Author: Chukwuebuka Festus - Page 8

Over 40 Migrants Drowned Off Western Sahara

10May

By Chukwuebuka FestusNo Comments

Life, Morocco, News

Over 40 Migrants Drowned Off Western Sahara

At least 44 migrants drowned after their boat sank on Sunday off Western Sahara in southern Morocco, the Spanish NGO Caminando Fronteras said. Moroccan authorities are yet to confirm the deaths. However, according to Helena Maleno, the founder of the NGO Caminando Fronteras, 44 migrants died after their boat sank off Cape Boujdour, Western Sahara. "Seven bodies were transferred to the morgue and the other victims were swallowed by the sea," she added on Twitter. Twelve other migrants survived the sinking and were arrested, according to the same source. Helena Malenon did not specify the destination of the boat, but migrant boats departing from this area usually head for the Spanish archipelago of the Canaries. Located at the north-western tip of Africa, Morocco is ...

Thousands Abandon HIV Drugs In Mozambique

9May

By Chukwuebuka FestusNo Comments

HIV/AIDS, News

Thousands Abandon HIV Drugs In Mozambique

The authorities in Mozambique say over 14,000 HIV patients have abandoned antiretroviral therapy in the first three months of the year in the central province of Zambézia. Male patients form the largest part of those no longer taking the drugs, according to Dr Cheinaze Veríssimo - the provincial head of the HIV Programme in the region. He blamed stigma and prejudice associated with HIV for the high rate of defaulters. Read Also: Hoodlums Kill Three, Loot Hospitals in Darfur – MSF Over 300,000 patients receive HIV antiretroviral care in Zambézia province. “The challenge we have now is in relation to those patients who drop out. If the person abandons treatment, the virus automatically gains more strength, the person gets sick and can even, in some cases, lead to death," ...

President of Ivorian National Assembly Dies At 68

8May

By Chukwuebuka FestusNo Comments

Cote d'Ivoire, Life, News

President of Ivorian National Assembly Dies At 68

The President of the Ivorian National Assembly Amadou Soumahoro died on Saturday at the age of 68, according to a press release from the President of the Republic Alassane Ouattara. Amadou Soumahoro “I have the deep pain to announce the death, this Saturday, May 7, 2022, of the President of the National Assembly, my younger brother, Amadou Soumahoro”, indicates the text. “I pay tribute to a great statesman, whose commitment and political career have marked our country. Côte d’Ivoire is losing a brave son, a man of conviction and duty. I am losing a faithful companion, a loyal and devoted friend,” continues the Head of State. President of the Assembly since March 2019, he has made long stays abroad in recent months for medical reasons. Amadou Soumahoro was a figure in Ivorian p...

Kenyan Cleric Refuses To Leave Jail After Release

7May

By Chukwuebuka FestusNo Comments

Judiciary, Kenya, News

Kenyan Cleric Refuses To Leave Jail After Release

A Muslim cleric in Kenya has asked a court not to free him from jail despite being acquitted of terrorism charges. Guyo Gorsa Buru said he feared he could be abducted and killed by state agents once released as is alleged has happened to other terror suspects. He was arrested in 2018 and charged with possessing material that promoted a terrorist group and for collaborating with Somalia-based al-Shabab militants. The court in the capital has allowed him to remain in custody for 30 days. Earlier, a chief magistrate at Nairobi's Milimani law courts ruled that the state had failed to prove its case against Sheikh Buru. His lawyer has asked the High Court for the guarantee of state protection for his client once freed. Read Also: Catholic Priest, Others Convicted Over Alb...

Gabonese Football President Arrested In Child Sex Abuse Scandal

6May

By Chukwuebuka FestusNo Comments

Gabon, Judiciary, News, Sports

Gabonese Football President Arrested In Child Sex Abuse Scandal

The president of the Gabonese Football Federation (Fégafoot), Pierre-Alain Mounguengui, has been arrested after being charged with failing to report allegations of sexual abuse of hundreds of children in the sport. The scandal, revealed by the British daily The Guardian in December 2021, broke when Patrick Assoumou Eyi, coach of the national under-17 team until 2017 and a well-known figure in Gabonese soccer circles under the nickname "Capello", was jailed after being accused of hundreds of rapes and sexual assaults on children for whom he was responsible in his duties for several years. Assoumou Eyi was, since 2017 and until his arrest, technical director of the soccer league of Estuaire, the province of the capital, Libreville. Since his arrest, two club coaches, Orph...

