Kenya

AFPCopyright: AFP

The high court in Kenya has declared illegal the rollout of a biometric ID scheme also known as Huduma Namba.

The judge said the rollout went against the 2019 data protection act.

The government was also faulted for not assessing how data protection would be impacted before the rollout.

The interior ministry has been ordered to conduct the assessment in line with the law.

The Huduma Namba scheme was launched to bring together on one card details about a citizen so they could get easy access to all government services.

Sensitive information, such as contact details, fingerprints and a person's profession, was collected in 2019.

Early last year, the court had already halted the scheme until new data protection laws had been enacted.

Millions of Huduma Namba cards had been printed and some have already been collected by Kenyans.

Government spokesperson Cyrus Oguna on Wednesday urged those who had not collected their cards to do so and clarified that the cards would not be used in the upcoming general election, local media reported.

Prominent Kenyan trade unionist Francis Atwoli wants to copyright his catchphrase "alaa, alaa, alaa" signifying amazement.

The exclamation is used by many in Kenya but his exaggerated style of expression has become a well-known meme.

A video of him uttering those words can often be seen on social media if someone wants to express shock or surprise.

T-shirts emblazoned with the phrase have been selling online.

Now Mr Atwoli wants to take ownership of the copyright to prevent others from benefiting from branded merchandise.

The copyright body says anyone who wants to challenge the copyright claim should file papers at its offices in the capital, Nairobi, the Daily Nation newspaper reports.

Mr Atwoli has not commented about his legal bid but others are wondering how it is possible to copyright an everyday expression.

Earlier this year, the trade union leader was at the centre of a controversy about the renaming of a Nairobi street.

Dik Dik Road was renamed Francis Atwoli Road in May in his honour.

But the street sign was vandalised by critics who said Mr Atwoli was unworthy of the honour as he had not improved workers' conditions during his two decades at the helm of the Central Organization of Trade Unions.

Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images

Apple juice made by South African firm Ceres has been recalled from seven African countries over high levels of patulin that can cause vomiting and nausea.

Patulin is a mycotoxin produced by a variety of moulds found in apples and apple products.

Laboratory tests showed that Ceres juice contained levels higher than the legally allowed 50 microgrammes per litre.

The juice is sold in Kenya, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Uganda, Seychelles and Mauritius.

The Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (Comesa) competition commission urged consumers to return batches packed between 14 and 30 June 2021.

Pacific PressCopyright: Pacific Press

Kenya's President Uhuru Kenyatta is set to become the first African leader to be hosted by the US President Joe Biden at the White House on Thursday.

White House spokesperson Jen Psaki said the two would discuss "efforts to defend democracy and human rights, advance peace and security, accelerate economic growth, and tackle climate change".

The presidents will also talk about "the need to bring transparency and accountability to domestic and international financial systems".

The meeting comes weeks after President Kenyatta's name appeared in the Pandora Papers leak over international financial dealings.

President Kenyatta said he would respond to the allegations after he returns from his trip.

Kenya is set to disregard the judgement of The International Court of Justice on the maritime border dispute between Kenya and Somalia, due today at 13:00 GMT.

The two countries are both claiming a 62,000 sq miles (160,000 sq km) in the Indian Ocean thought to be rich in oil and gas.

Kenya’s border currently runs horizontally into the Indian Ocean, and that is how Nairobi wants it to stay. But Somalia insists its southern boundary should run south-east as an extension of the land border.

Kenya first established this maritime boundary along the parallel of latitude by presidential proclamation in 1979.

BBCCopyright: BBC

In 2009, the two countries signed a memorandum of understanding, certified by the United Nations, to negotiate their boundaries.

In 2014, Somalia decided to settle the matter at the International Court of Justice at the Hague.

In its application, Somalia said diplomatic negotiation had failed and it was now asking the court to "determine the precise geographical co-ordinates of the single maritime boundary in the Indian Ocean”.

But that is not all. Somalia also wants the ICJ to declare that “Kenya… has violated its international obligations to respect the sovereignty, and sovereign rights and jurisdiction of Somalia, and is responsible under international law to make full reparation to Somalia".

A year later, Kenya filed an objection to the court case, arguing that the memorandum of understanding was binding.

Kenya also questioned the jurisdiction and fairness of the courts and seek postponements because of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The court eventually rejected those arguments and ordered a hearing this year. Kenya decided to pull out of the case, citing procedural unfairness and questioning whether justice would be done.

Nevertheless, the judgement is set to go ahead.

Last Friday, Kenya said it had withdrawn from an agreement granting the ICJ mandate to handle cases against the country without its consent.

Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images

Congo-Brazzaville's President Denis Sassou-Nguesso could take legal action after he was named in the leaked documents, French broadcaster RFI reports quoting the information minister.

The Pandora Papers said Mr Sassou-Nguesso owned a company that controlled diamond mines in Congo.

The Congolese authorities rejected the claims.

Information minister Thierry Moungalla has condemned the leaks and said the president could sue media outlets that report on them.

In Kenya, political opponents of President Uhuru Kenyatta say the multi-million dollar properties as well as stocks and bonds worth over $30m (£22m) that his family reportedly owns in foreign countries should be liquidated and sent back home to boost the economy.

Kenya’s Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Noordin Haji told the Daily Nation newspaper that his office will probe individuals mentioned in the Pandora Papers “if the documents [will] help unearth crime as a source of funds”.

Uganda's Security Minister Jim Muhwezi, who was reported to own shares worth millions of dollars in two foreign shell companies, was non-committal when contacted by the Daily Monitor newspaper.

“I don’t know what you are talking about and I can’t make any reply,” Mr Muhwezi was quoted as saying.

Read more:

• A simple guide to the Pandora Papers leak
• How leak is being reported around the world

American artist Cardi B has excited Kenyans on Twitter after sharing an old video of Kenya's former President Mwai Kibaki declaring in an infamous 2009 video that he only had one wife.

Mr Kibaki, the country's third leader, was at the time under pressure after reports about a second wife circulated.

His wife, Lucy Kibaki, was standing next to her husband as he dismissed reports of polygamy. She asked the media to seek clarification saying that they had published lies.

It is not clear why she decided to repost the archive footage but Cardi B's tweet on Monday night was captioned with an emoji;

It attracted thousands of comments from Kenyans on Twitter, helping those who didn't understand with context and adding a bit of levity.

"Good ol’days… the economy was top only drama was domestic at the big house," radio presenter Shaffie Weru tweeted.