Month: August 2015

Janet Mbugua is currently 9 weeks into her pregnancy and it has been the biggest story since her beautiful wedding held at Chaka ranch about a month ago. But she is not the only Citizen TV personality that is expecting a child this year.

Joanne Ball Burgess popularly called “Judge Joan” thanks to Citizen Tv’s Sakata will be a mommy soon as she is 21 weeks pregnant. The expectant celebrity judge showed of her burgeoning baby bump in a flowery bikini while she entertained herself in the ocean.

This will be her third child with her husband Quincy as she already has two sons.

Seems like there is no end to pastoral scandals in this country. If they’re not swindling you,they’re stealing your wife,getting caught dead drunk,knocking dead motorists,concocting miracles,misappropriating church funds or,in this case,eloping with their GAY Boyfriends.

Welcome to The Church.

If you thought our minimally-schooled politicians were scandalous,you haven’t met our Men Of God. They’re just the best.

After the nation was gripped by the Pastor Ng’ang’a killing soap opera that starred poor grammar and ludicrous assertions,we now have another Pastor on our plate. And this one,though not a popular televangelist,is proving to be quite the controversial one.

American theologian Gene Robinson was the first openly gay Episcopal Bishop. He presided over the Diocese of New Hampshire and retired in 2004.

After his coming out,which shook the Church and threatened to tear apart the Episcopal Church of the United States of America,many more Men Of God,ordained priests and self-appointed pastors,joined in the fray… And went public with their sexuality.

Among them was Rev. Otis Charles of Utah,the Right Rev. Mary Douglas Glasspool of England,Bishop Thomas Shaw of Massachusetts and the Very Rev. Jeffrey John of Southwark Cathedral among many others especially in Britain’s Anglican Church.

And now that it has become somewhat normal to have a Gay Man of God,a Kenyan pastor took it upon himself to be the first ever openly gay pastor in Kenya. And to get married.

Edwin Sikot,a 37-year-old who works as a pastor in the Lutheran church,and Isaiah Guda,a 25-year-old laborer,first met through Facebook through a mutual friend. After three years of chatting,they decided to meet last year.

‘In Kenya,meeting somebody is not easy. But when I met him,it was like my dream,it was the person I was looking for,’ Edwin told Gay Star News.

They entered into a long distance relationship,with Edwin preaching in Tanzania and Isaiah at home in Mombasa,Kenya.

But when they reunited,and Edwin found a church in Kenya that accepted him and his partner for who he is,they wanted to celebrate their union. And do a wedding like all other couples.

So around 20 people gathered in the compound of his church in the village of Mtitu Andei,and a fellow pastor came to bless their union. The majority of people first thought it was a bit of a joke,but soon realized their mistake.

“We had the wedding in the village where we stay. A pastor there, a good friend who understands much and who knows I am a gay and who knows about my relationship with Isaiah, brought a word – something like a service, for our wedding. We made a tent. It was just us and our guests, about twenty people. We said our vows to each other.”

‘The Kenyan government may not have a law for our marriage, but we were married under God’s law,’ Edwin said.

‘In Kenya, most of the people only marry for love. That’s what we did. I now have somebody in my life…Who I love..’ Edwin said.

This is believed to have been the first same-sex wedding in Kenya, or at very least the first to receive a blessing from a religious leader.

Other Sheep,a Latin American-based Christian group,found out about the historic Kenyan Gay wedding and went to Kenya to congratulate them and posted a blog to commemorate it.

Subsequently,a couple days after it had been posted,Isaiah had gone into the city center to buy feed for their chickens. His brother followed him. Someone had told him about the wedding. He had brought friends, and started beating his own brother up.

Edwin came to Isaiah’s rescue before a mob could pummel him to death. He escaped with heavy bruises and cuts on his body.

Afraid,they are now attempting to raise the funds to stay with friends in Tanzania, Zanzibar or elsewhere.

Edwin has no regrets about allowing someone to write about him, in fact, he’s proud of it. He wants people to know and understand what is happening in his country.

‘I know I have to go through this, and I know that some are following me. I will not regret who I am. If it means I have to die, I will die,’ he said.

‘This is my life, why should I hide? If God makes his decision,I will accept it.’

