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Ivory Coast is headed for a constitutional referendum in October. President Alassane Ouattara backs the initiative, which would create a senate and a new post of deputy president, but the opposition does not share his enthusiasm.

One of the main reasons to reform the current constitution, Ouattara has said, is to remove a contentious article on nationality that played a role in years of civil war in the West African nation.

Ouattara's political opponents used the article on nationality to block him from several presidential elections in the past, claiming his parents were not born in Ivory Coast, and he was thus not eligible. The U.S.-trained economist was elected head of state in 2010 and took office the following year, after months of unrest involving supporters of his predecessor as president, Laurent Gbagbo. 

Ivory Coast has kept its role as the world's leading producer of cocoa despite the civil war earlier in this decade, and Ouattara has since won re-election. He declared one of his main goals is to revise and update the constitution.

Unseen new charter

The text of a new national charter has not yet been released, but when the president announced details of the planned change this month - creating a new post of deputy president, and adding a senate as a second legislative branch of the government - they immediately aroused controversy.

The opposition denounced the president's proposal, saying it reflected a lack of national dialogue and consensus.

Bamba Morifere is the spokesperson for the CODE, the opposition coalition.

When you bring in a new constitution, all Ivorians should be part of the debate, he says.

"The president should follow international standards and and establish a constitutional commission," Morifere said. "It’ll take time - as much as needed - but there needs to be an in-depth debate. [Ouattara] shouldn’t try to force his way through."

The opposition spokesperson believes Ivory Coast's fragile social order is at stake.

New position, control

Ouattara said he wants the new constitution to establish the office of deputy president, since the office of the president needs to fill such a vacancy. The opposition claims his real agenda is to choose a successor.

As for the senate...

"He wants to name one-third of the senators," Morifere claims. "That’s against the separation of powers."

Civil society platform POECI has recently run several small focus groups across the country.

Priorities questioned

Spokesperson Marie Paule Kodjo says most of those who participated believe the president's new constitution is not what Ivory Coast needs now. "They believe priorities are elsewhere," she said, such as action to curb "the rising cost of living, unemployment and corruption."

Kodjo's group also emphasizes the need for a national consensus on the text of a new constitution, and is against creating new institutions that could challenge the nation's existing order.

This is necessary "given the fragility of the social fabric and the need to rationalize the expenses granted to the governing body," said Kodjo.

The civil-society organization also asked the government to communicate better on the new text, and to publish full details sooner than the minimum period required before a national referendum — just two weeks prior to a vote due to take place in October.

VOA

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Rita Akana

15.Aug.2016

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At least 45 people were found dead in a massacre perpetrated on Saturday night in Beni city of North Kivu Province in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, city mayor Nyonyi Bwanakawa confirmed on Sunday.

According to the mayor, the assailants attacked the village of Rwangoma in the outskirts of the city, killing civilians.

President Kabila who is staying in the province of North Kivu, told the press that these acts were of pure terrorism. 

“The terrorist massacre happening at the moment in the east is not different from what happened in Mali, France, Somalia and other corners of the world,” said Joseph Kabila in Goma.

Suspected rebels of the Allied Democratic Forces, an armed group of Ugandan origin, were responsible for the attack, according to army spokesperson Mak Hazukay.

Three days of national mourning have been declared following Saturday night’s mass killing, the latest in a series of massacres that have left more than 600 people dead in and around the troubled town of Beni since 2014.

Sources: AFP, Xinhua

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Rita Akana

15.Aug.2016

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As the first U.S. president with familial ties to Africa, President Barack Obama has left a mark and a legacy on the continent. Among his signature achievements is Power Africa, which aims to add 60 million new electrical connections to light up the continent.

Obama also launched the Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI), which mentors and funds projects for ambitious young people. He has also helped expand trade to the continent and has visited sub-Saharan Africa four times, more than any other U.S. president.

But as Africans closely watch this year's presidential race, they are wondering what the policy of either party's candidate — Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton or Republican candidate Donald Trump — would look like toward the region.

African policy has not been a priority topic on the campaign trail for either candidate, but each has advisers who offer hints at how they would approach Africa as president.

