KENYA-SOMALI CONSORTIUM.....News, Politics & Updates

ABDIKADIR MAY TAKE THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY SPEAKER SEAT

2013-03-20T11:01:00.001+03:00

The battle for National Assembly Speaker has narrowed down to a two-horse race between incumbent Kenneth Marende and former Mandera Central MP Abdikadir Mohammed.

This follows Justice Minister Eugene Wamalwa’s announcement that he was not interested in the seat.

Mr Marende has declared he would be defending his seat under the CORD Coalition led by Prime Minister Raila Odinga and Kalonzo Musyoka, while Abdikadir is set to receive blessings from the Jubilee Coalition.

Mr Abdikadir is also enjoying support of an equally sizeable number of MPs from the CORD, following his neutral stand in spearheading the implementation of the new Constitution.

The soft-spoken former Mandera Central MP was the chairman of the Justice and legal Affairs committee as well as the Constitutional Implementation Committee after the promulgation of the Constitution and fought to have it implemented until the time parliament was dissolved.

He was also instrumental in judicial reforms as his committee vetted the now Chief Justice Willy Mutunga and former deputy Nancy Baraza before they were approved by Parliament.

Marende, on the other hand, has steered the House through turbulent times having taken over from long serving Speaker Francis ole Kaparo in 2008 and oversaw the legislation process that operationalised the new Constitution.

And the race for various seats in the two Houses has intensified with Alliance Party of Kenya leader Kiraitu Murungi touted for the seat of Majority Leader in the Senate. Mr Kaparo is being fronted to take over as first Speaker of the Senate under a Jubilee Coalition arrangement.

Sources within the Uhuru-Ruto led coalition said Kiraitu had been settled upon for the seat following the inability of Narc leader and Water minister Charity Ngilu to win the Kitui County Senate seat that would have placed her in the strategic position.

Ngilu’s Narc also managed one seat as opposed to the requirement of two and above which would have enabled the party to get a nomination slot.

The sources also said Environment minister Chirau Ali Mwakwere, another key ally of Uhuru and Ruto, who was trounced in the Kwale Senatorial race, is being touted for National Assembly Majority Leader’s seat.

MANDERA WITH A 1.2 BILLION BUDGET EVERY YEAR...TIME FOR SERIOUS TRANSPARENCY

2013-03-07T11:55:00.002+03:00

Summary:
Mandera, with an increment of Sh1.2 billion, is the second biggest beneficiary should the new formula be implemented.

The Commission on Revenue Allocation (CRA), chaired by Mr. Micah Cheserem, launched marginalization Policy on 27th, February, 2013 at Stanley Hotel, Nairobi.

The Commission on Revenue Allocation was established under Article 215 of the Constitution of Kenya 2010 with the main mandate of recommending the basis for equitable sharing of revenues raised nationally between the national and the county governments, and sharing of revenues among the county governments.

Populous counties will receive the most money when revenue is shared between national and county Governments with Nairobi, Kakamega and Bungoma receiving over Sh7billion each to top the list, the Commission on Revenue Allocation revealed.

Using the latest audited figures of Sh610 billion in government revenues collected last year, the CRA proposes distributing Sh200 billion to the counties leaving the national government with Sh410 billion for central government operations.

Mandera County, tops with an increment of Sh1.2 billion, making it the second biggest beneficiary in the country.

2013 ELECTIONS: GARISSA, WAJIR AND MANDERA COUNTIES

2013-03-06T20:57:00.000+03:00

MP, Lafey Constituency, Mandera County

Brief Profile.
Hon. Shaaban Ali Issack was born in Arabia, Mandera East. Has been elected as the new MP for Lafey Constituency in Mandera County. Has been an assistant Minister of Local Government, Incharge of Urban authorities, in the Republic of Kenya in the 2002-2007 Government.

Governor - Garissa County

Brief Profile.
MR. Nathif Jama Adan is now The Senator elect of Garissa County. He was the immediate Managing Director of the Kenya's First Community Bank Limited (FCB). He first joined the banking industry in 1980 at Kenya Commercial Bank.

Senator, Garissa County

Brief Profile.
Mzee Yusuf Haji is a well known politician and an administrator. He is the Kenya's Minister of State for Defence. Haji has also been acting as the Minister for Provincial Administration and Internal Security briefly during the last Kibaki administration.

Hon. Mohamed Yusuf Haji, E.G.H., M.P., the Minister of State for Defence was born in Garissa Distarict in North Eastern province on 23 December 1940. He is the current Ijara Constituency member of Parliament on KANU party ticket. After completing the East Africa Certificate of Education (EACE), he joined the Provincial Administration as a District Officer and rose to the position of Provincial Commissioner between 1970 – 1997. He first joined Parliament as a nominated Member in 1998 and was later elected Member of Parliament in 2002 on a KANU ticket.

He served as an Assistant Minister in the Office of the President from 1998-2001 and as the Minister of State (Cabinet Affairs) Office of the President in the year 2002. He was appointed the Minister of State for Defence on 8 th January 2008 after 27 th December 2007 general elections.

During his term as a Member of parliament he has served in the following parliamentary Committees:

1998 -Chairperson Departmental Committee on Defence and Foreign Relations

Select Committee on the Review of constitution of Kenya and

Constituency Development fund Committee.

The Honorable Minister is married. He has a Diploma from University of Birmingham , UK on management and Finance Control. His professional career includes Administration and management. The Honorable Minister is Muslim. His hobbies include walking, golf, swimming, sport hunting and welfare activities

MP, Eldas, Wajir County

Brief Profile.
Hon. Adan Keynan was born on 10th October, 1968. He graduated with a Bachelor of Education and later with Master of Arts ( Public Administration) from Moi University. He holds a Diploma in Insurance and Organizational Management. He is currently pursuing his PhD in Political Science and Public Administration. Hon. Keynan is the Vice-Chairman of the Parliamentary Service Commission of Kenya. He is the Chairman, Defence and Foreign Relations Committee of Kenya National Assembly. He is also a member of Energy, Communication and Information Committee - Kenya National Assembly.

He was a Director of National Housing Corporation . Hon. Keynan was first elected in 1997 and has served in several committees like Finance, Planning and Trade and Administration, National Security and Local Government among others.

Hon. Keynan is a recipient of Spirit of Detroit Award in Michigan State, USA, (1999) in recognition of exceptional achievement, outstanding leadership and dedication to improving the quality of life. He is also a recipient of an award in the Role of Legislatures in Economic Governance, Washington DC, USA, (1999). Hon Keynan is currently the Chairman of Kenya - Turkish Parliamentary Friendship Group.

KENYA CAMPAIGN RALLIES: ELECTIONS 2013

2013-03-03T17:10:00.003+03:00

DAYNILLE SONGA 2012 OFFICAL VIDEO

2013-03-03T16:05:00.001+03:00

2013-02-10T15:35:00.000+03:00

These kind of animosities is hatred perse. It is hidden and comes out from time to time. Without being addressed, it may boil over and people will start hacking each other.

PICTURE SPEAK : KENYA SOMALIS

2013-02-10T15:20:00.000+03:00

PICTURE SPEAK

2013-02-10T15:11:00.001+03:00

FIRST KENYAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE FROM NORTHERN KENYA: MOHAMED ABDUBA DIDA

2013-02-09T12:52:00.000+03:00

Here is a Brief Profile of KENYA PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE Mohammed Abduba Dida......

"THE HON. PRESIDENT FROM THE NORTHERN KENYA WAS BORN TO SERVE KENYA & THE PEOPLE OF NORTHERN KENYA".....

Mohamud Abduba Dida was born in Wajir Town of Wajir District in 1975 to a Borana Father and Somali Mother. He went to Laheley Primary school before proceeding to Sabunley Secondary school. He went to Kigumo Teachers college for a Diploma certificate. He has a Degree in Education from Kenyatta University and Masters Degree in Philosophy and Religious Education from University of Nairobi.

He has has taught at Sabunley Secondary School, Wajir High school, Wajir Girls Secondary School, Dadaab Secondary School, Lenana school and Nairobi school. He resigned from teaching in 2009 to venture into business. He founded Sunrise Services limited that deals with livestock marketing and tours and travel and he is also the founder of Muslim Scout Fellowship.

Lastly.......he is happily married to 3 wives and they are blessed with 11 children...

