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No. 29578 www.standardmedia.co.ke KSh 60/00 TSh1,500/00 USh2,700/00

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State of the economy

CONTINUED ON PAGE 8

CONTINUED ON PAGES 2 & 3

By GEOFFREY MOSOKU

President Uhuru Kenyattas sig-nature on the Marriage Bill yesterday lifted all legal encumbrances stand-ing in the way of Kenyan men and the number of wives they desire.

With the signature, the male-dominated National Assembly got its

By JACKSON OKOTHjokoth@standardmedia.co.ke

Elections, poor rainfall and terrorism weighed heavily on business last year ac-cording to fi gures in the National Eco-nomic Survey released yesterday.

The data shows that the economy grew by just 0.1 per cent last year to 4.7 per cent a very slight increase from the 4.6 per cent recorded in 2012.

Devolution and Planning Cabinet Secretary Anne Waiguru released the fi g-ures yesterday, but there was some con-fusion after the Government, for the fi rst time, failed to indicate by how much it expects the economy to grow in the next

Grew from 3.2 per cent in 2012 to 4.8 per cent

From 6.5 per cent in 2012 to 7.2 per cent

Expanded by 5.5 per cent up from 4.8 per cent

Grew by 9.6 per cent in 2013, up from 9.1 per cent

MANUFACTURING SECTOR

SECTORS THAT RECORDED DECLINE

SECTORS THAT RECORDED GROWTH

AGRICULTURE TOURISM TRADE ELECTRICITY & WATER

FINANCE INTERMEDIATION

TRANSPORT &COMMUNICATION

BUILDING & CONSTRUCTION

1.3% 13% 1.5% 4.4%

1.6% 0.7% 5.5% 0.5%

Dropped to 2.9 per cent from a revised growth of 4.2 per cent in 2012

Number of interna-tional visitors fell from 1.7 million to 1.5 million

Wholesale and re-tail sector declined from 9 per cent 7.5 per cent in 2013

Declined from 10.3 per cent in 2013 to 5.9 per cent last year

New law makes

polygamy much easier

Pain of a mother: Mama Amina Suleiman shares the agony of losing her son, Aden Suleiman, to terrorists who went on to drag his body along the streets of Kismayu, on September 1, 2012. She wants sellers of DVDs of the gruesome act prosecuted. SEE STORIES PAGES 6 & 7

Election jitters, insecurity and decline in key agricultural sector sees economy expand by a modest 0.1 per cent to register 4.7 per cent growth even as outlook for 2014-15 looks gloomy

Day Al-Shabaab dragged my sons body on Kismayu streetTHE SCARS OF WARUntold Stories of fallen KDF men

Wednesday, April 30, 2014 / The StandardPage 2 / NATIONAL NEWS

How election jitters, terrorism

slowed down the economy

fi nancial year.It is suspected the omission is due

to the Governments ongoing review of the way in which it calculates eco-nomic growth.

The revised matrix for working out the growth takes effect in September when it is expected that new fi gures will be released to put Kenya at par with middle-income nations.

But even the economic growth pro-jections for Kenya by the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) were missed in 2013.

FOURTH QUARTERKenyas growth was also well behind

that of neighbouring Uganda (5.6 per cent), Tanzania (7 per cent) and Rwan-da (7.5 per cent).

The outcome contrasts with the rosy projections by a fi red up Treasury last year.

We had initially projected a growth of 5.6 per cent in 2013 but looking at the last three quarters we are now look-ing at the growth of about fi ve or 5.1 per cent. But that means we must grow strongly in the fourth quarter, Mr Jus-tus Nyamunga, the Director at Trea-surys Economic Affairs Department, said in May last year.

Regardless of this, Kenyas is still the largest economy in the East African Community, which also includes Bu-rundi.

POOR RAINFALL More ominous are fears that poor

rainfall in most farming areas during the planting season, including in the North Rift region regarded as Ke-nyas grain basket and terrorist at-tacks will hurt the economy again this year.

Agriculture was the worst hit sector last year, with farmers in the dairy, sugarcane, coffee, tea and horticul-tural sectors earning less from their produce.

Growth in the agricultural sector fell to 2.9 per cent from a revised growth of 4.2 per cent in 2012, partly

38.9 million bags last year, while wheat rose 19.5 per cent from 162.7 million tonnes to 194.5 million tonnes last year.

Rice production increased from 83,600 tonnes in 2012 to 90,500 tonnes last year.

Production of fresh horticultural produce rose 3.9 per cent to 213,800 tonnes.

Much of the blame for Kenyas eco-nomic slowdown is being put down to election jitters, rising insecurity and insuffi cient rainfall in the fourth quar-ter of 2013 that hit agriculture, the

main turbine in its en-gine.

DEVOLUTION FEARSApart from wheat and

rice, other cereals re-corded signifi cant de-clines in production.

A fall in international prices and erratic weath-er affected earnings from coffee, tea and horticul-ture, pushing down Ke-nyas economic perfor-

mance last year.There was risk aversion in the fi rst

quarter as key parastatals and govern-

due to inadequate rainfall received in some grain growing regions.

While tea output rose 17.1 per cent from 369,400 tonnes in 2012 to 432,400 tonnes last year, earnings from the domestic and interna-tional market have been on a decline.

Coffee production dropped 18.8 per cent from 49,000 tonnes in 2012 to 39,800 tonnes last year.

Production of maize also fell 2 per cent from 39.7 million bags in 2012 to

Kenya National Bureau of Standards Chairman Prof Terry Ryan and Ministry of Devolution and Planning Cabinet Secretary Ms Ann Waiguru at Kenyatta International Conference Centre yesterday during the release of Economic Survey Report 2014. [PHOTOS: MBUGUA KIBERA/STANDARD]

Female graduate teachers eclipse

males in jobsBY GATONYE GATHURA

For the fi rst time, degree trained female teachers surpassed their male counterparts in primary schools.

According to the Kenya Economic Survey 2014, the Education Ministry took 83 per cent of the total recurrent expenditure in the social sector with much of this going to the Teachers Service Commission mainly to service remuneration awards to teachers.

The Government had also expect-ed to spend a lot of money in the im-plementation of the now stalled lap-tops project for primary schools which had been factored in last years expenses.

The expenditure in the Education Ministry went up by 17 per cent from Sh260 billion in 2012 to Sh304.9 bil-lion. However, the devolution of pre-primary education functions to coun-ties is indicated to have cut a bit on recurrent expenditure for the na-tional government.

