Iko Nini Bwana Seed?

WHAT UK NEWSPAPERS SAY - EXCHANGE RATE AGAINST THE POUND TODAY IS KSHS. 123.00

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New Hope Orphans Centre in Kenya - Updates

Mrs. Anne Chege and her daughter Catherine Njeri in London on Sunday 23rd August, 2009.

1. NEW HOPE CENTRE-Uplands, Kenya.

 Home is run by Mr & Mrs Chege, both retired bankers. They both live inside the Orphanage as volunteers, assisted by 12 staff. The current population is 140 children, 90 girls and 50 boys. We have additional 60 external children, who we assist with School Fees, and sometimes food. They live with their relatives. The children attend different schools in the local community, some in High School, Primary and Nursery School. We have a few who stay at home, as they have not attained the school going age.

At New Hope, we now have electricity, and running water from our bore-hole, PRAISE GOD.

The photo of New Hope.

2. HIGHER LEARNING.

  Three girls have already completed University, courtesy CALVARY CHARISMATIC BAPTIST CHURCH.

The 3 are currently working.

We have now 11 at University, three of whom are sponsored by CALVARY CHURCH.

3. OUTREACH MINISTRY

  Every Saturday, we give food to the hungry neighbours, mostly very old people. We supply maize flour, sometimes with cooking fat, salt, soap---etc. The quantity depends on availability of funds. We manage to reach 50 families only, although the number has drastically increased. I have been forced to turn some away empty handed------a very painful experience.

Occasionally, we give clothes when available.

Photo of such families---- WANGUI came from Nyeri, with starving kids. She wanted to abandon them somewhere----we asked her to stay with us.

4. GRANDMOTHERS' VILLAGE ( Valerie's Village).

Last year, we purchased 1 acre plot for grandmothers, where we constructed 12 houses.

The grannies were from the roadside, or along the railway live, where they had been given notices of eviction. In front of each house, an empty portion of land, where they use for farming, or their grand children can put up houses. We gave them completely, for their generations----downwards until the return of the Lord.

Each house has 3 rooms, a separate kitchen, and a water tank for harvesting rain water.

They entered the new houses on 28th Feb 2009, with prayers from many local churches. One granny commented------'This is our Canaan, the Promised Land----I now believe I will see the New Jerusalem---'

Photos of old houses, and new house..

5. OUR NEEDS AND PROJECTS.

  (a). General. You may help us in general for our upkeep. Everything has been very expensive, especially food.

 (b). Sponsor kids in High School, either at New Hope or external. Day School Fees, £100 per year, boarding £ 250 per year payable in 3 instalments.

  (c). Sponsor University Students, £ 1000 per year, payable twice. Partial sponsorship is welcome.

        Photos to follow.

  (d). Support a starving family. Monthly £10 will support a family for 1 month.

  (e). We have found 1.25acres land, for Kshs 1million. We intend to settle 15 homeless families in 2010. Kindly contribute towards this fund.

      You can also fund construction of 1 house---either partial or whole.

SEEKING FOR SPONSORSHIP

1. Dennis Muchiri-----a total orphan without both parents. He comes from MPEKETONI in Mombasa. Denis was admitted to Kenyatta University in 2008, for teaching course, but lacked money to go. He has been at home ever since, waiting upon God. Kindly help, partially or whole. I have his admission papers, and other details.

2. Sharon Wacera----a total orphan who lives with her grandfather. She is in Form 2, in Loreto Sec School, Kiambu. Grandpa is experiencing difficulties in payments. Kindly help.

3. Yvonne Nyambura and Melvin Waweru, brother and sister, both from Eldoret where they suffered tribal clashes violence. Their dad died, their mum is jobless, and has been unable to take them to Uni. Kindly assist.

THANKS.

Special tribute to everyone who have helped us at New Hope, in any way. Even those who ever prayed for us, am truly grateful. Could be, your prayers upheld me----on that day when I felt discouraged, when I felt weak and unable to pray, when my soul was so downcast-----your prayers upheld me. Kindly continue.

To you all, this is your portion;

'BLESSED IS HE WHO HAS REGARD FOR THE WEAK, THE LORD DELIVERS HIM IN TIMES OF TROUBLE. THE LORD WILL PROTECT HIM AND PRESERVE HIS LIFE, HE WILL BLESS HIM IN THE LAND AND NOT SURRENDER HIM TO THE DESIRES OF HIS FOES. THE LORD WILL SUSTAIN HIM IN HIS SICK BED

AND RESTORE HIM FROM HIS BED OF ILLNESS.' Psalms 41;1-3

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' THOSE WHO SAW IN TEARS WILL REAP IN SONGS OF JOY, HE WHO GOES OUT WEEPING CARRYING SEEDS TO SOW, WILL RETURN WITH SONGS OF JOY,  CARRYING SHEAVES WITH HIM' Psalms 126;5-6.

PHOTOS FOR SOME KIDS AT NEW HOPE;

- twins MBUGUA AND KARANJA, 4 yrs old, total orphans----their sister Lillian, who had left school, to take care of the twins.

Lillian is now in School, class 6.

- Our girls' foot-ball team.

- David and his sister Beatrice.

Lastly, whatever is happening at New Hope in as little at the 'drop of water' in the ocean. There is so much to be done----the journey is long.

May the name of the Lord be Glorified. I urge you all to forget me or my husband and family, as we are only vessels used by God, to accomplish His purposes. Honour and thank God, and pray that He will touch more people----the journey is long.

I invite you to a fundraising on Sunday, Sept 27th-----at MANOR PARK COMMUNITY CENTRE, 524 HIGH STREET NORTH, LONDON. E12  6QN. Tel 0208 514 0903.

- David and his sister Beatrice.

BANK ACCOUNT DETAILS.

If you help, our UK bank details; BARCLAYS BANK, sort code 20 92 60, acc no 20984698, name Anne Gathoni Chege.

You may also contribute through our UK Charity representatives,  HAND IN HAND, 3c The Granaries, Reeds Farm Estate, Roxwell Road, CHELMSFORD. CM1 3ST. website; www.hihand.org , email; info@hihand.org. Tel 01245 421177.

Even a small donation will make a huge difference at New Hope----that's how we have arrived where we are today.

My UK Tel 0794 7883505, until end of Sept.

In His service.

Anne Chege.

  (f). Support another children's home who we assist, FOUNTAIN OF LIFE SUPPORT PROGRAMME, JUJA, and Grace Children's Home in Kagwe, Lari Uplands.

I invite everyone coming to Kenya, to visit us, my Tel 0720 240585. We shall facilitate your arrival, once you are in Kenya.

FOR MORE INFO, KINDLY VISIT OUR WEBSITE, www.newhopechildrenscentre.org

Home Office, 21 August 2009. International crackdown on identity fraud. A new fingerprint sharing deal with Canada and Australia will boost the fight against identity fraud, the Home Office announced, Under the new data sharing agreement, the United Kingdom will be able to swap fingerprint information on foreign criminals and asylum seekers with these two countries - making it easier than ever to flag up those migrants who try to hide their past from authorities, while ensuring personal information continues to be protected. This groundbreaking agreement has been developed by the members of the Five Country Conference, which is a forum for cooperation on measures to improve immigration controls and border security. The USA will be joining the agreement shortly, and New Zealand is considering legislation to join in the near future. Each country will have the same ability to check fingerprints, and for the first year of the agreement each country will be able to share 3,000 sets of fingerprints with partner countries - this number will rise as the deal rolls out. The collaboration will make it easier to detect those people with previous criminal histories in other countries, as well as speed up removals and establish previously unknown identities. UK Border Agency deputy chief executive Jonathan Sedgwick said:

'We already have one of the toughest borders in the world and we are determined to ensure it stays that way. 'We are continuing to expand our watch-lists, work more closely with foreign Governments to share information, and speed up the redocumentation of those being removed. 'This new agreement will help us identify and remove individuals whose identities were previously unknown but also improve public safety through better detection of lawbreakers and those coming to the UK for no good.' These checks are complementary to the ones we already undertake with our European partners, and trials of the data sharing agreement have already reaped results, with individuals' identities being revealed through the exchange and checking of fingerprints. In one such case, an individual claiming asylum in the United Kingdom as a Somali was found to have previously been fingerprinted on arrival in the USA while travelling on an Australian passport. Australia subsequently confirmed that the individual was an Australian citizen wanted for rape. This resulted in his deportation to Australia, where he faced court proceedings and is now serving a jail sentence. The protection of personal information is important to all the countries involved in this project and the specific measures that are being employed to protect privacy include:

• ensuring that all fingerprints remain anonymous and cannot be linked to an individual unless a match is detected between countries;
• destroying fingerprints once a match has been completed with no fingerprint database being compiled; and
• using encryption and other security tools to protect files that are shared.
•  

You can download a privacy impact assessment report, setting out how the arrangement will operate, from the right side of this page.

KIKUYU AGE GROUP

1959 - Rika ria Ngeithia thayu - Peace greetings

The wedding of the year in Nairobi

Miss Mary Adhiambo (Bride) and Mr. George Wadegu (Groom) from Nyanza but live in Nairobi left many Kenyans speechless in the streets of Nairobi on Saturday 22nd August, 2009. Escorted by two horses, they were riding on Camels at Kariakor market. This is very rare in Nairobi. Not even the August showers could stop them do their thing. They were later joined at ST. Polycarp ACK church at Mlango Kubwa (Juja road Estate) by Rev. Peterson Kithaka Francis. This is one of a kind I have seen in Nairobi City. Sources told us they decided to use horses and Camels cause they are rare in Western Kenya. I could not prove it though. That's why 'najivunia kuwa Mkenya' - All photos by Karuga wa Njuguna, Nairobi, Kenya.

Great Kenyan ideas for a wedding. Final picture.                       

The last photo when Mary Adhiambo and George Wadegu got joined together as husband and wife.

LUO PROVERB

Ibuth ka Iwang'ni/ilal ka lwang'ni.

You are as greedy as a fly or as indiscriminating on what you eat as a fly.

Rude saying referring to a glutton, or to a badly behaved person with no self-respect who lacks table manners.

A Kenyan among three charged with forgery

(Springfield, MO) -- Three people from Texas are charged with forging phoney travellers checks and trying to pass them at local businesses. Springfield Police say the scam came to light last Thursday, when the three tried to pass a forged American Express travel check at Chedder's Restaurant. Investigators say the three had tried to pass checks at other local businesses as well. Police confiscated forged checks totalling more than $14,000, along with fake IDs and items used to make forged checks. Lawanna N. Everage, 18, of Dallas, TX, Evelyn Haley, 30, of Arlington, TX and Ronald Ngure, 35, of Balch Springs, TX were all charged with forgery in Greene County Circuit Court.

KIKUYU PROVERB

Mubatari ndaconokaga

He who is in necessity does not feel ashamed (to ask for help).

Kibaki leads Kenyans in marking Kenyatta's 31st anniversary

President Mwai Kibaki on Saturday 22nd August, 2009 led the nation in commemorating the 31st anniversary of the death of the founding father of the nation Mzee Jomo Kenyatta. President Kibaki joined Mzee Kenyatta's family led by the widow Mama Ngina Kenyatta in laying a wreath at the mausoleum of the late President at Parliament buildings before attending a memorial service at the Holy Family Minor Basilica. Others who laid wreaths were the Speaker of the National Assembly Kenneth Marende and the chief of General staff Jeremiah Kianga and Nairobi Mayor Geoffrey Majiwa.  The anniversary service was conducted by Bishop Anthony Muheria of the Catholic diocese of Kitui.  In his sermons based on Isaiah 30: 19-21, Psalms 23,Romans 5: 1-5 and Matthews 25: 31-46, Bishop Muheria exhorted Christians to seek God's forgiveness and strength to fulfill the vision of the founders of this nation who sacrificed and struggled to make the country a better place for all Kenyans. He challenged Christians to be the light and salt of the earth during their life as their deeds reflected the will of God towards mankind. The Bishop urged all leaders to always seek God's guidance in whatever they do to add value to lives of Kenyans and the Country's posterity. Bishop Muheria also led prayers for the President, Government, the nation and Mzee Kenyatta's soul. At the mausoleum, dignitaries who also included the Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka, Cabinet Minister Beth Mugo and Nairobi Mayor Geoffrey Majiwa observed two minutes silence in remembrance of the founding father of the Nation.

President Mwai Kibaki is introduced to grandchildren of the late Father of the Nation Mzee Jomo Kenyatta by Mama Ngina Kenyatta on arrival at Mausoleum of the late President at Parliament Buildings, Nairobi.

"Constant forgetfulness is a sign of lost vigour and vitality" - Sanity, Grace Njeri, Oxford - gracenjeri77@yahoo.com

A female pilot died in UK when her Edge E40 light aircraft crashed at Silverstone Circuit, police have said. The 40-year-old Californian woman, who was the only person on board the aircraft, was pronounced dead at the scene, Thames Valley Police said. There were no other injuries, a force spokeswoman added. The Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) is investigating. Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue Service said the crash happened in the south-west coroner of the racing circuit, in Buckinghamshire. Police said the aircraft had been taking part in an acrobatic show when it came down on the circuit. The spokeswoman said: "Thames Valley Police is currently at the scene of an aircraft crash at Silverstone, Dadford Road, Buckingham. "Police were notified at 12.12pm that a single aircraft taking part in an acrobatic show at Silverstone had come down on the circuit. "The pilot, an American woman, was pronounced dead at the scene. "No one else was injured in the incident. Investigators from the Civil Aviation Authority are on their way to the scene to begin their investigation."

Kirui makes it three gold for Kenya

Berlin, August 22 - Abel Kirui led compatriot Emmanuel Mutai to a 1-2 finish as Kenya once again demonstrated its prowess in road running at the World Athletics Championships in Berlin on Saturday 22nd August, 2009. The 27 year old led from the halfway mark to win gold in a new championship record of 2:06:54 as Kenya displayed brilliant team tactics to successfully defend the title won by Luke Kibet in Osaka in 2007. "I was overjoyed with emotion. You know as I approached the finish line I could not believe it was happening. It is great for me to win in these championships because this is my first time to win gold and represent Kenya,” said Kirui. Mutai who was also making his debut in a Kenyan vest clinched an impressive silver. - CLICK HERE FOR THE FULL MARATHON VIDEO
 

President Mwai Kibaki launches the construction of the Northern and Eastern by-passes which are expected to ease congestion within Nairobi city.

Al Shabaab worries US military

The United States African Command (AFRICOM) says it is increasingly concerned by the  terror threats being issued to East African nations by the Al Shabaab network. US AFRICOM Commander Gen William Ward said his government will intensify surveillance on the Somali based radical group and others allied to the Al Qaeda led by Osama Bin Laden. “The threats are also in the Sahel with what goes on there with the Al Qaeda. But threats are more than just from those groups as well because there are other linkages that could be there,” he said citing other challenges that weigh in such as drug trafficking. Addressing a press conference at the US Embassy in Nairobi, Gen Ward said AFRICOM is “paying attention to terrorism and terror threats…to prevent them from having an ability to create sanctuary to operate without being checked and doing that in ways that…causes the counterterrorism efforts to be successful.” Gen Ward’s visit to the continent which kicked off on Friday is part US efforts to coordinate and improve activities in support of military relations with African countries and organisations. Though he commended Kenya for its efforts in maintaining security and fighting terrorism in the region, Gen Ward said a lot more needed to be done.

Just to remind you again. This is the same spot a matatu from Chania  Sacco smashed the Nairobi river barriers killing a man from Kinyona in Murang'a a fortnight ago. This car went through the gap after the previous accident. This time no one was killed but this proves how dangerous this road is after recent roads re-carpeting. The driver was not injured. Luckily KKV (kazi kwa vijana) youth were in the area and one offered his gumboots to help this nice looking man after he refused to be carried by one of the area mechanics for a fee. He did not seem bothered as much but after wearing the dirty gumboots he walked slowly and was helped off to the main land. He should be grateful that Nairobi river has just been cleaned. Something need to  be done on this road between Kamukunji police and Race Course roundabout to stop the boy racers. What is not clear is whether the owner of the gumboots asked for a Kitu kidogo. - Photos and story by Karuga wa Njuguna, Nairobi, Kenya. - Photos and story by Karuga wa Njuguna, Nairobi - 22/08/09.

Changes to our policy on judicial review challenges

Home Office, 20 July 2009

The UK Border Agency is changing its published policy on judicial review challenges in cases where we are seeking to remove people from the United Kingdom. The changes to the policy will come into effect on 3 August 2009. We are making these changes as part of our drive to establish a swift end-to-end process for concluding asylum cases and deporting foreign national prisoners. Any decision that the UK Border Agency makes can be challenged in the courts under the process known as 'judicial review', if it is believed that the decision was made unlawfully or irrationally or was otherwise flawed. Immigration cases should not reach the stage of judicial review until they have been through the entire appeals system. The change to our policy covers situations where a person's case has been finally determined and they have exhausted all statutory rights of appeal. If they then issue a claim for a judicial review up to three months after their statutory appeal was concluded, our current policy is normally to suspend their removal. Under the new policy, we will normally proceed with the removal, although we will still defer removal in appropriate cases. In addition, we are extending our current policy on people who issue a claim for judicial review up to three months after a judge has refused permission on a previous judicial review application. This revised policy, which came into effect on 30 January 2009, currently applies only to cases where people have been detained. From 3 August it will be extended to include non-detained cases. These changes in policy will only affect those cases where the claimant has raised nothing new (having lodged the same or virtually identical grounds) to the material that was previously considered or that could reasonably have been raised previously during the statutory appeal. We will inform any individuals affected by the new policy, and their representatives, that we intend to proceed with removal and that they will therefore need to obtain an injunction in order to prevent their removal.

It is very sad that these children have to learn in such conditions. The question is can we copy the western culture and become sponsors to some of the children. Hard Lessons - Learning in very unforgiving conditions (Kibera, Mitumba Slums). - VIDEO

Nairobi, Saturday 22nd August, 2009. The rift in ODM appeared to widen as party leader Raila Odinga and one of his deputies William Ruto held parallel rallies within a radius of 5km in Gucha. While Raila campaigned for the party’s candidate in the Bomachoge by-election, Mr Simon Ogari, Ruto led 14 MPs in discussing succession politics, the Mau forest and the Imanyara Bill on a local tribunal to try post election violence suspects at a funds drive in South Mugirango constituency. And the MPs who accompanied Ruto to ODM treasurer Omingo Magara’s South Mugirango base hinted at a new political alliance ahead of the 2012 elections. Magara introduced officials of a little known party — People’s Development Party (PDP) — and told his guests to take them seriously. "This party should be watched keenly because it reflects the future," he said as he introduced the chairman, Mr Momanyi Bogonko. Magara asked Abagusii MPs to forge political alliances. "It’s time for new political alliances. Kisii leaders should find ways of getting to the table. Kalonzo Musyoka had less than 20 MPs and he is now the Vice-President," he said. He added: "From today, we will form new alliances regardless of party affiliations." Ruto accused Imanyara of being used by certain individuals to take Kenyans in circles over the post-election violence trials.

"We are wasting time over trivial issues. MPs had agreed that the matter be taken to The Hague. The Waki envelope is already opened and there is no need campaigning for a local tribunal," he added. Contrary to expectations, Raila and Ruto did not team up at either function. Ainamoi MP Benjamin Langat almost let the cat out of the bag when he said: "Those who love politics are in Bomachoge. Those who love development are in South Mugurango." Eldama Ravine MP Moses Lesonet accused the party leadership of failing to unite members. "If ODM has failed to manage a national party, can it be expected to manage a country?" he asked. Budalang’i MP Ababu Namwamba also hinted at a new a alliance, saying: "When you see this impressive constellation of leaders, know something is a foot." Curiously, even the head of the ODM Secretariat, Ms Janet Ongera, did not join her party leader in Bomachoge and instead attended Magara’s funds drive. But unruffled by the events in South Mugirango, Raila braved the dust and hot sun to campaign for the ODM candidate.  He said the party could not afford to lose Bomachoge and Shinyalu parliamentary seats. "We need these seats to boost our numbers in Parliament and we need your help," he told a rally.  He said the Government would deliver services faster to the people. Among MPs present was Education minister Sam Ongeri, Assistant Minister Cecily Mbarire and Mt Elgon MP Fred Kapondi. The function was at the same spot where Ruto, Magara and other ODM leaders were attacked by armed PNU youths in 2007 as they campaigned. - The Standard.

Kissing a giraffe is not all that bad as this tourist demonstrates and on right a nyama choma kitchen at Carnivore Restaurant

It is now official. Internal Security minister George Saitoti bought 100 acres of public land for a paltry Sh138,450. Prof Saitoti acquired the land in the Zea Settlement Scheme in Trans Nzoia in 1994 when he was minister for Finance and Planning, ADC chief executive William Kirwa said yesterday.  This settles the query of who the G.K. Saitoti appearing in a list of beneficiaries of ADC land tabled in Parliament is. “We have confirmed that the G.K. Saitoti is George Saitoti... who at one time was the minister for Finance,” Mr Kirwa told the Saturday Nation. At the same time, the ADC boss cleared Agriculture minister William Ruto from the land allocation. He said documents in his office showed that the William Ruto whose name was tabled in Parliament was a different person.  “We have a Mr William Ruto from Kitale. In 2004 he lost some of his documents and he wrote asking that we give him the details. And all indications are that this is not William Ruto the minister.” At least 59,000 acres belonging to the Agriculture Development Corporation was allocated at throwaway prices. - Daily Nation.

The letter written to the Kenya immigration department by the Canadian diplomat in Nairobi disowning the Canadian lady - CLICK HERE

A city where law is not applicable

If you have ever been arrested by the Nairobi city askaris, then you know what am talking about here. This newly acquired Kamukunji Division garbage truck could not escape the lenses doing the unthinkable. An illegal turn!. Is a high time he gets stopped before killing innocent Kenyans. - Photo by Karuga wa Njuguna, Nairobi, Kenya. 21/08/09.

Cornels Akello Onyango was dazed when a beautiful young brown woman menacingly approached him brandishing a razor blade. “Get ready to be circumcised,” she barked as she walked towards him. For him, the fact that the threat was coming from a woman was a shock in itself. The look on her face left no doubt that she was capable of carrying out the threat. Onyango, stark naked, frightened and his mind in a turmoil, was in front of a group of about 10 stone-faced men. - FULL STORY

The Express urges Britons to cheer up citing a list of reasons to be happy including rising house prices and renewed hope in the Ashes cricket match and on right a picture illustrating England's progress in the Ashes match is emblazoned on the front of The Independent together with the Lockerbie bomber story.

President Mwai Kibaki will Friday 21st August, 2009 officially inaugurate the Eastern and Northern by-passes at the junction of Kangundo and Ruai roads. The Kshs 8.5 billion by-passes are expected to greatly help in the reduction of traffic jams in the city.  During the occasion the President is also expected to outline other measures the government is taking to deal with the management of traffic in Nairobi, including the missing link roads.  During his last visit to Beijing, President Kibaki secured funding for the by-passes from the Government of the Peoples' Republic of China.  The by-passes are part of the government's ambitious infrastructure development programme aimed at making Kenya the regional economic hub.    Last week the Head of State inaugurated the Maji-ya-Chumvi-Miritini road, a key section of the critical Northern Corridor.   The President is expected at Embakasi at 11.00 a.m. On arrival the President will be received by the Minister for Roads Hon Franklin Bett and other senior Government officials. On Saturday President Kibaki will lead the nation in marking the 31st Anniversary of the death of the late Mzee Jomo Kenyatta.

Kesom Freight International Ltd. Opens a branch in East London

The leading forwarding and clearing company from London to Kenya – Kesom Freight International Ltd has opened a branch in East London.  The new office is located at 380 Ripple Road, Barking IG11 9RS a through away of a stone from Thatched House.  During their launching ceremony on Saturday 8th August, 2009 the company hosted a nyama choma party at the venue. They have offices in UK, Dubai and soon they are opening an office in China. They accept goods as from 10 kgs to Kenya from UK and clears with goods with Kenya Customs and you collect your goods in Eastleigh, Nairobi. For more information please contact 020 8507 9093 or 07930508058.

A farmer has been stung to death by a swarm of wasps in East Yorkshire, his family have confirmed. Mark Evison, 47, had been cutting grass as he cleared a ditch in Ellerker, near South Cave, on Sunday evening when he disturbed a wasps' nest. Relatives said he had died after suffering a severe allergic reaction. East Riding of Yorkshire Council's pest control team said nearby residents had been informed of the nest's location and it had been sealed off. Official figures show there were four deaths in England and Wales in 2007 due to contact with hornets, wasps or bees.

Sport's biggest debate: Is Caster Semenya a man or a woman?

South African gold medal winner Caster Semenya is at the centre of a 'gender bender' mystery after doubts about her sex. The runner powered to victory in the 800 metres World Championships final last night in a time of 1min 55.45secs, more than a second quicker than her previous best and the fastest time in the world this year. Earlier, the IAAF revealed they have been investigating Semenya's gender after her breakthrough performance when winning the African junior championship title at the end of July. The 18-year-old South African ran a stunning world leading time for the year of one minute 56.72 seconds, striking almost four seconds from her previous best. IAAF communications director Nick Davies, revealing they cannot prevent her competing, said: "The situation today is that we don't have any conclusive evidence that she not be allowed to run, so it would be totally wrong to take a decision such as to withdraw an athlete from the field. "It is a medical issue, it's not an issue of cheating. "Again it is stressed in a general sense, we have to be sensitive to this, this is a health issue, this is a human individual who was born as a woman, has grown all her life as a woman and is now in a position where this is being questioned. "There is a need of course to make sure the rules are followed and the rules are very clear that women should compete in women's competitions, so yes of course, we're taking it absolutely seriously. "But we're also doing that in a rigorous, fair-minded way." "We have to wait until the process is completed however long it takes. "I believe it will be a matter of weeks rather than months, but that is speculation."

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End of Summer Youth BBQ Bash!

