Day: March 27, 2024

A row between Natira residents of Kalobeyei ward in Turkana County and their Member of County Assembly Julius Edung Apuron is threatening development projects in the area.

The residents, who accused the MCA of chasing away partners supporting community projects, now want him stopped from interfering with projects identified by the locals.

On Monday, the residents asked Turkana Governor Jeremiah Lomorukai to exercise his executive powers to unlock community projects that have failed to take off.

Among the notable projects being contested is the Kudura project, an initiative to provide renewable energy to homes in the remote areas.

Kudura project liaison officer Mr Fred Achoka said the renewable energy project had worked in 24 wards in Turkana county.

Achoka said the projects received political support in all the areas it had worked, except parts of Kalobeyei ward.

‘The area MCA asked us to initiate Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) projects so that we get the greenlight to continue with the initiativ
e. He wanted two classrooms in a school but we informed him that we could offer water and street lights as CSR, but he insisted and became adamant to the extent of chasing away our staff,’ he alleged.

The organizations stressed that they were already engaging in CSR since they were offering services that the government should be providing.

Led by Peter Eyenai, the locals said they were yet to understand why the politician was stopping projects.

‘Our villages have never been connected to electricity since independence. We found an organization that agreed to supply renewable energy to our houses and trading centres. It is puzzling that a political leader is becoming the stumbling block,’ said Eyenai.

Eyenai went on to claim: ‘When we ask why the projects are not taking off, our partners inform us that our ward rep asked them to stop.’

He requested the intervention of Governor Lomorukai, asking the county chief to meet the organisations and assure them of their safety.

‘We still hope that the organization
s will continue with the projects. We believe that access to reliable energy sources not only enhances productivity but also facilitates access to education, healthcare, and other essential services. We expected no one to obstruct such projects for any reason. This is a setback and we call for intervention,’ explained Eyenai.

Another accusation against the MCA is that he had stopped sand harvesting, a venture which they say had created jobs for them.

‘It is unfortunate that we were forced to stop the sand harvesting initiative because a well-known cartel demanded a cut,’ a youth representative claimed.

A water drilling project by Chinese construction company, locals said, is allegedly among projects derailed by the move.

Moreover, the locals accuse the MCA of micromanaging the projects like water projects where he is demanding that the locals form SACCOs that will be used to pool funds that will benefit the members.

They alleged that the MCA is a beneficiary of funds collected from a Chinese water projec
t.

‘He misappropriated the funds because he was the community representative in the company,’ they claimed.

Apuron denied the claims and maintained that organizations implementing projects in his ward should establish CSR projects to benefit the community.

‘Political rivals are not happy when we ask for CSR projects for our people. We have not stopped any project, we only ask for CSR projects,’ he said.

The MCA dismissed the claims saying he was being fought by political rivals.

Source: Kenya News Agency

On page 33 of the book Courage; Building the Character of a Champion, Edwin Louis Cole pens; when homosexuals ‘came out of the closet”and became bold in their identification with their homosexuality, when they overcame their fear of men and in their boldness openly confessed what they were (and sometimes flaunted it), they overcame much of society’s stigma and changed people’s attitudes.’

A saying also goes thus ‘when wealth is lost nothing is lost, when health is lost something is lost, when character is lost all is lost’.

Mercy Mwangi, roadside food vendor in Nyeri town narrated to KNA how she came to learn about lesbianism while in High School.

This was after a girl whom she shared a bunk bed with was expelled from the school for allegedly engaging in the vice.

Prior to the incident, Ms Mwangi had never imagined, even in her wildest dreams, that such acts exist.

It was only after her colleague got exposed that it dawned on her that the practice was quite rife in the institution and only alien to the
ignorant.

Today, she now believes, institutions of learning act as the perfect breeding grounds for almost all antisocial activities plaguing the society and not necessarily limited to same sex relationships.

‘Before I joined High School, I could never imagine how persons of the same sexual orientation could be in an erotic relationship. But how wrong I was after my very bed mate was given a suspension letter after being involved in an amorous relationship with another girl. It was shocking if not weird to say the least,’ she recounts.

Homosexuality is perhaps as old as humanity with its history stretching as far as 1650 B.C during the existence of the wicked cities of Sodom and Gomorrah.

A person reading Genesis 19:5 cannot fail to decipher that gay relationships were nothing unusual during that early.

It was one of the evils that led to the decimation of the two cities from the face of the earth.

Historians have traced the gay practices in a dozen other ancient civilizations extending as far apart as
the east from the west.

Among countries where same-sex unions were practiced include ancient Egypt (especially in Luxor), China, India, Greece and Rome.

Idolized Greek philosopher Plato once wrote, ‘Homosexuality is regarded as shameful by barbarians and by those who live under despotic governments just as philosophy is regarded as shameful by them, because it is apparently not in the interests of such rulers to have great ideas engendered in their subjects, or powerful friendships or passionate love-all of which homosexuality is particularly apt to produce.’