He added: ‘We cannot change the world by staying quiet. We can only change the world by talking, taking action, and speaking out.’

The couple now lives together at some undisclosed location in The Coast of Kenya…Enduring endless stigma and violence and ostracization.

Isaiah tells us there are many gay men in Mombasa. He tells us, “I was searching for a gay friend.” He explains that his experience in Mombasa is that most the gays there are teenagers who “just want to meet and have sex and that’s all.” Isaiah wanted “to meet someone very serious, older who can guide me. He [Edwin] told me his age. I liked his age.”

Isaiah is not open to his parents, or to anyone. He tells us, “If you are not open and if you want to stay [connected] with your parents, you have to tell lies to be together with your man.”

Click NEXT PAGE to see photos of Edwin and his wife/husband Isaiah in Church. And to also find the link to Edwin’s Facebook page.

Pastor Edwin Sikot and his ‘wife’ Isaiah Guda.

Edwin Sikot

Isaiah Guda Sikot married to Edwin.

Edwin in Church and below,with fellow Mtito A Ndei pastors.

Edwin chilling outside his church.

You can follow Edwin on Facebook by clicking HERE. And Isaiah is also found on Facebook as well.

For quite some time now, Nairobi residents have raised concerns about the number of police officers roaming in the streets harassing and mistreating people in the name of ensuring crime is not rampant.

Among the things the officers have been accused of is arresting residents without ID cards or those carrying their laptops or other gadgets without receipts.

Claims of the officers harassing even those who have done their shopping from Supermarkets have also been made. The officers are then said to ask for bribes from the victims and if you don’t comply you are taken to Central police station.

The latest incident is where the officers were captured on camera arresting and handcuffing activist Boniface Mwangi and his friend as they walked in the streets of Nairobi.

Boniface refused to show them his ID card and was escorted to Central Police station where he was released immediately Police Officers at the station saw him.

A few metres away another man was arrested and his military combat jacket he bought in a mutumba shop taken away with his documents.

Boniface said:

“In Nairobi today, people are arrested and asked for bribes for NOT carrying an ID.

According to the Kenya constitution not having an ID is not an offence and failure to produce it, is also not an offence. However everyday innocent Kenyans are harassed for failure to produce an ID. Prison warders’ core mandate is to guard prisoners but they are now patrolling Nairobi streets. Today I was arrested for failing to show my ID and Marc Hoeferlin who was walking with me was also chained next to me. We were taken to Central police station and the police released us.

Shortly after we left the police station, we met a person who told us there was man who had been arrested and escorted to Equity Bank, Muindi Mbingu street to withdraw a bribe for wearing a combat jacket. I walked to the bank, found the prison warder and Robert Cheruiyot, the arrested man. After he explained his story we told him not to pay the bribe, and the escort warder rejoined his colleagues outside the bank and walked away with his jacket, which had his personal documents and we followed them to Central police station. A few citizens who witnessed Robert being escorted to the bank to withdraw a bribe, courageously volunteered to escort him to the police station and stand by him. Upon arrival at Central Police Station the police listened to the warders and Robert’s story and they released Robert without a charge.”

And here is the video:

Jacky Vike is a professional dancer, and no, not the twerking kind, she does ballet, Capoeira and other dance.  Thanks to her dancing skills she is also a dance and yoga instructor thus her lithe, well-defined body.

Something that she put a pause to when acting picked up. She managed to star in many productions including Wash and Set, Nairobi Half-Life, Papa Shirandula and off-camera she starred in countless theatrical productions.

Despite her assortment of theater and TV productions, one role stood out, a role that most Kenyans associate her with, Awinja a chatty household in Papa Shirandula. But as she reveals exclusively to Ghafla, the journey to being ‘Awinja’ was not easy.

She went for an audition and on the panel was Charles Bukeko (Papa Shirandula). She auditioned for a different character away from Awinja. Unfortunately, the project did not work out at first. After 6-8 months Bukeko called for the role of Awinja. A village bumpkin from the heart of Luhya Land with a thick Luhya accent.

She says she was skeptical at first on whether she would do justice to the character of ‘Awinja’ as she had never done accents before and she didn’t speak Luhya fluently. Because she spent a large part of her life in Nairobi and was only in Western for four years in high school.

