Police MP Kaluma, businessman Ogaga over weekend fight

By BARACK ODUOR
More by this Author

Homa Bay Town Member of Parliament Peter Kaluma during a press briefing on January 4, 2016. FILE PHOTO | TONNY OMONDI | NATION MEDIA GROUP 

Summary

• Mr Kaluma and Mr Ogaga, an aspirant seeking to unseat the MP, fought at the Homa Bay town stadium before Cord leader Raila Odinga arrived at the venue.
• County Police Commandant John Omusanga and Criminal Investigations Officer Michael Mugo accused the two politicians of breaching the law.
• The MP said he had not received the summons and brushed it off, saying the Sunday incident was political.

Police have asked MP Peter Kaluma and businessman Washington Ogaga to present themselves to the Homa Bay Police Station within 44 hours or risk arrest.

The two rivals were involved in a scuffle at a rally at Homa Bay stadium on Sunday.

County Police Commandant John Omusanga and Criminal Investigations Officer Michael Mugo accused the two politicians of breaking the law.

Mr Ogaga is seeking to unseat Mr Kaluma from the Homa Bay Town parliamentary seat in the next election.

Mr Omusanga said police have evidence that the two politicians had breached the law by fighting publicly and causing a disturbance at a political rally addressed by Cord leader Raila Odinga in Homa Bay Town on Sunday.

“We investigated the matter and concluded that the two politicians should record statements immediately with the police or they be arrested,” said Mr Omusanga.

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• ODM to grill 8 over weekend violence

The MP said he had not received the summons and brushed it off, saying the Sunday incident was political.

He argued that he was the one who was beaten up and therefore does not need to record any statements.

“I am not going to record any statements with police because this issue is political,” said Mr Kaluma.

“We will take the two politicians to court for breaking the law,” said Mr Mugo.

Speaking to the Nation by phone, Mr Ogaga said he requested the police officers to allow him to record statements at the nearest police station but his request was declined.

“I have to travel all the way to Homa Bay Police Station to record a statement,” said Mr Ogaga.

Conjestina Achieng discharged from Kisumu County Hospital

By ANGELA OKETCH
More by this Author

 Summary

• Ms Achieng spent over four weeks in a psychiatric ward at Kisumu County District Hospital.
• This was the third time she was admitted to a hospital in the past four years.
• In October 2013, a successful funds drive was held to offset a hospital bill she had incurred after spending several weeks at Mathari Mental Hospital in Nairobi.

Two-time World Boxing Council (WBC) middleweight title winner Conjestina Achieng, who has been discharged from hospital. FILE PHOTO |  NATION MEDIA GROUP

Former boxing champion Conjestina Achieng has been discharged from hospital, where she was being treated after being taken there by a well-wisher a month ago.

Ms Achieng spent over four weeks in a psychiatric ward at Kisumu County Hospital.

This was the third time she was admitted to a hospital in the past four years.

CONJE SURPRISED

In October 2013, a successful funds drive was held to offset a hospital bill she had incurred after spending several weeks at Mathari Mental Hospital in Nairobi.

A total of Sh785,000 was raised against the Sh595,000 bill.

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Atieno Otieno, the chairwoman of Maendeleo ya Wanawake, along with other members of the organisation, paid part of the bill while the hospital waived Sh22,000 in charges.

“This was one of our celebrated heroes. When we heard that she was at the hospital, we rushed and helped where necessary,” said Ms Atieno.

Ms Achieng, on the other hand, said she was surprised at how she had become a burden to Kenyans.

GOVERNMENT FAULTED

“At one point, I had my money and could do my things without bothering anyone. I am surprised that those who came to see me never told me of any development issues apart from saying they will give help,” said Ms Achieng.

She said she was hoping to get get well soon and that she looked forward to returning to the ring.

“This was my passion and if I get well even today, tomorrow I would be in the ring fighting because I still understand the rules,” she said.

Her family faulted the government, saying it had abandoned her after she became mentally incapacitated.

