Author: Publisher

Malaysia Changes Last Words From Missing Plane

{{The last words from the cockpit of a missing Malaysian jet were a standard “Good night Malaysian three seven zero”, Malaysian authorities said, changing their account of the critical last communication from a more casual “All right, good night.”}}

The correction more than three weeks after Flight MH370 vanished with 239 people on board was made as Malaysian authorities face heavy criticism, particularly from China, for mismanaging the search and holding back information.

Painstaking analysis of radar data and limited satellite information has focused the search on a vast, inhospitable swath of the southern Indian Ocean west of the Australian city of Perth, but has so far failed to spot any sign of the jetliner.

Search coordinators warned the hunt could drag on for some time yet.

“In this case, the last known position was a long, long way from where the aircraft appears to have gone,” retired Air Chief Marshal Angus Houston, the head of the Australian agency coordinating the operation, told reporters in Perth.

“It’s very complex, it’s very demanding and we don’t have hard information like we might normally have,” he said.

The Boeing 777 disappeared from civilian radar in the early hours of March 8 as it flew from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing. Minutes later its communications were cut off and it turned back across Malaysia and headed towards the Indian Ocean.

Malaysia says the plane was likely diverted deliberately, probably by a skilled aviator, leading to speculation of involvement by one or more of the pilots. Investigators, however, have determined no apparent motive or other red flags among the 227 passengers and 12 crew.

“We would like to confirm that the last conversation in the transcript between the air traffic controller and the cockpit is at 0119 (Malaysian Time) and is “Good night Malaysian three seven zero,” the Department of Civil Aviation said in a statement late on Monday.

Malaysia’s ambassador to China told Chinese families in Beijing as early as March 12 that the last words had been “All right, good night”. About two-thirds of the passengers on board were Chinese.

The statement said authorities were still conducting “forensic investigation” to determine whether the last words from the cockpit were by the pilot or the co-pilot. Malaysia Airlines had previously said the words were believed to have come from the co-pilot.

reuters

April 1, 2014
Pastors Arrested while Plotting Against ADEPR Church

{{Rwanda National Police has arrested Pastors who were plotting against Current Leadership of Pentecostal Church in Rwanda (ADEPR).}}

Police confirmed to media that it has arrested several people suspected of planning to topple the current ADEPR Leadership.

Police operations were tightened on Sunday to arrest the suspected plotters as they were found holding a secret meeting at Hotel Sportsview in Kigali City.

Rev Pastor Jean Sibomana; current Head of ADEPR confirmed to media that some of people had been arrested by the Police but he didn’t know the exact number.

Source says among the suspects are pastors who want to form their own Church.

ADEPR has been involved in disputes until the Government last Year intervened to help address the differences in the Church.

Earlier this Year a group of Pastors addressed a Letter to the President complaining against bad leadership and mismanagement of the Pentecostal Church of Rwanda.

March 31, 2014
Rwandan Envoy Says Nigeria’s Problem is Greed

{{Rwanda’s High Commissioner to Nigeria, Joseph Habineza, has said Nigeria problem is greed rather than religion and ethnicity.}}

The envoy was speaking in Abuja at the weekend at a press briefing in commemoration of the 20th anniversary of the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda.

He noted that religion and ethnicity had been used as tools of manipulation by politicians, saying delegates at the National Conference should not to elevate the issue of religion which he said is personal.

He warned that Nigerians should learn from Rwanda’s tragic past.

This year’s celebration, which will take place on April 13, is titled: “Remember-Unite-Renew.”

Habineza said, “the ongoing national conference is a good thing but first of all, individually, the delegates should have self-transformation, because you can be in the conference and from there you go and call your friend, who is a member of Boko Haram, to attack. So nothing is going to come out from there if you are not committed to the peace of your country.”

Habineza also added that whether a Christian or a Muslim, everyone should realise that the two religions were adopted.

“These are manipulations of the politicians. So our tragic history should be a lesson for Nigeria. Why should somebody be killed on what he believes in? So this celebration should not only be for Rwandans but for the whole world that division, segregation, bad leadership, can lead to killings, genocide,” he said.

He explained that with the resources available in the country, every Nigerian should have access to decent and affordable house if these are productively used.

