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Socialist Party accuses Zambian ruling UPND of abducting its candidates

Published

7 months ago

April 13, 2024

Zambian opposition party, the Socialist Party (SP), has accused the ruling United Party for National Development (UPND) of masterminding the abduction of its candidate for the Kaunga Ward by-election in Luangwa district of Feira Constituency, Maneya Mwale.

The SP, in a statement in Lusaka, also called on security agencies to arrest the UPND’s Lusaka Province Chairperson, Obvious Mwaliteta, for the alleged abduction of Mwale.

SP’s Vice President, Dr Cosmas Musumali, said Mwaliteta should be arrested together with his District Chairperson, Anderson Banda.

Musumali, who made the call at a media briefing in Lusaka, alleged that Mwaliteta, Banda and other people mentioned kidnapped his party’s candidate.

He also accused the ruling party and President Hakainde Hichilema of being behind such activities that had continued to happen in all the ward elections in the country.

“Those who know this President know that he micromanages everything. He has hands on type of leadership and this kidnapping have not happened once but have been happening, nothing has been done, no one has been arrested, what’s the conclusion, the conclusion is that he is okaying it, he sees nothing wrong with it and the Head of State who swore to uphold the rights and Constitution of Zambia,” Musumali said.

“This is something that can not be done without HH tolerating it, facilitating it and even giving it a go ahead. If it’s done once I would agree with you that some rogue UPND members did it outside his control,” Musumali added.

He also claimed that the UPND was not ready to uphold the democratic tenets of the country and were using all means necessary to win the elections.

“The candidate in Kaunga Ward, like in the other 6 Wards, was abducted during the nominations day, which forced the Socialist Party to look for other candidates and Hichilema has remained silent on such activities,” Musumali noted.

Musumali further called on the Electoral Commission of Zambia to invalidate the nominations for Chikenge and Chisanga wards and set a new date for filling in of nominations.

“We further demand that the Commission should ban the UPND from participating in these two wards due to the crimes committed, which are against the electoral code of conduct,” he demanded.

He expressed that “hell would have broken lose had it been the other way round, and that Socialist Party leader Dr Fred M’membe would have been called all sorts of names by the UPND and their surrogates.”

“This is the winning formular for the UPND, kidnapping, abductions have become child’s play for them, they are endangering people’s lives, you have the audercity to abduct a 22 years old girl and pointing a gun to her head,” Musumali said.

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Ivory Coast to create $500 million green financing fund

Published

5 days ago

November 17, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

Ivory Coast will establish a $500 million green financing fund to assist sustainable growth, the IMF said.

Africa’s 54 countries have been worst hit by climate change, although emitting less pollution than developed nations. They get only 1% of yearly global climate financing.

The African Green Banks Initiative aims to develop a $1.5 billion ecosystem of green investment facilities by 2030, including Ivory Coast’s new facility.

The Global Environment Facility, the Green Climate Fund, the Ivory Coast government, multilateral development banks, development finance organisations, and possible private sources will all contribute to the facility’s capitalisation.

The leading cocoa-growing country in the world, West Africa, has been drafting new legislation to help other green finance projects, such as a body to regulate carbon credit management.

The consequences of climate change have disproportionately affected Africa, making cyclones, floods, and droughts worse in recent years.

A 30-month, $1.3 billion loan agreement for Ivory Coast under the IMF’s Resilience and Sustainability Facility was authorised by the executive board in March.

According to the IMF, the funding agreement will help the Abidjani administration implement its pledge to lessen the negative consequences of climate change.

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1,172 Nigerians killed, over 1,000 kidnapped in nine months— NHRC

Published

1 week ago

November 14, 2024

Isaac Dachen

The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has put the figures of Nigerians killed and kidnapped by non-state actors from January to September 2024, at 1,172 and 1,463 respectively.

A new data released on Wednesday by the organization reveal that the month of May saw the 298 persons killed, making it the highest, while March recorded the highest number of abductions with 499 kidnappings.

These data which was presented at a workshop on the state of human rights in Nigeria by the commission and the European Union, in Abuja, attributed the rise in kidnappings, killings and child abandonment in Nigeria to the negligence and failure of the state to protect its citizens.

While presenting the data, NHRC Senior Human Rights Adviser, Hillary Ogbonna, gave a breakdown of what he described as the alarming rise in human rights abuses, including kidnappings, killings and child abandonment.

“By January 2024, we already had 150 kidnappings and 55 killings associated mainly with non-state actors. What has become the norm is the killing of law enforcement officers,” Ogbonna said.

“We started with seven policemen killed in January. From victims’ perspectives, we had quite a number of victims for human rights violations for January.”

Also speaking at the event, the NHRC Executive Secretary in Nigeria, Tony Ojukwu, said:

“In recent years, we have witnessed alarming trends and threats against those who dare to speak the truth to power.

“It serves as a stark reminder that the protection of human rights is an ongoing struggle that requires continuous vigilance, action and cooperation from all sectors of the society,” Ojukwu said.

A delegation from the EU which also made a presentation, reiterated its commitment to support Nigeria to overcome these challenges, while urging the Federal Government to work with the armed forces to end this trend.

“The European Union will continue to work around the world through diplomacy,” the Head of EU Delegation, Zissimos Vergos, said.h