GEMA BACK IN TOWN

Gema makes a comeback

Published on May 31, 2008, 12:00 am

By Saturday Standard Team

Two key developments that could redefine Kenya’s political landscape, especially in the post-Kibaki era, are unfolding in Central Province.

The first is the return of the blood union of Mount Kenya communities — Gikuyu, Embu and Meru Association. After two-and-half decades of silence, the political and religious class from the Gema community converge today at the Kenya Methodist University, Meru, to discuss the Central region’s future and leadership. The instrumental union during Mzee Jomo Kenyatta’s reign was among the tribal organisations former President Moi outlawed in 1980.

Secondly, Narc-Kenya party marks her second anniversary on Tuesday and Justice minister Ms Martha Karua, who has declared interest in the presidency, is poised to take over as the chairperson.

Karua is set to replace former Foreign minister Mr Raphael Tuju, who was beaten in last year’s election but is now one of President Kibaki’s formal advisers.

Narc-Kenya’s Organising Secretary and Medical Services Assistant minister Mr Danson Mungatana said he expects Karua to take over from Tuju. He said by virtue of being a civil servant, Tuju cannot continue being the party’s chairman or hold a political position.

Also to be replaced is former Cabinet minister Prof Kivutha Kibwana, the party’s vice-chairman, who was also appointed presidential adviser. If Karua is elevated to lead the party — a key partner in the president’s Party of National Unity — she would have stepped right into the silent battle in region to take over the leadership mantle from President Kibaki, who is serving his last term.

Touted as having come close to clinch the Deputy Prime Minister’s post which went to Kanu chairman Mr Uhuru Kenyatta, Karua would stand at par with the both the DPM and Internal Security minister Prof George Saitoti. The Internal Security minister hails from the Rift Valley but his political roots run deep in Central Kenya because of his mixed ethnic heritage. Karua was Narc-Kenya’s choice for DPM.

Top on the agenda in the Gema meeting in Meru would be the regional leadership scramble as well as how to stem the perception the communities was facing isolation from the rest of the country.

The resettlement of internal refugees in the Rift Valley, and the contentious debate on negotiation with members of the outlawed Mungiki sect will also feature in the meeting which former and current MPs and ministers from the region will attend.

Generational succession in the region’s political leadership is also expected to feature, with ‘aging’ and ‘washed-out’ leaders being asked to take up their place in retirement by making way for their sons and daughters.

The region bears the dubious reputation of having the highest age profile among the powerful political class. Many of whom served under President Kenyatta in the 1960s and 1970s. “These grandfathers still view Kenya the way it was during the Kenyatta era when spotting grey hair alone commanded respect,’’ said a source who requested anonymity because of fear of political reprisal should it look like he is rebelling against President Kibaki.

He added: “Their instance to hang onto leadership is against the community’s custom and traditions. They are a major source of our divisions,” another source said.

Several initiatives discussing Gema’s political agenda and future have been going on and the Meru meeting is expected to harmonise their activities.

The current MPs have been holding meetings under the auspices of the Central Parliamentary Group (CPG) under the chairmanship of the Mathira MP Mr Ephraim Maina.

The former MPs’ forum features among others former Naivasha MP and assistant minister, Mrs Jayne Kihara, former Kiambaa MP, Mr Njenga Karume. Maragwa MP Mr Elias Mbau has been linkman for the two groups.

Industrialist-cum-politician Mr Peter Kuguru, has also been leading his own group, Mega, whose agenda is not different.

Serving and retired prominent leaders led by retired Anglican Bishop, Peter Njenga, have also been involved in the initiatives.

Political agenda for 2012-basically revolves around the question whether the region, which has given Kenya two of the country’s three presidents so far, should have a try after Kibaki. “The agenda is unity around a political party that is to be identified, and whether the region should field a candidate or back a candidate from another party in a negotiated alliance,” said a CPG member. The voting patterns in last year’s election was also a wake up call to the region’s political leadership, when Gema communities stood alone, almost to a man, in voting for President Kibaki’s re-election, while the rest of the country went in the opposite direction.

The sobering spectre of a possible total isolation was made more traumatic by the post election violence that largely targeted members of the community in the Rift Valley.

Opinion is, however, divided as to who was responsible for this isolation, with wealthy and elderly members of the so-called Council of Elders taking most of the flak.

They are perceived to have ring-fenced Kibaki from the rest of the country for most of the first term, a blunder that nearly cost him a second term despite good performance on most fronts, especially the economy.

Grudges from these divisions have spilled into the current efforts to find political unity, with Kiambaa MP Mr Njenga Karume being accused of hankering to recapture his Gema leadership during the Meru conference.

Sources said that Karume would be ferrying delegates to Meru to secure a majority should election become necessary.

A press conference scheduled for yesterday at a Nairobi hotel ahead of the meeting was called off in the last minute. Former Gatundu MP, Mr Moses Muhia, was scheduled to address the press conference.

“We are aware of these machinations. These old men do not want to retire… Members of CPG are concerned the search for unity efforts should not be led by serving or former politicians but a businessman or a religious leader. Politicians will only perpetuate the divisions and simply reduce Gema into nyumba ya wazee (a home for grey haired grand fathers),” said another source.

The meeting will also discuss the political rivalry between Karua and Uhuru and what it portends for the province. During a meeting of the Central Kenya Parliamentary Group (CPG), three weeks ago in Nairobi, it was agreed that the region forges a united political platform. The meeting was attended by record 45 MPs.

Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka is also likely to feature at the Meru conference as a possible Gema candidate for the 2012, especially having thrown his weight behind Kibaki at his weakest moment last year. His case has however been floated by a few politicians and wider consultations will have to take place.

As chairman of Narc-Kenya, Karua will be representing her party at the PNU council that is chaired by President Kibaki. Mungatana said Narc-Kenya will be two years old on June 3 and will mark the day by holding celebrations at the party’s headquarters in Nairobi.

He said the celebrations would be marked by deep reflections on the party’s performance in the last General Election and projection of the future.

He says had the party gone on its own during the elections, it would have managed up to 80 MPs.

Mungatana says the party is deeply wounded after President Kibaki abandoned it and formed PNU. “We should have done better if President Kibaki had not changed parties at the last minute. The advice did not fly because most PNU affiliates did not make much of a difference,’’ he added.

“We were very angry. We did not get a single nominated MP. Ford-Kenya that has only four MPs got a slot. The other slot we had laid claim to went to Ms Maison Leshomo, who nobody knew,’’ said Mungatana.

Mungatana says Kanu has 16 MPs while Narc- Kenya has 29, including those like Karua and Saitoti who went through PNU but have remained faithful to their mother party.

He recalls how Narc-Kenya was born and the success it has achieved within a short time. Shortly after the party was launched during a colourful ceremony at the Kenyatta International Conference Centre (KICC) grounds on June 3, 2006, it faced five by-elections and returned with three seats.

The by-elections were occasioned by the Marsabit plane crash that claimed five MPs and nine other people. Narc-Kenya took the North Horr, Saku and Nakuru Town parliamentary seats.

The party had started asserting her authority and was considered a strong contender in the last general elections as it commanded a following of more than 80 MPs in the Ninth Parliament.

MOI WANTS RADIOS SHUTDOWN

Shut tribal radio stations, says Moi

Published on May 31, 2008, 12:00 am

By Beauttah Omanga

Former President Moi has asked the Government to act on vernacular radio stations fanning tribalism and hatred.

Retired President Moi admires a painting of his image at Sunshine Secondary School in Nairobi on Friday day where he was the chief guest during the Prize giving day. Looking on is the school principal, Mrs Magdalene Sang. Picture: Collins Kweyu

Moi said he was concerned that the majority of stations were advocating tribalism at the expense of national cohesion.

“The Government should take action against such vernacular radio stations for they pose a threat to the unity of Kenyans,” he said.

The former President warned that the vernacular stations could plunge the country into chaos if they continued broadcasting hateful politics that set communities against each other.

If the stations were to be allowed to continue operating, he said, they should only propagate cultural values and religious programmes.

“The participants should not be allowed to discuss politics in their mother tongues. I am now 84 years old and know what I am talking about. The stations, if not checked, will cause a major problem in this country,” he said.

The retired President spoke on Friday at Sunshine Secondary School, Nairobi, during a prize-giving day.

He asked the mushrooming radio stations to educate their listeners on culture and keep off politics.

Chiefs

Moi, who was with his son Philip, also expressed concern over what he termed emerging of tribal chiefs in the political arena.

“We are seeing tribal chiefs take centre stage in our national politics. We must speak as Kenyans and reason as Kenyans at all times,” he said.

Moi said any leader who aspired to be a President must first leave their tribal cocoon.

“The person must first dissociate himself or herself from tribal cocoons, which do not produce presidents,” he said.

He challenged politicians to unite Kenyans, adding: “even if somebody did not vote for you, as a leader, you should not hate him or her.”

The former Head of State reminded leaders and the media that their public utterances and news items influenced young Kenyans.

