MOMBASA: Jomvu artists are calling on the county government to be more involved in programs that promote artists’ growth.

The artists who had come together on ‘Good Deeds Day’ for the Sanaa Mtaani Program organized by Pwani Youth Network at Allidina Grounds in Jomvu said the county should do more to engage artists from the grassroots level.

“County should show up to such events as a way of showing support to upcoming artists who cannot access platforms to show their talent. You find that most of the time the county concentrates on these big artists who have already made names for themselves, but what we need is for them to come to the grassroots and meet all these talented upcoming artists,” said Rogo, an artist hailing from Jomvu sub-county.

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As they entertained the over 300 people who showed up for the event, the artists had one message for fellow youth, and it was all about peace and security.

“Instead of getting into crime, use your talent to make a living. Do not fall into peer pressure and join gangs, your talent is free, sharpen it and use it to make ends meet,” said Rogo.

The event saw performances from Jomvu artists including rappers and dancers.

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According to Judith Adhiambo from Pwani Youth Network, the event was to show support for the youth and their talents.

She called on the community to accommodate artists and give them a safe space and environment to showcase what they have.

“The notion that anyone doing hip-hop music abuses drugs is not true, we have heard from the rappers, most of their songs have very deep messages so let us give them a chance,” she said.

The youth champion also encouraged and called on county governments to support young talents.

“As an organization, we are here to support but there is just much that we can do. We are seeing youngsters whom we want to grow and this is where the county’s support is needed. They can reach and access where we cannot as an organization. We want them to link the youngsters with bigger opportunities,” said Judith.

“Young people have talent, we just need to show up and support them so that they do not join bad company,” she added.

Alfred Sigo is the Founder and CEO of PYN. He says the event, which was geared towards promoting peace, attracted more artists than they had anticipated.

“Two weeks ago we had a lot of incidences of insecurity in Jomvu sub-county, especially the Mikindani area. So the purpose of this event was to bring the youth together and engage them. So we hope this event was able to provide a platform to create awareness on the importance of peace and the role young people can play in being good peace and community ambassadors,” said Sigo.

“We had anticipated 25 artists but the ones that showed up surpassed that number,” he added.

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Young learners who showcased their talents walked away with a package of learning materials from PYN.

“Through the School 2030 program that we are running in partnership with Aga Khan, we gave out 20 packages of learning materials that include a box of crayons, a few books, pens, sharpener, marker pens, and a few things parents need to buy for the competency Based Curriculum like manila paper, drawing book, and rope,” he said.

Through the School 2030 we will be distributing the learning materials in different communities,” he added.

Other partners at the event were Majestic Studios who support talent through the online platform.

MOMBASA: Police in Mombasa have limited bodaboda movements at night.

According to Mombasa County Commissioner Mohammed Noor, the move is to curb cases of insecurity caused by criminals operating on bodabodas.

“We had recent cases of people being robbed and attacked by people on motorbikes, so we are limiting the movement of motorcycles. The operation on bodaboda criminals is ongoing, if we find you operating a bodaboda at night we have to stop you and ascertain whether you are a real bodaboda operator or a criminal,” said Commissioner Noor.

“The number of cases has reduced since we started the operation but we will not stop until we find the criminals,” he added.

Security agencies are also working with bodaboda operator officials to weed out impostors and criminals hiding in the sector.

“The bodaboda sector is very important for the government’s Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda, so we have to nab all those criminals hiding there and making the public lose trust in the sector. Bodaboda officials are also helping us. They have their own regulations and inform us of any suspicious people or activities in their routes,” said the County Commissioner.

War on drugs and alcohol abuse

Police have closed 167 bars following the ongoing fight against alcohol and drug abuse.

“We also recovered 160 sachets of cocaine and have closed 21 chemists, some had no licenses and others were doing over-the-counter sales of drugs that need a prescription,” said CC Noor.

MOMBASA: The coming financial year will be a year of order and discipline in the county.

This is according to Mombasa Governor Abdullswamad Sheriff Nassir.

Speaking in Mombasa on Saturday, Governor Swamad said “That order and discipline will be from our roads in terms of construction, level of cleanliness, and even those sleeping by the roadsides.”

The County Boss highlighted that the coming financial year will be to improve Mombasa’s environment.

“The first financial year was to uplift the community, and in the second we identified how to do that. This coming one will be to ensure our environment changes. It will also be the year when Mombasa residents get back and are issued title deeds,” said the Governor.

His sentiments came after several complaints about the increase of street families and those sleeping by the roadsides.

Also Read: Send street families back to their home counties, says Machele

The governor took the reins in 2022 with the closure of illegal dumping sites, that were plaguing the county, being among the first orders of business.

