Vijana wamtisha Mwinyi KASI ya vijana wanaoshiriki kwenye maandamano ya kudai maisha bora nchini, imemtisha Rais mstaafu wa Awamu ya Pili, Alhaji Ali Hassan Mwinyi, na hivyo kushauri utafutwe ufumbuzi wa haraka wa kupunguza idadi ya vijana wasio na kazi wanaohama vijijini na kukimbilia mijini.

Mzee Mwinyi alisema kuwa tatizo la ajira kwa vijana hao lipo katika nchi nyingi duniani, na kwamba kuandamana si suluhisho wala dawa ya kulimaliza, hivyo aliwataka vijana kujitengenezea ajira zao wenyewe. Alitoa kauli hiyo jijini Dar es Salaam jana, katika mkutano wa kuhamasisha vijana wa Kata ya Kwadelo wilayani Kondoa Mkoa wa Dodoma, wanaoishi Dar es Salaam, akiwataka warudi kwenye kata yao ili kushiriki kilimo na kujikwamua na hali ngumu ya maisha. Vijana hao waliambatana na Diwani wa Kata hiyo, Alhaji Omar Kariati, ambaye Rais Mwinyi alimmwagia sifa kutokana na juhudi mbalimbali anazozifanya katika kuhakikisha wanapata mahitaji, na hasa katika kuhamasisha shughuli za kilimo mkoani Singida. Mwinyi alitolea mfano nchi ambazo zimeingia katika maandamano na migomo kuwa ni Hispania na Ureno ambapo wananchi wake wanadai serikali yao kuwaboreshea maisha bora ilhali wangejiajiri wenyewe yasingetokea maandamano makubwa kama hayo. Alisema kuwa kila nchi inakabiliwa na tatizo la ajira kwa vijana na kwamba halikwepeki, hivyo aliwataka viongozi katika maeneo husika kuhakikisha vijana wanajituma katika kujitafutia na kutengeneza ajira zao wenyewe bila kuitegemea serikali kwa kiasi kikubwa. “Sasa hivi katika nchi mbalimbali kumekuwa na maandamano ya vijana, wakiwa wanahitaji ajira na maisha mazuri, hivyo kufanya maandamano haisaidii, kinachotakiwa kila mtu, kila kiongozi ana wajibu wa kutengeneza ajira yeye mwenyewe,” alisema Alhaji Mwinyi. Japo hakutaja moja kwa moja, Mzee Mwinyi alionekana kuguswa na idadi ya vijana wanaojitokeza kwenye maandamano kama hayo yanayoendeshwa hapa nchini na vyama vya upinzani na hivyo kuashiria kuwa tatizo la ukosefu wa ajira ni kubwa. Rais huyo mstaafu maarufu kama Mzee Ruksa, aliongeza kuwa vijana wanatakiwa wasikimbilie mijini bali wabaki vijijini walime sana na kwamba waache kulalamika huku akiwataka pia kuweka mbele maombi kwa Mungu. Kuhusu hali ya mfumuko wa bei nchini, alisema kwa sasa nchi nyingi zimekuwa katika hali ngumu ya maisha kutokana na kupanda kwa bei za vyakula, nauli na mafuta, hivyo aliwaasa vijana kuelekeza nguvu zaidi katika kilimo. Naye Kariati aliwataka vijana wa kata yake waishio mijini kuacha kulalamika na kukaa vijiweni badala yake warudi kijijini kwa ajili ya kilimo baada ya serikali kuwawekea fursa za kilimo chenye tija kwa kuwakopesha ekari tano za kilimo kila mmoja. Akitolea ufafanuzi, alisema kuwa akari hizo tano kwa makadirio, mkulima atavuna magunia 100 yakiwa na thamani ya sh milioni tano ambapo marejesho yake ni gunia tano na sh 150,000 jambo ambalo ameliita ni uwezeshwaji mkubwa uliofanywa na serikali. Katika mkutano huo, Mzee Mwinyi alikabidhi kitanda cha kujifungulia akina mama na tenki la maji lenye ujazo wa lita 5,000 kwa wakazi wa Kijiji cha Kerere Chang’ombe na Kwadelo. Pia mwanafunzi wa Chuo cha Ualimu Ununio, Kassimu Athumani, alikabidhiwa sh 200,000 ili zimsaidie katika masuala mbalimbali ya elimu.