She wasn’t for the idea, it was very challenging due to the accent.She decided to run for teh hills in panic recommending a friend in the process but Charles Bukeko insisted. Then she gave it a try and as they say, the rest is history.

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As reported early on, former Harambee Stars and current Tusker FC midfielder Osborne Monday had gone missing when unknown people arrived at his home in Buruburu in a Toyota Probox and drove away with him, telling his mother to check the following day in one of the police stations around.

See also: Harambee Stars Midfielder Osborne Monday Goes Missing

And after the midfielder was finally found in Nairobi Area Police Station, it has emerged that he was taken away by CID officers for questioning.

See also: Missing Tusker FC Midfielder Orsbone Monday Found

It is alleged that Osborne was arrested after it emerged that his phone had been used to communicate to a suspected terrorist in Somalia.

He was taken away by CID officers for questioning. According to FKF President Sam Nyamweya, someone borrowed Monday’s phone and used it to communicate to the alleged terror suspect.

FKF made efforts to have the player released and they later bore fruits as Osborne was released on Thursday without any charges.

 Things in Kenya’s premier University’s management are getting thick. And to further cloud matters,Babu Owino,the indefatigable vocabulary-dropping student firebrand leader,has joined the fray. And it’s about to go down…

Reports,first publicized by The Standard,indicate that there is a nasty power tussle among the leaders of UoN. And it’s threatening to derail the progress and smooth running of the Most Important Kenyan University.

Of late,there have been bitter wrangles between the UoN Vice Chancellor Peter Mbithi and his deputy Bernard Njoroge.

According to reliable reports,there are claims that Mbithi,who is Njoroge’s head,has been undermining his Deputy and that he has been eating up into his kitty and even delegating responsibilities to himself instead of to his Deputy.

In his letter to University Council Chairperson Idle Farah, dated August 4, Prof Njoroge accused Prof Mbithi of meddling in his office administration affairs, adding that he will not be pushed to sycophancy.

“I am personally seeking protection of the council to facilitate the discharge of the mandate of the office of deputy vice chancellor in charge of administration and finance (DVC A&F) in word and deed and not as the head of a small unit as the Vice Chancellor clearly intends,” reads the letter to Dr Farah.

He added, “Sycophancy has no place in the present constitutional dispensation or in my chequered career.”

The letter was written just hours after Mbithi released new university expenditure guidelines to Njoroge.

 “I have given new guidelines with regard to approvals for expenditure. From now henceforth, all expenditure of Sh100,000 and above will be approved by the vice chancellor with the recommendation of DVC A&F,” said Mbithi.

He said the decision was taken “on account of the current very critical cash flow situation being experienced at the University”.

“It has become necessary to institute additional controls on expenditure…expenditure below this threshold (Sh100,000) will continue as per the current practice, but with full consultation with and guidance from the DVC A&F,” reads the letter seen by The Standard.

But in his protest letter to the council, Njoroge said he draws his mandate from the statutes.

“Statute V (4) reads; the DVC A&F shall be the head of administration and finance division of the university whose functions include management of personnel matters, finance and assets,” he said.

He believes Mbithi’s letter is “demeaning and disrespectful”. Njoroge said the latter has already moved some core functions to his office, adding that this is meant to undermine him.

And now,invincible student leader,who has been allover the news of late,has stepped into the mud ring.. And is cautioning the two gentlemen to either quash their wrangling or to step aside and leave the job to people who can actually do it.

Speaking exclusively to Ghafla,Babu Owino said that the fights between the UoN VC and his deputy were threatening to throw the powerful institution in limbo and that the students were NOT impressed in the manner in which matters were being handled.

‘These men should either style up or go home! The school is tired of these childish fights that are now derailing almost everything! Important school matters cannot be handled by men who cannot put their own house in order! We need to be led by qualifications and maturity not rash testosterone!! This is a school! Not a public bathroom! You are not going to degrade the image of an institution so powerful by engaging in trivial egocentric squabbles! If you cannot manage the UON,then go manage Sabina Joy! Or Liddos! They can put up with seedy wrangles there! But not here!! ‘ Babu railed.

Babu Owino with H.E President Uhuru Kenyatta and H.E Deputy President William Ruto.

