. cause of your love to your country and searchers and other institutions inter- reflected in national media or other Within the framework of the project therefore you will also continue with the ested in peace and conflict issues. The channels. Meetings have also been held we have also managed to train a sub- work that we have initiated. research laid the foundation for all ca- in locations where IDPs have returned stantial number of regional experts on Lastly, on behalf of the project team, pacity building trainings that have taken home. how to respond and handle conflicts, I would like to thank you for your un- place since February 2010. The train- More meetings are planned for the experts who remain critical persons in tiring support and wish you a Merry ings have had skills built the capacities future. The network covering Narok, their local areas in managing and re- Christmas and Happy New Year. of more than 140 CSOs in solving and Bomet and Kajiado (NABOK) has in total porting conflicts. The writer is the International Project mitigating conflicts in the regions of Rift held 14 peace meetings and visited all Finally, I would like to mention the Manager of the Partnership for Peace Valley, Nyanza and Western. the counties in their area of jurisdiction. policy dialogues that the CSOs have Project. For comments or suggestions When the partnership was being During their visits they have met with actively participated in. One of the write to: built many of the national, regional and several other CSOs to coordinate peace products from the policy dialogue proc- [email protected] local players in peace and conflict were initiatives. BAKENA which is the network esses is a National Cohesion and In- working independent from each other, of CSOs from Baringo, Kericho and Na- tegration Policy where the CSOs have INSIDE THIS ISSUE: Kibunjia team to Conflict management goes hi-tech train police on hate detection BY LUKE KAPCHANGA detection of conflict. the CSOs, which have been partici- — 16 “ICT will be used to circulate early pating in the Partnership for Peace NFORMATION and Commu- warning information faster among project, have no resources to facili - nication Technology (ICT) the network members for action”, tate their activities at the grass root”. Kalonzo calls for Iis being considered a vital said Hanna Carlsson, the Interna- The groups drawn from Western tool in peace building and con- tional Project Manager at Konrad province met in Kakamega, under peaceful elections flict management. Adenauer Foundation. the Mt. Elgon Residents Association — 17 The Partnership for Peace The network brings together or- and were encouraged to initiate ex- project sponsored by Europe- ganizations from Rift Valley, Nyanza change visits amongst themselves to an Union (EU) has developed and Western provinces which were share and learn each other’s experi- Now Saboat violence a network that brings togeth- hard hit by the post election vio- ences. er about 120 civil society or- lence. The exchange visits are likely victims call for probe ganizations that will give early Ms. Carlsson at the same time warning signals to help in the said, “it has emerged that most of Turn to Page 16 — 18

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The views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Commission. The Partnership for Peace Project is responsible for the views reflected in this supplement. 16 The Link, December 2011 SUPPLEMENT

Kibunja team to train police on hate detection

By PETER MUTUKU competition ahead of the 2012 poll. “Every Kenyan should be able to go HE National Cohesion Integra- to any part of the country and express tion Commission (NCIC) plans to their opinion without fear or favour as Ttrain police officers to enhance long as their sentiments do not violate their capacity to investigate cases the Constitutional rights of other Ken- of hate speech ahead of next year’s yans,” Dr Kibunjia said. General Elections. At the same time a Deputy Com- According to NCIC chairman Dr missioner of Police Julius Ndegwa Mzalendo Kibunjia, the training pro- warns that the government will deal gramme targets police officers includ- firmly with individuals who engage in ing station commanders, inspectors hate speech. and crime branch officers. “We call for total accountability Dr Kibunjia reveals that the training from all Kenyans and we shall deal will first take off in Mombasa before firmly with any acts of impunity. It is being replicated in other parts of the our collective responsibility to decide country. what is legitimate and exercise the He says that hate speech monitors enjoyment of our freedom of expres- will also be trained in all the counties sion without infringing on the rights during the initiative which is set to of fellow Kenyans,” Mr Ndegwa says. end in March 2012. Meanwhile, the Vice President Already a task force that comprises Kalonzo Musyoka has urged Kenyans of NCIC, the Director of Public Pros- to discard tribalism and embrace na- ecution (DPP) and the police force has tional unity in order to sustain the been set up to identify gaps that may country on the path of peace and derail the enforcement of the law re- prosperity. lating to hate speech. The VP cited tribalism as one of the The NCIC Chairman says that it un- biggest impediments to national unity fortunate that even with the laws in Kenya Police in a training camp. Photo/File and development and which should be place, the commission is still witness- eradicated through the available legal ing high levels of political intolerance He says the profiling is mainly be- Dr Kibunjia says that people choose provisions and social programmes. in the country and cited the buildup ing fanned using the social media to become members of extremist Mr Musyoka called upon Kenyans of religious animosity, intra ethnic and networks, broadcasts and short text groups like Al Shabaab in their indi- to shun politicians who seek to divide interethnic tensions in different parts messages which amount to ethnic vidual capacities and not as ethnic, them along ethnic lines, pointing out of the country. and racial discrimination of the Somali religious or racial entities. that the new Constitution has empow- “We are deeply concerned about Community. Dr Kibunjia says NCIC has at the ered the people to chart their destiny. the rising levels of intolerance and “We have received many com- moment launched investigations into In this regard, he appealed to Ken- hate speech in the country based on plaints of victimization of Kenya So- the origins and spread of hate propa- yans to embrace and support the law, ethnic, political, religious and other malis, including allegations of women ganda against Cushitic Communities , terming it as one of the best in the differences as we move towards the in buibuis being spat on,” he laments particularly Somalis . world. General Elections,” adds Dr Kibunjia. adding that discrimination against So- He says the Commission is liaising “We should all defend the new The chairman singles out the on- malis has extended to public transport with Media Council of Kenya and Com- Constitution because, besides provid- going ethnic profiling of the Cushitic vehicles and even schools. munications Commission of Kenya ing for the respect of the rights and communities that targets the Kenyans “Kenya is increasingly preparing (CCK) to obtain information that could equality of all Kenyans, it also allows Somalis following the abduction of the ground to make Somalis targets be used to prefer charges against the the impeachment of a President who foreigners and subsequent military of xenophobia and violent attacks. perpetrators of the hate propaganda. fails to live up to the call of his office campaign launched by Kenya against NCIC shall not allow this to happen,” NCIC has also raised alarm over ris- and thus eliminates dictatorship and the Al-Shabaab militia. he affirms. ing sectarian tensions due to political bad governance,” Mr Musyoka said. Conflict management goes hi-tech

From Page 15 “If the funds are available, the ing between organizations”, Murutu cal communities. next phase will focus on communi- added. He said that the CSO seeks to to be more effective, when the cation and coordination strategies,” The Co-manager urged partici- explore ways of reducing conflicts project comes to an end, as they she added. pants not to focus so much on fund- before they occur. Community will develop capacity in responding Jane Murutu, the co-manager of ing but sharing of ideas, knowledge elders were identified as crucial to the needs of vulnerable people. the project challenged the groups to and practices to improve on service partners in conflict management. Ms. Carlsson however said that use such visits in gathering relevant delivery. “Involving community elders is as much as the program was com- and technical support for their mem- Mr. John Cheptai , chairman of very useful as they have the expe- ing to a close, they were exploring bers. MERA, accused CSOs of focusing rience of the negative and destruc- ways through it can be extended “Peer exchange visits are practi- more on raising money instead of tive impact violence has on devel- for up to six months. cal and effective tool to foster learn- activities meant to empower the lo- opment”, Cheptai said.

This project is funded by the European Union This project is implemented by Konrad Adenauer Stiftung and her partners and associate

The views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Commission. The Partnership for Peace Project is responsible for the views reflected in this supplement. The Link, December 2011 SUPPLEMENT 17

Pressure mounts on state to tame terror gang Saitoti By BOB OMBATI promises titles HE provincial administration in Kisii and Nyamira counties has come under to Mt. Elgon Tattack for failing to protect residents from terror unleashed by outlawed Sungu squatters sungu militia group. In a report compiled jointly by the Kenya BY JOHN NYAMBUNE Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR), the Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC) ABOUT 1,735 families at the Chepyuk and National Cohesion and Integration settlement scheme, in Mt. Elgon Dis- Commission (NCIC), police have been ac- trict, have received allotment letters. cused of working in cahoots with the group The families are part of the group to kill suspected criminals. that was forcefully ejected by the Saba- The officials said that the group had ot Land Defense Force (SLDF) which established a strong network at the grass- had strongly opposed Government’s bid roots level due to a failed police and judicial to settle people on the land. system. “We must state here that while we According to the Minister for Internal hold no brief for any criminal elements in Security and Provincial Administration society, we will continue to ask as indeed minister, Prof. George Saitoti, benefici- we have done time and again in the past aries will receive their title deeds before that any issues of crime must be addressed the end of the year. within the clearly defined confines of the The minister at the same time dis- law,” they said in the report. Police in patrol. According to the report the militia group closed that the Government has ac- detection, prevention and exposing crimi- tia group was engaging in merciless killings still continues to wreck havoc in the area quired an additional 742 acres of land nal elements in your midst, this has taken of suspects besides inflicting grievous bod- despite assurances by the community and at Kshs180 million in Kitale where 350 another dimension in Kisii where the militia ily harm to their victims and issuing threats. government agencies that it had been dis- other families would be resettled. group serving as members of the communi- The report also stated that the group was banded and members incorporated in the Prof. Saitoti urged residents to up- ty policing programme are the perpetrators behind the disappearance of suspects and community policing programme. hold peace prevailing in the region in of crime and human rights violations. was openly extorting funds from members Commission officials Ann Ngugi (KHRC), order to fast-track development. The report dubbed: Sungu sungu mer- of the public and demanding sex in order to Mohammed Hallo Secretary (KNHCR), The minister who spoke at Kapsiro chants of terror and death in Kisii indicts the offer protection. Davis Malombe deputy executive secretary division recently during the launch of militia group for overstepping the mandate The report accused security personnel of (KHRC) and Tom Kagwe Senior programme a peace caravan to enhance cohesion, of community policing. abdicating their responsibilities to provide officer KHRC said the scenario had become said the government will continue to “Those who purport to provide secu- security in the area and challenged them more complicated as there are no clear dis- enhance security and support families rity under community policing in Kisii have to take charge instead of allowing militia tinctions between activities spearheaded by to settle and their rebuild lives. clearly overstepped their mandate. They are groups to run parallel groupings under the the Sungu Sungu militia group and the ones He urged chiefs and their assistants known to make arrests, carry out investiga- guise of self protection. undertaken through community policing. to be vigilante and ensure that benefi- tions, detain suspects in illegal holding cells The report proposed that community po- The report said that the militia group was ciaries do not sell land, saying the Gov- and pass judgments in Kangaroo courts,” licing committee be reconstituted afresh to operating at the confines of community po- said the report. rid the region of criminal elements operating licing to violate human rights. The study had established that the mili- under the cover of community policing. Turn to Page 18 “While community policing entails the Kalonzo calls for peaceful polls campaign

BY AGGREY BUCHUNJU oka said the country cannot move for- that every person has the right, either Farmers Training Centre (FTC) in ward without peace. individually or in association with oth- Bungoma County before signing of S we approach the next gen- Mr. Musyoka said that time had ers, to acquire and own property of the peace pact. eral elections concerted, effort come for Kenyans to forget about the any description, and in any part of The conference was sponsored Ais being made to ensure that post election violence and instead Kenya. by the peace and eighth programme peace prevails during and after the open a new chapter that mirrors all The VP challenged the signatories of the free Pentecostal fellowship in elections. ethnic groups as equally important. of the peace agreement to always live Kenya. Kenyans across the country are “I would want to urge all Kenyans by the pact saying that it was the wish Speaking at the same function being called upon by the state and to consign the post election violence of God that the human race lives in Bumula MP Bifwoli Wakoli chal- non-state actors to shun violence crisis to history and forge unity and peace. lenged Bukusu elders to initiate a and instead strive to forge a cohe- understanding amongst themselves,” He assured the three ethnic com- move that is aimed at reconciling sive and peaceful country. the VP said. munities residing in the volatile Mt. political leaders in the area. Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka The VP reminded Kenyans that the Elgon that the government recognized Mr. Wakoli said that there was no recently joined other peace crusad- new constitution guarantees basic and endorsed the peace agreement. need to reconcile Bukusus and Tesos ers by calling upon Kenyans to co- rights for every Kenyan including the Mr. Musyoka who was the chief since the two communities are not exist peacefully saying no one chose right to own property and reside in guest during the signing ceremony at war and have never been at war. where to be born and reside. any part of Kenya. reiterated that it was now upon the The MP who is also lands assist- Speaking during the signing of a Article 39 (3), states that every citi- concerned parties to respect the deal. ant minister instead asked the elders peace agreement between three (3) zen has the right to enter, remain and Elders from the Bukusu, Ateso and to reconcile Bukusu MPs who he ethnic groups, residing in Mt. Elgon reside anywhere in Kenya. Sabaot communities attended a four claims are always at logger heads District in Bungoma County, Musy- And Article 40 (i) (a) and (b) states day peace conference at Mabanga over petty issues.

This project is funded by the European Union This project is implemented by Konrad Adenauer Stiftung and her partners and associate

The views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Commission. The Partnership for Peace Project is responsible for the views reflected in this supplement. 18 The Link, December 2011 SUPPLEMENT PARTNERSHIP FOR PEACE

Saitoti promises titles to Mt. Elgon Now Saboat violence squatters From Page 17 victims call for probe ernment will support the families with inputs to embark on farming. The minister was flanked by Mt. By AGGREY BUCHUNJU Elgon legislator, Mr. Fred Kapondi, In- ternal Security PS, Mr. Francis Kimemia, PRESSURE is mounting on the Gov- and chairman of the task force that ernment to set up a tribunal to probe subdivided the land, Mr. Solomon atrocities committed in Mt. Elgon re- Ouko. gion. Mr. Kimemia said the Internal Secu- The Coordinator of Torture Survi- rity Ministry had come up with incen- vors Organization Mr. Taiga Wanyanja tives that will see peaceful districts re- challenged the government to investi- ceive a cash award of Kshs.100 million gate the atrocities and mass graves in to support development projects for Mt. Elgon during the 2006-2008 vio- the benefit of the community. lence. Mr. Kapondi, who is also the chair- “It is only an independent tribunal man of the Parliamentary Security that can unearth the root cause of the Committee, asked the Government to hasten the issuance of title deeds to al- atrocities and those involved,” he says. low families develop their farms. HUNDREDS of people are said to “Beneficiaries have been unable to have mysteriously disappeared dur- initiate any meaningful development ing the Mt. Elgon conflict and sub- se- because they have no document to quent military intervention. prove ownership of the land,” he said. Torture Survivors Organization, a The chairman of the task force that human rights lobby group, claims that subdivided the land said 41 public plots the victims were either abducted by have been earmarked for the construc- the Sabaot Land Defense Force (SLDF) tion of schools, markets, shopping cen- or killed by the military. tres, roads, river-line areas and Gov- Mr. Wanyanja alleges that over 700 ernment offices. people died or disappeared in the Youths ready for violence. He urged the Government to pro- hands of the military during the infa- vide families with building materi- mous” Okoa Maisha” operation. notorious militia group, SLDF. “The He equates Mt. Elgon atrocities to als and construct access roads. Prof. The rights lobby group coordinator government employed unorthodox the post election violence (PEV) where Saitoti said the ministry had set aside questions who the army was fighting methods to suppress the militia group 1300 people were killed and over funds for the construction of roads to since there was no exchange of fire leave alone perpetrating the killing of 600,000 others were displaced. enhance security in the area. during the infamous military operation innocent residents”, he alleges. Mr. Wanyanja calls upon the Inter- Meanwhile, Mt. Elgon leaders have in the area. Mr. Wanyanja further alleges that national Criminal Court (ICC) at the lauded Government’s move to settle Mr. Wanyanja censures the Gov- police helped perpetrators to escape Hague to come and take over the cas- 1,735 families at Chepyuk phase III ernment for allegedly using improper besides spoiling the evidence, thus es since the Kenya Government is not scheme, saying this will help create methods to clamp down on the then perpetuating impunity. willing to probe the atrocities. lasting peace in the area. Mr. Kapondi says the settlement exercise will go along way in resolv- ing long standing disputes triggered by CONTACT ADDRESSES: limited. Former area MP, Mr. John Serut, said EU-KAS Project Office in Kisumu, Varsity Apartments 3rd Floor, all displaced families should be settled P.O. Box 668, 40100 Kisumu, to ensure equity and fairness in land Telephone. +254 057 2023 484 distribution at the settlement scheme. +254 711 358 013 The Sabaot supreme court of elders Chairman, Mr. Reuben Butaki, said the e-mail: [email protected] resettlement was a key step by the Government to ensure peace prevailed PARTNERS by addressing land distribution issue. Mt. Elgon Residents Association (MERA) Community Initiative Action-Group (CIAG-K) Catholic Justice and Peace Commission (CJPC) Prof. Saitoti said more families Chem Ngeywo, Project Coordinator Mr. Chrispin Owalla, Project Coordinator Mr. James Kimisoi, Project Coordinator will be resettled in the next phase as Western Province Nyanza Province Rift Valley Province Kshs.180 million had been disbursed to P.O. Box 21-50201, Cheptais, Mt. Elgon Varsity Apartments 3rd Floor, The Catholic Diocese of Eldoret finance the exercise. Mobile : 0720-744827; 0734-517489. P.O. Box 668, 40100 Kisumu. P.O. Box 842-30100, Eldoret. In 2008, about 600 people were Email: [email protected] Tel: 0737-470558/0716-384135 Tel 2031272; 0722-448110 killed and thousands of others dis- [email protected] or E-mail: [email protected] placed at the height of conflict over [email protected] Chebyuk scheme spearheaded by the Sabaot Land Defense Force.