Hospital superintendent Amos Otedo told Nation.co.ke that the former boxer's condition was stable though she needs support and care so she does not resume drinking.

MOTHER ELATED

“Conjestina is a respected person. She should be looked after very well so that she does not engage in fighting and drinking local brews,” said Dr Otedo.

“She was worse when she was brought [in], but she is now fine and can carry out her duties normally,” he said.

Getrude Auma Adala, Ms Achieng's mother, was happy that her daughter could call her mother.

"We were great enemies because most of the time I would not allow her to get outside the house," she said.

Ms Achieng, a two-time World Boxing Council (WBC) middleweight title winner, has won World Boxing Federation, Global Boxing Union and World Boxing International Federation titles.

UN warnenWachsende Slums in Afrika

Erst veröffentlicht am 3.11.2008

Sally Odipo schaukelt mit abwesendem Blick ihren kleinen Sohn, der auf ihrem Schoß döst. Geduldig wartet sie auf Kunden, die einige der Tomaten, Bananen oder Kohlköpfe kaufen könnten, die in der Mittagssonne bereits etwas welk wirken auf dem kleinen Klapptisch vor der Wellblechhütte der jungen Frau. Doch die Geschäfte gehen schlecht, bei den Einwohnern von Kibera ist das Geld in den Zeiten hoher Lebensmittelpreise noch knapper als ohnehin. Aus billigen Radios plärrt Musik, Kinder in Schuluniformen rennen lachend und schreiend die Bahngleise entlang, die den größten Slum der kenianischen Hauptstadt durchschneiden, springen über die stinkenden Rinnsale, in denen Abfall und Fäkalien verrotten.

Kibera ist nur eine der Armensiedlungen Nairobis, in der längst die meisten Einwohner der ostafrikanischen Metropole leben. Und Nairobi ist kein Einzelfall. Nach dem vor wenigen Wochen veröffentlichten Bericht von UN Habitat lebt jeder dritte Mensch in den Entwicklungsländern in einem Slum. Nirgends ist der Anteil größer als in Afrika südlich der Sahara: Hier leben 62 Prozent der Stadtbevölkerung in Slums, und die Städte gerade in der Dritten Welt wachsen rapide.

Zahl der Slumbewohner steigt

Jede Woche suchen laut Habitat drei Millionen Menschen weltweit ein besseres Leben in Nairobi oder Lagos, Bangalore oder Rio, Manila oder Kinshasa. Im chinesischen Nanking wollen UN-Experten und Stadtplaner nun über die besonderen Herausforderungen des schnellen Wachstums und seiner sozialen und Umweltprobleme beraten.

Die Kinder von Kibera wirken trotz der Armut um sie herum fröhlich - sie kennen es ja nicht anders. Doch der Anblick strahlender Schulkinder, die stolz ihre Schulhefte vorzeigen, darf nicht täuschen. Nach der kostenlosen Grundschulzeit haben die Jungen und Mädchen aus den Slums so gut wie keine Chance auf eine höhere Bildung oder einen qualifizierten Job. Die meisten von ihnen, die oft von einer Zukunft als Lehrer oder Krankenschwester, Mechaniker oder Ärztin träumen, werden wie ihre Eltern nur Gelegenheitsarbeiten finden oder als Haushaltshilfe oder Gärtner bei der wohlhabenden Oberschicht einen Blick auf ein anderes Leben finden.

Soziale Ungleichheit am Pranger

Im UN-Bericht über das Wachstum der Städte wird die soziale Ungleichheit angeprangert, die gerade in Nairobi besonders ausgeprägt ist. Gleichzeitig wird hervorgehoben, dass das Leben in den Städten selbst den Kindern der Elendsviertel einige Vorteile im Vergleich zur Landbevölkerung bietet. Denn während in West- und Zentralafrika mehr als drei Viertel der Kinder in den Städten eine Schule besuchen können, liegt der Anteil in den ländlichen Regionen bei weniger als 50 Prozent.