“Public utterances of leaders, radio broadcasts and newspaper reports should not have content that instils in our youth a culture of tribalism and hatred,” he said.

Moi also hit out at drug peddlers whom he accused of using the youth as captives and easy markets for their substances.

Moi asked the Government to allow the private sector to play key roles in the provision of education.

He at the same time welcomed the new Nairobi Metropolitan Ministry but said its mandate should be expounded to cover all municipalities.

DINNING WITH THE DEVIL

You may sit down with criminals, but at your own peril Story by GITAU GIKONYO Publication Date: 5/31/2008

GITAU GIKONYO argues that a government that negotiates with such people is criminal Kenya as a country may not have been there when the original idea of Seven Wonders of the World was mooted by Herodotus (484 BC – 425 BC) and Callimachus (305 BC – 240 BC). A list was drawn of the original Seven Wonders, of which only the Great Pyramid of Giza is still standing. Members of the Mungiki gather outside the house of their jailed leader, Maina Njenga, after the Government ordered the withdrawal of police from manning it. Prime Minister Raila Odnga has suggested negotiations with the illegal sect. Photo/FILE But credit for the recent declaration of the annual Wildebeest migration one of the modern wonders should really have gone to our beautiful country, Kenya, with its unique people, wildlife and political leaders. All one needs to do is look at the unfolding events in relation to releasing the alleged perpetrators of the post-election violence and negotiating with outlawed groups like Mungiki. I learnt my lesson on negotiating with criminals the other day when I made my maiden voyage to the villainous Muthurwa market, ostensibly unplanned. I boarded a matatu in the early morning and confirmed with the conductor that it would drop passengers at the city centre. But the matatu went straight to Muthurwa market. Quite naturally, everyone on the vehicle was angry and demanded a fare refund. In the ensuing commotion, I offered to negotiate on behalf of the passengers and as a bargaining chip, I grabbed the matatu ignition key. At first the driver seemed cornered until all the hoodlums and hanger-ons masquerading as hawkers joined the fray, turning it ugly. I found myself surrounded by over 300 of them all baying for my blood. It slowly dawned on me that my lecture on contractual obligations and the offence of obtaining money by false pretences, contrary to Section 313 of the Penal Code, was not being given a hearing by anyone. I realised then that as we are busy seeking the relevant historical context between “ethnic hatred” and “socio-economic structure adopted since independence”, violence grounded predominantly on a robust and visible criminal network threatens to disrupt the fragile peace. To say the least, I hastily retreated — beaten — returned the keys and walked the remaining distance, with a lesson well learnt: you cannot negotiate with criminals. My early morning experience brought to the fore the ongoing clamour by politicians, either styled as elders or representatives of certain regions, calling for the release of certain people or for negotiating with some organised groups. As I understand it, the primary mission of all governments is to ensure security for everyone on the national territory where the Government exerts its authority. It is also my understanding that in so doing, the Government must respect and uphold the rule of law. The concept of rule of law in its most basic form is predicated on the principle that no one is above the law. Thomas Paine, a radical and intellectual English revolutionary, wrote in 1776 in his powerful and widely read pamphlet, Common Sense, “. . . the world may know, …THE LAW IS KING. For as in absolute governments the King is law, so in free countries the law OUGHT to be King; and there ought to be no other”. What Paine was saying is that, in Kenya, for instance, the law ought to be king. Thus, everyone is subject to the law. It also means that no one in the society — the president, the prime minister, the cabinet, senior civil servants (including judges) or police has power, except as it is derived from law. Authority can only come from law — the Constitution, a statute, legal regulations, common law, municipal by–laws and so on. However, sample this: One day the Right Honourable Prime Minister says the Government will talk with some organised group. Later, failed Mt Kenya politicians camouflaged as elders enter the fray as does Mr Isaac Ruto and other Rift Valley MPs, all seeking the release of their people. The PM later joins calls for the release of suspects held over post-poll violence.  Prof George Saitoti, in whose docket matters to do with internal security fall, says no negotiations. And  Ms Martha Karua of Justice says no amnesty. The Cabinet then gives final verdict: No blanket amnesty. The question that quickly comes to mind is: What is leadership? It is one of those things you know when you see it. It is easier to say what leadership is not than what it actually is. No wonder, while most people cannot define leadership, they know when they have been led. How then do our politicians lead us in calling for the release of people in police custody without due process? How can politicians ask for the release of people convicted and serving jail sentences? Where people have been arrested on suspicion of being criminals or engaging in criminal activity or for whatever reason, the law must be allowed to take its course. The law is clear, if the allegations are unfounded, the innocent ones will be released. Criminals are criminals and not community or religious leaders, or anything else. They do not deserve anything other than the law.  Our politicians must therefore have enough fortitude to stand up to them. Not negotiating with criminals ensures in the long run that one is not at their behest. The only time the government is known to negotiate with criminals is when it is criminal or made up of officially elected criminals. Such people will attempt to obtain numerous truces with other unofficial unelected criminals. This is what happened in Trinidad and Tobago when senators Manning and Joseph, said to be criminals, supported as well as wined and dined with known criminals masquerading as community leaders. They even gave them government contracts. Similarly, in Haiti, by December 2006, armed criminals had increased their declarations positioning themselves as ready to inflict fire and blood unless their demands were met. Yet these criminals continued to benefit from the impunity being part of direct but futile negotiations with the government. The government had established the National Commission of Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration (CNDDR) to reintegrate armed gang members into regular society. Unfortunately, at some point  CNDDR had, at its heart a criminal, the spokesperson of Operation Baghdad I — Jean Baptiste Jean Philippe alias Samba Boukman. Consequently, the success of the CNDDR was compromised. A lot of money was wasted on the programme, with gang members admitting themselves into it by submitting at least one firearm as an assurance of their resolve to renounce violent life. But this never worked. How has Nigeria fared with criminal elements? Each time the hoodlums struck by kidnapping foreign oil workers, either the federal government or the state one immediately negotiated with them and paid the ransom demanded. When the government cut deals with criminals and their masters, the hoodlums became so bold they are taking on the entire Nigerian state and shutting down one of the major cities. According to a recent editorial of the Nigerian paper,  Tribune, one reason kidnapping has become a thriving and lucrative business is that nobody has really been punished for it. This stems from the days when foreign oil experts were taken as hostages. Rather than arrest the criminals, the Nigeria government sat and negotiated with them, thus sending  the message that it could no longer guarantee the protection of life and property. The bottom line? It is only a criminal government that cannot be concerned with stopping criminal activities. Where a government’s politics consists of negotiating with criminals, it is a form of encouragement to fraudsters, thieves, kidnappers and other criminals who enjoy official impunity and are treated as bona fide political associates. These criminals are devoted to gaining from the government’s strategies. What morality chairs governmental procedures when the Prime Minister and other government officials affirm their desire to negotiate with people who impose the terror, kill, rape and steal? The leaders of all the gangs are well known, the hoodlums in the streets are not phantoms either, they are human beings. Kenyans demand that the Government immediately take the battle to them and stop any negotiation. Mr Gikonyo is an advocate of the High Court; gikonyog@yahoo.com

SELECTIVE CRIME AMNESTY, MAINA KIAI SUGGESTS

Kiai team for selective amnesty Story by NATION Team Publication Date: 5/31/2008

A Government human rights watchdog has supported amnesty for perpetrators of minor post-election violence. Such offences include blocking roads during protests, the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights. Giving its position on the raging debate which has threatened to split the two-month-old grand coalition Government, the human rights body said those who wanted amnesty must first apply for consideration within a “legislative framework”. Full disclosure “To qualify for amnesty, alleged perpetrators must take full disclosure of the act for which they are applying for amnesty and tell the whole truth, which might lead to the arrest and prosecution of the financiers and planners of the violence,” commissioner Lawrence Mute, who read the KNCHR’s statement in Nairobi, said. Mr Mute was accompanied by commissioner Fatuma Ibrahim, commission secretary Mburu Gitu and Mr Njonjo Mue, the principal human rights officer – campaigns and advocacy. Mr Mute said before amnesty was granted, views of the victims should also be sought and taken into account. The commission added: “Amnesty should apply across the country without discrimination and based purely on the type of crimes committed.” While the mechanism for amnesty was being legislated, suspected perpetrators who are not facing charges of serious human rights violations, KNCHR said, should be bonded to keep peace. The human rights body said no amnesty should be granted for war crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide, torture “and other serious violations of international humanitarian law”. It said this was what the Annan-brokered agreement stated. Not  allowed The commission said blanket amnesty should not be allowed as it would violate the rights of victims to life, property and protection as per the Constitution. The agreement says no blanket amnesty would be provided for past crimes but that individual amnesty may be recommended “in exchange for full truth”. The commission called for thorough investigations of politicians who incited the violence and the police who used excessive force “and all the culprits brought to justice without discrimination”. The Maina Kiai-led watchdog demanded that police and prosecution authorities make public the exact number of people being held in custody, undergoing trial and those being investigated over post-election violence. People detained without being charged, it added, should appear in court immediately or released. KNCHR warned that violence must never be rewarded. While reconciliation was important, the rights body added, holding perpetrators to account was crucial to combat the culture of impunity. Justice, National Cohesion and Constitutional Affairs minister Martha Karua is also opposed to blanket amnesty to the youths. On Friday, Prime Minister Raila Odinga  asked Kenyans to stay calm and not worry about different views expressed by Cabinet ministers on how to deal with youths arrested over the post- election violence.  Lasting solution The Government was working on a lasting solution to the controversial proposals on giving amnesty to those arrested in connection with post-election violence, said Mr Odinga. He spoke a day after Internal Security minister George Saitoti said allowing amnesty would promote lawlessness and impunity. Mr Odinga, who himself backs amnesty, said the ongoing debate among ministers over the issue was normal in a democracy and should not be construed to mean there were differences within the Government. “There is only one Government and the statements you hear from ministers should not worry you,” he said. Mr Odinga was speaking in Rongo  constituency during the burial ceremony of  Isaiah Marvin Otieno, the son of Public Service minister Dalmas Otieno, who was killed in a helicopter accident in Canada more than two weeks ago. Reported by Lucas Barasa, Walter Menya and Elisha Otieno

