GOVERNORS WANT PAY RISE OR PUSH FOR REFERENDUM

MERU COUNTY: The Government
should reconsider the amount of
money going to counties, otherwise
governors will push for a referendum
over revenue allocation, Council of
Governors Secretary Peter Munya has
said.
Speaking during the Meru County
Education Day at Kaaga Girls High
School, Munya said: “Meru county
was only allocated Sh5 billion from
the National Government. Of this,
they use 70 per cent to pay salaries.
We are left with Sh1.8 billion to
transform all the sectors.”
He said the nine sub counties will
each get Sh200 million which is
inadequate.
“We are not going to lie. We are not
happy with how the National
Government is treating us in terms
of allocations. We need more
money,” said the governor. He said if
Jubilee wants to puncture the
opposition’s call for a referendum,
the Government must increase
funding for counties, because “all
counties have tasted development
and nobody wants a reversal of gains
made.”
The Council of Governors said the
Sh226 billion allocated to the
counties is not enough for them to
meet recurrent expenditure and
initiate development projects.
The county bosses have previously
threatened to collect one million
signatures from Kenyans to force the
Government to conduct a
referendum on revenue allocation to
counties. According to the
Constitution, counties should get a
minimum of 15 per cent of the
national revenue.

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Citizen TV actress Nancy Nyambura a.k.a Jastorina has dies

Citizen TV actress Nancy
Nyambura a.k.a Jastorina
has passed on. She used
to act on the programme
‘Jastorina’, which is a
local drama that airs on
S.K Macharia ‘s TV
station.
The programme,
Jastorina basically
highlights the working
life of a housegirl in a
middle income home in
the city. The housegirl is
called Jastorina and she
grew up in the village, so
it is interesting to see
how she adapts to life in
the big city. She was a
great actress on this
programme.
She also had a cameo
role on the courtroom
comedy “Mashtaka.”
Nyambura had been
suffering from
meningitis, a bacterial
infection of the brain,
and it is also believed to
be the cause of death.
Just yesterday she won a
Kalasha award. She
leaves behind two sons.

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Hussein Machozi Mombasa politicians wife

Mombasa, Kenya: The late evening
Monday news, that controversial
Tanzanian artiste Hussein Machozi
had been caught pants down with a
Mombasa politician’s wife spread
like bush fire. From Kenya to
Bongoland, the showbiz arena was
all abuzz.
Hours before the rumour broke on
social media, a little bird called
Pulse, hitching to spill the gossip.
“Have you heard the big one,” our
informer charged.
“Hussein Machozi... he is in
trouble,” the snitch went on before
starting to spill the juice he had
overheard.
See Also: Ken Wa Maria hosts
Hussein Machozi
Even though the news could not be
confirmed as Hussein Machozi had
reportedly been ‘deported’ back to
Tanzania and his phone went
unanswered, in another hour, a top
Mombasa blog posted the piece
blaring it with this long catchy
headline:
“MSANII HUSSEIN MACHOZI APOKEA
KICHAPO CHA MBWA NA KUPEWA
MASAA 24 KUONDOKA HAPA NCHINI
KENYA”. It sounded astonishing, so
damning like a fellow caught doing
drugs in Singapore.
“Msanii huyu mashuhuri wa bongo
flavor leo hii katika hoteli flani ya
kitalii hapa jijini Mombasa alijipata
matatani baada ya kupatikana akiwa
na mke wa kiongozi flani mashuhuri
wa hapa nchini. Yasemekana
mheshimiwa huyu amekua akimkulia
timing Machozi bila mafanikio lakini
leo siku arobaini zilitimia kwake
msanii huyu mkosa adabu,” read the
Blackstar Entertainment update
whose Facebook link had been
copied to the Pulse editor. In a
nutshell, the writer was insinuating
that Machozi had been having a
secret affair with a top politician’s
wife and after learning of it, the
politician had been tracking the two
all along until this day when he
‘caught them’.
“Msanii huyu alipatikana red handed
na mke wa kiongozi huyo kwa kitanda
na hapo ndipo masaibu yakamkumba
na kuamrishwa aondoke hapa nchini
kwa masaa aliopewa,” the dossier
concluded and so with an
exclamation: “Je, wewe kama shabiki
wake wamshauri vipi?”
Some Facebook responses were as
hilarious as the reports. One Job
Chilibasi reasoned that the news
would not stop a steamy affair as
‘watakutana huko bongo’ while Pettie
Nashipai added that ‘utamu wa
maisha, kipendacho roho
dawa...ashapata Hussein, ashapata
yake mbona mwamgeuzia?”
What more to add ...for that is this
week’s dispatch from the Coast!

