In a bid to offer affordable housing solutions to the Kenyan market, the Iranian government has signed a memorandum of understanding with Urithi Housing Cooperative Society to supply quality construction materials at a reasonable price.
https://youtu.be/UDAuGWGgg2w
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A mother who is seven months pregnant together with her two children were on Monday 7th shot by bandits in Laikipa north of Laikipia county after raiders stormed their house.
This comes two days after the director of Sossian ranch Tristan Voorspuy was killed by bandits on his farm.
The government has so far deployed security personnel in the area to drive out raiders who have invaded private ranches.
https://youtu.be/L377Xc2OgQQ
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The Communications Authority (CA) has warned media houses against declaring results in the forthcoming General Election, saying only the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) has the legal mandate to call the polls.
Director General Francis Wangusi yesterday said although media houses and politicians may have parallel tallies of votes, only IEBC is allowed to release the official final outcome.
“Nobody announces the results other than IEBC. We are your watchdog so do not even attempt. We want to control platforms and also help control the electioneering process,” he said.
Wangusi was speaking during the launch of the 2017 Election Reporting Guidelines, developed by the Media Council of Kenya (MCK), in a Nairobi hotel. The journalists’ manual, reviewed from the 2013 version, has been developed in conjunction with the IEBC and supported by UNDP.
Media editors and managers, key stakeholders and representatives of media cadres signed up to support the guidelines. Wangusi, who was among key speakers, told journalists to be wary of replicating anything uttered by politicians to avoid causing unnecessary tension.
He said CA would closely monitor electronic media against hate speech and other vile talk, saying all call-in interviews must adhere to a seven-second delay to sieve unwanted content.
He reminded media practitioners intending to vie in the upcoming election to resign early enough to avoid conflict of interest. The CA boss said broadcasting codes for Free-to-Air (FTAs) must be followed adding that media houses should act responsibly and avoid abusing the media freedom guaranteed in the country today.
He called upon media houses to ensure equitable coverage for all registered parties, especially presidential candidates, as provided for in law.
IEBC chairperson Wafula Chebukati said holding a peaceful election is the responsibility of the entire society but the government and security agents must be at the forefront guaranteeing peace to the entire country.
Affirming the commission’s preparedness for the August 8 elections, Chebukati said security agents must also do their job, which will serve as an assurance to Kenyans’ safety and subsequently ensure a smooth election processes.
He reiterated that IEBC is up to the task of conducting elections on schedule despite the hurdles placed on its way by litigants. “Some people are saying we are not ready for the elections, yet they have not even talked to us. We will continue to overcome the roadblocks and nothing will stop us.”
The National Cohesion and Integration Commission (NCIC) chairman Francis ole Kaparo told media to play an active role in helping safeguard peace during the elections, other than just reporting passively.
“We are in this together as Kenyans, your fathers, mothers, children will all be in Kenya during the election. Play your role responsibly,” said the former Speaker of Parliament.
MCK CEO Dr Haron Mwangi called on all media houses to make the electoral guidelines part of their internal elections programmes.
Others who addressed the function were MCK board chairman Charles Kerich, Editors Guild chairman Linus Kaikai and officials from Kenya Union of Journalists, Kenya Correspondents Association, the Association of Media Women in Kenya (Amwik) and media representatives in academia.
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Khartoum, Tuesday
Sudan expressed “deep regret and discontent” today over US President Donald Trump’s revised travel ban barring its citizens from travelling to the United States.
“The ministry of foreign affairs expresses its deep regret and discontent over the executive order issued by the American president,” a statement said.
Yesterday, Trump signed a revised ban on refugee admissions and new visas for travellers from six Muslim-majority nations, among them Sudan. It came after a first ban was frozen by US federal courts.
The new executive order suspends refugee admissions for 120 days and halts new visas for travellers from Syria, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Yemen and Sudan.
Iraqis who had been targeted by the original ban were not included. Sudan said it renews its “condemnation” of the order as it comes despite Khartoum engaging in talks with Washington on fighting regional and international terrorism.
