Authorities in Ghana have busted a fake US embassy in the capital Accra run by a criminal network that for a decade issued illegally obtained authentic visas, the US State Department said.

Until it was shut down this summer, the sham embassy was housed in a run-down, pink two-storey building with a corrugated iron roof and flew a US flag outside. Inside hung a portrait of President Barack Obama.

"It was not operated by the United States government, but by figures from both Ghanaian and Turkish organised crime rings and a Ghanaian attorney practicing immigration and criminal law," the State Department said in a statement released late on Friday.

Turkish citizens, who spoke English and Dutch, posed as consular officers and staffed the operation. Investigations also uncovered a fake Dutch embassy, the State Department said.

Officials in the Netherlands were not immediately reachable for comment on Sunday.

The crime ring issued fraudulently obtained but legitimate US visas and false identification documents, including birth certificates at a cost of $6,000 each, the statement said.

During raids that led to a number of arrests, authorities also seized authentic and counterfeit Indian, South African and Schengen Zone visas and 150 passports from 10 different countries along with a laptop and smart phones.

The statement did not say how the gang obtained the authentic visas. And the State Department did not say how many people were believed to have illegally entered the United States and other countries using visas issued by the crime ring, which used bribery to operate unhindered.

"The criminals running the operation were able to pay off corrupt officials to look the other way, as well as obtain legitimate blank documents to be doctored," the statement said.

There was no immediate comment from Ghana's Criminal Investigations Division.

Visas for Western countries are in high demand in Africa and embassies say the visa market is a big target for organized crime.

The real US embassy in Ghana is a prominent and heavily fortified complex in Cantonments, one of the capital's most expensive neighbourhoods. Lines of people queue outside each day for visa appointments and other consular business.

The fake embassy was open three mornings a week and did not accept walk-in appointments. Instead, the criminals advertised on billboards in Ghana, Togo and Ivory Coast and brought clients from across West Africa to Accra where they rented them hotel rooms in nearby hotels.

US authorities conducting a broader security operation were tipped off about it and assembled a team including the Ghana Detectives Bureau and police as well as other international partners to shut down the ring.

A major operation has been launched to find more than 100 patients who escaped from Mathari hospital in Nairobi on Monday morning.

Management said the patients fled while doctors gathered to take part in a nationwide strike that began today.

"We saw some of the patients jumping over the facility's walls and trying to cross Thika Superhighway," a witness told the Star by phone. "I hope this is contained before they are hurt."

Reports indicated that some of them were found later.

The hospital's staff members asked police and members of the public for help.

One of the patients who escaped from Mathari hospital in Nairobi as doctors gathered to officially begin their strike, December 5, 2016. /COURTESY

Health workers countrywide went on strike after talks with the ministry collapsed the previous evening, warning that it will be the longest in history.

The medics failed to show up for a meeting with Health Cabinet Secretary Cleopa Mailu on Sunday.

They downed their tools saying they want the 2013 central bargaining agreement implemented.

More on this: Doctors begin 'longest strike in history' over 2013 CBA agreement

Kisumu Senator Anyang' Nyong’o should focus on his job as he is too old to vie for governor, Kakamega county chief Wycliffe Oparanya has said.

Oparanya who is ODM deputy party leader, said this on Saturday while drumming up support for Kisumu Governor Jack Ranguma, whom he said deserves a second term.

“We work till midnight. With Nyong’o‘s age... Will he really manage the kind of job we do?” he asked.

“Tell Nyong’o to shelve his bid and stick to the Senate role. I am the deputy party leader... Tell him I have said so because he should listen."

But he acknowledged that Nyong'o was his friend and had achieved a lot, in his address in Kisumu West during the burial of city environment director Thomas Sweta.

Read: Senators back Nyong'o bid to oust Ranguma as Kisumu governor

Oparanya urged the county's residents to vote again for Ranguma, saying he needed to complete his development projects.

He added that Governors need two terms to ensure the stability and success of devolution.

“Since the inception of devolution, we have spent three and a half years putting structures in place. It is therefore necessary that we be re-elected to fully deliver," he said.

The Kakamega county boss cited gains under their leadership despite many challenges, most of which he said were orchestrated by the national government and enemies of devolution.

He told off senators who want to succeed governors, accusing them of being self-centered and selfish.

“At least senators found structures in place because we attained independence in 1963. But with devolution we needed time to build structures,” he said.

“Senators did not know what governorship entailed. They thought the governor was the chairman of the county council. I don’t understand how they read the constitution."

Kenyans on social media have carried on with jokes about 'eating meat' following the President's remarks to Cord leader Raila during former cabinet minister William Ntimama's funeral.

[VIDEO] Get your house in order, let Jubilee feast on 'meat', Uhuru tells Raila

[VIDEO] Uhuru eats meat with Sakaja, Sonko during impromptu city tour

Oparanya said senators must be reading the document "upside down" and have only just realised that there is "meat" at the counties.

"They are now all over the place trying to become governors," he said, giving the example of "that noisy person" Kakamega Senator Bonny Khalwale.

Oparanya will vie against Khalwale, businesswoman Marble Muruli and former medical services minister Amukowa Anangwe.

He asked the rivals to prepare for a tough race as his development record "speaks volumes".

He said he was confident he would be re-elected to fully implement his development agenda.

Ranguma will face Nyong'o businessman Hezron McObewa, Kisumu Deputy Governor Ruth Odinga architecture Christopher Ondiek in the August 8, 2017 poll.

Other aspirants are former lecturer Gordon Wayumba, banker David Wayiera, UN WFP employee Asaka Nyangara and surgeon James Obondi.

The candidates have said they will battle it out for the ODM party ticket.

Read: Khalwale to run for Kakamega governor

Also read: Livondo 'assumes' Kakamega Senator seat as Khalwale 'admires' Governor post

Gambia's President Yahya Jammeh was celebrating his 48th birthday in Banjul in May 2013 when he saw a poor street hawker selling peanuts with a child strapped to her back.

Without hesitating, he sent an aide over with a gift: $1,000 in cash, double the tiny West African nation's average annual wage, said Fatou Camara, his former press secretary who saw it.

It was classic Jammeh: impulsive, capricious and generous with his pocket, at least when he was in the right mood.

"He could change a life in minutes," said Camara. "When you are close to him, it is impossible to believe the killings."