THOUSANDS IN DEBT

Why Kenyans are drowning in debt Story by SAMWEL KUMBA Publication Date: 5/31/2008

Thousands of Kenyans are facing ruin as banks and other financial institutions demand that their customers repay the money advanced to them. However, many of those who took loans have been unable to pay up. Wananchi queue to buy Safaricom shares in April. Many small-scale investors took loans to buy the shares. However, a large group of debtors who were adversely affected by post-election violence have been unable to repay their loans on time, leading to high default rates. Photo/FILE Financial experts are blaming easy credit in the form of unsecured loans, credit cards and financial illiteracy for the spiralling debts crisis. Most of those who are under pressure from banks were adversely affected by post-election violence which destroyed many businesses and left others on the verge of ruin. Post-election violence Insurers have so far received claims worth Sh1.2 billion arising from destruction caused during the post-election violence. They are yet to decide whether to pay or not. The law does not require them to pay for damages caused by politically-instigated violence. Many of those faced with the prospect of drowning in debt were tempted by bank offers of cheap unsecured credit over the last five years and are now finding it difficult to service the loans. The problem has been made worse by rising inflation, the high cost of food, fuel and other essential commodities. Financial advisers, lawyers and debt collectors are swamped by creditors seeking to recover their money and debtors pleading for relief. Teachers, farmers, soldiers, policemen and civil servants are bearing the brunt of the unserviceable debts. However, Laboso George of the Kenya Commercial Bank’s savings and loans department said there had been no upsurge in property auction as far as their mortgage book is concerned. Other banks were unwilling to comment on the matter. In one day this week, the Daily Nation had two pages of advertisements placed by auctioneers selling property seized from those unable to service their debts. Lawyers say this is just the tip of the iceberg. Mr Evans Monari,  a Law Society of Kenyan Council member, told the Saturday Nation that many more properties were  being sold without being advertised. “Most people are selling through private arrangements,” he said. According to him, banks are auctioning property after failing to reach an agreement with the debtor. He said the trend was likely to continue into the foreseeable future. He said many people had opted for voluntary bankruptcy to escape their debtors and buy time to reorganise their finances.  The  increase in the rate of bankruptcy is a signal that something is wrong with the country’s economy. “Our interest rates are too high. They are the highest in the region and this leads to high default rates,” the lawyer said. Over the last five years, banks have significantly lowered barriers standing in the way of those seeking credit. To secure a loan, one only needs to prove they are in salaried employment. Some institutions have also been “hawking” loans, luring all and sundry with the bait that one needs no security to get the cash. Financial experts argue that in addition to the lowering of barriers to credit, loans have become subject of aggressive promotion to the extent that many players in the banking sector actually employ freelance sales agents to market loans. Due to this, many more people are borrowing than ever before. And with more borrowers comes the possibility of more defaulters. “Banks are giving out loans on the security of payslips that clearly show that the borrower’s income cannot match the sums advanced,” says Mr Edward Wangila, a lawyer who has handled  debt collection cases. And Mr Manyara Kirago, a financial adviser with First Independent Advisers,  says many borrowers use loans on consumption rather than investing in income producing or appreciating assets. They buy cars, furniture and clothes, pay bride price and even go for holidays on borrowed money. “This results in spending more than they earn and when the repayments kick in, they find themselves unable to meet their obligations,” says Mr Kirago. This is the category of borrowers who are now being auctioned, he says. But Mr John Wanyela, the chief executive of  Kenya Bankers Association, disagrees with Mr Karago’s assessment. “Most of the loans have been pegged on an individual’s income. I therefore don’t think that there is a lot of defaulting in that area. That is an area that is substantially growing,” he said. Mr  Robert Warlow, the group head of risk at Fina Bank, advises people to use their loans wisely. “For example if you are borrowing money to pay school fees you are bound to have the same problems every three months, so that is not a necessary reason to borrow,” he said. Good debt But if one buys say a lorry for a business, it is a good debt because it produces income. According to him, a bad debt normally keeps one afloat temporarily. To ensure a loan improves one’s financial standing, experts urge people to develop financial plans before borrowing rather than because the money is available.  Banks and other institutions are lending as much as they can to maximise their profits. While the Government can help protect gullible borrowers by introducing regulations to ensure more transparent lending practices, the buck always stops with the borrower. In the last three years, banks have increased their lending. Many of the loans are unsecured, according to Mr Wanyela. “This growth has been due to positive political statements and everybody was suddenly optimistic. The economy started growing and there was general positivity to everything that was happening,” he said. Some banks are likely to be asked to write off their client’s loans. Should that happen, cooperatives and micro-finance institutions are usually the hardest hit. Mr Carilus Ademba, managing director of the Kenya Union of Savings and Credit Cooperatives Limited, told Saturday Nation that cooperative societies that were hardest hit by the post-election violence were mainly in the transport sector. “We are telling our members to provide information for such cases which we can write off. But default cases in cooperatives are less than five per cent compared to the bank’s close to 20 per cent,” he said. Risk management experts say that there is need to intensify loanee follow-up to improve recovery of outstanding loans and prosecute defaulters. “We should determine how much debt the borrower can comfortably handle, consider income streams and any other obligations that could interfere with repayment,” said Mr Warlow.

RAILA INCITING VIOLENCE YOUTH

Debate on amnesty for poll chaos rages on

Published on May 30, 2008, 12:00 am

By Abiya Ochola, Cyrus Ombati and James Ratemo

The amnesty debate for suspects held over the post-election chaos has refused to go away.

And it continues to divide the coalition Government. As Prime Minister Raila Odinga repeated calls for the release of youths yesterday, Justice and Constitutional Affairs minister, Ms Martha Karua, reiterated that blanket amnesty was out of question.

And Internal Security minister, Prof George Saitoti, differed with Raila on how to deal with the Mungiki sect. He told the followers of the banned sect to respect the rule of law or be dealt with ruthlessly.

Raila said amnesty for the youths was out of the question allegedly because the demonstrators were not guilty of any wrongdoing.

“I do not believe in the calls for amnesty. Amnesty presupposes some element of guilt and you are asking to be pardoned. The youth never committed any crime. Is it a crime in Kenya to fight for your democratic right? Is it a crime to demonstrate against a rigged election?” asked the Prime Minister.

Raila said the unconditional release of those arrested over the riots was the best way forward.

“I am calling for their unconditional release,” he said.

Speaking in Nairobi, Raila said the Cabinet had discussed the matter and mandated the Attorney-General, Mr Amos Wako, to deal with it.

He said the AG had the responsibility to draw the line between protesting over a denied right and a criminal act.

“This matter should not be dealt with by ministers or politicians because they are partisan,” he said.

However, Karua was at war with leaders fronting for blanket amnesty of post-election violence perpetrators.

The minister said the law should take its full course and only the Judiciary should “separate the guilty from the innocent”.

“Let them own up to their offences to facilitate forgiveness and reconciliation. When you reward impunity of whatever nature, it cannot lead to lasting peace,” she said.

Speaking at the opening of a three-day post-election peace building symposium at the Catholic University of Eastern Africa in Nairobi yesterday, Karua said only those involved in minor offences would be treated leniently.

She added: “Our law does not recognise executive amnesty for criminal offences before trial nor does it contemplate amnesty. The prerogative of mercy can only be exercised by the President after the accused person has been convicted.”

Karua further said the post-election crisis had brought to the fore ethical, legal and practical questions on how the country should be governed.