For Mohamed Abduba Dida, the fact that he was cleared to contest the presidency represents the clearest sign that things are looking up for Kenya.

“I went straight home, looked at my five-year-old son and told him; ‘little man there is hope’.”

Indeed he is coming to terms with what he could never have imagined; the man has a police bodyguard. Mr Dida, the little-known teacher who will fly the presidential flag of Alliance for Real Change (ARK), says he has finally realised his dream of getting a platform to deliver his vision for humanity. He says he is a candidate for the poor and an agent of human morality and change, having struggled through life from his Wajir home to Mukuru Kwa Njenga slum where his father, a retired junior policeman, lived.

“I have seen tough life until I got tired. Everyday things would get tougher until I gave myself two options – either flee the country or remain and become an agent of change. I chose the latter,” said 39-year-old Dida.

Mr Dida spoke to the Sunday Nation from his one-roomed party headquarters in the central business district on Friday. He was in the company of his running mate, 29-year-old Joshua Odongo Onono, also a former teacher in Kericho. And guarding him is police constable Hashim Mohamed Elmoge. Mr Elmoge would be joined later by four other policemen when Mr Dida makes a request. He says that, as a presidential candidate, he is entitled to state security but for now he is okay with Mr Elmoge, a friend and former school mate.

Interestingly, Mr Elmoge is the big-hearted policeman who donated his month’s salary towards a campaign to help starving residents of Turkana in 2011. He was moved by the story of a child suckling her dead mother. Mr Dida, who taught English Literature and Religion at Daadab Secondary School at the refugee camp and at Lenana School, says he was forced out of the classroom by what he termed “frustrations and dictatorship by management for standing for truth and justice”.

“In Kenya if you are sincere and straight forward you will suffer. If you are a thief and dishonest, you will go far,” says Dida.

He says that after quitting teaching, he registered a job placement agency which did not work due to what he says were frustrations and corruption in government departments.

“I have seen it all and, as a teacher, I think I am an agent of change who has been pushed to seek the presidency to try and uproot toxic leadership that has brought suffering to Kenyans. It is my moral responsibility,” he says.

The ARK candidate says he plans a 15-day intense campaign which will see him and his agents cover three counties a day.

“Our advance team will identify target groups such as the elderly, disabled, and youth. After they have held meetings with them, I will fly in to address them,” he says.

Although he says he has visited almost all counties and identified possible leaders, his party will however be fielding only nine county representatives and one MP aspirant.

Campaign financing

About his campaign financing, Dida says he relies on well-wishers, volunteers and prayers.

“Kenyans can sacrifice anything for good leadership,” he says, adding that social media platforms such as Facebook make it easy for him.

He says he head-hunted his running mate during a visit to the county of Kisumu. Consequently, Mr Onono quit his job in a Tanzanian NGO. Mr Dida says that even if he lost the race, he would stand tall because he would have achieved his dream of sensitising Kenyans on the need to pick proper leaders.

“I will comfortably go back to the University of Nairobi where I am currently pursuing a masters degree in religious studies,” he says.

Frustrations of former teacher

Mohamed Abduba Dida taught English Literature and Religion at Daadab Secondary School at the refugee camp and later at Lenana School. He resigned and started a job placement agency which did not work due to what he says were frustrations and corruption in government departments.

SOMALI ETHNIC GROUP "ASSAULT" IN KENYA

2013-01-21T18:57:00.001+03:00

Why are Somalis the only refugees.No one talks to Masaai who live in Kenya and Tanzania, Luos who live in Kenya and Uganda....Why the Somalis who also live in Kenya and Somalia. If there is a problem with Insecurity and the Kenya Government is unable to do anything, Why stress the Somalis...If need be...Call for a Referendum and ask the Somalis if they need to move out of Kenya as they are residing in their Homeland. North Eastern and the Former NFD is inhabited by Somalis

2012-12-04T16:06:00.000+03:00

KENYA is reborn once again.....after 1963....The Country will NEVER be the same again. For TNA/URP...The Game is over...Ujanja imeisha

NEP: ISSUES THAT KENYA NEEDS TO SOLVE FOR LONG TERM INTEGRATION

2012-11-29T18:16:00.000+03:00

For a period close to a century, Kenya’s North Eastern and Eastern Provinces hereafter referred to as NEP and EP remained volatile, underdeveloped, and deliberately isolated by successive Kenya administrations. For years, residents of these two vast, sparsely populated regions inhabited by Hamito-Cushitic nomads have been subjected to years of extrajudicial killings, summary and arbitrary executions, torture, rape and violence against women, plunder and livestock confiscations by Kenya’s dreaded security operatives with instructions from the central headquarters in Nairobi. Yet, these calculated and disturbing ethnic cleansings failed to grab the attention of the international community despite a few concerned media outlets publicizing repeatedly for years the callous practices of the Kenya government.

Kenya-Somalis and their cousins of like-semblance have been living under the reign of terror since Kenya’s attainment of independence from Britain in 1963 and yet not a single universal sovereign entity dared come to their rescue or raised objections at these appalling and aggravating military adventures. Kenya’s inhuman and reprehensible acts against its innocent, peace loving citizens continued unabated even with the knowledge of the Organization of African Union, (currently the African Union) based in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia - Kenya’s next door neighbor. “The brutality of the implementation of emergency powers in the North Eastern Province; and the discriminatory "screening" of ethnic Somalis” has been documented by Amnesty International.

The crux of past massacres in the region has colonial roots. NEP and EP were formerly Somali territories as they fell under the Northern Frontier District (NFD) during British colonial rule. The region was split into two after Kenya became independent with Moyale, Marsabit, and Isiolo becoming part of Eastern Province. Despite majority of NFD residents opting for unification with Somalia in a referendum, the colonial administration ruled in favor of Kenya. British colonial government’s refusal to grant self-determination to NFD resulted from its fear of neighboring Italian Somaliland. Italy, a colonial power with irredentist tendencies was an avowed enemy of the British realm. This political miscalculation by the British crown resulted in prolonged simmering border clashes and the birth of the destructive Shifta war. The devastating Bale Revolt of 1963 in Ethiopia culminated in the signing of a Mutual Defense Treaty between Jomo Kenyatta of Kenya and Haile Selassie of Ethiopia in 1964. Regarding Somali irredentism, Lord Earl Lytton of the British monarchy of the time, had this to say about Greater Somalia:

“The idea of a Greater Somalia has been put forward by four eminent people at various times. First, there was Sir Charles Elliot, one of our greatest administrators in Kenya, about 1904. Then there was Mohammed Abdille Hassan, commonly known as "The Mad Mullah", between 1899 and 1920. He is one of the greatest of the Somali poets. Then, the idea has been put forward by the Emperor of Ethiopia on a number of occasions, always with the intention of incorporating the entire Horn of Africa within the Ethiopian Empire. Finally, there was Mr. Ernest Bevin in 1946, and what he said is on record in Hansard.”

Though preceded by many human rights violations spanning many decades, the worst and most brutal skirmishes perpetrated by the military and police of post-independence Kenya in the region’s history occurred during the reigns of autocrats Mzee Jomo Kenyatta (1963-1978) and Daniel Toroitich Arap Moi (1978-2002) respectively. Moi who belongs to the Kalenjin tribe and Nilotic according to categorization of African tribes by colonial Anthropologists was vice-president at the time of Kenyatta’s death. Despite opposition from influential Kikuyu leaders generally known as ‘Kiambu Mafia’ and who were of the same tribe with the deceased president, Moi ascended the presidency immediately with little internal resistance.

Forty-eight years later, President Mwai Kibaki, a man who was vice-president and minister on various occasions when these atrocities occurred, endorsed the formation of a Truth, Justice, and Reconciliation Commission to divulge into the extent of enormities of past acts of violence committed against the people of the said region. Surviving families whose loved ones perished in the calculated, remorseless security skirmishes continue to pour into avenues reserved for a commission on a fact-finding mission. At first, Kenya-Somalis became skeptical of the make-up of the commission after realizing the presence of Bethuel Kiplagat who is perceived to have blood-stained hands and implicated in the masterminding of past massacres.

The commission, drawn from cadres having differing professions even includes a high profile Somali,Major General Ahmed Sheikh Farah, a retired Kenya Navy Commander. They have so far traversed the province beginning their initial assignment in Garissa, a city that has suffered the brunt of Kenya’s premeditated repression. They have been listening to and documenting testimonies from various sectors of the Somali community.

