Tag: GreatLakesNews

{Police have started an investigation into the motive of the thugs who hacked to death a Nateete National Mosque sheikh at his home in Buloba, Wakiso District on Wednesday night.}

Sheikh Yunus Lubega, who later succumbed to injuries as he was being rushed to Rubaga hospital, was attacked by more than three machete-wielding men while in his sleep at around 3am.

Kampala Metropolitan Police spokesman Patrick Onyango said they are treating the incident as a violent robbery case rather than an attack on Muslim clerics.

“The thugs demanded for money before the sheikh attempted to fight them off. In the scuffle, the thugs cut him on the head before they fled his home. He later bled to death. This incident appears to be different from the previous cases where Muslim clerics were attacked,” Mr Onyango said yesterday.

It was the second attack in two weeks against the same family. The first time, the thugs didn’t find him in the house, but they made off with his wife’s mobile phone.

The incident comes at a time when Muslims are living in fear following a spate of violent attacks on their leaders countrywide. More than a dozen Muslim clerics were gunned down in a similar manner in the last two years, but a few suspects were arrested and prosecuted. No conviction has been secured yet.
Mr Onyango said investigations into Lubega’s killing are ongoing though no suspects have been arrested yet.
In the latest killing, police said the thugs gained entrance in the house as Lubega’s family was asleep.

Matters ran out of hand
They then woke up the family and demanded for money. Lubega’s wife had kept Shs300,000 that was meant for their children’s school fees.

She gave it to the thugs, but they continued demanding for more money.

According to police, Lubega sent them to another place in the house where he kept some money and the thugs found the money, which they considered too little.
“The thugs got annoyed and harassed the family to reveal where they were hiding the money,” Mr Onyango said, adding: “When Lubega saw things running out of hand, he jumped on one of the attackers and attempted to strangle him. The attackers responded by cutting him on the head.”

Injured Lubega released the attacker, and they (thugs) fled Lubega’s relatives rushed him to hospital, but he was pronounced dead on arrival.

{More than 100,000 newly issued land title deeds remain uncollected at Land registries across the country.}

Lands and Housing Cabinet Secretary Jacob Kaimenyi says more than 100,000 newly issued land title deeds remain uncollected at Land registries across the country.

Prof Kaimenyi appealed to Kenyans who have applied for them to pick the crucial documents saying they should not lie idle in registries after a rigorous issuance process.

“We have dispatched hundreds of thousands of title deeds in recent weeks yet only between 2 and 6 per cent of this have been collected,” said the Lands CS.

Prof Kaimenyi said State officials were puzzled by the development, adding that the Lands ministry was mulling graduating payment of attendant costs to arrest the situation.

“We are not aware whether this situation is because of the cost element to the applicants or whether some people may not be aware that their titles are in their registries already,” said the CS.

During his State of the Nation address last week, President Uhuru Kenyatta said an additional one million new title deeds had been issued, bringing the total number of newly issued ones to 2.4 million since 2013.

“We are on track to surpass our target of 3 million by 2017,” said Mr Kenyatta.

Prof Kaimenyi spoke in Nairobi when he addressed the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors.

{The UPDF has deployed heavily in the Rwenzori region that covers parts of Kasese, Kabarole, Ntoroko and Bundibugyo districts to hunt for attackers responsible for killings in the region.}

In an operation code-named “Usalama Rwenzori (Peace in Rwenzori),” that will tentatively last 60 days, the army says it will dominate the ranges, flush out any criminal elements and destroy their bases.

The UPDF 2nd Division commander, Brig Peter Elwelu, said the army will restore sanity in the region and end fear that has gripped residents for several weeks now. He said the soldiers will spend some time combing the slopes of Mount Rwenzori.

“The operation will be two-phased; to capture and dominate the mountains. We want an end to destruction of property and killings,” Brig Elwelu said at Rwamabale in Ntoroko District. “If you refuse to cooperate and surrender, we shall deal with you,” he warned.

Brig Elwelu on Tuesday met the Rwenzururu king Omusinga Wesley Mumbere, in what appeared as the start of peace talks that will lower tensions between the armed forces and the traditional institution, which police has accused of fanning the violence and harbouring attackers.

