Category: Politics

Five-year-old becomes latest Ebola victim in Liberia

New cases are a setback for the country, which had been declared free of the disease for a third time in January.

A second case of Ebola has been confirmed in Liberia just months after the country had been declared free of the disease, according to health officials.

The five-year-old son of a 30-year-old woman who died on Thursday has now been taken to a treatment centre in Monrovia, Tolbert Nyenswah, the country’s deputy health minister, said on Sunday.

“We are investigating in both Guinea and Liberia how she entered,” he said. “But knowing the porous border we are not surprised. She entered Liberia before getting sick or manifesting signs and symptoms.”

Authorities are now checking everyone the woman was in contact with and 10 health care workers from the hospital where the woman was treated are also under observation.

The woman, who died on arrival at the hospital on Thursday, had travelled with three of her children.

Setback for Liberia

The new cases are a setback for Liberia, which had been declared free from transmissions for a third time on January 14.

The country was first declared free of the disease in May, but new cases have emerged twice, forcing officials to reset the clock in a nation where more than 4,800 people have died.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has said Ebola is no longer an international health emergency, but flare-ups, at a decreasing frequency, are expected.

Flare-ups have also broken out in Sierra Leone and in Guinea.

The WHO said there have been eight cases of Ebola and seven deaths in Guinea since late February. There now are no known cases in Sierra Leone.

Ebola is spread through direct contact with the bodily fluids of victims or corpses. It has killed more than 11,300 people, mostly in West Africa, since December 2013.

April 5, 2016
Uganda:Mbabazi petition costs taxpayers Shs10 billion

At least Shs10b worth of taxpayers’ money was spent on the just concluded election petition in which former presidential candidate Amama Mbabazi sought to nullify Mr Museveni’s victory.

Details from the Finance ministry, Electoral Commission (EC), Judiciary and Justice ministry show the money was apparently used to facilitate the Supreme Court, Attorney General (AG) office and payment for private lawyers.

According to the Finance ministry the Justice ministry requested for a supplementary of Shs14.4b of which Shs2.7b was for the election petition, EC officials had also presented a request of Shs3.1b as opposed to Shs1b previously reported as the budget for external lawyers.

Another Shs5b was requested by the Judiciary to facilitate election tribunals, operations and case backlog.
The AG, who is the chief government legal adviser, was added onto Mr Mbabazi’s petition as the third respondent. This was in regard to alleged electoral irregularities committed by civil servants such as police chief Kale Kayihura, KCCA executive director Jennifer Musisi and UNRA boss Allen Kagina.

Asked whether the Finance ministry conducted due diligence on the requests for additional funding for the election petition, Mr Jim Mugunga, the ministry spokesperson, said: “The AG requested for funds to manage the presidential election petition. The supplementary was allowed and is before Parliament for consideration.”
“EC wanted supplementary funds [Shs47b] to clear outstanding payments for the voter verification devices and another Shs3.1b for the presidential elections petition but this has not been considered. We [Finance ministry] believe EC has enough funds to meet these costs,” he said.

EC, which was the second respondent in the dismissed petition, hired six external lawyers to beef up its legal team in which the commission was accused of forging results. However, the petition was dismissed for lack of evidence.
The lawyers who represented EC included Mr Enos Tumusiime, Mr McDusman Kabega, Mr Tom Magezi, Mr Alfred Okello Oryem, Enoch Barata and Elison Karuhanga.
EC spokesperson, Mr Jotham Taremwa requested for more time to dig up the details of the supplementary request.
Mr Ibrahim Ssemuju Nganda, the FDC spokesperson and Kampala Lord Mayor, Erias Lukwago, among others at the weekend, called the expenditure ‘unacceptable’.
“…this is normal. Spending Shs10b on a petition is in his [Mr Museveni] line. They have shared our country,” Mr Ssemuju said.
However, Presidency minister Frank Tumwebaze, said it is Mr Ssemuju and other members who sit in Parliament to approve budgets and not the President.
“The President is not the accounting officer of those agencies,” he said, adding: “People like Mr Ssemuju are only obsessed with the name of the President.”

