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What made headlines this past week

Top of the charts not only in Kenya but globally is of course the tactics UK-based company Cambridge Analytica employed in getting US President Donald Trump elected/FILE

NAIROBI, Kenya, Mar 23 – Here’s a summary of the week’s biggest stories as told in our weekly news programme News Shot.

Top of the charts not only in Kenya but globally is of course the tactics UK-based company Cambridge Analytica employed in getting US President Donald Trump elected.

Kenya got dragged into the whole saga by company Executive Mark Turnbull who boasted about the role they also played in getting President Uhuru Kenyatta elected in footage captured on hidden camera by UK’s Channel 4 News.

The ruling Jubilee Party has however strenuously denied the association.

FULL STORY: Jubilee denies Cambridge Analytica managed Uhuru re-election.

Coming in Second are the power struggles in the National Super Alliance that continue to be played out in the public domain.

A meeting between National Super Alliance principals on Thursday was expected to bring an end to squabbles in their ranks, it did not.

On the contrary, it only served to portray the future of NASA as uncertain.

This is after they failed to agree on the reinstatement of Moses Wetangula as Minority leader and instead announced that the coalition’s Senators would go on a retreat to decide his fate.

FULL STORY: Wetangula ouster prompts NASA Senators’ retreat

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Kenyatta National Hospital just can’t seem to catch a break after news emerged this week that a patient’s intestines were damaged during a caesarean section.*

Health Cabinet Secretary Sicily Kariuki however managed to dodge a bullet after an impeachment motion against her was withdrawn.

FULL STORY: MP beats hasty retreat in CS Kariuki ouster bid

The signing of a continental free trade agreement on Wednesday was also big news globally after 44 African countries became signatories to what is viewed as the biggest trade agreement since the World Trade Organisation.

27 other countries, signed a separate agreement for the free movement of their nationals across their borders for a maximum of 90 day stays.

The continental free trade area agreement will however need to be ratified by the respective parliaments with economic power houses Nigeria and South Africa yet to sign on.

Critics of the deal are concerned that the agreement lacks legs to stand on and teeth to bite as there are no consequences to non-compliance.

In making their case they’ve pointed to the failure of regional blocs to realise their objectives.

Advocates of the deal argue a continent wide free trade area is the only way for Africa to achieve its economic potential; by growing its markets.

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Africa currently does the least intra-continental trade and businesses currently pay higher tariffs when they export within Africa than when they export outside it.

FULL STORY: 44 African nations sign pact establishing free trade area: AU

Sudan, the last male Northern White Rhino died on Tuesday from age related complications.

He suffered from a hard-to-treat infection in one of his legs on his last days.

The 45-year-old Rhino left behind a daughter and grand-daughter with the future of their species dependent on advancements in Artificial Insemination.

The police service payment structure also made national news after it emerged that graduate servicemen were irregularly awarded pay increments.

A move to rationalize these increments led to a public outcry and debate that carried over to the August House.

In response, the National Police Service Commission shelved the rationalisation plans to allow the affected officers “meet their pre arranged financial commitments.”

FULL STORY: Police Commission shelves officers pay-cut plans

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*After carrying out an internal investigation, KNH denied that negligence on the part of its staff caused the damage. “Patient had hidden defects in her abdomen that were unrelated to the surgery.”

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