Author: Francis Muli

The three policemen arrested and detained by Ugandan policemen have been released. The officers were rounded up and put together with Kenyan fishermen found catching fish in Ugandan waters. This comes at a time when the Kenyan police in Busia, in what appeared to be a retaliatory move, arrested 53 Ugandan nationals ostensibly for being in the country illegally. Read: Three Kenyan Policemen Arrested And Detained In Uganda The government is yet to issue an official statement in what appears to be a diplomatic row simmering in the background. Kenya has been previously been involved in a conflict with Uganda…

Director of Public Prosecutions Noordin Haji has said that he is unable to prosecute graft suspects presented to him by the Ethic and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) for lack of sufficient evidence. Haji told the Senate Legal Committee that only one out of the four cases in which EACC wanted governors dragged to court this week over alleged corruption is solid. “(For) some, we have asked them to proceed with prosecutions and others we have asked them to address the gaps. All the 57 files we received from EACC were returned on Monday,” he said. Read: UoN Clerk Charged With Ksh4.4…

Employment and Labour Relations court has issued a new directive that requires all government procurement and finance officers to proceed on forced leave to allow their employer time to vet them. Justice Onesmus Makau gave the directive on Wednesday after setting aside his earlier orders stopping the audit. The judge ordered all procurement and accounting officers to provide the required documents within 10 days —  by June 22, 2018. According to the judge, the earlier order in favour of the petitioner, activist Okiya Omtatah, was issued without proper disclosure of facts. Read: Court Suspends President Kenyatta’s Order On Vetting In…

Uchumi Supermarket has advertised offering its Lang’ata Hyper Branch to a franchisee to run the high end branch on their behalf. In an advert run in the local dailies, the embattled chain retailer called on business moguls with super-financial ability to run the business. “Uchumi Supermarket Plc is now exploring the piloting of a Franchisor-Franchisee Business Model. Successful Franchisee candidates shall be required to demonstrate financial resources in the high hundreds of millions of shillings and the technical capability to undertake this venture,” read the advert in part. Read: Boda Bodas Rake In More Than Half A Billion A Day,…

Nairobi County Speaker Beatrice Elachi has rejected Governor Mike Sonko’s deputy governor nominee, Miguna Miguna, citing Article 78 of Constitution on dual citizenship. According to the article clause two (2), “a State officer or a member of the defence forces shall not hold dual citizenship”. Miguna holds Canadian Citizenship as well as Kenyan citizenship. However, authorities have held ground that Miguna is a Canadian citizen. The Immigration Department stated that Miguna denounced Kenyan citizenship at the time he acquired Canadian Citizenship, requiring him to re-apply for Kenyan citizenship. Read: Miguna’s Fate To Be Decided This Week He has since been…

Kisumu Governor Professor Anyang’ Nyong’o is under pressure from Kenyans to explain an incidence where a firefighting engine belonging to Meru County was launched in Kisumu. Photos posted by his press service shows the purported Kisumu City Manager Ms Dorice Ombara posing for a photo beside the engine bearing the name Meru at the sides and number 62, which corresponds to the number on the firefighter engine donated to Meru County by Bedfordshire, England. Read: Kisumu County Head Of Staff Arrested for Attempting To Kill Governor and DG However, the number plates of the engines are not visible, leaving questions…

A report by the Motorcycle Assemblers Association of Kenya (MAAK) shows that there were at least 600,000 commercial motorcycles (Bodabodas) in Kenya by the end of 2017, out of 4.8 million bikes in the country. On average, most boda boda operators take home about Ksh1,000 per day each, translating to more than Ksh600 million cumulatively. This is attributed to their flexibility in snail-paced traffic jams in urban areas as well as moving seamlessly in narrow and rugged roads, where matatus and other transport means cannot suffice. Read: Kenya To Spend Ksh3.07 Trillion In 2017/2018 Fiscal Year On the flipside, 14-seater…

Kenya is set to spend an all-time high budget of Ksh3.07 trillion in the 2018/2019 fiscal budget tabled before parliament. In the 2017/2018 budget, Kenya spend Ksh2.6 trillion. However, Kenya’s revenue collection is in deficit of the estimated budget, which will force her to borrow an additional Ksh562.74 billion. This is amid the current state debt of more than Ksh4 trillion which has raised eyebrows both locally and internationally. Under the new budget estimates, among the expenditures, debt-related payments (interest and redemption payments) alone amount to Ksh870.6 billion. The President’s Agenda Four legacy initiative will receive Ksh1.25 billion to be…

