ABUJA, July 24 (Reuters) - MTN Nigeria has appointed former telecoms regulatory chief Ernest Ndukwe as chairman-designate in a board shake-up following its debut stock market listing on the Nigerian bourse. 6.54 billion) debut, in part to settle a long-running dispute in Nigeria, its biggest market. That listing turned the telecoms company into the exchange's second-largest stock by market value. Ndukwe, ex-chief executive of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), will take over from Pascal Dozie, who has been at the helm for almost two decades, on Sept. In addition to Ndukwe, MTN has appointed former Nigerian pension regulatory chief Muhammad Ahmad, ex-minister for communication Omobola Johnson and ex-banker Andrew Alli who once represented the International Finance Corporation to MTN Nigeria's board.wikipedia.org MTN Nigeria Chief Executive Ferdinand Moolman said.showmax.com MTN Nigeria grew to become Nigeria's biggest telecoms firm under Dozie, who steps down alongside five other directors after 18 years at the helm of the company. 1 billion to settle a dispute over unregistered SIM cards and agreed to list on Nigeria's bourse.
The Supreme Court of Nigeria has never overturned a presidential election, Chris Kwaja, a senior adviser to the United States Institute of Peace, said. The president’s colleagues had expected a challenge. "There’s no opposition that will roll over and play dead," Hameed Ali, the ruling party agent attending the vote declaration, told reporters. Mr Buhari’s supporters began dancing in the streets of the capital, Abuja, on Tuesday night as victory became clear. "He is a man of integrity," a Buhari supporter in the northern city of Kano, Mohammed Aliyu, said as jubilant people held up four fingers to mark the new term. Mr Buhari received 15.1 million votes, or 55%, the electoral commission said. The average national turnout was 35.6%, continuing a downward trend.
Nigerian sensation Wizkid retained his best artist title at this year's African Music Awards, as he carried off a clutch of prizes at a glitzy ceremony in Lagos. The 27-year-old Afrobeats star -- real name Ayodeji Ibrahim Balogun -- beat his compatriot Davido and Fally Ipupa from the Democratic Republic of Congo to the top award. He also won the best song category for "Come Closer" and the prize for best West African artist. AFRIMA 2017, now in its fourth year, is considered the equivalent of the US Grammys and was held on Sunday evening at a luxury hotel in Nigeria's economic and entertainment hub. The African Union-backed awards are designed to celebrate the continent's booming music industry and were this year broadcast live to 84 countries on 109 different channels.
#Nigeria: The Bauchi State Ministry of Health is investigating a suspected Yellow Fever outbreak linked to the famous Yankari Games Reserve.
https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/bauchi-health-ministry-investigates-suspected-yellow-fever-outbreak.html … via
@daily_trust
— CDD West Africa (@CDDWestAfrica) September 5, 2019
His defeat of incumbent Goodluck Jonathan was seen as a positive step for Africa's top oil producer, given the corruption scandals that have blighted previous administrations. But Nigeria's financial markets are starting to suffer as the post-election euphoria fades and the lack of a cabinet leaves investors waiting in vain for policy direction on issues as important as the currency and petroleum investment. Garba Shehu told Reuters. Buhari's anti-corruption drive has been at the heart of his moves so far, alongside efforts to establish a military force with Cameroon, Chad and Niger to fight the six-year Boko Haram Islamist insurgency in the northeast. While Buhari has not named any ministers, he dissolved the board of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) last week and the state oil firm's management may be next to go.
The National Economic Council, a presidential advisory group that met this week for the first time since Buhari was inaugurated, said the NNPC had kept nearly half Nigeria's oil revenues from 2012 to May 2015 and promised an investigation. All Progressives Congress (APC) party said. However, some APC insiders say a power struggle between Buhari and party leader Bola Tinubu, a former Lagos state governor and one of Nigeria's most formidable political godfathers, lies behind the delays. The opposition People's Democratic Party (PDP) said it was concerned Buhari had not made key appointments and the first month of his tenure had been "all motion, no movement". Yvonne Mhango, sub-Saharan Africa economist at Renaissance Capital, said the uncertainty was exacerbating jitters about the outlook for an economy battered by depressed oil prices.
