A senior manager at the Kenya Revenue Authority may find himself in trouble after it was revealed he has been receiving cheques from a contractor who is eyeing an extension of his terms of service. The firm and the senior manager have been put under surveillance after sleuths began investigations to ascertain if the payments are a kickback disguised as rent. If it is genuine rent, then the investigators want to establish if the firm had disclosed that it had rented apartments for some of its staff from the senior manager as this can amount to conflict of interest and deny the firm the...
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Corridors of Power
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Tax holidays abused, says NGO
A TAX lobby wants taxation laws amended to enable Parliament oversee award of tax incentives to corporate companies operating in proposed special economic zones. Tax Justice Network Africa said on Wednesday in Nairobi the country's tax incentive regime lacks transparency, providing an avenue for multinationals to avoid paying taxes with an estimated Sh75.25 billion($875 million) stashed in secret overseas accounts. The organisation said the role of awarding tax holidays, free zones, stability agreements and discretionary incentives should be moved from Treasury to Parliament to ensure...
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Big businesses move offices to Waiyaki Way
Three of the ‘big four’ professional services firms in Nairobi – Deloitte, PricewaterhouseCoopers and KPMG – are now operating from Waiyaki Way, raising its profile as a prime office space location. Ernst & Young Kenya is the only other still operating from Upper Hill. The big four offer services that include audit, tax, advisory, consulting and actuarial for publicly traded and privately held companies. Waiyaki Way is the latest beneficiary of the migration of corporations from Nairobi’s Central Business District and other commercial nodes that are fast becoming crowded. Deloitte has its...
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Kenyans to feature in Sh2m Google innovation finals
Two Kenyans are among ten finalists in the Google’s Africa Connected competition which kicked off on February 18 Steve Kyenze and Sitewa Wafula were selected from 2,200 entries from 35 countries and stand a chance of winning two million each to support their businesses. They are now requesting for public support through online voting at http://www.africaconnected.com/ which will run untill March 7. The competition will award five winners on April 1 and the winners will also have the opportunity to work with a Google sponsor over a six-month period to further their online business success...
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Middle level managers top in economic crimes - PwC
MIDDLE LEVEL managers top in economic crimes a survey by global consultancy firm PriceWaterhouseCoopers released yesterday shows. The 2014 Global Economic Crime Survey:Kenya Report indicates that this is mainly because of the managers access to information and opportunities. The report says the middle level managers perpetrate economic crime because they have more discretion over large sums and are more likely to collude with external parties. “In Kenya 54 per cent of economic crime is committed by those in middle management, 28 per cent by junior staff and 13 per cent by senior management...
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Why roofing with shingle is fast gaining trend countrywide
Roofing using shingle is fast gaining trend in the Kenyan building industry owing to the material’s high aesthetic appeal and moderate cost. Roof shingle – roof covering consisting of slates laid in courses – costs around Sh1,450 per square metre, including overlap. The underlay, made from recycled plastic, costs around Sh500 per square metre. In total, a square metre shingle roofing will cost about Sh2,000, excluding the cost of timber roof trusses. In use In Nairobi, most gazebos and outdoor dining areas for restaurants are now increasing being roofed using shingle. Examples of places with...
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New housing project set for Kitengela area
Thika-based Urithi Housing Cooperative has unveiled its fourth gated community development in Kitengela. Urithi’s membership has increased to about 4,000 in a short span, helped by it conquests in helping aspiring homeowners to step on the property ladder. The new development is dubbed Kitengela Olive Ostrich Gated Estate, deriving its name from the renowned Ostrich Farm which it neighbours. It sits on 60 acres of land and is divided into five 12-acre blocks which will be sold in phases. The gated development is planned to have 500 houses. Its three earlier developments are Olive Villas,...
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Celebrity race to London begins
After the Sunday flag off that saw two participants of the reality TV show Tusker Twende Kazi begin the relay, the Humphrey Kayange's Tusker has changed hands to the second team. Double Olympic and defending champion Ezekiel Kemboi and his partner Michael Nduati handed over the Tusker whose final destination is London to team two, Nameless and Wandia. One of the contestants of the reality show, Eve D Souza blogged about it in her Facebook Page. She wrote, "Though there was lots of drama Kemboi and Michael managed to complete their challenge in Amboseli and have handed the Tusker over to a...
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Kigen challenges ICC witness's testimony
THE prosecution's 12th witness was yesterday taken to task over his understanding of the Kalenjin language. The defence pointed out mistranslations he had given the court. Last week, the witness told the court that Deputy President William Ruto and former Industrialisation minister Henry Kosgey had in the Kalenjin language said that "trees brought by the whiteman should be cut." When asked by Joshua Sang's lawyer Katwa Kigen about the same phrase, the witness told the court that it meant "the trees should be uprooted." Kigen asked the witness to explain the meaning of the word " suswek "...
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Terrorism pushes up reinsurance premium rates
Re-insurers have increased premium rates for terrorism by between 10 and 40 per cent. Heritage Insurance executive director, Joseph Kyungu said the rise was occasioned by the frequent terrorism attacks in the country but moreso the Westgate Mall attack. “The ratings of terrorism is based on the property being insured, whether a school, shopping mall, vehicles and even the location,” he said. The Somali terror group, Al-Shabaab, an affiliate of al Qaeda, claimed responsibility for the bloody four-day siege at the mall, during which at least 67 people were killed. The attack began on September...
