|
LISTEN TO THIS THE AFRICANA VOICE ARTICLE NOW
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
Ruto Says Kenya’s El Niño Scare Over
President Ruto Sunday 22 October announced the country will not experience El Niño rains as previously predicted by the meteorological department. Instead, he said, the country will experience heavy rains, but not at a destructive level.
“The meteorological department has now said there will be no El Niño,” Ruto said. “We will only have heavy rains but they will not reach a destructive level.”
This news comes as a relief to many Kenyans, who were worried about the potential devastation that El Niño rains could bring. However, the president urged Kenyans to take advantage of the new prediction of abundant rainfall to produce more food from farming to ensure that the country is food secure.
El Niño is a weather phenomenon that occurs when sea surface temperatures in the tropical eastern Pacific rise to about 0.5C above average. This ultimately releases more heat into the atmosphere, creating wetter and warmer air.
Experts had warned that El Niño rains could hit Kenya and other East African countries from mid-October. Warnings that the heavy downpours could cause flooding, infrastructure damage and possible deaths prompted the Kenyan government to put the military on standby in case of emergencies.
Kenya last experienced El Niño rains in 1997, which left a trail of destruction, especially to the roads.
Karua Claims Ruto Not Committed to Negotiations
Martha Karua, the leader of the NARC party, Monday said she is disappointed with the extended National Dialogue Talks. She said Ruto’s regime is just buying time and that any meaningful negotiations should not take longer than 30 days.
In an interview with a Kenyan TV station, Karua said that she is “deeply disappointed” that the talks keep getting extended. She said that the talks were initially supposed to end at the end of August, but have now been extended by 30 days to November.
“I don’t know if Jesus will return before we finish these talks,” she said.
She said that Ruto’s regime is “buying time” and that “we are dealing with very slippery characters in Ruto’s regime, starting with himself.”
“Any serious talks will not last more than 30 days,” she said.
Karua also claimed that the committee’s plan to go to parliament and present a motion is an attempt to “drag out and slow down” the negotiations. She said that only the agreements reached by the two parties need to be presented to parliament.
“It is not necessary to pass a motion,” she said. “It is the agreements that you bring that are taken to parliament to be passed either as legislation or as policy. So even going to parliament is dilly dally or filibustering.”
Karua claimed that the ruling party is buying time and is not committed to the talks because it is bringing up its own problems that are unrelated to the Azimio la Umoja protests, which were protesting about the cost of living.
“The Ruto regime needs time,” she said, “and the Kenyans need action. And for them time is a savior. And why are they prioritizing constitutional amendment like that was the crisis? The crisis is the cost of living and has trembled the economy of the country.”
Karua gave the example of the Inter-Parties Parliamentary Group (IPPG) negotiations, in which she participated and which were concluded in just two weeks.
“If the IPPG was able to conclude the negotiations in two weeks,” she said, “then why can’t we do the same for these talks?”
Baringo Bandits Strike Again, Two Consecutive Days, Night & Day
The hills of Baringo County once again echoed with the sound of gunfire on Thursday afternoon, as over 20 armed bandits ambushed herders looking after their livestock at Nenteiyo hills in Kiserian area.
The bandits, who are suspected to be part of a well-organized gang, opened fire on the herders with the intention of stealing their livestock. However, the herders bravely fought back, and a fierce gun battle ensued.
Security forces from the nearby Kiserian GSU camp responded to the distress calls and engaged the bandits in a shootout. The fire exchange lasted for over half an hour, with bullets flying in all directions.
Eventually, the bandits were overpowered and forced to flee towards Chepkalacha area in Tiaty Sub-county. However, they managed to escape with some of the livestock.
The attack sparked panic at the nearby Kiserian Primary School, as pupils and teachers scampered for safety. Learning was halted for the rest of the day.
Tension is now high in the area, following the two daring bandit attacks in a short period of time. Residents are calling on the government to do more to protect them from the bandits.
Area leaders have also condemned the attacks and called for the security apparatus to investigate two private helicopters, a blue and white one, suspected to be supplying the bandits with bullets.
The attacks are the latest in a series of bandit attacks in Baringo County, which has been classified as disturbed and dangerous. The government has deployed a multi-agency security team to combat banditry in the region, but the attacks continue to occur.
Meanwhile, Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) troops have taken a lead role in patrolling the area following Tuesday’s ambush of a GSU camp by armed bandits who laid a siege for more than six hours.
LEAVE A COMMENT
You must be logged in to post a comment.