According to him, “Nigerians should have a nice house, water; just what you have here. Look at your land, so fertile, and you import tomatoes; the oil, the gas, minerals that even people don’t know. You focus on that and make it productive. So they should think about the people, not about themselves, the delegates who are there; not talking about how much we are getting from here.

“The fact is there are bad politicians and there are good politicians but the bad ones are so evil; they can use all means to get what they want.”

He further advised those calling for secession to have a re-orientation as those who called for war were often being the first victims.

Habineza, who recalled the 1994 crisis of his country, attributed it to the same kind of manipulation, first by the colonial power on the one hand and the country’s politicians on the other hand.

He said, “This kind of indoctrination, brainwashing, mixed with poverty brought Rwanda to that end. We have to blame ourselves and the colonials also. The agenda then was to divide the country because they found it difficult to believe that a society can be well structured and organised like Rwanda. This is our past and we have learnt from it. It is a lesson to the whole world.

“Coming to our experience, a week before the tragedy, I met somebody who was an adviser to the late president, a former ambassador to Germany. He was a very close friend to my parents and we were discussing politics. The president was supposed to implement the Arusha Agreement…So I met this adviser and I said your Excellency, uncle, why don’t you advise the president to implement the Arusha Agreement?

“He said my son, in politics, it is like a tug-of-war, which if it is cut, you fall. You see, it can’t be cut because we are the majority…but he doesn’t know that if you think like that, you can be the first victim and your family members too may be killed. If you are thinking of bringing the war, you can be the first victim. But you know what happens, that ambassador, unfortunately, died in the plane with the president.”

Habineza therefore advised the delegates and other Nigerians in position of authority to see their present status as an opportunity to serve the people and not to serve themselves.

“I think politicians should remember they are public servants because once you are serving, you are rendering service, and not that you are serving yourself.”

{worldstage}

March 31, 2014
Global oil Prices Fall After Strong Gains

{{Oil prices fell on Monday as dealers booked profits after strong gains last week fuelled by positive US economic data and the tensions in Ukraine.}}

New York’s West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for delivery in May fell 43 cents to $101.24 a barrel.

Brent North Sea crude for May dipped 28 cents to stand at $107.79 a barrel in London afternoon deals.

“We are seeing some easing because of some profit taking,” Tan Chee Tat, an investment analyst at Phillip Futures, told AFP.

WTI prices got a boost last week from data showing robust US consumer spending.

UKRAINE CRISIS

Orders for US durable goods — a key indicator of the economy — rose 2.2 percent in February from the prior month, beating expectations for a 1.0-percent decline.

Investors are also tracking events in Europe as the top diplomats from the US and Russia held talks to find a solution to the crisis in Ukraine.

Russian troops are massed on the borders of eastern Ukraine, sparking fears about Moscow’s plans after it took control of the Crimean peninsula this month.

While the two failed Sunday to reach a breakthrough deal in Paris they did agree to keep talking after what were described as “frank” and “constructive” negotiations.

The latest bid to resolve the worst East-West standoff in the post-Cold War era came after Russian leader Vladimir Putin unexpectedly called US President Barack Obama on Friday.

Russia provides about a quarter of Europe’s natural gas supplies, with about half of those exports travelling through pipelines in Ukraine, analysts say.

Traders fear that an escalation of the crisis would disrupt those supplies.

{agencies}

March 31, 2014
Hunger Costs 16.5% of Africa GDP’

{{Child under nutrition caused by hunger is causing an estimated loss of between 1.9% and 16.5% of gross domestic products (GDP) among African countries as costs to health and productivity per year, a new study shows.}}

The study titled “Cost of Hunger in Africa” which in its first phase gives statistics from Egypt, Uganda, Ethiopia and Swaziland says that between 40 and 67% of the working age population in the four countries were stunted as children resulting to low productivity.

The experts say that the stunted children are vulnerable to health problems, repeating grades or drop from schools due to underperformance and therefore increase costs for taking care of them.

They say the cases of stunting in Africa today is more than it was some 20 years back and therefore call for specific countries to take appropriate measures to tame the vice and ensure inclusive development in the continent.

The report was launched on March 28that the seventh Conference of African Ministers of Finance, Planning and Economic Development to unveil the impact of child under-nutrition on the African economies.

“We need to work with the private sector as well as smallholder farmers in addressing,” said Manoj Juneja, assistant executive director resource management and chief financial officer, World Food Programme.

