Nairobi: On Saturday June 6, 2025, prominent CHADEMA member and former Arusha MP Godbless Lema attempted to cross into Kenya for a scheduled medical appointment in Nairobi. Instead, he was detained for over four hours at the Namanga One Stop Border Post. Immigration officers confiscated his passport and ordered him to return to Arusha, instructing him to report to the Dodoma immigration headquarters for further “clarification”.

Lema, who suffers from severe pain and had an appointment with a Nairobi specialist, protested that he faced no charges or formal restrictions under Tanzanian law. “Nimezuiliwa kinyume na utaratibu wa sheria na immigration governing Order, sina kesi yoyote mahakamani wala hakuna malalamiko yoyote dhidi yangu jeshi la polisi … Nimenyimwa haki ya kusafiri na zaidi kupata matibabu Nairobi bila sababu ya msingi” (“I’ve been blocked contrary to legal and immigration procedures, with no court case or police complaint against me … I am denied the right to travel and access treatment in Nairobi without a valid reason.”).

CHADEMA decried the move as a targeted political feud, citing orders “from above” to oppress dissent. The Tanzania Immigration Service defended its action as routine, claiming Lema was merely “flagged” for identity verification. Rights observers warn that such restrictions on movement undermine civic space ahead of the October general elections and threaten fundamental freedoms. 

The incident exacerbates diplomatic strains between Tanzania and Kenya, where lawmakers and activists have recently faced similar blocks and deportations. Observers caution that obstructing an opposition figure’s urgent medical travel signals deeper encroachments on human rights and sets a dangerous precedent within the East African Community. By Vincent Olando KDRTV

Nations worldwide have been urged to embrace dialogue as a means of urgently addressing escalating global conflicts. The call was made on Thursday during preparations for the first International Day for Dialogue Among Civilizations, held at the United Nations Office in Nairobi (UNON).  

UN Secretary-General, António Guterres, in a message delivered by Zainab Hawa Bangura, Under-Secretary-General and Director-General of UNON, expressed concerns over growing conflicts, saying the mission to find peace "is more urgent than ever."

"Around the world, we hear rising voices of intolerance and xenophobia, amplified by online misinformation and hate speech. In our fractured world, dialogue is not optional – it is essential for building bridges of understanding and trust," said Mr Guterres.  

He urged the organisation to promote dialogue, the fundamental conviction on which its establishment was anchored. 

"Where dialogue is missing, ignorance fills the void. So, too, is the work of the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations, reinforced by the global platform for dialogue that it has created over the past two decades," he said. 

International Day for Dialogue Among Civilizations was adopted to be celebrated on June 10, every year, by the UN General Assembly during its 78th sitting.   

It was a proposal by China as an avenue to rally countries to resolve challenges through consensus. 

This year's celebrations, according to the organisers, are expected to be held at the UN Headquarters in New York, with a series of similar events also slated to take place in Nairobi, Geneva, Vienna, Rome, Bangkok, among many other countries.  

While describing dialogue as "only a project for the future," Permanent Representative of Kenya to the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP), Ababu Namwamba, rallied leaders to embrace the Kenyan harambee (togetherness) in the face of challenges. 

"I find a particularly striking manifestation of this truth in the African spirit of Ubuntu. Ubuntu means, I am because we are, or humanity because of us, meaning I choose myself and my humanity because of you and your humanity," he said. 

He added: "The future is only a project of dialogue and open discussion, as people foster agreement with society, then achieve a more just society. So, it is part of the wisdom, born in sorrow, marching forward." 

He observed that the world is currently confronted with several challenges, including threats of war, epidemics, nuclear proliferation, and climate change, that need commitment, even as he lauded the UN for the role it has played in advocating for peace.

Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China to Kenya, Guo Haiyan, implored countries to embrace cultural exchanges to transcend complex challenges that the world is grappling with. 

"In the face of such a turbulent world with increasing challenges, we need more dialogues among flourishing civilizations than ever before to gain mutual understanding. To build a global community of shared future for mankind, each civilization should pursue diversity and seek common ground while preserving differences," she said.

At the same time, she urged world leaders to emulate China's Global Civilization Initiative (GCI), a programme that she says has successfully helped them advocates respect for diversity of civilizations, the common values of humanity, and the robust importance of inheritance and innovation of civilizations, and robust people-to-people exchanges and cooperation.