Judiciary

Different figures: According to Judiciary deputy spokesperson Solomon Muyita, they only requested for Shs2.8b and not Shs5b to cater for the presidential, parliamentary and local government election petitions.

The numbers

Shs2.7b
The amount of money that was requested by the Justice ministry for the election petition.

Shs3.1b
The amount of money that was requested by the Electoral Commission.

Shs5b
The amount of money that was requested by the Justice Ministry to facilitate election tribunals, operations and case backlog.

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April 5, 2016
S African parliament to debate Zuma impeachment motion

National Assembly set to debate on Tuesday an opposition-tabled motion to impeach President Zuma over spending scandal.

South Africa’s parliament will debate a motion to impeach President Jacob Zuma, the National Assembly Speaker said on Sunday days after the country’s top court ruled the president had violated the constitution.

“The debate on that motion has been scheduled for Tuesday afternoon,” Baleka Mbete said a day after anti-apartheid veteran Ahmed Kathrada joined opposition leaders in calling for Zuma’s resignation.

The South African president had ignored orders from the public prosecutor to return some of the $16m in state funds that he used to renovate his mansion in Nkandla situated in KwaZulu-Natal province.

On Friday, 73-year-old Zuma in a televised address apologised and said he would pay back some of the money, as ordered. He said that he never knowingly or deliberately set out to violate the constitution.

Mmusi Maimane, leader of the opposition party Democratic Alliance, tabled the motion to impeach Zuma, who is facing arguably the biggest scandal since he took office in 2009. He has fended off accusations of corruption, influence peddling and rape in the past.

The impeachment proceedings are unlikely to be successful because of the Africa National Congress party’s strong majority in parliament, but the judicial rebuke may strengthen anti-Zuma factions within the ruling party to press for change.

The unanimous ruling by the 11-judge constitutional court also criticised parliament for passing a resolution that purported to nullify Public Protector Thuli Madonsela’s findings on Zuma’s private residence.

“The judgement makes sound, balanced and critical findings,” Speaker Mbete told journalists.

April 4, 2016
Turkish leader Erdogan says Islamophobia on rise in US

Turkish president says US presidential candidates have targeted Muslims as he opens a mosque.

Islamophobia is on the rise in the United States and US presidential candidates have targeted Muslims during the election campaign, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said during a visit to the country.

Speaking on Saturday at the opening of a Turkish-sponsored mosque and religious complex outside Washington, Erdogan also said recent attacks in Brussels and Paris “cannot compare” to countries such as Turkey and Pakistan had endured over the years, in terms of violent attacks by hardline groups.

“Unfortunately, we are in a period of rising intolerance and prejudice toward Muslims in the United States and the world,” Erdogan said. “It is absolutely unacceptable to make all Muslims pay the price for the pain and horror” of the attacks on America on September 11, 2001, he said.

“There are still people walking around calling Muslims terrorists. I am watching with bewilderment and astonishment that some candidates still defend this position in the current presidential election in America.”

The Turkish leader was in the US mainly to participate in a nuclear summit in Washington.

“Thousands have come here to hear him speak,” Al Jazeera’s John Hendren, reporting from the mosque, said.

“There are Turkish flags here with the words ‘I love Turkey’ on them. He has generated some enthusiasm, on an otherwise controversial trip.”

ISIL discussed

On Thursday, US President Barack Obama reaffirmed the US commitment to Turkey’s security during a meeting with Erdogan, while also discussing both countries’ efforts to fight the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS), the White House said.

“The president extended condolences to President Erdogan on behalf of the American people for those killed and injured in today’s terrorist attack in Diyarbakir, and reaffirmed the support of the United States for Turkey’s security and our mutual struggle against terrorism,” the White House said.

“The leaders also discussed how to advance our shared effort to degrade and destroy ISIL”.

In a statement on Friday, Turkey’s presidential office said the two NATO leaders discussed cooperation on resolving the refugee crisis and how partners in the fight against ISIL can ramp up their efforts.

