The European Union has granted Kenya over Sh11.4 billion to support priority areas of green transition on environmental sustainability and digital inclusion, good governance as well as peace and stability.

In a deal signed by Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in Brussels, Belgium on Wednesday, the funds will go towards boosting programmes in the identified key sectors of the economy. 

The Deputy President, who is representing President William Ruto at the Global Gateway Summit hosted by the EU in Brussels, welcomed the collaboration between Kenya and the EU saying the grant will help develop the country and improve the lives of the people.

Pivotal stride

“Kenya welcomes this statement of signature which will be realised through the outlined priorities for the Multi-Annual Indicative Programme 2021-2027. This collaboration marks a pivotal stride towards a brighter future for the Kenyan people. As we implement the Global Gateway, we are confident that sustainable development, security and prosperity will rightfully take centre stage in our development cooperation narrative going forward,” he said of the deal signed on the sidelines of the Global Gateway Forum 2023.

Gachagua said Kenya looked forward to continued partnership with the EU. The Ruto administration was keen on strengthening existing ties with the EU, he added. 

“I reaffirm our collective dedication to this partnership. Together, we strive towards a future where the bonds between Kenya and the European Union continue to flourish, bringing about positive change and shared prosperity,” the DP added.

Kajiado residents will have to wait longer for title deeds after the court suspended the titling of more than 22,000 plots.

Justice Maxwell Gicheru ordered that the process be halted, pending submission of the plan to the Kajiado County Assembly for public participation.

The court also ruled that monies paid to consultants by plot owners be refunded in less than 60 days.

Justice Gicheru also ordered that after approval by the county assembly, the county should carry out competitive pricing for the parcels.

“The county department of land and county attorney should take responsibility for the survey and titling process,” ruled Justice Gicheru. 

For over 40 years, most Kajiado residents have had no land ownership documents. In some areas, land disputes have been the order of the day, following double allocation by the defunct Olkejuado County Council.

Councillors would give one person a plot but when they left office, the incoming councillor issued the same plot to another person. In April this year, the county government in conjunction with the National Land Commission (NLC) embarked on issuing title deeds to clear the mess.

The Department of Land hired three consultancy firms to carry out the exercise. However, a section of landowners petitioned the process and urged the county government to stop the process.

Kajiado residents will have to wait longer for title deeds after the court suspended the titling of more than 22,000 plots.

Justice Maxwell Gicheru ordered that the process be halted, pending submission of the plan to the Kajiado County Assembly for public participation.

The court also ruled that monies paid to consultants by plot owners be refunded in less than 60 days.

Justice Gicheru also ordered that after approval by the county assembly, the county should carry out competitive pricing for the parcels.

“The county department of land and county attorney should take responsibility for the survey and titling process,” ruled Justice Gicheru. 

For over 40 years, most Kajiado residents have had no land ownership documents. In some areas, land disputes have been the order of the day, following double allocation by the defunct Olkejuado County Council.

Councillors would give one person a plot but when they left office, the incoming councillor issued the same plot to another person. In April this year, the county government in conjunction with the National Land Commission (NLC) embarked on issuing title deeds to clear the mess.

The Department of Land hired three consultancy firms to carry out the exercise. However, a section of landowners petitioned the process and urged the county government to stop the process. By Peterson Githaiga, The Standard

When President William Ruto and Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua triumphed, the Bottom-up Empowerment and Transformation Agenda officially became the development model.

But there was the gigantic agenda of 'rewarding' those who 'contributed' to their victory morally, economically and spiritually. To deal with this legitimate expectation, a special purpose vehicle, christened Kenya Kwanza Shareholders Plc was assembled. The truthful man, the DP, was in charge of it.

Right from the constitution of the Cabinet to the appointment of constitutional office holders, this consideration was the rule. Then came the reality check that happened between the first and the second year after regime change in Kenya.

A little of history. In 1983, then President Daniel Moi after the 1982 coup, filled key government offices with loyalists. In 2003 and 2005, President Mwai Kibaki sacked Moi's and Raila Odinga's allies from the civil service. In the process, he planted the seeds of the 2007/8 post-election violence.

Specifically, Jomo Kenyatta-era power man Charles Njonjo and his lieutenants were either sacked or rigged out of the snap 1983 election. Nicholas Biwott and the Kalenjin mafia emerged and reigned supreme up to the deep end of the Nyayo era in 2002. 

Kibaki's triumph in 2002 and his glory years tumbled when he fell out with Raila and Kalonzo Musyoka. The duo were sacked and immediately teamed up with Uhuru Kenyatta and William Ruto to defeat Kibaki in that year's constitutional referendum.

The shareholder business was a truthful way of dealing with the loyalty and reward system so that a fallout with supporters could be mitigated. It worked well because the public faces of the Ruto political juggernaut have received their pay cheque through appointments to key government positions.  

But the political Ruto has now been replaced by the Executive President, who has the apparatus to know what each of the 40 million-plus Kenyans ate for dinner, if at all.

This truth confronts him every morning. Essentially, he must have realised that unnecessary, populist duels with Kenyans have no value now or in 2027. And since he can't rewind the clock, he has to employ tactics that will make him look morally right. 

Hence his directive to disband the 'limited liability company'. But the President has a challenge here. Right from his Cabinet nomination, this principle was the default mode. Will he now revisit the constitution of his Cabinet? By appearing to chide his deputy over the shareholder position, the President is, unconsciously invoking the Uhuru syndrome of 2018 when out of the blues, Uhuru decided to face the lake and groom Raila's treacherous attempt to climb Mt Kenya

Let the shareholder firm remain. But augment it with reason because there are no people called Azimio or Kenya Kwanza. We only have tribal affiliations driven by selfish leaders and sometimes gullible and clueless supporters. 

Mr Charles Mulila is a media practitioner   The Standard