Aboud
Rogo Mohammed who was on US and UN sanction lists for allegedly
supporting Somalia’s Al-Qaeda-linked Shebab militants was shot dead on
Monday.His bloody body was slumped behind the wheel of a car.
The
body of Aboud Rogo Mohammed lies in a van along Mombasa Malindi highway
as his relatives sit in the vehicle in Kenya’s coastal city of Mombasa
Shortly
after Rogo’s death furious protests erupted.One person was hacked to
death on Monday. Cars were set ablaze and several churches were
looted.The protest continued for the second day with protesters
condemning his brutal killing.
Kenyan security forces patrol the streets during demonstrations REUTERS/Joseph Okanga
Aboud
Rogo Mohammed is said to have introduced Fazul Abdullah Mohammed —
the late head of Al-Qaeda’s east Africa cell, shot dead last year in
Somalia’s war-torn capital Mogadishu — to at least one of the men who
helped him carry out the twin US embassy bombings in 1998.
Photo |
Mzee Julius Wanyondu Gatonga, 128, cannot be covered by NHIF since the
computer system recognises age from 1890, six years after he was born
He is among the world’s oldest men, but cannot get what he needs most — medical insurance cover.
Computers are frustrating Mzee Julius Wanyondu Gatonga’s efforts at getting the cover under the National Hospital Insurance Fund.
He is deemed too old for the system, since his ID indicates he was born in 1884; the computers only accept birth dates from 1890.
For this reason, efforts by his family to have him covered under the NHIF hit a snag; his age is beyond the NHIF computer system, so his application to be a member was rejected due to his age.
Mzee Wanyondu from Mihuti village, Mukurwe-ini District in Nyeri County has had his name rejected several times once entered to be registered as a beneficiary of NHIF.
Family members cannot understand the circumstances under which this was happening. “Unbelievable,” said 70-year-old John Nguru Wanyondu, the fourth child of Mzee Wanyondu.
He said as a family they felt embarrassed by the feedback that their father was too old to be registered.
“Our father is too old, and looking at his age, we don’t know what will happen next, so we are urging the authorities to consider his case and do something,” he said.
He says it is also embarrassing for the family as the system is insinuating that their father is supposed to be dead by now. Share This Story
Mr John Macharia of Muungano Mwema enterprises, an agent of NHIF based in Mukurwe-ini, said the family members of Mzee Wanyondu visited his office seeking medical cover for their ageing parents.
Mr Macharia said the family first sought to register their parents in March this year, but the old man’s name was rejected by the NHIF computer system.
“The man has been regarded as being too old for the computer, despite the NHIF claim that there is no age limit with the fund,” said Mr Macharia.
He says they now use his 89-year old wife Beth Wanjiru as the contributor, because he has completely been rejected by the system.
Mr Macharia says efforts to get help from the Nyeri NHIF Branch manager have hit a snag as he says he does not understand the error.
“We tried all means to register Mzee, even through his wife’s details, but it still it declined to register him citing age,” added Mr Macharia.
Computer limit
The NHIF systems only accept details of persons born after 1890, but for Mzee Wanyondu, the system fails to detect his age because he is older than the stipulated age limit.
The family now regards this as an issue of age discrimination and an embarrassing computer glitch which needs to be fixed quickly before the medication for Wanyondu becomes urgent. The family says this may be seen as an isolated case, but there could be other families nursing such elderly men and women, and suffering in silence.
They question how a national health insurance scheme which has full government backing can discriminate against its most senior citizens who played an important role in the country’s history.
Although he is 128 years old, Mzee Wanyondu still walks and does a number of some chores by himself.
According to NHIF registration policies, as long as you are a Kenyan who has attained the age of 18, whether from formal or informal sectors, you are eligible for cover. There is no upper age limit.
A person under NHIF cover is expected to benefit upon admission to a hospital which is a member of the fund, as well as all government and mission hospitals.
The Church has demanded compensation for 11 of its institutions, which have been burnt down in the past five months.
The National Council of Churches of Kenya (NCCK) secretary-general Peter Karanja said the attacks on its churches by Al-Shabaab and other groupings appear to be well-planned and the government should bear the responsibility.
