News

Here’s what I brought: Governor Cheboi defends foreign trips after uproar

Published

2 months ago

April 7, 2023

Benjamin Cheboi, the governor of Baringo, has defended his recent international travel by claiming he obtained benefits for the country’s citizens.

It comes after a public outcry over charges that the county executive had concentrated heavily on international trips ever since he assumed office, with some stating they believe he is not doing them any favors.

One of them is Mr. Ezekiel Kipsoi, who protested that the governor had turned into a tourist while citizens back home were going hungry and experiencing banditry. Cattle rustling has wreaked havoc in many counties, including Baringo.

The Baringo governor visited Korea from March 11 to March 18 before traveling to Germany from March 27 to April 1 with President William Ruto.

The county administrator claimed on Wednesday that he had the opportunity to meet friends and business partners who were eager to start projects in the area while on the excursions.

“Partnerships and linkages are not only about locals. It’s about us and national government institutions, development partners, friends from beyond and borders,” said Mr Cheboi.

“The latest last week I had an opportunity to meet friends and partners from Germany and Korea. We went to Korea with a small team from the county under the invitation of a non-governmental organization — World Best Friends — who worked with us in my first term, ” added the governor. He claimed that the group not only invited them but also covered the cost of their travel to Germany.

The governor claimed that the trip had some benefits and that he had met NGO representatives with whom he had a talk about coffee exports from Baringo to Korea.

“Coffee is one of our flagship crops and we would like to be a premier county in the production of coffee, not just for processing here, but also to cut a niche in the export market. We have had an opportunity to export our coffee to Korea and because it is of good quality, people have also been using it to blend other coffee,” said Mr Cheboi

“Through the NGO, we were also able to get support from Reverend Cha Bo Yo, who led the construction of the Sh100 million coffee milling plant in Baringo North. He agreed to give us Sh5 million for the purchase of coffee seedlings for farmers,” he added.

The governor said the move will go a long way in increasing the production and income of coffee farmers in the region.

He noted that the devolved unit is targeting to grow more than 5 million coffee trees in five years, expected to increase the annual income to more than Sh4 billion.

“That is an opportunity to increase the circulation of money in this county, not only local but also foreign currency,” noted the county boss.

Crime

Nyeri teen arrested with homemade gun, bhang to be charged

Published

2 days ago

May 31, 2023

KSN Reporter

By Wanja Waweru

A 19-year-old guy was detained by police in Nyeri County after being discovered in possession of a handmade gun that could fire and marijuana.

The National Police Service (NPS) said in a statement that the young man was detained as a result of a tip from the general public.

“Police officers from Munyange Police Station arrested a 19-year-old suspect after he was found in possession of a home-made pistol, stones of cannabis sativa and rolls of the same. He has been remanded in police custody,” the statement read in part.

The NPS also expressed gratitude to the general public for helping to support community police in the battle against crime and illegal narcotics.

A police officer assigned to the General Service Unit (GSU) was also found in possession of a handmade pistol the day before the teen’s arrest.

A failed heist in Kasarani sub-county led to the arrest of Mr. Graham Ndichu Chege, a GSU officer.

On Monday, May 29, 2023, Nairobi News broke the exclusive that the suspect has been on police radar for more than four months.

Officers worried about an armed gang terrorizing people in Kasarani Sub-County knew when, not if, Mr. Chege would be apprehended.

The suspect was being questioned about more robberies that had occurred nearby, according to an investigator with the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) who is aware of the current inquiries.

“Officers involved in the matter believe that he was the one leading a gang that has been giving the locals in this sub-county a hard time. Plans are also underway to arrest his accomplices,” said the officer, who spoke in confidence as he is not authorised to speak to the media.

According to a police report reviewed by this reporter, Mr. Paul Maina said that three individuals on motorcycles and carrying pistols robbed him at gunpoint of his cell phone at the Cooperative area along Kamiti Road.

“Police officers on foot patrol responded very quickly and with the help of bodaboda riders they chased the suspects to Juja Weighbridge where the suspect’s motorcycle developed mechanical problem and Mr Chege was arrested,” the report reads in part.

As a GSU officer assigned to the GSU Headquarters and Transit Section, Mr. Chege then revealed to the officers that he was to them.

When the police searched him, they discovered a makeshift pistol that they claimed might fire.

“A bloodstained broken knife and a motorcycle with registration number KMFH 031U, make Ranger Black, were recovered,” the police report added.

News

Kenyans ranked 87th most unhappy people in the world

Published

2 days ago

May 31, 2023

KSN Reporter

The top 20 most miserable persons, according to Hanke’s Annual Misery Index, created by Steve Hanke, modified and ratified by Harvard University, and published by The Wall Street Journal, are listed below.

Inflation, unemployment, and high interest rates are the main causes of these people’s misery.

Zimbabwe, Venezuela, Syria, Lebanon, and Sudan took the top five positions.

Ranked sixth to tenth were Argentina, Yemen, Ukraine, Cuba, and Turkey.

Sri Lanka, Haiti, and Angola were 11th, 12th, and 13th, while Tonga, Ghana, and South Africa were 14th, 15th, and 16th. Ranked 17th to 20th were Suriname, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iran, and Rwanda.

At the bottom of the list in 87th place was Kenya with a misery index of 29.264 and the main factor contributing to its misery was the interest rate on loans.