PRESS RELEASE ON ODM CELLEBRATIONS AT THE    COAST LED BY H.E ALI HASSAN JOHO

 

PRESS STATEMENT

Further to an announcement by the ODM Deputy Party Leader, H. E Hassan Ali Joho, regarding our "10 At 10" celebration scheduled for this Saturday, my directorate wishes to alert our members and by extension the nation at large of our arrangements for the extravaganza.

Tomorrow, the Deputy Party Leader will have an event to flag off 47 ODM branded buses from Mombasa to each of the forty seven counties of the republic. These buses will provide transport to party delegates from all over Kenya to participate in our jamboree.
Moreover, out of their deep belief in the cause, several party supporters have donated personal vehicles totaling 823 in number nationally which will converge in Mombasa. These vehicles will be branded to comb the entire country mobilizing and rallying the people around our 2017 agenda.

Upon the arrival of the Party Leader on Friday, there will be a series of roadshows as what is expected to be thousands of delegates from all over Kenya will assemble to welcome him to the county of ODM's birth.

Later that Friday evening, the Deputy Party Leader shall host a private reception in honor of the Rt. Hon Raila Odinga and Mama Ida where 450 MCAs, 110 MPs, 18 Senators and at least 10 Governors have confirmed attendance over and above the delegates from all over Kenya. A team of expert bakers have been tasked to prepare a giant cake for guests to commemorate the event.

On Saturday, we will hold a grand convention of the party where a ground-shaking political announcement shall be made. In the evening, there shall be a celebratory procession on Mama Ngina drive where international award-winning music artist Diamond will jet in from the US to entertain guests in what is billed to be an evening to remember not just for Mombasa but Kenyans at large. The night will conclude with a dramatic fireworks display that promises to leave Kenyans breathless.

All aspirants for all positions including MCAs, MPs, Senators and Governors are invited to attend from all over Kenya. Tukutane Mombasa!

Hon Junet Mohamed, MP
Director of Elections and Campaigns,
Orange Democratic Movement,
Mombasa.
Wednesday, September 7th 2016.

THE LIKONI RESCUE CIRCUS

                    THE LIKONI RESCUE CIRCUS

  Can someone help me settle to an answer to my questions which have been boggling me since Sunday tragedy where Amanda and her mom were swallowed and hidden in the depths of the calm but hungry Indian ocean waters at the Likoni crossing Channel.
  History has it that the three Ferries, Mv Harambee, Nyayo and Kilindini ARE SAID to have been withdrawn from the International Maritime Standard's Body,Lloyd's Register in 2007. And to add salt to the injury, the other two, Mvs Pwani and Mvita to do not appear on any classification bodys register; and are over 45 and 50 years old. Mv Harambee which was commissioned in 2015, resumed business a year latter after repair works at a cost of Kshs. 143 million. According to preliminary report done by Acting Head of Maritime Services Capt. Mbarak Zaunga, one of the findings revealed that the ramp was not working and it seems still not working..... which contributed to the sliding back and drowning of  Mariam Khaghenda and her daughter Amanda Mutheu.
  And now that the rescue mission is on, ten days [Tuesday] down the line, no signs of a mother,a daughter or the car. Tussle and argument between the govt institutions and private divers is conspicuous. Government talking big, but as usual, to the public its empty rhetoric with no touchable results to show. According to Colonel Lawrence Gituma of Kenya Navy who is heading the 13 multi agency team, kicked out the private divers who were hired by the family, at acost of Kshs. 350k, with a down payment of 100k. Gatuma claimed that Musa Owaga with his 15 member team, defied all laid down operation rules. He claimed Musa and crew went against ''The Set Rules and were posing danger to others involved in the operation.'' Musa in his response said they are fed up with the harassment by the security personnel and not sure when they gonna resume.
   But wait a minute. Is he the same Musa Owaga, Head of the Kenya Rescue DIVERS, who was called to a search and recovery mission when a Chopper crashed in to Lake Nakuru in 2018? Hon. Mishi Mboko, Likono MP, testified of his experience with Musa team in one of the rescue missions hes involved in. The great public and residents of Likoni and its environs got a great recollection of what TEAM MUSA HAS DONE TO SAVE LIVES ALONG THAT CHANNEL. Thew BQ is, why is the so called multi agency team does not want to have Musa on board with his great&versed  experience and knowledge of the channel?
Musa who is Internationally trained diver, decided to hang his gloves on Friday after he claimed  harassment from the security team.
Ten days..... Nothing to bring ashore to show. Professional divers brought from all walks of life; Sweden... S.Africa..... unfortunately nothing. Kenyans are still treated to the same old tired storyn lines of  '' Of No Stones Will Be Left Unturned.'' Pure ineptness, insensitivity and incompetence.
These are those moments of painful humiliation, for a nation held in high regards internationally.
   And this is when BABA came calling. The only voice of reason, face of humanity with legendary command. Strikes with speed of lighting, military precision with political closure. You can try to isolate him but cant put him down. When he gave that order, the person could have been a subject of debate but NOT what he said. The deafening noise of dredging machines went mute, to confirm and remind the ''Tangatanga'' team that the AU Special Evoy For INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT was in town. One of the best Kenyas best analytical minds, Prof. Herman Manyora said, '' Raila is not an ordinary person like me and you, its him and the President who can call for an holiday in this country''
The sycophantic behavior and kindergarten thinking of Jubilee MPs, especially first timers, is suicidal and indication of rogue intolerant and dishonorable members, ranting for hand outs. Raila Odinga is an engineer by profession, a politician by calling and a BABA naturally. Let me remind the likes of Nyoro, what BABA can see seated at his Apoda farm, will take them centuries on top of Mt. Kenya seeing nothing. The so called ''Leaders of tomorrow'' have false narratives camouflaged in unacceptable, hollow and dangerous precedences. Very unfair that these guys invent facts and twist tales to suit their unrealistic political agenda.
Testube and vanilla politicians who value lies in the fact that their divisive style never going to be distasteful to the national palate. This will amount to flagrant abuse to the very tenets of our moral fabric that underpins and defines the concepts of our core values as Kenyans; And more importantly.... as human beings.They are not honorable enough to be Honorable.As much as we are playing politics and gymnastics at the shore, remember, Amanda and her mom are still 70 meters down

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Wins in Iowa and New Hampshire Will Propel Bernie Sanders to the Presidency 

When Bernie Sanders wins Iowa and New Hampshire, the tidal wave of media attention will cause a paradigm shift within the American political establishment.

