DO YOU SUPPORT MUTUNGA'S ENDEAVOURS

The newly appointed Chief Justice of the Republic of Kenya Mr. Willy Mutunga took office Monday20th June 2011 with a solemn promise to wipe out corruption and end impunity in the Judiciary.

Mr Mutunga replaces Justice Evans Gicheru who retired in February this year in tandem with the new Constitution.

He will be deputised by Ms Nancy Baraza who was also sworn-in together with Director of Public Prosecutions Mr Keriako Tobiko in a ceremony witnessed by President Kibaki, Prime Minister, The Rt Hon Raila Odinga, Justice minister Mutula Kilonzo and Attorney-General Amos Wako.

In his acceptance speech The New Cj said that expectations of the new Constitution, was to put tyranny, oppression and exploitation, opacity and impunity on the back foot “while making strides towards freedom, opportunity, transparency and liberty”.

Mr Mutunga faces an uphill task of cleaning up the image of the Judiciary by providing leadership to an institution viewed as most corrupt compared to other government agencies.

The CJ is also expected to address the issue of case backlog that continue to stalk the Judiciary. An ecomonic survey revealed that by December 2009, there were 910,013 pending cases – 2,372 in the Court of Appeal, 115,344 at the High Court and 792,297 at the magistrate’s courts.

Do you think Mr Mutunga's Endeavours will suceed?

Were the youth ably catered for in the budget?

During the 2011/2012 budget the finance minister Hon Uhuru Kenyatta highlighted the youth as being a key area of focus in the Kenyan economy.He credited the youth with pioneering innovations in the ICT sector that has given Kenya, an international recognition in the area of mobile technology, and for this reason he said the government will tap into this pool of resources to push the country's economy up the technology value chain.

To this end, we have scaled up the Kenya Youth Empowerment Project (KYEP) by Sh210 million to go towards labour-intensive works and social services, bringing the total expenditure for KYEP to Sh1.8 billion in 2011/12," he said.

The Minister also mentioned the challenge facing the youth in securing internships for prior experience when applying for formal employment, subsequently he said he will urge the private sector to avail opportunities to the youth to harness their potential.

"To address this challenge, he said his ministry will be consulting with private sector players on the best ways to extend tax breaks for firms offering internship and training placement for youth, training and passing on the relevant work experience and enhancing the employability of youth," he ensured.

Do you think the finance minister addressed the plight of the youth fully?

Are the Kenyan youth taking more leadership and elective roles?

in an exclusive interview in one of our Media stations a Mr Anthony Kibagendi (pictured Left), the Chairman of the Vipa Party of kenya says he made a very interesting observation about the Kenyan youth were locked out of the Kamukunji Parliamentary elctions by the IIEC. This got my mind jogging.... .

The youth make up about 60% of registered voters, right? That makes us the outright majority of voters, but I highly doubt that there is any political party in Kenya that actually reaches out to the youth. I’m talking about having the youth’s interests at heart. Kenyan politics is all about name calling and mud slinging, and in the process no one bothers to address issues (or at least make empty promises in their manifestos) to address issues faced by the youth.

We face various issues that include HIV/AIDS, sexual (as well as other forms of) abuse, inadequate educational facilities, lack of employment opportunities for university graduates, lack of adequate opportunities to develop individual talents among others.

Anyway, the idea is, would it be possible/feasible to cater for the youth with a special need by allocating special seats for them so that they solely cater for the interests of the youth? I’m not necessarily talking about going for the top seats, but let’s assume that the they could reach out to the youth in all corners of the country and educate them about their rights and the importance of having representation for the youth and by the youth,

Whats your take on this?

Replacing Lost ID cards to cost kshs 300/=

Accordingly ,Replacing a lost national identity card will now cost Sh300. Previously it was kshs 100/=.

Immigration and Registration of Persons minister Otieno Kajwang’ said in Parliament on Thursday, charging Sh300 was designed to encourage ID holders to be more careful in handling the document.

Mr Kajwang’ said the money is a small fraction of the cost of producing a single card.

He said it would cost at least Sh1,000 to produce a third generation ID.

Describing the ID as a “very expensive” right, the minister said his ministry wanted to ensure that everyone had the document and this could be made easier if more resources and time was spent issuing new ones instead of replacements lost ones..

But the minister insisted that holders must take good care of the document if they wanted to avoid paying the replacement cost.

Do you support the government move to increase this rates at this time?

What Can the Youth Do to Prevent a Repeat of the Post Poll Chaos in 2012

After the 2007 elections there was a political, economic, and humanitarian crisis that erupted in kenya after incumbent president Mwai Kibaki was declared the winner of the presidential election held on December 27, 2007. Supporters of Kibaki's opponent, Raila Odinga of the ODM, alleged electoral manipulation .