Addressing a press conference at the council’s headquarters in Jumuia Place, Nairobi, the Rev Karanja said the government has a duty to protect life and property, which it had failed to do.
Churches destroyed
“What is clear is that peace in the country is about appeasing the angry rather than protecting the innocent,” he said.
Reacting after the Mombasa chaos in which two churches were destroyed by rioters protesting the killing of Sheikh Aboud Rogo on Monday, the Rev Karanja praised Christians for restraining themselves following the attacks. (READ: Mombasa burns as Kibaki, Raila lead peace campaign)
In Mombasa, a meeting between Muslim leaders and Christian clerics called to broker peace aborted on Wednesday when bishops stormed out of the venue.
“We are not happy with the agenda of today’s meeting. How can they put politics ahead of peace when Mombasa is burning?” Anglican Bishop Lawrence Dena said as he drove away.
Prime Minister Raila Odinga has said there was a “hidden hand” in the Mombasa riots aimed at creating a wedge between Christians and Muslims.
Mr Odinga, fielding questions from journalists at the Nyali Beach Hotel, noted that the level of the riots and use of grenade was a pointer that there was someone controlling the attacks.
“Their intention is to divide the people of Mombasa into Christians and Muslims with the sole aim of creating an inter-religious conflict,” he said.
Security agencies, according to the PM, are investigating the violence and would bring to book those behind the chaos. (READ: Tension in Mombasa as Al-Shabaab suspect Rogo killed)
However, Mr Odinga refused to speculate or disclose the “hidden hand”, saying the spontaneous attacks in Mvita and Kisauni immediately after the burial of the murdered preacher was an indication of a mastermind.
At the same time, Vice-President Kalonzo Musyoka said in a statement from London, UK:
“By targeting churches and other places of worship the intent of the perpetrators of such cowardly acts is to fan tension between people who ascribe to different faiths.”
Shariff Nassir Foundation chairman Abdullswamad Nassir asked the youths to stop the unruly acts, saying, Islam did not allow such atrocities.
And deputy police spokesperson Charles Owino on Wednesday denied claims that the police were involved in the killing of Sheikh Rogo. Share This Story
According to Mr Owino, the death of Mr Rogo may have resulted from his radical teachings on jihad (Islamic term for holy war) or his relationship with the Al-Shabaab may have gone sour.
“Mr Rogo was a fiery cleric whose teachings did not go well with other Imams because of his hardline positions on jihad. This caused differences that we do not want to overlook while investigating his killing.
“His relationship with the al Shabaab as their contact person in Kenya may also have a role in his death,” Mr Owino said.
A campaign aimed at reducing the number of Kenyan children who die before their fifth birthday was launched in Nairobi on Wednesday.
The drive will also raise awareness on the number of children below the age of five dying from preventable causes and complications during birth and harmful practices after birth that cause infections.
The national campaign dubbed “5 and alive” has been organised by Save the Children and World Vision with support from the Ministry of Public Health and Sanitation.
Acting head at the Ministry’s Department of Family Health Dr Tatu Kamau said they are targeting to improve maternal health and heighten the chances of child survival beyond the age of five.
“Malaria, malnutrition, HIV and Aids and inappropriate household practices are some of the main causes of such deaths and it is factors such as poverty, cultural practices and inadequacies in health services that it possible,” she said during the launch at the Silver Springs Hotel.
Other causes of Kenya’s high child mortality are caused by water, sanitation and hygiene related factors.
A caravan, which was flagged off at the ceremony, will snake through major towns countrywide carrying the message of the campaign – use of clean water, hand washing and visiting health centres for treatment and child delivery.
Optimum care
Dr Kamau said it will create awareness on the correct practices that will promote optimum infant and maternal care as “the problems start in the community level.” Share This Story
"Measures such as vaccines, oral hydration therapy to treat diarrhoea, drugs to treat infections, insecticide-treated bed nets to prevents malaria, exclusive breast feeding for six months, among others can dramatically reduce deaths among children under the age of five.”
Save the Children Country Director Duncan Harvey described the first five years of a child’s life as the most crucial to the physical and intellectual development of children.
Statistics from the government indicate that currently, 74 children out of every 1,000 born in Kenya die before their fifth birthday.
