Tag: GreatLakesNews

{Fulgence Ndagijimana fled Burundi due to civil strife and hostilities.}

Fulgence Ndagijimana has found a new home in Saskatoon after he fled his former one in Burundi due to civil strife and hostilities.

Ndagijimana explained that “the situation is very difficult.”

He said over 250,000 Burundian refugees have already left for the neighbouring countries of Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Tanzania and Uganda.

President Pierre Nkurunziza’s decision to seek a third term last year, violating an agreement that limits presidents to two terms, has left Burundi on the brink of civil war.

And since then, Ndagijimana said thousands of people have been jailed, killed, and kidnapped making the situation in the country tense and grave.

{{Targeted by the government}}

Ndagijimana said he was personally targeted by the Burundian government as a person and as a pastor.

He said he was taken from his church office and detained for nine days, being accused of funding criminals and money laundering.

“When you go to work, you do not know where it will be safe all day, so the situation is most impossible to live,” he said.

He said the crisis is forcing many people to flee.

“It is a situation of concern with the violence, with the kidnapping… the violent ways the government is managing the crisis, we are in for trouble,” he said.

Ndagijimana worries that the current violence will result in a genocide.

“We hope this situation, which is a bloody one, will probably give place to a kind of hope.”

{Items donated by Kenyatta University students were stolen from the store.}

A commotion broke out at Huruma CDF camp Wednesday due to agitation over missing donations that had been given to families affected after a house collapsed last week killing 52 people.

A lorryload of food stuff including rice, maize flour, and cooking fat and other household items donated by Kenyatta University students were stolen from the store where victims are being accommodated.

Huruma Assistant Chief Marion Doka said they were at Daima Primary distributing other handouts that had been donated by the government when the items were stolen.

“I was called at around 7pm and told a group of youth had forced their way into the store. This happened after one of the women opened the door to investigate reported theft that was going on where food items were being passed through the window,” said Ms Doka.

She added: “The young men pushed her into the store and took off with items which included some blankets, flour, diapers and sanitary towels donated by P&G. She was rescued by fellow women otherwise she would have been injured.”

She said they returned to the camp with police when they found a commotion.

“We are now investigating the matter, we want to know where the items went to and who were involved,” said Doka, adding that one Macharia had been keeping the key to the store.

But the youth at the camp, led by the assistant youth leader, Brenda Adika refuted the claims and instead blamed the administrators.

“There is no way youths can come into the chief’s camp to steal. If that had been the case, then the door would have been broken or fallen following the commotion. They need to return the items,” said another youth who did not want to be named for fear of a backlash, “This is a well-orchestrated theft.”

{President John Magufuli has assured his Ugandan counterpart Yoweri Museveni of full cooperation in accomplishing the construction of crude oil export pipeline from Hoima District in Uganda to the Indian Ocean port of Tanga.}

According to a press statement issued by the Directorate of Presidential Communications, Dr Magufuli made the assurance in Kampala during his talks with the Ugandan leader.

He arrived in Uganda to attend President Museveni’s inauguration slated for Thursday. At the Entebbe International Airport, he was received by Ugandan Works and Transport Minister John Byabagambi and Uganda’s High Commissioner to Tanzania, Ms Dorothy Samali Hyuha.

Uganda’s Assistant Inspector-General of Police Andrew Felix Kawesi was also present at the airport to receive the Tanzanian leader. Dr Magufuli is popular in Uganda for the radical changes he has embraced in Tanzania, including spearheading the fight against corruption, since he took over office late last year.

He joins two other dignitaries, King Letsie III of Lesotho and the Prime Minister of Swaziland, Dr Barnabas Dlamini, who arrived in Uganda on Tuesday evening. He then headed to State House Entebbe for an official welcoming ceremony.

This is the second time for Dr Magufuli to travel outside the country since becoming president. He first travelled to Rwanda last month. President Museveni recently endorsed his country’s decision to construct the pipeline through Tanzania during the 13th Northern Corridor Integration Projects (NCIP) Summit in Kampala, which was also attended by President Paul Kagame and Uhuru Kenyatta of Rwanda and Kenya, respectively.