NFD as a region predates Kenya’s colonial history. However, demarcation of the international boundary between colonial Kenya and Abyssinia (Ethiopia) was completed in 1903. In 1925-1926, after Jubaland was transferred to Italian Somaliland, border marking was finalized between colonial Kenya and Italy.

With living conditions dictated by weather patterns, pastoral nomads from NFD and elsewhere in the Horn of Africa travelled between unsecured borders in search of pasture for their livestock. Apart from the search for greener pasture, it is these unrestricted travels and peripatetic lifestyles that rejuvenated the ungovernable male Bedouins’ search for brides and bridal paraphernalia, saints and saintly practices, war implements and other valuable provisions.

The region’s fight for separation from Kenya kicked-off before Kenya proclaimed independence. Freedom fighters and founders of the Northern Province People’s Progressive Party (NPPP), the main party that represented the region’s political aspirations, hailed from a variety of tribes. Among them was Alex Kholkholle, a man who was held in high esteem by the colonial administration and the Somalis themselves. A Rendille by tribe and teacher by training, Alex, who was the Vice-President of NPPP favored separation from Kenya and unconditional union with Somalia. The Borana (also referred to as Galla), a tribal group that populates Moyale and Marsabit towns respectively, fielded the indomitable Wako Hapi, doyen of separatism and armed struggle. While Kenya security forces restrained the Shifta uprising from spilling into its border, Ethiopia, on the other hand, had a stranglehold on natives spanning its border. To have a glimpse of Ethiopia’s past imperialist goals toward its own people, one needs to read the views of the honorable British Lord uttered in 1963 in the following lines:

“Ethiopia, within to-day's political boundaries, is, in a small part, the ancient Abyssinian Kingdoms of history, and, in a much larger part, the colonies conquered by the Emperor Melinek II, who was more or less a contemporary of Gladstone. The colonies are approximately the same age as our own. They are Somali and Galla. The only difference is that whereas we label our places as "colonies", the Ethiopians have described them as one Ethiopian people, and from time to time they say they are historically part of Ethiopia. That is not true.”

President Mwai Kibaki selected Bethuel Kiplagat to head the commission in 2009. However, Kiplagat was forced to resign in November 2010 after Kenyan’s of all walks of life decried his past inhuman practices. In a letter to Justice Minister Mutula Kilonzo, the nine commissioners of the TJ&RC, citing powers conferred on them by the Truth, Justice, and Reconciliation Act, asked for the removal of Kiplagat as chairman of the commission. He was subsequently replaced by Tecla Namachanja as acting chairperson. Factors that led to Kiplagat’s expulsion from the commission include illegal or irregular acquisition of land; the assassination of the Honorable Robert Ouko, and the Wagalla Massacre." Because he was ruined by the same injustices he was supposed to investigate, Kiplagat issued a short statement that read in part: "In order to allow the tribunal to carry out its mandate, I am, therefore, as of today, stepping aside from my day to day responsibilities at the TJRC."

Kiplagat, a born-again Christian and former deputy general secretary of the National Council of Churches of Kenya, is accused of having been party to atrocities in Isiolo, Wajir, Malka Mari, and Garissa when he was in charge of security operations. The Wagalla massacre of 1984 happened during his tenure of office. Ironically, Kiplagat was Kenya's envoy to Somalia during Somalia's turbulent years (2003-05) until he was relieved by Ambassador Mohamed Affey, a Kenyan-Somali parliamentarian. I wonder how this man's heinous crimes escaped the attention of the Somali people all those years. Those critical of Moi’s autocratic rule implicate Kiplagat in the gruesome murder of Robert Ouko, Kenya’s Minister for Foreign Affairs, at the foot of Got Alila Hill near his country home in Nyanza Province bordering Lake Victoria. Likewise, his critics raise questions regarding his past relations with British business magnate Tiny Rowland and his Lornho conglomerate, and also his association with Mozambican rebels, Renamo.

Benson Kaaria, a man with no apology for past injustices in the region he commanded was the Provincial Commissioner (PC) for North Eastern Province during the Wagalla Massacre of 1984. All those officials who had a grip on the running of the province and who have been implicated in the horrible incidents meted on the poor, unarmed civilians of North Eastern and Eastern Provinces have distanced themselves from any wrongdoing. In the past, commissions after commissions evolved with government blessings. In the end, it was the commissioners who proudly walked to the banks with bursts of laughter without any sorts of resolutions to the issues investigated. I don’t see any sense in the existence of the Truth, Justice, and Reconciliation Commission currently in full swing.

Report Compiled By Brother Adan Makina
WardheerNews, Kansas City
E-Mail: Adan.makina@gmail.com

References

(1) Kenya: Taking Liberties, Yale University Press, 1991, p.269.

(2) Northern Frontier District of Kenya, HL Deb 03 April 1963 vol. 248 cc600-36, Retrieved June 15, 2011 from http://hansard.millbanksystems.com/lords/1963/apr/03/northern-frontier-district-of-kenya.

(3) Gufu Oba, Professor, Noragric, Department of International Environment and Development Studies, The Norwegian University of Life Sciences PO Box 5003, N-1432 Ås, Norway. Ethnic Conflicts on Ethiopia-Kenya Frontier: The Northern Frontier District of Kenya from 1903-1934, a draft Paper prepared for PRIO Seminar on NORKLIMA Project, Noragric.

(4) Presentation of Earl Lytton before the British Parliament on 03 April 1963. Further readings available from http://hansard.millbanksystems.com/lords/1963/apr/03/northern-frontier-district-of-kenya, Retrieved June 15, 2011.

(5) Kenya: Truth Team Wants Kiplagat Out, Retrieved June 15, 2011 from http://allafrica.com/stories/201004130975.html

(6) Ex-diplomat, church official, resigns as head of Kenya truth body by Fred Nzwili, Retrieved June 15, 2011 from http://www.christiancentury.org/article/2010-11/ex-diplomat-church-official-resigns-head-kenya-truth-body.

Bethuel Kiplagat: Former Chairman of Kenya's Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission, Retrieved June 15, 2011from http://www.africa-confidential.com/whos-who-profile/id/360/Bethuel-Kiplagat.

THESE ISSUES NEED TO BE SOLVED IMMEDIATELY...BY US & THE KENYA GOVERNMENT

2012-11-22T20:25:00.000+03:00

What was the mood of Kenya-Somalis at this time?

Helpless, subdued, marginalized, and brutalized and feel as if they were being ruled by powerful people who hated them.

ARE NEP SOMALIS IN A DIFFERENT COUNTRY?

2012-11-20T18:33:00.000+03:00

The government and the security structure must take pragmatic steps and provide a broad-based strategic plan to curb and avoid these momentum of violence from hitting a crescendo!"

"‎Kenya is becoming a battle ground that is seemingly giving terrorists the chance they have always wanted - to dismantle our peace and tranquility!! Schools are closed, hospitals are ten-fold their capacity with victims of gun shots, Garissa market is burning, all we hear is gun-fire from every corner .....

.Do we need to ask Somalia for their SDF (Somalia Defence Force) to help us. What happened to this great nation that was an embodiment of a growing democracy, stability and commercial hub for Africa? Let us engage the media to call out for peace, our military and police force should act measurable and responsibly and not shoot randomly and carelessly as we have seen in the last few days. I have not seen the security arm speak out publicly to condemn this inferno and mayhem that is engulfing nation.

Yes, it is only a few months to elections. Many Kenyans are still nursing the wounds we sustained from PEV 2007. We certainly do not wish for another- God Forbid. But with MRC in the recent months, Mandera interclan violence, Multiple explosions and killings in Garissa, the Baragoi police massacre and sustained sectarian face-off in Eastleigh, this nation must worry that these might be only signs heralding widespread election violence.

BIG STORY: MUSLIMS STANDS WITH PM RAILA 2013

2012-10-08T17:20:00.000+03:00

Videos related to the Story:

Raila at Wagalla

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bEvyDu8f_UY

Raila in Dadaab Refugee camp

Advocacy Work to help in Famine

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xfc-XMfk13s

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TD5Fi6ChVKI

Recent statistics show that Prime Minister Raila Odinga will take almost all counties in North and Upper Eastern Counties come the 2013 General Election. Because the people of North Eastern, Upper Eastern and Tana Delta are mainly Muslims, delegates from the region have not hidden their preferred candidate at the Naivasha ODM retreat meeting. They say they are overwhelmingly rallying behind Raila Odinga beacuse of an un-finished promise to address issues close to their heart.