The upgrading of teachers who had completed degree and diploma courses resulted in signifi cant in-crease of graduate teachers in pri-mary schools from 6,865 in 2012 to 19,273 last year, with the number of degree holding female teachers sur-passing their male counterparts, says the report.

During the same period, the num-ber of diploma teachers in primary schools almost doubled from 15,569 to 34, 048 while this upgrade reduced to zero the number of P2 teachers in the country.

A similar trend in secondary scho during the period, with the number of female graduate teachers increasing almost three times than males. Di-ploma teachers in secondary schools doubled from 3,579 in 2012 to 6,303 last year.

While during the same period the number of enrolment into secondary schools increased by 10 per cent, the retention rate went down marginally, which education experts say is a cause for concern.

More girls than boys were unable to complete secondary education but still, there was an increase of girls who sat for KCSE last year compared to boys in the same period.

A signifi cant development in the education sector during the period was a dramatic enrolment in universi-ties shooting up by 34 per cent last year.

This is attributed to a signifi cant upgrading of public universities and introduction of new and more mar-ketable causes. Courses approved for private universities almost doubled in the same period.

0.1 per cent

2013 economy growth

ment agencies withheld spending dur-ing the transition to devolved system of governance, said Waiguru.

Tourism suffered as international arrivals fell by 11.2 per cent from 1.7 million to 1.5 million with tourism earnings declining from Sh96 billion in 2012 to Sh94 billion last year.

WESTGATE ATTACKThe tourism sector was badly af-

fected by the various travel advisories that were issued by many source mar-kets owing to security concerns, said Waiguru.

Signs of trouble for Kenyas econo-my emerged in the third quarter of last year (July-September) when increased cost of living and effects of the West-gate terrorist attack began to sink in.

The shilling also depreciated as the county imported more than it export-ed. During this quarter, the economy grew at 4.4 per cent, compared to 4.5 per cent in a similar period in 2012 with various sectors such as agricul-ture, hotels and restaurants registering subdued growth.

On average the economy expanded by 4.6 per cent during the nine months period (January-September 2013) compared with 4.4 per cent in 2012.

GROWTH RATE FOR DIFFERENT SECTORS Manufacturing grew by 4.8 per cent in 2013 compared to a revised growth of 3.2 per cent in 2012 partly due to higher investor con dence, easing of in ation and stable exchange and interest rates Cargo handled at the port in Mombasa increased by 1.8 per cent to 22.3 million tonnes Kenya Railways carried 1.2 million tonnes of cargo last year, 200,000 tonnes less than in 2012 Mobile connections rose from 30.4 million in 2012 to 31.2 million in last year with Internet subscriptions up from 8.5 million Mobile money transfers also grew from Sh672 billion to Sh914 billion. Total installed electricity-generating capacity increased from 1,606.1 Mega Watts (MW) in 2012 to 1,717.8 MW in 2013

Kenyas economy recorded a modest growth of 4.7 % in 2013

Sh1.02 trillionTotal expenditure to stand at Sh1.3tr in 2013/14. As a result, the net borrowing is expected to deteriorate further to a de cit of Sh300b

4.8%The Sector sector created 9,000 jobs in the formal sector, a 3.4 per cent increase of the 271,000 jobs created in 2012.

Sh914 billionThe amount of money transacted through the mobile money transfer service grew remarkably from Sh672 billion as at June 2012 to Sh914 billion as at June 2013.

Down to 2.9%Depressed performance of the rains affected the sector, which is the sinlge largest contributor to GDP

1.2m tonnesRailway freight tonnage dropped from 1.4 million tonnes in 2012 to 1.2 million tonnes in 2013.

Sh1.02 trillionTotal value of mineral output declined by 28.6 per cent from Sh27.6 billion in 2012 to Sh19.7b

TRADE MANUFACTURING MOBILEAGRICULTURE

RAILWAY

MINING

ECONOMIC SURVEY 2014

Continued from P1

Wednesday, April 30, 2014 / The Standard NATIONAL NEWS / Page 3

Malaria cited as top killer disease

porting period.But on the social scene allocations

to orphans, vulnerable children and older persons went up dramatically during the period. The funding for the elderly went up from Sh1,519 million in 2012 to Sh3,168 million last year. The allocation to orphans rose from Sh1,081 million to Sh4,763 during the same period.

THE NUMBERSAccording to the Survey, Malaria

accounted for 12.2 per cent (23,789 deaths) of registered deaths while Pnemonia accounted for 11.8 per cent (22,918 deaths) last year.

Cancer, Aids and tuberculosis fol-lowed closely, crossing the 10,000 mark, taking the third, fourth and fi fth positions. Each recorded 13,720, 11,448 and 11,186 cases respectively for the same year. Other major causes of death were anaemia (8,134), road traffi c ac-cidents (4,942), other accidents (4,857), heart disease (4,544) and meningitis (4,265).

It was also shown that the total registered births increased by 8.6 per cent from 801, 815 in 2012 to 870,599 in 2013.

Garissa, Nairobi, Mombasa, Kiam-bu, Kirinyaga and Embu counties had coverage of over 70 per cent.

State sets new formula to

gauge growth

apart from in Garissa Country where registration reached 70 per cent.

Nationally, only about 60 per cent of births were registered last year and less than half of births were recorded in the same period.

On the brighter side, there was an impressive rise on the number of people joining the National Insurance Fund going up by more than 13 per cent. Majority of the new members, 70 per cent, were from the informal sec-tor; a factor attributed to a better co-ordinated recruitment campaign.

The national government, the re-port says spent less money on health with much expenses having been de-volved to the counties during the re-

By GATONYE GATHURA and LONAH KIBET

Malaria, followed by pneumonia were the leading killer-diseases in the country last year. Having claimed more than 46,000 lives, the ailments have proved to be serious threats to the economy.

For the fi rst time, cancer has sur-passed Aids as the third largest killer, having claimed 13, 720 lives compared to 11,448 deaths caused by HIV.

According to the Kenya Economic Survey 2014 comparative fi gures for the last four years show Aids and ma-laria to have been on a slow but steady decline while cancer and pneumonia and other respiratory disease have been on the rise.

The other causes of deaths that should get Kenyans worried are road traffi c accidents, which have been on a steep rise, just approaching the 5,000 mark for the fi rst time.

BIRTHS AND DEATHSHowever, medical experts would

dispute some of these fi gures claiming most deaths recorded as having been caused by pneumonia, cancers and respiratory illnesses are actually Aids related complications.

