Hereditary politics: Tyrants, be it in Uganda or Chad, are self-perpetuating bloodhounds
Both Yoweri Tibuhaburwa Museveni of Uganda and Idriss Deby of Chad have a few similarities: They both loved power to the extent of excluding others from accessing it so long as they ruled; relied heavily on their armies, which they personalised; organised regular elections not to lose power to others, but simply to show that elective politics worked to prove their popularity; preferred politicomilitary politics to civilian politics and ensured that soldiers were in every civic space as dominants; and believed everything started with themselves and ended with themselves. The military is a t the centre of the electoral process.
Togo’s longtime leader assents to new constitution that eliminates presidential elections
Togo has been ruled by the same family for 57 years, first by Eyadema Gnassingbe and then by his son. Faure Gnassingbe took office after elections that the opposition described as a sham.
World Bank is transforming homosexuality into a political tool to graft Western values on Ugandans
Unlike in the case of the Anti-Homosexuality Act (2014) when the Uganda Constitutional Court ruled that it violated human rights, in the case of the Anti-Homosexuality Act 2023, it on April 3 2024 ruled to uphold the law. However, institutions such as Human Rights Watch were not happy. They argue that the law has abusive and radical provisions, entrenches discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender and queer (LGBTQ and makes them prone to further violence.
Judge fines Trump $1,000 for contempt of court, warns he risks jail if breaks gag order again
Justice Juan Merchan said the nine $1,000 fines he had imposed so far did not seem to be deterring the wealthy business mogul from violating the order, which bars him from making public comments about jurors, witnesses and families of the judge and prosecutors if the statements are meant to interfere with the case.
Trump labels Biden’s government a ‘Gestapo’ administration’ that’s clipping his wings
The Gestapo was the secret police force of the Third Reich that squelched political opposition generally and, specifically, targeted Jewish people for arrest during the Holocaust. Trump’s unfounded comparison to Nazi-era tactics comes as he denies and tries to deflect from the charges against him – most notably his effort to overturn Biden’s 2020 victory, before a mob of Trump supporters attacked the Capitol on January 6, 2021.
Investigations reveal ‘Biden says he told Nigeria to kill fewer civilians, but Nigeria keeps killing lots of civilians’
Between 2000 and 2022, the US provided, facilitated or approved more than $2 billion in security aid, including weapons and equipment sales to Nigeria, according to report by Brown University’s Centre for Human Rights and Humanitarian Studies and the Security Assistance Monitor at the Centre for International Policy, a Washington think-tank. Over that time, the US also carried out more than 41,000 training courses for Nigerian military personnel.
Elections security gets top priority as South Africa turns to 350 private firms to assist police
Police and voting stations have received threats and intimidation before Election Day
Kaizer Chief FC player Luke Fleur’s murder is grim reminder of South Africa’s endemic crime ahead of this month’s polls
At 45 per 100,000 people in 2022/23, South Africa’s murder rate was the highest in 20 years, police figures show, roughly equivalent to Ecuador’s and higher than that of Honduras, a country plagued by extreme gang violence. The murder rate in the United States, one of the highest in the developed world, was six per 100,000 in 2022, according to government data.
Hours after $9,000 fine for contempt, Trump calls judge ‘crooked’ but risks no time in jail
Trump insists he is merely exercising his free speech rights, but the offending posts from his Truth Social account and campaign website were taken down. Merchan is weighing other alleged gag-order violations and will hear arguments on Thursday.
Pot ‘crackers’ in US celebrate reclassification of marijuana but move won’t get drug pushers out of jail
Biden, a Democrat, supports legalising medical marijuana for use “where appropriate, consistent with medical and scientific evidence,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said on April 25, 2024. “That is why it is important for this independent review to go through.”
