Nation Media Group (NMG) Mombasa office has suffered a major blow following reports that one of its key writers is set to ditch the company to work for a Mombasa gubernatorial aspirant. 

Mohamed Ahmed, who has been one of the key correspondents from the bureau is set to join businessman Suleiman Shahbal's campaign team. 

Mohamed will head the Communication Department as the Director, reliable sources have confirmed to Ommy Dallah. 

The journalist has been writing on security and political affairs covering Mombasa and the entire Coast region. 

Ommydalla.co.ke is reliably informed that, Moha, as he is popularly known in the media and social circles was poached from NMG by Shahbal’s campaign manager Idris Abdirahman. 

Mr Abdirahman is working as director of security affairs at Mombasa Governor's Office. He also served as Director of political affairs. He has since joined Mr Shahbal. 

He is now seen as the master strategist who is part of the team set to deliver a victory for Mr Shahbal come 2022. 

Meanwhile, talks between Idris and Mohamed started way back in February before the journalist accepted the offer.

Mohamed has served NMG for the last five years. 

He joined the media company from 2014 as an intern before he was confirmed as a correspondent in 2015. 

Since then he has worked under three bureau chiefs including the current one Allan Olingo. 

Reports indicate that Olingo and Mohamed had a good rapport and made the correspondent to be seen as his favourite. 

Sources from NMG told Ommydalla.co.ke Olingo was "sad" to see him leave the company. 

“This is a major blow to the bureau, Moha was an asset especially on crime reporting” said the source.

Fast rising Nigerian star and U and I music signee, Olakira has debuted his first sophomore EP titled 4Play out tomorrow(14th May 2020). 

4play is a collaborative work of the multi-talented artiste that has seen him produce two songs and also feature various producers and two fast-rising female artistes Sho Madjozi South Africa and Zuchu Tanzania. 

The tracks in the EP are Sere ft Zuchu produced by Simba Tagz, Sterryo, and Drumatik. The second track Gotchu, was produced by Drumatic while the third and fourth track, Hot night, Call on Me ft Sho Madjozi are works of Simba Tagz and Mr. Kamara, and Olakira and T Boy the Flame.

Other bonus tracks include For Life produced by Qasebeatz and Simba Tagz and Summertime ft Moonchild- Sanelly produced by Olakira, Mr. Kamara, and Drumatik. 

Call On Me: https://youtu.be/O4MqDtOHeC8 

For Life: https://youtu.be/-R60KCk_r34 

Gotchu: https://youtu.be/l22Jxmz9uAE  

Hot Night: https://youtu.be/Bl6plB4-Efw  

Summertime:https://youtu.be/QF4CZcbwRtc 

Olakira has been riding high with Sere that featured Tanzanian and Wasafi first lady Zuchu released two weeks ago.

This is the first single off the Ep and has been greatly received, with the video garnering 1. 3million views on YouTube in just two weeks and over 100k streams across digital platforms. 

Sere: https://youtu.be/wht8D5mekJ8 

Speaking about his future plans, Olakira says "4 Play is just a tease of what's to come in the Album due later in the year. I am currently in the studio working on new stuff that will blow your minds off". 

Olakira had a great 2020 despite the pandemic, his single In My Maserati became a global anthem with 60million cumulative views on YouTube and over 150 million streams across digital platforms.

The In My Maserati star is set to release 3 videos and also embark on a Pan African tour to promote the EP after lockdown restrictions are lifted. 

One of Kenya’s leading travel and tour company One World Adventures is set to expand its wings to Mombasa County, the first office outside Nairobi.

According to the group’s managing director Solomon Wao, the company is set to be a game changer in the tourism industry as they introduce new products to the Coastal market.

He said they plan to venture into untapped tourism products such as battle field tourism safaris and desert safari.

"Mombasa and the Coast region at large has alot of potential and opportunities, that is why we have also decided to venture here" he told Ommy Dallah.

He said they also intend to identify and explore virgin destinations such as Lamu, Tana River for viewing of endangered mangabey monkeys among others.

Wao said they are determined to partner with star rated hotels, villas, apartments, tented camps and lodges in Kenya and beyond so as to give their clients comfort and unrivalled experience.

One World’s products are new to the market and it is set to bring in much needed changes in the tourism industry.

Such explorations will not only be a boost to the ailing tourism sector, but will give the targeted varieties of activities while planning a tour in Kenya

Wao said the company targets the domestic tourism which has given the tourist sector a lifeline during this Covid-19 pandemic period especially when international tourism flow deteriorated due to the restrictions put in place by various nations to curb the virus.