‘Infact the students are now demanding that Babu steps into the ring…And takes up the VC job himself! Yes,the honorable students of the honorable University of Nairobi are now saying that I should be their VC… And I am totally ready to take up the mantle. And to steer the school to the heights it deserves!’

And after we did a quick spot check conducted around a section of at least 50 students,male and female and in different faculties,they all said that, indeed,they would love to see Babu elevated to be the UoN Vice Chancellor.

‘He’s competent. And fearless… I think he can make a wonderful VC… We need someone who doesn’t put his own interests first… But those of the students. He’s shown competency before… I think he can be great! ‘ James Kamau,a student in UoN said in the survey conducted largely online.

‘ Babu ako sawa… Anajua ku-handle issues za Nairobi Uni… Plus he’s a committed leader… He should just go for it… ‘ said another female student.

‘ These nonsensical,bull crap fights must end! And if not,we’ll make them end! An institution cannot be run on a principle of bloated egos and childish jurisdiction battles! Either know your job and do it or we’ll teach you how it’s done! ‘ Babu barked.

Well… Where are things going? We can only sit and watch… Popcorn in hand.

Two days ago Gor Mahia FC fans allegedly torched a Nairobi County van after one of the county cars knocked three Gor fans as it chased hawkers in the heart of the capital.

The raging fans are allegedly said to have been angered by the kanjos and resolved to burn one of their vans which resulted to a nearby police car catching fire in the process.

However, a section of fans have come out to deny that they torched the van and are laying blame on hawkers saying they were the ones who torched the cars and not Gor fans.

Gor Mahia has since issued a statement condemning the incident and demanding those hooligans found culpable be brought to book.

And now police have promised to arrest the hooligans who torched the cars. They are intending to do so by reviewing CCTV footage from the street cameras.

Police spokesperson George Kinoti said they believe the cars were set ablaze by Gor fans and not hawkers as some allege.

Yesterday Ghafla! Kenya reported that former Harambee Stars and current Tusker FC midfielder Osborne Monday had gone missing without a trace.

See also: Harambee Stars Midfielder Osborne Monday Goes Missing

The news was revealed by his club Tusker FC and his family had said that they had tried to look for him in all Police Stations to no avail.

However, the midfielder has finally been found. Monday was found at Nairobi Area Police Station.

Osborne Monday had been picked by unknown men who arrived at his home at night with two probox cars and prevented his mother who was with him at the time from seeing the number plates of the cars.

The 10 men said they were policemen and told the midfielder’s mother to check him the following day in one of the police stations in the area.

Monday was later released yesterday without any charges.

Kenyans are known for some very fascinating things. Sometimes very exciting and other times very disgusting. Their creativity, however, is without doubt, top of the notch.

A few months ago, Rongai was in the limelight when  it unveiled an armored matatu that was meant to scare away any terrorist who would want to attack it. It was one of those classic matatus that have hit our roads in the recent past.

And now the estate is yet again in the news after another fascinating Matatu was unveiled over the last weekend.

The Matatu belonging to one Abel Ouma is one of a kind. It is called Hotsteppa and indeed its features will throw you off your chair.

The Hotsteppa was the centre of attraction at the East Africa motorshow held at the Museum Hill last weekend.

Here is the Matatu:

Boys, they say, will always be boys. It has been reported this morning that a bunch of British diplomats urinated in bottles  before throwing them from their car. 

 According to Nairobi News : 

“A suspected British diplomat was caught on camera throwing out bottles filled with liquid along Mombasa road which are suspected to have been urine. The car carrying the group of diplomats was stuck in traffic along Mombasa..”

A  motorist caught the act on camera and posted it on social media. 

Below are images: 

Here is the car from which urine in bottles was thrown from:

Images|courtesy. 

Finally, Cable News Network (CNN) has put its ego aside and eaten a humble pie after referring to Kenya as a Hotbed of Terror ahead of President Obama’s visit to the country.

The American media house angered many Kenyans with the headline, prompting a massive attack on social media under the viral hash tag #SomeoneTellCNN.

The Kenyan government went ahead to cancel an advertising deal it had struck with CNN after they failed to apologise to Kenyans for lying to the world that Kenya is not safe.

