Kibaki shuns Sh500 million Mweiga home, gets new Sh250 million state offices
Posted by admin on Sunday, March 16, 2014 · Leave a Comment
Even as former President Mwai Kibaki keeps off the State-financed Sh500 million Mweiga home, he is this week expected to move into Sh250 million office block purchased for him by the Government.
The new office block for Kibaki and his staff is at Nyari Estate, Nairobi. His personal secretary, Prof Nick Wanjohi explained the “final touches are being done and we will invite you sometime soon to open it. May be sometime this week.”
From this house, Kibaki will carry out his official functions and receive visitors. “It has taken long to acquire it because of stringent procurement laws. But we are satisfied with the building,” said Wanjohi.
Originally, the Treasury had allocated Sh700 million for the new offices in the 2012/2013 financial year, but Parliament brought down this figure to Sh250 million following public outcry.
Original team
The house also has an electric fence around it and apart from the outer six-metre brick wall; themain house is surrounded by another brick wall.
At any given time, according to our source, five members of the squad are assigned to guard the gates leading into the compound while a team of 15 domestic workers is assigned other duties inside the compound.
Our month-long investigations revealed that a team of ten GSU officers headed by a Chief Inspector guards the residence.
A group of five is assigned a 12-hour shift and always shuttle between Kibaki’s Kanyange rural home and the Mweiga residence.
According to our source, the original team assigned to guard the home comprised 12 officers but two are currently on training in Magadi.
Apart from the GSU officers, the house has a retinue of servants, gardeners and housekeepers, who report daily for work and are under government payroll.
An attempt by The Standard on Sunday to gain access into the compound was warded off by GSU sentries who told us visitors are not allowed without express authority from the family of the former President.
“There were a few things which had not been fixed including some plumbing but these are now in place. But I’m not sure if the contractor has handed over theproject to the Government as required,” said another source who works in the house.
The employee who declined to be named for fear of being seen discussing confidential matters said the house has a swimming pool and a Jacuzzi.
The worker said the residence has also a health club and an in-house canteen for entertaining guests.
Latest fitting
“The residence also houses an office wing complete with a waiting lounge. There is also a guest wing on the left hand side and houses for the security guards near themain entrance,” added the source.
“A solar water heating system is one of the latest fittings to be installed in the expansive house,” the employee said.
Apart from the main residence, there are two double-bedroomed units for senior managers and a block of six houses for security personnel.
An extra block of another six houses for domestic workers is adjacent to the senior manager’s office. Painting an illustrative picture of how the residence is lavishly furnished, the worker said the manicured lawns and flower beds are tended to daily by a group of workers.
There is also a foyer and a large open ground behind the house for meetings. The area with manicured grass can accommodate between 400-500 guests.
But true to his character, Kibaki rarely spends a night in his rural home even when in Nyeri. During his presidency, he would preside over a function in Nyeri and drive back to Nairobi or fly to Sagana State Lodge for the night.
Railway firm cleared to move to site
Thursday, March 20, 2014 – 00:00 — By NZAU MUSAU
NATIONAL Lands Commission has cleared the way for Standard Gauge Railway contractor to move into Tsavo National Park in readiness for the project. The commission announced that the Kenya Wildlife Service is the biggest beneficiary of the compulsory compensation pay-out as it is the single largest owner of single largest portion of land where the railway will pass.
Commission vice chair Abigael Mbagaya said the government will deposit Sh8 billion with the commission to pay out the land owners along the rail line. She spoke at a African Woman and Child Features breakfast meeting with editors at a Nairobi hotel. “We have already cleared the contractor to move to some parts of Tsavo East National park. The money will be deposited with us to pay for compulsory acquisition,” she said. She said the law empowers the commission to acquire any land- public or private. Mbagaya downplayed the ongoing squabbles between the commission and lands cabinet secretary Charity Ngilu. She described them as “teething problems.” She said the commission is suffering from poor funding.
She said they require more funds to fully digitize land records, set up county land boards across and implement pending reforms. “In the current year we got a budget of Sh296 million. In the supplementary we are getting another Sh400 million. Our work however needs much much more and we are engaging with the relevant authorities to ensure we get more,” she said. She said setting up the county land management boards alone need Sh1.8 billion and digitization of the records Sh8 billion.
