Metro

Coup scare in Burkina Faso as heavy gunfire rocks capital, Ouagadougou

Published

2 years ago

September 30, 2022

There were fears of a coup as hesvy gunfire were heard shots early Friday morning in Burkina Faso’s capital, Ougadougou, especially around the presidential palace and the headquarters of its military junta led by Lieutenant Colonel Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba, seized power in a coup in January, toppling the West African country’s elected leader.
which also seized power in a coup last January.

As well as the presidential palace, gun shots were also heard around the capital as several roads were blocked by troops and broadcast by state television was cut, displaying a blank screen saying: “no video signal”, according to local media.

“Soldiers have been seen along the main avenue in Ouagadougou leading to the presidential palace and national television station,” a local online platform reported.

“Soldiers are on the streets and heavy gunfire has been heard near the main military camp and residential areas of Burkina Faso’s capital.

“Soldiers were seen along the main avenue leading to the presidential palace, administrative buildings and the national television station, which stopped broadcasting. Several main roads in Ouagadougou were blocked by troops,” it added.

Though the country’s military junta has not made any public announcement on the incident, a security analyst, Ornella Moderan, told journalists a lot of rumours were flowing on social media amid the confusion of what is happening.

“All the streets leading to the presidential palace, the parliament, and the constitutional court are being manned by soldiers. People who have tried to approach these areas have been told to return and move away.

“Late at night, around 3am, gunfire erupted in the capital as the president of transition, who took over in January, was in the presidential palace. There is no word about him nor his whereabouts,” he said.

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Metro

65% of Nigerian households lack money for healthy food—Survey

Published

7 hours ago

November 22, 2024

Isaac Dachen

A survey conducted by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has revealed that around 65% of Nigerian households, which is about two-thirds of the population, lack the financial means to eat healthy food.

According to the survey by the agency, the decline is a reflection of the multidimensional poverty in the country and the impact of continuous reduction in the purchasing power of Nigerians due to rising prices of goods and services.

And as a result, two-thirds of households in the country lack money to eat healthy, nutritious food, the NBS said.

Titled “Nigeria General Household Survey – Panel (GHS-Panel) Wave 5 (2023/2024),” the survey examined demographics, education, and health trends in Nigeria, comparing data from Wave 4 (2018/19) and Wave 5 (2023/24).

On food insecurity, the survey stated:

“Approximately two out of three households indicated being unable to eat healthy, nutritious or preferred foods because of lack of money in the last 30 days.

“Similarly, 63.8 per cent of households ate only a few kinds of food due to lack of money, 62.4 percent were worried about not having enough food to eat, and 60.5 percent ate less than they thought they should.”

It added that between Waves 4 and 5, the proportion of households that reported being worried about not having enough food to eat because of lack of money increased significantly, from 36.9 percent to 62.4 percent.

On access to energy, the survey revealed said:

“82.2 percent of urban households have electricity, compared to 40.4 per cent in rural areas. Nigerian households face an average of 6.7 power blackouts weekly.

“Cooking typically involves traditional three-stone stoves (65.0 percent), primarily using wood as fuel (70.2 per cent), but with use of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) rising significantly.

“Many households lack toilet facilities and rely on tube wells or boreholes for drinking water. Waste disposal is mostly informal, with 45.6 percent of households using bushes or streets,” it added.

Metro

Zambia: APP leader lampoons PF over pledge to reverse forfeited properties

Published

1 day ago

November 21, 2024

Isaac Dachen

Leader of one of Zambia’s opposition parties, Advocates for People’s Prosperity (APP), Mwenye Musenge, has criticised the Patriotic Front (PF) over its promise to reverse forfeited properties if the party won the 2026 presidential election.

Musenge, who was reacting to a statement credited to the PF Member of Parliament (MP) for Lukashya Province, George Chisanga, described the PF’s promise as a betrayal, saying the declaration had exposed the party’s disregard for accountability and justice.

The APP leader, who spoke to Zambia Monitor in a telephone interview from Kitwe, expressed shock that Chisanga, a former Law Association of Zambia president, would endorse what he termed a “regressive agenda,” accusing the PF of prioritising the protection of corrupt individuals over the welfare of citizens.

“This declaration reveals the PF’s true intentions, returning to power not to serve Zambians, but to shield their corrupt network and restore stolen assets,” Musenge said.

He alleged that former President Edgar Lungu’s consistent calls to protect his family, who he claimed cannot explain their amassed wealth, further demonstrate the party’s self-serving mission.

Musenge further described the PF as “a political carcass animated by greed and nostalgia for its days of unchecked looting,” and accused its leaders of leaving Zambia impoverished while enriching themselves.

“Allowing them near power again would be akin to handing a butcher’s knife to a thief already drenched in the blood of the nation’s resources.

“The PF represents everything wrong with Zambian politics—a relic of the past clinging to survival through recycled lies and corrupt agendas,” he added.

Musenge went on to call for the party to be permanently eradicated, saying it had no vision, morality, or credibility to serve Zambians.