For 22 years since he took power in a coup, Jammeh, a former junior army officer, mixed charm and generosity with the threat of violence to maintain a firm grip on power.

But over time, the latter took centre stage as Gambia morphed into a police state that tortured opponents, rights groups say. Jammeh's supporters deny such claims, and he frequently rails against the Western interference in Africa.

Jammeh accepted his shock election defeat on Friday, a sharp turnaround for a man who had vowed to rule the tiny West African nation of 1.8 million people for "a billion years".

He has not been seen in public since. It is still uncertain whether he will honour his promise to hand over power.

Read: Gambia's Yahya Jammeh to hand over power by end January

"Fear began to erode"

Friends and victims alike say if there was a defining event which set Jammeh on an increasingly authoritarian path, it was a coup attempt by a vanguard of the military in March 2006.

Musa Saidykhan, then the editor-in-chief of The Independent newspaper, was in bed a few days after the coup when policemen came to arrest him. His paper had reported that Jammeh rounded up more people than the authorities had announced.

Saidykhan was taken to the National Intelligence Agency, a short drive away, next to one of Banjul's white sand beaches that attract thousands of tourists to Gambia.

There, on April 8, in a room that Gambians nicknamed the 'Crocodile Hole', agents electrocuted his genitals, beat him with batons, suffocated him with a plastic bag and broke his right hand.

"They said I write with my right hand and that is what is causing the trouble," he told Reuters. Saidykhan left Gambia after his 22-day ordeal and is now social worker in the United States.

The government has repeatedly dismissed allegations of torture. Reuters's calls to officials for comment on this story went unanswered.

Jammeh's quirkier traits, such as his strong belief in supernatural powers, often made international headlines.

He claimed to have a herbal cure for AIDS that only worked on Thursdays. He invited hundreds of women to State House where he administered another herbal remedy for infertility.

In 2009 he arrested hundreds of people for witchcraft.

Gradually, terrified citizens became bolder in expressing dissent, even after hundreds were arrested for protesting in April to May this year.

"The fear began to erode," said Jeffrey Smith from campaign group Vanguard Africa. "People had had enough."

Read: Gambians celebrate voting out 'billion year' leader Yahya Jammeh

Also read: Surprise Gambia poll winner Adama Barrow eyes new cabinet, reforms

"Soldiers with a difference"

On July 22, 1994, Jammeh deposed the corrupt regime of Dawda Jawara, who had ruled since independence from Britain in 1960. It was a sudden rise for a quiet man with little education who once grew tomatoes and lettuce in rural Gambia.

"Many of us welcomed the intervention. These were soldiers with a difference, setting the stage for democracy," said Amadou Janneh, Jammeh's communications minister in 2004.

Even then, there were warning signs: the junta arrested politicians from the old government and reinstated the death penalty. In 2000, its forces killed 14 students at an anti-government protest.

Former aides say Jammeh can appear charming and generous. In 2002, he gave a leather bag containing 250,000 dalasis ($6,000) to a boy whose father had been struck dead by lightning, said Ramzia Diab, an advisor who saw it.

On a state visit to Thailand in June 2005, he tipped restaurant staff with multiple $100 bills he drew from a suitcase, said Amadou Janneh, who witnessed the event.

But after the coup attempt, he became more paranoid.

"He could be very jovial and kind and then lose his temper like a mad dog," said Momodou Sowe, 36, an aide to Jammeh between 2003 to 2012 before being jailed for allegedly leaking sensitive information, which he denies.

Armed men arrested Demba Dem, a member of parliament, at his office shortly after the coup. In darkness, agents he could not see beat him with sticks and guns and burned him with hot metal.

Four others interviewed by Reuters got similar treatment that week. Guards dripped melted plastic onto the leg of Yaya Darboe, an officer involved in the coup. Someone filmed it, Darboe said.

Dem and Darboe were taken to Mile 2, a prison complex of white concrete that abuts the main highway into Banjul.

Cells are overcrowded so that inmates cannot lie down. They are served sandy rice and rotting fish. Dozens share one toilet, often a bucket in a corner, several former inmates said.

Former newspaper editor Saidykhan developed severe back pain from his treatment, and in 2010, the regional ECOWAS Court of Justice ordered the Gambian government to compensate him with $200,000.

He is still waiting to receive it.

A watchman shocked Bungoma residents when he helped a woman to give birth after doctors went on strike on Monday.

Benson Wanyonyi was manning the entrance to Bungoma County Referral Hospital when the women got into labour and called for help.

Rosebela Marani, 32, did not know that doctors had downed their tools, in what they said would be the "longest strike" in Kenya's history.

“I am glad the guard helped me," she said after giving birth to a boy, with the help of a guard with no medical training of any kind. The baby is in good health.

“I was at the main entrance when the woman was brought in on a motorcycle," said Wanyonyi.

"She then learnt that the workers were on strike and was contemplating rushing to a nearby private facility but she was overwhelmed. I ran to the outpatient department and got some gloves and assisted her."

Patients were discharged from the hospital as the strike began. Most of the facilities in the county remained closed with patients at Webuye subcounty hospital opting to see private medics.

Read: Doctors begin 'longest strike in history' over 2013 CBA agreement

Rosebela Marani, whose baby was delivered by a watchman at Bungoma County Referral Hospital following the doctor's strike, December 5, 2016. /BRIAN OJAMAA

Two dead in Naivasha

A man and woman died at Naivasha subcounty hospital, whose health workers only admitted patients in critical condition when the strike became official.

Residents transferred their sick relatives to private hospitals in Naivasha and Kinangop, but said they hoped the strike would end.

But Joseph Mburu, the superintendent in charge of the hospital said the two had been sick for a long time.

“Two people died over the weekend and this had nothing to do with the ongoing strike by the nurses,” he further noted.

Mburu said more than 150 nurses and doctors had downed tools.

“We are relying on skeleton staff as we wait for the crisis to be resolved,” he said, adding the outpatient department was operational but that the number of patients had declined.

More than 700 nurses from Nakuru county have been on strike since last week, demanding promotions and accusing Governor Kinuthia Mbugua of failing to fulfill his promises.

The county has advertised 1,200 positions to replace those on strike but a nurse, who did not want to be named, said they will not be intimidated.