Former UN Secretary General, Dr. Koffi Annan arrived in the country nearly a month after the election, and successfully brought the two sides to the negotiating table. On February 28, 2008, Kibaki and Odinga signed a power-sharing agreement called the National Accord and Reconciliation Act, which establishes the office of prime minister and creates a coalition government.The power-sharing Cabinet, headed by Odinga as Prime Minister, was eventually named on April 13, after lengthy negotiations over its composition

As the youth of this country, what can we do to avert a repeat of this inhuman acts?

As a Youth, Do You Support Hon. Mike Sonko's Antics?

Makadara MP Gideon Mbuvi aka Sonko is at it again. The MP led his supporters in a demo that entailed the MP lying prostrate on the streets, punching gates with his bare hands and jumping over them all in attempt to make a point over alleged demolition of kiosks.

Makadara Member of Parliament Gideon Mbuvu alias Mike Sonko was unapologetic for his behaviour in the streets of Nairobi. Sonko says he will keep representing the wishes of his constituents using whatever means to get justice. It is also alleged that the MP led the youth to burn down a city council office in South B estate after causing mayhem at Jogoo House.

Watch Video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5jcmDPyhtUI&feature=player_embedded

Do you support Sonko's Antics?

MCSK Deregistered Over ‘Misuse of Funds’

The Music Copyright Society of Kenya (MCSK), the body that collects royalties for music composers, authors and publishers in Kenya has been deregistered.

According to Kenya Gazette Notice number 5093 of May 6, 2011, signed by executive director Marisella Ouma (pictured above)and chairman Henry Chakava of the Kenya Copyright Board (Kecobo), the society was deregistered on April 1, 2011.

Sources close to Kecobo said the society had been under investigations after artistes lodged complaints of misappropriation of funds.

Many musicians have welcomed the deregistration, saying they have a better opportunity to streamline the society and make it effective.

After checking our accounts, they said that we spend half of what we collect on management.

Last year, MCSK posted an accounts report on their web site indicating that they had collected Sh185,555,521 compared to Sh118,125,764 recorded the previous year.

Earlier in the month, MCSK was reported to have merged with the Performance Rights Society of Kenya (PRSK) and Kenya Association of Music Producers (KAMP). The merger is meant to form one collecting body for royalties, instead of three.

Since most youth have turned to music as a means of livelihood, do you support KECOBO's decision to de-register MSCK?

Is the Lack of National ID's Affecting the Youth?

There is lack of adequate clarity on the documents required to support an application for an ID
Three kinds of evidence are required in the application process: – (1) Proof of age (2) Proof of citizenship and (3) Proof of residence.
The National Bureau of Registration has provided the following guidelines:
a) For proof of birth, any of the following may be used: • Birth certificate • Baptismal certificate • School leaving certificate • Age assessment certificate from a medical officer • Child health card • Notification of birth • Letter from the Provincial Administration – Chief/Assistant Chief • Sworn affidavits (for late registration)
b) For proof of one’s citizenship, one may be required to produce: • Parent’s ID card, and in some cases, grandparents ID • Certificate of registration as a Kenyan citizen (Kenyan by registration or naturalization) • A letter from the civil service attesting to parents’ employment by Government and a copy of the parent’s civil service ID. • Any other document/information that will be asked for by the registration officer.
c) For proof of residence, one may be required to produce: • A title deed • Agreement of sale of land • Water and electricity bills • Letter from the area Chief
Other than a birth certificate, baptismal card or age assessment certificate, most of the other requirements are not enumerated in the Registration of Persons Act or its rules. The lack of direction and extremely wide discretion given to registration officers to determine any other document/information, leaves room for abuse, arbitrariness and unreasonable demands on the applicants resulting in unfortunate consequences.
The NRB informed KNCHR that such requirements were local initiatives which later became institutionalized without formal approval. Registration officers are allowed to “use all necessary processes to prove citizenship’ and that ‘the key is satisfaction of the registrar since they are accountable for all persons registered’. Despite the fact that such practices had been scrapped by way of circulars in August 2006, the latest findings tell a different story. Residents of Kajiado, Tana River, Turkana, Teso, Wajir and Mandera districts, for instance, alleged that they had been asked to produce title deeds or letters of allotment when applying for an identity card. But in most of these districts, residents neither have title deeds to land nor is land registered to individuals as most of the areas are trust land, making the demand unreasonable.

Should this be a problem for the youth and will it affect future generations?

Should Ear Ring Studs Be An Impediment To CJ Job?

On the 13th of May, 2011, the Judicial Service Commission announced their choice for nominees to the positions of Chief Justice and Deputy Chief Justice of Kenya. Dr. Willy Mutunga was chosen for post of Chief Justice and Nancy Baraza for Deputy.

Is the current debate on the CJ's nominee ear stud worthwhile or it shows a break from tradition?

Should matatu art be reintroduced?

The Matatu subculture has it's diehard supporters and detractors. One of it's offshoots was a distinct Matatu art form which appears to have suffered a mortal blow when the police enforced an obscure single color motor vehicle law. Did Matatu art really contravene the law? Should it be reintroduced?