Slums wie Kibera gelten als "informelle Siedlungen". Im Stadtplan sind sie nicht verzeichnet. Die meisten Haushalte haben weder Strom noch Kanalisation und fließendes Wasser. Gekocht wird mit Kerosin, immer wieder haben Brände, die durch umfallende Lampen ausgelöst wurden, verheerende Folgen in den dicht bevölkerten Slums. Auch Atemwegs- und Durchfallerkrankungen sind häufig, die HIV- Infektionsraten über dem Durchschnitt.

Die Menschen sind "einfach zu arm"

Am Rand von Kibera wird derzeit gebaut - Sozialwohnungen für die Slumbevölkerung, die die Lebensverhältnisse drastisch verbessern sollen. Der Tischler Tom Mburu hat allerdings Zweifel, dass er mit seiner siebenköpfigen Familie in eine dieser Wohnungen ziehen kann. Für die Wellblechhütte der Familie zahlt er 1200 Schilling (etwa zwölf Euro) Miete. "Eine dieser Wohnungen kann ich mir bestimmt nicht leisten", meint er nüchtern. "Das sind gute Pläne, aber die meisten Menschen hier haben nichts davon, sie sind einfach zu arm."

QUELLE

Wesley Korir denies wife duty in Ottawa cost him medal

By AYUMBA AYODI
More by this Author

Former Boston Marathon champion Wesley Korir, who is also the Cherangany MP, and his wife Tarah, during a training session at University of Eldoret grounds on May 9, 2016. PHOTO | JARED NYATAYA |  NATION MEDIA GROUP

Summary

• Korir said that his participation in the race on May 29 where he paced his wife, Tarah McKay Korir, who was chasing Olympic qualifying time, was before Team Kenya’s marathon team went into camp.

Team Kenya captain Wesley Korir has said that his participation at Ottawa Marathon three months before the Rio Olympics could not have affected his performance at the Games.

Korir said that his participation in the race on May 29 where he paced his wife, Tarah McKay Korir, who was chasing Olympic qualifying time, was before Team Kenya’s marathon team went into camp.

“Someone thinking that running 40 kilometres with my wife almost three months before Olympics affected my race then they know nothing about marathon training and running,” said Korir.

“I did many 40km long run at faster pace than what I did with my wife as directed by coaches.”

Korir said that despite the marathon team camp having not started, he sought permission from Team Kenya coaches, who gave him the green light and instruction how to pace.

“I used instructions approved by Team Kenya coaches for the race in Ottawa. There was no one in camp and everyone was training on his own,” explained Korir.

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“The problem is people, who don’t understand marathon have now become masters of the game.”

The Rio Probe Committee report, whose members included Ibrahim Hussein, the first black man to win the New York marathon, accused Korir of not adhering to team preparations and regulations.

It said that on May 29, 2016, Korir is said to have left camp and proceeded to run as a pace setter for his wife where he covered 41 out of the full 42km race and with only a few weeks to the Olympics, the athlete could not recover enough to run marathon in Rio.

“He dropped out of the Rio Olympic race citing ‘water mix-up’ problem along the course,” said the report.

Tarah, a Canadian national who was chasing the Canadian qualifying standard of two hours, 29 minutes and 50 seconds, fell short despite running a personal best 2:35:46 at the Scotiabank Ottawa Marathon.

Meanwhile, Olympic javelin silver medallist Julius Yego, who is also the world champion, has insisted that the National Olympic Committee of Kenya (Nock) were to blame for his travelling impasse even after the report cleared Nock.

The report blamed a technical hitch at Kenya Airways where Yego’s name didn’t show up in the system yet he had the ticket.

Yego said on his Facebook page that one Derrick, who went find out what had happened, confirmed that his ticket had been changed and his next booking didn’t show on when he was to travel.

