The Voice News magazine

ISSN:2588-8807

ISSN:1571-3466

Motto: Actuated towards Africa’s advancement

Volume 21. NO. 196 August 2020

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First complete African magazine published in The Netherlands since August 1999

I am the best person for Uganda as President - Bobi Wine African gospel music is accepted worldwide

-Uniekgrace

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The Voice magazine

THE VOICE MAGAZINE TEAM

The Voice magazine is editorially independent although we enjoys the support of our readers, subscribers, advertisers, non-­governmental organizations and in­ dividuals of like minds; however the magazine publishers are in no way af­filiated to any of these bodies or to any other ­ publishing institution or political interest or group.

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Editor-in-Chief Pastor Amb. Elvis Ndubuisi Iruh elvisiruh@thevoicenewsmagazine.com Founding/Contributing Editor Edward Idahosa Ogbee apexbest2000@yahoo.co.uk Managing Editor Henry D. Oduenyi (Nigeria Office) henry@thevoicenewsmagazine.com Project Coordinator Ifeyinwa Ezeagabu i.ezeagabu@thevoicenewsmagazine. com BUREAU CHIEFS Gbenga T. Okunlola (London) teejayok@gmail.com Femi Ikutiyinu (London) afpaprint2000@yahoo.com Middle East Vice- President Amb. Laila EL Aftani Rahhall CORRESPONDENTS ABROAD Barrister Eze Eluchie (Nigeria) paddingr@yahoo.com Kehinde Aig-Imoru (Nigeria) aigimoru@yahoo.com Project Editor (Nigeria) Rev. Tammy Abusi (Port-Harcourt) t.abusi@thevoicenewsmagazine.com

Eubaldus Enahoro enabadus2000@yahoo.com Principal Photo Editors: Handy Tims Azeez Badris fatim_26@hotmail.com PA to Publisher Lilian Akintokun (Mrs) raven_lilian@yahoo.com Magazine Designer David Banjoko MEDIA CONSULTANT Jonathan Mgbejume Abeka Salmin Abdallah Mildred Kleinbussink Pastor Duncan Spier Engr. Barry Igbeare You can as well contact our Office Address: Stichting Paddi Europa Inz The Voice Jeroen Boschplantsoen 82 1318 HH Almere, The Netherlands Land Line: +3136-8801341 Tel.: +31 (0)6-48519292 Mobile: +31 (0)6-84999548 E-mail: info@thevoicenewsmagazine.com Websites: www.thevoicenewsmagazine.com www.thevoiceachieversaward.com

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The Voice magazine is published in the Netherlands by Stichting Paddi Europa and it is p ­ ublished online since 2016 around the world. It is registered at the Chamber of Commerce Amsterdam. The Voice aim to serve as a vital link among African readers in the Diaspora and we ­provide ­objective information and organizes opinion exchange among African people both in the ­continent and abroad. Thus it strives to foster and enhance complete understanding of ­developing c­ ountries problems and bring information to help address those issues. You can support this project now with as much as one euro a month to help keep publishing our digital copy for you.

DETAILS IN THIS EDITION PLEASE. TV MANAGEMENT

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Volume 21 www.thevoicenewsmagazine.com

NO 196

August 2020

Contents Get fast results by advertising with us.

Others are doing, join us today. Call us on +31684999548 or +31648519292 E-mail: info@thevoicenewsmagazine.com Page 6- Editorial: A lesson for African countries – Malawi rerun Presidential election brings back hope to Africa Page 8 - BOOK REVIEW: The Other Side of Fear Page 12 – Letters to the Editor.

Pages 14 & 15 - Research project Dr. Joram Tarusarira awarded with NWO/NWA-IDG grant Pages 16 - 19 – More tributes to Ambrose Myles Nwadike Page 20 - Rwanda ready to reopen after Coronavirus pandemic Pages 22 & 23 - African countries have to come to terms with a growing Diaspora’s dual citizenship Pages 24 - 27 - Bobi to Besigye: Stand behind me Pages 32 - 34- African gospel music is accepted worldwide Uniekgrace Pages 36 & 37 – AROUND AFRICA: Africa’s richest woman agrees to cooperate in corruption probe * Burundi makes Human Rights a Priority President Ndayishimiye Changes Tack on Covid-19 Pages 38 & 39 – Tolulope Arotile: Too early for the hangar in the sky Pages 40 -42 - The OAU Declaration on Fundamental Changes at 30 – A Retrospective Look at its Genesis and Impact Page 43 - Zimbabwe accuses mobile phone operator Econet of money laundering Pages 44-45 – Paddi commemorates the International day against drug abuse and Illicit trafficking in Nigeria Page 46 - Two politicians die and 25 others test positive in Madagascar Page 47 - The Need to Establish Fresh Water and Marine Protected Areas in Nigeria Page 48- Hon. Abike Dabiri Erewa derogative use of words on the Diaspora.

Page 49- Equality and Acceptance Page 51 - Amsterdam new holiday rental rules begin on July 1 Pages 52 & 53 - Jawar Mohammed: The Ethiopian media mogul taking on Abiy Ahmed Pages 54 & 55 - Scientists have some theories on why hundreds of elephants are mysteriously dying in Botswana Pages 56 -58- Diary: BUHARI’S PHONEY GALLANTRY Tony Enahoro: A Noble Life of State Pardons Page 59-Zambia denies accusations President Edgar Lungu bankrolled Rwandan rebels Pages 60 & 61 - FBI used Instagram and Snapchat to track down an alleged scammer in Dubai Pages 62 & 63 – Remembering the late sporting President of Burundi, Pierre Nkurunziza Pages 64 & 65 - AFCON to be played in 2022 Pages 66 & 68- Sports Feature: The extraordinary ups and downs of Saido Berahino’s journey from Burundi to Belgium Page 69 - FIFA to implement Premier League VAR changes

The Voice Magazine Volume 21. No 196 August 2020 Edition

NTC RE-BRAND ITS WEBSITE.....

Stichting Nigeria Trade Centre, (NTC) just uploaded his new designed website to reflect the progress the organization has made over the years promoting the private sector initiatives in the area of Agriculture. It the belief of the Board of Directors that the future of Nigeria depends on its agricultural sector therefore they are encouraging Nigerians to exploit opportunities with their Dutch counterparts who are interested in doing business with Nigeria.

We encourage you to visit our new website at www.ntcafrica.com for more information and engage us in our services.

For more details, send us an email at info@ntcafrica.com NTC Management: Announcer

Flying Officer Tolulope Arotile Daring the Odds She dared where men dread!

She excelled even amidst excusers.

Groomed to serve fatherland but sent underground!

She desired to live long but prematurely cut short!

May she fly with Angels in heaven She has since been buried on 23rd July 2020 in Abuja with full military honours. REST IN PEACE TOLULOPE. www.thevoicenewsmagazine.com

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E D I TORIAL:

A lesson for African countries – Malawi rerun Presidential election brings back hope to Africa

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istoric rerun election took place in Malawi last month and it draws our editorial attention to a new opportunity for Africa to readdress the challenges often faced during elections. Malawi has shown that it is possible to correct the wrongs during elections where the incumbent tries to manipulate the election to its favour against the popular wish of the electorates. First the judiciary lived up the expectation of the people as they took the courage to address all the malpractices at the election and declare the

presidential result as unfair and not free to be upheld and demand a rerun of the entire exercise, the incumbent president challenged the decision in court the court rule in favour of the opposition and disbanded the electoral commission and a new body was allowed to be established by the President to hold a rerun of the elections.

The whole continent was interested in the elections to see if the electoral commission would address the abnormalities that occur during elections in the country. We have only few elections that have gone down in history with smooth transition of power from one government to another except when it is the same party exchanging leadership position for another. Crucial elections would be held in Ethiopia and Uganda among others this year and the world is watching how those elections would go particularly in Uganda where Museveni is still contesting after over 30 years in power.

Malawi at long last has a newly sworn-in president following a 13 month election process. On June 23, opposition leader Rev. Dr. Lazarus Chakwera won the country’s rerun presidential vote defeating incumbent President Pastor Elvis Iruh Peter Mutharika. He defeated the Editor-in-Chief now former President with 58% of the votes cast. It was a clear 6

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victory unlike the first presidential election held back in May 2019 when President Mutharika claimed a narrow victory. But Dr. Chakwera, who came in second place, alleged voter fraud and appealed to Malawi’s Constitutional Court. The Court found evidence of widespread irregularities and in February 2020 ordered a new election to be held. Malawi is only the second African nation to annul a presidential election over irregularities following Kenya in 2017.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo expressed admiration for the commitment to the rule of law and democracy exhibited during Malawi’s presidential elections. Praise should go to the people and the constitutional court that stood its grounds despite intimidation and harassment for the then government, they stood on the side of the population of Malawians and at the end, it was victory for democracy.

“The people of Malawi elected Lazarus Chakwera as their next president. This is only the second time that a court in Africa, has overturned a presidential election tainted by irregularities, and the only time that a re-election process has resulted in the election of an opposite party candidate. Truly a historic opportunity for the people of that country.”

President Chakwera has called his election a “win for democracy and justice.” In his inaugural address, he promised not to put himself above the rule of law: “This means

that as required by law, I will make a full declaration of my assets each year; I will go to parliament to be questioned by the people about my handling of state affairs; I will propose legislation to reduce the powers of the presidency and empower institutions to operate independently, including parliament and the Anti-Corruption Bureau.”

This is an historic opportunity for Malawi to work toward a future of greater prosperity, government accountability, and freedom and we hope as we wish the President and the people of Malawi success in their future endeavors but that other African countries would emulate their exampleship.

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Since you’re here... Support the Voice magazine so we stay publishing for your reading pleasure…..

Happy New month to you our readers and our followers. We have a small favour to ask. More people, like you, are reading and supporting the Voice magazine since we stopped the hard print copy in 2016. We have continued to serve you the magazine in the same format with all production cost covered like editing, page designs, photography and digital distribution via online channels where we have to pay. The Voice magazine has been an independent organisation, we do not receive any form of subsidy except the support of our readers and friends. We made the choice to keep our reporting open for all, regardless of where you live or what you can afford to pay. Our advertising drive continue to grow. You can support us through that medium as well, promote your businesses and services with us as your way of support.

Our editorial independence means we set our own agenda and voice our own opinions. You are free and welcome to contribute both commercial and political independent articles for our reading audience without bias. We want to continue to give a voice to those less heard, explore where others turn away, and rigorously challenge those in power.

We hope you will consider supporting us today. We need your support to keep delivering quality journalism that’s open and independent. Every reader contribution, however big or small, is so valuable. Support The Voice magazine as little as one EURO and it only takes a minute through your bank account.

