SHOPPPING MALL FEARS ALLAYED

By Chris Mahandara.

The National Buildings Inspectorate has allayed fears that work at a multimillion shopping mall in Kisumu city was substandard and could collapse any time.

Reports in a cross-section of the social media indicated that parts of the 17 storey wing of the building had cracked and the contractors were busy trying to reinforce the pillars to prevent it from collapsing.

An official of the National Building Inspectorate at the State Department of Housing, Moses Nyakiongora who led an inspection tour of the Nakumatt Mega Plaza said the ongoing works were as per the structural designs of the project.

Nyakiongora confirmed that six pillars on the left wing of the Sh. 600 million shopping mall complexe were being reinforced to accommodate weight of 62, 000 liter tanks to be placed on top of the tower.

This, he said, was no reason to create fear and panic since it was only a safety measure to ensure that the additional weight does not affect the stability of the building.

“This kind of reinforcement is not strange in fact it is good because for a building of this nature nothing should be left to chance,” he said.

The structural designs of the building were approved nearly 20 years ago, however, the additional works took long to be completed since ownership changed hands.

The additional works features two towers, one comprising of 16 floors while the other 17 floors, and will be accessed through eight lifts and two elevators on the ground floor.

It encompasses four distinct blocks and a middle foyer to ensure additional car parking facilities on the first, second and third floors totaling to a maximum of 400 cars.

Nyakiongora thanked members of the public who raised concern over the safety of the building, adding that investigations were ongoing and the building shall only be given a clean bill of health once the reinforcement is completed and inspected.

In the purge against unsafe buildings, Nyakiongora disclosed that 640 buildings shall be pulled down in Nairobi alone.

Most of the buildings, he said, have been poorly done while others have been erected on public land, sewer lines, fire hydrants and sewerage system.

Once the exercise is completed, he said, the department shall embark on cleaning up rivers in Nairobi to ensure that residents live in a clean environment.

“Our first priority is to first address structural integrity because it has claimed lives,” he said.

He said the exercise shall be rolled out across the country to ensure that the laid down regulations are followed to the latter.

Before betting tonight,this is what you should know.

Br Fredrick Langat.

Philippe Coutinho is set to miss up to six weeks of action with ankle ligament damage, ruling him out of much of Liverpool's busy Christmas schedule.After closing out November with a League Cup fixture against Leeds United on Tuesday night, Liverpool will face a run of six matches before the New Year.

The Reds will be without several attacking options for the visit of Leeds, with Daniel Sturridge and Adam Lallana also currently sidelined and Roberto Firmino likely to sit the game out after being substituted with a knock against Sunderland.
After closing out November with a League Cup fixture against Leeds United tonight ,Liverpool will face a run of six matches before the New Year.

Tonight the Reds will be without several attacking options , with Daniel Sturridge and Adam Lallana also currently sidelined and Roberto Firmino likely to sit the game out after being substituted with a knock against Sunderland.

ADOPTION MONTH CELEBRATION.

By Tom Kimani.

The national government is spending an estimated Sh21.3 billion to ensure orphans and venerable children are raised within family setups as opposed to children homes where they are exposed to various upkeep challenges.

East African Community, Labour and Social Protection Cabinet Secretary Phyllis Kandie through the PS Susan Mochache said the investment is with a view to ensuring the venerable children remain within family and communities.

This, she said is done through government funded cash transfers and bursaries for needy families across the country.

Some of the program dubbed Inua Jamii, she said includes a scheme to cater for orphans which has benefitted from Sh9 million, and which has reached 320, 000 families, bursaries (Sh400 million), funds for venerable families, money for the elderly and persons living with disabilities added that the government has also been sensitizes various stakeholders on the guidelines for alternative family care.

The government, she said has also launched guidelines for the alternative family care which lay emphasis on family based care for children in need of care and protection.

Apart from adoption, the CS said other forms of alternative family care include foster care, guardianship, kinship care, kafaala (for Muslims), supported independent living and supported child-head households.

Others are temporally arrangements for the care of children until they attain the age of 18 years or as the situation warrants. … Every child needs a family and we need to sensitize our people on the need of the many children institutions being brought up in a family setup for it’s the best place to nurture them,” she said.

The programs, she noted that they are meant to mitigate the challenges which lead to the children being put under the care of children homes.

Ms Mochache on her part encouraged the society to embrace adoption in order to get children out of children homes, even as it emerged that since 2009, only 1,941 children have been formally adopted.

Out of the cases, 250 were handled between 2015 and 2016.