Ewura yazibwaga kampuni za mafuta

KESI iliyofunguliwa na kampuni 13 zinazouza mafuta ikiwamo BP Tanzania Limited dhidi ya Mamlaka ya Udhibiti wa Huduma za Nishati na Maji (Ewura), imetupiliwa mbali baada ya kushindwa kuthibitisha hasara waliyopata kwa bei za mafuta kushuka. Baraza la Rufaa la Ushindani mbele ya jopo linaloongozwa na Mwenyekiti, Jaji Razia Sheikh na wajumbe wake Dk. M. Bundara na Ali Juma liliitupilia mbali kesi hiyo mwishoni mwa wiki. “Kutokana na mazingira yaliyokuwapo, mdaiwa (Ewura), alifuata sheria katika kutangaza bei mpya ya mafuta, lakini walalamikaji walikaidi kukubaliana na uamuzi huo. “Kwa hiyo, malalamiko yao hayana msingi na jopo linayatupilia mbali na walalamikaji wanatakiwa kuilipa Ewura gharama za kesi,” alisema Jaji Sheikh. Jaji Sheikh akisoma uamuzi huo, alisema Ewura kwa mamlaka waliyonayo walitangaza bei mpya ya mafuta ambayo ilitakiwa kuanza kutumika Agosti 3, 2011 na ilizitaka kampuni za mafuta kuuza mafuta kwa gharama yoyote, lakini isizidi kiasi walichotangaza. Alisema Ewura wakati ikishusha gharama za mafuta ilizingatia vigezo vyote kisheria na maslahi ya wanunuzi, wawekezaji wa mafuta pamoja na serikali. “Hakuna ushahidi wa kuonyesha kwamba Ewura wakati wanapunguza bei ya mafuta hawakuzingatia maslahi ya wawekezaji, wanunuzi na uchumi wa nchi kwa ujumla. “Wakata rufaa wameshindwa kuleta ushahidi wa kuonyesha athari walizopata kutokana na bei mpya, upo ushahidi miongoni mwao waliendelea kufanya biashara na kusambaza mafuta,” alisema. Kampuni zilizofungua kesi dhidi ya Ewura ni BP Tanzania Limited, Engen Petroleum Tanzania Limited, Camel Oil, Oilcom, Total, Gapco, Hass Petroleum, Oryx, MGS, Lake Oil, Moil na Acer Petroleum Tanzania Limited. Ziliwasilisha madai 10 zikidai kwamba wakati wanashusha bei ya mafuta, Ewura walishindwa kuzingatia gharama za kusambaza mafuta nchini, haikujali maslahi yao, ilishindwa kutoa uwiano kati ya wanunuzi, wasambazaji na iliwataka kuuza mafuta kwa hasara. Sheikh alisema Ewura hawakulazimisha wasambazaji mafuta kuuza kwa bei moja, waliwaruhusu kuuza kwa gharama yoyote ya chini kwa ajili ya ushindani wa kiabiashara, lakini wasizidi bei halisi iliyotangazwa ambapo faida ilizingatiwa. Walalamikaji waliwakilishwa na Wakili Fatuma Karume akisaidiana na Madina Chenge wakati Ewura iliwakilishwa na Galeba pamoja na Kabakama.

Dk. Ulimboka Mahututi •  Huduma zasitishwa tena MOI Hali ya afya ya Dk. Steven Ulimboka ambaye anatibiwa Afrika Kusini, imebadilika ghafla na kuna habari kuwa yuko mahututi.