KEBBI PEOPLE Vs KAEDCO
@KBStGovt @Kadunaelectric
RE: REASONS FOR LOW ELECTRICITY SUPPLY
Firstly, Let me commend the effort of H.E @AABagudu for the provision of elect. Transformers across Kebbi state.
Then, To the @Kadunaelectric ,
THREAD
— MUKHTASAR MALCOLM ALKALI (@MalcolmAlkalee) September 4, 2019
The job market for young Nigerians is causing people to leave, says one of the leading contenders to become Nigeria's next president. Atiku Abubakar wrote on Twitter. The flight of Nigeria's trained professionals - especially doctors - is also a regular complaint. What do we know know about the scale of people leaving Nigeria? Does the perception stand up to the statistics? As one Nigerian news outlet wrote, the high rate of Nigerians leaving the country, legally and illegally, has hit worrying levels. Many of the migrants taking the central Mediterranean route into Europe come from Nigeria - frequently by boat from the coast of Libya to Italy. In 2016, almost 40,000 Nigerians arrived in Italy, more than any other nationality. But the latest data shows that there has been a significant decline.
This fall reflects the wider trend - fewer migrants crossed the Mediterranean last year. Is poverty in Nigeria getting worse? The UN says that routes used by human traffickers are constantly changing and are dependent on a number of factors, but the drop in numbers reaching Italy is attributed mainly to closer co-operation with the Libyan coastguard. And this closer monitoring of Libya's coast has made illegal crossings much harder. Testimony from those coming back to Nigeria after failed attempts bears this out, says Jorge Galindo of the International Organization for Migration (IOM). Returning migrants, he says, are alerting people to the huge risks involved in the dangerous journey. UN data suggests that Nigerians are not trying to get to Europe through Spain, which is now the main entry point for other migrants across the Mediterranean.
One reason might be that Nigeria has well-established links to people smugglers along the route between Libya and Italy. Those connections haven't been forged along the path to Spain. The migration figures, however, don't include Nigerians who have left their homes but not managed to cross into Europe - many thousands are thought to be held in detention centres in Libya or along the way in other African countries. Out of this scheme, a pattern has emerged revealing from where in Nigeria the migrants have started their journeys. The IOM says about half the total are from the southern Edo state - with a further quarter from neighbouring Delta state. Nigeria is a huge country with a large population, but this data suggests that the people migrating come from a relatively small area.
So wena you didn’t know? You’re not even in CPT but I’m sure you knew
— Wizkid Stan Acc❤️ (@Xhosa_Goddess) September 5, 2019
Edo state is the most established base for people smugglers, says Esohe Aghatise, who runs the anti-trafficking organisation Iroko. Some leave in search of economic opportunities but fall into the hands of traffickers, she says. But many others, especially women and girls, she says, are trafficked against their will or at least without any idea of what they are getting themselves into. Is there a brain drain? Many Nigerians with professional qualifications seek to travel abroad, applying for visas to do so legally. There are also those planning to study abroad or join other family members already there. Some will stay for long periods, others will return at the end of their contracts or studies. There are no official government statistics available, so one way to look at legal migration is through the numbers undergoing medical assessments as a requirement for visa applications. These are carried out by the IOM's migration health assessment centres in Lagos and Abuja. In 2018, there were 21,000 examinations - a higher figure than in previous years.
Nigeria's President Muhammadu Buhari joined fellow worshippers Friday to pray for peaceful elections, amid claims of possible vote-rigging and fears of violence. The 76-year-old leader waved at hundreds of jubilant supporters in his home town of Daura, in the northwestern Katsina state, where he will vote on Saturday. Buhari, from the All Progressives Congress (APC), is expected to face a stiff challenge from former vice-president Atiku Abubakar, 72, from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Abubakar is a fellow Muslim from Adamawa state, in northeast Nigeria. Buhari arrived at the Daura mosque in a festival atmosphere, with crowds cheering his convoy and security detail.