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BOOK REVIEW

The Other Side of Fear Uncertainty, anxiety and fear: only fictitious superheroes are exempted from this all-too human sequence. The trouble is that fear is paralyzing because it feeds our minds with negative thoughts. In a second, fear can turn the idea of courage into one of recklessness, and then it’s all downhill to a point where determination is put aside in favour of ‘playing it safe.’ Sadly, fear can stop you from doing anything slightly risky. It’ll keep you locked up in the prison of the comfortable and predictable where you’re more likely to die of boredom than might from any of the dangers you fear. So, what’s to be done? The simple answer is that risk-taking and adaptability are as much part of our human heritage as uncertainty-inspired fear. It’s finding a balance that matters most. Fear is a useful tool for making better life-directing decisions, but fear must never be allowed to control the direction of your life. That way you lose the opportunity of reaching your true potential. I hope this book will inspire you to transcend your fears and achieve all of your dreams.

The greatest prison you can live in is the prison of your own fears. Nothing of value can be achieved when we allow fear to control our life. Grab a copy of “The other side of fear” be inspired to live above your fears. You can purchase E-book & paperback on amazon.

First and foremost, I want to thank God for guiding my every step towards completing this project and to every other

person who contributed to this. I’ve learned that if we can find the courage to begin something, God will empower & enable us to complete the task. There’s nothing we cannot accomplish if we are determined enough. I was inspired to write this book because fear has kept a lot of people locked up in the prison of comfort.

Too many people are living in a self-made prison of their own fears, they are stuck, unable to move forward and achieve their meaningful dreams. Fear has the power to limit your greatness, and blind you from seeing the opportunities that lies ahead of you. Everything you desire is on the other side of your fear, don’t stay trapped behind the walls of your fear for the rest of your life. It’s time to move towards your fears instead for trying to avoid them. I can confidently tell you that this book will inspire and challenge you to transcend your fears. And also provide principles to help you on the journey.

Grab a copy of this book to bless yourself, a friend or a loved one. You can read online, download, & order hard copies of this book online click on the link. www.amazon.com/Other-Side-Fear-M-K-Slim-ebook/dp/ B088RKSDW7/ref=sr_1_8?

Thank you

By M.K. Slim

About M.K. Slim For much of my life, I’ve been fully committed to my music career, but I’m also an entrepreneur and a budding writer. I’m very motivated and mentally resilient: a genuinely optimistic person who believes that anything can be achieved if I’m determined enough. I strive to create a positive impact in the lives of those around me and I believe the highest of human acts is to inspire others to reach their potential.

I strive to inspire as many people as I can. I’d like others to say of me, “Because you didn’t give up, I can do the same.”

That’s the legacy I hope to leave behind when I die.

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Victory Outreach Church Almere is a Pentecostal Church, a Bible based believing people in the trinity of Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.

What would you like to know? Our vision?

Which activities we organize? Or would you like to hear testimonies about how we follow God? One thing is certain, we would like to get to know you and therefore you are more than welcome to visit one of our services in this new year 2020. You can visit us every day of the week as there is a Resident Pastor available to your demand.

You may have been a believer for many years already.

Or you might still be searching for the meaning of life and asking yourself whether or not there is God. Within Victory Outreach Almere we would like to help you find the answer. We will gladly teach you through the help of the Holy Spirit the exact meaning of “a living faith�.

With us you will truly see

and experience the supernatural power of the living God. You can always count on love and comfort when you need it. You will discover that we have a wonderful diversity of people with lots of different backgrounds, characters and personalities. But there is one thing we have in common. We all follow the same God, Jesus Christ.

In that diversity and love for God, we are a family where you are more than welcome.

We personally hope to meet you during one of our services. God bless you as you come in Jesus Christ name. Amen Signed: Pastor Roel & Ida van Rooij Senior Pastors Victory Outreach Almere.

Barbeelstraat 12, 1317 PZ Almere The Netherlands.

Telephone: 036-8417007; Telephone: 036-7505571 E-mail: info@voalmere.nl Website: www.voalmere.nl

Join our church service every SUNDAY in church and also online service via FACEBOOK & YOUTUBE

Victory Outreach Almere

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Feedback

YOUR LETTERS ARE WELCOME Write to the Editor - Email: info@thevoicenewsmagazine.com Kindly follow our policy on letter to the Editor for your letter to stand the chance of being published in our magazine. Your letter must include the writer’s name, address, email and contact number. Also keep your letter short, concise and precise to the point. We are also allowed to edit where necessary. All details will be kept confidential. The views written in the Letters to the Editor do not necessarily reflect the views of our magazine therefore we do not take any responsibility for the views stated by those who write to the Editor. The Voice magazine also reserves the right not to publish letters that we find offensive to others please.

Thank you for your usual cooperation.

TV Management.

Why are my articles not published in your magazine?

Dear Editor, I have written severally to your news magazine and expecting my opinion to be published either as a letter of article but till date, none has happened.

I am concerned why my letter is not published. According to your name, you are supposed to be the voice of the voiceless and speak out on our behalf. I wrote severally on the abuse of power in Cross River State through persons close to the State Governor. I know if my write up where praise on the Governor you would have published them. Those politicians are public office holders accountable to the people who elected them to office. I need some answers please.

By Note: The Voice News magazine does its best to research a story or letters to the editor, we try to confirm the story before publication.

We also have a team of editors in the magazine set up who choose what letter or opinion article to be published as far as it conforms to our clear cut objectives. In each publication, we indicate what type of letters we would publish therefore you need to read through that. With your complain, I have asked the team to check if we did received letters from you that has not been published and we could consider them if they meet our requirements. Thank you again for writing in.

TV Management

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Let humanity prevail for us all

Dear Editor, As I follow the discussion on Black Lives Matter I am confronted with a stricken fact: that to be black is not a uniform for all black people (Ben Carson & Kanye West are vivid examples). There are black and white people who will continue to sabotage the struggle for equality. So as we fight racism we should understand this....that we are fighting to bring all human races irrespective of our differences to the same footing. Not Black Lives Better but that it matters NOW than ever before. Equal rights and justice. Therefore we should fight as a collective of liberators who believe in an inclusive society and space for all. We should also believe that in order to win and bring as many people with us along the way, we must move and go beyond the narrow nationalism that is all too prevalent in Black and White societies. We must ensure that we are building a society that brings all of us to the front irrespective of race, beliefs, gender, sexual preference or political ideology. So as we say aloud Black Lives Matter we are shouting to uplift the rights of a specific marginalized race to an equal footing with all other races.

By Babah Tarawally The Hague, The Netherlands

Persons living or affected with HIV and AIDS Dear Editor, How has life been treating you? Good or not? There is a way to positively change that. Because when you change the quality of your thinking, you can change the quality of your life, sometimes instantly. Just as one positive word can make someone smile, great humor can make someone laugh. Positive thoughts are important in guiding our lives. You should live the fullest potential, in every way and everywhere. You have complete control over only one thing in the entire universe, “ YOUR THINKING”. So use it to fulfill your dream and emancipate your beauty!

Love your life and think positive, no matter what circumstances.

Great time during this Corona Virus pandemic

By Eliane Becks Nininahazwe HIV Stigma fighter Amersfoort, The Netherlands

Research project Dr. Joram Tarusarira awarded with NWO/NWA-IDG grant The influence of religious logics on conflicts induced by climate change D r Joram Tarusarira , Assistant Professor in Religion, Conflict and Peacebuilding at the Faculty of Theology and Religious Studies of the University of Groningen, has been awarded a prestigious NWA Idea Generator grant by NWO for his research project entitled Invoking the Sacred: Towards Alternative Strategies Against Climate Conflicts.

Tarusarira will be conducting research on the influence of moral, spiritual and religious orders on conflicts induced by climate change.

Closer connection between society and research The project is awarded with 50.000 euros by NWO’s NWA Idea Generator to further investigate the idea for one year.

NWO’s NWA wants to achieve a closer connection between society and research and therefore funds projects that address a societal question, that have potential for societal impact and where there is a clear collaboration between research and societal stakeholder(s) throughout the project. ‘The ambition of the NWA Idea Generator funding instrument is to positively contribute to the global knowledge society of tomorrow by creating easy knowledge flows from researcher to users, an interaction that leads to further development of research.

The research is undertaken with the view to benefit the knowledge economy as well as society at large,’ Dr Tarusarira adds.

‘The role of religion in society is significant, yet underestimated’ He is delighted that this research field is getting NWO’s support: ‘I am quite excited to get the support to develop this line of research, which I believe is much needed. The role of religion in society is significant, yet underestimated.

I am thrilled to have the opportunity to argue this case through investigating how moral, spiritual and religious orders influence how conflicts induced by climate change are dealt with. If anyone ever doubted that religious and cultural studies as well as sociology of religion could have anything to say about climate change related discourses, this project is your answer!’

Neglected deeper religio-spiritual mechanisms Joram Tarusarira explains what his research project is about: ‘Climate change is fuelling violent conflicts and undermining international peace and security. Competition over access to and control of pastureland and water due to climate-induced degradation has resulted in outbreaks of bloody intercommunal violence in different parts of the world. These conflicts may be driven by economic poverty, but the role of sacred beliefs and practices in these conflicts remains understudied. Yet people take extraordinary measures, such as engaging in bloody, inter-generational conflicts, and even sacrificing their lives, to protect what they consider sacred such as land, water and cattle. This research is about how moral, spiritual and religious orders or logics influence how conflicting parties position themselves in conflicts that are induced by climate change (climate conflicts). The modern obsession with scientific, legal and economic reasoning in dealing with climate conflicts neglects the deeper religiospiritual mechanisms that motivate and propel the conflicting parties and give such conflicts their texture.’

Finding peaceful solutions to climate-induced conflicts Dr Tarusarira considers this research important for various reasons: ‘We are confronted with climate-induced conflicts in contexts where communities fully depend for their survival on environmental resources which they consider sacred, but we lack knowledge on how sacred beliefs and practices frame these conflicts and how that influences the peace and reconciliation strategies policymakers and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) adopt. For the most part, government and NGOs intervening in these conflicts focus on either providing food to the poor or to military interventions, without considering how conflicts are embedded in sacred beliefs. I wish to make the point that dealing with climate conflicts requires more than considering positivist, technological and statistical motivations and approaches. By so doing I hope to reorient attention of researchers and policy makers to the much deeper and underlying moral, religious and spiritual orders which are often ignored, muted or misunderstood.

The sacred connection to the land and the religious blessing of conflicts raises questions of whether and how sacred beliefs and practices could also contribute to finding peaceful solutions to climate-induced conflicts, beyond food and military actions.

Undertaking this research is crucial to understanding the link between climate change and conflict and developing indigenously-founded peace and reconciliation strategies which are sustainable. Pairing scientific and technical perspectives with moral, religious and spiritual logics in dealing with climate conflicts, will help stop climate conflicts from becoming “wicked conflicts”, that is conflicts that seem unsolvable and recur over and over again.’

Research in Kenya and in the Netherlands Tarusarira will carry out his research in Kenya and here in the Netherlands. He will work with research assistants and societal partners in both countries. The official societal partner in Kenya is Osotua Le Maa – an organization working to protect East Africa’s traditional ecosystems in the face of unpredictable weather patterns and unprecedented conflict – who will also collaborate with Joram’s colleague Dr Damaris Parsitau of Egerton University (Kenya).

