Tag: GreatLakesNews

{The Kenyan family of United States President Barack Obama in Nyangoma Kogelo village, Siaya County, has disowned their kin Malik Obama for his stand in American politics.}

Family spokesperson Nicholas Rajulu on Thursday said the rhetoric and decision by the older Obama, half-brother of the US leader, to support Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump was against the will of the family.

President Obama is a Democrat.

They have vowed to campaign against his bid for election as Siaya governor in next year’s polls, saying his actions were regrettable.

“We are disappointed by Malik,” said Mr Rajulu in K’Ogello. “We don’t recognise him as a member of our family.”

Mr Malik Obama travelled to the US to attend the final presidential debate for the November 8 election between Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton and Mr Trump at the invitation of the latter.

He has been on record castigating the leadership of President Obama, accusing him of abandoning the family after he assumed office eight years ago and failing to live to his campaign pledge of improving the lives of Americans.

Mr Rajulu told the Nation the family and residents of Kogelo had been forced to rethink their decision to support Mr Obama in the 2017 General Election.

{{‘OPPOSED DEVELOPMENT’}}

“He has opposed development brought by Barack in the region,” said Mr Rajulu. “How sure are we that he will listen to us if he becomes governor? Even if he is contesting for MCA, we will not vote for him until he changes his attitude.”

He said President Obama is a member of the family and the comments by his brother on the person of the US leader were aimed at gaining him cheap publicity.

Mr Malik had termed President Obama as an incompetent leader who has not achieved much. He also blamed him for the killing of Libya’s leader Muammar Gaddafi, leading to the suffering of the Libyan people.

Local Member of the County Assembly Owiti Osuri accused Mr Malik Obama of constantly trying to find fault with the US leader for the past 10 years.

“We will not support Malik in 2017 despite him being one of us,” said Mr Osuri. “He is a disgrace to us; we will ensure he fails miserably.”

Mr Osuri said the community has immensely benefited from the support the US President has accorded the region since he entered the White House.

King Mohammed VI of Morocco is expected to arrive in Tanzania on Sunday for a three-day state visit as part of a royal tour aimed at broadening cordial relationship, partnership and opening up investment opportunities worth about 4 trillion/-.

Foreign Affairs and East African Cooperation Minister, Dr Augustine Mahiga, told a press conference in Dar es Salaam yesterday that the king would be accompanied by more than 150 delegates, including government officials, businessmen and members of his family.

“This is the first time for Tanzania to receive a king from any other country. So it will be a visit of its own kind,” the minister pointed out, adding that all preparations for the special visit were on good course. According to the minister, already about 100 Moroccan officials were in the country for the mission.

During the visit, he said, more than 18 agreements involving different sectors would be signed and witnessed by King Mohammed VI and his host, President John Magufuli. Apart from holding talks with Dr Magufuli, the king was also expected to meet with Zanzibar President Ali Mohamed Shein.

Dr Mahiga told reporters that it would be a great opportunity for Tanzania and Morocco to strengthen bilateral ties and create opportunities for the people in the two African countries.

Dr Mahiga mentioned areas of cooperation between the two countries as including foreign relations, security, finance sector, notably on banking and insurance, infrastructure, particularly energy, education, investments and private sector development.

Investment agreements are expected to exceed two billion US dollars (about 4tri/-) in different areas, thanks to Tanzania’s Consular General in Morocco, Mr Fouad Mustafa, for “fighting tooth and nail to ensure the visit becomes successful.’’

The minister said that the king was expected to end his official tour on October 25, but would remain in the country with his family for five more days as part of his holiday.

The monarch is expected to seize such opportunity to visit other tourist areas, including Zanzibar. Dr Mahiga disclosed further that another purpose for the king’s visit relate to seeking support for Morocco to join back the African Union (AU).

Morocco was among founder countries of the defunct Organisation of African Union (OAU) before it changed its name to African Union (AU). Morocco withdrew from membership of the regional cooperation many years ago, but now they want to come back.

“We welcome them and we have no reason of not endorsing our support. As we speak now, they are in Rwanda for a similar mission,” the minister told reporters. Dr Mahiga said the king was also expected to visit Kenya and Ethiopia, but the visits have been rescheduled, pending other arrangements.

{Detectives from the Buruburu Directorate of Criminal Investigations shot dead two suspects on Kangundo Road, Nairobi, on Wednesday evening.}

A Ceska pistol, a handcuff and a phone were recovered in the incident.

The suspects were part of a gang of six, comprising three men and three women, who had been carjacking passenger vehicles on Kangundo Road.

Buruburu Criminal Investigations boss Jeremiah Ikiaoh confirmed the incident that occurred at 7.30pm.