April 3, 2016
Central African Republic president names new PM

President Faustin-Archange Touadera appoints former campaign director Simplice Sarandji to prime minister post.

Faustin-Archange Touadera, the Central African Republic’s new President, has named his former campaign director Simplice Sarandji as the country’s prime minister.

“The president of the republic, head of state, in light of the constitution of the Central African Republic of March 30, 2016 … decrees Mr. Simplice Sarandji to be named prime minister, head of the government,” a presidential decree released on Saturday said.

It was not immediately clear when Sarandji would name his cabinet but an announcement was expected in the coming days.

Touadera, a former prime minister and mathematics teacher, was elected president in February, replacing a transitional government that had held power since early 2014.

Touadera has pledged to bring peace and development to the former French colony. The country was hit by religious and inter-commununal conflict in 2013, when a mostly Muslim rebel group, Seleka, toppled longtime ruler Francois Bozize.

That prompted a counter-attack by a Christian militia known as the anti-Balaka. Three years of bloodshed and the displacement of nearly one million people from their homes have since disrupted harvests and sent food prices soaring.

In March, the World Food Programme (WFP) said that at least half of the population – or 2.5 million people – were facing a hunger crisis.

Bienvenu Djossa, the WFP country director in CAR, said the number of people battling hunger had doubled from 2015.

“It is serious,” Djossa said in a statement.

The WFP said it had only secured about half the $89m it needs until the end of July to respond to the needs of 1.4 million people in CAR and neighbouring countries hosting refugees from there.

April 3, 2016
US urges Ugandans to respect court decision

While urging Ugandans to accept the Supreme Court’s dismissal of the petition challenging President Museveni’s re-election, the US has said government should in the next term institute, among others, electoral reforms.

“We encourage all Ugandans to respect the court’s decision, and express their views in a peaceful manner,” the US embassy said in a press statement on Friday.

“We hope the government will now address the grievances voiced by its own people in the wake of these elections and take the necessary steps to enact reforms that will guarantee political inclusivity, transparency, accountability and free and fair elections. Uganda’s future prosperity and democratic progress will depend on such actions,” the statement added.

The statement came after court’s dismissal of the petition, ruling that President Museveni was nominated in accordance with provisions of the Presidential Elections Act, contrary to the claims of the petitioner.

Mid last month, the US warned that Uganda government’s continued crackdown on civil liberties, if not reversed, could affect economic and political ties between the two countries. The warning was informed by a crackdown on Opposition politicians and their supporters as well as the clampdown on the media.

Civil society, Opposition political parties, the Catholic Church and private individuals made similar calls immediately after the 2001, 2006 and the 2011 general elections.
Their proposals would mean a constitutional amendment, which can be done once every 10 years or when Ugandans, through a plebiscite, overwhelming call for reforms.

Those calling for reforms wanted an independently constituted Electoral Commission (EC). The government merely changed the name of the EC to the Independent Electoral Commission. Above all, the Bill tabled by government retained the President’s power to appoint the EC’s commissioners.

Also, it did not proscribe the involvement of the army, intelligence services and police from electoral activities, which critics say creates fear among opposition supporters.

April 2, 2016
Closure of border scares South Sudanese

Relationship between the two neighbours has never been good, particularly on the Abyei issue.

South Sudanese have expressed fears over a border standoff with Sudan.

The citizens of the young nation say the closing of the border and tensions with Khartoum could badly affect their lives.

A senior employee of the state-owned Nile Pet Oil Company, Charles Juma Modi, said Khartoum’s decision to close the border would aggravate suffering, not only in South Sudan, but also in the Sudanese marginalised regions of Nuba, Blue Nile, South Kordofan and Darfur.

Modi said the stalemate between the neighbours was bad for the South Sudanese who moved from Upper Nile and Bahr-el-Ghazal to Khartoum in search of food.

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees last week said hunger made about 38,000 South Sudanese from Warrap and Northern Bahr-el-Ghazal states flee into Sudan’s East and South Darfur regions since January.

“Khartoum is a major source of many basic commodities and they are much cheaper than the ones from East Africa,” Modi said.

