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Uganda’s inter-religious council called off the eagerly awaited presidential candidates’ debate.
The council said the debate, that was due on Thursday 03 was cancelled due to limited resources.
Local media reported that a total of ten presidential candidates were expected to grace the occasion.
This comes amid numerous complaints majorly from the opposition who have constantly blamed the security apparatus for rights violations.
Uganda opposition have in most cases face wrath of the police especially the renowned musician-turned politician, Bobi Wine.
Two weeks ago, 54 people died in protests after Wines supporters called for his release following a brief arrest at campaign rally.
They have defended themselves by claiming that they were only implementing Covid-19 guidelines to prevent the spread of Coronavirus.
Bobi Wine was later charged with violating pandemic restrictions on gathering of crowds and granted bail.
The embattled singer later met the electoral commission and asked them to ensure that there should be equitable campaigns and police should be stopped from intimidating the opposition leaders and their members.
\t On Friday, internet and international calls were cut off across the West African nation in anticipation of the election results, according to locals and international observers in the capital, Conakry.
\t This was the third time that Conde matched-up against Diallo. Before the election, observers raised concerns that an electoral dispute could reignite ethnic tensions between Guinea's largest ethnic groups.
With popular frustrations running high, and opposition leader Agathon Rwasa warning that he will not accept a \"stolen\" election, fears are mounting that a contested poll could lead to violence along the lines of what the country saw in 2015, when Nkurunziza's controversial bid for a third term prompted street protests, a failed coup, a crackdown and the exodus of over 400,000 people.
It now also appears that the EAC will be unable to send an observation team in time for the elections; Burundi's authorities have cited the COVID-19 outbreak as a reason to quarantine the observers for fourteen days upon arrival, though it is unclear whether the decision was genuinely made for legitimate public health reasons, given that the government has otherwise played down the outbreak.
Ruling-party nominee Ndayishimiye and long-time opposition leader Rwasa, who both fought as rebels in Burundi's 1993-2005 civil war, are the clear front runners, and emblematic of the former fighters' continued influence in national politics.
They say Nkurunziza, who pushed for the selection of his ally Pascal Nyabenda, the president of the National Assembly (the lower chamber of Burundi's parliament), only agreed to Ndayishimiye's candidacy after intense lobbying by generals.
While Rwasa has announced that he will not allow the election to be \"stolen\", CNDD-FDD officials believe that their party structures and ability to register and mobilise voters across the country cannot but deliver victory.
Uganda’s Electoral Commission announced on Tuesday that it will push ahead with organising the scheduled February 2021 General Election.
Amidst uncertainty over the coronavirus pandemic, the Commission banned mass gatherings and directed parties and candidates to use various media platforms to reach out to voters.
He said the new roadmap was problematic because of a history of partiality by the Electoral Commission in favour of the incumbent, and the failure to appreciate internal processes the party has to undertake to arrive at flag bearers.
While Uganda has a number of privately-owned FM radio and TV stations, the majority are owned by politicians who are members of the ruling National Resistance Movement party or people friendly to the party, who will not grant opposition members access to campaign on their platforms.
The Electoral Commission was faulted in a Supreme Court ruling on the 2016 elections for its failure to ensure state media gave candidates equal access.
[Monitor] The newly revised roadmap for 2021 General Election that authorised virtual campaigning has been challenged in the High Court for violating various fundamental constitutional rights and freedom.
The Republican National Committee is using National Black Voter Day to show Black Americans that it's not about who you vote for, but that you vote.
Donald Trump’s decision to stage a campaign rally in a sports stadium in Tulsa, Oklahoma, is spurring a renewed push for reparations for the racial massacre that devastated the city’s black community just 10 blocks away from where the president will be speaking on Saturday.
But his scheduled visit is also providing a boost to a justice movement that has coalesced around the 1921 massacre that struck a thriving area of the city known as “Black Wall Street”.
