Africa
Gabon coup leaders name Gen Brice Oligui Nguema as new leader
Gabon coup leaders name Gen Brice Oligui Nguema as new leader
Army officers who seized power in a coup in Gabon on Wednesday have named General Brice Oligui Nguema as the country’s transitional leader.
Gen Nguema was earlier carried triumphally through the streets of the capital Libreville by his troops.
The deposed President, Ali Bongo, has appeared in a video at his home, calling on his “friends all over the world” to “make noise” on his behalf.
The former French colony is one of Africa’s major oil producers.
Mr Bongo’s overthrow ended his family’s 55-year hold on power in the Central African state.
Army officers appeared on TV in the early hours of Wednesday to say they had taken power.
They said they had annulled the results of Saturday’s election in which Mr Bongo was declared the winner but which the opposition said was fraudulent.
The officers also said they had arrested one of Mr Bongo’s sons for treason.
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Within hours, generals met to discuss who would lead the transition and agreed by a unanimous vote to appoint Gen Nguema, former head of the presidential guard.
Gen Nguema told France’s Le Monde newspaper that Gabonese people had had enough of Ali Bongo’s rule, and that he should not have run for a third term.
“Everyone talks about this but no one takes responsibility,” he said. “So the army decided to turn the page.”
Crowds in Libreville and elsewhere celebrated the army’s declaration.
But the coup was condemned by the UN, the African Union and France, which had close ties to the Bongo family.
The US state department urged Gabon’s military to “preserve civilian rule” and urged “those responsible to release and ensure the safety of members of government”. The UK condemned the “unconstitutional military takeover” of power.
There has long been simmering resentment of the Bongo family – it ruled Gabon for almost 56 years – and there has been public discontent over broader issues such as the cost of living.
“At first I was scared, but then I felt joy,” a resident of Libreville, who requested anonymity, told the BBC. “I was scared because of the realisation that I am living through a coup, but the joy is because we’ve been waiting for so long for this regime to be overthrown.”
Gabon coup leaders name Gen Brice Oligui Nguema as new leader
Africa
Civil societies, Togo president on war path over new constitution eliminating elections
Civil societies, Togo president on war path over new constitution eliminating elections
The hope of having new leader in Togo has been dashed following the abolition of presidential elections in the West Africa country.
The development follows the signing of a controversial and widely condemned new constitution by President Faure Gnassingbe
The new constitution does not allow for election to the highest office in the land, an arrangement that will see the Gnassingbes consolidate their hold on power and extend their six-decade-long rule.
A statement from Gnassingbe’s office on Monday stated that, under the new legislation, only the parliament will have the power to select the president, eliminating direct elections.
According to Africa News, the election commission on Saturday announced that Gnassingbe’s ruling party had won a majority of seats in the nation’s parliament.
The report revealed that there was a crackdown on civic and media freedoms ahead of the vote, as the government banned protests against the proposed new constitution and arrested opposition figures.
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Also, the electoral commission banned the Catholic Church from deploying election observers.
In mid-April, a French journalist who arrived to cover the elections was arrested, assaulted and expelled. Togo’s media regulator later suspended the accreditation process for foreign journalists.
Provisional results showed the ruling Union for the Republic (UNIR) party won 108 out of 113 seats in parliament, and 137 out of 179 positions in the senate.
The new constitution also increases presidential terms from five to six years and introduces a single-term limit.
However, the almost 20 years that Gnassingbe has already served in office would not count toward that tally.
Togo has been ruled by the same family for 57 years, initially by Eyadema Gnassingbe and then by his son, Faure Gnassingbe, who took office after elections that the opposition described as a “sham.”
The political opposition, religious leaders and civil society say the proposed new constitution makes it likely that Gnassingbe will stay on when his mandate expires in 2025.
They also fear that the creation of a figure similar to a prime minister, to be selected from the ruling party, could become another avenue for Gnassingbe to extend his grip on power even beyond that new term.
Civil societies, Togo president on war path over new constitution eliminating elections
Africa
Father mourns 14-year-old daughter poisoned at school, says ‘I’ve failed you my baby’
Father mourns 14-year-old daughter poisoned at school, says ‘I’ve failed you my baby’
A father has mourned his 14-year-old daughter, Nomfundo Palesa Tyler Khumalo, who was allegedly poisoned at her school in South Africa.
It was gathered that the incident happened on 8 April 2024 and she passed away on 25 April.
Details surrounding the circumstances of her death remain unclear.
A murder case has been opened, and investigations are underway.
The family of Nomfundo is currently struggling to deal with the loss and seeking answers as to why and by whom she was targeted.
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Nomfundo’s father, Gift, on Sunday, May 5, wrote a heartfelt message on X to pay tribute to her.
“Never in my wildest dreams did I think you would end up on this page I’ve failed you my baby , should’ve protected you better we even spoke about you being home schooled after you recover unfortunately.. I’m so sorry If Possible I’d easily give up my life for yours,” he wrote on Sunday, May 5.
In an earlier post, he wrote: “I wish the after life is kinder to souls as precious as yours , there is no boundry for my love to you my baby Not even Death itself Don’t forget to visit us in our dreams more exp your Mother It’s never goodbye when there an after life promised I’ll see you soon my child.”
Father mourns 14-year-old daughter poisoned at school, says ‘I’ve failed you my baby’
Africa
Floods kill over 200 in Kenya, cyclone approaches
Floods kill over 200 in Kenya, cyclone approaches
The death toll from flood-related accidents in Kenya has surpassed 200 since March, the interior ministry announced Friday as a storm approached the Tanzanian coast.
Torrential rains have lashed parts of East Africa, causing flooding and landslides that have wrecked crops, buried homes, and displaced hundreds of thousands of people.
According to a statement from Kenya’s interior ministry, 210 people have died “due to severe weather conditions,” with 22 deceased in the last 24 hours.
More than 165,000 people had been evacuated from their homes, with 90 others missing, increasing concerns that the toll may increase further.
Kenya and adjacent Tanzania, where at least 155 people have died in flooding, are bracing for Cyclone Hidaya, which will bring heavy rain, wind, and waves to their coastlines.
Tanzanian authorities warned Friday that Hidaya had “strengthened to the status of a full-fledged cyclone” around 3:00 a.m. local time (0000GMT), about 400 kilometres (248 miles) from the southeastern city of Mtwara.
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“Cyclone Hidaya has continued to strengthen further, with wind speeds increasing to about 130 kilometres per hour,” they said in a weather bulletin.
Kenya’s interior ministry predicted that the storm would “bring strong winds and large ocean waves, with heavy rainfall,” and hit the shore on Sunday.
Since September last year, Burundi’s heavier-than-usual rains have killed at least 29 people, injured 175 others, and displaced tens of thousands, according to the United Nations.
The rains have been exacerbated by the El Nino weather pattern, a naturally occurring climate phenomenon that is normally associated with increasing temperatures worldwide, resulting in drought in some regions of the world and torrential downpours in others.
More than 300 people were killed by rains and floods in Kenya, Somalia, and Ethiopia late last year as the area struggled to recover from its worst drought in four decades.
Cyclone season in the southwest Indian Ocean typically lasts from November to April and produces approximately a dozen cyclones every year.
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