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Talk of Town: The MP, the VIP girlfriend, and the sittings turned date nights
Parliament buildings in Nairobi.
MP and girlfriend behaving badly
The chairperson of a powerful parliamentary committee is the subject of conversation among his colleagues due to his conduct at meetings held outside Nairobi. He has formed the habit of bringing his girlfriend along and insisting that she be treated as a VIP, even sharing a table with legislators at the expense of Parliament. In the latest incident, when the team gathered to discuss important business, the MP could be seen walking hand-in-hand with the woman in front of his colleagues. Committee meetings held outside hotels are intended to provide a focused setting for deliberations on policy and budgetary matters. The MP’s colleagues say it was a case of divided attention.
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Official panics over jobs probe
A probe by legislators into the role of recruitment agencies in connecting Kenyans to jobs abroad has caused a senior official, believed to be a beneficiary of the situation, great concern. He fears that he may be named in the investigation, which could affect his chances of returning to his senior position if the current administration is re-elected. There are unconfirmed rumours that he owns some of the recruitment agencies being monitored by security services, while others pay him kickbacks. He has already started reaching out to influential legislators to “soften the ground” and clear his name.
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World Cup matches mess interview
A third-term lawmaker missed a morning show on a local TV channel after staying up late to watch World Cup matches. He went to bed at 3 am and slept until 10 am, completely forgetting that he was due in the studio at 6 am that morning. He woke up to find that he had missed 12 calls from the station, at which point he remembered that he was due to play a critical part in the interview. On Wednesday, he told his colleagues that he had cancelled all his morning media interviews so that he could watch football in peace.
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Board member fears losing job
A former lawmaker, who now serves as a board member in one of the most powerful parastatals, is worried about losing his job after a new law took effect requiring all board members to reapply for their positions. The former MP has confided in close friends that he fears he could be dismissed under the new arrangement. Having served in the 12th Parliament, he fears that the new requirement for professionals who have not held public office in the last five years might prevent him from being reappointed. He has been making frantic calls to powerful individuals to lobby for his position.
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Jitters over ODM secret meeting
The Thursday meeting, which brought together former ODM officials who are now serving as CSs in the broad-based government, has already caused a stir within the party. Some party members are complaining that the former officials are getting involved in the party's affairs despite serving in the Executive. Those complaining say that some of those involved are biased against certain party members and might prevent them from being nominated next year. They are now planning to stop the former officials from interfering in the party's internal affairs and are asking them to focus on executing their mandate in the Executive instead.
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Popular MCAs fight over colleague
A county assembly is awash with whispers after two married male MCAs reportedly fell out over the attention of a fellow female legislator, turning what was once a close political friendship into an icy rivalry. Our little bird in the assembly said the two MCAs, who were once inseparable, now go out of their way to avoid each other. The source of the bad blood is a female MCA whose growing closeness with both men is said to have sparked jealousy and bruised egos. Insiders claim colleagues have tried to broker peace, but every attempt has hit a brick wall. Even routine assembly business reportedly becomes uncomfortable whenever the trio finds themselves in the same room.
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