Auma Obama urges teachers to nurture critical thinkers

By PIUS MAUNDU
More by this Author

Summary

• Speaking on Tuesday at Kambi Mawe Primary School in Makueni County during a ceremony to commission libraries in 30 primary schools across the county, Dr Auma Obama decried that the Kenyan education system does not train learners to be creative.
• The ceremony that was also attended by Governor Kivutha Kibwana and senior county government officials, saw the county government donate books to 30 school libraries.

United States President Barack Obama's sister Auma interacts with Standard Two pupils at Kambi Mawe Primary School, Makueni County on November 29, 2016. PHOTO | PIUS MAUNDU | NATION MEDIA GROUP 

US President Barack Obama’s sister has challenged Kenyan teachers to nurture creative thinking in learners.

Speaking on Tuesday at Kambi Mawe Primary School in Makueni County during a ceremony to commission libraries in 30 primary schools across the county, Dr Auma Obama decried that the Kenyan education system does not train learners to be creative.

“The problem with our school system is that teachers only teach children to do as they are taught only rather than teaching them to be critical thinkers,” said Dr Obama.

She called on teachers to encourage the learners to question what they are taught and also to read as many books as possible on different topics.

“To have creative and critical thinking, you must be able to know other worlds; you must be exposed to other things and our text books are not enough: It is our story books that take us to other worlds, expose us to others’ way of thinking and to other people with different ideas,” she added.

The ceremony that was also attended by Governor Kivutha Kibwana and senior county government officials, saw the county government donate books to 30 school libraries.

Some of the books were donated by StoryMoja, a charity associated with Dr Obama works though Shina Foundation, a charity that is run by Prof Kibwana's wife Nazi Kivutha, and the rest were bought by the county government.

Dr Obama lauded Makueni County for being the first county in the country to start libraries in schools and challenged the remaining devolved units to follow suit.

Echoing Dr Obama’s sentiments, Prof Kibwana singled out education as the most important investment residents of the arid and semi-arid devolved zone depended on.

Some of bright and needy students in various secondary schools across the country whose secondary school studies are fully sponsored by the county government were paraded and gave moving testimonies on how the scholarship started in 2014 came to their rescue.

Both Dr Obama and Prof Kibwana commented The Agha Khan Foundation and General Electric as some of the sponsors that backed the cause develop a reading culture for starting libraries in schools and called on locals to also donate books to schools.

Wives in North Rift fear husbands will lose harvest money to prostitutes

By GERALD BWISA
More by this Author

Farmers harvest maize in Royalton, Uasin Gishu County, on November 21, 2016. Prostitutes cashing in on money from the maize and wheat harvest have invaded Eldoret Town, sending wives into a seasonal panic. PHOTO | JARED NYATAYA | NATION MEDIA GROUP 

Summary

• But some male farmers have warmly welcomed the sex workers who have descended on Eldoret.
• And the streetwalkers appear to enjoy the company of these men.
• Uasin Gishu County Commissioner Abdi Hassan has warned residents to be careful when dealing with the sex workers.
• County officials say prostitution is likely to reverse the gains made in the fight against the HIV/Aids.

It is harvest time in the North Rift region and the usual suspects have invaded Eldoret Town, sending wives into a seasonal panic.

Several women who have spoken to the Nation have expressed their fears that their husbands will lose their profits from the sale of maize and wheat to prostitutes.

“We got a huge harvest and my husband lied to me that he had used all the proceeds from wheat to buy land. But when I insisted on having a look at the purchase documents, he turned violent and threatened to beat me up for questioning him,” said housewife Jemima Jepkoech.

“I really suspected that he must have lavishly spent the money on prostitutes in town,” she continued.

Ms Jepkoech said she helped plant, weed and harvest the wheat and maize but her husband had selfishly squandered all the money they made from the produce on sex workers.

Another housewife, Peninah Rono, explains why she resents the prostitutes: “I am strongly against the sex workers as their aim is only to drain our husbands’ pockets and bank accounts.”

But it is a different story with some male farmers, who have warmly welcomed the sex workers who have descended on Eldoret from across the country in all shapes and complexions.