In Kenya, Ms Mochache said adoption has been done both formally and informally, but lamented that the latter which is rampant, and which leaves children exposed to future abuse and possible disinheritance.

The processes of formal adoption, she said has now been made easier and less costly, saying the process now takes six months and cost Sh12, 000.

However, to improve it (the process) there is need to register more adoption societies all over the country for ease of access by prospective adoptive parents

Currently, there are only six registered adoption societies, all expect one are located in Nairobi, making is hard from people in other regions top go through the formal adoption.

Kiambaa Member of Parliament Paul Koinange said the government should move fast to not only hasten the adoption process but also demystify the myth associated with it with a view to encouraging more people to embrace it.

In the African setup, there has been a notion that adoption on buying children, which we need to erase in our minds. We have thousands of children to need to be adopted and this can only be made possible by hastening the processes as well as sensitization.

Football fraternity mourns

By Fredrick Langat.

A plane carrying a Brazilian professional soccer team crashed in the mountains near Medellín, Colombia, late Monday, killing 76 people.

Five people survived the crash of the charter plane, according to authorities.

"The British Aerospace 146 aircraft was carrying Brazil's Chapocoense soccer team to a tournament in Medellín, Colombia's second-largest city," John Otis reports for NPR from the Colombian capital, Bogotá.

"The plane had departed from the Bolivian city of Santa Cruz but reported an electrical emergency shortly before crashing late Monday night," he says.

Internal party democracy will give the country good leadership, says President Kenyatta

BY JAMES MWAMBAI.

Internal party democracy will give Kenya good leaders, President Uhuru Kenyatta has said.

The President noted in the past the country for a long time has had challenges in picking good leaders because of interference by party leaders but assured that each aspirant will be accorded equal chance in the Party.

“We want to assure that Jubilee will conduct fair nominations and all aspirants will be given equal chance. Our internal party democracy will ensure voters are given space to choose the candidates they want,” said President Kenyatta.

He added: “The Deputy President and I have no preferred candidates. It is upon the electorate to decide whom they want. People should not go around claiming that they are our favourites. To us, all Jubilee aspirants are equal.”

President Kenyatta was addressing a mammoth gathering after he launched the tarmacking of the Kutus – Kianyaga – Kiamutugu – Githure – Kibugu road at Kianyaga in Kirinyaga county. The road will be tarmacked at a cost of over Ksh 1.3 billion.

The Head of State said the Jubilee party wanted the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission to conduct its nomination to ensure free, fair and transparency in the exercise.

This, the President said, would give the electorate an opportunity to elect their leaders without any interference.

“When we say we are together, we mean that residents are given the opportunity to elect their leaders without any manipulation,” said President Kenyatta.

“It is you who will decide what kind of people you want to take up leadership positions,” the President emphasized.

The President pointed out that upon completion, the road will accelerate economic growth and boost the lives of the people of Kirinyaga County, especially farmers.

He pointed out that the Government has earmarked to tarmack 173 kilometres of road within Kirinyaga to open up the county for faster development.

“We don’t want our farmers to continue making losses because of bad roads,” the President said, adding that soon the Kirima-Karatina road would also be tarmacked to ensure easy connectivity between Embu and Nyeri counties.

President Kenyatta said electricity, road infrastructure and good healthcare are the basic ingredients for development and that is what his Government is striving to achieve.

“If Kenyans have electricity, good roads and better healthcare then they will be able to handle other issues,” said the President.

President Kenyatta also noted that the Government has continued to expand the free education programme to carter for exam fees and at the same time added more money for the free maternity programme.

“This year none of the parents with children in public schools were charged exam fees. We have also continued with our free maternity programme and allocated more funds to it. After women give birth they are given NHIF cards which allow them access free medical healthcare,” the President said.

The President also said the Jubilee Government works as a team and is action oriented unlike the opposition which is a grouping of parties without a vision for the country.

He castigated opposition Chief Raila Odinga whom he said is fond of criticizing any project undertaken by the Government without considering its merits and benefits to Kenyans.

“Even if people are to criticise because they are in the opposition, the criticism must be constructive if it is meant to improve the country. Unfortunately, our opponents only criticise for the sake of it and do not add any value,” he said.

Deputy President William Ruto – who accompanied the President – said as an action oriented Government, the Jubilee administration has fulfilled most of its pledges it made to Kenyans.

He said unlike the opposition, Jubilee is focused and has well thought plans for the development of the country.

Present were leaders from Kirinyaga County led by Joseph Ndathi, Senator Daniel Karaba and Narc-Kenya leader Martha Karua among others.