Ibn Chambas: NGOs should support transition process in The Gambia

 

The UN Secretary –General’s Special Representative for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS), Dr. Ibn. Chambas has urged civil societies in West Africa to support the efforts of the Economic Community of West Africa States (ECOWAS) to speed up the transition process in The Gambia.

According to him, the process will be a long and arduous process that touches on critical issues of national reconciliation, security sector reform, and other sensitive challenges.

Dr Chambas made the comments when West Africa Network for Peace Building (WANEP) officially opened its $500,000 office complex in Accra Ghana. The group also launched a book titled, “The WANEP story”.

Dr. Chambas commended WANEP for its tremendous contribution in making peace a priority in the sub-region. He said many elections have taken place in the sub-region over the past two years and the overall assessment confirms the positive democratic trends in the Africa sub-Region.

He pointed to some critical interventions made by WANEP in Sierra Leone in 1999 and how helpful WANEP have been in making sure peace sustained itself in The Gambia just recently.

“It’s on account of these and many more that the United Nations Office for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS) is determined to strengthen its collaboration with WANEP in addressing common threats affecting the sub- region,” he stated.

The chairman of the occasion, Marcel Alain De Souza who is also the President of the ECOWAS Commission expressed his joy over the impressive achievements WANEP and ECOWAS had chalked over the past 15 years in the implementation of the ECOWARN system and operationalization of the ECOWAS conflict prevention framework, which has inspired the signing of the memorandum of understanding (MOU) between WANEP and ECOWAS.

 

-Africanews

 

AEP

 

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Africa: AU Votes As EAC-Backed Amina Eyes Top Post

By Zephania Ubwani

Kampala — African Union (AU) leaders, currently in Addis Ababa for their twice a year summit, will today vote for a new chairperson of its Commission, a position eyed by Kenyan cabinet secretary for Foreign Affairs, Ms Amina Mohamed.

With the backing of the East African Community (EAC) and shuttle diplomacy across Africa by Kenya government representatives, the 56-year-old diplomat and politician is upbeat to win the top post also contested by four other candidates, three of them from the Francophone/Spanish speaking zone.

President Uhuru Kenyatta, was forced to abandon the election campaigns now heating up in his country to travel to the Ethiopian capital on Saturday apparently to lobby for the election of his cabinet secretary.

The Kenyan leader's lobbying strategies for Ms Mohamed is likened to what Mwalimu Julius Nyerere did in 1989 when as former Tanzanian president and an influential leader in the continent led an "army' of Tanzanian official to successfully campaign for the election of Salim Ahmed Salim as the secretary general of the Organization of African Unity (OAU), a position he held for 12 years.

Kenyan diplomats have been around several African capitals seeking support from the AU member countries for their candidate for the post which is crucial for the day-to-day running of body which oversees the unity and development agenda for the continent.

 -Africanews

 

AEP

 

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Africa: AU Summit - the Schedule and What to Expect in Addis Ababa

 

 

 

By Aggrey Mutambo

African Union members states have converged on Addis Ababa to, among others, elect the new chairperson of the AU Commission as well as eight other commissioners.

The bloc will also deliberate the re-admission of Morocco.

It quit in 1984 to protest recognition and admission of the Sahrawi Republic to the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), the AU predecessor.

Rabat considers Sahrawi Republic part of its territory.

Here is how the programme of the meeting looks like:

Meeting

Heads of state are expected to hold a closed-door meeting from 9am (0600 GMT).

Kagame Report

After the meeting, the union will adopt a report prepared by President Paul Kagame and his team on how to reform the AU and make it a more financially independent.

Kagame report has suggested that AU members fund the organisation through a 0.2 per cent levy on imports.

Kenya, Ethiopia, Chad and Senegal say they have already set up escrow accounts to collect these money and remit it to the AU.

But the confusion is on which type of imports the levy applies.

Ideally, the Kagame report implies that goods coming into Africa from elsewhere but this could upset existing trade agreements between individual African countries and the outside world.The Kagame team was tasked to draw up proposals after it emerged the AU is reliant on donor funds.