Buhari enjoys fanatical support in his home town and across the wider north, where he is seen as a humble man of the people, unlike Abubakar who is viewed as an elite businessman. Security was tight in Daura and in the northwest, with armed personnel present at several new checkpoints after a spate of attack by bandits on local communities. As election officials transported ballot boxes and voting equipment to polling stations around the country, millions prayed for a peaceful vote. Fatu Aluko, a market trader near the mosque on Lagos Island, said she felt the result was in "God's hands". Religion plays a key role in Nigerian life, including its politics. The country is almost evenly split between a mainly Muslim north and a largely Christian south. Buhari's Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo is a church pastor while Abubakar's running mate, Peter Obi, is a devout Roman Catholic, whose sister is a nun and brother is a priest.
Officials in Nigeria say the mother of Finance Minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala has been kidnapped. Kamene Okonjo, a professor, was taken from her home in Delta State on Sunday. A finance ministry spokesman said Mrs Okonjo-Iweala had been threatened recently but did not know whether this was linked to the kidnapping. Nigeria is one of the worst countries in the world for kidnapping, where it is a lucrative criminal enterprise worth millions of dollars a year. The crime is particularly prevalent in the oil-rich Delta State, although high-profile victims are uncommon. A security official said it was not clear whether the motive was political or pecuniary. Mrs Okonjo-Iweala, 58, is an internationally respected economist who has led a high-profile campaign to clean up corruption in Nigeria, particularly in a controversial fuel subsidy programme. She has delayed the payment to fuel importers, seeking better verification of claims for subsidies.
But analysts say kidnapping for political reasons is rare in Nigeria. Mrs Okonjo, 82, is a medical doctor and retired professor of sociology at the University of Nigeria in Nsukka. Her husband, Obi Chukwuka Okonjo Agbogidi, a retired professor of economics, is the traditional ruler of the Ogwashi-Uku kingdom in Delta State. Mrs Okonjo-Iweala was one of the leading candidates to take over the World Bank this spring. She was previously the institution's managing-director but lost out to the Korean-American, Jim Yong Kim. PM's brother quits as Tory MP and minister Jo Johnson, younger brother of Boris Johnson, says he's "torn between family and national interest". Will the PM get his breakneck election timetable? Is it OK to call someone a 'big girl's blouse'? Elections and Brexit: How did your MP vote? Will Greta Thunberg save the planet? Copyright © 2019 BBC. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.
#NP LIFE OF A STAR by @lilkeshofficial / @adekunleGOLD
ontop #GRAGRAXPRESSIB w/ #Radio5and6 @oluwafemigerman & @beccablisse
— NAIJA 102.7 FM IB (@NAIJA102IBADAN) September 5, 2019
ABUJA, April 26 (Reuters) - Nigeria's power generation has been significantly reduced due to a gas pipeline leak that forced the shutdown of four power stations, the nation's grid operator said on Friday. The closure of the Egbin, Omotosho, Olorunsogo and Paras power stations highlights the precarious electricity supply in a nation where power cuts are endemic. The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) said the four power stations were completely shut down on Thursday for emergency maintenance on the gas pipeline supplying them. In a statement, TCN said the issue was caused by leakage on the Escravos-Lagos Pipeline System gas pipeline, but that operator Nigerian Gas Company had already repaired the line. TCN said in a statement. NGC, a subsidiary of state oil company NNPC, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The nation's rickety power grid is commonly cited as an issued hindering growth in the continent's largest economy.
