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Transport CAS Chris Obure has clarified how Kenya lost Covid-19 donations made by Chinese businessman Jack Ma.

Appearing before the National Assembly Health Committee on Thursday, September 3, 2020, Obure noted that 21 packages of assorted medical supplies did not reach Nairobi from Ethiopia. 

He said that five other consignments were received and stored in Kenya Medical Supplies Agency warehouses in Nairobi. 

“We received what we received in the manner in which it was packaged and dispatched from the source (Jack Ma Foundation (China). Am not aware if there was any repackaging in Addis Ababa.

“The 21 packages were missing after we verified with the parking documents from China. We realized that 21 packages were short delivered, I assure you we will continue to pursue the matter with the Ministry of Health to ensure they are delivered,” Obure stated.

According to Obure, MoH had reached out to Ethiopian authorities who were investigating the matter.

The CAS nonetheless distanced himself and his ministry from the scandal which saw President Uhuru Kenyatta issue two directives to investigating agencies and Health CS Mutahi Kagwe.

Earlier reports alleged that the Jack Ma donations were stolen and sold to MoH at inflated prices. 

President Kenyatta ordered the Directorate of Criminal Investigation and the Ethics and Anti Corruption Commission to table a report on the KEMSA scandal in 30 days. Kagwe was also given 21 days to table his report.

On Wednesday, officials from the Ministry of Transport were hard-pressed to explain the ministry’s role in the clearing of Jack Ma Foundation donations that arrived in the country in March.

Obure, found it hard to convince the committee as he was accused of lacking facts regarding the clearing of the consignment.

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Top Transport ministry officials were on Wednesday September 2, 2020 sent away by National Assembly committee on health, saying the team was unprepared to respond to its questions.

The Sabina Chege-chaired committee said the Transport ministry officials who appeared before them were not adequately prepared.

The Transport ministry was represented by Health CAS Chris Obure during the afternoon session.

He appeared before the committee to explain the ministry’s role in the clearing of Jack Ma Foundation donations.

Obure had told the committee that all the donations were cleared exclusively by the government clearing agency.

“The document before us from the ministry is not well prepared. We need to compare what was donated, what was received and what actually ended up in the warehouse,” Chege said.

The Health committee probing the loss of Covid-19 funds demanded written submissions.

Cherangany MP Joshua Kutuny said the ministry is not prepared to face them in regards to the questions they have.

“…when we have people come here with half baked information, it causes tension,” he said.

“I will appeal that any institution invited here, if they are not prepared, they need to go back. I know you are experienced, you should not panic.”

Kutuny said the public should be fed with enough information on the investigations.

“I want to appeal to the government that they fine tune their communication,” he said.

Chege asked Obure to go and prepare himself and come back with facts.

“If we have this gaps you will keep Kenyans guessing. We will see you tomorrow at 9:30am on Thursday,” she said.

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Migori County Governor Okoth Obado has been released on a Ksh8.7 million cash bail or Ksh20 million bond in Ksh73.4 million graft case.

Chief Magistrate Lawrence Mugambi on Monday August 31, 2020 ordered that Obado be barred from accessing Migori County office until the case is concluded.

He directed that the governor be escorted to pick his belongings.

Obado was arrested alongside his four children on August 26 after surrendering to the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) offices in Kisii for questioning over the alleged embezzlement of public funds.

The accused denied all the counts of graft at the Migori county government on Friday when they were arraigned.

In today’s bail ruling, Obado and his children were ordered to deposit their passports in court.

While approving the arrest and prosecution of the suspects last week, the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Noordin Haji said the county chief irregularly received the money through his children from companies trading with the county.

This, according to Haji, happened between 2013/14 and 2016/17 financial years.

Investigations also showed that the companies belonged to persons closely related to Obado.

The companies are; Misoft Company Limited, Tarchdog Printers, Deltrack ICT services, Seletrack Consultants, Mactebac Contractors, Joyush Business, Swyfcon Engineering, Atinus Services, Kajulu business, Victorious Investment, Dolphins Softwares, Dankey Press and Pesulus Services.

The business proprietors are his three brothers: Jared Peter Kwaga, Patroba Ochanda and Joram Opala. The others were his mother, Penina Auma Otago and his sisters-in-law Christine Akinyi and Carolyne Onyango.

