MPs 'hatch plan' to make Duale Prime Minister

IT COULD BE a joke taken too far that some MPs are already mulling an amendment to the Constitution to make Garissa Township MP Aden Duale Prime Minister. With the excitement around the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI), a lawmaker whispered to Corridors that they plan to present the proposal next week. Just like the BBI report recommends, the proponents of the idea say Duale is the leader of the party with the majority in Parliament and should without delay become the premier. If endorsed, he will also chair cabinet sub-committees and not Interior CS Fred Matiang'i. The only brake to the plot is the fear of a backlash in the wake of no implementation framework.

THE CHAIRMAN OF a state agency in Nyanza is being cited for misogyny. The vocal chairman is said to have no respect for women leaders and uses every opportunity especially during weekend funerals to attack women leaders particularly those who have expressed interest in the county’s top seat. The loathing is too much and local leaders are considering petitioning the powers to be told if the hate for women is official policy of the graft-ridden agency. Last month, the chairman reportedly told a woman politician angling for the top seat to go and contest at her home county, something that has not been received well by the local leadership. The man who installed himself as the spokesperson for one of the major clans in the county is now busy mobilising voters on clan basis ahead of the 2022 elections which he also has an undisclosed interest.

WHY CAN'T DEPUTY President William Ruto sack civil servants who are sabotaging him in government? This is the question some civil society actors were heard discussing yesterday. They argued that taking to public fora to complain about Jubilee administration employees was the clearest signal that his relationship with President Uhuru Kenyatta was totally broken down. On Sunday, Ruto accused Interior CS Fred Matiang'i of arrogance and disrespect.  The activists likened Jubilee to a troubled marriage where the children are openly disrespecting their broke father, who because of his financial situation has no authority to discipline the children. According to the activists, it's only a matter of time before Ruto begins taking on Uhuru in public.

A VICIOUS BUSINESS war between local manufacturers of edible oil and importers of the commodity is on the cards. Reports indicate that the manufacturers have succeeded in frustrating the importation of the commodity using some state agencies in what is believed to be costing the government billions in taxes. It has also emerged that the local manufacturers are struggling to meet consumer demands, threatening to occasion a major shortage of the commodity. Suppliers are forced to wait for weeks to get their orders delivered by the local manufacturers struggling with the capacity to meet market demands. The business fight started when local manufacturers claimed some of the edible oils were not fortified and demanded they be banned from the Kenyan market.