Politics

A prominent Benin businessman, Sebestien Ajavon, announced on Sunday he would run for president in an election scheduled for February in the tiny West African state that borders Nigeria. President Thomas Boni Yayi has led the cotton-producing country since 2006. He is barred under the country's constitution from standing for a third term and the election is considered wide open. "I dream of a Benin that smiles and that's why I invite us to turn resolutely toward a clear future," he told a rally at Mathieu Kerekou stadium, which holds 35,000 and was nearly filled to capacity.

Ajavon, who made his fortune through a food product company, will run as an independent supported by various political parties. He called for a reduction in youth unemployment, improved access to energy and less corruption. Leaders in Congo Republic, Rwanda and Burundi have all secured the right to run for third terms in the last year through constitutional changes, in moves that opponents have criticized as stifling democracy. Benin's President Yayi has not sought to change the constitution to allow him to run and Prime Minister Lionel Zinsou said in December he would seek election on behalf of the ruling party, though he has not yet officially launched his candidacy.

A former investment banker and economist, Zinsou has said his presidency would focus on reducing poverty and getting more workers into the economy's formal sector. He was named to head a government in June that aimed to boost the economy. The International Monetary Fund said Benin's GDP growth will be 5.5 percent this year but has been affected by a slowdown in neighbor and major trading partner Nigeria.

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Ngwa Bertrand

04.Jan.2016

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Moscow’s sanctions against Ankara over the downing of a Russian jet by Turkey are now affecting various sectors of the Turkish economy, including tourism, construction companies and food exports, a new report says. Russia’s relations with Turkey soured after the Turkish military shot down a Russian Sukhoi bomber plane on November 24, 2015. Ankara claimed that the warplane violated the Turkish airspace near the Syrian border, though Moscow denied the accusation. In reaction to the incident, Moscow has imposed a series of sanctions against Ankara.

Russia has banned the import of Turkish fruits and vegetables, poultry and salt. It has also forbidden the sale of charter holidays to Turkey for Russians. The sanctions also impose restrictions on Turkish firms willing to work on construction projects in Russia. Moreover, Turkish citizens working for companies registered in Russia are facing restrictions. Russia has also stopped working on a new Black Sea pipeline that was to increase its gas exports to Turkey. Turkish economist, Erhan Aslanoglu, said Ankara risks losing USD 3.5 billion annually in income from Russian tourists, who had long been flocking to Turkey's Mediterranean resorts. In 2014, Turkey was the second most popular holiday destination for Russians, attracting some 3.3 million tourists.

According to Aslanoglu, Turkey may also lose USD 4.5 billion each year due to the cancellation of its construction projects in Russia. Regarding the gas export, Aslanoglu said, "If Moscow stops or delays the natural gas flow, that will definitely have a serious impact on the Turkish economy." Turkey relies on Russia for 55 percent of its natural gas and 30 percent of its oil.

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Ngwa Bertrand

03.Jan.2016

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Another member of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria (IMN) has lost his life in detention due to the lack of medical care, the movement has announced. According the a statement released by the movement on Friday, Abbas Isiyaku had been shot and injured in an attack by the Nigerian army in the city of Zaria in the northern province of Kaduna in December. 

On December 12, Nigerian soldiers attacked Shia Muslims attending a ceremony at a religious center in Zaria, accusing them of stopping the convoy of the army’s chief of staff and attempting to assassinate him. Dozens of people lost their lives in the deadly assault. “There are some other 13 critically wounded members of IMN still in the prison in Kaduna, Nigeria, alone,” the statement further said, adding that a large number of others, including the country’s prominent Shia cleric, Sheikh Ibrahim al-Zakzaky, and his wife, were still being held incommunicado at different military barracks and other prisons without access to medical attention.

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Ngwa Bertrand

02.Jan.2016

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The White House on Wednesday voiced concern about the arrest of journalists in Ethiopia and urged that country's government to release people imprisoned for exercising their right to free expression. While the United States had welcomed the release of several detained bloggers in Ethiopia earlier this year, National Security Council spokesman Ned Price said in a statement, "we are deeply concerned by the recent arrests of other journalists." He did not give details about the recently arrested journalists.

On a visit to Ethiopia in July, U.S. President Barack Obama said in a speech at the African Union in Addis Ababa that Ethiopia "cannot unleash the full potential of its people" if it jails journalists and restricts legitimate opposition groups. An Ethiopian opposition party leader said on Friday police had arrested two of its senior members on suspicion of inciting weeks of protests against government plans to set up a new economic zone near the capital that would displace farmers. "We urge the Ethiopian Government to release journalists and all others imprisoned for exercising their right to free expression, to refrain from using its Anti-Terrorism Proclamation as a mechanism to silence dissent," Price said.

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Ngwa Bertrand

31.Dec.2015

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The Conference Hall of the Ministry of Defence was on December 29, 2015, jammed to capacity as military leaders, senior officers, officers, non-commission officers and soldiers of rank and file as well as family members and friends of 47-year old Saïd Kamsouloum thronged the venue to witness the commissioning of the Senior Civil Administrator as Secretary General (SG) of the Ministry of Defence. Commissioning the new SG in the presence of the Secretaries of State in charge of the National Gendarmerie and Ex- Service Men and War Victims, Jean Baptiste Bokam and Koumpa Issa respectively, the Minister Delegate at the Presidency in charge of Defence, Joseph Beti Assomo reminded him of his missions and attributions as spelled out in the 2001 text organising the Ministry. 

He urged him to be committed, available and assiduous to surmount the huge task awaiting him in the coordination of activities of the different departments of the ministry. Born in Ngaoundere in 1968, Saïd Kamsouloum, who hails from Makary in the Lagone and Chari Division of the Far North Region, is a graduate of the National School of Administration and Magistracy (ENAM) 1999-2001 batch. The holder of a Bachelor Degree in Public Law from the University of Ngaoundere also prides himself with a Higher Diploma in Strategic, Security, Defence and Conflict Management studies from the University of Yaounde II. The father of five has put in 14 years of service in the Ministry of Defence, occupying various posts of responsibility including Technical Adviser No.2; a position he occupied till his appointment last December 22, 2015.

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Ngwa Bertrand

30.Dec.2015

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People in the Central African Republic (CAR) are going to the polls in much-delayed elections in the hope of putting an end to years of violence in the country. Polling stations for the presidential and parliamentary votes opened on Wednesday. Thirty candidates, including former prime ministers, Anicet-Georges Dologuele and Martin Ziguele, are running for president.

The elections had been postponed four times since February 2015 due to insecurity and logistical challenges. In a Tuesday statement, the United Nations (UN)’s Secretary General Ban Ki-moon called for calm and credible elections in the African country. He urged “all national stakeholders to commit themselves to ensuring that the elections are conducted in a peaceful and credible manner.”

The 11,000-strong UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA) is working to reinforce security and prevent “any possible disruption to the election process,” he added. The CAR has been convulsed by turmoil since 2013, when Christian anti-balaka militiamen launched coordinated attacks against the mostly Muslim Seleka group, which had toppled the government in March that year. Thousands of people are believed to have been killed in the conflict.

In December that year, France deployed troops to the CAR, a former French colony, after the UN Security Council adopted a resolution giving the African Union and France the go-ahead for the troop deployment, though the measure failed to end violence in the country. According to the latest UN estimates, the conflict in the CAR has internally displaced some 400,000 people and forced more than 460,000 to flee to neighboring countries.

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Ngwa Bertrand

30.Dec.2015

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