Brig Elwelu was shown on national television as he was thoroughly checked by the royal guards who did not allow him and his police counterparts to enter the Omusinga’s palace with guns or communication gadgets.

Timely

The deployment follows attacks on civilians, police and army in Kasese and Bundibugyo since last month where the conflict has left more than 45 people dead. “Yes, we have deployed mainly in Kasese, Ntoroko and Bundibugyo following attacks on civilians, police and the army,” said Maj Ronald Kakurungu, the UPDF spokesman for the 2nd Division.

President Museveni, the commander in chief of the armed forces, last week visited the area and promised to pursue the attackers even if it meant crossing to neighbouring DRC. The president, who has camped in Fort Portal since Tuesday night, is said to be meeting several leaders in the region at the state lodge. They include cultural leaders from Kasese and Bundibugyo districts.

According to the army, the soldiers have been deployed to quell the attacks. The attackers are said to be having bases in the Rwenzori Mountains.

While Bundibugyo seems to be calm for now, there is still high tension in Kasese.

{Government blames fighting on the disbanded “Ninja” Nsiloulou militia.}

At least five people died and buildings were torched in clashes between government forces and suspected rebels in Congo’s capital, the government said on Tuesday, saying some 50 people had been arrested over the “terror attack”.

A dozen attackers were also killed in the fighting in the south of the city on Monday, which saw six police stations, a town hall and two customs checkpoints set on fire, government spokesman Thierry Moungalla said on Twitter.

Heavy gun battles erupted before dawn in the southern Makelekele and Mayana districts of Brazzaville, which are loyal to the opposition, sending thousands of panicked residents fleeing.

“Three members of the security forces, two civilians and 12 attackers” were killed in the unrest, Moungalla said, adding that “six members of the security forces were injured, as well as some civilians”.

“In the course of the police operation during the assault, security forces arrested around 50 former militia members, the perpetrators of the attack.”

“NINJA” MILITIA

The government blames the fighting, which comes on the heels of a disputed election last month, on the disbanded “Ninja” Nsiloulou militia that fought two civil wars in the 1990s.

The Ninjas are headed by Protestant preacher Frederic Bintsamou, known as Pastor Ntumi, who recently came out in favour of opposition presidential candidate Guy-Brice Parfait Kolelas, the runner-up in the March 20 vote.

“The overwhelming evidence held by relevant services clearly points to the active implication of Mr Bintsamou in the events of Monday,” Mr Moungalla said.

Congo’s constitutional court on Monday confirmed that former paratrooper colonel President Denis Sassou Nguesso had won, extending his 32 years in power despite accusations of rampant corruption and nepotism.

Five defeated candidates have disputed the results of the poll, in which Sassou Nguesso took more than 60 per cent, alleging “massive fraud”.

Congo has been on edge since an October constitutional referendum ended a two-term limit on presidential mandates, allowing the 72-year-old head of state to run again.

Last week, there were strikes in several southern districts in protest over the election results.

The southern Makelekele and Mayana districts remained eerily quiet on Tuesday morning and few residents appeared to have returned home after fleeing the fighting in droves the day before.

Troops deployed at key points throughout Brazzaville and manned roadblocks, searching the few cars and people out on the streets, while stalls were empty at the city’s biggest Total market.

“We live in a country where, whether you vote or not, peace is always under threat,” said one woman, who gave her name as Julienne.

OPPOSITION INVESTIGATIONS

Mr Moungalla said the March vote was “a great moment of peaceful democracy” and said authorities were investigating whether the opposition was behind the unrest.

The government “does not yet have proof that candidates or their supporters are involved in this affair” but investigations “are ongoing”, he said.

Mr Kolelas, who came second to Sassou Nguesso in last month’s vote with 15 per cent, said the government allegations against the rebels were “overly hasty”.

“I want a totally impartial enquiry carried out,” Mr Kolelas told AFP in an interview.

“It’s a masquerade,” he added. “I’d like to see proof of what happened.”

He also disputed a ruling by the constitutional court that his request to have the results of four regions annulled was “inadmissible as it was filed after the constitutional deadlines”.

Mr Sassou Nguesso served as president from 1979 to 1992 and returned to power in 1997 following a civil war.