He expressed worries that Sudan could block pipelines which transport South Sudan oil to the international markets.

About 98 per cent of South Sudan’s revenue comes from oil exports.

Clement Lerat, an economist, expressed similar fears and called on the South Sudanese authorities to address the situation.

“Our people should be brought home as Khartoum has closed the border,” he said.

According to the Executive Director for African Centre for Transitional Justice, Peter Gai Manyuon, there was nothing new about tensions between the two countries.

“Whether the border is open or closed, nothing will benefit South Sudan and her people. The issue of Abyei will always disrupt the relationship and the cooperation agreement signed by both countries,” he said.

Sudan and South Sudan lay claim to oil-rich region of Abyei.

South Sudanese singer Nyibol Grace said she was dismayed by the breakdown of relations between the two countries and urged Juba and Khartoum authorities begin negotiations to reopen the border “for the benefit of their citizens”.

“It is tragic that Sudan has taken that step. I understand there were negotiations on how to build trade corridors and make it easy for citizens to move into either country,” she said.

Journalist War Machor described Khartoum’s decision as unfortunate, saying it would cause a humanitarian crisis in both countries.

He said Sudan and South Sudan faced insecurity and other problems, which could become worse with the closure of the border.

April 2, 2016
Djibouti leader out to stretch long reign

Supporters of Guelleh — president since 1999 of the tiny but strategic former French colony — are confident of victory in the April 8 vote.

After 17 years under his rule, few doubt Djibouti’s President Ismail Omar Guelleh will fail to win a fourth term next week, with a divided opposition calling the vote a sham.

Supporters of Guelleh — president since 1999 of the tiny but strategic former French colony — are confident of victory in the April 8 vote.

Since campaigning began on March 25 portraits of “IOG”, as Guelleh is known, have lined the baking hot streets of Djibouti City, capital of the arid Horn of Africa nation of 820,000 people, where his supporters parade in the green party colours of his Union for the Presidential Majority (known by its French acronym, UMP).

“We are optimistic, especially when we see that the opposition struggling,” Foreign Minister Mahamoud Ali Youssouf said.

Guelleh won the last poll five years ago with 80 per cent of the vote, after parliament changed the constitution in April 2010 to clear the way for a third, and now a likely fourth, term.

The main opposition group, the Union for National Salvation (USN), is a collapsing coalition.

Three of the seven parties that made up the USN have decided to boycott the poll entirely — the Movement for Democratic Renewal and Development (MRD), the Republican Alliance for Democracy (ARD) and Movement for Development and Freedom (Model) — while the remaining parties are fielding two competing candidates, Mohamed Daoud Chehem and Omar Elmi Khaireh.

“Our party will not participate in the election because we consider it a sham, the minimum requirements of transparency are not guaranteed,” said MRD leader Daher Ahmed Farah.

After parliamentary elections in 2013, which Guelleh’s UMP won with 49 per cent amid claims of fraud, parties had demanded the creation of an independent electoral commission, a key element of a 2014 deal to resolve a political deadlock and end street protests.

Under that deal, the opposition agreed to accept just 10 MPs — instead of the 52 they claimed to have won — in exchange for government commitments to improve protection for opposition parties and the establishment of an independent electoral agency. It was never created.

“The MRD has never believed in the sincerity of this agreement,” said Farah, who said the government only wanted, “to stop the protests”.

April 2, 2016
Moise Katumbi challenges Congo President Joseph Kabila to step down

The owner of African’s top football club has told the president of Democratic Republic of Congo to step down when his second term in office ends in December.

Moise Katumbi urged President Joseph Kabila to stick to the constitution.

Mr Katumbi has been nominated by seven opposition parties to be their presidential candidate in the elections expected in November.

Mr Kabila took power in 2001 after his father Laurent Kabila was assassinated.

Mr Kabila has won two disputed elections since he took power in 2001, and is constitutionally barred from contesting the poll.

Violent protests erupted last year over fears that President Joseph Kabila was trying to delay polls.

If Mr Kabila stands down in December he “will go out as a great president who will be praised everywhere,” Mr Katumbi told the BBC.

