East Africa

East Africa

Details: East Africa; 08 April 2024; 299

The national government has been asked to find a lasting solution to the ongoing doctors strike in the country.

Siaya Governor James Orengo indicated that the strike has been recurring and it is now time that the government fully addresses it.

Orengo pointed over the years, he has appeared in court to defend doctors’ union officials but the problem has refused to go away.

“The national government has failed to resolve the long standing dispute involving the doctors’ union,” he said.

He says that four years ago he appeared for former Kenya Medical, Practitioners Pharmacists and Dentists Union (KMPDU) officials who were arrested while agitating for similar demands now.

Speaking in Nyakach Sub County on Sunday during a funds drive at Holy Trinity Catholic Church, Orengo says the government has failed its citizens in matters of health.

“This government was formed on the basis of mama mbogas, who cannot now access medical health services due to the ongoing strike,” he said.

Kisumu Deputy Governor Mathews Owili, who hosted Orengo says despite health being devolved, the ongoing strike is a creation of the national government.

“County governments has nothing to do with the ongoing strike, let the national government come out to put this strike to a stop,” he said.

The two leaders spoke only hours after President William Ruto emphasized the need for doctors to understand the government’s fiscal constraints, stressing the importance of living within means when it comes to salaries and allowances.

The president’s call slams any hope that demands by the doctors in regard to salary rise will not be effected. By Ojwang Joe, Capital News

Details: East Africa; 06 April 2024; 309

A Political Parties Forum held in Juba on Thursday endorsed the draft code of conduct for political parties ahead of general elections in December this year.

The code of conduct that was validated during the meeting is expected to guide political parties before and during general elections.

Speaking to reporters shortly after the meeting, Dr Lam Akol Ajawin, Chairman of the opposition National Democratic Movement Party (NDM), said the discussion “led to a major consensus among the parties.” He added that the consensus reached on the document proves that South Sudanese parties can solve their own problems.

“We were discussing how we deal with our issues when trying to compete as political parties. So it is mostly about elections, and I am happy to announce that we have reached a consensus,” said Dr Akol.

“The parties are ready to sign, only that are still small editorial things. This is a voluntary code of conduct for the parties to adopt. I think this is a big step forward, a good development for the country, and a good development for the exercise of democracy that we are hoping to build and consolidate,” he added.

Dr. Akol expressed hope that the agreement on the code of conduct for political parties will influence the dialogue between the political parties in the country regarding the upcoming elections.

For his part, James Akol Zakayo, Chairman of the Political Parties Council (PPC), explained that the code of conduct for political parties is intended only for political parties that have requested registration with the council.

He said the workshop was to validate the code of conduct for political parties. “The Council and the participants agreed that the code of conduct would be voluntary and signed by the Political Parties Council,” he said.

“The document in its entirety is okay. The political parties have accepted it, and it is a voluntary code of conduct that we need to adopt as a council into our regulation so that it can be legal,” he added.

The event was organized by the Political Parties Council (PPC) with support from the UN Mission (UNMISS). Representatives of the SPLM, SPLM-IO, South Sudan Opposition Alliance (SSOA), and other stakeholders attended the meeting.

The Political Parties Council is mandated to register, monitor, regulate, and de-register political parties. The other functions of the Council are to issue registration certificates to political parties, indicate in the register that changes have occurred within a political party, maintain records of registered political parties, and administer the Political Parties Fund.

South Sudan has never held elections, as government officials have postponed them multiple times. Elections are scheduled for December 2024 to end the transitional period, but peace monitors and the international community say the transitional government hasn’t built up the structure necessary to hold free and fair elections this year. By Koch Madut, Tower Post

Details: East Africa; 06 April 2024; 293

Demonstrators run from tear gas fired by police at a protest against corruption, in downtown Nairobi, Kenya, on Aug. 21, 2020. [AP Photo]

American firms are losing out on business and contracts in Kenya because top government officials demand bribes, the U.S. trade office said in a report released last week, warning that corruption will hurt foreign investment.

According to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, American businesses are finding it hard to secure Kenyan government contracts meant to develop the East African nation because senior government officials seek a bribe before awarding such jobs.

The 2024 National Trade Estimate Report on Foreign Trade Barriers said that the contracts are going mainly to foreign firms willing to pay the bribes.

This level of corruption, say the authors of the report, will cause Kenya to lose future investment from businesses and countries that shun or punish corrupt activities.

Cleophas Malala, secretary general of Kenya’s ruling party, acknowledged that Kenya's procurement and payment system has been a problem but said President William Ruto and the government are working to solve the problem.

"We know it's a challenge to us, but the president is keen on fighting corruption. You’ve seen how hard he has been. He moved very swiftly when the KEMSA saga came up,” Malala said, referring to a corruption scandal last year involving a $28 million contract that led to the dismissal of the top officials at Kenya’s Medical Supplies Authority.

“He has been steadfast in ensuring that any public officer who gets involved in corrupt activities languishes his position and faces the rule of law,” Malala said. “As a political party, we've said time and again that we are not going to defend anybody."

According to a survey by Kenya’s Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission, the country’s interior, health and transport ministries are the most corrupt. The survey showed that the size of the average bribe doubled in 2023.

Kenyan activist Boniface Mwangi told VOA that American businesses are simply being asked to follow what has become a standard procedure in Kenya.