The nurse said it was illegal to advertise their jobs and that the county should turn its focus to addressing their grievances.

“The move by the county government to hire new healthcare workers on contract is baseless and meant to intimidate us,” she said.

The nurse asked members of the public to brace for tough times, saying medics had suffered in silence for years while the county embezzled funds.

“The strike has just begun... We are ready to stay at home for months... until all the grievances we have raised are fully addressed,” she said.

[VIDEO] 100 patients escape from Mathari hospital as doctors strike begins

Negotiations between the Health ministry and Health workers backfired for the second day in a row after the health workers representatives failed to show up in a meeting called by CS Cleopa Mailu.

Mailu in a presser on Monday told journalists he had convened a meeting with all stakeholders including representatives of both doctors and nurses but their unions failed to show up.

“We had met for several hours with them and the council of governors and discussed issues around recognition agreement for nurses and CBA for the doctors. They requested for a break and for our surprise after 6 pm the representatives said they could not negotiate beyond that time,” Mailu said.

Mailu said the ministry had written to them inviting them for another negotiations on Tuesday 8am with intentions of ending the stalemate that has seen about three people dead on the first day of the starike.

Health workers countrywide went on strike on Monday after talks with the ministry collapsed the previous evening, warning that it will be the longest in history.

More on this: Mailu calls for fresh talks with health workers ahead of Monday strike

The medics failed to show up for a meeting with Mailu on Sunday.

They downed their tools saying they want the 2013 Central Bargaining Agreement implemented.

Kenya National Union of Nurses secretary General Seth Panyako oi a TV interview said the strike would go until the CBA is taken to court.

“We are not backing out on this strike; we shall push until court hears us. We shall strike even for 20 years and talk until Jesus comes,” he said.

Samuel Oroko, national chairman of the Kenya Medical Practitioners Pharmacists and Dentist Union, said the government had not fulfilled its promises.

"It is time that the government listened to us. We have tried all avenues but it is not working. We will make them listen to us," he said.

"We only have two main issues - poor pay and deployment of our members. They must be addressed before we resume work. Nothing will stop us."

Oroko said the health workers will only resume duty after the full implementation of the CBA.

Comprising about 5,000 members, the union says the bargaining agreement was to give them a 300 per cent pay rise, review of their working conditions and job structures and criteria for promotions, and address under-staffing of medical professionals in state hospitals.

"We must be listened to... We have had lots and lots of diplomacy, and lots and lots of dialogue. Dialogue has to come to an end," the chairman said to cheers of doctors at a news conference before the march.

"We are sorry for Kenyans who end up suffering but this will not be resolved in any other way."

The health workers asked the public to prepare for the longest strike ever; they said they will not report to work and that if they do, no patients will be admitted.

Police fired tear gas to disperse hundreds of them who marched to the Health ministry headquarters and then to the Finance ministry's.

Mailu earlier said the strike was premature as the 90 days a court gave for negotiations had not lapsed.

He said nurses were asking for a recognition agreement by county governments which 46 counties had not signed.

We can only advance to negotiate a CBA with nurses after the recognition agreement which falls under county governments is signed, he said.

Noting the ministry was still open to talks, he urged the medics to report to work and prevent a health crisis that may lead to the loss of lives.

“This strike notice is premature. On October 6, Justice Monicah Mbaru directed the Salaries and Remuneration Commission to reconvene and solve contentious issues including salaries in 45 days," he said.

"The judge also directed the ministry to submit the pact in court for registration within 90 days after it was finalised."

He added that the 21-day day strike notice issued by the medics was in bad faith.

Also read: Government fails to avert health workers' strike

Jubilee and Cord have filed petitions to disqualify some applicants for membership of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission.

Details of four petitions emerged yesterday, even as complaints were made about political interference with the selection panel and process. National Council of Churches of Kenya secretary general Peter Karanja, objected. He sits on the nine-member selection panel.

Interviews got underway last Thursday for the six commissioners. Thirty-six candidates have been shortlisted.

The selection panel has already found unsuitable the five short-listed applicants for commissioner. New applications are sought.

The earliest a new commission could be in place is mid-January.

Among the petitions received by the panel is a protest against Oliver Kisaka Simiyu, Karanja's former deputy at NCCK.

In a letter to the selection panel, Cord CEO Norman Magaya accused Karanja of failing to disclose to the panel that Kisaka had been his deputy.

"It is even more disturbing that Canon Karanja never bothered to own up to the rest of the membership of the panel that he was conflicted on this specific matter,” Magaya told the panel. “It is expected this conspiracy of silence will continue to the interview process.”

Referring to the bloody street protests that led to negotiations on electoral reforms, Magaya warned against compromising the process.

Magaya said recruitment of new Commissioners is predicated on the blood of Kenyans and called on the panel to nullify Kisaka's nomination.

“It must be noted any attempt to compromise this process will be strenuously resisted. If the intention of the members of the selection panel is to dish out jobs to their cronies, then, they must exercise it elsewhere not on this very important matter of the selection of IEBC Commissioners,” he said.

The petitions lift the lid on the behind-the-scene intrigues by both Jubilee and Cord to influence the recruitment process.

A separate petition against Mutakha Kangu, shortlisted for both chairman and Commissioner, claims he had been part of the think tanks of opposition chief Raila Odinga.

The petitioner, calling himself Jawabu Kenya, quotes Miguna Miguna's book, Peeling Back the Mask, to back claims Mutakha had worked worked for the Cord leader.

“Some of those Mr Miguna lists as long-term strategists of Mr Odinga include Prof Edward Oyugi, Mr Oduor Ong'wen, Mr Mugambi Imanyara, Mr Mutakha Kangu, Dr Adhu Awiti, Prof Peter Wanyande, Mr Salim Lone and Mr Nabii Nabwera,” the petitioner says.

In yet another letter, Magaya says shortlisted candidate Ismail Buro Hassan has close ties with National Assembly Majority Leader Aden Duale and is an in-law of Garissa Senator Yusuf Hajji.

“These close family ties make it impossible for Mr Ismail Buro Hassan to act as Commissioner of IEBC, a position that requires absolute fidelity to impartiality. The perception of of bias cannot be resisted on this matter,” Magaya said.

Magaya also alleges Hassan has had what he termed improper contact with some members of the selection panel and thus should be disqualified.