Habari zilizoifikia Tanzania Daima kutoka vyanzo mbalimbali vya habari ndani na nje ya nchi, zimesema kuwa Dk. Ulimboka alikuwa amepoteza fahamu, na juhudi za kuokoa maisha yake zilikuwa zikiendelea chini ya jopo la madaktari bingwa wa nchi hiyo na wale wa Tanzania. Inadaiwa kwamba hali ya kiongozi huyo wa jumuiya ya madaktari nchini ambaye alikimbizwa nchini humo wiki iliyopita, awali ilielezwa kuwa inaendelea vema, lakini ghafla ikabadilika na kufikia kiwango cha kupoteza fahamu. Mwandishi wa habari wa Shirika la Habari la Uingereza (BBC) alikaririwa akisema kuwa hali ya Ulimboka ilikuwa mbaya, na kwamba kulikuwa na ulinzi na usiri mkubwa kuhusiana na hali hiyo. Jijini Dar es Salaam, mmoja wa madaktari aliyezungumza na gazeti hili kwa sharti la kutotajwa jina, alisema kuwa walipata taarifa za kuzidiwa kwa Dk. Ulimboka kutoka kwa ndugu yake aliyeko Afrika Kusini kwamba alikuwa yuko kwenye hali mbaya, hali iliyowachanganya mno. Mmoja wa madaktari alikiri kupokea taarifa za kuzidiwa kwa mwenyekiti wao kutoka kwa kaka wa Dk. Ulimboka. “Leo asubuhi baada ya kupokea taarifa za kuzidiwa kwa Dk. Ulimboka kikaitishwa kikao cha dharura cha madaktari wote tunaelekea huko,” alisema. Hata hivyo, majira ya mchana habari zilivuma kwamba Dk. Ulimboka alikuwa amefariki, hali iliyozidi kuzusha wasiwasi mwingi miongoni mwa madaktari, viongozi wa vyama vya kijamii na wananchi wa kawaida waliokuwa wakihaha kupata ukweli wake. Uvumi huo hata hivyo, ulikanushwa baadaye na msemaji wa Hospitali ya Muhimbili Kitengo cha Mifupa MOI Almasi Jumaa lakini akakiri kupata taarifa za kubadilika kwa hali ya mgonjwa huyo. Huduma za matibabu MOI zasimama tena Taarifa za kutatanisha kuhusiana na hali ya Dk. Ulimboka, zilisababisha kusitishwa kwa huduma za matibabu katika Kitengo cha Mifupa cha Hospitali ya Taifa Muhimbili (MOI) baada ya madaktari karibuni wote kwenda katika mkutano wa dharura kujadili tukio hilo. Habari za kuaminika kutoka MOI, zimethibisha kuwa taarifa za kuzidiwa na hata kuzuka kwa habari nyingine kwamba Dk. Ulimboka alikuwa amefariki, ziliwachanganya kwa kiasi kikubwa madaktari hao, ambao walilazimika kusitisha huduma na kuwapangia wagonjwa tarehe nyingine za kurudi. Kutokana na hatua hiyo ya madaktari, wagonjwa waliofika MOI baada ya kusikia kwamba huduma zimerejea, walishindwa kupata tiba badala yake waliandikishwa majina, wakalipia na kupewa tarehe ya kurudi kwa madai kwamba hakuna madaktari wa kuwahudumia. Taarifa ya kurejea kwa madaktari hao ilitolewa juzi hospitalini hapo jana na Mwenyekiti wa Bodi ya MOI Balozi Charles Mtalemwa na kusisitiza kwamba hospitali hiyo haiko katika mgomo kwa sasa. Wakizungumza kwa nyakati tofauti baadhi ya wagonjwa waliokosa tiba, walidai kuchoshwa na usumbufu huo huku wakiwaomba madaktari hao kurejea kazini. “Nimekuja hapa tangu saa moja kulikua na foleni; wenzetu waliowahi walionana na madaktari lakini ilipofika saa nne tukaambiwa wote tuliojiandikisha turudi Alhamisi ijayo kwa sababu madaktari wanaenda kwenye kikao,” alisema Abdallah Haji mkazi wa Kimara. Kwa upande wake Jenipher Suka alisema inasikitisha kuona hivyo kwa sababu mama yake ambaye ni mgonjwa mkazi wa Dodoma amekuja akitegemea kupata tiba matokeo yake ameambiwa arudi tarehe 10 mwezi huu kwa kuwa hakuna madaktari kwa sasa. “Kwa nini serikali isiseme ukweli maana tunahangaika kuja mpaka huku halafu hakuna huduma? Vyombo vya habari vimetangaza kwamba mgomo umesitishwa lakini bado wanatudanganya wananchi kwa faida ya nani?” alilalamika Jenipher. Akizungumza kwa sharti la kutochapisha jina lake gazetini mmoja wa maofisa waandamizi wa hospitali hiyo alikiri kutokuwepo kwa huduma baada ya madaktari kupokea taarifa za kuzidiwa kwa Dk. Ulimboka. “Unajua huduma zinazoendelea kwa sasa ni kliniki na upasuaji kwa waliowahi lakini hawa madaktari wamechanganyikiwa baada ya daktari mwenzao aliyeongozana na Dk. Ulimboka kuwaeleza kwamba hali ya mgonjwa ni mbaya mno. Kukosekana kwa huduma kulichangiwa na madaktari wanafunzi ambao hupokea na kuwahudumia wagonjwa kuwa katika maandalizi ya mitihani ya mwisho wa mwaka itakayoanza Jumatatu ya Julai 9, 2012 hivyo kusababisha huduma utoaji wa huduma kutokuwepo kabisa. Pinda abanwa MJINI Dodoma, Waziri Mkuu Mizengo Pinda, ameshindwa kuliambia Bunge endapo serikali iko tayari kuunda tume huru kuchunguza tukio la kutekwa na kupigwa kwa Dk. Ulimboka. Waziri Mkuu Pinda, alishindwa kutoa kauli wakati akijibu swali la Kiongozi wa Kambi ya Upinzani Bungeni, Freeman Mbowe (CHADEMA). Katika swali lake la nyongeza, Mbowe alisema kumekuwa na ongezeko la vitendo vya mauaji yanayodaiwa kufanywa na Jeshi la Polisi. Mbowe ambaye pia ni Mbunge wa Hai, alitolea mfano wa tukio la kupigwa kwa wabunge wawili wa CHADEMA mkoani Mwanza na tukio la hivi karibuni la kutekwa na kupingwa kwa Dk. Ulimboka. “Kwa kuwa kumekuwa na ongezeko la matukio ya mauaji kwa raia wasio na hatia na kumekuwa na hisia kwamba matendo hayo yanafanywa na Jeshi la Polisi. Mfano wa matukio hayo ni pamoja na lile la kupigwa kwa wabunge wawili na hili la hivi karibuni la kutekwa kwa Dk. Ulimboka, tukio ambalo limelichafua taifa; je, serikali iko tayari kuunda tume huru kuchunguza matukio hayo?” alihoji Mbowe. Akijibu swali hilo, Pinda kwanza alisema sio kweli kwamba tukio la kupigwa kwa Dk. Ulimboka limechafua sifa nzuri ya taifa. “Mh. Mbowe, kwanza tukio la Ulimboka sio mfano mzuri sana kwa sababu hakuna mwenye ushahidi wa serikali kuhusika kumteka na kumpiga Dk. Ulimboka. “Kama nilivyosema awali, sioni sababu ya serikali kuhusika na kipigo cha Ulimboka ambaye tulikuwa tukishirikiana naye vizuri kwenye vikao vya majadiliano,” alisema Pinda. Hata hivyo katika kujibu swali hilo, Pinda hakusema chochote kuhusu swali la Mbowe aliloitaka serikali kuunda tume huru kuchunguzwa tukio la Dk. Ulimboka. Badala yake alisisitiza kuwa serikali itafanya uchunguzi wa kina kubaini waliohusika kumipiga Dk. Ulimboka. Akijibu swali la msingi la Mbowe aliyehoji utekelezaji wa sheria ya uchunguzi wa vifo vyenye utata, Waziri Mkuu Pinda alikiri kuwa mwaka jana aliahidi Bungeni kwamba serikali ingelikuja na sheria ya uchunguzi wa vifo vyenye utata ili kuharakisha matokeo ya uchunguzi huo. Alisema serikali bado inaendelea na mchakato wa kuandaa sheria hiyo ili ianze kutumika. Mbowe alisema kumekuwa na kasi ya ongezeko la vifo vyenye utata vya raia wasio na hatia na vyombo vya dola, hasa polisi wamekuwa wakihusishwa na vifo hivyo. Alisema kuwa Waziri Mkuu Pinda alikiri kuwapo na hali hiyo na kuahidi kuwa serikali ingekuja na sheria ya kuchunguza vifo vya aina hiyo. Ulimboka alitekwa na watu wasiojulikana, kupigwa na kujeruhiwa sehemu mbalimbali za mwili, kisha kutupwa katika msitu wa Pande, nje kidogo ya jiji Dar es Salaam. Jeshi la Polisi limeunda jopo kuchunguza tukio la utekaji nyara na shambulio la kudhuru mwili wa Dk. Ulimboka. Tangu kuibuka kwa tukio hilo, wabunge mbalimbali kwa nyakati tofauti wamekuwa wakiibua hoja ya mgomo wa madaktari na kipigo cha Ulimboka, lakini kiti cha Spika kimekuwa kikizima kwa hoja kuwa jambo hilo liko mahakamani

