Reject Online Issue 11

ISSUE 011, February 1-15, 2010

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Unfiltered, uninhibited…. just the gruesome truth

February 1-15, 2010

ISSUE 011

A bimonthly on-line newspaper by the Media Diversity Centre, a project of African Woman and Child Feature Service

Dead morgue resurrects

A view of the Mwingi District Hospital. The hospital’s mortuary coolers that collapsed three years ago were repaired a fortnight ago after area residents protested over lack of action. Inset: Vice-President Kalonzo Musyoka uses a mask to cover his nose before taking a tour of the Mortuary. Pictures: Musembi Nzengu

By Musembi Nzengu Derrick Maingi had to visit three hospitals to have the body of his dead wife preserved. The reason being that for three years, the mortuary to the hospital near his home had broken down and no action had been taken.

Maingi is not alone. He is among the hundreds of Mwingi residents who have endured long trips of walking with the dead. The hospital’s mortuary broke down in 2006 and for three years area residents suffered with no place to preserve bodies.

Miles away This sad state of affairs left many suffering and majority ended up burying almost decomposing bodies. Those who had money transported the bodies to other hospitals as far away as 100 kilometres as they made burial arrangements. Those who didn’t have the money suffered as they ended up taking home almost decomposed bodies.

Mr Derrick Maingi who works as a sentry with the Mwingi based German Agro-

Action, recalls the rough time he went through when his wife died in October, last year.

“It was not easy to get the body moved to a mortuary near home since the cooler at the Mwingi District Hospital mortuary had broken down. I had to hire a vehicle to take the body to Migwani Sub-district Hospital morgue in the neighbouring Mwingi West District but unfortunately it was full,” Maingi recalls. He adds: “I was forced to go to Muthale Mission Hospital, 40 kilometres away to have the body preserved.”

Maingi had to incur the cost of hiring a vehicle to collect his wife’s body and transport it through Mwingi town to his home in Nzeini, Kyuso District, a distance of about 100 Kilometres.

“If the mortuary at Mwingi Hospital was in working condition, the cost of transpor-

tation and preservation would have been cheaper,” says Maingi.

Visitors to the hospital have had to persevere a suffocating stench from the mortuary. A visit by Vice-President Kalonzo Musyoka prompted action to be taken on this sad state of affairs.

Musyoka, who also had to endure the nauseating stench, said action must be taken to make the facility fully operational. Musyoka who is the MP for Mwingi North, visited the hospital after his Mwingi South counterpart David Musila had been there.

The visit by the two politicians was prompted after they got wind that area residents were organising a protest march over their leaders’ inaction on the mortuary.

The V-P admitted his visit was organised after he got wind that residents of Mwingi

Visitors to the hospital have had to persevere a suffocating stench from the mortuary.

town and the outlying areas were planning a demonstration to protest against his failure to have the mortuary cooler repaired undertaken.

The hospital medical administrator, Dr Daisy Ruto, had a rough time trying to explain the strong stench that could be felt a considerable distance from the hospital.

While Musila, allegedly left in a huff, with a warning that unless the mortuary was repaired the hospital administrator would find herself in trouble, Musyoka’s visit was more thorough and included a brave tour of the morgue.

Preservation at a high cost He regretted that the residents have had to spend huge sums of money to take the remains of their loved ones to other hospitals as far away as Matuu and Thika for preservation at a high cost.

Inside the mortuary, Musyoka was shown the cooling chambers whose systems had broken down and consequently contributing to the bad smell.

Continued on page 2

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ISSUE 011, February 1-15, 2010

Unfiltered, uninhibited…. just the gruesome truth

Court repatriates Somalia nationals

By Ryan Mathenge A Thika court recently ordered the deportation of 16 Somali nationals after they admitted to being in Kenya illegally.

The 16 in a group of 22 had appeared before Senior Resident Magistrate, Ms Liz Gicheha. Thirteen others were required to pay a fine of KSh10,000 each or be imprisoned for three months before being repatriated to their country of origin.

Among the 16 were three minors aged between 12 and 15, who were spared both fine and prison term. Speaking through an interpreter, five suspected aliens, two of whom were minors said they had documents allowing them to be in Kenya.

They were released on a bond of KSh100,000 each with sureties of similar amount. Their case will be heard on March 18.

The remaining suspect, also a minor, is yet to have charges read against him

By Ryan Mathenge

Somalia immigrants get off a prison lorry to attend court proceeding. They were arrested for being in Kenya illegally.

as the charge sheet was not ready. The Somali nationals had been charged with being in the country unlawfully on January 18, and of failing to register as aliens.

They were all found at Makongeni Estate in Thika town.

The immigrants were arrested during a police crackdown on illegal aliens.

Kenya is ready for nuclear energy

By Charles Njeru The government has identified construction sites for a nuclear power plant — potentially the first on the continent outside of South Africa.

Mr Rolex Kirui, a senior engineer with the Kenya government, said one site had been identified at the coast and construction is scheduled to begin once an ongoing environmental study is completed.

Kirui said a second potential site has been identified in western Kenya, bordering Lake Victoria.

Energy minister, Mr Kiraitu Murungi, first announced plans for the plant’s construction in October, last year. Murungi said the country faces a shortage of 3,000

megawatts of electricity. Kenya generates just 1,100 megawatts of electricity per year and its electricity production is ranked 22nd in Africa.

