LAMU, Kenya, Jan. 7 (Xinhua) -- Kenyan police said Friday it has launched investigations into the killing of the four security officers after being ambushed by the bandits in the coastal Lamu region.
National Police Service Spokesperson Bruno Shioso said a team of security officers are also pursuing bandits who ambushed a security vehicle that was on patrol along Lamu-Garsen road at around 9:00 a.m. on Friday.
"Police officers who were onboard responded swiftly and managed to repulse the bandits, unfortunately there were casualties," Shioso said in a brief statement.
The scene on the Lamu-Garsen road is a secluded location which is also a renowned hotspot where militants have launched tens of attacks on security and civilian vehicles in the past.
A security officer in Lamu said police officers who were on a different vehicle fought back amid reports a number of the attackers believed to be al-Shabab militants were injured.
The bandits attacked the police vehicle using a rocket-propelled grenade in the same area where a senior government official was killed in 2018.
The security officer said the militants found it impossible to launch improvised explosive device (IED) attacks on security vehicles as has been their norm and thus resolved to the use of grenades.
Lamu County has been in the spotlight for some years now owing to increased scathing attacks by the militants that have left hordes of security officers and civilians dead. - Xinhua
In a media briefing held at Lake Naivasha Resort, IEBC Chairman Wafula Chebukati has shared that the Commission is determined to progressively actualize the right of Kenyans in Prisons and those living outside the country to participate in General Election. Regulation 34(2) of the Elections (Registration of Voters) Regulations 2012 provides that:
“A decision by the Commission to register Kenyan citizens residing outside Kenya or to conduct elections outside Kenya shall be based on the presence of Kenyan embassy, High Commission or Consulate.”
ECVR II will also augment the right to register as a voter for Kenyans living outside the country (diaspora) and prisoners. In addition to Kenyans in Burundi, Tanzania, Rwanda, Uganda and South Africa, which participated in 2017 General Election, the Commission will extend diaspora voter registration exercise to seven more countries namely, the United Kingdom, Canada, the United States, South Sudan, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Germany.
Key Dates
The Chairman shared that the voter registration for citizens residing outside Kenya will start on 21st and end on 6th February 2022. Voter registration will be conducted during the official working hours at the Kenyan Embassies and Consulates in respective countries.
The Commission will use Biometric Voter Registration (BVR) kits to capture voters’ details such as fingerprints, photo, name, passport number, Identity Card number, polling center and country of residence.
Those who will have traveled home
In countries with multiple registration centers (USA, Canada, UAE and Tanzania), there will be an additional BVR kit for registration of voters in those centers. The Commission will avail a BVR kit in Huduma Center in GPO, Nairobi, to enable voter registration services to eligible diaspora citizens who will have traveled to Kenya during this registration period.
Requirements to register as a voter
Kenyan citizens residing outside Kenya who apply for registration as a voter must fulfil the following conditions: produce evidence of citizenship which is a valid Kenyan passport, be of eighteen years of age and above, and present their identification document to the Registration Officer stationed at a designated registration center. However, Kenyans residing within the East African Community can use their Identity Card as proof of their citizenship.
During this ECVR II, a voter previously registered in Kenya but wishing to vote in Diaspora country by visiting their preferred registration center in the Diaspora to change their voting station. Similarly, those who had previously registered in a Diaspora but wish to vote in Kenya should visit their preferred constituency IEBC office in Kenya and change their voting station.
Diaspora only votes for Presidential candidate
It is important to note that a registered voter in diaspora country will only be voting for the Presidential elective position. IEBC Chairman Wafula Chebukati says that the Commission is planning and putting in measures to ensure free, fair, credible, verifiable, accountable, and transparent General Election.
In line with Section 8A of the Election Act 2011, IEBC will engage reputable professional firm 6 months before the date of the election to audit the register of voters for accuracy. The Professional firm will give their report within 30 days and the commission will thereafter implement the report.
IEBC has now cleared 82 registered political parties to participate in General Election 2022. It has also approved the nomination rules of the 82 political parties and they are now ready to participate.
On 19th January 2022 IEBC will publish in Kenya Gazette a notice of the General Election of the Office of President, Members of Parliament, and Members of County Assembly. This notice marks the commencement of the election period.
After the publication, Election Offences Act 2016 and Electoral Code of Conduct will be in force.The Electoral Code of Conduct will cover the Party Primaries and any breach of the code will be adjudicated by the IEBC Electoral Code of Conduct Enforcement Committee, which is created under the Election Act.
As per the provisions of the Elections Act, 2011, public officers who are keen to contest in the 2022 General Election should vacate office by 9th February 2022.
Speaking at the Bomas of Kenya, Nairobi on Friday, January 7, where the birthday celebrations were being held, the former Prime Minister explained to the crowd that graced his event why he chose to cut his birthday cake at exactly 11:47am.
Raila explained that 11:47am signifies the exact time he was born. He went on to reveal that immediately after he was born, he was given the name 'Onyango.'
ODM leader Raila Odinga dancing alongside Kieni MP Kanini Kega and a local artist during his birthday party at the Bomas of Kenya, Nairobi on Friday, January 7, 2022
RAILA ODINGA'S TWITTER PAGE
The African Union High Representative for Infrastructure Development noted that before his mother passed on, he only used that name (Onyango) when referring to him.
"Today, there is one person I would pretty much like to appreciate, unfortunately she is not here. That is my mother. She endured a lot of pain," Raila stated.