Eighty per cent of its annual budget comes from EU, US, Turkey and China.

In fact the report points at the perennial delays or even defaulting on member fees by some poor states within the bloc.

This has made the AU largely lame-duck, unable to respond to crises around the continent in time.

Photo Session

Thereafter, the leaders will emerge for a photo session.

-Africanews

Eighty per cent of its annual budget comes from EU, US, Turkey and China.

In fact the report points at the perennial delays or even defaulting on member fees by some poor states within the bloc.

This has made the AU largely lame-duck, unable to respond to crises around the continent in time.

Photo Session

Thereafter, the leaders will emerge for a photo session.

-Africanews

 

AEP

 

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Exiled Yahya Jammeh has my forgiveness but… - Ex-political prisoner

A leading member of the then opposition coalition that defeated Yahya Jammeh as Gambian president, says he has forgiven the former president and that he will not personally pursue him.

Ousainou Darboe, leader of the main opposition United Democratic Party (UDP) was only recently released from detention after Jammeh lost the December 1, 2016 elections, he was speaking to a BBC journalist currently based in The Gambia.

He however adds that he would not object to the former leader facing the International Criminal Court (ICC) if there is evidence that he committed crimes that warrants him being hurled to the Hague.

Despite pleading not guilty to charges of unlawful assembly, Darboe and 17 others were sentenced to three years in prison in July 2016 by a High Court in Banjul. They were arrested after demonstrations in April calling for political reforms and to protest against the death of an official of the UDP in custody.

The national organizing secretary of the UDP, Solo Sandeng, was arrested after the April 14 demonstration and he died while in detention. His death sparked the April 16 demonstration which resulted in more arrests including that of Darboe.

Jammeh is currently on exile in Equatorial Guinea after accepting last minute mediation efforts by Guinea and Mauritanian presidents. Regional troops had been deployed by ECOWAS ready to force Jammeh out of power if the mediation failed.

ECOWAS and other international bodies had lauded Jammeh for accepting the election results but soon after his decision to reject the results, they condemned his action and insisted on enforcing the will of the Gambian voters.

The swearing in of President Adama Barrow had to be done in the Senegalese capital of Banjul because of political uncertainty and fears of insecurity. Barrow flew out to Bamako before returning to Senegal where he stayed for about a week prior to his swearing-in. He is billed to return to Banjul this Thursday.

-Africanews

AEP

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ECOWAS troops secure presidential palace in The Gambia

 

West African troops from regional force (Economic Community of West African States) ECOWAS stood guard outside Gambia’s presidential palace on Monday in preparation for new President Adama Barrow’s return from neighbouring Senegal.

The regional military force entered the capital city of Banjul on Sunday and took control of the presidential palace, the symbolic seat of the ex-ruler Yahya Jammeh’s 22-year authoritarian regime.

Jammeh, who refused to accept defeat to opposition challenger Barrow in a December 1 election, left Banjul late on Saturday en route to Equatorial Guinea as the regional force was poised to remove him.

Senegalese army officials said the force, which also includes troops from Nigeria, Ghana and Mali, met no resistance as they advanced on Sunday.

“I am also giving thanks to the Senegalese government and their people and the ECOMOG (Economic Community of West African States Monitoring Group) as well. I also pray and wish for more unity between the West African nations and the entire continent at large because these are all signs of unity. When your brother is in crisis, you intervene and give help. This is all unity,” said Banjul resident Paul Jagne.

“We can’t say that Jammeh did not work. His departure was God’s doing. God has now sent us Barrow and we are looking forward to great things for our country. All I ask for is for every Gambian to support the new president so that he can do his work well. I also ask the international community to give Barrow all the help he needs,” said another unidentified Banjul resident.

The regional military operation was first launched late on Thursday after Barrow was sworn in as president at Gambia’s embassy in Senegal, but it was halted hours later to give Jammeh one last chance to leave peacefully.

Jammeh’s departure followed two days of negotiations led by Guinea President Alpha Conde and Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz of Mauritania, prompting speculation over what, if any, terms were agreed upon to convince him to step down.

-Africanews

 

AEP

 

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