And now CNN has flown in its global Executive Vice President and Managing Director, Tony Maddox to apologise to Kenya and its people.

This is the man, Tony Maddox, who brought the apology to State House where he met President Uhuru Kenyatta:

US’ Cable News Network (CNN) has eaten a humble pie after it labeled Kenya a hotbed of terror few days to the visit of US President Barack Obama to Kenya.

The international media house greatly erred when it to made a statement aimed at making Kenya look like it is the most insecure country in the world, a remark that greatly angered many Kenyans.

What followed was  the famous hash tag #someonetellCNN which went very viral, attracting the attention of the globe.

And after a successful and peaceful trip to Kenya by Obama, the government cut links with CNN when it withdrew an advertising deal it had struck with the news network.

And now CNN has tendered a heartfelt apology after the mistake which greatly threatened its relationship with Kenya and Africa in general.

On Thursday, Tony Maddox, CNN’s global Executive Vice President and Managing Director flew all the way from Atlanta to Nairobi to personally apologise to President Uhuru Kenyatta and Kenyans.

Speaking to President Uhuru at State House, Maddox admitted that CNN’s reference to Kenya as a ‘Hotbed of Terror’ was both undeserved and ill-conceived.

President Uhuru with Maddox at State House

“We acknowledge there is a widespread feeling that the report annoyed many, which is why we pulled down the report as soon as we noticed. It wasn’t a deliberate attempt to portray Kenya negatively, it is regrettable and we shouldn’t have done it. There is a world at a war with extremists; we know what a hotbed of terror looks like, and Kenya isn’t one,” Maddox is quoted as saying.

President Kenyatta on the other hand said:

“Today I held a meeting with CNN’s Global Executive Vice President and Managing Director, Tony Maddox, who called on me at State House, Nairobi. He personally delivered an apology on behalf of CNN International and expressed deep regret after portraying Kenya as a ‘hotbed of terror’ ahead of a visit to Nairobi by President Barack Obama last month. He admitted that the description of Kenya as a “hotbed of terror” was both ill fitting and undeserved. I expressed my deep disappointment at the story not only on behalf of the government, but also because it angered the people of Kenya. I reiterated that the war on terror was a global threat, not exclusive to Kenya, and that Kenya’s troops and her people have made great sacrifices and still do, to keep Kenya and the region safe. In one stroke, CNN’s description of Kenya as a ‘hotbed of terror’ undermined the sacrifices made by our Kenyan troops, and the value of hundreds of lives lost, and relegated them to nothing. That’s why Kenyans, as expressed by those on Twitter, were so angry. Kenya is nothing like the countries that have real war. There was no reason to portray Kenya in that way.”

It is a chilly morning in Nairobi and its environs, but we thank God that has not deterred us from waking up as usual to bombard you with juicy and up-to-date happenings across the entertainment industry in Kenya… and probably beyond.

And as you embark on your day’s endeavors, here are the things making headlines this cold morning. I hope they warm you up as you brace yourself for more:

#1 After 8 Months Size 8 Drops Her New ‘Baby

#2 Jeff Koinange Caught On Camera Enjoying His Newest Lucrative Job (Photos+Video)

#3 Uhuru Kenyatta Tears CNN A New One #UhuruTellsCNN

#4 School Girl With Bhang In Underwear Wants 5M Compensation

#5 Money Buys Off Beef! Diamond Paid 7 Figure In Kenyan Shillings To Perform With Ali Kiba

#6 Before Jetting Into Kenya, Ne-Yo Announces A Collabo With An East African Artiste. Meet the Lucky One

#7 Meet Larry Madowo And Lilian Muli Hanging Out In London 3 Years Ago (Photo)

#8 Catherine Kamau (Celina) Show Stops In Wedding Gown (Photos)

#9 Nazizi Responds To Assumptions That She Is A Lesbian

#10 Shock As MP’s Vehicle Is Found Transporting 390 Rolls Of Bhang And 24 Sachets Of Heroine

Catfights are often messy to watch. The hair pulling, face clawing, weave hauling and cloth tearing is a just a bit much and as you know, girls don’t fight clean.