“It must be noted Mr Duale is part of the campaign team for the reelection of Jubilee ... the purpose of this letter therefore is to request the selection panel to rise up to the political realities abundant in this matter and refuse to give this candidate the opportunity to serve as commissioner of the electoral commission,” he said.

The Cord CEO also filed a petition against Ibrahim Wako Boru, Isiolo county secretary, saying he has been cited in many graft cases.

The anti-graft agency had raided Boru's office and asked for his suspension from the county government.

“By this letter, the selection panel is implored to disqualify his candidature on grounds of integrity as set out under Chapter six of the Constitution. It must be noted that the outgoing commissioners largely vacated office on grounds of failure to inspire public confidence in the commission and integrity issues,” Magaya said.

Documents in the Star's possession also indicate that the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission only cleared Margret Shava for IEBC chair.

This is said to be among the reasons that compelled the panel to re-advertise the top job.

Shava, a former commissioner with the old Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission, is said to be related to President Uhuru Kenyatta's family.

In a letter to the selection panel, EACC deputy chief executive Michael Mubea said they have received allegations touching on the integrity of the other four candidates.

These include Mutakha, David Malakwen, Roseline Odede and David Mereka.

“The commission further confirms that Dr John Kangu Mutakha has been convicted by the Advocates Disciplinary Committee for professional misconduct,” the EACC said.

However, the CID said none of the candidates had a criminal record and cleared them all.

The Advocates Complaint Commission also said there were no pending complaints against the six, although LSK said Mutakha has had three separate cases at the disciplinary tribunal.

The members of the selection panel include two men and two women, nominated by the Parliamentary Service Commission.

These are Evans Monari, Mary Karen Kigen Sorobit, retired Justice Tom Mbaluto, and Ogla Chepkemoi Karani.

Others are Musundi nominated by the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops; Karanja nominated by NCCK; Prof Abdulghafur El-Busaidy of the Supreme Council of Kenya Muslims, Bishop Dr David Oginde nominated by the Evangelical Alliance of Kenya; and Rajesh Rawal of the Hindu Council of Kenya.

Ten expelled ODM rebel MPs yesterday suffered a blow after the party’s National Governing Council unanimously dismissed their appeals.

Delegates from across the country upheld the party’s decision of expelling renegade legislators to allow for by-elections for decamping to the Jubilee Party.

The appeals were dismissed during the NGC special meeting at Orange House because the appellants did not give substantial grounds challenging their expulsion.

ODM deputy party leader Wycliffe Oparanya, who chaired the meeting, welcomed the expulsion, saying it will restore sanity in the party.

“It is now the work of our acting secretary general to act quickly by forwarding our resolutions to the Registrar of Political Parties to take action as required. The resolutions should also be forwarded to National Assembly Speaker for these seats to be declared vacant for by-elections,” Oparanya said.

The expelled legislators include Kwale Governor Salim Mvurya, Kisii Deputy Governor Joash Maangi, Kwale woman representative Zainab Chidzuga, Steven Kariuki (Mathare), Isaac Mwaura (nominated), John Waluke (Sirisia), Samuel Arama (Nakuru Town West), Masoud Mwahima (Likoni), Ababu Namwamba (Budalang'i) and Viwandani MCA Samwel Nyang'wara.

The legislators, in appeals through their lawyer Kioko Kilukumi, said they only attended the launch of Jubilee Party as “invitees” hence ODM cannot consider them to have defected.

They also questioned the legality of the five-member disciplinary committee chaired by Fred Athuok that grilled them and recommended their expulsion.

ODM executive director Oduor Ong’wen said the party’s Legal Committee, chaired by Westlands MP Timothy Wanyonyi, established that the rebels were not committed to the party and its constitution.

“The legal committee went through the submissions by the appellants and the claim by Mvurya that he attended the launch of Jubilee Party as an invitee is not true. In a video clip he was introduced and confirmed to have defected from the party,” he said.

The delegates maintained that the rebels should be deregistered from the party because their pattern of behaviour does not show remorse. They cited several incidents and singled out lawmakers who have publicly "insulted the party leader and talked against the party".

Kilukumi had earlier warned that failure to get justice for his clients from the party’s internal mechanism will prompt intervention from other legal systems.

The lawyer said he will appeal to the political parties tribunal, high court, court of appeal and the supreme court.

The lengthy judicial process may drag on until next year to hamper Odm's push to have by-elections because the law bars by-elections 90 days to the general election in August.

Odm chairman John Mbadi asked NGC to also refer Kwale deputy governor Fatuma Achani to the disciplinary committee because she was "behaving like her boss who defected."

Mbadi said Achani who is indicating signs of defecting cannot take over the county leadership when the party succeeds yo unseat Mvurya.

Four governors including Evans Kidero (Nairobi), JosEphat Nanok (Turkana), Okoth Obado (Migori) and two deputy governors attended the special NGC meeting. Over 15 MPs amd more than 10 MCAs were also present.

Kisumu deputy police boss Benjollife Munuve has denied claims that people arrested during the Wednesday night crackdown were tortured.

He said what the police did was legal and the OCS had the right to undertake special operations.

“We didn’t harass anybody, there were people who refused to cooperate but we only used justified force not excessive force. This is just the beginning of many crackdowns, expect a more serious crackdown,” Munuve said.

He said police were cleaning the town ahead of the festivities to ensure the safety of everybody.

The officer said it is the responsibility of residents to report any incident that threatens their lives.

Kisumu OCS John Thiringiri said no police officer entered any club because they went for the crackdown with a target.

“We were targeting idlers drinking outside clubs, drunkards misbehaving in public and wine and spirits drinking space and clubs with permits allowing them to sell alcohol up to 11pm but were working past that time,” he said.

The two officers gave contradicting number of people who had arrested during the crackdown.

Munuve said about 50 were arrested and 24 charged, while Thiringiri said about 80 had been arrested and 54 were charged.

Kisumu Deputy Governor Ruth Odinga has accused ODM national chairman John Mbadi of partisanship ahead of the party primaries in February.

Ruth said the Suba MP's action of inviting incumbent governors to fundraisers in the constituency does not assure other aspirants of free and fair nominations.

"As the chairman, he should be neutral and focus on how best ODM party can be made more vibrant," Ruth said, adding that the MP should resign if he cannot handle his roles.