Clinton offers continuation

Tom Daschle, former Senate majority leader and a Clinton supporter, said Clinton’s relationship with the continent runs deep, especially with the Clinton Foundation, which has worked to fight AIDS and supports educational initiatives.

“Hillary and Bill Clinton have really made a commitment to Africa and the relationship between our continents for a long time,” Daschle said. “The Clinton Foundation has been extremely active in Africa, and so we think it really represents a new chapter for the relationship. We are very really bullish and very optimistic about what it could mean.”

He also said Clinton would have a very different perspective on immigration than her opponent, who has pledged to halt immigration for Muslims and for people coming from areas of the world with high instances of terror.

“I think it’s night and day when it comes to immigration,” Daschle said. “We believe in immigration. We think that immigration is really the reason why we celebrate the diversity and the strength that is America. And the more we can embrace immigration, the more we believe we have an opportunity to help create stability around the world, in addition to enhancing their own diversity.”

Trump's counterterrorism efforts

Trump has made little mention of Africa in his campaign appearances.

The closest Africa has come to being a hot topic was when Trump mispronounced the nation of Tanzania when speaking about terrorism. Additionally, some animal-rights activists have protested the fact that two of Trump’s sons go on hunting trips to shoot big game in Africa.

Walid Phares, a Lebanese-American foreign policy analyst and adviser to the Trump campaign, said he has met with ambassadors from about 50 countries and addressed their concerns.

“We confirmed that a Trump administration would show solidarity with Africa,” Phares told VOA.

He said Trump will be eager to form security partnerships with African countries to combat shared enemies such as extremist groups. Many African countries, including Libya, Mali and Tunisia, have seen their security situation erode, Phares said, adding that he believes they are hungry for a stronger commitment to fighting terror from the White House.

“Africans like Obama, for sure, but his foreign policy was not good for Africans and Sahel countries feel they were not part of this policy,” Phares said. “They would rather go now with a Trump administration. Without security, there is no economy.”

2016 party platforms

Each of the two parties mention policy toward Africa in official party platforms introduced and voted on at the party conventions.

The Democratic Party platform promises to improve capabilities in crisis response and provide protection of civilians with an emphasis on women and girls.

They promise to continue Obama’s initiative to combat wildlife trafficking and make counterterrorism efforts a priority.

“We will work to end the reign of terror promulgated by Boko Haram, al-Shabab, AQIM and ISIS,” the platform reads.

Terrorism is similarly important to the Republican Party, which states in its platform: “We urge governments throughout the continent to recognize this threat to their own people. We support closer cooperation in both military and economic matters with those on the front lines of civilization’s battle against the forces of evil.”

Other GOP promises include the extension of health care support throughout the continent until 2025. The initiatives include President George W. Bush’s signature program to offer AIDS relief, known as PEPFAR, and funding to fight AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria.

Witney Schneidman, a nonresident fellow at the Brookings Institution and adviser to Clinton on Africa, believes that no matter who wins, both parties can find common ground in their shared interest to help the continent.

“Over the last two administrations, Bush and now Obama, there’s been a tradition of bipartisanship when it comes to Africa,” Schneidman said.

He pointed to the 2000 passage of the African Growth and Opportunity Act that received strong bipartisan support, which the President’s Emergency Program For AIDS Relief did as well. Obama’s efforts in Africa have similarly enjoyed broad support from both parties, he said.

“I would expect into the next administration that many of these programs will continue and this bipartisan consensus will be sustained,” Schneidman said.

VOA

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Rita Akana

14.Aug.2016

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Yaounde-Cameroon: CONTEST ENTRY INTO ENAM: The corruption at the Advance School of Administration and Magistracy - ENAM - has reached epic proportions of impunity so much so that the Director of the said Institution has NO PROBLEM signing the unmissable hocus-pocus, the glaring scam, the broad daylight imposture that lies in the final results whereby a he validates results without asking some very obvious pertinent questions.