But still, the report shows a lot of births and deaths in Kenya are not be-ing registered especially in arid areas

BY MACHARIA KAMAU

A new method of computing the market value of goods and services produced in Kenya is set to see the economy go up by as much as half a trillion once completed.

The countrys Gross Domestic Product (GDP), which is the total value of products and services, is set to grow to Sh4.2 trillion from about the current Sh3.7 trillion.

According to the Economic Survey 2014, the GDP estimate for 2009 is Sh486.6 billion or 20 per cent higher than the previous estimates.

The Survey dedicated a whole chapter to the rational of reviewing the computation of the GDP referred to as rebasing which will give an il-lusion that Kenya is a middle-income country. Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) said the rebasing is partially done and will be complete towards end of this year.

The process of rebasing the GDP is based on the 2009 fi gures and factors new sectors that are not captured us-ing the current methodology of com-puting GDP.

These include certain aspects of Information Communication Tech-nology, mining, oil and gas. The latter two are expected to bring about heavy foreign direct investments in coming years. The last rebasing was carried out in 2001 and the economy includ-ing its drivers are seen to have signifi -cantly changed in the over one de-cade. The revised GDP estimate for 2009 is Sh486.6 billion higher than the previous estimates. This translates to a 20.6 per cent increase, read the Survey. KNBS said the current revision has taken four years since inception and will be concluded by end of next year.Under the new method, agricul-ture is still the single largest sector but its infl uence slightly waned owing to slowed growth and a rapid expansion of manufacturing, communication and real estate.

Why manufacturing sector grew by 5 pcBy FRANKLINE SUNDAY

Increased production of agricul-tural produce particularly in the sugar and horticulture sectors buoyed Ke-nyas manufacturing industry above the 2012/2013 slump caused by the 2013 General Election jitters.

According to data in the 2013/2014 economic survey released by Cabinet Secretary for Devolution and Planning Ms Anne Waiguru, output in Kenyas manufacturing industry grew by 4.8

per cent compared to 3.2 per cent re-corded in a similar period the previous year.

The volume of output grew by 2.6 per cent during the same period and this is partly associated with the po-litical stability that prevailed after the March 2013 general elections, read the report in part.

The manufacturing sector created 9,000 jobs in the formal sector, a 3.4 per cent increase of the 271,000 jobs created in 2012.

The total value of manufacturing output stood at Sh1 trillion with value addition and intermediate consump-tion growing by 5.2 and 4.3 per cent respectively.

The production of fi sh however recorded a slump in the second year running with a drastic 17 per cent drop in output in 2013 while produc-tion in the dairy sector rose by 4 per cent with the improved performance attributed to favourable weather con-ditions during the year.

The increased demand for motor vehicles saw the assembly of motor vehicles, semi-trailers and building of bus bodies grow by 3.2 per cent com-pared to a similar period the previous year.

Kenyas infrastructure and real es-tate growth was once again evident as demand for cement drove up growth in the sector by 7.8 per cent in 2013 compared to 4.8 per cent recorded in 2012 translating to 5,059 tonnes.

A child is immunised against polio in Embu County. A report has shown that a lot of births and deaths are not being registered. [PHOTOS: FILE /STANDARD]

GRIM PICTURE OF RISE IN FATALITIESFrom the Survey, it was also clear that 2013 recorded the most fatalities, (194,332) compared to previous years, 2010-2012Death registration level at the national level rose by 3.5 per cent from 187,811 in 2012. 2010 and 2011 each recorded 185,100 and 182,652 deaths respectively, read the survey in part.

1.5m VisitorsThe number of international visitor arrivals decreased from 1.7 million in 2012 to 1.5 million in 2013, largely blamed on travel advisories and insecurity

1.5m VisitorsThe number of international visitor arrivals decreased from 1.7 million in 2012 to 1.5 million in 2013

46,000Malaria followed by pneumonia were the leading killer-diseases in 2013 claiming more than 46,000 lives and proving to be serious threats to economy.

3% dropExports declined by 3% from Sh517.8b in 2012 to Sh502b last year, while imports increased by 2.8% from Sh1.4tr in 2012 to Sh1.4tr last year

Sh305bThe expenditure in the education ministry went up by 17 per cent from Sh260b in 2012 to Sh304.9b. However, the devolution of pre-primary education functions has cut recurrent

expenditure for the national government.

TOURISM TRANSPORT HEALTHTRADE

EDUCATION46,000Malaria followed by pneumonia were the leading killer-diseases in

Exports declined by 3% from Sh517.8b in 2012 to Sh502b last year, while imports increased by 2.8% from Sh1.4tr in 2012 to Sh1.4tr last year

HEALTH

ECONOMIC SURVEY 2014

population than to poverty incidence in a given area.

A county with a high population and low poverty incidence may have a higher contribution to national pov-erty than one with less population even if it has a high poverty inci-dence, reads part of the report.

According to the survey, Kakamega County, which is ranked the highest, has poverty index of 4.77 per cent while Lamu has 0.19 per cent.

The top fi ve contributors to na-tional poverty are Kakamega, Mande-ra (4.69), Turkana (4.13), Nairobi (3.94) and Bungoma with 3.79 per cent.

Lamu, Isiolo (0.73), Kirinyaga (0.79), Taita Taveta (0.82) and Tharaka Nithi (0.87) per cent are the lowest contributors to the national poverty index. According to the 2009 national census, Kakamega has a population of 1.64 million and Mandera, Turkana, Nairobi and Bungoma have 927,605, 801,346, 3.06 million and 1.35 million respectively.

The report indicates that poverty incidences per county ranged from a low of 21.8 per cent in Nairobi to a high of 87.5 in Turkana.

This implies that two in every 10

people in Nairobi live below poverty line compared to nine in every 10 peo-ple living in Turkana County.

Additionally, poverty rate in Nairo-bi is approximately half the national average 45.2 per cent, while Turka-na has almost double the national poverty incidence.

The results also show that Wajir and Mandera in Northern Kenya have high poverty incidences of above 80 per cent while those with low poverty rates of below 30 per cent are Kiambu, Kirinyaga and Nyeri counties.

BELOW THRESHOLDCounties like Siaya (38.2), Kisumu

(39.9), Trans Nzoia (41.2), Machakos (42.6), Bungoma (47.3), Laikipia (47.9), (Homa Bay) 48.4, Kakamega (49.2) and Migori (49.6) per cent have pov-erty indices ranging from 38 to 50 per cent respectively. The poverty line is a threshold below which people are deemed to be poor. The poverty gap shows how far off individuals are from the poverty line.