VIOLENCE SUSPECTS COMMITTED NO CRIME RELEASE THEM, SAYS RAILA

Raila: Free youths without conditions Story by NATION Team Publication Date: 5/30/2008

The thorny question of how to deal with youths arrested over post-election violence has returned to haunt the grand coalition with Prime Minister Raila Odinga saying they should be released unconditionally “because they committed no crime”. Prime Minister Raila Odinga. Photo/HEZRON NJOROGE However, Mr Odinga’s sentiments appeared to be at variance with Internal Security minister George Saitoti’s, who said those linked to the violence should be prosecuted to discourage impunity and promote peace. Prof Saitoti made the remarks at a meeting with senior Administration Police officers in Nairobi. Giving amnesty But while addressing the Law Society of Kenya monthly luncheon at the Hilton Hotel in Nairobi, where he was the chief guest, Mr Odinga said: “I don’t think we should be talking about giving amnesty to these young men because they committed no crime. “Is it a crime to fight for your democratic rights? Or is it a crime to stand and say that last year’s elections were rigged?” The PM said that he supported the unconditional release of all those arrested over the violence in which more than 1,200 people were killed and over 350,000 others displaced from their homes. He added that the matter was discussed by the Cabinet and handed over to Attorney-General Amos Wako to resolve. “This matter should not be dealt with by politicians because they are partisan to this issue in one way or another,” Mr Odinga said. But at the Kenya Institute of Education, Prof Saitoti said 4,690 cases of petty offences linked to the violence had been prosecuted and urged the police to speed up investigations into and prosecutions of the remaining 8,000, including serious crimes like rape, arson and murder. On February 28, Mr Odinga and President Kibaki signed a deal that was to end the violence sparked by a dispute over who between them won the December 27 presidential election. The Electoral Commission declared Mr Mwai Kibaki the winner, but ODM disputed the results. The deal between President Kibaki and Mr Odinga was brokered by former UN secretary-general Kofi Annan. Among other things, it provided for a grand coalition with Mr Odinga as Prime Minister with ODM and the PNU coalition sharing Cabinet seats. Thursday, Prof Saitoti promised to protect and defend security forces as long as they performed their duties within the limits of the law. Impunity culture According to him, “prosecution (of the perpetrators of violence) would ensure the perceived culture of impunity is eliminated, rule of law restored and confidence in police strengthened.” MPs from the Rift Valley, including Cabinet ministers, William Ruto and Henry Kosgey, have been campaigning for the release of the youths who were arrested during the post-election violence during which mobs went on a killing, looting, arson and raping spree, at times blocking major highways to protest at the outcome of the presidential elections and other grievances. But another group of ministers, including Justice minister Martha Karua and Prof Saitoti have opposed calls for amnesty, saying the law must be allowed to take its course. Eldoret, Nakuru, Naivasha, Nairobi, Mombasa and Kisumu were some of the areas hardest hit by the violence. The number of youths in custody has been difficult to ascertain with police saying only 137 were in remand, while some leaders, including Mr Ruto, put the figure at 12,000.

KENYA, AMNESTY FOR CRIMINALS UNLAWFUL SAY KARUA

Debate on amnesty for poll chaos rages on

Published on May 30, 2008, 12:00 am

By Abiya Ochola, Cyrus Ombati and James Ratemo

The amnesty debate for suspects held over the post-election chaos has refused to go away.

And it continues to divide the coalition Government. As Prime Minister Raila Odinga repeated calls for the release of youths yesterday, Justice and Constitutional Affairs minister, Ms Martha Karua, reiterated that blanket amnesty was out of question.

And Internal Security minister, Prof George Saitoti, differed with Raila on how to deal with the Mungiki sect. He told the followers of the banned sect to respect the rule of law or be dealt with ruthlessly.

Raila said amnesty for the youths was out of the question allegedly because the demonstrators were not guilty of any wrongdoing.

“I do not believe in the calls for amnesty. Amnesty presupposes some element of guilt and you are asking to be pardoned. The youth never committed any crime. Is it a crime in Kenya to fight for your democratic right? Is it a crime to demonstrate against a rigged election?” asked the Prime Minister.

Raila said the unconditional release of those arrested over the riots was the best way forward.

“I am calling for their unconditional release,” he said.

Speaking in Nairobi, Raila said the Cabinet had discussed the matter and mandated the Attorney-General, Mr Amos Wako, to deal with it.

He said the AG had the responsibility to draw the line between protesting over a denied right and a criminal act.

“This matter should not be dealt with by ministers or politicians because they are partisan,” he said.

However, Karua was at war with leaders fronting for blanket amnesty of post-election violence perpetrators.

The minister said the law should take its full course and only the Judiciary should “separate the guilty from the innocent”.

“Let them own up to their offences to facilitate forgiveness and reconciliation. When you reward impunity of whatever nature, it cannot lead to lasting peace,” she said.

Speaking at the opening of a three-day post-election peace building symposium at the Catholic University of Eastern Africa in Nairobi yesterday, Karua said only those involved in minor offences would be treated leniently.

She added: “Our law does not recognise executive amnesty for criminal offences before trial nor does it contemplate amnesty. The prerogative of mercy can only be exercised by the President after the accused person has been convicted.”

Karua further said the post-election crisis had brought to the fore ethical, legal and practical questions on how the country should be governed.

KENYA IDPS, NO CASH FOR THEM SAYS GVT

No cash for displaced, says PC

Published on May 30, 2008, 12:00 am

By Steve Mkawale and Beatrice Obwocha

The Government has ruled out cash compensation for those who lost relatives and property in the post-election violence.

Instead, Rift Valley PC Hassan Noor Hassan said, the Government would assist the 180,000 people who had returned to their homes in the past few weeks to resettle.

“It is impossible for the Government to compensate anyone for loss of lives and destruction of property,” he said.

“We are starting to offer assistance tomorrow to families who went back to Kipkelion District and then those in Molo will be next,” he added.

But the administrator declined to specify the kind of assistance the Government would give victims of the post-election violence.

More than 1,000 people died and thousands were injured during the post-election chaos in January and February following the announcement of presidential results.

Hassan was addressing displaced people in Molo District as he launched Operation Ujirani Mwema (Good Neighbourliness) aimed at reconciling ‘rival’ communities.

During the meeting on Wednesday, the PC asked those who looted shops and houses to return the stolen property as a sign of good faith.

LUCY KIBAKI BACK IN TOWN

First Lady Lucy Kibaki resurfaces

Published on May 28, 2008, 12:00 am

By Cyrus Ombati

First Lady Lucy Kibaki made a surprise appearance in the city centre five months since she was last seen in public.

Mrs Kibaki turned up at a cosmetic and beauty shop at the junction of Muindi Mbingu and Tubman roads at 12.30pm, with four security officers in two cars.

A huge crowd gathered at Our Price beauty shop where she bought some items.

Later, it was disclosed that she bought a weave.

The First Lady walked out after about 20 minutes with her guards in tow.

She was beaming and saluting the crowd, which demanded that she addresses them.

There was drama as she walked towards the curious crowd, some of them stretching their hands to shake hers.

Mrs Kibaki made three attempts to shake hands but the bodyguards pushed back the surging crowds, while guiding her into the car.

“Wacha mama aongee, wachana na Press (Let the First Lady talk. Leave the Press to do its job),” shouted the crowd.

Due to public demand, the First Lady finally talked.

She said she had been out of the public eye because of “too much work” that came up after the General Election.

KENYANS IN UNWORKABLE POLITICAL SYSTEM

Africa is stuck in unworkable social and political systems Story by MARTIN MULE Publication Date: 5/28/2008