To register its presence in Mombasa, One World has lined up series of events starting this Saturday where tourism is set to be infused with entertainment and culture.

The event will be taking place at the Reef Hotel where guests are expected to be entertained by artists such Susumila while DJ Crème dela Crème and Bonz will be the spinning masters.

The event will be emceed by super MC Willy M Tuva and Gates Mgenge.

Attendee will have a chance to witness some of the creative photography and videography services in the county.

For the car enthusiasts, One World has promised a thrilling car showcase and attendees are encouraged to carry there cheque books as they could purchase the cars on spot.

Culture will be displayed in various forms including corporate exhibitions as well as a showcase by APDK Bombolulu workshop and cultural center.

 "This is an extra ordinary event that will showcase alot of things in the showbiz and tourism industry. We want to bring tourism home to the people first and this also means coming with extra ordinary things " said Wao.

Wao further noted that the recent visit by Tanzania President Samia Suluhu has opened opportunities to local companies and event organisers to venture the Tanzanian market.

Wao charged "Mama Samia's visit has given us hope and lee way to venture in areas like Daresalaam, Arusha and Zanzibar which were previously a challenge to us" 

This past weekend saw revelers throng Wasafi lounge for the Genge Vibes Party that was held on Saturday at the Kiambu Road establishment.

Juacali had fans on their feet throughout the show with hit songs like Bidii Yangu, Kiasi, Kamata Dame, Ngeli ya Genge among others.

The action packed show was also graced by Dj Ras Hani throwing it down alongside, DJ Ocheezy and MC Wilko King of Swag.

The event which also served as the ultimate May Babies Birthday bash for the weekend celebrated resident DJ Ras Hani and a host of other May Babies at the party.

Wasafi Lounge is set to host a series of shows with P-Unit’s Frasha all geared up to entertain fans this coming weekend Saturday 15^th May in a bid to spice up entertainment along Kiambu Road and its environs.

The Frasha Foundation in collaboration with Wasafi Lounge will first proceed to Devine Mercy Children’s Home in Githunguri and culminate the drive at Wasafi lounge for the show dubbed #GinandGiving.

Well-wishers can drop off donations in kind like food-stuff, clothes, shoes, toys and sanitary pads at Wasafi Lounge by Friday 14^th May.

Anti- gender based violence (GBV) activists have come out to offer support to a Mombasa based female police officer whose video went viral last week asking the inspector general of police to accept her resignation letter.

The activists offered to give the officer attached to the traffic department free psychological counselling and promised to assist her pursue the case.

In the viral video, the female cop was seen complaining of sexual harassment and discrimination by senior officers in the police service.

In an interview with Ommy Dallah, the activists led by Topista Juma of Muhuri congratulated her for coming out to air the challenges female officers go through while on duty.

They encouraged other officers going through similar and other dire situations to come out and ask for help saying that there are many cases which have gone unreported.

“I would like to ask officers going through depression or any form of violence to come out and ask for help. We have seen cases of officers committing suicide and murder because of depression and because of this we are ready to offer free psychological support and counselling,” said Topista.

Last week Inspector General of police Hilary Mutyambai ordered for investigations after the video officer alleging unfair treatment and sexual harassment went viral on social media.

“I have directed the Gender and Children Directorate to independently investigate the matter and give a report within 7 days,” he said on Twitter.

Muhuri has partnered with the county government of Mombasa through their departments on gender based violence to launch a hotline for reporting the cases (0800720587).

According to their records, their GBV desk has been receiving more than a hundred cases related to gender violence every month since the advent of the corona pandemic last year.

From March to December last year, they received more than 350 cases related to gender violence and defilement of minors.

Most of the cases were reported to have come from Junda and Mshomoroni areas in Kisauni Sub-county, Kisumu ndogo in Nyali while a number of cases from Mvita and Likoni go unreported hence hindering justice to the victims.

“We had many cases reported from Junda, mshomoroni and kisumu ndogo areas. However there were several cases in Mvita and Likoni which were unreported as concerned parties resolved to settle for an out of court settlement,” said Topista.

Topista also reported that there were many cases of men being battered by their wives during the pandemic period but were afraid to report due to stigma from society.

This she said led to many suffering in silent while others got depressed a matter that she said can be resolved by encouraging men to come out and not be afraid to call for help.

