Close associates of suspended Higher Education minister William Ruto are bragging that their man will emerge politically stronger and more powerful once the ongoing cases against him are concluded. They are so confident that they are now claiming the International Criminal Court Chief Prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo does not have evidence to prosecute him over the post-election violence. They are saying they have got their hands on whatever little evidence Ocampo may have had on their man.

***

Libyan strongman Muammar Gaddafi and Vice-President Kalonzo Musyoka reportedly held their recent meetings in the dark in Libya because Gaddafi is afraid of being assassinated. Street lore has it that Gaddafi's obsession with his personal security started in the 1980s when a US attempt to assassinate him resulted in the death of his daughter. According to our moles in the VP's delegation, the street lights are switched off whenever the self-proclaimed Brother Leader is passing and are switched on after he has gone his way.

***

A foreign company on Thika Road in Nairobi subjected its staff to humiliating body searches and illegally held them overnight after some Sh378 million in UK Sterling Pounds went missing from the premises. The company security personnel locked in all the staff, strip-searched them and did not allow any of them to go home until morning. But the missing money was not found. The workers are afraid to report to the authorities as they fear losing their jobs.

***

Two clans in Mandera — the Murule and the Garre — are wrangling over the awarding of tenders for the construction of roads in the district. One clan which lost out on the tenders claims a former Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Roads who comes from the rival clan influenced the awarding of the tenders to his clansmen. They claim that a company associated with the former PS was awarded a Sh200m contract even though it had not presented the lowest bid.

***

There was high drama at the African Union headquarters last month when the commission chairman Or Jean Ping publicly clashed with Prime Minister Raila Odinga in Addis Ababa after the latter held a Press conference ahead of the Peace and Security Council Summit convened to discuss the situation in Cote d'Ivoire.

According to the story posted on the All Africa.com website, Raila was supposed to brief his superiors in the Peace and Security Council first after which they would deliberate on his report and any other reports pertinent to the Cote d'Ivoire crisis before holding a Press conference to announce their decision.

Ping who had received a rapping from the leaders over his handling of the Cote d'Ivoire issue was peeved by Raila's breach of protocol and summoned AU security details to stop the press conference.

"There was some shouting, pushing and shoving with the clearly discomfited Kenyan premier attempting to rush through his statement before handing out copies to journalists who were being dispersed after which he left the scene in a huff," the story says. It is strange that none of the Kenyan media who were present at the AU summit picked up on this.

***

Spotted in a Nairobi yesterday: The CEO of a prominent media house, his top managers and a senior manager of the Central Bank of Kenya enjoying lunch at a city hotel. This set the rumour mills turning as speculation grows that the CBK official might soon be shown the door.

***

A board member of a foreign company which was recently awarded a multibillion-shilling contract by Communication Commission of Kenya is under siege from creditors who are demanding that he pay his debts. The individual has accumulated debts in excess of Sh 100 million and spends much time and resources trying to fend off his creditors who want to have him declared bankrupt.

***

We are told the Party of National Unity is grappling with the dilemma — will the Attorney General appeal against the High Court ruling that declared that President Kibaki breached the constitution in announcing his nominees for the new Chief Justice, Attorney General and Director of Public Prosecutions? Remember Amos Wako signed the Judicial Service Commission statement that condemned the nominations as null and void. The PNU has enlisted a senior lawyer who is friendly to the Judiciary to appeal against Justice Daniel Musinga's ruling. The top lawyer who has represented top politicians in high-profile cases is said to be favourable to the Bench.

***

The government will find itself tied down to a contract with a foreign company having the monopoly of printing the country's currency and other security documents. The deal is expected to be sealed soon. According to our moles, while some government officials involved in the negotiations were opposed to the 10-year contract, they were persuaded to accept the deal when they were informed that the foreign company would form a joint venture with local representatives.

***

PNU politicians are bragging that they will soon "teach" Prime Minister Raila Odinga a political lesson. The politicians believe that the moment they have been waiting for to fix Tinga (Raila) once and for all has come since the political pendulum has swung in President Kibaki's favour. They plan to push through the names proposed by President Kibaki before they introduce a motion of no confidence against Raila.

***

Are the decisions being made by the Head of Public Service Francis Muthaura being coloured by the fact that he is one of the six people suspected to have masterminded the post-election violence? Those working with him say the man is annoyed with some senior government officials who he claims gave information to ICC chief prosecutor which was used to fix him.

***

A well-known city lawyer is in trouble after he threw his wife and child out and married another woman. The man has been sued by his wife, whose lawyers are convinced they have a credible case against their flamboyant and uncaring colleague. The woman intends to air all the dirty linen in public once the matter comes for hearing in court.

***

JUSTICE and Constitutional Affairs minister Mutula Kilonzo was surprised when he confronted by a Star journalist who wanted to get his comment on the re-insertion of a controversial clause in the re-published Vetting of Judges and Magistrates Bill, 2011. "I'm shocked because no other journalist has realised it or is likely to!" said Mutula before confirming and taking full responsibility for the same.

Almost a year later, Joseph Hellon, Esther Arunga and Quincy Timberlake seem to have had a
massive fallout

By Grace Kerongo

It's almost a year after the controversy that snared ex-TV anchor Esther Arunga, saxophonist Joseph Hellon and rapper Quincy Timberlake hit the proverbial fan.

Esther Arunga shocked many fans when she made the decision to dump her fiance just weeks ahead of their planned wedding, under advice from leaders of the Finger of God cult.

She then went ahead to quit her job at KTN - a job she had described on her Facebook page as, "The best job ever, I love my job"

Esther then refused to go back home even after the police were called by her concerned parents to get her from Runda, where musician Joseph Hellon, the Church leader lives.

(Veronica Agape, Joseph Hellon, his wife Wagikuyu and Quincy Timberlake's former bodyguard Joel Masiga on Tuesday when they visited the Star office.)

At the time Hellon told the world with Esther by his side that she was old enough to make her own choices.

The controversy caused quite a social commotion with many people thinking the trio had lost their senses.

Now Hellon has come out to speak about the controversy describing the whole affair as "a well-planned, elaborate con carried out on me, Arunga, and the Finger Of God congregation."

Quincy meanwhile is keeping silent and refusing to comment on the affair. Attempts to reach him failed when he refused to respond to calls and messages.

The musician turned spiritual leader spoke in detail about his interaction with Quincy, and when it finally dawned on him that he had been had.

Hellon first met Quincy in childhood. Quicy's family lived 100 metres from Hellon's mother's Kokuro village home, located a few kilometers from Awendo Town in Nyanza Province. Quincy was raised by his grandparents Joel and Rael Madanji.

The two were deskmates since class two at Kokuro Primary School. Back then, Quincy was registered in the school as Joginda Singh. Since then, Quincy has gone by many aliases.

When he was in Kanda King's band he was a Congolese known as Dezato, and to the late rapper Krupt, he was Fizzle Dogg. Now with Hellon he goes by Quincy Wambita Zuma Timberlake.
In an exclusive interview this week, Hellon came clean about all the too good to be true deals that he was sucked into Quicy's orbit by.

The first deal that grabbed Hellon's attention was a contract with Pepsi Cola, the deal was further sweetened by an acting deal with Hollywood actor Mel Gibson and finally an interview on Larry King Live's show on CNN.

"When Quincy came to me he told me he had a contact at the Pepsi Cola Company in the USA and they would be interested in sponsoring my jazz career. Immediately, I started receiving phone calls from people saying they were Pepsi's managers for Africa. I could see the number was South African for real and so I believed."

Even when soon afterwards Quincy went to prison and was released on bail, after a case of obtaining money through false pretence, Hellon stuck by him.

"When he got out, I told him 'Look, let's get on with Pepsi Cola deal' and he told me all these court cases were slowing the deal down. That is when I started thinking there must be something wrong.

"The various people who called never wanted to meet in person. When after a while nothing happened, it occurred to me that the many Pepsi Cola managers, and others who claimed to be Larry King and Mel Gibson had been inventions of Quincy Timberlake all along.

"If it wasn't for the way things happened early last year (the raids and court cases) we would have discovered this a lot earlier.

"It was hardly a month after meeting him that we got raided and arrested and now we have been saddled with the legal aspect of everything. We have bills and lawyers to pay and our names to clear.