Forcibly displaced now account for 1% of humanity – UN report
“The visit is galvanising people,” said Damario Solomon-Simmons, a civil rights lawyer who represents the last known survivor of the massacre living in Tulsa.
“We are all very concerned about Trump coming to Tulsa as he creates violence and intimidation among his supporters, but on the other end it has put the spotlight on the massacre.”
The Tulsa race massacre is widely considered to be one of the worst single acts of racial violence in US history.
Prominent dissident Guillaume Soro, a former prime minister who was blocked from running in Ivory Coast’s presidential election, called Wednesday on the country’s military to disobey President Alassane Ouattara after he was allowed to win a controversial third term.
Soro’s comments via his Facebook account put him on a direct crash course with his former mentor, and align him more closely with two other opposition leaders still in Ivory Coast who have pledged to push ahead with a transitional government of their own after Saturday’s election.
“I ask you to disobey the illegal orders and join the National Council of Transition. To the defense and security forces, I ask you to look in the mirror, in soul and conscience, and act to stop the killings. You must act to restore our constitution to its former glory,” Soro said.
“Alassane Ouattara is no longer the President of the Republic of Ivory Coast. Put an end to the specter of civil war that threatens our country, you know me,” Soro said, directly addressing defense and security forces.
Soro, a former rebel leader who went on to become the president of the National Assembly, was unable to return to Ivory Coast from France earlier this year when criminal charges were brought against him that his supporters say were politically motivated to derail his candidacy.
He was later sentenced to 20 years in absentia on embezzling public funds and money laundering charges.
Several opposition leaders in Abidjan have had their homes surrounded by security forces since Tuesday when the electoral commission issued results showing Ouattara had won another term with 94.3% of the vote after an opposition boycott.
Ouattara has been in power for nearly a decade. He initially said he would not run again this year but changed his mind after his party’s candidate died suddenly in July. He maintains that the country’s two-term limit for presidents does not apply to him because of a constitutional referendum passed in 2016.
The 78-year-old president, who is popular with international donors, has said he was motivated to run again because of his love for his country. He also has said it’s unlikely he would seek reelection again in 2025.
There have been widespread fears of post-election violence erupting in Ivory Coast, where more than 3,000 people were killed following a disputed vote a decade ago.
Soro said Wednesday that a “nascent tyranny” was forming in the country and he called on opposition activists to continue civil disobedience efforts.
“We must stand up and block the former president, Alassane Ouattara, who has taken the country hostage,” Soro said. “Let’s stand up to say no to the dictatorship.”
Ghana’s President Nana Akufo-Addo has apologized to his Nigerian counterpart Muhammadu Buhari following the illegal building demolition on the premises of the Nigerian High Commission in Accra, according to a statement.
The two West African leaders spoke by telephone, according to Nigerian presidential spokesman Garba Shehu. Akufo-Addo assured Buhari that a full investigation would be made in to the incident.
Shehu added that a number of suspects had been arrested.
According to local media, a number of people entered the residence of the Nigerian High Commission in Ghana with a bulldozer and razed a structure that was nearly completed. It was to be housing for either staff and visitors.
Online Ghanaian news site GhanaWeb said it had interviewed Nii Odoi Kwao II, the head of the Nii Odei Kwao family and a member of the Osu Stool, a traditional council. He said that the land the Nigerian High Commission built on land that actually belonged to the Osu Stool.
Speaking in an interview with GhanaWeb, Head of the Nii Odei Kwao family and a member of the Osu Stool, Nii Odoi Kwao II reiterated that the said land belongs to the Osu Stool and not the Nigerian Embassy in Ghana.
“Nii Odei who declined to speak on the matter of the demolition carried out by unidentified persons extensively said, the incident is a sad one which the Osu Council is not happy about,” according to GhanaWeb.
The leader said that the Osu Stool will be meeting to discuss this matter and the pending litigation over the land. He added that the traditional council did not intend to make a diplomatic row over the issue.
Nigeria had lodged a complaint after the incident.