World’s Only Nonuplets Celebrate First Birthday

5May

By Chukwuebuka FestusNo Comments

Mali, Morocco, News

World’s Only Nonuplets Celebrate First Birthday

The world’s only nonuplets – nine babies born at the same time – are “in perfect health” as they celebrate their first birthday. "They're all crawling now. Some are sitting up and can even walk if they hold on to something," said Abdelkader Arby, an officer in the Malian army. They are still in the care of the clinic in Morocco where they were born. He said their mother Halima Cissé, 26, was also doing well. "It's not easy but it's great. Even if it's tiring at times, when you look at all the babies in perfect health, [in a line] from right to left we're relieved. We forget everything," he told BBC Afrique. He has just returned to Morocco for the first time in six months, along with their elder daughter, Souda, aged three. "I'm overwhelmed to be reunited with all my ...

‘Facebook Rapist’ Found Dead In South African Prison

4May

By Chukwuebuka FestusNo Comments

Crime, News, South Africa

‘Facebook Rapist’ Found Dead In South African Prison

State Maximum Security Jail South African convict Thabo Bester, also known as “the Facebook Rapist” for using the social networking site to lure his victims has been found dead in his prison cell. The convicted rapist and murderer died on Tuesday May 3, according to Correctional Services Department spokesperson Singabakho Nxumalo. According to Singabakho Nxumalo, Bester’s body was discovered with burn wounds in his cell in the early hours of Tuesday. “We have confirmed the untimely passing of an inmate by the name of Thabo Bester at Mangaung Correctional Centre in Bloemfontein. This inmate was doing life imprisonment. He was discovered in his cell at about 3:35 on Tuesday morning. He suffered serious burn wounds,” Nxumalo told Newzroom Afrika on Tuesday evening...

Eight Miners Trapped For Two Weeks In Burkina Faso Await Rescue

3May

By Chukwuebuka FestusNo Comments

Burkina Faso, News, Safety

Eight Miners Trapped For Two Weeks In Burkina Faso Await Rescue

Rescue efforts has continued in Burkina Faso as workers try to reach eight miners who have been trapped underground for more than two weeks. The zinc mine at Perkoa flooded following heavy rain last month. Six of the miners are from Burkina Faso and the other two are from Zambia and Tanzania. Burkina Faso Prime Minister Albert Ouedraogo said that managers of the mine have been banned from leaving the country while investigations are under way into the cause of the accident. “Precautionary measures have been taken to prevent the persons in charge of the mine from leaving the country and instructions have been given firmly to the Minister of Security for this,” a statement from the PM’s office said on Monday. Read Also: Chinese Businessman Jailed 20 years in Rwa...

Labour Day: Kenya, Morocco To Increase Minimum Wage

2May

By Chukwuebuka FestusNo Comments

Cost of Living, Kenya, Labour, Morocco, News

Labour Day: Kenya, Morocco To Increase Minimum Wage

The governments of Kenya and Morocco are set to increase the minimum wage to cushion workers against further erosion of their purchasing power. Speaking at Labour Day celebrations in Nairobi, Kenya's President Uhuru Kenyatta said a rise of 12% was necessary to help workers cope with a surge in consumer prices, which has been partly driven by the war in Ukraine. “As a caring government, we find there is a compelling case to review the minimum wages so as to cushion our workers against further erosions,” Kenyatta said at a Labour Day rally. Minimum Wage Increase He said the 12 percent increase would come into effect from May 1. It takes the minimum monthly wage from 13,500 Kenyan shillings (about $116.5, 110.5 euros) to 15,120 shillings ($130.5, 124 euros). Read Also...

Guinea To Move To Civilian Rule In Three Years

1May

By Chukwuebuka FestusNo Comments

African Development, Armed Forces, Elections, Guinea, News

Guinea To Move To Civilian Rule In Three Years

The military leader of Guinea, Colonel Mamady Doumbouya, announced a 39 month transition period before the country returns to civilian rule. Speaking on television, Col Mamady Doumbouya, said the proposal would now be put to Guinea's parliament. His army ousted the elected president in a coup last year - a move many Guineans initially welcomed. But there has been growing discontent as the military junta failed to hand over power to civilian rule. The announcement came after the regional bloc of West African nations, ECOWAS, set last Monday as a deadline for the army to give its timeline - or face immediate sanctions. The deadline was missed but the junta asked for more time and said it was considering a transition period of between 18 and 52 months. On Saturday, Col Doum...