Dr Joram Tarusarira

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Obituary for Ambrose Nwadike

BY ERIC PRIEZKALNS

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mbrose Nwadike was a wellknown and much loved telecoms risk consultant who sadly passed away last week. He provided consulting services on behalf of some of the industry’s biggest firms, including Nokia Siemens Networks, Nortel Networks and PwC; latterly he was the Managing Partner of his own business, Telecom Advisory Services (TAS). The telcos Ambrose served during his career included KPN, Vodafone, Celtel, Brasil Telecom, Swisscom and MÊditel. He built his profile and reputation by working in a wide variety of countries over the course of a quarter of a century, leading him to

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make many friends amongst the community of telecoms risk professionals.

I first met Ambrose at a revenue assurance conference held in London in May 2003, where he was promoting Cerebrus Solutions.

Ambrose impressed me through his easy, unaffected manner of dealing with people.

He stood out from other salesmen at that event, not just by being black, but because he could speak from personal experience about the challenge of assuring revenues.

Ambrose actively sought to make the world a better place, so it came as no surprise to learn that he founded a magazine, entitled Coloured Pictures, which educated European readers about African cultures and traditions.

Ambrose was inducted into the Hall of Fame for telecoms risk and assurance professionals at the RAG conference held in Nairobi in September 2018. He was the first, and so far only black professional to join the Hall of Fame. The following tributes come from two fellow professionals who joined Ambrose on stage for his induction ceremony in Nairobi, Nixon Wampamba (pictured center) and Joseph Nderitu (pictured right).

From Joseph Nderitu I first met Ambrose in 2007. We were attending a revenue assurance conference in Cape Town. As we were staying in the same hotel, I ran into him twice during breakfast. Ambrose was an affable chap. From the first morning, he greeted me as one would greet an old friend. We talked quite a bit about his work. Later during the day, he made an impressive presentation on revenue assurance KPIs, drawing richly from his vast experience with Celtel. I chatted with him some more and was very impressed by his knowledge and even more by how freely he shared insights.

I was to meet Ambrose later at RAG events. He attended the inaugural RAG Africa event at MTN and also the second Africa event held at Safaricom, Kenya. We always found time to talk during those events. His humour was refreshing. I took to calling him “Ambrose the Boss”.

It is the Nairobi event that remains etched in my mind. I was on the nominee list for the Lifetime Achievement Award along with Ambrose and a couple of other people. When Ambrose took the award, I felt really privileged to have been on the lineup with him because truly, if I can become half the professional that he was, I will have done well in this life. He was always inspiring and he always had a kind word for everybody who interacted with him.

Before the awards ceremony, he joked that getting an award for a lifetime of achievement is pretty much an indicator that one should go home and leave the stage for younger actors. We even laughed and said it might be just be like an asset that had depreciated so much that the book value is approaching zero too fast.

Now Ambrose is gone.

However, it is not because he needed to leave the stage. Neither is it that his book value was low. He gave his best and his departure should remind us to aspire to be the best we can. Eric recently asked, “Where are the black risk experts?”. I want to address my black brothers and sisters: if you want to know where you should be in this field, look no further, our departed brother has shown us exactly what type of professional you need to be.

Fare thee well, Ambrose the Boss.

From Nixon Wampamba It is with great sadness that I write of the passing of Ambrose Nwadike. For most of us, Ambrose was one of the prominent African RAFM leaders. If you have met Ambrose in a business or conference setting, you would conclude that this was a real gentleman.

I first heard of Ambrose when I started work at Celtel (ZAIN/ Airtel) in Tanzania. At the time Ambrose was Director of Revenue Management, part of the senior management team. My

personal interaction with him at the time was limited, as he soon left Celtel to set up his consultancy firm, Telecom Advisory Services.

I interacted with him again during the various RAG conferences; Ambrose was always pushing the interactions and never shying

away from having a detailed discussion. One occasion that I will always remember was during RAG Nairobi, in September 2018. At this RAG conference, there was a Hall of Fame Award, which both Ambrose and I were nominated for. Ambrose won the top award, and rightly so as a prominent ambassador for revenue assurance in Africa. During his speech, for accepting the award, Ambrose was the true gentleman and he projected the leadership and kindness that we will always remember of him.

Revenue assurance has lost a great leader, but the heavens have gained a great soul, a real gentleman. Rest in peace Ambrose, you will be greatly missed.

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Tribute to late Ambrose Chukwuma Myles Nwadike

S

ince the announcement of the untimely death of Mr. Ambrose Nwadike, tributes have continued to pour in from all around the world from his family members, school mates and professional colleagues. His passage occurred in London on June 9, 2020.

Ambrose lived for 19 years in The Netherlands where he made a name for himself in the Telecommunication industry and later was relocated to Africa to start Celtel mobile in Nigeria.

In a tribute by his cousin and President of the Nigerian Association of Movie Producers of Nigeria, Mr. Ralph Nwadike, he describes Ambrose in these words, “He was a world class Telephony Specialist. He was the shining star of the Nwadike’s family. He was our Son, our brother, our cousin, our uncle and a wonderful father that loves his children with passion.’

On the 9th of July 2020, a joint memorial celebration was organized by the family and friends in the United Kingdom and The Netherlands with hundreds of people paying tribute via a live YouTube channel to Ambrose for his great contribution to the advancement of humanity.

Everyone from his primary school mates to friends at Lagos State University where he graduated with a degree in Chemistry spoke of Ambrose as an ambitious man who was not afraid to take risks in life.

He rose to the pinnacle of his professional career and his passion for music and sports never ceased. He was a diehard fan of Tottenham Hotspurs and loved Nigeria National football team Friends and well-wishers are still encouraged to visit the YouTube Channel: “Ambrose Myles Nwadike”. If you click on the Discussion button, you can still leave a comment on your experience with Ambrose as well as a short video if you wish. Ambrose will forever be missed but he forever lives.

The physical remains of Ambrose Chukwuma Myles Nwadike was laid to rest in Surrey, United Kingdom in a private interment a few hours ago. May His soul respect in perfect peace of the Lord. Amen.

About AMBROSE NWADIKE He started schooling at Sunnyfields Nursery and Primary School in Surulere, Lagos, and attended Government College, Eric Moore also in Surulere, Lagos for his secondary education.

In 1984, he was admitted as one of the pioneering students of the Lagos State University (LASU) where he graduated with a BSc in Chemistry in 1988 at the age of 18.

He also obtained a Masters degree in Business Administration (MBA) from Kingston University in the United Kingdom, class of 1996 and also attended the Haarlem Business School in The Netherlands with MBA degree.

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A member of the LASU Pioneer Graduation Class of 1988, Ambrose was until his death a Telecommunication Industry expert. He was a people oriented person known on his job and outside his job. Many remembers him for his writing skills as was displayed in “The Coloured Pictures”, a photo centric Magazine founded and published by our late Brother, Ambrose. His publication was focused at sharing African cultures and traditions with host European countries.

During his many travels, he comes up with beautiful African story telling pictures and he thought it was not good enough to keep them in his archives; he decided to publish them in a stylishly designed. It was a great joy and pride to the African and international audience with the gift of Coloured Pictures Magazine.

Ambrose Nwadike was married to Ronke Nwadike for over 16 years with their union blessed two children, Demi who turned 18 recently and their football son, Alex, our future football star.

Ambrose Nwadike is survived by his father, two children, five siblings and several extended family relatives.

MORE TRIBUTES FOR AMBROSE NWADIKE I pray God to console Ronke, their children and the rest of the family in Jesus Christ name. Amen.

Ambrose rest on as you continue to live in our hearts

By Pastor Elvis Iruh

To Nwadike Family: On behalf of my family and I, please accept our heartfelt condolences on the untimely passing away of your husband and father. We pray that God grants you the fortitude to bear such great loss. Take heart. May his soul Rest In Peace.

By Engr. Cornelius Obot

Those we love never truly leave us. There are things death cannot touch. May Ambrose’s memories bring you peace.

Pleasure to be invited and my condolences to the entire Family

By Phyll L. I am trying hard to come to terms with your death, it is sudden and unexpected. You have left a huge vacuum among our families and friends, you will forever be miss. My only solace is that you lived a fulfilled and impactful life. Rest on my brother!

By Musty Ahmed

Pleasure to be invited and my condolences to the entire Familly

By Ebou Sanneh

God is in all of us. Therefore his strength as well. As long as we wish it we can do anything. If we keep this in mind everything will turn out as it is meant to be.

Rest on Amrbose Nwadike

By Alexandr Ceban Ambrose was a kind man and a true gentleman; he always put others before himself. He will undoubtedly be missed. RIP

By Onikoyi David Eso

We lost one of our BEST.

By Donald Okeke

May God Almighty console the entire family and may the soul of the departed rest in Peace.

Mr. & Mrs. Michael Osawe My condolences to the family. May his soul rest in peace. May the Lord God strengthen the entire family in this period, Amen.

By E O Olatunde Okafor

Rest on and on and on and on in perfect peace. We will forever miss your soothing smiles and good heart.

By Taiwo Feyisipo May the lord grant the family the fortitude to bear the irreparable loss. Ambrose is indeed an ICON

By T O Otubambo My Allah grand him peace and allow him passage to heaven

By Seidu Mustapha

I pray that the family continue to have the strength to live with this enormous loss to us all. Ambrose will surely be missed for eternity.

By Alex Jebose Ambrose was a very good man. He came, saw and conquered . We thank God for the life he lived that touched so many people. A life of service to humanity. Rest In Peace Ambrose. May God be with the family left behind.

By Hajara Yusuf

May almighty lord give u the strength and courage to bear this lose. We all gona miss him REST IN PEACE MATE

By Sunday Odaro My family and I mourn with you the passing away of an honourable and trustworthy gentle man, friend and brother in Christ Jesus.

By Brother Christian Umelue

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RWANDA READY TO REOPEN AFTER CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC

W

ith nearly to 5 months after the Government of Rwanda stopped all in coming and outbound flights as part of the measures to stop the spread of the New Coronavirus spread, Rwanda is now gearing up to reopening her airports from 1st August 2020 to commercial flights according to Rwanda’s Ministry of Infrastructure (MININFRA).

In a statement issued by Rwanda’s Ministry of Infrastructure on 6th June 2020, several measures shall be adhered to safeguard the health of passengers, crew and staff including all passengers, including those in transit, will be required to show proof of a COVID-19 PCR negative test, taken within 72 hours of entering the country and (ii) all passengers entering the country will be subject to a second PCR test, while staying at designated hotels at their own cost, with results out within 24 hours.

Other measures in place include hand sanitizers, physical distancing markings, disinfection of the airport and equipment, airport staff well trained on Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) measures, and comprehensive guidelines to ensure safe operations.

In addition, Rwanda has deployed smart anti-epidemic robots at the airport to help in taking temperatures of arriving and departing passengers within the airports.

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The reopening on 1st August comes following the first phase of 17th June 2020 where Rwanda Airport’s authority opened up to private and chartered flights.

KLM Royal Dutch Airlines is expected to resume flight operations to Kigali on 6th August after, the airline had

halted intercontinental operations due to the pandemic.

