Politics

Sonko excluded as Senegal releases final list of presidential candidates

Published

3 months ago

January 21, 2024

A final list of 20 candidates for Senegal’s February presidential election has been released by the constitutional council, with controversial opposition figure, Ousmane Sonko, missing.

Karim Wade, the son of former president, Abdoulaye Wade, and Khalifa Sall, who both saw their aspirations of participating in the most recent presidential race dashed by legal convictions, were also left off the list. Both have since been granted presidential pardons; however, Wade is said to be ineligible this time around because he held dual citizenship at the time of his campaign.

The statement by the council claimed that opposition firebrand Sonko’s bid was invalid because of a suspended sentence related to a case of slander. Sonko, 49, has been involved in a number of legal battles since 2021; the government refutes his claims that the lawsuits are politically driven, but discontent has been stoked by the public’s outrage at his treatment.

The final list also includes Bassirou Diomaye Faye, who was nominated in November by members of Sonko’s now-dissolved Pastef party as a fallback candidate in case Sonko is found ineligible. Faye is in detention, just like Sonko, but he is still able to run because the case against him has not yet been decided. Defamation and contempt of court are two of the counts against him.

Prime Minister Amadou Ba, former mayor of Dakar, Khalifa Sall, and former prime minister Idrissa Seck are among the candidates approved by the council. Macky Sall, the outgoing president, will hand over power in July after ruling out a third term, putting an end to months of speculation that contributed to some of the deadliest violence in the normally stable West African nation’s modern history.

Since Sall declared that he would not use a constitutional revision to seek a third-term mandate—a strategy common among other African leaders to extend their reign—concerns about the possibility that Sonko’s expulsion would spark additional protests have subsided as his trial has triggered deadly demonstrations.

The February 25 election will mark the first time since Senegal’s independence that the current president will not run for office again after serving two terms in office.

A presidential candidate needs to secure the signatures of 0.8% to 1% of the voting public. At least 2,000 sponsors must be secured for each of Senegal’s fourteen regions, where a minimum of seven signatures are required.

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Politics

S’Africa lengthens troop deployment in Mozambique, Congo DR

Published

2 days ago

April 26, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

President Cyril Ramaphosa said in a speech that South Africa’s military would keep sending troops to Mozambique and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which are both in the middle of wars.

The extension will leave 1,198 members of the South African National Defense Force (SANDF) in eastern Congo for an unknown amount of time. They are there as part of a United Nations peacekeeping force helping Congo fight rebel groups.

The statement also said that 1,495 members of the SANDF would keep working in Mozambique, where they have been since 2021 helping the government fight dangerous extremism in the north.

After two SANDF troops were killed and three were hurt by a mortar bomb in Congo in February, South Africa’s military operations abroad have been looked at more closely at home this year.

Meanwhile, the major opposition party in South Africa, the Democratic Alliance, said that Ramaphosa sent troops into a war zone without being ready.
Under the supervision of the UN, the SANDF has taken on many dangerous and difficult peacekeeping tasks over the years to help war-torn African countries stay stable and peaceful.

In 2003, South Africa was one of the first countries to send troops to Burundi to help the peace process. During the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) peacekeeping mission in 2000, the SANDF led attempts to stabilize the country’s politics, rebuild and improve infrastructure, and train DRC troops.

Politics

Digital Rights: Policy enthusiast, Jere, advocates self-regulation as alternative to govt regulations

Published

4 days ago

April 24, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

Copperbelt businessman and mining policy advocate, George Jere, has highlighted the importance of self-regulation in the expanding digital media landscape, countering arguments against freedom of speech.

In an exclusive discussion with Zambia Monitor, Jere challenged notions surrounding media freedom and digital rights, emphasizing the indispensable role of effective media instruments in national progress.

“Digital media’s unrestricted nature facilitates publishing, although tracking those behind it poses challenges for government intervention,” Jere remarked, advocating for self-regulation as a preferable alternative to government restrictions.

He stressed the need for a balanced approach between private and public media operations, criticizing the high level of censorship in public media channels.

“While cyber security laws fall short, self-regulation offers a more effective solution for managing digital platforms,” Jere asserted, expressing disappointment in the government’s failure to enact comprehensive media reforms.

Jere cautioned against subjective regulations aimed at suppressing dissenting voices, urging authorities to reconsider laws through inclusive consultations.

“Media freedom should extend to all, including rural communities, chiefs, and church leaders, across traditional, social, and digital platforms,” he emphasized.

Reflecting on public media governance, Jere noted its tendency to align with ruling interests, calling for fairer recruitment processes for media executives to ensure unbiased coverage.

Regarding proposed taxes on online livestream programmes, Jere questioned the necessity of double taxation, suggesting negotiation of percentage-based levies to support domestic resource mobilization without unfairly targeting individuals.

As debates on freedom of speech and media regulation continue, Jere remained steadfast in advocating for inclusive, balanced media practices to foster national development.

This story is sponsored content from Zambia Monitor’s Project Aliyense.