A set of conjoined twin girls have been separated in a US hospital. Miracle and Testimony Ayeni, from Nigeria, were conjoined at the pelvis. They arrived in the US on June 28 with their parents Samuel Olusegun Ayeni and Mary Abiodun Ayeni, their older sister, and their pastor after being offered free flights from a Nigerian airline Arik Air. It was their only hope at separating the girls, after trying and failing to find a hospital nearby that could carry out the operation. Finally, after months of research, they were referred to Le Bonheur, whose surgeons offered to do the life-saving operation free of charge. The hospital announced the landmark procedure on Wednesday morning, with more information to follow. Miracle and Testimony Ayeni were conjoined at the pelvis. This is an image of the girls' shared body marked by the surgeons.
The central line is where they felt it would be a clear separation. The curved lines with arrows show where they felt there may be issues. Miracle and Testimony were born in the family's local hospital in Enugu, Nigeria - an eight-hour drive from the coastal capital of Lagos. They were immediately moved to a specialist hospital in Enugu before being flown to Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, where they remained until June. The procedure comes just weeks after twins from Illinois conjoined at the head were separated at New York City's Montefiore Hospital. The incredibly delicate operation to separate Jadon and Anias McDonald took 27 hours, and the lead surgeon has admitted he considered stopping halfway through.
However, both boys are now recovering and showing strong signs of development. Conjoined twins are formed in a similar way to identical twins. Share In the case of identical twins, the mother releases one egg that fertilizes and splits. They have their own amniotic sacs, and they are genetically identical. With conjoined twins, the same process occurs. However, the separation process after fertilization does not complete. The embryo starts to split to form identical twins but instead forms one fetus. Since only one egg is involved, conjoined twins are always the same gender. Conversely, with fraternal (non-identical) twins, the mother releases two eggs instead of one, both are fertilized. She then carries two babies, each in their own amniotic sac. They are not genetically identical.
Xenophobia: NYPF condemns attacks on Nigerians, tasks FG http://dlvr.it/RCWBYB @vanguardngr.com #vanguardnewspic.twitter.com/kSJR8V2PAO
— Vanguard Newspapers (@vanguardngrnews) September 5, 2019
He signed for Chelsea before the likes of Eden Hazard, Cesar Azpilicueta and Gary Cahill, but seven years after his arrival Nigeria's Kenneth Omeruo has yet to make a first-team appearance for the Premier League giants. It's unlikely the 25-year-old centre-back ever will run out at Stamford Bridge although Omeruo is establishing himself as one of the continent's premier defenders at the Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt. After failing to qualify for the two subsequent editions, Nigeria's return to the event has been plagued by a dispute over unpaid bonuses that resulted in a brief training strike after an opening 1-0 defeat of Burundi.
Arrest warrants have also since been ordered for the country's top football officials after they failed to appear in court as part of an ongoing corruption case, but Omeruo is keen to put such distractions to one side. It was a shock 2-0 loss to Madagascar that left Nigeria facing a blockbuster showdown with holders Cameroon that highlighted Omeruo's importance to Gernot Rohr's side. He was rested by the German for the final group game in which Nigeria gifted Madagascar an early goal and never recovered. The defeat placed the Super Eagles on a potential collision course with Egypt, should they overcome five-time champions Cameroon. Omeruo's impact is remarkable given a succession of loan spells away from Chelsea, the latest of which took him to Leganes in Spain where he was a regular under former Southampton boss Mauricio Pellegrino. Following his 2012 transfer from Standard Liege, Omeruo has also spent time in the Netherlands and Turkey either side of an 18-month stint with Middlesbrough in the English second division. Omeruo told BBC Sport of his time in La Liga. I deserve stability in my career as a footballer.
Aṣọ rock ló wà
— Président de BamboO™🥤 (@officialsunnexy) September 5, 2019
A bank manager has told how two aeroplanes full of banknotes were used in a cash exchange being investigated in a major Nigerian corruption case. 3.8m; £3m), was so great that it took 10 days to count it, Sunday Oluseye told the court in Abuja.youtube.com His testimony forms part of a case linked to a multi-billion dollar corruption scandal. President Muhammadu Buhari has promised to tackle corruption. Mr Oluseye told the court, in comments reported by Nigeria's Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), a government anti-corruption body. He told the court that most of the money was in 500 and 1,000 naira notes.