The country encourages people to visit Rwanda again for business or pleasure ensuring that adequate preparations are in place for their safety and wellbeing.

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African countries have to come to terms with a growing diaspora’s dual citizenship

By Amindeh Blaise Atabong

Earlier this year, Jawar Mohammed, the prominent political activist and media entrepreneur, who had returned home to Ethiopia from the US, looked set to challenge his former ally, prime minister Abiy Ahmed, in the country’s election. But there was immediately uncertainty created over Jawar’s eligibility simply because he had been a US citizen. Ethiopian law does not allow dual nationality and even though he written letters saying he’s renounced his US citizenship that uncertainty remains.

Jawar’s case is one of many that highlights an increasingly common issue for many African countries, who after years of battles with Western imperialism and colonial rule were determined at independence for their citizens to literally pick a side and not be allowed to carry the passports of other countries.

But in the 60 years since independence across the continent, the forces of globalization and transatlantic

who was none other than legendary star Roger Milla, who had traveled to Jeddah on a French passport as he couldn’t also have a Cameroonian one.

Now, Cameroon is considering a revision of its nationality code which was enacted in 1968. The current law stipulates any Cameroonian adult who willfully acquires a foreign nationality automatically loses their Cameroon nationality.

But a new draft bill—a copy of which Quartz Africa has seen—says “a Cameroonian who has acquired another nationality shall retain Cameroon nationality unless it is expressly relinquished by the concerned.” The bill is expected to pass through with little challenge.

Some African governments have been reluctant to legalize dual citizenship, arguing the patriotism of people with dual citizenship could be questioned. But there’s also anecdotal evidence some of these governments are more concerned an influential and economically independent diaspora, able to move freely between countries, could support a challenge to the leadership.

By 2010, a comprehensive study showed that 21 African countries, including DR Congo, Liberia, Algeria and Zimbabwe, prohibited dual citizenship.

Meanwhile, 23 others permitted dual citizenship under certain circumstances like if acquired by marriage to a foreign spouse or allowed for citizens from birth only. Other countries did not address the issue of dual citizenship in their laws.

migration has seen dual nationality come up more frequently as an issue which needs to be addressed across politics and business through to sports.

Back in 1985, Saudi Arabia’s soccer authorities initially refused to hand over the trophy of the Afro-Asian Cup after losing to Cameroon in the finals of the tournament.

They claimed Cameroon had fielded an ineligible player 22

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Despite these restrictions it is not unusual among middle class Africans to find people holding dual nationality in countries which don’t allow dual nationality, in part because many countries don’t have comprehensive systems for checking until they vie for office. In 2017, up to two-thirds of the presidential candidates in Somalia’s election held foreign passports while as many as 100 of its 275 legislators also held

foreign passports. Eventual winner, now president, Mohamed Farmaajo, also held American citizenship. He had previously worked for the state transportation department in Buffalo, New York.

the advantage of granting them the possibility to hold dual citizenship. As early as 2000, it passed a law to recognize dual nationality for its citizens. The government of Ghana has since made efforts to attract its Ghanaian origin and other African descendant diaspora to return home, with the Year of Return, Ghana 2019 recording remarkable success.

Many African professionals and businessmen at home and in the diaspora want to pick up foreign passports for very practical reasons—they want to be able to move freely around the globe.

According to the Africa Visa Openness Report 2019, on average, Africans can only travel to 25% of other African countries without a visa. But holders of passports from North America and Europe can travel visa-free to more African countries than Africans.

Many African countries today have sizable diaspora communities, notably in Europe and North America, with an increasing economic, social and political influence aided by the improvement in communications and travel networks over the last couple of decades.

Henley & Partners, the global citizenship and residency advisory firm which is set to open an office in Lagos, has pointed out that most Nigerians wishing to subscribe to their offerings have no plans to relocate. Instead, they just want to have a passport which makes it easier to travel without the unpredictability of visa applications.

The World Bank estimates the African diaspora around the world at 30.6 million, but the figure could be even higher when unrecorded African migrants are considered. In 2019, remittance inflow from the African diaspora topped $48 billion. Such remittances in 2010 contributed to 2.6% of the continent’s GDP. The IMF has estimated the African diaspora save an around $53 billion every year outside of the continent. There is a belief that if it was easier to invest in their countries of origin as dual nationals more of those savings would come to Africa.

Last year, Ethiopia’s parliament passed a bill to allow members of the Ethiopian diaspora, who have taken up nationalities in other countries, to invest, buy shares, and set up lending businesses in the country’s statedominated financial sector.

Ghana seems to be one of the African countries which has been quick to recognise the potential of its diaspora and

The latest Henley Passport Index shows that two of Africa’s most populated countries, Nigeria and Ethiopia occupy the 97th and 98th positions respectively on the index. The Nigerian passport offers its holders visa-free travel to just 46 countries mostly in Africa, while the number is 44 for Ethiopia. www.thevoicenewsmagazine.com

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INTERVIEW WITH BOBI WINE

Bobi to Besigye: Stand behind me In this interview, Robert Kyagulanyi better known as Bobi Wine and leader of a fast growing youthful political pressure group, People Power, issues a dire warning to the Electoral Commission: You either organize a normal election with normal campaigns or no election at all.

Bobi Wine: These people are trying to make me an illegal citizen; they are trying to silence my voice by doing so, many illegal things. I’m saying no; so I’m resisting them.

It doesn’t matter who is standing with me. Because I’m standing for the truth, I’m ready to stand alone.

Interviewed by Baker Batter Lule, the Kyadondo East member of parliament and presidential aspirant, said the opposition forces are going to do everything under the sun to ensure that EC organizes a normal election or no election is held at all…He has also urged four-time presidential candidate Col Kizza Besigye and all other

Q: You once believed you could convince President Museveni to hand over power peacefully; you were reconciliatory; now you sound more radical…What has made you to change course?

presidential hopefuls to let him be the joint opposition presidential candidate…Below are excerpts.

[Late former South African president Nelson] Mandela taught us that in the struggle for freedom it’s not the people fighting that determine the course; it’s the oppressor.

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Bobi Wine: I spoke love but [President Yoweri] Museveni’s response has been brutality, attempting to

take my life and murdering young men and women. He has shown Ugandans he’s ready to do anything to retain power. Unfortunately, we are not willing to back down.

Q: You are challenging President Yoweri Museveni in the next election…Do you believe elections can change power?

Bobi Wine: Yes, I believe in free and fair elections. I

believe in working hard to make sure we win. That’s what we have been doing in the last three years. Museveni has always used propagandists in the regime and in the opposition to kill hope in elections. But they have found a generation that is ready to take them on. We rallied Ugandans to massively register as voters and yes they did and that explains why Museveni is trying to ban campaigns and bring ‘scientific’ elections. Why, because he can’t take us on. We believe in overwhelming him and that’s what we exactly intend to do.

rally taking place in Kikuubo, there is a rally in the taxi park even in your township. This nonsense that people will get sick is a very hypocritical assertion.

Q: So, you don’t believe coronavirus exists in Uganda?

Bobi Wine: I’m the one who sang the coronavirus song. But I know we must not use coronavirus to deny the servant leadership that the people of Uganda have needed for a long time. I want to remind you that people in places like America, which are worst hit by the coronavirus; came out in millions to demonstrate against the killing of one black person. There is Covid-19 in Malawi but they have just held a presidential election. There is Covid-19 in Burundi but they just had a presidential election. We know that Covid-19 is here and it’s not going anywhere. We must learn to live with it. Wear your damn mask, practice social distancing, wash your hands and go about life.

Q: You talk about Malawi and America but Covid-19 infections have risen to unprecedented levels there because of what you’re talking about. The late Burundian President Pierre Nkurunziza is said to have died from Covid-19... Don’t you think that might happen here?

Q: You have more people watching your online shows than those attending real-life (physical) concerts… So, why would it be a problem having virtual campaigns?

Bobi Wine: We didn’t move from physical to online. We have been present online and ruling it, by the way. But on the orders of Museveni, they stopped us from holding shows, saying this is not campaign time. Well, now this is campaign time. Secondly, our nation doesn’t have up to 30 per cent electricity coverage, the internet has been stifled; we tax social media in order to stop young people from communicating. So, should Ugandans pay a tax to listen to a campaign message? Of course it’s a joke. Less than 40 per cent of our people have access to smartphones and the internet. What they are effectively saying is that elections are reserved for only 30 per cent of the population and we are saying no, we are not taking any of that.

Q: People in the past have vowed that elections wouldn’t take place without electoral reforms. But elections happened without reforms… So, it wouldn’t be rocket science to predict where this will end… What’s your recourse?

Bobi Wine: We are going for a real election… the only truth that [EC chairman Simon Mugenyi] Byabakama said in that roadmap is that there is an election… this nonsense that there are no rallies, I don’t agree with it. As we talk now, there is a

Bobi Wine: I must remind you that there are people as we speak in town. According to that roadmap, the elections are supposed to be physical.

So, you are telling me that people will get sick for attending rallies, and not during voting. The Constitution of Uganda envisioned situations like this one. Most importantly providing for an extension of an election for six months in a state of emergency; but interestingly, because Museveni wouldn’t be the president during that extension, he doesn’t want to read that part of the Constitution.

Q: How can you ensure that people retain their right to vote but also protect their health?

Bobi Wine: Allow people to go about their usual business because the nation is going to open. In Sweden, they didn’t close because scientists know that when pandemics like this one happen, our bodies begin to adapt. Of course, it will kill a few people but luckily enough we haven’t lost a single Ugandan. Maybe we are too strong. But they want to use the pandemic to give us a bad election, which might cost us so many lives. A bad election cost us more than half a million lives in the 1980s.

Q: The argument is, the pandemic has not killed people because of the government concerted effort…

Bobi Wine: I’m trying to look for a decent word to substitute Continued on Page 26 www.thevoicenewsmagazine.com

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Continued on Page 25 stupidity; what these people are saying is pure hypocrisy.

What hospital has been refurbished? We are battling a disease but we are fighting it using guns. Covid-19 has not killed a single Ugandan, but more than 10 people have been killed by security officers. Let’s be honest to ourselves.

Q: Justice Byabakama said people who reason like you have no regard for human life. You are simply interested in your politics. If people die, they die…

Bobi Wine: He is not honest; no wonder he was the one who pinned Dr Kizza Besigye on the rape charge when he was director of public prosecutions. What happened to that case? Does he know what a bad election can do to our country? Is he a doctor to tell us what we should or not do?

Q: When you weigh the health of the people and the right to vote, what wins for you?

Bobi Wine: People are dying in Uganda and our problem is not Covid-19, at least going by the last four months.

It’s a pandemic and it’s not Uganda’s biggest problem.

Our problem has been mis-governance. This explains why we have been borrowing and using the money to buy and recruit people [supporters].

This explains why the media to a larger is extent is sanitizing this election to make it normal. Have you heard from the cultural, religious and opinion leaders? Everybody knows the dangers of a bad election. I expect Byabakama to argue this from a legal perspective.