Profile: Barack Obama

Mr Obama re-election message warns Mr Romney does not have middle class interests at heart

President Barack Obama enters the home stretch of his re-election campaign amid a still-struggling economy, with national polls showing him virtually tied with Republican challenger Mitt Romney.

But Mr Obama has one big thing going for him: voters seem very much to like him personally, and many remain loyal to him even as they give him low marks for his handling of the economy.
If his campaign team can convince his 2008 supporters to flood back to the polls this November, while also persuading undecided voters that Mr Romney does not have their interests at heart, he will win a second term.
Mr Obama, America's first black president, had a turbulent first term in office.

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• Born 4 Aug 1961 in Hawaii
• Studied law at Harvard
• Worked as a civil rights lawyer in Chicago
• Served in Illinois state senate 1996-2004
• Elected to the US Senate in 2004
• Bested Hillary Clinton to win the Democratic presidential nomination
• Won the 2008 presidential election, defeating Republican Senator John McCain

He and his fellow Democrats scored several historic achievements. But the US economy has struggled mightily since Mr Obama took office amid one of the worst economic recessions in decades: job growth has been anaemic and the US unemployment rate has remained over 8%.

Add to that, the Democratic Party suffered historic losses in the mid-term polls in November 2010, with the Republicans emerging energised and more determined than ever to promote their conservative agenda and stymie the president's plans.
Mitt Romney and the Republicans are now betting that Mr Obama will be unable to inspire the same enthusiasm that carried him to the White House and that independent voters will turn away from his policies amid a still-lagging economy.
Oratory, charm, background Barack Hussein Obama made history on 4 November 2008, when he easily defeated Republican rival John McCain to become the first black president of the United States.
Aged 47 when he was inaugurated, Mr Obama was also the first urban president since Harry Truman and the first president born in Hawaii.

More than a million supporters and fans stood in the freezing cold to see Mr Obama inaugurated in 2008

And unlike John McCain, George Bush and Bill Clinton, his background was not steeped in the Vietnam War or the cultural conflicts of the 1960s.
Since he took office, the Democrats overcame Republicans' united opposition to pass an economic stimulus programme, overhaul the US healthcare system, lay down new rules for Wall Street and the banking industry, and rescue the US auto industry from collapse.
Later, he and the Democrats overturned a two-decade-old law banning openly gay Americans from serving in the US military. Wielding his presidential authority, Mr Obama also acted without the consent of Congress to grant temporary legal status to some young illegal immigrants brought to the US as children.
Mr Obama despatched a team of commandos to kill Osama Bin Laden, brought the US war in Iraq to a close and struck a new nuclear arms treaty with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev.
Early in his presidency he escalated the US-led war in Afghanistan, and the US has seen a consequent rise in violence there. But Mr Obama has pledged to turn the security mission in Afghanistan over to Afghan troops by the end of 2014, thus ending the more than a decade-long conflict.
International upbringing Mr Obama was born in 1961 and named for his father, a Kenyan intellectual who met Mr Obama's mother Ann, a white teenager from Kansas, while studying at the University of Hawaii.
When Mr Obama was a toddler, his father abandoned the family and the couple divorced. Father and son were to meet only once more, during a brief visit to Hawaii by the elder Barack Obama.