On Tuesday, a number of videos were posted on social media of some 30 Nigerian nationals in Accra protesting in front of the building.
In Nigeria, House of Representatives Speaker Femi Gbajabiamila spoke out on behalf of the House, calling for retaliatory measures for those who do not respect diplomatic rights and privileges of Nigeria and its citizens in foreign lands.
This Happened In Nigerian Embassy In Accra Ghana. The Govt Of Ghana Demolished The Nigerian Embassy In Ghana.
Nigeria A Failed State Is Crumbling Fast And Has Lot Every Atom Of Respect In The Eyes Of The World. #BreakUpNigeria And End This Charade!MaziNnamdiKanu Amaka_Ekwo pic.twitter.com/9yodwCymbl— Mazi Chigozie Umebelechukwu (@ChigozieKenndy2) June 21, 2020
Agencies
The sudden death of outgoing Burundian President Pierre Nkurunziza Tuesday came as a shock to everyone on the African political scene.
Nkurunziza ruled Burundi with an iron first for 15 years, including a controversial third term that saw hundreds killed in protests and more than half a million fleeing the country.
Burundi has begun seven days of mourning after the death of President Pierre Nkurunziza, who died Monday at a hospital in the town of Karuzi.
The rise of Imbonerakure will be Nkurunziza’s defining characteristic of his human rights record,” said Mudge.
Nelleke van de Walle, deputy director for central Africa at the International Crisis Group, said the future of Burundi depends on what the political system left behind by Nkurunziza will do in the coming months.
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) - A coalition of political parties in Venezuela led by US-backed Juan Guaid� said yesterday that it won't participate in upcoming congressional elections called by officials loyal to President Nicol�s Maduro.A group of 27 opposition parties rejected the December 6 election as 'fraud'.
Zimbabwe's health minister Obadiah Moyo was arrested on Friday for alleged corruption related to the supply of medical materials to combat the coronavirus pandemic, the anti-graft agency said.
The government did not immediately comment on the arrest, which came a day after the country's main opposition condemned alleged state corruption following suspicions over a $2-million-dollar payment to a medical company contracted to provide anti-coronavirus equipment.
Harare has come under fire for granting two-month-old company Drax Consult SAGL a contract to supply $20 million worth of drugs, personal protective equipment and Covid-19 test kits.
In March, authorities in Hungary - where Drax Consult SAGL is registered - flagged a suspicious $2 million deposit into the company's accounts, drawing anger from the opposition Movement for Democratic Change.
Government last week ordered the cancellation of all contracts for the supply of medicines and sundries by Drax, according to the state-run Herald newspaper.
[Monitor] Kampala -- The Electoral Commission (EC) has rolled out nominations for the local government councils.
An Angolan trade union on Tuesday accused the police of shooting dead one of their senior officials and his neighbour in front of his home in the capital, Luanda.
The police removed the body from the scene and launched an investigation, interior ministry spokesperson Waldemar Jose told local media.
The Sinptenu teaching union named the dead man as Lazarino Dos Santos, their national secretary.
He was \"shot dead at the door of his house on Monday evening by two police officers on a motorcycle, without justification\", union president Avelino Calunga told AFP.
Angolan security forces have long been criticised for using excessive force.
Wider Says Secret Debt Intensified Poverty; Inequality Is Increasing As Better Off 'Eat' More
There were 1 million more poor people in Mozambique in 2018 than in 2015, largely due to the secret debt, according to research published by the United Nations University - Wider on 3 June.
Two other recent Wider publications, show that inequality is increasing and that Mozambique is failing to tackle child poverty in rural areas and in the north.
Mozambique's population is increasing at the rate of 3% per year, so any annual poverty reduction of less than 3% means the number and share of poor people increases.
Children Poorer Than In Neighbour Countries - And It's Getting Worse
\"A significant, and striking, result of our analysis is that rural poverty incidence for children aged 0-17 is more than three times that of urban areas, and the four poorest provinces are about 50 times poorer than the richest,\" write Kristi Mahrt, Andrea Rossi, Vincenzo Salvucci and Finn Tarp in a paper published 23 April.