An audit trail showed that Ksh38.9 million was wired to his three children; Dan Okoth, Jerry Okoth, and Susan Okoth.

This money was used to pay for their school fees and daily upkeep. Some was also used to purchase two Toyota Land Cruiser V8.

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Sirisia MP John Waluke

Drama ensued on Thursday August 13, 2020 after two lawyers representing Sirisia MP John Waluke clashed in Court during his bail hearing.

This forced the judge to adjourn Waluke’s bail hearing to Monday August 17, after the lawyers clashed in court over who was better placed to represent the jailed lawmaker.

Waluke, who was sentenced to 67 years in jail over Ksh 300 million maize scandal, followed the cases virtually from Industrial Area Prison.

His lawyers, Elijah Ongoya and Evans Ondieki, differed on who the MP had directed to argue the bail hearing in court.

“I was appointed by Waluke himself. That is why I have put a short supplementary submission through more documents to Director of Public Prosecutions Noordin Haji,” Ondieki stated while appearing before Justice John Onyiego.

On the other hand, Ongoya argued that he was not aware of the new documents tabled before DPP, adding that Waluke directed him to argue the MP’s case too.

Ongoya asked the court to disregard the new documents furnished by lawyer Ondieki. The attorney added that Waluke was in a position that did not call for more frustrations of the case.

“I am embarrassed at the development because I had strict instructions to represent Waluke. He is keen to have the court hear and determine the application,” Ongoya stated.

Ondieki’s efforts to represent Waluke backfired after the court was informed that Waluke was to be represented by Ongoya and another attorney, Sam Nyaberi. 

The judge did not listen to either party and threw them out of court to sort their confusion.

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Boya police station OCS and four other junior police officers have been arrested for stealing alcohol in Kisumu.

The five are being held at Kisumu Central police station on allegations of looting alcohol from a vehicle that had been involved in an accident.

Nyando police boss Leonard Matete who led the operation confirmed that they got complaints from the crew of the ill-fated vehicle that police officers had looted the alcohol the vehicle was ferrying.

Matete says he responded and after a search in the OCS house at the Boya police station they recovered 72 bottles of white pearl vodka.

He says the OCS  William Cheruiyot, other junior officers including corporal Jane Chepkemei, police constables Bernard Macharia, Samuel Maina and Rodrick Laushuset are all being held by the DCI officers in Kisumu.

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Detectives from Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) based in Kilimani have arrested a Nairobi man that has been trading in counterfeit medicines.

The sleuths who were accompanied by Pharmacy and Poisons board officers, and acting on a tip off from members of the public on Friday evening nabbed a 47 year old man namely Peter Cummings Thatia, a trader in counterfeit medicine within Hurlingham in Nairobi County.

Counterfeit ViagraPro capsules, two polythene bags containing a white powdery substance, a capsule filler machine, advertising fliers together with Motor Vehicle Registration number KCK 442A, a Nissan Note that the suspect was driving were recovered and retained as exhibits.

Mr Thatia is in custody awaiting arraignment for the offence of unlawfully manufacturing and selling in the course of trade in counterfeit medicines contrary to The Anti-Counterfeit Act No. 13 of 2008.

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One person has been killed, with another one left injured after they were suspected to have attacked two police officers in Lamu County.

According to an update posted by Citizen TV on Friday August 7, 2020, the police officers are said to have been attacked at Pate Island in Lamu East.

The Lamu County Commissioner said that one of the attacked police officers is currently nursing injuries.

This is however not the first time police officers are being attacked in the Coastal region County.

Just last month, a police officer was hacked to death at night by a gang of panga-wielding thugs in Tchundwa village in Lamu.

Constable Rodgers Odhiambo, who was attached to the Tchundwa police post in Lamu East, was accosted as he walked out of a shop in the village at around 8.30pm.

The attack was not however, the first one.

In October last year, a similar incident was witnessed in the area.

The incident was confirmed by Lamu county commissioner Irungu Macharia, who said the officer suffered cut wounds to his forehead, neck and limbs.

The officer who was in civilian clothes and unarmed as he was not on duty at the time is believed to have bled to death.