Bernie Sanders offers the possibility of a better political future, the kind of world I’ve been contemplating since the Black Lives Matter movement began. That’s appealing to me. I am not so naive as to think a Sanders presidency will solve everything or even much at all. But I am tired of being told I cannot imagine a better world.

You can’t alleviate any of the systemic problems facing society today – like racism, sexism or income inequality, to name a few – without an honest and sustained critique of capitalism. My support for Sanders stems from his radical (in this country, anyway) willingness to reimagine how our financial system can work. His presidency could open a broader debate about it before the whole thing collapses.

I certainly wish Sanders had enough room in his capacious political imagination to consider the (UN recommended) concept of reparations for slavery. But he seems to get how our economic structure harms most of us, and he’s gotten better at articulating the link between economics and racism since black women challenged him.

I’ve never understood the enthusiastic, robust support for the Clintons from black voters. Bill Clinton amped up policing against us. He irreparably harmed impoverished black families with so-called “welfare reform”. Hillary Clinton made even our black children out to be dangerous “super-predators” deserving harsh punishment.

Whatever her other qualities, Hillary Clinton is beholden to maintaining the system as it is. She will not (indeed, given her donors and speaking gigs at banks, she cannot) entertain criticism of capitalism or even Wall Street and therefore is not an appealing candidate to me.

The status quo of late-term American capitalism is making it so we can’t breathe. I don’t want to vote for someone who is going to maintain our broken system at all costs. Therefore, I look forward to voting for the democratic socialist Bernie Sanders.

Bernie Sanders speaks the truth. The extraordinarily wealthy, with all the power they deploy, make the laws of the land, and we just live here. Sanders knows that half-measures avail us nothing: we need a revolution. All of us need to participate. All of us need to vote and overwhelm the influence of the unaccountable rich. 99.9% is a lot more than .1%.

In 1907, when Congress passed the Tillman Act, banning all corporate contributions to candidates, the Senate Report noted: “The evils of the use of money in connection with political elections are so generally recognized that the committee deems it unnecessary to make any argument in favor of the general purpose of this measure. It is in the interest of good government and calculated to promote purity in the selection of public officials”.

Yes, I know: quaint. Two world wars later, and after Elvis gyrated his hips on television, there went purity. In 2010, the US supreme court turned the faucet on the free flow of megabucks with Citizens United v Federal Elections Commission.

“[I]ndependent expenditures, including those made by corporations, do not give rise to corruption or the appearance of corruption,” wrote Justice Anthony Kennedy for the majority. “That [campaign donors] may have influence over or access to elected officials does not mean that those officials are corrupt. And the appearance of influence or access will not cause the electorate to lose faith in this democracy.”

.

New Hampshire results: resounding wins for Trump and Sanders

Ever since, voting in America has been funded by multinational corporations.

Bernie Sanders is right: the whole thing is run by a few billionaires. Or many. There are now 1,826 billionaires in the world, and 536 of them are American – never mind all the people who are merely worth nine figures, all of them with their Super Pacs and thinktanks and philanthropies and foundations and charitable trusts and lobbyists and pushers and peddlers.

Bernie Sanders has come along and said that we are in deeper than we think. We are the lobster in the pot, and we don’t know that the water is about to boil. We have the illusion of control, because some of us still exercise the franchise, but we live in an oligarchy.

Bernie Sanders is not radical. No. This democracy is losing its heartbeat. He wants to revive it.

Bernie Sanders recognizes climate change as the “single greatest threat to our planet”. That is why the “climate emergency caucus” in Iowa overwhelmingly voted to support Bernie Sanders, by 67%. His independence from corporate interests allows him to tackle other pressing issue of our time, like income inequality and taking on the 1% who profited from the bank bailouts. His courage, integrity and clarity of vision on critical issues like these make him a compelling candidate.

I was among the thousand protesters in front of the White House in 2011 who risked arrest in opposition to the Keystone XL pipeline. While we were doing all we could to prevent the disastrous plan from going forward, then secretary of state Hillary Clinton was developing close ties with lobbyists for TransCanada Corporation, the backers of the Keystone XL pipeline. She said she was “inclined” to support the pipeline and, in 2015, she hired a former lobbyist for the Keystone XL as a campaign adviser. She only came out against the pipeline last fall.

Bernie voiced clear opposition to the pipeline in 2011. Along with Senator Jeff Merkley from Oregon, Sanders cosponsored the Keep It in the Ground bill, to keep public lands off limits to future oil, gas and coal leases. Sanders knows that if we are to avoid dangerous levels of CO2 in our atmosphere, 80% of proven reserves must stay in the ground. This step – ensuring public lands are not given away to the very industries profiting from the climate crisis – is a critical one. Sanders is also the only presidential candidate to oppose all fracking, which has a disastrous impact on the environment.

As a senator, Sanders has submitted comprehensive legislation to remove the $135bn in taxpayer subsidies the fossil fuel industry enjoys. He is able to adopt an aggressive stance against big oil because he is the only candidate with no discernible contributions from Super Pacs. (Amusingly, there is one Super Pac called “Billionaires for Bernie” that has contributed, wait for it, $0 to Bernie.)

The Pentagon has called climate change a “threat multiplier” for terrorism and everyone from the president to the Pope to the scientific community has called it a global emergency. Fossil fuel industry lobbying has been a big reason why so few politicians are willing to do anything serious about this. But Sanders has refused to kowtow to corporations and billionaires – that is why he stands out as having singular clarity on this urgent issue.

As a journalist, I travel regularly and see firsthand the unprecedented dangers the world is facing, like climate change, extreme concentration of wealth and the widespread disillusion with democracy. To me, another Clinton presidency will literally be business as usual. Just consider Hillary Clinton’s large Wall Street speaking fees and her previous support for deporting young children back to Central America, to their possible deaths. Sanders, however, sounds like he has at least some political imagination on these issues.