Compared to its neighbours, \"Mozambique achieved the greatest reduction in urban poverty index, which once more confirms the impression of an uneven development process\" and particularly excluded children in rural and central/northern regions.
More than 3,200 Ivorians have fled the ongoing post-election violence in their country to Liberia, Ghana and Togo, the U.N. refugee agency says. Ivory Coast's President Alassane Ouattara won a controversial third term in office in an election on Saturday that was marred by violence, intimidation and electoral malpractice. Opposition leaders who boycotted the election...
The post In Ivory Coast, thousands have fled ongoing post-election violence to Liberia, Ghana and Togo appeared first on Face2Face Africa.
Electric buses made by students of the Makerere University in Uganda have now hit the road with improved health guidelines as the country battles Covid-19.
According to local media, the EVS bus has an onboard Wi-Fi to ensure the travelers stay connected, USB charging ports to enable charging of traveler’s display boards for timely and accurate information dissemination.
Kiira Motors, who assembled the buses, have equity partners made up of the Government of the Republic of Uganda represented by the Ministry of Science, Technology, and Innovation (96%) and Makerere University (4%).
The company, which is made up of students from the Makerere University has also produced the Kiira EV, Kiira EV SMACK – the first electric hybrid vehicle to be designed and built in Africa, as well as, the Kayoola which is Africa’s first solar powered bus.
According to the company, the production of the bus, “provides an unprecedented opportunity for participation of a wide range of local manufacturers making components to feed the production line at the Kiira vehicle plant addressing the key aspects of Supply Chain Localization and engendering import substitution.”
May 27: Health Minister infected, cases pass 1,000 mark
\tLocal media portals have reported that Zambia’s health minister has tested positive for COVID-19.
Zambia virus stats as of May 24, 2020 at 13:00 GMT
Confirmed cases = 920
Deaths = 7
Recoveries = 336
Active cases = 577
May 20: Nakonde records more new cases
\tNakonde, the border town with Tanzania continues to record more cases of the virus.
The one-stop border post in Nakonde was closed last week by President Lungu amid a spike in cases.
May 14 = 654 cases (208 new cases), 7 deaths, 124 recoveries
\t\tMay 13 = 446 cases (5 new cases), 7 deaths, 117 recoveries
\t\tMay 12 = 441 cases (174 new cases), 7 deaths, 117 recoveries
\t\tMay 11 = 267 cases (0 new cases), 7 deaths, 117 recoveries
\t\tMay 10 = 267 cases, 7 deaths, 117 recoveries
\t
\tThe town of Nakonde was declared a hot spot by the Ministry of Health on May 10 leading to the closure of the frontier with Tanzania.
On Saturday (May 9) 76 new cases were reported in Nakonde, the border town in question.
Uganda’s two key opposition figures, Kizza Besigye of the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) and People Power leader MP Robert Sentamu Kyagulanyi (aka Bobi Wine) on June 15 announced a strategy for joint political activities under the United Forces of Change.
Bobi Wine and Dr Besigye have branded their partnership a political pressure group meant to push back against President Yoweri Museveni’s government.
Before he joined mainstream politics in 2017 as a member of parliament for Kyadondo East, Bobi Wine was a Dr Besigye supporter.
At some point, the seeming popularity of Bobi Wine’s People Power created suspicion and hostility with the FDC, the largest opposition party in Uganda.
Our strategies may differ at some point but our objective is the same,” said Bobi Wine at the launch.
Stevante Clark was booked into Sacramento County main jail on felony battery charges this week, after he was apprehend by the Sacramento Police Department’s Career Criminal Unit on May 18, Sacramento police said.
Clark is scheduled to be arraigned in a Sacramento County court on May 27.
Clark is the older brother of Stephon Clark, who was shot and killed by two Sacramento police officers in the back of his grandparent’s South Sacramento home on March 18, 2018.