KENYANS ARE YET TO REALISE that the current political dispensation is not the answer to their incessant political and socio-economic woes. As a result, they are unable to demand a total overhaul of their governance system, starting with a strong resolve to seek fresh faces that can be trusted with the nation’s leadership. Africans in general continue to bury their heads in the sand while perfecting the art of building their nations on falsehoods and illusions. Some have gained a measure of success, but this success rarely lasts beyond a generation due to the fickle foundations of their institutions. What has happened in Zimbabwe, Kenya and South Africa testifies to this. The killings that followed a flawed General Election, in Kenya, the violence in Zimbabwe, and the violence against foreigners in South Africa are a result of lack of effective policies by mediocre African governments. Elections are always rigged even in developed countries, and illegal immigrants are a constant threat to social systems and well-being of many nations, but people do not choose to kill their brothers, sisters, mothers and children like wild animals as happened in Kenya, and now in South Africa. Instead of initiating and building on their own policies, African leaders prefer copying what has already been discarded elsewhere as unworkable. They always ignore the fact that tolerance can only be enhanced when it is redemptive, not when it is wasteful and senseless. Human beings can tolerate suffering, but they cannot tolerate meaninglessness. The violence in Kenya, Zimbabwe, South Africa and in many other African nations is steeped in meaninglessness. Africans need to start basing their operations on truth and facts if they are to turn around many of the conflicts, hatreds, jealousies and violence destroying their continent. Most violence comes from insecurity. But it is a self-defeatist hopelessness that blinds human beings, and prompts them to eliminate others, ignoring the support, love and generosity of their victims. This is what happened in Kenya’s Rift Valley three months ago, and it is what is happening in South Africa today. Africans need to realise that their anger, hatred and cruelty come from their own pain and suffering, and the solution is not to vent it on others. The solution is to embrace the facts and truth so that they can channel their pain into productive uses. African leaders must also take responsibility for not working hard enough for reconciliation. They need to do more to rein in hegemony, negative ethnicity, elitism and chauvinism. African governments are responsible for not taking the right measures to curb the appetites of opportunists who manipulate the gullible sections of society into violence for their own interests. SOME PEOPLE ARGUE THAT WORLD media represent Africa poorly, but is the media image of Africa true or is it exaggerated? If it is true, is it a result of inter-ethnic conflicts, racial conflicts or other factors? The problem is that Africans have agreed to be defined by the same Western media perceptions, and local journalists have learnt to parrot the same prejudices. The major powers have thus found it easy to use what they perceive as Africa’s inherent divisions, unquenchable corruption and violence, in order to dominate Africa. Africans always see themselves as ethnic entities first and citizens of their countries second. They are inordinately proud of their ethnic communities and turn to them to seek refuge whenever they are caught in the wrong. They are deliberately failing to pay adequate attention to the failure of their political systems, their political parties, and ideologies. Africans have also fallen prey to borrowed concepts, especially the dictatorship of the so-called dominant view based on opinion polling. In many African countries, opinion polls are manipulated and cannot conclusively determine what the public thinks about social or political issues. Superficial reconciliation can bring only superficial healing. It is a contradiction for ODM leaders to press for a blanket amnesty for the people who committed crimes against humanity during the post-elections crisis while, at the same time, calling for “truth and reconciliation” in Kenya. In essence, they are denying the perpetrators a chance to become human again through contrition, remorse and repentance. They are contemptuous of the need for the victims and relatives of the victims to restore their dignity as human beings. While appreciating their constituents’ pressure, ODM leaders must also reckon with the fact that the victims want public acknowledgment that what happened to them was wrong, so that the burden of shame can be lifted from their shoulders and placed where it belongs. They’re ashamed of powerlessness and inability to protect the integrity of their own bodies against rapists, arsonists and murderers. Mr Mule is a Kenyan journalist based in Cologne, Germany.   Write to the author

MORE COMPLICATIONS FOR RAILA

New war front for Raila

Published on May 28, 2008, 12:00 am

By David Ohito And Kipchumba Kemei

Prime Minister Raila Odinga trod a delicate balance when he came face-to-face with the thorny Mau Forest issue, which could complicate his political future more.

Raila, who toured the forest in a large entourage of stakeholders in three helicopters spelt out decisions that clearly implied he was aware of the dilemma the ecosystem posed for him.

Even as the PM moved to save the forest that is Kenya’s largest water catchment area and to cushion settlers who have been brutally evicted from farms for which they have title deeds, it was clear that the issue was much more than an environmental concern.

It also has a political and ethnic twist to it. Mau Forest, approximately 420,000 acres, is predominantly in Maasailand, but a large number of the Kipsigis acquired land and settled there.

Now, the Kipsigis face eviction and their MPs, who drummed up support for Raila in the last General Election, are up in arms and out to defend their ‘land’. Up to 47,000 acres of forestland has been hived off for settlement.

Prime Minister Raila Odinga shares a word with Chepalungu MP, Mr Isaac Ruto (right), when they met at Tenduet playground in Mau Forest, on Tuesday. With the PM are Water minister, Mrs Charity Ngilu and Rift Valley PC, Mr Hasan Noor Hasan. Picture by PMPS

In his position as Prime Minister, Raila was returning to an area that voted for him nearly to a man as the ODM presidential candidate last year. Then, he gave hope to the 30,000 residents who were evicted from the forest by the Narc Government.

But on Tuesday, he came face-to-face with pent up anger from the local community and was told that Government officials and some MPs who were part of his entourage were the culprits in hiving off the indigenous forest and adjacent prime lands.

Grabbers named

A nominated Narok councillor, Mr Jackson Kamuye, who is the chairman of Friends of Mau Conservation Trust, named some MPs in Raila’s entourage and top civil servants as “land grabbers”.

Said Kamuye: “Those implicated in excising Mau Forest and acquiring land in the catchments are some of the MPs present here. One was defeated in the last General Election and one is a senior provincial administrator in Nakuru.”

The delicate nature of Raila’s assignment also hung on the fact that if he ruled that the eviction of the remaining 15,000 settlers goes on, he would be seen to add another wound to a region whose MPs have been grumbling.

They say they were short-changed in the Grand Coalition Government and some have even gone ahead and joined calls for a Grand Opposition.

And if he allowed evictees to return, the PM would be seen to go against Government policy to conserve the precious indigenous forest gem.

Raila had announced the Mau trip on Friday during an ODM meeting in Nairobi where his party ministers unsuccessfully tried to convince youthful MPs to back off the proposed Grand Opposition.

It was clear he was not courting further estrangement from the region and told residents who had waited for him at Tendwet and Nkaret that the eviction process would go on, but it would be done with a human face.

Unlike in the past, he said, those who had title deeds, but live in the forest boundaries would be compensated.

However, those who had no titles would be dealt with separately.

Local politicians barred

Apparently aware of the emotive issue that is Mau, Raila did not give a chance to any of the regional politicians who accompanied him to speak. Only three ministers from outside the region made short speeches.

Accompanying him were Cabinet ministers Dr Noah Wekesa (Forestry and Wildlife), Mrs Charity Ngilu (Water), Mr William ole Ntimama (National Heritage) and Mr James Orengo (Lands).

Others were MPs, Mr Isaac Ruto (Chepalungu), Dr Julius Kones (Konoin), Mr Luka Kigen (Rongai), Mr Nkaidili ole Lankas (Narok South), Mr Zakayo Cheruiyot (Kuresoi) and Assistant Lands minister, Mr Gonzi Rai, Permanent Secretaries Mr Kombo Mwero (Forestry and Wildlife), Ms Dorothy Angote (Lands) and Dr Mohammed Isahakia (PM’s office).

Conspicously absent was Environment minister, Mr John Michuki.

Raila, who spoke at two stops, Tendwet and Nkare, and later at a Press briefing in Nakuru, ordered an audit of land ownership in the forest.

The audit could open a can of worms and help the Government get back at original owners who were allocated land in dubious circumstances in 1998, most of them believed to be senior politicians and civil servants.

Raila also ordered a stop to land transactions in the area until issues were resolved.

He called for a meeting in two weeks’ time to be attended by Mau stakeholders to discuss the outstanding issues.

“I agree mistakes were made by past regimes. The forest is destroyed, but we can’t go on mourning. We must take the bull by its horn,” Raila said after a closed-door meeting with local leaders and top civil servants in Nakuru.

He added: “It is true excision was done by Government officials and some politicians and it is a mess we are dealing with, but let’s stop the blame game and resolve issues once and for all.”

Raila assured those living in the forest and hold title deeds that they would be compensated and moved to allow for conservation.

“Some people are innocent victims who were sold land. We will listen to their cases and help accordingly,” Raila said.

“We want county councils to stop the demarcation process until we resolve the issue,” Raila said.

He assured them that the police or forest guards would not burn houses as they evicted people.

“This is a beastly approach which has failed before,” Raila said in reference to eviction methods used in 2003 and 2005.

Reforms underway

Unep Policy and Programmes Officer, Mr Christian Lambretchs, said tea, tourism and energy were under threat from forest destruction.

He warned that if the forest was not saved, the Sondu Miriu power project could become stillborn and rivers feeding Lake Victoria extinct.

While assuring residents that the Government would respect the sanctity of title deeds, Orengo said comprehensive reforms were the only solution to land problems.

“You have co-existed with animals well. Why should you fell trees that your great grandfathers found, but never destroyed?” Orengo asked.

Ngilu said: “We must conserve our forests to guard our rivers from drying up. This we must succeed in doing by putting our differences aside.”

Wekesa said: “Communities living around the forest must take lead in protecting and caring for our precious forests.”

And as the heavy-powered delegation headed back to Nairobi, most of them were pretty aware of how much the Mau Forest issue needed to be handled with care.

IS THERE A GOD OR MANKIND IS ALONE?