But he went to Museveni [who is also a candidate] and agreed on how to conduct this election. Because he [president] is sick and weak, he cannot run around the country with us. That’s why he wants to deny people a legitimate election.

we are not going to accept it.

Q: In no uncertain terms, what are you going to do to stop it?

Bobi Wine: You want me to tell you and they stop us?

Just watch us.

Q: It’s six months to the actual voting day and you are still talking about having a joint candidate…aren’t you taking too much time?

Bobi Wine: Everybody knows that I’m running for president. If need be, we will talk up to the last day. We are moving as we talk. If they agree with the concept of unity, so be it. If they don’t, the people of Uganda know what to do.

Q: In your world unity means people joining you…

Bobi Wine: We have said this before and you also see it now that currently young people are the majority. Two, many of these comrades have tried this before and we are telling them to try something different. Because if you want to get what you have not got before, do what you have not done before. We think we should unite and bring something new.

Q: In all previous elections, a joint candidacy effort

Q: If they proposed to extend this election, would you buy it?

Bobi Wine: I would buy everything that is within the law… The election is next year but these people are talking about no rallies as if they know what’s going to happen tomorrow.

Q: Other than saying this election is not going to happen in the form suggested by EC, what are you doing to stop it?

Bobi Wine: Of course Museveni has the army, he can arrest all of us, and go ahead with the election but for us,

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failed but Ugandans always unite behind a candidate with a better chance to defeat the incumbent. Why waste time with unity yet Ugandans know what to do?

Bobi Wine: I keep telling my fellow leaders that people are way ahead of us. I’m only calling upon these leaders to see what is obvious.

Q: The other day you launched the No Nedda campaign,

calling on people to make noise; they did that for two days and fizzled out. Are those really the people you can bank on?

Bobi Wine: We as People Power have been calling on people to register and vote but our comrades on the other

money.

Q: But how do you run your activities without money?

Bobi Wine: The people we are fighting against are used to buying people; they don’t know anything else apart from bribing people. They get surprised when we get all this support without buying people.

That’s why they conclude that we too buy people, but we don’t.

Q: You will need billions to run your campaign…

Bobi Wine: I don’t think we will need billions; yes we will need some money to print posters, fuel, meals, etc. But we shall mobilize cash from amongst ourselves.

Q: Gen Tumukunde the other day said you and him are talking…

Bobi Wine: Yeah, I have had a chat with him; not once, not twice.

side have been calling for defiance. It has always been a conflict of strategy and we agreed that whatever “you believe in, let’s do it together and what we believe in, let’s do it together. We didn’t intend to stop. I continue telling Ugandans that let us work together on whatever idea you have because in war, even a person who raises an alarm is helpful.

Q: Haven’t you been disappointed by the lukewarm response from Ugandans?

Bobi Wine: I don’t call it a lukewarm response; all strategies have been very highly embraced. We have won all elections we have taken part in except Hoima, which was blatantly rigged.

Q: You said you are going to select people to stand on the People Power platform; this is not a registered political party; how are you going to do that?

Q: He says the biggest problem is that every one of you wants be the joint flag bearer and that might scuttle the possibility of having a joint candidate…

Bobi Wine: This is clear to the people of Uganda, we have been there; we have seen it; even the dynamics at play show that this is a youthful population. So it should be clear to these people. I want to call them brothers and sisters but then, I don’t want to sound disrespectful, can I call them our fathers and mothers; it should be clear to them.

Q: We have many presidential aspirants. Why would a Ugandan vote for you and not any other person?

Bobi Wine: I guarantee servant leadership. I’m new and I’m not a politician but a common person who has come to put things right. I’m a young person like them; so we should dare to have a fresh start. It’s a guaranteed win; let’s combine forces and take on the guy.

Q: Will the army accept your presidency?

Bobi Wine: I know it will be successful to a certain extent but I also know that with the popularity of People Power, so many leaders want to contest on our card. Even in my constituency more than four people are running on our platform. Whenever we can we shall harmonize and wherever we can’t the people of Uganda will decide.

Bobi Wine: The army is supposed to be submissive to civilian authority; that’s the law and the army is not above the law.

Q: People Power promised to bankroll people standing on its platform. Where do you get money from?

Note: After this interview, Bobi Wine and his group announced a new Political Party - National Unity Platform (NUP). More information to follow in the next issue

Bobi Wine: We have not needed money; we are different, the people can facilitate themselves. We don’t give people

bakerbatte@gmail.com Culled from The Observer, Uganda.

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We have sections for all beauty and body care products for men and women at Jeffangs Beauty Supply & Salon in Rotterdam We offer you the latest hair and skin products with fantastic prices.......

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African gospel music is accepted worldwide -Uniekgrace In June 2020, I received a phone call from multi-talented gospel musician making waves across Europe and back in her motherland, Nigeria, Funke Ojo Emessiri (Mrs.) aka UNIEKGRACE. She is a wife/mother/artiste/God’s own gift to humanity. She studied Nursing at Hogeschool-Universiteit Brussel in Belgium. During her off duty, she devotes her life to her God giving musical talent to sing and make music to glorify God. She was visiting The Netherlands from her base in Belgium to record a new musical at a studio in our city, Almere. What a great news and opportunity to track down this very businesswoman. However her schedule was very tight because she needed to return immediately after the recording session to Belgium for another appointment. I requested for few minutes of her time after the recording session. I insisted she passed by our office for few minutes and she obliged, the five minutes despite her tight schedule turn into an interview time with the Voice news magazine. When we sat down to have a chat, which I have developed into an interview for your reading pleasure. She is a rising star to watch out for in the gospel music circle. Meet my guest on Face to Face chat with Funke Ojo Emessiri.

Just after the interview, she released her much talked about new single that she collaborated with another talented Nigerian female signer, Eloho Efemuai. She pride her as the only Nigerian Afro-urban starlet in Europe, dishing out the vibe worldwide. You will love what you hear from her in this interview.

Excerpts:

UNIEKGRACE on The Voice magazine

T

V: Introduce yourself to our worldwide readers. What do you do professionally?

Funke: My name is Funke Ojo-Emessiri, well known as Uniekgrace. I am a registered nurse by profession and a singersongwriter by passion and calling.

TV: Where do you come from in Africa? I know you live in Belgium. How long have you lived there?

Funke: I was born into my mother’s state of origin, Ondo State, but my father is from Imesi Ile, Osun State. These are States in Nigeria, West Africa. I lived in Nigeria until the age of 11 when my father who is a diplomat representing Nigeria to the world, got his first international posting to Italy. Little did I know that I would end up living permanently in Europe two decades after we flew out of Nigeria then. I say this because after my father finished his work in Italy some years later, his next post was to Switzerland for another five years of which the whole family moved along with him.

After that posting, my parents sent me to America to continue my education, for better stability in my formative years. To this, I gladly agreed. Fate brought me back to Europe to settle down; Belgium to be specific and I have been living here for twelve years now.

TV: We know you are a woman of many parts; you are a

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musician; what type of music do you do?

Why do you choose this type of music?

Funke: Presently, I am a woman of many roles in my community but what stands out most is my music of which I am popularly known as Uniekgrace. I write and co-produce my music with a record label called AFT media production founded by my husband, Alexander Emessiri and I. We work with various producers to get my musical messages produced and put across to the audience.

I am a Christian and I chose to make music based on my faith and walk with God, primarily to empower and uplift those that God has called me to reach with my music. I don’t believe that I am to appeal to every single soul on earth. I believe music genre is used to speak to a particular type of people and my genre is afrourban and soul-jazz; with this genre, I sing about my life

journey with God in order to encourage and empower humanity and the body of Christ. This type of music is call gospel music.

TV: Who produces your music since you have a producing company?

Funke: In the beginning of my music career, I allowed other people to produce my music for me and I just write the lyrics but when I understood the calling path God has set me on, I decided to go to a music academy in Belgium to study more and be well informed. Now I am glad to say I write and direct my own music and play the guitar as my instrument of choice.

I join forces with producers of choice to co-produce my music and with my record label, I do my own music promotion and distribution alongside other major distribution companies in the music industry. These are areas of music promotion I took time to attend seminars for.

TV: You are a family woman, married with children; so how do you combine all of these activities with your music career?

Funke: Thank you for this question. I like to believe that I emulate the woman of Proverbs 31. A Proverbs 31 woman is a reference to how the role of a woman in a home should be like and in a community so that the woman can be beneficiary to the world. In other words, challenges don’t scare me. I welcome challenges, work on them and rise above them.

So the other roles of my life which are more precious to me than the previously mentioned are the roles of motherhood and wifehood (if there is such a word!) I am a wife to Mr. Alexander Emessiri and mother to four beautiful royalties. I must admit that being a woman and a married one in the ministry of music is not easy. This is simply because my time is split amongst many things such as being a mother, a nurse and an entrepreneur and philanthropist at the same time. Is it achievable? Of course. One just needs to be patient, be organized and learn to fully rely on the voice of God. None of these would be possible if not for the grace of God and the love of God and the spirit of perseverance. I was raised in a home that highly commends successful marriage and God led me into a marriage that makes me feel secured, supported and appreciated. With these elements, I am able to get closer to achieving my calling in life.

TV: How is life in Belgium compared to your home country, Nigeria? Do you stay in contact with Nigeria or travel there and

how often is your travelling to your country of birth?

Funke: Being based in Belgium, sometimes I do ask myself if life and ministry would have been easier if I was in Nigeria or if I had stayed in America. The truth of the matter is that this is where God wants me to be. Moreover, Nigeria remains home in my heart. I was born there and the culture lives in me. I am a full-blown Nigerian to the core and I would not trade my culture for any other that I have experienced to date. I travel at least once a year to Nigeria. The reason I do this is because while I was in America (the land of which I spent most of my developing years), I did not visit Nigeria for the ten years I lived there. This made me to forget some of my cultures. I needed to learn them and pick it up again. I only went back to Nigeria after I got married. From that year that I set my foot again on my mother land, the love for the country came rushing back into me.

I felt so loved and so welcomed.

Old memory lanes that I grew up on were exciting to retrace. By the time I answered the call to music, I asked God to lead me so that I may be a blessing to the country of my birth.

I strongly believe that God has His purpose for placing us on certain continents, just like he did to Abraham, he took him to other lands to get away from his family.

While he did that, I believe the byproduct is that he gathers wisdom and experience for his purpose to be fulfilled. I believe I am a welltraveled Nigerian for a purpose to be fulfilled and I keep threading the path God has paved for me so that His will shall be done.

TV: You made a visit to Nigeria to promote your business in 2019. Share a bit of that experience with our readers?

Funke: My first project was released in 2017. It’s an EP (mini album) of five songs, titled “E go Better”. I made my first tour that same year to promote my music in over thirty media houses -television and radio as well as newspapers. This was achieved with the help of a record label based in Abuja, called Christed Records. I used this opportunity to study the music industry in Nigeria and I must admit, I appreciated what I saw.

My purpose was to speak about the message behind the EP and the music video I chose to showcase which was of my song, I’m a SURVIVOR. It was written and produced to expose a dark moment I passed through in America, as a rape victim.