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Still, I don’t see Sanders investing major resources like time and money into getting the Latino vote, which will be crucial to whomever wins the presidency.
So far, his efforts have been insufficient – especially since he is up against an entrenched, well-recognized pro-Clinton Latino machine that is backed by big donors and an army of well-paid Latino operatives. In the face of such an opponent, an insurgent campaign like Sanders’, which targets mainly white voters, will not win the Latino vote.
Bernie Sanders has managed to capture the political imagination of many, especially the young, but he has still not tailored his vision to Latinos, who skew younger. He is a game-changer at a national level, but not so much at the Latino community level. At least not yet.
To become so will require differentiating himself from the Clinton machine. He will need to do things like invest heavily in reaching Latino voters and take bold policy positions such as acknowledging US responsibility for the utterly failed drug war in Mexico that’s left countless dead. He should also condemn domestic immigration policies that lead Obama (with Clinton’s support) to jail the youngest, most vulnerable victims of those policies.
I have not yet decided if I will vote for anyone. But if Sanders does things that spark the Latino political imagination, he might just persuade me.

Anonymous Hackers Target North Korea in Response to Satellite Launch

A North Korean rocket is launched on February 7, carrying what Pyongyang claimed to be a satellite. In response, hackers attacked state websites in an attempt to disrupt ground communications with the satellite.

Hackers associated with the Anonymous collective have attacked North Korean state websites in response to the country’s latest satellite launch.
The New World Hackers targeted three websites hours after the launch on Sunday, with the group claiming up to 200 sites were affected as a result of the attacks.
“Our main motive for these attacks was to stop communications between the satellite and the websites, leaving the government wondering why they can’t launch a test, or possibly even a real missile strike at any point in time,” a member of the group tells Newsweek.

“If you attack a site linked to a satellite that constantly updates off of that site, you’re really disrupting something somewhere. We at least slowed down their progress.”
It is not clear if communications with the satellite were affected but proof of sites being knocked offline by a distributed denial of service (DDoS) attack was shared with Newsweek. This method of attack overloads the servers used to host websites with traffic from multiple sources.

New World Hackers has previously been credited with the largest DDoS attack ever carried out, using its “BangStresser” tool to disable all of the BBC’s websites for a period of several hours in December 2015.
The same tool has also been used to repeatedly disrupt Donald Trump’s campaign website, as well as dozens of sites associated with the Islamic State militant group (ISIS) as part of Anonymous’s OpISIS campaign. New World Hackers has said that while it takes part in certain Anonymous operations and supports the hacktivist collective, it operates independently of the group.
North Korea has defended the satellite launch as a way of tracking weather patterns. However, the U.S. and other countries have accused Pyongyang of using the launch as a front for a ballistic missile test.
“North Korea continues to develop their nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs, and it is the responsibility of our alliance to maintain a strong defense against those threats,” General Curtis M. Scaparrotti, U.S. Forces Korea commander, said in a statement.
The United Nations Security Council also “strongly condemned” the launch and promised to take punitive steps against North Korea.

Russian Hackers Shut Down Ukraine’s Power Grid

This article first appeared on The Daily Signal.
As many as 80,000 residents in western Ukraine lost power for six hours on December 23. Cybersecurity firms SANS ICS and iSight Partners have attributed the blackout to Russian hacking group Sandworm and its malicious software, BlackEnergy 3.
Cyberattacks on power grids and other critical infrastructure are not new, but this most recent attack seems to be the first use of cyber as a weapon with kinetic effects during an ongoing conflict, highlighting the growing importance of cybersecurity.
While an analysis of the cyberattack is ongoing, BlackEnergy 3 has a history of targeting information control systems.

For the Prikarpattiaoblenergo electric company in Ukraine, the malware and its subcomponent KillDisk shut down computer operating systems, which in turn ended up shutting down the local electrical grid. Hackers also sought to make it impossible for customers to report electrical issues to the electric company by blocking out the company’s phone system.
There may be other businesses that have been affected by BlackEnergy 3, as certain malware can have cascading effects. Luckily, the reported effects of the cyberattack have so far been relatively short-term.
Cyberattacks against Ukrainian, EU and NATO officials in 2014 have been attributed to the same hacking team. Hackers in Russia have a tendency to set their sights on areas most relevant to Russian foreign policy—in Ukraine’s case, the illegal annexation of Crimea by Russia and ongoing Russian-backed rebellion in eastern Ukraine.

BlackEnergy 3 wouldn’t be the first successful cyberattack that’s had kinetic damage (outside an ongoing regional conflict)—and it may not be the last.
Recent news reports highlight the continued efforts of hackers, such as those from Iran, to gain information on critical infrastructure in order to cause damage—for example, the cybertheft of passwords and blueprints from a number of power plants or illicit access to dam control systems.
Critical infrastructure may be targeted by those such as hacktivists, nation states or state sympathizers, or domestic and international businesses.
Disrupting critical infrastructure control systems to the point of causing kinetic damage is no easy task. It takes knowledge of both the operating systems used and the spokes and cogs that run the machine. But as cyberattackers and malware grow and evolve at a very rapid pace, and malicious actors gain access to blueprints, operating manuals and resources from those interested in causing damage, the risk of a successful attack increases.
While the power outage in Ukraine was short-lived, there will be serious implications of similar successful attacks. The hackers, while said to be within Russia, also have international ties.
It’s important for the U.S. and the international cybercommunity to work together to prevent cyberattacks of this type.
Contributed by
Riley Walters is a research assistant in The Davis Institute for National Security and Foreign Policy at The Heritage Foundation.

J.P. Morgan to Pay $1.42 Billion to Settle Most Lehman Claims

Deal doesn’t resolve all of failed investment bank’s claims against J.P. Morgan

 J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. has agreed to pay the remnants of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. $1.42 billion in cash to settle most of the failed investment bank’s lawsuit over claims that J.P. Morgan illegally siphoned billion of dollars from Lehman before its collapse.

Representatives from Lehman and JP Morgans declined to comment. 

This is JP Morgan for you

His millionaire father, Junius, made his fortune by investing other people’s money and helped found modern investment banking. When John Pierpont, or JP, is a child, Junius has him handle a million dollars in cash so he knows what it feels like. JP Morgan is taught early to avoid risk.
Morgan escapes military service during the Civil War by paying $300 to a substitute to fight for him. During the war he buys five thousand rifles at $3.50 each and sells them on at $22 apiece. The rifles are defective and some shoot off the thumbs of the soldiers firing them. Later, a congressional committee notes this but a federal judge upholds the deal and Morgan is exonerated.Dominated by his father, JP is 40 before he ignores his father’s business lessons. He wants to be synonymous with an industry, like Rockefeller is with oil, and Carnegie is with steel.