She said the commission has serious capacity issues as well. Mbagaya said the commission is looking forward to fully implement the Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission (TJRC) recommendation on land once its secretariat is up and running. “We have put structures in place to implement the full report alongside many other inquiries like the Ndung’u land commission. We are already repossessing many pieces of land together with other relevant government agencies,” she said. She said the commission is “assertive” and that it will do anything within the law to ensure that land reforms are effected. – See more at: http://the-star.co.ke/news/article-159490/railway-firm-cleared-move-site#sthash.ZRvSHg1H.dpuf
The survival of ancient tyrants spoils Africa’s record of improving democracy
Oct 12th 2013 | From the print edition
..
BETWEEN independence from colonial rule in the early 1960s and the end of the cold war in 1991, not a single African ruler was peacefully ousted at the ballot box, except in the Indian Ocean island of Mauritius. But since Mathieu Kérékou of Benin and Zambia’s Kenneth Kaunda bowed out graciously in 1991, at least 30 African leaders or ruling parties have let their countries’ voters kick them out. Multiparty systems in Africa now far outnumber single-party ones. This contrasts strikingly with the Arab world, where so far almost no incumbent-ejecting elections have taken place anywhere.
Yet Africa still harbours too many dinosaurs whose time ought to have passed. Half of the world’s 30 or so longest-serving rulers are African. Some, such as Zimbabwe’s Robert Mugabe, now nearing 34 years in charge, started with genuine popular consent. So did Yoweri Museveni, pictured with Mr Mugabe, who has run Uganda since 1986, but like Mr Mugabe is now loth to let go (see article). Several other old-timers have been in charge even longer. Teodoro Nguema of oil-rich Equatorial Guinea pushed out his even ghastlier uncle in 1979. Angola’s José Eduardo Dos Santos became president, on a supposedly Marxist ticket, in the same year. Omar al-Bashir, wanted by the International Criminal Court for alleged crimes against humanity, has presided over Sudan since 1989. None of these grim figures would still be in charge if his people had more freedom.
In this section
The gated globe
Too many dinosaurs
The dove v the desperadoes
Desperate measures
City sicker
Reprints
Related topics
Rwanda
Nigeria
South Africa
Angola
Equatorial Guinea
The continent’s biggest democracies, South Africa and Nigeria, have not lately been a compelling advertisement for representative government. South Africa, ruled by the African National Congress since 1994, is in danger of becoming a de facto one-party state. Nigeria’s politics is so corrupt that it gives the D-word a bad name. In both countries large majorities of people still live in penury, despite the rise of billionaires at the top.
In the short term at least, autocracy does not seem to hamper economic growth. Some anti-democrats—Ethiopia’s late ruler, the authoritarian Meles Zenawi, is a favourite example—have seen their economies grow faster than those of more democratic neighbours. The increasingly ruthless Paul Kagame has made Rwandans a lot better off. Thanks to oil, Equatorial Guinea and Angola are among the fastest-growing countries in the world.
The price of autocracy
Yet Mr Mugabe has pauperised a once-rich country, and some of the least-free countries are also the most economically backward. Most of the 300 or so desperate refugees who drowned off the Italian island of Lampedusa on October 3rd were from Somalia and Eritrea, Africa’s worst performers in political participation and human rights, according to the Mo Ibrahim index of African governance. As the index has repeatedly shown, countries that do well in political participation and human rights also tend to do well in economic development. And democracy is the best guarantor of peace, which is the best foundation for growth.
Western countries and NGOs give succour to protesters and lessons in institution-building, which is good, but they are losing their leverage. As China provides more grants, loans and trade deals with no tiresome strings attached, aid from the West that is conditional on more democracy and respect for human rights is less alluring to African rulers. So it is, increasingly, up to the African people to demand more of a say in the way their countries are run. For many, earning a living is too much of a struggle to think about politics. But Africans are changing, as computers and mobile phones allow them to argue and complain. Dinosaurs beware: the question is not whether they will demand better government, but when. http://www.economist.com/news/leaders/21587787-too-many-dinosaurs
who owns the the current rights of the meter gauge we have in kenya is the british ? It does not make sense at all to build a new one Kiriro has made it obvious there must be some more underling reasons? Why spend 350 billion when we can spend 20 billion the gov should let kenyans know who owns the current meter gauge railway clearly its not kenya as thre is no reason not to up grade .If it is corruption the could as well corrupted the upgrade tender to fit there purposes
Kenya Stockholm Blog 
http://www.npr.org/player/v2/mediaPlayer.html?action=1&t=1&islist=false&id=247468299&m=247468286
Kibaki shuns Sh500 million Mweiga home, gets new Sh250 million state offices
Posted by admin on Sunday, March 16, 2014 · Leave a Comment
Even as former President Mwai Kibaki keeps off the State-financed Sh500 million Mweiga home, he is this week expected to move into Sh250 million office block purchased for him by the Government.