Today, at least 23 countries across the world have already legalized same-sex unions through nationwide voting while 10 others have done so through court decisions.

South Africa, which legalized the unions in 2006, was the first country in Africa south of the Sahara to adopt the eccentric practice.

Twelve years ago, Eric Gitari, former Executive Director of National Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (NGLHRC) challenged the Kenya NGO Coordinati
on Board’s refusal to allow him to apply for registration of an entity under a name containing the words ‘gay’ or ‘lesbian’.

Judges ruled in his favour at the High Court in 2015 and again at the Court of Appeal in 2019.

However, an appeal was later lodged at the Supreme Court seeking to set aside the lower courts’ rulings.

Through a majority decision on September 12 last year, the Supreme Court dismissed the application and ruled that the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer (LGBTQIA+) community has the freedom to associate, which extends to the formation of associations.

Sections 162 (a) and (c), 163 and 165 of the Kenyan Penal Code establish several criminal offences, one of which, having ‘carnal knowledge against the order of nature,’ is punishable by up to 14 years in jail.

Bishop Dr. Erastus Njoroge of Foursquare Gospel Churches terms same -sex relations not only ungodly but unethical under African traditional cultures.

He blames the aping of Western ideals by a section of Kenyans for the
rapid erosion of African values in favour of alien ones.

The cleric also faults the current family setup where parents are delegating their roles of mentoring their children to house managers and teachers as they pursue careers and money-making deals.

‘Parents should create time to be with their children in order to talk to them to instil moral values in them. Religious leaders have neglected their calling in the ministry and are too busy to attend to the needs of their church members. It baffles me at times where church leaders spend much of their time if they cannot feed sound Biblical doctrines to their flocks,’ wondered Bishop Njoroge.

‘The only thing that can salvage society today is going back to the word of God. Anything short of that will never save this generation,’ he insists.

According to Yahya Mahinda Yachu, same-sex unions are a deviation to the established laws of nature.

The Muslim scholar says God never created men to have union among themselves and therefore had to create a female compan
ion for him as a complement.

‘Man and woman were from the very onset created purely for procreation. It is a misconception for anyone to teach that it’s also okay for young girls or young boys to follow a deviant route and establish unions outside God’s original plan. Modern society has misled our youth into believing the family is an outdated institution which one can do without. It is such misplaced arguments that have led to an increase in same-sex relationships today,’ he argues.

Mahinda now says he believes the Government should come out and make its stand known in the heated debate involving LGBTQ fraternity in the country.

He says by keeping mum over the issue, advocates of the unconventional practice will interpret this as concurrence on the practice.

Nyeri County Director of Children’s Services Kung’u Mwaniki says same-sex relationships are unnatural and alien to African culture.

The officer states that most of such practices have their roots in school set up especially in boarding schools where
they are done discreetly.

Mwaniki is now challenging parents to own up to the mistake of failing to take up their role in talking to their children and go back to the God-given responsibility which he terms as the only way to salvage the modern child.

‘Parents ought to have a genuine conversation with their children to help them manoeuvre the intricate nature of today’s liberalized society. Children must be made aware from the word go that same-sex relationships are wrong. Let’s call out evil by its name and not try to sugarcoat it with other fancy terms,’ he says.

Davenese Okello, a smokie vendor, attributes the sweeping wave of gay relationships to poverty and erosion of our African cultural heritage.

Okello says many young people have been brainwashed through unorthodox ideas that the only way to be ‘cool’ is to defy the natural order of doing things.

Advancement of high-end tech has also played a big part in the erosion of societal morals through programs that advocate for values that were once frown
ed upon in our societies.

‘With advancement in technology, masses are able to access any information including on homosexuality. Parents are really failing. They have an obligation to look after their children and offer guidance and counselling,’ explains Okello.

Perhaps the question we all need to ask ourselves is whether same-sex unions are a cure to much needed liberalism or whether this is a clear sign of creeping compromise into our long cherished African values.

Source: Kenya News Agency

Opening of new roads across all the wards in Uasin Gishu by the County Administration has played a significant role in transforming the lives of the residents not only by improving road connectivity but also providing a new means that has improved household incomes.

Farmers can now easily transport their farm produce such as Irish potatoes, vegetables, milk and maize to the market unlike before when the access roads to farms and villages were in poor conditions.

Among the newly opened roads in Ainabkoi/Olare Ward, Ainabkoi Sub-County include Welelo road which connects to Karungu Trading Centre and Tingwa-Langas Road.

The County has also graded Kewet Road which connects to Burnt Forest town to enhance agricultural activities in the area and spur the economy.

Residents of Kapcher Village led by Philip Kimeli and Jonah Too Sawe say their land is very fertile for agriculture but they have been experiencing post-harvest losses because of transportation problems.

