Kenya:This is why the EAC won't work.

[Ab-Titchaz]

Says a lotta bana. Heshima yako Boss

Na kwako pia natoa heshima.

 

[Nono]

kwani we ab tichaz sio mkenya?????????

Hapana, huyu ni mu-Afghanistan.

 

[Ab-Titchaz]

Now there is a war of words between Kenya's Prime Minister (Raila) and a
deputy Prime Minister (Uhuru Kenyatta). Uhuru anasema kua Wizara ya
Fweza haitowalipa mafisadi walioiba mashamba kule Mau lakini ile tetesi
iliotolewa na Daily Nation bado infuka moshi na penye moshi pana
moto. Somebody new something was about to come afloat and they
preempted the move by going public. If nothing had been said, then fisadis
would have quietly gone to the bank and have a field day akiwemo former
President Daniel Arap Moi.

Raila takes on Uhuru over Mau payout ​

Prime Minister Raila Odinga and Finance Minister Uhuru Kenyatta consult during a meeting at Treasury Building. ​

Prime Minister Raila Odinga on Tuesday traded accusations over Mau payouts with his deputy and Finance minister, Mr Uhuru Kenyatta, in an embarrassing public spat.

Mr Odinga issued a statement accusing Mr Kenyatta of "political chicanery" over the latter's denial of a plan to pay big shot land owners compensation.

In a strong statement issued by his spokesman, Mr Odinga said that Mr Kenyatta and his Forestry counterpart, Dr Noah Wekesa, were "playing politics" when they denied on Monday that the government intended to pay the so-called Big Fish Mau settlers.

But Mr Kenyatta shot back in a similar statement: "The Deputy Prime Minister Uhuru Kenyatta has never at any time tried to play politics with the issue of Mau forest complex, and the allegation is not only baseless and unsustainable, but is in itself playing politics with Mau."

On Monday, Mr Kenyatta, accompanied by Forestry minister Dr Noah Wekesa had said: "We at the Treasury and the Ministry of Forestry can categorically state that there has never been any discussion of any nature with any individual or company for compensation of any kind."

On Tuesday, Mr Odinga said MPs amended the motion for the adoption of the Mau task force report to require that the government pays settlers and the House should take responsibility for the colossal sums of money to be paid to both small and large scale settlers.

http://www.nation.co.ke/News/politics/-/1064/829448/-/wtitx3z/-/index.html

 

[Ab-Titchaz]

PM statement on Mau compensations

The Ministry of Forestry and the Ministry of Finance yesterday denied knowledge of any plan to pay compensation to large landowners evicted from the Mau Forest, as reported in the media.

The two ministries stated that the Mau issue was being handled by a secretariat in the Prime Minister’s office – attempting to give the impression that the PM alone would know of or author such compensation plans.

A section of MPs have also apparently expressed dismay at the idea of large landowners being compensated.

As most Kenyans are aware, there is a political game being played here.

In the interest of truthfulness and accountability and on behalf of the Prime Minister, I wish to state the following:

1. The plan to compensate landowners in the Mau was passed by Parliament, following an amendment to the Bill adopting the Report of the Government’s Task Force on the Conservation of the Mau Forest Complex, laid in the House on Wednesday, 12th August, 2009.

In its original form, the Task Force Report had contained no provision for compensation.

But an amendment introduced by the Hon Ekwe Ethuro, after weeks of lobbying by a section of MPs, made it mandatory that conservation of the Mau Forest be effected in line with the provisions of the Land Acquisition Act, Cap 295 of the Laws of Kenya, and the Registered Land Act, Cap 300 of the Laws of Kenya.

That amendment, sponsored by the lobbying MPs and passed in the House, introduced payment for all title-holders, no matter how their titles had been acquired.

Unfortunately, the amendment these MPs introduced and lobbied for was driven not by the national interest but by irresponsible personal and political motives against the Prime Minister.

The Prime Minister’s position was, and has always been, that Kenyans cannot pay, and should not pay, for land irregularly acquired.

But he has always felt that the small landowners, with a maximum of 5 hactres, who bought it genuinely believing the land was legally on sale, be paid back their money as long as they can prove ownership and that money actually changed hands in the transaction.

It is therefore shamefully dishonest for certain MPs now to attempt to shift responsibility for this situation to the Prime Minister – when they know full well that it was they themselves who introduced, lobbied for and passed this legislation.

At the time they did so, a parliamentary grouping that saw the Mau issue as a platform for political mileage was taking shape.

Members of that ‘alliance’ had already attempted to kill off the entire Mau report. When that did not work, they single-mindedly voted for blanket compensation for all title-holders, large and small alike, whether the titles were legally or illegally acquired.

And with that vote, those MPs committed Kenyans to looking for money for Mau compensation that our country, devastated by drought and food shortages, cannot afford.

(For ease of reference, I attach the Hansard Report on the debate in Mau, showing how MPs committed Kenyans to this pay plan.)

As debate had raged in the House, the Ministry of Finance failed to rise to the occasion and state categorically that the proposed amendment had immense budgetary implications.

But neither the Finance nor the Forestry ministry can now turn round and claim that they are unaware of this amendment and its financial implications.

2. There are serious contradictions in the Finance Minister’s claims that he is looking for money to compensate and resettle those who have been removed from the Mau – but he has no plans to pay large landowners.

