East Africa

Details: East Africa; 30 September 2021; 845

Opposition MPs addressing at parliament. Photo via The Observer

Opposition MPs have resolved to boycott parliamentary sittings as they continue mount pressure to secure the freedom of fellow legislators Allan Ssewanyana (Makindye West) and Muhammad Ssegirinya (Kawempe North).

Ssegirinya and Ssewanyana who are facing murder and terrorism charges got re-arrested soon after being granted bail by the High court. The MPs communicated their position following today's meeting chaired by the leader of the opposition in parliament (LOP), Mathias Mpuuga.

“We condemn the illegal detention of the two MPs and many other Ugandans who are being held for so long without trial,” opposition chief whip John Baptist Nambeshe said, adding that, “We will boycott the plenary sittings of parliament until the due process of the law is followed in the prosecution of our colleagues and other opposition supporters.”

The move, Nambeshe said, is intended to force the government to respect the rule of law.

“Until the two members and other Ugandans who support change who are in incarceration; some in places we don’t know are taken through due process, we shall not go back to parliament and comfortably deliberate on issues when our people are being persecuted,” Nambeshe said.

The development comes a day after opposition MPs stormed out of parliament in protest of what they termed as government’s failure to offer a satisfactory reason for the brutal re-arrest of Ssewanyana and Ssegirinya moments after they had been granted bail.

Ssewanyana was re-arrested last Thursday while Ssegirinya was re-arrested this Monday outside Kigo prison by armed security operatives. Meanwhile, the opposition has also rejected President Museveni’s push to abolish the requirement to grant bail to suspects.

“We want to confirm that we stand by the current provisions in the Constitution. Uganda obligations, internationally and regionally; we are party to the universal declaration of human rights that calls for presumption of innocence, we are a party to the international covenant on civil and political rights. All those obligations mandate us as a country to ensure that we respect the presumption of innocence and by extension, we uphold the right to apply for bail,” Bugiri MP Asuman Basalirwa said.

“We will defend the current constitutional provision that entitles anybody accused of an offence to apply for bail and will therefore not be party to any moves that are intended to remove bail from our law books. The current provisions on bail are sufficient enough to cater for Mr Museveni’s concerns,” he added.

Yesterday Tuesday, Museveni met NRM MPs to sell to them his idea of scrapping the constitutional provision on bail which Basalirwa warned is likely to cast the NRM government in bad light.

“The NRM government will go into history as the first government in the whole world to abolish bail. Not even the Taliban [in Afghanistan], not even the military regime in North Korea or in Myanmar abolished bail, so, they [NRM] will be the first should they pursue this matter to its conclusion. If Museveni wants to be the champion of being unique in that respect, we will not follow him in that uniqueness,” Basalirwa said. - The Observer

Details: East Africa; 28 September 2021; 774

Arid land is seen due to elevated temperature and drought, at Lindlay town in Free State, South Africa on January 14, 2016. ( Ihsaan Haffejee - AA )

Report says Africa needs additional investment of $280 billion which will produce more than fourfold return by 2050. Billions of dollars are needed to prepare Africa’s cities for climate change and to turn urban centers into engines of green growth, a report released Monday by the Coalition for Urban Transitions and FSD Africa said.

The report, which is based on an analysis of cities in Ethiopia, South Africa and Kenya, which combined represent 18% of Africa’s urban population, notes that investing in climate readiness in African cities will have immense economic gains.

"Economic analysis commissioned for the report shows that across the 35 major cities in the three countries, delivering more compact, clean and connected development would require an additional investment of $280 billion but would produce a return of more than four times that, with total benefits worth $1.1 trillion by 2050, equivalent to $330 billion in today’s terms (net present value)," the report notes.

Mark Napier, the CEO of FSD Africa, in a statement said that "Africa’s destiny will be determined by the way its cities develop. We firmly believe that with well-structured green investment, it is possible to deliver both environmental benefits and strong economic growth at the same time.”

Nick Godfrey, director of the Coalition for Urban Transitions, for his part said that “whilst the scale of the investment needed is significant, the economic dividends are far greater, and
there are existing mechanisms capable of financing a more sustainable, healthier and prosperous urban future across Africa.”

The investment will also create hundreds of thousands of jobs, improve health, reduce pollution and raise productivity across the continent, while at the same time reducing carbon emissions and making cities more resilient to the impact of rising temperatures, the report said. By Andrew Wasike Shimanyula , Anadolu Agency

Details: East Africa; 28 September 2021; 817

A 14-year-old juvenile who had been abducted from her parents home in Nyeri county on August 25, 2021, has been rescued by detectives from her captor.

The minor was rescued at Mto wa Mbu town in Tanzania, 514-kilometers away from her parents’ home and a main suspect arrested.

Before her disappearance, the suspect worked at an establishment near the minor’s home.

It is not clear if a ransom had been demanded for her to be released.