According to the results, nearly fi ve in every 10 people in the rural areas are poor compared to only three in 10 in urban areas.

Page 4 / NATIONAL NEWS Wednesday, April 30, 2014 / The Standard

Report lists counties with highest levels of poverty

By RAWLINGS OTIENO

Kakamega County contributes to the national poverty index 25 times more than what Lamu contributes, a new report has shown.

The Economic Survey 2014 indi-cates that a county with a high popu-lation of poor people contributes im-mensely to the national poverty index.

The survey states that the contri-bution to the national poverty indica-tor is defi ned as the number of poor people in a county expressed as a per-centage of the total number of poor people in the country.

The indicator is more sensitive to

Stakeholders keenly follow release of the 2014 Economic Survey Report at Kenyatta International Convention Centre, yesterday. [PHOTO: MBUGUA KIBERA/STANDARD]

It states that a county with high population and low poverty incidence may have a higher contribution to national poverty

By NICHOLAS WAITATHU

Depressed rainfall patterns in most grain growing parts of the coun-try last year contributed to 1.3 per cent decreased growth in the agricul-ture sector.

Launching the Economic Survey 2014 yesterday in Nairobi, Devolution Cabinet Secretary Ann Waiguru con-fi rmed that growth in the agriculture sector decelerated to 2.9 per cent from a growth of 4.2 per cent in 2012.

Even though low rainfall patterns instigated the low production, other factors such as high cost of produc-tion and processing in some sectors, and low international prices occa-sioned the same.

Most of the cereal crops recorded signifi cant decline in production dur-ing the review period apart from rice and wheat. For example, maize pro-duction decreased from 39.7 million bags in 2012 to 38.9 million bags in 2013. Over the same period, produc-tion of beans decreased from 6.8 mil-lion bags to 6.1 million, she said.

Following the depressed output of

major crops, the total value of mar-keted agricultural production de-clined from Sh344.6 billion in 2012 to Sh334.7 billion in 2013.

The decline in international coffee prices together with lower produc-tion resulted in 29.2 per cent decrease in earnings from Sh15.4 billion in 2012 to Sh10.9 billion in 2013. The de-cline was further triggered by rising costs of farm and processing inputs.

DEFIED ODDSWaiguru indicated that a number

of subsectors dared the drought pe-riod to record increase both in pro-duction and value.

For example, a notable increase was recorded in the output of pro-cessed milk products following an in-crease in the volume of milk deliver-ies to processors.

And the value of wheat increased from Sh5.6 billion in 2012 to Sh6.9 bil-lion in 2013 while the value of mar-keted sugar cane increased by 13.4 per cent from Sh21.7 billion in 2012 to Sh24.6 billion in 2013.

See related stories on page 42

By STANDARD REPORTER

There were more than 742,000 jobs created last year, majority by the informal sector.

Increase in number of jobs created in 2013 was attrib-uted to growth in labour intensive sectors.

According to the Economic Survey 2014 released yester-day, the total number of persons enrolled in both formal and informal sectors increased from 12.8 million in 2012 to 13.5 million in 2013, translating to 742,800 new jobs.

The formal sector recorded 116,000 new jobs, 26,300 jobs of which were by the Government.

This means more than 600,000 jobs were created by the informal sector.

Despite being essential in employment creation, the in-formal sector has largely operated with little support from the Government, which has to a large extent failed to offer a conducive environment including the operationalisation of essential legislation as well as putting in place infra-structure.

The document detailing the performance of Kenyas economy last year notes that employment in Government was fuelled by the implementation of devolution, which has resulted in county governments hiring in large num-bers.

The expansion of jobs in the public sector was mainly attributed to the recruitment in the devolved structures and employment of more teachers, adds the report.

Agriculture production drops after rains fail, prices fall

Over 600,000 jobs created in informal sector

ECONOMIC SURVEY 2014

Wednesday, April 30, 2014 / The Standard Page 5

Wednesday, April 30, 2014 / The StandardPage 6 / NATIONAL NEWS

Untold stories of the fallen KDF men the fallen KDF men SCARS OF WAR

Mother speaks about shocking incident which turned her world upside down

BY PAUL WAFULA and NYAMBEGA GISESA

On the morning of September 1, 2012, the world woke up to shocking footage of Al-Shabaab militants drag-ging the bodies of men in military uniform in the streets of Kismayu.

The militants had forced families to come out of their homes to watch them lugging the bodies leashed on cars. Kenyans were being subjected to same humiliation that Americans endured in 1993 when warlords dragged muti-lated bodies of US soldiers through the streets of Mogadishu.

The Twitter handle for Al-Shabaab even referred to the infamous Battle of Mogadishu in 1993, saying Just like all invaders before them, #Kenyan sol-diers were mercilessly dragged in the streets of Kismayu by an angry mob.

One of the bodies tied to a vehicle driving through the streets was that of

Private Suleiman Adan, the son of a soldier from Isiolo, who was barely out of his teens by the time he was enlisted in the military.

The Kenya Defence Forces prom-ised Kenyans that they would do every-thing possible to have Suleimans body brought back home for burial.

Although, fi nding the remains of their son was supposed to dry their tears and bring closure to their three-month nightmare, the scars in their hearts remain fresh.

One-and-a-half years after Sulei-mans remains were brought home and laid to rest, the pain is yet to go away.

My son grew up wanting to be a soldier and to serve his country, his mother Amina says, her face aged by the ordeal. Often, she breaks down when memories of her son fl ood back. He was only 23-years-old when he was killed.

Amina leads a quiet life alone in Isiolo town, nursing painful wounds from the 30 months of war. She heard about the existence of a DVD showing her son being dragged through the streets. She went out, bought one and inserted it into her player and held the remote. I just could not watch it.

Suleiman had worked for two years before he went to Somalia and

never came back. He had great plans for this family and when he got the job, we were hopeful that they would be fulfi lled, she says.

A footballer, Suleiman had bravely followed in the footsteps of his father, Adan Idema, also a soldier who is cur-rently deployed in South Sudan for peace keeping. He went to Isiolo Boys and St Kizito Primary school.

Since the start of Operation Linda Nchi on October 11, 2011, the blood-bath at Miido has been one of the low-est moments for KDF.

On August 31, 2011, men from the Eldoret-based 9KR battalion under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Has-san left Afmadow for the 90km match towards the epicentre of the war Kis-mayu.