The evidence was given as part of a money-laundering case brought by the EFCC against Abiodun Agbele, whom the body names as a close ally of the governor of Ekiti State, Ayodele Fayose. The EFCC says the case is linked to a wider investigation into Nigeria's former national security adviser Sambo Dasuki, who has been charged for an alleged multi-million dollar fraud in which government funds earmarked to fight Boko Haram were stolen. Mr Dasuki and Mr Agbele both deny the charges. Corruption is endemic in Nigeria and so far the EFCC has only managed to secure a handful of convictions.
Rice is a big deal in Nigeria. People love eating it. So the BBC's Ijeoma Ndukwe asks: why don't they grow more of it instead of importing so much? A long line of customers queue along a glass divide separating them from a rice food station at an eatery in Lagos, Nigeria's commercial capital. Diners can choose between white rice, fried rice and jollof at this popular local restaurant known as "The White House". A steady flow of customers is served in the main hall, and in two packed adjoining rooms diners are enjoying Nigerian dishes. Rice is the basis of the popular national dish jollof and a staple across the country.
The problem is not a lack of land, or that there are not enough people to grow it in Africa's most populous country. During the grain market crisis eight years ago, Nigeria experienced shortages in rice that made the country rethink its food security and ability to supply the local market. As a result, President Muhammadu Buhari has made rice farming a priority. Nigerians' appetite for rice means that the country imported nearly 17 million tonnes of it over the past five years. Duties for imported rice are currently 60% and consumers have seen the price of a bag of rice double in the past 12 months. Many domestic players have been entering the market. Olam, a multi-national agribusiness, set up a rice farm in 2012 in response to government calls for local players to help feed the 170 million Nigerians.
It is a bumpy journey to Olam's farm in Rukubi village close to the Benue River in Nasarawa State. The lush green fields of the farm are an oasis among miles and miles of dusty red road and bushes. Large metal silos carrying 228,000 tonnes of rice rise up from the ground, gleaming in the scorching afternoon sun. Manager Anil Nair, drives us around 4,500 hectares of the farm and mill. Most of the farm hands have finished work for the day. They usually work in the rice paddies from 07:00, before the sun gets too hot.youtube.com Only a few women remain, standing ankle deep in the paddies, planting rice seedlings. This is one of the largest rice farms in Nigeria and although it grows 50,000 tonnes each year, that is still just a small fraction of the country's demand.
Media captionSince 2011 Nigeria has imported more than 17 million tonnes of rice According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), the country imported 2.3 million tonnes in 2016, about half of the country's estimated requirements. Minister of Agriculture Audu Ogbeh says that the culture of importation has to stop. However, most farmers in Nigeria are small scale and struggle to get the financing they need to improve farming methods and boost their yield. Members of the Rice Farming Association of Nigeria say they can only access high-interest loans from commercial banks. Joseph Jatau Kudu has been farming near the town of Doma in Nasarawa State since 1982. He says the banks charge as much as 30% to lend money.
Without the capital to mechanise, workers must do everything on his 15-hectare farm by hand. The agriculture minister claims that Nigeria will become self-sufficient in rice production by the end of the year. However, critics of government policy not only point to a lack of spending on agriculture, but also to an under-investment in the entire value-chain for rice, from field to cooking pot. 302m; £240m) was assigned to the sector in the 2017 budget - only 1.26% of the entire budget for the year. AgroNigeria's Managing Director Richard Mbaram says that achieving self-sufficiency in the next couple of years is merely a "pipe dream". There is research, there is mechanisation, there is warehousing and storage. There is market opening and market access. In the meantime, Nigerians' appetite for rice shows no sign of slowing down.