God save us from those who would deny His existence Story by JOHN WAHOME Publication Date: 5/28/2008

PROF PETER SINGER’S AGNOSTIC article (DN, May 22) is typical of the position often advanced by negative atheists – that it is improbable for evil and an all-good God to be concurrent. To counter the Judeo-Christian and Qur’anic dogmas of free moral agency, retribution for sin, and the necessity of suffering for character refinement, they posit that human character may still be buttressed with far less agony than, say, the buffeting of Burma by cyclones. They cannot place the needless and, for them, indefensible, suffering of innocent babies within the jurisdiction of a tender and all-loving God. They are, however, more moderate in their denial of the ‘‘divine’’ than their positive atheist counterparts. With all due respect to Prof Singer and others whose academic shoe-laces I am unworthy to loosen, what value would the non-existence of God, even if proven right, add to the human experience? Aren’t the philosophical derivatives of atheism – communism, rationalism and materialism – despised, at least in theory, in the Western hemisphere, being associated with retrogression and selfishness? ISN’T IT PLAUSIBLE THAT, LIKE ANY other dandy parent, God could possess latent, benevolent attributes whose worth is only manifested when a sick body recovers, or in Jesus’ own words, deliverance is extended to a captive? An endless litany of philosophers, among them David Hume, Voltaire, Lord Byron, Mark Twain and more notably, Freud, Marx and Friedrich Nietzsche preceded Singer in grappling with the same profound divine question, and left us neither a definite deity, nor a reasonable alternative. If heeded, Bertrand Russell, in particular, would have left the world a much worse place with his uninhibited theory of ‘‘free love’’ among post-teen university students. Even godly patriarchs, such as old Job, and King Solomon of the Ecclesiastes were not spared the dilemma of apparently unfair human predicaments. I am possibly an embodiment of the suffering Prof Singer so eloquently empathises with, having been at Eldoret during the height of the recent political turmoil, and at the mercy of arrow-wielding throngs. My family is only alive because some theists had constructed a place of worship where they allowed the escaping souls to take shelter for a while. I am also, somehow, reconciled with my erstwhile tormentors because a pastor inculcated in me what secularists would possibly never – the ability to abandon my human and legal rights, forgive all my wrongdoers, and pray daily for them. In fact, that whole experience reinforced my resolve into active theism. In biblical parlance, ‘‘I saw God’’. On the other hand, the eminent bioethics professor has probably never broken a finger while fleeing for dear life. An independent observer would logically expect Prof Singer to also ‘‘see God’s hand’’ in his cushioned, blessed life, and his eminence in the American academe. While Prof Singer would possibly marvel how I believe in God despite my suffering, I would return the compliment. Logically, the proof of the existence of God should never be concluded in ivory-towered lecture halls inundated with learned didactic exchange, because that would preclude some old illiterate villager by Lake Turkana reaping immediate benefits and infinite possibilities of knowing a living God. Further, God, to be fair to all, would have to provide a way of being accessible by anyone regardless of geography, social strata or sophistication. Which is why faith – as naïve as it is cast to be by the atheistic hordes – is the only reasonable avenue of knowing God. Arguments advanced by some irreligious folk are thinner than soup made from a shadow of a starved rabbit. And hypocritical too. They refuse to believe in anything that cannot be proved empirically in the laboratory, and yet tell their spouses daily how they love them! It is truly a relief that many great leaders and scientists have been believers in God. Sir Isaac Newton, one of the greatest physicists to ever walk the earth, is recorded by the New Dictionary of Thoughts as saying: “No science is better attested than the religion of the Bible.” THE GERMAN MATHEMATICIAN-philosopher, Gottfried von Leibniz, considered the supreme intellectual of the 17th century, and co-discoverer of the calculus, was a church minister and author of the volume, Essays on the Goodness of God. Kneeling in snow, George Washington, the first American president, once prayed the whole night at Valley Forge before crossing the Delaware during the war of independence. He led a ragtag, shoeless army to victory over the British the next day. Five or so musket balls perforated his shirt; none harmed him at all. If Prof Singer is, indeed, a negative atheist, as is apparent in his mild article, this is a pointer that he is ‘‘not far from the kingdom of God’’. Once in the fold, he would make a wonderful Christian apologist! Mr Wahome teaches Mathematics at Egerton University.   Write to the author

Cholmondely murder trial kicks off

Written By:Court Reporters   , Posted: Tue, May 27, 2008

Caption:

The case against police constable Edward Kirui who is accused of killing two youths at Kondole Estate in Kisumu during the post election violence kicked off after the state counsel appeared in court.  

The second person to testify in Edward Kirui’s case was Kisumu OCS Hansen Kaloki.

Kaloki told the court that he watched news that were aired by a local television channel and saw a policeman kicking and shooting at two youths.

Justice Onesmus Mutugi said that the court would have to see what the media house broadcasted to determine its content.

The matter didn’t take off on Monday due to lack of state counsel. Edward Kirui is accused of killing two youths in Kisumu.

The case was adjourned till Wednesday.

Elsewhere, the murder trial against Patrick Cholmondely who is accused of killing Robert Njoya on 10^th May 06 kicks off at the court of appeal.

Fred Ojiambo who is representing the accused argued that Cholmondely rights were violated and that the court has no jurisdiction to force the defendants to diverge information of their witnesses.

The state on the other hand argued that they were not heard fully.Chomledlley had applied a petion not to provide the prosecution with statements of seven witnesses he intends to call for his defense.

Meanwhile the battle between the KFF Nyamweya’s faction and the Hatimy group continues.

Last week Justice Hatari Waweru ruled that the Nyamweya is the official and legal group but the Hatimy group was not satisfied with the ruling.

The group now wants the orders reversed arguing that it would be in the interest of justice based on the new evidence that was not produced in the court.

The Hatimy group also argued that Sam Nyamweya was expelled while Twaha Mbarak and Peter Ochiel resigned from KFF.

The rulling will be heard on 6^th of June.

 

HOW KANYOTU LOST HIS JOB

The Christmas Moi didn’t celebrate, Kibaki quit and Kanyotu lost his job Story by KAMAU NGOTHO Publication Date: 5/27/2008