"Mbadi should support party structures so that we can have free, fair and transparent nominations."

The Deputy Governor further said in Kisumu on Monday that Mbadi must remain independent and neutral where political activities of those interested in ODM tickets are concerned.

Mbadi hosted Governors Jack Ranguma (Kisumu) and Cyprian Awiti (Homa Bay) to a harambee in his constituency last week, a move that raised questions about his independence.

Ruth said the chairman's action led to the conclusion that he supported their candidature in the 2017 polls.

"Some of the Governors who are now close to Mbadi have done nothing substantive for the party. Their development records are wanting," she said.

The DG asked ODM secretary general Agnes Zani to take action against party officials perceived to be using their positions for such gains.

Ruth also asked the party to discipline politicians who perpetrate violence against their opponents, especially women.

She said MCAs, MP, senators and governors fueling violence against their rivals should be disqualified.

"We must remain focused on making the party vibrant. Fighting and chaos are denting the party’s image to the benefit of our competitors," she said.

"Those behind violence should stop giving Raila a hard time because he is not supporting any particular candidate."

She noted that Raila has not endorsed any candidate for any position in the nominations and next year's August 8 general election.

Read: ODM outlines strict rules for aspirants before nominations

Raila earlier said the party will vet all candidates, conduct opinion polls and subject the aspirants to a popular vote.

"The most popular candidate will be handed the ODM nomination. We want free and fair nominations decided by the people," he told governors in Naivasha in August.

Read: ODM governors give Raila go-ahead to bring more leaders to Cord

Also read: Ruth Odinga differs with Raila over ODM governors' meeting

More on this: Ida Odinga hailed for 'dispelling anxiety' over ODM nominations

Speaking separately, Kasipul Kabondo MP Oyugi Magwanga, who wants to succeed Awiti, said Mbadi had been a big let-down.

But Mbadi dismissed the allegations and challenged those with evidence to present it.

He said he will only support those who will be elected by party members during the nominations.

"Let aspirants focus on selling their policies instead of wasting their time blaming me," the Suba MP told the Star.

Cord leader Raila Odinga has said he will work with Amani's Musalia Muadavadi to remove President Uhuru Kenyatta from power next year.

The two made a public appearance in Laikipia on Tuesday, saying they regretted parting ways ahead of the 2013 general election.

"We will be together in 2017," Raila declared at Resort hotel in Laikipia North constituency, and promised Uhuru's Jubilee Party a bruising battle.

He urged voters to arm themselves with identity and voters cards.

“Come February next year it will not be business as usual. This government is full of thieves who need to be taken home. We want to bring change to this country," he said.

Read: We will form 'super alliance' with Cord to defeat Jubilee - Mudavadi

Also read: Gideon Moi to be DP in Nasa line-up

Raila and Mudavadi accused Uhuru and DP William Ruto of abetting corruption, nepotism and tribalism.

The opposition chief noted that money was being stolen through the Integrated Financial Management System, as the two leaders watch.

Raila stated that Tanzanian President John Magufuli, who has only been in office for a year, has jailed former revenue and ports authority bosses.

He further noted that five governors, several government ministers and state officials have been jailed in Nigeria over corruption-related matters.

He cited the two cases in comparison to Kenya, where he said Uhuru and Ruto use propaganda and lies to ascend to power, saying he took them to the ICC.

“Kibaki and I took a motion to Parliament proposing that we have a special local court to address the post election cases but they refused. They said 'let’s not be vague. Let’s go to The Hague',” said the Cord boss.

Mudavadi said the National Super Alliance was the best outfit to use to defeat the Jubilee government.

He said he and Raila were not enemies as they have worked together before and can still do so, and underlined that failure to unite will allow Jubilee to rig the pol..

“What is important is the message of unity that we should send to voters. We are not saying we do not want ODM, Wiper, Ford Kenya or the others," he said.
"We want a special unity that will see us win the elections. Standing here shows I have that will."

The Amani leader questioned the source of money the government has been giving at harambees.

“They are moving around with sacks of bags full money. Where do they get the Sh18m they dish out at harambees every weekend?” asked Mudavadi.

He further asked why striking doctors have not been paid while money is being given away.

Raila and Mudavadi were with Nairobi Governor Evans Kidero and MPs Mathew Lempurkel (Laikipia North), Junet Mohammed (Suna East), Alfred Agoi (Sabatia) and Elijah Memusi (Kajiado Central).

Read: Ruto dismisses 'selfish' super alliance push for new constitution

Also read: Super alliance progress? Raila, Rutto discuss politics in Bomet meeting

The National Police Service Commission has fired 127 Traffic police officers who failed the vetting process.

Chairperson Johnston Kavuludi yesterday said the majority of the officers were those involved in the matatu business. He said the 127 were among 904 Traffic police officers vetted in May. They are from Coast, Nyanza, Western and Rift Valley.

“Out of the 127, 36 are from Coast, 23 from Western, 50 from Rift Valley and 18 from Nyanza,” Kavuludi said.

He said there are pending investigations of 72 officers, adding 26 were removed after they opted not to be vetted. Kavuludi said six officers out of the 20 officers who had previously been sacked but asked for a review of their results had been reinstated.

They include former AP spokesperson Masoud Mwinyi, William Metto, Japheth Ngatwa, Daniel Chacha, William Kariuki and Festus Luruma.

“Twelve officers failed the vetting review, while one applied to retire. One is awaiting conclusion of a court case, which she filed against the Commission,” Kavuludi said. “Unexplained financial transactions, sending and receiving money from fellow police officers in the Traffic department and operating matatu business are among the reasons that informed their removal.”

He said some received money from transporters and breakdown business operators, while others had professional misconduct. Kavuludi said the fact that 127 out of 904 officers vetted have been removed attests to the endemic corruption in the Traffic department.

As various political parties continue to align and realign themselves with diverse alliances and coalitions, Kanu’s body language is, to say the least, a bit confusing, politically speaking.

The party’s top leadership has been sending mixed signals to the electorate. They have never really been consistent on who they intend to work with.

Mid-this year, during the Raila Odinga-led anti-IEBC demos, Kanu was in the forefront. Kanu’s secretary general Nick Salat was captured on TV and other media dodging teargas canisters and bullets alongside other opposition leaders.

