NADCO Fires Back at Sifuna Over UDA-ODM 10-Point Agenda Delays

The National Dialogue Committee (NADCO) has fired back at Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna over his criticisms of alleged delays in implementing the UDA-ODM 10-point agenda, rejecting claims that the committee has failed to deliver on its mandate. Committee members broke their silence on Thursday, expressing frustration at what they described as a deliberate misrepresentation of their work. NADCO warns against politicizing the implementation process The committee issued a stern warning to politicians, urging them to stop politicizing the dialogue process. Members accused critics of distorting facts about NADCO’s progress and undermining the bipartisan initiative. Sifuna, during a Tuesday interview, had

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EXPOSED: Inside Market Dimension’s Harsh Employee Rules

By Kenya Today Team An internal disciplinary code used by Market Dimension Limited has raised serious questions over the severity of sanctions imposed on workers, with employees facing dismissal or summary dismissal for offences ranging from using abusive language and making unauthorised statements to the media to participating in industrial action. Documents reviewed by Kenya Today reveal a detailed disciplinary regime containing dozens of offences and corresponding penalties. While several provisions deal with legitimate and serious workplace concerns such as fraud, theft, assault, sexual harassment, sabotage and gross negligence, other rules cast a remarkably wide net over employee behaviour and prescribe dismissal for a first offence. A review of the document against Kenya's employment laws shows an important distinction that employees need to understand. Companies are entitled to formulate disciplinary policies and serious misconduct can justify summary dismissal, but an internal disciplinary code cannot override statutory protections contained in the Employment Act. In particular, Section 41 establishes procedural protections where termination is contemplated on grounds of misconduct, poor performance or physical incapacity. Kenyan courts have repeatedly emphasised the importance of giving an affected employee an opportunity to hear and respond to the accusations against them. The Market Dimension document itself acknowledges this principle. Its stated objectives include ensuring fair and equal treatment of employees and ensuring that principles of natural justice are applied before an employee is disciplined. Significantly, it also expressly declares that the disciplinary procedures should not be used for intimidation or victimisation. Those commitments, however, sit alongside a punishment schedule containing a number of unusually severe provisions. Being Rude or Disrespectful Can Lead to Dismissal One of the provisions likely to worry employees concerns being “rude, discourteous, impolite or disrespectful” towards fellow employees, clients or superiors. Market Dimension defines this broadly to include screaming or shouting, insults, demeaning statements and even banging tables. According to the disciplinary schedule, the sanction indicated for the first breach is dismissal. There is nothing unusual about an employer demanding respectful behaviour in the workplace. Abuse, intimidation and persistent misconduct can legitimately attract disciplinary sanctions. The concern arises from grouping a wide spectrum of behaviour under a broad definition while prescribing dismissal at the first breach. A momentary argument between colleagues, an employee raising their voice during a disagreement and sustained abusive conduct can involve significantly different circumstances and levels of seriousness. The Employment Act does provide circumstances in which misconduct can justify dismissal, but the existence of a company rule does not make dismissal automatically fair. The facts surrounding an incident, the seriousness of the conduct, the employer's evidence and the disciplinary procedure followed can all become relevant when the fairness of a termination is challenged. Abusive Language Can Attract Summary Dismissal The disciplinary code goes further when dealing with abusive language. It defines the offence as a verbal act involving offensive, foul or insulting language and lists summary dismissal as the first-breach sanction. Again, serious verbal abuse in the workplace can constitute misconduct. What deserves scrutiny is the breadth of the provision when combined with the most severe disciplinary sanction available to an employer. The policy does not, on the pages reviewed, distinguish between different degrees or contexts of offensive language before indicating summary dismissal. Under Kenyan employment law, summary dismissal allows an employer to terminate employment without the ordinary notice where the employee's conduct amounts to gross misconduct. It should not, however, be confused with dismissal without procedural fairness. Section 41 protections remain highly relevant where misconduct is alleged, while Sections 43 and 45 deal with proving the reason for termination and whether termination was fair. That distinction is important because a disciplinary handbook cannot simply transform every incident falling within a broadly drafted category into proven gross misconduct. Employees Risk Summary Dismissal for Unauthorised Press Statements Another particularly striking rule concerns employees communicating with journalists, members of the public or other third parties. The company's