The first appearance of Gicheru before the Court took place on November 6, 2020.
In Summary
• The orders which are part of ‘Order Setting Deadline for Defence Requests’ were issued by presiding judge Miatta Maria Samba.
•The first appearance of Gicheru before the Court took place on November 6, 2020.
The defence team representing lawyer Paul Gicheru who is under trial at the International Criminal Court has been ordered to table motions it seeks the chamber to rule on by Wednesday next week.
The orders which are part of ‘Order Setting Deadline for Defence Requests’ were issued by presiding judge Miatta Maria Samba.
“In the interests of ensuring the expeditiousness of the proceedings, the Chamber hereby instructs the defence to file any further motions upon which it wishes the Chamber to rule, by no later than May 4th, 2022,” reads the order in part.
It further reads, “The Chamber understands the notice not to present ‘a case’ as the defence’s notification that it will not be presenting a case through the calling of witnesses. However, the Chamber interprets the Defence’s Bar Table Motion as that it still intends to tender evidence into the record.”
In a statement dated April 25, from his counsel Michael G. Karnavas to the Trial Chamber III and the prosecution, Gicheru said he does not intend to present a case.
Gicheru is facing offences against the administration of justice, consisting in corruptly influencing witnesses regarding cases involving Deputy President William Ruto and veteran radio presenter Joshua Arap Sang.
Gicheru pleaded not guilty before presiding judge Miatta Maria Samba.
The first appearance of Gicheru before the Court took place on November 6, 2020.
The prosecution team concluded presenting its witnesses last month. By Felix Kipkemoi, The Star
An Ebola vaccination campaign has begun in northwest Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), to halt the spread of a deadly new outbreak in the country, where the disease is endemic.
The UN World Health Organization (WHO) said on Wednesday that people have now been inoculated in Mbandaka, the capital city of Equateur Province west.
It follows the deaths of two people from Ebola since 21 April. More than 230 contacts of the deceased have been identified and monitored and three vaccination teams will work to reach those at highest risk, according to WHO.
Positive outlook
“With effective vaccines at hand and the experience of DRC health workers in Ebola response, we can quickly change the course of this outbreak for the better,” said Dr Matshidiso Moeti, the UN agency’s Regional Director for Africa. “We are supporting the country in all the key aspects of Ebola emergency response to protect and save lives.”
The DR Congo has seen 14 Ebola outbreaks since 1976 - six just since 2018.
With support from WHO and other partners and donors, the country has become expert in mounting effective Ebola response, the UN agency noted.
Lifesaving delivery
Around 200 doses of the rVSV-ZEBOV Ebola vaccine have been shipped to Mbandaka from the eastern city of Goma and further doses will be delivered in coming days.
The vaccination is injected according to the “ring strategy”, whereby the contacts - and the contacts of contacts - of confirmed Ebola patients, receive the jab, as well as frontline and health workers.
In addition to the vaccination campaign, a 20-bed Ebola treatment centre has been set up in Mbandaka. Disease surveillance and investigation of suspected Ebola patients are already underway to detect new infections, and WHO has also provided material support as well as six epidemiologists to assist in the response.
'New strain'
National health authorities are also crucial to the effort, including the National Institute for Biomedical Research, which has completed an analysis of a sample from the first confirmed case, results of which show that the new outbreak indicates a new strain of Ebola, the result of a “spill-over event from the host or animal reservoir”, WHO said.
Investigations are ongoing to determine the source of the new outbreak and how it came to infect the first confirmed person. UN
Suna East MP Junet Mohamed flanked by Azimio Secretariat members address the press outside KICC in Nairobi. Image:FREDRICK OMONDI
Raila has until May 16, to name his running mate.
In Summary
• Azimio Council secretary-general Junet Mohamed said Raila had constituted the panel that includes the clergy and representatives of political parties.
• The panel has up to May 10, to submit potential running mate candidates to the presidential candidate.
Azimio la Umoja One Kenya Alliance presidential candidate Raila Odinga has formed a seven-member panel to advise on who he will pick as his running mate.
In a statement on Wednesday, Azimio Council secretary-general Junet Mohamed said the panel members have agreed to take up the roles and deliver their new mandate.