But when asked whether Kanu was jumping into a political partnership with Cord, Gideon was witty as usual. He said Kanu was in the demonstrations because, like Cord and other Kenyans, it wants free and fair elections next year.

But pundits read more into that brief remark; they said Gideon and Raila could be planning an alliance next year.

A few months later, Gideon was seen at a fundraiser in Ukambani. It was no coincidence that Wiper leader Kalonzo Musyoka was seated beside him.

Less than a week ago, West Pokot Senator John Lonyangapuo, a close Gideon ally, told a political gathering in the county that Kanu will throw its weight behind President Uhuru Kenyatta’s reelection next year.

When the Jubilee Party was launched as a new political vehicle in September, it gobbled up more than 10 political parties in a single gulp, but Gideon refused to fold Kanu, saying that would be foolhardy because when the time comes for power-sharing, he wouldn’t have any clout to bargain with.

Kanu supported the Jubilee Coalition at the 2013 election, the political supremacy battles in Rift Valley rent asunder Deputy President William Ruto’s fragile relationship with Gideon.

It is imperative to note that Ruto’s beef with Gideon has not affected the relationship between Uhuru and the favourite son of retired President Daniel arap Moi.

This is why Gideon is at a crossroads. If he supports Uhuru, he will indirectly be supporting his political enemy, the Deputy President.

Last week, Gideon was among top opposition leaders crafting the National Super Alliance outfit, the ogre believed to be the only antidote against Jubilee attempts to retain power next year.

Nasa’s proposed lineup has Gideon as one of two Deputy Presidents.

This is strategic. This slot puts Gideon at par with Ruto in the political pecking order. The voters will therefore be convinced to vote for Nasa.

At least seven people died in public hospitals yesterday as the nurses and doctors strike continued to cause suffering and pain.

In some hospitals, mortuary attendants took turns in wards to help patients in critical condition, as relatives watched helplessly.

The government issued a statement yesterday, saying it “deeply regrets” the situation and promised to talk with the doctors and the nurses to end their strike now in its third day.

“The government notes with grave concern that the strike has disrupted the enjoyment of basic, fundamental rights for citizens across the country, and is causing incalculable pain and grief across the country,” government spokesman Eric Kiraithe said.

Mortuary attendants at the Baringo Referral Hospital said they decided to help patients, instead of waiting for the bodies at the morgue.

Two people died at the hospital yesterday morning. They included a 70-year-old admitted in the facility two months ago, and a middle-aged man, who was struck by a boda boda in Marigat on Monday.

The two were among 50 patients abandoned by the health workers. Some 100 critical cases were referred to private hospitals in Nakuru, Eldama-Ravine and Eldoret on Monday.

Mortuary attendant Daniel Ngetich said he has received 10 bodies at hospital mortuary since Sunday.

At the Coast Provincial General Hospital, three patients died waiting to be attended.

One of them was Emmah Kairu, 28, who was admitted at the hospital on October 12, suffering from meningitis.

Relatives taking care of three other patients at the Intensive Care Unit said they did not know how to transfer them to private facilities, because they are in a coma.

At Kinango Subcounty Hospital, Kwale, one man died at the gate as his relatives were turned away.

“The situation is worse in Msambweni Referral Hospital, but we cannot do anything because the strike is on,” a doctor, who sought anonymity, said.

Talks between the Health ministry and the striking doctors collapsed again after the team from the Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists’ Union walked out of the meeting at Afya House.

They doctors want the government to implement the collective bargaining agreement they signed with the Health ministry in June 2013, giving them a pay rise of up to 300 per cent.

The medics also want a review of their working conditions, job structures, criteria for promotions. They also want staff hired to reduce shorotage of medical professionals in state hospitals.

Governors are looting millions of shillings in taxpayers’ money from county revenue and pending bills, the Controller of Budget said yesterday.

Agnes Odhiambo told the National Assembly Finance committee the governors are reluctant to declare the millions of shillings collected and exact figures of pending bills to fleece the public.

Odhiambo told the committee, chaired by Subukia MP Nelson Gaichuhie, that the counties have been spending the undeclared revenue at source.

Barred by law

Her office cannot stop the practice because the CoB Act bars her, she says.

“Our hands are tied because the law does not allow us to report on local revenue. The counties have not been declaring the income collected and this is why most governors have appeared before the Senate to answer audit queries on local tax,” Odhiambo said.

She cited Nairobi Governor Evans Kidero’s administration as among the counties that do not announce collected revenue. Odhiambo said no county has attained its revenue target since devolution.

Mavoko MP Patrick Makau said the governors could be pocketing the revenue because the sums announced are far less compared to the collections made. “We used to collect Sh1.5 billion in Mavoko municipality but now the entire Machakos county collects Sh410 million. This might be the money the governor is using to launch his political party and opening offices,” Makau said.

Avenue for fraud

Odhiambo said the governors have been estimating figures of pending bills instead of declaring all sums.

“We have been reporting on these pending bills in the counties and it could be an avenue of ongoing fraudulent activities because some are not genuine. We don’t understand how governors have ended up with huge pending bills,” she said. Kidero has been piling pressure on the national government to clear Sh69 billion it owes the county in terms of pending bills from parking and license fees, among others.

The Senate Public Accounts Committee chaired by Kisumu Senator Anyang Nyong’o in May asked the Auditor General‘s office to “urgently” conduct a special audit to determine the exact amount of Nairobi county’s pending bills.

This was after Kidero and his finance officers failed to account for Sh42 million collected as parking fees in 2013-14. Senate Speaker Ekwee Ethuro in March directed the Auditor General to conduct a special audit of pending bills in all the counties.

Police in Nairobi have arrested a businessman who evicted a family from their house in Westlands on Sunday. 

Francis Nyaga Njeru of Frank Logistics will be arraigned in court on Wednesday to face charges of malicious damage to property.

He is said to have hired goons who demolished a house whose lease had expired and claimed it had changed ownership.

On Sunday, the Kurji family was forcefully evicted from their home by a group of men armed with machetes and clubs.

They only managed to salvage some items before a bulldozer flattened their home.

Jameeta Kurji told the media that the family has owned the piece of land since 1972.

She said two brothers, Nazmudin and Sadrudin, built a duplex - two houses separated by a wall - on the parcel that year.