But they were attacked from all sides a few kilometres after Afmadow, leaving one of the platoon command-ers, Lieutenant Francis Muthini, Pri-vate Joseph Nditika Nyamu, Private Martin Kimngich and Corporal Charles Ndemo dead.

Private George Karari and Suleiman never returned to base after combat. The military classifi ed them as missing in action (MIA).

SOCIAL MEDIAHours after the attack, KDF de-

ployed more men including a team from its highly trained Special Regi-ment unit to search for the missing.

At the crack of dawn, the militants with a penchant for social media, posted pictures of the badly mutilated body of Suleiman on Twitter and Face-book. His body was later discovered in a mass grave with the help of residents of Kismayu after the port city was liber-ated by KDF.

It was transported to the Armed Forces Memorial Hospital in Nairobi for DNA analysis. It was later released to his family for burial, nearly three months after his death. He was buried at Jamia Mosque Cemetery in Isiolo town.

Suleimans family is reluctant to talk about his death. They fear this can bring back painful memories. The fam-ily learnt of his horrifi c death through the Internet, throwing his mother and sister into their own private battle. It has been a silent war at home that has gone unnoticed for nearly two years.

It is a struggle to erase the horror of Suleimans death. The tormenting im-ages of him being dragged in the streets are replayed like a bad movie every night.

Al-Shabaab has portrayed the on-

going war in Somalia as a religious fi ght against Islam. They describe the Muslims, who are not on their side as Kafi r, an Arabic word used in an Is-lamic doctrine to refer to a traitor, an infi del, an unbeliever or a disbeliever.

The militants view KDF as a foreign force occupying Somalia.

Yet, ironically, Suleiman was a Mus-lim. According to the terror group, he should not have gone to Somalia. They argued that he endured the most pain-ful death because he was Muslim.

The family is reminded every morn-ing of Suleimans death whenever they walk in the streets of Isiolo town. Ami-na feels deeply betrayed by some members of her religion who branded her son a Kafi r.

My son was called a Kafi r yet he was out there serving his country. I raised him and I know Suleiman has never stopped being a staunch Mus-lim, she says. So it torments me so much when his faith is put to question just because he was fi ghting in Soma-lia. He was not fi ghting Muslims.

But her nightmare does not end with the terror groups and Muslims who branded her son an unbeliever. They are accentuated by the ruthless and heartless businessmen who are making money out of her sons pre-dicament.

They openly sell the videos of my son being tortured in Kismayu in small video kiosks in the streets of Isiolo town. How do you think a mother can feel when people of my faith fi nd plea-sure in watching how my son was tor-tured?

We bought the DVDs at Sh300 out-side Isiolos Jamia Mosque. The vendor asked if we wanted a DVD of the late Sheikh Aboud Rogo preaching or the one with the beating of KDF in Kism-ayu. My prayer is that the Government would one day appreciate the pain I go through and stop these businessmen from distributing the videos, she says.

Rahma, 23, Suleimans younger sister says that though her father is a soldier, she cannot stand watching a man in military uniform. It opens fl oodgates of pain. I do not want to hear the word Somalia. It is like every-thing starts afresh when someone talks about Somalia. I avoid watching TV, she says.

pwafula@standardmedia.co.kengisesa@standardmedia.co.ke

Fallen KDF soldier Sulei-man Adans sister (left) and mother. RIGHT: The late Suleiman Adan. [PHOTO: STANDARD/COURTESY]

The day they dragged my sons body in the streets of Kismayu

4DAYARMY WIDOWSMy wedding gown arrived two weeks after my fi ancs burial, only in your copy of

Tomorrow.

Page 8 / NATIONAL NEWS Wednesday, April 30, 2014 / The Standard

Go ye and marry many wives, new law says

riage. According to the Act, marriage is the voluntary union of a man and a woman, whether in a monogamous or polygamous union, registered under the Act.

The National Assembly passed the controversial law last month in a heat-ed session that saw women MPs storm out in protest. The MPs allowed an amendment that denies a jilted lover the right to seek damages and anoth-er that gives men a free hand to take second wives to go through.

This now means that a provision that required a partner who had promised marriage to pay damages in the event they do not honour the promise, will no longer be applica-ble.

Women will also be roped into the sharing of maintenance costs for chil-

way and so just as with cars, which all come with individual registration plates, men now can have as many marriage certificates as the number of wives they marry.

This is because for the first time, monogamous and polygamous mar-riages equally have the force and guarantee of legal recognition and ex-istence.

But for men who want to increase their domestic brood, there is an un-stated caveat anchored on personal considerations; they would still have to contend with the reaction of their religious guides and the economic burden that comes with each extra mouth to feed in a household.

That notwithstanding, there is one thing that should make many men smile today a husband in a custom-ary marriage will not be required to seek the consent of his wife before taking on a second wife as this earlier clause was repealed before Parlia-ment passed the Bill sent to the Presi-dent.

While polygamy was not illegal, a marriage certificate could be issued only for a monogamous union.

The Marriage Act (2014) defines various types of marriages including monogamous, polygamous, custom-ary, Christian, Islamic and Hindu.

The new law for the first time brings civil law, in which a man is al-lowed only one wife, into line with customary law by providing for the same legal status in the case of polyg-amy as that of a monogamous mar-

dren in cases of divorce. Male MPs had ganged up to delete the clause that had required a husband in a cus-tomary marriage to seek consent from his wife before marrying a second one.

Leader of Majority Aden Duale, Justice and Legal Affairs Committee chairman Samuel Chepkonga, Gem MP Jakoyo Midiwo and Suna East MP Junet Mohamed were vocal in sup-porting the deletion.

They argued that it was against tradition to seek consent to marry a second wife and claimed their female colleagues had ulterior motives in try-ing to push for the clause.

When you marry an African wom-an, she must know the second one is on the way, and a third one this is

Africa, Junet argued.I want my Christian brothers to

read the Old Testament; King David and King Solomon never consulted anybody to marry a second wife. Du-ale added. Narok Woman Representa-tive Sopian Tuya argued that for the sake of peace, it was important that men seek their wifes consent to take another one.

MAN ENOUGHAt the end of the day, if you are the

man of the house and you choose to bring in another party (and there may be two or three), I think it behoves you to be man enough to agree that your wife and family should know, she ar-gued.

Priscilla Nyokabi (Kiambu) unsuc-

cessfully pushed the argument that it was important that the amendments be defeated for the sake of family uni-ty.