Like the discovery of fire and the invention of the wheel, electric light will revolutionise mankind and Morgan believes, make him rich, and crucially, richer than his rivals. Morgan hires Thomas Edison, a telegraph boy turned inventor, to install electricity in his 5th avenue Manhattan mansion. Morgan’s home becomes a lab for Edison’s experiments and a small generator is installed to power the home’s 400 light bulbs.
Though his father Junius believes it a fad, electric light becomes a must have modern utility for the city’s elite. Against his father’s advice, Morgan invests everything in Edison to form the Edison Electricity Company.

They create the world’s first power station and soon half of Manhattan’s connected. But every home and business lit electrically is a lost customer to Rockefeller who supplies kerosene to the oil powered lamps. So he starts planting scare stories in the press.An apprentice of Edison, Tesla, creates alternating current, or AC, but Edison believes its higher voltage unsafe, so sticks to direct current, or DC. But electrical pioneer George Westinghouse invests in Tesla. And to disprove suggestions that AC is dangerous, Tesla stages magical light shows where electricity harmlessly crackles around him. Orders for Westinghouse power stations pour in. Edison tries to discredit AC by using it in his new creation, the electric chair. The first execution goes horribly wrong and instead of killing the man quickly, it slowly roasts him alive. The resultant publicity damages Edison, not Tesla.
The Niagara Falls contract opens for bids. It could light the entire North East and the only real choice is between Morgan and Westinghouse. And Morgan desperately wanted to replace Rockefeller as the man who lit America.
In 1890, Morgan’s father dies after a horse carriage accident. It instantly quadruples Morgan’s wealth. The 1893 World Fair is to be held in Chicago and organisers want the entire event lit with electricity. Westinghouse underbids at a quarter of the cost offered by Morgan. Over 27 million people flock to see the 200,000 light bulbs that illuminate the event, powered by Westinghouse generators. And in 1895, it’s the Westinghouse AC electric generating plant that is built at Niagara. It seems it will be him, not Morgan who will light America. In 1897, Tesla tears up his patent claim on his AC design, reducing his rights to profits which immediately attracts investment into the Westinghouse/Tesla Company.
So Morgan threatens Westinghouse with patent infringement. Few could afford to fight a lengthy lawsuit with Morgan. Westinghouse, stretched to breaking point is forced to sign over Tesla’s patents. Morgan’s consolidated electric company (minus Edison and operating on AC) General Electric, will become one of America’s biggest corporations.
Morgan now heads the biggest investment bank in America, and has consolidated both the electricity and rail-road industries. By 1900, Morgan controls 100,000 miles of railroad, half the country’s mileage.
When, after a two year depression, the US Treasury becomes desperate, Morgan, a private individual guarantees them a $100m ($3bn today) and bails out the federal government, effectively bailing out the country from collapse. Morgan virtually single handily saves the US economy in both 1895 and 1907.

MORGANISATION

The process of creating a monopoly through the elimination of competition and the maximisation of profits by slashing the workforce and reducing their wages is named after JP Morgan.
But as profits soar, working conditions sink. Pay reduces so that the average worker earns barely a dollar a day, Over 90% of Americans survive on less than $100 per month. Working hours and workplace fatalities increase.
In a single year, more men die inside a steel mill than died at the Battle of Gettysburg.
Monopolies, cartels and trusts dominate everyday life. Popular disgust at such unregulated capitalism leads to the rise of politicians such as Democrat Williams Jennings Bryan. He promises an end to the excesses of big business characterising the bosses as ‘robber barons’.

WALL ST V MAIN STREET

Sensing a common threat, Morgan, Carnegie, and Rockefeller, put aside their bitter rivalry to ensure their man, William McKinley sits in the White House. Bryan criss-crosses the country in the nation’s first press tour giving over 500 speeches. But he can’t compete against the robber barons contributions. McKinley outspends Bryan by a factor of five to one.
In the 1896 election, 90% of the electorate vote, double today’s turnouts. But back then voting was a public affair and workers know they may be fired if seen to be voting for Bryan. McKinley wins. He rolls back regulations.

THE FIRST BILLION DOLLAR COMPANY

Carnegie agrees to sell out to Morgan for the equivalent of four hundred billion dollars nowadays (or $480 back then). This is more than the entire budget of the US federal government. It gives Carnegie the largest private fortune the world has ever seen.
It allows Morgan, in 1901, to create US Steel, the first billion dollar company in history. It will dominate the steel business for almost a hundred years. At his peak Morgan will sit on the board of 48 corporations.

ROOSEVELT: THE ROBBER BARON BUSTER

But Morgan’s power drew the attention of New York City police commissioner turned politician, Theodore Roosevelt. Born into a wealthy family, Roosevelt entered public life after an image makeover from New York aristocrat to man of the people. He joins the army and serves during Spanish-American war. Back in New York as governor, he clamps down on the abuses of big business. The Robber Barons hope making Roosevelt into the Vice President will silence him.
"The vice presidency in those days was a place where people went to disappear. They became vice president, were never heard from again. It was almost like a modern witness protection program."

H.W. BRANDS , Historian

But in 1901, President McKinley is shot by Leon Czolgosz, a factory worker who lost his job in a JP Morgan takeover. Czolgosz had joined the growing anarchist movement and McKinley’s big business ties made him a target.
Roosevelt, impotent as McKinley’s number two, now becomes President. Just five months into office he targets the Morgan owned railroad consortium. Morgan is furious. He sees the President of the United States as just another business rival to be bested, or bought off. The Government sues the rail consortium in the first antitrust case filed against a major consortium. The case goes to the Supreme Court. Roosevelt wins and JP Morgan’s rail monopoly is broken.

MORGAN MONEY MAKES OCEANS MEET

Undaunted, Morgan invests in the new canal project in Panama that hopes to link the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Morgan acts as the middle man for the government and raises $40m ($70billion today) to get the project started. Over 75,000 workers labour in brutal heat, under the threat of deadly diseases, digging a 51 mile long canal. But in 1913, a year before it’s completed, Morgan dies in his sleep aged 75. The New York Stock Exchange shuts down for 2 hours in remembrance; an honour normally reserved for the passing of a president.