The White House released an image of Mr Obama in the situation room as US commandos killed Bin Laden

When Mr Obama was six, his mother married an Indonesian man and the family moved to Jakarta. Then known as "Barry", Mr Obama later moved back to Hawaii, where he was raised largely by his grandparents.
Mr Obama's upbringing in Indonesia, the world's largest Muslim country by population, and his descent from Kenyan Muslims fuelled right-wing conspiracy theories that he was not born in the US, or that he is a secret Muslim.
Mr Obama produced two separate birth certificates to prove that he was born in the US state of Hawaii.
After graduating from Columbia University in New York, Mr Obama worked for three years as a community organiser in poor neighbourhoods in Chicago.
He then attended Harvard Law School, becoming the first African-American president of the Harvard Law Review.
While working at a Chicago law firm, he met Michelle Robinson. The couple married in 1992 and have two daughters, Malia and Sasha; the Obamas are the first couple since Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter to live in the White House with young children.
After Harvard, Mr Obama returned to Chicago to practise civil rights law, representing victims of housing and employment discrimination.
He joined the law faculty at the University of Chicago, where he was lauded as a popular teacher and an exceptional legal thinker.

"Barry" Obama only met his father once after Barack Obama Sr left the family to study at Harvard

In 1995 he published his first book, Dreams from My Father, a memoir, and the following year he was elected to the Illinois state senate.
As a state senator, he spoke out strongly against the coming Iraq War, a position that later helped him win early support in the Democratic primary race.
From there, Mr Obama won national prominence during his 2004 run for the US Senate, when he electrified the Democratic National Convention with a speech about self-reliance, aspiration and national unity.
After his landslide election to the Senate a few months later, he became one of the most visible figures in Washington, and soon published a second best-selling book, a politics-and-policy tract entitled The Audacity of Hope.
On Capitol Hill, Mr Obama established a liberal voting record, but also worked with Republican colleagues on HIV/Aids-education and prevention and nuclear weapons proliferation.
When he embarked on his presidential campaign in February 2007, he had been in the Senate only two years, and his opponents sought to cast him as unqualified and ill-prepared for the presidency.
But his campaign excited millions of liberals - especially young voters - who were yearning for something new in Washington after two terms under George W Bush.
Mr Obama clinched the Democratic nomination after a long and gruelling battle against former first lady Hillary Clinton, whom he later appointed secretary of state.
Economic dissatisfaction His victory over septuagenarian Republican Senator John McCain was aided in part by public perceptions Republican policies had contributed to the economic tumble - and that Mr McCain was ill-equipped to lead a recovery.
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Race to the White House

Obama49%

Romney46%

Poll of polls, 19 September See more polls on our poll tracker

Now, Mr Obama and his team of strategists and advisers hope they can duplicate his 2008 victory.

The recession has ended, employment figures have slowly climbed and other indicators show the economy has improved.
But there lingers among the electorate a widespread sense of unease and dissatisfaction with the way things are going.
Mr Romney, his vice-presidential running mate Paul Ryan, and the Republican Party have had their campaign bolstered by big-spending patrons eager to despatch Mr Obama to political oblivion.
They blame Mr Obama's policies for the ongoing economic malaise, and hope voters will overcome their fondness for and political investment in him.

Barack Obama and Mitt Romney campaign in Ohio

The candidates will both be campaigning in the same part of Ohio in Wednesday

   US President Barack Obama and his Republican challenger Mitt Romney spent the day campaigning in Ohio, as opinion polls show the incumbent pulling ahead of his rival in the key swing state.

Mr Obama has a five-point lead in the Buckeye State, according to a Real Clear Politics average of surveys.
He addressed two universities, while Mr Romney attended events in three cities as he travelled the state by bus.
This is the last week of campaigning before the presidential debates begin.
Ohio, with 18 electoral college votes, is seen as critical to Mr Romney's path to victory. No Republican has ever won the White House without carrying the state.
Early voting is due to begin in Ohio from 2 October, ahead of election day on 6 November.
Debate preparations A CBS/NYT/Quinnipiac opinion poll released on Wednesday suggested Mr Obama held a 10-point lead over his rival in Ohio and was ahead by nine points in Florida - another key battleground state.
A Washington Post poll released on Tuesday gave Mr Obama an eight-point lead in Ohio and a four-point lead in Florida.

