There’s no 'epidemic' of violence against men

It is not hard to tell why married men have been sleeping with their eyes wide open. Violent attacks by women against their sleeping husbands in parts of Central Kenya have sparked panic among menfolk in the region and beyond.

Indeed, no other story has been more debated lately in the public sphere than this one. The talk of town is that husband battering has now spiralled out of control. Mr Nderitu Njoka of Maendelo ya Wanaume obviously concurs that this is the case. PointBlank disagrees.

Out of proportion

The  brouhaha over the ‘rising cases’ of men battering is anchored on three cases of men who were assaulted, one of them two months ago, by their wives.  Are three cases of assaults enough to conlcude that there is an unswing of cases of attacks against men? Definitely not.

The matter has obviously been blown out of proportion. Well, there is something called social amplification of risk and this sounds like it. Publication of these incidents in the media seem to have given the subject a life of its own. Someone should commission a study and prove PointBlank wrong.

Ex-student cries foul over ‘loan’

 

Is the Higher Education Loans Board out to reap where it never sowed? Mr John Maina Mwangi, who was admitted to Moi University Maseno campus in the 1998/99 academic year, claims that he is convinced that this is the case.

Mwangi (admission no. BA/99/98), says although he applied for a HELB loan in 1998, he never got it as  he was denied  university admission after he reported  late at the campus.

He decided to go for a parallel degree programme at university of Nairobi. However he did not qualify for Helb funding, as he was on parallel programme.

However, in 2008 Mwangi was shocked after he discovered that some money had been deducted from his salary allegedly to repay a Helb loan. On inquiry he was informed that he owed Helb Sh140,000. Already  Sh50,000 has been deducted from his account.

Helb claims to have sent the money to Postbank account number KAAC 1755512 but the bank insists that this account does  not exist and therefore  no money was credited.

Just who is fooling who here Mr Benjamin Cheboi, Helb chief executive? Mwangi can be contacted on 0722832209.

Zambezi’s road to ruin

 

Early last year, reports J.M Ng’ang’a, the Ministry of Public Works  and the Kenya Rural Roads Authority awarded a contract for the rehabilitation of the Zambezi-Karai Road (E422).

Ng’ang’a, however, says that something seems to have gone  amiss as the construction  work stalled almost immediately after it started. The only evidence today that the road was once under construction are huge mounds of soil, deep potholes, and incomplete culverts.

The road is in a worse condition than before and poses danger to both motorists and pedestrians. “Can the ministry and KeRRA inform residents of this area when the contractor will resume work to complete this road?

Ragati Road

From Nairobi, Bos Bos, is wondering, just like several others have complained before, whether Ragati Road in Upper Hill will ever be completed. The road, which is less than a kilometre has taken more than a year to complete. Bos claims although the road is very close to Kenya Urban Roads Authority offices, it appears extremely far from their attention. He wants KURA to tell him when, if ever,  this road will completed. His email is [email protected].

Elders should keep off fund

While other youths were engrossed in the colourful celebrations to mark the fifth anniversary of the Youth Development Fund, Mr Gachiengo Gitau was preoccupied with something totally different. He was scanning the faces of those charged with charting a path to take youths to the desired  economic nirvana. But he wasn’t impressed because, according to him, the entire board of directors of  Youth Fund comprised of people of an “age far gone by”. A youth, according to him, is someone aged under 45 years.  Gitau further says  the youth can manage the fund succesfully with help ‘of  one or two elderly patrons?”

DON’T YOU FORGET

Prof Ongeri punishes parents with silence

On October 5 and  6, PoinBlank carried complaints of alleged use of corporal punishment in schools. The parent of a student at Igunga Girls High School in western Kenya alleged that his daughter was sent home after being “thoroughly whipped” by her teachers. A parent of a student at New Light Senior Girls in Nairobi complained the next day that her daughter had also been caned and sent home by teachers. PointBlank requested Education minister Sam Ongeri to investigate the allegations and, if possible, inform Kenyans about the prevalence of corporal punishment in our schools and what he was doing to curb the practice.

We are still waiting, Prof Ongeri.

Point of Order
Computer error costs pupils secondary slots

Kitui pupils are not the only ones lamenting (refer to our story yesterday, New barriers to education?) for missing a golden opportunity to join good provincial schools.

Ms Olivia Fwaya says that pupils from Sihay Division who passed KCPE and merited to join provincial schools did not because “they were wrongly coded and the computer missed their names”. The local Education office reportedly advised them to apply for vacancies in local schools. Fwaya says this is unfair and demoralising to the hard working children. She can be reached at [email protected].

It is time KRA taxed wayward churches

As we inch closer to the elections, Fiddy Macharia predicts that there will be a flurry of harambees in some churches as religious leaders move to cash in on politicians’ most vulnerable moment. She claims that some clergy, just like some money-hungry voters, know that campaign season is their time to eat.

Ms Macharia wants the Kenya Revenue Authority to start taxing churches, especially those that are involved in misappropriation of funds. Her email is [email protected].

Client decries unrelenting threats from Kenya Power

Pastor Abrahams Wanda Odongo who has rental premises at Ndiru market centre, Rangwe Division wonders why Kenya Power keeps on issuing threats to his tenants that their electricty would be disconnected even when they have paid their bills.

He claims the bills always talk about ‘unpaid balances brought forward’ and even bear a warning that the premises would be disconnected ‘any time soon’. “Why would they persistently insist on disconnecting the power even when the bills have been paid?” he wonders.  He can be contacted on 0720455938.