And the new born deaths contribute to 33 per cent of infant deaths and more than 50 per cent of these occur at home.
In May, a World Health Organisation (WHO) report revealed that more than 150,000 children under the age of five died of preventable diseases last year.
The report cited that pneumonia, malaria and diarrhoea, resulting to malnutrition, as the main causes of the deaths.
According to the report, Nyanza topped the list of provinces with the highest number of preventable child deaths, followed by Western while Central recorded the lowest numbers.
Also, Dr Kamau said the government is planning to rehire retired midwives to serve as skilled birth attendants to assist in cases of home deliveries.
“However, we are not encouraging home births as we would prefer them to come to our centres. But this is the government trying to meet them halfway,” she said. The Nairobi circuit of the campaign will kick off on Monday before heading to Nakuru and Western parts of the country.
Mombasa police boss Kipkemoi Rop (centre) talks to youth outside the
Royal Castle Hotel after they disrupted Mr Miguna (not in the picture)
promotional session of his book.
Former Prime Minister Raila Odinga advisor Miguna Miguna was confronted by rowdy youth during a promotional tour of his controversial book at the Castle Royal Hotel in Mombasa County.
Trouble broke out when the youth demanded to know who was funding him to scuttle Mr Odinga's quest for the presidency in the next General Election.
Mr Miguna, who was addressing would-be buyers of his book, Peeling Back the Mask: A Quest for Justice in Kenya, found himself cornered when enraged youth accosted him with blows and kicks.
In the ensue melee, Mr Miguna lost his trademark cap and a shoe as he wrestled with the attackers.
However, quick action by hotel security and six police managed to throw the rowdy youths out before locking entry points to the premises.
As the crowd swelled outside the hotel on the busy Moi Avenue, anti-riot police led by Kipkemoi Rop took charge and with the assistance of flying squad officers whisked the besieged author out of the hotel.
When told pole (sorry) by a journalist, Mr Miguna shouted back "Aluta continua the struggle is still on," before entering a flying squad car that zoomed off closely followed by another escort vehicle.
Earlier, Mr Miguna had criticised the PM saying he lacked the leadership qualities to be the next president.
He said Mr Odinga had failed to rein in corruption in his office, which "was infested with corrupt individuals". Share This Story
Briefing the media, Mr Rop expressed satisfaction they had done their operation without resorting to force or tear-gassing the unruly mob.
Photo|FILE
Kenya Defence Forces spokesman Emmanuel Chirchir
African Union troops in Somalia have killed 42 Al-Shabaab militias and injured scores of others.
Kenya Defence Forces spokesman Emmanuel Chirchir
said several others escaped with injuries after they attacked Algibah
near the port city of Kismayu.
Major Chirchir said four Al-Shabaab technical
vehicles, one water bowser, one lorry and supplies were also destroyed
in the process.
Clan resists
He said Al-Shabaab had called on women in Kismayu
to provide their fighters with food and water as they battle Amisom
troops but some women refused.
“As Amisom troops surround Kismayu, Marehan clans
vowed to resist and fight alongside Al-Shabaab but the rest of the clans
have welcomed the troops to free the area of the militia,” Mjr Chirchir
said.
On Tuesday, Amisom edged closer to seizing Kismayu
after the capture of Marka, the third largest port in southern Somalia.
(READ: AU troops capture Shabaab stronghold)
The forces pushed the Al-Qaeda-affiliated Al-Shabaab out of the town, which has been one of militants’ key havens since 2008
The KNS Jasiri battleship. President Kibaki is set to officially receive
the Sh4.6 billion vessel at the Mombasa Port August 29, 2012.
Kenya’s largest and most sophisticated battleship has sailed into Mombasa amid pomp and fanfare rolled out by the military.
KNS Jasiri docked at the Mkunguni Navy yard on Wednesday, concluding a 20-day journey from Spain and ending the controversy that has lingered since 2003 when its acquisition was initiated.
The warship was among the controversial Anglo Leasing projects exposed by former Governance and Ethics permanent secretary John Githongo but was later cleared by Parliament. (READ: House team approves Sh2.8bn for navy ship)
Appropriately named Jasiri (Kiswahili for bold), the Sh4.6 billion vessel is expected to spearhead efforts to secure the country’s territorial waters and help in the planned sea-based military excursions to liberate the Somali port town of Kismayu from the Al-Shabaab.