You are invited to End of Summer Youth Barbecue Bash on Saturday 5th September, 2009. Free food, nyama choma and music. Lots of other entertainments as from 3.00 p.m. to 7.00 p.m. Venue: South London, Spa Hill Allotments, London SE19 3TU. For more information please contact 07903984578.

Scramble for university places

London, Friday 21st August, 2009. Teenagers who failed to get their first choices for university are rushing to find courses amid a squeeze on places. More than 5,000 students have found a place through the UK's "clearing" system since A-level results came out. There is a shortage of places this year after a surge in applications and a decision to cap growth in places. The university admissions service Ucas said hits to its website were 50% up on last year after teenagers received their A-level results. It is thought there were about 22,000 places available through clearing, so nearly a quarter of them have gone. Data just released by Ucas says nearly 142,000 people are eligible for clearing. The body says since 0600 on Thursday, more than 970,570 students have logged onto its website to see if they have a university place confirmed or to find alternatives. Calls to its helpline were close to 15,000 by the end of the day. Applications to UK universities are up more than 10% on last year. This is due to a bulge in the population (there are more 18-year-olds this year), the drive to get more young people into higher education and the effects of the recession in encouraging both young and old to go to university. The Westminster government earlier this year put a 10,000 cap on the expansion of places for this autumn, though later offered funding for 13,000 more places as numbers of applicants surged. However, not all universities took up this offer because places were not fully funded. The rising pass rate at A-level has also, over a longer term, made more young people eligible for university. This year the overall pass rate for A-levels in England, Wales and Northern Ireland rose to the record level of 97.5%, adding to the clamour for places. Students in Scotland, who received the results of their Highers earlier this month, had a head start on clearing. The pass rate for Highers also rose - by 0.8 percentage point to 74.2%.

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The matatu's and buses were not on strike this morning. They had to drop their passengers at Kariokor Market, Nairobi due to traffic police operation. I wonder if they achieve anything! – Photo and story by Karuga wa Njuguna, Nairobi - 20/08/09.

A move by the Government to upgrade Kibera slums has suffered a major setback.  The High Court on Thursday 20th August, 2009 issued conservatory orders stopping the Government from demolishing structures of those living in Kibera’s Soweto East area.  The relocation of residents was to start today in an exercise where President Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga were to attend. Lady Justice Abida Ali-Aroni said the orders would remain in force until August 28 when the case is set to be heard inter parties. "The conservatory order is issued up to August 28 restraining the respondents from demolishing houses of petitioners in Zone A Soweto East," she ruled. Aroni’s ruling arose out of an application by 84 people living in Kibera. They say if the Government has to upgrade the houses as it has proclaimed under the Slum Upgrading Programme, adequate compensation has to be put in place. On August 14, the Government gave residents a month to vacate from Soweto East in an area classified as Zone A. - The Standard.

"Can you seal that sewage?" - Hon. Michuki

We all got ideas but this one hit rock bottom. The reason being that KKV were trying to block the sewage from going to Nairobi River. They never achieved their goal but is my hope someone somewhere will show them the source of the sewage where it could be easier to block it from and divert it to the main line. 'I could be wrong though'.Now they are writing back to Michuki - "we have blocked the sewage". – Photo and story by Karuga wa Njuguna, Nairobi - 20/08/09.

A record-breaking number of A-level entries for England

London, Thursday 20th August, 2009. A record-breaking number of A-level entries for England, Wales and Northern Ireland have been awarded A grades. More than one in four entries - 26.7% - got the top grade, up from 25.9% last year and the overall pass rate rose to 97.5%, up 0.3 percentage points. The improvement in grades - for the 27th year in a row - will add to the pressure on university places. There are there are 60,000 more applicants for university places in the UK than this time last year. That is a 10% rise on last year. Hundreds of thousands of teenagers are getting the results of their A and AS-level exams. Scottish students have already received the results of their Highers and Standard Grade exams - which showed a slight rise in standards achieved. The A-level results have been released by the Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ), the body which represents the exam boards. They show that more than three quarters of entries (75.1%) were awarded at least a C grade. In Northern Ireland, more than one in three entries (34.5%) was given an A grade - a slight fall on last year, while in Wales 24.1% of entries got the top grade. The figures reveal that girls continue to outshine boys generally at A-level, but that the gap between them at the top grade is narrowing. The percentage of entries from boys which were awarded an A is 25.6% this year, compared with 27.6% of entries from girls. The results show traditional subjects remain the most popular at A-level, with English and maths the top choices.

There were an extra 7,882 entries for maths this year, and an extra 1,382 entries for further maths. There was also an increase in the number of entries for chemistry and physics, but a fall in the number taking biology. Fewer people took French and German this year. There were 552 fewer entries for A-level French - a fall of 3.7% - and a 7.7% drop in those taking German. Jim Sinclair, director of the Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ), said: "These are excellent results. They are the outcome of hard work of students and teachers, who deserve to be congratulated. "It is particularly good to report improved uptake and outcomes for mathematics and science." Figures presented by the JCQ at a media briefing show the proportion of top A-level grades awarded to independent schools is increasing. About 50% of entries from the independent sector were given A grades, the exam boards said. This compared with about 40% of entries from selective state schools and about 22% of those from other state schools.

Clearing pressure

In response to the surge in applications to UK universities, the Westminster government recently announced partial funding for 10,000 extra places in "priority" subjects - predominantly sciences, engineering, technology and maths. There have been rises in numbers applying to most of these subjects, with the exception of chemistry. Those who do not achieve the grades needed for their degree offers can use the "clearing" system to search for an alternative available university place, but the pressure on places means fewer students will find a course this way this year. It is thought about 22,000 places will be available by this route - about half the number allocated through clearing last year. Oxford and Cambridge saw record applications for the next academic year - around 15,000 people applied for the 3,000 or so places on offer at each institution. Dr Wendy Piatt, Director General of the Russell Group of leading universities, told the Today programme on BBC Radio Four universities were facing pressure for places. "We are turning away candidates with not just three As but four As," she said. However, she added, universities strove to look at the whole candidate, not just their grades, and A-levels, although not perfect, were "on the whole, fit for purpose".

The Conservatives said ministers were to blame for the thousands of students who may miss out on a university place. Shadow education spokesman David Willetts said: "First, they cut the number of extra university places, then they told universities they could offer some new places after all but only on an unfunded basis, which many of them could not accept. "Now, they are still threatening the university sector with fines for over-recruitment. This is a recipe for disaster." Democrat spokesperson for universities, Stephen Williams, said students applying to study arts subjects would not benefit from the extra places announced. "The irony is that while a record number of students are likely to get the top grades, more young people than ever are going to be disappointed as they fail to get a place at university." Schools Minister Iain Wright said the government had expanded university education. "This is a day for celebration, not cynicism. "The entrance into university is always a competitive process. We've provided more resources, we've provided more money, which contrasts to the Conservatives point of view, which wouldn't provide a single additional place for university students. "There are 10,000 additional places in addition to the massive investment in higher education that we've provided over the last decade. I would say to students, don't give up hope, there is options available there."

More £5 notes for cash machines

A High Street bank in UK says it is stocking more £5 notes in cash machines in a pilot scheme to boost their numbers.  HSBC said that 100 of its cash machines in the Midlands and south west of England were being stocked with more fivers in a Bank of England trial.  While all UK cash machines must have the capacity to hold all denominations of notes, demand and efficiency means most only give out £10 and £20 notes. Latest figures show that £1.3bn worth of fivers are in circulation in the UK.

Crisis fears on university places

Fifty thousand more people have applied for university places in the UK this year, increasing fears that many will not get on a degree course. Figures just released by the admissions body Ucas show applications are up by 9.7% on this time last year. The Conservatives accuse the government of "sleepwalking into a crisis", as more young people try to avoid the recession by studying. Ministers say they are committed to expanding opportunities for the young. The new figures show that so far 592,312 people have applied to start undergraduate courses this autumn - compared with 540,108 at this time last year (up 9.7%).

Among those living in England, the figure rose by 10.1% (from 390,358 to 429,734). The Ucas figures are a snapshot of the picture of university applications, but do suggest an upward trend. The last figures released, in February, showed an 8% increase in applications year on year. In times of recession, university and college applications generally rise. The biggest increase was in applications from young people in European Union countries outside the UK . This figure rose by 15.4% across all age groups, with the largest increase among those aged 20 and under (17.9%). Earlier this year the Westminster government placed a cap of 10,000 on the number of extra student places it would fund this year, reduced from 15,000 because of a funding squeeze.

The Conservatives' spokesman on universities and skills, David Willetts, said: "Ministers are sleepwalking into a crisis in university applications. "Yesterday, [Higher Education Minister] David Lammy told the House of Commons there was nothing to worry about and the Prime Minister keeps telling us he is offering more opportunities to young people. "But today we have the hard evidence to show that tens of thousands of people who hoped to go on to higher education this year face a brick wall. "Young people are becoming the biggest victims of this recession. The number of young people not in education, employment or training is already at record levels and now we are on course to have a record number of young people refused a university place."

'Graduates needed'

There are reports that the government is working on a rescue plan, but officials are not commenting on that. The government has a target to get 50% of young people experiencing higher education. Higher Education Minister David Lammy said: "This government is committed to expanding opportunities for young people and supporting them through the recession. "The UK will need more graduates to win the highly skilled jobs of the future so it is encouraging to see that so many young people want to go to university. "There are record numbers of students currently in higher education - 300,000 more than in 1997. And this year we expect that there will be 40,000 more accepted applicants than just three years ago.  "Students who get the grades to meet their offer will secure a place at university this summer, but we will continue to work with the sector to support those who do not and to manage increased demand."

The National Union of Students (NUS) welcomed the rise in applications but said an urgent expansion of places was needed. NUS president Wes Streeting said: "Unless there is an urgent expansion of places, universities will be unable to meet this demand. We are therefore calling on the government to take immediate action to increase student numbers for the coming year. "Applicants of all ages are clearly making the correct assessment that it is better to invest now in their education and training." Liberal Democrats' spokesman Stephen Williams said: "Record numbers of youngsters will be disappointed this summer when they get their grades and still can't get a place at university, particularly as ministers have botched the funding for the additional places they promised to offer. "It is little wonder that so many school leavers want to carry on studying since, despite announcement after announcement promising them help, the government has left the vast majority facing a choice between that and the Jobcentre." The rise in applications comes as employers that recruit graduates are taking fewer this year. Meanwhile almost eight out of 10 secondary school pupils aim to go to university, a survey suggests. Research for the Sutton Trust found 77% of those aged 11 to 16 thought it likely they would go on to higher education, up from 72% in 2008.

Awesome Bolt breaks 200m record

Jamaican sprint superstar Usain Bolt claimed yet another world record as he recorded a stunning victory in the 200m final at the World Championships. Bolt set a time of 19.19 seconds to demolish the previous record of 19.30 he set in winning Olympic gold last summer in Beijing. The 22-year-old finished well clear of the field, with silver medallist Alonso Edward finishing in 19.81. Wallace Spearmon of the United States took bronze.

Higher and Standard Grade pass rates for Scottish pupils have reached record levels, the Scottish Qualifications Authority has confirmed. Nearly 160,000 school pupils across Scotland have been receiving their examination results. The numbers receiving the highest grades also went up. Universities Scotland said those with good grades would get a higher education place even though competition was likely to be steeper this year. Nearly 30,000 students have been receiving their grades by e-mail or text message. Certificates are being sent to 159,901 pupils this year, up from 158,627 in 2008. The Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) said the pass rate for those sitting Highers rose 0.8 percentage point to 74.2%. For Standard Grade pupils, 98.5% received a pass, up from 98% in 2008.

Was this man given a long rope to hang?

Prime Minister Raila Odinga is juggling three balls in the air and if he lets one fall, he could be political minced-meat for his rivals in the 2012 presidential election. He could be the proverbial politician who was given rope to hang himself and did not disappoint. - MORE

Candle use linked to cancer risk

Candle-lit dinners may be romantic, but researchers are warning they could be harmful to health. South Carolina State University experts analysed the fumes released by burning candles in lab tests. They found paraffin wax candles gave off harmful fumes linked to lung cancer and asthma - but admitted it would take many years' use to risk health. UK experts said smoking, obesity and alcohol were much more important in terms of cancer development. And even the researchers admitted occasional candle use was not something people should worry about too much.

A Kenyan lady has passed away in the UK. The late Mrs. Jacinta Ndaisi Mutinda passed away in a Liverpool Hospital on Monday 16th August, 2009 after a short illness. She was the loving wife to Ben Kiilu (St. Helens, Merseyside), sister to George Musyoki (London), Regina Muia and Mary Kamonthe (Australia),  Samuel Muia and Patrick Muia (Kenya) and the late Bernard Muia. Family and friends are meeting for prayers to offer support and consolation at this difficult time at 301 Mount Pleasant Avenue, St. Helens, WA9 2PU or 133 Farley Road, Catford, London, SE6 2AF. If you are not able to make it and wish to offer financial financial support, please use the bank account at Lloyds, Account No. 31491360, Sort Code 77-14-02, in the name of Mr. Benjamin M Kiilu. For more information contact Ben Kiilu - 0782 332 8465 or George Musyoki - 07747624298.

The late Mrs. Jacinta Ndaisi Mutinda

Mobile service provider Safaricom is considering share consolidation following shareholder complaints of meagre dividends. Safaricom chief executive Michael Joseph said the company is awaiting the outcome of a proposal it forwarded to its board to allow it contract a financial advisor to guide the process. We proposed to the board to give us a go ahead to reduce shares," said Mr Joseph during the firm’s first Annual General Meeting (AGM) on Wednesday 19th August, 2009. In the just concluded financial year, Safaricom — which registered more than Sh10 billion in profits — declared a Sh4 billion dividend to about 800, 000 shareholders translating to ten cents a share.

KPLC Staff caught stealing their employer

Mulika Mwizi is a KPLC slogan to help curb electricity theft in Kenya. A visit at Muthaiga Police station made my mind spin a little bit. Is a KPLC lorry full of stolen cables and very expensive transformers. Apparently it has been at the station for months. On getting a bit nosy, it was revealed to me by one officer who declined to be named that it was ended KPLC staff caught with the load. So someone had 'MULIKAD' them. Should we change the slogan to something else now that we know 'Nyani haoni k.......' I suggest TUNJIMULIKE!!!!!! - Story and Photoes by Karuga wa Njuguna, Nairobi

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APPRECIATION

THE LATE MISS TABITHA WANJIRU NJENGA aka MICHELLE

"My family and I wish to thank you all most sincerely for your support through prayers, spiritually, morally, financially and for attending the funeral service for my daughter Tabitha Michelle NJENGA in a big way.  I was deeply touched by your love, commitment and participation.   As I cannot be able to thank you all individually I pray that you accept my appreciation through this medium.    I continue to experience your support every day and my Anchor Holds Firmly in Christ Jesus who will help me  go through this STORM of life.
  
 To the youth and Shiro's most dear friends I convey my deepest thanks from the bottom of my heart.  I know you have lost one of yours but you all will be with her in spirits.  Her work on earth was done and she finished the race successfully to be with her Creator.
  
 God bless you all in a Mighty Way and may He continue to overflow your cups with love and joy."
  
 Mrs Elizabeth Njenga & Family.

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Student visas - provision for students with

International Baccalaureate qualifications

Home Office, 19 August 2009

It has come to our attention that students relying on International Baccalaureate qualifications awarded on 5 July 2009 will not be issued with a paper transcript giving their results, and will not receive their award certificates in time to apply for United Kingdom university courses starting in September this year. To enable these students to apply under Tier 4 of the points-based system, we have made urgent provision for students relying on an International Baccalaureate qualification. Where a sponsor has assessed a student on the basis of an International Baccalaureate award awarded on 5 July 2009, it must clearly explain in the student's confirmation of acceptance for studies/visa letter that it has confirmed the student's results using either the UCAS or International Baccalaureate Office online checking systems. If the Tier 4 sponsor has already issued the student's confirmation of acceptance for studies/visa letter, it must provide the student with a separate letter explaining that it has confirmed the student's results using either the UCAS or International Baccalaureate Office online checking systems. The student must include this letter with their Tier 4 application. When a student applies for their Tier 4 visa, they will need to provide a printout of their results from the UCAS or International Baccalaureate Office online checking service. Full details of the actions that students must take are included in a new addendum (Annex A) to the Tier 4 migrant guidance, which you can download from the right side of this page.

LEFT: As A-level results are due to be published, The Guardian estimates 50,000 students will miss out on university places. CENTRE: The Independent also looks at exam results, saying there is expected to be a rise in the number of A grades achieved. RIGHT: The Sun claims Michael Jackson's doctor Conrad Murray will be charged with the singer's manslaughter in the next few days.

The little boy stares at the ceiling then at his rotting feet, which lie lifeless as though abandoned by their owner. He does not know the hour, but he knows this is the day doctors at Malindi District Hospital are coming to end his pain. Well, sort of. - MORE

The California woman who gave birth to octuplets in USA

The California woman who gave birth to octuplets in January looks set to cash in on her nickname as the last of her eight babies comes home from the hospital.  Nadya Suleman apparently wants to trademark the name "Octomom" which has dominated headlines in the US for nearly three months. According to reports, the 33-year-old filed two applications with the US Patent and Trademark Office on April 10. The applications said the divorced, unemployed mother of 14 wants to put the Octomom name on TV shows, clothing and nappies. Speaking to radaronline.com at home with her babies, she said: "The reason I chose to do that is because I heard someone else did that in another state, Texas I think. "I have no idea why someone who has no association or even knows me would take that name. I never invented that name - everyone else did." She went on: "I was thrust into all of this without my awareness and without my willingness and now I feel almost like I have no choice but to do what I can to support the kids. "People in society labelled me that so I may as well take advantage of that to the benefit of my kids." The octuplets' birth on January 26 was initially heralded as a medical miracle but the public's fascination with Ms Suleman quickly soured as details of her life emerged. She was living with her other children at her parents' home and on government assistance when she became pregnant with the octuplets through in-vitro fertilisation. Ms Suleman also told radaronline.com she would consider making a documentary series following the octuplets until they are 18. "It would be a documentary style where they would just monitor and assess their growth and development from, like, this stage until they are maybe 18. I think that would be fascinating."

Diplomat's tour of duty in Nairobi 'is over'

Canada, Wednesday 19th August, 2009. The Canadian diplomat who officially disowned Suaad Hagi Mohamud as an "imposter" has been recalled from Kenya. Liliane Khadour has "concluded" her posting, a consular official at the Canadian High Commission said yesterday from the capital, Nairobi. "Her tour of duty is over," he said, explaining that Foreign Affairs employees rotate posts every two or three years, and Khadour had been in Nairobi for two. "I am not very sure where she went."  Although she owns a condominium apartment there with her partner, Jason Joyce, the two are staying at a downtown hotel. Both had been working at the commission in Nairobi as first secretaries. When reached by cellphone yesterday, Joyce hung up almost immediately. Neither answered the phone in their hotel room or returned messages. The Canada Border Services Agency has opened an internal investigation into the handling of Mohamud's case. The Somali-born Canadian citizen, an employee of an Etobicoke courier company, had been visiting her mother in Nairobi when she ran into trouble. On May 21, a Kenyan employee of KLM airlines challenged Mohamud's passport photo at the Nairobi departure gate as she was trying to board a flight home to Toronto and her 12-year-old son, she has said. Canadian consular officials interviewed her at the airport on May 22 and sided against her. On May 25, Mohamud appealed to the high commission to take her fingerprints. And on May 28, Khadour sent a letter to Kenyan authorities that sealed Mohamud's fate.  "Please be advised that we have carried out conclusive investigations including an interview," Khadour wrote, signing herself vice-consul, first secretary (consular). "

And (we) have confirmed that the person brought to the Canadian High Commission on suspicion of being an imposter is not the rightful holder of the aforementioned passport. "The Canadian High Commission is releasing the passport to your office for the purposes of prosecution," Khadour wrote to Michael Ojwang, director of Kenyan immigration services. The letter alleged Mohamud was carrying a passport not her own and was in Kenya illegally. These are serious charges that could have led to a Kenyan prison sentence or deportation to her native Somalia. Mohamud was arrested and held for eight days in a women's prison before friends were able to post her bail. But, it turns out, there was no conclusive Canadian investigation. Mohamud was no imposter.  And although it took her three months and a DNA test to prove her identity to Canadian consular officials and two federal departments, Mohamud was in fact the rightful holder of the Canadian passport she was carrying. Last Friday, after conclusive DNA results, the Kenyans dropped all charges against the 31-year-old single mother and the next day she returned to her son, Mohamed Hussein, and a hero's welcome at Pearson International Airport. Since then, she has been undergoing tests for a persistent cough and weight loss, symptoms that have nagged her since her eight-day stay in Nairobi's Langata Women's Prison in June.  Chest x-rays have ruled out any serious lung illness such as tuberculosis or pneumonia, her lawyer Raoul Boulakia has said. "She's extremely relieved to be in Canada and to be with her son," he said yesterday. Legal proceedings have begun in federal court to obtain Mohamud's disputed passport and case file, Boulakia said, adding the case is expected to be heard next month. Asked whether his client plans to sue, Boulakia said: "I'd like to see her get compensation. She deserves it ... but I'd rather see her not go to court."

Peter King, HSK trustee, organised a six-month unsupported bicycle rally to East Africa to raise awareness and funds for a school-building charity. It seems perverse that the most difficult and testing challenges often start life merely as innocent suggestions, made in conditions at the polar extreme to those of the adventure itself. In my case, I was sipping beer and listening to a discussion between the other trustees of the small Kenyan-focussed charity I had recently joined. I was struck by how competent they were and, desperate to find a niche, hit on a brainwave: that I would choose an activity that no one else would even want to try! The resulting statement – that I was thinking of cycling to Kenya – was said with blithe abandon. But damn them for remembering it in the morning. - MORE

Burnley   1 - 0   Man Utd

The 20,872-strong Turf Moor crowd salute their side's first top-flight win in 33 years

Burnley marked the return of top-flight football to Turf Moor after 33 years with a memorable win against Premier League champions Manchester United. Robbie Blake's explosive first-half volley crowned a night of high emotion as Burnley mixed passion with their trademark passing style to inflict defeat on Sir Alex Ferguson's side. Burnley keeper Brian Jensen matched Blake for heroics, saving Michael Carrick's penalty just before half-time and standing firm in the face of a predictable late siege from the champions. Owen Coyle's Premier League newcomers had a tough introduction to life back in the top tier with an opening day defeat at Stoke City - but they demonstrated that they were swift learners by matching Manchester United in all areas and providing the moments of inspiration to claim a deserved victory.

In pictures: Portraits of Darfur

Talk of hardship and poverty in Africa. Here drought is the order of the year and water and firewood is as rare as food. The boys have never seen a river - things we take for granted

These are images of a gang of youths who set a woman teacher's hair on fire with a lighter in an unprovoked attack on a train. CCTV cameras captured the moment the Swedish tourist was set alight on the service from Hastings to Charing Cross. The woman, who was on a school trip, was walking through the carriage when one of the youths held out a lighter and touched her hair. She only realised she was on fire when her students started screaming and she was able to pat out the flames. British Transport Police Inspector Gary Ancell, who is leading the inquiry, said the woman escaped injury but was "extremely distressed".  He said: "The victim was walking through the carriage at around 6.30pm when a youth held out a lighter as she passed. Her hair immediately caught alight and she only realised what had happened when she walked towards her students and saw them screaming and pointing to her hair. She was then able to pat the fire out."  He said police are searching for four youths, two of whom were thrown off the train by a conductor who found them hiding in a lavatory.

The Parliamentary Finance Committee is opposed to Government plans to buy a stake in the currency printing firm, De la Rue Currency and Security Print Ltd.  Committee chairman Chris Okemo told Finance Minister Uhuru Kenyatta in Parliament they are not convinced "that is the way to go" and wondered why Government was eager to buy into a multinational it has been doing business with. Okemo urged the Government to shelve the deal because De la Rue, which has maintained a stranglehold over currency printing contracts, is still subject of a Parliamentary inquiry and the report is yet to be tabled in the House. Further, the committee is concerned that the Government intends to acquire equity in the private company yet the firm’s equipment "is not capable of producing new generation currency notes," according to a report prepared by the committee. De la Rue signed a three-year contract with the Central Bank in May last year to print 1.7 billion new bank notes at a cost of Sh3.9 billion ($51.2 million) but they are yet to deliver although part of the payment had been made. Mr Okemo told the House during scrutiny of the Treasury’s Sh43 billion budget that what the Government was doing was curious and opposite of its own privatisation policy. "We will, however, engage the minister on the way forward," the Nambale MP said.

Lucrative venture

The Government is reportedly in secret negotiations with De La Rue to buy 25 per cent stake in the company in a deal the Cabinet is said to have recently sanctioned after passing a paper tabled by the Treasury.  It is feared the deal could further tighten De La Rue’s dominance of the lucrative venture since it is bound to lock out competition by other players in future currency contracts.  Joint ventures with European multinationals and of the type the Government is contemplating with De La Rue were popular in Kenya and many African countries in the 1960s and 1970s. But they ceased to be in vogue after Kenya adopted the policy of privatisation and when it became apparent such arrangements merely served the interest of private contractors by allowing them to secure privileges from the State, gaining unfair advantage. At the same time, Isiolo South MP Abdul Bahari urged the Treasury to abolish a directive that prompted ministries to engage in rush procurements to beat a deadline at the end of the financial year. Bahari said the spending spree by ministries so that they spend funds allocated to them lest they are returned to Treasury meant Government did not get value for money. He, however, lauded the minister for cracking the whip on Capital Markets Authority to ensure the financial markets regulator effectively discharges its duties. - The Standard.

