Press Review: The day’s top stories at a glance
Today is Wednesday, February 8, 2023.
You can read the Daily Nation e-paper here https://epaper.nation.africa/
Here is a quick look at what is making headlines.
Ruto hosts opposition lawmakers, sparks fears of ODM split
President William Ruto has taken the opposition by surprise by hosting lawmakers who are aligned with Raila Odinga.
The move has caused a big split within the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) party, as simmering disquiet with the anti-government protests led by Odinga has escalated into an open internal revolt.
ODM sources reported that the party is divided over the anti-Ruto rallies, with some MPs snubbing them and accusing Odinga of sending conflicting signals about embracing the president.
ODM chairman John Mbadi added fuel to the fire, saying he was ready to resign from his position. He hit back at critics for accusing him of not attending rallies and emphasized that the rallies are not ODM’s. Meanwhile, Odinga hosted several high-profile leaders for lunch, including Suna East MP Junet Mohamed and former governors Charity Ngilu and Wycliffe Oparanya.
The meeting sparked a bitter war of words within Odinga’s camp.
The President’s meeting with some of his allies is part of his long-term strategy to gain a foothold in Odinga’s Nyanza region.
The strategy is aimed at making an early entry into the region in the event that Odinga does not run in 2027 and flipping the region to his side ahead of the next General Election.
The President is said to have informed his guests that his door is open and he is keen to work with them between now and the next polls.
However, the politicians’ meeting with the President without Odinga’s blessings has exposed them to hostile reception from Odinga’s supporters.
A tribunal recommends removal of Justice Chitembwe
A tribunal appointed by former President Uhuru Kenyatta has recommended the removal of Justice Juma Chitembwe from his post.
The 12-member team, led by Lady Justice Mumbi Ngugi, was investigating several petitions filed against the judge, including allegations of misconduct, breach of the code of conduct for superior court judges, and gross misconduct or misbehavior.
The tribunal found the judge guilty of gross misconduct and stated that the allegations were established to the required standard of proof.
President Ruto thanked the tribunal for its expeditious work and stated that he will act on its recommendations in accordance with the Constitution.
The former President had suspended Chitembwe in May 2022.
KRA seeks explanation for missing KES 432B Chinese imports
The Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) is trying to explain the mystery surrounding the missing KES 432 billion worth of Chinese imports from its books last year.
KRA Chairman, Anthony Ng’ang’a Mwaura, said senior officers at the border points and ports have been redeployed in an ongoing internal shake-up.
The data from the General Administration of Customs of the People’s Republic of China negates the possibility that the imports gap was destined for other countries in the region.
The discrepancy in the value of Chinese imports has been growing gradually over the past five years, causing billions of shilling in tax revenue losses.
The KRA is undergoing an internal audit to identify loopholes that are being used to evade taxes. With trade misinvoicing being a common issue, the KRA is seeking to improve compliance in value-added-tax payment and tax collection.
Treasury allocates KES 12B to Hustler Fund
The National Treasury has presented the first supplementary budget to the National Assembly with new allocations and reallocations, with President William Ruto’s election pledge project the Hustler Fund receiving KES 12 billion.
Despite the government’s efforts to implement austerity measures, only KES 13.3 billion was saved from deductions made from development spending, which was reallocated to recurrent expenditure.
In the supplementary budget, the State Department of Cooperatives saw its allocation increase from KES 2.3 billion to KES 22 billion, while the State Department for Arid and Semi-arid Lands received an additional KES 6.3 billion due to the ongoing drought crisis.
On the other hand, some ministries faced budget cuts, including the State Department for Interior and Citizen Services and the Ministry of Water and Sanitation.
Although the budget cuts fell short of President Ruto’s promise to cut down recurrent expenditure by KES 300 billion, the State House was allocated KES 200 million and the office of the deputy president was given KES 45 million for operations and maintenance.
The National Treasury stated that the supplementary budget was necessary to fund emerging priorities, emergencies, and approved reallocations and to align with the revised reorganization of government under executive order No. 1 of 2023.
The government will also continue its efforts to reform taxes and improve the tax revenue base.
Safaricom limits validity of Bonga loyalty points data bundles
Safaricom the largest mobile network provider, has limited the validity of data bundles purchased through its Bonga loyalty points program.
The change, which affects resources bought using the Bonga USSD platform, was made in a bid to push customers to use their loyalty points, which have been recognised as a liability by the telco.
Previously, the data bundles had no expiry, but are now only valid for seven days. Airtime and talk-time minutes have a validity period of seven days, while SMS redemptions can expire between 24 hours and 30 days, depending on the units redeemed.
“The data bundles purchased will be valid for seven days after which any unused resources will expire and will no longer be available for use,” the company said in a statement.
The move reflects Safaricom’s recent efforts to encourage customers to redeem their loyalty points, which have a deferred income status in the company’s books.
In March 2022, the value of outstanding unredeemed points reached KES 4.5 billion, up from KES 3 billion in 2015. Safaricom has expanded the options for redemption, including merchant payments through Lipa na M-Pesa and Paybill, and the purchase of plane tickets.
Court allows increase in NSSF contributions
President William Ruto’s plan to raise contributions to the National Social Security Fund (NSSF) has been given the green light after the Court of Appeal overturned a previous decision that blocked the tenfold increase in subscriptions.
Under the NSSF Act 2013, the fund seeks to build a larger retirement pot and offer workers monthly stipends instead of the current one-off payment.
As of June 2021, the NSSF had 348,291 registered members and an investment portfolio of KES 284.9 billion.
The court ruling means that top earners will now be deducted up to KES 1,080, up from the current KES 200.
The total pension contribution for both the worker and employer is expected to be a maximum of KES 4,136 or 12% of the proposed maximum pensionable earnings of KES 34,476.
Maize imports to take longer to arrive
Agriculture Principal Secretary (PS) Kello Harsama has warned that imported maize will take longer to arrive in Kenya due to low maize stocks and climate change.
Kenya, along with neighboring countries Ethiopia, Zambia, Malawi, Tanzania and Uganda, is facing a maize shortage due to the impact of climate change on traditional maize export sources.
South Africa is the only country with maize stocks remaining in Africa and demand for maize from other countries is putting pressure on the availability of maize.
The government has allowed maize importation until August when the long rains maize harvest from South Rift is expected to come into the market.
On December 23, 2022, National Treasury and Planning CS Njuguna Ndung’u issued a gazette notice to allow duty-free importation of 900,000 metric tonnes of white maize grain, 600,000 metric tonnes of milled rice and 100,000 metric tonnes of sugar.
However, a delay in the gazettement of the list of millers and traders allowed to import maize into the country might complicate the food situation, as local stocks will soon deplete.
PS Harsama has stated that the government is seeking to have imported maize sold locally at KES 4,200 for a 90kg bag, based on the fact that taxes have been waived to benefit consumers.
However, millers and traders have been demanding to import maize at between KES 5,500 to KES 6,000 for a 90kg bag.
Sports
Athletics Kenya to hold track and field weekend meeting in Kisumu
Kisumu City is preparing to host the first Athletics Kenya (AK) track and field weekend meeting on Friday and Saturday.
A huge field of about 1,000 athletes is expected to attend the two-day event, which will take place at Moi Stadium and Kisumu National Polytechnic.
Joseph Ochieng, the AK Nyanza North regional chairman, says the event is a build-up ahead of the World Championships in Budapest, Hungary in August. Track events will be held at Moi Stadium, while field events will be held at Kisumu National Polytechnic.
The Kisumu county government has relocated a market and dumping site away from the stadium to ensure its condition is perfect for the event.
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