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“Start Quote

People who prefer Mr Obama to Mr Romney, but cannot be bothered to get off the sofa on polling day, could end his hopes of a second term”

   

• Read more from Mark

Mr Obama has made 13 visits to Ohio this year, while Mr Romney has been to the state 10 times since the beginning of May, according to his campaign.

The former Massachusetts governor made seven more trips to Ohio during the Republican primaries at the start of the year.
Some analysts have said Ohio's improving economy has favoured Mr Obama. The state's unemployment rate is 7.2%, below the national average of 8.3%.
On Wednesday, Mr Obama was expected to talk about his record on China, highlighting that he filed more trade cases against Beijing in one administration than his predecessor, George W Bush, did in two terms.
This month, the Obama administration filed a complaint with the World Trade Organization against Chinese subsidies for its car industry.
The Obama campaign has also criticised Mr Romney for investing in Chinese firms.
Race to the White House

Obama49%

Romney46%

Poll of polls, 19 September See more polls on our poll tracker

Meanwhile, Mr Romney has said that on his first day in office he would use an executive order to label China a currency manipulator.

He also focused the deficit and the interest paid on the national debt.
The Romney campaign released the latest in a volley of campaign ads on Wednesday.
The Republican appears in the video and says directly to the camera: "President Obama and I both care about poor and middle-class families. The difference is my policies will make things better for them."
Mr Romney appeared at campaign stops in Westerville, Bedford Heights and Toledo. Mr Obama addressed students at Bowling Green and Kent.
Both candidates have one eye on the presidential debates which begin next week. The first forum on 3 October in Denver, Colorado, will focus on foreign policy.
Mr Romney has been preparing intensively for the debates, with Republican Ohio Senator Rob Portman playing the role of Mr Obama.
"I want to kick him out of the room, he's so good," Mr Romney said of Mr Portman on Tuesday.
Mr Obama is expected to head to Nevada on Sunday for three days of debate preparation.
He has been practising with Democratic Massachusetts Senator John Kerry playing the role of Mr Romney.

Defeat to Nagu blurs Sumaye’s Ikulu goal

Monday, 01 October 2012 07:53

Mr Frederick Sumaye Arusha/Katesh. Frederick Sumaye, a political titan who, as one-time prime minister has been a potential future president, lost his bid for re-entry into CCM’s powerful  National Executive Committee (NEC) yesterday.It’s the latest signal  of a  radical shift in tradition by the long-ruling party, which had an unwritten code of  retaining  in its major  policy formulation and decision-making organs, heavyweights within active service as well as in retirement, for as long as they lived and wished. Mr Sumaye lost to Dr Mary Nagu, one of  the female political shining stars,  in   the race for  a representative of Hanang district, Manyara region, in NEC. The lady who dislodged Mr Sumaye from a position that under the old order would have been his for keeps, is the minister of State in the Prime Minister’s Office (Investments and Empowerment). The election results were announced at 1:00 am yesterday after considerable delay and amidst signs that the poll appeared to have  not only divided CCM members down the middle but certainly dealt a crippling blow to whatever political ambitions Mr Sumaye may have nursed for the future. Dr Nagu, who is the MP for Hanang, beat her predecessor and longest serving premier in the country’s history. She garnered 648 votes against Mr. Sumaye’s 481 in the tense contest at the district CCM office in Katesh. The defeated aspirant, who has been a member of CCM’s NEC since the 1990s, could not be reached  for his reaction on the outcome. One of his close associates told The Citizen over phone that he did not want to be bothered with questions on the results of the election which had Hanang and the entire Manyara on tenterhooks. “Mzee has made it clear he does not want phone calls related to the election results”, one of them said, adding, however, that he had already notified his closest friends and political associates on what had happened to him. Reports from Katesh said although  Mr Sumaye conceded defeat, he had to personally recount the votes to verify them in the wee hours of Saturday night while the confident Dr. Nagu assigned the task to one of her  aides. The former premier was a Hanang legislator for 20 years  (1985- 2005)  after which he stepped down to vie for the Union Presidency but was among  the nearly a dozen candidates who did not secure CCM candidature for the presidential race won by President Jakaya Kikwete. His aspirations for the country’s highest office, gave room for Dr Nagu, then a cabinet minister, to vie for the Hanang parliamentary seat which she easily won that year and retained it during the 2010 General Election. Although the two most popular and powerful leaders in Hanang district appeared to be political allies, the situation changed dramatically from August this year when both of them aspired to become NEC representative  for Hanang district. Initially the CCM political committee for Manyara region nominated and cleared only the former premier  to stand unopposed. However, in a new twist on September 8, Dr Nagu was reinstated  in the race. The committee had earlier claimed that the minister had been left out on grounds that as MP for Hanang and Cabinet minister, she was weighed down by too much work. It subsequently transpired that her reinstatement as contestant was intended to avert a possible rift in the ruling party. But yesterday’s result  has caused jitters amongst some party followers, who fear that, it may cause cracks  and weaken cohesion, in the light of the Opposition in the area seeming to be consolidating significantly. Some CCM members who spoke from Katesh on condition of anonymity said they could not understand why the election meeting which was scheduled to start at around 10 am on Saturday was delayed until 1 pm. The actual voting for the NEC representative began minutes past 7 pm as the exercise was preceded by  the election of other party officials, including the district CCM chairman. Others queried the legitimacy of Manyara regional commissioner Elaston Mbwilo supervising the poll. One member who spoke on condition of anonymity said besides Dr Nagu and Mr. Sumaye, there was another candidate who vied for the much coveted post, one Leonsi Marmo from Miaschiron area. He opted out shortly before the tension-filled poll which some people, especially allies of the former PM, claimed was marred by irregularities, including the dimly-lit and congested hall as well  as alleged presence of “strangers”. In his brief  remarks after the official results were announced,  Mr. Sumaye did not openly criticise the process or reject the results but warned that corruption could one day cost the ruling party heavily in sustaining its leadership. There had been growing tension at Katesh, the Hanang district headquarters, in the  few days preceding the poll. A fortnight ago, the name of Dr. Nagu was omitted from the list by the CCM leadership in Manyara region in preference of Mr.Sumaye. Later, however, Dr. Nagu’s name was brought back into what could not strictly be characterized as a David-versus-Goliath affair, since, her rival’s prime ministerial and long parliamentary career notwithstanding, she is a high achiever and immensely popular in her own right. The voting process at Katesh started close to noon on Saturday amid tension and apparent division among the supporters of the two candidates.The process ended at dawn yesterday when the results were officially announced. It was RC Mbwillo who announced the final results to end anxiety which had gripped Hanang district and the entire Manyara region. Dr. Nagu and Mr. Sumaye hail from Endasak village along the Katesh-Babati highway and have been in active politics since 1995 and 1985 respectively. Katesh is considered the stronghold of the minister while Sumaye has a large following in Endasak and adjacent areas. The latest development may affect the political fortunes of  Mr. Sumaye,  whose name often  crops up in speculations over  potential future presidents under the CCM ticket. During the polls, Mr. Michael Bayyo was elected the Hanang District CCM chairperson. He defeated the close rivals Hassan Hilbagiroy and Goma Gwaltu. In neighbouring Mbulu district Zacharia Paul Isaya retained his position as the district chairman of the ruling party while Fratey Massay was elected NEC representative. The latter defeated Gesso Bajuta and Naftal Naaman. In Babati Urban, Ally Msuya was elected the district chairman. He defeated Nada Maary and Faustin Bura. One Ally Sumaye won the NEC seat slot, according to Loti Ole Mesele, the district CCM secretary. In Kiteto,  the winner for the district chairman’s  seat is Mwendadi Kinyua while Emmanuel Papian took the NEC representative’s  seat. Similar polls for Babati Rural and Simanjiro districts will be held today. (Reportered by Zephania Ubwani in Arusha and Joseph Lyimo in Katesh)