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Senators, MPs resolve to counter 'governors' arrogance'
The two Houses of Parliament have unanimously agreed to whittle down the excesses of county governors by fast tracking two crucial bills that will drastically check their “arrogance.” The decision was reached during yesterday’s joint informal sitting of the Senate and the National Assembly at Parliament Buildings chaired by House Speakers Ekwe Ethuro and Justin Muturi. The meeting is a subject of the recent High Court injunction against the Senate impeachment of Embu Governor Martin Wambora for abuse of office, corruption and violation of the constitution. The meeting was also called to...
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Chief's wife, two thugs killed in Nairobi robbery
A wife to a chief was shot dead on Kimathi Street in Nairobi as police gunned down two suspected thugs after a botched robbery. The Chief from North Eastern was also injured during the shoot-out between police and suspected robbers, one of whom is believed to be a rogue police officer. A police issue Ceska pistol was recovered. The chief and his wife were walking towards Jamia Mall when a bullet hit the woman in the head killing her instantly. Her husband was injured by another bullet. The two were taken to Crescent Clinic adjacent to Jamia Mosque where the woman was pronounced dead. Two...
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Work permit delays hurting EAC trade
HUNDREDS of jobs could be going down the drain annually due to Kenya's unclear and inefficient work permit regulations, regional business leaders said in Nairobi yesterday. The East African Business Summit said the bureaucracies around the work permits for investors remains a major barrier to foreign businesses expanding not only into Kenya among the five-member East African Community. Chief executive of business consultancy firm KPMG, Josphat Mwaura, said the long process of securing a working permit for investors could be more efficient and friendly if coordinated by Kenya Investment...
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HF arm pursuing six fresh joint ventures
Kenya Building Society, the developer arm of mortgage lender Housing Finance, is presently negotiating six joint ventures, three of which it hopes will crystallise this year. The developer is already in two joint ventures two years into its revival after 13-year dormancy, raising HF’s presence in the housing supply chain and boosting mortgage sales. “We are negotiating about six potential joint ventures with big land owners and hopefully we’ll close at least three in the course of this year,” said Timothy Gitonga, HF’s group business operations director. The lender could not disclose the...
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Serviced land shortage hampers green building
The state must service land to spur construction of buildings that conform to principles of green technology, a property developers’ forum heard yesterday. Servicing land includes provision of trunk infrastructure such as electricity, water, roads and sewerage systems on way-leaves, to which developers can connect new buildings. This reduces builders’ capital expenditure thereby lowering the cost of new residential and commercial units. Developers identify lack of serviced land as a major factor to the prevailing high prices of homes, office, and retail space. Availability of trunk services...
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First Daughter's day out without security
Kenya's first daughter let her hair down on Sunday during the Safaricom Jazz Festival held at the Ngong Racecourse. Ngina Kenyatta the daughter of President Uhuru Kenyatta was flying solo without heavy security at the jazz festival. Ngina was hanging out with her pals under the watch of G4S muscle. Together with her posse, Ngina was at the VIP tent where she stood at the barriers next to the stage. Ngina joined thousands of Kenyans who were eager to watch a star-studded line-up at the jazz extravaganza. Other performances were by Kenyan artistes, Aaron Rimbui, Kavutha and Jacob Asiyo, Eddie...
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MP condemns eviction plan
LAMU West MP Julius Ndegwa has termed plans to evict over 10,000 squatters within his constituency by a conservation organization as unconstitutional. Ndegwa said plans by Kipini Conservancy and Kenya Forest Service to have the residents of Maisha Masha, Niruji among other areas evicted to pave way for conservation of indigenous trees goes against the constitution that provides for looking for alternative land to relocate squatters before eviction. Speaking from Lamu on phone, the legislator who said the move has caused anxiety among his constituents said there was need for the National Land...
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Families want hostages freed
FAMILIES of two Kenyan engineers abducted by suspected Somalia gunmen in Mogadishu, are appealing to the government to negotiate with the group for their release. Seafarers Union of Kenya yesterday contacted the families of the two who reside in Ongata Rongai town in Kajiado county. The hostages aged 34 and 38 year -old are currently under captive in pirates-infested district of Harardhere in Galgaduud region 700 kilometers North of Mogadishu . The gunmen believed to be Somalia pirates are demanding a ransom of Sh86 million to free them. The two are cousins and are married with children. The...
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Obado lashes out at the Senate over summons
MIGORI Governor Okoth Obado has criticised Senator Wilfred Machage and the Senate over governors’ summonses. Speaking during the launch of Uriri Constituency Strategic Plan on Monday, he said, “the Senate is idle and is looking for relevance by summoning governors.” “We will not go to the Senate because if governors have misappropriated funds they should face the anticorruption body.” However, he was among the first governors to appear before the Senate last week after he was summoned. Obado said the courts should discipline corrupt governors. He said if the country was to hold a referendum...
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MCAs target brewer's land
KISUMU MCAs plan to repossess a 50-acre plot belonging to the Kenya Breweries Ltd. The MCAs say the idle land should be allocated to new investors. Led by Kaloleni-Shauri Moyo ward representative Prisca Auma, the MCAs said the company will only be allowed to use the land for its intended purpose. They were speaking to the Star in Kisumu town yesterday.
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