After a few public outbursts related to the death of his brother, Stevante Clark has been a model citizen by supporting other families that suffered similar consequences.
Clark recently helped a family bring attention to a video of a Sacramento County Sheriff beating a defenseless 14-year-old boy late last month.
Ugandans are engaged in heated debates over the merits, possibilities and effectiveness of participating in what is being popularly referred to as a ‘scientific election’.
The East African country is scheduled to hold presidential, parliamentary and local government elections next year.
The electoral commission last week told the nation to prepare for an unusual election where campaigning will be done digitally, as the destabilizing effects of the coronavirus continue.
Justifying scientific elections
Uganda which currently has over 700 confirmed cases of the coronavirus has been slowly easing restrictions and emphasizing measures of social distancing for all activities in the country.
The commission says it is bound by Article 61 (2) of Uganda’s constitution which tasks it to organize elections within 120 days before the expiry of the term of president, parliament or local government.
In conducting a scientific election, the commission hopes to exercise its duty to facilitate Ugandans’ right to choose their leaders in a healthy and safe environment.
How it will be conducted
Aspirants at all levels will only be able to conduct campaigns electronically via television, radio and social media, since open-air public rallies have been banned.
“This is because electoral activities involve public gatherings and hence pose high COVID-19 risk of person-to-person and object-to-person transmissions,” the commission explained in a statement.
The three months of a lockdown imposed since March across the country also means that some activities will have to be accomplished in a much shorter time.
With hardly six months to the elections scheduled to be held between January and February next year, political parties are yet to nominate flag-bearers for the different offices that will be contested.
Voting itself is to be conducted normally, with president Yoweri Museveni telling the nation on Monday that government can effectively ensure social distancing and other precautionary measures at polling stations.
“… the gathering for the elections themselves, can be safely managed with hand-washing, social-distancing or leaving gaps of the necessary metres between voters in line,” Museveni said.
“This would remove the uncertainty that would be created by the postponement of the elections but also ensure that elections are held safely. I call upon Ugandans to support this option.”
Ugandans react
Key stakeholders in the electoral process including leaders of political parties and the voters themselves have shared mixed reactions to the electoral commission’s proposal.
While the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) has welcomed the proposal and says it will adjust its programme accordingly, many in the opposition say the commission is playing into the hands of incumbent Museveni and other powerful NRM politicians.
The opposition politicians accuse the electoral commission of not consulting them as it drafted the revised election roadmap. According to the popular legislator and presidential hopef
The electoral commission, INEC, has approved direct primary for the All Progressives Congress (APC) to select its candidate for the September 19 governorship election in Edo State.
The APC headquarters had approved direct primary while the Edo chapter of the party wanted indirect primary.
Festus Okoye, the INEC spokesperson, appealed to the various political parties to conduct their primaries in full compliance with the provisions of the 1999 Constitution and Electoral Act 2010 law.
\"In accordance with Sections 85 and 87 of the Electoral Act 2010 (as amended), 15 out of the 18 registered Political Parties have notified the Commission of their intention to conduct primaries for the purpose of nominating candidates for the Edo State Governorship election slated for 19 September 2020.
\"The Commission appeals to the various Political Parties to conduct their primaries in full compliance with the provisions of the 1999 Constitution and Electoral Act 2010 (as amended), Regulations and Guidelines for the Conduct of Political Party Primaries (2018) and the INEC Police COVID-19 Pandemic of 21\" May 2020.
The IEC says that it stands ready to resume running by-elections under Level 1 lockdown, with strict Covid-19 protocols in place.
Donald Trump isn’t usually one to cave to the so-called “culture wars,” but that’s exactly what he did after his decision to hold a campaign rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma on Juneteenth was met with heavy backlash.
In response to an uproar that started earlier this week over the president’s scheduling of a MAGA rally in the same city of the Black Wall Street massacre on Juneteenth (Friday, June 19), he’s retreating by rescheduling the event for a later date.