“Our hotline received a lot of calls from men reporting they had been abused by their spouses. We were able to counsel them and also helped fix several marriages during the pandemic,” added Topista.

Muhuri  established a GBV desk outside the Mombasa Law Courts while the department of gender in Mombasa county opened up a situation room in Tononoka social hall where citizens can report cases of gender based violence.

If you have visited Mombasa within the last ten years then you definitely are not a stranger to these black birds. In fact their dominance within the coastal region would make you think this is their original home and probably their only habitat.

Unfortunately, the crow is not a native species of the Kenyan Coast. To clear the beaches of stinking, rotten, garbage in the late 18th Century the British imported the House Crow from India into Zanzibar.

Soon flocks of these alien birds were on mainland Tanzania and today millions of House Crows are ravaging Kenya from Lunga Lunga to Lamu! 

Their collective noun should be a "Murder of Crows" and these invaders literally murder Kenya's fauna wherever they have landed. Whole villages along Kenya's Coast have been entirely denuded.

There are no lizards, gekkos, grasshoppers, butterflies, crickets, beach crabs in these villages all eaten along with common indigenous birds like the bulbul, golden weaver and even the beautiful lilac-breasted roller. 

Daily the House Crow is gaining new territory. Already their ugly cawing is heard amongst the calls of the bush in Tsavo East Game Park Lodges. 

They have been seen at Voi on the way to Nairobi, following the SGR. Once these horrors reach Nairobi there will be no way to stop them.

Following expanding urban sprawl, they'll naturally occupy the Rift Valley, and then spread to the vital Tourist Lodges in the Masai Mara.

Eventually, they will definitely dominate, and decimate Kenya's fauna and greatly affect the flora. This has become a great concern for environmentalists, nature enthusiast and the tourism industry.  

The Kenya Tourism Federation Chairman, Mohammed Hersi, shares that the fight against the Indian house crows has for a long time been a battle for hoteliers.

The crows do not just feed on rubbish and leftovers but also have a nose for delicacies and will a number of times invade restaurants, grab food from tourists’ plates and leave their dropping all over the furniture. Unfortunately though, he mentions that the government has been the least involved in dealing with this invasion.

“For a long time we have been fighting it on our own but other organizations are moving in now. The biggest threat with the house crow is that it is at the top of the food chain, this means that no other bird can feed on it but it feeds on all the others. It will be an even bigger problem when they invade the Tsavo parks and make their way to Nairobi." He shares.

Adding "They are already in Mtito Andei. The crows are a pest just like the locusts are and the government should be doing everything possible to get rid of them, unfortunately this battle has only been left to private wings,”.

Some hotels have been forced to hire bird chasers in fight against the house crows.

Kenya Wildlife Services is currently the lead in the Indian house crow control program.

According to a report by Dr Mohammed Omar, Principal Scientist Coast Conservation Area, the Indian house crow has proved to be a very invasive species as it tends to outcompete other native species.

It poses a number of risks as it is a nuisance to tourists, eats turtle nests, drives out and raids other nests and destroys eggs of other small birds.

“There are more than 1130 bird species within Kenya, 120 of these species are associated with the Coast, and they migrate to and from other areas because of habitation traits. But in the recent years most of these birds have been displaced by these invasive crows. The areas most affected currently include Mombasa, Kwale and Kilifi. We are afraid they might end up going to Tsavo as they have already been spotted in Voi. This means that there will be a lower diversity of birds in the parks,” shares the official.

According to Dr Mohammed, Kenya Wildlife Services in partnership with other organizations including the ministry of  tourism, Kenya airports authority, ministry of health, national museum of Kenya, Kenya birds of prey, Nema  and others  are currently in discussion on what can be done and the correct methodology to target this species.

Over population of the house crows has also greatly affected farmers as they raid and damage crops leading to low harvests, they have a mob tactic and they attack their target areas in groups.

About 8 years ago, Dancan Mitchell, Fred Otieno and a couple of Vipingo villagers started the Vipingo Village Crow eradication Kids initiative.

The initiative engages the local kids in raiding the house crow nests and destroying their eggs. Every week the kids destroy over 8,000 eggs, the kids are then paid 5 shillings for every egg that is destroyed from the Crows no more funds drive.

The initiative has also made Vipingo Ridge the best bird watching location in the Coast due to the relative absence of the crows.