This project is funded by the European Union This project is implemented by Konrad Adenauer Stiftung and her partners and associate

The views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Commission. The Partnership for Peace Project is responsible for the views reflected in this supplement.

The Link, December 2011 20 GOVERNANCE Land grabbing hampering youth Mwingi hospital in need of help By KAVYU-KURA “Some of the wards are pretty old said the project collapsed after issues view to sourcing for required support. project in Kisii and aging. Such environment compro- of financial impropriety were raised. The local government director said By BOB OMBATI MWINGI district hospital is in dire mises the get well fast policy as it is He said it was time the revival of the he was touched by the state of the hos- need of assistance to acquire modern not homely and hospitable. We need project was mooted. pital a month earlier when he took a LAND grabbing in Kisii District has facilities, the institution’s management assistance to build new wards and fit The hospital administrator made relative who had broken his leg to the hampered the implementation of Kazi has admitted. in modern equipments,” said Mutua. the remarks when he hosted the direc- facility only to realize the hospital did Kwa Vijana (KKV) projects. The hospital’s administration of- He added that not only did the hos- tor of markets development in the min- not have equipments to fix broken Abel Onchari, a member of the ficer, Dickson Mutua, said that the ag- pital lack essential equipments in the istry of local government, Patrick Mu- bones. Kisii District Environment Committee (DEC) says private developers have ing and dilapidated structures require wards, laundry and mortuary but also tua Nzoka, recently. Nzoka who hails “I had to transport my nephew to encroached on public land in the area, an urgent face lift to give the hospital an ambitious community driven amen- from the area had called at the hospi- Naivasha where he had his leg fixed making it difficult for environmentalists a better status. ity ward project stalled midway. He tal to formally assess its needs with a at a cost of Kshs 100,000. But the is- to implement projects aimed at conserv- sue of lack of the right facilities for ing and protecting the environment. treatment especially for the ordinary Onchari, who led thirty youths con- residents who could not afford the tracted under Kazi Kwa Vijana (KKV) high medical charges kept haunting programme in a protest match against me thus the reason for this follow up land grabbers said the group in unable to visit,” said Nzoka. proceed with a project that seeks to plant trees at the Kisii town’s recreational Nzoka interacted with patients in ground since the land had been grabbed. the maternity, surgical and general The youths, who marched to the men and women wards and cleared Kisii Municipal council offices where hospital bills amounting to Kshs. Deputy Clerk, Francis Otachi promised 30,000 for patients who had been dis- to address their grievances, vowed not charged but could not leave before to relent in their fight against land grab- they paid up. He also sponsored lunch bers until all grabbed public land is re- of rice and meat for all the in patients possessed. at Kshs 20,000. They accused the developers of us- The director lamented that in its ing the courts to frustrate efforts by the government to beautify the town espe- current state, the hospital could not cially recreational parks, adding that the guarantee quality health services to town lacked a recreational facility which the residents of Mwingi. He added that forced residents to while their time at since he had firsthand experience of Kisii Golf course which is a members the deficiencies at the health facility, club. he would mobilize assistance to im- Onchari, flanked by DEC member, prove the situation. Evans Mageka said the town was poorly “I will talk to our two MPs-Kalon- planned and congested due to the influx zo Musyoka (Mwingi north) and Dav- of job seekers from rural areas. “There- fore, the absence of social amenities id Musila (Mwingi south) with a view only complicate the scenario leading to of getting intervention through their the mushrooming of slums and spiraling respective Constituency Development crime. Funds and Mwingi town council. I will Area District Environment Officer also mobilize support from the Nzoka ( DEO) Samson Bokea said he had re- Director Patrick Mutua Nzoka speaks to Munuve Munyithya at the Mwingi district hospital general foundation and local and international ceived a court order from one of the de- wards during a visit to the facility. Photo/Kavyu-Kura friends,” he pledged. velopers stopping the youths from plant- ing trees at the park pending the hearing and determination of the court case. The DEO said plans to reclaim and replant trees at the park followed recom- mendations by the Ministry of Envi- Government under fire in Malindi ronment and Natural Resources Senior By BEKADZO TONDO tle in their campaigns to sensitize the “This is because members of mandate by going against the set rules. Deputy Secretary Ben Mugambi, and communities on good governance and the public are involved in the iden- Mr. Mzungu said NGOs are le- National Environment Management THE provincial administration in Ma- participation in the implementation of tification and implementation of the gitimate entities after having been Authority (NEMA) Deputy Director lindi District has come under criticism after trees planted during the first of the projects funded using devolved funds projects,” he said. licensed by the government and there- KKV programme were destroyed by un- for alienating the public in the man- due to lack of support from the local However, Mr. Samuel Kahindi fore must be accorded support by the known people. agement of public affairs. administrators mostly the chiefs. who is the chief of Bungale location provincial administrators. Bokea told The Link in his office A civil society in the area told a “The work of civil societies to sen- absolved the administrators from “The government cannot regis- that the two officers who were evaluat- forum convened to discuss commu- sitize the communities on their rights blame and accused civil society for al- ter or issue licenses to civil societies ing the KKV project were shocked and nity participation in projects funded and push for good governance and ienating government officials in their which do comply with the set regu- dismayed by the massive destruction of through devolved funds that the ad- participation by community in project work. lations and therefore claims by the trees at the recreational park, saying it ministrators were blocking efforts by implementation process has been “Some civil societies hardly in- chiefs that NGOs are not been trans- was a waste of public funds. civil society groups to push for pub- blocked by our chiefs who fail to co- form the government about their work parent in their work are meaningless,” He said he had presented a budget lic participation in the monitoring of operate with organizations and mem- programs and therefore it has become said Mr. Mzungu. of Kshs 1.6 million which was approved projects. by the Ministry to allow the youth to bers of the public,” said Mr. Mzungu. impossible for the administrators to He said the role of civil society replant trees at the park. “The exercise The director of the Institute of Par- He claimed that a large percentage support them,” said Mr Kahindi. groups is to supplement government was however halted by a court order ticipatory Development (IPD), a local of funds earmarked for development Mr. Kahindi said chiefs take or- efforts in enhancing good governance filed by one of the developers through based Non Governmental Organiza- projects in the area had been returned ders from their superiors mostly the and thus the need to support them to advocate Samuel Nyariki Ondieki and tion, complained that civil society to the treasury despite the fact that the District Officers and the District Com- hasten development at all levels,” said company advocates,” he said. organizations have achieved very lit- area still lags behind in development. missioners and they cannot usurp their Mr. Mzungu. Contractor urged to speed-up building of market By LINK CORRESPONDENT work said that he was now happy tor of Channa Construction Limited ditors to ascertain how funds meant town. However, Keya said it was that the project was set to be com- Company M. S Channa said he was for rehabilitation of roads were be- unfair for the residents to blame him CONSTRUCTION of new mar- pleted. set to heed to the dateline. ing spend. when the funds were being chan- ket stalls by Kakamega Municipal Keya and the town Mayor Math- Sichere said that a parking site “ I am concerned that the Kenya neled through the urban roads au- Council valued at Kshs 153 million ias Sichere said that traders should for the complex will be established Urban Roads Authority is not doing thority. will be completed by the end of the not be anxious of the allocation cri- at the facility. anything on the town roads,” said The Kakamega County Council year. teria since the council will ensure “We are going to transform the Keya who is the Lurambi MP. Chairman John Shimaka said that The new market stalls are set to that they retain their stalls once the market into a regional Centre as the He said that he was set to for- roads in rural areas were better than accommodate over 500 traders who project is completed. Kenya Municipal Programme has ward the complains to the Parlia- those in towns because the council were re-located to various places Keya and Sichere explained that earmarked the town for the estab- mentary Committee on Roads for was utilising cess funds from sugar within the town after the ministry of the council was concerned that the lishment of other facilities,” said investigations as the residents were factories to maintain them. Local Government disbursed funds ongoing heavy rains had paralysed Sichere. suffering. Shimaka explained that cess to improve the facility. operations at the open-air markets. He explained that road network Officials from the urban roads funds from Mumias Sugar Com- An assistant minister Manyala Keya of Gender and Children in the town was wanting and chal- board however said they were wait- pany and West Kenya Sugar compa- Keya who had petitioned the con- Affairs ministry made the remarks lenged the minister for Roads Fran- ing for the funds to be released be- nies have played a key role in im- tractor to speed up construction when he toured the cite. The Direc- klin Bett to dispatch a team of au- fore they can repair roads within the proving road network in the region. The Link, December 2011 DEVELOPMENT 21 Kakamega Council pays County Volunteer fire fighters off NSSF its roads set for graduates in Nyeri dues By LINK CORRESPONDENT rehabilitation By JOSEPH MUKUBWA Council, the training was mooted to the Busia fire involving a fuel tanker,” address gaps in the management of Noted Murugi. KAKAMEGA County Council has re- By JOEL JUMA FORTY volunteer fire fighters from fire tragedies which have become syn- Nyeri Police boss Kirunya Lim- leased over Kshs34 million to the Na- Nyeri County have graduated after a onymous with the region. bitu urged members of the public to tional Social Security Fund (NSSF), THE Government has released over two – week training. Speaking during the graduation join hands with the police in order to in compliance with a Government’s Kshs300 million for the rehabilita- The firefighters underwent an - in ceremony at Dedan Kimathi Kamuku- help fight fire once it erupts instead of directive to clear outstanding statutory tion of roads in the nine constituen- tense training programme on how to nji grounds, the G4S deputy Manag- throwing stones to fire fighting engines debts. cies of Kakamega County. fight fire and administer first aid to ing Director Jack Muchira noted when they are late for the incident. The council cleared the dues, Roads in Kakamega town how- fire victims in the event of an emer- that the recent spate of fires across “This partnership is a positive which had accumulated since 2006. ever fall under the Kenya Urban gency. The course was sponsored by the country call for more trained fire step in increasing national disaster This made it the first local authority in Roads Authority (KURA). the Ministry of Special Programmes, fighters to be able to contain and man- preparedness. Since initiation of the Kakamega County to heed to the de- Cabinet minister Soita Shitanda Nyeri CDF and G4S Kenya. age incidences. Special Programmes programme three years ago, G4S fire mands of the statutory body. said there is need for Kakamega The training was the first to be Minister Esther Murugi while officiat- services has trained and equipped 125 “We do not have any arrears as all town residents to demand answers conducted outside Nairobi area and ing the graduation expressed concern personnel with fire fighting skills. the dues have been remitted,” said the from KURA on the state of the the third initiative to take place on an over the recent loss of lives to fire and The company intends to partner with roads in the area. Council Clerk Patrick Kamwessar. annual basis. This brings a total of 125 called for more caution, and urged the the Government in order to carry out Kamwessar and the Council He said MPs from the county public to stay away from scenes that volunteer fire fighters trained by the this exercise across the country,” said Chairman John Shimaka said the lo- focus on rural roads managed by G4S throughout the country to date. are likely to cause fires. Muchira. the Kenya Rural Roads Authority The G4S is partnering with the “The country has experienced Nyeri Mayor Edward Muteru cal authority wants to ensure debts are (KERRA). “The only MP who can Ministry of Special Programmes and several incidents of destruction and urged the graduates to be well disci- cleared during this financial year be- demand to have urban roads in the organizations like Kenya Emergency fatalities caused by fire tragedies. The plined and be good ambassadors. fore the County Government comes in County repaired is Lurambi MP Medical Technicians Council to train public should also desist rushing to Nyeri deputy mayor Grace Wan- place after the next General Elections. Manyala Keya because his con- volunteers across the country on how scoop or siphon fuel from tankers. The yeki said they should help to manage Most of the local authorities are stituency is both in urban and rural to respond to fire incidences. recent fires have wrecked havoc and any disasters when fire erupts and struggling to take stock of their assets areas,” said Shitanda. Organised by the G4S Kenya and left a trail of deaths and destruction more importantly be able to call for and liabilities before the operations Shitanda said roads in rural ar- the Emergency Medical Technicians including Sinai Fire in Nairobi and assistance when required. are handed over to the County Gov- eas are better compared to the urban ernment after the next polls. roads due to close supervision by Shimaka said that the council has the Constituency Road Boards. already demolished kiosks construct- He said MPs in the County are ed illegally saying that stock-taking investigating the criteria used to se- requires that plots with disputes be lect contractors for the jobs. resolved before next year. “It has emerged that most of Shimaka said that the council has the roads were given to contractors also remitted workers deductions to from one region and locals locked the Bukhungu Savings and Credit Co- out despite having applied for operative Society as part of ensuring the jobs,” said Shitanda who was that there is smooth transition from the speaking to the press in Kakamega Local authorities to the County Gov- town. ernments. He explained that the matter will Shimaka remarks came as the be forwarded to the Parliamentary Ministry of Cooperatives warned Committee of Roads and Housing. Kakamega Municipal Council against He added that the minister for withholding over Kshs 80 million Roads Franklin Bett should explain meant for the workers in the coopera- the criteria used in the selection tive movement. of contractors. The Parliamentary The Western Provincial Coopera- Roads Committee Chairman David tive Officer Nathan Mukhweso has Were said he has received the com- declared that the council assets risk plaints. He promised to move round being auctioned to clear the debt owed to collect information regarding the to the Kakamega Municipal savings selection of contractors before sum- and Credit Cooperative Society. moning Bett over the matter. The Society Chairperson Iris Ma- Were, who is Matungu MP said Volunteer fire fighters put off the fire at Dedan Kimathi Kamukunji grounds in Nyeri town recently sambaga said that workers were not he was shocked to learn that most during the drill exercise where 40 volunteer firefighters graduated after a fortnight training course. able to obtain loans from the society local contractors were not given the Photo/Joseph Mukubwa due to none remittance of the funds by jobs despite having qualified. the employer. “The idea of devolution is to Masambaga said the debt had par- ensure that funds at the grassroot Bahari youth asked to utilize fund to improve