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Tension mounts in Mali as rebels detain President, prime minister
There is a growing tension in Mali following the detention of President of the West African country’s Transitional Government, Bah Ndaw, a retired colonel, along with Prime Minister Moctar Ouane and Defence Minister Souleymane Doucoure, after a cabinet shuffle.
They were arrested by rebellious soldiers and taken to the Kati military base, outside the capital, Bamako.
ECOWAS has promptly condemned the action and called for the “immediate and unconditional release” of the detainees.
Their joint statement also called on the international partners to support the efforts by ECOWAS and the AU towards the success of the political transition in Mali.
The leadership of the 15,000-strong United Nations Mission in Mali, MINUSMA has equally issued a similar statement, while Nigeria’s former President Goodluck Jonathan, the ECOWAS chief mediator on the Mali crisis, is expected to return to Bamako on Tuesday (today).
He was in Bamako last week, and in Accra, the Ghanaian capital, on Monday, attending a meeting for the reconstitution of the ECOWAS Council of the Wise on conflict management.
The Mali transitional government was put together following the 18th August 2020 military coup that ousted the government of elected president Ibrahim Boubacar Keita.
The President’s arrest and others took place hours after two military cabinet members were dropped in a government shake-up.
Malian civil society groups and the international community led by ECOWAS had insisted on a civilian-led Transition government but the latter endorsed the Transitional Military Council-named government headed by retired Col Ndaw with the junta leader as his deputy and the military holding some key portfolios.
However, the Ndaw-led government had remained under pressure from the civil society to ensure more inclusivity in its composition and transition programmes, which prompted the cabinet shuffle that brought in more non-state actors, including some members of the M5 Movement.
According to diplomatic sources, President Ndaw and Prime Minister Ouane would appear to have angered the military over some key positions in the new cabinet.
The Kati military base is fast becoming synonymous with change of government in Mali. It was at the base that former President Keita was reportedly forced to sign his resignation in 2020, while a mutiny that started at the same base also resulted in the ouster of his predecessor President Amadou Toumani Toure in 2012.
The latest political tussle could compound the already bad security situation in Mali, notorious for chronic political instability characterised by military coups, tribal and religious conflicts, as well as separatist and militant Islamist groups linked to al Qaeda and ISIS.
News
Edo Gov Okpebholo freezes govt accounts, reverses ministry’s name
Edo Gov Okpebholo freezes govt accounts, reverses ministry’s name
Edo State Governor, Monday Okpebholo, has directed the immediate freezing of all state-owned bank accounts.
In a statement issued on Thursday by his Chief Press Secretary, Fred Itua, the governor stated that the accounts would remain frozen until further notice.
He instructed commercial banks, ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs) to comply with the order immediately or face severe consequences.
The statement reads: “All state bank accounts with commercial banks have been frozen. Commercial banks must comply with this order and ensure that not a single naira is withdrawn from government coffers until further notice.
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“Heads of Ministries, Departments, and Agencies must ensure full compliance without delay.
“Following necessary investigations and reconciliations, the governor will take appropriate action and decide on the way forward. For now, this order remains in effect.”
Okpebholo also directed relevant agencies to revert the name of the Ministry of Roads and Bridges to its previous title, the Ministry of Works, a change made during the Godwin Obaseki administration.
“It is odd to name a government institution the Ministry of Roads and Bridges, especially when not a single bridge was built by the previous administration — not even a pedestrian bridge.
“In the coming days, we will examine further actions taken by the previous administration and make decisions that serve the best interests of the state,” the statement added.
Edo Gov Okpebholo freezes govt accounts, reverses ministry’s name
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Israel-Palestinian conflict: Two-state solution is a deception, says Gumi
Israel-Palestinian conflict: Two-state solution is a deception, says Gumi
Prominent Islamic scholar Dr. Ahmad Mahmud Gumi has criticized the widely discussed two-state solution for the Israel-Palestine conflict, calling it a “deception.”
His remarks followed a recent summit of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in Riyadh, where President Bola Tinubu and other leaders condemned Israel’s actions in Gaza and urged an end to hostilities.
In an interview with Daily Trust at his Kaduna residence, Gumi argued, “This Two-State Solution is a deception. No Israeli will allow a Palestinian to survive, and Palestinians will never allow Israel to survive.
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The only solution is to dissolve the two states and create a democratically electable region.”
Gumi commended the OIC’s support for Palestine, noting that Muslims and Arabs worldwide increasingly see the treatment of Palestinians as “genocide” and accuse Israel of human rights abuses.
He also called for a return to the pre-1948 structure, where Palestinians, Jews, and Christians lived together, suggesting a single, inclusive state that allows peaceful coexistence.
“When I hear people talking about Two-State Solutions, I know they are just deceiving themselves,” Gumi added, advocating for a unified region where people of all faiths can live together, similar to the multi-faith coexistence seen in countries like the United States.
Israel-Palestinian conflict: Two-state solution is a deception, says Gumi
News
Court sacks Ondo LP candidate, two days to governorship poll
Court sacks Ondo LP candidate, two days to governorship poll
The Labour Party candidature of Olusola Ebiseni for the upcoming gubernatorial election in Ondo State has been nullified.
The nullification follows the sacking of Ebiseni by the Court of Appeal, sitting in Abuja, on Wednesday.
The governorship election of the southwest State will hold on Saturday, 16 November 2024.
The judgement disqualifying Ebiseni was unanimously delivered by the three members of the panel and read out by the chairman of the panel, Justice Adebukola Banjoko.
The judgment granted the prayer of the Labour Party who preferred the case against Ebiseni.
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Justice Banjoko held that, “the appeal marked CA/ABJ/CV/1172/2024 brought by the Labour Party against Chief Olusola Ebiseni and two others is allowed.”
Justice Banjoko further stated that the Certified True Copy of the judgment would be provided to the parties involved in the appeal as soon as possible for their review.
Recall that Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court in Abuja had ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission to accept and recognize Olusola Ebiseni and Ezekiel Awude as the Labour Party’s governorship and deputy governorship candidates for the November 16 Ondo State governorship elections.
Justice Nwite confirmed that the second primary election conducted by the Labour Party, which resulted in Ebiseni and Awude being selected as candidates, was valid and should be upheld by INEC.
However, the appellate court has now overturned the judgment of the trial court’s judgment.
Court sacks Ondo LP candidate, two days to governorship poll
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