disciplinary code identifies as an offence the issuing of unauthorised press statements to the public or mass media concerning company business without authority from management or the director. The first-breach sanction indicated is summary dismissal. Companies plainly have legitimate reasons for controlling who speaks officially on their behalf. Employees generally cannot appoint themselves corporate spokespersons, disclose genuinely confidential commercial information or falsely present personal statements as authorised company positions. However, the breadth of such a provision requires careful application. An unauthorised official statement on behalf of the company is not necessarily the same thing as every possible communication an employee might make concerning workplace matters. The circumstances, content of the communication, confidentiality obligations and any applicable statutory protections would matter. A disciplinary code therefore cannot necessarily be interpreted as creating an unlimited prohibition against workers ever speaking about their employer. Confidential Information Clause Gives Management Significant Power Disclosure of confidential information to unauthorised persons is another offence for which the disciplinary schedule provides dismissal. Protecting trade secrets, customer information, financial records and genuinely confidential business material is entirely legitimate, but the documents photographed do not appear to provide a detailed definition of what constitutes confidential information for purposes of this particular sanction. That distinction can become significant during disciplinary proceedings. An employer alleging that an employee disclosed confidential information would still need to establish what information was disclosed, why it was confidential, whether the employee was under an obligation to protect it and the circumstances under which the disclosure occurred. A broadly drafted confidentiality rule should therefore not be treated as a blank cheque for terminating workers who communicate information management simply finds embarrassing or inconvenient. Whether particular information is legally protected, confidential or subject to another statutory regime depends on the facts. Sexual Harassment and “Immoral Conduct” Placed Under One Offence Market Dimension also lists “sexual harassment or immoral conduct” as an offence attracting summary dismissal. The accompanying definition refers to uninvited lewd, sexually explicit or suggestive acts or words. Sexual harassment is a serious workplace offence, and Kenyan employment law itself recognises employers' obligations concerning sexual harassment. Where such misconduct is established following a fair disciplinary process, severe sanctions can plainly be justified. The questionable part of the drafting is the additional expression “immoral conduct.” Morality can be subjective, whereas a disciplinary offence should ideally tell employees with reasonable clarity what behaviour is prohibited. The definition supplied by Market Dimension narrows the provision towards unwanted sexual or lewd conduct, but the broader heading could potentially create uncertainty if management attempted to apply “immoral conduct” beyond the behaviour actually defined in the policy. Workers Face Dismissal Over Industrial Action Among the most consequential provisions are those governing industrial action. Market Dimension's disciplinary schedule provides dismissal for taking part in an “illegal strike or other industrial action,” including references to picketing and demonstrations. Inciting others to participate in illegal industrial action is separately listed as an offence attracting dismissal. The important legal qualification is the word “illegal.” Article 41 of Kenya's Constitution protects labour relations rights, including workers' rights to form, join and participate in trade-union activities and the right to strike. The Labour Relations Act then provides the statutory framework governing protected and prohibited industrial action. An employer therefore cannot simply erase those rights through an internal handbook. If industrial action is lawfully protected, participation cannot automatically be converted into misconduct merely because management dislikes the action. Conversely, participation in unprotected or unlawful industrial action can carry employment consequences. Determining which situation exists requires reference to the law and facts, rather than merely the wording of an internal disciplinary schedule. Fighting, Sabotage and Personal Business Can Bring Immediate Dismissal Several other offences attract summary dismissal on the first breach. They include fighting or assault at work, sabotage or malicious damage to company property and using company time for personal monetary gain. Gross negligence resulting in loss of company funds or damage to company property also attracts summary dismissal, together with recovery or surcharge for the money allegedly lost. Some of these are substantially different from the broader behavioural offences. Assault, deliberate sabotage, fraud and serious dishonesty can plainly amount to gross misconduct where established. The Employment Act expressly recognises several categories of serious misconduct capable of supporting summary dismissal. Even here, however, an accusation should not automatically become a conviction inside the workplace. An employer contemplating dismissal still needs to establish the factual basis for the disciplinary action and observe the procedural