Politics

Angola: President Lourenco sworn in for second term after contentious poll

Published

2 years ago

September 15, 2022

President Joao Lourenco of Angola has been sworn in for a second term in office after a disputed election last month in which the opposition parties said was fraught with rigging and irregularities.

Lourenco took his second oath of office for another five years amid tight security in the capital Luanda on Thursday after for fear of the major opposition force, the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA), going forward with the threat of disrupting the ceremony.

Lourenco who is the leader of the ruling party, the People’s Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA) which has been in power in the past four decades, took the oath of office in the presence of at least African heads of state and dozens of other diplomats from around the world.

The President was declared winner of the August 24 general elections on August 29, with the National Electoral Commission (CNE) saying he had won 51.17 percent of the votes cast, while UNITA, the largest opposition party in the country, gained 43.95 percent of the total votes cast, the largest it has ever won.

In the aftermath of the election, UNITA, a former rebel group who fought the MPLA for nearly three decades, said it rejected the result and went to the Supreme Court to challenge the result.

UNITA repeatedly said that it did not recognise the results of the vote, and that various complaints have been filed with the electoral commission. The party has cited discrepancies between the commission’s count and the party’s own tally.

UNITA leader and presidential candidate, Adalberto Costa Junior, in an address to the nation on the disputed poll, had said:

“The MPLA did not win the election… we have been in peace for 20 years, and we now need to embrace a true democratic rule of law.”

Lourenco himself had acknowledged the polls had been “the most disputed elections of the history of the young Angola democracy,” but said they had nonetheless “contributed to the strengthening of our democracy”.

Related Topics:Angola Elections Featured MPLA President Lourenco Joao UNITA

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Politics

Burkina Faso releases 4 French spies after Moroccan intervention

Published

2 days ago

December 20, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

In a diplomatic spat over their imprisonment, France and Morocco announced Thursday that four French nationals detained in Burkina Faso for a year had been freed after mediation from Morocco.

They were spies, according to a prior statement made by the director of France’s foreign intelligence organisation, the DGSE.

A request for comment was not answered by the DGSE or a representative of the French military, which is in charge of the agency.

Since December 2023, they have been held in Ouagadougou.

President Emmanuel Macron hailed King Mohammed of Morocco on Wednesday for his intervention, “which made possible the liberation of our four countrymen who had been held in Burkina Faso for a year,” according to a statement from the French administration.

King Mohammed and President Ibrahim Traore of Burkina Faso were also commended by Morocco’s foreign ministry, which stated that “this humanitarian act” was made possible by their positive bilateral ties.

In October, France made peace with Morocco, one of its former protectorates, after three years of hostilities between Paris and Rabat stoked by immigration concerns and the disputed Western Sahara region.

Morocco offers Burkina Faso and other military-ruled Sahel republics Atlantic trade.

However, France’s relations with former West and Central African colonies, such as Burkina Faso, remain difficult. In Ouagadougou, French troops and diplomats were ejected, the defence attache and ambassador were asked to depart, and certain French media were suspended.

The military junta that took control in 2022 in Burkina Faso has been criticized by international rights groups for cracking down on free expression and harassing dissidents to handle a security crisis precipitated by Al Qaeda and Islamic State extremists.

Politics

Ghana: President-elect Mahama appoints anti-corruption team

Published

3 days ago

December 19, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

According to a statement released by his transition team on Wednesday, Ghana’s President-elect, John Dramani Mahama, has designated an anti-corruption committee to investigate allegations of wrongdoing.

When he takes office next month, Mahama, the leading opposition candidate in the presidential election held on December 7 and who received almost 56% of the vote, has pledged to reclaim the proceeds of corruption and hold those responsible for it accountable.

In anticipation, an anti-graft squad has been established. The parliament’s Committee on Assurances, which has previously raised suspicions of governmental corruption, is chaired by MP Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwah.

An investigative journalist, a private attorney, a former auditor general, and a former police officer with experience in high-profile robbery cases make up the other three members.

After looking into alleged financial irregularities that took place during the previous administration, Daniel Dumelovo, the former auditor general, was fired.

Recovering lost assets and fighting corruption were two of Mahama’s main campaign pledges.

“He intends to hit the ground running on these commitments,” the statement said.

Eight years after leaving office, former President Mahama is back to head the West African country. Despite not being personally contaminated, he faced criticism during his 2012–2016 administration due to claims of political corruption.