“These negotiations confirmed that Sudan plays a big role as a partner in fighting terrorism that endangers people of both countries and of the world,” the foreign ministry said.
Urging Washington to drop Khartoum from its blacklist of state sponsors of terrorism, the ministry said the US adminstration should review the “harsh decision” taken against Sudanese citizens.
“Sudanese citizens have never been involved in any crimes or terrorism in the United States,” the statement said. Before leaving office, president Barack Obama eased decades-old sanctions against Sudan, but kept Khartoum on the blacklist.
Sudan was designated a state sponsor of terrorism in 1993 and has been subject to a US trade embargo since 1997 over its alleged support for Islamist groups.
Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden was based in Khartoum from 1992 to 1996. Washington believes Khartoum’s terror ties have ebbed, but has kept sanctions in place.
According to the United Nations, 300,000 people have been killed and 2.5 million displaced since the Darfur conflict erupted in 2003.
Veteran President Omar al-Bashir is wanted by the International Criminal Court on charges of war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide related to the conflict in Darfur. He strongly denies the charges. —AFPå
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Nyamira Senator Okong’o Mong’are yesterday unveiled the National Liberal Party (NLP) which he intends to run on as he vies for the presidency in the August 8 General Election.
Speaking yesterday Mong’are said he had settled on NLP as the party speaks for Kenyans. He said his aim of vying for the presidency is to liberate Kenyans whom he claimed have suffered for long.
“It is evident that previous regimes, including this one, have conned this country for the longest time,” he said. Change needed Mong’are accused both President Uhuru Kenyatta and Opposition leader Raila Odinga of being part of the many problems that faced Kenyans, adding that he represents the “change that Kenyans have been yearning for since independence”.
The senator vowed not to relent in his bid to occupy the presidency, adding that he will use his experience as a member of the Senate Public Accounts Committee to deal with corruption. Following the launch of the party, Mong’are said he will be traversing the country to seek for votes.
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Timothy Kariuki @PeopleDailyKe Runyenjes MP Cecily Mbarire (pictured) has challenged State agencies to help President Uhuru Kenyatta enforce integrity by ensuring all Jubilee aspirants are vetted before running for political office. She said the President should ensure all aspirants comply with Chapter Six of the Constitution, which spells out the leadership and integrity requirements for ...
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Kirera Mwiti and Paul Muhoho @PeopleDailyKe
The National and County governments have put their foot down against the striking public doctors and told them to either resume work immediately or be fired.
In a no-nonsense statement jointly issued in Naivasha, President Uhuru Kenyatta and the Council of Governors (CoG) ordered the county service boards and the Ministry of Health to take immediate disciplinary action against the doctors who would not heed a proposed return-to-work directive.
The stern statement expressed sheer impatience by the governments who left no room for continued negotiations short of resuming duty or facing the sack.
Earlier, while addressing the fourth devolution conference, President Uhuru had warned that the government was no longer going to tolerate blackmail by the doctors.
He said the government had offered the best perks to the doctors, adding that they were bound to earn more than their counterparts in private hospitals.
“Today a medical intern earns more than a doctor at Aga Khan, Mater and Nairobi hospitals and we are being subjected to pay them for working for two hours and then they work in the public hospitals,” said Uhuru.
A visibly agitated Head of State said the doctors were not fair in their demands, saying he would not let Kenyans suffer any more. He said doctors were not in any way special from other public servants, saying what they were asking for cannot be achieved in one night.
Speaking to governors and other stakeholders at Kenya Wildlife Service Training Institute in Naivasha, he said the doctors ought to be fair in their calling and stop the public suffering.
“Do they think we are stupid, if they fail to agree in this one last step… then we will sort them out,” said the President. And the unionsable doctors may now face stern action that could tame the powers of Kenya Medical Doctors, Pharmacists and Dentists Union (KMPDU).