The message was well exposed. That was the beginning of the

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Continued from Page 33 ministry of Uniekgrace. I made a similar trip in 2019, but it was for concert tours and less of media tour. Moreover, it was a great experience as I was graced to be in the presence of several kings in the Yoruba land. Also, I was able to kick start a new project called “Entrepreneur Showcase” of which I am grooming young entrepreneurs in Nigeria to take bold steps and be heard. So far, the movement is well supported.

TV: Is this something you will want to do again?

Funke: Yes! Most definitely. I was to be in Nigeria again this year (2020) for further projects but the lockdown happened. It is well.

TV: Is there any form of collaboration with you and other gospel singers in Nigeria or Europe?

Funke: Yes. I collaborated with a few Nigerian gospel artists as well as in Europe. In fact, my last song called KOSI is a feature song with an Abuja based superstar rapper called Younggod. The song is being celebrated all over the world. The next song I am releasing later in the month of July is called NEARER. I featured Eloho, a Nigerian gospel artist based in Scotland. This song is for big-time lovers of hymns. It is a revamped hymn song birthed from a yearning to stick with God no matter what the situation is.

TV: Is there a market for African gospel music in Europe and what are the challenges you face doing music in Europe?

Funke: Yes! There is definitely a market for it.

The beauty about what I noticed in 2017 tour is that African music has a new movement now, where our music, be it gospel or mainstream, it is getting a special type of attention all around the world. African music is being celebrated. The challenge for most artistes really is the promotion of their music. Some artistes still don’t understand the power of promoting their songs and they end up making albums for their friends and family members when the song is for nations. The reason why most secular musicians are successful is because they believe in the power of networking and promoting their talents in creative ways.

TV: What are your challenges in doing music in Europe?

Funke: Many artistes believe that it is tough to do music in Europe but honestly I believe this is the best place to do music, as long as you know who your target audience is.

You can’t cater for everybody. You have to understand your voice, your choice of music, your message and then brand yourself to a particular set of people. That’s how success can come in; after all, if your mother calls your name in a room full of people with your exact name, you will most likely be the one who answers the call even if many turn around.

That’s a simple example of targeted audience. One voice for a particular set of people.

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That’s how I believe it is with music; there are a set of people that when they hear your music, they will automatically feel drawn to you. The only challenge I faced personally as a musician in Europe is something I have found a solution to through several studies and I’m currently putting it into practice. I can’t put a name to it yet but I hope in a latter edition of THE VOICE MAGAZINE, I can come back to share how I have conquered in the music industry in Europe.

TV: What are your plans for the future?

Funke: In the very near future, my first single for the year 2020 will be released in the month of July. Title is NEARER. After that, my production company is planning a full album project for year 2021 where my audience can appreciate full band live music. This is a project I am fully looking forward to.

TV: Apart from your performing, traveling, have you been involved in other activities and if yes, like what please?

Funke: I am a philanthropist and an activist, joining forces as an ambassador with already existing trusted organizations in Nigeria called Imani Foundation, Ajijola-iya empowerment foundation and Win Women International. Most of what I am doing is for the safety of children and women in Nigeria and through these organizations or anyone who wishes to support

me is welcome to contact me at booking@uniekgracemusic. com Just last month, we were able to open a shelter for women fleeing from domestic violence, in Edo state of Nigeria and we run rallies and safe protest for anti-rape awareness. That is with Win Women organization and with Imani Foundation, we were able to organize free seminars for young girls in different communities in Nigeria, and during the lockdown, AEF was able to raise money to cater for the elderly in my father’s village. These elderly had to abide to the rules of the lockdown while their children were also on lockdown in the big cities so they lacked support and care. We stepped in to assist in our little way. One of my passions as I mentioned earlier is to serve my community and currently I have a show on my facebook page @uniekgrace where I bring public figures and professionals in different field of education, to address my audience who are ready to build their own business empires. My show is called My Brother’s Keeper.

Please stop by sometime to contribute to our topics, or request to be a guest so that we can help each other grow. Also, I am a director of a glass repair company called EKO GLASS, a sole authorized agent of Glass Mechanix USA, in Africa and my role is recruiting of individuals that want to learn the business in other countries, in order to create income for their country people.

TV: Where do you expect to see yourself?

Funke: My simple answer is this; I want God’s purpose to be done, above my personal desires and dreams because I know that the plans He has for me exceeds my imagination and expectations.

TV: You have started receiving awards for your work, is there any particular one that stood out for you and why?

Funke: Yes, I have started receiving awards and they all mean something special to me. I am always short of words whenever I receive a recognition because I am simply doing what I love to do. I am only living my life. If that is an inspiration to others to keep working, to the point where my community awards me, it is a bonus; icing on the cake that is already sweet! I don’t have a preferred award yet. They all tell a story about my journey.

TV: Recently there has been the outbreak of the pandemic of the Corona virus. Has it affected you in doing your music in any way and is there any lesson you want to share with your readers?

Funke: The outbreak of the Corona virus happened so suddenly that no one planned well for it. In my own case, I performed more in my role as a nurse. While many were running away from the virus, I was on the field with other health care workers, making sure people are well taken care of. As scary as some moments were for me, I still managed to stay positive.

Entertainment events shut down worldwide so I was not able to perform on stages. However, personally, I welcomed the silence because it gave me time to seek the face of God closely and find Him in another brand new way. I wrote new songs

and l had online guitar lessons so that I don’t forget my skills.

I was involved in several online worship moments in different parts of the world. The corona crisis was more positive for me than it was negative. I honestly believe that with the way our world was going, the virus was a way to press the reset button. Our world was going too fast with no time to press the pause button; now here we are, on a mandatory break time worldwide and I hope many are learning important lessons to keep going on stronger.

TV: You have been to one of the events of The Voice Magazine which was the 20th anniversary celebration, what was your experience like?

Funke: Inspiring! I truly enjoyed every moment and looking forward to be more involved for the next one.

TV: Lastly, what would be your advice to your readers and followers?

Funke: No long thing; work hard and rely fully on God for guidance.

TV: How could you be reached please?

Funke: My contact and social media links remain as thus: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter: @uniekgrace Website: www.uniekgracemusic.com For event booking as artiste or motivational speaker: booking@uniekgracemusic.com Thank you for the interview and your time visiting our office in Almere, The Netherlands.

Funke: You are welcome.

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AROUND AFRICA:

Africa’s richest woman agrees to cooperate in corruption probe

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sabel dos Santos was accused of misappropriating billions of dollars in Angolan State-owned assets but now the acclaimed Africa’s richest woman, Isabel dos Santos, has agreed to cooperate with Angolan authorities who are probing her after corruption allegations were leveled against her last year. As Nairametrics had earlier reported, dos Santos was accused of misappropriating billions of dollars in Angolan State-owned assets during the 38-year rule of her father.

Earlier on, dos Santos had denied any wrongdoing and accused the Angolan Government of witch-hunting her. In other words, she categorised the allegations against her as politically motivated. Now, she has changed her stance.

Bloomberg quoted her to have said,“What I want to resolve as quickly as possible are the attacks on my reputation and my good name. I’m available, as I always have been, to cooperate with justice and to provide all the necessary clarifications so that the truth prevails.”

Recall that last week Thursday, the Portuguese Government seized shares she owns in the electrical equipment company – Efacec Power Solutions SGPS SA. Interested bidders are now being sought after to take up the 72% owned by Isabel dos Santos. Portugal also froze her bank accounts in February.

Isabel dos Santos, worth $2.4 Billion, is accused by the Angolan

Millions of euros discovered in safe deposit box belonging to Isabel dos Santos

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till in parts uncertain – and threatened now with the probability of an international arrest warrant – former first daughter of Angola Isabel dos Santos is back on the nation’s front pages today after millions ‘in cash’ were discovered in a safe deposit box that she holds at a branch of Novo Banco in Porto.

Reports are not specific on the currency/ currencies involved. Just that they amounted to ‘millions’ and ‘part of the €280 million ‘seized by Portuguese authorities’ as a result of the massive investigation launched on the back of ‘Luanda Leaks’ – an exposé that claims Ms dos Santos has pillaged the Angolan State to the tune billions.

Over 60 separate searches are understood to have taken place last

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courts of misappropriating over $5 billion during her father’s, Jose Eduardo do Santos rule. In May, she claimed the probe against her was based on a fake passport. She denies any wrongdoing and claims the Angolan government has been aware of her location and should be able to contact her.

By William Ukpe

week, gathering information on the case and on all the various associates allegedly involved.

At least one search went ahead in the Algarve – in Quinta da Lago – where Ms dos Santos has a holiday home, owned by a company based in Malta.

Meantime, the heat of this investigation is rising.

Angolan Attorney General Hélder Pitta Grós has confirmed that judicial authorities in his country are working in “total tune” with counterparts in Portugal and “if there is necessity to reach this point” will be issuing an international arrest warrant.

Isabel dos Santos meantime – protesting her innocence since the outset – is said to be seeking to challenge the seizure of her Portuguese assets in the European Court of Human Rights.

Ms dos Santos has always maintained that she is the victim of a political witch-hunt. This is why she has remained in ‘parts uncertain’, explain reports. She does not believe she would receive a fair trial if she returned to Angola to defend herself. natasha.donn@algarveresident.com

Burundi makes Human Rights a Priority

President Ndayishimiye Changes Tack on Covid-19

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urundi’s new president, Évariste Ndayishimiye, should make protecting and promoting human rights a priority during his presidency, Human Rights Watch said in a letter to the president made public this month. The new administration has taken positive initial steps to tackle Covid-19 but faces enormous challenges.

Human Rights Watch outlined eight key recommendations to improve human rights in the country during his first year in office.

They include removing abusive security force officers and other officials from their posts; reining in and prosecuting abusive members of the ruling party’s Imbonerakure youth league; enforcing the rights to freedom of expression, assembly, and association; ensuring independence of the judiciary; holding people responsible for the worst abuses to account; and restoring cooperation with regional and international human rights and justice mechanisms.

“President Ndayishimiye faces the daunting

task of ending pervasive patterns of violence and abuse, fueled by impunity, that have long plagued Burundi,” said Kenneth Roth, executive director of Human Rights Watch. “Reining in the Imbonerakure, ending impunity for abuses, and opening political space are key.”

Ndayishimiye was sworn into office in June 2020 following disputed elections, after former president Pierre Nkurunziza’s unexpected death on June 8. Burundi’s leadership should ensure concrete human rights and democratic reforms, and accountability for past abuses, Human Rights Watch said.

During his June 18 inaugural speech, Ndayishimiye promised to reform the judiciary and ensure that all government or other

officials who commit offenses are held accountable. He also assured Burundians that his government will take measures to protect victims and witnesses and that corruption will not be tolerated.

Ndayishimiye has repeatedly promised that political exiles and refugees can safely return to the country.

On June 30, Ndayishimiye also declared Covid-19 the country’s “worst enemy” and pledged to ramp up testing and lower the price of water and soap.