Some of the delegates say they supported Raila for the same reason they voted against the proposed Constitution in 2010 referendum because Raila was at the forefront and a cornerstone in the Fight for the Kadhi Court during the Constitution. During the Referendum, The Court was almost removed from the Constitution and many Muslim MP's particularly Najib Balala was conspicously silent on the Kadhi Court. It was becoming increasingly clear that the highly emotive issue of the Kadhi's courts could have been the red herring in the country's quest to realize the new constitution. Barely a day after Prime Minister Raila Odinga declared his support for the retention of the courts in the constitution, a group of evangelical Christians have accused the Prime Minister who has voiced support for the Kadhi courts of allegedly campaigning for Muslim votes ahead of 2012.

The Christian leaders vowed to mobilize their followers to reject the draft constitution should the Kadhi courts be retained. The Anglican Church of Kenya, NCCK had joined the number of Christians groups calling for the removal of the provision for the Kadhi courts in the constitution. According to the church the inclusion of the courts would be tantamount to placing one religion above the rest. A three-judge bench had declared the inclusion of Kadhis courts in the current Constitution illegal and discriminatory. Justices Joseph Nyamu, Mathew Emukule and Roseline Wendo ruled that having the courts in the constitution amounted to elevating Islam over other religions. They also took issue with funding of Kadhis courts from public coffers. This was a deliberate attempts and it was Raila who stood with the Muslims at that critical time.

Thus, Delegates from upper part of Eastern and North Eastern Province (NEP) say they support Raila because he has these other credentials which others in the Presidential race lack. PM is seeking the muslim support as he builds up his presidential campaign for the next general elections. Raila while addressing a Muslim gathering in Mombasa sold his bid to Muslims citing that he spearheaded the inclusion of Kadhi courts to the new constitution as part of the said MOU between him and the Muslim voters.

1. Raila created The Ministry of Northern Kenya from his "half loaf of bread" akaweka msomali(in this context seen as a Muslim) as a minister. Then Finance Ministry ilikanyagia pesa za budget for the Ministry on the context that Northern Kenya sio important. It was important for Raila anyway.

2. Raila alipeana 3-4 assistant Ministers wakiwa either wasomali, waborana or kwa jumla waislamu. The Other "loaf" tumepata nini.

3. Raila was instrumental in opening the Ifo 2Camp during the Droughts and Famine Last year. He even cried on seeing people wakiwa hali mbaya in the Refugee camp. Atleast someone amijitolea kufika na kuona shida zako. Wengine walikuwa wakiangalia kwa Flat Screen Nairobi. He even helped advocacy work to help the Somali refugees and Turkana people in the North during the Famine

4. Raila's office even has a Somali PS, An Administration officer while the rest hata hawana msomali hata moja...That shows anawadhamini....atleast

6. During the Nominated MP's time, alipeeana 2, One for MP Sofia and MP Sheikh Dor wote wakiwa waislamu.

7. Wagalla Massacre, Indemnity act, Garissa Gubaay amesema lazima zote zi sotiwe and Much more.Prime Minister Raila Odinga has instructed the Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission to thoroughly investigate the infamous 1984 Wagalla Massacre on several occasions notably at the 27th anniversary of the massacre. He announced that he will convince President Mwai Kibaki to sign into law the Indemnity (Repeal) Bill, which was also passed by parliament, to facilitate the lifting of the blanket immunity security forces, including those behind the Wagalla Massacre, have been enjoying since 1972.

"We have hoped for years for change. I think we are on the right track," said a delegate from North Eastern Province after ODM’s presidential nomination at the just concluded NDC meeting in Naivasha last week.

Often, the PM has pledged to protect Muslims from harassment should he win the presidency and that is already seen. Raila from time to time has also promised to address the thorny issue of land. With that assurance at heart, delegates from NEP have decided to vote for Raila come 2013. To bag the Muslim vote from the region, the ODM presidential candidate has reportedly entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with Muslim organisations led by the Council of Imams and Preachers of Kenya (CIPK) and National Muslim Leaders Forum who have endorsed his candidature.

Sheikh Mohamed Khalifa, the organising secretary of CIPK confirmed the group will meet Raila a few days before the D-day. One of the issues on the MOU would look at is the assurance Muslims would be protected, especially in the face of war on terrorism. The Terrorism Bill has already been passed after a lot of adjustments.

Terrorism a big issue

Terrorism affects everyone and it is the duty of Muslims to help fight it off. That was Raila's message when Muslim Leaders went to have a word with him at his office recently. Analysts say NEP Muslims feel they have been targeted by Kibaki administration and the US in the joint war against terror. A number of Kenyans, have been whisked to Ethiopia and Guantamano Bay by Government due to pressure from US Government.

‘The Government was forced by the US to publish the Anti-Terrorism Bill. Even though Parliament had passed it, the Government should not use the bill and it's contents to deny Muslims their fundamental rights,’’ say One Muslim delegate from Garissa while stressing the importance of the Government to uphold human rights and cease to abuse the rights of Kenyans of Somali and Swahili origin by labelling them terrorists or collaborators and handing them over to foreign countries illegally. .

‘‘We do not condone terrorism. We want our Government to take suspects to Kenyan courts. Those found guilty should be punished accordingly. But we have failed to get this under Kibaki,’’ says a delegate.

Going by all Raila has done for Muslims, in addressing issues close to their heart, Most of the delegates were of the opinion that under an ODM government led by Raila, Muslims rights will not be trampled upon because he believes in reforms. During his acceptance speech, Raila echoed what the leaders from the region stated.

KENYA-SOMALIA CONSORTIUM PROJECT: ROADS IN NORTHERN KENYA

2012-10-06T14:26:00.000+03:00

This comes as KENYA-SOMALIA CONSORTIUM is courting China Wu Yi Company to do the Wonders they did in Thika Road as grants are sought out. I will attach here different Parliamentary Hansard Reports from 1963 to 2012 which were talking about Roads in Northern Kenya and No one wants to do anything.

The Hansards used in this are actual Motions discussed in the Kenyan Parliament and which are subject to our Question: Why are Road Networks for North Eastern Kenya never put into Government Plan?

Hansard 1

Hansard 2

Hansard 3

Hansard 4

Hansard 5

Hansard 6

Hansard 7

Hansard 8

Hansard 9

KENYA EDUCATION PS DIRECTIVE ...ILLEGAL AND UN-LAWFUL

2012-10-02T14:14:00.000+03:00

Order by The Kenyan Education PS on hijab declared unlawful

Between May 18 and 26, 2009 there were complaints that several schools were not allowing students to wear religious dresses, especially the hijab for Muslims. On July 14, 2009 Education Permanent Secretary Prof Karega Mutahi wrote to all provincial directors of education, district officers, municipal education officers and heads of schools directing them that principals who may have expelled students on the basis of wearing the hijab admit them immediately.

On November 1, 2010, a Muslim student of the Kenya High School (who can’t be named as she is a minor) sued the institution seeking orders on her own behalf and on behalf of fellow Muslim students to compel the school to comply with the PS’s directive. She asked for an order quashing the decision of the school denying her the right to wear the hijab in school and to prohibit the school from interfering with her right to wear the hijab, which she said was her form of expression and manifestation of her religious right as provided for under Section 32 of the Constitution.

The Kenya High School is a Girls Public National School situated in Nairobi Kenya. It is located on Kileleshwa hill, off Mandera road, which is about 7 km from the City center. It’s built on a 100 acre plot , an initiative by the Government in 1946. The school initially started in 1910. The school was by then referred to as The Kenyan European School and it was meant for the European only. At this time the school was located at the current Nairobi Primary. The Christian values are considered central to the success of the school, which has a chapel that was opened in 1959. There is a School chaplain who organizes services every Sunday. She is also a teacher at the school. The Students have a pastoral session every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday morning.for all religious groups.