The joint statement said the union’s registration, certificate and role would be reviewed to ensure that each medical practitioner would henceforth have to negotiate individually with his or her employer.
“It is now time for the die to fall as they say; and for each individual doctor, pharmacists and dentists within the public service will negotiate with his/her particular employer, be it the National government in the case of those working in national facilities, or in the particular county governments,” read the statement.
The CoG chairman Peter Munya said hard decisions must be made to sort out the problem once and for all. In the statement, read by Munya flanked by Uhuru and governors, the National and County governments revoked the deal mediated between doctors and religious leaders and instead revised it to a new one that would apply beginning last January for medics who have not been on strike.
Equally, the additional arrears that had been proposed for doctors under the religious leaders mediated talks, backdated to July 2016, were withdrawn.
Under the religious leaders mediated talks, the government had offered the doctors a 50 per cent increment as a sign of goodwill and an additional Sh 600 million Risk Allowance backdated to July, 2016, on condition they were to resume work by yesterday morning.
“Consequently, for failure to call off the strike, the Government has now rescinded this offer and there will be no further negotiations on remuneration (salaries and allowances),” the national and county governments announced.
Munya said all the government offers would have brought the doctors’ annual wage bill as a singular budgetary item to more than Sh14.5 billion.
As a show of their seriousness to fire those defiant, the two tiers of government ordered interns and post-graduate doctors to resume work immediately and guaranteed security for those working.
The statement said the decision had been arrived at after failed mediation attempts by the Central Organisation of Trade Unions (Cotu), Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR) the Law Society of Kenya (LSK) and, lately, the religious leaders.
Commending the latest development, the chairman of the Inter-Religious Leaders Forum and Supreme Council of Kenya (Supkem) chairman Adan Wachu blamed the doctors for the woes that have befallen them.
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National Super Alliance (Nasa) affiliates are reading from different scripts on the proposal for joint primaries after Amani National Congress said it would field candidates across the country.
ANC said the issue of joint nominations was yet to be discussed and agreed upon by affiliate parties. This comes just days after Wiper secretary general Hassan Omar refuted claims that the parties had agreed not to compete against each other in the General Election in order to bag more seats.
Parties under Nasa are the Orange Democratic Movement of Raila Odinga, Kalonzo Musyoka’s Wiper, Ford Kenya of Moses Wetang’ula and Amani National Congress led by Musalia Mudavadi.
A Wiper National Executive Council meeting, which was expected to ratify Nasa’s nomination proposal, was yesterday cancelled at the last minute creating confusion on the party’s stand on joint primaries. But Mudavadi yesterday downplayed the rift saying Nasa would overcome the teething problems.
He said Amani intends to field candidates in all elective positions, but added the party would consider joint nominations in certain areas.
“I want the assurance to go to all our supporters that we are set for primaries and we will field candidates across the country. We are also alive to the fact that Nasa has a nomination proposal with different methodology,” said Mudavadi.
He was speaking during the unveiling of 12-member ANC National Elections Board which will be chaired by Martin Etyang, a Kenyatta University lecturer.
Mudavadi also launched a five-member Internal Dispute Resolution Committee chaired by lawyer Sylvester Ngacho.
Elsewhere, Kalonzo said joint nominations will only be conducted in select areas. He said candidates should face each other at the ballot and allow the best to win.
Kalonzo made the remarks when he presented platinum membership certificate to Makueni Governor Kivutha Kibwana who recently joined the party.
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Seth Mwaniki @MwanikiM
A woman and her two sons were airlifted to the Nairobi Hospital in Deputy President William Ruto’s chopper in critical condition after they were shot and wounded by criminals in Orjijo village, Laikipia North.
Rose Kuraru, 25, Lodumu Kuraru, 8 and Salim Kuraru, 5, were shot on Monday night. The woman, who is seven months pregnant, was shot in the left thigh and shoulder, while Lodumu was shot in the chest and Salim in the left leg.