In this instalment of our five part series on the secrets spymaster James Kanyotu took to his grave, we sample former President Moi’s trying times during the clamour for multiparty politics in the early 1990s. Writer KAMAU NGOTHO revisits the dramatic developments. The end of 1991 provided for some of the most dramatic developments in President Moi’s regime. From left: Philip Gachoka, Paul Muite, Jaramogi Oginga Odinga, Munyua Waiyaki and Gitobu Imanyara. Photo/FILE That was the period he dramatically climbed down on his strident opposition to the multiparty campaign; and also had arrested two of his most powerful confidants — Cabinet minister Nicholas Biwott and Internal Security permanent secretary Hezekiah Oyugi — after they were mentioned adversely during the Judicial Commission of Inquiry into the 1990 murder of Foreign Affairs minister Robert Ouko. It was also the period long-serving Cabinet minister and former Vice-President Mwai Kibaki quit Kanu for the newly-minted opposition, and when veteran security intelligence chief James Kanyotu lost his job. On December 3, 1991, the President summoned a Kanu delegates conference at Moi International Sports Centre, Kasarani. To the shock and consternation of everybody present, he used the occasion to push the ruling party into accepting the need for a multiparty system. Party hawks Before he stood up to provide direction, the President had sat quietly listening to party hawks fulminating against the multiparty campaigners, and thus the shock when he suddenly changed direction. It was Mr Moi who in 1982 had forced through the legislation that made Kenya officially a one-party state. Prior to that it had been only an unofficial one-party state since 1969 when the only opposition, former Vice-President Jaramogi Oginga Odinga’s Kenya Peoples’ Union,  KPU, was proscribed by the Kenyatta Government. Mr Moi’s surprise move to allow multi-partyism in December 1991 came just three months after he had vowed at the same venue that Kenya would only “go multiparty over my dead body”. But as British war-time premier, Winston Churchill, once said, swallowing words has never caused indigestion for a politician! The immediate weekend after Mr Moi allowed a return to a multiparty democracy, he summoned his kitchen Cabinet to Nakuru State House to scheme on how to humble the emerging opposition. At the time, the pro-reform forces had found a common umbrella in the lobby group, the Forum for Restoration of Democracy (Ford), soon to convert into a political party. The de facto leaders of the anti-Kanu forces were the opposition doyen Oginga Odinga and former Cabinet minister Kenneth Matiba, who had fronted the multi-party campaign. The previous year, Mr Matiba and his co-conspirators, including Mr Charles Rubia and Mr Raila Odinga, Mr Jaramogi’s son and now Prime Minister, had been rounded up by Mr Kanyotu’s men and detained without trial. At the time of the historic announcement at Kasarani, Mr Matiba had been set free, but was still recuperating in a London hospital after suffering a massive stroke while in prison. Now on this afternoon at Nakuru’s State House, Mr Moi wanted to pick the brains of his top strategists on how to beat the strongly threatening, but loosely-knit opposition. Seated next to the President was intelligence boss James Kanyotu, Vice-President George Saitoti and the newly appointed head of the civil service, Prof Philip Mbithi. Others at the horse-shoe shaped table were an assortment of about a dozen selected Cabinet ministers, Kanu officials and senior civil servants. The meeting was supposed to come up with plans on how to scuttle the opposition before it gained any momentum and also determine the most advantageous timing for the General Election, due the following year, under a multiparty system. Also to be discussed was how to raise campaign funds for Kanu, a party more accustomed to securing power without opposition and openly using public funds and other resources to drive its politics. A source recalls that President Moi was his usual self, allowing the meeting to drag on and on without making much contribution until he felt it was time to strike. Clearing his throat and sitting upright after what appeared to be a drowsy moment, he declared: “All those things you are talking about are not important for now. The date of the election is my secret weapon. Where to get money for Kanu’s campaign should not worry you either. What I want to hear is how Kanu can remain united and take the war to the opposition.” And without any breather, Mr Moi turned to Mr Kanyotu: “Do you see Mr Kibaki resigning to join the opposition? Who else do you think will follow him?” At the time Mr Kibaki was serving as Health minister after being demoted from the VP’s perch in 1988. He had served as President Moi’s principal deputy for 10 years. After a moment of silence, Mr Kanyotu said he had no information that Mr Kibaki or his close associates would be resigning from the Government. Political suicide But after another prolonged moment of reflection, Mr Kanyotu offered a line that startled the President and all the others in attendance. The intelligence chief’s reading of the situation was that a Kibaki resignation would not necessarily be a disaster, it would in fact be a bonus for Kanu insofar as it served to divide the budding opposition. Mr Kanyotu argued that Mr Kibaki’s bastion, central Kenya, was already fiercely pro-opposition, so his remaining in Kanu would not earn the ruling party any vote, it would only be political suicide. The President was unimpressed by the analysis and immediately threw a tantrum. He went on into a lengthy lecture of how his long experience in politics made him acquire insights, which even the intelligence team under Mr Kanyotu can never have. Summing up his tirade, Mr Moi said Kanu’s best chance of remaining in power at the time lay in stopping central Kenya from joining the Nyanza bloc in the opposition. His reasoning was that Mr Matiba, who was in bad health, would not be as attractive to the Central Province voter as Mr Kibaki. He added that the Health minister was a respected leader among the Kikuyu and could easily dissuade his supporters from decamping if it was shown they had a stake in Kanu. To demonstrate his seriousness, the President turned to Prof Saitoti and told him to his face that he would not hesitate to drop him as his number two if that is what it took to keep Central Province in Kanu. Festive season Having said his piece at the Nakuru meeting, Mr Moi, as was his habit, abruptly called off the session and invited his guests for lunch. A few days before Christmas, Mr Kanyotu obtained permission from his boss to travel to Dubai over the festive season. The intelligence chief was away on Boxing Day when Mr Kibaki dropped his bombshell. He called a news conference while on his annual holiday by the beach in Mombasa to announce that he had quit the Moi Government and had formed the Democratic Party of Kenya. His resignation was soon followed by a number of Cabinet ministers and assistant ministers, and a livid Mr Moi feared a deluge. Mr Franklin Bett, then the deputy Comptroller at State House and now MP for Buret, recalls  that to have been one of the worst Christmas holidays for the former president. Mr Moi was seething and somebody had to pay for what to him was a wholly unexpected development. He turned his wrath on Mr Kanyotu, who fatally happened to be away during such a critical moment. “Rightly or wrongly,” Mr Bett says, “Mr Moi concluded that Mr Kanyotu had conspired with Mr Kibaki to pull a fast one on him, and right in the middle of Christmas festivities!” Without any ceremony, Mr Kanyotu was jobless. However, Mr Kanyotu was vindicated when subsequent events confirmed his analysis to have been correct, after all. Mr Kibaki’s debut into opposition politics only helped to hasten the splintering of the opposition and paved the way for Mr Moi’s return to power in the December 1992 election. Two years later in February 1994, Mr Moi quietly rehabilitated Mr Kanyotu as he seriously began to craft his succession plan. The dramatic political events leading to Mr Kibaki’s exit were the culmination of a dizzying series of happenings. Freeze aid On November 16, a consortium of foreign donors meeting in Paris had resolved to freeze aid to Kenya until more tangible steps were taken towards more political and economic reforms. The previous month, the president had taken the painful step of not just sacking, but also having arrested two of his most trusted and powerful confidants of the time — Mr Biwott and Mr Oyugi — after they were mentioned adversely in the Scotland Yard report on the murder of Dr Ouko. Mr Bett recalls the period as one of the most trying for his former boss. “You could read stress all over Mr Moi’s face in those days,” says Mr Bett, “He was visibly restless and I can say for sure that he wasn’t having sound sleep.” He says the President would be on telephone way past midnight, only to call again just before three in the morning and be at his desk before six o’clock. “It gave me the impression that the President had no time to catch some sleep,” he adds. To his face Mr Bett recalls British Prime Minister John Major telling Mr Moi to his face in mid-October 1991 that he just had to change or risk international isolation. The two had met in Harare, Zimbabwe, at the Commonwealth Heads of State and Governments Summit. During one of the breaks at Harare, recalls Mr Bett, Mr Moi and the British premier held a lengthy meeting at the request of both parties. Also in attendance was Foreign Affairs minister Wilson Ndolo Ayah and his British counterpart Douglas Hurd. Mr Bett, who was in the meeting to take notes for Mr Moi, reckons that unlike on previous occasions, Mr Major was brutally frank with Mr Moi this time. He told him that he just had to steer Kenya into a greater democratic path as well as cut down on official corruption. The alternative, he warned, was to risk international isolation. Lest Mr Moi took it to be the usual diplomatic tough-talking, recalls Mr Bett, the British premier told him that the Americans were determined that he be forced out of power and that only Britain was holding them back. The US had unleashed the abrasive ambassador Smith Hempstone with explicit instructions to harass Kenyan authorities until the country steered back to a multiparty system. However, at the Harare meeting, Mr Major had offered a soft landing. Britain would be there for the Kanu Government, but there should be a more determined effort to accommodate the growing opposition. Mr Bett, who worked in Moi’s State House for close to two decades, reckons that much as the president was known to be stubborn, he was also very flexible and pragmatic whenever he sensed real danger. That was such a period. Returning home from Harare, Mr Moi sacked Mr Biwott and Mr Oyugi and ordered their arrest. They were to remain in police custody for two weeks until they were released for lack of evidence. Never again Mr Oyugi mysteriously died a few weeks later. Mr Biwott informally remained close to the president, but would not be re-appointed to the Cabinet until five years later. His relationship with Mr Moi would never be the same again.

LOVE GONE CRAZY

Love fury bait that claimed innocent life Story by MUCHIRI KARANJA Publication Date: 5/27/2008

A jealous husband’s plot to kill his wife backfired when his children fed on the poisoned bait he had laid out for their mother, leaving one dead. Margaret Mwendia, wife of Robert Migwi (inset), holding her daughter Pauline Nyakio. Robert had hoped to kill Margaret with poison. Photo/JOSEPH KANYI And the  killer dad  refused to confess that he had poisoned his five children, aged between 15 and six years, until village elders devised a clever way of making him do so: a red-hot knife. The incident that two weeks ago, shocked a sleepy village in Siakago, Mbeere district also ended up in the man’s death. Robert Migwi, a 36-year-old casual labourer, had suspected his wife had an affair with another man, and planned to kill her. He laced the little maize flour that remained from the previous night’s meal, with poison, hoping his wife would be the one to partake the meal. Barely alive But their five children came back from school earlier than he thought, and ate the poisoned meal. Hours later, the couple’s 10–year-old, son, Fredrick Mbogo, was dead. The other four were barely alive. And when he was informed that his children were fighting for their lives in hospital, the killer father’s first question was: “What about their mother?” Disappointed that he did not kill his wife, Robert stayed with the terrible secret that he was indeed the one who poisoned his own children for two weeks, until local villagers, threatened to invoke a traditional ritual-called gucuna kiviu (licking the knife) in the local language. In this ritual, suspects who plead innocent to a crime are asked to prove their innocence by putting their tongue on a red-hot knife. The ritual, administered by local elders, is believed to fish out real culprits in any crime. Locals believe that only the guilty person gets his tongue burned. So when the elders of Kavuguri Village,  in Eastern Province, suspected that the couple was involved in the poisoning incidence, they suggested the two go through the red-hot knife licking ritual. Hang himself The husband chickened out. He confessed that he was the one who had put poison in the family meal. Shortly after, he  sneaked out of the compound and hang himself in a neighbour’s farm, in shame, neighbours say. “He refused to go through the kiviu ritual, and confessed he was the one who put the poison in the flour,” said the killer’s cousin, Mr Joseph Muriuki Njeru. According to the area chief, Mr Joseph Muchiri, the couple was constantly quarrelling. The major cause of their domestic conflict revolved around the wife’s suspected infidelity. On the afternoon of May 5, their domestic squabbles turned tragic. “From what I have gathered, he had planned to kill the wife, so he laced the ugali with some pesticide, hoping the wife would be the one to take it. Unfortunately, the children came back from school earlier and feasted on the ugali,’’ said the chief.  Doctors at Siakago district hospital confirmed that the five children were poisoned. But the exact type of poison used is yet to be known. A sample of the killer ugali, along with the remainder of the maize flour that made it, are still with the Government chemist for testing.  “We got a call that the children had just taken lunch, and complained of abdominal pains, vomiting and convulsions,” said Dr Mwangi Kaniaru, a medical officer at Siakago hospital in Mbeere District. Poisoned dish Unfortunately, the district hospital is ill equipped to handle such cases, and the five children had to be rushed to Embu provincial hospital, about 50km away. By then, it was too late for Fredrick. He died minutes after reaching the hospital. His mother, 30-year-old Margaret Mwendia, a casual labourer, had no idea  that the poisoned dish was actually meant for her. Her husband had left for his work place on the ill-fated morning. With the children off to school, the mother of five was left behind to look for something to make for lunch. She fixed some ugali, but did not take it immediately. “I had some unfinished work to do,” she said. That decision saved her life, but unfortunately took that of her second born. According to Margaret, her five children, came back from school earlier than usual, and shared the ugali. Minutes later, they were all moaning and writhing in abdominal pains. ‘‘I carried one on my back, and pulled two on each side, I did not know what was wrong with them. I started screaming for neighbours to come and tell me what was wrong with my children,” said the distraught mother. Villagers helped her carry the almost lifeless children, to a clinic 4km away. Workers at the clinic said they were not equipped to handle the cases, and had to summon an ambulance from Siakago district hospital-about 20km away, which rushed them to Embu Provincial General Hospital. By the time they reached the hospital, 15-year-old Esther Kagendo was in a coma, Fredrick was barely alive, while two and a half year old Pauline Nyakio was unconscious. Only 8-year-old Purity Wawira and 6-year-old Kennedy Gitonga looked slightly better. Fredrick died soon after reaching Embu hospital. His body is still lying in the hospital mortuary, as the poor family struggles to raise money to transport it home for burial. It will be a burial coming soon after the family buried the killer father. The father was buried hours after committing suicide. “I told them (police) my grandson’s body is still in the morgue, if I took my son’s body there too, he would have remained there,” explains 80-year-old Michael Mwangi, still struggling to come to terms with what he refers to as his son’s “madness”. “I think he went mad,” he says, with a vacant stare on his face. He has been for the last 8 years. And after burying a son last week, the old man is struggling to raise cash to bury the grandson. Kagendo, Wawira, Gitonga and Nyakio are yet to recover fully, days after being discharged from hospital.