The mother filed her own affidavits and others sworn by Muslim scholar Sheikh Khalfan Kamisi and one Fatuma Hirsi Mohamed. The girl named the school headmistress as first respondent and the Board of Governors (BoG) as second respondent. Before Lady Justice Cecilia Githua, the girl claimed the Kenya High School had refused to comply with the order by the PS. She said she had a legitimate expectation that she would be allowed to wear the hijab while in school. The school had failed to meet this expectation. She claimed the refusal was discrimination on the basis of religion and violation of her rights under Article 27 and Article 32 of the Constitution of Kenya. Sheikh Ahmed M Athman, the Imam of Jamia Landhies Mosque, said wearing of hijab for women is an edict of the Quran and mandatory.

The Kenya High School filed affidavits sworn by the Chief Principal and secretary to the BoG Rosemary Saina, the Parent Teachers Association chairman Samuel Gitonga Mutungi, educationist and scholar Dr Eddah Gachukia and Islamic scholar Prof Imam Al-Hajj Ibrahi B Syed. education act Through lawyer Fred Ngatia, the school argued that under the Education Act Cap 211 Laws of Kenya, it was mandated to make rules and regulations for the proper administration, discipline and functioning of the school community. The rules apply to all students. The school argued that uniform serves a critical role in the education set up, as it creates harmony, cohesion and unity among students, which in turn contributes to high academic performance. The principal denied having directly received the letter from the Education PS saying it was brought to her attention by the girl in September 2009. The matter was subsequently discussed by the BoG and the Parents and Teachers Association (PTA) on March 20, 2010 and resolved that all students should continue wearing the school uniform in order to promote discipline, identity, harmony, equality and uniformity in the school. Mr Ngatia said Kenya High School had never denied any student the right to education and has never expelled or prevented the Muslim students from attending school based on religious considerations. Ngatia argued that under the law only the Education Minister could give directions to schools.

The directive by the PS in his own capacity and not on behalf of the minister was illegal and not valid in law. The lawyer said if its application was allowed, it would distort the school uniform, which had served the school well for over 100 years and introduce inequality in the treatment of students. Students of other religious sects would feel discriminated against and start agitating for similar treatment. This would translate into disharmony and disorder not only at the Kenya High School, but also in other national schools in the country. Justice Githua concurred that the letter by the PS in his official capacity was not a directive contemplated under Section 27 of the Education Act, as it was not made by the minister. The court took judicial notice that Prof Mutahi had never been appointed as a Minister for Education.

The letter was issued in excess of authority hence the directions were unlawful, null and void. The school administrators therefore had no legal obligation to comply with a directive that had been issued illegally. “There is no room for doubt that the said directive was a nullity in law and it was consequently not capable of giving rise to a legitimate expectation of any kind to the applicant or to anyone else for that matter,” the judge said, adding: “Directives issued contrary to the law cannot give rise to a public duty. In the premises, I am satisfied that the applicant is not entitled to an order of mandamus (compulsion) and the same is hereby declined.” The judge observed that there was no evidence in court to show that the applicant had at any time been subjected to any form of discrimination by the school administrator on basis of religion.

Limitations

The judge observed that in learning institutions, some rights could be limited by rules and regulations made by various organs of management to ensure order and smooth running of the institutions. She said: “If the court were to allow the applicant’s quest to wear hijab in school, the 48 Muslim girls in the school would look different from the others and this might give the impression that the applicants were being accorded special or preferential treatment.

This may in all probability lead to agitation by students who profess different faiths to demand the right to adorn their different and perhaps multi-coloured religious attires of all shapes and sizes, which the school administrators will not be in a position to resist if the Muslim students are allowed to wear a hijab.” “The students will be turning up in school dressed in a mosaic of colours and consequently, the concept of equality and harmonisation brought about by the school uniform would come to an abrupt end.” On September 18, 2012 the judge rejected the application and dismissed the case ordering each party to bear their own costs. The girl has the right to appear and even to take the matter to the Supreme Court for constitutional interpretation.

The writer is a court reporter with the Standard.

RELIGIOUS WAR IN KENYA?......DON'T DREAM ABOUT IT

2012-09-30T19:57:00.000+03:00

They say, TERRORISM HAS NO RELIGION

As many Anti-Muslim websites are reporting or spamming the Internet, There is no way Kenyans can have a religious WAR.....This is utter rubbish. Anyone trying his best to separate Kenyans from Kenyans, Muslims from Kenyans, creating tensions among Kenyan tribes is doomed to fail. Many of my freinds are Christians, They go to Church, I go to the Mosque...So STOP this business. Fool some of the people sometime, but try fooling them all the time....

See the Kenyan Prime Minister, Raila Odinga talking about this.......in this Video Clip,

There will no religious war in Kenya. Kenya is not Nigeria as some claim

Some of these Anti-Muslim websites/Blogs or news aggregators have a role to play to inform the public but sometime post news that are not beneficial to us Muslims. News that may inflict more damages than curing the problems within Muslim Communities in relation to Terrorism and Crimes. Terrorism itself doesn't have a religion. We are advising their editors to come out and support our initiatives to disseminate information about Islam and Muslims in the correct way. Everyone Knows Islam doesn't ascribe to Violence as is said in the Holy Quraan Chapter Quran 5:32

If anyone slays a person - unless it be for murder or for spreading mischief in the land - it would be as if he slew all people and if anyone saves a life, it would be as if he saved the life of all people. (Quran 5:32)

At that time the Quran was revealed (7th century A.D.), there was no United Nations or Amnesty International to keep the peace or expose injustice. Inter-tribal violence and vengeance was commonplace. As a matter of survival, one must have been willing to defend against aggression from all sides. Nevertheless, the Quran repeatedly urges forgiveness and restraint, and warns believers not to "transgress" or become "oppressors." Some examples:

Some of the anti-Islam websites/Blogs include or are not limited to:

http://sabahionline.com

www.memri.org

www.infidelnewsnetwork.com

www.trinityafer.com

somaliwarmonitor.com

www.criticalthreats.org

english.alshahid.net

somaliamediamonitoring.org

www.thereligionofpeace.com

www.answering-islam.org

www.freerepublic.com

www.mwlusa.org

NAIROBI BOMB BLAST: ST PLOYCARPS JUJA ROAD

2012-09-30T19:12:00.000+03:00

A boy was killed and several others injured on Sunday after suspected terrorists hurled a grenade at St Polycarp's ACK church along Chai road in Pangani, Nairobi. The injured, mostly children attending a Sunday school service were rushed to Guru Nanak hospital. However, one child has already been discharged while seven children are still admitted.

"So far, we can confirm that one child has succumbed to injuries," Nairobi police boss Mr Moses Ombati told Reporters .

"Other victims were injured in a stampede after the incident," he added.

This comes after Kenya Muslims, majority of them Kenyans of Somali origin promised to protect the churches. In a rare Garissa meeting , Muslim leaders promised "We decided as solidarity that the Muslim youth will provide a vigilante service to the churches not only in Garissa but in any other places that the Christians may deem fit," he said There are an estimated 30 churches in Garissa. "Muslims felt that because those Christians are a minority in their domain they must be protected at all cost."

However, in today's attack, The local MP Margaret Wanjiru insisted: "There is no religious war in Kenya."

Kenya's PrimeMinister, Raila Odinga has said, There is no probability of a religious War in Kenya.

See the Video

According to one St. Plycarps church goer, Mr Jackson Mwangi, the attacker threw a grenade at around 10.30am on the Sunday school section.Police at the scene cordoned off the area to stop any secondary attacks.Bomb experts, fire brigade and ambulances arrived at the scene shortly thereafter. However, most people interviewed at the scene said they did not see any attacker but only heard the blast.Witnesss Janet Wanja said she was just entering the church in the Pangani district on the outskirts of the Kenyan capital when the blast shook the building.

"I heard a loud explosion and then heard kids screaming," she said. "I am traumatised by what I saw, kids with injuries and blood all over. "Why are they attacking the church?"

Three people arrested at the scene taking photos of the church told police that they were working for the Horn Cable TV of Somalia.Tension gripped the area as enraged youth started attacking the nearby Alamin mosque. However, police managed to restore calm and dispersed them.

Pangani is situated next to the Eastleigh quarter, nicknamed "little Mogadishu" because most residents are either Somali refugees or Kenyans of Somali origin.

Mr Ombati has appealed for calm and urged the residents to restrain from retaliatory attacks.

“Anyone who will be found to be involved in revenge attacks will be dealt with in accordance with the law,” warned Ombati.

Asman Mohamed, A Muslim, whose house is next to the church, told AFP the children were singing when a loud blast ripped through the building.

