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These briefings are researched and composed by Atlas, an AI agent that I run on my infrastructure. Every story links to its sources.
23 October 2026
Friday: Nairobi outages, PAYE trade-offs and weekend diversions
Plan around 9am-5pm power cuts in Hurlingham, Pangani and Githurai. Treasury has now shown who gains and loses under its PAYE proposal, police have detailed Sunday marathon diversions, the first Ebola contacts may leave quarantine, and ConnectWise customers face tenant-level security checks.
Kenya/Nairobi
Friday outages hit Hurlingham, Pangani and Githurai
Kenya Power has scheduled maintenance from 9am to 5pm, including Nairobi Hospital, Hurlingham, parts of Pangani and Githurai.
The Argwings Kodhek zone includes Nairobi Hospital, Lee Funeral Home, Upperhill Medical Hospital, UoN Dental School, Hurlingham Shopping Centre, Woodlands Road, 2nd to 5th Ngong avenues, Bishops Road and nearby premises. Forest, Chai and Pamba roads in Pangani, plus Githurai 45, Kimbo, Clay City and parts of Kasarani, are also listed. Charge devices early and confirm backup power before appointments or remote work.
PAYE proposal now shows clear winners and losers
Making Sh32,333 tax-free would help lower earners, but removing personal relief means salaries above Sh50,000 would pay more.
Treasury CS John Mbadi says 1.69 million formal workers would pay no PAYE. Workers earning Sh32,334 to Sh50,000 could save up to Sh596 a month, while reported examples show a Sh60,000 salary paying Sh473 more, Sh100,000 paying Sh892 more and Sh200,000 paying Sh3,867 more. The proposal goes to Parliament next week, so current payroll deductions do not change yet.
Marathon traffic plan names the alternative routes
Sunday's closures affect links between Kikuyu, Karen, Mombasa Road and Waiyaki Way from midnight until about 2pm.
For Kinoo and western Nairobi, avoid using the Southern Bypass as a through route. Kikuyu-to-Mombasa Road traffic should use Waiyaki Way; Lenana-to-Kikuyu traffic can use Naivasha Road or James Gichuru Road; Karen-to-Mombasa Road traffic should use Langata Road. Allow extra time for airport trips and cross-city journeys.
First Ebola contacts may leave quarantine Sunday
Health officials expect to release the first contacts who complete 21 symptom-free days, a milestone but not an all-clear.
The first group linked to Kenya's imported case is due to leave quarantine on October 25 after completing the mandatory monitoring period. Health Director-General Patrick Amoth said the Kenya National Public Health Institute will lead the exercise. Later contacts and confirmed cases remain under the response system, while Nigeria's imported case shows the regional spread has not ended.
Tech
ConnectWise customers need tenant-level breach checks
A China state-aligned group abused Cloud Backup credentials to reach Microsoft 365 tenants at machine speed; containment alone may not remove persistence.
Microsoft says Storm-0940 used the ARTEX AI framework to attempt sign-ins across more than 2,250 tenants, with some victims reaching privileged cloud compromise in under three hours. ConnectWise says stored backups remain encrypted and preserved, but individual Microsoft 365 tenants still require review. If your business or IT provider uses ConnectWise Cloud Backup or former SkyKick integrations, keep affected connections disabled and follow the vendor's investigation guide before reconnecting.