"Since the death of Sadrudin, the house was occupied by my father, Nazmudin, and mother Parin, and my other sibling," she said.

The National Lands Commission and the police had launched investigations to establish the ownership of the disputed piece of land.

The NLC intends to review the grants and will on Friday morning hold public hearings for the property.

All the parties are required to produce at least six document to support ownership including letter of allotment, receipt of payment, deed plans, leases and title deeds.

Njeru had told the investigators that he applied for lease in 2008 in a letter dated December 18, 2008 to the Commissioner of Lands.

On November 10, the Nairobi City County issued an Enforcement Notice to stop any further illegal development forthwith and also remove any illegal structures. The county has disowned the document and termed it fake.

On Monday, IPOA dispatched its Rapid Response Unit to investigate the alleged failure by police to protect the family and their property.

Head of communications Dennis Oketch said they will make recommendations and forward the investigation file to the DPP for his attention.

Read: IPOA sends team to investigate forceful eviction in Westlands

President Uhuru Kenyatta personally telephoned Kanu leader Gideon Moi and urged him not to join the National Super Alliance.

This is the latest and strongest signal Uhuru and the Jubilee Party are uneasy with the resurgent alliance coalescing around Amani leader Musalia Mudavadi and ODM leader Raila Odinga.

The President, according to a source in the Moi family, last week urged the Baringo senator to back his own reelection next year and lead the former ruling party to work with Jubilee.

Details of Moi's response were not disclosed. However, Uhuru's appeal is said to have informed Gideon's decision to back away from his offer to enter into a deal with Mudavadi, who is spearheading formation of NASA, the National Super Alliance.

Both retired President Daniel Moi, Uhuru's political godfather, and the Kenyatta family enjoy longstanding political ties and family friendship.

The source told the Star, however, Uhuru told Moi that "his interests and those of his family were well taken care off in Jubilee, and not in NASA."

The team crafting the Super Alliance has proposed two Deputy Presidents in a new government — one of them Kanu chairman Moi.

Last Friday, however, Moi indicated that Kanu would stand by the agreement it signed with the Jubilee government and was not willing to join another alliance ahead of the 2017 elections.

Senator Moi said his party has an existing pact with Jubilee, which they signed after the 2013 general election, and it is not about to break it to enter into another accord..

"Kanu respects its obligations and until the expiry of the agreement, we are not in a hurry to get into another political agreement. As far as I am concerned, Kanu will honour the existing pact for now." He was speaking in Mombasa during public hearings on the Local Content Bill.

"We have not entered a new coalition," he said.

Gideon was not available for comment yesterday, as he did not answer phone calls or respond to text messages.

On Friday last week, his aide Joseph Kimkung said although the NASA proposal of First Deputy President has not been formally made, the Baringo senator was open to ideas.

"When it is presented to us formally, we will respond. Our party leader has made it clear he is willing to engage with progressive forces in a structured manner," Kimkung told the Star.

The think tanks behind NASA are hoping to bring all opposition parties into a major alliance as they fight to remove the Jubilee government.

Kanu secretary general Nick Salat yesterday said NASA leaders are still tackling pertinent issues and negotiations will greatly depend on the IEBC deadlines as constituted in the supreme laws.

He said the IEBC timelines will also dictate if Kanu goes to the next elections in the Jubilee coalition or forms a new alliance, depending on the outcome of the talks and requirements of the amended Political Parties Act.

Salat said the move to stick to the IEBC deadlines was meant to ensure Kanu goes to the next elections well prepared under the new laws.

“When the Senator (Gideon Moi) said that he was not in any other coalition but in Kanu, he meant that we had not signed and agreed on terms with any alliance. I know we will agree at the end, but we have tight deadlines under the new laws,” Salat said.

Speaking to the Star on phone Salat confirmed that Kanu was in talks with opposition leader Raila Odinga, ANC leader Musalia Mudavadi and Wiper leader Kalonzo Musyoka to put in place an inclusive government to unite the country.

“We want to form an inclusive government but we must also ensure the MoU signed is strictly followed. We don’t want what happened to Narc to repeat again,” Salat aid.

Salat said Kanu will have its National Delegates Conference in two months to endorse the resolution of the talks or establish a new way forward for the party.

“We are in the final stages and addressing pertinent issues that we will reveal at the right time to kick off the campaigns together,” said Salat.

Salat was confident the task will succeed, standing his ground that Kanu will not be dissolved.

If the National Delegates Conference endorses Gideon Moi as the party's presidential candidate and the party joins the National Super Alliance, he will be joining other candidates seeking to be NASA's presidential flagbearer.

Raila, Kalonzo, Wetang'ula and Mudavadi have already been endorsed as flagbearers by their parties. They will compete to be the alliance's presidential candidate.

Doctors yesterday walked out of their negotiations with the government after a court order was issued to arrest any officials from the union participating in the strike.

Judge Helen Wasilwa also ordered the officials of the Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists’ Union to appear in court next Tuesday to show cause why they should not be committed to civil jail for disobeying a court order not to skip work.

“I will not fail to issue warrants of arrest if they fail to appear in court,” she said.

Doctors, dentists, pharmacists and nurses have skipped work since Monday following the lapse of a 21-day notice. But nurses in some counties are working.

They are demanding that the government implement the June 2013 collective bargaining agreement for promotions, better pay, hiring of more medics and better work environment.

Union secretary general Ouma Oluga told the Star on the phone that they are not going to negotiate with the government because it seems they do not want to address their demands.

“After that court order, we do not care anymore. We are not going to negotiate anymore. They should know that we are not going back to work. The collective bargaining agreement must be implemented first,” he said.

Oluga warned that the health sector will suffer more next week.

“Next week, doctors working in private hospitals will be joining us in solidarity. If the government is serious about healthcare, then it should implement the collective bargaining agreement signed three years ago,” he said.

Clinical officers also said they will skip work from today.

Nurses might call off strike

However, there was hope that the nurses’ strike would be resolved after Kenya National Union of Nurses’ officials agreed to negotiations.

“The ministry has shown seriousness to negotiate with us and we are ready to talk,” KNUN secretary general Seth Panyako told the Star.

Panyako and KNUN chairman John Bii held talks in Nairobi from midday yesterday with officials from the Ministry of Health, Council of Governors, Kenyatta National Hospital, Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital and the Salaries and Remuneration Commission.