Hesborn Okemwa, who was attached to the same post, was lured to his death by an unknown gang on October 2, 2019.

His badly mutilated body was recovered several meters inside a mangrove forest in Kizingitini on October 5.

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Former Kiambu County governor Ferdinand Waititu is yet again on the spotlight for allegedly grabbing one of the streets in Nairobi CBD.

Waititu is alleged to have grabbed an area along Titar Lane that joins Tubman road and Biashara street.

Controversial blogger Robert Alai on Thursday August 6, 2020 shared the photos of the allegedly grabbed area, calling on the Nairobi Metropolitan Service (NMS) to intervene.

Alai further revealed how Waititu has constructed a concrete staircase and put up a gate to block the public from using the lane.

Alai also alleged that Waititu has grabbed the area to serve his newly opened Salehe hotel.

“Former governor Waititu has apparently grabbed this area. This is Titar Lane that joins Tubman rd and Biashara st. He has constructed a concrete staircase and put up a gate to serve his newly opened Salehe hotel. Therefore blocking it to public use,” Alai posted.

This is not however, the first time Waititu is finding himself in such scandals.

In 2019, the former County boss was accused of using his office position to take land away from a widow.

Investigations revealed that a prime property belonging to Ms Cecilia Mbugua was fraudulently transferred to Ms Esther Nyatu through the office of the governor and the Waititu himself.

Commission on Administrative Justice (CAJ) Chairperson Florence Kajuju handed over title deeds back to Ms Mbugua following an admission by Waititu of his role in taking away the land worth Sh100 million.

The commission’s investigations revealed that two properties – Thika Municipality/BlockXI/877 and Thika Municipality/BlockXI/878 – belonging to Ms Mbugua, were transferred to Ms Nyatu, in a process facilitated by Waititu.

The investigation followed a complaint filed with the commission on March 5, 2019.

Kiambu County land officials revealed that Mr Waititu facilitated the transfer and provided all the required documents.

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Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) detectives based in Nakuru have arrested a notorious robbery with violence suspect namely.

The 52 year-old James Maina Njuguna has been nabbed from his hideout in Eastmore area and is believed to be the Mastermind behind a series of robberies that have been reported in the area.

Identity (ID) cards bearing different names, two driving licences, a Civilian Firearm Certificate bearing another person’s name, assorted electronic gadgets among other items that were recovered from his hideout have been retained as exhibits pending his arraignment.

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Kimilili MP Didmus Barasa has again been caught in another criminal puzzle. Last week, the MP moved to court trying to stop arrest over a sale of a matatu to a one Irungu Mwangi.

In court papers filed through Khaminwa and company advocates, the MP prays that the court admits Barasa to reasonable bail terms pending the investigations and arrest by officers under inspector general.

According to sources, Barasa in 2016 sold a matatu plying on Nairobi -Kitengela route to Irungu. By then, the MP was out to get money to help his campaign for Kimilili seat then held by Suleiman Murunga.

Then, Barasa had taken a loan from Rafiki Micro Finance Ltd and the vehicle sale value was Sh700,000.

It is said, Barasa did not disclose dealings with Rafiki as the matatu was the security in the procurement of the loan. Barasa was to clear Sh187,000 balance to Rafiki Ltd in the deal according to documents.

Irungu who bought the vehicle via an agent was to pay Sh200,000 to the microfinance and have Sh500,000 paid to his account to release the logbook. By then, the MP had three matatus operating on the Kitengela route.

Last year Barasa faced a bankruptcy suit after failing to pay Sh4.2 million owed to a car dealer. Smart Cars Limited and Car city Limited claimed the MP failed to pay the outstanding balance for a personal Toyota Land Cruiser purchased in 2017.

The car cost was Sh11.7 million. The MP was also to be caught in a circus over the purchase of sofa sets for his house.

He failed to honour payments after paying a deposit. Family members say the MP is a poor debt payer, and before being elected, rent arrears had accumulated to hundreds of thousands

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Sirisia MP John Waluke

Convicted Sirisia MP John Waluke has been released on bond.

The High Court on Wednesday July 22, 2020 released the lawmaker on bond pending his bail application hearing on August 7.  