“With nuclear energy there is potential to generate four times that amount or even more,” said the minister.

Second to South Africa South Africa is the only African nation to have a fully operational nuclear power plant. Egypt and Nigeria are in the process of planning but Kenya is the first to both identify a site and undergo an environmental study.

Director of Nuclear Science and Technology at the University of Nairobi,

Mr David Maina, said the project will cost an estimated KSh80 billion (US$1 billion).

But it will take at least five years before the plant is operational, as extensive inspection must be carried out by authorities such as the Radiation Protection Board and the National Environmental Management Authority.

“Construction could begin as early as September, this year, once the feasibility study is complete,” said Maina.

According to Kirui, the plant could act as a model for other African countries to solve their own electricity problems. He is also confident that the plant will not be harmful to the environment, since all necessary safety measures will be taken.

Relief as mortuary is repaired after three years From page 1

Ruto explained that the heavy stench emanated from the 13 unclaimed bodies placed outside the cold rooms.

She informed the VP that the bodies were not embalmed and their disposal awaited court orders.

An Assistant Director for Medical Services, Dr Simon Mueke, who was in the tour party said once the unclaimed bodies were removed the nauseating smell would be gone.

The visits to the mortuary by the two legislators took place in the second half of last December. And only weeks after their visit, the morgue had been repaired by the end of the first week of January at a cost of KSh700,000.

Mueke said about KSh10 million was needed to ensure that Mwingi Hospital had a modern mortuary, to which the V-P

Gang on a robbery mission arrested

said the amount was affordable and would be made available.

Musyoka, however, ordered that the management first repairs the mortuary’s cooling system to ensure bodies do not rot.

The V-P noted that there was need for the Medical Services Ministry to explore possibilities of having mortuaries and maternity wings in the new districts that were recently hived off from the larger Mwingi District to ease congestion.

The indulgence of the two legislators was welcomed by the residents who for three years have had to dig deeper into their pockets to finance the preservation of their kin’s bodies as they await internment.

Dr Wathe Nzau, a veterinarian in Mwingi who lost a relative last August re-

calls how the family had to have her body preserved at a mortuary in Thika town, almost 100 kilometres away.

A Mwingi businessman, Mr Simon Ngui Mbuvi had no kind words for Musyoka and Musila arguing that the residents had suffered for three years as a result of being ignored.

“I am lucky that I have the money and in two cases I have had to take bodies to mortuaries outside Mwingi but those who cannot afford such an expense have ended up with rotting bodies,” he said.

He said the MPs should have taken money from the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) to repair the morgue.

“They dragged their feet knowing pretty well bodies of their constituents were decaying at the collapsed mortuary. They were sleeping on the job,” charged Mbuvi.

A four-man gang suspected to behind a syndicate of abductions, committing robbery with violence while pretending to be police officers parts of Central, Nairobi and Eastern provinces has been arrested.

A former administration police officer is said to be the gang’s leader and has been helping in leaking security information.

The gang was seized in Kitale town when on a mission to rob traders who do not comply with the tax regulations by purporting they were police officers attached to Kenya Revenue Authority.

Detectives from Murang’a led by DCIO Mr Lenny Kisaka also recovered sets of handcuffs, fake four police identity cards, a walkie talkie and nine mobile phones.

Murang’a OCPD Mr Gasper Kilonzo Makau termed the operation successful saying the gang has in the past one month caused terror in the region by abducting its victims and robbing them of their money.

“They are wanted for robberies committed in Embu, Nyeri and Kirinyaga districts,” said Makau.

He said the four have been purporting to be police officers seconded to Kenya Revenue Authority, Kenya Bureau of Standards and Flying Squad officers pursuing criminals.

In Murang’a, they are wanted for three abduction incidents and a number of armed robberies.

Fake currencies Meanwhile, in Murang’a South District, two suspects, a man and a woman were arrested after a carjacking victim informed the police he had spotted the vehicle that was involved in robbing him.

A Makuyu councillor who spotted the vehicle along the Kenol-Sagana highway notified the police who swung into action and found in the car fake currency notes amounting to millions of shillings.

The money in KSh1,000 denominations valued at KSh2.1 million and $36,000 was found neatly packed in the Toyota Prado suspected to belong to a police officer based at Kasarani Police Station.

They were also in possession of a pistol with ten rounds of ammunitions. Police also recovered fake admission letters purporting the bearers to have direct entry to Armed Forces Training School in March.

Central PPO John Mbijiwe said the letters will help to dig deeper to establish their source to save civil servants from being accused.

“There are many parents who have been conned millions of shillings by people pretending they can get direct entry without going through the recruitment process,” said Mbijiwe.

ISSUE 011, February 1-15, 2010

Unfiltered, uninhibited…. just the gruesome truth

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An island of juicy mangoes

By Paul Kimanzi Just mention the word Ukambani and images of drought and starvation flash through the minds of many people.

However, Mr Kimanzi Munyithya, a resident of the desolate Mwingi District sees it differently. The 53-year-old farmer is a symbol of hope to millions in the drought-ravaged Ukambani where vagaries of the weather have driven the majority to the brink of despair.

With Munyithya things are different and he is not suffering like most of his neighbours in Kivou, Mwingi District.

