NEWS - The African Mirror

Feb

10

2024

West Africa bloc urges Burkina, Niger and Mali not to withdraw

NEWS

THE West African regional bloc ECOWAS pushed junta-led Burkina Faso, Niger and Mali to reconsider their decision to quit the political and economic alliance, it said, warning of the hardships the move would force on their citizens. The three countries' self-appointed military leaders jointly announced on January 28 that they were abandoning the bloc after it pressured them to restore constitutional order following a string of coups. Their departure threatens to further weaken ECOWAS, which has struggled to curtail a retreat of democracy in West Africa that started with a military takeover in Mali in 2020. Its mediation and security council met…

Feb

09

2024

By CAMILLUS EBOH

Nigeria’s unions tells government to cushion hardship caused by reforms

NEWS

NIGERIA'S main unions gave a two-week ultimatum to the government to meet demands ranging from wage hikes to improved access to public utilities and accused it of failing to uphold pledges to soften the impact of reforms. The Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC), umbrella unions that represent millions of workers in Africa's most populous nation, including its dominant oil sector, said millions are facing hunger, erosion of purchasing power and insecurity due to reforms that drove up inflation. President Bola Tinubu scrapped a popular but costly fuel subsidy last May and lifted restrictions on currency trading,…

Feb

09

2024

By The African Mirror

Twenty-seven missing, 13 dead after Sudanese migrant ship sinks off Tunisian coast

NEWS

THE bodies of 13 Sudanese migrants have been recovered and 27 others are missing after a boat sank off the coast of Tunisia having set off from Sfax, a Tunisian judicial official said. The boat was carrying 42 people, all of them Sudanese, and two people were rescued, the judge Farid Ben Jha said. Tunisia replaced Libya as North Africa's main departure point for people fleeing poverty and conflict elsewhere in Africa and across the Middle East in the hope of a better life in Europe. The country has seen a record wave of migration since last year, with frequent…

Feb

09

2024

By The African Mirror

Ethiopia intelligence head Temesgen approved as deputy prime minister

NEWS

ETHIOPIA'S parliament approved the appointment of intelligence service chief Temesgen Tiruneh as deputy prime minister, replacing Demeke Mekonnen, who had served in the role for 11 years, the government said. In addition, parliament accepted the nomination of Taye Atske Selassie, a former ambassador to the United Nations, as foreign minister. Demeke has also served as foreign minister since 2020. Temesgen, who has coordinated the government's response to a conflict that broke out last year in the Amhara region, was elected in late January to succeed Demeke as a vice president of the ruling Prosperity Party. A vice president of the party typically…

Feb

09

2024

By MAXWELL AKALAARE ADOMBILA

Presidential candidate of Ghana’s ruling party outlines main policies

NEWS

GHANA'S Vice President Mahamadu Bawumia said he was ready to lead the nation in a campaign launch speech, pledging to revive the battered economy, fight graft, and boost the private sector if elected president in December. The 60-year-old economist was overwhelmingly voted presidential candidate of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) in November, teeing up a contest with former President John Mahama. The former central banker said he was ready to be "in the driver's seat" in a speech to crowds of supporters at the University of Professional Studies in Accra. "I want to build a Ghana where we leverage…

Feb

08

2024

By The African Mirror

What is happening in Senegal and could tensions escalate?

NEWS

SENEGAL'S parliament voted to postpone a presidential election from February 25 to December 15, extending President Macky Sall's mandate in an unprecedented break with the West African country's democratic tradition. Amid widespread public outcry to the postponement, some opposition lawmakers tried to block proceedings in the National Assembly building until security forces intervened and forced them off the central dais, allowing the vote to proceed. The contested bill was eventually passed by 105 members of parliament (MPs) in the 165-seat Assembly. WHY DID PRESIDENT SALL CALL FOR A POSTPONEMENT? Sall, who is not standing for re-election and has reached the constitutional limit…

Feb

08

2024

By The African Mirror

Nigeria edge South Africa on penalties to reach Cup of Nations final

NEWS

NIGERIA goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali saved two penalties in the shootout to guide his side to a 4-2 victory over South Africa following a 1-1 draw and earn a place in the Africa Cup of Nations final. Nigeria had lost five of their previous six semi-finals at the continental finals but survived some nervous moments to book a place in Sunday's decider against hosts Ivory Coast. William Troost-Ekong put Nigeria into the lead from the penalty spot midway through the second half, before South Africa earned a spot-kick of their own in the final minute of the 90 and it was…

Feb

08

2024

By The African Mirror

South Africa’s Ramaphosa to announce election date this month

NEWS

SOUTH African President Cyril Ramaphosa will announce the date of this year's general election later this month, his spokesman said on Wednesday. "If you count from tomorrow, the president will announce the election date within 15 days," Ramaphosa's spokesperson Vincent Magwenya told reporters. Political analysts say record power cuts, poor service delivery and high levels of unemployment are likely to hurt the governing African National Congress (ANC) party that Ramaphosa, 71, leads, threatening the loss of its parliamentary majority for the first time since the end of apartheid in 1994. Ramaphosa, who has struggled to rekindle economic growth since taking…

Feb

08

2024

By The African Mirror

Egypt receives Hamas response to Gaza truce proposal, working to reach final formula

NEWS

EGYPTIAN officials said that they have received Hamas' response to a framework ceasefire agreement for the Gaza Strip, a statement from Egypt's State Information Service said. "We will discuss all the details of the proposed framework with the concerned parties to reach an agreement on the final formula as soon as possible," Diaa Rashwan, head of the State Information Service, was quoted as saying. Egyptian security sources told Reuters on Tuesday that Hamas' response showed flexibility, asking for a specific timeline for the ceasefire to end after the Muslim Eid al-Fitr holiday in early April. "Egypt will continue to exert…

Feb

07

2024

By The African Mirror

Kenyan doomsday cult leader charged with murder of 191 children

NEWS

KENYAN cult leader Paul Mackenzie and 29 associates were charged with the murder of 191 children whose bodies were found among more than double that number buried in a forest. The defendants all denied the charges brought before a court in the coastal town of Malindi. One suspect was found mentally unfit to stand trial. Prosecutors say Mackenzie ordered his followers to starve themselves and their children to death so that they could go to heaven before the world ended, in one of the world's worst cult-related disasters in recent history. The followers of his Good News International Church lived…