"Nimekuja kutafutia watoto wangu chakula"

Mrs. Ann Chege of New Hope Orphans Home in Kenya is in London. Mrs. Chege arrived in London on Tuesday 18th August, 2009. She will be in the UK for the next one month looking for funds to feed her 120 orphans children in her care. With the current drought and economical difficulties in Kenya, the mother of 120 needs to do more to feed her children. Feeding, educating and housing 120 children is not easy at this time. Some of the children are now in the University, secondary school, primary school and some have not yet gone to school. Talking to Mr. Seed on her arrival in London Mrs. Chege had this to say jokingly: "Nimekuja kutafutia watoto wangu chakula. Wambie Wakenya hapa UK wanipatie chakula nipelekee watoto wangu." Her contact while in the UK is 07947883505 or email: newhopechildren@mail.com - For more information please visit www.newhopechildrenscentre.org

Lucky to be alive

His 40th day arrived this afternoon behind OTC downtown Nairobi. Robbers on a mission shot at the police on Gwassi road. One of the officers was hit on the leg. A member of the public who was on delivery was also caught by a stray bullet and got injured on the nose. One of the robbers was shot several times and died instantly. The motive of where they intended to rob was not clear. However he is known by Kamukunji police as ''Jicho Moja'. He was said to be a known criminal. The area is known to be very safe. Nowadays is very hard to get away with anything in Nairobi. - Photo and story by Karuga wa Njuguna, Nairobi, Kenya, Tuesday 18th August, 2009.

Suspected crime cash is seized at Birmingham airport

Home, Office, 18 August 2009

Officers from the UK Border Agency at Birmingham International Airport have seized £92,000 in cash believed to be the proceeds of crime. Seven separate seizures, ranging from £8,500 to £28,000, were made over a two-week period as eight men and one woman of various nationalities tried to take the cash out of the United Kingdom. The seizures were made under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002. Following court orders, the money is being held for three months while HM Revenue & Customs officers carry out investigations into the seizures. It will be confiscated and returned to the public purse if it is shown to be associated with criminal activity.

Adrian Farley, assistant director of criminal investigation for HM Revenue & Customs, said:

'Cash is only seized if there are reasonable grounds to suspect it is the proceeds of, or is intended for use in, illegal activities. The Proceeds of Crime Act was specifically designed to take the profit out of crime, making it harder for money to be laundered and depriving criminals of their illicit wealth. It is a vital element of our criminal investigation strategy.'

At about 5.00pm on Mombasa road heading to JKIA,A small pickup from Libra house interchange was hit from behind by a matatu limping off the pick up load cabin. It's load was all over the place. The cabin hit the rear of the bus leaving it with a big dent. The matatu however stopped a distance away. No one was injured from all the three vehicles involved but seemed like the pickup never took the acceleration lane first. - Photo and story by Karuga wa Njuguna, Nairobi, Kenya, Tuesday 18th August, 2009.

The Governor of the Bank of England, Mervyn King, wanted to pump more money into the UK economy this month but was outvoted by fellow policymakers. Minutes of the bank's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting on 6 August reveal that Mr King wanted £75bn rather than the £50bn that was injected. Two fellow committee members also voted for a bigger cash injection. The decision to pump £50bn came as a surprise, and was already twice the £25bn that the market expected. The bank originally set aside £150bn for this policy, but the decision to inject an extra £50bn took the total to £175bn. The governor, backed by Tim Besley and David Miles, voted instead for a £75bn expansion. They argued that too little stimulation would mean inflation remaining below its target of 2% for "a sustained period of time... and might harm public confidence in the recovery, causing it to falter". They added that if £75bn proved to be too much, they could reverse the policy, by selling assets, and increase interest rates.

The Independent says "scores" of state schools are ditching the teaching of traditional subjects at A-level in order to boost academic results and on right NHS negligence payouts have risen by 22% in a year to £807m, reports the Metro, which cites "ambulance chaser lawyers" as the cause for the sharp rise.

NHS negligence payouts have risen by 22% in a year to £807m, reports the Metro, which cites "ambulance chaser lawyers" as the cause for the sharp rise and on right The Independent says "scores" of state schools are ditching the teaching of traditional subjects at A-level in order to boost academic results. 'Ambulance chaser' lawyers in UK have pushed NHS payouts for negligence up 22 per cent in a year to a record £807million, it has emerged. There were 8,885 clinical and non-clinical claims brought against the service in 2008/09 – a rise of more than a fifth on the previous year. The £807million would pay for 25,000 heart transplants, 150,000 hip replacements or build five small hospitals. Susie Squire, of the TaxPayers' Alliance, said: 'While it is important that cases of medical malpractice are dealt with, too much of this money will inevitably in the hands of ambulance chasers. Every penny that goes to the compensation culture could be going into health care.' While only one in 25 of the 8,885 cases went to court, the service's costs to deal with payouts and legal fees has risen by more than £200million in just two years. The NHS spent £613million in compensation payouts in 2006/07 and £661million in 2007/08. Its total budget for 2008/09 was £94billion. The National Health Service Litigation Authority, which detailed the payouts in its annual report today, said: 'The costs claimed by claimant lawyers continue to be significantly higher than those incurred on our behalf by our panel defence solicitors. This remains a very significant concern.' Shadow health minister Mark Simmonds said the government should have backed its proposals when the NHS Redress Bill was debated three years ago. They would have allowed more cases to be resolved without litigation, he added. Nigel Edwards of the NHS Confederation, which covers the service's organisations, said: 'The NHS has got much better at dealing with these cases but there is much more to do, starting with making sure these things never happen in the first place.'

Kibaki, Raila come face to face with starvation reality

Prime Minister Raila Odinga (in cap) and President Kibaki (behind the PM) distribute food in Marsabit on Tuesday. They reassured wananchi that all resources would be used to ensure that nobody starved. More than 500,000 children in Kenya have been pushed out of school, largely by the biting food shortage, according to a new report. The number of out-of-school children stands at two million, up from 1.5 million, says a group of local non-profit organisations engaged in education. In a report obtained on Tuesday, the Elimu Yetu Coalition said the rise in drop-out rates posed a major threat to the free learning programme. The introduction of the programme in 2003 saw a rise in enrolment from 5.9 million pupils to 8.3 million last year. Worst affected are children in urban slums and arid and semi-arid lands. The findings come less than a month after the government announced it would allow over 2.5 million children in famine-hit areas to remain in schools during the August holidays to be fed under the School Feeding Programme. On right photo Mrs Anna Apodo is a study in hunger and resilience in Kamenya, Rangwe constituency.- Daily Nation.

A Bed That Makes Itself

Here's a must have bed for all those that never have time to make their beds in the mornings. This might look like a normal bed, but it does have the added bonus that you do not actually have to make it. With just the push of a button this machine neatens up your bed, pulling the duvet up and straightening it out. The only negative is that by the time it has finished you might have already fallen asleep again!

US prosecutors have charged a man with stealing data relating to 130 million credit and debit cards. Officials say it is the biggest case of identity theft in American history. They say Albert Gonzalez, 28, and two un-named Russian co-conspirators hacked into the payment systems of retailers, including the 7-Eleven chain. Prosecutors say they aimed to sell the data on. If convicted, Mr Gonzalez faces up to 20 years in jail for wire fraud and five years for conspiracy. He would also have to pay a fine of $250,000 (£150,000) for each of the two charges. Mr Gonzalez used a technique known as an "SQL injection attack" to access the databases and steal information, the US Department of Justice (DoJ) said. Edward Wilding, a fraud investigator, told the BBC that this method was "a pretty standard way" for fraudsters to try to access personal data. It "exploits any vulnerability in a firewall and inserts a code to gather information," he explained. However, he added that this case probably "involved extremely well researched, especially configured codes, not standard attack codes downloaded from the internet".

Mr Wilding said that chip-and-pin did provide some protection against SQL attacks, but there was little consumers could do to protect themselves against this kind of fraud. "The real vulnerability, I suspect, is internet and telephone transactions. But this is a failure in the configuration of [corporate] firewalls," he said. Mr Gonzales' corporate victims included Heartland Payment Systems - a card payment processor - convenience store 7-Eleven and Hannaford Brothers, a supermarket chain, the DoJ said. According to the indictment, the group researched the credit and debit card systems used by their victims, attacked their networks and sent the data to computer servers they operated in California, Illinois, Latvia, the Netherlands and Ukraine. The data could then be sold on, enabling others to make fraudulent purchases, it said. Mr Gonzalez, who had once been an informant for the US Secret Service helping to track hackers, is already in custody on separate charges of hacking into the computer systems of a national restaurant chain and eight major retailers, including TJ Maxx, involving the theft of data related to 40 million credit cards. Mr Gonzales is scheduled to go on trial for these charges in 2010. This latest case will raise fresh concerns about the security of credit and debit cards used in the United States, the BBC's Greg Wood reports.

A Kenya lady passed away in a Liverpool Hospital, UK on Monday 16th August, 2009. More information later.

Lawless Kenya! As usual we are waiting for many more to die before we act. Only a few hv licenses. Who will force them wear crash helmets as required by the law? Hon Makwere clean up this mess! - Photo by Karuga wa Njuguna

UK inflation rate stays at 1.8%

A key measure of inflation in the UK has unexpectedly remained at 1.8%. Economists had expected the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) to decline to 1.5% in July. The Retail Prices Index (RPI) inflation measure, which includes mortgage interest payments, also unexpectedly rose to -1.4%, from -1.6%. The RPI rate has fallen sharply over the past year as the Bank of England slashed interest rates to a record low amid a recession. The figures suggest that inflationary pressures on the economy may be easing. Prices of recreational devices, such as computer games, DVDs and CDs, rose the most in the month, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). There was also upward pressure from furniture prices because of less aggressive discounting in the July sales. The chief downward impact on prices came from food and non-alcoholic drink prices. The drop to 1.8% in June was the first time in two years that CPI rate - the government's preferred measure of inflation - fell below the Bank of England's 2% target rate. The Bank aims to keep inflation at 2% to maintain price stability and more broadly, economic stability. The RPI in June fell to its lowest since the records started in 1948, according to the Office for National Statistics. Among other things, the RPI should mean lower season ticket prices for trains next year. Annual rail fare rises are pegged to the RPI figure in July of the prior year, plus 1%. Last July, the RPI was 5%, meaning that rail prices this year rose by 6%.

Kenya at risk of losing lions

Kenya Wildlife Service has warned that Kenya might lose all its lion population in the next 20 years. KWS says if the current rate of decline continues unabated, and unless urgent and decisive measures are taken the lions could be extinct in just two decades. In a statement, KWS says the national lion population has been reducing by an average of 100 per year for the last seven years due to a combination of factors, including human wildlife conflict, destruction of habitats due to the increase in human population that encroaches on its habitat, climate change and disease. The population of lions is said to have dropped from an estimated 2749 in the year 2002 through 2,280 in 2004 to the current 2000 individuals. To reverse this disturbing trend, Kenya Wildlife Service has taken a number of measures including monitoring lion movements, creating public awareness and drafting of a comprehensive national lion conservation and management strategy which is set for launching next month. The new strategy will guide efforts geared towards conserving lions in the long-term and prescribes actions that need to be taken by various stakeholders coordinated by KWS to reverse the declining national population. Lions have a special place in Kenyans' livelihood and conservation efforts. Other than being the symbol for national strength, they are among the Big Five, a major attraction for tourists to Kenya. "The trend of lion population decline is disturbing and every effort needs to be made to ensure that Kenya either stabilizes its population at the current population of 2000 lions or increases the numbers to an ecologically acceptable level" said Paul Udoto the Corporate Communications Manager at KWS.

A scenery from the land of "Hakuna matata"

London, Tuesday 18th August, 2009. Students starting university this autumn could graduate with debts of up to £23,500, it has been warned. The average undergraduate will rack up debts of £5,000 in each year of study, while others will borrow far more to pay for necessities such as tuition fees and living expenses. And experts warned the recession and rising tuition fees would further increase the level of debt next year. With over £23,000 of debt and graduate employment opportunities at an all-time low, we find it astonishing universities continue to demand ever higher fees,' said Wes Streeting, president of the National Union of Students. 'We are in danger of condemning an entire generation to a lifetime of debt.' Last year, the estimated maximum debt for university-leavers was £17,500 – or an average of £4,500 a year. But as fees rise to £3,225 a year and the recession continues to bite, both figures have jumped dramatically. Of this year's £5,000-a-year figure, 78 per cent will be owed to the Student Loans Company, ten per cent to banks, eight per cent to parents and two per cent to credit card companies. University guide Push.co.uk, which compiled the study, questioned whether students could now be asked to 'stump up any more towards their education'.

CHINA: How does he do that? A monk tries out some kung fu moves at the Shaolin Temple on the Songshan Mountain in Dengfeng, Henan Province.

Climate change has hit Kenya with a vengeance. The food situation remains worrying for marginal agricultural, agro-pastoralist, pastoralist and urban livelihoods. The Government is in panic mode and is fire fighting on one hand while seeking at least Sh37 billion to feed hungry mouths. The state of the nation according to Prime Minister Raila Odinga is bad. "We have a worrying situation and forecasts in these areas are grim. The Gods are not to blame. We are paying the price for decades of wanton destruction of the environment, which has seen our forest cover decline from 12 per cent at independence to about 1.2 per cent." "Our national assessment is that 10 million people are food insecure and require emergency support. These people will not be able to meet their minimum food requirements if emergency measures are not taken," President Kibaki said earlier in the year.

Seasons of failed rains since 2007 culminated in near crop failure. The number of Kenyans threatened by food insecurity is on the rise but leaders are busy politicking. Raila argues, "We have abused our water towers, slashed and burnt our forests and farmed in river basins. From Mt Kenya, to the Aberdares, Mau, Cherangani to Mt Elgon, all water towers are threatened by human encroachment." More than 28 Kenyans have died in conflicts related to resources like food and water. Elsewhere people resort to coping strategies such as eating wild foods to survive while the rich have too much on their plates and fridges.  Cattle carcasses are strewn across marginal districts and those of wild animals litter sanctuaries. The truth is that the country did not harvest enough food.  "In a good year, we harvest 28 million bags of maize. This year, we hope to get 20 million. Our national consumption is 33 million bags. We have near total crop failure in Lower Eastern where the expected food production has been downgraded by 40 per cent. Instead of 1.3 million bags, we expect 800,000 bags," Raila says.

Agriculture Minister William Ruto says the Government is moving fast towards irrigation farming as a long-term solution. "We aim to irrigate one million acres in the next five years. In the next two months, we will put about 35,000 acres of land under irrigated maize and rice." Ruto said. In the long-term measures, Ruto says agricultural extension; research programmes are on the way and the investment plan is about Sh16.7 billion in the next 3-5 years. But analysts decry the poor planning by Government. Former Finance Minister Chris Okemo says Kenya’s problem is an accumulation of failed policies over time. "The problems are not new. Energy shortage occurs annually and we refuse to have affirmative action." "Kenya is not the only country affected by drought. Many others are, but their wise plans help them. The solution lies on improved budgetary allocation for agriculture and investing in infrastructure." Okemo said. Economist Mr Osano Kute says, "Even the military and National Youth Service interventions will not yield much. The army would have made a difference if they drilled boreholes and supplied ready to eat food." Kute says strategies have not been implemented over time making the situation worse.

"Government interventions are reactionary. To ensure food security, after Mau, we must repossess Agricultural Development Corporation and Kenya Agricultural Research Institute farms."  The situation has not spared Kenya’s wild heritage. At least 28 elephants have died of malnutrition. and scores of antelopes have no food.  USaid and World Food Programme (WFP) estimate that about 15 per cent of IDPs remaining in camps are likely to remain food insecure through next month, having lost virtually all their productive assets, homes, and in some cases family members, and have little or no access to their farms.  Resettlement efforts have been hampered by lack of funds and ongoing tensions, rendering it improbable that households in either category are likely to achieve pre-election production levels in the near future.  USaid and WFP project that the likely scenario between July and September suggests that food insecurity will be felt in marginal agricultural areas, as little crop will be harvested, following the poor season. However, the new EMOP has been expanded to cover up to 30 per cent of the population in drought-hit areas, thus minimising the likelihood that food security will deteriorate to emergency status. WFP says high food prices will also moderate local improvements in pastoral terms of trade. Poor urban households are likely to remain highly food insecure through next month because the most important harvest gets into the market from October onward; food prices will remain high unless large-scale food imports are undertaken.  The Government has unveiled a stimulus package to reduce reliance on rain-fed agriculture and enhance food production.

Finance Minister Uhuru Kenyatta said the move would mark the beginning of a journey to attain food security. The new measures would focus on mechanisation, irrigation, use of hybrid seeds and water harvesting. Part of the plan is establishing efficient storage and marketing systems and application of scientific farming methods. As a first step, the Government has allocated substantial resources to ministries responsible for agriculture, irrigation and regional development. In addition, it allocated Sh3 billion toward rehabilitation and expansion of irrigable land under Bura, Hola, Tarda, Wei Wei and Kerio Valley. Uhuru says from the investments, the Government expects to harvest about one million bags of rice and maize by the end of December this year. "As we scale up resources toward irrigable agriculture, we are confident this great nation will emerge as a net exporter of food by 2012," he said. Agriculture is the mainstay of the country’s economy and represents 24 per cent of Gross Domestic Product and about one third of its produce is exported. But interestingly the budgetary allocation to Agriculture remains small compared to what is pumped in the military. Agriculture production recorded a significant drop, declining by 5.1 per cent last year compared to a two per cent in 2007. Analysts say unless intensive measures on irrigation are extended, there will be perennial food shortage. - The Standard.

WHAT SOME OF THE UK'S PAPER SAY ON TUESDAY 18TH AUGUST, 2009

LEFT: The Daily Express says a think-tank's report has revealed unemployment figures are considerably higher than the number quoted by the Government. CENTRE: A Tunisian teacher in her 30s is expected to give birth to 12 children, reports the Metro, after undergoing fertility treatment following two miscarriages. RIGHT: A dramatic fall in stocks in the Asian and European markets has the Financial Times questioning the strength of the economic recovery.

Trade Minister Amos Kimunya’s bodyguard was shot dead in Nairobi’s Lang’ata Road. The administration policeman was shot at an unknown place but drove up to Mbagathi/Lang’ata Rd roundabout where he crashed and died on Saturday night. His gun was found in the car’s backseat and an examination on it showed it had fired at least five times, an indication he tried to shoot back. Police investigating the incident say it is, however, not clear where the senior sergeant of police was shot or was involved in the shootout if any. The officer who is also the minister’s driver was also in charge of a team of officers who guard Mr Kimunya and his family. His colleagues say he was off duty at the time of his death.

A lucky shopper had a narrow escape when a driver lost control and smashed into the kiosk of a petrol station – missing him by inches. Dave Hurrell, was buying a sandwich on his way home from a concert when he saw the car manage to avoid the pumps before crashing through the shop window. The vehicle missed him but he was thrown to the floor by the impact. Mr Hurrell, 42, was left lying face-down on the floor with a freezer on top of him, surrounded by snacks and debris. 'I just got up and checked that I had the right number of arms and legs,' he said. The driver, who was not over the drink-drive limit, and two passengers escaped unhurt from the crash in South Brent, Devon, on Saturday.

Identity fraudster jailed

Home Office, 13 August 2009

A woman from Nigeria, arrested at Birmingham International Airport, has been sentenced to 12 months' imprisonment for using a false passport to try to leave the United Kingdom. Patience Ikhayere, 27, was arrested on 26 May after she tried to board a flight to Toronto. Airline check-in staff were suspicious of her identity and alerted the UK Border Agency. Ikhayere admitted that she had travelled from Nigeria to Dublin and on to Birmingham using a false Spanish passport. A specialist team of the UK Border Agency's foreign national crime officers matched Ikhayere's fingerprints to her true Nigerian identity. She was charged with two offences of facilitating a breach of immigration law and possession of a false identity document. Ikhayere pleaded guilty to both offences at Warwick Crown Court on 11 August and was sentenced to 12 months, to run concurrently. The judge also recommended that she be deported when she completes her sentence. UK Border Agency regional director Gill Adams said:

'We will not tolerate immigration abuse and will punish those who break the immigration laws. This case shows how effective identity cards will be in preventing immigration abuse. Individuals will be locked down to one identity through their facial image and fingerprints.

'Identity cards for foreign nationals will help us stop people illegally accessing benefits, and make it easier than ever to crack down on illegal working.'

The jailing of Ikhayere follows the recent opening of the UK Border Agency's new hi-tech centre in Birmingham for issuing identity cards to foreign nationals. Many categories of foreign national who want to stay in the United Kingdom must now have their facial images and fingerprints recorded at our biometric enrolment centres, before being issued with identity cards. The new identity cards are safe and secure. They contain a highly secure, embedded chip which is protected by a secure encryption technique. The card has security features which will make it very hard to forge. The UK Border Agency is planning to speed up the introduction of compulsory identity cards for foreign nationals, and will be making an announcement about this in the coming weeks. Within three years, we expect to be issuing more than one million identity cards for foreign nationals per year.

Father dies as his first son is born

A father-to-be dropped dead at his fianceé's hospital bedside as she went into labour – and just hours later she gave birth to their first child. Dave Robertson collapsed in the maternity ward shortly after rushing to be with partner Sharon Phillips, who was being induced. She gave birth to a baby boy named Sam, weighing just over 9lbs, ten hours after he died in the Great Western Hospital, Swindon.

The first case of the dreaded H1N1 flu virus has been reported in Nyeri from a six year old standard one girl. The girl, who is still at home, was taken to the Nyeri Provincial general hospital last month as an outpatient suffering from flu-like symptoms and was treated and went home. The hospital's deputy Nursing officer, Mrs. Ann Wachira, said that specimen from the girl was taken for screening of the virus as it was mandatory procedure for all patients with similar symptoms since the first case was reported in the country. Mrs. Wachira said that she received a call Tuesday from the Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI) where the specimen was taken confirming that it was the virus. She said that a surveillance team from the hospital, led by Nyeri Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Peter Munyua, had been dispatched to the girl's home area in Thunguma on the outskirts of Nyeri town to determine and take specimens of all persons that might have come into contact with the girl. "There could be a possibility that other people might have contracted the virus since the patient has been interacting with members of the public and family members since she developed the symptoms," Mrs. Wachira explained. She said that the girl, who was brought to the hospital about two weeks ago by a parent suffering from malaria like symptoms, was given antibiotics and paracetamol and seems to be well adding that she was still at home. Mrs. Wachira, however, urged the public not to panic saying that the hospital was ready and fully equipped to handle any case of the infection detected in the area. - Daily Nation.

Japan has come out of recession after its economy grew by 0.9% in the April-to-June quarter. The growth comes after four consecutive quarters of contraction. Correspondents say that the rise is due to a huge government stimulus package and it is unclear whether the momentum will be sustained. Recent figures show other economies coming out of recession, including Germany, France and Hong Kong, a sign the global slowdown is easing. Despite Japan exiting recession, the country's main share index, the Nikkei, fell back as the rate of growth was not as large as analysts had hoped. If Japan's latest quarterly rate were maintained for a full year, the economy would grow 3.7%, but this was less than market expectations of 3.9%. The Nikkei ended down 329 points or 3.1% to 10,269. Japan officially fell into recession last year and there was a dramatic fall in growth in January-March as the world economic slowdown hit Japanese exports hard. Massive government stimulus measures helped to boost the economy, including cash handouts and subsidies to buy energy efficient cars and home appliances, the BBC's Roland Buerk in Tokyo says. Manufacturers also benefited from recovering demand in China and other markets. But Japan could still face a long road to sustainable recovery, our correspondent says.

Junko Nishioka, chief economist at RBS securities, told Reuters the latest figure was "very good". "The positive contribution of public spending is likely to continue, so I don't think there will be a return to [contraction], as feared by some," the economist added. Japan is heavily reliant on its exports. The slowdown in the US has hit it hard as American consumers have limited their spending. In a recent Bank of Japan report, the central bank underlined its cautious view of the economy. While it said conditions in the Japanese economy had stopped worsening, it warned that unemployment would stay high and consumer spending low. Last month, the bank forecast that Japan's economy would shrink by 3.4% in the 12 months to 31 March 2010. The French and German economies both grew by 0.3% between April and June, bringing to an end recessions in Europe's largest economies that have lasted a year. Analysts had not expected the data, suggesting recovery could be faster than previously expected. And Hong Kong recorded growth of 3.3% in the three months from April to June. That data was also better than had been expected, with the government subsequently increasing its forecast for growth in the whole year.

UK set for tropical weather this week

Get your fans ready – muggy weather is set to descend over the next few days with temperatures in the south hitting an uncomfortable 29ºC (84ºF). Most of England and Wales will enjoy fine and warm weather until rain pushes in from the west on Wednesday. Cooler weather will dominate north of the border, with temperatures in Edinburgh struggling to reach 20ºC (68ºF). And cricket fans hoping for blue skies for the fifth and final Ashes Test at The Oval in London may be disappointed – heavy showers are predicted along with temperatures of 25ºC (77ºF). 'It is tending to look a little more unsettled for the weekend but in the south there will still be some fine weather,' said a Met Office spokesman. Asked if the barbecue summer was back, a suitably cautious Met Office said: 'It's too early to say.'

Seven die in Kiambu accident

Nairobi, Monday 17th August, 2009. Seven people died in a grisly road accident along the Kiambu- Githunguri road when a mini- bus lost control, over-turned and rolled several times down a valley. Four of the victims died on the spot while the rest succumbed to their injuries on arrival at hospital. Twenty-two passengers were rushed to Kiambu District Hospital where the three were pronounced dead. The passengers coming from a Christian choir competition are said to have been in high spirits which was however cut short by the accident.The driver of the bus suspected to have been drunk, was speeding and the vehicle lost control, rolling several times down the valley. Passers by attempted to rescue the passengers and rush them to Kiambu hospital. A nursing officer at the hospital said that of the twenty-two patients rushed to hospitals, many had been discharged since they only suffered from minor injuries. Four of those seriously injured are said to be out of danger. Residents in the area say, the spot has turned into a danger zone as four other grisly accidents have occurred there in the last one-month and are now asking the government to take preventive measures to curb the wanton deaths.