“What is the problem if we speed our hard-earned money on these beautiful women who are ready to obey us?” asked Peter Kiplimo from Moiben, Uasin Gishu.

ENJOY MEN'S COMPANY

And the streetwalkers appear to enjoy the company of these men.

One sex worker, who came all the way from Mtwapa in Mombasa County, said she likes the men of Eldoret.

“One thing I like with Eldoret is that men here are very generous and gentle. They can even give you more money than you had asked for,” she told the Nation.

However, Uasin Gishu County Commissioner Abdi Hassan has warned residents to be careful when dealing with the sex workers and report any crime to the police.

“It takes two to tango and we are telling not only farmers but also businessmen to be cautious with these women who are out to con [them of their] money in the name of pleasure,” said Mr Hassan.

He also put the prostitutes on notice that they will be arrested if they engage in crime.

He urged residents to try to improve their lives with the money they have earned instead of wasting it on pleasure.

County officials also take a dim view of the sex workers, saying they deprive families of their livelihood.

They also say prostitution is likely to reverse the gains made in the fight against the HIV/Aids.

KENYA POWER SURCHARGE ON BILLS PAID AT BANK HALLS

By DAVID HERBLING, hdavid@ke.nationmedia.com

Kenya Power will from next July introduce a surcharge on bills settled at its offices in an effort to decongest the banking halls further in a plan that will also see the listed firm recruit more agents, starting with 200 in Nairobi.

The electricity distributor says the recruitment will cover the whole country but rolled out in phases as part of a strategy to drive its growing number of customers to alternative payment channels such as mobile money.

Managing director Ben Chumo said its customer base has more than doubled to 5.3 million in the last three years, straining the 825 employees who work at the firm’s 10 banking halls across the country.

About 630,000 Kenya Power customers paid their bills at the company’s offices as of June 2016, but Dr Chumo says these halls should be reserved for services such as enlisting new users and offering support.

“The idea is to reduce the people coming to our counters by introducing a fee for those customers who are simply making bill payments,” he told the Business Daily in a telephone interview last Friday.

“This is the approach commercial banks have taken to decongest their banking halls. We shall recruit agents to receive these payments and offer other services for a small commission. We shall start with 200 agents in Nairobi in July 2017.”

Six out of every 10 Kenya Power customers pay their bills via mobile cash platforms such as M-Pesa and Airtel Money, according to official data available for the year to June.

Supermarkets and retail token vendors are ranked second, taking up 20 per cent of the total payments.

About 13 per cent of Kenya Power’s customers pay their bills at its offices while seven per cent of them do so at commercial banks.

In Nairobi, Kenya Power’s main banking halls are Stima Plaza in Ngara and Electricity House on Harambee Avenue. The State-owned utility also has offices in Eldoret, Nakuru, Nyeri and Mombasa and other major towns.

READ: Kenya Power’s bid to charge consumers higher tariffs flops

Kenya Power, in its five-year strategic plan starting 2016, disclosed plans to set up self-service kiosks that would dispense electricity tokens to customers at malls and retail stores even as it steps up the installation of prepaid meters.

Of its 5.3 million customers, 3.1 million of them are prepaid customers while the rest still receive monthly bills.

The power distributor is also exploring other ways of selling pre-paid electricity besides using mobile money platforms, including using text messages “without cost”.

“We do not have [the] luxury of increasing tariffs in order to hire more personnel to serve our growing number of customers and build bigger banking halls to accommodate them,” said Dr Chumo.

“We therefore want to decentralise our services so that we have the least contact with customers. When you come to the banking hall, it should be for other key services and not simply paying bills.”

VOTING OUT JUBILEE A PATRIOTIC DUTY: RAO TO LUHYA COMMUNITY

VOTING OUT JUBILEE A PATRIOTIC DUTY:
ADDRESS BY RT. HON RAILA ODINGA; EGH, ODM PARTY LEADER, AT WESTERN KENYA ODM DELEGATES CONFERENCE, KAKAMEGA;
25TH NOVEMBER 2016:
Let me begin by thanking you for sparing time for this meeting and for the warm welcome you have accorded me.
It is clear from the hearty welcome that western is solidly Orange and CORDED.
I feel at home here today as always.