The Nigerian government has strongly denied claims that the state oil company is bankrupt, shortly after a junior minister said it was insolvent. However, two senior cabinet ministers flatly contradicted him. Nigeria is a major producer and exporter of crude oil but depends almost entirely on imported fuel. Finance Minister Segun Aganga told journalists the NNPC was a going concern and an important arm of government.youtube.com Information Minister Dora Akunyili also rejected the comments. The NNPC has also denied the claim but said it was struggling because of the government's failure to pay billions of dollars of subsidies. The BBC's Caroline Duffield in Lagos says it is not clear why the money has not been paid, but there are now talks between the government and the NNPC to try to resolve the problem. PM's brother quits as Tory MP and minister Jo Johnson, younger brother of Boris Johnson, says he's "torn between family and national interest". Will the PM get his breakneck election timetable? Is it OK to call someone a 'big girl's blouse'? Elections and Brexit: How did your MP vote? Will Greta Thunberg save the planet? Copyright © 2019 BBC. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.
A Nigerian senator has been criticised for his appearance in a music video depicting his lavish lifestyle. The song Dino, named after Dino Melaye, features lyrics like "100 cars in the parking lot like I'm Dino". The video shows rapper Kach pretending to eat dollar bills, displaying expensive cars, a mansion, jewellery and shoes. Mr Melaye represents the Kogi West constituency, where many local civil servants are owed months of back-pay. In the video, Mr Melaye, 43, is seen stepping out of a car, wearing a T-shirt labelled Legend. The senator is well known for his love of luxury cars, champagne and designer clothes, as his Instagram account shows. Skip Instagram post by dinomelaye View this post on Instagram "Money is anything money" can buy.
Ekiti state governor is doing excellently well .. we don’t need A Seyi Makinde
— Newsthrill_ng (@folabilawrence) September 5, 2019
This is the definition of money by a respected prof of economics. Don't twist my write up haters. Skip Instagram post 4 by dinomelaye View this post on Instagram My Toys. Other lyrics in the song include: "Popping bottles in the club is nothing like I'm Dino" and "Dino Melaiye k'oshi mi o raye", meaning "Get out, I don't have time for this," followed by the chorus "Dino, Dino, Dino". Kach, the son of Nigeria's petroleum minister Ibe Kachikwu, has come to the defence of the senator, saying he has done nothing wrong. In the video, Mr Melaye also does his signature dance routine of pulling down his eye-lids and staring at the camera in defiance of his critics.
The refinery, being built by billionaire Aliko Dangote, is set to be Africa's largest. Kyari, who also intends to push for more transparency, said NNPC wants to be a "supplier of first resort" for the Dangote refinery. He said the openness, and a plan to improve commercial terms for oil companies, would spur investment that has been throttled by uncertainty and opacity. The contract lists have not been published for years, and NNPC has been dogged for decades by a reputation for corruption. Kyari said, adding that this would help to attract investment. He said the contracts for swapping fuel would be published by the end of next week, though "clarifications" were needed before the crude oil contracts could be published. Industry sources told Reuters that those two-year contracts, awarded earlier this year, included close to 100 names.
NNPC is also pressing ahead with plans to revamp its own ailing refineries - despite a nameplate capacity at Dangote refinery that is well above Nigeria's consumption. Kyari said of NNPC's refinery overhauls, adding that Nigeria could become a fuel supplier to the entire region. After the revamps, he said that third parties would maintain and operate the state-owned refineries to ensure reliable production. The refineries have processed oil only sporadically for years, leaving the nation to import virtually all its own fuel needs. Kyari said that some ambitious proposals, including selling down government stakes in joint-venture agreements changing the way it pays NNPC's portion of the bills owed under those deals, were on hold for now. The government still intends to sell its stakes to less than 40%, Kyari said, but he noted that there was currently no framework in place for the sales. NNPC is in talks with all operating partners to improve commercial terms, but he said the long-delayed legislation to overhaul the oil sector, known as the petroleum industries bill, needed to pass quickly to spur investment. The mammoth bill, covering everything from fiscal terms to Niger Delta community engagement, has been in the works for over a decade. But Kyari said the current government, with the legislature controlled by the party of President Muhammadu Buhari, could pass it.