their welfare alysed the operations of Sacco which level circulate among the locals,” is unable to advance loans to members said Were who was speaking in his By BEKADZO TONDO before any funding can be approved. tage of the available opportunities to The officer challenged the youth acquire gainful skills that can help due to lack of adequate funds. Matungu constituency. Deputy Prime minister and Min- Area MPs who include Shitan- ABOUT Kshs 5million Youth Entre- in the area to engage in meaningful them start meaningful projects that can preneurship Fund (YEF) earmarked projects other than indulging in unlaw- attract funding. ister for Local Government Musalia da, Keya and Ben Washaili (Mu- for Bahari Constituency lies idle in the ful acts which deprive them of a future. He said the polytechnics are highly Mudavadi while addressing chief of- mias) have raised concern over the banks as youth in the area fail to apply ‘The government has been allocat- funded by the government and students ficers and councillors at the Kakamega selection of contractors. for funding. ing Bahari constituency Kshs1 million hardly pay any fees. County Council Hall urged the stake- Shitanda said it is shocking that Kilifi District Youth Officer Ms in every financial year to support the He announced plans by the govern- holders to ensure that there is proper local contractors were left out in Jocelyn Katunge says the fund is un- Youth Entrepreneurship Fund but it ment to put up another polytechnic in awarding of jobs for the construc- management of the public resources. derutilized in the area with only a few was shocking that the youth have failed Kilifi town. Mudavadi explained that council tion of bridges in the County. youth groups seeking for funding. to tap on the enormous opportunity,” The officer further urged the com- Over Kshs 400 million was Speaking during a youth meeting said Ms Katunge. munity to supplement government ef- should not engage in practices that spend by the Kenya Sugar Board at the Kilifi township chiefs’ office, the The youth who attended the forum forts by supporting the initiative. will make them financially unstable. (KSB) for the construction of bridg- officer says it is unfortunate that youth however insisted that the conditions set Kilifi District Commissioner Mr. es in the county with only six con- are still reluctant to seek for the funds by the government were prohibitive Katee Mwanza who presided over the tractors out of the 16 being locals. despite the vigorous campaigns aimed and had denied them access to the fund. meeting challenged the youth to start The KSB Western Regional at sensitizing them. The youth claimed that the process income generating projects using loans Manager Laban Mulehi explained “I get disappointed when I receive was time wasting and must be revised sourced from the youth fund instead of few applications from groups request- to ease access to the funding. joining outlawed groups such as Mom- that the jobs were awarded on merit. ing funding when we have many job- Eda Kadenge, a youth from the basa Republican Council (MRC). Mulehi explained that a panel less youth in Bahari,” adds Ms Ka- area said that officers entrusted with Mr. Mwanza said most youth had formed to award marks followed tunge. the fund are not supportive and this had been pushed in such groups by poverty the requirements adding that it was The officer dismissed claims that contributed to the problem. because they are promised with good- not fair to deny those who qualified majority of the youth in the area were The district youth training Officer ies but challenged them to make use of for the jobs merely because they are unable to meet the tough conditions im- Mr. Joel Mulathya challenged youth to the youth fund to empower themselves not locals. posed by the government. enroll in youth polytechnics to acquire financially. KSB Directors Ewing Mwombe She explained that the government skills that can help them venture into The administrator said the youth and Mohammed Mukhwana said has relaxed conditions to attract more income generating activities. have a role to play in the development politicians should stop politicising youth and cited registration of groups Mr. Mulathya said the polytechnic of this nation and said it was counter- development matters. and identification of viable projects as were offering competent courses and productive if they engage in criminal some of the conditions that must be met thus the need for youth to take advan- activities. Mr. Mudavadi The Link, December 2011 22 DEVELOPMENT Pan Paper set Desire to own a car drives boy to make one for re-opening By JOHN NYAMBUNE investor who owned a polytechnic in Kakamega. At the polytechnic known as after years of FOR John Ambunya , dropping out Mathai, he assembled bicycles and of school was not going to shutter his wheel chairs and picked up more dormancy dream of success. skills for a year before picking up a By TITUS MAERO John went ahead and designed certificate in the field. THE largest paper manufacturing Tuk Tuk which has transformed Ambunya later decided it was transport industry in most rural parts company in East Africa Webuye time he opened a repair shop, and in based Pan Paper Mills Limited is of this country. His contraption was 1984 he launched his business as he inspired by a desire to own a car. But set to be re-opened after the gov- taught others interested in the art. ernment appointed task force is- owing to his poor economic status, he He started with 15 people but the knew that was just a dream. sued re-call letters to some key number slowly rose with time. Most technical former employees of the Ambunya, 50, hails from Eshisiru of his apprentices were proud owners village, North Butsotso location, in firm. of garages in Kakamega. The task force Chairman Wa- Kakamega County. He dropped out As the business grew, it became of Form two in 1980 after his family fula Muliaro announced the re- difficult for him to transport tools and vival of the factory as the Ministry was unable to pay for his school fees. spare parts to and from home, for he He later joined his grandfather in of Industrialization and that of the did not have anywhere to store his Finance stepped up the re-opening fixing bicycles and with that he de- wares given the high levels of insecu- veloped a passion for fixing things. process of the factory which was rity in the region. shut down due to severe cash Ambunya nurtured his skills It then dawned on him that he while working for his grandfather crunch. Repairers work on broken down bicycles. A polytechnic graduate has should acquire a car, a thought that According to sources at the fac- made major strides towards creation of jobs with his bicycle repair and it was not long before his prow- garage in Kakamega town. Photo/File ess in the business attracted a Dutch Turn to Page 23 tory, the government has released funds to jump start the factory that was closed down on November 8, 2009 sending over 1,500 perma- nent employees and about 20,000 Kenya Power moves to light up slums casuals home. The Pan Paper Mill was started By JOSEPH MUKUBWA and dangerous,” he said. will improve security by lighting Priscilla Wanjira said this will in 1974 with a production capacity The project will provide af- up the people settlement areas and help their children to be finishing of 45,000 tonnes of paper annually KENYA Power and Lighting Com- fordable electricity to the people in uplifting their economic well being. their homework while Patrick Mai- but before it collapsed it had hit an pany (KPLC) is set to connect about settlement schemes by connecting The customers will use prepaid na said this will reduce insecurity in impressive production of 120,000 70,000 slum dwellers in the country them at highly subsidized rates and services while paying the bill as the area. tonnes per annum. with electricity at a cost of Kshs1 will prevent loss of revenue by the they will be unable to pay monthly However, he said the implemen- Recently, the task force Chair- billion. company through unmetered power fee. tation of the project has been af- man Mr Muliaro said the factory The company coordinator in usage. At Witemere slums, about 500 of fected by lack of accessible roads in aims to start production with an charge of the Rural Electrifica- He added that the connection them will benefit. the slums. initial 80 tonnes of paper daily un- tion project Harun Mwangi said til the whole factory system was over 67,000 customers living in operationalized to start full scale the sprawling slums will only be production. required to pay Kshs1,000 (which It is projected that for the fac- is affordable) as connection fee in- tory to be fully operational it re- stead of the normal Kshs35,000. quires huge amounts of capital, but They will also be required to hire so far the government has pumped a qualified electrician for wiring of Kshs500 million following a cabi- their homes. net approval to clear debts owed to Speaking during the ground creditors by the company. breaking ceremony at Witemere Initially, the government, slums in Nyeri town, Mwangi said which is the main shareholder already slum dwellers in Kibera and jointly, owned the factory with Mukuru slums in Nairobi have al- Biria Company Limited of India. ready benefited. Others living in Ki- The Biria Company’s Chief Exec- andutu in Thika have also benefited. utive Officer (CEO) Mr H.A Saha The project is being funded by later pulled out and re-located to the Kenya Power with support from India. the World Bank through the Global Prior to the closure of the fac- Partnership Output based assistance. tory, it had been performing poorly “We are committed to improving mainly due to high operating costs, the lives of the slum dwellers. We low capacity utilization rates and want them to invest in power and competition from cheap paper im- start income generating projects like ports by other players in the field of saloons, barber shops. We believe paper manufacturing. this will reduce the high rates of il- Kenya Power coordinator in charge of Rural electrification Harun Mwangi during the ground breaking In recent times, problems at the legal connections which are risky ceremony of the slum electrification project in Nyeri town recently. Photo/Joseph Mukubwa factory have been aggravated by increased electricity tariffs which rose by more than 65 per cent from July 2008 resulting in huge debts in unpaid power bills. New development policy underway — official The Kenya Union of Printing , publishing Manufacturers and Al- By JOEL JUMA guard against confusion during the He said all Acts related to Water, ants are sometimes confused while lied Workers National Vice Chair- implementation of Government poli- Public Health, Environment, Lands, implementing some policies at the man Stephen Watuti has said that THE Government is formulating a cies in the Counties. Local authority, Physical Planning grassroots. “The Lands and Agricul- while the government had pledged policy to guide development matters Land matters are mainly handled and Agricultural will be guided by the ture Acts sometimes conflict with the Kshs2 billion for the revival of the at the County level. by either the Commissioner of Lands new Cities and Planning policy. Environment Act. We need a harmo- Local Authority Act, which has or Lands Registrar. Masinde was speaking at nised policy formulated under the new factory only Kshs500 million had acted as a guiding tool for the chief This time round it will be difficult Kakamega Golf Hotel during a two- Constitution,” said Kwatch. been released. officers managing council affairs, as most land matters will be handled at day capacity building workshop for Kwatch explained that having Wafula said prior to the closure, will be replaced with a new policy be- the County level,” said Masinde. land stakeholders drawn from the many Acts cause confusion in man- the factory was ISO 9001 certified ing formulated by a team of officers Masinde explained that the new Kakamega County. agement of resources, as they are not for manufacturing quality products drawn from various ministries. policy aims at abolishing Cap 265 of Western PC Samuel Kilele opened supportive to one another. and had also served as the social Director of Physical Planning the Local Government Act. the workshop which was attended Masinde however said matters economic livelihood to the local in the Ministry of Lands Augustine “Some of the problems facing by civic and church leaders. District will be resolved as the draft will be people through business establish- Masinde said having many Acts great- Physical planners are caused by town Commissioners from the County also circulated to the stakeholders to add ment and creation of employment. ly contributed to confusion in the im- clerks and civic leaders who allocate took part in the programme. in their views. “We shall come back The company stopped op- plementation of Government policies plots without the knowledge of the Matungu DC Otieno Kwatch and with the draft so that public can give erations after it plunged into huge at the grassroots. Physical planning Department,” said the Western Upper Regional Commis- their input before being taken to Par- debts running to billions of shil- Masinde said the new policy will Masinde. sioner Peter Okwanyo said civil serv- liament,” said Masinde. lings according to records. The Link, December 2011 23 DEVELOPMENT Nairobi Hospital to Desire to own a car drives boy to build cancer centre make one By JOSEPH MUKUBWA know their status,” said the CEO. Statistics show that about 50 Over 3,000 people participat- person die daily from various From Page 22 is operated manually as it has no ed in the walk including students forms of cancers and about 90,000 THE Nairobi Hospital will build a engine. After inventing the locomo- from seven secondary schools of cases of cancer are diagnosed each Kshs700 million Cancer centre to tive, he stopped fixing bicycles as the Nyeri County. year, with the most common listed made him laugh at himself because cater for cancer patients. vehicle was in high demand. People The schools included Tumu- as breast, cervical, prostrate, colon he knew he could not afford one be- The hospital CEO Cleopa Mai- would hire his locomotive for various tumu Girls, Chinga Girls, Dedan and lung cancer. ing a polygamous man. lu said the hospital will start the purposes either in the farm, super- Kimathi Secondary and Kangubiri “Early detection translates to But if he could not afford a car, facility and bring in modern equip- markets or just for carrying personal Girls among others. higher survival rates because it he mused, he should make one to ment in order to cater for those goods. The walk in Nyeri town was the increases the opportunity to catch check losses his business was facing suffering from the disease. The car would also carry passen- third after another one was held in cancer early and provides an op- for lack of resources to hire storage He was speaking at Dedan Ki- gers around the town but the furthest Nairobi and Kisumu towns. portunity for intervention before facilities and his transport. mathi Kamukunji stadium in Ny- it has every gone is 20 kilometers out All the walks will cost more it has spread to other areas within When he told his friends he was eri town recently during the seven of Kakamega town. than Kshs 8 million. the body,” said the CEO. planning to make a car, they thought kilometer Cancer walk. “Old age set in and I no longer The theme of the walk was During the exercise, women the idea was “ridiculous” and they Mailu said this is part of their have that kind of energy, I cannot ‘Taking Strides Against Cancer.’ and men who participated in the almost convinced him it was impos- corporate social responsibility. carry passengers for more than one The walk’s objective is to cre- exercise were screened free of sible. “Their doubts pushed me and I “We want to compliment what round because my car requires great ate awareness on the importance charge. was determined to prove not just to the Government is doing in the energy to carry out such a task for the of early detection as the best way The participants were also them but to myself, that it was pos- fight against Cancer. The centre whole day,” he says in a giggle. will also enable more people to to beat cancer. awarded with certificates. sible. All I had to do was give it my best,” Ambunya says. He uses the locomotive to sell Assembling the parts was not sugarcane, fruits and other fast foods. easy as they were expensive. It took All this is to supplement his other him two years before to have eve- income-generating activities. rything in place. By 1999, the three- Ambunya did not fully neglect wheeled car that resembles a Tuk Tuk what he does best: fixing things up. was up and running. The first passen- His magical hands still means many gers were his two wives and the last customers still trickle in to his work born child. place to get bicycles fixed. “No one believed it. People all In the afternoons when he is not over town were shocked, especially busy repairing bicycles, he rides his when they saw me riding it. I was ‘car’ around town as he fetches cus- very happy,” he says in a smile. tomers. “It is also good exercise for The car can accommodate a me after a hectic day at work,” he maximum of three passengers and says. ADVERTISING RATES