"So basically, attention shifted from him. That gave him a lot of time to work with whomever his accomplices were to keep us deceived. And I do admit we were fully deceived."

The final confrontation leading to the breakup between Hellon and Quicy took place on December 8 last year.

"When I asked him about all the deals that never happened, he became upset and said he was leaving.

"One of the reasons I had believed him initially was because Quincy never hid details of his former life or on how he earned his money.

"He convinced us he needed help. He wanted to be part of the church as well," explained Hellon.

Hellon claims that Quincy somehow managed to hack into his e-mail and pretend he was the televangelist Benny Hinn and order Hellon's Finger of God church to do various things.

"Finger of God had been partners with the Benny Hinn ministries for many years. And Benny Hinn used to send us letters every month. How Quincy was able to somehow hack into that mail to the extent that instead of getting mail from Benny Hinn we got it from him, we don't know.

The wording, format and message was the same.

"We were oblivious, thinking we were still receiving original messages from Benny Hinn. We only realised this was not the case towards mid-last year."

During his 12-month stay with Quincy at his Runda and later Kitisuru homes, Hellon said he began to notice the "peculiar habits" of his erstwhile friend.

"We started to realise that he regularly destroyed or got rid of his computer hard drives. This got us wondering what is he trying to hide," Hellon said.

After the confrontation with Hellon, Quincy left the house in Kitisuru that Hellon, his wife Wagikuyu, Esther Arunga and a female UN employee friend of theirs shared and he rented a place of his own in New Kitisuru.

Later on December 12 a blog claiming to detail the gang rape of a Finger of God congregation member allegedly posted online by fellow Finger of God member, Veronica Agape. These claims have since been denied by Agape who says she suspects that an imposter posted the blog to hurt Hellon.

Hellon, his wife Wagikuyu and Veronica Agape recorded statements at CID headquarters on Tuesday, in which they threatened to sue Quincy.

Coalition principals grossly misguided about Kenyan youth

We are infuriated by the fact that President Mwai Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga used Jamhuri Day celebrations to level allegations of treason against the youth of Kenya.

The principals' outburst, coming hot on the heels of Government spokesman Dr Alfred Mutua's similar outlandish claim that the youth are receiving foreign funding to destabilise the coalition government, cannot be ignored, especially by the leadership of youth. In this regard, we wish to address the President and Prime Minister as follows:

First, we would like to point out that the poignant claims eloquently expose the fears and uneasiness that the political establishment has over the emerging political consciousness among the youth. The language of the castigations reeks of the status quo's misguided view of youth as being disorganised, confused and easily manipulated.

We refuse this ill-advised definition of the youth and warn that we are indeed actively organising to empower ourselves in order to keep track of reforms especially as espoused in Agenda 4 of the same National Accord that brought President Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga together in a coalition government.

Second, we are not fazed by allegations of receiving support from wherever in order to realise our agenda. This is not news, as the coalition leaders never ending foreign begging trips are common knowledge.

In any event, the youth are part of the wider civil society that likewise survives primarily on international funding for their activities. Also, since the coalition government will not put together empowerment programmes that are not designed to control us, manage us or take us hostage, a reality check demands that we work with anyone who understands our problem and genuinely wants to help.

Third, we frown upon Kibaki and Raila's attempt to plant seeds of strife and discord among youth by branding their leadership as foreign-aided coup plotters. Whilst the tag is meant to cow the emerging youth leadership, we want to boldly warn them that Agenda 4 issues, among these, youth unemployment, remain key reform and progress scorecard items for the youth; that if not comprehensively and urgently addressed by the two principals will precipitate the threatening revolution of the dissatisfied masses of youth against the cartel of political elite.

Fourth, unless Agenda 4 items are addressed, the youth and future generations will remain victims of bad governance that is characterised by corruption, impunity, poverty and tribalism. We are no longer at ease with the way things are and will not hesitate to latch onto constitutional rights to organise to overthrow the political establishment that preys on us. We want a better Kenya that is fit for all of us to realise our God given potential.

Fifth, it is true we are organising to breed a new leadership that is up to the task of bridging the differences in our society and inspire our social diversities to work together to realise prosperity and peace for all. These are the ideals the youth of our generation dream of and in the backdrop of new constitution find it civic obligation and duty.

We are organising because we are dissatisfied with the periodic tokenism such as Kazi kwa Vijana, Youth Enterprise Fund and worse still a youth ministry that has turned out to be a political circus. We are organising because we have come to the realisation that anything this political leadership never addresses the urgent grave situation of unemployment among youth.

We do not want to be used and abused as political levers by political cartels. We are fully aware of the problems the youth face and the solutions to those problems and we are sure that we are the leadership we need to get us out of this deep hole.

Sixth, the youth are actively involved in post-referendum civic education on the new constitution especially on the contents of Chapter 6. This is because in gearing up for 2012, before the campaign propaganda and empty promises peddled by power hungry politicians clouds their judgment, it is important to empower Kenyans to realise that most of the current crop of leaders cannot stand the leadership and integrity test set by this section of the constitution. Mr President and Mr Prime Minister, you must accept that Kenyan youth organising to shake off the yoke of oppression and exploitation through ballot democracy is not a crime.

Seventh, we find it well within our political rights and liberties to want to and accordingly to organise to legally depose an establishment rife with corruption, impunity and tribalism, and replace it with one for whom the people's agenda is central.

In doing so, the youth do not act only for ourselves, but millions of Kenyans who are victims of the current bad leadership such as the thousands of internally displaced persons sleeping cold and hungry in filthy camps, thousands of youths seeking solace from joblessness in crime, alcohol, drugs and prostitution, and the millions of Kenyans on self imposed curfews as a result high insecurity in our country.

Eighth, we sympathise with the coalition principals' embarrassment suffered after the honest and unflattering contents of Wikileaks, but wish to categorically protest against the Machiavellian use of youth as a political distraction shield of sorts. Casting aspersions against the youth leadership as ploy to steal the public attention from revelations of Wikileaks is in bad taste, reactionary and totally misguided and betrays how quick the principals are to sacrifice others for their own interests. Accordingly, we dismiss with contempt and term it as a gross insult, the unsolicited paternalistic advisory that had the Premier label Kenyan youth as puppets and we demand a public apology.

In conclusion, we demand that Kibaki and Raila either come up with practical programmes to get the youth out of the extreme poverty. We reiterate that we are peaceful and patriotic Kenyans engaging in constitution guaranteed civic actions to bring about another Kenya that is fit for all of us.

The writer is the Co-convenor, National Youth Forum

Prime Minister Raila Odinga's allies have been working overtime to try and get the support of leaders from Central, Coast and Rift Valley provinces and persuade them to join his team ahead of the 2012. Some of those involved are wealthy and influential business people, university dons and former powerful politicians and their task is to convince their kinsmen and friends that the PM is the right horse to back in 2012.

***

Attorney General Amos Wako's recent statements poking holes at the evidence collected by the Justice Philip Waki report on the post-election violence and down playing the success of the cases that the ICC Chief Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo is preparing against the suspects has raised eyebrows. The questions that are begging for answers are: Has Wako now joined the bandwagon of those out to sabotage Ocampo's work? Is that the reason why the Witness Protection Fund has not been operationalised? And what does it say about Wako's loudly voiced commitment to fighting impunity?

***

The successful implementation of the new alcohol law may rest on the shoulders of the provincial administration whose officers — from the district commissioner upwards — have the final say on who gets an alcohol licence. The district commissioners are however reluctant to take on this new responsibility as they feel their positions are not guaranteed under the new constitution.

***

A well known PNU minister is reported to be using all means to try and keep off his growing number of creditors. The man is said to have mortgaged his salary to the brim paying off bank loans and other debts. It's rumoured he is only taking home Sh50,000 out of the close to Sh1 million that MPs are paid each month. He has exhausted his goodwill with parliamentary colleagues who have become tired of his borrowing and inability to pay.

***

An MP who is a member of one of the prestigious parliamentary committees reportedly received Sh10 million hush money from a senior Government official. Reason? The official wants the MP to keep quiet about a huge scandal in one of the ministries. An assistant minister from Western Kenya who brokered the deal is also reported to have received a "commission". The dossier on the underhand dealings in the ministry remain under lock and key—for now.

***

Some MPs opposed to what they see as ICC Chief Prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo's 'meddling" could not hold back their very colourful language when they addressed a press conference at Parliament. They threw parliamentary decorum to the wind, ranted and raved against Ocampo whom they described as a "tyrant" and "devil guy."