If you choose to marry, it is im-portant you inform your wife that you are taking another partner. For the sake of cohesion, it is important to in-form all the parties, she said.

But Benjamin Washiali (Mumias) supported the changes, saying he was a product of a second wife.

sEiziNG prOpErtyMidiwo claimed that women op-

posed to the amendments were only interested in seizing family property. The law also provides for parties in marriage to meet the maintenance costs for children in cases of divorce.

The Act, which consolidates vari-ous laws relating to marriage, pro-vides procedures for separation and divorce. It also regulates the custody and maintenance of children in the event of separation or divorce.

The MPs had also amended the Bill to make it mandatory for those who want to stop a Christian marriage to put their reasons in writing despite opposition from other MPs that it might discriminate against Kenyans who dont know how to write but have valid reasons to stop an intended marriage.

It states that parties to a marriage have equal rights and obligations at the time of marriage, during the mar-riage and at the dissolution of the marriage. All marriages registered un-der the Act have the same legal sta-tus.

Polygamy now recognised by law For the first time, monogamous and polygamous marriages equally have the force and guarantee of le-gal recognition and existence While polygamy was not illegal, a marriage certificate could be is-sued only for a monogamous union But for men who want to increase their domestic brood, there is an unstated caveat anchored on per-sonal considerations; they would still have to contend with the reac-tion of their religious guides

Continued from P1

Wednesday, April 30, 2014 / The Standard Page 9

By Wilfred AyAgA A parliamentary committee

has approved Government plans to pay off Sh1.4 billion owed to two companies associ-ated with the infamous Anglo Leasing contracts.

The joint committee on Budget and Appropriations, and Finance voted to allow the Government to pay the money to Merchantile Securities Cor-poration and Universal Satspace LLC.

But the decision will be considered when the report is tabled this afternoon in the House where it is likely to raise a storm because the opposi-tion has vowed to reject the payments.

The committee resolved to give the Government the green light to make the controversial

Committee approves Anglo Leasings Sh1.4bJoint committee members want the Government to pay for non-existent projects

payments, which have been pending since last year when the Government lost two court appeals against the two com-panies.

The joint committee ad-opted the report on the back of arguments by the Treasury that the Government was staring at the possibility of its property abroad being attached should it fail to honour the court deci-sions awarded in Swiss and British courts.

Treasury Cabinet Secretary Henry Rotich appeared before the committee earlier in the day accompanied by Solicitor General and told the commit-tee that the Government has no option but to pay.

government AssetsIt is important to note that

the Government has a notifica-tion for the attachment of Government assets. Therefore, failure to pay the negotiated amounts will result in the at-tachment of its assets abroad, said Mr Rotich.

The cases are accruing interest at the rate of Sh264,000 per day. On an annual basis, the Government would be lia-ble to pay an additional Sh96.6

million, Rotich told the com-mittee. He said the Govern-ments efforts to float a sover-eign bond in the international market were being harmed by delay in making the pay-ments.

We estimate that the cost of not paying could potentially reach Sh20 billion, arising from higher domestic interest rates. Without the issuance of the sovereign bond, domestic in-terest rates are likely to be higher for both private and public sector, he said.

While members allied to the Jubilee coalition supported the payments, those allied to the opposition, CORD, voted to have the report thrown out.

Among those who sup-ported the report were Jim-myAngwenyi (Kitutu Chache North), Johnson Sakaja (nomi-nated) and Jamleck Kamau (Kigumo). Four members op-posed this, among them Timo-thy Bosire (Kitutu Masaba) James Nyikal (Seme) and Jared Opiyo (Awendo).

The allegation that this is the only Government that is paying for the so-called Anglo-Leasing contracts is incorrect, Rotich said.

LSK Chief Officer Apollo Mboya, Chairman Eric Mutua and lawyer Willis otieno at a press briefing yesterday. LSK has warned against paying Anglo Leasing. [PHOTO: BEVERLYNE MUSILI/STANDARD]

Page 10 /NATIONAL NEWS Wednesday, April 30, 2014 / The Standard

By moses miCHirA

Lawyers have threatened private prosecution on any officer involved in the payments to An-glo Leasing companies.

Law Society of Kenya (LSK) Chairman Eric Mutua has warned top officials at the national Treasury that they would be held individually liable for payments for the controversial con-tracts.

If these payments are made, then the Law Society of Kenya shall take out private prosecu-tion against all persons who contractually com-mitted the country to such payments, said Mr Mutua in a statement.

LSK has also demanded that Kenyas argu-ments and submissions in the Swiss court that awarded the Anglo Leasing firms to be made public. Sharing the arguments could be a sig-nificant step in unraveling a case that is billed to be Kenyas biggest corruption scandal and pos-sibly the deepest mystery.

Mutua faulted the Geneva court in awarding the shoddy companies, citing that a corruptly entered contract could not be enforced.

It is feared that the 18 Anglo Leasing con-tracts that were cancelled in 2004 could poten-tially cost the taxpayer Sh125 billion. So far, two of the firms were awarded Sh1.4 billion in De-cember following inability of the State to defend its decision to cancel the suspicious contracts ten years ago.

An even bigger mystery is exactly how much Kenya is exposed in the court cases following cancellation of the contracts. Top officials have been issuing contradicting figures on how much the country could be paying, with amounts vary-ing from Sh1.4 billion to Sh125 billion.

Treasury Cabinet Secretary Henry Rotich disclosed in February that the State needed to settle Sh125 billion owed to the Anglo Leasing related firms to forestall endless legal battles. He has now changed his stand and says Kenya is ready to pay Sh1.4 billion.

LSK to sue individuals making payments

NOTICE OF ANNUAL GENERAL MEETINGNOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the Ninety Sixth Annual General Meeting of The Standard Group Limited will be held on May 23rd, 2014 at 11am at The Standard Group Centre along Mombasa Road, Nairobi, to transact the following business:

To read the notice convening the meeting, this is issued in accordance with Article 137 of the Articles of the Company.1) To confi rm minutes of the ninety fi fth Annual General Meeting held on May 31, 2013.2) Matters arising there from.3) To receive and consider the Balance Sheet and Accounts for the year ended 31st December 2013, together with the 4) reports of the Chairman, the Directors, and the Auditors report therein.To approve payment of a fi nal dividend of Kshs.0.50 per share for the year ended 31st December 2013, subject to 5) shareholder approval.Re-election of Directors:6)

In accordance with Article 101 of the companys Articles of Association, Dr. James Mcfi e who is an independent a. Director retires by rotation and being eligible, offers himself for re -election.In accordance with Article 101 of the companys Articles of Association, Mr. Francis Munywoki who is an b. executive Director retires by rotation and being eligible, offers himself for re -election. Shaun Zambuni, was appointed on the 28c. th February, 2014 and in accordance with Article 102 of the Companys Articles of Association, he hereby retires and offers himself for re -election.

