The High Court has dismissed an appeal filed by Safaricom over a ruling that had compelled it to pay Sh452,868 to a customer whose mobile phone was stolen and money withdrawn from his M-Pesa account. The court, sitting in Nairobi, dismissed the appeal by Safaricom arguing that the company had the duty of care to protect its customers’ data and account details from breach by outsiders and third parties. In the judgment issued by High Court Judge A.N. Ongeri, the court disagreed with the arguments by Safaricom that it had done all that it could to prevent the loss of funds,…
Author: Silas Apollo
Students who are unable to afford fees in colleges and universities in Kenya could soon have a cheaper way of earning degrees and diplomas after the National Assembly granted the approval for the establishment of Kenya’s first virtual university. The House, while debating a report tabled by a technical committee set up to establish the virtual university, said that the setting up of the institution will provide a better alternative to learners in the country. The MPs as a result, approved the preliminary charter for the Open University of Kenya (OUK), setting the stage for the admission of the first…
Members of county assemblies have been warned against flouting laws on procurement while making purchases in counties. This follows revelation by reports from the office of the Auditor-General that counties were losing millions of shillings every year due to a disregard of basic procurement laws by the county assemblies. The revelations, which were made public bare during a meeting held by the County Public Accounts Committee of the Senate, put on the spot a number of county assemblies, including Laikipia and Kakamega Assemblies, where MCAs were accused of disregarding the Public Audit Act as well as the Public Finance Management…
President William Ruto has identified at least five key areas which his administration says that it intends to focus on as part of the Kenya Kwanza government’s economic transformation plan for the country. A look at the budget for the 2023/24 Financial Year presented by the National Treasury in July, indicates that President Ruto’s administration wants to largely focus its attention on areas of infrastructure, agriculture, the social sector, governance and administration as well as on the environment to turn around the country. According to the budget policy statement presented by Treasury cabinet secretary Njuguna Ndung’u, these areas are set…
The processing of nearly 28 Bills which are at various stages in the Senate is part of the workload that awaits Senators when they resume session next week after a two-week recess. The recess which started on June 29, 2023 in accordance with the Senate calendar and which was approved by members, is scheduled to end on July 18, 2023. In a communication made to members by House Leader of Majority Aaron Cheruiyot, the resumption of the session will be preceded by a meeting of the Senate Business Committee (SBC) which will consider and approve the business for the week.…
The Senate has approved the formation of a special committee to help push for compensation for Kenyan victims of the 1998 bomb blast in Nairobi. The Senate Ad Hoc Committee on the Compensation to the Kenyan victims of the 1998 Bombing of the United States of America Embassy in Nairobi, was formed after members of the House approved a motion for its establishment. In a session held in the Senate Chamber, members of the House said that the nine-member Committee will pursue and accomplish the compensation of victims and families of the victims of Kenyan nationals by the United States…
The National Assembly has approved regulations to establish the National Peace Support Operations Fund, which will provide support for Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) peacekeeping missions and operations. This is after the House adopted a report of the Committee on Delegated Legislation, which considered the Public Finance Management (National Peace Support Operations Fund) Regulations, 2023. The purpose of these regulations will be to create the National Peace Support Operations Fund, into which the government is expected to contribute about Sh1 billion. Currently, Kenya contributes troops to the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).…
Unsettled financial obligations by governments and their agencies, sometimes tunning into decades, leave a trail of broken investors, families and businesses, and suppliers buried in debt – sometimes literally When Simon Gichuki joined the Association of Public Suppliers, he had no idea of the horror stories he would hear of the devastating effects that bills owed to suppliers and contractors by national and county governments had on some of his members. Mr Gichuki, the secretary-general of the Association of Public Sector General Suppliers, says that unpaid bills owed to suppliers by various government agencies and entities have driven many of…
Devolved units have underperformed by about 75%, resulting in poor service delivery, stalling of development projects and a failure to deliver on essential services County governments have for the seventh year running failed to meet their targets in the collection of their own source revenue, leading to poor service delivery and the collapse of some key development projects. An analysis of a report released by the office of the Controller of Budget shows that governors have year after year failed to meet the set target of about 75% in collecting revenues in counties. This in the end, has resulted in…
The Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR) has asked a Committee of the Senate to push for the amendment of the Section 226 of the Penal Code of laws of Kenya and decriminalize suicide in the country. The Commission argues that individuals who attempt to kill themselves have mental illness and deserve medical care instead of being arrested and charged in court of law. In a submission to the Adhoc Committee on the Proliferation of Religious Organisations, which is investigating the Shakahola deaths, Prof Mariam Mutugi, a commissioner with KNCHR, said the decision to arrest and arraign in court…