The envisaged pipeline through Tanzania will be of benefit not only to Uganda and Tanzania but other countries in the region such as Kenya, South Sudan, Rwanda, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

Officials from Uganda and Tanzania convened for the first time in Tanzania last month to discuss work plan for the development of the proposed 8.7 trillion/-crude oil export pipeline.

{Investigations now include cases in which activist was a complainant.}

Police used a special metal detector to find the cartridges as a preliminary postmortem report showed the controversial businessman and political activist was killed by two bullets to his chest, fired from close range.

Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) boss Ndegwa Muhoro said the cartridges were from an AK47 rifle.

“They are being analysed to establish if the weapon had been used elsewhere,” he said.

Detectives from the DCI homicide unit who recovered the cartridges immediately towed Mr Juma’s vehicle from Karen Police Station to their headquarters on Kiambu Road.

Early reports had indicated that Mr Juma was shot several times at close range.

Examination of the body showed that he was shot from the front and that at least two fatal bullets exited through the back.

However, it was not clear if these bullets have been found at the scene of the crime and none appears to be lodged in the backrest of the driver’s seat.

The earlier theory that Mr Juma was hurriedly shot in a random, quick-fire, drive-by shooting at the scene is not supported by the injuries he suffered.

The bullet-riddled car belonging to businessman Jacob Juma, who was shot dead by unknown gunmen on May 5, 2016. PHOTO | JEFF ANGOTE | NATION MEDIA GROUP

BULLET-PROOF WINDOWS

It may well be that he was killed at the scene — some 10 metres or so off the Karen road at the inter-change near Lenana School — but an examination of early photos of his vehicle and the scene tend to support the notion that a determined effort was made to kill the brash millionaire.

A likely scenario is that a vehicle blocked Mr Juma, he swerved, veered off the road and ended up in a ditch on the roadside where his vehicle was found.

Photos of Mr Juma’s car show that the Mercedes Benz S320 resisted a volley of shots on the windscreen, giving credence to initial information, and Mr Juma’s own earlier assertions, that his car was bullet-proof.

After attempting to shoot through the windows, the attackers seem to have resorted to using a pick-axe, or a similar sharp object, to pierce the windscreen without much success.

A similar assault seems to have been significantly resisted by the driver’s window, albeit with holes.

The right rear passenger window was shattered and the businessman could have been shot through there.

However, the killer shots could only have been inflicted on his chest if he had turned in his seat to face his attackers.

The attackers may also have shot the businessman through other small openings made with the pick axe-type object.

Mr Juma, a licensed small arms owner, was probably armed at the time of the attack, but his bullet proof windows would have protected his attackers as much as they protected him.

He could also have been sure that his car would protect him from the assailants and did not make determined efforts to drive out of the ditch or merely panicked when the shooting started.

In essence, then, the controversial businessman had, in the blink of an eye, transitioned from being one of the most protected and secure motorists in Nairobi, to a sitting duck.

Death came in the form of multiple rifle shots, which shattered his arm and collapsed his chest.

The wounds on his right hand indicate that it was hit several times.

There were blood stains on the roof of the car, as well as on the steering wheel, the dashboard, front passenger seat and the centre console.

“The hand could have been injured when the attackers were smashing the driver’s and the rear right windows,” a senior officer familiar with the investigations said on Tuesday on condition of anonymity.

The scope of the investigations has also been widened to include a review of some files that were pending under investigations in which the deceased was either a complainant or was adversely mentioned.

{{AT A GLANCE}}

10 unanswered questions

1.What was the motive for what is clearly the murder of a controversial businessman?

2.Who had the opportunity and means — in this case control of what appears to be a determined bunch of assassins — to commit the crime?

3.Was Mr Juma killed at the scene? If he wasn’t, where was he killed?

4.If Mr Juma was shot inside the car at close range, where are the bullets? If by some means he was shot through the windscreen, why is the backrest undamaged?

5.Whom did Mr Juma communicate with on his two mobile phones and what is their story? What does the data on his phones say about his movements?

6.Was the car bullet-proof as claimed?