Fast Facts: 

James Pierpont, JP Morgan’s uncle, wrote “Jingle Bells” in 1857.

Morgan’s first marriage was very brief. He married his first love despite the fact that she had a severe cough. Just four months after their wedding, his wife, after being diagnosed with tuberculosis, died.

A saying from the age of Morgan the robber barons is that an honest man is defined as one who, when bought, stays bought.

"While some multimillionaires robber barons started in poverty, most did not. A study of the origins of 303 textile, railroad and steel executives of the 1870s showed that 90% came from middle or upper class families." Howard Zinn: A People’s History of the USA

Quotes :

Whitman scholar Horace Traubel’s obituary for Morgan

“He was a brute. His code was barbarous...He walked over rather than round the humanities… (but) I am not satisfied when he is discredited…. He was a certain civilization.

What the power of wealth stood for: he was that. He was stocks, bonds, banks, railroads, trusts, financiering, chicanery, profit. He was success. We put his age away in the hole in the ground with him.”

Assistant Treasury Secretary William Curtis

“U.S. finances (are) being controlled by a committee, of which JP Morgan is the chairman… while the Secretary of Treasury sits, practically powerless in his office.”

Morgan’s inscription on his young first wife’s grave.

“Not Lost but Gone Before”

Morgan’s alleged reply to a journalist asking the cost of his yacht.

"If you have to ask, you can’t afford it.”

What Morgan is actually recorded as having said and the basis for the often misquoted aphorism above.

“You have no right to own a yacht if you ask that question” 

 

Great Men Talk Of morgan

Whitman scholar Horace Traubel’s obituary for Morgan

“He was a brute. His code was barbarous...He walked over rather than round the humanities… (but) I am not satisfied when he is discredited…. He was a certain civilization.

What the power of wealth stood for: he was that. He was stocks, bonds, banks, railroads, trusts, financiering, chicanery, profit. He was success. We put his age away in the hole in the ground with him.”

Assistant Treasury Secretary William Curtis

“U.S. finances (are) being controlled by a committee, of which JP Morgan is the chairman… while the Secretary of Treasury sits, practically powerless in his office.”

Morgan’s inscription on his young first wife’s grave.

“Not Lost but Gone Before”

Morgan’s alleged reply to a journalist asking the cost of his yacht.

"If you have to ask, you can’t afford it.”

What Morgan is actually recorded as having said and the basis for the often misquoted aphorism above.

“You have no right to own a yacht if you ask that question”

Kenya loses to South Africa as film destination
Read more at: http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/article/2000189456/kenya-loses-to-south-africa-as-film-destination/

Two Vietnamese and a Chinese arrested with ivory at JKIA, Nairobi
Read more at: http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/article/2000189450/two-vietnamese-and-a-chinese-arrested-with-ivory-at-jkia-nairobi

Two Vietnamese and a Chinese arrested with ivory at JKIA, Nairobi
Read more at: http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/article/2000189450/two-vietnamese-and-a-chinese-arrested-with-ivory-at-jkia-nairobi

Two Vietnamese and a Chinese arrested with ivory at JKIA, Nairobi
Read more at: http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/article/2000189450/two-vietnamese-and-a-chinese-arrested-with-ivory-at-jkia-nairobi

Two Vietnamese and a Chinese arrested with ivory at JKIA, Nairobi
Read more at: http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/

Two Vietnamese and a Chinese arrested with ivory at JKIA, Nairobi
Read more at: http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/

Two Vietnamese and a Chinese arrested with ivory at JKIA, Nairobi
Read more at: http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/

GUNMEN ATTACKING PAKISTANI BACHAKHAN UNIVERSITY LEAVES 30 DEAD

Four gunmen killed after an attack in north-west Pakistan,Officials warn that the death toll is likely to rise

Pakistani security personnel taking position outside the Bacha Khan university following an attack by gunmen in Charsadda.

Pakistani officials say the death toll from an attack by Taliban assailants on a university in Charsadda, northwestern Pakistan, has risen to 30, with many wounded.
A gun battle ensued between militants and security forces at the Bacha Khan University, after four gunmen entered the campus in the morning. Reports say explosions were first heard at around 9:30 a.m. on Wednesday.
The military and police forces rushed in by about noon, and exchanged gunfire with the attackers. By early afternoon, four of the attackers had been killed, according to Lieutenant General Asim Bajwa of the Pakistan Armed Forces.
According to AFP, the Pakistani Taliban has claimed responsibility for the attack.
“Our four suicide attackers carried out the attack on Bacha Khan University today,” Umar Mansoor, a commander in the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistani (TTP) militant group said over the phone from an undisclosed location.

He said the attack was in retaliation for the military's recent crack down on extremists in tribal areas.
A spokesman for rescue workers, Bilal Ahmad Faizi, said 19 bodies had been recovered including students, guards, policemen and at least one teacher, named by media as chemistry professor Syed Hamid Hussain.
Many of the dead were apparently shot in the head, TV footage showed.
Reuters also has this account of the how the attack unfolded:
The militants, using the cover of thick, wintry fog, scaled the walls of the university before entering buildings and opening fire on students and teachers in classrooms and hostels, police said.
Students told media they saw several young men wielding AK-47 guns storming the university housing where many students were sleeping.

“They came from behind and there was a big commotion,” an unnamed male student told a news channel from a hospital bed in Charsadda’s District Hospital. “We were told by teachers to leave immediately. Some people hid in bathrooms.”
Television footage showed military vehicles packed with soldiers driving into the campus as helicopters buzzed overhead and ambulances lined up outside the main gate while anxious parents consoled each other.
Shabir Khan, a lecturer in the English department, said he was about to leave his university housing for the department when firing began.

“Most of the students and staff were in classes when the firing began,” Khan said. “I have no idea about what’s going on but I heard one security official talking on the phone to someone and said many people had been killed and injured.”

The terrorist monitoring group SITE confirms the mixed messages coming from the Pakistani Taliban. While one commander Umar Mansoor claimed responsibility for the attack. The organisation’s central spokesman Muhammad Khurasni has strongly condemned it.

Pakistani rescuers shift an injured victim from the Bacha Khan university.

Pakistani police and onlookers gather in front of a hospital after the attack.

Pakistani rescuers carrying coffins after the attack.