Somalia role
Certainly proud of the acquisition of the warship, Kenya Defence Forces declared that KNS Jasiri’s arrival had boosted KDF’s capacity to defend the country and role within African Union Mission in Somalia (Amisom).
“Jasiri has capabilities and capacities that we did not have. If there are some people out there thinking they can come to our waters and worry us.
"Let them know that things can get very tough for them,” warned Gen Julius Karangi, Chief of the Kenya Defence Forces.
Though Gen Karangi and the KDF top brass declined to divulge details of the ship’s capabilities, sources at the Department of Defence had earlier told the Nation that the ship is fitted with long-range cannons, missile launchers, machine guns and sophisticated radar and communications systems. Share This Story
“It is actually the best among warships owned by navies in this part of Africa with the exception of South Africa,” a military official, who cannot be named as he is not authorised to speak to the media told the Nation at Mkunguni.
Sea traffic at the Kilindini Harbour was halted for some time as the grey warship with the Kenyan flag emblazoned on its twin chimneys slowly made its way past the Mtongwe Navy Jetty on its way to Mkunguni, escorted by a fleet of other Navy ships and patrol boats.
It blared its horn in acknowledgment of a salute from Gen Karangi at the jetty as Kenya Air Force fighter jets simultaneously made their deafening fly-pasts.
An Air Force helicopter with the banner bearing the words ‘Karibu Jasiri’ (Welcome Jasiri) followed as the military personnel on the ground saluted.
The celebrations later shifted to Mkunguni where prayers were made for the safety of the ship and its crew. Maj-Gen Ngewa Mukala, the Navy Commander, alongside the Kenya Air Force Commander, Maj-Gen Joff Otieno and Lt Gen J.K. Kasaon, Army Commander, attended the occasion.
History and controversy
Also present were members of the parliamentary Committee on Defence and Foreign Relations Adan Keynan (chairman), Charles Kilonzo, Wilson Litole, Mohamed Hussein Ali and Martin Ogindo.
Gen Karangi said the history and controversy that had dogged the acquisition of the battleship was a thing of the past and Kenyans should now take pride in being the owners of a vessel loaded with cutting edge-technology.
“The history of Jasiri is known to Kenyans and all manner of things have been said and happened concerning Jasiri since 2003. “It is not our intention to go back in time, this is not the time to say this and that about Jasiri. Suffice it to say that we have acquired this ship to use in the defence of our country,” he said.
He said KDF’s engagement in Somalia under Amisom would continue until security was fully restored in the Horn of Africa country.
“We are fully and actively engaged in Somalia and will not come out until the country is secured. We are on the homestretch,” he noted.
Mr Keynan said his committee fully backed the efforts to upgrade the military.
Four police officers were on Wednesday night seriously injured in yet another grenade attack in Mombasa.
The four were in a group of seven officers who were patrolling the town when they were attacked at Lebanon on Kenyatta Avenue.
A young man suspected to have been in the group of protesters that threw the grenade was also injured and is in hospital.
Three of the police officers were on Wednesday night scheduled for an operation at Pandya Memorial Hospital.
Coast Provincial Criminal Investigations boss Amborse Munyasia, while addressing journalists at the scene, denied that there were any deaths as earlier reported, but confirmed that four officers had been injured.
The attack comes on a day when calm was beginning to return to the coastal town following two days of fierce riots by youths protesting against Monday’s killing of Al-Shabaab suspect Sheikh Aboud Rogo. (READ: Tension high in Mombasa in second day of protests)
In court, 24 people were on Wednesday charged with causing the chaos. Acting Internal Security minister Yussuf Haji said they were among 32 arrested by police.
The others are still being questioned. The government also named an 11-member team to investigate Sheikh Rogo’s killing and the subsequent riots in which four people, including three prison warders, have died.