He has refused to give in to the perennial drought and has instead decided to invest in agriculture even in the face of possible failure.

The father of five has an interesting story that dates back to 1973 when he was a Standard Three pupil. “I would go hungry as a little boy and when I begged for mangoes from our neighbours, they would selectively pick the raw bitter ones to give me to eat,” recalls Munyithya. He adds: “Since I had no option, I ate all the mangoes.”

After suffering the embarrassment of being a habitual beggar, young Munyithya decided enough was enough and resolved he would plant his own mango trees. He started with three.

“I was very young then. School was eight kilometres away from home. I would walk all that distance but still managed to irrigate my mango trees whenever I returned home from school,” he says.

Fruits of his labour Matters were not helped by the fact that the river where he got the water for the irrigation was far. But the industrious boy persevered the challenge, believing that one day he would enjoy the fruits of his labour.

He did not have to wait for long. Five years later, his trees began fruiting giving him the results he had longed for in many years. Hard work and enthusiasm in agriculture drove Munyithya to maize and bean production in the 1980s despite the inadequate rainfall in the region. But with persistence and hard work, success came his way.

“I have been relying heavily on maize and beans to sustain my family but the rains have let me down,” he explains.

Undeterred by vagaries of the weather, the budding farmer ventured out of the box that constrains many a farmer. He chose to ignore over-reliance on rainfall and embarked on big-time irrigation of grafted mango trees in 1990.

The first lot of grafted mango trees did not do well, forcing him to try out various other varieties. His breakthrough came with the onset of the millennium in 2000 after a study tour in Makueni District.

Here he met a retired teacher with a successful grafted mango production business that was dependent on irrigation. The fruit was sold to a village market with the

A farmer by all means, Mr Kimanzi Munyithya attends to the mango trees in his farm.

He has excelled in farming in the dry Ukambani region. Picture: Paul Kimanzi

surplus going to neighbours. The lessons he acquired from the retired teacher have seen him go beyond his expectations to become a prominent producer of the fruit in his district and beyond for he now exports mangoes abroad.

He partly attributes this to a rare stroke of fortune when a local television station that had heard of his success story carried a documentary on his agri-business early this year, giving him the exposure many a commercial farmer would die for.

Watching him narrate how VIPs have been visiting his home near Mwingi town, one is left with great admiration for his enthusiasm and drive for excellence in his chosen trade.

The exposure brought to his farm visitors from eight different countries. “One came from Australia, another from US, Germany, India and many other European countries,” he says, adding a representative from the Word Bank called him ‘a hero in Ukambani’.

Among the local VIPs who have visited his farm include the Vice President and area Member of Parliament, Mr Kalonzo Musyoka, who reportedly applauded his

efforts. After going round his farm, the V-P told him“Wii mbee wakwa (you are ahead of me)”, meaning that he too had ventured into the grafted mango business but was nowhere as successful.

“He curiously asked me where I got the idea from and how I managed that number of trees.”

Munyithya is a man not to shy away from diversifying. He tried his hand on cattle trade as he toyed with the idea of buying a couple of donkeys he would use in ferrying water to his mango farm for irrigation. The extra income would also help meet his labour costs.

“My neighbours thought I was flogging a dead horse. Some despised me saying such agriculture is only applicable in Central Province and not in the dry lands of Ukambani,” he says.

Undeterred by the negative attitudes, Munyithya continued expanding the mango acreage and currently has 3,000 grafted trees.

“I remember I started with only three but now I have over 3,000 mango trees of different species,” he says.

His accounts show 2007 as his best

Undeterred by vagaries of the weather, the budding farmer ventured out of the box that constrains many a farmer. He chose to ignore over-reliance on rainfall and embarked on big-time irrigation of grafted mango trees in 1990.

year with sales amounting to KSh666,848.

Thanks to the hordes of business men and women who flock to his farm to buy the juicy fruit.

He has been able to cater for his family including educating his children with profits from mango sales. Two of his children are students in local universities, two in high school and the last born in primary school. He also pays fees for three orphans, one of whom attends Strathmore University, and the other two are in a middle-level college and high school.

Drought is still playing But all is not rosy for Munyithya. The long drought that is still playing out in most of Eastern Province continues to ravage the region, with Ukambani being the worst hit.

As the short rainy season selectively manifests itself in parts of the country, it’s Munyithya’s hope and prayer that it comes to Mwingi District in the coming few days. The donkeys he uses to ferry water for irrigation have died as many of his mango trees wither under the baking sun.

Even then, his spirit remains unbroken, and he dreams for the day when he will help transform the entire Mwingi District into a ‘land of fruits’, especially once he attains the capacity to dam water from the river and pump into his farm.

“I have a vision for Ukambani but the drawback is water,” he laments.

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ISSUE 011, February 1-15, 2010

Unfiltered, uninhibited…. just the gruesome truth

Corruption cause Illegal charcoal impounded in Kitui of unemployment,

By Muasya Charles says World Bank official

By Faith Muiruri Kenyan youth have been advised to embark on aggressive campaigns geared towards eliminating impunity and the culture of rewarding corrupt individuals.

World Bank Vice President, Ms Obiageli Ezekwesili said bad leadership characterised by impunity and corruption was to blame for the rising cases of unemployment and poverty among youth in most Africa countries.

