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Kibwana hosts Dutch Envoy, Former CJ, on devolution support

Governor Kivutha Kibwana on Monday hosted Dutch ambassador to Kenya Frans Makken, former Chief Justice Willy Mutunga and Ford Foundation’s Eastern Africa director Maurice Makoloo at Wote to share ideas on how to support devolution through mutual partnerships.

The leaders explored possible areas of partnerships with key focus on institutionalized civic education, public participation and mainstreaming the youth in development.

Dr Mutunga described Makueni as a beacon of progress for sustaining devolution owing to its robust civic space and public participation framework.

“Makueni is one big change story,” he said. “We are looking at the county as a focus for enhancing civic space because of the robust public participation and civic engagement of the citizens being rolled,” said the former CJ.

Governor Kibwana said it took a lot of struggle to achieve a successful civic education and public participation in the county as the first crop of members of county assembly vehemently opposed any proposed budgetary allocation on grounds that it would have done better on tangible projects such as water, roads and Early Childhood Development Centres.

He said it is out of the robust civic space that the citizens petitioned President Uhuru Kenyatta to dissolve the county government after it became ungovernable due to incessant fights between MCAs and the executive during the first cycle of devolution.

Kibwana said his government has opened its doors to partners such as Ford Foundation, adding that the government is only playing a catalyst role and then partnering with strategic partners for sustainable development.

Dutch ambassador to Kenya Frans Makken said innovative processes for development partnerships should be enhanced as donors are no longer dishing out monies but facilitating ideas that would translate into wealth creation and tangible social-economic achievements.

He said there are numerous companies, donors and other non state actors willing to engage in such like partnerships with counties such as Makueni which have demonstrated willingness to work with the public in a people-driven development model.

Mr. Makoloo said the foundation will consider working with Makueni to pilot a new youth program involving building a green rural economy driven by young people.

Kilome residents secure date with NLC over alleged land injustices

Over 3,000 members of Kiima Kiu-Kalanzoni and Mukaa (KIAMUKA) Society have secured a date with the National Land Commission to present their grievances on alleged historical land injustices committed against them.

The society members, spread across Mukaa and Kiima Kiu/Kalanzoni wards in Kilome constituency, claim that a 5,048-acre piece of land leased to a British immigrant Robin Woodcraft Stanley in 1947 was forcefully taken from them, and a myriad of atrocities committed during their eviction.

The society has since petitioned NLC to look into the alleged historical injustice committed against them and their petition admitted.

Mr. Stanley popularly known by the locals as Makala has also petitioned the land commission seeking to stop any proceedings of whatever kind in relation to the piece of land.

The locals also claim that the piece of land owned by Makala is bigger than the 5,048 acres declared in the title of lease and want a survey done to ascertain the authenticity of the declared size under lease.

In a meeting attended by NLC commissioner Dr. Rose Musyoka, Governor Kivutha Kibwana, County Commissioner Maalim Mohammed, representatives of senator Mutula Kilonzo Jnr, members of county assembly and KIAMUKA society members on Monday, it was agreed that both the society members and Makala be heard by NLC in November to expeditiously put the matter to rest.

It was also agreed that the department of lands and urban planning in the county carry out a survey of the land next week as part of the process of the petition hearing.

Kibwana meets KPC chiefs over delayed oil spillage compensation

Governor Prof Kivutha Kibwana on Monday hosted top officials from Kenya Pipeline Company(KPC)  and Thange Farmers Association representatives to deliberate on the delayed compensation following oil spillage on River Thange in 2016.

The meeting came as  a response to a letter dated October 05, 2018  addressed to the KPC Chairman Mr John Ngumi by the Thange Farmers Association to look into the challenges delaying the compensation.

In the letter the group raised concerns about delayed compensations, lack of supply of potable water for domestic use and loss of land use since 2015 among other issues.

The Association chairman Mr Sammy Muindi referring to the letter said that there were still pending compensation cases three years after the oil spill adding that their agricultural means of livelihoods were cut short by the damaging spillage.

He said: “Three years after the oil spill we are yet to be fully compensated. KPC promised to supply clean water for domestic use but for a month now we have gone without clean drinking water. We stopped all our agricultural activities,the victims are facing a serious economic crisis.”

Governor Kibwana who chaired the meeting noted that the matter falls within the energy sector which  is not a devolved function making it difficult for the county to expressly take action.

The governor however said that they were offering support to the affected citizens of Thange and pleaded with all stakeholders to move with speed and bring the issue to rest once and for all.

“Energy  is a national function and we cannot go beyond our mandate as a county. We however are giving support to our Thange citizens. My plea to you is that we need to finalise this issue once and for all so that we can move on,” Prof Kibwana stated.

The governor  further said that the Thange oil spill should not be politicised.

KPC chair John Nguma said the organization is taking the matter seriously and would act to ensure residents are supplied with clean water for domestic use.

Makueni Senator Mutula Kilonzo Junior responding to the matter observed that all stakeholders involved in resolving the issues were performing poorly citing breakdown of communication as one of the major setbacks.

“We are all doing poorly in handling this matter while the people of Thange are suffering. What I see here is a breakdown of communication,” Mutula said.

