Category: Politics

{Announcement likely to further divide the president’s opponents in a country that has been rocked by violence.}

The president of the Democratic Republic of Congo named a former member of the largest opposition party as prime minister on Friday, a move likely to further divide Joseph Kabila’s opponents after talks to negotiate his exit from power broke down last week.

A statement from the presidency named Bruno Tshibala the prime minister of a new transitional government meant to organise a presidential election by the end of this year following Kabila’s refusal to step down when his mandate expired in December.

Tshibala replaces Samy Badibanga, who resigned on Thursday.

Polls were not held last year because of what the government said were budgetary constraints, sparking violent protests at the end of last year in which security forces killed at least 40 people.

Critics say Kabila deliberately delayed elections in order to remain in power.

DRC’s conference of Catholic bishops (CENCO) helped negotiate a December 31 deal aimed at avoiding a political crisis by ensuring an election this year to elect Kabila’s successor.

The bishops stepped aside last week after progress on the deal stalled.

Congolese police fired rounds into the air and launched tear gas canisters to disperse hundreds of opposition supporters in the capital Kinshasa after the negotiations broke down.

{{Nomination ‘departure from accord’}}

Tshibala was expelled from the Union for Democracy and Social Progress (UDPS), Congo’s largest opposition party, last month after he contested the designation of successors to veteran leader Etienne Tshisekedi, who died in February.

Tshibala’s nomination as prime minister escalates tensions ahead of a mass march on April 10, called for by the UDPS in Kinshasa to protest delays in implementing the deal.

Under the December political agreement, the opposition coalition known as the Rassemblement was to pick a prime minister, but divisions within the coalition complicated efforts to choose a candidate.

Kabila’s announcement on Friday came two days after the president said he would name a new prime minister if the opposition could not agree on a candidate.

Tshisekedi’s son, Felix, who replaced his father as president of the Rassemblement said Kabila violated the deal by not naming a candidate of the alliance’s choosing.

“We continue to demand the application of the December 31, 2016 accord,” he told Reuters news agency. “The nomination of Bruno Tshibala is a departure from the accord.”

Tshibala will be confronted immediately with stern security and economic tests.

Congo’s franc currency has lost nearly half its value since last year and violence has worsened across the country in the wake of Kabila’s decision to stay in power.

The country, which suffered through two wars between 1996 and 2003, has not had a democratic transition of power since its independence from Belgium in 1960.

Source:Al Jazeera

{As the August elections close in, President Uhuru Kenyatta has cautioned leaders against destructive politics, saying they only work to hurt the people.}

He asked Kenyans to instead unite to fight challenges that afflict the nation.

“Ndovu wakipigana nyasi ndiyo huumia….ndovu ni hawa wanasiasa na nyasi ni wananchi (When elephants fight, the grass suffers….elephants here are politicians while grass represents electorates),” he said when addressing a rally at Emurua Dikirr in Narok County.

{{Enhance development }}

He said Kenyans are faced with a myriad of challenges, which leaders should strive to tackle.

“My agenda is to fight poverty and improve the economy of the country,” he said.

While asking the national and county governments to partner in advancing development, he said bad leadership resulted to wastage of resources.

He entreated the residents to support his re-election bid saying: “I plead with a lot of respect we work together.”

{{Heckling }}

Accompanying him were Deputy President William Ruto, National Assembly Majority Leader Aden Duale, Narok Governor Samuel Tunai and Emurua Dikirr MP Johana Ng’eno, who had a rough time addressing the Jubilee and CCM supporters who had thronged Dikirr Township for the rally.

Mr Tunai was forced to cut short his speech after a brief address, after which he welcomed the President to the region.

“Today we have our President here. I take this opportunity to welcome you on behalf of the county. This is a Jubilee zone, which overwhelmingly supported you in the last elections,” he said.

But Mr Ruto, Mr Duale and Mr Ng’eno managed to address the crowd amid heckling.

Jubilee supporters shouted down Mr Ng’eno while those belonging to Chama Cha Mashinani, which is headed by Bomet governor Isaac Ruto, jeered the Jubilee leaders.

{{Re-elect Uhuru }}

Mr Ng’eno, who has been one of the critics of Jubilee leadership, told the President that his constituency supports him and are satisfied with his rule.

He pleaded with the President to tarmac roads in the region.

Mr Duale said the Jubilee government has good plans for Kenyans and asked them to re-elect the President come August 8, who will then hand over to Mr Ruto come 2022.

Source:Daily Nation

{The US State Department issued a travel alert on Thursday warning Americans residing in or traveling to Kenya of possible violence in the run-up to the August elections.}

“Rallies, demonstrations and protests may occur with little notice and even those intended to be peaceful can escalate into violence,” the notice said.

“As with all large events, there is also the opportunity for criminal elements or terrorists to target participants and visitors,” the State Department added.

It urged US citizens to avoid areas where protests or demonstrations are occurring and to “exercise caution if unexpectedly in the vicinity of any such events.”

Candidate selections for national and county offices are taking place this month, the State Department noted.

A travel alert last June urged US citizens to avoid visiting Lamu, Nairobi’s Eastleigh neighbourhood and Kenya’s northeastern counties.

{{Safety concerns }}

That warning also cited a US embassy recommendation to avoid using the Likoni ferry “due to safety concerns” and to visit Mombasa’s Old Town only during daylight hours.

US Ambassador Robert Godec has made pleas for a peaceful election in 2017.

“Youth need to make a commitment to use their power peacefully — a commitment to reject violence, and those who would call for violence,” the US envoy declared in February.