Deadly Kenya grenade attack hits children in church

Eyewitness Irene Wambui says worshippers "ran for their lives"

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One child has been killed and three seriously hurt, police say, in a grenade attack on a church's Sunday school in the Kenya capital, Nairobi.

The attacker targeted St Polycarp's church on Juja Road.
A police spokesman blamed sympathisers of Somalia's al-Shabab Islamist militant group, angry over Kenya's role in the UN-backed intervention force.
A mob later rounded on Somalis living near the church with sticks and stones in a suspected revenge attack.
Police chief Moses Nyakwama told the BBC's Focus on Africa programme that 13 people had been injured in the revenge attack, in the suburb of Eastleigh.
Separately, two police officers were killed in an ambush in the town of Garissa, near the border with Somalia.
In July, 15 people were killed in raids on churches in Garissa, and there was speculation that al-Shabab or its sympathisers were responsible.
'Running for their lives' Reports suggested a number of those hurt at the church were injured in a stampede after the attack.

Analysis

Gabriel Gatehouse BBC News, Nairobi

The fact that Sunday's bombing has immediately been blamed on "Al-Shabab sympathisers" is hardly surprising, given events in Somalia in recent days.
The hand-grenade, thrown into a crowded public place, is becoming a grimly familiar tactic in Kenya. In the past six months, it has been used in bars in Mombasa, churches in Garissa near the Somali border, as well as churches and a bus station in Nairobi.
All of these attacks have initially been blamed on al-Shabab. But in at least some cases, subsequent reporting has suggested turf-wars between local gangs.
As Kenyan troops push al-Shabab out of its last Somali urban stronghold, Kismayo, there is nervousness about the possibility of a retaliation on Kenyan soil.
Many remember the bombings in Kampala in 2010, which killed 74 people, after Ugandan troops entered Somalia. Whatever the motive of Sunday's bombing, it is not on a comparable scale.

A police spokesman, Charles Owino, told Reuters news agency: "We suspect this blast might have been carried out by sympathisers of al-Shabab.