He further urged for transparency in dealing with the issue.He called  for the reconstitution of the taskforce appointed to handle the spillage.

KPC Managing Director Joe Sang, in response to some of the issues raised by the Thange farmers said that they had used over Sh 31 million in Corporate Social Responsibility activities and over Sh 31 million to compensate 266 claimants.

He further promised that seven claims where discharge vouchers were signed and awaiting payment were going to be paid by the following week explaining that out of the total 4,267 claims received by KPC to date, 491 were fraudulent, 635 were pending due to incomplete information which was required by the insurance company for compensation 1,272 were rejected because the claimants were not residents of Thange.
  • October 15, 2018 in News

Involve the people in government projects: Deputy Governor

Makueni Deputy Governor Adelina Mwau on Thursday  called for the involvement of all stakeholders in implementation of government projects.

Mwau said that the governor and herself were able to stand out in development because they have always involved the Makueni people through the public participation model in the county.

The DG raised concerns over the formation of a committee to oversee the construction of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET)  institution in Nunguni which she said was formed without the input of the local residents.

“I am surprised to hear there is already a committee formed to manage the proposed college when Kaiti people were not involved, ” the DG said.

She further explained that together with Governor Prof. Kivutha Kibwana they have been able to achieve a lot for the county because they avoided politics in development.

“Let us not bring politics into development matters otherwise governor Kibwana and I would not have come this far, ” Mwau advised.

She was addressing a meeting convened between the Kaiti  constituency leadership and Kilungu Elders group to streamline Kaiti development agenda.

The county government has already  allocated a five -acres plot of land  for the construction of the institution, request which was made by the elders

The Elders Group through their chairperson Mr Julius Kilonzo  appreciated the Deputy Governor for the allocation saying that the institution was going to help secure  the future of their youth.

” We are grateful for the plot of land because the future of our young people will be taken care  of when the institution will be established,” Mr Kilonzo said.

  • October 12, 2018 in News

Makueni youth in Rwanda for continental networking summit

20 young people from Makueni are taking part in this year’s Youth Connect Africa summit staged in Kigali, Rwanda.

The summit brings together young people from across the continent to share ideas on the possible opportunities that they can collectively exploit to empower themselves and engineer the much needed continental transformation.

According to the organizers of the event, the forum seeks to connect 100 million young Africans, empower 25 million youth with skills, create 10 million jobs for the youth and nurture a million young leaders.

The three-day forum was officially opened by Rwandese Prime Minister Edouard Ngirente on Monday 8th.

Makueni governor Prof. Kivutha Kibwana, also addressed the forum on Tuesday 9th.

He challenged policy implementers to involve the youth in policy formulation and work with them on youth empowerment initiatives instead of working for them. He also called for a paradigm shift in youth mobilization as many miss opportunities for lack of information.

“For young people to be empowered, they have to be informed. Most ordinary youths miss opportunities because policy makers only target elite youths by means of communication,” he said.

Makueni County executive for Education, Youth, Sports and ICT Dr. Naomi Makau said the 20 youths from Makueni are in Rwanda to interact globally with other youths from the continent and learn from best practices on how to empower themselves.

Naomi said plans have been made to ensure the skills acquired from the forum cascade down to all the villages across the county.

The 20 were competitively selected from the six sub counties, with each sub county represented by three youths and two from the Makueni Youth Empowerment Service (M-YES).

An application to facilitate the youth networking will be launched at the end of the forum.

Kibwana meets top FAO officials

Governor Prof Kivutha Kibwana on Monday hosted the Food Agricultural Organisation(FAO) officials where they deliberated on a number of possible partnership areas.

The delegation led by Dr. Mulat Demeke indicated that the organization is keen on supporting devolution with special focus on food,nutrition security and sustainable agriculture, governance and public participation.

Some of the possible partnership areas being looked at include small scale farm level irrigation where the agricultural organisation is interested in supporting both the national government and county level on policy development for environment and efficient cost.

FAO applauded Makueni’s public participation model hinting, the organization could support  its implementation   in the other counties.

Prof Kibwana also held bilateral talks with the Danish ambassador Mette Knudsen, Grundfos CEO Mr.Mads Nipper to discuss water solutions for Makueni County.

The Danish government in partnership with the county and the World Vision has funded several water points in Makueni  using AGTAP, a systemized automated teller machine.
The ambassador will on Tuesday tour Makueni county to inspect various projects.

Mwau talks tough on cruelty against women

Makueni deputy governor Adelina Mwau has  warned gender based violence perpetrators in the county saying stern action will be taken against offenders to fight the vice.

Mwau spoke at Unoa grounds where she addressed a women conference convened to discuss gender mainstreaming, women’s financial stability and healthcare among others.

The county had partnered with Musyi FM a Nairobi based vernacular radio station   to organise the event that brought together women from different spheres of life.

The deputy governor regretted  that incidences of violence against women had become  rampant in Makueni terming such acts unfortunate and barbaric.

‘’We are witnessing a lot of defilement and rape cases across the county. This is disheartening and no woman or child deserves to be violated,” Mwau noted.