protections applicable under employment law. The provision allowing both summary dismissal and recovery or surcharge for losses also deserves careful application. An employer seeking deductions from an employee's wages must comply with the statutory framework governing permissible deductions rather than simply deducting whatever amount management believes it has lost. Criminal Allegations and Dishonesty Carry the Ultimate Workplace Penalty The disciplinary code additionally groups dishonest conduct and criminal offences among matters attracting summary dismissal. The underlying definitions cover extremely serious conduct, including theft, misappropriation of company funds, fraud or attempted fraud, bribery, corruption, unauthorised removal of company property, destruction or alteration of official records, smuggling, drug trafficking and misleading auditors. No reasonable workplace could be expected to tolerate proven theft, bribery or fraud. The legal concern arises if allegations are treated as automatically established simply because they fall within a category carrying summary dismissal. Employment disciplinary proceedings do not necessarily have to wait for the conclusion of criminal proceedings, but an employer must still have a defensible factual basis for its employment decision and provide the employee with the applicable procedural protections. Being suspected or accused of criminal conduct is therefore not identical to an employer proving a valid and fair reason for termination. Some Parts of the Code Are Far More Balanced Not every provision in Market Dimension's disciplinary regime is excessively punitive. For many ordinary workplace offences, the company adopts a conventional progressive disciplinary structure. Reporting late, taking unauthorised breaks, absenteeism, carelessness, poor supervision, substandard performance and several other offences generally begin with a verbal reprimand before progressing through written warnings, a final warning and eventually dismissal after repeated breaches. That structure recognises an important purpose of workplace discipline: correcting behaviour rather than immediately ending employment. The company also places time limits on disciplinary sanctions. The documents indicate that a severe reprimand remains effective for one month, a written warning for two months and a final warning for four months or the remainder of the contract period, whichever is shorter. Those provisions are considerably less punitive than the sections prescribing dismissal at the first breach. The contrast within the same document is striking. An employee repeatedly reporting late can progress through several warnings before dismissal, while another employee accused of using abusive language or issuing an unauthorised press statement can face summary dismissal at the first incident. Market Dimension's Own Code Prohibits Intimidation and Victimisation Perhaps the most important safeguard appears at the beginning of the company's own disciplinary code. Market Dimension states that its procedures are intended to ensure fair and equal treatment, encourage corrective action and guarantee the application of natural justice before an employee is disciplined. The document then makes an unusually direct declaration that the disciplinary procedures “shall not be applied for the purpose of intimidation or victimization.” That sentence could become highly significant whenever an employee challenges disciplinary action. If a worker were targeted for personal reasons, denied an opportunity to answer accusations or subjected to punishment as retaliation, such treatment would potentially raise questions not only under Kenyan employment law but also under Market Dimension's own stated disciplinary principles. The document therefore contains an internal contradiction that management must navigate carefully: it establishes severe punishments for certain offences while simultaneously promising workers natural justice, equal treatment and protection from intimidation and victimisation. Company Rules Cannot Replace Kenyan Employment Law Market Dimension is entitled to establish standards governing punctuality, performance, safety, confidentiality, professional behaviour and protection of company property. Employees equally have a responsibility to observe legitimate workplace rules. What the disciplinary code cannot do is create a parallel employment-law system in which writing “summary dismissal” next to an offence automatically removes statutory protections. Sections 41, 43, 44 and 45 of the Employment Act operate together in determining how misconduct and termination are treated. Section 44 recognises circumstances capable of constituting gross misconduct, while Section 41 provides procedural safeguards and Sections 43 and 45 address the employer's reason and the fairness of termination. Kenyan courts have repeatedly examined these provisions when deciding whether dismissals were substantively and procedurally fair. Bullies: Market Dimension's disciplinary code therefore deserves scrutiny not because employers should be prevented from disciplining workers, but because some provisions give management an exceptionally severe sanction for broadly framed conduct.
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President Ruto Calls Kenyan Diaspora a Key Human‑Resource Asset During New York Visit

President William Ruto told New York audiences that Kenya’s overseas community is a valuable human‑resource capital essential for the nation’s economic and social development.