The new office block for Kibaki and his staff is at Nyari Estate, Nairobi. His personal secretary, Prof Nick Wanjohi explained the “final touches are being done and we will invite you sometime soon to open it. May be sometime this week.”
From this house, Kibaki will carry out his official functions and receive visitors. “It has taken long to acquire it because of stringent procurement laws. But we are satisfied with the building,” said Wanjohi.
Originally, the Treasury had allocated Sh700 million for the new offices in the 2012/2013 financial year, but Parliament brought down this figure to Sh250 million following public outcry.
Original team
The house also has an electric fence around it and apart from the outer six-metre brick wall; themain house is surrounded by another brick wall.
At any given time, according to our source, five members of the squad are assigned to guard the gates leading into the compound while a team of 15 domestic workers is assigned other duties inside the compound.
Our month-long investigations revealed that a team of ten GSU officers headed by a Chief Inspector guards the residence.
A group of five is assigned a 12-hour shift and always shuttle between Kibaki’s Kanyange rural home and the Mweiga residence.
According to our source, the original team assigned to guard the home comprised 12 officers but two are currently on training in Magadi.
Apart from the GSU officers, the house has a retinue of servants, gardeners and housekeepers, who report daily for work and are under government payroll.
An attempt by The Standard on Sunday to gain access into the compound was warded off by GSU sentries who told us visitors are not allowed without express authority from the family of the former President.
“There were a few things which had not been fixed including some plumbing but these are now in place. But I’m not sure if the contractor has handed over theproject to the Government as required,” said another source who works in the house.
The employee who declined to be named for fear of being seen discussing confidential matters said the house has a swimming pool and a Jacuzzi.
The worker said the residence has also a health club and an in-house canteen for entertaining guests.
Latest fitting
“The residence also houses an office wing complete with a waiting lounge. There is also a guest wing on the left hand side and houses for the security guards near themain entrance,” added the source.
“A solar water heating system is one of the latest fittings to be installed in the expansive house,” the employee said.
Apart from the main residence, there are two double-bedroomed units for senior managers and a block of six houses for security personnel.
An extra block of another six houses for domestic workers is adjacent to the senior manager’s office. Painting an illustrative picture of how the residence is lavishly furnished, the worker said the manicured lawns and flower beds are tended to daily by a group of workers.
There is also a foyer and a large open ground behind the house for meetings. The area with manicured grass can accommodate between 400-500 guests.
But true to his character, Kibaki rarely spends a night in his rural home even when in Nyeri. During his presidency, he would preside over a function in Nyeri and drive back to Nairobi or fly to Sagana State Lodge for the night.
– The Standard
Who can recognize such a farcist Neo-Nazi in Europe in this Era! Hitler is Back but Eu citizens are keeping Mum!>
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-26654973
DANIEL ASRAP MOI IN Raping dancing mood>
Railway firm cleared to move to site
Thursday, March 20, 2014 – 00:00 — By NZAU MUSAU
NATIONAL Lands Commission has cleared the way for Standard Gauge Railway contractor to move into Tsavo National Park in readiness for the project. The commission announced that the Kenya Wildlife Service is the biggest beneficiary of the compulsory compensation pay-out as it is the single largest owner of single largest portion of land where the railway will pass.
Commission vice chair Abigael Mbagaya said the government will deposit Sh8 billion with the commission to pay out the land owners along the rail line. She spoke at a African Woman and Child Features breakfast meeting with editors at a Nairobi hotel. “We have already cleared the contractor to move to some parts of Tsavo East National park. The money will be deposited with us to pay for compulsory acquisition,” she said. She said the law empowers the commission to acquire any land- public or private. Mbagaya downplayed the ongoing squabbles between the commission and lands cabinet secretary Charity Ngilu. She described them as “teething problems.” She said the commission is suffering from poor funding.
She said they require more funds to fully digitize land records, set up county land boards across and implement pending reforms. “In the current year we got a budget of Sh296 million. In the supplementary we are getting another Sh400 million. Our work however needs much much more and we are engaging with the relevant authorities to ensure we get more,” she said. She said setting up the county land management boards alone need Sh1.8 billion and digitization of the records Sh8 billion.
