A smallholder tea farmers company has poked holes in the Tea Industry Regulations, 2020, citing some of them as unconstitutional. Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Peter Munya released the regulations last week and gave stakeholders 14 days within which to present their views. In a brief that will be presented to the ministry, Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA) dismisses some the rules, terming them unconstitutional and punitive. KTDA says the Agriculture and Food Authority (AFA) has been given too much power that will result in bureaucratic tendencies, thus stifling the sector’s growth. Rule 10 (7) requires a factory to have 250 hectares of planted tea before renewal of their licences—a requirement KTDA says will pose challenges to factories. The rule, KTDA said, “implies that farmers must give up land to the factory. This is unconstitutional since it interferes with an individual’s right to own property

Former First Lady Mama Ngina Kenyatta (above) yesterday donated food worth Sh20 million to 12 children's homes in Gatundu and Nairobi. President Uhuru Kenyatta’s sister Nyokabi Kenyatta and former Woman Representative Ann Gathecha gave the donation on behalf of the former first lady. Nyokabi said the donation was meant to cushion vulnerable children from the shock of the Covid–19 pandemic. The donation included 13 tonnes of soya, seven tonnes of porridge mix, 950 litres of oil, 750 kilogrammes of green grams, 2.5 tonnes of rice, 1.5 tonnes of beans and 100 bales of maize flour. Morning Star, Mji wa Huruma and Mama Ngina Children's Home in Nairobi will also benefit from the donation. Elsewhere, a Kiambu businessman, Kimani Rugendo, donated Sh5 million merchandise to police officers controlling 24 roadblocks in the county in the fight against Covid-19. The donation included juice and energy drinks, water, and hand washing stations. Thika West Sub-county ...

President Uhuru Kenyatta ( pictured ) has urged Muslims and other Kenyans of various faiths to pray for Kenya during Ramadhan.   As Muslims across the globe marked the beginning of the holy month, Uhuru admitted that "these are challenging times".   "It is impossible to ignore the unusual circumstances under which we find ourselves. The whole world stands united against the Covid-19 pandemic."   In a statement on Friday, the President asked Muslims to embrace measures put in place to prevent further spread of coronavirus.   "As has been said before, if we behave normally in this period, this disease will treat us abnormally."   He cautioned against large gatherings and called for regularly washing of hands with soap and water, and maintaining social distancing.   "I am optimistic that we will overcome this challenge but we must make necessary sacrifices... I believe that we shall see the end of coronavirus in Kenya and begin ...

The State has ended the operation to retrieve bodies of missing persons following mudslides on the border of Elgeyo Marakwet and West Pokot counties. Senior security bosses leading the operation ended the search for other 17 missing people who were swept away. They cited heavy rains and difficulties in retrieving bodies buried under boulders and mud. One body was retrieved from the mud on Thursday, two days after two others and a foetus were recovered. The operation has been led by Rift Valley Regional Coordinator George Natembeya. However, the move to call off the search was criticised by Elgeyo Marakwet Senator Kipchumba Murkomen who accused the state of “giving up too early.” A multi-agency team comprising of Kenya Defense Forces (KDF), the police, Red Cross and community scouts have been combing Chesegon, Liter and Cheptulel areas in search of bodies. Natembeya declared that 17 people who are still missing after the mudslides that rocked Sambalat and Liter...

Kenyans stranded in China to fly home May 1 Those who wish to travel back home will pay $750 (Sh80,000) for the economy class ticket from Guangzhou to Nairobi. The Kenyan Embassy in China yesterday said the airfare had been discounted and maintained that the government would only facilitate those who can afford the ticket. “Cost of ticket will be borne by an individual who will personally book and pay for it on the platform provided by Kenya Airways,” the embassy said in a communique to the Kenyans in China. The new communication comes amid heightened criticism on how the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has handled the predicament of the Kenyans stuck in China, many of them students and business people, who have been unable to return home for lack of means. The Chinese government has grounded all planes to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus. Some of the Kenyans have reported mistreatment in the Asian country, specifically Guangzhou. Videos of Africans being...

A gang shot dead a university student during a macabre robbery mission at a hospital in Umoja, Nairobi. Rodgers Opiyo ( pictured ), 22, and a fourth-year student at Meru University was at the Phadam Medicare Hospital on Wednesday at about 7.30 pm to buy medicine for his ailing mother when the incident happened. The mother has been suffering from ulcers, according to the family. Police and witnesses said the gang shot him in the neck after he identified them as being his friends in the neighbourhood. g services at the reception and their main pharmacy before they turned out to be thugs. They then ordered all those who were present to lie down and surrender all their valuables and cash. The doctor on duty said the gang came in posing as customers seekin It was during the robbery mission that Rodgers identified them and questioned one of them why they were stealing from him. Without any response the gunman pulled the trigger killing him on the spot. This sent panic among...

A doctor’s strike looms in Kakamega County over what a union terms as poor working conditions and intimidation by health executives.  The medics through the Kenya Medical Practitioners Pharmacists and Dentists Union (KMPDU) say the county is not prepared to handle the Covid-19 pandemic since they don’t have adequate Personal Protective Equipment. They also claim that they have not been receiving allowances as earlier announced by Governor Wycliffe Oparanya for the medics who are on the frontline to contain the spread of coronavirus disease. The most affected doctors are those working at the Kakamega County Teaching and Referral Hospital and Level (IV) hospitals in the county. According to the doctors, they have tried seeking audience with the Health executive Rachel Okumu and the County Executive Committee Member Dr Beatrice Etemesi over the matter but they have been met with threats and intimidation. Now KMPDU has warned that if the matter is not solved bef...