The Star 03/30/2017

The Kenya Pipeline Corporation management has dismissed allegations that it has exposed taxpayers to a possible loss of Sh40 billion under the new 450-km Mombasa-Nairobi pipeline. This follows news reports in one of the dailies from ‘whistleblowers’, that KPC is throwing away good infrastructure and buying capacity the country has no use for. This is under the ongoing upgrading of the Sh43 billion Mombasa- Nairobi pipeline and a second Sh48 billion Line 5 to the Western region. KPC has been accused of increasing the size from 16 to 20 inch and buying pumps and equipment for projects that are not required. In a statement to newsrooms, managing director Joe Sang’ yesterday defended the expansion and choice of a 20-inch Mombasa-Nairobi pipeline. He said it was informed by a study by…

VARSITY PARTNERSHIP COURSES IN ISLAMIC FINANCE The Coast International College yesterday signed an MoU with a Malaysian university to offer courses in Islamic Finance. The CIC, owned by Gulfcap Group of Kenya, will partner with the International Centre for Education in Islamic Finance for provision of a curriculum for vocational training to offer internationally recognised qualifications. See Page 9 UNPAID TAX KRA SAYS JOHO OWES IT The Kenya Revenue Authority on Tuesday told the court a company associated with Mombasa Governor Hassan Joho owes Sh90 million. Judge Eric Ogolla issued an interim injunction stopping KRA from seeking taxes from the firm until the matter is heard and determined. The firm’s management said it is not evading tax. See Page 31 PROTEST NAMANGA CUTS WATER TO TZ Namanga residents disconnected water…

Kenya will receive a Sh2.25 million grant from the Chinese government to buy food to mitigate the effects of the prevailing drought. The National Treasury and the Chinese Embassy signed notes for humanitarian assistance in Nairobi on Monday. Under the deal, China will bring in 21,000 metric tonnes of rice, which is expected to arrive in three weeks. Speaking during the signing ceremony, Treasury CS Henry Rotich said Kenya is facing an “unprecedented shortfall of staple foods, particularly maize”. About three million people in urban and rural areas face hunger. “Indeed, because of not getting adequate food, children less than five years and expectant and lactating mothers are highly vulnerable to malnutrition,” Rotich said. He said the government has been taking short-term measures to address the current food crisis. This…

Televangelist Gilbert Deya is at the centre of fresh investigations after a court in Nairobi disowned an order purporting to quash his prosecution for child trafficking. Justice Roselyne Aburili yesterday directed investigations into the matter after she was informed that Deya has furnished a UK court with a fake order. The order, the court heard, purports that all cases against him before the Kenyan courts have been terminated. Prosecutor Edwin Okello told Aburili that the UK has since been notified the order is not genuine. Yesterday, it also turned out that the case file has gone missing, prompting the judge to order reconstruction of a skeleton file. “The DPP should carry out investigations as appropriate and the two deputy registrars of the division should find out where the order originated…

IT seems the authenticity of many Kenyan leaders’ academic papers is in doubt. Some civil society actors were heard whispering that it could be a good idea to move to court to force State agencies to set up a website on which all the education certificates of all public and State officers are posted. This would make the information accessible and eliminate apparent double standards in the crackdown on selected culprits. They said, for instance, that Kapsaret MP Oscar Sudi (pictured), initially very critical of Jubilee, is among those alleged to have forged papers. Then there is a Cabinet Secretary who claims to have papers from the Kenya School of Law. According to the activist, the portal would see the spotlight of scrutiny shone on all, not just Governor Hassan…

‘THAT COMMITTEE IS SKEWED AND THE RESULTS WILL FAVOUR ONLY ONE SIDE, SO WE DON’T HAVE TO KEEP MEETING. EVEN IF WE MEET 100 TIMES, WE WILL NOT AGREE UNTIL THE MOU IS HONOURED’ Wiper has threatened to bolt from NASA if its boss Kalonzo Musyoka is not declared the opposition presidential candidate in seven days. “If it is not Kalonzo, that will be the end of NASA,” National Assembly Minority Leader Francis Nyenze declared emphatically yesterday. “It (NASA) could change into something like Nyanza Super Alliance, because we will pull out,” he told reporters at Parliament Buildings. The statement by Nyenze, a close Kalonzo ally who sits on NASA’s powerful National Coordinating Committee, was the clearest signal yet the opposition was staring at a potentially disastrous split. Kalonzo did…