Monthly Archives: March 2018

8, March 2018

Mario Balotelli attacks Italy’s first black senator ⁰

Mario Balotelli, Italy’s most famous black footballer, said on Wednesday a politician who has become the first black person elected to the Senate should be ashamed of himself for representing a fiercely anti-migrant party.

Nigerian-born Toni Iwobi moved to Italy in 1976 and joined the League in 1993, serving as a local councillor. He was elected to the upper house on Sunday to represent the northern city of Bergamo – the League’s heartland.

“Perhaps I’m blind or perhaps they haven’t yet told him that he is black. But shame on you!!!” Balotelli wrote on Instagram.

The post showed a photograph of Iwobi with League leader Matteo Salvini, both wearing T-shirts saying: “Stop the Invasion” – a reference to the party’s call for a halt to African migrants who have poured into Italy in recent years.

Balotelli was born in Sicily to Ghanaian immigrants. He has played more than 30 times for the Italian national team and plays club soccer for French side Nice.

The League has adopted an uncompromising anti-migrant stance, drawn up with the help of Iwobi, and has called for the deportation of some 600,000 immigrants, many from Africa, who have reached Italy over the past four years.

However, the party has said it supports legal migration. Iwobi came to Italy legally on a student visa and subsequently married an Italian. He went on to set up an IT company.

League leader Matteo Salvini immediately leapt to Iwobi’s defence. “I don’t like Balotelli on the field. I like him even less off it,” he tweeted.

Iwobi wrote on Facebook: “These controversies don’t interest me. There are more important things. I cannot wait to start serving my country.”

He went ahead to defend himself in an interview with Italian newspaper, Il Giornale,saying only 10% of those who flee from Nigeria are fleeing war.

“I come from Nigeria and I know how things are,” he added.

“Only 10% of those who disembark in Italy are fleeing war.The others, all the others, the vast majority, no.”

The election – which saw his party came third with 17% of the vote, a huge increase on the 4% it won in 2013 – comes at a time of heightened anti-immigrantion feeling.

The killing of Senegalese street vendor Idy Dienec in Florence on Monday prompted two days of protests.
Source: Africa News

8, March 2018

US Senate minority leader says White House is getting ‘hollowed out’ ⁰

US Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer has said the exit of President Donald Trump’s top economic adviser, Gary Cohn, is another indication the White House is getting “hollowed out.”

“One of the problems here is the White House is getting hollowed out and the number of people capable of doing things, of doing real things whether you agree or disagree ideologically, is getting smaller and smaller. And they seem unable to recruit new people to take these jobs,” Schumer told reporters on Wednesday.

“So the mess ups we’ve seen this past week, I think we’re going to see over and over and over again,” the top Democrat in the Senate added.

“The president’s erratic style. I didn’t vote for Jeff Sessions, but I think it’s a symbol to everybody what he did to his best friend Jeff Sessions is don’t go work there,” he said, referring to Trump’s public denunciation of his Attorney General Sessions and the Justice Department.

“And I’ve heard story after story of capable people in the Gary Cohn mode trying to be recruited by the White House and no one wants to go,” he continued.

Cohn announced his resignation from the Trump administration on Tuesday, days after the president announced that his country would impose a 25 percent tariff on imported steel and a 10 percent tariff on aluminum to protect American producers, but critics have said it would fail to boost jobs and risks starting a trade war with China.

The US oil and gas industry pounced on Trump’s plan to slap tariffs on steel and aluminum, saying the controversial move would kill energy jobs by raising costs for big infrastructure projects.

“It has been an honor to serve my country and enact pro-growth economic policies to benefit the American people, in particular, the passage of historic tax reform,” Cohn said in a statement.

“I am grateful to the president for giving me this opportunity and wish him and the administration great success in the future,” he continued.

Trump and Cohn had reportedly developed differences on the issue of trade policy. Cohn was staunchly against tariffs.

Cohn’s resignation follows that of White House communications director Hope Hicks, who announced her decision to step down last week.

Over the past year, several top Trump administration officials have departed the White House, including Stephen Bannon, Sean Spicer and Reince Priebus.

Trump believes the tariffs will safeguard US jobs but many economists say they will destroy more jobs than they create.

“It’ll be 25 percent for steel and it’ll be 10 percent for aluminum … and it’ll be for a long time,” he said. “We’re going to build our steel industry back and our aluminum industry back.”

However, America’s top energy industry trade groups, which rely on imported steel for drilling equipment, pipelines, liquefied natural gas terminals and refineries, issued statements calling on Trump to scrap the plan.

Source: Presstv

7, March 2018

Nigeria probes man who attempted to fly with over $375,000 cash ⁰

Nigeria Customs earlier this month arrested man who attempted to travel with $375,000 cash to the United Arab Emirates. They have since handed the suspect over to the anti-graft body.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Wednesday confirmed that Customs had handed over one Adamu Rabiu Mohammed to them for investigations.