Pakistani TV broadcasts showed heavy military presence at the university in the afternoon, as security forces cleared the campus block by block. Reports say the attackers managed to hold out for several hours in the campus buildings before they were killed.

Pakistan's army chief Raheef Sharif (R) arrives at Bacha Khan university following an attack by militants in Charsadda.

Pakistan Army's QRF and KPK Elite force arrive on the spot to carryout an operation at #BachaKhanUniversity #Charsadda
Posted by Bacha Khan University Charsadda (OFFICIAL) on Tuesday, January 19, 2016

Lack of ambulances a worrying sign amid Bacha... by arynews

News outlets are reporting rising casualty numbers as the events unfold. So far, one Chemistry Professor Syed Hamid Husain[PHD in Organic Chem] killed in the attack has been identified, said Al Jazeera.

Students told of how he opened fire on gunmen as they rampaged across campus, giving the young people time to flee before he was cut down in a hail of bullets.
“We saw three terrorists shouting, ‘Allah is great!’ and rushing towards the stairs of our department,” one man told reporters.
“One student jumped out of the classroom through the window. We never saw him get up.”
He described seeing Hussain holding a pistol and firing at the attackers.
“Then we saw him fall down and as the terrorists entered the (registrar) office we ran away.”
Geology student Zahoor Ahmed said Husain had warned him not to leave the building after the first shots were fired.
“He was holding a pistol in his hand,” he said.
“Then I saw a bullet hit him. I saw two militants were firing. I ran inside and then managed to flee by jumping over the back wall.”
“They fired directly at” the professor, sociology student Muhammad Daud told AFP, describing Hussain as “a real gentleman and a respectable teacher”. Pakistan’s President Mamnoon Hussain confirmed the lecturer had died, and expressed his grief and condolences to the man’s family.

Journalist Omar Quraishi has some background and a photograph of Omar Mansoor, the Pakistani Taliban commander who initially claimed the TTP carried out the attack.

Celine Dion’s husband Rene Angelil dies of cancer 

Canadian singer Celine Dion (R) and her husband Rene Angelil. 

 

Celine Dion’s husband Rene Angelil, who discovered the Canadian pop diva and long managed her career, died aged 73, after a struggle with cancer.

Dion announced his passing in a Twitter message, saying: “Rene Angelil passed away this morning at his home in Las Vegas after a long and courageous battle against cancer.”

A spokesman for the singer, Marc Olivier, said more information would be given in the coming days, but for now the family wished to be left to mourn in private.
News of Angelil’s death triggered an outpouring of sympathy from Dion’s fans, with the singer’s name trending on Twitter worldwide.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau tweeted his condolences to Dion and to Angelil’s six children, including three from a previous marriage.
Angelil’s home city of Montreal announced that flags would be flown at half mast in his honor, as mayor Denis Coderre paid tribute to “a monument of the entertainment world.”

Born in Quebec to Lebanese-Syrian immigrants, Angelil started out in music dabbling in yeye – French 60s music – before trying his hand at comedy, and finally settling on a career in music management.

DEBUT ALBUM

As a talent agent, he signed one of the biggest names in Quebec music, Ginette Reno, but the arrangement ended abruptly in 1981, leaving Angelil destitute and desperate.

Just then, another opportunity arose.

At age 12, Dion had recorded a demo tape with her mother and sent it to Angelil. He was so struck by her voice that he signed her to an exclusive management contract – mortgaging his house to finance her debut album.

“I’d never heard anything like it. For me, it was the most beautiful voice in the world,” he would recall in interviews.

The businessman set out to make Dion the biggest singer in the world.

His protegee and future wife went on to become one of pop’s music’s best-known voices, winning five Grammy awards including for the “Titanic” theme song “My Heart Will Go On,” and collaborating with stars from Stevie Wonder to Barbra Streisand.

Behind the scenes, Angelil invested Dion’s earnings from concerts and 220 million albums sold worldwide in restaurants, dance clubs and golf courses. He launched clothing lines, perfumes and other Dion branded merchandise, building an empire of wealth for them to share.

“There is no other manager like him,” Dion once said. “Ninety-nine point nine percent of what’s happened to me (my success) is because of Rene.”

Canadian singer Celine Dion (R) and her husband Rene Angelil. 

EXTRAVAGANT WEDDING

In 1994, when she was 19 and he was 45, the couple married in an extravagant wedding ceremony that was televised live in Canada, and splashed all over glossy magazines.

“My mother wanted to kill him,” Dion said later.

Eventually the couple landed in Las Vegas where Dion played nearly 1,000 shows, earning her more millions.

Their fairytale life, however, took a turn when Angelil was diagnosed with throat cancer in 2013. A year later he stepped down as Dion’s manager – a position he held for more than 30 years.

After taking a break from performing to care for her husband, Dion returned to performing on the Strip in 2015 at Angelil’s urging.

In a candid interview with USA Today she described dealing with the pending loss of “the only boyfriend I’ve ever had” and “the leader of the band all my life.”

In a soft voice, she recalled: “I’ll say, ‘You’re scared? I understand. Talk to me about it,’” pausing before adding: “And Rene says to me, ‘I want to die in your arms.’ OK, fine, I’ll be there, you’ll die in my arms.”

Sarah Hassan quits Kenyan TV, moves to LA for further studies

 Media personality and former actress Sarah Hassan.

NTV’s Discovery +254 co-host and former Tahidi High actress Sarah Hassan has quit local TV and relocated to Los Angeles, US for further studies.

The sassy entertainer made the announcement on her website, revealing she had actually relocated with her fiancé, Martin Dale.
“Immediately I started to work, I started saving up for school fees and two years ago, I started filling out my application. Every other day I used to look at my application and work harder,” she wrote.
She says she got admitted to a LA academy early last year after Dale encouraged her to send in the application.

“From when I was young, in school and was able to understand film and TV, I always wanted to go to Film school specifically New York Film Academy in Los Angeles to learn and understand more, but some dreams take longer to accomplish,” she wrote on her website.
PURSUE HER DREAM
“I wouldn’t have been able to get this far without my mum, dad and my entire family who have always been there for me, supporting me every step of the way, not forgetting my closest friends, yes… you know who you are.”

The TV host who says that she was an active kid when growing up, adds that she loved mathematics and went ahead to study actuarial science at JKUAT Karen campus.
Sarah says Dale surprised her when he bought two air tickets to LA, and decided to move with her as she studies and tries to pursue her dream.