***

An ecstatic acting City Mayor George Aladwa last night hosted a dinner for close to 300 family, friends and relatives. NO. It had nothing to do with recent attempts by some of his civic colleagues to have him confirmed as mayor. Aladwa was celebrating the fact that his dear wife was among the hundreds of University of Nairobi graduates.

***

A polygamous MP from Nyanza who is also an assistant minister is reported to be planning to divorce one of his wives. Reason? He claims she has been cheating on him with a senior security and intelligence officer.

***

An MP from the Coast has become the laughing stock of his colleagues after his car stalled in Parliament for the last two weeks. Reason? He is unable to purchase a car battery. His colleagues are wondering why the mheshimiwa cannot just fork out Sh30,000 to buy a battery for his expensive car.

***

A prominent Mombasa businessman has been busy on the phone calling politicians and senior government officials to find out whether his name has cropped up in the ongoing investigation into drug traffickers and dealers. Those in the know say it is just a matter of time before the man is put out of his misery as the list of suspected drug dealers will soon be leaked.

***

The CEO of a blue chip company is said to be grooming his wife to contest a parliamentary seat at the Coast. The man has made it a habit to drive down to the Coast to inspect the construction of their mansion as well as establish her credentials at the grassroots. The woman is expected to announce her intentions early next year.

***

Several bars have sprouted up along Hospital Road in Upper Hill, Nairobi. The bars, which are situated in a residential area and within metres of the Kenyatta National Hospital and the doctors quarters, have been running for several months. Complaints by residents to the Nairobi City Council, the National Environment Management Authority and all the relevant authorities have received no response. Reason? The person running the bars is a well connected businesswoman whom the authorities, including the police and the city council, are
afraid to confront. She is said to enjoy protection from the powers that be

***

A flamboyant MP from the Coast was on Tuesday spotted along Wabera Street in Nairobi. What was strange was that the man was right in the middle of the street, appeared to be in deep thought and was mumbling to himself. For ten minutes motorists hooted and swerved to avoid hitting the MP who eventually walked away to an unknown destination.

***

Junior employees at the Wundanyi district headquarters are up in arms against a senior official whom they accuse of demanding a kickback before he signs their imprest request. The junior civil servants are now asking the Kenya Anti Corruption Commission to come to their rescue as their complaints to their superiors are not being acted upon.

***

An ODM MP was escorted from the dais during Prime Minister Raila Odinga's weekend rally at Kibera after he started making statements which were at variance and inconsistent with the PM's views. Other MPs attending the same function said they were surprised when their colleague started making disturbing utterances. He was quietly asked to cut short his foul mouthed tirade and leave the dais.

***

Poor Prof Alloys Orago! The executive director of the National Aids Control Council has in his tireless efforts to set a good example to Kenyans and encourage them to know their HIV status been tested nearly 40 times this year alone. "I have become a guinea pig in HIV testing!" Prof Orago was overheard saying. He is a fervent believer that if 80 per cent of Kenyans know their status, the war against HIV will be close to being won.

***

PNU activist Stanley Livondo has been unlike his usual robust self. The man known for his high profile political activities has been making countrywide tours and meeting with youth and women representatives. Two weeks ago, he was in Mombasa where he announced sponsorship for Coast beauty pageants. After Mombasa, he toured Lamu and Kwale where he had lunch with about 1000 Form Three students in the county. Last week he was in Imenti and is scheduled to go to the North Rift this weekend.

BY STAR REPORTER

A total of 1,821 diplomatic cables from the US embassy in Nairobi are among the more than 251,000 documents that the website Wikileaks started releasing over the weekend.

The first 250 cables to be released do not include any from the American embassy in Kenya.

However they are expected to start coming out in the next few days.

The Kenyan diplomatic cables go back to 2005 but the majority cover the 2007 elections and the period of the coalition government. There is one cable from May 14,1996.

Diplomatic cables are confidential reports sent by ambassadors to their superiors in Washington.

The cables have only been partially released but have been given in full to the New York Times, Der Spiegel, the UK Guardian, France's Le Monde and Spain's El Pais.

"America's ambassadors can be merciless in their assessments of the countries in which they are stationed. That's their job.

Kenya? A swamp of flourishing corruption extending across the country. Fifteen high-ranking Kenyan officials are already banned from travelling to the United States, and almost every single sentence in the embassy reports speaks with disdain of the government of President Mwai Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga," states the international edition of the German magazine Der Spiegel.

Julian Assange, editor of the Wikileaks, described the cables as a "diplomatic history of the United States" that would cover "every major issue" as governments across the world braced for damaging revelations.

The cables contain confidential communications between 274 American embassies across the world and the State Department in Washington DC. Over 15,000 are classified "Secret".

It is expected that as the cables will shed light on the thinking behind Michael Ranneberger's swift congratulatory message to President Kibaki following the December 27, 2007 elections and the subsequent American turnaround to put pressure on the PNU to accept a coalition government.

On one day alone, January 2, 2008, as violence was raging in Kenya, the Nairobi embassy sent five cables to Washington.

"Cablegate" has so far unflattering views of world leaders Libyan President Muammar Gaddafi described as "just strange" by an adviser to Sultan Qaboos of Oman; Gaddafi's penchant for a voluptuous Ukrainian nurse; Robert Mugabe, Zimbabwe President, branded "the crazy old man" by Maite Nkoana-Mashabane, South Africa's international relations and cooperation minister; Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi described as "feckless, vain, and ineffective as a modern European leader", and a "physically and politically weak" leader whose "frequent late nights and penchant for partying hard mean he does not get sufficient rest."

A sister of one of the grand coalition's top leaders stormed the offices of the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority last month demanding an explanation as to why an application for an air service license by an airline associated with the family had not been granted. Despite her drama and threats to bring the power of her family to bear on the hapless officials, the authority deferred its decision until next year.

***

A judge who wants to succeed Evan Gicheru as Chief Justice is leaving nothing to chance. He is so confident of getting the job that he has started upgrading his wardrobe so that it can conform to what he thinks befits the Chief Justice. What he seems to have forgotten is that the outward show is nothing compared to his judicial rulings and knowledge of the law which will count more when the vetting is done.

***

Twenty eight MPs! That is the number of legislators that Kenya has despatched to Southern Sudan to assess the situation there ahead of the January referendum when that country is supposed to decide whether or not to break from the North. As a guarantor of the Comprehensive Peace Plan, Kenya was expected to send a delegation. The Kenyan taxpayer will have to foot the bill for the huge delegation which is expected to be in Juba for four days.

***

The son of a prominent grand coalition official who has been putting up a block of six residential houses is shocked that his real estate development has been stopped, Reason? Unlike other mortals, the man expected he would go ahead to develop the houses without paying heed to environmental concerns including details such as waste water disposal systems, power lines, etc.

***

A potential 2012 presidential candidate may have his chances blighted after one of his very close associate has been found to be a central figure in a corruption scandal being investigated by a parliamentary committee. The wheeler dealer in trouble is known to be the link man in the transfer of huge sums of money from foreign accounts to local accounts for use by the prospective presidential candidate.

***

Members of the Parliamentary Committee on Legal Affairs and Administration of Justice are reportedly gathering evidence against one of the people nominated to the Judicial Service Commission. The committee has reportedly put together boxes containing complaints against the nominee alleging his involvement in land grabbing and other ills.

***

A daughter of a well known political activist almost fainted when she was told that a huge contract she had been brokering for some investors had already been signed and given to a company from China. The lucrative contract, worth Sh1.2 billion, was floated by a government agency and those bidding for it offered huge commissions. One bidder offered all those involved Sh100 million in kickbacks and secured the contract. The young woman who had promised to deliver Sh80 million in kickbacks was confident she would get the tender for her clients. The shock was so great that she loudly confessed in the presence of par-astatal CEO's secretary, "I nearly slept with him to get the contract!"

***

Deputy PM Musalia Mudavadi reportedly lost his phone during the ODM retreat at the Great Rift Valley Lodge in Naivasha. According to those present, the Local Government minister placed the phone on the table during a plenary session only for it to disappear mysteriously. Those attending the workshop were ODM MPs and other members of the National Executive Council.