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LEAFLETS IN BUSIA KWANGAMOR

Residents of
Kwangamor village in Teso South,
Busia County are living in fear
following circulation of leaflets
warning of attacks.
The leaflets warned of plans to end
the lives of certain individuals and
destruction of property.
Amukura East ward representative
Dick Omukaga said the locals are
now spending nights in bushes or
sugarcane plantations for fear of
being attacked.
The leaflets were dropped at the
Chief's office and Akobwait trading
centre last Friday bearing the
message: “From Lamu we are coming
to Teso (Akobwait village) to collect
the heads of 36 leaders and we shall
destroy all the property situated
along the road”.

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The EACC Questions MUTUA, GITHONGO

The Ethics and Anti Corruption
Commission (EACC) officials have
questioned Machakos Governor
Alfred Mutua over alleged corruption
in his County.

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Relief for counties as High Court deal frees funds

Fears of county governments
running dry on funds were eased
on Friday after the Controller of
Budget agreed to release the
money immediately.
The deal was sealed in the High
Court by lawyers representing
Members of County Assemblies,
the Commission on Revenue
Allocation and the Controller of
Budget. Mr Justice Isaac Lenaola
witnessed the signing of the
consent which allowed the county
governments to withdraw half of
their budgets.
According to the consent order,
Controller of Budget Agnes
Odhiambo is to release 50 per cent
of budget estimates for each of the
47 counties budget estimates for
2014/2015 Financial Year, pending
hearing and determination of the
petition.
“The funds must be released
immediately to counties as per
section 134 of the Public Finance
Management Act in respect to
County Budget Estimates for the
2014/2015 financial year,” reads
the order.
Justice Lenaola directed the CRA
and the Controller of Budget to file
their responses before the hearing
of the petition on August 29.
The development is a big relief to
county governments which had
warned that their operations may
grind to a halt if the funds are not
released in the next seven days.
MCAs from all the 47 counties
challenged a directive by the
Commission on Revenue Allocation
curtailing their spending of billions
of shillings.
Their lawyer, Prof Tom Ojienda,
submitted that CRA and the
Controller of Budget contravened
the Constitution as they had no
authority to direct how counties
spent the funds.
“The mandate of CRA is only to
recommend the basis for equitable
sharing of revenue raised by the
National Government to the
devolved governments.
“The Controller of Budget is only
mandated to ensure the funds are
released and has no mandate
deciding how the assemblies will
use them,” Prof Ojienda said.
Last month, CRA issued a directive
on budget ceilings to restrict
spending by MCAs and assemblies
following an outcry over wastage
of public funds through allowances
and foreign trips.
Under the new ceiling, the total
cost for funding new structures
under devolved units should not
exceed Sh13 billion of the total
amount allocated per year for the
executives and Sh17 billion for the
assemblies.
Curb misuse
The ceilings provided a limit of
spending by county executives and
county assemblies in a move meant
to curb misuse of resources and
cut down unnecessary recruitment
at the county governments.
The suit seeks orders suspending
the circular issued by the CRA and
an order compelling the Controller
of Budget to release county funds
as per the 2014/2015 budgetary
allocation for county governments.

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