Berlin 2009 - Bolt smashes 100m world record

Jamaican Usain Bolt smashed his own 100 metres world record with a scintillating time of 9.58 seconds to win gold at the World Athletics Championship in Berlin. The performance beat the 9.69 mark he set winning gold at last year's Beijing Olympics and took the race into a time zone undreamed of before his arrival on the scene. American Tyson Gay, the 2007 world champion, finished second in 9.71, the second-fastest time before the raxe and Jamaican Asafa Powell claimed bronze in 9.84. "It's a great time but I felt good in myself," Bolt told the BBC. "I knew it wasn't going to be an easy race but I did what I had to do." Bolt, who false-started in the semi-final, made a flying getaway in the final and was clear by 20 metres. He crossed the line watching the clock before blowing kisses to the crowd, hugging his friend Powell and completing a lap of honour roared on by some 70,000 cheering fans in the Olympic stadium. - VIDEO

The economy of Hong Kong has emerged from recession, posting growth of 3.3% in the three months from April to June. The seasonally adjusted figures were better than had been expected and the government has raised its forecast for growth in the whole year. It followed the emergence from recession of Singapore, which grew an annualised 20.7% in the second quarter. Hong Kong's growth was negative for four consecutive quarters, starting in the second quarter of 2008. The growth of 3.3% compares with a revised contraction of 4.3% for the first three months of 2009.

One in five teenagers receiving their GCSE results next week could be receiving unemployment benefit by the time they are 21, a report says. Those leaving with no qualifications are twice as likely to sign on as those with qualifications, the report adds. The Prince's Trust and Sheffield University base their predictions on trends seen during previous recessions. Their study suggests current 18 to 25 year olds could be the hardest hit in that age group since the 1929 crash. Figures released on Wednesday showed 2,435,000 people were out of work. The government said it was investing billions of pounds to give youngsters training and work opportunities. The Prince's Trust report was compiled by professor of human geography at Sheffield University, Danny Dorling, who said that if the current recession played out like those of the 1970s, 80s and 90s, the UK could see mass levels of youth unemployment.

UFO is caught on camera at family’s BBQ

A photographer has captured a UFO on snaps she took at a family barbecue.  Sue Sill didn't notice the strange object lingering in the back of the photos until she looked at the pictures. 'It was either moving extremely fast and I was just lucky to catch it, or it was invisible,' said the 51-year-old keen snapper, from Hudders-field. No one else saw it either and it made no sound. I can't explain it.' The MoD said it would try to identify the object only if there was a 'potential threat'.

Nairobi, Sunday 16th August, 2009. A Canadian woman, stranded in Kenya for three months because officials said she did not resemble her passport photo, has arrived home in Toronto. Suaad Mohamud was prevented in May from returning from a two-week holiday. Canadian consular officials accused her of being an imposter, voided her passport and asked Kenyan officials to prosecute her. The results of a DNA test finally proved her identity, clearing the way for her return to Canada. Family members and a throng of reporters were waiting for Suaad Hagi Mohamud as she arrived back in Canada. The lawyer for the the 31-year-old Somalian-born Canadian woman said that she intended to sue the governments of Canada and Kenya for their alleged roles in her detention. Ms Mohamud's ordeal began in May when she tried to leave Kenya after visiting her mother there. Kenyan officials said that her face did not match her passport photo. Canadian consular staff in Nairobi maintained that she was not who she claimed to be, even when Ms Mohamud handed over several other forms of identification. It was not until a DNA test confirmed her identity on Monday that Canadian officials prepared emergency travel documents so that she could return to Toronto. Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper has promised a review of the case. But opposition politicians and other critics say Suaad Mohamad's case raises serious questions about the willingness of Canadian officials to protect their citizens who get into difficulties abroad.

Suaad Hagi Mohamud intends to sue the governments of Canada and Kenya for their alleged roles in her detention

New telephone mobile technology has arrived in Kenya. A mobile phone with a in-built solar charger from China. There are about 17 million mobile phones in Kenya.

Despite the water rationing in the city there was a pipe burst on Kiambu road at 11 am Saturday  morning 15th August, 2009. It seemed like someone was trying to reach the main line for some connection due to the dug out heap of soil at the burst itself knowing very well it was illegal. No one was at the vicinity to explain what happened. Brentwood inn near by was flooded and workers were busy opening drainage for this unwelcome visitor. Photo by Karuga wa Njuguna, Nairobi.

This is to let you know that Lucy Wanjiku Themba of Bristol, UK, has lost her father Mr. THEMBA MUGUTI in Kenya.  Mr. Themba was husband to TABITHA WANJA, and father to Lucy Wairimu Mbugua (of Makuyu), Susan Mungai (KARI, NARL), John Muguti (Galsheet, Kenya), Lucy (Bristol, UK), Jane Muthoni (KARI), Ann Wanjiru (Karatina, Gitunduti), Paul Murigi (Sabasaba), George Chege (Makuyu) and Loise Waithira (Makuyu).  For further information, contact Lucy (07852687369).

Dropping in the Jaws of a crocodiles

Life is in God's hands. There situations in life you need God's intervention

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HOLIDAY LETTING HOME WHILE IN KENYA

The House is a 4-bedrooms one ensuite furnished stands on secure compound with a stone wall, its in Thika Happy Valley Estate along Garrisa road next to Kenya Army barracks. Its being offered for short term stay tenants at a daily rate of £20 and we are offering car hire services. This facility solves a accommodation problems for families with children and people travelling in a group, the surrounding is peaceful and shopping convenient at the Parkjel Plaza supermarket.  Contact in Kenya 0725-344-001, email peterrock@gmail.com

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Detectives hunting the Mayfair jewel raiders in London have offered a massive £1million reward for information on what was Britain's biggest gems heist.  The officer investigating the raid said they would offer up to the seven figure sum in a bid to catch the thieves. Detective Chief Inspector Pam Mace, head of Barnes Flying Squad, said: "I think this is the biggest reward that has ever been offered for a crime of this type." reward, of up to £1 million, for information leading to the identification, arrest and prosecution of those responsible and the recovery of the stolen property is being offered by Tyler and Company on behalf of interested insurers.

Kenya Airways workers call off strike

Nairobi, Kenya Aug 16- Kenya Airways workers have finally called off their three-day strike after their union accepted a 20 percent pay increase that will be spread over a two-year period. The Secretary General of the Aviation and Allied Workers (AAWU) Union Jimmy Masege said the strike ended following intense negotiations that went on into the night on Saturday 15th August, 2009. "I ask all employees to co-operate and work hard to make up for lost time. Whatever has happened should be a lesson for the management and the union that we need to work closely," he said at a news conference.

The Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) Renal unit has resumed normal operations after a two day breakdown of the Reversal Osmosis Equipment.  KNH Chief Public Relations Officer Simon Ithai told Capital News on Sunday that 13 renal machines were now in operation and normal services for patients resumed on Saturday evening.

Nairobi, Saturday 15th August, 2009. Many flights from Kenya's main airport have been grounded as workers from the national airline go on strike, leaving passengers stranded in Nairobi. The main aviation union called the industrial action after talks with the management of Kenya Airways failed to resolve a dispute over pay. A BBC reporter says police have released four top union members who were arrested when the strike began. Kenya Airways says it would have to close if it agreed to the demands. The BBC's Wazir Khamsin says the airline's workers, who are members of the Aviation and Allied Workers Union, want a pay rise of 130%. They have rejected the company's offer of a 13% increase. The union members say their salaries have not increased to the same extent as those of senior managers and pilots. Kenya Airways, which employs nearly 3,000 workers, says its offer will push the company's annual wage bill to about $10m (£6m). If it complied with the union's demands the amount would rise to $110m a year. "We'll just have to fold up, there are no two ways about it," Kenyan Airways Chief Executive Titus Naikuni is quoted as saying by Kenya's Daily Nation newspaper. "I can't give you what I don't have." Our reporter says the union officials who were detained by police on Friday morning, went on to address the defiant strikers after their release. Nairobi's Jomo Kenyatta International Airport is one of the busiest airports in east Africa.

KIKUYU PROVERB

Mutino urutaga mundu uriri

Danger makes a man rise from bed.

Men in danger need no spur.

It was cremation for the late Tabitha Wanjiru Njenga

The body of the late Tabitha Wanjiru Njenga was cremated on Thursday 13th August, 2009 at  Croydon Cemetery, Mitcham Road, Croydon, South London. Early in the morning a memorial service was conducted at St. Stephen's & Norbury Church, 9 Warwick Road, Thornton Heath where hundreds of guests attended. It was to the surprise of many guests when they arrived at the cemetery to find that the 18 minutes ceremony of crimination was over. The coffin arrived at the cemetery at about 15.35 and by 13.53 the ceremony was over in the chapel and by the time most of the guests arrived the family was gathering at the flower memorial area outside the chapel. Many guests were surprised because according to the previous programme the body was to be buried at the cemetery and they family had been the plot allotment number.  It was a last minute change of events. Above left the family presenting a song in the church and on right the coffin of the late Tabitha in the chapel minutes before it was criminated. MORE PHOTOS BY NJEHU

LUO PROVERB

Lewi bith ka opila.

Your tongue is as sharp as a peel from maize, sorghum or sugarcane stem.

Words have sharp edges so one has to be careful with what one says.

Secrets of Clinton’s private meetings in Kenya

The US Government will name and shame key perpetrators of Kenya's post-election violence and individuals involved in corruption. It will also ban them from visiting the country, the Sunday Nation has learnt. The declaration is part of an agreement reached between Secretary of State Hillary Clinton during various private meetings with Kenya Government leaders and MPs during her three-day visit to the country. The US further pushed for the total overhaul of the criminal justice system and the removal of four key public officials in what they view as the first crucial step to reform the institutions they head. Parliamentary Accounts Committee chairman Bonny Khalwale, who attended one of the closed-door meetings with Mrs Clinton, said she was concerned about lack of reforms to help end impunity and promised to name, shame and ban the violence and corruption suspects from visiting the US. “She promised to name and shame them as a demand for reforms. She also promised travel sanctions,” Dr Khalwale said. He said the US felt that if it used economic sanctions, only the poor would suffer. Mrs Clinton, in her speeches and interviews, published by the State Department, said a local tribunal was preferable but The Hague option was inevitable if Kenyans did not move fast “The local approach is usually preferable because people feel that they are acting in a way that is commensurate with their values and their national interests. But what I’m hearing from people in Kenya is that no one thinks the local route will work, that they can’t get a special tribunal that is independent and able to stand up against impunity,” she said. - MORE

"God gives you a seed called marriage. It's upon your responsibility to work on it, so that it can produce fruit." - Pastor JJ Gitahi, Nairobi, Kenya

Kenya Airways  staff strike paralyses operations

Kenya Airways on Friday cancelled 10 international flights and one local flight as the strike by its unionisable staff began to bite. The KQ boss Titus Naikuni said the airline which normally operates 42 flights daily had only managed to oversee 14 flights by yesterday evening. “We have combined some flights and are now using larger aircrafts to mitigate the crisis,” he said. Mr Naikuni said more cancellations should be expected on Saturday when the strike enters its second day. KQ management is expected to meet the Aviation and Allied Workers Union tonight to help avert the crisis. But the union says it will only go to work after being given an “emergency package, even if it is staggered”. The workers also wanted an assurance that they won’t be victimised for participating in the strike. He apologised to hundreds of stranded passengers saying the airline will have to book them into flights operated by its rivals. - FULL STORY

Worlds oldest pupil, Stephen Maruge, dies

The worlds oldest pupil, Stephen Kimani Maruge, is dead. Maruge, 89, a symbol of hope for the free primary education programme initiated by the Narc Government in 2003, died yesterday at Chesire Home in Kariobangi North, Nairobi. The man who demonstrated a rare spirit of resilience enrolled as a pupil at Kapkenduiywa Primary School in Eldoret in 2004.  He was recognised by the Guinness Book of Records as the worlds oldest pupil and was set to achieve his dream of achieving higher education and be able to read the Bible before the 2007 post-election violence rooted him from Eldoret. Worlds oldest pupil Stephen Kimani Maruge. His colleagues at Chesire Home were shocked by the news of his death.  Ms Donatila Ekuyi said Maruge was a jovial and co-operative old man. She said he lived well with other members in the home for the old and he would be dearly missed. "We are shocked to lose Maruge," said Ekuyi, a matron at the home. Maruges granddaughter, who had lived with him after being displaced from Eldoret last year, said Maruge, had an ear for everyone even though he was battling stomach cancer, which was diagnosed last year. "He was ready to listen to everyone. I will dearly miss his advice," she told The Standard on Saturday. Ekuyi said Maruges health deteriorated from April when he was operated on at Kenyatta National Hospital.  "He could hardly take solid food. He drank milk, sodas and fruit juices," she said  - The Standard.

Watch out, they clash to cars carrying even coffins in Nairobi. Luckily there was no body, which could have been rested in pieces before reaching it's destination and on right Health and Safety to some Kenyans is history, no safety helmet and has not secured himself in case the car tips over. Waiting for a disaster to?

France and Germany exit recession

The French and German economies both grew by 0.3% between April and June, bringing to an end year-long recessions in Europe's largest economies. Stronger exports and consumer spending, as well as government stimulus packages, contributed to the growth. The data came as a surprise, with few analysts expecting Germany and France to start to recover so soon. But economic activity in the eurozone fell by 0.1%, showing the region as a whole is still in recession. It was the fifth consecutive quarter of economic contraction in the eurozone, but was a marked improvement on the 2.5% drop recorded in the first three months of the year.

UK reaction

Markets reacted positively to the news, with the main German and French markets up more than 1% at midday before later dropping back slightly. In London, the FTSE 100 index also rose, with traders anticipating a positive effect on the UK economy, which by contrast shrank by 0.8% in the second quarter. Asked about why the UK seemed to be lagging behind, Business Secretary Lord Mandelson said: "Different economies will show different patterns of behaviour." "But the key point is all these economies rely on each other; 55 to 56% of our trade is with the rest of Europe. So when [they are] recovering that is good news for our manufacturers and our exports here." France and Germany may have been less hard hit than the UK by the global economic slowdown because their financial sectors, which were at the heart of the crisis, account for a smaller proportion of their economies. Germany was thrown into recession earlier in the year because its exports collapsed. The latest figures showed German exports had grown at their fastest pace for nearly three years at 7%, with particularly strong growth in demand from rapidly-growing economies such as China.

The country's Federal Statistics Office said that household and government expenditure had also boosted growth. It added that imports had declined "far more sharply than exports, which had a positive effect on GDP growth". "These [GDP] figures should encourage us," said Germany's Economy Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg. "They show that the strongest decline in economic performance likely lies behind us." Reaction among analysts to the signs of Germany's recovery, however, was mixed. "The recession has ended, and it has ended sooner than we all thought. We expect to see growth of 1% in the third quarter, which is very strong for Germany, and I wouldn't rule out the chance of even better growth," said Andreas Rees at Unicredit. But there are concerns that the banking system across Europe is still fragile and that the growth is reliant on government stimulus spending that will eventually have to come to an end. BBC Europe business reporter Mark Sanders said that although the surprise news was highly welcome for those that have been suffering, there were questions about how strong and credible the economic recovery is. "To draw a medical analogy, we've got the patient waking from a coma and talking to medical staff," he said. "They're not necessarily going to be running any marathons soon."

WHAT THE UK PAPERS SAY ON SATURDAY 15TH AUGUST, 2009

LEFT: The Mail tells how surgeons are celebrating a European first with five lifesaving transplant operations from two donors in 24 hours. CENTRE: The Independent leads with the row about how the NHS is being misrepresented in America over President Obama's plans to reform healthcare - with a special report on medical services in the US. RIGHT: Police chiefs have been accused of a scandalous misuse of taxpayers' money after helping to set up a special support group for sex-change staff, says the Express.

Make-Up Artist 'Changed Jewel Robbers' Faces'

The armed robbers who stole £40m worth of jewellery reportedly hired an unsuspecting make-up artist to disguise their faces with Mission Impossible-style rubber masks. The pair employed the 29-year-old professional - who thought they were due to appear in a music video - to completely change their look using liquid latex, according to The Sun. The newspaper said the freelance make-up artist, who cannot be named for his own protection, also changed the duo's hair colour and skin tone during the £450, four-hour session. Forensic experts have seized items including hairbrushes, gowns and bank notes from a make-up studio in Covent Garden, The Sun added. A Metropolitan Police spokesman told Sky News the force had no comment to make on the claims. Police are trawling through hundreds of hours of CCTV footage to piece together the robbers' exact escape route after the heist at Graff Jewellers in central London last Thursday. Officers have so far recovered a blue BMW abandoned in a nearby street after it collided with a black taxi just seconds after the raid. They have also found a high-powered motorbike, possibly used to rush away a bag holding the stolen gems. Detectives believe the two men may still be in London and also have genuine London accents. The moment the robbers escaped with 43 items of jewellery in Britain's biggest ever jewellery robbery was captured by a witness on his mobile phone. The men could be seen calmly walking towards a blue BMW holding a staff member, as someone shouted: "Call the police, call the police." Several security men and possibly one passer-by then moved towards the smartly-dressed pair before a gunshot was heard. Officers have arrested and questioned a 50-year-old man in Ilford, east London, in connection with the robbery. They suspect the man may have been involved in planning the raid, although he was not in the West End when it took place.

Man Charged $23 Quadrillion For Cigarettes

A man who was charged more than 23 quadrillion dollars on his credit card for a packet of cigarettes has told of his relief at not having to foot the bill. Josh Muszynski checked his account a few hours after making the purchase at a Mobil petrol station and saw the incredible 17-digit number. He had been charged a total of $23,148,855,308,184,500 (twenty-three quadrillion, one hundred forty-eight trillion, eight hundred fifty-five billion, three hundred eight million, one hundred eighty-four thousand, five hundred dollars). "I thought somebody bought Europe with my credit card," he told the WMUR-TV station in his home town of Manchester, New Hampshire. "It was very concerning - it was a lot of money in the negative." Muszynski said he panicked and drove back to the petrol station, where the assistant was unable to help him get to the bottom of the extortionate fee - which was greater than the world's combined GDP. He said he spent two hours on the phone with Bank of America trying to sort out the string of numbers and the overdraft charge. The bank corrected the error the next day.

Nine Anti Stock Theft Unit (ASTU) police officers are admitted at the Nyahururu district hospital in critical condition after their lorry was involved in a road accident. Three of their colleagues have also been referred to Nakuru Provincial General Hospital for further treatment after sustaining serious injuries during the accident that occurred along the Nyahururu-Maralal road at 9pm on Friday 14th August, 2009. The victims were among a contingent of officers traveling from ASTU headquarters in Gilgil to Samburu district on a deployment mission to help in reinforcing security operations in the region. According to the unit commandant Michael Ngugi, the lorry's brakes failed and it rammed onto an electric post at an accident black spot near Maili Saba junction, several kilometers from Nyahururu town.

Colonial BancGroup has become the biggest US bank to collapse this year. Colonial, a property lender based in Montgomery, Alabama, had about $25bn of assets, said the US regulator, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp (FDIC). The agency approved the sale of Colonial's $20bn in deposits to BB&T, a North Carolina-based bank. BB&T will also buy $22bn of Colonial's assets. The collapse is expected to cost the FDIC about $2.8bn. The total number of bank failures is now over 70 in 2009. The FDIC also entered into a loss-sharing agreement on about $15bn of Colonial's assets with BB&T, the regulator said. Colonial BancGroup has become the biggest US bank to collapse this year. Colonial, a property lender based in Montgomery, Alabama, had about $25bn of assets, said the US regulator, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp (FDIC). The agency approved the sale of Colonial's $20bn in deposits to BB&T, a North Carolina-based bank. BB&T will also buy $22bn of Colonial's assets. The collapse is expected to cost the FDIC about $2.8bn. The total number of bank failures is now over 70 in 2009. The FDIC also entered into a loss-sharing agreement on about $15bn of Colonial's assets with BB&T, the regulator said.

Kenyans living abroad will be among those to be counted during the national population and housing census. Census enumerators will ask their families to disclose the amount of money they remit and how the cash is invested, Population and social statics director Mr Collins Opiyo has said. This will be the first time for Kenyans living abroad to be counted in a national population and housing census, which will be held on the night of August 24 and 25. “This time we want to know all the details,” Mr Opiyo said. Mr Opiyo was briefing members of the Kenya Private Sector Alliance (Kepsa) at Nairobi’s Intercontinental Hotel on Wednesday. The government, he added, will also be establishing the number of people who have died in a household and the cause of their deaths. The intention, he explained, is to know the number of those who have died due to social-economic problems. They will also establish the number of people who are not employed. He said the enumerators will ask at least 30 questions as they will be seeking several details from the people. “They (the enumerators) will also be finding out the number of disabilities in a household and establish if the disabled engage in any kind of economic activity,” Mr Opiyo said. An enumerator will be required to spend at least 30 minutes in a household. The census will also establish the heads of livestock in the country, the official further explained. “We need all this data to make the country move forward,” he said. The government will also be seeking to know if members of a household own a car, a truck/lorry, a motocycle, a canoe or a computer. Households will also have to disclose whether they own refrigerators, television sets, radios or even mobile phones and landline telephones. And they will be required give such details like the kind of fuel they use for cooking , their main type of lighting fuel and where they dispose their human waste. He said after the census they will compile the data of people who are computer literate. The number of people living in informal settlements in urban centres will also be known. He told members of Kepsa that people will be counted according to their location on that particular night. - Daily Nation.

KQ staff set to down tools over pay

Kenya Airways staff on Thursday announced they will stage a strike beginning midnight. The 3,500 workers will down their tools due to non-implementation of pay agreements struck with their employer. The 3,500 workers will down their tools due to non-implementation of pay agreements struck with their employer on 13 AUGUST, 2009. - Daily Nation.

London, Thursday 13th August, 2009. An elderly British gems expert has died after reportedly being attacked by a gang of armed men in Kenya. Campbell Bridges, 71, was targeted by men with knives, clubs and spears, as he drove to his mine close to Tsavo National Park, his son Bruce said. The pair were travelling with four Kenyan employees when they got out of their vehicle because the mob had blocked the road with thorn bushes. "One guy went at my dad with a spear, my father grabbed the end of the spear and held it away from him. Right as that happened I saw another run up and stab my father," Bruce told The Daily Telegraph. "I went to the man with the spear who was right above my father, he tried to get me, I hit the spear out of his hand and chased him into the bush." There had been long running tensions between the Bridges family and miners illegally digging for gems, according to local reports. A Foreign Office spokesman said: "We can confirm the death of Campbell Bridges on 11 August following injuries sustained in an attack near Voi in Kenya. "British consular officials are liaising with the local authorities who have confirmed that an investigation is under way." Mr Bridges, originally from Scotland, discovered the gemstone tsavorite in Tanzania in the late 1960s. In 1971 he also discovered the gemstone in Kenya where he had the find registered officially and began mining it, according to the International Coloured Gemstone Association.

Mr Bridges with the gem tsavorite, which he discovered. Pic: Tsavorite.com

Nairobi, Kenya, August 12 - The government will slash budgets of all ministries in a bid to raise Sh5 billion to meet part of the Sh24 billion needed for emergency relief to address the drought crisis in the country. Prime Minister Raila Odinga told Parliament on Wednesday that the government would borrow another Sh3 billion for the project while the rest of the monies were contained in specific ministerial budgets. Mr Odinga said that from allocations to the various ministries engaged in the emergency relief programme, Sh13.5 billion would be set aside specifically for the undertaking. He said that another Sh3.2 will be sourced from contingences.  Mr Odinga moved to assure the country that the government was focused on feeding the over 10 million Kenyans facing starvation.  “The immediate focus of the government’s interventions is to save those areas of high risks of humanitarian emergency. The areas cover the districts of Marsabit, Samburu, Isiolo, Mwingi, Kitui, Tana River, Turkana, Laikipia, Mandera, Wajir and Garissa,” he said. The Cabinet held a special meeting on Tuesday and resolved to set up a Crises Response Centre at the Office of the Prime Minister. It also agreed to deploy the armed forces, the National Youth Service, and the Administration Police to deliver food, water, and medicine to the affected people.  “Within this period, immediate danger of starvation and other humanitarian disasters should be removed, food be stored in sufficient quantity in convenient locations, and adequate water sources be secured’” the PM said adding that the operations have been earmarked to take place for a period of between one and three months. “The Ministry of Special Programmes has already delivered food in the depots in each of these districts. It will be distributed to the affected areas as soon as the transport equipment arrives.”

Besides a food deficit, the country is facing acute water and electricity supplies which has led to rationing. “The Ministry of Water is now procuring a large number of water tanks and bladders and will, together with the Ministry of Northern Kenya, drill, repair and maintain boreholes,” the PM said in his statement. As regards water supply in Nairobi City, 20 boreholes will be drilled, 20 bowsers deployed, and additional 1000 water tanks installed in Nairobi, all within the next three months. In addition, the Ministry of Water will purchase about 80 million litres of water per day from private borehole owners. These should supply water to 800,000 people in Nairobi.  In other areas across the country, 200 boreholes will be drilled, 30 water bowsers deployed, and 5,000 water tanks installed, again within three months. These interventions will supply water to 5.7 million people, and 4.4 million livestock.  Northern Kenya, Coast and Ukambani areas are worst hit by the crisis. Pastoralists especially have driven their animals for hundreds of kilometers in search of water and pasture. The government has allocated Sh700 million to the Kenya Meat Commission to purchase the animals to avert death. Members of Parliament however questioned the government’s criteria in identifying the areas are in urgent need of food aid. The lawmakers claimed that many other parts of the northern, Eastern and Rift Valley are also hit hard. “We are afraid these interventions as good as they, will be implemented through the bureaucratic government ministries they will come too late and our animals will continue to die and people to suffer,” complained North Horr MP Chachu Ganya. “I am wondering why he has left out Taita where all Somali and Maasai animals are converging in one borehole,” said Wundanyi MP Thomas Mwadeghu. - CapitalFM

"TUKUTANE HAGUE"

Talk of Hague in Kenya and even an old woman in the village in Kenya knows what it means. Some of those who cannot understand what Hague is thinks it is a jail outside Kenya. Most of the matatus in Kenya has some stickers talking about "Hague" as this matatu on right hammers the message home with the photo of the The International Criminal Court prosecutor Luis Moreno-Campo - meaning in Hague you will be prosecuted by Luis Moreno-Campo. - Photo by Karuga wa Njuguna, Nairobi.

