Politics

Equatorial Guinea: World longest-serving President, Teodoro Nguema, appoints first female Prime Minister

Published

1 year ago

February 1, 2023

Equatorial Guinea’s President Teodoro Obiang Nguema has appointed his vice-minister of education, Manuela Roka Botey, as prime minister.

On Tuesday, the longest-serving president in the world appointed Botey making it the first time a woman has held the role in the West African country.

According to a statement by the office of the president, “the former Deputy Minister for Education, Manuela Roka Botey has, through Presidential Decree, been appointed Prime Minister of the Government, Charged with Administrative Coordination, replacing Francisco Pascual Obama Asue. She becomes the first Equatoguinean woman to hold the position.

“Roka Botey was Vice-rector of the National University of Equatorial Guinea and Sister Militant in the Baney PDGE District Monitoring Commission.

Furthermore, the three Vice Prime Ministers of the Government have been confirmed in their posts: Clemente Engonga Nguema Onguene, First Vice Prime Minister and Minister for Education, University Teaching, and Sports; Ángel Mesie Mibuy, Second Vice Prime Minister of the Government, Charged with Parliamentary Relations and Legal Affairs, and Alfonso Nsue Mokuy, Third Vice Prime Minister, Charged with Human Rights.”

President Mbasogo, has been sworn in for a sixth, seven-year term. He emerged the winner in the presidential election held in November, winning by 99 percent of the votes cast.

He has been in power since 1979, and won with 94,9% of the votes, according to the head of the electoral commission.

The United States said at the time it had “serious doubts about the credibility of the announced results” in the election and called on authorities to work with all stakeholders to address allegations of voter fraud.

The country of around 1.5 million people has had only two presidents since its independence from Spain in 1968. Obiang ousted his uncle, Francisco Macias Nguema, in a coup in August 1979.

Related Topics:Equatorial Guinea Featured President Te President Teodore Obiang Nguema Mbasogo

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Politics

Mozambique: Ruling FRELIMO announces Chapo as presidential candidate

Published

1 day ago

May 7, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

Daniel Chapo has announced that he will run for president in the October election on behalf of the ruling FRELIMO party in Mozambique.

Since achieving independence in 1975, FRELIMO has ruled the nation in southern Africa, and the party is hoping that Chapo can lead it to another win in the election on October 9.

“The soap opera of speculation is over, including speculation about the third term,” President Filipe Nyusi said on state television on Sunday, dismissing the prospect of contesting elections again.

“We must all unite around comrade Daniel Francisco Chapo, in the demanding march towards electoral victory next October,” Nyusi said.

The president of Mozambique is limited to two terms of five years by the constitution. Nevertheless, following his reelection as party leader in 2022, there had been conjecture in the media that Nyusi may run for a third term.

Chapo, a relatively unknown person in national politics, is the governor of the province of Inhambane in southern Mozambique. As to the party announcement, he secured 225 votes (about 94%) from the central committee of the party.

“We are going to work with all social strata,” Chapo said on television after his win.

Chapo, a former radio host, was born in 1977, making him the first candidate for FRELIMO to be born since the nation gained its independence.

He has served in many governmental capacities, most notably as an administrator of the districts of Nacala and Palma. He also has a master’s degree in development management and a law degree.

Politics

Again, Rwanda denies it attacked displaced persons in DR Congo

Published

4 days ago

May 4, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

For the sixteenth time, Rwanda refuted US charges on Saturday that its troops attacked a camp for internally displaced persons in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), placing the blame instead on militants it claimed were backed by the military of the Congo.

The US State Department released a statement in which it vehemently denounced the incident that claimed at least nine lives on Friday.

There have been persistent accusations against Rwanda of providing support to the armed organizations, which has resulted in diplomatic tensions between the neighbours in East Africa.

Citing the threat that Rwanda’s surface-to-air missile systems posed to civilians, U.N. and other regional peacekeepers, aid workers, and commercial aircraft operating in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the US demanded in February that Rwanda remove its systems and all of its armed forces from the DRC immediately. Rwanda denies providing any assistance to the rebels.

According to the U.S. statement, the M23 rebel group, which Rwanda supports, and the Rwandan Defense Forces (RDF) held the positions from which the attack was launched. The United States is “gravely concerned about the recent RDF and M23 expansion” in eastern Congo.

Speaking on behalf of the Rwandan government, Yolande Makolo refuted claims that the RDF was responsible for the attack, blaming instead rebels backed by the Congolese military.

“The RDF, a professional army, would never attack an IDP (displaced persons). Look to the lawless FDLR and Wazalendo supported by the FARDC (Congolese military) for this kind of atrocity,” she said in a post on X.

Wazalendo is a Christian sect, while the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) is a Hutu organization that was founded by Hutu officials who left Rwanda after planning the 1994 genocide.

Thousands of people from the surrounding areas have fled to Goma in eastern Congo as a result of the M23 rebels’ two-year offensive, which has advanced toward the city in recent months.