"I was terrified... I just peeped through the window and saw people running around the church... I saw children being taken out with injuries. Other kids were running out crying," Mohamed said.

Some experts say the attacks on churches in Kenya are reminiscent of those waged by Nigeria's radical Islamist group, Boko Haram, which has been blamed for hundreds of deaths during its insurgency in northern and central Nigeria although the main Culprits are Al-Shabaab of Somalia who are said to inter-mingle with the locals.

Last Month, The Kenya police said gunmen attacked two churches in the eastern town of Garissa on Sunday, killing 17 people and wounding at least 40. Seven were killed at the AIC church while another three died at Central Cathedral Catholic church during the Sunday morning services. The North Eastern PC James Oleserian said among those killed are two police officers adding that those injured have been rushed to the Garissa General Hospital and other health facilities in the area.Eyewitnesses say that four masked gunmen sprayed bullets at the AIC church congregation before hurling grenades at them. The dead included six women, two men and two police officers.

Garissa is close to the Dadaab refugee camp, where gunmen kidnapped four aid workers and killed a driver on Friday in an attack Ndolo said he suspected al-Shabab sympathizers of carrying out.

Somalis are citizens of Five countries and Kenya is one of them. Notable among Kenya Somalis are The Deputy Kenya National Assembly Speaker, Hon. Farah Maalim, The Chairman of the Kenya Constitutional Commission, Hon Abdikadir Mohamed, The Kenyan Minister of Defence, Hon Mohamed Yusuf Haji and Minister for Northern Kenya, Hon. Mohamed Elmi.

There is so much profiling going on in Kenya towards Kenyans of Somali origin because of their kinsmen from Somalia. Look at this article, http://kenyasomali.blogspot.com/2010/09/profiling-of-somalis-in-kenya-must-stop.html

The Kenyan Citizen of Somali tribe also say they have grossly been marginalized and their population is grossly under-estimated, see this article, http://kenyasomali.blogspot.com/2010/09/kenya-somali-census-results-have.html

KENYA-SOMALI GALA NIGHT IN EARNEST

2012-05-19T16:54:00.004+03:00

The Kenya-Somalia Consortium in Nairobi and GCG is hosting the first Kenya-Somali Gala night, a traditional night laced with celebration of culture, heritage, leadership and development. It is our obligation to shape the future of our region and nation by deliberating on the current economic, social and political roadmap to reach where we need to be. The event to be held at KICC on the night of may 26th will bring together leaders from broad range of sectors. Please join us to celebrate our fascinating culture and use this opportunity to participate shaping the destiny of our nation!

Charges:

Entrance - Ksh. 2000 per ticket

Individual Sponsors - Ksh. 10,000 plus

Check Poster Below:

Business Sponsors - Ksh. 100,000 plus

2012-05-13T20:12:00.001+03:00

Welcome to the First Ever Kenya Somali Gala Night to be held at KICC Lenana Hall on the 26th May 2012 from 6.00pm

The Speakers range from Bankers, Lawyers, Doctors, Business Executives, MP's, Non-Somali Politicians and so on. Name them, RT Hon. Doc Raila Odinga, Hon Martha Karua, Hon Peter Keneth and many more will be in the event where, The History, Status of NEP, Past and Present will be discus sed while focusing on the Future.

This one of a kind event is aimed at bringing together the Kenya Somalis in order to interact, positively exchange ideas, explore the potential of our vast region, discuss the core issues hindering us from an accountable and responsible leadership that would propel us to the front page of social, political and economical prosperity, not to forget a celebration of our beautiful and most fascinating culture.

WELCOME!!!

KENYA NEP HISTORY & WAY TO THE FUTURE

2012-05-04T10:45:00.001+03:00

MARGINALIZATION/GROSS UNDER DEVELOPMENT & HUMAN RIGHT ABUSES IN NORTHERN KENYA BY SUCCESIVE KENYA GOVERNMENT

NB:

Some of the Information contained herein are Excerpts from Kenya’s Independent and Boundaries Commission Chairman, Ahmed Issack Hassan Who has been an advocate at the High Court of Kenya.

SUMMARY:

After reading through, many of the information are useful, get some more on the links below

http://kenyasomali.blogspot.com/2010/05/threats-on-kenya-somalis-notice-to-nsis.html

http://kenyasomali.blogspot.com/2010/01/cartoon-says-all.html

http://kenyasomali.blogspot.com/2009/11/macharia-gaitho-day-i-learnt-garissa-is.html

One of the most visible legacies of the Imposed Kenya Emergency Law period in the region of Northern Kenya where Somalis are 100% owners of the land is the state of underdevelopment in all aspects of life. The government's energies and resources were largely directed towards security and the maintenance of Law and Order. Its policy has been described as one of containment and not engagement.

Surveying a history of marginalization and distance from government support, Ahmed Issack Hassan explores the legal and administrative impediments to have plagued the development of the region of Northern Kenya. Citing a litany of human rights abuses and the discrimination faced by inhabitants of the region, the author argues for the need for appropriate and effective legislation and sustained political goodwill from executive and national parliamentary power in the struggle to tackle tyrannical practice.

Kenya's colonial government enacted several laws specifically targeting the north. The Outlying District Ordinance of 1902 effectively declared the Northern Frontier District (NFD - made up of the present-day districts of Wajir, Mandera, Ijara, Garissa, Isiolo, Moyale and Marsabit) a closed area; movement in and out was only possible under a special pass. The Special Districts (Administration) Ordinance of 1934, together with the Stock Theft and Produce Ordinance of 1933, gave the colonial administrators extensive powers of arrest, restraint, detention and seizure of properties of 'hostile tribes.' The latter legalised collective punishment of tribes and clans for the offences of their members. These ordinances applied not only to the NFD but also to present-day Tana River, Lamu, Kajiado and Samburu districts.

The net effect of this early colonial legislation was to turn the NFD into a closed zone that had no contact or relation with other parts of Kenya. Indeed, other Kenyans knew little about it. This situation continued after independence and is best captured by the statement of the American writer, Negley Farson: 'there is one half of Kenya about which the other half knows nothing and seems to care even less [about].'

INDEPENDENCE OF KENYA AND THE NFD

When political activities were legalised in 1960, the people of the NFD formed the Northern Province Peoples Progressive Party (NPPPP), whose main agenda was the secession of the NFD and its reunion with Somalia. At the Kenya Constitutional Conference of 1962 the Secretary of State for the Colonies proposed that an independent commission be appointed to investigate public opinion in the NFD regarding its future. The commission visited every district in the NFD. It heard oral submissions from 134 delegations, received 106 written submissions, and held meetings in Nairobi with the leaders of other political parties. The majority of people in the NFD were found to be in favour of secession.

However, the British government was unwilling to abide by the result of the commission on the grounds that it was not prepared to take a unilateral decision on the future of the territory so close to Kenya's independence. The Regional Boundaries Commission set up in 1962 recommended that the predominantly Somali-occupied districts of Garissa, Wajir and Mandera be constituted into the seventh region, and thus the North Eastern Province was born.

This was seen as a betrayal of the wishes of the people of the NFD in general and the NEP in particular. They boycotted the 1963 elections and the leaders of the NPPPP started what came to be known as the 'shifta' war. Somalia broke off diplomatic relations with Britain and supported the secessionists. Kenya's newly independent government was firm in its stand that it would not cede an inch of territory. Two weeks after independence it declared a state of emergency over the NFD which lasted for close to 30 years.

AMENDMENTS TO THE INDEPENDENCE CONSTITUTION AND EMERGENCY LAWS IN THE NFD

Kenya became independent on 12 December 1963. Section 29 of the independence constitution provided for the procedure to be followed in the event of declaring a state of emergency. However, Section 19 of the Kenya Independence Order in Council (Kenya subsidiary legislation, 1963) provided that the Governor-General:

"may, by regulations which shall be published in the Kenya Gazette, make such provision as appears to him to be necessary or expedient for the purpose of ensuring effective government or in relation to the North Eastern Region and without prejudice to the generality of that power, he may by such regulation make such temporary adaptations, modifications or qualifications or exceptions to the Provisions of the Constitution or of any other Law as appear to him to be necessary."