Uganda spends around $254 million per year treating cases of diarrhoea, anaemia and respiratory infections linked to malnutrition.

The early deaths among children each year of causes related to hunger reduce Uganda’s labour force by some 3.8%.

That amounts to some 934 million working hours lost every year due to an absent workforce.

Ethiopia lost an estimated $4.7 billion in 2009 because of child undernutrition. This is equivalent to 16.5% of the country’s GDP which is often used as an indicator of how an economy is performing.

In Egypt, the study concluded that 40% of adults were stunted as children. This represents more than 20 million people of working age who are not able to achieve their potential, as a consequence of child undernutrition.

Child undernutrition costs Swaziland around $92 million per year in lost worker productivity.

NMG

March 31, 2014
Ghanaian Afriyie Acquah Hopes to Play Against Cristiano Ronaldo in World Cup

{{Ghanaian Parma midfielder Afriyie Acquah dreams of playing at the 2014 FIFA World Cup finals and relish a meeting with the World’s best player ,Cristiano Ronaldo.}}

The 22-year-old is seen as a rising star in Serie A with some sections of the Italian media comparing his unique style of play to Italian legend Andre Pirlo.

Acquah, who made his debut for Ghana in an international friendly against Chile on February 2012, is keen on earning a place in the Ghana squad for Brazil later this year.

“I dream of playing at the world cup and prospect of playing against Ronaldo” the former Ghana U20 player told reporters.

“I am playing well and doing my part hopefully it could be enough to earn a spot.

“Ronaldo is the world’s best player and his style is quite unique playing against him will be a realization of a dream and hopefully helping Ghana stop him would be special.”

Acquah played against Malawi and scored his only goal for Ghana in a 2013 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier.

March 31, 2014
Climate impacts ‘overwhelming’ – UN

{{The impacts of global warming are likely to be “severe, pervasive and irreversible”, a major report by the UN has warned.}}

Scientists and officials meeting in Japan say the document is the most comprehensive assessment to date of the impacts of climate change on the world.

Members of the UN’s climate panel say it provides overwhelming evidence of the scale of these effects.

Natural systems now bear the brunt, but a growing impact on humans is feared.

Our health, homes, food and safety are all likely to be threatened by rising temperatures, the summary says.

The report was agreed after almost a week of intense discussions here in Yokohama.

This is the second of a series from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) due out this year that outlines the causes, effects and solutions to global warming.

This latest Summary for Policymakers document highlights the fact that the amount of scientific evidence on the impacts of warming has almost doubled since the last report in 2007.

Be it the melting of glaciers or warming of permafrost, the summary highlights the fact that on all continents and across the oceans, changes in the climate have caused impacts on natural and human systems in recent decades.

In the words of the report, “increasing magnitudes of warming increase the likelihood of severe, pervasive and irreversible impacts”.

IPCC Chairman Rajendra Pachauri said the findings in the report were “profound”

“Nobody on this planet is going to be untouched by the impacts of climate change,” IPCC chairman Rajendra Pachauri told journalists at a news conference in Yokohama.

Dr Saleemul Huq, a convening lead author on one of the chapters, commented: “Before this we thought we knew this was happening, but now we have overwhelming evidence that it is happening and it is real.”

Michel Jarraud, secretary-general of the World Meteorological Organization, said that, previously, people could have damaged the Earth’s climate out of “ignorance”.

“Now, ignorance is no longer a good excuse,” he said.

Mr Jarraud said the report was based on more than 12,000 peer-reviewed scientific studies. He said this document was “the most solid evidence you can get in any scientific discipline”.

The report details significant short-term impacts on natural systems in the next 20 to 30 years. It details five reasons for concern that would likely increase as a result of the warming the world is already committed to.

These include threats to unique systems such as Arctic sea ice and coral reefs, where risks are said to increase to “very high” with a 2C rise in temperatures.

The summary document outlines impacts on the seas and on freshwater systems as well. The oceans will become more acidic, threatening coral and the many species that they harbour.

On land, animals, plants and other species will begin to move towards higher ground or towards the poles as the mercury rises.

Humans, though, are also increasingly affected as the century goes on.

wirestory

March 31, 2014
Gen. Musharraf Charged With High Treason

{{A court in Pakistan has charged former military ruler Pervez Musharraf with treason, the first army chief to face such a prosecution.