***

The Prime Minister's office has written to the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Labour Beatrice Kituyi alerting her that a senior official at the National Social Security Fund has been using the PM's name. Our mole says the official uses Raila's name to intimidate his colleagues.

***

Still on NSSF, how is it possible for an employee to acquire property worth Sh200 million within
a year? We are told that a senior manager has been buying property in Karen and Kitisuru and
yet his salary is not enough to qualify for a Sh200 million loan! PLO Lumumba, isn't this an obvious case for you?

***

Infighting has erupted at the Treasury over delegation of responsibilities to senior staff by a top official. A lady with dubious professional credentials has been assigned four key dockets in the Ministry of Finance and she has literally pushed out qualified technical staff. The lady pokes her nose into any docket with huge sums of money. Rumour has it that the lady's arrogance is due to her being related to a man in the ministry.

***

An ODM-K MP from Ukambani is behaving badly. He approached a group of clergy who are battling a city speculator to reclaim a grabbed plot and asked them to accept a Sh5 million token to drop the case. The first-term MP was shocked when the men of the cloth told him off and decided to battle on. The clergy had sought the MP's political intervention in the matter which has dragged on in the corridors of justice.

***

An accountant at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has reportedly gone underground after the KACC widened its investigations over the foreign embassy purchase scandal. The man is said to have switched off his cell phone and is believed to have changed numbers. The accountant is said to have been a confidant of PS Thuita Mwangi and minister Moses Wetangula who have since stepped aside to allow further investigations.

***

The PS who had imported seven new cars and had some of them moved from his backyard to some unnamed locations has now covered the remaining vehicles with black plastic sheets to conceal them from the 'elements?' The man reportedly moved some of the vehicles following the zeal shown by Parliament and KACC to deal with corrupt civil servants.

***

Kenya Wildlife Service director Julius Kipng'etich may soon have to deal with some of his senior wardens who are now behaving like some of the predators his organisation is committed to protect. The senior wardens are preying on their juniors who have been allocated houses in areas they consider bigger and better than the ones they have been assigned. Afraid of losing their jobs, the junior staff have been keeping quiet hoping their seniors will not turn their attention to them. Those hounded out of their homes have to watch as their seniors take them over or have them allocated to their friends.

***

Several judicial officers who are celebrating the election of one of their own to the new Judicial Service Commission have now decided to throw a celebratory bash. The catch is, they are expecting judges to cough out Sh5,000 and magistrates to pay Sh2,000 to finance the bash which is also going to be used to console two judicial officers who recently fell victim to carjackers. The thanksgiving get-together is set for next Friday in a yet to be decided venue in the city.

***

Did Court of Appeal judges 'elect' or 'select' Justice R.S.C. Omollo to represent them in the Judicial Service Commission? Word doing the rounds is that the good judges refused to allow officials from the Interim Independent Electoral Commission to supervise the "elections" and the judges reached a consensus selecting the good judge to be their representative in the JSC.

Call us with your news, tips and photos Corridor Hotlines 4244119/144/148

Email: yourtips@nairobistar.com

At the International Monetary Fund meeting going on in the US, African ministers complained that the Fund was treating Africa unfairly. Then the IMF Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn walked into the room, spoke to the ministers and asked if anyone had a question. None of them raised a single question.

***

An MP from Nyanza is spending a lot of his time avoiding his constituents who seem to have lost faith in him. The constituents are saying the man is hard to find when they need his help. The voters have decided that the MP's performance is below par and they will "deal with him" at the right time.

***

Like children, some of the MPs in two parliamentary committees are fighting for attention. The members from the Legal Affairs Committee chaired by Budalangi MP Ababu Namwamba and those from the Oversight Committee chaired by Mandera Central MP Hussein Abdikadir are organising media functions and other meetings aimed at outshining each other.

***

You know about the tag of war at the Ministry of Industrialisation over the appointment of the KEBS managing director Joseph Koskey? Yesterday we reported that Civil Service boss Francis Muthaura has been in talks with PS John Lonyangapuo over the matter. Actually the PS with whom Muthaura had a word is Dr Karanja Kibicho. Lonyangapuo is the PS for Public Works and has nothing to do with the fights in his former Ministry.

***

A top official at KACC has complained to friends that he is facing serious frustrations moving ahead with speed as anticipated in the war on corruption. The official claims roadblocks have been placed in every move he makes to unearth corruption and has suddenly become isolated in a process that requires a lot of teamwork.

***

The uproar over the appointment of the new Kebs director has led to Industrialisation minister Henry Kosgey being called in to explain his decision to Prime Minister Raila Odinga who is also the ODM party leader while Kosgey's the chairman. On his part, Head of the Civil Service Francis Muthaura has given a hearing to the PS John Lonyangapuo.Kosgey and Lonyangapuo have been at loggerheads since the former went ahead to appoint Julius Koskey as the new Kebs boss against the advise of the PS and a section of the board. It's now a matter of who will blink first.

***

A Cabinet minister from Nyanza is at risk of being isolated by MPs from the region for associating with a group of Luo elders who have fallen out of favour with the MPs. The minister is being accused of financing and organising international connections for the elders who have fallen out with their colleagues over "artificial feuds" manufactured by some local politicians.

***

The interest that a well known PNU political activist has taken in the ongoing construction of stalls on a disputed City Council plot in Upper Hill, Nairobi, has attracted the curiosity of many people. A senior City Council officer who has been asked questions about the construction of the stalls just when the council is tearing others down has remained mum and does not want to comment on the matter. The question many are asking is whether the council has changed its policy as far as unplanned structures are concerned.

***

Yet another attempt by another political activist, this time from South Nyanza, to get audience with Prime Minister Raila Odinga has come a cropper. The man, who is hoping to run for Parliament in the next elections, is bitter that despite investing huge sums of money in ODM politics and donating huge sums of money in harambees the PM is yet to notice him. The well known ever ambitious political activist is deeply concerned that people in his constituency will soon realise the PM wants nothing to do with him which will mean the death knell for any political career he is hoping for.

***
A cabinet minister from ODM has been enjoying freebies offered by a Mombasa politician. In return, the mheshimiwa has been using his influence to assist his newfound-friend acquire some prime real estate along the beach. The politician is known to pay his friends for their assistance by footing the bills for the plane and chopper hired to take them to Coast where he hosts them in style and indulges their every whim.

***

Some High Court judges who have been presiding over a controversial land case are reportedly headed for trouble after a prominent city lawyer started compiling a report containing what he claims is incriminating evidence that will bar the judges from any future appointments to the bench. The lawyer has reportedly been gathering the dossier on about 15 High Court judges who have over the years handled the matter. He intends to present the dossier to the vetting committee.

***

Former schoolmates of a Nyanza MP who has all along been claiming he is a qualified lawyer have challenged him to say in which university he acquired his law degree. The man reportedly never completed his law studies as he dropped out after one semester for unexplained reasons and never returned to school to complete the course.

***

A top cabinet minister who is known for claiming he is "Mr Clean" surprised his colleagues when he started celebrating receiving a Sh20,000 gift from a businessman. The minister decided to be 'philanthropic' by calling a number of his buddies to join him for a small weekend party which he hosted courtesy of the cash gift.

***

Key ODM-K strategists want President Kibaki to appoint Ndaragua MP Jeremiah Kioni an assistant minister. The plan is to have Kioni in cabinet leaving the way open for gemstone dealer and Kangundo MP Johnstone Muthama to take over as one of the joint Chief Whips.

***

Prime Minister Raila Qdinga's handlers are pushing hard to have one of the ODM Cabinet ministers from Nyanza fired and replaced with the ever vocal Gwassi MP John Mbadi. The handlers are complaining that the minister has been a burden to the party which is in need of revitalisation to woo more members. And if Raila does not want to appoint Mbadi, the handlers have set their eyes on yet another assistant minister, also from the same region, whom they think should be replaced by Rarieda MP Nicholas Gumbo.

***

On Friday we told you of a former provincial commissioner who is said to be overruling his boss when it comes to some decisions to do with allowances. We have since learnt that decisions to do with allowances are not made or implemented by one person. They are collective because the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry decided to set up a committee to deal with allowances. Since the new system was implemented, we are told, the committee has been able to deal with all the allowances and in fact got rid of fictitious claims. Those complaining have had their claims questioned.