They were airlifted from Nanyuki Airstrip after receiving first aid at Cottage Hospital. Director of Communications in the office of the Deputy President Emanuel Talam said the DP learnt about the incident while chairing a security meeting in Rumuruti.
The meeting was attended by area MP Wachira Karani, Senator GG Kariuki, Baringo Governor Benjamin Cheboi and senior security officials.
Talam said the Deputy President regretted the incident and vowed the government would rein in criminals threatening peoples’ lives.
Mukogodo East Ward MCA Paul Shwel decried the worsening security situation, saying restoring normalcy especially in his ward, where the incident took place, has been left to residents and police reservists. “We find it hard to pursue the m because they are armed and we are not,” he said.
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Alliance Boys’ High School yesterday expelled six students for bullying. The expulsion comes four days after the Board of Management announced their suspension and committed to restore normalcy in the school.
According to a board member who sought anonymity, the internal investigations established that the six were culpable of assaulting their Form One colleagues.
“Our investigations have revealed that the six took part in bullying and mistreating other students,” he said shortly after the meeting.
In a statement to newsrooms last week, board chairman Sam Ncheeri admitted that there have been cases of bullying at the school.
The school demoted 10 prefects, including the captain for failing to alert the administration over the incident. Ncheeri, who apologised to the students and parents over the cases of indiscipline, assured the public that there was an ongoing probe into the matter.
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Roy Lumbe @lumbe_roy
The High Court in Nakuru extended orders directing Kenya Medical Training College (KMTC) and the Kenya Universities and Colleges Central Placement Service (KUCCPS) to allow students who secured admission to continue with their studies.
The two institutions have been tussling over who should admit new students and the standoff has seen KMTC rejecting admission of some students selected by KUCCPS.
Justice Anthony Ndung’u extended the orders after State counsel Kiprotich Kirui successfully applied for more time to allow Parliament to provide directions through the passing of the Universities Act.
The bill outlines who is mandated to admit students to public colleges such as KMTC. More time In an application before court, the AG urged the court to allow his office more time to settle the dispute through a written law after negotiations from both parties to loosen their grounds hit a snug.
According to lawyer Steve Biko for KUCCPS, his clients rights to education have been violated as no student has been admitted to the college. The matter was slated for hearing on March 29.
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Detectives stormed veteran Rift Valley politician Jackson Kibor’s Ziwa home yesterday and confiscated his firearm before escorting him to the Eldoret police station to a record statement in connection with an attempt to shoot his son.
Ezekiel Kibor, who claimed to have escaped death by a whisker, was also at the station with his wife to record his statement.
Speaking to the media at the station, Eldoret West OCPD Samuel Mutunga said they were investigating the incident said to have been triggered by a land dispute. Kibor (pictured) has, however, said it was his sons who wanted to harm him using machetes.
“I was just trying to scare my sons from attacking me after I found them ploughing my land without my consent,” he said. The veteran politician moved to court seven months ago to block transfer of a 1,250-acre parcel of land to his sons, 20 years after subdivision. He says he is still the owner of the vast property which he alleges was illegally subdivided and registered.
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Wangui Githugo and Victor Raballa @PeopleDailyKe
The government has threatened not to pay lecturers their February salaries even as the dons vowed to resist intimidation to end their strike.
They declared to embark on weekly street demonstrations to push the government to negotiate, sign and implement the 2013-2017 Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA).
Universities Academic Staff Union (Uasu) secretary general Constantine Wasonga said the more than 9,000 lecturers across the 33 public universities and constituent colleges will hold protests every Wednesday until their demands are met.
“I commend all our members for their continuing commitment to the strike that is becoming protracted in the face of non-responsive government,” he said yesterday when they presented a petition to the Office of the Deputy President William Ruto.
This happened as Education Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i issued a directive to vice chancellors to take action against the lecturers who have absconded duties for close to two months.
Speaking at Catholic University of Eastern Africa yesterday, Matiangi said union officials representing the academic staff should have called off their strike to allow the negotiations to continue in good faith.