UK economy worse than previous thought

London, Wednesday 12th August, 2009. The Bank of England has warned that the UK economy still has some way to go before it recovers from the effects of the financial crisis. In its latest quarterly Inflation Report, the Bank warns that any recovery in 2010 will be "fragile". The report will be bad news for the chancellor, who has predicted that the UK will rebound sharply in the future. If it does not, then his record budget deficit of £175bn will be even bigger, with a greater need for spending cuts. On the outlook for inflation, the Bank said it was "more likely than not" that the annual rate of growth in consumer prices would temporarily fall below 1% in the autumn and stay low until the end of its two-year forecast period. This implies, unless something changes, that interest rates could stay at 0.5% until well into 2011, BBC economics reporter Steve Schifferes says.

Bank governor Mervyn King - VIDEO

'Uncertain pace'

The Bank has recently added another £50bn of new money to the economy, as part of its programme of quantitative easing (QE) to spur economic growth. Its report said there were "encouraging signs" that the steps taken to stimulate the economy had been having an impact. However, Bank governor Mervyn King was downbeat about whether the policy had been fully effective. He hinted that the Bank might have to consider additional measures, although he warned that with the public finances in such a perilous state, there was little room for further expansion to help boost economic growth. "The pace of recovery over the next few years is highly uncertain," he added. Following his comments, economists suggested the bank would inject more new money into the economy. "More quantitative easing is on the cards," said Charles Davis from the Centre for Economics and Business Research. "Our rough and ready estimate is a further £50bn." "The reality of a deep recession and sluggish recovery has dawned upon [the Bank], recognising that insipid growth and downward pressure on prices is the greater concern."

Deeper recession

Mr King accepted that had been some signs of short-term recovery in the last few months, and that growth may resume to its long-term average of around 2.5% to 3% by the middle of next year.But since its last report in May, the Bank has also revised downwards its view of how deep the recession was during the last quarter of 2008 and the first quarter of 2009. It says that the very depth will make any sustainable recovery unlikely until banks, households and governments rebuild their balance sheets. What this means in practical terms, says BBC economics reporter Steve Schifferes, is that it does not expect banks to resume large-scale lending for some years to come. And the need for further cutbacks in public spending and or higher taxes will add to the deflationary pressures on the economy, our reporter adds.

Downside risks

The Bank has identified several downside risks that could make the recovery more fragile. First, unemployment could rise even faster in the future. The Bank says that so far, unemployment has fallen more slowly than in previous recessions. That could be because workers have become more flexible, and are willing to work shorter hours, and for lower pay, than in previous recessions. But the report warns that "if demand does not recover sufficiently, it will become more difficult for [firms] to maintain employment." Higher unemployment rates, in turn, could further dampen down consumer demand, and also limit the modest recovery in the housing market. In relation to inflation, the main pressure pushing inflation upwards has been the effective 20% devaluation of sterling since the financial crisis began. This has helped manufacturers by making their products cheaper abroad, but it has raised the prices of imported goods sold in the UK. This effect has been modest so far, because the weakness in the economy has prevented firms from raising prices - but if there was a sustained recovery, a further fall in sterling which raised inflation would force the bank to raise interest rates. This seems some distance away, however, as the Bank's current projections for inflation suggest it will still be under its 2% target in two years' time - suggesting that interest rates will stay at around 0.5% for a long time to come. In addition, the governor refused to be drawn on whether he regarded the Conservatives' plans to hand over regulatory powers to the bank as a good thing. But he did warn against any "half-baked" schemes of financial reform being adopted at the upcoming G20 summit.

Kenya voting to go modern

The next General Election in Kenya could be conducted electronically, according to the Interim Independent Electoral Commission (IIEC). Speaking at the opening of the National Conference on Electoral Reforms on Wednesday, IIEC Chairman Ahmed Isaack Hassan said a Kenyan team will be heading to India next week to study how the machines are used. The conference is intended to provide an opportunity to deal with electoral inconsistencies, among other things. “The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has agreed to assist the Commission to send a team of Commissioners to study the system of electronic voting in India. The State of Maharajah is conducting its state elections and we will be very happy to study that model, alongside other models available in the world,” he said. The three-day conference is themed "Setting the Electoral Agenda for Kenya".
 

WHAT SOME OF THE UK PAPERS SAYS ON THURSDAY 13TH AUGUST, 2009

The Daily Express says the Labour government has "betrayed a generation" - as one in five young people is unemployed and The Guardian, too, says the under-25s are feeling the brunt of the recession

Eagles’ Gathering Christian Centre has just concluded their annual ‘Living Word’ Convention with this year’s theme ‘Times of Refreshing’ which ran from 7th-9th August, 2009. The Special Guest Speakers, Pastors Wade and Carla Porter of Living Faith International flowed mightily in the Apostolic and Prophetic anointing and the congregation, which included delegates from as far out as South Africa, Germany, Kenya, Wales, Southampton, Oxford, Peterborough amongst other places all had a great testimony of the Mighty things God did and said to His People during the Conference. A very Glorious Conference indeed! Afterwards, Dr. Stan & Jemi Wangenye, together with Eagles’ Gathering Christian Centre hosted a sumptuous Dinner on 10th August. The setting was the fabulous West Park Lodge Hotel, Hadley chase road, Herts.

The hotel, a former hunting Lodge for the aristocracy, sits on 35 acres of land, has an exotic arboretum with over 800 different species of trees, boasts excellently manicured lawns and it’s own private helipad. The Dinner was graced by Dr. Stan’s Apostolic Authority, Pastors Wade and Carla Porter of Living Faith International. Also to grace the occasion were Pastor Avis Darlymple of Word of Life Community Church as well as Bishop Muya from Elburgon , Kenya . Bishop Muya was escorted by Nellly Mwangi amongst others in the entourage. Be sure to watch ‘On Eagles’ Wings Dr. Stan Wangenye on Inspiration TV (Sky 587) every first and second Sunday of every month @ 11pm.  Eagles’ Gathering Christian Centre holds services at EastBanet Baptis Church , Corner of East Barnet/Crescent Road. East Barnet EN4 8PS @ 2:00pm every Sunday. For more information, please visit www.eaglesgatheringcc.org.uk or email admin@eaglesgatheringcc.org.uk. For more photos, please visit Dr. Stan’s Facebook page and add him as your friend. His id is pastor.eagles@googlemail.com

On left  from right is Mrs. Mwai, Mr. Mwai, Bishop Muya, Mrs. Nelly Mwangi and her daughter Kasandra Mwangi a young celebrity from Wanjengi Muranga, and the hosts Pastor Wangenye and his wife. Right photo: Mrs. Nelly Mwangi (right) and Mrs. Carol Mwai with their message loud and clear "we had been to the salon before joining the dinner".   - CLICK HERE FOR MORE PHOTOS

How many times have you received a windfall, say, an unexpected sack full of fresh vegetables straight off a farm, and rushed to share it with your siblings? Or, when you receive your annual bonus, thought of sharing even a little bit of it with your brother or sister just because of the bond you share? For Florence Kyalo, sharing everything she has – and she doesn’t have an awful lot – is not something she has to think about twice, especially when it comes to her ‘baby’ brother, Mwanzi Kasuni. When I first meet Mwanzi, my first impression is that he looks like one of the characters in the comic series-cum-Hollywood film, Fantastic Four; the really strong one with the body that is made of stone. Mwanzi suffers from a skin disease that quite frankly makes him scary to look at.  FULL STORY

Oh dear, did I miss the drive-through?

A driver ploughed through a shop wall after she apparently hit the wrong pedal – with the entire embarrassing episode caught on CCTV. The woman, thought to be in her 60s, struck the empty retail unit so hard bricks were thrown 20m (66ft). The car ended up centimetres from gas cylinders. She was embarrassed and shaken rather than hurt, said Stef Malajny, who owns a restaurant next door. 'She couldn't stop wailing and said her husband was going to kill her,' he added. She panicked and pressed on the accelerator after selecting a forward gear instead of reverse, it is thought. Structural engineers had to inspect the scene after Monday's incident in Walton Retail Park, Peterborough.

UK jobless total climbs to 2.4m

The number of people out of work in the UK has risen to its highest level since 1995, official figures have shown. Unemployment increased by 220,000 to 2,435,000 in the three months to June, taking the jobless rate to 7.8%. Claims for unemployment benefit were the highest in 12 years, increasing by 24,900 in July to 1.58 million. Average earnings, excluding bonuses, grew at their slowest rate since records began in 2001, the Office for National Statistics said. Earnings excluding bonuses rose at an annual rate of 2.5% in the three months to June, down from 2.6% in the three months to May. Those in manufacturing only averaged pay increases of 1.1%, while the public sector saw an average rise of 3.7%. Average earnings including bonuses also rose by 2.5%, but this was up from the previous rate of 2.3%. BBC employment correspondent Martin Shankleman says the figures confirm that unemployment continues to rise remorselessly, with no early respite. Our correspondent adds that the full impact of joblessness among those who recently left school or college and are now looking for work is not reflected in these figures and has yet to be felt. The figures come as the Bank of England's latest quarterly inflation report warned that the UK economy still had some way to go before it recovered from the effects of the financial crisis. Bank governor Mervyn King warned that any recovery in 2010 would be "slow and protracted". He also hinted that further measures might be needed to stimulate the economy, in addition to the Bank's programme of quantitative easing (QE) to spur growth. The British Chambers of Commerce warned that unemployment was likely to continue rising at a rapid pace, even if the economy started growing again, and could exceed three million. And the Institute of Directors said that almost a million people were working part-time because they could not find a full-time job, meaning the impact of the recession on employment was "even greater than the headline figures suggest".

Bye bye Moses Muniu

A memorial service for the late Moses Muniu Gatere was held on Tuesday August 11, 2009 at the Trinity Church-Ushindi Ministry in Dallas, TX. The service started as scheduled at around 4pm and concluded around 7.30pm CST. Mourners filled the church to capacity as they came in droves to say goodbyes to the late Mr. Gatere. The officiator of the service was Pastor Jacob Ngobia of Ushindi Ministry and the Master of Ceremony was Mr. Alex Ndirangu. Mr. Muniu's body is tentatively scheduled to leave for Kenya on Friday, August 14th 2009 and the rest of the family following shortly after. Mrs. Muniu who is currently a full time Nursing student had to attend her classes as well as sit for her exams despite this difficult period for her and her family. She could not get permission to reschedule her exams which are scheduled to end on Friday, August 14th. Right: Pastor Muturi, Pastor Ngobia and Pastor King'ori pose for a photo. - MORE

Body exhumed in 1979 murder probe

Police investigating the murder of a woman in Southampton 30 years ago have exhumed the body of a male suspect. Officers carried out the exhumation at Kingston Cemetery in Portsmouth to obtain "further DNA evidence". The body of Teresa De Simone, 22, was found in her car at the pub where she worked part-time in December 1979. She had been raped and strangled. Sean Hodgson, 57, of County Durham, spent 27 years in jail for the murder before his conviction was quashed. Det Ch Insp Phil McTavish said the latest suspect had at one stage been in custody on unrelated matters but took his own life in 1988. Miss de Simone's mother, Mary Sedotti, 77, said the death of the suspect meant her daughter's death would remain a mystery. "We didn't think they would find anybody, not after 30 years," she said. "It'll be nice to know that they have got the right person at last, at the end."

Russian navy joins hunt for ship

Russia's navy has been deployed to find a ship reportedly hijacked three weeks ago in the Baltic Sea. Up to five vessels - reported to include nuclear submarines - will be involved in the search for the Maltese-flagged Arctic Sea, the navy confirmed. It has a 15-strong Russian crew and was reportedly taking timber worth $1.5m (£900,000) from Finland to Algeria when it was boarded by gunmen on 24 July. The Arctic Sea was last sighted off the north coast of France on 30 July. British authorities say the 4,000-tonne vessel may have been spotted subsequently by a Portuguese coastal patrol aircraft, but its current location remains unknown. Maltese authorities have said it is unlikely to be in the Mediterranean.

London 2012 Olympics - how the Olympic Park will look and on right the BMX track

Hundreds of wild animals in the renowned Hellsgate National Park in Naivasha are facing starvation as the on going drought that has hit parts of the country rages on. Already, several animals mainly herbivores have died in and around the park as they seek pastures.  According to the warden in charge of the park Ms Nelly Palmeris, zebras, giraffes and buffaloes are the most affected. Palmeris said the Kenya Wildlife Service had embarked on providing water for the animals, a move that had seen tens of wild animals that had strayed outside the park coming back. "It has not rained for the last few months and just like other sectors and areas of the country, the drought has adversely affected us," she said. Her sentiments were echoed by assistant warden Ms Lilian Aberi who said that majority of the animals had taken cover under the bushes due to the heat.  "We have also experienced mortality among some wild animals while others are not giving birth due to the prolonged drought," she said. However despite the drought, the number of tourists visiting the park has shot up by thirty percent in the last two months.  Speaking while on a tour of the park, Palmeris at the same time raised alarm over the illegal trade in game meat around Naivasha.  She said that there were fears that the meat was finding its way into butcheries around the lakeside town.  According to her, KWS officers had in the last two weeks nabbed over 300kgs of game meat and arrested scores of suspect.  "The trade is rife in Ndabibi, Kasarani and Ngondi areas and we have intensified our operations to nab those behind the illegal trade," she said. During the visit, the warden said that they had started preparations to re-brand the renowned park to make it more interesting to the visitors. Palmeris said that a major re-branding function would be held in the park on the September 25 where an improved service delivery initiative would be also be launched.

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A Kenyan has passed away in Marietta, Ga. USA. Mrs.  Martha Njeri Warui cousin to Lawrence & Lydiah Muriithi Githinji of Acworth Martha passed  away on Tuesday morning 11th August, 2009 at Kennestone Hospital after a long illness. Kenyans of goodwill will be meeting in her residence  at 3175 Souffle Court, Acworth, GA. 30101 as from 7.00 p.m. daily. For more information please contact John Kinyua-770-608-8245, Muigai-404-915-2529 or Lydia-404-933-6335. More information later.

The late Martha Njeri Warui

Nairobi, Tuesday 11th August, 2009. The Cabinet Tuesday held a special session to discuss measures that should be taken to effectively deal with the water, food and energy crises in the country.  The meeting deliberated on a range of measures including those proposed by the cabinet committee that met with President Mwai Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga, at Harambee House late last month. The Cabinet agreed on measures to ensure expenditure rationalization and cuts to finance the multi-pronged and rapid response emergency interventions. The meeting that was chaired by President Kibaki at State House Nairobi agreed on the following short, medium and long term measures.

1. Immediate mobilization of the Military, National Youth Service and Administration Police to provide transport and other logistical assistance in the delivery of food, water and medicine to districts hardest hit by the drought.

2. Use existing mechanisms such as the Emergency Operation Program (EOP), and the School Feeding program to reach other areas that also require food and water assistance.

3. The School Feeding Program to continue during the current school holiday in the worst hit areas.

4. The provision of subsidized seed and fertilizer to enhance food production in the upcoming planting season.

5. Undertake emergency livestock off-take and other assistance to pastoralists.

6. Install emergency power generation capacity to make up for the loss of hydro generated power and promote the use of energy saving bulbs.

7. Take concrete steps to deal effectively with conflicts arising from the competition for food and pasture in parts of the country.

In addition to these the government has created a Crises Response Center to be based at The Office of the Prime Minister. The Center will be chaired by the Prime Minister while the Permanent Secretary Special Programs will serve as the response center coordinator. The Center will work directly with District Committees. The Cabinet also resolved;

• That subsidized and affordable seeds and fertilizer be availed on a long term and sustainable basis to ensure food security in the country.

• There is need to expand the current water storage through construction of several new dams and rehabilitation of new ones.

• The drilling of new boreholes to be intensified.

• Local communities and individuals to be encouraged to increase their water storage.

• Increase power generation by an extra 2000 MW's in the next five years with emphasis on green energy.

The Cabinet also appealed to national and local leaders to educate their communities to respect the ownership and user arrangements for resources such as water and pasture in order to avoid conflict between various communities.

“You will soon drink from Nairobi river” – Hon. Michuki

Caught out cleaning their shoes. Nairobi rivers are getting cleaned by KKV aka Kazi kwa Vijana. Again Kudos to Hon Michuki and well done! – Hon. Michuki - photos by Karuga wa Njuguna, Nairobi, Kenya.

 Backbenchers in parliament led by Imenti Central MP Gitobu Imanyara Tuesday 11th August, 2009 launched an amendment bill seeking to establish a special tribunal to prosecute perpetrators of the post election violence.  Imanyara said the move was meant to ensure the end of the culture of impunity while demanding action against all criminals.  He said the bill would deal with all impunity and was not just limited to the post election violence but the culture which has permeated the very fabric of Kenya.  Since last week members of parliament belonging to the backbench have expressed opposition to the mandate given to the Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission, (TJRC) to investigate and prosecute the perpetrators of the 2007/2008 election violence. Imanyara said the signing and assenting to the amendment was the last chance for the government to prove that it will deal with the ongoing culture of impunity. Former Kabete MP Paul Muite sought to explain that the group had not changed its mind about the formation of a local tribunal, but did not agree with the original document which was rejected by parliament. The MPs also launched a website that will create awareness among Kenyans and enable interactive participation on the bill. Adding their voice to the TJRC debate, members of the Kenyans Against Impunity (KAI) rejected the commission due to what they termed as utter impunity that was witnessed in the appointments. The group's leader Stephen Musau says impunity was to blame for most ills facing the country. The group says it has written to the chief justice petitioning him to interpret the TJRC Act to Kenyans so as to facilitate the resolution of the matters they have raised.

VW bettle!

Kenyan's creativity - Is a convertible!!!!!!!!!!! - photos by Karuga wa Njuguna, Nairobi, Kenya.

 Councillors have authorised the Nairobi City Council to take a Sh155 million bank overdraft to settle staff salaries and other expenses for the month of July. They passed the resolution on Tuesday at City Hall during a special council meeting. City treasurer Jacob Munge said the council only collected Sh379 million but its expenses stood at Sh534 million. The council is yet to pay staff salaries for the more than 10,000 employees and councillors. It also owes millions of shillings to its suppliers and pensioners, among other creditors. Councillor Michael Ogada, who proposed that the council goes for a bank loan, was seconded by Cllr Phillip Atula. Sources privy to the councillors’ attendance register claimed that some civic leaders forged the signatures of their colleagues to enable the meeting to go on since it almost aborted due to a lack of quorum.  Meanwhile, a meeting between the Local Government Workers Union officials and the Town Clerk failed to take place on Tuesday. Branch secretary Festus Ngare said it was postponed to tomorrow.  - Daily Nation.

Ms Mercy Kamau was caught at the Seeds wedding holding "kinya kia uchuru" saying: "Kai Seed agatuonia uhoro-i - kinya giki na uchuru ona tuihuri ararutire ku? - Where did the Seeds get all this. - CLICK HERE FOR WEDDING VIDEO CLIP

Jewellery raid haul put at £40m

London, Tuesday 11th August, 2009. Robbers stole nearly £40m of items from a London jewellers in what police say was Britain's second biggest robbery. Two men with handguns threatened staff at Graff jewellers in New Bond Street on 6 August before taking 43 items. They dragged a female member of staff outside as they left the shop and fired a shot, although no-one was injured. CCTV images of the two men have been issued. The £40m haul is exceeded only by the £53m raid on a Securitas depot in Kent in 2006, a Met spokesman said. Det Ch Insp Pam Mace from the Flying Squad said: "This was a well planned robbery with a number of vehicles used to help the robbers escape. "These men are extremely dangerous and fired at least two shots in busy London streets as they made their getaway. "Someone knows who these men are, they would undoubtedly have spoken about it beforehand or boasted about it afterwards." The "smartly dressed" pair escaped in a blue BMW. They fired once while leaving the store and then again in Dover Street where they abandoned the BMW, police said. The robbers then got into a silver Mercedes and drove into Farm Street where it is believed some of the suspects got into another vehicle, possibly a black Ford Galaxy or Volkswagen Sharan. One of the 43 items of jewellery stolen was a pair of white round diamond double-hoop earrings. A yellow diamond flower necklace, a platinum white Marquise diamond ring and a Chronograph men's watch were among the other pieces taken. The first suspect is described as white, about 30 years old, slim and between 5ft 10ins and 6ft tall. Det Ch Insp Pam Mace: 'If anyone knows who these men are, we'd love to hear from you' The other man is described as black, in his 30s, 6ft tall, more well- built than the first suspect, with very short hair. The same store has been targeted by robbers before. Jewellery worth an estimated £23m was stolen in a raid in 2003 when two Serbians armed with a revolver held up staff. And in 2007 jewellery worth as much as £10m was taken from a branch of Graff Diamonds in Sloane Street in central London by two men posing as customers.

The Kenya Judiciary on Tuesday made an honest examination of itself... and judges came to the verdict that the wheels of justice do not move as fast as they should. They also agreed that some of them had misused their security of tenure and that the Judiciary lacked accountability. Chief Justice Evan Gicheru, speaking during the meeting held at the Judicial Institute, called for speedy and transparent method of dealing with complaints against the Judiciary. “Judges are under a duty to ensure that judgments and rulings are well reasoned and promptly delivered to make Kenya’s Judiciary accountable, thus enhancing our credibility,” he said.

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Do you that Soweto obtained its name from the first two letters of South Western Township which was the original description of the area.

Rarely seen photos of Barack Hussein Obama Senior

Barack Obama (senior) as one of the featured speakers at a Mothers Peace Rally in Ala Moana Park on Sunday May 13, 1962. ILWU leaders, including Jack Hall, joined the march and rally. Obama, an African student from Kenya studying economics at the University of Hawaii Afro-American Affairs Institute, told the crowd of 350, Anything which relieves military spending will help us...Peace will release great resources... and on right Barak Obama (center) and friends at a party given by Arnie and Suzie Nachmanoff, in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, in the early 1960's

Police in Nairobi have arrested a man who attempted to transfer land files from the lands office. Lawrence Ngigi who was found with four new empty deed files, was arrested after he tried to pay a bribe of 2000 shillings to wardens at the entrance of Ardhi House in Nairobi to be allowed to leave with the files. Police also confiscated the files and the bribe money. "We suspect that the files were to be used to issue fake land documents which would be used to con innocent members of the public," said Mr. Nelson Namisi, a senior Security Officer at Ardhi House. Ngigi who first attempted to resist inspection claimed he had been given the files by a visitor at the ministry whom he however failed to identify. Namisi said Ngigi who is a private surveyor was also found with three Identity Cards all bearing his name and photograph. "He could not explain the circumstances under which he acquired the IDs," Namisi said. Deed files are used to store Title deeds. Namisi said only employees in the Lands Registry were allowed to handle Deed files. The registry superintendent F.M. Wanyonyi said no files were supposed to leave the department without his authorization. Cases of people being conned by being issued with fake land documents have been on the increase in the country. "We have been dealing with numerous cases of forged land documents," said a police officer at Kilimani Police Station where Ngige is being held. Meanwhile the Ministry is putting up stringent measures to prevent such malpractices including computerization of records which will prevent loss of files.

The accused man outside Ardhi House

"Thou has granted me life and favour, and thy visitation hath preserved my spirit." - Job 10:12

London 2012 Olympics - how the Olympic Park will look

The Olympic Park and on right see how the 2012 Olympic Park and stadia will look when construction is finished. Here is an artist's impression of the Aquatics Centre

KIKUYU PROVERB

Mburi itiugagirwo mbu

No alarm is shouted for a goat (because it is not a dangerous beast).

Do not waste time and money on unworthy things.

Govt to map Nairobi buildings, streets

Written By: Irene Muchuma, Posted: Mon, Aug 10, 2009

Nairobi which used to known as "The green city in the sun" is soon to regain its beauty after a long period of negligence and low maintenance, Government spokesman Alfred Mutua has said. Mutua says the government has adopted a system that uses stone and flowers in an orderly, beautiful and easy to maintain land scaping with the aim of reclaiming the glory of Nairobi as it were in the 70's and 80's. "Therefore we have adopted a system that uses stone and flowers in an orderly beautiful and easy to maintain landscaping to send the message that Nairobi is a city on the move. This phase one starts from the airport to Kangemi on Mombasa road. Thereafter, other streets in Nairobi such as Jogoo road, Ngong road, Lang'ata road etc will undergo a facelift." He added. Speaking at a press briefing along Uhuru highway when he launched the initiave, Dr. Mutua termed management and maintenance as the major weaknesses on the implemented projects which has seen the government adopt the use of rocks and flowers for easy management. The on going beautification program also aims at clearing bushes near roundabouts for security purposes. Mutua added that CCTV cameras will be put along the highway to reduce the level of crime in the city. He said the project will offer over 5,000 job opportunities and most of the renovation will be done using the existing materials. The ongoing Nairobi beautification programme was launched a month ago with an aim of reclaiming the glory of the city.

Mutua said the beautification project will offer over 5,000 job opportunities

A man has been jailed for yawning 'boisterously' in court. Judge Daniel Rozak was left seriously unimpressed when Clifton Williams stretched and let out the badly timed yawn just as his cousin's sentence was being handed out for drugs offences. . Williams faces six months in jail for criminal contempt. Williams's father told St Louis Today: "I was flabbergasted because I didn't realise a judge could do that. It seems to me like a yawn is an involuntary action." And Williams got further backing from the cousin in question Jason Mayfield, who insisted it was 'not an outrageous yawn'. But Chuck Pelkie from the state's attorney office told the paper: "It was not a simple yawn - it was a loud and boisterous attempt to disrupt the proceedings."