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Some of the secondary and college students during the Nairobi Hospital Cancer walk held in Nyeri town recently. Photo/Joseph Mukubwa Our advertising rates are as follows: Full page colour Kshs. 72,000 Full page black and white (inside) Kshs. 40,000 Half page (Black and White) Kshs. 20,000 Oparanya okays audit of Butere CDF Quarter page inside Kshs. 10,000 The Link Classified Kshs. 4,000 By JOEL JUMA fund was benefitting un-deserving auditing of some projects in Malava cases. Shitanda acted by reorganizing and Khwisero is high,” said Adieno. Front Page Earpiece (colour) Kshs. 8,000 PLANNING Minister Wycliffe the CDF committee. He appointed Recently Oparanya told MPs to Front page strap Kshs. 6,000 Oparanya has given the National Tax former MP John Anaswa to be the allow NTA to audit their projects. He Back page strap Kshs. 4,000 Payers Association (NTA) a go ahead chairman and sacked Phillip Makola. said the trend should be encouraged to audit the Constituency Develop- NTA National Coordinator Davis as it gives the public a chance to air Back Page Earpiece Kshs. 7,000 ment Fund (CDF) kitty in his Butere Adieno and the Western Regional Co- their views on the management of the Front Page Solus (colour) Kshs. 20,000 constituency, Kakamega County. ordinator Everlyne Khamala said the public funds. Back Page Solus (colour) Kshs. 15,000 Oparanya, whose office is in teams to audit the two constituencies Oparanya said MPs need to be put charge of the kitty, said auditing of are already on the ground. to task over disbursement of the funds CDF is a pre-requisite measure to curb “Oparanya has agreed to have the as the kitty is winding up this financial Special Rates corruption. His Butere kitty will be au- CDF funds audited to expose mal- year. The Government allocated over We offer very special rates for advertisement of charitable activities dited alongside the Malava CDF run practices,” Adieno said. He explained Kshs 22 billion in this financial year to programmes or services. To get special rates, contact the Editor or by Soita Shitanda. that the Butere CDF management complete projects funded by the CDF. Malava was recently rocked with committees have already availed all Adieno and Khamala said audit- the Editorial Assistant. controversy after it emerged that bur- the relevant information to the experts ing of the devolved funds will extend sary funds were not being distributed to audit the projects in the area. to the Economic Stimulus Projects The details should be mailed to the Editor, P.O. Box 7438, 00200, fairly. Shitanda was forced to disband Adieno who was speaking in Mu- (ESP). Nairobi, Kenya. Telephone 020-601776, 020-3572365. You can also the CDF committee following a pub- mias town during a workshop for re- The Parliamentary committee on lic outcry. searchers slated to audit the projects Housing, Roads and Works chaired e­mail us at [email protected] or [email protected]. Students at Masinde Muliro Uni- noted that complains from Malava and by David Were is also going round NOTE: All payments should be made through cheques, payable to: versity of Science and Technology Khwisero were rampant. “We have to assess the progress of ESP funded Institute for Civic Affairs and Development (ICAD). from Malava had complained that the not started work but the demand for projects. The Link, December 2011 24 DEVELOPMENT Mukurwe-ini residents get new health center By JOSEPH MUKUBWA health centre projects was started cilities exercise started in Septem- distribute 1,117 motorcycles and two years ago. ber in Kwale County. 2, 347 bicycles and also procured THE Government has unveiled “To date 108 health centres “We have managed to recruit 43 ambulances for the counties. Nambale CDF Thangathi Model Health centre have been completed and are 3,781 nurses 2, 004 community Kazungu said the ministry is in Mukurwe-ini district which has ready for commissioning, 37 fa- health extension workers and 535 ready to improve access to pub- allocation list been built under the Economic cilities are between 80 and 99 per public health officers/ technicians. lic health and sanitation and also Stimulus Programme. cent complete and only 11 facili- Our target is to employ 10, 500 improve quality of public health Assistant Minister for Medi- ties are below 50 per cent,” said staff once all projects are commis- services through the rehabilitation By NYAKWAR ODAWO cal Services Kambi Kazungu and the assistant minister. sioned,” he added. of facilities and reducing incidenc- The launching of complete fa- The ministry has been able to es of diseases. NAMBALE Constituency De- Youth assistant Minister Kabando velopment Fund[CDF] com- wa Kabando commissioned the mittee has disbursed a total of facility which is aimed to benefit Kshs13million to finance devel- area residents recently. opment projects identified in the The multi million facility will constituency. offer maternal and infant health- Addressing stakeholders dur- care. ing the monitoring and evaluation Kazungu who was also ac- of various development projects companied by Safaricom founda- in the constituency at the Nambale tion chairman Les Baillie said the district headquarter, the Nambale health centre should be immedi- Constituency Development Fund ately be upgraded to sub district project manager and CDF chair- hospital. man Joshua Mulesi said that the Kabando said the facility constituency development com- has come at a time when the lo- mittee unanimously resolved to cal community needed much the set aside funds to finance projects health facilities. This is one of the in critical sectors among them the comprehensive health care reform construction of the provincial ad- programme covering infrastruc- ministration. ture development. “The provincial administra- It is part of the Kshs 4 billion tion and security agencies play a (Kshs 20 million per constituency) crucial role in the society and that earmarked for the construction is why we have agreed as a com- and equipping of a health centre in mittee to fund the project from the every constituency. CDF kitty,” said the project man- The programme also involves ager, adding that initially the pro- employment of 20 nurses per vincial administrators in the area constituency, procurement of 20 were operating from dilapidated bicycles per constituency and mud-walled structures. procurement of medical supplies From left Safaricom foundation chairman Les Baillie, assistant Minister for Medical Services Kambi Other projects that received comprising of drugs and non phar- Kazungu and Youth assistant Minister Kabando wa Kabando after they commissioned Thangathi funding included the construction maceuticals. Model Health Centre in Mukurwe-ini district which has been built using the Economic Stimulus of the constituency office which The programme of model Programme funds. Photo/Joseph Nukubwa was funded to the tune of Kshs 10million, Busibwabo commu- nity office received Kshs 300,000; Buyofu assistant chief’s office cost Kshs300,000. The construction of Will Base succeed where Tiomin has failed? Lwanya chief’s office and a police patrol base at Mayenje within Bu- By BRIGHTON KAZUNGU issue as precautionary measures had be transported by road to the Momba- Mr. Forbes said Base Titanium sia municipality received Kshs 1 been set up to reduce toxic discharge. sa port for export and urged residents Limited has set up three liaison com- million each. AS a new investor prepares to take Addressing a sensitization meet- to cooperate with the company and the mittees to cover “footprint areas” The CDF committee at the over operations of titanium mining ing of residents at Shika Adabu, Mr. Provincial Administration. under the project, including Likoni, same time disbursed a total of in Kwale County the questions that Forbes said the project will create em- The manager said the project will Kwale and Msambweni. Kshs1.9million towards the con- seems to be in everyone’s lips is: Will ployment opportunities and support use huge amounts of water and a recy- The committees will facilitate struction of various water projects it succeed? community development projects. cling plant is set for construction. preparation of regular meetings dur- ing which project matters will be in the constituency in a bid to ease Base Titanium Limited has an- The official said a community- “The community will benefit im- the water problem. nounced plans to take charge of the based approach had been applied to mediately from the water plant which discussed in the presence of all stake- holders, including community mem- The Nambale District Com- project, which has stalled under Cana- ensure the project benefits all stake- can be utilized for domestic and com- missioner Francis Lenyangume dian firm Tiomin Resources Inc. holders benefit during the 13 years of mercial purposes,” said Mr. Forbes. bers, and viable solutions worked out, he said. commended the CDF committee The company’s Social Manager, mining and 14 years of revenue reach. “There will be a few expatriate for supporting projects geared to- He said the recruitment process who will be employed at the begin- The Mombasa National Envi- Mr. Colin Forbes, says adequate wards the improvement of liveli- measures have been taken to reduce will be transparent by ensuring resi- ning of the project to train locals to ronment Management Authority dents get top priority. “Applicants will ensure smooth transfer of skills over a (NEMA) Environmental Officer, Mr. hoods in the community. environmental degradation during the The DC who also chairs the mining process. undergo stringent vetting process to period of five to seven years,” he said. Bakari Mangale, said the process had ensure that area residents benefit fully However, local contractors will been given a go-ahead after a thor- District Education Board (DEB), He said significant health risks due cited the education sector which to the poisonous emissions associated from the project,” Mr. Forbes said. be involved in building roads, among ough impact assessment had been car- He said the extracted titanium will other civil engineering projects. ried out. he said had benefited immensely with titanium mining will not be an from the CDF kitty adding that several classrooms, administration blocks, libraries and laboratory fa- By JOSEPH MUKUBWA cilities have been put up in various STAKEHOLDERS attending a con- Next budget to prioritize Vision 2030 primary and secondary schools in sultative forum in Nyeri County on the the district courtesy of the CDF and expenditure rationalization due ance based aimed at attaining achiev- technology, Public administration and money. budget making process were urged to to the economic challenges stemming able and measurable results. foreign relations, Physical infrastruc- give priority to programmes that are from negative impacts of drought and He added that public participation ture, Human resource development, The CDF project manager as- in line with the realization of Vision global economic crisis which are like- in budgetary process is also a way of Governance, justice law and order, sured stakeholders that the com- 2030. ly to slow down economic activities in making stakeholders more enlightened Environment, water and irrigation, and mittee will continue to allocate Ministry of Finance Budget Policy the country. on public money spending, helping Agriculture and rural development. more funds towards the construc- Advisor, Samuel Kiiru told stakehold- Kiiru said the main reason for them to monitor and evaluate govern- Central Provincial Director of tion of additional classrooms to ers that the next national budget will stakeholders’ involvement in budget ment spending, and increasing accept- Planning, Grace Muimi said the vari- accommodate the large number give priority to projects that are fully making is to enhance the capacity of ance and legitimacy of policy plans. ous sector views collected recently of students seeking for enrolment compliant with the government’s reg- the public to participate in public fi- The views being collected from all will be compiled and subjected to an- annually. ulations and whose priorities are justi- nance and ensure the process is trans- the Counties by nine different teams other public forum for validation be- “We are very much aware that fied and outlined in the Vision 2030. parent and accountable in line with the comprising members drawn from nine fore submission to treasury. most facilities in schools are over- Kiiru said the proposed projects new Constitution. key sectors of the economy will form Upper Central Regional Commis- stretched due to the large number should indicate how they will contrib- Through such participation, he said the final programmes for next year’s sioner, Ann Ng’etich urged all Kenyans of students in the constituency. We ute to economic growth, job creation the public will have acquired greater budget. to participate fully in all governance are going to allocate more funds to and improvement of citizens’ welfare. ownership of the whole process thus These key sectors include Tour- issues in the spirit of implementing the facilitate the construction of addi- He said there is need for careful creating a transparent and accountable ism, trade and industry, Special pro- new Constitution which requires full tional classrooms to accommodate and disciplined resource allocation budget that is programme-perform- grammes, Research innovation and participation of every one. more learners,” said Mulesi. The Link, December 2011 FEATURE 25 Keep plants at home for healthier life By BRIGHTON KAZUNGU expensive electrical air purifiers. found that all in-door plants can puri- cals are not in homes. seats. Formaldehyde irritates mem- Houseplants, according to website fy in-door air. Plants not only provide Benezene is a colourless toxic liq- branes of the upper respiratory system DID you know that keeping plants in- work better than high-tech gadgets in food for man but also clean the air . uid used in the manufacturer of dyes, and can increase asthma. Pollutants side your home can help detoxify your removing unwanted pollutants from Trees and other plants are living lungs paints, plastic wall covers and adhe- from new materials can continue for environment and guarantee a healthier the air. that breathe for the earth. sives. Any new house or furniture is some time, at times for up to several life? Air pollution is prevalent in most As we adopt modern lifestyles, almost sure to give out benzene from years, depending on the material of The Kwale Public Health Officer, houses due to chemicals introduced pollution has increased, leading to a paints and glues used. The chemical product in question. Ms. Redemptor Mwendo, wants resi- through the contemporary lifestyles. drop in the plant cover. This has in- is also generated into the air during Although all plants require light to dents to keep indoor plants to help pu- The danger posed by indoor pol- creased air pollution because of lack cooking using gas. Benzene is also grow, most indoor plants evolved in rify the air at home by reducing impu- lution should not be underestimated. of enough plants to remove impurities used in the manufacture of detergents tropical or subtropical forests where rities that can negatively affect health. Pollutants have not only been known in the air. and pharmaceuticals. they received only filtered light. This She says indoor plants or house to increase cases of respiratory infec- Experts say plants ‘breathe in’ Benzene is also found in tobacco is what makes them suitable for grow- plants, regardless of whether they are tions such as asthma, but some chemi- carbon dioxide and release oxygen smoke. In offices, photo copiers and ing indoor. You need 15-20 plants flowery or not, are powerful cleaners cals cause allergies, auto-immune dis- as part of the photosynthesis process. printers also emit benzene and expo- per 1,800 square feet for effective air that provide a natural, cost effective orders and headaches. This ensures the amount of carbon di- sure to the substance can cause dizzi- purification. Some sources put the re- way of cleaning in-door air. Other air pollutant chemicals in- oxide in the air is checked. ness, nervousness, headaches, anae- quirement at 10-12 inch potted plant This she says will help bring down clude carcinogenic that can increase Carbon dioxide is linked to poor mia and can irritate eyes and skin. per 100 square foot. respiratory infections in the area es- the probability of developing cancer. concentration and lower work per- Trichloroethylene is present in Plants love rain water and when- pecially asthma which is on the rise. The carcinogenic chemicals are used formance in indoor working areas. inks, paints vanishes and adhesives. ever possible, one should capture rain- Mrs. Muendo explains that air pollu- in the manufacture of synthetic sub- The NASA research discovered Formaldehyde is present in most ad- water for houseplants as they thrive tion acts as a trigger for respiratory stances. that plants reduce components in vola- hesives, paints plastic grocery bags best with natural sources. One should diseases and allergies. Research done by the US agency tile organic compounds such as ben- and varnishes. It is also found in chip learn more about plants to know the Her sentiments appear to support responsible for the exploration and zene, toluene and xylene. The three boards and paper products. amount of water each need. Since the information available in a website on scientific study of space, the National top household toxins are benzene, The toxin is also present in new aim is to avoid non-organic fertilizers, environment that encourages people Aeronautics Space Administration formaldehyde, and trichloroethylene. curtains, upholstery, fabrics and floor keeping the soil well fed using natu- to use house plants to clean and filter (NASA), while exploring ways of This is likely to lead one to assume coverings and is responsible for the ral composts and manure is recom- the air naturally instead of investing in creating suitable space station habitats that the complicated sounding chemi- smell of newness in a car, curtains or mended. My husband sold the family land without my consent After Kenyans voted to accept a tus of the marriage does not solely new constitution, women across the entitle a spouse to a beneficial interest country speak about their hopes and in the property registered in the name expectations. News Correspond- of the other, nor is the performance ent MALACHI MOTANO listen to of domestic duties. Even the fact that some women, sharing bitter tales that the wife was economical in spending could stand for the story of millions on the housekeeping will not do.” of women in Kenya who have been This interpretation, gender activ- robbed of their contributions to mat- ists say, fails to recognise the indirect rimonial lands and other assets. contributions of women in their pro- ductive, reproductive and commu- ELIZABETH Kache is 55 years old. nity roles. From her modest grocery store in Cases like these are widespread. Jericho Estate, Nairobi, she recounts Hilda Nguyai, FIDA-Kenya’s client how in the early 1990s, her husband services officer says the organiza- sold the house they had bought to- tion receives many cases and most gether without her knowledge. of them involving land. The figures “My husband and I owned a mod- have been increasing over the years. est home which we had bought from “Many women have been denied the city council. But one frosty morn- land. Some are disinherited by their ing, my six children and I woke up to in-laws upon their husbands’ deaths. loud bangs by rowdy youth who had Some are chased away and barred been hired to evict us from the house. from accessing any matrimonial “To my shock I was informed property,” that my husband had sold the family Thanks to the new constitution home without my knowledge. Nor which stipulated government to es- had I seen the money he received tablish a legal framework, to divide from the sale.” land and other matrimonial property Attempts to seek redress proved equitably between spouses. The poli- futile because she had no legal claim cy also protects the rights of widows, to the family home since she had no Nora Muthoni takes the News Correspondent to her farm within the homestead. This is the land that has widowers and divorcees through the proof of her contribution to buying brought problems for her with the brothers since their father passed away. Photo/Malachi Motano enactment of a law on co-ownership the house. of matrimonial property. This, it is believed, will guard against acts of But now the new constitution pro- in her parental land where she has got married, her father before he died case. I remained a helpless woman vides for the elimination of gender selling and mortgaging of family land managed to successfully bring up divided the ten acres to the three of and it is up to that time when I de- without the involvement of spouses. discrimination in law, customs and her children who are two day family them (Nora and the two brothers). cided to return home even if they will practices related to land and property. Although the new legislation men and women. The old woman has After the demise of the father, fight- me and my children, I will die at my is guarding against discrimination Jacinta Wanjiku’s husband -Isaac had great huddles and battles with ing began. father’s home “ Kamau Mungai also sold their family against women in the division of her brothers who many times tried “My two younger brothers, other Peter Echaria, a civil servant, land and other matrimonial prop- land without her consent or the con- to evict her from the father’s land. At three from the second family and to- married his wife Priscilla in 1964. sent of their eight adult children. The erty, culture seems to be an obstacle. least today, she has a shield to hold gether with my married sisters came She had a career of her own – first as “There are customary practices that family depended solely on the land on-to defend herself with- the new together to remove me from the fam- an education officer, then as a man- for their cash and subsistence crops undermine efforts seeking to support constitution, section 60 which en- ily land. At some point I had to take agement consultant – but had to stop women’s access to land, and they are and lived in a house on the property. sures “equitable access to land” and a refuge at my friend’s place with the working to accompany her husband The sale failed to consider widely practiced,” observed Rose- “security of land rights” four of my children. To me, the world abroad when he was assigned to a mary Wachira, who coordinated the Kamau’s interests, and upon com- “My father is called Mr. Both was getting to its end” diplomatic posting. This was to have pletion of the transaction, the buyer, draft land policy. Mbugua. He had two wives. I was Nora received all the abuses and painful consequences. Across Kenya and Africa, culture Ndirangu Gatigi, threatened to evict born in the first family where we were was also called all the names in this When they divorced in 2001, the the family from the land, prompting and tradition is frequently invoked to four girls and two boys. The second world “My Sister referred to me as court had to determine the division assign property rights to men, some- Kamau to go to court for protection. family was seven in total. We grew a prostitute who wants to spoil the of 118 acres of land which was their The court however argued that times even holding that women are loving one another until it reached village school boys. My brothers re- joint property. The court in its judg- forbidden to own and inherit land. “It has never been the practice nor a a time when we wanted to establish minded me that a woman’s land is at ment held that “the beneficial share of legal requirement that before the le- Women and human rights activ- our own homes when the problems her maternal home each spouse to matrimonial property ists contend that public education gal proprietor of a piece of land dis- began” Nora begins her story “I took the matter to the area to depends on his or her proven respec- poses of it he or she should consult campaigns are crucial to encourage Their father (the late Mbugua) the village Elder Mr. Patrick Kanja tive portions of financial contribution communities to abandon practices any third party be it his/her husband had ten Acres of land in fact accord- but my efforts were thwarted when either direct or indirect towards the or wife.” that bar women from owning and in- ing to Nora, they were more than ten he asked me whether I am a seri- acquisition of property.” heriting family land, but how long it Nora Muthoni Mbugua is 65 acres, but they lost some when the ous woman. I then took the matters Priscilla Echaria was awarded years old, and a mother of four (two will take to erode such cultural prac- feeder roads were being constructed. to court in Limuru but the brothers just a quarter of the land. tices may be another matter. ladies and two gentlemen). She lives Because her other three sisters had in one way or the other blocked the Further, the court said “...the sta- The Link, December 2011 26 FARMING/NEWS Who really owns Simbauti farm? Kitui traders By BOB OMBATI ecutive Officer (CEO) Robert Mainya Onyonka, Dr. Hezron Manduku, Re- fore the land tribunal but lost the case. forcefully says that any assets owned by the un- uben Oyondi, Stephen Manoti, Dr. I therefore urge those camping at the A FARMERS union in Nyamira ion can only be sold with the approval Protus Momanyi, Ferdinand Obure, farm to follow suit,” he advised. occupy Bus County is embroiled in a tussle over of delegates during a special general and the late nominated legislator, Dr. Mainga urged the government to the ownership and management of the meeting. Lawrence Sagini endorsed the sale evict the members of the Group from Park giant 1,130 Simbauti farm. Mainya stresses it is difficult for while Simeon Nyachae, then minister the farm, adding the union was filing Bought in 1965 from white settlers a small clique to dispose the land se- for Agriculture, Livestock and Mar- a case against them for trespass and By KAVYU-KURA by 27 coffee cooperative societies af- cretly since tenders inviting buyers are keting sent an apology but endorsed disturbance. filiated to Gusii Coffee Farmers Co- advertised openly and the highest bid- the sale minutes. Some Gusii MPs including Dr. TRADERS and public serv- operative union (GCFCU), the farm’s der is allocated the land. He added that relevant govern- James Gesami who bought land on ice vehicle operators in Kitui ownership still remains a puzzle to The CEO says that members from ment Ministries were furnished with the farm and former South Mugirango have forced their way into many despite the fact that it is man- the societies and outsiders are allowed copies of the resolutions passed dur- legislator Omingo Magara have ac- the newly refurbished Kitui aged by the union. to apply for tenders and the selection ing a District Development Commit- cused the union management of se- Matatu and Bus park. A group of politicians and senior process is competitive and transpar- tee chaired by the then DC, Harry Wa- cretly disposing land belonging to the This follows delays by the civil servants in the area have laid ent. He says that only 330 acres of mubeyi for approval. farm. “Why is it that whenever we are government to officially reo- claim on sections of the land which the Simbauti farm was disposed off in Mainya insisted that the farm is approaching an electioneering year, pen the facility months after they ostensibly bought from former March 6, 1995 to repay a bank loan jointly owned by the union and the the issue of Simbauti farm crops up? the completion of a lengthy union officials. Another self help that had been secured to build the un- societies whose delegates serve as the Posed Mainga and urged stakehold- rehabilitation exercise. group headed by Peter Ochoki has ion’s Kahawa house. supreme organ. He said those claim- ers to seek information from the union “The sale was done with the ap- ing ownership are ignorant of the pro- over its ownership and management The angry traders pulled also joined the fray and is seeking to down the iron sheets that had repossess all union land that has been proval of local Members of Parlia- cedures. of the farm. sold off illegally by the errant officials. ment, after the bank threatened to auc- The union’s board Vice chairman, A survey by The Link has estab- been used to seal off the facil- Members of the self group, with tion the union’s properties to recover Abel Mainga has scoffed at claims lished that wealthy politicians- both ity to allow vehicles plying support from local politicians, have the debt which had accumulated to that the officials were secretly dispos- former and current and senior civil the Kitui-Nairobi route to start pitched camp at the farm to demand 33million from Kshs 11 million,” he ing of land and challenged aggrieved servants have farms and huge hous- operating from the park. the immediate removal of union offi- explains. parties to seek legal redress instead es in Simbauti farm and admit they The bus park has been un- cials over alleged corruption. Mainya disclosed that the then of disturbing farm workers. “In 2007 bought and own their pieces of plots der construction over the last However, the union’s Chief Ex- Gusii lawmakers- the late Zachary another group had sued the union be- legally. six years and was slated to be officially reopened by a high ranking government delega- ket. tion led by Deputy Prime Mu- The call came as Kabiru-ini salia Mudavadi. Coffee Factory in Mathira dis- But the traders and Matatu Farmers decry rampant operators overtly impatient trict lost over 120 bags to rob- bers who stormed the factory with the government’s delay and also killed a watchman. in opening the park, took con- Cases of coffee theft have trol of the facility after defy- theft of coffee ing pleas from Water Minister been rampant in Central Ken- By JOSEPH MUKUBWA said the hiring of police officers expensive as the officers will ya despite calls by President Charity Ngilu to wait until the is the only way to curb theft. guard the beans during the time Kibaki to curb the vice which official commissioning. THE director of Coffee Re- He said the exercise is not they are searching for the mar- has become the order of the day. The Kshs. 90 million refur- search Foundation Joseph bishment works was financed Kimemia has advised farmers to by the Local Government hire police officers to guard cof- ministry under the Urban De- fee factories and curb the theft velopment Programme. The of coffee. construction had stalled twice Kimemia said hiring armed after the project exhausted the police officers during the time initial funding. This led to a when they are ready to sell their sharp rise in the project cost beans, will minimize the ram- from the initial estimate of pant cases of coffee theft in the Kshs 40 million to Kshs 90 factories. million owing to inflation. “Hiring an old man with a However, on completion, rungu cannot prevent the theft. the traders led by the Chair- The farmers should contact the man of the Kenya National Ministry of Internal Security to Chambers of Commerce, Ki- get police officers who would tui branch, Daniel Ngoima be guarding the coffee facto- Kimanzi, petitioned the gov- ries during the time they are ernment to hasten the opening ready to sell their coffee,” said of the park. Kimemia. The traders had com- He was speaking at the re- plained that the delay had search foundation based in impacted negatively on their Ruiru of Kiambu County during businesses and general devel- a media workshop on impact of opment of the town. climate change on coffee. He claimed that since the Kimemia who was accompa- bus terminus was temporar- ily re-located to Kunda Kindu nied by Economist Kennedy Gi- The Director of Coffee Research Foundation Joseph Kimemia check on some of the coffee berries at the re- tonga and official James Minai search foundation in Ruiru of Kiambu County. Photo/Joseph Mukubwa area from the central business district to pave way for the construction of the modern fa- cility, trade has been sluggish. While conceding that there Group devices ways to raise school fees was delay in opening the bus terminus, the Kitui Town By BRIGHTON KAZUNGU tion for their children. school. This is the only pre-school make a ‘sheet’. One branch pro- “The highest level of education whose launch was done with re- duces about four sheets of one foot Clerk Lucy Waema however RESIDENTS of Sita village in Kilifi in our village has for a long time sources from the project. wide, each of which is worth five laid blame on the Ministry of County have embarked on an am- remained at class four. But we are The group’s next goal is to start a shillings. Local Government. bitious plan to raise school fees for now determined to change this cy- primary school section and Standard Every group member targets Waema said in an inter- their children. cle by setting aside funds to support One next year. They hope the school to make a minimum of 20 makuti view in her office that the The group has formed the Pisa our children complete their studies,” will one day grow to Standard Eight. sheets a day. The 20 ploughed back project was under the Ministry Bursary Kit group (Pisbuk) that says Peter Baya, the chairman. Pisbuk group has focused on the to the groups account. However any and therefore the decision on comprises of 18 members who are The group with the support of the tree to provide roofing and wall- extra sheets that members make are when to open the bus terminus currently engaged in the sale of roof- Aphia II Plus, a Non-Governmental ing material. The residents weave exchanged for cash, which is used lay squarely with the Minister ing materials using the coconut tree Organization that works in the coast fronds; fasten them with sisal fibre to buy food and cater for other daily for Local Government. to generate funds to support educa- region has been able to set up a onto the leaves’ central support to needs. The Link, December 2011 FARMING 27