“Why would they want to make money where they have actually not earned? They have not worked for it. The crisis we have currently is on values where people want to reap where they have not sown and is very unacceptable,” said Matiang’i.
He said it has become a growing concern that the union leaders have stayed away from classes despite the government giving a counter-offer of Sh10 billion.
But the union leaders argued that the Sh10 billion offer is too little to cater for more than 30,000 representatives of Uasu, Kenya Universities Staff Union and Kenya Union of Domestic, Hotels, Educational institutions, Hospital and Allied workers.
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The government has warned chiefs in Narok and Kajiado counties against acting as brokers in land deals. Interior ministry Secretary for Administration Arthur Osiya said those who will be caught engaging in the vice risk been sacked for contravening the law and their code of conduct.
The two counties have been a hive of land transactions and some local administrators are suspected of colluding with brokers to sell off community land.
Speaking when he addressed more than 160 chiefs drawn from the two counties at the Multi Media University, Ongata Rongai he urged chiefs to advise residents in the two counties against selling land.
“By law, chiefs are supposed to be the community’s eyes at the land control board. That is the position that you are supposed to use to protect your community’s welfare.
The workshop was organised by the Citizens Participation in Security Task Force (CPSTF) to address grassroots security. CPSTF chairman Joseph Kaguthi (pictured) asked the administrators to use smart phones to deal with security challenges in their areas.
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Orange Democratic Movement party leader Raila Odinga was yesterday rushed to Nairobi’s Karen Hospital where he was treated for food poisoning and discharged.
Raila is reported to have checked in at the facility early yesterday morning and attended to by doctors for the better part of the day. He was discharged some few minutes after 5pm.
Sources at the hospital told the People Daily that Raila started complaining of stomach upsets on Tuesday evening. The condition seemed to worsen by yesterday morning, prompting his handlers to rush him to the hospital where he was temporarily admitted.
Raila’s spokesman Denis Onyango confirmed the incident but assured that the former Prime Minister was better by the time he was discharged.
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President Uhuru Kenyatta has given the clearest indication yet, that repatriation of Somali refugees at Daadab is still on course, a task he said will be executed with the help of the international community.
Terming the events that led to establishment of Daadab a terrible tragedy, Uhuru yesterday said the best response to it is to help refugees return and rebuild their country.
“Our policy has been clear for some time… our efforts to hasten the repatriation and resettlement of the refugees continue,” he said. Bilateral talks He made the remarks after holding bilateral talks with United Nations secretary general, Antonio Guterres at State House, Nairobi.
The President’s remarks come weeks after a High Court in Nairobi quashed the government’s plan to close down Daadab refugee camp.
The court also declared repatriation of refugees unconstitutional and discriminative. Kenya is expected to host an Extra-Ordinary Summit on March 25, bringing together IGAD heads of state and government and partners of the region, to discuss durable solutions to the plight of Somali refugees, with Uhuru inviting Guterres to join in.
Guterres, on his part described Kenya as a symbol of positive story of Africa, replacing the usual narrative of unending crises, even as he stated that Africa is a beacon of hope and should now be seen more as a land of achievement and opportunity.
“Kenya is an example that can be copied around the world that in today’s international community, there are countries moving to make sure the three UN pillars —peace and security, sustainable and inclusive development and human rights— are be fully met,” said the UN boss.
Gutteres, who was coming from a visit to Somalia, said he came back with hope from the country and urged the international community to support efforts to make it a functioning state.
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Seth Onyango and Sarah Ndung’u @PeopleDailyKe
A new survey paints a gloomy picture on the possibility of Kenyan women failing to support female aspirants for elective political positions.
While Kenya has made great strides in women empowerment, despite prevailing gender inequalities, the survey says more women do not hold the view that their same chances as men.
“Seventy three per cent of Kenyans say women should have the same chances as men of being elected but men (66 per cent) are less likely than women (81 per cent) to hold the view,” read the report by Afrobarometer.