Earlier that month, medical workers and experts had told Human Rights Watch they were seeing an increase in cases with Covid-19 symptoms and alleged that the authorities were refusing to carry out tests or adequately respond to the pandemic. But Ndayishimiye also used threatening language against those who refuse to get tested for Covid-19.

A science and fact-based Covid-19 response is needed and long overdue in Burundi, and the measures need to respect fundamental human rights, Human Rights Watch said.

Other statements have raised concerns. During his inaugural speech, Ndayishimiye made disparaging comments about human rights defenders, whistleblowers, and those he accused of criticizing the government. Likewise, some recent actions by the new administration raise doubts on how seriously the new government will take its obligation to uphold fundamental rights.

The appointment of Prime Minister Alain Guillaume Bunyoni and Minister for the Interior, Community Development, and Public Security Gervais Ndirakobuca, both under international sanctions for their alleged role in violence in 2015, raises concerns about the possible interference with criminal investigations into past abuses. The Burundian government should ensure that no one who may be the subject of a criminal or other investigation into human rights abuses is in a position to influence it, Human Rights Watch said.

“By taking strong, bold, and concrete steps to advance rights, President Ndayishimiye could turn the page on Nkurunziza’s rule of violence and abuse,” Roth said. “Ndayishimiye should adopt systemic changes that benefit all of Burundi’s people, starting with the urgent health crisis that is underway.

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TOLULOPE AROTILE: TOO EARLY FOR HANGAR IN THE SKY

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hen a pilot dies, the colleagues say he or she has gone to the hangar in the sky. Hangar is a place where aircraft are housed, but it was way, way too early for Nigeria’s first female helicopter fighter pilot, Tolulope Arotile, to go there. Not a time for parking yet. Not at 23, not when her life and career were just starting.

Tolulope died on Tuesday, curiously not in terra incognita, which the sky is. But rather on terra firma, solid ground.

She was involved in an auto crash at the Nigerian Air Force Base, Kaduna, suffered head injuries, from which she never recovered.

What a grief, what a tragedy. I saw Tolulope in February, when the Nigerian Air Force was presenting its newly acquired hardware to President Muhammadu Buhari at the Eagle Square, Abuja. So young, so tender, almost too innocent to be a fighter pilot. Deftly, she explained the features of the new attack helicopter to President Buhari, and that was just about five months after she was winged as the first helicopter fighter pilot in the history of the Air Force.

Too early to house your chopper in the hangar, Tolulope.

Why was Heaven so much in a hurry to have you? You were serving nation and humanity, flying several combat missions for Operation GAMA AIKI in the North Central area of the country, particularly Niger State, infested with bandits from the pit of hell. You did your bit in enforcing peace in that area, giving those fiends a black eye. Now, no more. No more thrills, no more rush of adrenaline, as you soar into the azure sky in your nimble machine, a wonder of technology in warfare.

Tolulope lived and died for the sky. Primary education

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By Femi Adesina at Air Force school. Secondary, too. Then, enlistment into the Air Force, commissioned an officer, and further training abroad to hone her skills.

She was decorated in October last year, with Women Affairs Minister, Dame Pauline Tallen assisting the Chief of Air Staff. It made a lot of Nigerians proud, particularly her parents, Engineer Akin and Mrs Arotile, from Iffe, in Ijumu Local Government Area of Kogi State.

After the decoration exercise, a delighted Mrs Arotile (which parent won’t be over the moon, despite the risky nature of the career) took to her Facebook wall, and posted: “On behalf of my entire family, Engr. Akin and Mrs Arotile, I will like to sincerely appreciate everyone for honoring the invitation to celebrate with Pilot Officer T. Arotile. I am indeed grateful and pray that God will reward you all exceedingly and abundantly above all you would think or ask of Him. Once again, thank you and

God bless.”

Most parents would be proud to produce a pilot. I can tell, because I have one. That day, in 2017, when my pilot son flew me in a Boeing 737 from Lagos to Abuja, with me sitting with him in the cockpit, is one one my happiest. Forget the knot of fear and anxiety in the bottom of my belly, as he manipulated the winged bird through the sky, pointing out landmarks to me, and touching down gingerly at our destination about 50 minutes later. It was the experience of a lifetime.

My son first indicated his desire to be a pilot at just four years old. I thought he would outgrow it. But the older he got, the more resolute he became. He went to flying school, got his private pilot’s license, then the commercial license, and then type rated on Boeing 737.

Tolulope must have known no other world, except flying. Like the parents of every pilot, the Arotiles must have had their times of anxiety, but also trusted firmly in God. What Late Tolulope on her job as a pilot for Nigerian Navy can we do without faith in God? Nothing. I say young and the old. The firm and the infirm. The poor and again; nothing.

God, what then happened? How did an auto crash at NAF the rich. But I am glad that death itself shall die one day.

Base claim such a tender soul, turning her family, the Air John Donne, in his poem titled Death Be Not Proud, Force, the nation, into mourning. President Buhari recalled declared: the young lady that took him round, explaining the features “Death, Be not proud, though some have called thee of the fighter helicopters at the Air Show held in Eagle Mighty and dreadful, for thou art not so...

Square. He mourned her deeply, condoling with her family, One short sleep past, we wake eternally the Air Force, and the nation at large. God, we should not And death shall be no more; Death, thou shalt die.” question you, but what really happened? As mere mortals, Yes, death shall die. The Holy Bible reinforces it for me. we don’t know. But we will surely understand it better by Revelation 20, verses 13 and 14.

“And the sea gave up the dead that were in it; and death and and by.

I recall a story told us in church long ago by my then pastor, Hades gave up the dead that were in them; and they were Rev Felix Meduoye (now retired General Overseer of the judged every man according to their works.

Foursquare Gospel Church in Nigeria). He said his young “And death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This daughter used to pray: God don’t let us die in our sleep. is the second death, even the lake of fire.”

Don’t let us die when we are awake. Don’t let us die when Death has denied the nation a potential wife, mother, we are on the road. Don’t let us die when we are flying in grandmother, accomplished fighter pilot. Her body will a plane. Don’t let us die when we are in our car. Don’t let soon be interred, and like John Brown’s body, it will “lie a-mouldering in the grave.” But her soul will go marching us die...

My pastor laughed, and said we at least have to die on.

For now, we mourn with the Arotiles. We weep, we sorrow, somehow. True. But not like Tolulope did. Too sad. but not like those without hope. Our hope is that one day, “There is no armour against Fate; Tolulope will rise to life eternal. And Death, the enemy of Death lays its icy hands on kings; man, shall die.

Sceptre and Crown Death, thou shalt die. It’s not a curse. It’s just your inevitable Must tumble down end.

And in the dust be equal made Mr. Femi Adesina is Special Adviser to President Buhari on With the poor crooked scythe and spade.”

So wrote James Shirley in his poem, The Glories of Our Media and Publicity Blood and State. And death has no shame. It takes the TOLULOPE HAS BEEN LAID TO REST IN ABUJA WITH FULL MILITARY HONOURS. R.I.P. www.thevoicenewsmagazine.com

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The OAU Declaration on Fundamental Changes at 30 – A Retrospective Look at its Genesis and Impact

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An African Agenda for Peace, Governance and Development at Thirty: A retrospective look at the genesis and significance of the OAU’S July 1990 Declaration on Fundamental Changes” This 11th of July marks the 30th anniversary of the Declaration on the political and socioeconomic situation in Africa and the fundamental changes taking place in the world. Adopted by the Organization of African Unity (OAU) in Addis Ababa, the Declaration has been the bedrock of many of Africa’s normative and policy advances over the past three decades. It provided encouragement and continental legitimacy to the democratization processes initiated in the early 1990s and set the stage for the redesign of the OAU conflict management tools, while also revitalizing the long-held dream of Africa’s integration.

Yet, this policy document seems to have fallen from public attention. In a way, it was a victim of its own success: as the OAU and its successor, the African Union (AU), developed new and bolder instruments, it was bound to fall into some kind of oblivion.

The 1990 Declaration was Africa’s response to the multifaceted challenges confronting the continent at that time. Three interrelated aspects are key.

Firstly, in the 1980s, the continent experienced a profound economic crisis giving rise to social unrest and demands for political reform.

Secondly, after

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Said Djinnit and El-Ghassim Wane decades of struggle waged by the liberation movements, there was rapid change in Southern Africa, including the independence of Namibia and the beginning of the reforms and negotiations that soon resulted in the dismantlement of apartheid in South Africa. Thirdly, the international landscape was transformed by the end of the Cold War. Those developments impacted Africa, providing added impetus for reform and helping end some long-running conflicts. However, as these conflicts receded, others exploded in places like Liberia, Somalia and Sierra Leone.

Against this backdrop, Salim Ahmed Salim, who assumed office as OAU Secretary-General in September 1989, was convinced of the imperative for Africa to adjust to the new situation and set an ambitious agenda focusing on democratization and improved governance, economic integration and enhanced role on the global stage. To this end, he proposed that the February 1990 session of the Council of Ministers, usually devoted to budgetary and financial matters, also discuss the changes taking place in the world and their implications for Africa. Salim articulated what was at stake, and the Ministers requested him to prepare a fuller report. This, he did. The report was presented in July.

Our paper, published July 9, details the consultations that Salim conducted, the issues he confronted and the process of adopting the report.

Most important, were the report’s recommendations.

These included the need for the continent to fully embrace democratic and accountable governance, as well as human rights; the redesign and institutionalization of the OAU’s conflict management mechanisms, to more effectively deal with interstate conflict and meaningfully engage in intrastate ones (including shifting from the principle of noninterference to that of non-indifference to mass violations); the acceleration of economic integration; and the nurturing of international solidarity, with the United Nations as the locus of the continent’s diplomatic endeavors.

Salim called for the strengthening of the OAU. He was disturbed by what he termed as the member states’ lack of enthusiasm towards the continental Organization, singling out their erratic attendance of meetings and irregular payment of contributions to the regular budget. In his view, they seemed to have fallen into some kind of complacency, as if the OAU, with the impending completion of the liberation struggle, was becoming less relevant. Yet the challenges that were facing the continent – from fostering economic integration and political transformation to giving Africa a fighting chance on the global stage – required closer unity and a stronger OAU. Africa’s leaders agreed with the overall thrust of Salim’s analysis and adopted the Declaration on Fundamental Changes. All understood that change and adaptation were unavoidable, and the OAU framework offered the leaders

the opportunity to set an African agenda. Two issues came up during the debate. First, the need to ensure that democratization took into account the specific realities of African countries, in opposition to the one-size-fits-all approach; second, rejecting political conditionalities on development aid—the latter partly in response to President François Mitterrand’s speech at the June 1990 La Baule Summit.

Compared to Salim’s report, the Declaration put greater emphasis on economic issues, making everything else—including the democratization and governance agenda—secondary to that objective. It stopped short of making an explicit link between the liberation struggle and the promotion of democracy and human rights. On conflict management, the Declaration stated the leaders’ commitment to work together towards the resolution of all conflicts on the continent, firmly placing internal conflicts within the Organization’s remit, but without the specifics proposed by Salim.

Overall, Salim achieved his objective. His vision was endorsed, and he got the mandate needed to move forward.