She said the commission has serious capacity issues as well. Mbagaya said the commission is looking forward to fully implement the Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission (TJRC) recommendation on land once its secretariat is up and running. “We have put structures in place to implement the full report alongside many other inquiries like the Ndung’u land commission. We are already repossessing many pieces of land together with other relevant government agencies,” she said. She said the commission is “assertive” and that it will do anything within the law to ensure that land reforms are effected. – See more at: http://the-star.co.ke/news/article-159490/railway-firm-cleared-move-site#sthash.ZRvSHg1H.dpuf
African governance
Too many dinosaurs
The survival of ancient tyrants spoils Africa’s record of improving democracy
Oct 12th 2013 | From the print edition
..
BETWEEN independence from colonial rule in the early 1960s and the end of the cold war in 1991, not a single African ruler was peacefully ousted at the ballot box, except in the Indian Ocean island of Mauritius. But since Mathieu Kérékou of Benin and Zambia’s Kenneth Kaunda bowed out graciously in 1991, at least 30 African leaders or ruling parties have let their countries’ voters kick them out. Multiparty systems in Africa now far outnumber single-party ones. This contrasts strikingly with the Arab world, where so far almost no incumbent-ejecting elections have taken place anywhere.
Yet Africa still harbours too many dinosaurs whose time ought to have passed. Half of the world’s 30 or so longest-serving rulers are African. Some, such as Zimbabwe’s Robert Mugabe, now nearing 34 years in charge, started with genuine popular consent. So did Yoweri Museveni, pictured with Mr Mugabe, who has run Uganda since 1986, but like Mr Mugabe is now loth to let go (see article). Several other old-timers have been in charge even longer. Teodoro Nguema of oil-rich Equatorial Guinea pushed out his even ghastlier uncle in 1979. Angola’s José Eduardo Dos Santos became president, on a supposedly Marxist ticket, in the same year. Omar al-Bashir, wanted by the International Criminal Court for alleged crimes against humanity, has presided over Sudan since 1989. None of these grim figures would still be in charge if his people had more freedom.
In this section
The gated globe
Too many dinosaurs
The dove v the desperadoes
Desperate measures
City sicker
Reprints
Related topics
Rwanda
Nigeria
South Africa
Angola
Equatorial Guinea
The continent’s biggest democracies, South Africa and Nigeria, have not lately been a compelling advertisement for representative government. South Africa, ruled by the African National Congress since 1994, is in danger of becoming a de facto one-party state. Nigeria’s politics is so corrupt that it gives the D-word a bad name. In both countries large majorities of people still live in penury, despite the rise of billionaires at the top.
In the short term at least, autocracy does not seem to hamper economic growth. Some anti-democrats—Ethiopia’s late ruler, the authoritarian Meles Zenawi, is a favourite example—have seen their economies grow faster than those of more democratic neighbours. The increasingly ruthless Paul Kagame has made Rwandans a lot better off. Thanks to oil, Equatorial Guinea and Angola are among the fastest-growing countries in the world.
The price of autocracy
Yet Mr Mugabe has pauperised a once-rich country, and some of the least-free countries are also the most economically backward. Most of the 300 or so desperate refugees who drowned off the Italian island of Lampedusa on October 3rd were from Somalia and Eritrea, Africa’s worst performers in political participation and human rights, according to the Mo Ibrahim index of African governance. As the index has repeatedly shown, countries that do well in political participation and human rights also tend to do well in economic development. And democracy is the best guarantor of peace, which is the best foundation for growth.
Western countries and NGOs give succour to protesters and lessons in institution-building, which is good, but they are losing their leverage. As China provides more grants, loans and trade deals with no tiresome strings attached, aid from the West that is conditional on more democracy and respect for human rights is less alluring to African rulers. So it is, increasingly, up to the African people to demand more of a say in the way their countries are run. For many, earning a living is too much of a struggle to think about politics. But Africans are changing, as computers and mobile phones allow them to argue and complain. Dinosaurs beware: the question is not whether they will demand better government, but when.
http://www.economist.com/news/leaders/21587787-too-many-dinosaurs
who owns the the current rights of the meter gauge we have in kenya is the british ? It does not make sense at all to build a new one Kiriro has made it obvious there must be some more underling reasons? Why spend 350 billion when we can spend 20 billion the gov should let kenyans know who owns the current meter gauge railway clearly its not kenya as thre is no reason not to up grade .If it is corruption the could as well corrupted the upgrade tender to fit there purposes