Adamu was arrested at the Kaduna International airport with the money as he was due to board an Ethiopian Airlines flight bound for Dubai.

Head of the EFCC office in Kaduna said they will do all it takes to get to the bottom of the attempted act. He added that the suspect will be processed for court as soon as their preliminary investigations are done.

The EFCC has in the past seized huge sums of foreign currency across the country. In February 2017, they announced the seizure of $9.8 m cash in a Kuduna house, the money is said to be owned by a former head of the country’s oil firm, NNPC.

They have also busted over $600,000 in a Lagos market and another $43 million cash in a Lagos apartment. The latter known as the ‘Ikoyi cash’ led to the dismissal of the country’s spy chief by President Muhammadu Buhari after a probe.

Source: Africa News

7, March 2018

Edgard Alain Mebe Ngo’o: In the eye of the storm ⁰

Cameroon’s former transport minister, Edgard Alain Mebe Ngo’o is today firmly in the eye of the storm. The former transport ministry boss, considered as one of the creations of President Paul Biya and a potential successor of the “Lion Man”, is now losing sleep as the wheels of justice that have crushed the ordinary citizen for years, are heading his way. Mr. Mebe Ngo’o is gradually falling into the country’s labyrinthine legal system, a few days after being sacked as the country’s Minister of Transport.

Reports reaching the Cameroon Concord News Group hold that he was taken yesterday to SED where it is believed he answered some tough questions posed by agents of the dreaded GSO (Special Gendamarie Force) regarding a summons issued by the Special Criminal Tribunal.

It should be recalled that some French Cameroon media outfits such as Le Point had reported that Mr. Edgard Alain Mebe Ngo’o and Mr. Basile Atangana Kouna, former minister of water and energy, were those working behind the scenes for the marginalization of the country’s English-speaking minority. It is alleged that they financed the arrest and extradition of the Ambazonian interim president, Julius Ayuk Tabe, just to impress the president. Despite their largesse to the government, both men were kicked out of government last week and are being investigated by the secret service.

Besides being the brain behind the actions against the Anglophone minority, there are also allegations that Mr. Edgard Alain Mebe Ngo’o has been involved in several fraudulent activities, most of them taking place while he was Minister Delegate in charge of Defense at the Presidency of the Republic.

It is being reported that he bought two helicopters estimated at CFAF 6 billion from Ukraine ostensibly to reinforce the Cameroon air force, but also to line his pockets. There are reports that the technical conditions of the helicopters have been called into question by a military quality monitoring team. It should also be noted that his name did pop up in investigations into the purchase of a faulty aircraft for the head of state, an affair commonly known as the Albatross case that has been a nightmare to former Prime Minister, Ephraim Inoni, who has been sentenced to 20 years in jail.

There are also allegations that he inflated the prices of two air crafts he purchased to enhance the national carrier’s fleet. Mr. Alain Mebe Ngo’o is being accused of tripling the prices of the planes when compared to the price at which the DRC bought the same planes.

Meanwhile, his former colleague, Basile Atangana Kouna, is also being accused of helping to fuel the Anglophone crisis that is tearing the country apart. But it is the renationalisation of the national water corporation, Camerounaise Des Eaux, that might finally take this former CAMWATER Director General to jail.

The threats of jail hanging over these former ministers come as no surprise to anybody. Messieurs Edgard Alain Mebe Ngo’o and Basile Atangana Kouna who are being watched by state security are simply following the footsteps of their predecessors who thought they could abuse power and embezzle state funds with impunity. Messieurs Edgard Alain Mebe Ngo’o and Basile Atangana Kouna should have understood that Mr. Paul Biya has no permanent friends. He has permanent interests and once any action militates against his interests, he does not hesitate to punish those who want to rain on his parade. They should have also understood that Operation Sparrow Hawk put in place in 2006 to watch over public funds embezzlers is still doing its job.

By Meshack Enowmbiin Yaounde.

7, March 2018

Serena Williams wants top tennis tournament in Africa ⁰

Tennis star Serena Williams has spoken about plans to set up a WTA Tour event in Africa, in what is believed would be a first for the continent.

She told BBC Sport that it is something that that she has “thought about”:

It is something I have thought about and I would like to keep thinking about it. I’m glad you brought it up because I think it would be amazing. It would be so fun – the help that we could do, and the awareness and the athletes and the amazing players that would come out of Africa would just be unbelievable.”

The WTA Tour is an elite professional tennis circuit organised by the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA).

She said Kenya is where she would want the event to take place, adding “it’s one of my favourite places to go, so why not?” Ms Williams said she is preparing to return to the WTA Tour six months after giving birth. She is a 23-time Grand Slam singles champion.