 A candidate by name "Atangana Joseph Yannick" had his name on two lists,namely the General Administration section and the Economy and Finance section of this year's ENAM examinations. Ironically, both exams were held on the same day at the same time making it impossible for the said candidate to have been at both sitting rooms to take on the two exams.So what happened?How comes the Director could validate such a list?

Tapang Ivo Writes

 

 

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Glory Agwetang

12.Aug.2016

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Yaounde-The trial of Ahmed Abba, the Hausa language correspondent in northern Cameroon and Northeastern Nigeria for Radio France International, RFI, continued at the Yaounde Military Tribunal on Wednesday, August 3, 2016. Hearing the matter was Mr. Justice Edou, assisted by Col. Jotsa David and Lt. Col. Ayang Clement. Prosecuting was Major Ndzie Pierrot Narcisse. The trial began on February 29, 2016, but had not made much progress.

Arrested in Maroua on July 30, 2015, Abba was later charged with terrorist collusion and failing to report terrorist acts to the authorities. The charges are punishable under Articles 74, 97 and 107 of the Penal Code and Law Number 2014/028 of December 23, 2014. He pleaded not guilty to the charges at Wednesday’s hearing. Presenting the case, Major Ndzie Pierrot said the prosecution will use one witness, Dr Ben Bidjocka, a computer expert, instead of the five initially announced. He explained the change to difficulties in contacting other witnesses who are far-off.

During preliminary inquiry, Ahmed Abba, according to his sworn statement, admitted having contacts with Mohammed Boukar, an avowed Boko Haram member who used to call him. On one such occasion, Boukar announced an imminent attack on Cameroon, which came to pass. In a transcribed telephone conversation with Abu Kataga, another Boko Haram member, portions of which were read in court by Ndzie Pierrot, Kataga claimed reasonability for the abduction of French nationals and the seizure of three truckloads of food. He also admitted planting a mine on a road used by the Rapid Intervention Battalion, BIR, which killed some soldiers. All this, the prosecution alleged, the accused did not report to the authorities. The exhibits were tendered and accepted in evidence.

Counsel for Ahmed Abba, Barristers Charles Tchoungang and Nakong Clement, reacted by pointing out that their client was arrested on July 30, 2015 and his statement only taken on November 13, 2015, more than three months after. They noted that this was against the law. Tchoungang made it clear to the court that contrary to the law, his client was never assisted during preliminary inquiry, reason why the sworn statement was not signed by any counsel for the accused. After heated arguments between counsel for the accused and the prosecution over several details on how the trial should proceed, the matter was adjourned to September 7, 2016, for continuation of hearing.

Cameroon Tribune

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Rita Akana

12.Aug.2016

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South Africa has surpassed Nigeria to become Africa’s largest economy. South Africa regained the position after two years of coming in behind Africa’s biggest oil producer.

The Nigerian currency (naira) has been losing against the dollar while South African money (rand) keeps on making gains against the dollar.  The rand gained more than 16 percent against the dollar from the beginning of 2016 and Nigeria’s naira lost more than a third of its value in June when its Central Bank removed a currency peg according to the report by Bloomberg.

South Africa’s economy is currently at $301 billion at the rand’s current exchange rate with the dollar, while Nigeria’s GDP is at $296 billion, based on gross domestic product of 2015 published by the International Monetary Fund.

Declining oil prices, reduced oil output due to insurgency and shortage of foreign currency are among the reasons that caused Nigeria’s economy to shrink by 0.4 percent in three months early this year. For South Africa, decline in farming and mining output caused it economy to reduce by 0.2 percent.

“More than the growth outlook, in the short term the ranking of these economies is likely to be determined by exchange rate movements,” Alan Cameron, an economist at Exotix Partners LLP, said in e-mailed responses to questions on Aug. 2 from Bloomberg.

Although Nigeria is unlikely to be unseated as Africa’s largest economy in the long run, “the momentum that took it there in the first place is now long gone.”

South Africa experienced more economic growth as investors turned their attention to emerging markets as Britain voted to leave the European Union in June. And as South Africa voted for the local government, there were speculations that the pressure against the ruling party will make it introduce economic reforms that will boost growth and cut unemployment.

CCTV

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Rita Akana

11.Aug.2016

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