A Nairobi magistrate’s court has ordered bank managers to freeze accounts of companies and suspects stashed with money believed to have been stolen from the National Youth Service (NYS). The accounts will remain frozen for six months as the State starts to seize assets acquired through theft of Ksh8 billion from the agency. The court issued the freezing orders following an application by Asset Recovery Agency (ARA) investigating officer Frederick Musyoki. Dozens of senior officials and business people remain in custody and face charges related to the theft of millions of shillings from the youth agency. Read: NYS Billions Lost…

Three Kenyan Police officers are being held in Uganda by Ugandan soldiers in what media reports indicate to be the controversy surrounding fishing rights in Lake Victoria. The officers were arrested and disarmed by the UPDF soldiers on Monday near Mageta and Hama Islands in Lake Victoria and taken to the neighboring country by boat. The officers were rounded up and put together with Kenyan fishermen found catching fish in Ugandan waters. Read: Police Strip Seach Bearded Tout To Confirm Gender Siaya County Administration Police Commandant Patrick Lumumba said the 3pm incident involved up to eight soldiers on patrol. Lumumba…

The National Treasury has set aside Ksh1 billion to cater for salaries and other benefits of the 110 Cuban doctors, who started arriving in the country early this month. According to Treasury’s report presented to the National Assembly’s Budget and Appropriations Committee (BAC) breakdown, the doctors will take home a total of Ksh563 million in salaries annually. “The committee was informed that the project is a bilateral agreement between Kenya and Cuba and has an allocation of Sh1,001,922,000,” Kimani Ichung’wa, who chairs BAC, says in a report on the budget estimates for the 2018/19 financial year. The Sh1 billion also…

HMD, the home of Nokia phones has re-introduced the ‘slider’ mobile phone in the market through a new model, Nokia 8110. The Nokia 8110 4G features intuitive tactile mechanics, with slide to answer and end calls, as well as a helicopter-style spin on its axis. “The Nokia 8110 4G delivers crystal-clear VoLTE calling and is perfect for anyone who wants an iconic 4G feature phone or a companion phone, with access to an app store for favourites like Google Assistant, Google Maps, Google Search, Facebook and Twitter. Other capabilities of the Nokia 8110 4G include sending and receiving emails,…

Tanzania’s leading Web Platform  Jamii Forums has closed down in a new government order banning all media outlets including blogs from publishing any information unless they are licensed. The platform is known for giving Tanzanians a platform to freely share dossiers and opinions concerning government operations. This follows a new law that requires all online media creators, including everything from online radio providers to bloggers, to pay registration and license fees amounting to about $920 (Ksh92,000). The pioneer of the platform Mr Maxence Melo argues that the platform does not fit in any of the platforms highlighted in the new law,…

The motion to discuss nomination of embattled Lawyer Migiuna Miguna as Nairobi’s Deputy Governor will be tabled this week, according to County assembly Speaker Beatrice Elachi. The motion is expected to approve or reject Miguna nomination, who was appointed by Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko mid last month, raising controversy across the political divide. “We will table the motion before the assembly this week, I don’t want to talk much about it as it is a matter to be discussed before all members of the County Assembly,” said Alachi. Read: Kenya Sevens Players Conceal Brand Kenya Message for Lack of Payment…

1998 marked the turning point for Ms Rosemary Kaittany. Rosemary, a former teacher who made her living inspiring young Kenyans to chase after their dreams and reach for the stars, took her own advice one day and left the world of education to pursue her life’s desire. The alluring world of tours and travel. With the endless support of family and friends, a vision, a lot of hard work, determination and most of all God, ATS Travel was born. And like a young child, who shows incredible potential, Rosemary saw long before anyone else what ATS could become, if she…

War for the Internet market share in Kenya between Safaricom, Airtel and Telkom Kenya seems not to be ending soon as Telcom has hit the market with a new 5GB bundle worth Ksh 39. The 5GB bundle dubbed ‘Night Owl Bundle’ is available between 12am and 6am daily and you can purchase it more than once. Read: Nonini to Sue Safaricom for Infringing His Copyright However, the bundle cannot be used outside the 12am-6am time frame. This data is available to all prepaid GSM customers on Tujuane profile and one can simply dial *544# to subscribe or use the mytelkom app.…