Source: BBC

7, March 2018

Nigerian man elected as Italy’s first black senator ⁰

A Nigerian man, Toni Iwobi, who has been living in Italy since the 1970s, has been elected as the country’s first black senator. Iwobi, who was born in Gusau in Northern Nigeria, is the chief immigration spokesman for the far-right League party in Italy, a party which has been accused of stirring up xenophobia.

He announced on his Facebook page that he had been elected to the senate in Italy’s general election, The Local reports. NAIJ.com gathered that Iwobi’s party was elected in the industrial city of Brescia in Northern Italy – a major immigration hub.

Source: www.naija.ng

7, March 2018

Clueless Biya cabinet unlikely to resolve the crisis in Southern Cameroons ⁰

This week’s Cabinet reshuffle in Cameroon appears unlikely to herald change in the government’s approach to the crisis in the anglophone regions. The crisis began nearly a year-and-a-half ago and has grown more violent. Stabilizing the anglophone regions is seen as a priority ahead of nationwide elections later this year.

There are two notable firsts in the new Cabinet of President Paul Biya.

Nalova Lyonga from Cameroon’s English-speaking southwest region becomes the minister of secondary education. Paul Atanga Nji from the English-speaking northwest region assumes the job of minister of territorial administration.

Neither of those posts has ever been held by a member of the country’s anglophone minority.

The government remains under the charge of Prime Minister Philomen Yang, who also hails from the English-speaking northwest.

FILE - Teachers strike in front of the Ministry of Finance in Yaounde, Cameroon, March 28, 2017. (M.E. Kindzeka/VOA) — FILE – Teachers strike in front of the Ministry of Finance in Yaounde, Cameroon, March 28, 2017. (M.E. Kindzeka/VOA)

Some see the new appointments as an effort to curb tensions in the English-speaking regions. However, teachers involved in the 2016 strike that kicked off the crisis say they are unconvinced.

“The anglophone populace say they are asking for a system of governance that will allow them run their own things apart, separate from what they see, from the general super-structure of anglophones and francophones, and we have talked a lot about dialogue,” said Valentine Tame, a leader of the Teachers Association of Cameroon. “We have talked a lot about forgiving people, talk together and see how things can go ahead.”

Cameroon has two official languages — English and French. Strikers say the anglophone minority has been marginalized. Demands range from reforms to school curriculum to a return to federalism.

Over the past year, amid deadly unrest and waves of arrests, armed separatist groups have emerged demanding all-out independence for the two English-speaking regions. The government says at least 30 and police have been killed.

President Biya has announced some reforms — for example, official documents are now more available in both languages. However, the president has ruled out any dialogue on the form of the state.

Local analysts told VOA they do not expect the new Cabinet to mark a change in the government’s approach.

Nji, the new minister of territorial administration, has been a close aide to Biya for some time. Soon after the strike began in 2016 in his home region, the northwest, Njj told state TV that there was no such thing as problems specific to anglophones in Cameroon, a position he tells VOA he maintains.

“President Paul Biya, as I have always said it, whenever he has to take any important decision, anglophones have always been in the center of those decisions,” he said. “President Paul Biya has proven beyond all reasonable doubts that he has total confidence in English-speaking Cameroonians.”

The Cabinet appointments this month followed reports of fresh arrests in the English-speaking regions, which remain under a curfew.

Culled from the VOA

7, March 2018

U.S. pledges $533 million in aid to Africa ⁰

The United States will give more than $533 million in humanitarian aid for victims of conflicts and drought in Ethiopia, Somalia, South Sudan and the West and Central African countries bordering Lake Chad, U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said on Tuesday.

Tillerson made the announcement at a speech in Virginia before departing for a week-long trip to several African countries. He also said the United States supported the creation of a development finance institution for Africa.

Tillerson contrasted the United States’ work on the African continent, which he said promoted “sustainable growth,” with that of China, which recently pledged $124 billion for its Silk Road plan to expand links between Asia, Africa, Europe and other places.

Tillerson said China’s investment in Africa “encouraged dependency”.

“Chinese investment does have the potential to address Africa’s infrastructure gap, but its approach has led to mounting debt and few, if any, jobs in most countries,” said Tillerson.

“When coupled with the political and fiscal pressure, this endangers Africa’s natural resources and its long-term economic and political stability,” Tillerson added.

Tillerson added that the US would continue to help fight corruption and promote transparent institutions across the continent.

Source: Africa News

7, March 2018

US: Trump’s top economic adviser Cohn resigns over tariff plan ⁰

Top White House economic adviser Gary Cohn has announced his resignation following US President Donald Trump’s controversial plan to impose hefty tariffs on steel and aluminum imports.

