As you start your day, you need to power your mind with some relevant and useful information.
We have picked for you the Top 10 stories making the headlines on this day, 23rd July 2021.
UDA Officials Raise Alarm Over Alleged Plot to Snatch Party
The Deputy President William Ruto-linked United Democratic Alliance (UDA) is staring at bleak future after its former officials lodged a petition at the Registrar of Political Parties in an attempt to regain control of the party.
UDA chairman Johnstone Muthama said there was an elaborate plot by certain unnamed people to snatch the party from the DP due to its growing popularity.
Former UDA chairperson Mohamed Noor claimed that he was illegally ousted and now wants to be reinstated.
DP Ruto had recently revealed that he intended to use the party, which was rebranded from the Party of Democracy and Reforms (PDR) to UDA, to vie for the presidency.
High Court Judges Arrested
The Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) yesterday stormed the offices of High Court judges Said Chitembwe and Aggrey Muchelule and arrested them without revealing their alleged crimes.
Investigators searched the offices of the two before whisking them off to the DCI headquarters on Kiambu Road, where they recorded statements after hours of interrogation. Muchelule was apprehended just before delivering verdicts on pending cases.
The judges’ lawyer, Dunstan Omari, hinted that his clients were arrested over graft allegations. He said the detectives were searching for money, but they did not find any.
He accused the Executive of intimidating judges through “fake arrests”.
Justice Muchelule and Controversy
High Court Judge Aggrey Muchelule was last month among six justices whom President Uhuru Kenyatta declined to appoint to the Court of Appeal over integrity allegations.
However, this was not the first time he was facing such public humiliation. In 2006, retired President Mwai Kibaki refused to swear him in as High Court judge under unclear circumstances despite him showing up at State House to take oath of office. His promotion was, however, okayed in 2009.
In 2005, Muchelule came under sharp criticism after acquitting drug traffickers suspects Ibrahim and Battash Akasha, who were last year jailed for 23 years by a United States court.
Uhuru Issues Title Deeds in Kilifi
President Uhuru Kenyatta today issued 2,169 title deeds to the residents of Rabai in Kilifi County, and urged them not to be enticed into selling their birthright for temporary pleasure.
The President noted that the title deeds were worth billions of shillings and if utilised well, they hold immense potential to transform the lives of the beneficiaries and their dependants.
“When we finish this event, the residents of Rabai will be worth Ksh4.2 billion. The question is: if you have received a title deed and you have heard of its worth, are you going to use it to improve your lives or you are going to sell it and make yourself happy, then in December you will start looking for another place to be a squatter,” the President posed.
Nasa Divorce
The planned dissolution of the National Super Alliance (Nasa) faces a new dilemma as it has emerged that former Bomet Governor Isaac Ruto’s Chama Cha Mashinani (CCM) was still a member.
Ford-Kenya of Moses Wetang’ula also cannot transact any business due to an ongoing case in which two factions want to take control of the party.
This means that dissolving the opposition coalition may take longer, as members must formally write to the Registrar of Political Parties expressing their intention to leave.
Raila, Kalonzo Meet Over Funds Impasse
ODM leader Raila Odinga and his Wiper counterpart, Kalonzo Musyoka, were on Thursday holed up in a meeting to discuss how the political parties fund given to the Orange party should be shared among affiliate members of the National Super Alliance (Nasa).
Wiper, Ford-Kenya and ANC have been accusing ODM of refusing to share the money despite an MoU dictating the percentage each party should get depending on its strength.
The Registrar of Political Parties has also arranged a meeting among Nasa partners to resolve the impasse.
Kangogo, Ogweno Families Meet
Barnabas Kibor, the father of the late policewoman Caroline Kangogo yesterday met with the family of Constable John Ogweno, who was allegedly murdered by his daughter.
Kibor offered his condolence and apologised to Onweno’s family.
The corporal was accused of killing two men, Ogweno and businessman Peter Ndwiga.
Her body was later found in her parents’ bathroom, with police saying she shot herself.
Father of Musician Says His Son Was Killed
The father of the late Benga musician Edward Irungu Njaro has dismissed media reports suggesting that his son committed suicide.
Njaro Wairutu claimed that Irungu was eliminated by his business partners after a fallout.
Wairutu said he had received calls from unknown numbers with those people promising to give him money if he would not talk to the media about his son’s death.
Irungu;s body was found floating in Masinga Dam, with a text message indicating that he killed himself. However, his father, who has now lost all his children in controversial circumstances since 2003, insists the alleged murderers fabricated the suicide note to mislead the public.
Mutua is Not Eligible For Third Term at KFCB, State Committee Says
Attempts by the Kenya Films and Classification Board (KCFB) to renew the contract of Chief Executive Ezekiel Mutua for a third term of three years have been termed illegal by the State Corporations Advisory Committee (SCAC).
In a letter to ICT Cabinet Secretary Joe Mucheru, SCAC said the members of the board should face disciplinary action for trying to make a decision that is not feasible.
Mutua was first appointed in 2015 and reappointed in 2018. His term expires in October.
Attack Leaves Non-Local Teachers Pushing For Transfers
A crisis is looming in Marsabit County after non-local teachers stormed the offices of the Teachers Service Commission (TSC), asking to be transferred.
The teachers said they feared for their lives after one of them was killed and two seriously injured in the recent ethnic attacks.
They told their employer that the attackers were targeting non-local teachers.