She said corruption has become entrenched in almost all sectors of the economy and that most leaders have looted public coffers despite the negative spirals registered in their economies.

The World Bank Vice President said this when she addressed students at the University of Nairobi in a forum dubbed “Providing Equal Opportunities for the Youth”. Ezekwesili said Kenya should consider introducing employment policies that favour and address investment in education and training with a bias towards entrepreneurial skills.

“Although the government’s policies appear to favour investment in education and training, this investment has not translated to job creation due to glaring gaps between curriculum and specific needs in the job market,” she explained.

She observed that there is a scenario playing around where youth in urban areas are hunting for jobs alongside thousands of others from the same schools and institutions while rural youth are flooding into the cities looking for work, and this can only be described as tragic.

She further challenged governments to put in place measures that promote private sector investments.

About four hundred and forty two bags of charcoal have been forfeited to the state after they were impounded by the Kenya Forestry Service in Kitui.

Kitui Resident Magistrate, Mr Tim Mwangi also sentenced seven people to six months imprisonment or a fine of KSh25,000 for transporting charcoal without a valid permit from the Kenya Forestry Service.

Production and transportation of charcoal in the region was banned last year.

The seven are Christopher Tito, Peter Muigai, John Njuguna, Christine Peter, Philiup Kamau, Peter Muinde and John Mwangi.

They were charged that between January 8-9, this year, they were found along Kitui–Machakos Road transporting char-

coal in three lorries without a permit. The incident occurred in Kaminza area. They all pleaded guilty but could not pay the fine and were jailed.

Meanwhile, Kitui District Forest Officer, Mr Joseph Njigoya said the ban on production and transportation of charcoal imposed in the region last year was still in force.

The officer said despite the ban, charcoal merchants were still ferrying the commodity out of the region, especially from the southern areas where environmental degradation was worrying.

The most affected area is South Kitui Game Reserve that has been invaded by people who fell trees for charcoal and timber. The highly valued indigenous tree locally known as mukau (melia volkensii) is particularly targeted for its hardwood that makes good charcoal.

Impounded charcoal outside the law courts in Kitui. Charcoal burning has been banned in the area.

Mass transfer of teachers challenged The Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) Kitui branch executive secretary, Mr Joseph Mwanzia Makuthu, is furious at the mass transfers of local primary and secondary schools’ head teachers.

Makuthu accused the District Education Officer, Mr Boniventure S. Wasikoyo of being responsible for the transfer of more

than 50 head teachers, most of them from secondary schools. “We as the Union and as Kitui teachers will never allow that. I am out to fight for the teachers,” warned Mr Makuthu. He was addressing mourners at the burial of 52-year-old Juma Kitheka, who was laid to rest at Kithama village, Mutune sub-location, Kitui District.

More courts, magistrates needed to decongest jails, says prisons’ commissioner

By Hussein Uran

The government has plans to decongest prisons by expanding the existing ones and relocating prisoners to institutions that are not crowded.

The Commissioner for Prisons, Mr Isaiah Osugo, said prisons are currently holding a surplus of 34,000 inmates since the capacity for the existing facilities was for 16,000 people, not the over 50,000 persons now squashed in the cells.

Osugo disclosed that facilities in major towns would be expanded to accommodate more prisoners since varied crimes were committed in urban centres, hence the higher number of inmates.

The prisons boss made the remarks at Isiolo GK Prison where he recently

opened a new prisoners’ building. Isiolo Prison operates under capacity and will soon be hosting prisoners from the extremely congested prisons.

Osugo said the Prisons Department is petitioning the government to establish more courts and have pending cases dealt with fast to help ease congestion.

Delayed cases He attributed the crowding to delayed court hearings, leading to jail detentions of many accused persons. He said this could be eased through increased courts, magistrates and judges.

“Towards this end, there is need for amendment of relevant laws,” said Osugo.

He added: “In administering justice, sus-

pects must not all be remanded or jailed.

Some can be handed affordable fines or be committed to extra-mural jail.”

The Prisons’ Commissioner also hinted that the government will establish schools, colleges and tertiary institutions to offer learning opportunities for prisoners and prison officers to advance their careers.

He challenged prisoners to take advantage of learning opportunities in prisons to advance their academic careers alongside technical courses available to improve skills that would help them upon being released from prison.

Osugo also assured prisoners who have appealed against their sentences of the government’s commitment to hastening the process to ensure they received justice.

MP wants schools used as centres for development

By Faith Muiruri All learning institutions, including secondary and primary schools, have been tipped as the most viable entities in the realisation of Vision 2030.

Yatta Member of Parliament Mr Charles Kilonzo said in order to address the issue of food security, learning institutions should be used as central points where techniques that embrace modern farming methods are imparted to the communities.

The MP urged schools to explore possibilities of liaising with institutions that offer such services and cited Amiran Kenya which was currently implementing a similar project in 15 schools within his constituency. Amiran Kenya has been providing agricultural education and installing farmers’ kits in various schools within the constituency in a venture that is jointly being undertaken with the local Constituency Development Fund.

The MP who is opposed to the current scenario where universities are the only entities allowed to partake such tasks, said most farmers cannot access institutions of higher learning owing to the long distance involved and the fact that they are few in number.