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From Underdog to City Hall Contender: Ronald Karauri Forces His Way Into Nairobi Governor Conversation

By Milton Were The race for Nairobi governor is beginning to acquire a different complexion, and Kasarani MP Ronald Karauri is increasingly becoming a name that cannot simply be ignored. Once viewed as an outsider in a contest expected to revolve around Governor Johnson Sakaja and Embakasi East MP Babu Owino, Karauri has declared his candidature and is seeking to build a case around management experience, business leadership and a less confrontational political style. Karauri's entry is particularly interesting because he does not fit comfortably into the traditional mould of a Kenyan politician. Before entering elective politics, he spent a decade in aviation, serving as a Kenya Airways captain between 2005 and 2015. He subsequently moved into corporate leadership as SportPesa chief executive before contesting the Kasarani parliamentary seat in 2022 as an independent candidate. He won with 32,406 votes, establishing himself politically without relying on the ticket of one of Kenya's dominant parties. That journey from the cockpit to the boardroom and eventually Parliament is central to understanding the proposition Karauri is putting before Nairobi. His supporters can point to a career requiring discipline, management and decision making, while his critics and rivals can legitimately ask whether those qualities can be transferred to the considerably more complicated business of running Nairobi County. That is precisely the debate his candidature introduces. For a city struggling with garbage collection, drainage, traffic, deteriorating roads, markets, healthcare and revenue management, the question of administrative competence is likely to feature prominently in the 2027 campaign. Karauri himself has framed Nairobi's problems primarily as failures of leadership, telling Kasarani residents when announcing his bid that he intends to seek the governorship and believes the city can be run differently. From Political Underdog to Serious Conversation Karauri was not initially the politician dominating discussion about the Nairobi succession battle. Sakaja naturally commanded attention as the incumbent, while Babu Owino had spent considerable time building his profile as a prospective challenger. Businesswoman Agnes Kagure and several other politicians have also featured prominently in discussions about the seat. What has changed is that Karauri is no longer merely a name being floated from the sidelines. He is a declared aspirant, a sitting Nairobi MP and a politician who has already demonstrated an ability to win an election as an independent. Recent coverage of the developing race now routinely places him among the politicians seeking to challenge Sakaja, alongside Babu and other contenders. That distinction matters. Being an underdog is different from being irrelevant. Karauri may have started this contest outside the group commanding the biggest polling numbers, but his political résumé gives rivals reason to watch how his campaign develops. Business Acumen Will Be Central to His Case Karauri's strongest differentiating characteristic is arguably his business background. Nairobi is not merely a political capital; it is an economic engine requiring the daily management of revenue, infrastructure, licensing, health facilities, markets and thousands of county employees. The governor is therefore both a political leader and the chief executive of an enormous public institution. Karauri can credibly point to years spent managing organisations outside government. His aviation career demanded discipline and adherence to systems, while corporate leadership exposed him to budgets, personnel, strategy and organisational accountability. His subsequent move into Parliament added the political and public-service dimension that was absent from his earlier career. None of that automatically makes somebody an effective governor. Public institutions operate under constitutional, procurement and public-finance rules that differ fundamentally from private companies. But it gives Nairobians a concrete professional record to interrogate rather than a political biography built exclusively around rallies, party positions and elections. The challenge for Karauri will be translating the language of management into a detailed programme for City Hall. Nairobians will want to know what a Karauri administration would actually do about garbage, drainage, water, county hospitals, markets, traffic and revenue collection. Business credentials become politically valuable only when they can be connected to measurable public outcomes. A Political Identity That Is Harder to Box In Karauri's independent victory in Kasarani also gives him an interesting argument in a cosmopolitan county where tribal arithmetic alone cannot guarantee victory. Nairobi is home to virtually every Kenyan community, meaning any successful gubernatorial coalition must cross ethnic, class and geographic boundaries. His political identity has not been built around positioning himself as the representative of one ethnic bloc. That does not prove that any politician is entirely free from Kenya's ethnic political dynamics, but Karauri's 2022 independent candidature gives him a different starting point from politicians whose careers have been inseparable from major party structures. His comparatively restrained public style is another distinction. Karauri is generally less combative in his public presentation than some of his