"I was born at exactly 11:47am, the time we have cut my birthday cake. That means my name is Onyango. My mother gave me that name and all while she was still alive, she used to call me Onyango to signify the time I was born. That is why I always tell men that you must respect all women."
He appreciated his mum's efforts in raising him to become an upright citizen with immense contribution to the country's fight for democracy.
Raila's cake was also symbolic in a way, being a 5-tier cake. The cake represented different important phases Kenya has undergone since gaining independence in 1963.
The first tier of the cake represented the late President Jomo Kenyatta's reign from 1964 to his death in 1978. The second tier represented late former President Daniel Arap Moi who ruled for 24 years from 1978 to 2002.
The third tier represented President Mwai Kibaki's reign from December 2002 until April 2013, then the fourth one represented President Uhuru Kenyatta's time in power.
The last represented his fifth stab at the presidency expressing his confidence to clinch the August 2022 presidential election.
In his speech, Raila expressed the confidence in his administration to transform the country in all sectors.
"I have been to many countries and what I am saying is possible. We can transform this country and make it an industrialized one. We must change the way we do things and how we approach development in our country," he stated.
He extended an invitation to the youth to join his campaign trail as he starts making inroads in search of votes.
"I want to work with the youths of this country, I want all youths to participate and be in Baba’s army. In 5 years’ time, I can promise you a different Kenya. I have been the Prime Minister of this country and I know where the money is."
The event was attended by top political figures, business people, and different groups sharing his political ideologies. Those who did not attend took to their social media platform to wish him a happy birthday including Deputy President William Ruto.
"Happy birthday Jakom. May you be blessed with many more," the second-in-command wrote.
ODM leader Raila Odinga arriving at the Bomas of Kenya for his birthday celebration on Friday January 7, 2022 Geoffrey Lutta, Kenyans.co.ke
Cases of child abuse are common and on the increase in Uganda, according to studies done by child rights activists and police
Police in Kyegegwa District are holding a 33-year-old man on murder charges after he allegedly beat his 7-year-old daughter to death.
Rwenzori west police spokesperson, Mr Vincent Twesige, said Bridget Kemigisa, a resident of Igunda B village, Kakabara town council was fatally beaten by her father after he returned home drunk on Thursday afternoon and found her sleeping in his bed.
“The suspect has been taking alcohol. On Thursday when he returned home from a bar, he found Bridget and her other two siblings sleeping in his bed and started beating them until she died. Her other siblings survived with injuries,” Mr Twesige said.
When the suspect realised that his daughter had died, he reportedly told neighbours that she had been sick for days and that she died of natural causes.
But upon examining the body, the neighbours discovered the girl had sustained several injuries.
Kemigisa’s siblings also revealed to the neighbours that they had been beaten by their father before their sister died. Residents contacted police detectives who arrested him upon interviewing Kemigisa’s siblings.
The suspect is said to have been staying with the children alone after he reportedly separated with their mother several months ago.
Cases of child abuse are common and on the increase in Uganda, according to studies done by child rights activists and police.
The Uganda violence against children survey report released in 2018 indicated at the time that three in four children in Uganda have experienced some form of violence. Among the three primary forms of violence surveyed were sexual, physical and emotional. One in three children have experienced at least two of these, the researchers said.
In November 2021, the Inspector General of Police Martin Okoth-Ochola condemned what he described as the increasing acts of aggravated child abuse and torture.
This was after several videos, showing children being battered and mistreated by parents, guardians and care takers were widely shared on social media.
“Our Children and Family Protection Unit, has continued to register cases where parents and guardians administer punishments in form of physical beatings, deprivation of sleep, fed on minimal amounts of food or even starved etc. As a result this worsens the relationship between the child victim and the parent, guardian or caretaker,” police spokesperson, Mr Fred Enanga said at the time. By Alex Ashaba, Daily Momitor
Stanbic bank has earmarked Shs 600 billion in school fees loan offers to help financially stressed parents return their children to school.
In his New Year address last week, President Museveni authorised schools to re-open next week on January 10. Now in response, Stanbic bank says it’s moving to assist the financially-indebted school owners and the education sector in general by coming up with booster plans for the schools.
The bank will write off accumulated interest on loans owed by indebted private schools, officials announced during a press conference on Wednesday in Kampala.
Under the discounted booster finance, schools are able to borrow up to Shs 500 million in collateral-free (unsecured) loans to prepare their institutions for reopening. Parents can also access up to Shs 250 million in unsecured loans processed digitally and dispersed within five minutes at zero processing fee.
Furthermore, the bank revealed that its decision to waive all 2021 unpaid accumulated interest on loans to privately owned schools is a proactive initiative based on the understanding that schools have not been earning and that they need to be supported to regain their ability to settle their liabilities.
Speaking at the press conference, the bank’s chief executive officer Anne Juuko said the "bold decision by management even in the face of uncertainty, speaks to our commitment to walk the talk of our business purpose, which is that we drive Uganda’s growth, as such, we have to exercise our corporate responsibility to the country’s education sector."
Dr Kendrace Turyagenda, the director of education standards in the ministry of Education and Sports lauded Stanbic's corporate leadership and urged other players in the financial sector to emulate them. She noted that the successful reopening of schools will require all stakeholders to play their part.
Uganda’s education sector has more than 28,000 schools, of which 80% are privately-owned. - Moses Mugalu, The Observer
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