‘Initially, we relied on donkeys and tractors t
o transport our farm produce to Karungu Centre as vehicles could not reach our villages. Irish potatoes could get spoiled in the farms every harvesting season because we didn’t have good roads,’ Too explained.

Residents of Tingwa and Kewet villages led by Samson Kirwa who operate bodaboda business said the dozing and improvement of Langas- Tingwa and Kewet road has reduced the cost of transporting milk to Tarakwa Dairies located in Bayete area significantly from the previous Sh300 to about Sh150.

Besides new roads, the county is also keen on the construction of bridges and box culverts which are among key road infrastructure projects in order to spur economic development and improve service delivery for the people.

The completion and commissioning of the Kapkures-Kipsomba box culvert in Kapkures ward, Soy Sub County will facilitate agricultural, business and trade activities, besides bringing the people together in other spheres of life.

Speaking when he commissioned the construction of the box culvert at
Kapkures ward, Soy Sub County, Governor Dr. Jonathan Chelilim affirmed his administration’s commitment to enhancing infrastructural development to propel county’s economic growth in order to provide a safer and quicker means of transportation to improve the economy and quality of life of the people.

The area MCA David Buttuk commended the project which he said had a dramatic impact on the people by creating access to opportunities and other essential facilities.

County Executive for Roads Eng. Joseph Lagat says over six bridges and box culverts have been completed and that efficient infrastructure would ensure safe crossing over of rivers in many areas where they did not exist.

Source: Kenya News Agency

Tharaka Nithi governor Muthomi Njuki has warned farmers to refrain from buying cheap counterfeit fertilizers that could destroy the quality of seeds.

Speaking while distributing free certified seeds at Mukuuni cereals stores in Magumoni ward, the governor said that the government offers high quality subsidized fertilizers to farmers at affordable cost.

He assured that the fertilizer from the Ministry of Agriculture has been inspected and was of high quality adding that farmers should purchase fertilizers with the Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS) mark.

Njuki expressed that malicious people selling cheap counterfeit fertilizer to farmers would in turn destroy the quality of seeds and crops.

‘There are people selling fake fertilizers with added stones and color that is cheaper than one supplied by the government that is fake and will destroy quality of crops, farmers should desist from buying them,’ he said while assuring farmers that the fertilizers in the county’s cereals stores are good.

Njuki said that
anyone selling fertilizers must register with the Ministry of Agriculture for inspection to certify that it was of good quality.

The governor has so far distributed certified seeds in Magumoni ward, Karingani ward, Mugwe ward, Muthambi ward to boost productivity in the county.

Source: Kenya News Agency

The government in conjunction with partners has rolled out a campaign to reign on malaria and ensure that school going children are protected and treated against the disease.

A non-governmental organization christened Maisha Meds has partnered with among others the Ministry of Education to champion the campaign to be piloted in five schools in Kisumu County.

Speaking during the launch of the campaign at Nyakach Girls High school Mrs. Ruth Namayi who is the Programmes Officer at Maisha Meds revealed that the programme targets to eliminate malaria whose prevalence has been noted as alarming in Kisumu County.

‘Maisha Med envisions to provide products for malaria testing kits and anti-malarial drugs to schools and they are working in collaboration with the Ministry of Health and Ministry of Education to provide test kits to schools for we all know that Kisumu County is a malaria endemic zone.

We have selected five schools to roll out the programme where we will be collaborating with the Ministry of Health in
malaria case management and we will run the pilot for a period of six months and afterwards we will make a decision based on the impact on how we will scale within Kisumu County and beyond and to how many facilities,’ said Namayi

A health expert at Meds Mrs. Grace Jobita disclosed that the programme targets over 15000 learners with plans to commission the programme in Kisumu County within six months even as she called on strengthened partnership between the county and the national government in spearheading medical services.

‘When we started the programme, Maisha Med had to have a meeting with the regional Director of Education and it’s the Ministry of Education that decided on the five schools including Kisumu Girls, Kisumu Boys, Ahero Girls, Onjiko Boys and Nyakach Girls.

The Ministry of Health at the county level and the Ministry of Education will monitor the health base within the secondary schools. We are targeting about 150,000 students who will be reached within the pilot phase which is six months b
ut we believe we will go beyond Kisumu County,’ said Jobita.

The area County Director of Education Mr. Jacktone Nyangre hailed the initiative that he noted would help save time for the learners that would have been spent in search of medication even as he pledged that the ministry of Education would wholly support the programme.

‘I am sure this will be beneficial to our learners as a lot of time that would have been wasted going to far off facilities for testing can now be done in school. This is going to be very useful to us and we want to believe that after this, when they do this survey, they will be able to extend to more schools,’ pointed Nyangre.

Source: Kenya News Agency