While issuing the directive Justice John Onyiego asked the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Noordin Haji to file a response and gave each party three days to avail and exchange documents before the hearing date.

However, the judge declined to release his co-accused Grace Wakhungu on medical grounds, pending the hearing of her bail application.

Justice Onyiego directed that she presents her case on August 7 during the hearing of the bail application.

 In the petition, Waluke, through his lawyers Cliff Ombeta, Evans Ondieki, Danstan Omari and Sam Nyaberi argued that the trial magistrate, Elizabeth Juma erred in law and fact by convicting him on the basis of a defective charge sheet.

The defence lawyers argued that the trial court misdirected itself as to the applicable law based on the set of facts adduced by the Prosecution to the prejudice of the MP and his co-accused.

They said that the Subordinate Court failed to appreciate that critical witnesses were never called to testify in the case.

They accused the trial court of failing to exercise independence and impartiality because the prosecution’s case was full of contradictions and inconsistencies.

He said that the Subordinate Court applied double standards since the money to pay the supplier was not sufficient and two other firms failed to service the contract. 

The  defence lawyers also said that the court failed to appreciate that there were material contradictions and inconsistencies between the witnesses that ought to have been resolved in favour of the appellants.

Waluke and co-accused Grace Wakhungu were fined Sh2.1 billion fine for defrauding the National Cereals and Produce Board of Sh313 million.  

Wakhungu was sentenced to 69 years in jail with an option of Sh1.1 billion fine alongside her co-director Waluke, who was jailed for 67 years or a fine of Sh1 billion

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Nairobi County senator Johnson Sakaja has this morning presented himself at Kilimani Police station.

Sakaja went to the police station accompanied by Makueni senator Mutula Kilonzo jnr (in official governemnt vehicle) and Lawyer John Khaminwa.

Sakaja had been arrested on Saturday morning at a club in Kilimani, Nairobi for flouting Covid-19 safety guidelines.

Police found him at Ladies Lounge along Dennis Prit road while drinking in the company of 10. He was later released on a free bond and was to go back to the station and record his statement before being arraigned today (Monday July 20, 2020).

Police had started looking for him after he failed to record the statement. He had been given up to Sunday evening, but he did not show up.

He had allegedly switched off his phone and went into hiding.

According to Nairobi police boss Philip Ndolo, following his release on Saturday, Sakaja had promised to present himself to the police.

“He has not recorded the statement. I am sure he will be recording anytime. We don’t know his whereabouts. He said he would present himself to the police. We hope he will keep his word,” Ndolo was quoted by a local daily.

was arrested with three others and according to a police report, he became unruly after being ordered to leave the nightclub. He incited the others into staying put.

The officer on patrol called Regional Orderly officer Mr Asambasa who approached the senator in vain.

Mr Asambasa too called Deputy OCPD Kilimani Adan Hassan who arrived with a team.

It is then that he became violent and put his hands up to be handcuffed.

After being taken into custody, Sakaja is said to have threatened to have the officers at the station transferred within 24 hours.

He also declined to be released on free bond. After reports of his arrest went viral, he took to social media to deny, saying that he had not been arrested, and will never be arrested.

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Sonko Rescue Team has yet again retrieved three infant bodies from Nairobi River.

Taking to his official twitter account on Sunday July 19, 2020, Nairobi governor Mike Sonko revealed that the team had retrieved the bodies near Kogocho slums.

Sonko said that triplets might just have been killed by their mother, and thrown into the Nairobi River.

Sonko while condemning the incident said that he keeps on feeling sad whenever he sees such incidents all the time.

Sonko noted that there are women outside there struggling to have a child, while someone who has been blessed is going ahead to kill them.

“TRIPLETS KILLED: Just a few minutes ago, our team yet again retrieved 3 infant bodies from Nairobi River, Korogocho slums. I keep on feeling so sad seeing this all the time, bearing in mind some women are still struggling to have kids just to be called mums,” Sonko tweeted.

This is not the first time infant bodies are being retrieved from Nairobi River.

In June this year, bodies of two infants have been retrieved from Nairobi River in Korogocho. Members of Komb Green Solutions found the bodies as they cleaned the river

This brought to 21 the number of bodies retrieved from the river in the informal settlement since the launch of the Nairobi River Restoration Project early last year.