By JOSEPH MUKUBWA OTHAYA Farmers Cooperative Cof- Mgeno fee Society has raised a red flag over Society cries foul over illegal coffee dealings in the area. community The society chairman Newton Mwangi Ndiritu says the area has be- ranch set for come a haven of illegal coffee rack- illicit coffee dealings eteers where illegal coffee dealings rehabilitation including coffee hawking is the order funded by a commercial miller are The chairman said that the illegal farmers can be incited to turn against By BRIGHTON KAZUNGU of the day. taking place shortly after the Govern- coffee dealings intensified shortly af- it. “We are requesting the Coffee Speaking in Nyeri town recently, ment waived debts to coffee farmers ter Othaya Farmers Cooperative Soci- Board of Kenya to intervene and the MGENO community ranch in the chairman who was accompanied worth billions of shillings and also ety acquired a dry coffee milling plant. police to have this illegal exercise Mwatate district, Taita-Taveta Coun- by the manager James Kimondo said at a time when the Government has The society has also been gearing up stopped once and for all by bringing to ty is set for rehabilitation following buying and selling of coffee is now established the Coffee Development towards engaging in value addition book the illegal coffee dealers who are the allocation of Kshs.8.3 million being done along roads side and shop- Fund,” he said. adding that the acquisition of the dry masquerading as coffee business deal- by the government through the Eco- ping centres in broad daylight in total He added, “We are aware that the mill by the society angered some ers while others operate in the name of nomic Stimulus Programme (ESP). disregard of the law. He said this will coffee is being taken for processing commercial millers who termed it as self help groups,” he appealed The District Livestock Produc- soon lead to the collapse of the society to a coffee society in the neighboring a threat to their life line. The society appealed that legal tion Officer (DLPO), Mr. Martin which serves 14,000 farmers from 19 district with the evil motive of desta- He said the commercial millers and administrative provisions be en- Oyindo, says the funds will help coffee factories. The dealers are buy- bilizing the society and eventually want to cripple their milling plant by forced on the miller behind this illegal initiate development in the ranch ing Kshs 40 per Kg of cherry and Kshs cripple it,” making it non-functional so that the activity for the good of coffee farmers. and finance renovation work to help 20 per Kg of dry beans. transform the ranch into a citadel of The society however accused local excellence in a county which boasts police of laxity saying that suspects of 28 ranches,” said Mr. Oyindo. who were arrested recently with ille- Among the key projects ear- gally acquired coffee were released at marked for implementation include night from othaya Police station with- the purchasing of additional 190 out conducting any thorough investi- heard of cattle. The funds will be gations. He added that after the release channeled towards the rehabilita- of the culprits from the police station, tion of cattle dips, buying of modern they went round shopping centres drugs for animals and bush-clear- bragging that illegal coffee dealings ance on extra 32 hectares to expand are there to stay. the area under pasture. “The illegal practice contravenes The ranch has set up a weighing the Coffee Act specifically section 17 scale for animals under a fattening which deals with the buying, selling, programme before being fetched for milling, dealing or transacting any sale in the local and global markets. business in coffee,” he said. Mr. Oyindo said a water pan with The chairman said that if the trend the capacity to hold 18,000 cubic continues, cases of insecurity and gen- meters is under construction to help eral lawlessness will go up since the resolve the problem of water scarcity illegal dealers might start stealing cof- in the ranch. “When all the projects fee from the farms and factories and are completed, Mgeno ranch will be selling it,” he added. a pacesetter in the ranching sector in He blamed the vice on the com- the country,” said the officer. mercial millers. “The illegal dealings He said the ranch has been have a damaging impact on the coffee working closely with the livestock industry in Othaya and beyond. The Coffee farmers in Othaya prepare coffee for sale. Othaya Farmers Coffee Society has since department and has complied with criminal activities which are being raised red flag over illegal dealings of coffee in the area. Photo/Joseph Mukubwa a Government directive to ensure transparency in the management of the community ranch’s affairs. products. The ranch has also signed a con- However, Abubakar Abdi traces the tract with Kenya Meat Commission Migori fish farmers get a major boost problem of shortage to monopoly, espe- (KMC) for the provision of beef cat- cially by Asian entrepreneurs who own direct links with fish processing indus- would operate. tle to the meat processing company. By JOHN NYAMBUNE “The Government should urgently fish industries in the region. tries; hence they buy for Kshs.200 per “The problem to be addressed as Mr. Oyindo said most ranches in the kilogram. Muragiri says locals venture intervene and ensure that each person area face challenges as they never THE government has released Kshs 4.8 only operates a maximum of two boats far as I am concerned is not over fish- into fishing independently. ing, we should be looking at the issue of involve livestock officials in the run- million to support fish farming in Migori “The kind of investment required for otherwise very soon there will be no fish ning of their affairs. County. The District Fisheries Officer in our waters,” says Penina. establishing industries to empower these this kind of business is beyond our means locals because these factory owners keep “We need to be involved if we in charge of coordinating activities Si- that is why we have to rely on these So- Lack of proper gear, she says, has mon Munguti says that the county will on reducing prices at will and because are to offer positive improvement, malis. You need about Kshs.500,000 to forced a number of locals to improvise he said. receive an additional Kshs.600,000 to tools such as mosquito nets for fishing, people have to make a living they try to be able to acquire both the machine and get more fish for sale,” says Mr. Abdi. promote fish farming. the boat required for fishing,” he says. leading to the wiping out of immature The fisheries officer at the same time Another fisherman, Mr. Thomas # says that plans are underway to put up Odundo, says in the absence of supplies, a mini fish processing plant in Rongo the future is uncertain and blames piracy The SUBSCRIPTION FORM District to salvage the sector. “We are for the problem. “The lake is our core also encouraging fish farmers especially business and it is important that a solu- where there is a dam to form groups and LinkEnhancing governance for all tion is found to check on the declining think on ways and means of making fish from the lake,” he says. their own fish feeds,” says Munguti. Mr. Odundo says the Government He spoke as it emerged that fish should take measures to ban small spe- Please accept my/our subscription to The Link for the period of ...... months farmers in the county are exploring cies. “If possible storage facilities should ways through which they can come up be built at the beach to allow us to sell with an alternative economic activity our fish directly to the industries,” he dating from ...... to...... owing to the declining fish stock. says. Abubakar Abdi, a Somali trader The industry has become fragile and who has purchased fish for the last 14 I/We …………………….………………...………………… of P.O. Box...... ….…...... …… farmers have no option but to diversify years at Mugabo BMU, in Muhuru Bay, their trade to survive in the harsh eco- Migori County, decries the rate at which Code ……...…… Town …...... ….…..….…Tel No.…….……...... …. Street ...... nomic times. the stocks are falling. He says this has Dancan Kowa, a fisherman and a been the worst year ever since he ven- Building ...... Floor ...... Room No ...... Mobile ...... …… member of Mugabo Beach Management tured into the business. Unit (BMU), expresses fears over the Last year we would get at least 50 Email: ……...... have paid Kshs...... changing trends in the business that has kilograms per boat but now we get an been his economic backbone for years. average of five kilogrammes and on a (Attached, please find money order No ...... “Fish from the lake has continued to re- good day one can get 20 kilograms,” duce drastically. says Mr. Abdi. Mr. Munguti says the Please send me ……...... ………....………..copies per issue every month. In the past two months, we used to county has a high potential but over- get two tonnes per day but presently whelming pressure on the lake by the Signature and /or stamp of client/:...... …...… Date ...... on a lucky day you can only get one or rising number of people who are com- even half a tonnes,” says Kowa. He says peting for the commodity requires inter- Back issues No/Months: ...... because of lack of economic empower- vention such as controls on the number ment the locals are also losing the sec- of nets and fishermen. tor to Somalis who have developed keen Mrs. Penina Okeyo, treasurer of the Fill in this form and attach a postal money order of Kshs. 660 and post back to:- interest in the sector. Mugabo BMU, says over-fishing was a Tobias Muragiri, a committee mem- major contributing factor to the situation, Institute for Civic Affairs and Development ber of the BMU agrees with the senti- saying over 100 boats can be seen at the ments, adding that unlike the locals, the lakeside unlike in the past when only 30 P.O. Box 7438 - 00200 Nairobi Somalis have access to loans as well as The Link, December 2011 28 FARMING/NEWS Mwingi expecting bumper heavests By KAVYU KURA drought and rain failure. “During the prolonged drought the locals had kept THE famine prone Mwingi Central away from their Shambas because district will realize 90 percent crop there was no work to do,” said Mu- yields to the current rains, the District choka. Agriculture Officer has predicted. The area DC (Kinuthia) led a The Mr James Muchoka said number of government departmen- recently that farmers in the area re- tal heads to a farm belonging to a ceived 26 tons famine recovery seeds member of the Ithumbi Farmers Field which they planted early before the School, Rose Mulyungi, in the out- onset of the October-December good skirts of Mwingi town where they rains. launched the initiative by participat- “By the time the rains arrived ing in a menial weeding exercise. in the second week of October the The DC said that his taking part in farmers had already planted and the the physical weeding exercise served crops germinated very well. Now to show his devotion to kicking fam- what is remaining is proper tending ine out of Mwingi by encouraging of the crop to maturity. We expect 90 farmers to take good care of their percent yields this time round,” said crops to maturity. He added that he Muchoka. He was speaking to news- would make unannounced visits to men at the sidelines of the launch of farms in various parts of the district to a participatory initiative to drive local further the initiative. farmers back to their farms to nurture Muchoka said the failure to nur- the growing crops to maturity in order ture the growing crops following the to realize a good harvest. current heavy rains in the area would A number of district heads of de- compromise on the expected good partments participated in the launch yields. He said it was time local farm- that involved joining a local women’s ers spend more time in their farms to self help group in a physical weeding tend their crops. exercise led by DC Peter Kinuthia. He expressed fears that although The drive according to Muchoka the area was bound to realize good is meant to build a “back to farm harvest, food shortages were likely mood” among local farmers after to be experienced shortly after the keeping off their Shambas for a long harvest if farmers dispose their yields The Mwingi Central DC Peter Kinuthia (in official uniform) joins the Ithumbi Farmers Field school mem- time due to the prolonged period of cheaply soon after harvest. bers in physical weeding during the launch of the “back to the farm” initiative. Photo/Kavyu-Kura Man who quit farming for bar business Peter Oruko is a poligamous man. His kind of farming,” says the 30-year-old li, capsicum, and other drought-resistant They are some of the women who of 500 shillings ($6.25) per share. two wives have three children each. For Monica or Mama Nyandori, as she is crops for export. “We have brokers who have risen from a state of poverty to be- According to Judith Wayumba, more than twenty years he was surviving referred to by her women colleagues. come over every Saturday with Lorries come bread winners for their immediate members are allowed to borrow money from subsistence farming in the Semi- She shuns uniformly heavier, faster- to buy the produce for the export mar- and extended families through small- from the association’s account, which arid Nyabeda, a rural village in Uyoma maturing exotic breeds to raise hardier, ket,” says Jane who is also the first wife. scale farming,” said Jane Biashara, a they repay later with interest. “The in- Kobong’ in Rarieda. One day he just motley indigenous varieties – like many She has three salaried farm workers and community development expert who terest therefore becomes a dividend to quit farming for bar business and leav- others raising poultry in Kenya, she has three casual labourers on daily basis. On has worked with more than 60 groups benefit all group members.” ing his wives to manage the family land, found a niche market for these free- Saturdays, when she is harvesting for of small-scale women farmers in Kenya. Not having formal title to land is a writes MALACHI MOTANO ranging birds, consumers claiming they the export market, she hires more day According to Biashara, the best way common obstacle for women seeking are tastier than exotic broilers. labour to boost her staff to 15. to empower poor women is by mobilis- credit; the association solves this by WHEN his first children were getting The chickens are the foundation of The farm has a gross income of ing them into groups, where they can requiring a borrower to get three guar- into secondary education in 1999, the the success the family enjoys since tak- 120,000 Kenyan shillings per week – raise funds and borrow from their own antors, also members of the self-help 57- year-old couldn’t support his fam- ing over managing family’s six hectares 1,500 dollars – from which she pays her pooled savings. “From my experience, I group she is part of. The amount mem- ily from his six hectare farm, so he quit of land in the tiny Nyabeda village in workers, buys necessary farm inputs, have learned that poor women are more bers may borrow is also limited by the farming to open a bar. But he turned the Rarieda. The two women began with and spends the rest on the upkeep of her comfortable borrowing from kitties they number of shares she has purchased in land – and decision-making on it – over five birds, and carefully nurtured them Children and boosts the economic sta- own, than getting loans from other or- the association. “We use members as two his wives who later turned out to to reach their present number (500). tus of the general family, including her ganisations. The interest accrued goes guarantee simply because in most cases better farmers than he ever was. The two women ploughed the prof- mother-in-law and eve the husband. back to the same kitty thus avoiding women do not own properties which Monica Awino and Jane Atieno its from the poultry project into dry Oruko sometimes helps his wives losses,” she said. they can attach as a security to secure a (Oruko’s two wives) rise at 6 a.m. every land farming. “We grow several types supervise activities on the farm when She points out the example of the loan. This means that if one is unable to day to pick kale leaves to feed chickens. of vegetables including amaranth, cow- there are lots to be done, but he is happy Mawira Farmers Association to which service the loan, then we go for shares Sometimes they supplement the suku- peas, kales, tomatoes, legumes such as to see her retain full control of the fam- the two women belong. The group has of the guarantors,” said Wayumba. The ma wiki, as kale is known locally, with pigeon peas and many others. I also ily land. “Things have changed. In fact, accumulated over 70,000 dollars in cap- project points to an essentially untapped crushed maize and pigeon peas for her grow maize and millet – basically for they sometimes help me re-stock my ital over five years simply by members resource at the heart of African agricul- 120 indigenous birds, since they cannot domestic use and feeds for my chicken, bar, and at the same time take care of buying shares in the association at a cost ture: empowered women. survive on greens alone. and also sell the remaining produce to most domestic needs I trust them. And “This is a drought-stricken area. the local market.” I think I am lucky to have such industri- That is why we must consider using The hardworking Monica and her ous women as my wives.” indigenous knowledge to sustain any co- wife Jane later started planting chil- “When I found out that my stock was growing steadily, I decided to join a women’s self-help group known as Mond Kobong’ as part of the Mawira Farmers Association,” says Monica. The association is composed of 21 women-driven self-help groups, with a total membership of 750 small-scale farmers. The group collaborates with a non-governmental organization known as the Inades-Formation – a pan-African Non Governmental Organization that encourages groups to save collectively to support individual members with loans. She is yet to take her first loan. “I have my shares accumulating and very soon I might go for a loan in order to expand my project,” The example set by the two women supports research findings published by the Food and Agriculture Organiza- tion this month, which suggest that if Monica and Jane in their family farm. ‘We grow several types of veg- women had access to same resources as Monica (left) and Jane attends to the chicken. The chicken are etables including amaranth, cowpeas, kales, tomatoes, legumes such men, their farm yields could rise 20 to the foundation of the success the family enjoys since taking over as pigeon peas and many others. We also grow maize and millet for 30 percent. managing family’s six hectares of land in the tiny Nyabeda village in domestic use only. Photo/Malachi Motano Rarieda. Photo/Malachi Motano The Link, December 2011 29 REGIONAL NEWS Kikuyu youth told to stop Church cry foul over drinking killer brews illegal By JOSEPH MUKUBWA violence,” he noted. ance Civil Society Week was being butions being made by Civil Society He added that the Constitution rec- held in Nyeri town where over 300 Organizations (CSOs) in promoting occupation YOUNG people in Central region ognizes our diversity but at the same delegates have been discussing critical Democratic governance. have been told to stop drinking dan- time emphasizes that we are one Na- issues on the preparedness for 2012 The Deputy PC said the Govern- gerous brews that have killed and tion, with one destiny and it is there- Elections. ment welcomes the partnership CSOs of its land maimed hundreds of them. fore incumbent on all of us to ensure The exhibition was meant to pro- as they contribute to development of Deputy PC Francis Sila said the peaceful co-existence. vide an opportunity for Nyeri resi- our country providing a momentum By LINK CORRESPONDENT use of the brews had ruined many This year’s Democratic Govern- dents to learn more about the contri- for growth and unity. youths in the region and said there A CHURCH in Kakamega North was need for them to engage in other District is opposed to plans to con- income generating activities. struct provincial administration Sila who was speaking recently at offices on its land. the opening of Civil Society Exhibi- Bahai Faith Church Ministries tions at Whispers Park in Nyeri town has written to the area District said the use of illicit brews has put the Commissioner Gideon Ombongi region in to shame as compared to demanding that the Government other regions in the country. offices be re-located to an alterna- “I pray that the youth in this region tive land to avoid controversies can stop using these illicit brews. The over the matter. brews have put the region in a very The church said in a letter to shameful position,” said the PC. the Western PC Samuel Kilele At the same time, he called upon that it was unable to undertake any Kenyans to commit themselves to the development since the provincial new principles enshrined in the Con- administration had occupied its stitution, where the lives of all citizens parcel of land. must be protected and respected by Ombongi confirmed that he all. had received the letter from the Sila said the New Constitution has church administration. He said ushered in a platform that eliminates there was need to relocate the of- the culture of impunity and violence fices to avoid disputes between as evident after the 2007 elections that the church and the Government nearly destroyed. officers. “All efforts towards having a “We are not the only offices peaceful 2012 elections must be in- faced with lack of land. Even tensified as the New Constitution has Malava girls was put up on land provided the country with a golden Central Deputy PC Francis Sila (right) visiting some of the exhibitions at Whispers Park in Nyeri town belonging to the forest, “said the opportunity to exorcise the ghost of recently. Photos/Joseph Mukubwa DC. The DC made the remarks at board had not budgeted money to fa- Samitsi secondary school in Mal- cilitate in-house trainings next year. ava constituency during inspec- Loan defaulters threaten future of Society The delegates said for the Sacco to tion of projects by the officials of By BEKADZO TONDO The report compiled by the su- stringent measures to recover the debt run well and make profits, members the National Constituency Devel- pervisory committee chairman Mr. from the defaulters. have to be trained on proper market- opment Fund led by the board’s KILIFI Teachers’ Savings and Credit Michael Kithi and read to delegates “Cases where members fail to re- ing strategies in order to lure more Public Relations Manager George Society is owed Kshs17.1 million during the Sacco’s annual general pay loans advanced to them in good members to the Sacco Muruli. through defaults in loan repayments meeting held at Kilifi county hall in- time is becoming a big challenge to The delegates at the same time ac- Housing minister Soita Shitan- and accrued interests. dicated that 208 members are yet to the Sacco and I would request default- cused some members of defaulting in da said that cases of land disputes The directors say that the debt has clear loans advanced to them by the ers to honour their pledges to avoid their loan repayment schedules and should be addressed by stakehold- financially crippled the Sacco whose sacco. destabilizing operations of the Sacco,” later seeking for loans from commer- ers before the County Govern- membership stand at 400 due to non- “The accumulation of unpaid said Mr. Dzombo. cial banks. ments are put in place next year. repayment of loans advanced to mem- loans is threatening to cripple the The chairman noted that most of They said that the Sacco must now Shitanda who is the area MP bers. Sacco’s operations and the supervi- the defaulters have overcommitted crack the whip on defaulters so that explained that failure by school to A financial report compiled by the sory committee now wants the sacco their pay slips and therefore the Sacco other members whose loan applica- obtain land title deeds on time was Sacco reveals that about Kshs11.4 management board to advise on the is unable to recover the debt from their tions are still pending can benefit. Del- egates at the meeting also demanded contributing to land disputes. million has not been repaid by 194 best way the debt can be recovered,” salaries. The minister explained that adds Mr. Kithi. Delegates at the meeting almost that the management streamline op- members who were awarded the loans the Constituency Development through the Sacco’s front office serv- The chairman Mr. Richard Dzom- disrupted the proceedings after it erations so that more members can ices. bo suggested that the Sacco adopts emerged that the Sacco’s management access credit facilities. Fund (CDF) has so far spent over Kshs 7 million to purchase a piece of land for the construction of a youth entrepreneurship centre. He said that the centre will be equipped with Information Tech- Machakos youth calls for end to graft nology (ICT) facilities to enable the youths scout for employment By PETER MUTUKU ing undertaken at locational level to gramme, while line ministries con- ing diseases that result from vitamin opportunities in various parts of enable interested youth to apply for centrate on supervisory roles and deficiencies. The Ministry enhances the country. recruitment. offering of technical advice on the awareness of mothers and children YOUTH in Machakos County want The Kakamega County Coun- the government to put in place meas- They claimed that they were be- projects. on the need to visit public health ures to curb corruption which has be- ing forced to bribe recruitment offic- Meanwhile the Malezi Bora ini- institutions where they can receive cil Chairman John Shimaka said come rampant in the implementation ers with cash before they can be en- tiative that was launched in 2007 by checkups and medical supplements. that lack of employment among of programmes meant to boost their listed to work under the programme. the Ministry of Health to cater for The exercise was officially the youths was to blame for the welfare. They took issue with line govern- pregnant women, breast feeding launched recently in Machakos increased wave of crime in the Speaking in Machakos town , the ment ministries and other agencies mothers and children under the ages town. “Fruits are rarely budgeted for County. youth led by Michael Musyoka Mue- who they accused of conspiring with of five years has become a success in in daily meals and children cannot He said that despite efforts ma from Yatta District claim that politicians to recruit their cronies. the rural areas. access the required amounts of vi- being made to have the youths most projects initiated and funded The youth said although the pro- In an interview with The Link , tamins sourced from fruits,” he said. engage in income generating ac- by the Government and development gramme was a move in the right di- Machakos District Medical Officer Dr Nthanga said taking a bal- tivities, which include motorcycle partners for youth economic empow- rection, stringent mechanisms should of Health, Dr Jack Nthanga however anced diet by families ensures transport industry, they lacked erment were marred by controversy be put in place to seal any loopholes says children under the programme healthy living for the fulfillment of capital to expand into other sec- and hardly benefited them. that allowed corruption to thrive. need vaccines and close observation Vision 2030 goals in the health sec- tors of investment. The youth cited the Kazi Kwa They proposed that the hiring due to declining health indicators that tor. Shimaka said the Kazi kwa Vijana programme which they said of an independent agency that will were revealed during a recent survey Far flung areas such as Konza in Vijana programme should be be- was shrouded in secrecy and no in- oversee the hiring and payments of by the Ministry of Public Health. Machakos County will enjoy a one come permanent instead of being formation is availed on projects be- the youth working under the pro- The initiative aims at prevent- day medical camp . implemented on temporary basis. The Link, December 2011 30 REGIONAL NEWS