***

Speculations doing the rounds is that former nominated MP and sponsor of the very successful Sexual Offences Act Njoki Ndung'u wants to be the Chief Justice. Many of her friends and associates say the firebrand gender activist and constitution expert is uninterested. But her name has featured in a list being circulated by members of the Law Society of Kenya. They think she should be considered for the soon to be vacant position of Chief Justice. Her inclusion has reportedly made her very unhappy as it is far from the reality.

***

Last week, we told you of an MP from central Kenya who has puzzled his colleagues with his new love for Khat or Miraa. The MP has been carrying with him bundles of the mild stimulant herb which he does not shy away from chewing whenever he gets an opportunity. The same MP has also not been hiding his love for beer and has been seen several times along Riverside Drive imbibing his favourite drink as early as 2 pm.

***

An MP from Nyanza has been harassing Parliament staff. From the kitchen staff to clerks, the first-time MP belittles everyone he comes into contact with. He has no respect for the team that works day and night to ensure his stay at Parliament is comfortable. The staff now want this big man to stop his bad manners.

***

An argument between an MP from Kisii and his former aide almost turned tragic at a Nairobi hotel when the honourable member drew a gun. The mheshimiwa threatened to shoot the civic leader claiming he was behind his recent misfortunes. It took the intervention of two friends who had accompanied the MP to restrain him. When things cooled down, the MP sauntered away with a word of caution to his former aide, "I'm not through with you yet!"

***

We told you about a former minister from Coast who has been conning people and has become an embarrassment to his former cabinet colleagues, family and friends. We have learnt the man conned his junior at the ministry out of Sh180,000. The man, who has piled up a debt of Sh6 million, left the lady with a Rado watch as collateral and promised to repay the debt in a week but never did.

***

The PNU leaders who have been pushing for changes in the party's leadership are about to make a major announcement. Our mole in the party tells us that a group of disgruntled members who include youthful MPs are set to form a new party altogether. The group will be making an application to the Registrar of Political Parties next month for the registration of the new party whose name they are still piecing together. The group aims to shut out elderly politicians from politics of 2012.

***

Yesterday we reported that a senior officer in the Ministry of Housing has refused to pay junior workers allowances approved by the PS Dorothy Angote. We want to take the earliest opportunity to clarify that Ms Angote is the PS in Ministry of Lands while the Housing PS is Tirop Kosgey. The said officer, a former provincial administrator, has been overruling claims approved by Kosgey and not Angote.

***

The season of "eating" is upon us. At least that is what our moles are saying about a Cabinet minister who has enlisted the services of some senior officials and parastatal chiefs under his ministry to try and skim as much "excess cash" as they can in readiness for the 2012 campaigns. For those officers who do not oblige, they are finding themselves transferred or demoted which has caused fear among the staff. The minister has also organised for a top law firm to get the contract to recover millions of shillings owed to one of the parastatals under his mandate.

***

Time: 2am. Place: Langata Road: What: Kenya Airports Authority bus, KAT 277X parked by the side of the road. A group of people swiftly offloading cartons of clearly labeled duty free liquor and beer from the bus to a waiting matatu. Coincidence: The matatu belongs to a senior Duty Free shop manager.

***

The unending PNU wrangles continue. Now the dispute is about the two advisers associated with the party. Party officials are now fighting amongst themselves as to who between Prof Peter Kagwanja and Moses Kuria is best qualified to be the party's political spin doctor.

***

Junior employees at the Housing ministry are angry with a senior official who they say has refused to pay allowances which have been approved by the Lands Permanent Secretary Dorothy Angote. The official, a former provincial administrator, has given himself the role of overseeing the work of all technical departments, including directing heads of departments, even though he sorely lacks technical know-how.

A presenter in one of the leading vernacular radio stations is at the centre of a growing storm caused by a top Nairobi lawyer. During one of the talk shows, the lawyer accused a top Nyanza politician of doing little to uplift the standards of his people who have blindly and staunchly kept supporting him over the years. The lawyer's statements have infuriated some of the sycophantic MPs from the region who are putting pressure to have the presenter fired. However, the station management are standing firmly behind the presenter and have refused to reprimand or punish him for his guest's statements.
***
An assistant chief in Manga district has for the last few months been making a killing by collecting Sh40,000 each from anyone seeking a job as a driver, clerk or subordinate staff in the Ministry of Education. The cunning chief has now been forced to take a loan to repay more than 50 frustrated job seekers whom he had conned and who have vowed to get him fired.
***

In yesterday's Corridors, we erroneously said it is Mutito MP Kiema Kilonzo who wants the headquarters of the
Kitui County based at Mutonguni as opposed to Kitui town. The true position is that it is Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka who wants the headquarters transferred to Mutonguni, a plan which Kiema is resisting hence putting the two leaders at log-gerheads.
***
A senior figure at the National Assembly has bought a new, top-of-the-range and custom-made Mercedes-Benz S-Class from a local motor dealer and paid Sh22 million. The cheque was delivered to the motor dealer early this week and was drawn on the Parliament account. The question that goes begging is how come the purchase is being made even after the government has banned the acquisition of vehicles whose engine capacity is above 1800cc?
***
A former minister from Coast has become an embarrassment to his former colleagues in Cabinet, Parliament and friends. The man is said to be constantly borrowing money from friends, colleagues and acquaintances but does not pay back. The man once the epitome of success and power - has gone to the extent of borrowing Sh50,000 from clerks at his previous ministry. One of the clerks is repaying a Sh200,000 loan which he took on behalf of the former minister who has since reneged on the repayment. His indiscrimi-ate borrowing has seen the man accumulate a debt of Sh6 million.
***
A senior cabinet minister, who strongly believes he is in the International Criminal Court list of the post election violence suspects, has been leaking sensitive documents about ICC to the media. The minister has also been sponsoring meetings of leaders from his area to rally communal support for himself should the ICC seek to arrest him.
***
An MP from Central Kenya has puzzled his colleagues over his new love for Khat or Miraa. The legislator has been carrying with him bundles of the mild stimulant herb which he does not shy away from chewing whenever he gets an opportunity.
***
Parties with vested interest in the ongoing parliamentary investigation into Charterhouse Bank have reportedly been sharing their largesse far and wide. Among some of the beneficiaries are several members of the Fourth Estate who have received a share of the millions. One of the journalists received Sh600,000 which he spent to complete building his rural home and refurbished and remodelled his parent's house.
***
Mutito MP Kiema Kilonzo is bracing himself for yet another battle with VP Kalonzo Musyoka this time over where the headquarters of the Kitui County will be located. The MP wants the headquarters to be transferred from Kitui town to Mutonguni. Kiema has been blaming "Steve" for not strongly pushing for a Mwingi County during the negotiations on the new constitution in which the counties are enshrined.
***
An MP from North Rift is no longer visiting his constituency after his advisers told him that his chances of recapturing the seat in 2012 are almost zero. Instead of eyeing re-election, the advisers have told the man to concentrate on accumulating wealth for the remaining period in readiness for his retirement. The constituents, who are not aware of the plan, have been wondering why their lawmaker has abandoned them and is no longer attending funds drives or other functions in the constituency.
***
About 150 ODM-Kenya party delegates from Central Kenya are not so happy with some of the party leaders. Reason? Over the weekend, each of the delegates was given Sh1,000 as "bus fare" after a two-day party workshop which was attended by among others VP Kalonzo Musyoka. Immediately the VP left, some of the delegates started protesting questioning how delegates from Nyeri, where the meeting was taking place, could be paid the same amount as the ones who had travelled from as far as Nyandarua or Kiambu counties. Some of the delegates are reading mischief arguing that someone may have pocketed part of the cash due to them.
***
An ODM minister is getting jittery after he received information that some MPs want to move a censure motion against him in Parliament over some transactions he has been handling in the last two years. The MPs are planning to table documents which they say will be enough evidence to prove that there has been a conflict of interest and probably abuse of office by the minister after his company was hired to offer professional services by one of the parties involved in a dispute that directly touches on the ministry the man is in charge of.
***
A top grand coalition member was committed to six months civil jail when he was a Kanu member in the 1980s. We are informed that the man did not serve the term. A judge has hinted that the case registered in the 1980s is very much alive but police seem unable to find the man, who had enormous influence during the Kanu days and still enjoys the trappings of power.
***
The Makadara by-election candidate, who placed portable toilets in a slum adjacent to South B Estate during campaigns, removed them on Friday evening. The man duped the residents that the portable toilets would be permanently in place to get votes from the slums. The slum residents protested and tried to stop the people carting away the toilets in vain.
***
Corridors wants the real owner of identity card number 2624126 to stand up. A photocopy of the ID card we have shows that it is in the name of controversial businessman Ibrahim Noor Hillowly, involved in a land dispute in Nairobi's Eastleigh Estate. Curiously, a search at the National Registration Bureau shows that the ID number belongs to Kitetu Kilemi Mbithi. It also shows that the ID is supposed to be replaced with the new-generation cards. Maybe Immigration minister Otieno Kajwang can tell us how these things work.
***
Drivers and workers at the Chinese company building the Northern Bypass which cuts through Kamiti Road and Garden Estate in Nairobi are on a fuel siphoning spree. The workers at the Kamiti Road section, near Githurai 44 Estate, routinely siphon fuel from the construction trucks into drums. We are told a black Nissan van comes to pick up the drums between noon and 1 pm almost daily. Witnesses have seen the drivers and workers secretly offload and sell ballast meant for the highway construction.
***
They say once bitten twice shy. A Permanent Secretary who was recently interdicted took off from his office to avoid signing a contract he did not understand. The multi-million-shilling project being pushed by highly connected individuals was to construct social amenities in Kakamega County. Maybe more senior officers should be interdicted if it will save taxpayers money from greedy vultures.
***
Two PNU MPs whose constituencies neighbour each other are angling to replace former Makadara MP Dick Wathika in government as assistant minister. The two have been calling deputy prime minister Uhuru Kenyatta frequently to plead with him to take their case to "Mzee" but we are told one minister from Rift Valley has also whispered to the President that the seat should go to Kilgoris MP Gideon Konchellah describing the other two contenders as being underserving of the post and point to lurid footage of the two engaging in colourful political spats.