{The government of the Democratic Republic of Congo has announced the reduction of Visa fee for Tanzanians and Ugandans by half from 100/-US dollar to 50/- US dollar with effect from November 1, 2016.}

The decision has come a month after the DRC Ambassador to Tanzania, Mr Jean- Pierre Mutamba and the Central Corridor Transit Transport Facilitation Agency (TTFA) Executive Secretary Capt Dieudonné Dukundane as well as Chief Operating Officer Mr Sayiba Tambwe Patient met with DRC high level officials in Kinshasa to discuss the matter.

According to the statement released by DRC’s Director General of Immigration Mr François Beya Kasonga the move is part of Visa harmonisation process for Central Corridor Member Countries, in which Burundi, DRC, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda are involved.

Already Burundi, DRC and Rwanda enjoy Visa free movement among themselves under the Economic Community of the Great Lakes Countries (CEPGL) arrangement.

Harmonisation of Visa was also one of the agreed issues during the 7th Ordinary Meeting of the Inter-State Council of Ministers of the TTFA held in Dar es Salaam on August 11, 2016.

Commenting on the new development Capt. Dukundane hailed DRC Officials for this move that will reduce struggles and facilitate trade within Central Corridor member countries.

He also commended the useful guidance provided by the DRC Ambassador to Tanzania, Mr Mutamba towards the achievements made so far throughout this process.

{Tanzania is expected to be among the top five producers of uranium in Africa after the completion of Mkuju River Uranium Project, which is in the final stage, the Urenium One Chief Operation officer, Mr Andrey Shotov said yesterday.
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He told journalists that upon its completion in the coming two years, the project will help to boost the country economy. “We are finalising the Mkuju River project, we are looking forward to start trail as in the coming two years,” he said.

According to Mr Shotov, the project started seven years ago and that it has reached to the implementation stage after various research studies were conducted. He said the project is expected to provide employment to various Tanzanians and promote various economic activities across the country.

“Mkuju River Project in Tanzania is among the world’s most promising uranium projects.

The project is currently maintained in the active status as research work and preparatory operations are under way,” he said. MANTRA Tanzania Mnaging Director Mr Frederick Kibodya said that Mkuju River Project would be the first uranium mine in the country.

He said since establishment of the project, over 200m/- US dollar have already been used in exploration, constructing infrastructure and supporting local communities. “The projects will increase national income and employment to many Tanzanian.

Tanzania will be the leader in mining technologies,” he said. He said upon the completion Mkuju River Project would employ 1,600 people.

{EAST African Community (EAC) regional block have never reached a consensus on the issuance of the single tourist visa by Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda.}

“There has never been any agreement on the arrangement at the EAC level, as a matter of fact, the member states are still discussing the issue,” Acting Director for Trade and Investment in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and East African Cooperation, Bernard Haule, said yesterday.

Mr Haule was responding to allegations by some media outlets and social networks, suggesting that Tanzania had snubbed the multi-entry visa for tourists outside the regional bloc.

The official maintained that introduction of the arrangement for all EAC member states was still under discussion through sectoral meetings on tourism and wildlife, noting that Tanzania was fully participating to the deliberations.

The ‘Daily News’ has separately learnt that even the three countries that have embraced the single visa are at loggerheads due to differences in national visa policies and regimes in Uganda, Kenya and Rwanda.

A senior tourism development officer from Uganda, Ms Anne Awori, was recently quoted at a forum in Kigali, Rwanda, complaining that some of the countries implementing the agreement were forcing tourists with the documents to pay extra upon entering their countries.

“We have come across many cases of officials asking tourists who have obtained the single entry visa from Uganda to pay entry fees in Rwanda or Kenya,” said Ms Awori, adding, “A recent case is when Rwanda charged a 13-yearold tourist an extra 60 US dollars despite having the regional visa from Uganda.”

Earlier, Uganda had blamed Kenya and Rwanda for breaching the visa agreement by issuing their own local visas to tourists instead of the single EAC tourist visa.

At one time, Ugandan tourism officials were quoted by the local media as threatening to pull out of the visa project. Heads of State from the three countries launched the single tourism visa in February 2014.

The idea was to allow tourists move freely within Uganda, Kenya and Rwanda without applying or paying for another visa. At a news conference in Dar es Salaam yesterday, Mr Haule explained that the idea came on way back in November, 2008, during an EAC Council of Ministers for tourism and wildlife, with a taskforce formed to look into the matter.

At a follow up meeting in 2010, the task force briefed the ministers on issues to consider, including harmonisation of visas for the EAC member states. “It was as well proposed that the visas be issued electronically, the taskforce further proposed a proper system for collection and sharing of revenues accrued from the visa fees,” Mr Haule explained.

The official stated further that after recommendations by the experts, the sectoral ministers in July 2013 agreed to form another working team to propose the best ways member countries could address the issues raised by the first team.

“Before the team got to work and suggest the way forward, the three countries decided to introduce the single visa on their own,” he remarked.

According to Mr Haule, the experts working on the issues were drawn from multiple areas including immigration departments, tourism, information and communication technology, security organisations, finance, legal affairs and ministries of foreign affairs.