It says Kenyan men are unlikely to support women to seek political leadership. About two-thirds of women (63 per cent) and men (68 per cent) say the government has performed well in promoting opportunities and equality for women.
But discrimination against women is deeply entrenched in the inherently chauvinist political arena, according to the study. It is manifested in the two-thirds gender rule bill debate.
MPs in the men-dominated National Assembly and Senate failed to pass the crucial bill to effect the rule aimed at ensuring equitable gender representation in Parliament.
Yesterday, Kenyans led by President Uhuru Kenyatta joined the rest of the world in marking the International Women’s Day. At a ceremony at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre where he was represented by First Lady Margaret Kenyatta, the President enumerated the huge strides the country had made towards gender equality and empowerment of women.
Uhuru recognised the role that women have played in liberating the nation and urged them to stay focused on development. The President said the government would continue addressing structural barriers that hindered women’s advancement, recognise and act on women’s unpaid care burden and invest in their reproductive health services.
Also in attendance was African Union (AU) Commissioner for Social Affairs Mustapha Kaloko and hundreds of women from all walks of life.
President Uhuru said the two initiatives launched at the celebrations - the African Union Campaign Ending Child Marriages in Africa and the joint Government of Kenya/UN Programme on Gender Based Violence would ensure Kenya does not witness the sad incidents and harrowing experiences of FGM, child marriages and sexual abuse that women and girls have had to endure.
“International Women’s Day is a special occasion the world over, to not only celebrate the gains made towards women empowerment, but having conversations about the issues that disproportionately affect women,” said President Uhuru.
Among the gains the President highlighted was the eradication of FGM, which has declined from 27 per cent in 2009 to 21 per cent in 2015.
These measures and interventions, he said, had contributed to progress in tackling harmful practices such as FGM and stipulated the minimum age of marriage to protect the girl-child.
“No country can claim to be modern and progressive unless it recognises the importance of gender equality. And according to the Afrobarometer report, women are considered passive politically and are significantly less likely than men to discuss politics.
They are also unlikely to contact political leaders, raise others to an issue and to attend community meetings. Men are twice as likely to reject equal rights for women when it comes to owning and inheriting land.
Speaking at the launch of the report in Nairobi yesterday, Director of Institute for Development Studies, University of Nairobi, Prof Winnie Mitullah said women still suffer harassment.
“Fifteen per cent of women say they personally suffered discrimination and harassment based on gender in the past year,” she said. The biggest impediment to gender parity remains patriarchal cultures that shape all facets of life.
While some argue that women are now at par with men in access to social, economic and political rights and cite affirmative action as a cause, recent events in Parliament refute that claim.
Women legislators walked out of Parliament in protest after legislators passed a polygamy law that does not necessitate a man to seek consent of his first wife before marrying another.
The policy, overwhelmingly supported by male legislators, indicates power relations between the sexes, in which women are not considered partners in marriage but inferiors.
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As the clock ticks towards the August 8 General Election, the number of women seeking political posts in Coast region has significantly increased despite the cultural and religious barriers that have over the decades kept women out of leadership.
And as the world marked the International Women’s Day yesterday, women in Coast region appear to be more determined more than ever before to take over the mantle of leadership from their male counterparts with dozens of them having declared interest to vie for various political seats.
In Mombasa, close to 50 women are seeking various elective posts and some of the aspirants are very popular among voters thus sending shivers down the spines of their male counterparts.
If the aggression with which women are campaigning starting from Members of County Assembly, Women Representative, Member of Parliament to Senatorial posts is anything to go by, then the 2017 elections could be different from other election.
Since 1997, when Marere wa Mwachai, a Muslim woman, was elected as MP and rose to the position of an assistant minister, no other woman has been elected to such position again.
In Mombasa county, where women have been pushed away from the political arena because of lack of resources, religion and male chauvinism in the region has seen more women declaring their interest to battle against men counterparts in the coming elections.