***

An MP from Rift Valley has banned his two wives from visiting him at his Continental House office. The ban followed an incident where the two women met at the MP's office and had a heated argument that greatly embarrassed the MP. He hopes that by barring them from coming to his office, he will save himself any future embarrassments.

***

The Government's legal department is finding itself in a dilemma over the stance taken by the government on its cooperation with the ICC. Top government officials fear that Chief Prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo already has copies of security minutes which the government doesn't want to release claiming they are classified.

***

Two senior PNU party officials who are on opposite camps in the growing debate over whether to change the party leadership or retain it have been exchanging all manner of text messages trying to outdo each other. The exchanges have taken a 'learned' turn. One of the MPs who wants to retain the party leadership with Prof Saitoti sent the sms "a wise man laughs once, a fool twice." His rival who wants to oust the Saitoti leadership team promptly responded saying: "Not that I loved Caesar less, but I loved Rome more," a quote by one Marcus Junius Brutus who was a servant and close friend of Julius Caesara but who conspired in his murder!

***

Several MPs are angry with a young and brash city MP who has taken to inviting dozens of young women to visit him at Parliament's cafeteria since the House resumed work from recess last Tuesday. It may be sour grapes but the MPs are now complaining that their colleague's guests are denying them and their own visitors space to sit as his guests stay for hours on end and occupy all the seats in the MPs' Lounge.

***

A polygamous MP from Western Kenya has taken up a new weekend habit of taking a retinue of young nubile girls to Naivasha for visits. The girls, many of whom are tempted by the prospects of visiting a new town and staying at some of the most resorts do not balk when the MP asks them to come with a friend or two for the fun and games. And if they are more than two, the MP is known to hire a vehicle specifically to ferry the young ladies to the venue!

***

A Central Kenya MP who hopes to replace defeated Francis Thuo as the Chief Whip has now asked a city MP to lobby MPs to his cause. Wags are saying the mheshimiwa has 'facilitated' his Nairobi counterpart to 'handle' fellow MPs to support his quest for the post. The city MP was overheard telling some MPs that the Central Kenya MP is the best suited for the seat as he was wealthy and would be able to use his immense resources to 'whip' MPs into supporting the government agenda.

***

Top cops in Central province panicked at the weekend following reports that former Mungiki leader Maina Njenga was due to visit the area to protest the arrest of 82 young people suspected to be sect members. To forestall any confrontation, the senior policemen rushed from Nyeri to Kiambu to establish exactly what was going on and under what circumstances the 82 youth had been arrested.

***

A top PNU politician has despatched a team of his own to South Africa to dig into the background of PNU political adviser Prof Peter Kagwanja, the president and chief executive of the Africa Policy Institute, a senior research associate at the Department of Political Science, University of Pretoria; and visiting professor of Political and International Studies, Rhodes University. A close associate of a top Kanu leader was overheard telling friends at a city restaurant that his boss was financing the team which is expected to report back soon.


Close allies of deputy prime minister Musalia Mudavadi are taking seriously statements by National Assembly Speaker Kenneth Marende which have created the impression that he (Marende) plans to run for Presidency in future. An MP who is a close associate of the DPM was overheard saying he and others would systematically and politically deal with Marende to ensure his political ambitions are checked at the end of this Parliamentary term.

***

Just a day after the MP-elect for Makadara Gideon Mbuvi Kioko alias Sonko was sworn in, he was telling friends how he intended to refurbish his office at Continental House and install a wardrobe of the suits he has bought to attend Parliament. The MP, who does not hide his love for bling and whose sartorial sense of dressing has raised eyebrows, he says his suits will be only for Parliamentary business.

***

Some ODM MPs are now pushing to have the Kenya Anti-Corruption Commission called in to investigate how the party's share of the political party's fund has been spent. The legislators are unhappy with the way in which party aspirants in the recent by-elections were handled. A top party official was insisting on spending money meant for the aspirants on their behalf.

***

Still on matters ODM, Budalangi MP Ababu Namwamba is set for bigger things. The man, once a close ally of Prime Minister Raila Odinga, is reportedly being groomed to take over the ODM secretariat. Corridors has information that some party members feel the seat should go to Internal Security assistant minister Orwa Ojode credited for his "cool" relationship with people from across the political divide.

***

An MP from Rift Valley who was being investigated for corruption sent a gang of thugsto deliver a chilling message to a former senior official at the Kenya Anti-Corruption Commission—stop the investigations or die. The thugs developed cold feet when they got to the man's home and found it well guarded and instead pasted the warning message on the ex-KACC officer's gate.

***

A Cabinet minister is not amused. She was left out of President Kibaki's delegation to New York to attend the United Nations summit on the Millennium Development Goals. The minister was overheard complaining that she should have been included in the delegation as her ministry is one of those crucial in the implementation of the MDGs. The President has also been accused of not including the minister in delegations to African Union meetings where issues directly under the ministry's mandate are discussed.

***

An MP from Central Kenya has organised a forum for professionals from his constituency to assist him in drawing up development strategies for the electorate. The invitation from the MP has been sent through sms but now many of the professionals invited are complaining because the MP has advised them that they will have to pay Sh300 for their lunch at the venue where the meeting will be held. Some of the professionals who want to attend the meeting are now claiming the MP is 'taxing' them and prefer that he meets the cost of their lunch!

***

The acquisition of a hotel owned by a top grand coalition official is becoming the subject of debate among his colleagues and supporters. The man cut a deal with a foreign road contractor during the Moi regime that saw him assume ownership of the multi-million company after he 'facilitated' the contractors to acquire the tender.

***

A city MP is in trouble after a lawyer accused him of conning him out of an undisclosed amount of money through a third party. The lawyer has now threatened to expose the MP whom he claims has four identity cards and who has been using the IDs to fleece him of the money.

***

Failure by an MP from Rift Valley to put up a permanent home in his village is causing concern among his family and relatives. They say the MP has on three different occasions attempted to put up a house only for the structures to crumble on their own. The MP's family and relatives believe the man is cursed and that the reason for the structures' collapse is ills he may have committed in the past.

***

A PNU MP was recently compelled by the Parliament security to tow away his Mercedes Benz which had been at the Continental House parking lot for the last six months. Those in the know say the MP had been unable to take the vehicle for repair and had left it at the parking lot. The authorities at Continental House wrote to the MP complaining that the car was jeopardising general tidiness and was a health hazard as rats had invaded it.

***

Employees working for a top Cabinet minister are becoming curious on the source of their boss' money. The workers claim that any cash the minister gives them as gifts disappears mysteriously. They now say past employees of the minister have died mysteriously or in poverty.