By JOSEPH MUKUBWA Carbon MAENDELEO Ya Wanaume Organi- sation has called upon the Govern- Saitoti urged to introduce traders should ment to introduce a policy to manage police posts countrywide. be honest with The organization chairman Ndir- policy on police posts itu Njoka said this will avoid cases of innocent citizens being tortured been turned into extortion havens by Njoka said the heinous acts are ris- action because the victim has been communities and confined in police posts illegally police officers where people are con- ing day by day with victims facing the threatened with dire consequences by and therefore called upon the Internal fined illegally and sometimes reports wrath of ruthless police officers. the police officer if he reports the case By PETER MUTUKU Security Minister George Saitoti to ur- are not booked or taken seriously. “It is very sad to note that the to higher authorities,” added Njoka.. gently introduce the policy. Njoka who was accompanied victim was booked in the police post “We as an organization that advo- WHEREAS a plan by a local com- “We are also calling upon the by the Secretary General Fredrick where he was arrested and confined il- cates for the rights of men and women pany to supply resident of Mbeere Commissioner of Police Mathew Mwangi was speaking recently in legally in the cell for three days before in general may resort to peaceful dem- with energy saving stoves is laud- Iteere to investigate police posts coun- Nyeri town after he met with a man being released without any charges,” onstrations if innocent people con- able, it needs to also inform them trywide because the main objective who was allegedly beaten by police noted the chairman. He demanded tinue being tortured and oppressed by on how to share the financial ben- to build police posts through CDF by officers at Gatitu Police Post in Nyeri that police officers implicated in the security officers,” he concluded. efits likely to accrue from carbon the community was for the purposes Central district last month. case to face the law the victim who He urged the police force to re- financing. of bringing security closer to the peo- The victim Eric Mathangani was has now become incapacitated and flect, focus and embrace the rights of Climate Pal is expected to sup- all people whether prisoners, suspects ple but it is unfortunate that instead allegedly arrested and tortured for can hardly undertake his daily chores. ply over 20,000 households in the three days at the police post after he “We are now calling on the Police or the common mwananchi as en- some police posts have now turned area with modern wood stoves. against the same communities,” said was arrested over a theft case. Commissioner to intervene by taking shrined in the new constitution. the chairman. Even so, it is known that such He claimed that some posts have projects attract huge financial ben- efits for the service providers that they more often than not do not disclose to the communities. Webuye Council The residents are expected to pay Kshs 100 for the stove accord- in financial stress ing to the Chief Executive Officer, By LUKE KAPCHANGA Geoffrey Kiringa Ruku. The project being supported by WEBUYE Municipal council risk be- ing rendered insolvent as the govern- the French government will enable ment continues to withhold its Local the residents access fuel efficient Authority Transfer Fund (LATF) allo- stoves in a bid to reduce carbon di- cation for the third year running. oxide emissions. The move by the government fol- Ruku was addressing a stake- lows the inability by the council to holders’ consultative meeting con- clear an outstanding statutory debt that vened to explore ways of scaling currently stands at Kshs50 million. up the project to include all house- Operations at the local authority holds in the entire Mbeere District. now threaten to ground to halt even He said the project will address as the Mayor Ali Mutoka sends out a the enormous challenges posed by passionate appeal to the government to intervene and salvage the local au- firewood collection and environ- thority from imminent collapse. mental degradation and save time Services at the council have deteri- spent in looking for firewood espe- orated to alarming levels with employ- cially by the school going children. ees going without salaries for the last The CEO said the improved three months. He says that the council wood stove project comes as a mainly relies on revenue generated great relief to the residents who are from business permits but that still is faced with myriad challenges. not enough to enable it effectively dis- He said the new technology will charge its mandate. also reduce the amount of carbon “Residents have suffered enough dioxide released from daily cook- as the government continues to punish the council over misdeeds commit- ing chores in the local households. ted by former officials of the council Ruku said residents can now who have since been transferred,” conserve and preserve vegetation, adds Mutoka. The council has not re- enjoy reduced fuel costs, cleaner ceived the last three disbursements of environment and manage carbon LATF funds following a directive by dioxide emissions. the Ministry of Local Government to Ruku said under the same clear the outstanding statutory debt or project international companies miss out of LATF allocations. have also signed a multi million The finance and general purposes deal programme to trade in carbon committee Chairman Mr. Jafred Ma- credits in the carbon market. khakha accused former councillors Maendeleo ya Wanaume Organisation Secretary General Fredrick Mwangi (right) and the national chairman and senior staff of plunging the coun- Ndiritu Njoka (left) shows the leg of Eric Mathangani who was allegedly beaten by police at Gatitu Police Prof Genesia Kinyamariro of cil in the current crisis. “We are now Post’s cell in Nyeri Central District last month. Photo/Joseph Mukubwa Nairobi University who helped unable to provide essential services to develop the stove, said the project the public with most projects funded will go a long way in reducing car- by LATF being suspended,” he said. bon emissions by over 50 percent. The two councilors confirmed Contractors challenged to finish roads faster He said the project will be a that the implementation of thirty six By JOSEPH MUKUBWA that are useful to our economy,” said have been cut-off by heavy rain caus- milestone in efforts to mitigate projects has stalled in the six wards Warugongo. ing transportation challenges to farm- against climate change. served by the council. ‘’We ask the ROAD contractors have been called He said that farmers in his constitu- ers intending to deliver their farm and Dr Kenyi of Kenyatta Univer- Ministry of Local Government and upon to hasten the completion of ma- ency have been experiencing problems dairy products to the market. sity, who was also involved in the the treasury to release the funding to jor roads to avoid inconveniencing delivering their produce in the market Warugongo said that most of production of the wood improved enable us meet our obligations as a lo- motorists. and the construction of the roads in the roads in the constituency are in cal authority,’’ said the Mayor. stove, said the project will assist in Kieni MP Nemesyus Warugongo time will be of great benefit to them. poor condition though the vast Kieni sensitizing rural communities and He said those who mismanaged who was speaking on the sidelines of Warugongo singled out the 28 Kil- Constituency is the biggest in Nyeri funds in the council should be brought Central Kenya Regional Stakehold- ometer Bellevue – Kiambogo road County with ground coverage of 52 in benefitting from carbon trading to account instead of subjecting inno- ers Consultative meeting held in the in his constituency which he said is per cent. and reduction. cent people to untold suffering. Nyeri Town Information hall said in poor state and said that he had re- “I expected that at least 120 to 200 However, the team did not say “The question as to why the funds funds used in the construction of ma- quested that the road be given the first kilometers of the constituency would how the community would share in were deducted but never remitted to jor roads are usually grants loaned to priority. have been considered for tarmacking the benefits likely to accrue from the statutory bodies can only be an- the government and thus the need to “Residents who use this road have as the area is vast and have long roads the expected carbon credits. The swered by those who were responsible speed up construction work so as to difficulties transporting their perish- but only five roads measuring 86.6 issue of benefit-sharing needs to then,” he added. ‘’In case the treasury benefit Kenyans who will repay the able products to the market due to the kilometers have been approved. But be addressed as there are many or- finds it difficult to remit the LATF loans. poor state of roads. The area is so pro- I am contended with that for the time ganizations in Kenya going direct- fund amounting to 71M to the coun- “The money used in road con- ductive and produces cabbages, toma- being ,” he said. cil, then they should directly clear the ly to communities to implement struction is loans though many think toes, carrots and potatoes among oth- Youth and Sports assistant Minis- climate-friendly projects without statutory debt and give us the remain- they are donation. And since it will ers which need to be delivered to the ter who is also the MP for Mukurwe- ing amount to run our operations,’’ have to be paid back, then it is good market on time,” said the legislator. ini Kabando wa Kabando also attend- informing them of real objectives suggested the mayor. that it is used in construction of roads He said some areas of the road ed the meeting. of their hidden motives. The Link, December 2011 REGIONAL NEWS 31 How to access credit still a Marikiti traders challenge to the poor threatened with eviction By LUKE KAPCHANGA By KAVYU-KURA ACCESSING credit still remains a major challenge to most rural entre- VEGETABLE hawkers at the preneurs and smallholder farmers in Mwingi town’s Marikiti market developing countries. will soon be relocated to the new While there has been consider- ultra modern wholesale market. able growth in microfinance institu- The Mwingi town council tions and private commercial banks chairman Felix Musya Nzung’u serving micro and small enterprises said that no amount of political (MSEs) in urban areas over the last pressure will deter the council fifteen to twenty years, too often rural areas lack sufficient financial from implementing its by-laws services. and removing “the misplaced “The growth of rural enterprises hawkers.” and the industries or subsectors in “We allowed the hawkers to which they operate is often limited operate from makeshift stalls be- by the scarcity of institutions offer- cause we did not have an alterna- ing a range of financial services in- tive site for them. Now that we cluding overdraft protection, work- have a new ideal, spacious and ing capital, investment and lease secure market site they should all financing, savings and others,” said Abraham Sarfo a Value Chain and move there before we forcefully Financing Expert. eject them,” said Nzung’u. Sarfo was speaking in Nairobi at Nzung’u who spoke from his a 3 day International conference on town hall office said that there Innovation in extension and adviso- was need to urgently decongest ry services; dubbed Linking Knowl- the Marikiti market that was cur- edge to Policy and Action for food rently overwhelmed by hawk- and Livelihood. He said banks and ers. He said in its current state nonbank financial institutions often and with the many makeshift cite the high cost of accessing indi- stalls made from nylon and card- vidual smallholders as a key con- VP Kalonzo Musyoka accompanied by Roads minister Franklin Bett as straint to servicing the vast group of boards, a fire disaster would be officially opens the new modern wholesale market in Mwingi town last smallholder producers catastrophic. August. The hawkers will be forcefully moved there. Photo/Kavyu-Kura “It has become imperative that in The chairman said although addressing the low level of financial an earlier attempt to remove the lows a recent visit to Mwingi being contaminated from car fuel Nacada’s inclusion of the smallholder farmer hawkers from the congested Ma- town by the director of Markets fumes and other toxic elements and rural enterprises, information rikiti market did not bear much development in the ministry of harmful to the health of consum- on financial services and innovation fruit after the intervention of the local government Patrick Mutua ers. Nyeri in the financial sector is brought to area MP David Musila, they will Nzoka. During the visit, Nzoka “We want these hawkers the level of the famer,” he said. The have to move once the council extension service and the advisory had directed that vegetables moved to the new market which headache service offer the vehicle for deliver- cracks the whip. hawkers be removed from road is more secure and free of con- ing this financial inclusion. “Due to his political interests reserves and other unsanitary taminants. Tests have also shown By MORRIS GITHENYA “However, currently most of the in the area, the MP opposed an sites. that vegetables sold at the road support services lack the knowledge attempt to relocate the hawkers Nzoka directed the Town sides are contaminated with a and skills to holistically approach to the modern open air market council enforcement officer big percentage of metals. This THE National Authority on Drug Abuse this dilemma on behalf of the rural but we are now obliged to fol- (NACADA) has revealed that many al- Mulandi Kavali to ensure that endangers the lives of consumers coholic drink outlets in the country are farmer,” said Sarfo. low the council’s by-laws,” said hawkers were immediately re- who are exposed to diseases like He said trader credit referred operating without valid licenses. Nzung’u. moved from the road reserve. He high blood pressure and diabe- Inspectors from the authority re- to short-term or seasonal loans be- The Chairman’s warning fol- lamented that their wares end up tes,” he said. tween buyers and sellers of inputs vealed that a majority of outlets were or products, typically provided in sharing one license contrary to provi- commodity-based value chains such sions of the Alcoholic Drinks Control as rice or other basic grains. Act. “In contract farming, financial The team led by Kiragu Wachira service and credit are tied to pur- who is a legal officer with NACADA Busia County parades its needs said that during a recent crackdown chase agreements: farmers agree to in Nyeri, one license kept circulat- sell to a given buyer, who in turn of- By NYAKWAR ODAWO parks, the drainage system is poor penditure. ten commits to providing additional ing to hoodwink the inspectors that all and the county lacks fire fighting -ma “Such forums will also enable premises had valid license issued by the services such as technical assistance. chine to fight emergency fire outbreak This increased level of commitment residents to identify challenges facing Authority. BUSIA County is in dire need of es- among others. various sectors in respective Counties Wachira at the same time accused is more appropriate for buyers and sential infrastructural facilities to ef- Speakers blamed lack of transpar- sellers of high-value, specialty prod- as well assist in the prioritization of the police of flouting the law saying ucts,” explained Sarfo. With chang- fectively discharge its mandate as out- ency and accountability in the man- projects that will be included the gov- that most police canteens were not only ing environment of agricultural ex- lined in the Constitution. agement of devolved funds to the poor ernment budget during the 2012/2013 operating beyond the licensed hours but tension, institutional pluralism and The County is still grappling with state of affairs. and 2014/2015 financial years,” he had been leased to individuals contrary bottom up participatory approaches an acute shortage of teachers and Addressing the meeting, Meshack to the laid down procedures. explained. “The facilities are packed by those are necessary to address new chal- lacks enough schools to cater for the Onyango, a commissioner with the The commissioner assured Busia lenges. charged with the responsibility of en- growing student population. Further Commission on Revenue Allocation residents that the new constitution forcing the law even after the expiry of The public sector may still need a large number of pupils are out of said that the new constitutional dis- guarantees equitable distribution of to play an important role in provid- licensed hours,” he explained. school and have opted for casual jobs pensation dictates that people must resources adding that since independ- A visit in one police canteen es- ing agricultural extension services to supplement income for their peas- fully participate in the budget making due to its ‘public good’ nature, but ence Kenyans have been depending tablished that revelers who included its role should be changing in the ant families. process as stipulated in the constitu- on the central system of government outsiders were taking beer with the full face of increasing role of private and The County does not have a ma- tion (Article 201) to ensure openness which promoted skewed funding as knowledge of the police officers on NGO sector and additional responsi- ternity wing, a theatre, lab facilities, and accountability. far as development was concerned. duty. bilities of extension services. health centers, staff housing and the “The constitution provides room “The new constitution will ensure “The canteens should be shut down “Entry of actors such as the pri- medical personnel are not enough. for public participation in the county as they were serving the interests of in- equitable distribution of resources to vestors and not the police department as vate sector and NGOs in delivery of Poor road network is a predomi- budget making process in order to en- all the regions. The new constitutional such services should not be relaxed intended,” said the lawyer. nant feature that underpins the border hance ownership, participation, moni- dispensation has also come up with a In Kakamega county it was reported to facilitate the creation of innova- town. toring and evaluation, openness and tive public-private partnerships policy to address the issue of the mar- that busaa brewers were unwilling to A stakeholder’s consultative fo- transparency and accountability,” said ginalized,” said the commissioner. discard the practice on the pretext that (PPP),”observed Sarfo. rum organized by the Commission the commissioner adding that this will From the value chain point of The consultative forum was at- their forefathers had pronounced a view, several interventions have on Revenue Allocation heard that the give room for harmonization to avoid tended by Busia DC Mwiandi Gi- curse on those who go against their will been designed for capacity develop- county lacks the necessary infrastruc- duplication and wastage of resources. tonga, Nambale DC Francis Lenyan- to denounce the traditional beer. ment of actors with the Comprehen- ture to support both social and eco- He said that the objective of the gume, Bunyala DC Ali Khaliff, Samia “Nearly 90 percent of brewers inter- sive African Agricultural Program nomic development as outlined in the consultative forum is to sensitize viewed claimed that they risk dying if DC Joseph Rotich Busia Mayor Im- they abandon art they were introduced (CAADP) that could benefit advi- constitution. stakeholders on the budget making elda Obwana and local leaders among sory services providers. to by their grandfathers before they There are no modern markets, bus process, utilization of income and ex- others.. died,’” he said. The Read The Link monthly for news affecting communities LinkEnhancing governance for all across Kenya The Link, December 2011 Fish farming enriching communities By JOHN NYAMBUNE County for example which is known for its production of indig- MANY communities and fami- enous chicken, a delicacy among lies and now better off thanks to the Luhya community has now the fish farming project under the embraced fish farming. Economic Stimulus Programme At least one in every ten home- (ESP). steads has a fish pond for produc- The project started in 2009, tion of table fish and for sale. has helped put up over 40,000 fish Kakamega County Deputy ponds in 140 constituencies in the Fisheries Officer Mr. Jonathan country at about Kshs.1.12 billion, Masaba says through the Econom- or Kshs.8 million per constituency. ic Stimulus Project, 2,700 ponds The project has greatly en- have been constructed in the coun- hanced fish production for subsist- ence consumption and commerce try’s nine constituencies. in the country. Mr. Masaba adds that the gov- Additionally, it has improved ernment engaged and paid youth environmental conservation and to do the ponds while at the same eased pressure on traditional fish time supplied fingerlings and feeds sources: rivers, lakes and the to farmers to start the project. ocean. So far all the farmers who ben- A senior official at the Ministry efited from the project have- har of Fisheries Prof. Charles Ngugi vested fish weighing 200g-700g reveals that production at fish and earned money which they have farms had shot up from 1,000 met- ploughed back into the project. ric tonnes in 2009 to 9,000 metric Apart from creating employ- tonnes in 2010. This year, he adds ment for the youth, most farmers in the ministry projects a production the area have now seen the benefit of 15,000 metric tonnes. Mabua Youth Group assists a farmer harvest fish in Kakamega County. of rearing fish since it takes only Kenya, he says has a potential 6-8 months to harvest and has a of producing over 20,000 metric launched an eat fish campaign to Nevertheless, the government in the country adding that the gov- ready market. tonnes of fish from fish ponds if popularize fish as a delicacy across has procured machines to process ernment has encouraged millers to But this was not easy, according aquaculture is fully embraced. the country and ensure a ready fish feeds and reduce the cost of produce more feeds for supply to to the fisheries officer. Introducing The current production, he market for farmers who have em- feeds in order to promote aquacul- farmers. fish in poultry dominated land was says is still very low because the braced fish farming as a business. ture. Speaking during a tour of not without challenges. Food and Agriculture Organisation Highly nutritious feeds, he says The fisheries Secretary says the fish ponds sponsored by ESP in “We took time to sensitize (FAO) recommends capita con- are a necessity for success in aqua- machines are being distributed to Kakamega County, Prof. Ngugi farmers on the economical and sumption of fish per person at 8.5 culture in Kenya. A proper feeding farmers in clusters to enable pro- said there was ready market for health benefits of fish before they kgs. regime ensures that fish are ready duce feeds for their fish. fish in the country urging farmers embraced aquaculture,” he says. “We are still miles away be- for sale in good time. The move, he says is aimed at to produce more for local con- Through eat fish campaigns, cause on average every Kenyan However, the high cost of feeds reducing the cost of feeds to bring sumption and export market. farmers in the area have been consumes 4 kgs of fish annually,” has pushed many farmers away and more farmers on board. He said fish farming was quick- taught on how to cook and serve says the fisheries secretary. derailed the expansion of aquacul- He attributes the high prices to ly gaining popularity even in the fish which is a rich source of pro- The ministry, he disclosed has ture programme in the country. lack of enough feed manufacturers most unlikely places. Kakamega teins Ababu accused of playing politics with CDF By NYAKWAR ODAWO the construction of an ECD class that tion of resources without bias,” says has been turned into a head teacher’s Magoba, adding that Busia County THE Budalangi Constituency Devel- office since the school has no admin- Council had chipped in to save the pu- opment Fund (CDF) Committee has istration block. pils by providing desks for the ECD been accused of selective allocation He says that teachers have to mark class. of funds to projects in the constitu- the children’s books under the trees However, Budalangi CDF com- ency. due to lack of a staff room. mittee chairman John Mango refutes Crucial projects prioritized by the “Understaffing is also a chal- the allegations terming claims that community have been denied fund- lenge because the school has only the school has been denied funding as ing as allocations go to projects that four teachers,” says the school head, malicious. He says that the proposal serve political interests of the area MP adding that the school requires at by the school management committee Ababu Namwamba. At Nabutswi pri- least two more teachers to handle the has already been approved and that mary school in Sisenye sub-location, growing school population consider- the school has been allocated a total Bunyala North location, pupils have ing that the nearest school is four kil- of Kshs700,000 that will facilitate in been forced to learn under trees due ometers away from the village. the construction of at least two class- to lack of classrooms. The area civic leader Samuel rooms. The school with a population of Juma Magoba accuses the current “As a committee we have already 151 pupils had submitted a proposal CDF committee of handling the al- approved the proposal forwarded of Kshs700, 000 to the Budalangi location of CDF kitty like a personal to us. We have issued a postdated CDF committee during the last finan- property hence considering only areas cheque of Kshs700, 000,” says the cial year to facilitate in the construc- where they feel the area MP enjoys CDF chairman, adding that the com- tion of modern classrooms but no re- political support and sidelining areas mittee will allocate more funds in the sponse has been forthcoming. that are perceived as strongholds of next financial year to facilitate the The school head, Cornel Obanda his opponents. construction of more classrooms as says that parents too have been reluc- “CDF is taxpayers’ money. There- well as an administration block and tant in contributing money towards fore there is need for equitable alloca- staff room. Mr. Ababu Namwamba.