Local leaders moved from house-to-house in the Kisauni urging people to avoid violence. Speaking at Mtongwe Jetty in Mombasa where he had joined the military brass to receive a new warship, Mr Haji condemned the burning of churches. Share This Story
Related Stories
Four hurt in Mombasa grenade attack
“I appeal to all the parents in Mombasa to ask their children to desist from attacking churches and causing mayhem in Mombasa. The government will not condone such behaviour; we will deal with them severely,” he warned.
He called on people to be patient as Sheikh Rogo’s murder was investigated. The minister praised the religious leaders who resisted attempts to turn the chaos into a Christian versus Muslim affair.
Meanwhile, two more prison warders succumbed to injuries sustained in the grenade attack in Kisauni. Eleven others, who were rushed to Jocham Hospital, were in stable condition, according to chief administrator Benjamin Simiyu Wafula.
At the Coast Provincial General Hospital, the chief administrator, Dr David Mwangi, said the officers who died were brought in with multiple injuries. A tuk-tuk driver who was stabbed by the rioters is also admitted and in serious condition.
Dr Mwangi said another police officer wounded in the grenade attack had been transferred to Pandya Memorial Hospital for intensive care. At the Mombasa Law Courts, the 24 suspects were before senior resident magistrate Elvis Michieka.
They denied taking part in unlawful assembly and a riot and were remanded in custody until September 3 when the court will rule on whether they would be freed on bond.
On Wednesday morning, Mombasa residents woke up to a more visible presence of security in the estates and streets.
The heavy deployment came ahead of President Kibaki’s expected arrival in Mombasa later in the evening for the opening of the Mombasa International Show.
In some areas, police conducted house-to-house searches in a day-long operation. Jamia and Masjid mosques, where the youths have been converging to plan the riots, were ringed by armed police.
In Kisauni, MP Hassan Joho, district commissioner Tom Anjere,
deputy mayor John Mcharo and other leaders moved door-to-door urging
people to maintain peace.
Mr Anjere asked residents to give police information on any stranger visiting the region.
In Nairobi, DPP Keriako Tobiko announced that the
investigation team would be led by assistant Commissioner of Police Pius
Macharia and would be coordinated by Mr Jacob Ondari of his office.
“In addition to investigating that murder the
mandate of the team is broadened to cover all acts of criminality,
including the burning of churches, destruction of property and killing
of law enforcement officers,” Mr Tobiko said.
The team is expected to present its findings and
recommendations in 14 days. Sheikh Rogo, who was adversely mentioned in a
United Nations report as a financier of the Somalia terrorist group,
Al-Shabaab, was shot dead on the Mombasa-Malindi highway.
As the inquiry team starts its work, various
theories are flying as to who could have killed Sheikh Rogo. Whereas his
family and the protesting youths have blamed the police, the
investigators will cast their net wider.
Police have denied responsibility and instead suggested that infighting within Al-Shabaab may have led to the killing.
Those who knew him suspect that the real sponsors
of Al-Shabaab and Al-Qaeda activities in Kenya might have been behind
his killing following his recent blacklisting by the US for fear of him
spilling the beans.
PHOTO|
Police Airwing quality manager Morris Oketch when he appeared before the commission at the KICC in Nairobi on August 29, 2012
A senior police officer took the helicopter which killed Internal Security minister George Saitoti and his deputy Orwa Ojodeh on a flight that was not documented days before it crashed.
The commission investigating the accident, which also killed two pilots and two bodyguards, was on Wednesday told the Police Airwing boss, Mr Rodgers Mbithi, flew for 50 minutes but did not record the date and his destination.
Police Airwing quality manager Morris Oketch said Mr Mbithi did not state the time and place of landing at Wilson Airport where the airwing is based. It is standard practice in aviation for pilots to document such flight details.
Some 80 witnesses are expected to testify. The commission is seeking to establish the cause of the crash.
The helicopter, manufactured by Eurocopter of France but bought from its South African subsidiary, crashed on the morning of June 10 in Kibiku area of Ngong, killing all six on board.
Mr Oketch, who was testifying for the second day, said the airwing commandant was the designated pilot on the take-off log sheet which, however, did not indicate a date and landings before the helicopter was returned to the hangar.
Mr Mbithi flew the helicopter from South Africa after it was purchased from Eurocopter, the commission heard.