***

An assistant minister decided to take his wife and family to shop at an Armed Forces Canteen Organisation store in one of the military bases. The AFCO stocks a wide range of products which are heavily subsidised for the benefit of the military. The Mheshimiwa and his family in tow surprised many of the military officers there who expressed surprise that he could be shopping for tax free goods and yet he pays a negligible amount of taxes for his huge allowances and salaries.

***

The spouse of a prominent politician may soon be caught in a net that the Kenya Anti Corruption Commission is laying to nab her. The woman has been getting cash from politicians and businessmen promising them that she will use her influence on her husband to sort out their businesses and political problems.

***

AnMP from Rift Valley is selling arms illegally. The man who has been in the arms business for many years also controls many of the armed militia gangs in the country which are behind bank robberies and other extortion rackets in urban areas. The man's business is so secretive that not even his wife, his many concubines or his children, know what he is up to. His security detail and driver cannot also say where the MP lives as he always instructs them to leave him somewhere in town where he takes a cab to his destination.

***

Still on our waheshimiwa, another well known MP has refused to pay rent for a mansion he has been living in for the last 15 years. Agents managing the property say the (dis) Honorourable MP has been issuing bouncing cheques for the last 12 years. The MP has been organising thugs to intimidate the landlady whenever she demands for payment. He has also ignored several court orders directing him to pay the rent arrears. Instead, the man has used his connections in government to ensure these orders disappear from the files and even has APs assigned to guard the house. The intention, according to his friends, is to grab the house. He used a similar ruse to 'grab' another house at Yaya Centre.

***

An MP from Central Kenya is ruing his decision to campaign against the new constitution. Since the referendum, the man has been having sleepless nights fearing that his many rivals might start gaining the ground he lost for opposing the constitution. Recently, the MP had a public spat with a city councillor who had gone to the constituency to donate sand and bags of cement for the reconstruction of a classroom at a local primary school in the constituency. The MP's handlers and agents tried to coerce the school administration to reject the donation claiming it was meant to undermine the MP. This, the handlers said, is not good for development

***

Cabinet minister George Saitoti has been keenly strategising how he can remain relevant in the changing political scenario. Corridor has information that the PNU chairman has met everyone who matters in his Kajiado County to consult on which position to seek in the 2012 general elections. The mathematics Professor, we are told, has been scrutinising the recent voter register and has accurately found out that he has the numbers to become the governor of the wealthy county. Just wait and read his lips!

***

Did President Kibaki deliberately refuse to undertake a far-reaching reshuffle after the new
constitution was promulgated? We are told that the President, in consultation with PM Raila had agreed to reshuffle the Cabinet, civil service and the provincial administration in a move that would have signalled a new beginning. However, for some reason, the President declined to announce the changes and instead announced a mini-reshuffle that saw Chirau Ali Mwakwere return to the Cabinet.

***

A senior manager at one of the parastatals under the Ministry of Energy has been sacked because of what our mole called insubordination. The manager, who was rewarded for dropping a petition case against a senior Cabinet minister was accused of "haphazard and indiscriminate appointments."

***

Talk of grass suffering when two bulls fight. We hear that a misunderstanding between two senior civil servants- Foreign Affairs PS Thuita Mwangi and Public Service Commission boss Titus Gatere has seen many diplomatic staff at Foreign Affairs ministry by-passed in promotions. Corridors heard that various proposals on how to boost the low morale of diplomatic staff through promotions have been turned down by the PSC boss.

***

A top lawyer who was once paid a huge amount of money for litigation is not lost to the dangers around his wealth. We hear the lawyer convinced a security officer to quit state service to serve him. Apparently, the lawyer who does not live in the city has successfully obtained a new muscle — a gun.

***

What was police spokesman Eric Kiraithe's motive when-he sent out a statement to a section of the media denying that First Lady Lucy Kibaki had kicked out security boss George Nderitu? We are told Kiraithe sent the statement to media houses but left out the Star that broke the story after he failed to get the attention of Star editors.

***

The fuel saga which many Kenyans have been complaining about seems to have finally caught up with some senior government officials. They were overheard discussing a possible solution to the problem—replace Energy PS Francis Nyoike with someone else. Those discussing the same seem to have forgotten a small detail—they have no authority or even powers to appoint or dismiss a PS!

***

A senior deputy secretary in a ministry who acted as a PS for a few months but was never promoted is so bitter that he has been saying everything nasty about the public service. The bureaucrat's anger is finding its way to his juniors who have been on the receiving end of his acidic tongue.

***

A group of Cabinet ministers are unamused by US ambassador Michael Ranneberger's frequent excursions to different constituencies without informing local MPs. The clique of ministers celebrated when news broke that Ranneberger might soon be replaced with President Obama's point-man in Sudan, Scott Gration.

***

Speculation is growing that President Kibaki may be planning to stay in power until August 2013. Some people in the government are claiming that the President has been advised that the new constitution allows him to remain in office till then. Our mole tells us the President may have intimated to PSs that those saying he will have to call elections by August 2012 are misinterpreting the new constitution!

***

A senior politician who lost big time in the recent by-election is said to have been taken ill immediately the reality that he had lost dawned on him. Sources close to the politician who had banked a lot on winning the seat said he could not comprehend the loss of a seat he had drooled over for years.

***

New CMB (cash man brother) MP Mike "Sonko" Mbuvi is a man in trouble. Corridors heard that there are several Facebook accounts trading under his name and where thousands of fans are congratulating him. Apparently, their inboxes are flooded with proposals and offers. The pokes are also uncountable.

***

We hear that a cabal of senior politicians and civil servants successfully schemed to halt the impeding sack of a powerful PS whose ministry has been riddled by scandals. According to our mole, the man earmarked to take over was given a big UN job leaving those who schemed the PS's ouster at a loss over what move to make next.

***

There is no love lost between commissioners of one of the Agenda Four commissions and their secretariat. We hear the commissioners are taking over daily activities of the secretariat when actually their role is at policy levels. Corridors heard that it's only a matter of time before the row erupts in public.

***

A mad woman who has been stripping naked every other day along Muindi Mbingu Street is causing jitters in town. A city resident yesterday called to complain why the City Council is not taking action to move the woman to a mental hospital and save her from ogling mindless men.

The new constitution is not an end in itself; it is a means to an end that must not be treated as a stand-alone project. It only gives the tools and mechanisms to bring forth the desired transformation of the state. The people of Kenya must give it Life and teeth.

Kenya has a history of impunity. There have been many corruption and human rights scandals in the country. Recommendations by commissions of inquiry are never implemented and the perpetrators continue holding powerful public and political offices. Due to corruption and political patronage, public institutions have been forced to employ unqualified staff.

Promoting and consolidating the rule of law and democracy while dealing with country's efforts to dealing with the authoritarian past is challenging but it must be done. It is even more challenging especially where the change process is under the stewardship of those with track record of blocking change and/or responsible for overseeing gross violation of human rights.

Institutionalising change is a precondition for dis-mantling authoritarianism and successfully transforming state into constitutionally sustainable democracy. This is what the new constitution seeks to do. But if those implicated in past scandals are given the task of implementing the changes, then it is not yet Uhuru.

A democracy which replaces a dictatorship endangers its credibility and forfeits it altogether in the eyes of the dictatorship's victims when perpetrators go unpunished and the new democracy does not prevent these people by legal means from retaining their positions and further pursuing their careers.

In order to address this deficit, it demands for legal sanctions and vetting. It is primarily the preventive affirmation of civic virtues and the strengthening of democracy under new order. The new constitution ushers a ground-breaking new value and culture system and sets up radical framework for good governance and accountability.

One key condition of cleaning the public service and other offices is vetting the holders of such offices, not only judges but all public servants. This will ensure only hardworking deserving Kenyans remain in public service. Vetting is meant to breathe new norms, practices and values in the management of public affairs. It lays down roots without the danger that the people in high positions of power will try to undermine the new nascent emerging democracy. The aim is
not to punish people presumed guilty but to jealously protect the newly emerging democracy.

Vetting covers both recruitment or appointment and dismissal or removal of public employees.