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The Link, December 2011 14 SPECIAL REPORT Urban Areas and Cities Management INTRODUCTION for and on behalf of the county government The process of streamlining the management HE planning and manage- (c) Promotion of accountability ment of cities and urban areas to the County government and and operation of urban development has begun Tin Kenya has in the past been residents of the urban area or overwhelmed by a formidable com- city with the enactment of the ‘Urban areas and Cit- bination of challenges and strains. (d) Institutionalised active Factors that range from lack of clear participation by its residents in ies Act, 2011’. The criteria of classification, man- cut criteria of establishment, manage- the management of the urban agement and governance, the functions as well ment, unprecedented urbanization area and city affairs coupled with high population growth (e) Efficient and effective service as transitional arrangement are all looked at un- rates, poor domestic policy perform- delivery ance and the associated debt burdens (f) Clear assignment of functions der the Act. In this issue OCHANDA GIDEON have had devastating impact on urban Classification of Urban Areas gives highlights of the provisions of the Act. development policies and strategies. and Cities This has been aggravated by the ab- The law classifies Urban Areas and sence of a legal framework to facilitate Cities into three categories and promote the growth of physically, (i) Cities (c) Efficient transport network zoning by public and private sectors to constitute an ad hoc committee to for any purpose including industry, socially and economically sustainable (ii) Municipalities consider the recommendation and connecting to rural areas, urban settlements. It is against this (iii) Towns towns and other local, regional commerce markets, shopping and advice as appropriate. other employment centre, that The Constitution 2010, directed The ad hoc committee comprises and international cities parliament to enact legislations with Cities (d) Commerce and industry residential areas, recreational of representatives from the following areas, parks, entertainment, the first year to entrench the govern- City status is conferred. It is done institutions ance and management of Urban Areas by the President on approval of the Management of Cities passenger, transport, agriculture (a) The Institution of Surveyors of and freight and transit stations and Cities. senate. Before conferment, the Urban Kenya The cities are to be managed by the On the 26th, August, 2011 parlia- area must meet the following criteria county government but administered within the framework of spatial and (b) The Kenya Institute of master plans ment passed - the Urban Areas and (a) population of at least 500,000 Planners by Cities Act, 2011. residents based on the latest (i) corporate boards (e) promote and undertake (c) The Architectural Association infrastructural development and The Act is a major development census report of Kenya (ii) City Mangers in the implementation of the constitu- (b) Has an integrated urban area (iii) County Public Service services within the city or (d) The Law Society of Kenya municipality tion and management of towns in the or city development plan (e) The association of urban areas country. (c) Has demonstrated capacity The board is to comprise of not more (f) Develop and manage schemes and cities. including site development in to generate sufficient revenue (f) The institute of Certified than eleven members, six of whom It provides for; to sustain its operation are appointed through a competitive collaboration with the relevant Public Accountants of Kenya national and county agencies (a) Classification of areas as (d) Has good systems and records (g) The business community. process by the county executive urban areas or cities of prudent management committee, with the approval of (g) Maintain a comprehensive (b) Governance and (e) Has the capacity to effectively the county assembly while five are database and information system In the event that the ad hoc committee of the administration and provide management of urban areas and sufficiently deliver resolves that the municipality under nominated by; and cities (a) An umbrella body representing professional associations in CITY SERVICES the area (b) An association representing Planing and Development Control Pre-Primary Education Theatre the private sector in the area Traffic Control and Parking Local Distributor Roads Library Service Water and Sanitation Conference Facilities Administrative Seat (c) A cluster representing Street Lighting Community Centres Financial Hub registered associations of the Outdoor Advertising Five Star Hotel Diplomatic Hub informal sector Cemeteries and Crematoria Guest Houses Consulate (d) A cluster representing Public Transport National Hospital Museum registered neighbourhood Libraries Referral Hospital Historical Monument associations Storm Drainage County Hospital Fire Station (e) An association of urban areas Ambulance Services University Emergency Postal Services and cities and appointed by Health Facilities Constituent University Campuses National TV Station the county executive committee Fire Fighting & Disaster Polytechnic Regional Radio Station with the approval of the county Management Training Institute Community Radio assembly Control of Drugs National School Casinos The executive committee must Sports and Cultural Activities County School Funeral Parlour uphold the principle of two thirds Electricity and Gas Reticulation Stadium Cemetary gender rule and ensure representation Abattoirs National Stadium Recreational Parks of persons with disability, youth and Refuse Collection International Airport Management of Markets marginalised groups. Solid Waste Management Airport Marine Water Front The board is a body corporate and Air Polution Airstrip Animal Control and Welfare serves for a term of five years on a part Child Care Facilities National Theatre Religious Institution time basis. It is to hold its sittings once in every three months. (c) Participation by residents in essential services to its review meets the criteria for classifi- One qualifies to be appointed to the governance of urban residents cation as a city, the county governor the board only if he/she is; areas and cities (f) Has institutionalised active forwards the recommendations to the (a) Kenyan citizens participation by its residents in county assembly for approval and for (b) ordinarily resident or has a Principles onward transmission to the senate for The act sets out principles to govern the management of its affairs permanent dwelling in the city (g) Has infrastructural facilities, consideration. (c) carries a business in the city urban areas and cities. They include: The senate has to approve the rec- (a) Recognition and respect for including roads, street lighting, (d) Has lived in the city for at least markets and fire stations ommendations and forward the reso- five years the constitutional status of lution to the President before any con- county governments and adequate capacity for disaster management ferment is done. Functions of the board (b) Recognition of the principle The Act has created three Cities; Nairobi City Hall and agency relationship (h) Has a capacity for functional The mandate of the board includes and effective waste disposal Nairobi as the Capital City, Mombasa (a) Overseeing the affairs of the between the boards of urban and Kisumu. areas and cities and their city or municipality public access Conferment of City status (b) Develop and adopt policies, (h) Administer and regulate its internal respective county Management and infrastructure in governments including The conferment process is to be plans, strategies an affairs preceded by an application made by the capital city programmes and set targets for (i) The ability by the board to Nairobi being the capital city is the board of a municipality to the delivery of services The board has powers to: discharge functions delegated required to sustain the following; executive committee. The executive (c) Formulate and implement an (a) Exercise executive authority by the county government (a) The seat of the national committee has powers to approve or integrated development plan (b) Ensure provision of services (ii) Financial accountability to the government reject the application. However on (d) Control land use, land sub residents county government (b) Offices of diplomatic missions (iii) The governance by each board approval, the county governor has division, land development and