Moise Katumbi was governor of the south-eastern Katanga province for almost a decade.

In September last year he broke ties with the ruling party when he accused President Kabila, his former ally, of wanting to cling to power.

His popularity is partly down to his job as the president of a great source of Congolese pride – football club TP Mazembe.

They are Africa’s reigning football champions, having won the African Champions League for the fifth time in November.

Mr Katumbi thanked the seven parties whic nominated him on Wednesday as their presidential candidate.

But he didn’t confirm whether he would accept the nomination, instead saying he wants even more opposition parties to join the coalition.

“For now, I am continuing my consultations here in Europe for the unity of the opposition.

“I am also consulting all the forces to have a single opposition candidate,” he said.

April 1, 2016
Libya’s UN-backed government sails into Tripoli

Members of Presidential Council arrive in Libyan capital by sea, defying opposition warnings to not move there.

Members of Libya’s UN-backed Government of National Accord arrived in Tripoli on Wednesday, defying threats by rival factions that it was not welcome in the capital.

Reports of sporadic gunfire and road blocks leading into Tripoli later emerged, with questions raised whether violence would erupt, or a peaceful transition of power would ensue.

The Presidential Council was formed under a UN-mediated peace deal late last year in an effort to end the political chaos and conflict that has beset the country since the uprising that toppled Muammar Gaddafi five years ago.

It is supposed to replace the two rival administrations – one based in Tripoli, the other in the eastern city of Tobruk – that have been battling each other for more than a year.

Tripoli’s self-declared government and armed groups that back it had in recent days warned the unity government not to travel to Tripoli.

But seven members of the council, including its head and Prime Minister-designate Fayez al-Sarraj, arrived in the Libyan capital by sea and set up a temporary seat of power at a naval base.

The officials were prevented from flying into Tripoli by the rival government.

“At this blessed historic moment, we announce to our people the start of National Accord Government work from Tripoli and the beginning of a new era of dialogue and communication with the sons of our people, regardless of their political attitudes,” Sarraj told a news conference after his arrival.

Yet, in his first remarks after Sarraj’s arrival, the head of the acting government reiterated his opposition to the Government of National Accord and urged its members to either surrender or leave.

“The government of national salvation calls on those illegitimate infiltrators to either hand themselves over and be in safe hands, or to go back to where they came from,” Khalifa al-Ghawi, leader of the General National Congress, told reporters.

“The salvation government is working with judicial and legislative entities, all state institutions and NGOS, as well as community leaders to take the necessary steps to save the country from the threat of chaos and foreign intervention.”

Al Jazeera’s Mahmoud Abdelwahed, reporting from Tripoli, said the big question now was whether the members of the council would be able to govern.

“There are a lot of challenges facing this government here in Tripoli,” Abdelwahed said. “Three major political entities in Libya are opposing the presence of this government.”

Martin Kobler, the UN envoy for Libya, welcomed the arrival of the council in Tripoli and urged all public bodies to facilitate a peaceful and orderly handover of power.

“I call on the Libyan people to extend to the Presidency Council and the Government of National Accord their full support and cooperation,” Kobler said.

“The international community stands firmly behind them and is ready to provide the required support and assistance,” he added.

The US also welcomed the arrival of the UN-backed government, while France said it would provide its “total support” to Sarraj.

“The Government of National Accord can now begin the crucial work of addressing the full range of Libya’s political, security, economic, and humanitarian challenges,” US Secretary of State John Kerry said in a statement.

Ahead of its arrival, the council said it had negotiated a security plan with police and military forces in Tripoli – and with some armed groups.

Even with international support, Sarraj faces a daunting array of challenges and could struggle to impose his will on the Central Bank, the state-run oil company, and other institutions.

He is also at risk of being attacked or besieged in his base by rival militias. He is being guarded by battle-hardened militias from the city of Misrata, which saw fierce fighting during the uprising five years ago.

But Tripoli is also home to several powerful armed groups, which could move against Sarraj, setting off yet another round of fighting.

March 31, 2016