"Kenyans pay bribes every day, not because they want to, but because they are forced to,” Mwangi said. “If you want to apply for an ID, you need to pay a bribe. You go to the police, you tell them to investigate a crime, you pay a bribe. You want to ask for a passport, you pay for a bribe. We are a bribe nation.

“One of the reasons the Chinese succeed in this country very well in doing business is because they are able to pay to play,” he said, adding, “The Americans are not told to do something that is not common. They've been asked to do what's been the norm in this country. ... Corruption is a way of life in our country."

Last year, the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission said the lack of transparency, accountability and public participation in some government projects creates a breeding ground for corruption.

That aligns with the U.S. trade office report, which said American firms complained of excessive complexity and inefficiency in the procurement process for contracts.

Malala said the government is working to change some of the procurement laws to help fight corruption and allow investors to compete fairly.

"We would want to ensure that all our investors get justice when it comes to the procurement system," he said.

Kenya finished low on the Transparency International corruption rankings for 2023, ranking 126th out of 180 countries measured for perception and prevalence of corruption. Source: VOA

Details: East Africa; 06 April 2024; 356

Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani inspects a project in Baghdad. (X)

Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani is preparing for a busy month when he will meet with US President Joe Biden in Washington in mid-April before receiving Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Baghdad on April 22.

The meetings will be held days after Iraq marks the 21st anniversary of the US invasion, which took place on April 9, 2003.

Sudani is visiting the US at the invitation of the White House amid a highly volatile and complex regional scene with the war on Gaza and the Iraqi government’s efforts to rein in armed factions that have launched attacks against American forces deployed in the country.

Baghdad is hoping to develop relations with Washington during Sudani’s trip. A prominent Iraqi official said the PM is expected to discuss the phase that follows the withdrawal of the forces of the US-led anti-ISIS coalition from Iraq.

New understandings

Sudani needs to reach new understandings with the US over the international forces and agree on a “security partnership”. The pro-Iran Coordination Framework is hoping for “flexibility” from Washington over sanctions it has imposed on banks and Iraqi figures.

Sudani and Biden are also expected to discuss oil exports from the Iraqi Kurdistan Region and legal and political disputes between Baghdad and Erbil.

However, the greatest challenge facing Sudani is the new political opposition emerging against him from Shiite allies within the ruling Coordination Framework.

An agreement among the coalition had allowed Sudani to be appointed PM.

Influential leaders in the alliance are now trying to impose conditions on the premier to prevent him from running in next year’s parliamentary elections.

Political sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that the Framework is worried that Sudani would seek to make gains in his favor during his trip to Washington and not address the sanctions against the coalition.

The sources were present at a meeting Sudani held last week with academics and policymakers. They said the PM stated that the early elections would not pose a threat to his government.

Sudani appeared confident because he was focusing on his government program, which focuses on services and developing Iraq’s regional and international relations, they added.

Biden and Erdogan

Soon after his return from the US, Sudani will welcome Erdogan for talks, which an official from the PM’s office described as “significant and historic” for Iraq and Türkiye.

Erdogan will be visiting on the heels of municipal elections where the opposition defeated him in Istanbul and the capital Ankara. Biden is also in a precarious position ahead of this year’s presidential elections.

Sudani seems the only official sitting comfortably in his position, which he may use in his favor during his summits with Biden and Erdogan, said Iraqi observers.

They noted that Biden doesn’t have many conditions to propose to Sudani, who is seeking to make gains in the strategic agreement framework signed between Baghdad and Washington in 2008 in order to ease the current tensions between the armed factions and US forces.

For his part, Erdogan is keen on compensating for his elections defeat by making foreign gains. He is eyeing the Development Road initiative launched by Sudani that could help revive Türkiye's economy.

Should the two officials reach an agreement on the initiative, then perhaps they could make progress in resolving disputes between Baghdad and Ankara over the chronic water file and Kurdistan Workers’ Party. By Hamza Mustafa, Arab World

Details: East Africa; 05 April 2024; 388

The sample photo of the Royal Gin and some soft drinks which were confiscated by the Juba City Council authorities on Thursday in Juba. [Jenifer James, The City Review]

The authorities of Juba City Council confiscated over 40 cartons of the Royal Gin and soft drinks suspected to have failed the consumption standards.

The seizure was done during the market inspection by the council authorities on Thursday.

Speaking to the media, the acting mayor of Juba city council, Mogga Franco, said they were enforcing the orders from the Central Equatoria State to ban the drinks.

“We have discovered that these drinks are harmful to our people, and we will not allow that these drinks continue in our respective markets,” he said.

He warned that traders stocking up the drinks would face the law and such will include revoking their licences.

“We close these shops in the meantime to allow the team to render a report, and that is less than three to four hours of the day. Once that is done, it is the report that will now allow authority to proceed,” he said.

Last year, a member of the national legislature called for the implementation of the order banning Royal Gin in Juba ahead of the festive season.

Arkangelo Minawe said such drinks are being abused mostly by teenagers, and their consumption had increased, especially during Christmas and New Year celebrations.

“I am informing this able August House to collaborate with IGP to impose some laws on those drinks, and I learned that the industry or manufacturing of that alcohol is here in Juba. The South Sudanese are also importing dangerous things (drugs) for young people, and now we have counted many young people who have passed away because of that drink.”

This was after the governor of Central Equatoria State, Emmanuel Adil, issued an order banning royal gin which is commonly known as “Jana Fara” in the Juba. By Jenifer James, City Review