Lusaka, Zambia | AFP | President Edgar Lungu has warned Zambia’s judges against blocking him from running in 2021 elections, saying a judicial intervention like that in Kenya could plunge the country into chaos. Lungu is expected to contest the 2021 race but may face a legal challenge from opposition parties …
Read More »Liberia opposition leader calls for new election commission
Monrovia, Liberia | AFP | The Liberian opposition politician who has lodged a legal complaint against the country’s election commission on Thursday called for its commissioners to be replaced, citing their actions during a disputed presidential election. Charles Brumskine came third in an October 10 presidential election and immediately alleged fraud …
Read More »IN THE INDEPENDENT: Why Kayihura is in trouble
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The top stories in this week’s THE INDEPENDENT COVER STORY Kayihura in trouble: Behind arrest of top cops, the Rwanda twist. THE LAST WORD Crisis of the state in Uganda: How foreign interests have captured our politics thereby turning our people from citizens to …
Read More »Bloodshed in South African province as ANC tensions rise
Durban, South Africa | AFP | In the South African province of KwaZulu-Natal, local politics is a deadly game, with at least 40 people killed in politically motivated shootings since last year. A battle for control is raging ahead of a conference of the African National Congress to choose a new …
Read More »Kiir accuses Sudan of being ‘source of weapons’ in S.Sudan war
Khartoum, Sudan | AFP | South Sudanese President Salva Kiir on Thursday accused Sudan of being a “source of weapons” fuelling the brutal civil war in his country as he met leader Omar al-Bashir in Khartoum. “If there is someone who can accuse the other, it is me who can …
Read More »Togo, Guinea leaders mediate deepening Liberia election dispute
Monrovia, Liberia | AFP | The presidents of Guinea and Togo held mediation talks Wednesday with all sides involved in Liberia’s disputed election, following a Supreme Court announcement it would summon the country’s electoral commission to explain alleged fraud and irregularities. Liberia’s top court has reviewed a legal complaint backed by …
Read More »Nigeria’s former oil minister blasted over court bid
Lagos, Nigeria | AFP | A Nigerian judge on Wednesday accused the country’s former oil minister of trying to “avoid justice” in Britain, as he dismissed an application for her to face corruption charges back home. Judge Rilwan Aikawa told the Federal High Court in Lagos that an attempt by Diezani …
Read More »S.Sudan’s Kiir in Sudan to ease ‘tense’ relations
Khartoum, Sudan | AFP | South Sudanese President Salva Kiir began Wednesday a two-day visit to Sudan aimed at resolving border disputes and addressing mutual accusations of supporting rebels in each other’s territory. It is Kiir’s third visit to Khartoum since the Christian majority south split from the Muslim north in …
Read More »Mugabe calls for return of death penalty
Harare, Zimbabwe | AFP | Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe on Wednesday called for the return of the death penalty, after more than 50 people applied for the vacant position of hangman. Capital punishment is on the statute book in Zimbabwe, but no one has been executed since 2005 when the country’s …
Read More »Trump says will terminate US green card lottery after NY attack
Washington, United States | AFP | President Donald Trump said Wednesday that he would end the popular US green card lottery as police said a radicalized Uzbek man staged the deadly truck ramming in New York after entering the country under the program. The move could spell the end to the …
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