Ms. Haiyan also believes that upholding inclusiveness to beat superiority would also contribute to harmonious coexistence among nations, while urging them to promote mutual learning to transcend clashes.

"With the dregs of civilization superiority theory resurfacing, some powers, in the name of culture, attempt to provoke confrontation and cultural hegemony," she stated. By Okumu Modachi , The Standard

The government has suffered a major setback after the High Court suspended a directive by Health Cabinet Secretary (CS) Aden Duale that had halted all licenses and import clearances for the manufacture, importation, distribution, or sale of nicotine and related products.

Justice Bahati Mwamuye, on Thursday, issued a conservatory order staying the CS’s decision made on May 31, pending the determination of a case filed by Susan Awino, who has termed the move illegal, null, and void, arguing it usurps the powers of the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) Commissioner-General.

She further argues that neither the CS nor the Kenya Tobacco Control Board has the authority to license or cancel importation clearances for nicotine or related products. 

“Pending the hearing and determination of the petition herein, a conservatory order be and is hereby issued staying the 2nd Respondent’s (Duale’s) impugned decision made on or about May 31, 2025, suspending all existing licenses and import clearances relating to the manufacture, importation, distribution, sale, or promotion of nicotine and related products and requiring all previously licensed persons and entities to re-apply for the same,” ruled Justice Mwamuye.

While issuing the directive, CS Duale required all previously licensed persons and entities to re-apply for licenses within 21 days, subject to full compliance.

Awino, describing herself as a public-spirited citizen, told the court that the CS’s blanket suspension of licenses and importation clearances was issued without prior and adequate notice to affected dealers or the public. 

She argued that it violated Section 4 of the Fair Administrative Action Act, 2015, which requires that those affected by an administrative decision be allowed to be heard.

“This rash decision by CS Duale to suspend licenses and clearances previously issued to dealers of nicotine and related products is ultra vires, illegal, and blatantly violates the rule of law under Article 10 of the Constitution, and the right to fair administrative action under Article 47,” Awino stated.

She added that the Ministry failed to consider the cost implications of obtaining licenses and clearances, thus burdening dealers and the public with unnecessary expenses and infringing upon their economic rights under Article 43 of the Constitution.

“To suspend the licenses and importation clearances of dealers in nicotine or related products is arbitrary, unreasonable, and not proportionate to the rights of the affected dealers,” she said.

“The declaration made by the minister purporting to cancel licenses held by dealers in tobacco products contravenes the Bill of Rights as well as the Constitution of Kenya, 2010. It is inconsistent with constitutional dictates and is therefore null and void to the extent of that inconsistency,” the petition reads. 

Awino also told the court that, following CS Duale’s declaration, the Kenya Tobacco Control Board and other enforcement agencies had moved swiftly to implement the directive, throwing the sector into turmoil and undermining the legitimate expectations of both dealers and users of nicotine products in Kenya.

“Many importers, manufacturers, retailers, and distributors risk being driven out of business unless this matter is certified urgent and heard on a priority basis. If the declaration is not quashed, the adjudicatory authority of this Honourable Court will be rendered an academic exercise. Constitutional values will be violated, and dealers, users, and the general public will suffer immense violations of their rights,” she urged the court.

She also submitted that the suspension of licenses issued under Section 15 of the Excise Duty Act, 2024, falls under the mandate of the KRA Commissioner-General as per Section 20 of the same Act.

“Thus, the purported suspension of the licenses and import clearances by the Respondent is a usurpation of the powers of the Commissioner-General and therefore ultra vires, illegal, null, and void,” Awino stated.

Awino also pointed out that in 2022, the Ministry of Health, through the board, reviewed samples of electronic cigarettes in line with the Tobacco Control Act and Tobacco Control Regulations, 2014.

These products, she said, were found to be compliant with packaging and labelling requirements and were cleared for importation and sale in Kenya.

CS Duale issued the suspension directive on May 21, 2025, while attending World No Tobacco Day celebrations at Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital (MTRH) in Eldoret.

Justice Mwamuye has directed the Ministry of Health, the Kenya Tobacco Control Board, and the Attorney General to file their responses by June 23.

The matter will be mentioned on July 3 for further directions. By Nancy Gitonga | The Standard