Biggie: hello Tacha!
Tacha: hello biggie!
Biggie: unpack your week
Tacha :
#BBNaijapic.twitter.com/CvIYcTdfwc
— TINUBU DOTA 4RM EAST. (@ogeonuegbu) September 5, 2019
Media captionOlusegun Obasanjo: "I have never seen an election that is perfect" Zimbabwe's elections were free and peaceful, the two leading African observer groups have said. African Union mission head Olusegun Obasanjo dismissed complaints of fraud, while another observer urged all parties to "accept the hard facts". A local monitoring group said earlier the poll was "seriously compromised". President Robert Mugabe's party is claiming victory in the election, which has been dismissed by Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai as a "huge farce". There is a mood of despair among Morgan Tsvangirai's supporters - they are shocked and dejected. A palpable feeling has gripped the capital, Harare, where people's hopes had been raised by the absence of the intimidation and violence seen in past elections.
DO YOU AGREE? My Father Has Made More Than The Money Osun State Will Make In The Next 40… https://goo.gl/fb/ftFNcH
— UDOKABESTLUV (@Udokabestluv) September 5, 2019
Many cannot understand how President Robert Mugabe's party managed to win seats in Mr Tsvangirai's urban strongholds. In contrast, Zanu-PF supporters feel they have brought back the father of the nation, who fought colonial rule and restored the dignity of black Zimbabweans. The country is torn apart by political strife. Emotions are running high and the country is likely to face another period of bickering and, perhaps, economic stagnation. The leaders of Mr Tsvangirai's MDC are meeting on Saturday to map the way forward. The question is whether he will remain at the helm, or face internal pressures to quit.
Abeg no follow this woman o. Abeg my people.
— Nigerian Health Blog (@DrUdomoh) September 5, 2019
The strong indications are that he may stay on in the opposition trenches until the next election. For now, the MDC is pursuing the legal route, which - judging by the past - is unlikely to succeed. For President Mugabe, it is time to go back to the office, where he will face the world's questions about his legitimacy. On Wednesday, voters were choosing a president, 210 lawmakers and local councillors. The results must be declared by the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec) no later than five days after voting day. No presidential figures have been announced but the first official results from national assembly elections show that Mr Mugabe's Zanu-PF party is taking an early lead.
However, the seats announced were mostly in Mr Mugabe's rural strongholds, correspondents say. Zanu-PF spokesman Rugaro Gumbo predicted that Mr Mugabe, 89, - who is running for a seventh term - would get at least 70% of the vote in the presidential poll. Zimbabwe's state-run Herald newspaper. It is illegal to publish unofficial election results in Zimbabwe. Police have warned they would take action against anyone trying to leak early results. Zanu-PF and Mr Tsvangirai's Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) have shared an uneasy coalition government since 2009 under a deal brokered to end the deadly violence that erupted after a disputed presidential poll the previous year. Speaking in the capital Harare on Friday, Mr Obasanjo said the elections were fair and free "from the campaigning point of view".
The former Nigerian president admitted that there were "incidents that could have been avoided", but he stressed that the 69 AU observers did not believe those irregularities could change the overall outcome of the poll. At the same time, the AU mission expressed concern at the high number of voters turned away and those being assisted to vote - usually reserved for the illiterate or the infirm.youtube.com In a statement, it also noted that 8.7m ballot papers were printed - 35% more than the number of registered voters. Shortly afterwards, monitors from the Southern African Development Community (SADC) - which had 562 observers - described the elections as "free and peaceful" but said it was too early to call them fair. SADC mission head Bernard Membe, according to the AFP news agency.
