18 | NEWSFOCUS October 2, 2018 www.mygov.go.ke Suspension of Mwea resettlement extended Underlying issues together with court cases must fi rst be resolved before lifting any ban, says CS BY MUOKI CHARLES KNA-EMBU T he Government has extended the suspension of the resettlement exercise at the Mwea settlement scheme until lasting a solution to the dispute is found. Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i said the government was receiving much pressure by some people to lift the suspension but will not be in a hurry to endorse a process that could cause security nightmares. Speaking in Embu town after meeting Eastern regional national government administrators, the CS said the Interior and Lands ministries, and the offi ce of Attorney General have set up a team that is working to resolve the matter. He said the land has several underlyEmbu council of elders chairman Andrew Ireri addressing Mwea residents on issues surrounding the settlement scheme ing issues revolving around its adjudication, together with court cases that must fi rst be resolved before lifting any ban. He said government will bring on board all the political leaders from Embu and discuss on the way forward in resolving the issue. “Th e suspension on resettlement in Mwea land stays until the underlying issues are resolved. Let us not pretend that there aren’t issues. Th e way the adjudication was done, it has to Let us not pretend that there aren’t issues. Th e way the adjudication was done, it has to be discussed and worked on - CS Fred Matiang’i be discussed and worked on. We don’t want to wake up in the morning and be told people have been killed,” he said. The resettlement was stopped in April after one person died and about a dozen were injured as residents resisted attempts to have new benefi ciaries shown their parcels of land in the 44,000 acres of land. Most of those who resisted the resettlement claimed that they missed out during the allocation exercise where 7,232 title deeds were issued. Embu and Mbeere elders welcomed the CS’s remarks saying a new allocation exercise should be initiated where all elders are involved. Th ey said lifting the suspension without resolving the underlying issues would lead to bloodshed and should ensure that all residents receive land. “Most of those who were allocated land are wealthy politicians and government offi cials. Deserving residents were overlooked and this was the cause of the bloody confrontations. We ask the government to start the process afresh,” said Embu council of elders’ chairperson, Andrew Ireri. Th e issues surrounding the land dates for years when Embu and Kirinyaga Counties were one, with the two county governments claiming ownership of the land. Construction of Sh100m Mwala dam under way Reservoir will have a capacity of 60 million cubic litres and will be suffi cient for the residents and its environs BY JOSEPH KAMOLO KNA, MWALA T he County Government of Machakos will spend Sh100 million on the Ikalaasa dam to ensure that the people of Kibauni ward in Mwala have enough water for their households and farms. Speaking at the dam si the weekend, Machak ernor Alfred Mutua sai complete, the dam will h a capacity of 60 milli litres and will be suffi c the residents and its en rons. During his tour of Kibauni Ward, Mutua also spoke on the Machakos universal health coverage that will be piloting from November in collaboration with the World Bank and National government. “This health cover will ensure every family member is covered and can access health care from anywhere across the county. I urged them to register and benefi t from this great programme once rolled out,” said Mutua On youth and employment, the governor announced that Maendeleo Chap Chap Party will soon sponsor bills in Parliament to ensure that the National government builds a factory in each Constituency in Kenya, so as to create employment for the youth. While issuing 2,000 e deeds to the people of Kibauni, he said the title eeds will empower the ple and allow them to ccess credit facilities for business and personal growth. Pedestrians worst aff ected as crash toll rises to 2,214 Government intensifi es public education to counter rising number of accidents BY MERCY KIHUGU KNA-NAIVASHA S ome 2,214 Kenyans have lost their lives through accidents from January to September this year up from 2,053 in the same period last year. The National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) director for road safety Njeri Waithaka said pedestrians and motorcycle operators were the most aff ected adding that reckless driving was identifi ed as the major cause of accidents involving public service vehicles. She said the government has intensifi ed public education on road safety to counter rising cases of accidents in the country. Waithaka regretted that many people were losing lives through accidents which she attributed to among other factors irresponsible behaviour such as people crossing roads at undesignated areas without due care. She said NTSA had embarked on periodic public education and awareness campaigns as a means of reducing the fatalities adding that majority of the accidents occurred on the Nairobi-Nakuru highway. Waithaka, who was speaking at Eserian Hotel in Naivasha during a stakeholders meeting on Nairobi County traffi c decongestion plan, revealed that NTSA had suspended operations of 12 SACCOS and deregistered fi ve others who were found fl outing traffi c rules. “We have deregistered Silver Agencies, Mathome Water Gate, Mega Rider Management Limited, Giwa and Kidatho SACCOS for fl outing rules set out in the NTSA act,” she said. She further said Gakanago, Mbukinya Success, Molo Classic Shuttle, Nairobi Kitu Line Services, Narok Safari Services and Molo Shuttle SACCOS among others had been suspended over continued fl outing of traffi c rules and were under investigation. The chairman, Association of Matatu Pperators in Nairobi Jamal Ibrahim said the county had 257 registered SACCOs with fl eets of vehicles hence the need to reduce them to be able to fi t in the limited spaces allocated in the Central Business District. KENYA WILDLIFE SERVICE INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITIES IN THE WILD Keny a Wildlif e Servic e invite s prospectiv e an d eligibl e firm s t o submi t proposal s fo r developin g an d operatin g touris t accommodatio n facilitie s AN D adventur e activitie s i n th e following identified sites among others: TENDER NO KWS/RFP/M&BD/08/2018-2019 Construction, Operation & Management of Ecotourism Facilities & Adventure Activities in KWS Parks TYPE OF DEVELOPMENT LOCATION Ecolodges, tented camps, Fishing camps, cafeterias, information & cultural centres Adventure activities including teambuilding sports sites, underwater aquarium, Children’s playgrounds Various National Parks country wide. Most are open vacant sites with no existing facilities Various National Parks countrywide. These are open vacant sites with no existing facilities. TENDER NO KWS/RFP/M&BD/09/2018-2019 Renovation & Management of Rangers Restaurant – Nairobi National Park TYPE OF DEVELOPMENT Rangers Restaurant LOCATION Nairobi National Parks PRE BID MEETING/BRIEFING@10AM 30TH OCTOBER 2018 A more detailed prospectus and the request for proposal (RFP) guidelines, can be downloaded for free at our website; www.kws.go.ke. Communication in regard to the tender must be in writing through email address: hps@kws.go.ke. All clarifications and/or amendments will be published in KWS website and developers are required to check for any addendums or amendments in the course of the bidding period prior to the closing dates indicated above Completed RFP documents in plain sealed envelopes clearly marked with RFP reference number and tender name, shall be returned and deposited into the Tender Box located at the entrance of Main Reception, KWS Headquarters, Langata Road P.O. Box 40241, Nairobi on or before 30th November 2018 at 12.00 noon The received proposals shall be opened immediately thereafter in the presence of developers or their representatives who wish to attend at KWS Vet Board Room. Firms will be will be required to provide detailed technical proposal (s) for their site(s) of interest in the format to be provided in the guidelines. DIRECTOR GENERAL PRE-BID MEETING/BRIEFING@10AM 23RD OCTOBER 2018 23RD OCTOBER 2018
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