Let me alert you right away that we are on the home stretch to August 2017.
I also want to urge all of you to appreciate from the start that the stakes are extremely high for our country, in fact, so high that we cannot afford to relax or engage in business as usual.

Kenyans have a date with destiny in the elections of 2017.
Our country is suffering. Corruption is at an all-time high and is spreading its tentacles to all levels of government.
Only a few with friends and relatives in high positions in government are benefitting from the corruption.

Jubilee has descended on our nation like armyworms and cockroaches, eating and stealing anything and everything that can be eaten or stolen.
A tiny elite with relatives and friends in government are carrying money around in sacks like charcoal while millions of other Kenyans struggle to pay for basics like food, rent, school fees and even bus fare.

The National Government of non-believers has declared a full scale war against devolution, giving it a bad name and sabotaging its operations with a bid to returning the country to the old over-centralized order that reduced others to beggars for development funds in our own country where we all pay taxes.

Insecurity is rising across the country. Only two days ago, they hit Mumias and nobody knows where these forces of fear and terror will surface next.

Marginalization of communities and regions has marched step by step with the rhetoric of Jubilee leaders giving lip service to national unity.
We have seen economic policies that will have grave consequences on regions and communities being implemented across the country without any sense of guilt.

Here in Western, the importation of sugar, which Jubilee allowed in return for exporting milk to Uganda, is taking a toll on sugar cane farmers.
Tribalism now looks like an official policy of the National Government. Your name and where you were born are becoming strong determinants in access to opportunities in our country.

Whether you get a government job or supply tender now depends to a great deal on your tribe and whom you know and not what you know.
Businesses are closing and unemployment is at an all-time high while an increasing number of our youth are graduating from colleges and universities.

Tax monies that are meant to build factories and create jobs for our youth are going into pockets and bank accounts of individuals; yet when we raise alarm, the authorities embark on blame game and black mail to make us silent.
This is how the collapse of nations begins.

Luckily, a growing number of our citizens are saying they are tired. A growing number is saying enough is enough.
We have to save Kenya from Jubilee.

Kenyans are looking up to us, ODM, to stand up to Jubilee and stop it from getting a second next year.
As I told you at the National Governing Council in Nairobi last month, winning the 2017 elections is not about ODM or CORD being in power.
It is about saving Kenya. It is about safeguarding the future of our children and grandchildren.
Our country is banking on us.

I am in turn banking on you delegates and the entire diligent people of western Kenya to traverse the entire region and enable our people prepare for the battle with Jubilee.

It is going to be a titanic battle for the soul of Kenya.

It is going to be our own final battle between good and evil; between forces of status quo and corruption and tribalism that have always undermined our progress and the forces for change.

This will be our version of what the Bible calls the Armageddon or the battle between David and Goliath. I believe strongly that we, in David’s camp and flying David’s flag, will triumph over the ugly giant called Goliath.

Beating Jubilee next year is a civic and patriotic duty that everyone who loves this country must aspire to.
It is a goal we must realize for the sake of our country and our children.

If ODM, the single largest political party in the country with a history of reform does not stand firm, Kenya will go to the dogs and our children and future generation will put blame on us for failing to stop the slide into the abyss that Jubilee is leading us to.
We must explore all the dimensions and avenues to have our people registered as citizens and as voters in the continuous registration exercise and in the main registration scheduled for next year.

I am appealing to you dear delegates and particularly to the young and energetic youth of this region to go all out on this mission for your country and your future.

I am counting on you, the young men and women of western Kenya to stand up and stop Jubilee from stealing your future.
You can always be assured that I will walk hand in hand with you in that gigantic struggle for our country.
I will not let you walk and fight alone.