Mr Obasanjo's assessment sharply contrasted to that of the Zimbabwe Election Support Network (ZESN) - the largest group of domestic monitors with some 7,000 people on the ground across the country. It said on Thursday that the elections were "seriously compromised", with as many as one million people unable to cast their ballots. The ZESN said potential voters were much more likely to be turned away from polling stations in urban areas, where support for Mr Tsvangirai is strong, than in President Mugabe's rural strongholds. Indications are President Mugabe will sweep to power with a colossal margin as his party scores a two-thirds majority in the National Assembly. It should be stated from the outset that the Registrar-General of Voters' Office falls under the Ministry of Home Affairs which was overseen by ministers drawn from Zanu-PF and MDC.
The Zimbabwe Electoral Commission is made up of commissioners chosen from lists submitted by the three parties in Government.spotify.com It thus comes as a surprise that today; MDC-T denies ownership of the electoral process it has been party to. In Hatfield, hundreds of street kids and youths were given voter registration slips and went on to vote and we are told this was prevalent throughout the country. What will Zec do about this blatant vote theft? Their desire is to see a better Zimbabwe. People need to separate good from evil, light from darkness, suffering from prosperity and make a demarcation between history and the future. People went out in large numbers to put an end to Mugabe's 33-year rule that was characterised by suffering. The group also alleged significant irregularities before the poll.
It said that 99.7% of rural voters were registered on the electoral roll in June compared with only 67.9% of urban voters. But speaking to al-Jazeera, Mr Obasanjo questioned ZESN's conclusions, describing them as "not verifiable". He said he was satisfied that the apparent anomalies between urban and rural voter registration had been explained by the registrar-general, who had the accurate figures for births and deaths. Mr Obasanjo also said that Mr Tsvangirai's camp should have addressed concerns about the electoral roll before the vote - not after. MDC member and Finance Minister Tendai Biti told the BBC that the assistance voting in rural areas was a "euphemism to say you have to vote for Zanu-PF under the guidance and watch of someone else".
Still, Mr Obasanjo's assessment of the elections is a big boost for President Mugabe and a heavy blow for his opponents, the BBC's Andrew Harding in Johannesburg says. It is unclear now how Mr Tsvangirai intends to fight on, our correspondent adds. On Thursday, the prime minister said the elections were "null and void". Extra police units - some in riot gear - have been deployed in Harare. Under the electoral law, if no presidential candidate gains 50% of the ballots, a run-off will be held on 11 September. Zimbabwe - New Era? PM's brother quits as Tory MP and minister Jo Johnson, younger brother of Boris Johnson, says he's "torn between family and national interest". Will the PM get his breakneck election timetable? Is it OK to call someone a 'big girl's blouse'? Elections and Brexit: How did your MP vote?twitter.com Will Greta Thunberg save the planet? Copyright © 2019 BBC. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.
Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari has come under fire for stacking his new cabinet with ageing party loyalists despite hopes he might opt for more technocrats in his final term. The senate this week approved the list of 43 ministers after the former military ruler finally settled on their names some two months after his inauguration in May. Buhari, 76, is yet to hand out their portfolios but already his choice of stalwarts from his All Progressives Congress (APC) party has caused dismay.wikipedia.org Abiola Akiyode-Afolabi, head of Abuja-based Transition Monitoring Group organisation. She said she doubted the ability of those chosen "to push the agenda for development for Nigeria".
Buhari faces a raft of challenges in his second term at the helm of Africa's most populous nation -- from tackling a grinding Islamist insurgency and spreading insecurity to trying to bolster a fragile economic recovery.goethe.de During his first four years he earned the nickname "Baba go-slow" after he took six months to name a cabinet and was seen to proceed with decisions at a glacial pace. Far from cutting lose for his second, and final stint in power, he now appears to have fallen back on familiar faces. In a country with more than half the population under 30, not one of the ministers is less than 40 years old.
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