He won two successive terms in elections in 2002 and 2009, both of which were disputed by opposition parties.

{Ipoa said that it had dispatched its Rapid Response Unit to conduct the investigations.}

The Independent Policing Oversight Authority (Ipoa) has started investigations into allegations of assault of University of Nairobi students by the police.

Ipoa said that it had dispatched its Rapid Response Unit to conduct the investigations after receiving complaints of alleged assault, rape and misconduct by police officers who were dispatched to quell chaos by the students on Saturday.

The university was closed indefinitely on Tuesday, following days of protests by students over the election of Babu Owino as their union leader.

Vice-Chancellor Felix Mulwa Mbithi, in a statement sent to newsrooms, advised students to vacate the university premises before 5pm on Tuesday.

Earlier, the Ministry of Education hosted a high-level meeting that was attended by Mr Mbithi, his deputy, Inspector-General of Police Joseph Boinnet, the Principal Secretary for Higher Education Colletta Suda and Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i to deliberate on the situation at the University of Nairobi.

The meeting was held at Dr Matiang’i’s office where some parents of the contestants of the student leadership positions were also called in to discuss the conduct of the students.

CANING STUDENTS
A video purportedly showing officers from the GSU caning students lying on a pavement in turns has gone viral, with students claiming that the officers used excessive force.

The Daily Nation has not been able to independently verify the authenticity of the video or the period it was shot.

In the video, tens of students are seen lying on a wet tarmac pavement as officers cane them in turns. Some of the students are heard wailing.

The video elicited mixed reactions from members of the public, but leaders condemned the decision by the police to use “excessive force” to quell the violence.

The university’s Women Students Welfare Association, WOSWA, said they have sought the representation of the Federation of Women Lawyers Fida over the alleged assault and rape incidences by police officers on Saturday.

“Male GSU officers entered the institution at around 4pm on Saturday and started beating us, yet we were not protesting. They sexually assaulted some of the female students,” Woswa chair Hilda Uku said there was no need to deploy GSU officers to the hostels since there was no violence.

She alleged that a student was raped in the bathroom by a police officer, adding that another GSU officer attempted to rape another student at the same hostel.

She also claimed that the officers took phones and laptops from the hostels and paved way for male students to even steal more things from the females.

DENIED RIGHTS

“We were denied the rights to freedom, privacy and security, by people whose job is to ensure the safety of members of the public,” Ms Uku said.

Although she did not disclose the identity and the whereabouts of the victim, she said the events of that day traumatised her and her colleagues.

Fida Kenya chairperson Josephine Mongare said the organisation would offer free legal representation to all victims of the “brutality”.

“Entering the hostels where the females were seeking refuge is a clear indication of the purposed atrocities by the GSU officers,” the Fida boss said.

Ipoa on Wednesday requested the public, including students who were at any of the affected scenes, to report to them, stating that it would give regular updates as investigation progresses.

{Members of Parliament (MPs) yesterday hailed budget estimates for the 2016/17, saying they have significantly reduced the dependence on donors and focused on domestic resources.}

The MPs, however, urged the government to outline new sources of revenue to ensure it caters for outlined development projects and step in when the small percentage reserved for donors is not met.

The government yesterday presented before MPs, proposed budget ceiling for 2016/17 financial year, which will be 29.539 trillion/-, an increase of 31.32 per cent from this financial year’s budget ending June 2016 which was at 22.495tri/-.

Presenting the budget estimates yesterday, the Minister for Finance and Planning, Dr Phillip Mpango, said development partners will only contribute about 12 per cent of the total budget, about 3tri/-.

Mr Japhet Hasunga (Vwawa – CCM) said the government did a commendable job by cutting down donor dependence in the national budget, citing bad experiences in previous budgets.

Mr Hasunga said some of the donor funding comes with conditions, some which are detrimental to the nation, stressing that if some of the donors fail to contribute to the budget the government can easily step in using domestic resources.

“I support the government’s efforts to cut down donor dependence to just 3tri/- out of the 29tri/- budgeted for next financial year 2016/17.

I believe Tanzania is abundantly blessed with natural resources, we just need to ensure we maximise revenue collection,” he noted.