“We started this initiative 8 years ago as a team of three but from there we engage other young people in eradication of the crow nests. We started with the Vipingo and Shariani areas as the crows had chased out almost all birds, today the Vipingo ridge where we started is nearly crow free. What we do is hunt down their nests, which we recognize by the twigs they use and their binding styles, they are very intelligent birds." Shares Fred Otieno.

Adding "Their eggs are also colorful so we know exactly which nests are theirs. The inspiration is basically for our children and the generations to come, we don’t want them to never see the different bird species that we have all because the crows made them extinct,”

Dancan Mitchell insists though that it is vital for the Government of Kenya to urgently approve a new start of tests using  the poison Starlicide which will only kill crows, as it is currently near impossible to stop the crows using any other methodology.

Between 1999 and 2005, A Rocha Kenya, a conservation and research organization, used the avian poison called Starlicide to eliminate crows in Malindi, their records show they managed to reduce crows from hundreds to fewer than 50.

But the Kenya government later banned the importation of Starlicide.

“We have just the one chance to eliminate these monsters. The Kenya Wildlife Service is allowing us to self-fund an efficacy test using Crow Specific Starlicide Poison. These tests will be conducted under the most rigorous scrutiny, which means they will be expensive and we need the public’s help to fund these tests, through crows no more fund,” adds the birder and nature enthusiast.  

Pete cast held a vigil on Monday in honour of their fallen colleague Gillie Owino popularly known for his role as Mzee Msiri.

Gillie succumbed to Liver cancer few weeks ago.

http://ommydalla.co.ke/buzz/item/2192-veteran-mombasa-based-actor-gillie-mzee-msiri-is-dead

Led by their producer Daudi Anguka the cast converged at Funzi Island in Kwale county, the location of the series for the vigil dressed in all white outfits.

Another vigil is scheduled for Wednesday at the little theatre club in Mombasa where Mzee Msiri was also an active member and staged several plays.

http://ommydalla.co.ke/buzz/item/2200-mzee-msiri-s-candlelight-vigils-set-for-next-week

Below are some photos from the vigil.

Multi-talented Ugandan singer, songwriter, recording artist and performer, Azawi, who is signed to top music label Swangz Avenue has released the music video for ‘My Year’, her first single off her upcoming album.

Watch ‘My Year’ By Azawi here: https://youtu.be/z1hm2XcFK18

My year was produced by Michael Fingerz at Swangz studios and the video was shot and directed by Kenny Mumba at Moon light studios in South Africa.

She signed with Swangz Avenue a year ago, and has shown her capability to become Africa’s next music star especially with the success of her debut 5-track EP dubbed “Lo Fit“.

Kenyan gospel singer Bahati is currently working on his music album, as he celebrates 7 years in the music industry.

In a bid to ensure that the album is the best, Bahati had to seek advice from Diamond Paltnumz, currently the top artist in East Africa.

In a photo shared online, Bahati is seen hanging out with Diamond Platnumz in South Africa. 

Bahati is in South Africa for the Africa Day concert where he will be representing Kenya

Diamond Platnumz is also working on his fourth album.

http://ommydalla.co.ke/buzz/item/2178-diamond-platnumz-working-on-his-fourth-album

"Yesterday Night in Joburg South Africa With Africa's Number #1 Musician Diamond Platnumz Bro Thank You for Always Giving Me a Listening Ear and Guidance; I Never Take it for Granted!" posted Bahati.

Adding "Your Words & Advice Yesterday I Know that Will Make My Upcoming Álbum One of the Best I have Ever Done! I'm Humbled Thank You for Always Being The Realest Big Brother"

England and Borussia Dortmund star Jude Bellingham has helped raise funds to build a school in Mombasa.

Taking to social media, the 17-year-old midfielder expressed his excitement over the completion of the school.

Construction of the school Miche Bora Nursery and Primary school begun in 2014. The school is situated in kisauni.

Currently Jude has a fundraising campaign to help raise money for a feeding programme in the school.

“The school in Mombasa is finished and the kids are enjoying being back in lessons and learning. Massive thank you to those who donated and supported, myself and the team really appreciate it." he posted on twitter.

Adding "I am continuing to work with Mustard seed foundation project Kenya Mombasa to try and make sure the children are provided with meals at School through the feeding programme " 

The footballer partnered with Mustard Seed Project in building the school.

Master seed project is a UK charity organisation providing quality education, health care and feeding programmes to deprived areas of Kenya.

Founded by husband and wife Geoff and Rita Fowler, they have transformed education in the country, initially starting by renting a building to educate 17 children in two classrooms.