The Link, December 2011 SPECIAL REPORT 19 Urban Areas and Cities Management urban area or city (c) Impose such fees, levies and MUNICIPAL SERVICES (d) receive representations, charges Planing and Development Control Child Care Facilities Administrative Seat including feedback on (d) Promote constitutional values and issues raised by the county principles Traffic Control and Parking Pre-Primary Education Financial Hub Water and Sanitation Local Distributor Roads Museum citizens, from (e) Ensure the implementation and elected and appointed officials. compliance with policies Street Lighting Conference Facilities Historical Monument Outdoor Advertising formulated by both the national Community Centres Fire Station Further citizens have the right to Cemeteries and Crematoria Hotel Homestays Emergency Preparedness and county government Public Transport (a) Contribute to decision making Guest Houses Postal Services processes of the city or urban (f) Make by-laws or make Libraries County Hospital National TV Station recommendations of issues to be Storm Drainage Constituent University Campuses National Radio Station area by submitting written included in the by-laws Ambulance Services Polytechnic Regional Radio Station or oral presentation or (g) Ensure participation of the Health Facilities Training Institute Community Radio complaints to a board or residents in decision making, its Fire Fighting & Disaster National School Casinos town committee through the activities and programmes Management County School Funeral Parlour city or municipal (h) Exercise such powers as may Control of Drugs Municipal Stadium Cemetary manager or town administrator be delegated by the county Sports and Cultural Activities Stadium Recreational Parks (b) Prompt responses to their executive committee Electricity and Gas Reticulation Airport Management of Markets written or oral communications Abattoirs Airstrip Marine Water Front (c) Be informed of decisions of a City Manager Refuse Collection National Theatre Animal Control and Welfare board, affecting The city manager has powers to implement Solid Waste Management Theatre Religious Institution their rights, property and decisions and functions of the board and is Air Noise Library Service Organised Public Transport reasonable answerable to the Board expectations (b) Has an integrated development Management of Towns (d) Regular disclosure of the state Qualification for appointment plan Towns Towns are to be managed by com- of affairs of the To qualify for the position of a city (c) Has demonstrated revenue Town status is to be conferred by mittees appointed by the governor in city or urban area including its manager, the applicant must have the collection or revenue collection the governor in consultation with the consultation with the county execu- finances following qualifications: potential county executive committee if an area tive committee. The Town committee (a) Be a Kenyan Citizen (d) Has demonstrated capacity to meets the following criteria is not a body corporate. There is also A city or an urban area is to develop a (b) Hold a degree from generate sufficient revenue to (a) Has a population of at least a Town Administrator appointed on system of governance that encourages recognised university in Kenya a similar manner as city participation by residents in its affairs or its equivalent manager to perform func- and can create appropriate conditions (c) Has proven experience tions determined by the for participation in of not less than five years in the Town Committee. (i) the preparation, implementation administration and and review of integrated management either in the public Citizens participation in development plan or private sector Urban areas and Cities (ii) the establishment, Public participation is implementation and review Municipalities guaranteed in the law. of its performance management The residents have an ob- (iii) the monitoring and review of its ligation to: performance (a) deliberate (iv) the preparation of its budget and make (v) making of strategic decisions proposals to the relating to delivery of service relevant bodies Transition from the current Local or institutions on Authorities (i) the provision of During the transition, the following services activities will be carried out. (ii) issues for l Assessment of the existing inclusion in urban areas and cities in order county policies to and county ascertain whether they meet legislation he criteria for classification and (iii) national policies to be classified accordingly. and national l All rights, assets and liabilities legislation shall stand repealed after the (iv) annual budget next first elections estimates of l All directions, resolutions, the county and of orders,authorization, licenses the national and permits will continue as government Mombasa City Hall though they are issued under (v) development new arrangements. plans of the l Members of staff appointed or 10,000 residents based on the sustain its operations county seconded to the current Local last census report (e) Has the capacity to effectively and the national government Authorities are to be seconded (b) Demonstrate economic, and efficiently deliver (b) plan strategies for engaging the or deployed to the new system. functional and financial viability essential services to its residents various levels and units of l The new bodies will inherit all (c) The existence of an integrated (f) Has institutionalised active government on matters of the legal rights currently under development plan participation by its residents in concern to citizens the L.As. (d) The capacity to effectively and he management of its affairs (c) monitor the activities of elected l Mombasa and Kisumu existing efficiently deliver essential (g) Has sufficient space for and appointed officials of the city status to be cities in the new services to its residents expansion urban areas and cities, including arrangement. (h) Has infrastructural facilities (e) Sufficient space for expansion members of the board of an including but not limited to Nairobi City Hall street lighting, markets and fire TOWN SERVICES Criteria and conferment process stations (i) Has a capacity for functional The County Governor has the discretion to Street Lighting Pre-Primary Education Postal Services elevate a town into a municipality in line and effective waste disposal. Cemeteries and Crematoria Community Centres Regional Radio Station with the resolutions the county assembly. Libraries Homestays Community Radio Management of Municipalities Health Facilities Polytechnic Funeral Parlour Sports and Cultural Activities Training Institute Cemetary A town can be conferred into a munici- Municipalities are to be managed by similar boards as cities. However, the Abattoirs County School Recreational Parks pality status if Management of Markets board is to consist of nine members, Refuse Collection Airstrip (a) The population stands at Solid Waste Management Unclassified Roads Marine Water Front 250,000 residents according to four of who are appointed and five Air Noise Museum Animal Control and Welfare the latest census report elected. Child Care Facilities Historical Monument Religious Institution