rivals. Supporters interpret that temperament as humility and composure; voters will ultimately decide how much weight to give those qualities when assessing leadership. For Karauri, however, the real test of non-tribal politics will come when he attempts to organise across all 17 Nairobi constituencies. Kasarani alone cannot deliver City Hall. He will need meaningful support in Embakasi, Westlands, Lang'ata, Dagoretti, Starehe, Kamukunji, Makadara and the rest of the county. Babu Owino Cannot Be Ignored The presence of Babu Owino makes the contest even more complex. Babu has developed a highly visible political identity, particularly among younger voters, and remains deeply engaged in the Nairobi gubernatorial conversation. He has also recently been organising his political vehicle as he prepares for the battles ahead. Karauri represents an almost opposite political style. Where Babu is combative, vocal and intensely political, Karauri presents a quieter corporate persona. Where Babu has built much of his national identity through political activism, Karauri arrived in politics after careers in aviation and business. Karauri has "shocked" Babu personally. Babu now faces a gubernatorial field containing another sitting Nairobi MP with financial, corporate and political experience. That inevitably complicates the contest. Sakaja Also Has Another Rival to Watch For Sakaja, incumbency provides both opportunity and vulnerability. He will be able to defend his administration using projects and policies implemented during his term, while every challenger will simultaneously use the city's unresolved problems to question that record. City Hall sources privately describe Sakaja as worried about Karauri and is hoping on grassroots leaders being mobilised in response to his emergence. The political reality is already significant without embellishment: Sakaja faces a growing field of declared challengers, and Karauri is now among them. Every credible entrant changes the calculations around alliances, party nominations, constituency mobilisation and campaign resources. Karauri's presence therefore matters even before anyone can reliably measure the eventual size of his support. The Real Karauri Test Starts Now Karauri has successfully moved himself from businessman to MP and now from constituency politician to declared gubernatorial aspirant. His next transition will be the most difficult: convincing millions of Nairobi voters that the skills that worked in aviation, corporate management and Kasarani can work at City Hall. That requires much more than a compelling personal story. It requires organisation, policy, grassroots structures and a convincing answer to the basic question every Nairobi gubernatorial candidate must face: what exactly will you do differently? The underdog label may remain appropriate when measured against current polling, but dismissing Karauri altogether would overlook his unusual political trajectory and the fact that he has already defied conventional expectations once by entering Parliament as an independent. Nairobi's race is still open, crowded and fluid. Babu Owino remains a major player, Karauri now enters the ring stronly and Sakaja remains a failed incumbent. Karauri has done is secure a place in the conversation. The former pilot, businessman and political outsider is now sitting at the same gubernatorial table as Nairobi's established political heavyweights. The next year will determine whether Ronald Karauri can turn that seat at the table into a genuine countywide movement.
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Kenyan Workers Stranded in Juba Accuse Recruiter Ann Kathure Rutere of Withholding Salaries

A group of Kenyan workers stranded in Juba, South Sudan, has renewed complaints against recruiter Ann Kathure Rutere, accusing her of failing to pay salaries they say are owed to them after she recruited them for employment. The workers, who have requested that their identities be withheld over fears of possible repercussions, say their situation has deteriorated as they struggle to survive away from home without the income they expected from their jobs. According to the workers, they travelled to South Sudan after being recruited for employment but claim that salaries they expected to receive have not been paid, leaving them financially strained and uncertain about their next move. The latest complaints put Rutere back in the spotlight, with the workers saying concerns about alleged non-payment had previously been raised but their grievances remain unresolved. “We are now stuck in Juba, South Sudan, and the situation has become increasingly difficult for us,” the workers said in their appeal. They say what began as an opportunity to earn a living abroad has instead left them struggling far from their families and without money they claim they legitimately earned. The workers are now appealing for intervention from relevant Kenyan authorities, asking officials to establish what happened to their salaries and assist them in finding a safe way out of their predicament. “We are Kenyans working away from home, and we simply want what we are owed and a safe way out of this difficult situation,” they said. The allegations raise questions that Rutere should be given an opportunity to answer, including how much money is allegedly outstanding, why the workers say they have not been paid, who their contractual employer is, and what arrangements are being made to resolve their situation in Juba. The workers are demanding answers and intervention before their circumstances deteriorate further.