MOMBASA: A 12-year-old boy was among 45 people arrested in Kisauni, Mombasa following an operation to weed out criminals in the area.

Speaking to Baraka FM, Mombasa County Commissioner Mohamed Noor Hassan said the door-to-door crackdown led to the arrest of 45 suspects, among the 12-17-year-old minors.

The operation followed a spate of insecurity that was witnessed in the area.

“We retrieved machetes and other weapons the criminals used to carry out their operations and also managed to recover some of the items they had stolen,” said Commissioner Noor.

The Mombasa County Commissioner has called on parents to ensure they know the whereabouts of their children during this school holiday.

“Do not let your children just wander around not knowing where they are going. Some of these children we arrest them at 1-2 am. How can a 12-year-old be out at that time? Parents should take their responsibility and account for their children’s whereabouts all the time,” said Commissioner Noor.

Also Read: Mombasa Governor’s stern warning to parents

The door-to-door crackdown on criminals will be extended to Likoni and Jomvu sub-counties.

Meanwhile, Commissioner Noor has also called on the county government to regulate the sale of Muguka in the county to ensure the product is not sold to children.

“Muguka sellers should do so in a regulated manner, in a clean place with all the correct licenses needed. We do not want our children going to muguka dens and staying there the whole night with suspected criminals who might mislead them. So we will have a crackdown on those illegal muguka dens and make sure they are closed,” said the County Commissioner.

Commissioner Noor said indulging in criminal activities will destroy a child’s future.

“When a 12-year-old’s fingerprints have already been taken into the system for engaging in criminal activities then it will affect their employment in the future because of the criminal record. It can also affect their opportunities when they get scholarships abroad,” he said.

MOMBASA: The Mombasa County Government on Saturday 13th April held Eid Baraza celebrations at the County’s treasury square in Mvita Sub-County.

The celebrations that started at 9 am were not only attended by the Muslim community led by Sheikhs and Imams from across the county but also by Mombasa politicians.

Speaking during the celebrations, the Mombasa County Assembly Speaker urged that Eid Barazas should be used as platforms to address challenges faced by the Muslim community in the county.

“I said this during last year’s Eid Baraza, let us invite Imams and madrassa teachers, both male and female, to these Barazas so that they can tell us the challenges they are facing and as leaders we see how to solve them. We might not be able to solve all but one at a time,” said Speaker Khatri.

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“We know that they go through a lot of challenges in a year, and giving them this platform is one way of addressing these challenges. Let us not use it for politics, politicians have a lot of platforms where they can speak, let us leave Eid Baraza to our Muslim brothers facing challenges,” he added.

Meanwhile, Mombasa Governor Abdullswamad Sheriff Nassir says the County government will not only be using one sub-county in festivals or celebrations saying this was the last Eid Baraza to be held in Mvita sub-county until they have rotated in all Mombasa sub-counties.

The celebrations were led by Chief Kadhi Sheikh Athman Abdulhalim Hussein who encouraged Muslims not to abandon prayers and reading the Quran just because the Ramadhan period was over.

“We might have reduced the frequency of fasting, prayers, and generosity, which is normal, but let us not completely abandon prayer, fasting, and giving to those in need,” said Chief Kadhi Athman.

MOMBASA: As the war against alcohol and drug abuse intensifies in the county, Likoni Member of Parliament Mishi Mboko now wants a rehabilitation center established in Likoni.

Speaking during the Eid Baraza celebrations in Mombasa, Mboko said those seeking rehabilitation treatment in Likoni had to go all the way to Kombani.

“I thank the DCIO and the OCPD for the job they are doing in fighting drugs in Likoni, the only problem we have now is a rehabilitation center. We need one in Likoni. Those seeking rehabilitation say going to Kombani is quite expensive,” said Mishi.

Meanwhile, Mombasa Governor Abdullswamad Sheriff Nassir has said the county will rehabilitate the youth struggling with drug abuse from the proceeds of Liquor License revenue.

“Any money coming from khat and alcohol will be used for rehabilitation. We have already identified a rehab center where our youth will receive treatment free of charge,” said Gov. Swamad.

In matters of education, the Likoni legislature has requested the county government for higher learning scholarships.

“We need to have professionals in Mombasa, let us have doctors, engineers, and other professionals coming from Mombasa,” said the Likoni MP.

“We also need infrastructure in terms of stadiums. The East African Legislative Assembly (EALA) games will be hosted in Mombasa and we need to be ready in terms of stadiums, we do not want this opportunity to be taken away from us because we were not prepared,” noted Mishi.