We must convince our people that it is their registration that stands between us and the better future that we desire for our children and our country.
As delegates, you are the eyes and the ears of the party on the ground. In fact, I want each of you to know that you are my eyes and ears on the ground as your leader in the party.

Our party calls on you and me to have a sustained focus on our core support constituencies like women, youth and people with disabilities.
We must roll out a clear strategy for engaging with women, identifying their issues and having them identify with us.
We must equally develop a clear strategy for engaging the youth at the county level by listening to them and giving them chances when opportunities arise.

And we must not forget the elderly. I am sure the elderly remember that when ODM was in government, we were responsible for a program that sought to pay allowances to them to keep them going, a program Jubilee today touts as it invention and is seeking to use for partisan politics.
We want to be back in government and take care of our senior citizens in a manner that does not derive them of the dignity they deserve.

We will begin nomination of candidates early next year in order to avoid the last minute rush that has worked against us in the past.
You will be my and the party’s ears and eyes on this. It will be upon you as delegates in this region to help the party lay down and roll out a clear strategy for conducting credible, free and fair nomination of candidates.

It will be upon you together with the National Elections Board to ensure that the mistakes of 2013 are not repeated.
We will be relying on you to ensure that we end up with candidates who believe in and share the ideals of the party, people who have stood with the party and who can be counted on to stand with the party at all times.

We have seen some of our members including those elected on our ticket cross to Jubilee claiming to be looking for development.
They are using you and the party for personal gain and I trust you will guard against such while you prepare to teach the traitors lessons they will never forget.

The nomination process must protect women, the youth and the disabled.
The nominations must enable us win majority of gubernatorial, Senate, National Assembly and County Assembly seats and see us take State House in 2017.

To achieve that grand objective, the party will be counting on you to put up elaborate and tested structures to register voters, to get out the vote and to protect the vote on Election Day.

I am confident that you are equal to the task, that you have the will and the ability to deliver for our party and our country.
God bless you all.

125

Police arrest fake doctor who put hundreds of lives at risk

Ronald Kiprotich Melly (centre), a quack who worked at Meteitei Sub-County Hospital in Nandi, is led away after he was questioned by Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Board chief Daniel M. Yumbya (left) and police officers in Nairobi on November 21, 2016. PHOTO | DENNIS ONSONGO | NATION MEDIA GROUP 

Summary

• Ronald Melly does not have a medical degree but he heads a county hospital and has carried out surgeries on patients.
• Police officers said Mr Melly did not finish his studies at the University of Nairobi and wondered how he was deployed as a medical doctor by the Ministry of Health in April last year.
• Mr Melly confessed to medical board CEO Daniel Yumbya that he still had three supplementary exams pending, meaning he was never qualified to graduate, let alone practise as a medical doctor.

By EUNICE KILONZO
More by this Author

A 28-year-old quack believed to have well-connected relatives on Monday confessed to have treated patients, performed surgery and delivered babies by caesarean section even though he is not a doctor.

The strange thing is that not only did he put the lives of hundreds of Kenyans at risk for more than two years, the ministry of Health promoted him to medical superintendent!

Ronald Kiprotich Melly, 28, the medical superintendent of Meteitei Sub-County Hospital in Nandi, is believed to be the grandson of the late Ezekiel Barng’etuny, a successful businessman and powerful Moi-era politician from the same area.

Mr Melly was arrested at the Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Board offices, where he had been tricked to believe he was going to renew his “permanent” medical licence.

SUPPLEMENTARY EXAMS

Police officers on the case on Monday told the Nation thatMr Melly did not complete his studies at the University of Nairobi and wondered how he was deployed as a medical doctor by the Ministry of Health in April last year.

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Documents show that he was posted to Kendu Adventist Hospital in Homa Bay County for 12 months after graduation, earning a monthly salary of Sh35,910, house allowance and other benefits.

This is despite the fact that before medical graduates are posted to public hospitals, the relevant university must send the list of graduates to the Ministry of Health, which then deploys them for one-year internships at selected hospitals.