She repeatedly quoted a recent case where a 77-year-old woman was raped by her 24-year-old grandson.

Mwau thanked police for moving with speed to apprehend the suspect and expressed hope the judiciary will be swift in dealing with the matter.

She urged women not to hide incidences of defilement and incest involving their husbands adding that it was hurting the battle to win justice for the victims.She urged the security apparatus to take action against those hiding such criminals.

‘’What are you still doing with a husband who defiles your daughter and impregnates them?,’’ She posed.

She continued, “ You deserve a legal action and no mercy should be shown to you. You are badly tormenting those young girls.’’

The County Executive Committee  Member for gender Dr. Godfrey Makau noted that the community needed more sensitization on measures taken in case of rape or defilement, gender responsive budgeting tools as well as women gender agenda.

‘’Our people need more education on measures they should take incase such barbaric acts are committed against them; the county has done a lot but we still need to reach out to more people,” Dr Makau noted.

At the same time  deputy governor announced that her office is keen on promoting women’s participation in leadership, decision making, advocacy as well as implementation of strategies geared towards empowering the woman.

She also said that the county has an already existing revolving fund that has been benefiting organized groups such as women, youth, men and PWDs since 2016.

‘’This interest free loan has achieved a lot so far in empowering these groups economically and soon we will introduce a Nzangule ya Matangi loan so that the county realizes its CIDP rain water harvesting plan’’ Mwau reported.

Makueni MP Daniel Maanzo appreciated the office of the deputy governor for championing the gender affairs, adding that Mwau has been on the forefront in the fight against gender based violence.

Mwau Visits Elderly GBV Victim as Police Mounts Search for Rape Suspect

Makueni deputy governor on Tuesday visited a 77-year-old woman at the Makueni Referral Hospital who was brutally raped by her 24-year-old grandson the previous night in Mbooni Sub-County.
 
Confirming the incident, Dr. Lugogo Athman said the woman had several light tissue injuries and bruises at her neck as the perpetrator attempted to strangle her.
 
Dr Lugogo however said that they were doing everything possible to ensure that she was stable and make sure she gets proper treatment.
 
Later the victim was referred to Nairobi Women Hospital, GBV recovery wing.
 
“We have done examination on her and she has serious raptures. We are doing all that we can to ensure that she is safe,” Dr. Lugogo said.
 
The DG was shocked at the  incident and how gender based violence cases have increased in the county saying that women are not safe including the children.
 
“This means we are not safe including our children,” the DG exclaimed.
 
According to the gender based violence officer Esther Ndeto who admitted the victim to the recovery unit, the rate of GBV is very high in Makueni with up to five reported incidences recorded daily.
 
“Gender based violence is very high. We receive up to 5 cases per day and I am even convinced the number could be more due to some which go unreported,”stated Ms Ndeto.
 
The county government through the Dg’s office is in the forefront towards fighting gender based violence and soon will be officially commissioning a Makueni Gender Based Violence Recovery Centre where victims will be taken care of including psychological counselling sessions.
 
Recently the county held talks with Equality Now to discuss how we can  partner  to organise  a county marathon, an initiative to help create awareness around GBV since many people do not have any or the right information on how to deal with such cases.

Governor commissions Kalawa Market Shed as he inspects projects

Governor Prof Kivutha Kibwana on Monday toured Kalawa Ward to inspect a number of development projects initiated by his government.

During the tour the governor commissioned several development projects in the Ward.

The governor also interacted with residents on the ward’s development agenda.

Governor Kibwana began by inspecting the grading of Kinyau-Thwake-Katangini-Makongeni-Ndauni-Kwa Kaoka-Kwa Mwamisi-Kathulumbi-Unyeeo-Ngomano-Syotuvali road.

This road connects the interior part of the ward to the Kalawa-Wote road,opening it to higher social and economic growth.

Prof Kibwana later commissioned Kalawa Market Shed in Kalawa town.

Involve the citizenry in legislative processes: Mwau

Makueni deputy governor Adelina Mwau has urged both the national and county governments to involve local communities in legislative processes.

Although the governments seem to have involved the people in most of their services and activities, the deputy governor said that there remains a gap in integration of their views into laws and policies they develop.

She said: “While the national and county governments seem to have involved the local communities in most of their services, there remains a lot to be done when it comes to engaging the citizenry in the legislative processes.”

Mwau spoke on Thursday at United States International University-Africa when she addressed delegates during the Second Conference on devolution for sustainable development adding that it is only through public participation and civic education that the local communities can be factored in the legislative priorities.

The DG’s sentiments were echoed by URAIA executive director Grace Maingi who also lauded Makueni for having implemented effective public participation, a model that drew several governors for benchmarking last month.

“Public participation and civic education is the way to go to ensure ownership and sustainability of development initiatives. I wish to congratulate Makueni for being successful in this,” Ms Maingi stated.

Mwau further observed that legislature should begin the process by educating the people on their rights and roles so as to be able to provide enlightened feedback.

“It is the high time we thought of delivering to the communities the sustainable development goals as a specific civic education program in order to contribute in the path of fulfilling the Kenya Vision 2030, the DG said.