“Secondary schools are better placed to undertake such ventures as they are closer to the people than any other institution,” reiterated Kilonzo.

He said this will also impact positively on students in targeted schools since they will be able to relate practically with what is taught in class and further replicate the ideas in their respective homes.

Demonstration centres Speaking in Yatta after commissioning of the project to install 30 greenhouses in 15 schools in the area, the MP said these will also be used as demonstration centres for farmers. Started six months ago, the project is earmarked to have a tremendous effect on the lives of people within the constituency.

According to Ms Pauline Kavita, a representative of Amiran Kenya, the organisation is committed to giving to people value of their investments.

She said the approach taken by Kilonzo will help curb rural-urban migration by reducing the number of youth running into urban centres in search of job opportunities as many of them will now be involved in agriculture.

Last year, a group of MPs, CDF chairpersons and committees drawn from over 50 constituencies joined Amiran Kenya at a Nairobi hotel to familiarise themselves with the farmers’ kit with the possibility of introducing modern agricultural methods to their constituencies.

ISSUE 011, February 1-15, 2010

Unfiltered, uninhibited…. just the gruesome truth

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Hundreds of guns surrendered in arms mop up

By Hussein Salesa A massive security operation to mop up illegal fire arms in pastoral communities has started countrywide.

Minister for Internal Security and Provincial Administration, Prof George Saitoti extended the amnesty to surrender illegal firearms after herders responded well to the exercise.

Saitoti said the herders had so far surrendered more than 1,000 illegal firearms and 10,000 ammunitions in the last one month.

The operation brought together 1,200 security officers from the General Service Unit (GSU) together with Administration and regular police in Isiolo town.

Senior politicians and businessmen in Isiolo also recorded statements following a resurgence of insecurity in the last 10 months. Hundreds of livestock herders across the Upper Eastern and Rift Valley provinces also turned up in large numbers to hand in the firearms.

Isiolo police boss, Mr Augustine Thumbi said security officers through the village elders also recovered a large number of camels and cattle, earlier stolen and taken to the neighbouring Samburu East District by bandits in the recent attacks.

Police also managed to arrest some of the most wanted bandits who are said to have been behind the Isiolo-Moyale and Garba-Tulla road attacks that have since claimed over 40 lives in the last four months. The bandits were arrested in Samburu East District while others were arrested at Ngaremara and Kambi Garba in Isiolo District.

The government has also put in place stringent security measures, including us-

Farmers reject Sacco board

By Ryan Mathenge The management committee of the troubled Thanga-ini Cooperative Society in Murang’a District has been ousted after members passed a vote of no confidence in their leadership.

About 5,000 farmers passed a vote of no confidence on the management and the government will be probing activities of the Society following claims of massive misappropriation of funds.

Murang’a South District Cooperative Officer, Mr Phillip Miano, had a rough time controlling the meeting that turned chaotic after farmers went almost physical.

They passed a vote of no confidence as the members of the management committee were forcefully ejected from their seats by irate farmers.

Miano, however, said the government has placed the Society under inquiry following numerous complaints raised by farmers against the management committee in connection with misappropriation of funds.

Minister for Internal Security, Prof George Saitoti receives one of the guns that was surrendered in Isiolo after government issued amnesty to those holding illegal arms.

ing the Anti-Stock Theft Unit to recover stolen livestock and monitor movement of bandits in the region.

Thumbi said the joint operation would ensure that all illegal fire arms and livestock stolen from Isiolo and Meru districts were recovered.

The decision to launch the operation was reached after compiling a list of livestock stolen and lives lost from the two districts after armed raiders reigned terror on the neighbouring communities.

He said more than 3,000 heads of cattle and 5,000 goats have been lost to Samburu morans (warriors) following several raids in the last two years.

Thumbi said at least five people have been arraigned in court following the last incident in which 11 people were shot dead near Isiolo by soldiers from the 78th Tank battalion.

Isiolo North Member of Parliament, Dr Mohamed Kuti commended the police for the operation and urged them to step

up measures to avert further attacks. He said hundreds of livestock have been lost to bandits and called on the police to be on the lookout especially at this time when the region is receiving rainfall.

Kuti who is also the Minister for Livestock Development, urged the communities in Isiolo to co-exist peacefully. He said dialogue was the only way out and challenged the peace committees to work out modalities that would help reconcile warring communities in the region.

New cereal storage project launched

By Muasya Charles The Ministry of Agriculture has designed decentralised cereal banks to guarantee food security in the drought-prone Ukambani region.

The project will be preceded by an informal ban on the sale of farm produce by farmers. Agriculture Permanent Secretary, Dr Romano Kiome said the bumper harvest expected in the region is encouraging and ways should be found to sustain food security where famine has been severe.

“Farmers will be allowed to use food storage facilities at the local National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB) stores to

avoid instances of aflatoxin contamination that is common in the area,” said the PS. Kiome said this when he unveiled the project at a crop performance assessment session in Kitui. He said plans are also underway to establish community-based food storage at village level.

He said an integrated plan involving ministries of Public Health and Agriculture, is being formulated to provide proper food storage devoid of aflatoxin contamination.

“Moisture metres will also be availed at the centres to ensure compliance with the recommended storage parameters,” said Kiome.