Mr Musharraf is accused of unlawfully suspending the constitution and instituting emergency rule in 2007.

He pleaded not guilty and has always claimed that the charges against him are politically motivated. He faces the death penalty if convicted.

President from 2001 to 2008, he was one of Pakistan’s longest-serving rulers.}}

{wirestory}

March 31, 2014
ECOWAS Fails to Sign Economic Partnership with EU

{{The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) at the weekend failed to sign the controversial Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) with the European Union (EU).}}

The expectation of a final seal to the agreement at the 44th Ordinary Session of Heads of State and Government of the ECOWAS Authority fizzled out last Saturday night after West Africa’s economic powerhouse, Nigeria, had raised issues with the agreement.

A communique issued at the end of the ECOWAS meeting in Yamoussoukro, Cote d’Ivoire, said some member states, particularly Nigeria, had raised some technical issues about the agreement, compelling the Heads of State and Government to shelve the signing of the EPA.

According to the communique, even though the Heads of State and Government reaffirmed their “strong commitment” to the agreement and endorsed its conclusion in principle, they still felt there was the need to iron out “the outstanding technical issues”

As a result of the development, it said, the authority had directed the chief negotiators to, within two months, take steps to address the issues raised by Nigeria and other member states before the agreement could be signed.

“The authority also directs the chief negotiators to establish a committee including representatives from Nigeria, Ghana, Senegal and Cote d’Ivoire to look at these issues and present the final outcome to the Heads of State and Government,” the communique stated.

{{President Mahama speaks}}

Later at a news conference, the new ECOWAS Chairman, President John Dramani Mahama, stated that much as in principle they agreed to the EPA, it was important to negotiate an agreement that would be beneficial to their peoples.

The EPA is a trade and development agreement negotiated between the EU and African, Caribbean and Pacific countries engaged in a regional economic integration process.

It aims, among other things, at helping countries in regional and subregional blocs to integrate into the world economy and share in the opportunities offered by globalisation.

{{Opposition}}

But in Ghana and other West Africa

and religious and farmer-based groups have opposed the signing of the agreement by ECOWAS.

They argue that the agreement will worsen the economic problems of the countries that sign on to it.

ECOWAS, however, is pushing hard for it to come into operation, even in the face of the issues raised by some of the member states.

Economic performance

The ECOWAS communique, which was read by the ECOWAS Commission President, Mr Kadre Desire Ouedraogo, also touched on regional economic performance and consolidation of the common market.

It said the Heads of State reemphasised the need to step up economic growth to sustain employment and facilitate the achievements of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

“To sustain the good economic prospects in the region, the authority urges member states to pursue efforts deployed towards putting in place sound and stable macroeconomic frameworks,” it stated.

It commended the President of Burkina Faso, Mr Blaise Campoare, for the role he had played to ensure the free movement of persons and goods across his country.

“Thp Summit also commends President John Dramani Mahama and President Mahamafou Issoufou of Niger for the measures taken in fulfilment of the mandate given to them by the authority to oversee the process towards monetary convergence for West Africa,” it said.

{{Peace and security}}

The authority renewed the commitment to ensure peace and security in the sub-region through good governance and democracy.

On Mali, the authority asked all nonstate armed groups to lay down their weapons for the peace process to proceed.

It also touched on the upcoming general election in Guinea Bissau and called for peaceful polls.

{myjoyonline}

March 31, 2014
British Airways Expands Presence in East Africa

{{British Airways is expanding its presence in East and Southern Africa and has appointed Edward Frost as commercial manager for the region.}}

Frost, who joined British Airways after studying politics at Durham University, has worked in a number of commercial roles over the past five years.

He managed some of the airline’s biggest corporate accounts while based in its New York office.

Returning to the airline’s Waterside headquarters he then served on a variety of commercial project teams responsible for Iberia and British Airways collaboration in Europe, corporate social responsibility and the UK and Ireland regional dealing framework.

In February he started in his new role as the commercial manager for Southern and East Africa, based in Johannesburg.

“With his energy and enthusiasm, Edward will bring new focus and build on our successes in South and East Africa,” says Jamie Cassidy, general manager Africa, Middle East and Asia Pacific.

“This is a dynamic time for British Airways in Southern and East Africa and I’m looking forward to engaging with our customers and expanding our brand across the region,” says Frost.

{capitalfm}

March 31, 2014