On Monday, Mr Melly confessed to medical board CEO Daniel Yumbya that he still had three supplementary exams pending, meaning he was never qualified to graduate, let alone practise as a medical doctor.

FORGOTTEN ADMISSION NUMBER

“The university cannot trace him on their records,” said Mr Yumbya. “He is not among those who qualified or failed in his year.

"What is even surprising is that Mr Melly says he has forgotten his university admission and registration number. I am waiting for official communication from the university tomorrow (Tuesday).”

Minutes after he was arrested by officers from the Special Crimes Prevention Unit, Mr Melly confessed to the Nation that he had “conducted surgeries, caesarean sections and other medical procedures” as was required of him.

The investigation into his suspicious posting began after the Nation contacted the board to confirm his status after a tip-off by some doctors, who requested anonymity, and who had interacted with him but “felt he was not properly trained” and “neither had they seen him in their classes while at the university”.

When asked by the Nation to name some of his lecturers or his classmates or even his registration number, Mr Melly broke into a sweat, explaining that he could not remember some names or his registration number, and insisting instead they were in his car or back at home.

FORGERIES AND DISAPPEARANCES

Mr Melly sat his secondary school examination at Tinderet Boys and got a ‘B’, meaning that if at all he was admitted to university to study medicine, he must have been under the parallel degree programmes.

Interestingly, some of his application forms to the medical board, seen by the Nation, show that he claims to have an undergraduate medical degree awarded in 2014 by the University of Nairobi. Notably, he listed deanmedicineuon@gmail.com as the institution’s official address.

The arresting officers rode out in Mr Melly’s Honda CRV from the medical board offices, but one of the police officers drove it to the Nairobi area traffic headquarters at around 2.15pm on Monday.

At the police station, the officers wrote a letter to the Ministry of Health requesting verification of the authenticity of the posting letter.

It is while at the ministry, at around 3.45pm on Monday, that the paper trail led to a series of forgeries and unexplained disappearances of Mr Melly’s records.

For instance, Mr Melly produced a letter of completion of internship from Kendu Adventist Hospital, allegedly signed by the chief of medical services, a Dr Marwa Joel.

REPEAT INTERNSHIP

But when contacted over the letter by Dr Pacifica Onyancha, the head of the Department of Health Standards, Quality Assurance and Regulations, Dr Marwa said:

“We had written a letter to have Mr Melly repeat his internship because he was not qualified to proceed. His attendance to his internship was erratic and he would disappear for weeks and when he came back, he would threaten us with his relative’s name.”

These letters are given to medical interns, who present them to the ministry to proceed with appointment.

Dr Marwa added: “Just a week before the end of his internship, the cabinet that holds our official letterheads was broken into and we suspect Mr Melly in collaboration with others got this letterhead and wrote himself a letter of completion. He was meant to repeat not proceed.”

However, it is this letter, now alleged to have been forged, that he presented at the Ministry of Health as proof that he had completed internship so as to be posted for employment.

He also has in his possession a temporary licence for the internship, which shows his qualifications as a Bachelor of Medicine degree, dated 2015.

MISSING RECORDS

Interestingly, records from the Ministry of Health show he was sent to Homa Bay County but instead was employed in Nandi County.

Mr Melly told police officers that he had also worked at Kapsabet County Referral Hospital between May and October this year, when he was appointed medical superintendent of Meteitei Sub-County Hospital. In this postion, he would also be in charge of the sub-county, Dr Onyancha said.

A clearly shocked Dr Onyancha told the Nation on Monday at her office: “It is unbelievable how he did all this. What is even stranger to us is that we cannot seem to trace the first letter he brought to us for his internship that began this whole process.”

She added: “We are working with the university to get his records, such as his registration number, which we understand he cannot remember.

"All we have from him is that he graduated in 2013, which contradicts ... what he was filling in to the medical board as 2014.”

Mr Melly is expected in court on Tuesday.