To approve the Directors remuneration for the year ended 31st December 2013.7) To note that the Auditors, KPMG Kenya, have expressed their willingness to continue in offi ce under section 159(2) of 8) the companys Act (Cap 486), and to authorize the Directors to fi x their remuneration.Any other transaction of the ordinary business of the company for which appropriate notice has been issued and 9) received.

By order of the BoardRonald LubyaCompany Secretary

Note:1 . A member entitled to attend and vote at the above meeting is entitled to appoint a proxy to attend and vote in

his stead .If the member is a corporation, the proxy shall be appointed in accordance with the Articles of the Company, or be represented in accordance with the Articles. Such a proxy need not be a member. A proxy form may be obtained from our website http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/corporate/annualreport.pdf, and if used, shall be deposited with the secretary of the Company, or at the Companys share registrars, Image registrar Ltd, 6th Floor, Barclays Plaza, Loita Street P O Box 9287 - 00100 Nairobi, no later than 48 hours before the time appointed for holding the meeting .

2. The full annual report may be downloaded from our website http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/corporate/annualreport.pdf. For further inquiries contact Naomi Kosgei (Telephone: 3222010, ckosgei@standardmedia.co.ke) Please Note: transport will be offered to shareholders to the Standard Group Centre along Mombasa road, the venue

of the Annual General Meeting, from outside I&M Bank towers along Kenyatta Avenue from 9am.

UNIVERSITY OF NAIROBI

Applicants must meet the following criteria:1. A good fi rst degree in Economics or a related fi eld from a recognized

institution.2. A good Masters degree in Economics (with a course work component) from a

recognized institution.3. The applicant must attach the following documents to his/her application:

a) Certifi ed copies of academic transcripts and degree certifi cates for his/her bachelors and masters degrees

b) At least three letters of recommendation from senior university academics who previously taught the applicant.

c) A detailed curriculum vitae.d) Evidence of attachment to an institution in Sub-Saharan Africa engaged in

economic management, research, and/or training in the public sector in the region.

e) Evidence of participation in research and publication.

Qualifi ed candidates should send their applications to:

The Director, School of Economics, University of Nairobi,

P.O. Box 30197-00100, GPO Nairobi Email: economics@uonbi.ac.ke

The closing date is May 31, 2014.

SCHOOL OF ECONOMICS

PH.D SCHOLARSHIPS IN ECONOMICS

Applications are invited for Ph.D. scholarships in Economics.

Wednesday, April 30, 2014 / The Standard Page 11

Back to School

Page 12 / NATIONAL: PARLIAMENT

The team wants the State not to pay Essar during their exit since they failed to upgrade and modernise the refinery as per the agreement It wants the State to fast-

track development of a modern refinery to cater for national consumption and export, noting delays in modernisation of the refin-ery had contributed to high pump prices

It wants Essar to under-take a cleanup before mov-ing out. It urges Nema to assess the environmental impact at the refinery and ensure Essar undertakes the cleanup

committee recommendations

Esther Koimett John Mruttu Patrick Nyioke

Wednesday, April 30, 2014 / The Standard

House team wants top State officers probed over refineryPIC wants anti-graft agency to probe officials over alleged skewed agreement favouring Essar

By MOSES NJAGIH and ROSELYNE OBALA

A parliamentary watchdog committee wants the anti-corruption commission to in-vestigate a governor, the In-vestment Secretary and a former PS over a skewed Kenya Petroleum Refinery Limited shareholder agreement.

In a report tabled in the National Assembly yesterday, the Public Investment Com-mittee (PIC) recommends that the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) should launch investigations into how the officers allegedly devel-oped the skewed agreement which favours Essar Energy Overseas Limited, a Mauritius firm at the centre of a sus-pected scam in the refinery upgrading.

The team wants Investment

By ROSELYNE OBALA

Mumias Sugar Company (MSC) is at the center of investigations over the influx of illegally imported sugar in the country.

Parliamentary Committee on Ag-riculture was told that the company has been constantly circumventing the law by importing and re-packing sugar, which they later sell to Kenyans

at an exorbitant price. The illegal im-ports are a threat to the survival of other industries and six million cane farmers.

Following the revelations, the MPs raised a red flag on the impact of the illegal exercise in the country, warn-ing that if not urgently addressed, it would kill the sugar industry and push cane farmers out of business.

They raised concern that since

2008, a total of 50 metric tonnes of sugar amounting to about Sh201 mil-lion have found way into the local market.

The committee chaired by Adan Mohammed Nooru also took to task Inspector General of Police David Kimaiyo and Criminal Investigations Directorate (CID) Director Ndegwa Muhoro over failure to apprehend sugar barons. The legislators noted

that for years, MSC has continued to import sugar into the country and even repackage it yet no action has been taken against it.

They informed the top security officers that the company between 2006 and 2008 failed to export sugar to Uganda (3432 metric tonnes), Su-dan (501 metric tonnes), Rwanda (300 metric tonnes), and Democratic Re-public of Congo (50 metric tonnes).

Mumias Sugar in a spot over illegal imports

Adan Mohammed

>>House Diary

Debate: National Police Service Commission Amendment Bill

Debate: Tabling of budget estimates

By JAMES MBAKAand FELIX OLICK

The participation of the Govern-ment in Thursdays Labour Day cele-brations remains uncertain after La-bour Cabinet Secretary Kazungu Kambi yesterday said he would give the fete a wide berth if it will not be representative of two warring labour unions.

The Central Organisation of Trade Unions (Cotu) has been locked in a supremacy tussle for the preparation, organisation and moderation of the May 1 annual celebrations with its rival the Federation of Public Servants

Trade Union (Pusetu). Yesterday the industrial court ordered Pusetu to refrain from interfering with the work-ers day celebrations, technically blocking the infant labour union launched barely three weeks ago from attending the event which will be held at Uhuru Park in Nairobi.

Yesterday, Pusetu claimed there was a plot by their opponents to dis-rupt the workers celebrations.