She concludes by saying, “It is a scary, exciting dream. A new chapter in my life and I am so grateful to God for everything he has blessed me with so far. 2015 was an amazing year, the love of my life Mr Martin Dale, proposing to me, and getting accepted to the prestigious New York Film Academy.”

Sh45bn election would be one of the most expensive in Africa

NAIROBI:Kenya could host one of the most expensive elections on the continent yet, according to a plan launched by the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC).

But observers are saying a huge budgetary allocation does not guarantee free and fair elections.

On Thursday, the IEBC launched the Election Operation Plan, a document that is supposed to guide the implementation of the Commission’s Strategic Plan ahead of the 2017 elections.

If all tools are put together, it could cost Sh45 billion to achieve, making 2017 the most expensive election not just in Kenya but in East Africa.

PUBLIC TRUST

But even as the commission launched the plan, which elaborates on better technology for vote-tallying and results relaying, Law Society of Kenya cautioned that the agency must do more to regain public trust.

“I don’t think more financial resources guarantee good elections. IEBC spends more on elections than its peers in Africa and elsewhere, but we need to ask yourselves why they are not doing better than them,” Prof David Kikaya who teaches at United States International University-Africa told the Nation.

(READ: IEBC unveils Sh45bn polls spending plan)

“I wouldn’t emphasise on finances, I would emphasise on whether we have the right people in the right places.”

Tanzania National Electoral Commission spent an equivalent of about Sh8 billion to run the elections in which 23 million voters participated.

Nigeria, with 68 million voters spent about Sh46 billion to conduct elections in Africa’s most populous nation. Both elections were given a fair grading on fairness by observers.

South Africa spent about Sh12 billion in 2014 elections which the Independent Electoral Commission said had 18 million voters.

Uganda which is scheduled to hold elections next month announced a budget of Sh12.5 billion in an election that 15 million voters may take part.

ELECTIONS BUDGET

In Kenya, the massive budget shows the commission would require Sh30 billion to prepare for the election and an additional Sh15 billion for normal operations.

Only 10 per cent of that budget is expected to come from donors. It is targeting to have 22 million voters on the roll.

Ahead of the 2013, IEBC asked for Sh25 billion but was given Sh17 billion.

With Kenya seeking to emerge from the chaos of 2007 post-election violence, donors who had been supporting ten per cent of the electoral budget unusually raised their additional contribution by giving Sh2.2 billion or 13 per cent.

Law Society of Kenya says the IEBC needs to work on its image to supplement the benefits of more funding.

“Financing does not work in isolation of other factors. You cannot be a good referee just because you are paid well. You need other qualities such as integrity,” LSK Chairman Eric Mutua told the Nation.

Anglican church suspends US arm over gay marriage

 

 

Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby at a past event. The Anglican church has suspended the Episcopal Church, its US branch, for three years for approving gay marriages. AFP PHOTO | CARL DE SOUZA 

LONDON

The Anglican church on Thursday said it had suspended the Episcopal Church, its US branch, for three years after it approved ceremonies for same-sex marriages.

The issue has long strained ties within the estimated 85-million-strong Anglican Communion, which includes more liberal members such as the United States and Britain, and conservatives such as Nigeria and Kenya.

The Episcopal Church last year approved ceremonies for same-sex marriages, shortly after the Supreme Court legalised the practice across the United States.

"The traditional doctrine of the church in view of the teaching of Scripture, upholds marriage as between a man and a woman in faithful, lifelong union," said a statement from a meeting this week of 38 Anglican primates.

"Given the seriousness of these matters we formally acknowledge this distance by requiring that for a period of three years The Episcopal Church no longer represent us on ecumenical and interfaith bodies," the statement added.

The primates, chief bishops or archbishops of churches within the Anglican Communion, also said the Episcopal Church "will not take part in decision making on any issues pertaining to doctrine or polity".

The religious leaders had gathered in England at the invitation of Anglican Communion leader Justin Welby, Britain's Archbishop of Canterbury, to discuss key issues, and he is expected to hold a news conference at the end of the meeting on Friday.

A website for the gathering said the decision to suspend the Episcopal Church had been leaked early, prompting them to issue a statement ahead of the news conference.

Declining church attendance in more liberal countries has put pressure on Anglican leaders to be more accommodating on social issues such as same-sex marriage, but that has put them at loggerheads with conservatives.

Homosexuality is either illegal or strongly taboo in several countries with large Anglican congregations.

In 2014, Welby said it would be "catastrophic" if the Church of England, mother church of the Anglican Communion, accepted gay marriage, arguing that the association could lead to the slaughter of Christians in countries such as Pakistan, South Sudan and Nigeria.

 