As an incentive to farmers willing to store their grains at the NCPB stores, free chemicals will be given to discourage farmers who might be tempted to sell the produce at low prices.

The PS advised Agricultural Extension Officers to educate farmers on the need to step up cultivation of traditional food crops, as it was the only way to counter perennial food scarcity in the region.

Area District Commissioner, Mr Joshua Chepcheng’ noted that 143 tonnes of seeds distributed at the onset of the ongoing rains, contributed greatly to the expected bumper harvest.

Ignorance to blame for environmental degradation

By BONIFACE MULU Ignorance is to blame for the wanton destruction of the environment in the expansive semi-arid Kitui District.

Nominated Councillor Stephen Kiluu Wambua called on residents in the district and the Ukambani region in general to take environmental protection seriously if they cared about the area’s future development.

Wambua expressed concern at the rate at which forests and the general environment had been destroyed in the region.

He cited the perennial failure of rainfall and prolonged drought in the region as a direct consequence of environmental degradation.

The civic leader, who is a forester by profession, also urged local residents to fully appreciate the importance, value

and meaning of education by according it greater support than previously.

The councillor said no country in the world can progress without having well educated people. He was speaking at a developmental meeting at the grounds of the proposed Malatani Primary School that was carved from Kithumula Primary School. Wanbua donated 25 bags of cement to start the construction work.

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ISSUE 011, February 1-15, 2010

Unfiltered, uninhibited…. just the gruesome truth

Lone eaglet treads where others dread Fighting retrogressive culture, Josephine Kulea defends Samburu’s oppressed

By Asha Muktar She has made it her preoccupation to free young girls from the bondage of retrogressive cultural practices that deny them their fundamental rights.

For this, she has paid dearly for going against the grain and defying her community’s culture and traditions to become the saviour to girls who have suffered in silence.

As a young girl, Ms Josephine Kulea, now 27, nursed ambitious dreams. She turned them into reality when she graduated as a nurse. However, the reality was short-lived when two years ago she quit her job at Kipsing Dispensary in Isiolo District and moved Nanyuki, on the foothills of Mt Kenya.

“I was threatened with death by morans (young warriors) after I saved a six-year-old girl from her 55-year-old would-be husband. The girl was set to become the man’s fourth wife,” explains Kulea.

Today, Kulea can no longer walk freely to her home in Nolooroi Village, Kipsing Location.

“I have been branded an enemy of the community and any time I visit my relatives, which I have to do at night, I take care not to be seen as I could be attacked,” Kulea says of her troubles.

Escape hostility Her tribulations have also affected her family. Kulea’s mother was also forced out of her home and had to move to Oldonyiro Market in Isiolo to escape hostility from her neighbours.

“Whenever I go to Kipsing, I try as much as possible to disguise myself or make sure I arrive at night to avoid being seen by many people,” she says.

Despite the threats, Kulea is not giving up and she is determined to carry on with her campaign to ensure girls are not denied the right to education.

Kulea is married to Sammy Leseita who is currently studying in the United States, and together they have two children.

She says since she has seen the benefit of education, she would not like to see other girls denied the chance by greedy fathers who are out accumulate cattle through dowry.

Kulea’s father had three wives and her mother was the second wife but he en-

couraged all his children to pursue the route of education.

“My late father did not force me into marriage, instead he encouraged me to work hard in school. It is my conviction that every girl should be accorded a chance to pursue her academic dreams,” says Kulea.

The first born in a family of three girls, all of whom are currently in school, she says both her husband and family are supportive of her initiative.

“My husband is upto date on what I am doing here. Though he comes from my community and is considered a moran, he encourages me to carry on with my activities,” she says.

Paying school fees Other than her own two children, the family has adopted son. Kulea is currently also paying school fees for a Form Two student from the pastoralist community at St Francis Girls’ High School in Dol Dol. “The student is performing very well in school although her parents said they could not afford to take her to secondary school. If I had not chipped in, she would now be someone’s wife back in the village,” she says.

Kulea is happy that some people in her village, mostly the women, are supporting her efforts, albeit silently. She cites a recent case where the mother of a 10-yearold girl played a big role in blocking plans to have her daughter married off as a second wife to a 45-year-old herdsman.

The girl’s mother organised for her daughter to be sneaked out of the village by a neighbour at night.

“The girl’s mother approached a neighbour and asked for my telephone number.

They called me and the girl was brought to my house in Nanyuki the following day,” she says.

Prior to the rescue, marriage preparations had been finalised and within a week, she would have undergone circumcision before being handed over to her husband.

Among the Samburu, a girl has to undergo circumcision first before getting married because the community believes that an uncircumcised woman cannot bear children.

Not surprisingly, the girl has never interacted with the herdsman who was set to

JOSPHINE KULEA: “My late father did not force me into marriage, instead he encouraged me to work hard in school. It is my conviction that every girl should be accorded a chance to pursue her academic dreams.” Photo: Asha Muktar

become her husband. This is due to the fact that marriages are arranged by parents.

“A suitor just needs to identify a young girl as she is herding her father’s goats.

The man then approaches the father with a bride prize and from there, she becomes a wife, age notwithstanding,” explains Kulea. Today, the minor who had been forced to drop out of Ol Donyiro Primary School has joined three other girls from her village at Isiolo Children’s Home. The three, including a seven year old, are pupils in schools neighbouring the home.