The Prime Minister’s position has always been that those who have left the forest so far were encroachers, with no legal claim to the land they occupied. Even the amendment in Parliament did not cover them. But he wanted some humanitarian assistance for them, so that they can restart and rebuild their lives after leaving the forest.

But the Ministry now wants to compensate these people, who have no legal claim to land they occupied – and yet, despite Parliament’s amendment, it wants to pay nothing to those who do have title deeds.

Again, these contradictions emanating from the Finance Ministry amount to nothing more than political chicanery.

The position taken raises serious questions about the Rule of Law and about the use of public funds for partisan or political gain.

It raises even more serious questions about the way Parliament is being used as a plaything by a certain section of MPs.

Kenyans are tired of being taken for a ride. They are tired of losing out while those in a position to save them play politics for their own personal ends.

Our country will never find solutions to its problems while these irresponsible games are allowed to continue.

Thank you.
DENNIS ONYANGO
DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATION
OFFICE OF THE PRIME MINISTER.
22.12.2009.
​

 

[Ab-Titchaz]

Kibaraka wa Uhuru naye akajibu:

On behalf of the Deputy Prime Minister I would like to state as follows:-
Dennis Onyango’s statement on the Mau compensation raises certain issues that need to be addressed as follows:-

1. The Deputy Prime Minister Hon. Uhuru Kenyatta has only publicly discussed the issue of the Mau on two key occasions:-

(a) At a fundraising to raise money to settle those displaced by the evictions from the Mau, where he attended in his personal capacity. What he said at the fundraising was that there was no need to add more tents when we are trying to remove others. The purport of his statement was that there was no need to have more displaced persons living in tents as we already were trying to deal with the settlement of the current IDPs. The statement is a matter of public record.

(b) When he was responding to a media story that gave the impression that the government intended to pay out large sums of money as compensation to large landholders. He was categorical that no arrangement had been made nor any discussion entered into for any payment by the government. The government has not made any budgetary allocation for the payment of any compensation for landowners of any kind. He made the statement as the public were concerned and he was reassuring them that no arrangement as alleged had been entered into, and that is the position.

2. The Deputy Prime Minister Hon. Uhuru Kenyatta has never attacked any policy of the government on Mau at any time

3. The matter of resettlement of Mau evictees has been discussed by government, on humanitarian grounds, but there has been no discussion on compensation on large landholders, there is no contradiction in this regard.

4. The Deputy Prime Minister Hon. Uhuru Kenyatta has never at any time tried to play politics with the issue of Mau, and the allegation is not only baseless and unsustainable, but is in itself playing politics with Mau.

5. The ministry of Finance has not entered into consultations nor discussions with large land owners nor has he received any communication from any government department for any valuation or intent to pay large land owners. Further we have not factored any such payments into the current budget

In conclusion the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister and the Minister for Finance would wish to inform Kenyans that it is committed to maintaining macro-economic stability and implementation of sound financial management principles and policies. In this regard, the Ministry has and will remain focused on committed government programmes of which compensation of large land owners is not one of them

The Prime Minister is a principal in the coalition government and if Dennis Onyango has any reason to doubt a government statement issued in consultation with other government departments, he should not have responded through the media but should have done so through laid down government procedures.


Njee Muturi
Principal Liason Officer
Office of the Deputy Prime Minister and the Minister for Finance
22nd December, 2009



​

 

[Ab-Titchaz]

Tafrani linazidi na wajaluo wa mitaa ya Kericho ambako wakalenjin
ndio wengi wameambiwa waanze!

Arrest leaflet authors, says Bett​

Roads minister, Franklin Bett addressing journalists at a past function​

By GEOFFREY RONO

A cabinet minister on Wednesday condemned those behind leaflets circulating in Kericho district telling members of the Luo community to leave the area.

Roads minister Franklin Bett said circulation of the leaflets should not be condoned and petitioned the security agents to ensure that the culprits were brought to book as soon as possible so as to restore calm in the district.

Mr Bett said this was a matter that could easily cause unnecessary panic and despondency among the communities living in Kericho and urged local detectives to give the issue the seriousness it deserved.

The leaflets, according to the local police boss, Mr Peterson Maelo, were dropped on Saturday night on the Kericho- Nakuru highway and within the foreign owned multinational tea firms in the larger Kericho district.

The minister made the remarks at Litein secondary school sports ground moments after receiving donations of food, clothing and blankets to be distributed to the squatters who were evicted from the South Western Mau forest and are now living in makeshift camps in Kuresoi and Konoin districts.

Mr Bett called on the residents of Rift Valley Province to co-exist and cautioned the youth not to allow themselves to be used in activities that could jeopardise the prevailing peace and tranquillity in the country.

The minister urged the local community to volunteer information to the security agents that could lead to the arrest of those they suspect could be behind the distribution of the leaflets so to that the government could deal with them.

Contacted for comment on Wednesday, Mr Maelo said that no arrest had so far been made in connection with the distribution of the leaflets but said investigations were going on.

The police boss assured workers in the multinational tea firms that security had been beefed up in all the areas where the fliers had been dropped and they need not panic.

http://www.nation.co.ke/News/-/1056/829978/-/vo810r/-/index.html