The nurses are asking for a 25 to 40 per cent salary hike, promotions, new allowances and harmonisation of their grading scales.

Bii said governors had refused to negotiate with them, forcing the union to write its own CBA. They now want the council to sign the unilateral CBA.

“They did not want to negotiate with us and we felt the strike was the best way to force them to the table,” he said.

At least 19 patients have died nationwide since the strike began on Monday.

Kenyans have taken to Twitter using the hashtags #BlameItOnThePresident and #UhuruPayDoctors, asking the President to intervene. Uhuru has pleaded with medics to return to work.

President Uhuru Kenyatta’s studious silence amid the ravaging healthcare crisis has stoked a barrage of criticism, with opposition MPs demanding he calls off his political campaigns.

Six ODM lawmakers yesterday condemned Uhuru and Deputy President William Ruto for “abandoning the country” with their whirlwind schedule of political engagements.

The country entered day three of a paralysed healthcare system without a word from the President. ODM said it has initiated the recall of Parliament from a two-month recess for a joint session to deliberate on the matter.

The MPs were Opiyo Wandayi (Ugunja), Florence Mutua (Busia), Fred Outa (Nyando), Zulekha Hassan (nominated)and National Assembly Health Committee members Raphael Otaalo (Lurambi) and James Nyikal (Seme).

They termed the raging health crisis a creation of the Jubilee administration, which, they said, wants to continue clinging to billions meant for devolved functions.

The legislators said Jubilee has been keen to starve the counties of the money they need to finance essential devolved functions so it can provide itself and its lieutenants with “a source of quick stolen cash”.

In a statement read by Wandayi, they said, “The time to show leadership is now. We demand the President cut short his political campaigns and intervene to have the health services resume and save Kenyans from the anguish and pain they are going through.”

Wandayi, who is the ODM secretary for political affairs, said Jubilee orchestrated the now full-blown crisis when they ensured there was no proper costing of all the devolved functions by the now defunct Transitional Authority. “Jubilee blocked costing of the functions as a deliberate move to retain bills at its disposal and make money available for thieves,” he said.

Wandayi said the counties have inadequate funds to pay health workers because large sums meant for them are held at the Treasury.

“We concur that doctors, clinical officers, nurses and other health workers deserve better terms of employment, which the county governments cannot offer presently because Jubilee is sitting on monies and some functions meant for the counties,” he said.

“We stand with the health workers and condemn the President for his silence and his business-as-usual approach to the crisis. We demand action today, not a day longer.”

The MPs opened a warpath with Jubilee, as Bureti MP Leonard Sang drafted a constitutional amendment bill seeking to centralise health functions. The Constitution Amendment Bill, 2016, seen by the Star, proposes amendment to the Fourth Schedule by deleting a key section that devolves Health to the counties.

The show of might between Kanu and Jubilee intensified when the parties competed on the number of choppers that could be squeezed into a women's fundraiser.

Many of the county's residents believe only high-flying politicians can afford to add aircraft to their campaign machinery.

Kanu leaders turned up with three planes and Jubilee leaders just one at the event in Bartolimo, Baringo North Sub-county on Wednesday.

Baringo Senator Gideon Moi (Kanu chairman) gave Sh1 million while the supporters who accompanied him gave another Sh3.5 million.

The Kanu leaders who put up the show included West Pokot Senator John Lonyangapuo (kingpin), county speaker William Kamket (Tiaty MP aspirant) and former Inspector General of Police David Kimaiyo (Elgeyo Marakwet senatorial aspirant).

Read: Kanu,Jubilee rivalry intensifies as Baringo leaders disown Gideon Moi's party

Also read: Uhuru phones Gideon to stay away from NASA

Others were Rift valley coordinator John Bii, secretary general Nick Salat and Emurua Dikir MP Johana Ng'eno. Also present was Bomet Governor Isaac Rutto who is Chama Cha Mashinani part leader.

Jubilee leaders 'embarrassed' by the lesser show of might included Elgeyo Marakwet Senator Kipchumba Murkomen and Kericho Senator Aaron Cheruiyot.

Others were Makueni MP Daniel Maanzo, Baringo North MP William Cheptumo, Baringo Central's Sammy Mwaita and county woman representative Grace Kiptui.

Part of the crowd laughed when staunch Jubilee supporter Baringo Governor Benjamin Cheboi got out of his vehicle to present his contribution and drum up support for his re-election bid.

Elgeyo Marakwet Senator Kipchumba Murkomen closes the door of a helicopter hired by Jubilee leaders for a women's fundraiser in Bartolimo, Baringo North subcounty, December 7, 2016. /JOSEPH KANGOGO

Murkomen asked Gideon to consider ditching Kanu for Jubilee lest he gets locked out of the next government.

But Kanu politicians and their supporters chanted their 'mambo bado' slogan, telling their rivals that they will "show them dust" at the ballot set for August 8, 2017.

"We are telling Kenyans that we do not fear anybody in this country, no matter how many choppers they use for campaigns. We are ready as Kanu to use more than theirs. Who is 'small'?" said Ng'eno.

He boasted about Kanu having the financial muscle required to take on Jubilee.

"We are not the Kanu of 2013. This time hell will break lose. We hope to take most, if not all the elective positions," he said.

There was a rumour about President Uhuru Kenyatta facilitating the Kanu leaders to diminish Deputy President William Ruto's popularity in the Rift valley region.

"We fear the President might be considering appointing Gideon as his successor ahead of his retirement in 2022. He could be funding Kanu to flatten Ruto’s ambitions," a resident told the Star.

Read: Kanu has no place in government, Baringo Jubilee leaders say

Also read: Gideon names three Kanu politicians to take on Jubilee MPs in Baringo

Gideon dismissed Murkomen's remark about him losing politically if he does not ditch Kanu for the ruling coalition. He termed the Senator Ruto's "chief sycophant".

"We had a discussion in the Senate with Murkomen. He told me he was a paid messenger of Ruto's and had the message for me to leave Kanu," he claimed. "I told him off and said their little plans shall never work."

Gideon further criticised Murkomen saying he was too young and lacked the capacity to understand anything concerning retired president Daniel Moi's family.

He said the Senator should start rebuilding his reputation by asking "his boss" Ruto to publicly apologise for insulting him and his family.