Brits Are 'Dangerously Lazy And Idle'

Lazy Brits would rather watch a television programme they do not like than get out of their chair to change channels. A survey by Nuffield Health has been finding out our slobbish habits with some shocking results. Around one in six people said if their remote control was broken, they would continue watching the same channel rather than get up. More than half of the 2,000 adults questioned (59%) would get the lift rather than climb two flights of stairs to their workplace. And a third (36%) said they would not run to catch a bus. "If we don't start to take control of this problem, a whole generation will become too unfit to perform even the most rudimentary of tasks," said Dr Sarah Dauncey, medical director of Nuffield Health. "Ready-meals, remote controls and even internet shopping are all contributing to a dangerously lazy and idle Britain. "The nation has fallen into a vicious circle of laziness that we must put a stop to." The Nuffield Health Fitness Report included a top 10 of the laziest cities, based on how many people admitted they do not exercise at least three times a week. Glasgow topped the table with 75%, followed by Birmingham and Southampton (both 67%), London (66%), Bristol (64%), Leeds and Newcastle (both 62%), Norwich (60%), Manchester (59%) and Cardiff (58%). The survey did offer some hope with almost three out of 10 (28%) of respondents saying they would be prepared to step up their fitness regime if they felt it would make them more attractive to their partner.

"Life is too short. Don't spend it hating other people." - Pastor JJ Gitahi, Kenya

Mutula backs Imanyara Tribunal Bill

NAIROBI, Kenya, Aug 10 - Justice Minister Mutula Kilonzo says he will back a Private Member’s Bill seeking to establish a Special Tribunal and disagreed with a Cabinet decision that trashed the tribunal idea two weeks ago. In an exclusive interview with Capital News on Monday, Mr Kilonzo said he was glad that the backbenchers had finally been convinced that a local tribunal is the best solution to deal with the suspected perpetrators of post poll violence. The Minister, a strong proponent of the Special Tribunal of international standards, said he was ready to work with Imenti Central MP Gitobu Imanyara and other backbenchers to ensure that the Bill goes through Parliament. “It’s quite a challenge but I will join in every way to make sure that his proposals are taken for what they are,” he said. The Bill which is fronted by Mr Imanyara has similar propositions to the one rejected by the Cabinet and is reported to have the backing of a section of backbenchers now angered by Cabinet’s decision to abandon the trial of the suspected masterminds of the violnce. “It is good that Mr Imanyara has seen the writing on the wall on this. I think the original opposition to the Tribunal Bill by the backbenchers was probably not well thought of,” he said. “I hope he has mobilised the numbers to push for a constitutional amendment.”

Since it is a Constitutional Amendment, the Bill will require a two-thirds majority for it to pass which translates to 145 Members of Parliament. Mr Kilonzo remained unapologetic in differing with the Cabinet decision that trashed what he termed as ‘a brilliant idea’ saying the resolve was just ‘a political statement’ championed by those who fear their names are contained in the famous Waki list. He regretted that narrow interests frustrated his idea of ensuring justice for those who suffered during the skirmishes. “At no time did any of those who opposed it give a reason why they rejected it.  All they said is that I could not strip the President his immunity or override the powers of the Attorney General and the Chief Justice. But didn’t all these exist when the violence happened?” an evidently frustrated Mr Kilonzo posed. Some ministers disagreed with his proposals to strip the President his immunity and the Attorney General his powers to withdraw cases. After the meeting President Mwai Kibaki informed the country that the Cabinet had decided to expand the mandate of Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission (TJRC) and institute reforms in the police and the Judiciary and use these to deal with the violence.

However close to two weeks after being directed to come up with the required amendments to the TJRC Act, Mr Kilonzo said he was not going to prepare any amendments to the Act. The Minister said he was convinced that any changes would undermine the essence of the Commission and loose its intended mandate. He said he was worried expanding it would deter people from appearing before it. “No Minister has suggested to me what expansion of the mandate they had in mind and there is no clarity as it stands. I have already talked to the Prime Minister and the Vice President about this,” he said remaining defiant that the TJRC’s mandate would remain as originally envisaged. Earlier in the day Deputy Prime Minister Musalia Mudavadi expressed fears that the TJRC could handle an extended mandate. Mr Mudavadi questioned the ability of the Commission to address the post election violence given that most institutions that could support the Commission also stand accused. “The TJRC was never intended to be a sole investigative agency,” he said. He however queried the bid to push for the establishment of a Special Tribunal by backbenchers saying the same people frustrated earlier efforts to form the court. - CapitalFM

A plan to demolish a building in Cankiri, central Turkey went badly wrong when the 25-metre high structure rolled over onto its roof. The building, a flour factory built in 1928 which had been idle since the 1980s, was scheduled to be demolished to make way for a shopping centre. No-one was reported to have been injured. VIDEO

From a fishing capital, Kisumu is becoming an academic city

Once famed as a source of fish, the lakeside city of Kisumu is fast fashioning itself into an academic town. After years of bearing the title of fishing capital, thanks to Lake Victoria, the city is positioning itself as an intellectuals’ hub. Many public and private universities are trooping to the town, to set up campuses. This is in addition to the Great Lakes University of Kisumu. Already, five public universities and several private ones have established a firm presence in Kisumu, with campuses offering not only undergraduate but also postgraduate degree programmes. The universities cite various factors for their insatiable interest in Kisumu. The vice-chancellor of the University of Nairobi, Prof George Magoha, said the decision to establish a campus in Kisumu was in “response to market needs”.

Elephants are known for their sensitivity, so it's not surprising that this calf looks far from pleased at getting stuck in a manhole for three hours. The accident happened after mahoots - elephant keepers - sent the baby elephant to work on the streets in the Ravong province, eastern Thailand. The squealing baby elephant lost its footing and ended up trapped in a drainage ditch. Holding on for dear life with his front two legs straddling the edge of the manhole, the unfortunate calf was left hanging in a very awkward position. A bulldozer came in to widen the hole and eventually rescue the bleary-eyed mammel. The calf was released unharmed, but very hungry, and promptly went off for a good meal of leaves and fruit.

"Forgiveness has nothing to do with forgetting...A wounded person cannot--indeed, should not--think that a faded memory can provide an expiation of the past. To forgive, one must remember the past, put it into perspective, and move beyond it. Without remembrance, no wound can be transcended." - Beverly Flanigan - Forgiving The Unforgivable: Overcoming the Legacy of Intimate Wounds"

Somali Islamists pull teeth from "sinners"-residents

Somali Islamist group al Shabaab is forcibly removing gold and silver teeth from residents in southern Somalia because it says they contravene strict religious law, locals from a coastal town said on Monday. Residents in Marka say al Shabaab has been rounding up anyone seen with a silver or gold tooth and taking them to a masked man who then rips them out using basic tools. "I never thought al Shabaab would see my denture as a sin. They took me to their station and removed my silver tooth," resident Bashir said. "In the station, I met several men and women whose dentures were being pulled out by a masked man they called a doctor. The doctor used a pincer or his gloved hand depending on the strength of the tooth," Bashir said. "As you smile your silver tooth accuses you. I was at a counter with my friend when three armed al Shabaab ordered me to follow them," he added. "I am afraid they want to make money from taking all this precious metal." Al Shabaab officials declined to comment. The Islamist group says the gold and silver teeth are used for fashion and beauty, which is against strict interpretations of Islam, residents told Reuters. Al Shabaab, which means "Youth" in Arabic, is an al Qaeda-inspired militant group that has taken control of large swathes of south and central Somalia. The group's hardline interpretation of Islamic law has shocked many Somalis, who are traditionally more moderate Muslims. Some residents, however, give the insurgents credit for restoring order to the regions under their control. In June, al Shabaab officials in one of the group's Mogadishu strongholds ordered four teenagers to each have a hand and a foot cut off as punishments for robbery. - Reuters

METHALI YA KISWAHILI

Liandikwalo ndiyo liwalo.

That which is written by God is what is.

Britain’s High Commissioner Robert Macaire says his country will not fund the Truth Justice and Reconciliation Commission if it is turned into a tool to cleanse post-election violence suspects. And Deputy Prime Minister Musalia Mudavadi has accused some backbench MPs of shifting goalposts on matters relating to justice over the violence. Mr Macaire supported a threat to withhold money meant for the TJRC issued by the European Union last week for similar reasons. The envoy said the TJRC couldn’t be turned into a substitute for criminal justice adding suspects who were involved in the violence must be brought to justice in courts of law. "It is important for Kenya to find a way of holding people to account for post-election violence and that responsibility lies with the Government and Parliament."

LUO PROVERB

Ich bungu

Womb is forest

From the womb comes all sorts of characters just like varieties of creatures which come from a forest

The sweet Pishori rice from Mwea has in the recent past been in the decline, both at shop counters and in the vast fields of the Tebere land. With this, prospects of improved food security are dimming, as rice, considered second staple food after maize, is in short supply. Mwea Irrigation Scheme is facing harsh times owing to an acute water shortage that experts now warn could kill rice farming in the area within five years. As a result, farming at the giant scheme is severely affected with only about 7,000 of the approximately 16,000 acres meant for paddy is prepared with the planting season barely weeks away. Farmers are pessimistically weighing their options, as water levels in Thiba and Nyamindi rivers, which supply irrigation canals, are worrying

.

Street beggars earning £200 a night

So-called professional beggars are earning up to £200 a night on the streets, it has ben revealed. And police in Leicestershire added that numbers were growing and officers had cautioned 20 people for begging in the city centre in the first two weeks of a scheme to tackle the problem. Officers discovered none of them were homeless. Toni Soni, head of hostel services at Leicester City Council, said previous joint operations operations by them and police found no beggars to be homeless. He said: "There are people who are actually professional beggars who are doing it to make a living. If we did find that they were rough sleepers we would obviously attempt to engage them in our support services." It emerged one woman begged at night after her day job to fund a new kitchen in her flat. Sergeant Adrian Underwood, of Leicestershire police, said some people could earn up to £200 begging on a Friday or Saturday night.

London, Sunday 9th August, 2009. A gang brandishing a snake as a 'weapon' attacked a 14-year-old boy with a 4ft (1.2m) python, forcing the reptile to bite the teenager's arm. Police suspect the attack, in Bradley Stoke, South Gloucestershire, may have had a racist element to it and officers are appealing for witnesses. The boy was pinned to the floor on Saturday afternoon, as one gang member forced the green python to attack. Two youths aged 16 and 17, both boys, are being questioned. The teenager was taken to Frenchay Hospital for checks. Police and the RSPCA are now investigating the incident, which took place at about 1500 BST. Paramedics who attended the scene were left baffled by the injury and called Bristol Zoo for advice. A spokesman for Great Western Ambulance service (GWAS) said: "Ambulance staff consulted Google and Bristol Zoo experts after a teenager was attacked by a group of youths." The spokesman added that the group forced the snake to bite the boy on the arm, leaving two puncture wounds. Pythons are ambush predators which rely on crushing their prey, and are not venomous. GWAS incident support officer Michael Howells, who was at the scene, said: "Although the patient was suffering breathing difficulties after the attack, this was probably due to panic rather than a reaction to the bite. I would probably be panicky if that happened to me." An Avon and Somerset Police spokesman said: "The teenager had been subject to racist comments and was then reportedly held down as a snake was held in front of him, which bit his right arm. "The boy was taken to Frenchay Hospital with breathing problems, where he was treated for the injury to his arm. "Police would like to hear from anyone who was in Merryweather Close at the time of the incident."

Pythons are not venomous and generally no threat to humans

Government to compensate Mau settlers

Written By: PMPS, Posted: Mon, Aug 10, 2009
 

The government will compensate all settlers in the Mau forest complex with less than ten acres of land regardless the legitimacy of their title holdings, Prime Minister Raila Odinga has said. He said due the circumstances under which some peasants acquired land on willing buyer and seller basis, considerations would taken to ensure the interest  all parties in the Mau fiasco were taken into account. Odinga said an audit of those within the forest cover was set to be undertaken to ascertain genuine recipients of the compensation programme which may include a resettlement scheme to ensure that the exercise was conducted in a humane manner. "The government wants to conserve the eco system but we have to partner towards this venture with the communities so that we arrive at a consensus on which way forward to avert irreparable damage to our water catchment area" he said The premier told rallies in Siongiroi in Bomet and Sogoo in Narok South districts respectively that influential personalities who allegedly grabbed large tracts of land in the catchment area were not likely to be considered for compensation. He assured residents in the affected areas that the government wanted to amicably resolve the issue so that communities within the complex were actively involved in conservation efforts when the demarcation of the forest land was finalized. "Those settler with between five and ten acres of land will be considered for compensation after the vetting of those within the Mau complex is concluded because we have realized that they unknowingly bought their parcel from the grabbers" Odinga said.

He however censored section of politicians from the region for playing dirty tricks over government efforts to restore the complex claiming majority of those critical of the exercise were the beneficiary of illegal allocation in the forest land. The premier said the leaders who were against the government's effort to conserve the forest were beneficiaries of the forest and told the claimants to be wary of their motives which he insisted was not in good faith. Odinga added that the issue of the conservation of the forest, the biggest water tower in the country should be de-linked from politics and told off the leaders critic of the exercise to shun retrogressive rhetoric over the issue. He said the government will formulate a conservation Authority to oversee the restoration and protection of the five water towers in the country to ensure that the eco system was preserved for posterity of future generations. He premier told resident that a task force may soon be dispatched to surveyors to demarcate forest land from the former group ranches amid complaints from resident that their ancestral land was erroneously put under the Mau conservancy zone. " The cabinet has already approved the task force report which will be submitted to parliament this for adoption before we formulate a task force to vet the settlers and establish the boundaries and ascertain the actual number of those within the complex" Odinga said. Among those present during the Premier's whirlwind tour of the South Rift were cabinet Ministers James Orengo, Paula Otuoma and MPs Nkoidila Lankas and nominated MP Musa Sirma among other communal leaders.

The Bishop still busy in the UK

Bishop Samuel Muya is still in the UK. He has busy visiting and preaching in different areas in the UK. On Sunday 9th August, 2009 he was the guest preacher at Lakeside Christian Fellowship, Woking and later he visited St. Andrew's Church,  Church of of England in Woking. On Sunday he will be preaching in Coventry at Christian Life Ministry, Parkside, Coventry, CV2 1DW where he is being hosted by Rev. Mike Bonner. A fortnight ago he was guest speaker at Enlightment Ministries church in Swindon (above photo). His wife Esther Kamuri left for US a week ago and now she is Boston, US. His contact while in the UK is 07556113850.

Kibaki arrives in Lusaka

President Mwai Kibaki has Sunday evening 9th August, 2009 arrived in Lusaka, Zambia where he will attend the third Ordinary Summit of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region. The Plane carrying the President and his entourage touched down at Lusaka International Airport shortly before 6-pm Kenyan time. On arrival President Kibaki was received by his host President Rupiah Banda before being entertained by groups of traditional dancers. Kenyan High Commissioner to Zambia Ambassador Lazarus Amayo also led Kenyans resident in Lusaka in receiving the president. President Kibaki is accompanied by the Foreign Minister Moses Wetang'ula. President Kibaki is the current Chairman of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region.

Food: Kenya's next crisis after water and electricity

Men walk past dead cattle in Narok on Sunday. More than 80,000 animals have been driven from Narok to Kwale District in search of water and grazing, with the drought showing no sign of letting up. Kenya's Cabinet will meet in emergency session on Tuesday to agree on steps to prevent mass starvation across the country. The session will discuss the report of a sub-committee which paints an alarming picture of the food situation. The report was given to the President two weeks ago and partly discussed at Cabinet last Friday. The government believes more than 10 million need food aid and the committee has made proposals on what needs to be done. Compiled by a cross-section of ministries, it details the shortage of food and water for people and livestock. Only parts of Nyanza and Western provinces together with a section of Nakuru and some parts of Meru and Embu are generally food secure, the Kenya Red Cross said in a report at the weekend. The drought is so severe that it has compromised food security in areas such as Rift Valley Province and Central Kenya, which are normally highly productive. During the long rains season – March to May – the country received very little rain with some areas of northern Kenya and the greater Kajiado receiving none at all. - Daily Nation.

Given that most Kenya ministers cannot pass the public morality test, I would have been pleasantly perplexed if Cabinet had endorsed either a local or international tribunal. Although this administration was voted on the reform agenda, it has failed to put in place policies and institutions that could dismantle the culture of impunity. Instead, well-connected persons continue to commit crimes with impunity. The offenders have not only used their immense wealth to manipulate the police and the courts but have also exploited their powerful positions to block meaningful reforms. Generally, the Cabinet behaves as though the law does not apply to them. —The writer teaches History and political studies at Kenyatta University. kisiangani2007@gmail.com

Masters of impunity, like dogs of war, have no honour

Despite local and international pressure that Kenya establishes a homegrown tribunal to try the perpetrators of post-election chaos, the Cabinet has finally settled for an option, which was never recommended in the Waki Report. Instead of choosing between a local tribunal and the International Criminal Court (ICC), Cabinet resolved to turn to local courts to try suspected lords of war. This decision was not only unpopular with the international community but has also profoundly enraged the public. Since its formation in April last year, Cabinet has been consistent in misreading the national mood and in doing the wrong things. So, why should we be surprised by its latest blunder? Given that most ministers cannot pass the public morality test, I would have been pleasantly perplexed if Cabinet had endorsed either a local or international tribunal. Although this administration was voted on the reform agenda, it has failed to put in place policies and institutions that could dismantle the culture of impunity. Instead, well-connected persons continue to commit crimes with impunity. The offenders have not only used their immense wealth to manipulate the police and the courts but have also exploited their powerful positions to block meaningful reforms. Generally, the Cabinet behaves as though the law does not apply to them. When he served as Local Government minister, Uhuru Kenyatta broke the law when he nominated more councillors than prescribed. In some cases, he ignored the lists provided by political parties and appointed his own people. In a true democracy, Uhuru should have been prosecuted and denied an opportunity to hold a public office. Another case of impunity involved Trade Minister Amos Kimunya. Despite overwhelming disapproval from Parliament and the public, Kimunya sanctioned the sale of the Grand Regency Hotel to a Libyan firm. The fact that the Kipipiri MP is still a minister demonstrates how deep the culture of impunity has penetrated Government.

Besides Kimunya and Uhuru, more Cabinet ministers should have been reprimanded long time ago. For example, I have never understood why Agriculture Minister William Ruto failed to take responsibility for the embarrassing maize scandal. In addition to dismissing his critics over the scam, Ruto organised ethnic alliances in Parliament to protect himself. The increasing road carnage is a damning indictment of Transport Minister Chirau Mwakwere. By failing to perform national duties properly, Mwakwere should step aside. The alarming levels of insecurity should have forced Prof George Saitoti to step aside as Internal Security minister. Rather than take drastic measures to sanitise security organs, Saitoti has consistently defended the police force against accusations of corruption and human rights violations. And the President has come out to defend Saitoti. Similarly, Attorney General Amos Wako has been unable to prosecute those who break the law. On his part, Energy Minister Kiraitu Murungi refused to take responsibility for the Triton Petroleum rip-off. Remember the Artur Brothers and their dollars? The duo cruised in Government vehicles and enjoyed VIP treatment only to turn out to be frauds. By failing to take decisive action on this matter, Cabinet committed a treasonable offence. If ministers are not punished for crimes committed under their dockets, how can this country neutralise the culture of impunity and corruption? When the same Cabinet decides either the local courts or the Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission (TJRC) should handle architects of post-election violence, it intends to manipulate inefficient institutions to protect criminals and subvert justice. The entire Cabinet epitomises a sorrowful discourse in broken promises.

Ministers know that as currently constituted, the TJRC has no prosecutorial powers to deal with masterminds of election violence. Furthermore, Cabinet is aware that even if it attempted to empower the TJRC to prosecute culprits, Parliament will not approve such a move. Because the current Judiciary answers to the whims of the Executive, judges and magistrates cannot be expected to convict those who have appointed them. In announcing the Cabinet verdict on the post election crisis, Kibaki promised to reform the Police department and the Judiciary to effectively face the challenges of trying suspects of post-election chaos. But how long would such reforms take? It is laughable that politicians are now promising to reform systems which have protected them from prosecution for a long time.Without doubt, the Cabinet decision to shelve plans to establish a special tribunal was carefully arrived at after it became clear that, under a fair trial, most MPs and ministers would be jailed. Worse still, there is no guarantee that those in high offices would escape conviction. As a result, the Cabinet chose local courts and the TJRC to make sure that the principal perpetrators of election violence will never face trial. On the brighter side of things, however, the Cabinet has exposed this Government for what it is — selfish non-reformers. Rather than waste our energies in condemning such a Cabinet, we should pressurise the ICC to promptly issue arrest warrants for all the chief priests of the post-election mayhem. It is only after these suspects are prosecuted that this country would have a realistic chance of moving to next level. —The writer teaches History and political studies at Kenyatta University. kisiangani2007@gmail.com - From the Standard.

A team of daring skydivers has set a world record for the biggest ever formation of people in freefall while facing headfirst towards the ground and on right the skydivers successfully managed to link up - while travelling at 180mph.

EU piles pressure on Kenya over poll violence

NAIROBI, Kenya - The European Union (EU) on Friday rejected the Cabinet's decision to use the Truth Justice and Reconciliation Commission to deal with the 2007 post-election violence and instead insisted on the formation of a Special Tribunal to try the perpetrators. In a statement signed by 20 EU Heads of Missions based in Nairobi, the union's Acting President Björn Häggmark insisted that even a properly mandated TJRC could not replace a judicial mechanism. He said when considering whether to provide financial support to the TJRC, the EU and its member states would take such concerns into account. "We believe a properly mandated TJRC can play a role in national reconciliation, but it cannot replace a judicial mechanism. When considering whether to provide financial support to the TJRC, the EU and its member states will take such concerns into account," he said. In the strongly-worded statement, the EU said it would peg its future dealings with Kenya on whether the government establishes a Special Tribunal. "We have in particular emphasised the need to ensure a credible judicial process for victims of the post election violence. This would be of immense benefit to Kenya and contribute to the EU's future relationship with the Government of Kenya," said Mr Häggmark. He however said the EU recognised the Cabinet's commitment to speed up judicial, constitutional, electoral and police reforms saying they will also play a big role to do justice to Kenyans and restore trust in such institutions.

The statement came after a meeting on Thursday between Prime Minister Raila Odinga and the EU Heads of Missions. The Cabinet last week decided to strengthen the TJRC to deal with the perpetrators of the 2007 violence, a decision that has left many Kenyans disgruntled.  A section of the civil society has asked the government to be clear on how the perpetrators will be punished. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Thursday told Capital news that Kenya had to punish the perpetrators at all costs. She threw her weight on the formation of a local tribunal saying it was the best option since it will be a process that will be in line with the people's values and national interests. "I did want to explore and frankly challenge the people of Kenya and the government as to what is the route that is going to be taken to hold people accountable? I feel very strongly there has to be accountability and appropriate prosecutions and that has not happened," she said. She further said if Kenya failed to form a local channel that was satisfactory to the people, the International Criminal Court will have to act on the Waki list that is with ICC Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo. "I'm hearing from people in Kenya that no one thinks the local route will work! That only leaves the ICC, if people and the government of Kenya cannot come up with a fair, acceptable approach to hold people accountable, then I believe you will see the referral to the ICC!," she noted. Even though the Cabinet held a meeting on Friday, there was no a word on how the perpetrators would be punished.

Australian Camels Will Be Shot From Helicopters

Thousands of camels will be shot from helicopters and turned into burgers in a bid to halt their trail of havoc across Australia. Marksmen plan to gun the animals down amid concern the thirsty dromedaries are barging into people's homes and ripping up their bathrooms looking for water. Government officials plan to wipe out 650,000 of the feral population in the remote Outback area of the country. The creatures were first introduced to Australia in the 1840s to help explorers travel through the Australian desert. There are now about one million camels roaming the country. They compete with sheep and cattle for food, trample vegetation and invade remote settlements in search of water. On a number of occasions they have scared residents - tearing apart bathrooms and ripping up water pipes. Last month, the federal government set aside £9.5m for the cull. Besides sending in sharpshooters in helicopters and on foot, officials are planning to turn many of the creatures into camel burgers and other treats. Glenn Edwards, who is working on drafting the government's camel reduction program, said the camel population needs to be slashed by two-thirds to reduce catastrophic damage.

Russian prime minister Vladimir Putin has been bolstering his credentials as an all-action tough guy while on holiday in southern Siberia and on right despite the fact he is no longer president, Mr Putin is widely regarded as the man who really holds the reins of power in Russia.

Cabinet to convene next week
Written By: vpps , Posted: Sun, Aug 09, 2009

A special meeting of Cabinet will be held on Tuesday this week to deliberate on ways and means of containing the serious famine that has hit many parts of the country due to prolonged drought, Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka has said. Mr. Musyoka described the current situation of famine in the country as serious and assured Kenyans that everything possible was being done to avert the situation from getting out of control. "The famine situation is serious that it needs urgent intervention. In fact, in a place like Mwingi district, over 70 percent of the total population is in dire need of food. The same thing applies to many other areas in the country,'' said Mr. Musyoka. "The government will on Tuesday announce the steps that will be taken to save the lives of those people who are being hit by famine,'' he added. Speaking at Mivukoni secondary school during a funds drive in aid of the school, Mr. Musyoka said the Government has recalled primary school pupils from Arid and Semi Arid Lands (ASAL) from their August/September holiday to go back to their respective schools so that they could benefit from the schools feeding programmes which have been revived in learning institutions.

Earlier, Mr. Musyoka had addressed wananchi at Matuu and Mwingi and Kithyoko trading centres. He said the government was concerned about the serious famine situation which has been compounded by prolonged drought and was exploring all avenues of containing the situation, assuring that nobody will be left to die of hunger. "President Mwai Kibaki has resolved to convene a meeting of Cabinet committees this Tuesday to work on ways of solving the perennial problem of famine among other issues in the country,'' said Mr. Musyoka. The Vice President was accompanied by Northern Kenya and other Arid areas minister Mr. Mohamed Elmi, assistant ministers Adan Duale (Livestock) Mahamud Mohammed (Energy), Mahalim Mohammed (Special Progrmames and MPs Johnstone Muthama (Kangundo), Peter Mwati (Limuru), Abdul Bahari (Isiolo South), Sophia Abdi (nominated), Mohammed Affey (nominated)  and former Kisumu West MP Kennedy Nyagudi among others.