The panel consist of the clergy and representatives of political parties.
"The panel members are; Bishop Peter Njenga, Archbishop Zaccheus Okoth, Senator Enock Wambua, Michael Orwa, Noah Wekesa, Sheik Mohammed Khalifa and Beatrice Moe," Junet announced.
"The panel shall reach its decision through consensus and shall elect its chairperson. The secretary of the panel shall be Ms Elizabeth Meyo."
The panel has up to May 10, to submit the name of a person suitable for the seat of the running mate.
On Tuesday, the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission Chairman Wafula Chebukati announced that the deadline for submission of running mate names for presidential and governor aspirants had been extended to May 16.
The deadline was initially set for Thursday, April 28.
On April 21, Azimio-One Kenya Alliance's top Council sanctioned a process to identify Raila's running mate ahead of the August 9 polls.
The alliance's top organ said it had tasked the advisory panel to recommend possible persons for the second-highest position.
"We have mandated an advisory panel to recommend suitable candidates for running mate," Azimio Council Secretary-General Junet Mohammed said.
On Tuesday, the National Rainbow Coalition (Narc) submitted the name of its party leader Charity Ngilu for vetting and consideration as Raila Odinga's running mate.
The party submitted the letter to the Azimio la Umoja- One Kenya Coalition Advisory panel constituted to select Raila's running mate.
"As a pioneering affiliate member of the said coalition, it gives us pleasure to submit the name of our Party leader Charity Ngilu for vetting, evaluation and consideration aforesaid," read the letter by Narc Secretary-general Fidelis Nguuli.
Somali military soldiers loyal to Prime Minister Mohamed Hussein Roble patrol outside the Aden Adde International Airport where members of the Lower House of Parliament are meeting to elect a speaker, in Mogadishu, Somalia, April 27, 2022.
Somalia’s election process faced new delays Wednesday as the president and prime minister clashed publicly over election security procedures ahead of a planned parliamentary leadership vote in the capital.
Prime Minister Mohamed Hussein Roble issued a statement authorizing African Union forces to take control of security at the fortified airport compound where the vote was to take place.
“I have authorized ATMIS (African Union Transition Mission in Somalia) peacekeepers to immediately take over the security of the air force hangar as we complete the election of the parliamentary leadership and prepare for presidential elections next month,” he said.
Just two hours later, President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed fired back, saying the national security election committee, which is chaired by General Abdi Hassan Hijar, Somalia's police commander, will oversee venue security.
The “ATMIS mission supports the national armed forces by collaborating with the Somali police force, which has the lead in the security of the elections,” Mohamed said in a statement.
By early afternoon, few lawmakers had shown up for the vote and a postponement seemed likely.
'Parallel' elections
For safety reasons, some of Somalia's parliamentary proceedings take place inside a former air force hangar at Aden Adde International Airport. The modified hangar, known as Afisyone, or “the tent,” will host the vote for speakership of the influential 275-member lower chamber.
It will also host upcoming presidential elections, which have yet to be scheduled.
In Somalia's parliamentary elections, which started in 2021, thousands of clan elders selected 275 members of parliament for the lower house, while senators for the upper house were elected by five different state-level legislatures. Both chambers of Somalia's bicameral parliament then elect the next president.
Although the elections of most lawmakers have been settled, a dispute has emerged over the election of 16 lawmakers representing Gedo, an administrative region within restive Jubaland in southern Somalia.
Citing security concerns, Somalia's election committee moved the venue for the parliamentary vote to resolve the disputed seats from the capital of the Gedo region, Garbaharey, to the Gedo town of El Wak. The move was endorsed by Roble, but supporters of the president rejected the move and selected 16 MPs of their own to offset the 16 chosen in El Wak.
Somalia's interim House Speaker Abdisalan Dhaban’ad and Roble want the 16 MPs elected in El Wak to participate in the speakership and presidential elections. But President Mohamed said lawmakers elected in the Gedo region's “parallel” elections should not participate until an agreement is reached.
Scuffles and a shooting preceded Tuesday's disagreement over who would provide security for the upcoming votes. House Speaker Dhaban’ad reported that police commander General Hijar denied him the opportunity to swear in the El Wak MPs at the tent on Monday.