The union executive board, through Secretary General Dr Charles Mukhwaya, claimed it had received intelligence reports that Cotu is hiring goons to cause mayhem.

(See related story on Page 18)

By JAMES MWANGI

Nairobi County Public Works and Transport Executive Officer Evans Ondieki has been sacked after a Mo-tion seeking his removal overwhelm-ingly sailed through the assembly.

The county assembly sanctioned his removal from office over several accusations including alleging graft among Members of the County As-sembly (MCAs), incompetence and gross misconduct.

The County Executive Committee member made allegations in the me-dia against the MCAs, thereby casting aspersions on their integrity, the mover of the Motion, Ngara Ward Representative Chege Mwaura, said.

The notice of Motion was tabled on Thursday giving Governor Evans Kidero three days, as Standing Orders provide, to dismiss Ondieki from of-fice. However, when the time lapsed without action being taken, the as-sembly sacked him.

SIGNATURES TABLEDThe Speaker said the Motion ad-

hered to Section 42 of the County Government Act 2012 and Standing Order 62 (1) and (2) of the County As-sembly.

The Motion required a third of the House-43 MCAs-to have their signa-tures tabled in the assembly but 115 members out of the total 127 signed it. Nyayo Highrise Ward Representa-

tive Maurice Akuk said the move would bring major changes in Nairobi, a sentiment echoed by Eastleigh MCA Nelson Masiga.

We allocated Sh1.2 billion to his (Ondieki) department hoping he would change Nairobi. Now they have used all money to repay developments done five to seven years ago. We need somebody who can give meaningful services, said Akuk.

Ondieki was also accused of asking members to give lists of proposed five roads per ward (425 roads in all 85 wards) for rehabilitation for which there was reportedly no budgetary provision. Committee Chairperson Diana Kapeen observed that Ondieki was to blame for his fate.

MCAs sack Nairobi transport official

Secretary Esther Koimett, for-mer Energy PS Patrick Nyoike and Taita Taveta Governor John Mruttu, the then Chief Execu-tive Officer of the refinery, probed and possibly prosecut-ed for irregularities in the ne-gotiations, drafting and signing of a skewed shareholder agree-ment in favour of Essar Energy Overseas Ltd.

The committee chaired by Eldas MP Adan Keynan further wants the EACC to investigate and determine the ownership

of Essar, a company incorpo-rated in Mauritius in 2007.

It recommends that the of-ficers be held to account for impropriety that saw Essar ac-quire 50 per cent stake of the refinery, with a view of moder-nising and enhancing its ca-pacity. The envisaged moderni-sation, including construction of residue conversion facilities, production of clean products and determination of product specifications, minimisation of emissions and stabilisation of

electricity supply is yet to take place and Essar is seeking to pull out of the agreement.

The officers should be held accountable for commit-ting Government to an agree-ment that seeks to pay Essar US$5m (Sh434 million) on exit. EACC should investigate cir-cumstances under which the considerations payable to gov-ernment for waiver of its pre-emptive rights was reduced from the initial $15 million to $2 million, it recommends.

State presence at Labour Day fete remains uncertain

By STANDARD REPORTER

President Uhuru Kenyatta has declined to assent to a Bill that barred Cabinet secretar-ies from enjoying the historical privilege of flying the national flag on their official vehi-cles.

The draft law, which also denied gover-nors the privilege of flying the miniature flag, ranked Cabinet secretaries further down the pecking order of State officers.

Yesterday, the President did not assent to the National Flag, Emblems and Names (Amendment) Bill that was passed by the National Assembly on March 26, 2014.

According to State House Spokesperson Manoah Esipisu, the Head of State was re-viewing the Bill and is likely to return it to Parliament with a memorandum in respect of Cabinet secretaries.

MPs defeated an amendment to the Bill that had sought to include Cabinet secretar-ies in the list of State officers who should enjoy the privilege of flying the miniature flag.

Majority Leader Aden Duale had sought to introduce the amendment to include Cabinet secretaries during the committee stage, in a bid to preserve the historical privilege that senior Government officials have enjoyed.

The amendment was defeated even as the House granted a similar privilege to the countrys diplomats. The diplomats, who are below the Cabinet secretaries in the Govern-ment pecking order, will however, be allowed the flags while in foreign missions only.

Efforts by Naomi Shaaban (deputy Major-ity Leader) to convince the members to vote for the inclusion of Cabinet secretaries in the list failed.

Uhuru rejects Bill barring officials from flying flag

Wednesday, April 30, 2014 / The Standard Page 13

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Page 14 / EDITORIALS Wednesday, April 30, 2014 / The Standard

Superiority wars at Lands costly to country

The Standard is printed and published by the proprietors,

THE STANDARD GROUPNewsdesk: 3222111 | Fax: 2213108Email: oped@standardmedia.co.ke

Group Managing Editor (Print): Kipkoech Tanui

Registered at the GPO as a newspaper.

What to do to grow the economy by double-digit?

WHAT OTHER MEDIA SAY...

It took too long for the chief government legal advisor, Attorney General Githu Muigai, to come out and speak publicly about the stand-off between the chairman of the National Land Commis-sion (NLC) and the Cabinet Secretary, Ministry of Lands.

Day to day operations at the ministry have suffered while the two institutions mandated to deal with matters of land and title deeds pull in different directions bickering over who is constitutionally empowered to issue title deeds, appoint key officials and renew land lease documents. The reluctance of Mrs Charity Ngilu to hand over some key functions to the NLC has not only occasioned bad blood, it has seriously affected operations.

In his observation that none of the contested functions exclusively belonged to either of the antago-nists, the AG was simply affirming what has been observed to be a duplication of duties, not just at the Ministry of Lands, but other institutions as well. Indeed, a review of existing institutions is necessary to stop duplication of work and unnecessary friction. Calling upon the NLC and the parent Lands ministry to sit and work together in collaboration, consultation and co-operation is an exercise in futility. The two seemed to have irredeemable differences.

To avoid continued paralysis, there is need for Parliament to sit and deliberate on the functionality of the Lands ministry vis -a -vis the National Land Commission and to set out clear demarcation lines in the functions of both parties. Only recently, the NLC put on notice land grabbers. Its efforts might come to naught if at some point, the parent ministry objects to its mode of operation. In a letter to governors, and which they have vowed to ignore, the Lands Cabinet secretary appears intent on subjugating the National Land Commission or stating that NLC was superfluous and needed to be disbanded. Meanwhile, no title deeds are being issued to legitimate landowners.

JK8E;8I;K?