7.Have witnesses at the scene helped to build a profile of the attackers?

8.Did the first responders move the body? What does the position of the body tell investigators about the direction of attack?

9.Why was the car towed to Karen Police Station with the body still inside? And why did officers fail to secure the scene of crime?

10.Why were only two cartridges recovered if multiple shots were fired? What do the ballistics say about the attack and the attackers?

{The anti-corruption crusade by President John Magufuli has earned him credibility, with foreign countries building fresh trust on Tanzania as one of the countries that are on course to containing the vice.}

The UK is one of the big nations, which have admired the government’s graft-fighting efforts. It has, therefore, invited President Magufuli to attend the International Anti-Corruption Summit 2016 in London slated for Thursday.

UK Prime Minister David Cameroon, who will host the landmark International Anti- Corruption Summit, invited Dr Magufuli after being satisfied with his strict measures to put public offices in order.

This was revealed in Dar es Salaam yesterday by the Prime Minister, Mr Kassim Majaliwa, who was expected to leave for London later on the day to represent the president in the crucial meeting.

President Magufuli is set to attend the inauguration of President Yoweri Museveni of Uganda who was recently re-elected to continue leading the East African country.

The summit, according to Mr Majaliwa, will bring together 60 heads of state from across the world. Tanzania and Nigeria are the only two African countries picked by Mr Cameroon to attend the summit.

The summit will seek to galvanise a global response to tackle corruption as well as agreeing a package of actions to tackle corruption across the world.

The meeting focuses also on dealing with issues, including corporate secrecy, government transparency, the enforcement of international anti-corruption laws and the strengthening of international institutions.

It will be the first summit of its kind, bringing together world leaders, business and civil society to agree a package of practical steps, including driving out the culture of corruption wherever it exists.

The summit is to be preceded by a conference today for leaders in civil society, business and government who are championing the fight against corruption.

Dr Magufuli is widely known inside and outside the country by his plain stance on corruption and austerity measures. His leadership style and stance have seen the country gaining trust and recognition from both Tanzanians and international communities.

Mr Majaliwa would be accompanied by the Chief Justice, Mr Mohamed Chande Othman, the Minister for Foreign Affairs, East Africa, Regional and International Cooperation, Dr Augustine Mahiga, Prevention and Combating of Corruption Bureau (PCCB) Director-General Valentino Mlowola and officials from the anti-graft body and law experts.

The premier reiterated that the government was determined to continue moving fast and with deliberate speed to ensure war against corruption becomes successful. He hinted that the government would apply all sorts of mechanisms available to weed out corrupt practices that had swallowed up the country.

“I appeal to all Tanzanians to team up with the government as we try to restore ethics and discipline in public offices,” he said, adding that the war would not end until the country has tamed corruption.

{Agency says it would not be right to send the asylum seekers back to their homes.}

The United Nations has condemned Kenya’s decision to close down Kakuma and Daadab refugee camps.

The government was asked to reconsider its decision and avoid taking any action that might be at odds with its international obligations.

In a statement from Geneva on Monday, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said the move could affect as many as 600,000 lives, and that as a result it viewed the new developments “with profound concerns”.

“For almost a quarter of a century Kenya has played a vital role in East Africa and the Horn of Africa in providing asylum to people forced to flee persecution and war,” said UNHCR.

The safety of hundreds of thousands of Somalis, South Sudanese and others, it said, had hinged on Kenya’s generosity and its willingness to be a leading beacon in the region for international protection.

“Tragically, the situations in Somalia and South Sudan that cause people to flee are still unresolved,” said agency.

It said it would remain in touch with Nairobi to fully understand the implications of the move, adding that it recognised that Kenya has played “an extraordinary role over many years” as one of the world’s frontline major refugee hosting nations, and that inevitably this has had many consequences for the country and its population.

At the same time, the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR) opposed the government’s plan.

KNCHR Vice Chairman George Morara said as much as Kenya’s concern of the heavy burden of refugees was understandable, sending them away was against human rights.

“It is not right to send back the families back to where they were fleeing,” he said calling on the international community to help Kenya shoulder the burden of refugees instead of closing down the camps.