At the time, the tally stood at 16 infants and five adults.

In September last year, Sonko called for a 24-hour surveillance of the river to stop the dumping of bodies.

Residents were also asked to be on the lookout and report the culprits to the authorities.

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A Kenya Air Force aircraft has crashed at Kanyonga in Masinga, Machakos County.

In a video that has been shared by former State House employee Dennis Itumbi on his official twitter handle, casualties are said to have been reported by eyewitnesses.

Reports however, indicate that two military officers have died in the crash.

The video shows people, among them law enforcement officers crowded around the crashed aircraft.

Information on where the craft was heading is also still unclear. The cause of the crash is also not known until now, but investigations have already been launched.

This comes just a month after another police chopper crashed in Meru County, leaving at least six people injured.

Police Spokesman Charles Owino said the chopper was carrying security personnel from Eastern, who were heading to Sololo in Marsabit for a security meeting.

The chopper crashed-landed on a banana plantation narrowly missing two houses.

Locals helped remove the passengers from the chopper.The injured passengers were rushed to Meru Teaching and Referral Hospital.

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Stolen shoes manufactured by Bata Company worth Ksh1.5 million have been found at a rented single room in Nairobi’s Kayole area.

According to a local daily, the shoes were on Friday night (July 3) recovered from a house in Obama Estate.

Police say the shoes were acquired using faulty vouchers from different Bata outlets in Nairobi by a suspected fraudster identified as Peter Matheka.

Kayole OCPD Isaac Thuranira told the local daily that Matheka is a former employee of Bata, and the police boss suspects he (Matheka) conspired with current workers at the different Bata shops to exercise the theft.

Matheka, Thuranira said, rented a single-room house in Obama area two weeks ago.

Neighbours said they recently saw a lorry filled with cartons containing shoes being offloaded and the shoes stashed in Matheka’s house.

It is suspected Matheka and co. were planning to sell the shoes when schools reopen.

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Court has ordered for the interrogation of President Uhuru Kenyatta and ODM leader Raila Odinga over a leaked CCTV footage showing the two touring Nairobi CBD at night.

The Milimani Principal Magistrate Zainab Abdul on Thursday July 2 ordered an investigating officer assigned the case lodged against two Sarova Stanley contractees to record statements from President Kenyatta and Raila, whose videos were allegedly shared by the accused, consequently breaching the Cyber Crimes law.

The footage was obtained from June 2, 2020 CCTV recordings captured by Sarova Stanley surveillance cameras, which showed President Kenyatta and Raila inspecting a deserted Kenyatta Avenue at 8:20pm.

Patrick Rading Ambogo, a security supervisor, and Janet Magoma Ayonga, a CCTV controller contracted by Sarova Stanley, were on June 17 charged with unauthorised interception of computer data under Section 17 (1) of the Computer Misuse and Cyber Crimes Act.

Ambogo and Ayonga, who are currently out on Ksh10, 000 bail each, are being represented by lawyers Danstan Omari and Apollo Moboya, who requested the court to order the investigating officer, David Tenei, to interrogate and record statements from President Kenyatta and Mr Odinga as their statements would be crucial to the case.

Milimani Principal Magistrate Zainab Abdul allowed Omari’s request, and directed Chief Inspector Tenei to obtain statements from President Kenyatta and Raila, and submit to the courts in one week’s time the pair’s recorded account of events.

“We had requested the prosecution to furnish us with statements filed by President Kenyatta and Mr Odinga, who are alleged to have been caught on tape touring the CBD at night, but the prosecution is yet to heed our request,” said Omari, who also asked the prosecution to supply the defense with an original footage of the June 2, 2020 CCTV recording.

Magistrate Abdul, who described the case as “interesting”, ordered the parties to appear before her on July 9, 2020.

The suspects were employed by Fidelity Guards and Robinson Security who are New Stanley Hotel’s property security guards and CCTV operators respectively.

The two were accused of “jointly intentionally and without authorisation intercepted a security CCTV footage capturing the Head of State’s entourage along Kenyatta Avenue.”

The charge, on conviction, carries a fine of Ksh10 million or a jail term of not more than five years or both.

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