He added “and now that we have natural gas and coupled with the other natural resources that we and the government’s position to reduce spending and maximise on revenue collection, we need to do away with donor dependence and become self-reliant.”

Mr Zitto Kabwe (Kigoma Urban – ACT-Wazalendo) described the budget as a daring move and a major step by the government to come up with a budget of 29.5tri/- for the financial year 206/17 from 22.5tri/- in 2015/16.

Mr Kabwe also noted the important steps taken by the government to increase domestic resources, but stressed also the importance of ensuring the efforts do not make it difficult for local businesses to operate.

The Kigoma Urban MP said the government was depending on getting loans from local financial institutions amounting to 5tri/-, this means the government will be competing with local businesses in getting loans … in economic terms we call this crowding out,” he urged.

According to him, the move can have a serious impact on small businesses which depend on loans to finance their business projects, noting that the MPs should take ample time to discuss and advise the government accordingly and get an implementable budget.

Mr Zitto also commended the government for its plans to increase budget for higher learning institutions and absorb many students graduating from various secondary schools in the country.

“The government is planning to expand higher learning facilities to accommodate more students who will complete their secondary education.

And if we get more students qualifying, as we improve the quality of education it is clear that we will need more universities, colleges, technical trainings and vocational institutions. I have seen the government has strategies to increase these higher learning institutions,” he explained.

Ms Magdalena Sakaya (Kaliua – CUF) advised the government to seek out new sources of revenue and increase domestic revenuecollection.

She said the government was currently collecting more revenue as a result of fines from tax defaulters who are also paying their dues.

“Once all these people have paid up, tax collections will go down … there is a need for the government to outline other sources of domestic revenue collections which are plenty,” she noted.

Citing an example, Ms Sakaya said the government can now establish a Fish Port that would cater for fishing ships, both local and foreign, that conduct deep sea fishing and collect revenue on the catches.

“This is currently not being implemented. We proposed that the government establish the Fish Port but nothing has been done yet. This is a very good source of revenue for the government.

There are people fishing in the deep sea for free. This is the right time for the government to implement this,” she noted. Another source for domestic revenue, according to Ms Sakaya, is the mining sector, noting that whatever the government is currently getting ‘’is peanuts compared to what is actually obtaining on the ground.’’

She added that steps taken by the government to curb theft, including putting up inspection gates, should be looked at again, adding that there isn’t any inspection done to vehicles passing through the gates.

Earlier, while chairing the one-day meeting comprising of Members of Parliament (MPs), ministers and other government officials, Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa commended the MPs and their committees for commendable work that have contributed to presentation of the budget estimates.

In his speech, National Assembly Speaker Job Ndugai noted that the main agenda of the meeting was to receive the budget estimates and for the parliamentary budget committee to embark on analysing the recommended budget proposal and advise sectoral parliamentary committees and the government accordingly.

{Police in Kasese have blamed the recent attacks on security installations and internal clashes in Rwenzori region on witchcraft and money that are believed to be fuelling the conflict.}

Police say some militia-like groups, who are involved in attacking security deployments, do so under the influence of witchcraft and promises for big money in exchange for guns and other incentives by undisclosed groups.

The Rwenzori East regional police commander, Mr Deo Obura, said the groups are being sent by yet undisclosed godfathers.
“Witch doctors incite the attackers and administer herbs into their bodies, telling them the herbs will make them immune to bullets,” Mr Obura said at the weekend.
The raging violence in the Rwenzori region has left more than 45 people dead.

Mr Obura was on Monday addressing a meeting of religious leaders and leaders of civil society organisations chaired by South Rwenzori Diocese Bishop Jackson Thembo Nzerebende at the diocesan Agape Guest House in Kamaiba Ward, Kasese Municipality.

Bishop Nzerebende said the meeting was convened to get updates on the security situation and to chart a common approach to restoring peace and stability in Kasese.

The meeting was convened a day after security operatives of the police Flying Squad shot and killed Yafesi Mugoye, a Rwenzururu cultural institution royal guard, around Shauri Yako market in Kasese Town last week.

According to Obura, the operatives shot Mugoye to prevent him from grabbing a pistol in an attempt to rescue his colleague, Juma Muliki, who was being arrested in connection with the March night raid on Kidodo police post.