Cohn,the director of the National Economic Council, handed in his notice on Tuesday after a little more than a year on the job.

His resignation came after Trump announced plans last week to impose a 25-percent tariff on steel imports and a 10-percent one on aluminum, a move that Cohn had firmly opposed.

“It has been an honor to serve my country and enact pro-growth economic policies to benefit the American people,” the adviser said in a statement about his resignation, refusing to provide further details. “I am grateful to the President for giving me this opportunity and wish him and the Administration great success in the future.”

Trump’s plans to impose the tariffs has reportedly triggered an intense debate within the oval office between Cohn and other advocates of free trade, on one side, and protectionist advisers on the other.

In response to Cohn’s resignation, Trump said in a statement that “Gary has been my chief economic adviser and did a superb job in driving our agenda … He is a rare talent, and I thank him for his dedicated service to the American people.”

The president also said in a tweet that he would make a decision soon on appointing a new chief economic adviser after Cohn’s resignation from the post.

“Will be making a decision soon on the appointment of new Chief Economic Advisor. Many people wanting the job – will choose wisely!” Trump wrote.

Unveiled on Thursday, the plan sparked a flurry of criticism both at home and aboard.

Trump believes the tariffs will safeguard US jobs, but economists say the measures will destroy more jobs than they create and will hurt the very US companies and workers that Trump has said he aims to protect.

Top US energy industry trade groups, which rely on imported steel for drilling equipment, pipelines, liquefied natural gas terminals, and refineries, have issued statements, calling on Trump to scrap the plan.

The decision also drew complaints and counter-threats from the European Commission, Canada, Mexico, Australia and the world’s biggest steel producer, China.

Beijing said it was ready to “take necessary measures” against Washington if it aimed to harm China’s economic interests following the imposed tariffs.

During his presidential campaign, Trump repeatedly blamed what he called unfair trade deals and allegedly abusive practices by countries such as China and Mexico for the massive US trade deficit and the loss of high-paying American factory jobs.

Trump lashes out at EU trade rules

Also on Tuesday, the US president criticized the European Union’s trade rules as the 28-member bloc threatened to take retaliatory measures against Washington’s new trade tariffs.

“The United States has been taken advantage of by other countries, both friendly and not so friendly, for many, many decades, and we have a trade deficit of $800bn per year, and that’s not going to happen with me,” Trump said at a press conference with Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Löfven at the White House.

US President Donald Trump and Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Löfven hold a joint press conference at the White House on March 6, 2018, in Washington, DC. (Photo by AFP)

“The European Union has been particularly tough on the United States. They make it almost impossible to do business with them, and yet they send their cars and everything else back into the United States. They can do whatever they like but if they do that, then we put a big tax of 25 percent on their cars and believe me, they won’t be doing it very long,” he added.

Trump had earlier warned to impose more tariffs on car imports from the European Union despite the new tariff plan, with member states being concerned about the impact of the new tariffs on their economies.

Following Trump’s announcement, European Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker complained that the proposed tariffs were a blatant intervention that amounted to protectionism, vowing to act “firmly” against the plan.

“We will not sit idly while our industry is hit with unfair measures that put thousands of European jobs at risk,” Juncker said.

EU’s response matches similar measures during a 2003 “steel war” unleashed by George W. Bush’s administration that eventually prompted the US to back down before the EU carried out its threat.

Source: Presstv

6, March 2018

Russian cargo plane crashes in eastern Syria, 39 killed ⁰

Russia’s Defense Ministry says a cargo plane operated by the Russian military has crashed in Syria, killing at least 32 people on board.

The ministry said in a statement on Tuesday that 33 passengers and six crew members were on board the plane when it crashed while landing in Hmeimim airbase in the western Syrian province of Latakia.

“On March 6, Russia’s Antonov-26 transport plane crashed at about 15:00 Moscow time as it was about to land at Hmeimim airdrome. According to preliminary data, there were 33 passengers and six crew members on board. Nobody survived,” the ministry’s statement said.

Russia has maintained military presence in Syria since late 2015, when Damascus asked Moscow to intervene in the war on terror in the country.

The assistance has proven very essential for Syria as it has managed to retake many areas from militants, relying on Russia’s air cover.

Hmeimim is the main base used by the Russian military in Syria while it also accommodates flights carrying Russia’s humanitarian aid and other cargos.

The Russian Defense Ministry said later that it had launched an investigation into the incident, which it said was caused by a technical malfunction. It said preliminary data received from the site of the crash, about 500 from the runway, proved that there was no terrorist incentive involved.

This is the second time an An-26, a military transport aircraft capable of carrying up to 38 passengers and some 5,500 kilograms in cargo, crashes in Syria. A Syria-operated one crashed while landing at the besieged Abu al-Duhur military airport in Idlib in January 2015.

Source: Presstv