For decades, women have been pushed aside in political leadership but according to Mombasa Jubilee Women’s Representative seat aspirant Amina Abdalla and her Wiper opponent Zamzam Mohamed attributed the high number of aspirants to the Constitution which guarantees participation of all people in leadership positions.
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Pretoria, Wednesday South Africa has formally revoked its controversial decision to leave the International Criminal Court following last month’s High Court ruling that such a move would be unconstitutional.
Notice of Pretoria’s decision to end the withdrawal process was posted on the UN’s treaty website this week, although it does not necessarily spell the end of its bid to leave the Hague-based court.
South Africa had in October announced it would withdraw from the UN court which was set up to try the world’s worst crimes following a dispute sparked by its refusal to arrest visiting Sudan President Omar al-Bashir.
The ICC had issued an arrest warrant for Bashir over alleged war crimes, but South African authorities refused to detain him, saying he had immunity as a head of state.
The decision to leave the UN court sparked widespread criticism, but yesterday, Pretoria informed UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres that the process by which it had begun withdrawing “was found to be unconstitutional and invalid”.
“In order to adhere to the (High Court) judgement, I hereby revoke the Instrument of Withdrawal from the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court with immediate effect,” the notice on the UN’s treaty website said.
Last month, the North Gauteng High Court ruled that the government’s bid to quit the ICC was unconstitutional because it had failed to properly consult parliament. The case was brought by the main opposition party, the Democratic Alliance.
Although Pretoria complied with the court ruling, this week’s decision to cancel the withdrawal process may only be a temporary reprieve, with the government expected to table a bill in parliament to win approval for South Africa’s departure from the court.
Although the High Court ruling was a blow to President Jacob Zuma, it was welcome news for the ICC, which has been hit by a number of withdrawal threats following complaints of an alleged bias against Africa.
Late last year, The Gambia had notified the UN it was withdrawing from the ICC in a process which was swiftly reversed under the government of new President Adama Barrow, who took office in January. Burundi has also registered to leave, while Kenya is considering following suit.
Currently, nine out of 10 ICC investigations concern African countries, with the only other case concerning Georgia. However, experts point out that many of the current cases — in Central African Republic, Uganda, Mali and the Democratic Republic of Congo — were referred to the ICC by the governments of those states.
Bashir has evaded arrest since his ICC indictment in 2009 for alleged war crimes in Sudan’s Darfur conflict in which 300,000 people were killed and two million forced to flee their homes.
The South African government’s decision not to arrest him was denounced as “disgraceful conduct” by the country’s Supreme Court which also ruled that the failure to arrest the Sudanese leader was unlawful.
The ICC was set up in 2002 in The Hague as a court of last resort to try the world’s worst crimes where national courts are unable or unwilling to act.
The court is unable to carry out investigations in countries which have not ratified its founding Rome Statute unless the United Nations refers a case for investigation. —AFP
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National Super Alliance (Nasa) co-principal Kalonzo Musyoka has warned that governors who engage in corruption will be personally held accountable for the vice in their counties once the alliance takes over leadership after the August 8 poll.
He said Nasa would “perfectly jail” those caught in corruption and other economic crimes once they assume power after the August 8 polls.
“I will give an example of Nigeria where almost all the first governors are spending their life in jail due to corruption and while I am not threatening you, you should be cautious of how you spend public money,” said Kalonzo.
He decried massive corruption in the counties saying it was derailing development, adding that it was making a mockery of the gains envisaged in devolved governance.
The Wiper leader said cost of goods was being inflated while rogue contractors were having a field day at the counties. Kalonzo said delays by the National government to disburse funds to the counties was the main catalyst to corruption.
“The delays mean that contractors bribe county officials to expedite their payments leaving little money for development”. The Wiper leader was speaking at the ongoing devolution conference at Kenya Wildlife Service Training Institute in Naivasha, Nakuru county.
He, however, said devolution was making positive impacts to Kenyans especially in far-flung areas in the country. The former Vice President said given the little resources the counties get, development can be seen in all the corners of the country.
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