The youngest girl was rescued in May, last year, when Kulea mobilised officials from the Children’s Department and the Provincial Administration to visit the

village located about 60 kilometres from Isiolo town.

Then, the girl was aged only six years when a 55-year-old herdsman took her as his fourth wife. A week earlier, Kulea had saved an 11-year-old girl from marriage.

After the incident, the suitor demanded to be refunded the dowry but the family of the rescued girl opted to give out their six-year-old daughter instead.

Kulea says she now wants to build a rescue centre for these girls where they will be living as they pursue their education.

“I managed to convince local leaders from Isiolo District about the rescue centre and they agreed to support me. They Continued on page 7

ISSUE 011, February 1-15, 2010

Unfiltered, uninhibited…. just the gruesome truth

7

Lifestyle diseases ail big cats

By Charles Njeru There are some diseases that are normally referred to as the rich man’s disease.

This is as a result of the kind of lifestyle that the rich lead.

However, scientists have made discoveries that certain diseases are not restricted to human beings alone. According to researchers from the National Museums of Kenya (NMK) and the Smithsonian Institute in the United States cheetahs get diabetes and lions get arthritis.

The bizarre discovery was made at the Nairobi National Park’s Animal Orphanage, last December.

According to the researchers, cheetahs were found to get diabetes as a result of living in captivity. A few young cheetahs at the Nairobi Animal Orphanage were found to have diabetes.

One of the chief researchers at the NMK, Mr Risky Agwanda, said the discovery has now prompted scientists from the Museums and the Smithsonian Institute to begin research work on new drugs.

“Now that wild cats also get diseases similar to those afflicting human beings, we have to work hard to develop new drugs that will improve animal health,” explained Agwanda.

He said such a move would work towards wildlife conservation in Kenya and other parts of the continent.

Cheetahs were discovered to have diabetes as a result of new feeding habits that they acquire while in captivity. The lions had arthritis resulting from old age.

Apart from the development of new drugs to tackle the diseases, the study will try to look for more causes of diseases in the big cats. Kenya Wildlife Service scientists are also involved in the study.

The scientists said as a consequence of the diseases, the animals risk dying because the diagnosis is undertaken too late, further undermining conservation efforts.

“Diagnosing the conditions early in the animals is also difficult and better ways of doing the procedure will have to be introduced,” said Agwanda, reiterating that diagnosing the conditions early is very important.

Athletics champion Usain Bolt of Jamaica hugs the baby cheetah that he adopted at the Nairobi Animal Orphanage. Cheetahs at the orphanage have been found to be afflicted with diabetes.

He said the diabetes has only been found in less than five cheetahs but the number could be higher.

“We have also discovered that like in one type of diabetes in humans, the condition in a few cheetahs is also genetic,” he explained.

The researcher said they usually advice veterinarians to feed the animals on

processed indigenous herbs which are readily available from the parks. The herbs have high medicinal value.

Agwanda said some imported medicines from the US have helped manage the diabetes well but they are not for curing the ailment.

Said he: “Just like in human beings, the diseases in the animals are not curable but

they can be managed.”

The study, which is still provisional, yielded interesting leads. He also said kidney failure had been detected in some cheetahs at the Animal Orphanage.

The researchers said the animals in captivity are fed on domestic meat as compared to bush meat which has different chemicals.

“In fact, two young cheetahs developed the ailment and almost died early last year on their second day of captivity,” Agwanda disclosed.

He suggested guidelines be introduced on feeding of animals with indigenous food such as game meat even when in captivity. Meat from cattle and goats currently comprises 80 percent of their daily diet.

Dr Mathew Mutinda, a senior scientist with the Veterinary Department at KWS, confirmed the discovery of the diseases at the animal orphanage.

He said blood from wild herbivores had very high concentration of sugar which could be a contributing factor.

“Cattle, goats, sheep and all domestic animals do not have high concentrations of sugar in their meat. Instead they have artificial chemicals which can be a contributing factor to diabetes in the cheetahs,” explained Mutinda.

He reiterated: “Arthritis in the lions is genetic, just as it is in humans. Blood from impalas, buffaloes and wildebeest contains high sugar levels which we analysed in the lab. The antibiotics that are found in the meat of cattle does have side effects on the wild cats.”

He added: “However, we have not yet documented the findings since the discovery is still young and we are yet to get leads on the major causes of lifestyle diseases in the animals.”

The KWS officials observed that chimpanzees also do get diabetes as was discovered in South Africa.

He explained that leopards have also been discovered to have diabetes and that the first case of the big cat contracting diabetes was recorded in South Africa.

Investigations by scientists among two young cheetah cabs at the Animal Orphanage revealed the cause was genetic.

Fighting for the oppressed Samburu Girls From page 6

are also providing the land where the facility will be constructed,” says Kulea.

“The girls at the children’s home have adopted the new lifestyle and are performing well in class,” says Ms Margaret Bwire, the administrator of the home.

Bwire recalls the time when the two sisters joined the home a year ago.

“They were withdrawn and could only speak their mother tongue,” she says.

But today, they can comfortably speak Kiswahili language and interact freely with colleagues from other communities.

An official from Isiolo Children’s Office says arranged marriages are common in the district despite efforts by the government to have the archaic practice eradicated.