CS Henry Rotich's response to Raila Eurobond theft claims

National Treasury CS Henry Rotich

NAIROBI,Kenya:Over the last three months the issue of the Eurobond has been in the public domain. During that time, the National Treasury has consistently and comprehensively responded to the issue through the media and posted the relevant documents on its website. Further, the National Treasury has also presented the same information to Parliament. Anybody who is sensible and well intentioned will be able to see that the claims that are now being made by the Former Prime Minister Hon. Raila Odinga are absolutely false and misleading.
As Kenyans will recall, the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP), directed the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) and the Director of Criminal Investigation (DCI) to investigate the matter and forward their findings to the DPP’s Office. These independent institutions have carried out their investigations and forwarded their report to the DPP. The DPP has summarized the findings of the EACC and DCI as follows:
a. no government official was found culpable;
b. recommended that the file be closed; and
c. recommended that the Auditor General carry out a special audit in Ministries/ Departments and Agencies to verify how the proceeds of the Eurobond were applied.
It is also important to note that Parliament has also recommended that the Auditor General carries out a special audit in Ministries / Departments / Agencies and indeed the Auditor General has commenced the special audit.
Despite these ongoing processes, Hon. Raila Odinga has persistently been making allegation that the proceeds of the Eurobond were stolen or unaccounted for. However, when asked to provide any evidence which could assist the investigative arms of Government, he has failed consistently. In addition, when Hon. Raila Odinga was asked again today in a public forum, he failed to provide any evidence. It is vital for the Kenyan people to note that Hon. Raila Odinga has relied on outright lies, and subversion of the truth for political gain and at the expense of the Kenyan economy. Clearly, these statements are meant to hurt the Kenyan Economy through sabotage by keeping away investors. The Kenyan people must hold him to account for lost opportunities now and in the future.
For purposes of the general public information, we shall again clarify some of the key issues raised in his statement as follows:
1. The allegation that US$ US$ 999 million (Kshs. 88.5 billion) is missing
Response:
The standard procedure for this transaction is for the Government to sell the dollars received to CBK which it retains as its own international reserves and simultaneously credits the Government Account at the CBK with the equivalent in Kenya Shillings.
In this particular case the Kenya Shillings Equivalent of Kshs. 88.46 billion (US$ 999 Million) was credited in the CBK Sovereign Bond Account No.1000212764 at the Central Bank of Kenya on the 8th September, 2014. At the same time, the CBK’s international reserves were increased by the equivalent in dollars of US$ 999 million at the CBK Account held with the Federal Reserve Bank in New York. This clearly demonstrates that there were no funds lost because the CBK forex reserves increased and the Government received its money.
The SWIFT transfer documents and the bank statements from the JP Morgan Chase bank and Citibank relating to these transactions were shared with Parliament, Auditor General, investigators and the media as well as posted in the National Treasury website and no information was redacted. As indicated earlier it is evident to well-meaning Kenyans that the money was received at the CBK.
2. The mystery of 7 letters purporting to direct the Central Bank of Kenya to make non-existent transfers to the Consolidated Fund.
Response:
It is ridiculous to purport that the letters referred to above are not authentic and that the transfer instructions are not genuine. These were the transfer instructions to the CBK to move the funds from the Sovereign Bond Account to the National Exchequer Account. We have shared the letters that transferred these funds to the National Exchequer Account with the Auditor General, the Controller of Budget, the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission and the Director of Criminal Investigations who have confirmed that the funds were received into the National Exchequer Account from the Sovereign Bond Account at the CBK, from where the Controller of Budget authorized the withdrawals. We also have posted them onto the National Treasury website www.treasury.go.ke for general public consumption.
3. We wish to re-emphasize that all proceeds of the Eurobond were received and properly accounted for. The National Treasury respects the rule of law and has complied fully with the provisions of the Constitution and the Public Finance Management Act, 2012 during the Eurobond transactions.
Conclusion.
4. There is nothing new that the Hon. Raila Odinga has said. All the information is already in the public domain. Indeed the officers mentioned were in the course of ordinary government business and he has presented no evidence of misconduct on their part. He is engaged in the malicious destruction of the reputations of the public officers. Equally, in this day and age, it is shameful that someone can cast aspersions on independent, reputable and highly-regulated institutions such as the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, JP Morgan Chase Bank, New York, Citibank New York without a shred of evidence.
Thank you
HENRY ROTICH, EGH
CABINET SECRETRARY / NATIONAL TREASURY
Dated: 14th January, 2016

Comedian Jimmy Morales takes office as Guatemala's new president

Guatemalan new President Jimmy Morales delivers a speech during the inauguration ceremony in Guatemala City, on January 14, 2016. AFP PHOTO | JOHAN ORDONEZ 

• Invitees to the swearing-in included US Vice President Joe Biden, and the presidents of Mexico, Ecuador and most Central American nations.
• His political support is weak, with his conservative party holding just 11 seats in the 158-seat Congress.

GUATEMALA CITY

Jimmy Morales, a former TV comic elected Guatemala's new president on a wave of public revulsion against widespread graft, took office Thursday in a ceremony attended by leaders from the Americas.

Invitees to the swearing-in included US Vice President Joe Biden, and the presidents of Mexico, Ecuador and most Central American nations. Spain's former king Juan Carlos also attended.

"Not tolerating corruption or theft, that is something we can do and what we are going to do from the first day," Morales, 46, said as he accepted the presidential sash.

Morales was previously best known for a television role as a country bumpkin who nearly becomes president.

Elections on October 25 elevated him to the office of head of state for real, by a landslide, despite having no political experience beyond an unsuccessful run for municipal office in 2011.

His victory was attributed to widespread public disgust with corruption, especially after his elected predecessor, Otto Perez, was felled by a major graft scandal.

Yet his political support is weak, with his conservative party holding just 11 seats in the 158-seat Congress.

No members from his party sit on the incoming congressional steering committee, and an opposition figure was chosen to be the new speaker in congress.

CORRUPTION

Morales' party is also fending off charges that some of its founders, former military officers, are linked to atrocities committed during Guatemala's 1960-1996 civil war.

Morales has given few concrete indications of how he intends to make good on his vows to fight corruption, or to combat the country's high murder rate and poverty.

His cabinet was expected to be unveiled hours after the inauguration ceremony, which was delayed more than two hours because of congressional wrangling over its top posts.

Ahead of the swearing-in, Biden met with Morales to congratulate him for vowing to fight corruption in his nation of 16 million people. He also stressed that Guatemala should attract more investment to counter emigration.

Morales asked for Guatemalan migrants in the US to be given "temporary protected status" that would preclude them being deported. Biden said he would analyze the proposal.

Biden and Morales then went into a closed-door meeting with the presidents of Honduras and El Salvador.

Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernandez said after the meeting that the three Central American nations would hold a technical meeting on migration and security in two weeks, then another meeting would be held with Biden in a month's time.

The United States this month launched raids to round up and deport mostly Central American migrants who have court orders to leave the country.

GANGS

Washington in parallel has allocated $750 million to improve security and prosperity in the so-called Northern Triangle made up of Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador, which is prey to vicious gang violence.

Guatemala recorded 6,000 murders in 2015, at least half of them blamed on gangs.

Its problems were heightened last year by political instability when protests erupted over a corruption scandal exposing kickbacks to officials in return for lowered customs duties for some companies. That brought about Perez's ouster in September.

Most Guatemalans view Morales with fondness as a familiar figure from his 15-year television career on a program he produced.

His brother Sammy Morales who co-produced the show told a web magazine, Nomada, asserted Jimmy was prepared "academically, emotionally and spiritually" to take on his new role.
According to his official biography, Jimmy Morales, an Evangelical Christian, has a university degree in business administration, a masters in media and communication and another in strategic studies with a specialisation in security and defence.

He has been married for two decades to his wife, Gilda Patricia Marroquin, and has three children.