And at the same time, the Vice President said the Government was putting more emphasis on the development of agriculture as the only way to improving the people's living standards, citing the revival of Bura irrigation project in Tana River district. The Vice President announced that the Chinese government will construct a dam in the area which will produce at least 500 megawatts of electricity once completed. "It is these kinds of projects that will enable our people engage in serious farming and thus empower them economically. In fact, rationing will be a thing of the past once the Chinese funded project will be complete,'' said Mr. Musyoka. He said it was high time to embark on the construction of dams and drilling of boreholes for irrigation purposes instead of relying on rain fed agriculture which has not been reliable in most cases. He said it was through the construction of such dams that the residents could form cooperatives societies and make use of them to engage in serious farming activities through irrigation.

" I have a dream that over 1,000 dams will soon be constructed especially in Ukambani region among other areas if we unite and forge a common development agenda for the  people,'' he said. He said the government will make use of the military, National Youth Service and even the prisoners in the construction of such dams. Mr. Musyoka said there was need for leaders to stop dwelling much on political matters and instead advised them to engage on activities aimed at improving the country's economy. "There is no need to talk about Hague and special tribunal issues all the time while Kenyans are being hard hit by hunger while others are still displaced from their homes following the post election violence. These are some of the issues which need our urgent attention instead of mere politicking," said Mr. Musyoka. He said the Government was committed to the healing and reconciliation as the only way to fighting negative ethnicity in the country. Mr. Musyoka asked District Commissioners to be transparent while handling public resources including the ones set aside for Kazi Kwa Vijana initiative, noting that it was through such projects that the youth could uplift their living standards.

Speaker after speaker emphasized on the need for leaders to preach peace and reconciliation for the sake of peace and development in the country. They vowed to support the recent move by the Cabinet to embark on Truth Justice and Reconciliation Commission, saying it was the only way to unite the people of Kenya. "Leaders have no option but to support the Cabinet in its efforts to uniting the people of Kenya. We have to forget the past, forgive each other if this country has to remain united,'' said Mr. Duale. Mr. Elmi said leaders have resolved to forget their political differences and work as a team in solving the problems facing the people of Kenya. Mr. Mohammed, the assistant minister for Special Programmes said the Government was doing everything possible to contain the famine which has ravaged many parts of the country. He said the government had donated 500 bags of maize to benefit needy cases in five locations of Tseikuru district. During the harambee, Shs. 2.8 million was raised.

Thumb-sucking Amy has an early night

Amy Winehouse was spotted sucking her thumb on a rare night out in London since her divorce from Blake Fielder-Civil. The singer, 25, reverted back to her childhood ways on a rainy night out in Camden with her handsome friend Tyler James, an unknown singer/songwriter. It looks like Winehouse is keeping on the straight and narrow since her split from ex-husband Blake as she decided to call it a night at 8pm. Amy, who was dressed in a navy top and dark blue jeans, left the Good Mixer pub hid under an umbrella and surrounded by bodyguards. She then crawled into the back of a waiting car with Tyler as dozens of snappers waited on the street to get a glimpse of her. The star has been looking a lot healthier coming back from the island of St Lucia, where she was recording her third album.

Waiter, there is a camel on my plate!

When Kerio Valley residents learnt a local abattoir would be used to inspect and slaughter camels, they threatened to tear down the facility. They protested at the idea, claiming the animal was not edible and its meat may be passed off as beef.It took the concerted efforts of veterinary officials and the Provincial Administration to convince them otherwise. Worried by incidents of game meat being sold in the area, the residents had vowed to block the move at whatever cost. But four months after the first camel was killed there, villagers throng the slaughterhouse, waiting patiently to get a share of the meat they once detested. Young and old even scramble for the animal’s tripe (matumbo), sold after inspection by vet officials. The long distance involved in sourcing the animals has not deterred businessman Abdulahi Osman, who travels more than 50kms to buy camels for slaughter. The butchery, which has been opened in Eldoret’s Mwanzo estate, is a special one in North Rift. Other than towns in North Eastern Province, camel meat is only sold in Nairobi and Nakuru. - The Standard.

A Kenyan student has passed away in Manchester, UK. Manchester Police are looking for the next of kin for the Miss Gloria Wanja Kutherima, aged 27 in Salford.  The lady was found dead at her flat on Eccles Old Road, Hope, on Friday 31 July 2009. There are no suspicious circumstances surrounding her death and the police have now contacted the family. She had been a student at City College, Manchester, until December 2008. It is believed she was a Christian and may have attended local churches. She is from Meru District.

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APPRECIATION

We the Parents of  Perpetua Muthoni Muchemi ‘aka’ Shiku  also known to her friends as Wendie, Mrs Ruth Warûchû Mwangi and Mr Stephen Muchemi Njoroge  would like to take this opportunity to convey our heartfelt gratitude to  Perpetua Funeral Organizing Committee, PCEA UK Outreach, All Pastors, His Excellence Kenya High Commissioner and the entire office, friends and colleagues.

We thank you dearly for supporting us during this trying moment Morally, Spiritually and financially. We praise and thank God that you stood with us when we needed a shoulder to lean on.  We thank God that you helped us, raise enough money to cover Perpetua funeral expenses and she was laid to rest in NaroMoru, Nyeri District, Kenya. Those who still wish to contribute towards Perpetua funeral expenses can channel their contributions to any other charity work that God may lead them.

With this notice, we appreciate that no other funds is raised in respect of our Daughter Perpetua Muthoni Muchemi ‘aka’ Shiku (Wendie).

Mr and Mrs Muchemi Njoroge.

The family and friends arrived safely in Kenya on the morning of 6th Aug 2009. The burial was on the 7th Aug 2009, was well attended and the Moderator of the 19th PCEA General Assembly Rt, Rev Gathanju was present and everything went well. May all Praises and Glory be to our Lord Jesus Christ!  The family will be back soon.

Thank You for Your Support and May the Almighty God Bless You Abundantly.

“Then weep not, since we shall meet, our trials over, our joy complete, safe in our father’s home.”

LUO PROVERB

Ich nam (a big river is called lake by the Luos)

Stomach is a lake

A person must work constantly to meet the demands of the stomach which like a lake/river never stay full.

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UK's most expensive sheep is dead

Britain's most expensive sheep has died at a farm in north east Scotland after fathering lambs sold for more than £1m. Tophill Joe broke all records when he was bought by a consortium of farmers for £128,000 six years ago. The Texel ram was valued for his perfectly-shaped head and legs, tight skin and top-quality fleece. His owners at Fyvie, near Turriff, Aberdeenshire, said recent hot weather in the area may have contributed to the sheep's demise. Many of Tophill Joe's offspring picked up prizes at the prestigious Royal Highland Show. Co-owner, Bruce Mair, said: "He had particularly good characteristics. He was active right up until the end. "He could be a bit of a pain sometimes - he had an aggressive streak, particularly during the mating season, but he will be missed. "Sadly, he didn't survive the very hot weather. The hot weather is tough going for a ram and this summer had some very hot spells." Tophill Joe is believed to have been six-years-old when he died. Texel sheep originate from the island of Texel, off Holland, and have been known since Roman times. They were introduced to Britain in the 1970s, and are renowned for their lean meat.

A Chania Sacco matatu heading from Nairobi veered off the road and caused death on Saturday morning 8th August, 2009. The matatu is said to have been driving from Kamukunji police direction heading to Race Course roundabout where it was said to have been driving very fast. Sources said the dead man was walking along the road when he go hit by the tail of the matatu when it started spinning killing him intently and causing damage also to the Nairobi river barriers. The driver and his conductor vanished. Few passengers in the matatu were not injured but suffered shock. The police released the following information to help their family find the deceased.

 
Name; HUMPHEY MWANIKI KIHU from Maragua,Murang'a
Division; KIGUMO
Location; Kinyona
Sublocation; KINYONA
Age; 40yrs

His postal address according to the DL is P.O. BOX 1696 Nairobi. Anyone who may know the family of the deceased should please let them know to, contact Kamukunji police station Nairobi for directions from there. - Photo by Karuga wa Njuguna, Nairobi.

Helicopter, plane collide over Hudson, 9 likely dead 

A tour helicopter with Italian tourists aboard collided in midair with a small plane on Saturday and crashed into the Hudson River, leaving nine people likely dead, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg said. He said there were five Italian tourist aboard the helicopter and three people aboard the plane including the pilot and a child. Two bodies had been recovered but there was no hope of finding survivors.  "This has changed from a rescue to a recovery mission," Bloomberg said. "There's not going to be a happy ending." Search and rescue craft rushed to the area and police divers started looking for survivors and wreckage. The weather around the time of the accident in the vicinity of West 14th Street at noon (1600 GMT) was reported clear and mild. Bloomberg said police had found one piece of wreckage in murky waters and the search would probably continue for a few days. The helicopter was operated by Liberty Helicopter, the largest sightseeing and charter helicopter operator in the U.S. Northeast. The plane was a Piper PA-32. An eyewitness told the NY1 local TV station he saw a wing come off the plane around the time of the collision. The helicopter immediately "fell like a stone" into the river, the witness said. Others reported hearing a loud boom. In January, a US Airways jet with more than 150 people on board crashed into the frigid Hudson River off Manhattan after apparently hitting a flock of geese. All aboard survived.

It is alleged that a council askari poured cooking oil in the fire as one of the workers was getting arrested. A fire broke up. Luckily the fire awareness week exhibition was right at the next street at Tom Mboya street next to Gill House where the smoke could be seen from. Response time then was seconds from. Three people got slight injuries and taken to hospital by St John's Ambulance. - photo by Karuga wa Njuguna, Nairobi 7th August, 2009. - Photos by Karuga wa Njuguna, Nairobi

Changes to the points-based system

Home Office, 07 August 2009

The UK Border Agency has today announced a number of changes to the points-based system and revised its guidance for employers and education providers who sponsor migrant workers and students.  We have made these changes in response to concerns that our customers have raised, and to ensure that the points-based system continues to facilitate the trade and travel that benefits the United Kingdom whilst also ensuring that the immigration system is not open to abuse. The changes to the system include:

• Creating an escalation route for University Vice-Chancellors and Academic Registrars through the use of a dedicated mailbox for urgent incidents requiring immediate attention, with a guaranteed response within 72 hours.
• Modified rules on students' maintenance requirements.

Additionally, we are:

• Developing new guidance for 'milkround' recruitment campaigns, to provide a truer test of the resident labour market whilst meeting the needs of businesses;
• Outlining our plans to develop our IT system, making it even easier for customers and sponsors to use;
• Looking at developing a new employer led route for interns to sit alongside and complement our existing Government Authorised Exchange schemes
• Making a number of changes to our guidance for points-based system sponsors.

We hope that these measures will demonstrate our continuing commitment to building a system that controls the numbers coming to the United Kingdom while also facilitating trade and travel. You can download a full list of the changes to the sponsor guidance and information on the other announcements we have made from the right side of this page.

Woman 'torched Briton's genitals

A Greek woman accused of setting fire to the genitals of a British tourist in Crete is due to appear in court. The woman admitted assault after dousing the man's private parts in alcohol and igniting them, but says she did so after being sexually harassed. Police on the Greek island say the tourist was drunk and had waved his genitals at several girls before allegedly groping the suspect. The man suffered second degree burns and is recovering in a private clinic. The 26-year-old suspect handed herself over to police, claiming she had acted in self defence. She has won praise on Crete for what has been seen as defending her honour, the BBC's Malcolm Brabant said. According to police the 23-year-old tourist was drunk when he dropped his trousers in a nightclub in the resort of Malia. The suspect, who has not been named, said she doused the man in Sambuca and torched him after she asked him to stop harassing her and he failed to stop. She will be questioned by an investigating magistrate in the city of Iraklion. The case has been widely discussed on Greek television, and there has been precious little sympathy for the young Briton, said our correspondent. He added that many Greeks are sickened by British bad behaviour in Malia and other resorts. A Foreign Office spokeswoman said: "We can confirm that in the early hours of Tuesday a 23-year-old British male national was assaulted in Crete. "We understand he suffered burns on his chest and abdomen. "He has been receiving consular assistance."

This was at Tom Mboya Street, Nairobi. For reasons not known the City Council of Nairobi was nowhere. G4S, Knight Support, Red Cross were there to showcase and educate Kenyans. Over to you Philip Kisia, Why is the council shying off while they should be at the front to educate us? This shows serious failures from The Ministry of Local Government and the Council. - Photo and story by Karuga wa Njuguna, Nairobi.

Kenyan woman arrested in Tanzania for drug trafficking

Written By: ThisDay, Posted: Fri, Aug 07, 2009

A Kenyan woman has been arrested in Dar es Salaam for possession of three kilogrammes of heroin worth millions of shillings. Rebecca Wanjiku, 48 was apprehended at the Ubungo upcountry bus terminal in the city allegedly in the process of trying to transport the narcotics to South Africa. She had just arrived in Dar es Salaam from Nairobi by bus. Tanzanian head of the police anti-drugs unit, Godfrey Nzowa said the suspect had tried to hide the heroin by carefully stuffing it in different compartments amongst her clothes in her luggage. Police sources say the woman claimed the drugs to be worth around 500 million Tanzania shillings and that she was planning to transport them by road from Tanzania to South Africa through Zambia and Botswana. But anti-drugs unit officials said they believed the drugs to be worth around 40.9 million Tanzania shillings. "The woman's travel documents show that she originated from Nairobi and had a visa to travel to South Africa," said Nzowa. Samples of the drugs confiscated from the suspect will be sent to the government chemist's laboratory agency for analysis as part of police investigations, he added. The arrest of the Kenyan woman marks the first time in recent history that police have managed to make a substantial drug burst at the Ubungo bus terminal. Various officials have often expressed belief that the terminal, which caters for buses plying both domestic and international routes, has over the years become a key transit point for drug traffickers. In the past, the more favoured method for such traffickers to transport narcotics to and from the country has been by air.

London, Aug. 7 : Believe it or not, star players of Chelsea FC spent a staggering 120,000 pounds on booze during a night out to celebrate the birthday of teetotaler Ivory Coast striker Salomon Kalou. According to The Sun, Blues captain John Terry forked out 60,000 pounds, but Kalou didn''t drink a drop. Terry also gave waitresses at the club a tip of 10,000 pounds before driving home. Kalou, 24, spent 34,000 pounds. Between them the 30-strong group, which included Michael Ballack, Didier Drogba, Michael Essien and Paulo Ferreira, ordered 30 bottles of Dom Perignon champagne and ten bottles of Patron tequila at London's Whisky Mist. Other players chipped in for special Quaich Trophy cocktails at 400 pounds each. The superstars, who were surrounded by girls all night, hired the entire VIP area of the Mayfair hotspot. Prince Harry had had to settle for a table in the main part of the club, but did his bit and bought the birthday boy a drink. (ANI)

"I will make sure you will drink from Nairobi river" - Michuki

When the name John Michuki or John Gakuo is aired anywhere, you think of serious men working for the government. With Michuki rules in mind, when he got moved to the Ministry of Environment and Mineral resources and talked of Nairobi cleaning, many of us took it as a joke. Together with Gakuo former town clerk, they have made Kenyans proud. Nairobi river is clean again but we can not swim now due to the low water level. Kudos to these two chaps and KKV AKA Kazi Kwa Vijana in the white dust coats, gloves, gumboots and all the required tools for the job.  - photo by Karuga wa Njuguna, Nairobi 7th August, 2009.

A truck carrying the casket of former Philippines President Corazon Aquino makes its way through supporters during funeral rites in Manila and on right men, with their bodies painted with recycled oil, pose for pictures as they take part in celebrations honoring Santo Domingo de Guzman, the patron of Managua, Nicaragua.

Kenyan albinos ask for recognition

A group of over 300 albinos is petitioning the government through parliament to include them in the development agenda. Issuing a petition on behalf of the group Saboti Member of Parliament Eugene Wamalwa said the petition seeks to have the government offer equal opportunities for the minority group who continue to face discrimination and in extreme circumstances undergo ritual killings such as those witnessed in neighboring Tanzania where albinos have been murdered in witchcraft related cases. They also want equal representation in various sectors of the economy as well as inclusion in leadership positions. The group also wants legislation enacted to address their issues saying the Disability Act that is in existence doesn't take their plight into consideration. Supporting the petition several members of parliament including Bonny Khalwale, Joseph Nyaga, Danson Mungatana and Mohammed Affey also called for a price cut in the sunscreen utilized by albinos to protect them against the harsh rays of the sun. Temporary Speaker Gitobu Imanyara referred the petition to the parliamentary committee on Justice and Legal Affairs for further scrutiny to which they will table a comprehensive report in 3 weeks time.

Artist wins with her body of work

A British woman was yesterday crowned World Bodypainting Champion for the second time with her stunning creations. Carolyn Roper, 27, triumphed at the competition in Austria after taking seven hours to paint her model and enter him in the bodypainting special FX category. The process took so long that she asked a friend who was a former Queen's Guard to pose as her model - because he was used to standing still for so long. 'There was a nerve-wracking wait for the results but I was amazed and ecstatic when they called my name out and I was crowned champion again,' said Ms Roper, who runs her own make-up and body art business from her home in Greenwich, south-east London.

The under sea fibre optic cable will be connected to Kenya's terrestrial network by August 25, 2009. The Director of Information Mr. Ezekiel Mutua said Kenya was the only country with a long coastline without fibre optic cables and expressed hope that the connection would decongest Internet broadbands and enhance development. Mutua said the department of information would be fully involved in the creation of digital villages, which will soon be piloted in 40 constituencies.  Speaking at the Kenya Institute of Mass Communication (KIMC) during the official closing of a five day course on camera operations for photo journalists, photographic officers and information officers, Mutua said the Kenya News Agency would be revamped to cope with modern technology. He said the department, in conjunction with the World Bank will in the next three weeks begin forming 24 information resource centres country-wide, to be fully equipped with digital news gathering equipment. "Our greatest challenge was lack of equipment and personnel with knowledge in modern technology, but we are soon beating this," he said. Mr Mutua said KNA would soon start transmitting news through the Internet as opposed to the current trend where news gathering tapes have to be sent to Nairobi by air or road making news 'stale'. "Many media houses want KNA stories, but since we do not have the modern technology to transmit news fast enough, we have been looked down for too long. We want to change this scenario," he said. He asked journalists under the department to be more innovative in their news coverage so that media houses go for stories from the agency. "We want to project KNA as a development conscious media house," he said. "We cannot compete with other media houses if we look for the same news angles as their reporters in the field."

Kesom Freight International Ltd are opening a branch in Barking, East London

Kesom Freight International Ltd are opening a branch in Barking, East London. The launching ceremony takes place on Saturday 8th August, 2009 as from 2.00 p.m. with  NYAMA CHOMA Barbecue. The venue is 380 Ripple Road, Barking, Essex IG11 9RS. There offices are a few meters from Thatched House. You are invited for the ceremony. For more information please contact 07930508058.

A Kenyan has passed away in Frisco, Colorado, USA. Mr. Moses Muniu Gatere passed away following a road accident on Monday 3, August 2009. He was the husband to Freshier Nduta Muniu and the father to Kairu, Gatere, Waitete and Njambi. He was the son of Mr. & Mrs. Charles Gatere of Gatimu village in Limuru and a son in law to the late Mr. & Mrs. Daniel Kairu of Kabuku village in Limuru. Family and friends are meeting daily for prayers and funeral arrangements at the family residence from 7.00 p.m. - 7017 Oconnor St, Arlington, TX 76002, 817 468 3214. A Harambee to raise the money needed to transport the remains and the immediate family to Kenya is scheduled for Sunday August 9, 2009 4 PM at the family residence. A Bank account has been set up for the fund mentioned; any financial support will be highly appreciated.

The late Moses Muniu Gatere

Bank of America, Account name: Freshier N. Muniu , Account #: 4880 2543 7539, Routing #: 111000025, Account established in the State of TEXAS. A memorial service will held on Tuesday August 11, 2009 between 4 PM – 6PM at  Trinity Hillcrest Church, 12727 Hillcrest Rd, Dallas, TX 75230, Tel: 972 991 3601. Lets join together to grieve and support his family. Your prayers and support will be greatly treasured and May God bless you. For Additional Information, you may contact any of the following persons - Alex Ndirangu 469 438 8388, Peter Mbugua 469 835 1210, Rev Jacob Ngobia 972 386 5582, James Mwangi 617 794 3949, Patrick Njoroge 214 404 6227, Robert Thige 469 995 5192, Philip Kuria 214 223 5020, Rose Wakibia 469 438 0873, John Ndichu 682 559 5807 or John Mwangi 682 557 6650.

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PLOT FOR SALE

Plot for sale: Ndenderu (Kiambu, Ruaka) along Nairobi Limuru Rd, 20 minutes drive to Nairobi city centre. Within 10 minutes drive is Runda, Muthaiga, Village Market. 50 x 200 1/4 acre ideal for residential properties development. Freehold, red soil. Title ready. Offers are welcome. Contact: UK 07931387519 or Kenya: 0722748079.

SEE THE MAP BELOW:

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?q=-1.196305,36.750436&t=h&sll=-1.16695,36.82201&sspn=0.022311,0.032015&ie=UTF8&ll=-1.196001,36.750877&spn=0.003749,0.004774&z=18

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"Being fat is a mistaken sign of success in Africa" - Pat, forum contributor

Gospel singer Rachel Njeri is in USA performing

Rachel, from London U.K is in St.Louis, USA. Her first album was "ningwenda unyite", came out in 1993. The 2nd  Album was "gugakihana atia kuu iguru", 3rd album "kiama kiama", 4th album "ngoma ndari kindu giake" ,5th album "elisha" and  6th  and new album which has hit the best in Kenya is"Kioneki". She is also part of the popular one " Riu ndiraigua o kugoca kuma ndaiiga mirigo thi". Her perfomance will be at 10:30 a.m and also 6:00 p.m at Christ Covenant Church (8/9/2009)

KIKUYU AGE GROUP

1917 - Rika ria Njanjo - Vaccination

Final leg for Perpetua Muthoni Muchemi

The coffin carrying the body of Perpetua Muthoni Muchemi being escored out of the church after the memorial service on Tuesday 4th August, 2009. The body was escorted to the airport and is to be buried on Friday 7th August, 2009. On the right both familes of Muthoni and Wanjiru posed for a photo with the Kenya High Commissioner HE Joseph Muchemi and former MP Hon. Shikuku.

Proposed changes to the law on citizenship

Home Office, 03 August 2009

The Borders, Citizenship and Immigration Bill received Royal Assent on 21 July. It will introduce certain changes to British nationality law. The new registration provisions will need to be commenced by order. We intend to commence these by early 2010. The "Earned Citizenship " provisions, which will amend the requirements for naturalisation, will be commenced in the Summer of 2011. One of these changes amends the British Nationality Act 1981 so that a person born in the United Kingdom to a parent in the armed forces will be a British citizen. This already happens, but changes to the 1981 Act will put the matter beyond doubt. For children born overseas to those in the armed forces, the Borders, Citizenship and Immigration Act inserts a new section 4D into the British Nationality Act 1981, which will entitle a person born outside the United Kingdom to register as a British citizen if:

• he or she was born to a Foreign and Commonwealth member of the United Kingdom armed forces; and

• that parent was serving outside the United Kingdom at the time of birth; and

• both parents consent to the registration.

A change has been made to section 3(2) of the British Nationality Act 1981. At the moment, children of British citizens by descent can only be registered under that section if an application is made within 12 months of the birth (or six years, if the Home Secretary allows). The change will allow an application to be made at any time before a child's reaches the age of 18. More information about registration under section 3(2) can be found in Guide MN1, which you can download from the right side of this page. The changes in the Act will allow British Nationals (Overseas) to be registered under section 4B of the British Nationality Act 1981 if they do not hold any other citizenship or nationality. A person will not qualify under this section if they have done anything after 19 March 2009 that resulted in the loss of another nationality. More information about registration under section 4B can be found in Guide BOS, which you can download from the right side of this page. A person who has a British mother currently has a right to register as a British citizen under section 4C of the British Nationality Act 1981 if:

• he or she was born between 7 February 1961 and 1 January 1983; and

• he or she would have become a British citizen if women had been able to pass on citizenship in the same way as men at that time.

The new Act extends the provisions of section 4C to those born before 1961. Further information about registration under section 4C can be found in Guide UKM, which you can download from the right side of this page.  The Government is also making changes to the requirements for naturalisation, to introduce the concept of earned citizenship. Further information about commencement of the nationality provisions will be posted on our website in due course.

Implement reform or face action, says Mrs Clinton

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton bids bye at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, Thursday. She left for South Africa.

Extra £50bn pumped into economy

The Bank of England's rate-setters have decided to pump another £50bn of new money into the economy in their programme of quantitative easing. It will take their total spending to £175bn, unexpectedly going over the £150bn set aside by the chancellor. In a statement, they said that the UK recession "appears to have been deeper than previously thought". The rate-setters also decided to keep interest rates unchanged at their historic low of 0.5% for a fifth month. BBC economics editor Stephanie Flanders said that the Monetary Policy Committee's (MPC) £50bn expansion of the programme had surprised many in the markets. "Most expected the MPC to either put the quantitative easing policy on hold or simply spend the remaining £25bn authorised by the chancellor in March," she said. "It's possible that the Bank of England has already done enough to support the recovery into next year, but no-one knows for sure." "I think they believe that the fragility of the economy right now is such that there's more risk in doing too little than in doing too much," she added. Following the announcement, the pound gave up much of its recent gains against the US dollar, falling more than 2 cents to $1.6765.