Apparently there was a cat fight at K1 after two female musicians allegedly got into a fight. Kush Tracey known from the hit song “Huwezi ni Dandia” claims that Yvonne Darq hit her with a bottle on her head

Kush claims that the reason that Yvonne hit her was because Kristoff was talking to her and Yvonne was not pleased about the whole situation.

“I left because I don’t want drama, when I tried coming back; she heatedly said that “Bring It On, Bring It On!” she says.

Before adding that “I was like for real? At least he didn’t crack my head. For now I don’t want anything to do with her.”

Have you dated Kristoff, Adelle asks? To which Kush says that she once dated Kristoff, but they are now good friends.

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Attempts to contact Yvonne proved futile.

A week ago a bus was impounded by police in Kirinyaga when they got wind that it was ferrying students who were engaging in criminal activities.

And true to the wind that reached them, upon the impounding, it was discovered that the students were engaging in sex, smoking bhang and drinking alcohol as loud music boomed from the bus.

The graffiti on the bus also was very controversial as it encouraged the students to do unpalatable things.

But what happened after overshadowed the whole. One of the police officers who frisked the students went ahead to take photos of the school girl found hiding bhang in her underwear as she stood there semi-naked.

The police officer later circulated the photos on social media. This caused great anger among Kenyans who demanded for the prosecution of whoever took the photos. The officer has since been interdicted and is likely to face charges.

And now the girl whose photos were put on the internet has come out to allegedly demand 5M compensation.

Through her lawyer, Gladys Wamaitha, the school girl will petition inspector general of police and DPP Keriako Tobiko over the manner in which she was treated, Tuko reports.

Great news!

Our Kenyan movie Fundi-Mentals will once again be representing ‪#‎EastAfrica‬ following its Nomination in the “Best Film of the Year (Africa)” Category at the 10th Nigerian Entertainment Awards 2015. The same film has also been nominated in the category “Actor of the Year (Africa)” for Gerald Langiri and the director of the film; Alexandros Konstantaras nominated as “Film Director of the year (Africa)”

Here is how to vote:
1. Go to >> http://neaawards.com/index.php/voting-page/
2. Navigate to the film Categories
3. Scroll down to “Best Actor (Africa)” Category” and below the picture of Gerald Langiri, click on vote. Once the word “vote” turns green, you have successfully voted. It is that simple. Then scroll down to Best Director (Africa) Category and vote for Alex Konstantaras and finally “Best Film (Africa)” and vote for Fundi-Mentals!

 “It is a great honour and yet another achievement in my acting career. It always feels good when people appreciate your work and what better way than to get nominated at such prestigious international awards. It is however up to the masses to help us bring this award home and therefore, please vote for us. Asante sana” Langiri says

 You can vote once everyday. The NEA AWARDS which are scheduled to take place on the 6th of September 2015 in ‪#‎NewYork‬ (US), is an annual entertainment award show held in the United States, with the sole purpose of celebrating and recognising the numerous contributions of entertainers to the African entertainment industry, while at the same time promoting the image and rich culture of Nigeria.Other East Africans nominated in this year’s NEA Awards include Kenya’s Sautisol in the same category as Tanzania’s Diamond Platnumz and Uganda’s Eddy Kenzo in the “African Artist of the Year (Non-Nigerian)” category.

The other day we saw little known artistes demonstrate along streets in Nairobi and later pitch camp at Nation Centre to demand that stations play Kenyan music.

See also: Charged Artists Block Kimathi Street To Storm Nation Center In Numbers Crying Like Babies Denied Mommy’s Milk (Photos)

The artistes lamented that their music had been ignored in favour of foreign music and specifically Nigerian music.

Well, I felt this was a misinformed move by D-list artistes who were forcing their way into media houses when they are sure their music is pathetic.

Had I seen the likes of Sauti Sol, Jaguar, Elani and the rest of established artistes demonstrating, I would understand.

See also: THE CORNER KICK | Why The Battalion Of D-List Singers Who Stormed Nation Centre In Protest Should Be Utterly Ignored

But it seems the government has jumped to the defense of local artistes after a music policy was launched yesterday.

CS for sports and culture Hassan Wario graced the event that went down at Laico Regency Hotel and which was attended by a number of artistes.

The policy stipulates that Kenyan radio and TV stations play 60% local content. This is mandatory. The policy also aims at ensuring that artistes’ rights are not violated.