Ms Sarah Jilo observes that without the selfless effort of people like Kulea, the Children’s Department cannot effectively eradicate the vice among the conservative communities that practice it.

“These incidents occur in far-flung villages and our office is poorly equipped to monitor such happenings. We can only rely on volunteers for information

and then take the necessary action,” reiterates Jilo.

According to Children’s Act 2001, it is a crime to subject an under-age girl to sexual exploitation. However, the practise of early and forced marriages continues unabated.

Failure by leaders from the affected communities to speak against the practice and laxity by provincial administration have been cited as factors encouraging the vice.

Kipsing Ward Councillor, Mr Peter Lekurtut says leaders from the Samburu community do not support forced marriages. However, he admits, it is an uphill

task to convince the people to discard the age-old practice.

“As a politician whose survival depends on the voters’ goodwill, I need to be tactical in approaching this delicate issue,” confesses the civic leader.

He argues that opinion leaders from the community should be at the forefront in preaching the demerits of forced marriage and circumcision of girls.

Undaunted by a humble position in a rabidly patriarchal community, Kulea has courageously decided to tread where others dread.

8

ISSUE 011, February 1-15, 2010

Unfiltered, uninhibited…. just the gruesome truth

Former squatters prosper in new settlement

Elena Mutundu, formerly a squatter tends to her new farm that she was given by the government. Mutundu is among the 6,000 families that were evicted from Mt Kenya region and settled in Laikipia. Photo: Jopseph Mukubwa

By Joseph Mukubwa At the centre of the four acres at Solio Settlement Scheme in Laikipia East District, a woman is weeding her crops, unbothered by the passersby.

Next to her is three-year-old Edwin Murimi, who is playing as he waits for her to finish whatever she is doing so that they can and go back to the house.

Thirty-eight-year-old Elena Mutundu cannot hide the joy that she is now able to work on her own farm. Mutundu was evicted from Mt Kenya’s Ragati Gathiruthiru Forest in 1989 when the government ordered out those settled there over concerns that they were living in a water catchment area.

Today, Mutundu is expecting her first harvest of potatoes since the eviction 21 years ago. She has been surviving as a casual labourer, toiling other people’s farms.

Together with others who faced similar predicament, Mutundu is happy that she is back to normalcy after many years of hardship.

The land she now occupies was bought by the government that also assisted in transporting the squatters over 40 kilometres from Mathira to Laikipia East.

The 10,000 acres of land was bought at a cost of KSh1.2 billion with each squatter getting a four and a half acre plot. The half acre is for building a house while the rest is devoted to farming.

Mutundu was part of the over 6,000 families of the larger Nyeri District

who were evicted from Mt Kenya and Aberdare forests. They had occupied Hombe, Chehe, Ragati, Hombe, Ragati, Ndathi in Mt Kenya and Zaina in Aberdare forest.

After a year-long severe drought in the area, rains finally fell turning the farms green and bringing smiles and hope to the landowners.

“The food is almost ready and within no time we shall be harvesting potatoes, peas and beans. It has been a long and tedious journey as some colleagues have died on the way,” says Ms Mary Wairimu, 56.

The families are happy that they will no longer rely on the government for relief

food and will enjoy the fruits of their labour.

“We shall no longer be called squatters since we will be making money from our farms and hopefully boost food production, says Wairimu. She adds: “We have reached where we were going and gotten what we were looking for.”

For 20 years, the squatters suffered from various diseases that included diarrhoea and cholera amid hunger, malnutrition and general destitution. Many among them did not survive and fell to stress and depression.

The squatters had never known any other home as most claim to have been born to parents and grandparents who had lived in the forested regions.

“Politicians had been giving us empty promises and they would come in big numbers, especially during the electioneering period. It was not until 2008 that the government honoured its promise,” says Mutundu, a mother of four children.

First Lady Lucy Kibaki had been pushing for compensation of those evicted from the two forests.

Solio is divided into seven villages that are numbered for ease of administration. It houses several incomplete primary schools, a dispensary, several boreholes and a cemetery. It is also has a road network and electricity as well as several churches. There are plans for the construction of a shopping centre.

Most of the families occupied their plots in February and March, last year.

Many still live in tents, some of which are tattered.

“We are living in shanties because the compensation was only for land, although the government provided transport for us. We sometimes get relief food but that comes once after a very long time,” says a settler who requested anonymity.

However, the farmers are hopeful that the rains will last long enough to enable good harvests, given the fertile virgin land that comprises most of Solio settlement scheme.

“The food is almost ready and within no time we shall be harvesting potatoes, peas and beans. It has been a long and tedious journey as some colleagues have died on the way.” — Ms Mary Wairimu.

Executive Director: Rosemary Okello-Orlale Programme Coordinator: Wilson Ugangu Programme Officer: Susan Mwangi Project Editor: Jane Godia Project Designer: Noel Lumbama Copy Editor: Musembi Nzengu, Hussein Salesa, Boniface Mulu, Muasya Charles, Ryan Mathenge, Hussein Uran, Charles Njeru, Paul Kimanzi, Faith Muiruri and Joseph Mukubwa

www.mediadiversityafrica.org Write to: info@mediadiversityafrica.org The paper is produced with funds from Ford Foundation