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NCBA Set to Lose Majority Local Control as Nedbank Takes Up to 66% Stake

NCBA Group is headed for one of the biggest ownership shake-ups in its history after the Central Bank of Kenya approved South Africa-based Nedbank Group’s acquisition of up to **66 percent of the Kenyan lender’s issued share capital**. The approval, granted on August 28 under Section 13(4) of the Banking Act, potentially puts majority control of NCBA in the hands of a South African financial conglomerate, subject to completion of the transaction under the agreement between the parties. For NCBA, the deal represents a striking transformation for a banking group created only in 2019 through the merger of NIC Group and Commercial Bank of Africa. Once completed at the maximum approved stake, Nedbank would hold nearly two-thirds of NCBA, leaving the Kenyan-listed lender operating under a fundamentally different ownership structure. The development is particularly significant given NCBA's footprint across East Africa. The Nairobi-headquartered group has banking subsidiaries in **Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and Rwanda**, alongside a joint venture in Côte d’Ivoire, and interests spanning stock brokerage, insurance, investment banking and leasing. Nedbank, meanwhile, is headquartered in South Africa and listed primarily on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, with a secondary listing in Namibia. Its existing African operations stretch into Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia, Eswatini and Zimbabwe. The acquisition therefore gives the South African group a potentially powerful platform for expanding its influence across East Africa through an established Kenyan banking franchise. CBK has welcomed the transaction, arguing that it will promote competition while strengthening the stability and resilience of Kenya's banking sector. But the sheer size of the proposed **66 percent holding** makes this more than an ordinary investment in NCBA. It represents a potential transfer of majority ownership of one of Kenya's prominent financial groups to a foreign banking giant. **The sharper question for the story is:** what does the deal mean for NCBA's existing major shareholders, boardroom influence, strategic direction and its identity as a Kenyan banking group? That angle hits harder **without inventing trouble at NCBA that isn't supported by the CBK release**.
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Uganda Revenue Authority Takes Out Full-Page Newspaper Ad to Congratulate Museveni’s Daughter on Becoming Bishop

KAMPALA, Uganda The Uganda Revenue Authority (URA) has taken out a full-page newspaper advertisement congratulating President Yoweri Museveni's daughter, Pastor Patience Rwabwogo , on her consecration as an Episcopal Bishop. The conspicuous congratulatory message appeared in the Weekend Vision newspaper as part of a special publication marking the consecration. Under the headline “Congratulations Pastor Patience on Your Episcopal Consecration,” URA's management and staff extended their wishes to Rwabwogo as she assumed her new religious role. “On the joyous occasion of your consecration as Bishop, the Management and Staff of the Uganda Revenue Authority extend our heartfelt congratulations and warmest wishes,” the message reads. URA described Rwabwogo's elevation as recognition of her faith, leadership and commitment to Christian ministry. The tax authority further prayed for wisdom, strength and good health for the President's daughter as she takes on her new responsibilities. The advertisement concludes with another congratulatory message to Bishop Patience Rwabwogo , signed by the management of the Uganda Revenue Authority. The decision by a government tax collection agency to purchase prominent newspaper space celebrating a religious milestone involving a member of Uganda's First Family is likely to attract public interest, particularly over the relationship between state institutions and prominent political families. The advertisement does not state how much URA paid for the full-page placement. Rwabwogo is one of the daughters of President Museveni and First Lady Janet Museveni and has for years been involved in Christian ministry. She leads Covenant Nations Church in Luzira, Kampala, which is marking its 20th anniversary alongside her elevation to Episcopal Bishop. Ahead of the consecration, President Museveni and First Lady Janet Museveni hosted international evangelist Bishop Dr LaDonna C. Osborn at State House Entebbe. Osborn travelled to Uganda for Rwabwogo's consecration. Rwabwogo's relationship with Uganda's First Family has inevitably placed greater public attention on an otherwise religious event. The URA advertisement is particularly striking because the authority is a taxpayer-funded public institution responsible for assessing and collecting government revenue. While public institutions routinely publish congratulatory messages marking major national events and achievements, URA's decision to dedicate a full newspaper page to the President's daughter's church elevation could raise questions about the expenditure involved and the criteria used by government agencies when purchasing such advertisements. There is, however, no information in the advertisement indicating whether the placement formed part of a broader institutional advertising campaign or how the expenditure was approved. The full-page message nevertheless adds a distinctly governmental presence to celebrations surrounding Rwabwogo's elevation, turning what would ordinarily be a church affair into an event receiving recognition from one of Uganda's most important state agencies.
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