KANYOTU STORY UNTRUE SAYS MOI

Moi dismisses Kanyotu story

Published on May 27, 2008, 12:00 am

By Alex Kiprotich

Former President Moi has dismissed a recent story that revealed the secrets of the late spymaster, James Kanyotu.

Moi, through a statement signed by his press secretary, Mr Lee Njiru, dismissed the series running in a local newspaper as a “work of fiction”.

“The story about the secrets of the late James Kanyotu is just a work of fiction,” said Moi.

He said the authenticity of the report was wanting, given that he was the main consumer of the intelligence report during Kanyotu’s tenure.

The former Head of State said the story was a fabrication “without any truth” and should be dismissed and ignored.

Moi took a swipe at the story’s author for feeding people with falsehoods.

The world of intelligence gathering was complex, he said, and caution must be exercised when handling such stories.

“The writer of the report may be free to emulate Sherlock Holmes, but it is unfair to feed people with blatant falsehoods regarding the complex realms of intelligence gathering,” he said.

Moi said nothing contained in the report was true and Kenyans should beware of such falsehoods.

Before his death, Kanyotu was a long serving head of Kenya’s intelligence service known as the Special Branch.

LIBYA PLOTTED TO BOMB KENYA

Top secrets: Gaddafi plotted to bomb Kenya Story by KAMAU NGOTHO Publication Date: 5/26/2008

Like with politics, espionage knows no permanent friends or enemies, only the convergence of interests. Libyan leader Col. Muammar Gaddafi. Photo/FILE Said to be the second oldest profession, at times it appears to have even lesser morals than the first. No surprise that when relationship between Nairobi and Washington were at the ice cold, it was still business as usual for legendary Kenyan spy chief James Kanyotu and the Central Intelligence Agency of the United States. Early one morning in February 1991, Mr Kanyotu found himself with a difficult assignment. His friends in the CIA had called with an urgent and unusual request. Dissidents They had with them 600 Libyan dissidents they wanted sequestered in Kenya before they could be flown to a safe haven out of the reach of mercurial Libyan leader, Col Muammar Gaddafi. The dissidents had been spirited out of Libya in a daring secret move and first flown to the then Zaire, now Democratic Republic of Congo. But the CIA was not confident that Zaire was a safe haven. The country’s dictator, Marshal Mobutu Sese Seko was a US ally and had himself come to power in the 1960s as a CIA protégé. But the Americans considered him unstable, unreliable and unpredictable. His avarice and love of money was legendary, and it would not be beyond him to cut a deal with Col Gaddafi and turn over the dissidents in exchange for handsome sums wired to his numerous Swiss bank accounts. The Americans wanted their charges out of Congo speedily, and Kenya seemed like the best choice. But there was one problem. President Moi at that time had no time for the US. Kenya was in the throes of the multi-party campaign and the US had come out strongly in favour of the push for democratisation. Mr Moi was particularly irked by President George Bush’s ambassador in Kenya, the outspoken Smith Hempstone, who consorted openly with and supported the growing opposition of the day and had been dismissed as the Nyama Choma (roasted meat) ambassador. An approach through Mr Hempstone would not work, for Moi would have loved nothing better than to tell the envoy to ‘shove it’. A direct approach from Washington, either through the Secretary of State or the President himself, was also considered but none wanted to chance reaching Moi when in one of his foul moods and risk a humiliating rejection. So the CIA turned to Mr Kanyotu to soften President Moi for them. It was a difficult assignment on two grounds. First of course was Mr Moi’s growing anger with the United States. Then there was the security risk for Kenya in crossing Mr Gaddafi, who might find a soft target on which to hit back at the US. The Libyan leader by then was on the American list of unfriendly regimes. He was fiercely anti-American, and was accused of financing Middle Eastern terrorist groups that were increasingly aiming at targets in the West. The Libyans at the time were also moving aggressively to position themselves in sub-saharan Africa, unlike many other North African countries, which viewed themselves primarily as members of the Arab world. That was where  Mr Kanyottu found the chink in President Moi’s armour. Libyan interests in the region had in the past few years been viewed suspiciously by Kenya, which was alarmed by the countries seeming support for dissident movements. From the early 1980, the Libyan embassy on Loita Street had become a popular calling place for radial student activists from nearby University of Nairobi. Usually it was to pick up freebies in the form of Mr Gaddafi’s writings, including his famous Green Book, and other literature and posters on Libyan and on the Palestinian cause. Mr Kanyotu’s agents kept a close watch around the embassy, paying particular attention to student leaders whom they thought might be tempted into going beyond mere infatuation with Gaddafi and enlisting into something sinister. Libya at the time already had a strong presence in neighbouring Uganda, which under President Yoweri Museveni had become the favoured transit point for Kenyan dissidents fleeing the country for exile in Europe. By early 1991, Kenya had already severed diplomatic relations with Tripoli after accusing the northern African country of sponsoring anti-Moi elements. Some student leaders at the University of Nairobi had also been arrested and charged with espionage for allegedly spying for Libya. Even without the Libyan link, President Moi at time viewed President Museveni as a dangerous radical all too keen to spread his ideology across the region. Kenya and Uganda had engaged in a brief shooting war across the common border only a few years previously, and still regarded each other with deep suspicion. With all the information at his fingertips, Mr Kanyotu was able to convince President Moi that the real threat lay not in US support for the multi-party campaign in Kenya, but in Libyan support for dissidents who might want to forment a revolution via neighbouring Uganda. Mr Kanyotu thought, Moi — even for ego purposes only — would relish the moment to show both Col Gaddafi and Mr Museveni who was boss in the region. Mr Moi gave his nod, and working under the strictest security, Mr Kanyotu’s men and the CIA hurriedly constructed a camp to hold the Libyans at a remote point off the Thika-Garissa highway. Within a week, a makeshift barracks was in place complete with a borehole and a fully-equipped dispensary. To throw off-scent any nosy characters, signposts were erected purporting that American peace-corps were coming to help sink boreholes in the remote reaches of Mwingi District. On D-Day, Mr Kanyotu joined the CIA team at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport shortly after midnight. Also present was Mr Hempstone. As Nairobi slept, two US Air Force jets taxied at the far end of the apron. Unmarked buses from the Kenya Army were in place to transport the delicate human cargo. Before dawn, the Libyan exiles were sound asleep in their new, but temporary, Kenyan home. Mr Gaddafi, probably through Ugandan and Soviet intelligence sources in Nairobi, soon came to learn about the presence of Libyans dissidents in Kenya. He was furious, and immediately set about planning how to retaliate. Commando squad A Libyan commando force assembled near the Entebbe Airport in Uganda, ready to strike once the exact location of the secret camp holding Libyan dissidents in Kenya was established. Gaddafi’s first option was lightning air strike to bomb the camp and kill as many of the residents as possible. The other was to bring in a commando squad by land, raid the place and capture some of the dissidents. To keep him off-scent, Mr Kanyotu and the CIA put up several decoys that kept the Libyan intelligence operatives on a wild goose chase. Meanwhile, the Americans found a permanent refuge for the dissidents, and before the Libyan forces could strike they were secretly flown out of Kenya under cover of darkness. After ranting and raving for a period, Mr Gaddafi concluded the Kenyan leader was no pushover and offered to make peace.