"These are the kicks of a dying horse since, of late, Kenyan police have arrested several suspects in connection with grenades."
The authorities said three children were seriously hurt in the attack, and a number of others suffered lighter injuries.
The Red Cross had earlier said six children were critically wounded.
Irene Wambui, who was in the church at the time of the attack, said: "We were just worshipping God in church when suddenly we heard an explosion and people started running for their lives.
"We came to realise that the explosion had injured some kids who were taken to hospital and unfortunately one succumbed."
Senior Nairobi police officer Moses Ombati appealed for calm after youths reportedly attacked the nearby Alamin mosque.
Nairobi and the port city of Mombasa have suffered a series of grenade attacks since Kenya sent troops into Somalia last October.
The attacks in Mombasa escalated after radical Islamist preacher Aboud Rogo Mohammed was killed in a drive-by shooting in August.

US military death toll in Afghanistan reaches 2,000

One eyewitness said vehicles were being stopped and searched when shooting broke out

 A checkpoint shooting in eastern Afghanistan has taken the US military's death toll in the war past 2,000.

A US soldier and contractor were killed while three Afghan soldiers died and several were injured.
The new deaths occurred on Saturday in Wardak province.
The international mission, Isaf, initially said the soldier was believed to have been killed by a member of the Afghan security services, but it later said the circumstances were unclear.
What is known is that a firefight took place, after what Isaf described as a short conversation between coalition and Afghan soldiers, says the BBC's Quentin Sommerville in Kabul.

Lt Gen Bradshaw, Nato: "The circumstances were somewhat confused"

Isaf says "insurgent fire" may have been involved in the incident, which is now under investigation by a joint Afghan and coalition team, adds our correspondent.
The Pentagon named the dead American soldier as Sgt 1st Class Riley Stephens, of the First Battalion, Third Special Forces Group (Airborne), saying the 39-year-old had died "of wounds sustained from enemy small arms fire".
The American death toll goes back to the US-led invasion of Afghanistan in 2001.
'Checkpoint row' Sunday's incident took place at a checkpoint near an Afghan National Army base in the district of Sayedabad, according to Afghan officials.

Shahidullah Shahid, a provincial government spokesman, earlier told the Associated Press news agency that an Afghan soldier had turned his gun on Americans and started shooting.
"Initial reports indicate that a misunderstanding happened between Afghan army soldiers and American soldiers," he said.
But Isaf later said an American soldier and an American contractor, along with three Afghan soldiers, were killed in an exchange of fire in confusing circumstances that may have involved insurgent activity.
Isaf's deputy commander, Lt Gen Adrian Bradshaw, said: "The circumstances were somewhat confused and we are establishing the full facts to the extent that it is possible."
Military officials from both sides have launched a joint investigation.
Two thousand dead The figure of 2,000 deaths was given by US officials on Sunday. During the war in Iraq, 4,409 American soldiers were killed.
As of 27 September, the Pentagon's official military death toll for Afghanistan had stood at 1,996.

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Afghan war deaths

• 2,000 US soldiers
• 1,066 non-US coalition soldiers
• possibly 20,000 civilians
• 10,000 members of Afghan security forces
• hundreds of private contractors
• unknown number of insurgents

The count includes both soldiers killed in action and soldiers who died of their injuries in hospital. The figure also covers 339 non-combat deaths.

A report by the Brookings Institution estimates that 40.2% of US deaths were caused by improvised explosive devices and 30.3% by gun attacks.
Officially, at least 17,644 US soldiers have been wounded in action in Afghanistan.
The independent organisation iCasualties estimates a higher US death toll, recording 2,125 to date.
This same source reports 1,066 deaths of non-US members of the coalition in Afghanistan. Since the war began, 433 British soldiers have been killed.
It is more difficult to establish the Afghan toll in the war but most estimates calculate a minimum of 20,000 civilian deaths, AP notes.
Some 10,000 members of the Afghan security forces have been killed. No reliable figures exist for deaths among the Taliban and other insurgents.
Nato combat troops are set to withdraw by the end of 2014, but a central plank of the strategy is that foreign soldiers will serve alongside and train Afghans for many years to come.
Correspondents say that may not be realistic given the ever increasing number of Afghans who turn their weapons on their foreign allies.

Martedi sera allo Juventus Stadium suonerà per la prima volta la musichetta della Champions... non puoi mancare!!!
 Qui tutte le info per acquistare i biglietti:

On Tuesday night the Champions League theme will ring out for the first time at Juventus Stadium... an unmissable event!
Find out how to purchase tickets by clicking: 

Zitto Kabwe

Naibu Katibu Mkuu wa Chadema na Mbunge wa Kigoma Kaskazini Zitto Kabwe akiwahutubia wananchi na wanachama wa chama hicho waliohudhuria katika mkutano wa hadhara uliofanyika jana Karatu mjini Mkoani Arusha. Mnadhimu wa Kambi ya upinzani Bungeni kupitia Chadema na Mbunge wa Singida Mashariki Tundu Lissu akihutumia wananchi na wanachama wa Chama hicho katika mkutano wa hadhara mjini Karatu Mkoani Arusha. — Karatu Mjini Leo 30-09-2012 (4 photos)