When Kenya became a republic in 1964, the powers enjoyed by the Governor-General under Section 19 were transferred to the president, giving him the power to rule the North Eastern Region by decree. There have been several subsequent amendments to the independence constitution. For example, the sixth amendment Act No.18 of 1966 enlarged the government's emergency powers. It removed legislation relating to parliamentary control over emergency laws and the law relating to public order. Existing constitutional provisions were repealed and replaced by one which gave the president a blank cheque: 'at any time by order in the Kenya Gazette to bring into operation generally or in any part of Kenya, part III of the preservation of Public Security Act or any part thereof.'

The application of emergency laws meant that in effect Kenya had two separate legal regimes: one applied exclusively to the NFD and the other to the rest of the country. The detailed provisions of the emergency laws were contained in the North Eastern Province and Contiguous Districts Regulations, 1966. These regulations formed the basis for the degradation of human rights and explicitly endorsed instances in which the fundamental human rights of the person could be violated. In the process, the government arrogated powers that could only apply to the rest of Kenya when it was at war.

The Northern region was thus technically a war zone and became a virtual police state. The regulations created offences that were punishable without due process. Possession of a firearm, or consorting with or harbouring someone with a firearm, was punishable by death. Harbouring someone who may act in a manner prejudicial to the preservation of public security was punishable by life imprisonment. Even the owning, operating or use of boats or any other means of transport on the Tana River was made a crime liable to imprisonment. Entry into the region by people other than civil servants and members of the security forces was prohibited. Members of the armed forces were given wide powers of search, arrest, restriction and detention.

Members of the provincial administration and the security forces were given powers to preside over 'judicial trials.' The Regulations also suspended the application of Sections 386 and 387 of the Criminal Procedure Code, which require the holding of an inquest on the death of persons in police custody or under suspicious circumstances.

The constitutional and legislative framework for the application of emergency laws in Northern Kenya was completed in 1970 with the passing of the Indemnity Act, Chapter 44 of the Laws of Kenya. This was meant to indemnify government agents and members of the security forces working in the region against any claims on account of any loss or damage occasioned by their actions. Many human rights violations occurred in the NFD after 1967; those responsible for these violations cannot claim indemnity under this act.

EFFECTS OF THE EMERGENCY LAWS IN THE NFD

a) Human rights violations
Members of the security forces have been accused of gross violations of human rights in the course of their duties, including instances of genocidal killing, mass murder and rape, extra-judicial killing, arbitrary arrests and detention of persons and communities, and illegal confiscation and theft of properties. For example:

• Bulla Kartasi Estate massacre, November 1980. Following the killings of six government officials in Garissa town, the security forces retaliated by burning the whole of Bulla Kartasi estate, killing people and raping women, and herding the town's residents to a mini-concentration camp at Garissa Primary School playground where they kept them for three days without food or water. Human rights organisations estimate the dead at over 3000, with an equal number unaccounted for.

• The Wagalla massacre, February 1984. The security forces launched an operation in Wajir targeting the Degodia sub-clan of the Somali. Most of those rounded up were summarily executed after days of incarceration at the Wagalla airstrip. Close to 5,000 people are said to have died.

• Other instances of extra-judicial killings and collective punishment include those in Malka-mari, Garse, Derakali, Dandu and Takaba areas of Mandera District.

b) Discrimination
Kenyan Somalis in general complain of discriminatory laws, regulations, practices and procedures that apply to them and not to other Kenyans. This is especially acute in the area of citizenship and immigration, i.e., in the issuing of birth certificates, identity cards and passports. The screening exercise of Kenyan Somalis in November 1989 is also cited as a clear case of discrimination. Its justification was contained in a government statement:

'The Government is to register all Kenyan Somalis and expel those found to have sympathy with Somalia. The Government cannot tolerate citizens who pretend to be patriotic to Kenya while they involve themselves in anti-Kenya activities. The Government has therefore found it necessary to register Kenyans of Somali ethnic group to make them easily identifiable by our security forces.'

In effect this was a mass verification exercise, carried out by vetting committees made up of selected elders and members of the provincial administration and civil service. The burden of proof was placed on those who appeared before the committees to prove their citizenship or their right to claim it. Those who failed to satisfy the committee were effectively declared non-citizens. Some were deported to Somalia while others opted to settle elsewhere in East Africa. The screening exercise and the requirement on Kenyan Somalis to produce their screening card in addition to their identity card as proof of citizenship was seen as a violation of their fundamental rights to protection from discrimination as enshrined in Section 82 of the constitution. The legality of the exercise was also questioned by many experts.

c) Marginalisation and underdevelopment

One of the most visible legacies of the period of emergency law in the region is the state of underdevelopment in all aspects of life. The government's energies and resources were largely directed towards security and the maintenance of law and order. Its policy has been described as one of containment not engagement. No constructive or meaningful development took place during this period. Indeed, over 80 per cent of the region's budget was spent on security. The net result is that the region is today the most underdeveloped and marginalised in Kenya.

d) Constitutional reform, multi-party politics and the repeal of the emergency laws
The clamour for constitutional reform in the 1990s, which led to the repeal of Section 2A of the constitution, the introduction of multi-party politics and the Inter-Parties Parliamentary Group (IPPG) talks that produced the minimum reforms to the constitution, also saw the repeal of the emergency laws affecting the NFD in general and NEP in particular. Section 127 of the constitution, which laid the foundation for the state of emergency, was repealed on 29 November 1991. The North Eastern Province and Contiguous Districts Regulations, 1966, was also repealed in 1991. The Outlying District Act and the Special Districts (Administration) Act were repealed under the Statute Law (Repealed and Miscellaneous) Amendment Act of 1997.

The repeal of these laws was a big step forward in restoring to the people of the NFD their fundamental rights and freedoms as guaranteed in chapter five of the constitution. They are now much freer than before and are slowly becoming aware and assertive of these rights. Their potential and morale was not destroyed by the colonial and post-colonial emergency legal regime applied to them. They have refused to regard or see themselves as inferior or second-class citizens, and have proved right Eleanor Roosevelt's statement that 'no one can make you feel inferior except with your own consent.'

e) Continuing legal and administrative impediments to the development of Northern Kenya.

1. The creation by the coalition government in April 2008 of the Ministry of State for the Development of Northern Kenya and other Arid Lands is an important milestone. The ministry can become the focal point for the government's efforts in addressing historical injustices, marginalisation and underdevelopment. However, the ministry was created by executive fiat. If it is to be effective and not just symbolic, there must be a legal framework that sets out its functions, the procedures for their implementation, and the powers of the minister.

2. Despite the repeal of the emergency laws, there are still some vestiges of laws and administrative practices. These include but are not limited to the following:

• The Stock Theft and Produce Act that provides for the collective punishment of pastoralists in Northern Kenya is still part of our laws. So too is the Indemnity Act, which was not repealed with the other emergency laws. These two Acts of Parliament should be repealed in order to formally lay to rest the emergency law regime. In 2001 parliament passed a motion brought by the MP for Wajir West, the Hon. Adan Keynan, to repeal the Indemnity Act, but to date no bill has come to the house to repeal it.

• The security forces still operate under the mentality of the emergency law era. There are many unnecessary barriers that result in harassment, corruption and the hindrance of the free movement of people and goods. The police force is yet to change its mindset in the region. It is common knowledge that when police recruits from Kiganjo are posted to North Eastern Province, they are given more training at the Forces Training Centre in Garissa before deployment. While all police officers are required by law to wear their uniform and display their force numbers, those in Northern Kenya do not do so. This even includes traffic officers, who are mostly dressed in jungle fatigues. The anonymity granted to them by this mode of dressing aids and abets the culture of impunity. This practice must be reversed. The security forces operating in Northern Kenya must do their work under the same conditions as their colleagues in other parts of the country.

3. The absence of a legal mechanism for restorative justice must be addressed. Those affected by gross violations of human rights during the emergency law period, such as the victims, widows and orphans of the Wagalla massacre, need closure. There has not even been a commission of inquiry into the excesses of the security forces in the region.

4. The lack of a legal framework for affirmative action and positive discrimination to help the people of the region recover from historical injustices remains an impediment to the region's catching up with other parts of Kenya.

5. The lack of lands registries is a major impediment to economic progress. Title to land or property enables the owner to offer it as security to access financial loans, guarantee payment of goods and services, or give surety for bail or bond in court. There is no lands registry in the entire Northern Kenya where a title can be processed, or sales, transfers and charges can be registered. The system of land registration should be brought into effect and land registries established in every district's headquarters.