Stephen Timms, financial secretary to the Treasury, said he thought the Bank had made the right judgment. "I think it's a key element alongside all the other things we've done - the VAT cut; the decision to let companies under pressure put off taxes they owe through the Time to Pay arrangement; bringing forward, as we have done, investment planned for future years into the current year," he said. "I think what we're seeing is all those measures in combination having the effect that we'd hoped they would have and a growing sense of optimism now that, as we said at the time of the Budget, the economy is likely to return to growth by the end of this year." There will now be increased focus on the Bank's latest economic projections, which will be published in the quarterly Inflation Report on Wednesday, 12 August. The extra £50bn will be spent over the next three months, which is a slower rate of spending than when the programme began in March. The Bank has said it will have to expand the range of government debt it is prepared to buy. In its statement, it also noted that "though there are signs that credit conditions may have started to ease, lending to business has fallen". The British Chambers of Commerce picked up the theme, saying that "many viable small firms are finding it difficult to access credit". It urged the MPC to buy more debt from companies instead of government debt, adding that "the risks of not persevering with an aggressive policy stimulus are much bigger than the risks of extending the QE programme".

There was some criticism from economists of the MPC's statement. "I'm just struck by how backward looking a lot of it is, focusing on the economy in recession and that there is a large output gap," said Ross Walker, an economist at RBS Financial Markets. "We knew all that, what has changed? They seem to be giving much more weight to the backward-looking data rather than believing the better surveys." Many of the recent forward-looking surveys have suggested that parts of the economy have been improving. Wednesday's survey from the Chartered Institute for Purchasing and Supply, for example, showed the service sector growing at its fastest for 18 months. At the same time, house prices are now rising, according to the latest survey from the Halifax, while recent surveys by Nationwide and the Land Registry also suggested prices were increasing slightly. The MPC's statement recognised that the surveys have suggested the bottom of the recession may be near. "The pace of contraction has moderated and business surveys suggest that the trough in output is close at hand," it said. Also on Thursday, the European Central Bank decided to keep its interest rates unchanged at 1%.

WHAT IS QUANTITATIVE EASING?

The Bank of England is trying to stimulate the economy.

It would normally do this by cutting interest rates, but with rates at 0.5% it has to create new money instead.

It gets the new money into the banking system by buying assets from banks.

The idea is the banks then lend the money to companies and individuals.

Businesses and consumers then spend it - buying goods, paying wages - which helps the economy recover.

Kenya High Commission staff at the memorial service of the two girls on Tuesday 4th August, 2009 - from left Mr. Boiyo, Mr. Ismael, Mr. Abrham Mwaura and Education attache Mrs. Gichure. On right is the chairman of South London Kenyan Community Mr. Anthony Thuo charting with Hon. Martin Shikuku.

New research shows that exodus of

immigrants from UK is speeding up

Home Office, 06 August 2009

A new report by ippr published today shows that more and more immigrants to the United Kingdom are staying for a short time and then leaving. The outflow in the last couple of years is close to 400,000. Major findings from the report, Shall we stay or Shall we Go: Re-migration trends among Britain's immigrants include:

• More than 3 million immigrants to the United Kingdom in the last thirty years have subsequently left - around half the total

• The size of the exodus is increasing, with more than 190,000 leaving in 2007 - a number that is likely to be exceeded in 2008

• Short stay migration is a growing phenomenon - immigrants spending less than four years in the United Kingdom doubled between 1996 and 2007

• 85% of migrants currently in the United Kingdom who took part in an on-line survey said they were only planning to stay short term

Research in 5 countries showed that migrants tend to come to the United Kingdom for economic reasons, but leave for personal reasons. The migrants who are most likely to leave are those with high skills, good education and low barriers to movement. These people are becoming increasingly 'super mobile'. The findings could have important implications for the Government's new points-based immigration and citizenship systems, which put an emphasis on highly skilled migration and greater integration of immigrants. Tim Finch, Head of Migration at ippr, says:

'The migration debate in the UK is fixated with the idea that immigrants come to settle and not enough attention has been paid to the fact that more and more immigrants are spending only short periods in the UK. Our research shows that many groups of migrants are now increasingly mobile. They are coming to the UK to study and work for short periods and then they are moving on. As global competition for highly skilled migrants increases in future years, schemes to retain migrants may become as important as attracting them in the first place.

The report's policy recommendations to the Government include:

• Taking more active steps to encourage some migrants to stay longer in the UK through using the points based system, retention schemes, simplified visa extensions and tax incentives

• Piloting and promoting Migration Information Centres and 'Circular Migration' schemes so that short stay migration is better managed

• Making sure that migrant integration strategies take into account the increasing amount of short stay migration

• Improving links with former immigrants to the UK and treating them as a 'secondary diaspora' which could be regarded as an economic and diplomatic asset.

Phil Woolas, Borders and Immigration Minister, said:

'This report further demonstrates that migrants come to the UK for a short period of time, work, contribute to the economy and then return home. Our new flexible points based system gives us greater control on those coming to work or study from outside Europe, ensuring that only those that Britain need can come.

'This week I announced proposals which will break the link between temporary settlement and permanent residence. Only those that who earn the right to stay should be allowed a British passport.'

I can hang those convicts for Kibaki

Michael Kirugumi Wa Njoka, 85, a retired hangman, outside his home at Kahigaini in Tetu on August 5, 2009. He says the decision to reduce death sentence to life imprisonment for inmates would set a bad precedent for hardcore criminals

A retired hangman is not happy. He does not see why 4,000 death row inmates in Kenya were saved from hanging. On Monday, President Kibaki of Kenya reduced sentences handed down to the inmates, from death to life. But the 85-year-old Michael Kirugumi wa Njoka says the presidential decision would set a bad precedent for hardcore criminals, especially murderers. “It is his prerogative to forgive prisoners, but what about the families of those the convicts killed? How do they feel?” he asked. For 16 years, the man from Kahigaini village, in Tetu, Nyeri, slipped the hangman’s noose on death row inmates without hesitation. Then, unlike now, the death sentence was actively executed.  “During (Jomo) Kenyatta’s time, death row inmates were hanged as expected. Now I hear (President) Kibaki has said people should not be hanged; I do not understand,” said the father of one. For years, he performed his duty with passion and enthusiasm at King’ong’o Maximum Security Prison for four years, and Kamiti Maximum Prison for 11 and a half years, before retiring in 1974.  For a monthly salary of Sh99, wa Njoka would prepare the condemned inmates for that final moment. “I would go to their cells and tell them the exact time I was going to hang them, so each knew at time he would die,” he recalls. He says hanging death row inmates was not a grisly affair as such.  In their last 24 hours the condemned would be treated like kings. They even had a chance to share these final moments with close members of their families.

Some, he recalled, would order expensive designer suits; others simply ordered lots of chicken. “We treated them well before hanging them; we would even trim their nails and shave their beards, and when time came to hang them, we hang them.”  Once the 24 hours were up, he would lead the prisoner to the hanging room; slip a black hood over his head before putting a noose around his neck. He would then pull the lever that opened a trap door beneath the convict’s feet. And once the trap door snapped open, the convict would hang, his weight pulling the noose tighter. “They were supposed to die slowly. We were not even supposed to bruise their necks,” he says, adding that he had no regrets and if he had his way, he would gladly slip the noose on the 4,000 convicts. “The hangman does not kill the convicts, it is the evidence produced in court against them,” he said. Although he confesses that the spirits of those he hanged haunt him to date, no amount of nightmares that plague him every day will make him change his position. “A man’s life is sacred, you cannot buy it from the market; the convicts were simply paying for the souls they killed.”  He says he lost count of the men that he hanged. But the last one, he recalled, had been sentenced to death for slaughtering his family — three children and the wife.  “I told him, you are going to die for this. The next morning, I hanged him.” He retired 35 years ago, but says he would gladly go back to his old job. “I loved my job. I would gladly do it again.” The government has not hanged any death row inmate for 22 years. The last to be hanged was 1982 failed coup leader Hezekiah Ochuka. - Daily Nation.

The parents of  late Perpetua Muthoni Muchemi ‘aka’ Shiku  also known to her friends as Wendie, Mrs Ruth Warûchû Mwangi and Mr Stephen Muchemi Njoroge  arrived safely in Nairobi on Thursday 5th August, 2009. The cleared the body of the late Perpetua at the airport and now she will be laid to rest on Friday 7th August 2009 in Naro Moru , Kenya.

MAASAI PROVERB

Miim nkoitoi are; mikibela ilomorin.

Never take two paths; the pelvis will collapse

Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom

1953 - Todate

Princess Elizabeth Alexandra Mary was born in London at 17 Bruton Street, at 2.40am on April 21, 1926. She was the first child of the Duke and Duchess of York, subsequently King George VI and Queen Elizabeth. With the Victorian era not three decades past, it might appear peculiar that Elizabeth’s parents applied so thoroughly modern a manner of bringing up their daughter – for, from the outset, it was decided that the Princess’s life was to be as normal as possible. No longer was the future Monarch to be sheltered from her people’s concerns by Royal excess and opulence; instead, she was to understand the inescapable reality of a nation still coming to terms with the loss of so many of its sons in the First World War. She was born in the year of the General Strike, and British society was undergoing a profound change. Accordingly, the Duke and Duchess of York were determined that Elizabeth should neither be shielded nor spoilt.  - MORE

Burial on Thursday 13th August, 2009

The burial of the late Tabitha Wanjiru Njenga will be be on Thursday 13th August, 2009 at St. Stephen's & Norbury Church, 9 Warwick Road, Thornton Heath, Surrey CR7 7NH from 13:30 hours and the funeral will be at Croydon Cemetery, Mitcham Road, Croydon CR0 3AT thereafter. In case of any clarification please get in touch with Pastor Nderito or myself on 07941287933.

The ethiopianization of Kenya

A few days ago the New York Times reported that Kenya is in the "throes of ethnic segregation." Following the highly disputed presidential elections there, hundreds of thousands of people have been internally displaced, resulting in a massive flight of Kenyans of all ethnic backgrounds to their "ancestral homelands." No one could have seriously predicted such decomposition of Kenyan society a few months ago.

On December 27, presidential election day in Kenya, Kenyan environmentalist and Nobel laureate Wangari Maathai expressed her concern and disapproval of the direction of reactionary ethnic politics in her country. She said, "Ethnicity is one of the major strategies that politicians have used to divide the African populace. I do not believe that people who have lived as neighbors for hundreds of years can just begin attacking each other and killing one another without provocation or support from those in power."

Maathai's worst fears were realized just days after the elections. Friends turned on friends; and neighbors attacked neighbors only because of differences in ethnic origin. Distrust and anger replaced 50 years of civility and tolerance. Kenyans began accusing each other of being "foreigners", and shamelessly ordered one another to go back “home”. “Home”? The madness of Kenya was in full swing within weeks of Kibaki self-coronation as president. As the Times reported: "Luos have gone back to Luo land, Kikuyus to Kikuyu land, Kambas to Kamba land and Kisiis to Kisii land…. Trucks piled high with mattresses, furniture, blankets and children keep chugging across the countryside, an endless convoy of frightened people who in their desperation are redrawing the map of Kenya." The body count was equally shocking: over 1,000 Kenyans dead from election-related violence, and over 600,000 displaced in a population of some 35 million.

There is no denying that the ethnic fabric of Kenya has been shredded in the post-election violence and upheaval; and Kenya’s exemplary democracy in Africa has crumbled like sawdust. Kenya is now plunged in divisive and destructive tribal/ethnic politics, and the long term outlook for Kenya is grim. After a half century of national existence, democratic experimentation, and stability, Kenya has degenerated into a tribal/ethnic basket case beset by violence, fear and loathing.

Kenya could have easily avoided this calamity. It had all of the tools at its disposal -- a functioning and well-oiled electoral process, a civically engaged population, a democratic political culture enriched by prior voting experiences, an active and independent press, and a reasonably professional and independent judiciary, among others. It could have peacefully and amicably resolved the persisting questions of land ownership and redistribution, democratic power sharing, and grievances over issues of ethnic domination. But Kenya had to make the right choice to get it right.

Unfortunately, for Kenya, Kibaki made the wrong choice by his naked power grab. He had two clear choices: Follow the Ethiopian model of ethnic-fragmentation electoral politics, or the Tanzanian way. Kibaki made the wrong choice. He wanted to perpetuate his personal rule and protect the privileges of his henchmen by playing the “ethnic card”, despite decisive popular rejection at the polls. Kibaki understood the implications of the theft of the presidential election for Kenyan national politics. He was fully aware of the potential for ethnic upheavals and widespread violence. He thought he could handle it by replicating the lessons of Kenya’s neighbor to the north, and perpetuate himself in power by introducing the discredited politics of “ethnic federalism”. But that experiment in bogus federalism had long proved to be a failure at its source of origin. As the Times noted, "Ethiopia set up a system in the mid-1990s called ethnic federalism, which carved the country into ethnic-based regions, each with broad power — at least on paper — including the right to secede. But Ethiopia's leaders soon concluded that too much regional autonomy would tear the country apart, and Ethiopia is now more or less centrally controlled by members of a small ethnic group."

Kibaki could have chosen the Tanzanian way which built upon the people’s sense of national unity, collective pride and brotherhood/sisterhood. As the Times contrasted, "Tanzania took the opposite approach. It de-emphasized ethnicity. It encouraged people to speak Kiswahili, and not their mother tongues, as a way to build Tanzanian-ness. The government sent children to high schools in different areas to expose them to different communities. Tanzanian election law even makes it illegal to campaign for office based on ethnic group."

It appears Kenya may have missed its appointment with destiny. Had it followed the Tanzania model, it could have been not only a great African nation, but also an object lesson in democracy, pluralism, harmony and tolerance for the rest of Africa. Tragically, the country that was touted to have the best promise of democracy fell victim to the malignant ethnic malady that continues to afflict its neighbor to the north.

The irony of Kenya at this moment in history is that one of its grand children has become a leading contender for the presidency of the United States selling an electrifying message of national unity, racial and ethnic harmony and global peace and tolerance. Barack Obama said, “There is not a black America and a white America. There is not a liberal America and a conservative America. There is the United States of America.” It is sad that the grand old man of Kenyan politics -- the man who helped draft the Kenyan Constitution -- could not bring himself to say, “There is not a Luo Kenya. There is not a Kikuyu Kenya. There is not a Kisii Kenya. There is no Kamba Kenya. There is just ONE Kenya!”

The truth of the matter is that in Africa today unscrupulous and corrupt regimes are glorifying tribal politics in the name of ethnic autonomy and self-determination. They unearth historical grievances to give legitimacy to their self-serving claims that they are the defenders of ethnic rights. But all of these efforts are little more than transparent excuses for the pursuit of the old “divide and rule” strategy used by minority governments the world over. In South Africa, the apartheid regime created ten bantustans for the purpose of concentrating the African population in designated areas based on their ethnic (tribal) affiliation. It did not work. Decades ago, a similar trick called “gerrymandering” was used to disenfranchise African American voters in the United States and perpetuate the rule of segregationists. It did not work either.

Those who seek to preserve their dictatorship in the name of defending ethnic rights should be challenged with the compassionate language of a common brotherhood/sisterhood and nationhood that appeals not tribal differences and prejudicies, but to the collective yearning of the people for justice, fairness and equality. In Kenya, as elsewhere, there could be no special brand of justice or democracy that is tailored exclusively for the Luo, the Kikuyu, the Kamba, the Kisii or any other group. Where there have been historical injustices, they should be addressed openly in a national democratic dialogue, and set right in a process of national reconciliation and in the spirit of compromise. The best defense for Kenyans against those who peddle the politics of tribalism in the name of ethnicity is to refuse to participate in the villainous schemes hatched by conscienceless and corrupt dictators and leaders to dismember the Kenyan nation.

The number of new cases of H1N1 swine flu in England and Scotland has fallen significantly, latest figures show. England recorded an estimated 30,000 cases last week, compared with 110,000 the week before. In Scotland estimated numbers fell from 1,500 to 1,050. The Health Protection Agency said there was no sign that the virus was mutating into a more lethal form, or developing resistance to drugs. The number of swine flu-related deaths in England now stands at 36. Four people have died in Scotland. In total, 530 patients were admitted to hospital in England last week, down on the previous week's total of 793. Wales is also reporting falling but widespread levels of "influenza like illness" with an estimated 2,670 new cases compared with 4,410 last week. Cases in Northern Ireland seem to have risen with 83 new cases compared with 10 the week before.

Three week campaign on lorry drivers - warning by immigration officers

Home Office, 05 August 2009

A three week campaign emphasising hauliers' responsibilities in the fight against illegal immigration has been carried out by the UK Border Agency across the midlands and the east of England. Operation Hedya - which concluded on Friday (31 July) - targeted lorry drivers who leave themselves open to stowaways by failing to properly secure their vehicles. Officers visited lorry drop hotspots - including Clacket Lane services in Surrey, Thurrock and Birchanger services in Essex, South Mimms services in Hertfordshire and Warwick services in Warwickshire - reminding drivers about the importance of conducting the correct security checks. Drivers can face heavy financial penalties if they do not secure their lorries properly - more than £68,000 was recovered during the campaign from drivers and companies identified with unpaid civil penalties from previous immigration checks. Simon Excell, UK Border Agency deputy director, said:

'Our top priority is to stop would-be illegal immigrants before they reach the United Kingdom. By highlighting to drivers their own responsibilities as well as the potential penalties they face if they do not implement an effective security system we are winning the fight against clandestine entry to the United Kingdom.

'We have already seen a significant fall in illegal immigrants sneaking in to the UK thanks to high profile operations like this one and the deployment of a mobile detention van which patrols the motorways of the Midlands and East of England.

'The message is getting out to would-be illegal migrants and organised smuggling gangs that we will catch them, we will detain them and we will deport them.'

The operation was led by Immigration Officer Dave Butler, of the Stansted Enforcement Unit, who said:

This operation only strengthens the continued effort to deter clandestine illegal entry and sends a clear message to hauliers.'

Can I marry your daughter Mrs. Clinton

Nairobi, Friday 7th August, 2009. It is not often that a girl is wooed through the mother, but US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton took the question happily and easily. In these tough times, so the question went, when the US is facing tough economic times that may have compelled her husband, former President Bill Clinton back to work, would she consider the substantial livestock offered by a Kenyan man for her only daughter’s hand in marriage? Amused by the unexpected question from Mr Fareed Zakaria of CNN, who was moderating a public forum at the University of Nairobi yesterday, Clinton said, it would be up to Chelsea to decide, as she is "very independent". But she would dutifully pass on the message to her daughter, she said. The man who wishes to be Mrs Clinton’s son-in-law is Mr Godwin Kipkemoi Chepkurgor, a former nominated councillor in Nakuru. Chepkurgor had first written to then President Clinton offering 40 goats, and 20 cows in the year 2000, in exchange for his daughter’s hand in marriage. Yesterday, Chepkurgor said he was elated by the response, adding that he had been waiting for more than eight years for a response. Well, the man has not been exactly waiting; he got married in 2006 after waiting in vain for Chelsea. But that does not mean the prospects are sealed; he can take a second wife. "I express joy and happiness that, after a long time the Clinton family has responded," Chepkurgor said, when The Standard caught up with him in Nakuru, yesterday. When the Clintons toured East Africa in 2000, Chepkurgor, then a fourth-year student at Moi University, made his intentions clear by expressing the desires of his heart. During a public debate at the University of Nairobi yesterday, Mrs Clinton said her daughter is mature enough to decide on her own, but she would nonetheless pass the message to her. Her response sent the audience roaring with laughter. - The Standard.

Justice GB Kariuki who is facing attempted murder charge has been put on his defense. This follows Nairobi chief magistrate Gilbert Mutembei's ruling on Wednesday that from the evidence adduced, the Judge had a case to answer. The Kericho based Judge had dismissed the prosecution evidence terming it as incredible. The judge in his final submission told the court that the complainant had failed to prove his case against him.  He further argued that evidence by some witnesses was not credible. Justice Kariuki through lawyer D P Kinyanjui said he would give a sworn statement to dismiss the allegations. The judge is accused of stabbing a motorist at Lower Kabete road in Spring Valley on 19th October last year. Robert Karori, a driver for the International Organization for Migration said the judge stabbed him in the stomach with a Somali sword. Meanwhile, ten people led by former MP and political activist Njeru Kathangu have moved to court to challenge the appointment of Truth Justice and Reconciliation Commission's chairman Ambassador Bethwel Kiplagat. The petitioners among them former assistant minister Kalembe Ndile argued that Kiplagat when he was Kenya's High commissioner to the United Kingdom played a crucial role in the repressive policies of the Moi regime. High court judge Justice Jean Gacheche told them to file a certificate of urgency regarding the matter. And the high court has quashed the election of Ole-Kajiado town council officials led by Taraiye Kores.. Justice Roselyne Wendo said the election would be held afresh.

"Forgiving does not erase the bitter past. A healed memory is not a deleted memory. Instead, forgiving what we cannot forget creates a new way to remember. We change the memory of our past into a hope for our future." - Beverly Flanigan - Forgiving The Unforgivable: Overcoming the Legacy of Intimate Wounds

Getting to feed your family is not an easy task in Kenya. All you need is to be creative in Nairobi to make money. This man dressed like a lady hit the streets on Nairobi selling VCD's. Having gotten a lot of attention from Race Course road handcart pushers, he never went home hungry. Thus why Am proud to be Kenya? You think a mzungu can do this? - Photo by Karuga wa Njuguna, Nairobi, Kenya.
 

METHALI YA KISWAHILI

Kufa kufaana.

Death has its advantages too ie it benifits those who inherit.

Right security in Nairobi  - Hilary Clinton is in town

Nothing was left to chance at KICC  entrance opposite Police headquarters. They were checking everywhere including explosives detection in all the cars getting in with just arrived equipments. Police dogs were plenty also. - Photo by Karuga wa Njuguna, Nairobi, Kenya.
 

KIKUYU PROVERB

Mukami tiwe munyiti njau

He that milks is not he that holds the calf.

Every man to his own job.

Is this really smoking gun of Obama's Kenyan birth?
Attorney files motion for authentication of alleged 1960s certificate from Africa

WASHINGTON – California attorney Orly Taitz, who has filed a number of lawsuits demanding proof of Barack Obama's eligibility to serve as president, has released a copy of what purports to be a Kenyan certification of birth and has filed a new motion in U.S. District Court for its authentication. - FULL STORY

"Sometimes in the name of religion, people cause more quarrels than they solve." - The Little Book of Wisdom

Clinton tells gov't to form tribunal

Written By: Doreen Appolos/BBC, Posted: Wed, Aug 05, 2009
 

The cabinet has received yet another resounding disapproval over the proposal to enhance the role of the Truth Justice and Reconciliation Commission to try perpetrators of the post election violence. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Wednesday said such a commission with no prosecutorial powers would not deal with impunity. "It's alright to try and create an alternate way of solving the myriad issues that the government has but if TJRC doesn't have the ability to prosecute, it will not satisfy the needs of Kenyans," Clinton noted. Mrs Clinton said solving our own matters locally, by forming a special local tribunal, was in the best interest for the country rather than surrendering to The Hague option. She was addressing a press conference after meeting with President Mwai Kibaki, Prime Minister Raila Odinga and Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka who briefed her on Kenya's progress on the reform agenda. Mrs Clinton strongly criticised Kenya's political leadership saying the absence of strong and effective institutions had permitted ongoing corruption, impunity and human rights violations, noting that these conditions had helped fuel the violence that engulfed the country in early 2008. "We've been very clear in our disappointment that action has not been taken over the violence" she said. "It is far preferable that it be done in the regular course of business, that prosecutors, judges, law enforcement officials step up to their responsibilities and remove the question of impunity." She added. However, Foreign Minister Moses Wetangula rejected the accusations, saying: the war against impunity and corruption in the country is on. The Secretary of State hailed the close working relationship between President Mwai Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga.

Kibaki niece killer free from hangman’s noose

The man who killed President Kibaki’s niece Stella Njeri is one of the beneficiaries of the amnesty to death row inmates. In a strange twist of fate, James Love Mwang’ong’o, who was being held at the Kamiti Maximum Security Prison in Nairobi, is among the 4,000 lucky prisoners whose death sentences were reduced to life imprisonment by the President. He was convicted five years ago, and was among 488 prisoners whose appeals had not been exhausted. However, he declined to speak to the Press on Tuesday when deputy Prisons Commissioner George Macgoye delivered the good news to them.  - Daily Nation.

That's incredibubble - the world's biggest bubble

In a momentous day for the art of giant bubble-making, a British bubble-maker has created what he thinks is the world's largest free-floating soap bubble ever Samsam Bubbleman - a self-proclaimed 'Bubbleologist' and owner of a profoundly stupid name - created the vast, ephemeral sky-blob using a top-secret mixture he has developed over 20 years. He was aiming to surpass the previous Guinness World Record, which was set in October 2005 in Minnesota, USA - coming in at a hefty volume of 105.4ft.

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IKO NINI BWANA SEED ARCHIVE

IKO NINI BWANA SEED? JUNE 2009 - PART ONE

IKO NINI BWANA SEED? JUNE JULY 2009 - PART TWO

IKO NINI BWANA SEED? JUNE 2009 - PART ONE

IKO NIN BWANA SEED? JUNE 2009 - PART TWO

IKO NINI BWANA SEED? MAY 2009 - PART ONE

IKO NINI BWANA SEED? APRIL 2009 - PART ONE

IKO NINI BWANA SEED? APRIL 2009 - PART TWO

IKO NINI BWANA SEED? - MARCH 2009

IKO NINI BWANA SEED? FEBRUARY 2009 - PART ONE

IKO NINI BWANA SEED? FEBRUARY 2009 - TWO

IKO NINI BWANA SEED? FEBRUARY 2009 - THREE

IKO NINI BWANA SEED? - JANUARY 2009 - ONE

IKO NINI BWANA SEED? - JANUARY 2009  - TWO

IKO NINI BWANA SEED? - DECEMBER, 2008 ONE

IKO NINI BWANA SEED? - DECEMBER TWO, 2008

IKO NINI BWANA SEED? - NOVEMBER ONE, 2008

IKO NINI BWANA SEED? - OCTOBER, 2008

IKO NINI BWANA SEED? - SEPTEMBER 2008