South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir has removed Napoleon Adok Gai as director general of the National Communication Authority (NCA), according to a decree broadcast on state television SSBC on Friday.
Adok, who had held the position since August 2020, was replaced by Gieth Kon Mathiang, a former board member of the regulatory body.
In a Facebook post, Adok said he was grateful for the opportunity to serve and expressed confidence in his successor’s ability to lead the NCA.
“It has been an honour to serve in this role for the past four years,” Adok said. “I warmly welcome and congratulate my colleague, Mr. Gieth Kon Mathiang… I am confident in his ability to steer the sector forward.”
The NCA, established under a 2012 law, regulates South Sudan’s telecommunications and ICT sector, including equipment imports and market competition.
In a separate decree, Kiir also replaced two undersecretaries at the Ministry of Information, Communication Technology and Postal Services—Wani Ladu Kenyi and Yath Awan Yath—with Thomas Gatkuoth Yak and Martin Mabior Mawien, respectively.
No reasons were given for the reshuffle.
The president frequently exercises his authority to appoint and dismiss government officials, sometimes within months of their appointment. Radio Tamazuj
Ahead of the October elections, Tanzania’s president is retreating from democracy – along with the rest of the East African region.
Democracy is in bad shape in East Africa and seems to be getting worse. Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan’s political reforms after she succeeded the authoritarian John Magufuli in 2021 raised a glimmer of hope – but she now seems to have regressed.
Reacting to the general retreat from democracy, Kenyan politician Martha Karua, a former Member of Parliament and cabinet minister, and Raila Odinga’s running mate in the 2022 presidential elections, is leading a campaign against opposition party suppression in the region.
Her Pan-African Progressive Leaders Solidarity Network is demanding the ‘immediate withdrawal of charges against Mr. Lissu and all political prisoners.’ This refers to Tundu Lissu, the leader of Tanzania’s Chama cha Demokrasia na Maendeleo (CHADEMA) party, who was arrested and detained in April on treason charges. CHADEMA is pushing for electoral reforms ahead of the October general elections under the slogan ‘No Reforms, No Election’.
Karua’s group describes Lissu’s case as ‘emblematic of growing threats to democracy across Africa.’ She has also joined the legal team defending Ugandan opposition leader Kizza Besigye and his ally Hajji Obeid Lutale, who were jailed without bail on charges of treason and illegal possession of weapons. Meanwhile, veteran Burundi opposition leader Agathon Rwasa has been sidelined from participating in next month’s elections.
None of the eight EAC member states can be considered a full democracy, according to Freedom House
Ugandan opposition leader Bobi Wine, who ran against President Yoweri Museveni in the last presidential elections, posted this week about visiting his bodyguard, Eddie Mutwe, and other jailed party members in prison. Mutwe was abducted last month by armed men. Wine said they had been tortured and that military Chief Muhoozi Kainerugaba – Museveni’s son – had personally participated in the assault.
Kainerugaba, who seems beyond the control of his father or anyone else, openly boasted on social media that he was holding Mutwe in his basement. Kainerugaba regularly posts threats to Wine and his officials. This blatant aggression is particularly disturbing as it is widely believed Museveni is grooming him as a successor.
And Kenya is somewhat complicit, having allowed Ugandan agents to abduct Besigye in Nairobi last December. Opposition activists report a spate of such abductions across the region.
None of the eight East African Community member states is a full democracy, according to Freedom House. Its 2025 report ranked Kenya as Partly Free and the rest as Not Free. Tanzania was demoted from Partly Free last year. The average score for EAC members was 22.875 out of 100 – way below the Partly Free threshold of 36. And the overall score of all eight declined from 187 in 2024 to 183 in 2025.
While Kainerugaba seems more straightforward, Samia is rather enigmatic. As Nicodemus Minde, Institute for Security Studies Researcher in Nairobi, recently wrote, after succeeding Magufuli following his death in 2021, Samia seemed set to reverse his legacy. She ‘proudly championed the “Four R’s” of reconciliation, resilience, reform and rebuilding.’
She ended Magufuli’s ban on political rallies, repealed his repressive media laws, and released then CHADEMA leader Freeman Mbowe from prison. Mbowe had spent eight months in jail on terrorism charges.
CCM won Tanzania’s 2024 local elections by a landslide after most opposition candidates had been banned
But last year the wheels started coming off her reform initiative. CHADEMA official Ally Kibao was abducted and murdered in September, and another, Aisha Machano, was brutally attacked in October. In August, hundreds of CHADEMA officials and supporters, including Mbowe and Lissu, were detained ahead of a planned rally.
It appeared the crackdown was linked to the November 2024 local elections. CHADEMA raised concerns that they would not be free and fair, mainly because the management of the polls remained firmly in the hands of government officials and not an independent electoral commission.
Proposals to have election results challenged in court have been ignored by the ruling party, Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM). So the election system remained ‘completely captured by the ruling party’ as Minde told ISS Today. CCM won the local polls by a landslide after most opposition candidates had been banned.
And now her government has cracked down again ahead of the October national elections by charging Lissu with the exaggerated offence of treason because CHADEMA threatened to boycott these elections too, failing electoral reforms.