RELATED: Biden Campaign Calls Out Racist Trump Rally To Be Held Where Black People Were Massacred
Juneteenth commemorates the end of slavery in the United States.
But Trump’s decision to hold the rally in the city that is the site of one of the worst incidents of racial violence in America’s history — the 1921 massacre where hundreds of Black people were attacked by a white mob — was deemed doubly disrespectful.
Trump has also faced backlash for holding rallies at all, considering cases of the coronavirus that continue to spike nationwide.
The Electoral Commission (EC) has revealed that only presidential candidates will be given free and equal airtime on the state owned media outlets as provided for in the Presidential Elections Act 2005.
Mr Byabakama said the electoral body will meet the Uganda Commissions Commission (UCC) to discuss the enforcement of the law which requires all presidential candidates to have the same access to the state-owned media outlets.
Section 23 (1 and 2) of Presidential Elections Act 2005 stipulates that all presidential candidates shall get equal treatment, freedom of expression and access to information of candidates.
\"
According to the electoral body, a presidential candidate is free to buy airtime from privately owned media houses to supplement their free access to the state owned media.
In February, Parliament passed the Presidential Elections Amendment Bill which stipulates punitive measures to state owned media managers such as a year in jail or a fine of up to Shs10m for denying presidential candidates coverage.
Bison's highly-rated quarterback using lone game this season to highlight Black Lives Matter, Breonna Taylor and others
Foreign Currency Account holders with Zimbabwean banks – among them units of Standard Bank, Standard Chartered and Nedbank – have expressed apprehension about what they fear could be a run on their funds by the government, as the central bank kicks in new monetary measures.
Chiedza Madzima, the head of operational risk for Fitch Solutions, said Zimbabwe's foreign currency accounts were facing pressure as depositors rushed to withdraw US dollar funds \"amid much lower market confidence.\"
Standard Chartered Zimbabwe last month told local media that \"the Covid-19 induced lockdown has resulted in some constraints in cash importation\", while some bank chiefs say they have been asked by the central bank to prioritise foreign currency allocations.
They are prioritising those accounts which have cash deposits, and now I am stuck because I cannot access my funds and at the same time I cannot convert into local currency at the official rate, which is much lower,\" said an FCA account holder at foreign-owned bank in Harare.
Banks such as Stanbic Zimbabwe and Standard Chartered have been touting alternatives to cash withdrawals such as internal transfers, online and mobile application payments for FCA accounts.
The Catholic church in the Democratic Republic of Congo has waded into the political crisis that has gripped the country calling for a divorce between the two coalitions running the affairs of the state.
On Tuesday (June 30) Archbishop of Kinshasa, Frindolin Ambongo has called for the dissolution of the political alliance between President Tshisekedi and his predecessor Kabila.
The cleric cited mistrust among members of Kabila’s Common Front of Congo, FCC and the president’s Union for Democracy and Social Progress, UPDS.
He noted the current political tension has been stoked by MPs of former president Joseph Kabila’s Common Front for Congo which has a parliamentary majority.
Monsignor Ambongo also accused the president of the Congolese national assembly of ‘contempt’ by renewing the mandate of the head of the country’s electoral commission.
Based on an ominous forecast just released by the University of Washington, if our habits remain the same and we insist upon the rush back to \"normal,\" we can expect the U.S. to exceed 200,000 deaths from COVID-19 by October.
The president promises that everyone who attends his campaign rally in Tulsa will have access to free gloves, face masks and hand sanitizer – but there's no word on whether attendees will be required to comply with these safer practices.
In New York, Tennessee and Arizona, recently opened \"water holes\" have been packed with thirsty patrons, many of whom have been seen not wearing masks and jammed to the walls.
Texas has seen record-number hospitalizations of those suffering from COVID-19 while others continue to ignore any recommended practices related to social distancing.
And in Miami, it looks like the much-celebrated reopening of bars, bistros and beaches may have been premature as Florida just recorded over 10,000 new infections in just one week's time.