6. The Districts and Provinces Act, No. 5 of 1992, established the composition of Kenya's provinces. Moyale, Marsabit and Isiolo districts fall under Eastern Province, whose headquarters is far away in Embu. Bringing these three into one province would be consistent with the spirit of bringing government services closer to the people.

7. Under the Judicature Act, Chapter 8, Laws of Kenya, the Chief Justice is empowered to create high courts and magistrates courts in any part of the country. There is no high court in the whole of the north. Appeals from magistrates' courts must be filed in the high court in Nairobi, Embu or Meru. This limits access to justice. Magistrates' courts are also few in number, as are the Kadhis courts which attend to matters of personal law for Muslims.

8. The potential for tourism of the region has never been harnessed. Instead of taking the camel to tourists at the coast, tourists should be taken to the camel in its natural habitat. The few game parks and reserves in Northern Kenya, such as the Kora and Arawale, have been neglected by the Kenya Wildlife Service.

10. Livestock is the economic mainstay of the region. The absence of a legal framework for the marketing and sale of livestock and livestock products is a major obstacle to its development.

11. The problems encountered by the people of Northern Kenya in obtaining birth certificates, identity cards and passports are a matter of public notoriety. The Registration of Persons Office and the Immigration Department have made it very difficult for young people to obtain these important documents that enable them to register as voters and take part in political affairs, or to travel out of the country to study or seek other opportunities abroad.

12. The role played by civil society and charitable institutions in supplementing government poverty alleviation efforts cannot be ignored. However, the rigid and strict application of the NGO Coordination Act and the Societies Act makes it difficult for local professionals to register local NGOs and charitable organisations.

13. With the relative peace in the region and the availability of raw materials and cheap labour, there is an urgent need for legislation that encourages private investment. This should contain provisions for tax incentives to spur wealth creation and economic growth in the region.

Thus, the legal and administrative impediments to the development of Northern Kenya can be overcome by enacting appropriate legislation where necessary, or by administrative action by the relevant ministry or government department concerned. This can only be achieved successfully if there is political goodwill from the executive and an accommodating parliament.

Further, No constructive or meaningful development ever took place during this period. Indeed, over 80% of the region's budget was always spent on security leaving nothing for development. The net result is that the region is today the most underdeveloped and marginalised in Kenya. There are very few institutions of higher learning in the region.

The level of illiteracy in the area is over 80% while over 85% of the people live below the poverty line (which is approx. USD.1 per day by U.N. standards). There are no major health facilities in the area. The infrastructure of the region is deplorable. While the region covers over 130,000 sq. kms, it has only 6 kms of tarmac road. Education standards in the region is poor due to the lack of adequate facilities.

The state of underdevelopment is often cited as evidence of marginalization. The lack of government support to develop the market for the livestock industry, which is the main economic activity of the region, and the location of the Kenya Meat Commission at Athi River, far away from the N.F.D, is cited as marginalization of the people and the region.

The statutory definition of the boundary of Garissa District to exclude the River Tana from its territory (the "3-mile rule") is also said to manifest the marginalization that remained from the emergency period. Government control on the movement for sale of livestock from the region to other parts of Kenya and the lack of good communication network such as tarmac roads for the border towns in the N.F.D such as Garissa and Mandera in N.E.P. and Moyale in Eastern Province which form the border towns for Kenya with Somalia and Ethiopia respectively as compared to the development of the road networks of other border towns such as Namanga and Taveta for Tanzania, Busia and Malaba for Uganda and Lodwar for the Sudan, has similarly been cited as evidence of Malignant marginalization. So too is the failure by government planners to group the Kenyan Somalis as one tribe like the others in Kenya instead of sub-dividing them into sub-clans and others during the National Population Census.

NEP KCSE EXAM CANCELLATION 2012 : WHAT A SHAM IN KENYA EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM

2012-03-09T20:28:00.000+03:00

More than 20 shops were looted and roads in Garissa Town barricaded as students from schools whose Form Four exam results were cancelled went on the rampage on Tuesday. The students and some residents overwhelmed riot police officers who fled. The officers had earlier in the morning dispersed the rioters, but they regrouped and staged more massive protests.

Business came to a standstill in the town with shops broken into and looted. (SEE IN

A crisis meeting

The students, chanting anti-government slogans, vowed to continue with the riots until the Kenya National Examinations Council (Knec) explains why their results were cancelled.

The protesters claimed it was not possible for candidates from 18 secondary schools out of 20 in the county to be affected by irregularities in last year’s exam. The riots come a day after leaders from Garissa County held a crisis meeting over the matter. (READ: 2,900 denied results over cheating). Speaking at the forum, Garissa mayor Ismail Garath wondered why Knec had not explained the cancellation of the results.

“We are still in the dark as we eagerly await the explanation from the exam agency. We want to know what transpired, why only this region was most affected,” the mayor said.

Separately, students of Enelerai Secondary School in Mulot Division, Narok County on Tuesday held a peaceful demonstration to protest their school’s poor performance in last year’s KCSE examination.

The students attributed the poor results to laxity on their teachers’ part and incompetent leadership. The school, which registered 31 candidates, had a mean of 3.60 with the best student scoring a mean grade of C minus. Led by their prefects, the students walked for 10 kilometres to seek audience with the area education officer.

Narok South quality assurance and standards officer Joshua Oketch promised that the education office will seek solutions to their complaints.

POOR RESULTS COUPLED WITH KCSE CANCELLATION IN NEP

2012-03-03T19:48:00.000+03:00

THE dismal performance by students coupled with exam cancellations of the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education in the North Eastern Province needs to be addressed urgently by all stakeholders. This comes as Northern Kenya MPs have called for a fresh audit into the exam irregularities that led to the cancellation the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) tests in the area.

The call was made by North Eastern Provincial Director of Education Pascal Makite when he addressed the press. He said the poor performance was a source of worry.

The province manged to post only three girls in the top ten list of 100 in last year's KCSE. The leading girl was Raha Abdi Salah of Northeastern Province Girls' High School who took position 24 with 67 points. “A big number of our district girls' schools like Iftin Girls, Khalif Secondary and Bute Girls performed poorly. Some explanation has to be given by those responsible why the schools could not even produce a C+,” said Makite.

He said some teachers were not serious in the delivery of the curriculum. Such teachers, he said, would not be tolerated. He said girls are still disadvantaged in many aspects compared to boys. Makite said cheating in the province had dropped drastically from 101 in 2009 exams to 33 last year.

Meanwhile, angry parents from Bura East Secondary School in Fafi District threatened to burn the school unless the poor exam results improved. Out of the 44 students who sat the exam last year, only one scored a C plain with others scoring D+ and below. The school's Parents Teachers Association chairman Moamed Yussuf, said they would rather stay without a school than to watch their children fail so miserably.

The parents had staged a protest march to the district commissioner's office.

AL SHABAAB ASSAULT IN MANDERA ENCOUNTERS "THE PUBLIC" IN MANDERA

2012-03-02T12:58:00.000+03:00

TWO people, including an assailant, died and eight others were injured in Mandera town yesterday morning following an attack by a suspected al Shabaab militia group. Three armed Somali militiamen raided a shop in the trading centre and shot a Kenya police reservist several times in the chest as he attended to his customers.

Mandera DC Benson Leparmorijo said the three armed attackers stormed the shop in a busy street near the Banisa matatu stage in the border town and appeared to have been looking for the reservist. Immediately after the shooting they tried to escape on foot but members of the public who had witnessed the incident gave chase and apprehended two of them. They disarmed them and heaped old tyres on one of them who they set on fire. Police saved the other suspect from the mob baying for his blood and took him to Mandera police station where he is being interrogated by detectives and anti-terror police officers.

"On realising that his colleague had been overpowered, one of the fleeing assailants hurled back a hand grenade to the pursuing crowd causing eight of them severe body,” the administrator added. Leparmorijo said a loaded Ceska pistol and unexploded hand grenade were recovered from the burned attacker. Those injured by the grenade are receiving treatment at Mandera district hospital.

A witness Amina Yussuf who owns a shop near the one of the shot reservist said the attackers were young men aged between 19-25 years and were masked. She said the attackers appeared to know their target. Mandera town council chairman Mohamed Adan Khalif said the daring attempt by the public to give chase was a sign that the public is dissatisfied with security personnel. The DC said the attacker who managed to escape disappeared toward the border Bulla-Hawa town.