Opposition leader Lissu is likely being legally harassed to stop him participating in the October elections
This week, the courts ordered the state to bring Lissu to court for his next appearance on 19 May. He has been on a hunger strike in protest against being forced to appear in court only virtually. He is insisting on habeas corpus to protect himself against possible harm in jail.
It seems likely that the CCM is subjecting Lissu to legal harassment so that he and his party will be effectively ruled out of the October elections, leaving the field open to the CCM.
What is unclear about Samia, though, is why she has reversed her reform course. Until quite recently, the prevailing narrative was that she was failing to face down opposition to her reforms from Magufuli hardliners, who remained strong in the CCM and feared a CHADEMA win in the October elections.
But Minde told ISS Today that having removed several Magufuli loyalists early on, ‘she’s now turned to most Magufuli loyalists to beef up her government ahead of the elections.’ She has also ‘consolidated her power by eliminating any potential competition from within CCM and now with the treason case Lissu is facing.’
If this is true, it would suggest that Samia has at last become her own woman. Though not in the way many had hoped she would. By Peter Fabricius, ISS
The RSF has been accused of using UAE-supplied Chinese weapons during its war against the army [Getty/file photo]
The UAE denied Amnesty's report on supplying of Chinese weapons to Sudan's paramilitaries, saying the claims are 'baseless and lack substantiated evidence'.
"The UAE strongly rejects the suggestion that it is supplying weaponry to any party involved in the ongoing conflict in Sudan," said Salem Aljaberi, the UAE's assistant minister for security and military affairs.
"These claims are baseless and lack substantiated evidence," he said in a statement posted on the foreign ministry's X account.
On Thursday, Amnesty said it identified "Chinese GB50A guided bombs and 155mm AH-4 howitzers" through analysis of footage of attacks by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on Khartoum and Darfur.
The London-based human rights group said the UAE was the only country to import howitzers from China, in a deal in 2019.
It relied on data from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute for its report.
"The howitzer referenced in the report is a system manufactured outside the UAE and has been available on the international market for nearly a decade," Aljaberi said, labelling the Amnesty report as "misleading".
"The assertion that only one country has procured or transferred this system is invalid," he added.
Abu Dhabi has repeatedly denied arming the RSF, despite reports from UN experts, US politicians and international organisations.
On Tuesday, the army-aligned government severed ties with the UAE, accusing it of supplying the RSF with the advanced weapons systems it has used to strike Port Sudan.
The UAE denied the allegation, saying the internationally recognised administration "does not represent the legitimate government of Sudan". Source: The New Arab Staff & Agencies
In a joint declaration, the anti-graft leaders also pledged to strengthen cooperation in investigating and prosecuting corruption cases that span multiple jurisdictions within the region.
Heads of anti-corruption agencies from Commonwealth countries in Africa have committed to working collaboratively to eliminate jurisdictional and procedural barriers that hinder the fight against cross-border corruption.
The resolution was made during the 15th Commonwealth Regional Conference of Heads of Anti-Corruption Agencies in Africa, held from May 5 to 9 in Cape Town, South Africa.
In a joint declaration, the anti-graft leaders also pledged to strengthen cooperation in investigating and prosecuting corruption cases that span multiple jurisdictions within the region.
The resolution was made during the 15th Commonwealth Regional Conference of Heads of Anti-Corruption Agencies in Africa, held from May 5 to 9 in Cape Town, South Africa/EACC
At the same time, they promised to develop strategies for investigators and prosecutors to effectively trace and recover proceeds of corruption, among other measures, the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) said in a statement on Friday.
EACC CEO Abdi Mohamud was among the heads and representatives of anti-corruption agencies from Commonwealth Africa who attended the forum.
In his remarks at the conference, Mohamud said the Commission is currently implementing its third Strategic Plan (2023–2028), which outlines key interventions aimed at reinforcing the fight against corruption.
“He emphasized the Commission’s focus on monitoring capital-intensive projects, tackling bribery at service delivery points, and the recovery and forfeiture of unexplained assets,” the EACC noted.
The Commonwealth Regional Conference is an annual event designed to enhance inter-agency collaboration, promote knowledge-sharing on anti-corruption strategies, and strengthen partnerships between governments, civil society, and the private sector. By BRUHAN MAKONG, Capital News
Tanzania has officially banned the use of foreign currencies, including the US dollar, for all domestic transactions, with the Tanzanian shilling now required for payments within the country.
This move follows a significant devaluation of the shilling, which has lost over 10% of its value against the US dollar, and aims to strengthen the national currency and improve control over monetary policy Exemptions include payments by foreign visitors, diplomatic posts, and certain international loans, while businesses have until 2026 to convert existing foreign currency contracts to Tanzanian shillings
Legit.ng journalist Zainab Iwayemi has 5-year-experience covering the Economy, Technology, and Capital Market. 5 Tanzania has officially banned the use of foreign currencies, including the US dollar, for all domestic transactions.
This means that the Tanzanian shilling (TZS) must be used exclusively to pay for products and services within the country. Tanzania officially banned the use of foreign currencies for local transaction. Photo Credit: Tanzanian Govt Source: UGC This comes after the Tanzanian shilling lost more than 10% of its value in relation to the US dollar, making it Africa's worst-performing currency in 2024, according to Bloomberg data. By Zainab Iwayemi, Legit
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