KENYA

Bloodbath: MCAs rejected in Ruto, Raila strongholds

It was a bloodbath for a majority of Ward Reps in the strongholds of Deputy President William Ruto and former Prime Minister Raila Odinga as voters rejected them in the party primaries last week.

Almost 90 per cent of MCAs were punished for returning a poor score card after five years of service as newcomers ruled from the floor of the Rift Valley to the shores of Lake Victoria.

With Dr Ruto’s United Democratic Alliance (UDA) and Mr Odinga’s Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) being the most popular parties in the regions, the rejection in the nominations could mean their fate is as good as sealed.

Voters in Migori, Homa Bay, Kisumu, Siaya, Nandi, Elgeyo-Marakwet and Bomet denied up to three quarters of their MCAs their respective parties tickets. 

In Migori, attempts by ODM to impeach Governor Okoth Obado over graft charges have been cited as one of the reasons the MCAs were voted out. Party chairman John Mbadi had warned them that they would face consequences for failing to toe the party line.

“Most of these MCAs have given us a hard time with questionable loyalty to the party. The other time, they deliberately failed to defend devolution when a motion to impeach their governor emerged,” he said.

(Source: Daily Nation)

TANZANIA

Govt to Issue Permit for Recruitment of 30,000 Civil Servants

The government may issue a permit for the employment of 30,000 civil servants including teachers in the coming financial year, Parliament has been told.

This was said by the Deputy Minister in the President’s Office, Public Service Management and Good Governance, Deogratius Ndejembi as he was responding to a question from Same West MP, Dr Mathayo David.

The legislator said he was concerned with the shortage of teachers in both primary and secondary schools in the country.

He further wanted to know the government’s plans to accommodate in the job market thousands of Tanzanian graduates as well as measures to provide incentives to civil servants especially teachers working in remote areas.

“Universities and colleges produce between 90,000 and 100,000 graduates each year, whereby more than 48,000 graduate with first degrees,” said Dr Mathayo in his supplementary questions.

Responding, Mr Ndejembi said the government through the Watumishi Housing Company has started to construct low cost houses that will be given to civil servants on loan basis.

Mr Ndejembi further noted that the ministry is currently conducting a human resources (HR) audit to ensure effective and efficient utilization of civil servants.

Last week, Minister of State in the President’s Office (Public Service and Good Governance), Jenista Mhagama announced jobs for 32,000 people in the education and health sectors. She said the government’s intention was to employ 44,000 civil servants this financial year.

(Source: Daily News)

UGANDA

Experts Ask Government to Cater for Islamic Banking in Its Laws

Experts have urged Muslims across the country to benchmark with Catholics who have been successful with Centenary Bank in the implementation of Islamic banking.

The remarks were made during Salam Ramadhan Symposium that takes place every Sunday at Hotel Africana where a number of issues ranging from Islamic financing and banking, Ramadhan and other Islamic issues are discussed.

The head of Islamic Investment at Micro Support Centre (MSC), Dr Sulaiman Lujja said more than 50 million people have been pushed into poverty due to Covid-19 and Islamic banking should be one of the interventions along other poverty alleviation programmes.

“Muslims should participate in emyooga, there is also emyooga Islamic SACCO. The longest verse in the Quran is talking about Islamic banking. It is not true that borrowing money is not allowed in Islam,” said Dr Lujja, calling upon Muslims to engage in Islamic banking.

He explained that Islamic banking is not a religious operation as it is commonly perceived by many Ugandans, adding that it is not intended for Muslims only but also other religious denominations.

(Source: Nile Post)

RWANDA

Kagame hits back at critics of Rwanda-UK migration deal

President Paul Kagame has hit back at those who have likened a migration deal recently signed between Rwanda and the UK to trading in human beings.

The UK, through the Migration and Economic Development Partnership, seeks to transfer unauthorised migrants and asylum seekers to Rwanda.

President Kagame, who was speaking virtually at a seminar dubbed, ‘Rwanda Past and Present’, and hosted by Brown University’s Watson Institute, noted that the deal was instead an innovative approach designed to help address the global migration crisis.

President Kagame said that people need to go a little bit into history to understand the rationale and context of the migration partnership between Rwanda and the UK. 

He cited a 2018 decision by Rwanda to help find a solution to a humanitarian crisis involving migrants that had unfolded in Libya.

The President also cited the fact that Rwanda has for decades hosted refugees. “They are here, we live with them.”

Rwanda was approached because of that history, and also how the Libyan case was handled, he said.

(Source: The New Times)

ETHIOPIA

Ministry Commends AU Position on Ethiopia’s Internal Affairs

The African Union stance on Ethiopia’s internal affairs is constructive, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

In his weekly press briefing to local and foreign journalists on Thursday, Foreign Affairs spokesperson Dina Mufti highlighted major activities of the ministry that focused on political, economic diplomacy, and citizen-centered diplomacy.

The spokesperson said Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Affairs Minister Demeke Mekonnen had a meeting with African Union Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security, Amb. Bankole Adeoye.

During their discussion, the deputy premier noted the constructive peace-building initiatives that the Government of Ethiopia has been undertaking.

Demeke briefed Adeoye on the current situation in the country, particularly the indefinite humanitarian truce, lifting of the state of emergency, the release of high-profile political figures from prison with the view to creating confidence among people and getting solutions to the situation in the country.

“The commissioner has been praised for the constructive position of the AU on the situation in the country, that the AU has been always stable, balanced and constructive when it comes to the situation in Ethiopia.”

(Source: Ethiopian News Agency)

ERITREA

Government Not Barring Eritrean Nationals From Leaving Ethiopia: MoFA

“The Ethiopian government will cautiously examine the case of Eritrean passport holders with foreign visas, who complained of being barred from leaving Ethiopia, the spokesperson of the Ethiopian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA), Amb. Dina Mufti said at today’s MoFA’s biweekly press release.

In the presser, the spokesperson stated his awareness that Eritreans who are residing in Ethiopia and hold valid visas from various foreign countries, have been complaining of being barred from leaving Ethiopia. “There are legal, documentation, immigration and to some extent security issues the Ethiopian government is examining,” adding,”there seems to be indications of urgency to leave Ethiopia against what the country’s law and processes allow. We’re not barring them but are implementing the law,” he said.

(Source: Addis Standard)

SUDAN

There is no stability without the extradition of criminals: Sudan Revolutionary Front

The chairman of the Sudan Revolutionary Front (SRF), El Hadi Idris, has renewed his party’s commitment in extraditing violators of human rights to the “International Criminal Court or the Special Court on the Crimes of the War in Darfur”, as per the criminal extradition clause in the Juba Peace Agreement.

In an interview with Radio Dabanga, the chairman stated, “there is no value to the Juba Peace Agreement, without adhering to its extradition clause”. He went on: “There is no transitional justice, democratic transition, or stability without extradition.”

El Hadi, who was the former leader of the Sudan Liberation Movement-Transitional Council, succeeding Minni Minawi as chairman of the SRF in 2019, stated that the “dialogue around extradition needed to be continued among other parties”.

(Source: Radio Dabanga)