Vetting may clash, however; with the principle of non-discrimination, as well as several rights of persons targeted. Rights that may be violated are: to hold a job in the public service in conditions of equality and without unlawful discrimination or unreasonable restrictions; to be protected from unlawful attacks on honour and reputation; to an effective remedy; to the presumption of innocence; to have one's case heard fairly and publicly by a competent, independent, and impartial tribunal; to equality before the law and to equal protection of the law without discrimination; and to work.

Vetting procedures are in principle administrative and preventive. They are not meant to replace criminal or punitive measures determining liability. A key issue in vetting processes is ensuring equitable procedures and procedural guarantees. The following criteria should be
kept in mind when designing a vetting process.

First, in order to have legitimacy, a vetting measure should respect the rule of law and human rights. Second, vetting should respect the rights of those targeted. Third, the process should not neglect objectivity, and therefore procedures should be based on objective and reasonable criteria. Fourth, all measures should be governed by law in order to avoid arbitrary application.

Fifth, it is important that vetting respect the principle of individual responsibility. Finally, vetting should be relatively autonomous and should be independent of criminal proceedings.

Procedures should allow for a phase of investigation and verification of a candidate's background by an impartial body, separate from the appointment organ. The candidate should be granted the right to respond to allegations and the right to a judicial remedy to challenge a decision. The investigation and verification body must allow a candidate or family to respond and have access to legal remedies, including appeal.

Vetting processes should be based on objective criteria, conducted by independent and impartial bodies and provide procedural guarantees to the persons concerned. Qualitative and quantitative participation, consultation and exclusivity are key.

The writer is Communication Associates, International Centre for Policy and Conflict.

Yes, the chickens are coming home to roost if they haven't already. Wanjiku is finally flexing her muscles. She has said she must part ways with the past for good. She is screaming on the rooftop warning the political class that with the advent of the new constitution, it will not be business as usual.

And she doesn't seem to have any respect for the high and mighty, rich or famous. She seems to scorn pedigree in our political system. Major political parties don't intimidate her either. But somehow, she seems to loathe individual arrogance most on the part of those who want to be our national leaders.

The just concluded by-elections in Juja, Makadara and Starehe are classic examples in how Kenyan politics has changed. In Juja, it did not matter that the fairly wealthy George Thuo was openly supported by Uhuru Kenyatta and Kalonzo Musyoka, the two political heavyweights that also lead two major parties in Parliament.

To have lost a seat he supposedly won with a landslide in 2007 just two years ago was some kind of a paradox because he dropped to third position far behind the man he is supposed to have beaten. Was this proof that Juja ballot boxes were stuffed in favour of the winner in 2007?

To come third after the relatively new Alice Wambu Ng'ang'a of Thika must have been really painful to the former Government Chief whip who has hardly spent three years in Parliament.

The Starehe results also sent a strong message to the political establishment that the old order must give way to the new order. The new wine cannot survive in the old wineskin. Maina Kamanda may have been a good councillor in Nairobi in the last century and even a good MP for Starehe at the turn of the century.

However, times have changed and the electorate has grown younger, more politicised and better informed. The old politics is gone kabisa. Now the electorate is demanding more than handouts.

Give them handouts but also show them that you can improve their lives.

Bishop Margaret Wanjiru may not have done better than Kamanda in the two years she has been in Parliament but at least she has consistently preached hope for them every week since her election.

Another twist to Kamanda's loss must have been the Mungiki factor, with adherents voting for the lady that their former boss openly supported. The combination of her church followers and Mungiki adherents was a factor anybody could ignore in Starehs at their peril. It came to pass.

The Starehe results were intriguing in one aspect. They were too close to the 2007 results to be ignored. However, they were way off the mark when one considered the recount results just before Wanjiru's victory was nullified. The question that begs answers is: If Kamanda beat Wanjiru by 15,000 during the recount whereas Wanjiru beat him by 1,000 votes during the 2007 elections, where did Kamanda's supporters disappear to this time round?

Incidentally more or less the same numbers that voted in Wanjiru in 2007 voted for her again this week. Were Kamanda's ballot boxes stuffed with more votes after the 2007 elections?

Reuben Ndolo lost a seat he thought was his for the taking in Makadara. He had successfully petitioned against Dick Wathika and the courts decided in his favour. However it seems the voters in Makadara had something up their sleeves.

They looked at Ndolo and Wathika and thought there was no difference between the two. So they opted for the third option. They chose little known Mike Sonko.

This must be a wake-up call to all political parties.

Free the democratic space within your parties. Practice internal democracy before you come out to compete against other parties. Forget blue-eyed-boy mentality where certain individuals
must get direct nomination at the expense of even better and more popular candidates.

Encourage internal competition because it is healthy for the growth of the party!

The secret to political" popularity lies in being tested from the grassroots. Those who claim to be popular yet fear to face challenges at the nomination level are conmen and women who are used to riding on the backs of popular parties. They not only give the party a bad name but they are also expensive for the party in the long run. Worse still, they cause unnecessary rebellion and protest voting against their parties and party leaders. Had ODM and PNU listened to Wanjiku, they would not have lost Juja and Makadara. One hopes that this is a lesson well learnt.

The writer is a media consultant.

The word gubernatorial is one which you may expect to see used very often in the near future.
It is an adjective which means of or pertaining to a governor. With every Tom, Dick and Harry dreaming of occupying a governor's mansion, the kind of writer who likes to make reference to President Kibaki's gentlemanly mien or to the mammoth crowds that turn up at Prime Minister Raila Odinga's campaign rallies will soon have a new word to play with.

More seriously, the fact that the country is moving into uncharted electoral waters should give us all cause for thought. So far, debate on the new electoral offices has focused largely on the question of why all these old men whom we thought had retired from politics, have suddenly resurrected their political ambitions, and resolved to serve the nation as senators.

Such views overlook the fact that in all democracies, senators are often old men, and often much older than any of our current lot of senatorial aspirants.

In the US, Senator Strom Thurmond of South Carolina served in the Senate from 1956 to 2003, and retired as the only senator to reach the age of 100 while still in office.

You would think that the 47 years he was senator would also make him the longest serving senator in US history. But in fact, that title goes to Senator Robert Byrd of West Virginia, who served in the Senate from 1959 to 2010. He died in June this year, at age 92, while still a senator having been one for 51 years.

Nor is great age the only thing commonly found in senates all over the world. Some democracies have instituted lifetime tenure for some members of the senate, or whatever body they have that is equivalent to a senate.

To quote one source: A senator-for-life is a member of the senate or equivalent upper chamber of a legislature who has life tenure. As of 2010 [update], seven Italian senators out of 322, four out of the 47 Burundian senators and all members of the British House of Lords have lifetime tenure. Several South American countries once granted lifetime membership to former presidents but have since abolished the practice.

And no doubt there are those among President Kibaki's most dedicated supporters who now wonder how on earth they left out a clause in the recently promulgated constitution, which would have enabled the President to spend the rest of his life in the Senate, without having to bother about the nuisance of re-election campaigns.

One more thing we can learn from the US example: these complaints we have heard about how some regions will have more MPs for each senator, while in others there will be very few MPs for each senator or governor, have no basis at all.

No country has yet found a perfect formula for the ratio of MPs to senators to governors; and there will always be some irrational outcome from the attempt to provide adequate representation at every level of government.

In the US, each of the states gets two senators, and there is a 100-member Senate. But when it comes to the House of Representatives (where the congressmen serve) the basis of calculating the numbers is that the 435 seats must be divided equally on the basis of population.

And so you find that a large state like California has two senators and 53 congressmen; while a small state like Delaware has only one congressman (based on its population) but nonetheless has two senators.

We must therefore accept that there will always be dis-satisfaction about the varying levels of representation resulting from a two-chamber legislature.

That depending on whether you focus on geography or on populations, there will always be regions that will appear to have benefited at the expense of others. And there will always be plenty of old guys in the senate.

But what should be of far more concern to most of us, and what will certainly touch our individual lives in a far more direct manner, is the question of who gets to be a governor.

For this will be a man or woman who with barely any serious oversight institutions looking over his or her shoulder, will be in charge of a budget of some Sh3 billion for the county.

And while admittedly much of that money will go to pay salaries and other recurrent expenses, there will be plenty of room for development expenditure which has traditionally been the focus of huge rip-offs in Kenya.

So the question is, will each county really be able to find a man or a woman who can be relied on to spend Sh3 billion annually, in ways that will provide long-term benefits to the ordinary people?

The writer comments on topical issues.