Could not recall
The witness, however, could not recall whether he was in the team that flew to Voi on June 8, two days before the crash. Share This Story
During cross examination by lawyer Fred Ngatia for the Saitoti family, Mr Oketch said the omissions were “clear errors in the commandant’s entries” but failed to explain further.
He told the commission that Mr Mbithi left blank a column where a flight pilot is supposed to describe defects, if any, after landing as a lead for the next pilot. (READ: Saitoti copter ‘allowed to fly with defect’)
“Such casualness bothers me,” he said. He said only the commandant could explain when and where he flew the aircraft. The commission heard the aircraft had been prepared for flight on June 9, a day before the crash.
Mr Oketch said he could not tell who was to use the helicopter on the cancelled trip, saying only the police operations and VIP transport departments had access to such information.
“The unit had received information that a flight would take place, but whoever was to use it was not known. I am more concerned with serviceability than the passengers,” Mr Oketch said.
He said he found the commandant and another senior officer at Wilson Airport on the tragic Sunday, but he did not take part in the pre-flight inspection.
Responding to a question by Mr Ngatia, the witness said civilian aircraft were parked at the police hangar, but declined to identity the owners.
He said only the commandant could allow them unlimited access to the hangar. He said a briefcase was stored in the luggage compartment after Prof Saitoti and Mr Ojodeh boarded the helicopter.
Asked how he got to the crash scene, Mr Oketch said he flew in another police helicopter captained by Mr Mbithi.
This screen grab from NASA Television shows an image transmitted from the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) Curiosity Rover shows the rover's wheel and the rocky terrain of the Martian surface indicating a successful landing on the Red Planet on August 5, 2012, taken at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. NASA's 2.5 billion USD Mars rover on August 5 made a dramatic touchdown on the Red Planet, marking a successful end to the most sophisticated Mars attempt in history.
AFP PHOTO
Posted Monday, August 6 2012 at 08:51
Pasadena, California,
NASA on Sunday successfully landed its $2.5 billion Mars Science Laboratory and Curiosity rover on the surface of the Red Planet, marking the most ambitious attempt to reach Mars in history.
"Touchdown confirmed," said a member of mission control at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory as the room erupted in cheers. "We are wheels down on Mars. Oh, my God."
A dusty image of the rover's wheel on the surface, taken from a rear camera on the vehicle, confirmed the arrival of the car-sized rover and its sophisticated toolkit designed to hunt for signs that life once existed there.
A second image arrived within seconds, showing the shadow of the rover on Mars.
When the landing was announced after a tense, seven minute process known as entry, descent and landing, the room filled with jubilation as chief scientists distributed Mars chocolate bars to the NASA staff members.
However, success was anything but certain with this first-of-its-kind attempt to drop a six-wheeled chemistry lab by rocket-powered sky crane on an alien planet. NASA's more recent rover dropoffs were done with the help of airbags.
In the final moments, the spacecraft accelerated with the pull of gravity as it nears Mars' atmosphere, making a fiery entry at a speed of 13,200 miles (21,240 kilometers) per hour and then slowing down with the help of a supersonic parachute.
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After that, an elaborate sky crane powered by rocket blasters kicked in, and the rover was lowered down by nylon tethers, apparently landing upright on all six wheels.
Scientists do not expect Curiosity to find aliens or living creatures. Rather they hope to use it to analyze soil and rocks for signs that the building blocks of life are present and may have supported life in the past.
The project also aims to study the Martian environment to prepare for a possible human mission there in the coming years.
It has already been collecting data on radiation during its eight and a half month journey following launch in November 2011 from Cape Canaveral, Florida.
Earlier on Sunday, Mars program director Doug McCuistion called the science "absolutely crucial" to finding out if Earthlings are alone, how Mars evolved from a wet to a dry planet and how accessible Mars may be for human explorers in the future.
"If we succeed, it will be one of the greatest feats in planetary exploration ever," he told reporters. "Our success rate has been pretty darn good recently."
However, he cautioned that "these things are really hard to do" and admitted that "we may not be successful."
Attempts by global space agencies since 1960 have resulted in a near 40 percent success rate in sending landers, orbiters or other spacecraft for flybys to Mars. NASA has the best record.