“The future doesn’t just depend on who wins the election; it also depends on how the elections happen,” Ambassador Godec added in a speech in Kariobangi.

Source:Daily Nation

{The government has denied reports that President Museveni is planning a dialogue with former presidential candidate Dr Kizza Besigye and his Forum for Democratic Change party. }

This followed Dr Besigye’s confirmation in Soroti District on Tuesday that it is possible for him to have a dialogue with President Museveni.

Dr Besigye who was addressing a workshop for his party members in Soroti District said that an agreement had been reached to have an audit of the 2016 presidential election results.

However, the Director of the Uganda Media Centre, Mr Ofwono Opondo dismissed the idea saying neither State House nor government ever mooted a dialogue or an audit of the 2016 polls.

Mr Opondo insists that there is no dialogue likely to take place between Dr Besigye and President Museveni adding that such talk is “drama and comedy” being preached to Ugandans.

He challenged Dr Besigye to come out and explain who approached him for a dialogue because Mr Museveni was declared as the winner which fact cannot be changed by anyone.

“No one from the government has approached the government of Sweden to be the mediator. There is no international country that can interfere in issues concerning the government of Uganda,” Mr Opondo said.

{{OFWONO OPONDO’S FULL STATEMENT}}

Response to Dr Warren Smith Kizza Besigye Kifefe’s false claim on dialogue

For some time now Dr Kizza Besigye, the four-time presidential candidate and loser, and some of his political allies have been going around the country making many false claims. In spite of the clear provocations, false insinuations and misrepresentations of material facts, government had deliberately ignored Mr. Besigye, and he has not on his own found the decency for self-restraint.

Among the many falsehoods Mr. Besigye has pandered are;

1.That he won the 2016 presidential elections with 52% votes cast, but that he was cheated

2.Consequent upon that false claim Besigye has been calling for an independent election audit by an international neutral body

3.That there should be dialogue between him and President Museveni over these election results and the possibility of varying those results and outcome

4.Yesterday, in a bizarre twist he added that they (Besigye & group) had been approached by President Museveni over the dialogue and that there was an agreement to audit election results.

5.That the dialogue should include president Museveni’s possible exit.

Government today wishes to categorically inform the country as follows; first, we believe that Mr. Besigye is doing all this for political grand-standing, continuous publicity and comedy because the title of presidential candidate ended with elections, and indeed no other former participants in that election goes by that title anymore except him

The 2016 presidential elections were over and results lawfully and appropriately declared and gazzetted by the Electoral Commission as mandated by the Constitution of Uganda. Those that were dissatisfied with the results went to the Supreme Court in accordance with the established procedures and the Court gave its public verdict, and therefore that matter is settled and won’t be revisited by anybody including the purported foreign countries. So, the claim by Mr. Besigye that there is an agreement presumably between him on one side, and government and President Museveni to audit the election results is not only false but grossly preposterous. No such an audit has been a subject of discussions anywhere within government. Never the less, we hereby challenge Mr. Besigye to publish the results he claims to have so that you the media and public scrutinize his absurd claims government would like to state categorically that neither government nor President Yoweri Museveni has approached Mr. Besigye or anyone else to solicit for dialogue over the election results as Mr. Besigye has falsely claimed.

There is no mediation efforts by anybody, country, power, local or international institution. We further challenge the Swedish government to come clean on who actually approached it on the said dialogue otherwise it is a hoax.

It is as laughable, as it as an absurdity for anyone to imagine government can at this point discuss President Museveni’s possible exist as if he was unlawfully in office. It demonstrates the utter bankruptcy and desperation on the part of Mr. Besigye and those he seeks to mislead.

While it is true that government has been approached by multiple groups mainly local (Inter-religious Council, elders, and women among others) to have dialogue with opposition groups in the country to handle and hopefully resolve some of the outstanding political, social and economic issues facing the country none of the efforts has taken off. As a principle, the NRM government is open to and welcomes all efforts at constructive engagement including talks with those we may have some disagreements, Therefore o, in principle, talking is not an issue.

The claim that Makindye military barracks is full of detained soldiers seeking to mutiny in support of the opposition [sic. Besigye] to bring about speedy and unconstitutional political regime change is false. Again we challenge Besigye to provide the full names of those soldiers, their ranks, and units they came from otherwise he shuts up. This type of false claim by Besigye isn’t entirely new or surprising because he first made it way back in 2001 when he claimed that he enjoyed then 90% political support within the army. Today, as everybody knows Mr. Besigye has been crying that the UPDF and Police is President Museveni’s loyalist outfit to keep him in power, and so it is really difficult to believe which Mr. Besigye is right. We see this as part of futile efforts to sow cracks within the security service.

On the economy, it is not the first time Mr. Besigye has claimed it is in total ruins. An economy that is in total ruins cannot support the multiple huge infrastructure projects currently underway, and as well at the same time simultaneously support our national recurrent expenditure including paying the public servants and fund our democracy one hundred percent. Obviously, the Uganda economy like that of much of Africa is under-going internal structural strain, and global pressures. The answer is not to run away from governance and leadership, but rather staying firm, and the NRM and its leadership has proven its capability over these past three decades. Just how many times in Mr. Besigye’s view will Uganda’s economy will collapse is hard to tell. To Mr. Besigye and other doomsayers, we can only advise them to organise better after-all the next circle of general elections at which Ugandans shall have an opportunity to renew the mandate of their leaders is only four years away from now.

Source:Daily Monitor