The school going child was on her mid term break, when the unfortunate incident happened, police and the parents said.

On the fateful night, she had stepped out of their house to answer a call of nature at 2 am, only for her parents to wake up in the morning and find their daughter missing.

The parents immediately reported at Gatitu police post but due to the gravity of the matter, Nyeri DCI boss John Gacheru, took over the investigations and escalated his file to headquarters for specialised action.

In a meticulously planned rescue mission led by DCI’s elite Special Service Unit and Tanzania’s regional crime office based in Arusha, the suspect was finally cornered on Sunday morning at 2am, within Engarika area and the girl rescued.

Tears flowed freely from the minor’s relatives and friends, as she was reunited with her distraught kin who have known no peace since her disappearance.

DCI George Kinoti said he appreciates the immediate action taken by Interpol, in facilitating his detectives and police officers from Mto wa Mbu in Tanzania, in ensuring that the class eight pupil is rescued and the suspect finally brought to justice.

The suspect is currently cooling his heels at Mto wa Mbu police cells, Arusha, Tanzania.

Incidents of kidnapping have been on the rise in a trend with ransom being demanded.

Police are calling for vetting of those employed at various levels and demand of identification documents to enable tracing. - CYRUS OMBATI, The Star

Details: East Africa; 28 September 2021; 755

A motorhome was flipped on its side and crashed through the perimeter wall outside a home near Humberton - Sadie Russell/MEN MEDIA

Extreme winds likened to a mini tornado overturned vehicles and damaged houses in the east of England on Monday.

Local residents described seeing garage roofs ripped off and bins thrown into the air by the freak weather event, which hit Thorngumbald, near Hull, and Humberston, close to Cleethorpes.

A motorhome was flipped on its side and crashed through a wall outside a home near Humberton.

Local resident Bob Salt told the BBC it sounded like "a bomb going off", adding: "It was really frightening, with tiles and bins flying all over the place."

A motorhome was flipped on its side and crashed through the perimeter wall outside a home near Humberton - MEN MEDIA

The UK experiences around 30 small tornadoes every year, which can cause localised damage.

The Met Office said it was unclear whether Monday's events had been a tornado. Wet and windy weather marked the arrival of a cold front from the west following a weekend of late summer sunshine. The Met Office said the weather had "effectively changed seasons" on Monday.

Further strong winds are expected later in the week, with a chance of hail and thunder as rain heads eastwards across the UK. By Emma Gatten, Telegraph/Yahoo News

Details: East Africa; 27 September 2021; 861

President of the republic of Kenya, Uhuru Kenyatta VOANEWS.COM

President Uhuru Kenyatta has expressed disappointment and anger at Central Kenya leaders.

According to his close allies, the President has had a change of heart and allowed the region's electorate to make their own decisions as opposed to his prior stance to rely on their leaders to chat the electorate's future.

The President's change of heart, according to his allies led by Nyeri Town Member of Parliament, Ngunjiri Wambugu, was informed by the electorates' opposition of the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) that was aimed at uniting the country and ensuring more resources to the counties.

Nyeri Town Member of Parliament Ngunjiri Wambugu addresses members of the public during a consultative Building Bridges Initiatives (BBI) meeting at the ACK St. Peters Hall in Nyeri on Wednesday, February 26, 2020.

FACEBOOK

The Nyeri Town MP, on Sunday, September 26, stated that the President felt betrayed by his own people.

"He feels betrayed and frustrated by the very people he believes he wanted to assist by preparing a better future for," noted the vocal legislator, who is also a defender of the President.

"We were with the President somewhere and he said that he finds it hard to forgive some people because the route that they took us through led to the fall of BBI."

The MP said that the Head of State was not happy since his efforts to bring together opposition leaders including Raila Odinga (ODM), Musalia Mudavadi (ANC), Kalonzo Musyoka (Wiper), Moses Wetangula (Ford Kenya) and Gideon Moi (KANU) through the BBI were badly affected.

"The President's focus is more on development and building his legacy. Ukienda kumwambia hiyo mambo ya siasa ya mlima, mtakosana (If you go to him with the politics of Mt Kenya, you will not be welcome)," as source close to the President told a local daily.

This comes even as eleven Members of Parliament from the larger Mt Kenya counties including Embu, Kirinyaga, Nyeri, Murang'a, Tharaka Nithi, Meru, Nyandarua, Laikipia, Nairobi and Nakuru committed to back Deputy President William Ruto's presidential bid.

"We have resolved to canvass the agenda of the people we represent on the platform of UDA, a political party we have formed together with other Kenyans from across the nation in a political movement that currently has the support of millions of Kenyans, MCAs, Governors and more than 150 MP's from all corners of the country," the MPs' stated.

A Section of Leaders From Mount Kenya Who Declared Support For DP Ruto's Presidential Bid at the Aberdares Cottage on Saturday, September 4. FACEBOOK Kenyans.co.ke