He also reported that when they moved the swearing-in ceremony to a private hotel, security forces fired on the hotel. That prompted Roble to warn General Hijar and the director of the national intelligence agency, Colonel Yasin Abdullahi Mohamud — whose agents were accused of involvement in the shooting — against “disrupting” the election.
General Hijar denied Dhaban'ad's accusations. General Hijar also said he wants to see the parliamentary leadership vote postponed for days so that he can prepare for the security of the venue. He said he could not guarantee security if elections take place on Wednesday. That angered the security minister, Abdullahai Mohamed Nur, an ally of Roble, who said he “suspended” the police chief.
Meanwhile, the election for the leadership of the upper house took place peacefully on Tuesday. Veteran lawmaker Abdi Hashi Abdullahi has been reelected to the post. He has been a fierce critic of the current president’s policies. By Harun Maruf, VOA
Markets come in all shapes and sizes, from traditional set-ups to online farmers markets. In South Sudan, the World Food Programme (WFP) has rolled out a 'retail in a box' pop-up initiative in Gorom refugee camp that is spurring on local businesses while helping refugees buy their foods of choice.
Gorom, some 21km south-west of the capital city of Juba, is home to 2,200 refugees spread across 11 villages. The camp was set up in 2011 to host refugees displaced from Ethiopia's Gambella region.
To create the new market for the refugee community, WFP installed portable storage containers in the camp, transforming the metal structures into shops and booths with proper doors, windows, ventilation and security measures -- ensuring a comfortable shopping experience for the camp's residents.
Local suppliers were selected and trained by WFP on food safety and quality, cash management and customer service.
"We really like working with WFP," says Mursal Samater, one of the suppliers that WFP contracted to bring food to Gorom. "We get a steady stream of customers" -- who have confidence in what they are buying.
To guarantee fair and stable prices, WFP negotiates a monthly fixed price -- based on local market rates -- for each commodity. WFP's field and market monitors keep tabs on the market regularly, making sure food is always available in the right quantity, variety and quality.
The retail-in-a-box initiative has proven a big hit with the refugee community of Gorom camp -- people no longer rely solely on WFP's food rations.
For Ariet, a refugee from Ethiopia, there is nothing more normal than preparing home-cooked meals for her three children: breakfast, lunch and dinner. After her circumstances changed, freedom of choice became a luxury she could no longer afford.
"I fled my own country to escape from warfare and to find safety," she says. "When I arrived here conditions were basic, and I felt as if I was living out in the open. With time, things became more accommodating."
Across from Ariet's home now stand a series of retail shops that sell a variety of foods and other essential items to serve the needs of thousands of refugees living in the camp. The newly built shops have livened up the camp, with children playing around the stalls after school.
Ariet and other refugee families can now buy food using WFP cash transfers, which offer people choice and the ability to diversify their diets at a low cost, supporting the local economy in the process.
"Before these shops were built, we used to receive monthly rations -- now, I can choose what I want to buy and cook for my family and children," says Ariet.
Maize flour, rice and beans are the most popular foods that Ariet and her neighbours like to buy. Prior to this WFP initiative, refugees in this city had access to only sorghum, lentils, vegetable oil and salt.
WFP looks for innovative solutions that facilitate people's access to essential goods, while also spurring on the local market economy, kickstarting retail networks that support affected populations while giving those refugees a measure of normalcy in their lives.
Where possible, WFP provides cash instead of food assistance to empower people with the choice of buying what they want and strengthen the local economy.
"Now we have evidence that we can positively impact markets to help people have cheaper and better access to food, and we want to continue to do that across South Sudan," says David Thomas, Head of Innovation at WFP South Sudan.
This year, WFP plans to scale up the retail-in-a-box project to at least three new regions in Lakes, Warrap and Northern Bahr el Ghazal states in South Sudan. This will allow more people to receive cash from WFP and for them to choose how to prioritize their immediate needs.
With similar efforts, more parents like Ariet will be able to provide varied diets for their families, bringing a little taste of home back into their lives.
Supporting refugees with cash assistance is possible thanks to generous contributions from ECHO and the governments of Canada, Germany, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the US. - ReliefWeb
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