Notably, the Conference on Security, Stability, Development and Cooperation (CSSDCA) was set in motion, which Continued on Page 42

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Continued from Page 41 in due course provided the framework for Africa’s peace and security architecture and commitments on governance and democracy. Other direct legacies include the OAU’s opposition to unconstitutional changes of governments, especially military coups, and the policies to promote good economic and corporate governance and oppose corruption made within the context of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD).

The 1990 Declaration set a rich normative and policy framework. Its impact can be seen in the notable decline of military coups d’etat and the proactiveness of the African Court on Human and People’s Rights, which increasingly adjudicates critical political and constitutional issues, thus holding governments to account for commitments made within the AU framework. Equally significant is the way in which local actors, in specific contexts, have interpreted and questioned the validity of the norms relating to eligibility to elections aimed at resorting constitutional order, as spelt out in the 2007 African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance.

Had this norm been deemed inconsequential, the actors concerned would have ignored altogether.

The 1990 Declaration shaped the evolution of the OAU conflict management tools. Indeed, deriving from it

was the June 1993 Cairo Declaration establishing the OAU Mechanism for Conflict Prevention, Management and Resolution, two aspects of which are worth noting: the institutionalization of the conflict management processes, to give them the required continuity; and the emphasis on prevention, which restricted the scope of the non-interference norm, whose narrow interpretation 42

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had for too long stymied the OAU’s efforts.

Economic integration also benefited from the momentum brought about by the July 1990 Declaration.

A year later, the OAU Summit in Abuja adopted the Treaty creating the African Economic Community, an objective to be achieved over a period of 34 years— still work in progress, but with remarkable successes to note. Also, thirty years later, one cannot but be struck by the commonalities between the concerns that informed Salim’s proposals and follow-up steps towards reforming the OAU and those at the heart of the AU institutional reform spearheaded by President Paul Kagame. The overarching objective then, as it is today, was to make the Organization more fit for purpose.

Most commentaries on the OAU and the AU focus on the discontinuities, dismissing the OAU as a “club of dictators” and seeing the AU norms, principles and institutions as a break with the past. These differences cannot be denied, but there are also marked continuities.

Indeed, many of the AU initiatives can be traced to policies and efforts made under the OAU. From that standpoint, one can look at the 1990 Declaration as a key inflexion point.

Three decades on, while Africa has made tangible advances in the pursuit of the objectives set in the Declaration on Fundamental Changes, a lot remains to be done. As the continent deploys renewed efforts to address the challenges at hand in an undoubtedly unfavorable international environment, it is important to recall the 1990 Declaration, for it holds important lessons for how Africa can seize the initiative at moments of global turmoil. African solutions are possible, resting on three pillars: the centrality of African institutions, most notably the AU; the ownership of the analysis of the problems at hand; and the formulation of context-specific responses.

Beyond political actors, this anniversary, as muted as it is, is also an invitation to academics and other observers to properly put into context the policy and normative developments witnessed on the continent in the past decades; pay greater attention to hitherto little known aspects of African agency; and be alert to the ways in which the battle for democracy and better governance has been and continues to be shaped by the (OAU).

Zimbabwe accuses mobile phone operator Econet of money laundering

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imbabwean police have issued a warrant against the largest mobile phone operator Econet Wireless to hand over a list of its mobile money transactions and subscribers because authorities suspect it of involvement in money laundering, according to the warrant.

President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s government has already suspended some of Econet’s mobile money transactions. Authorities last month also halted all trade on the local stock exchange.

In the search warrant issued on last month, police accused Econet of creating fictitious mobile money and converting it to cash to facilitate purchasing foreign currency on the black market and taking the money out of Zimbabwe.

The central bank has made similar accusations before, which Econet has denied. A senior Econet official, who declined to be named because he is not authorized to speak to the media, said the government Econet would challenge

the move in court.

A spokesman for the company said he could not immediately comment.

The police ordered Econet to provide a list of all subscribers, mobile money transactions and financial statements covering

Jan. 2 to June 30 this year “for the purpose of investigating or detecting a case of money laundering.”

Police spokesman Andrew Phiri declined to comment.

Zimbabwe has alarmed investors with its decision to suspend the stock exchange.

President Mnangagwa’s ruling ZANU-PF party has asked the government to de-list Old Mutual’s local unit from the Zimbabwe stock exchange, accusing it of fanning the foreign currency black market.

The Zimbabwe dollar, which was brought back last year without any foreign or gold reserves, is in freefall, fueling inflation to more than 700%. www.thevoicenewsmagazine.com

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FOREMOST NIGERIAN ANTI-DRUG ABUSE ORGANIZATION, PADDI, COMMEMORATES THE INTERNATIONAL DAY AGAINST DRUG ABUSE AND ILLICIT TRAFFICKING IN NIGERIA

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s part of global commemoration of the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking (also referred to as the World Drug Day), a foremost non-governmental organization focused on Substance abuse issues in Nigeria, People Against Drug Dependence and Ignorance {PADDI}, in collaboration with the Civil Society Network on Substance and Drug Abuse (CSNetSDA), organized an interactive online Seminar on the theme of the Year 2020 WDD, ‘’Better Knowledge for Better Care’’.

The event started with introductory remarks by Eze Eluchie, Esq., an Attorney and Executive Director of PADDI. Whilst welcoming the Guests Speakers and participants, Barr. Eluchie stressed on the need to ensure that in pursuit of the broader international goals of addressing problems of Drug use/misuse, our efforts in

Nigeria and across the West African subregion, should reflect and specifically address domestic priorities. The era when we addressed Drug Abuse basically from a Law enforcement perspective with the aim of preventing traffickers, without recourse to the evidence-based and balanced approach to which our countries committed to under the 2019 Ministerial 44

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Declaration of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs, is no longer sustainable.

Barrister Eluchie further reiterated that it is only by becoming more aware of the nature, telltale signs of use, consequences and other specificities of Drug use/abuse, that people and our governments will be in a position to better care for and address drug related issues.

In further opening commentaries, two members of CSNetSDA, Mallam Nura Sani Abdulahi, Executive Director of Youth for Human Rights, and Mrs. Peggy Chukwuemeka, Executive Director of Parent-Child Intervention Center, both of who made presentations from Kano and Enugu States respectively, expounded on the nationwide outreach of CSNetSDA, its grassroots penetration, and the diversity of the networks membership and programing which gives the network in a unique position to understand and intervene in addressing the complex and myriad drug use/misuse related problems in Nigeria. To CSNetSDA, the theme of the Year 2020 WDD affords the network and its membership, which spreads across the six geo-political zones of Nigeria, an opportunity to adapt the wealth of knowledge at their disposal towards ensuring greater understanding and empathy towards caring and addressing the drug misuse situation.

In her goodwill message, the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Health, who was ably represented by the Assistant Director, Mental Health, Alcohol and Substance Abuse), Mrs. Dorothy Amadi appreciated the opportunity given to the Federal Ministry to continue and deepen its efforts at public sensitization and education ‘’to mobilize political will and concerns to address drug abuse and illicit trafficking’’.

Continuing, Mrs. Amadi asserted that ‘’the fight against drug

abuse requires holistic stakeholder’s engagement, we are therefore pleased with the efforts of People Against Drug Dependence and Ignorance on the campaign against drug abuse and illicit trafficking in Nigeria’’.

In his presentation, Mr. Daniel Amankwaah {the Principal Programs Officer at the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Drug Unit} representing the ECOWAS Commission expressed appreciation to PADDI and CSNetSDA, organizers of the event and reaffirmed the Commission’s preparedness to and willingness to work with member States of ECOWAS and relevant civil society organizations to address the drug situation in the subregion. In the words of Mr. Amankwaah: “ECOWAS adopted the Political Declaration and a Regional Drug Action Plan which are being implemented vigorously.

The ECOWAS Drug Prevention and Control Programme (EDPCP) aims at contributing to a reduction of drug abuse, illicit drug trafficking and related organised crime in West Africa with particular emphasis on capacity building, reliable data collection, advocacy, coordination and support to our Member States to treat and rehabilitate people with drug use disorders” The representative of the ECOWAS Commission further emphasized on the ‘’commitment to addressing the drug menace in West Africa and calls on all stakeholders and partners to relentlessly support drug prevention and control at all levels as our common and shared responsibility for the welfare of our people’’.

In his presentation, Barr. Eluchie, who in addition to being the President of CSNetSDA is also a Board Member for the Africa Region on the Board of the World Federation Against Drugs (WFAD) listed four key areas of focus for CSO’’s towards deepening and actualizing the intendments of the theme of the Year 2020 WDD, these include: 1. Presenting a Draft Bill for consideration of the National Assembly for the establishment of the National Drug Abuse Prevention Agency (NDAPA) – an entity that will

be focused on addressing issues of Prevention, Treatment, Care and Rehabilitation of drug issues, whilst the NDLEA focuses on Law enforcement; 2. Increased advocacy towards incorporating meaningful education on and about Drug use/misuse in the curricular of our educational institutions (particularly the Primary and Secondary schools); 3. Encouraging the adaptation of Crop Substitution as a strategy to curtail the cultivation of illicit drugs (particularly Marijuana) in Nigeria; and 4. Capacity building and specialized training for Law enforcement and Judicial officers involved in addressing the drug abuse situation.

The civil society organizations and governmental agencies participating in the event committed to ensuring the actualization of the lofty ideals of this year’s them of the WDD. After robust contribution and questions from the participating audience, the well-attended online forum which featured participants from the six geopolitical zones of Nigeria and international participants from Cameroon and Liberia, came to an end after about two hours.

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Two politicians die and 25 others test positive as president promotes herbal remedy as country’s ‘green gold’ in Madagascar

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adagascar President Andry Rajoelina said recently in an interview with the press that two lawmakers have died after becoming infected with coronavirus, as he claimed an herbal concoction continues to protect him and his family from COVID-19.

In a new development, 11 parliamentarians and 14 senators also tested positive for the virus, President Rajoelina said bringing the number to 25 despite the herbal remedy being promoted around the continent.

“One deputy died. A senator died.

After the tests carried out on the deputies, 11 members of parliament were detected carrying the coronavirus. At the Senate, 14 people, senators and agents of Senate carry the coronavirus,” President Rajoelina said during an appearance on a talk show on national television last month.

He did not say when the lawmakers died and did not name them. The Indian Ocean island on July 5th placed its capital, Antananarivo, under a new lockdown following a surge in infections, two months after restrictions Madagascar has 5,080 confirmed coronavirus cases and 37 deaths, according to government data, with authorities estimating the peak

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will not be reached until the end of August. In April, President Rajoelina launched a local herbal concoction “Covid-Organics” that he claimed prevents and cures the coronavirus, despite warnings from the World Health Organization that its efficacy is unproven.

“It is true that I have been in contact with people likely to carry the coronavirus. I have even entered hospitals that care for patients with COVID-19. I’m fine,” he said.

“I don’t carry coronavirus at all. I have no symptoms. Thank God. I follow the directives that I have given myself. But above all, me and my loved ones, my wife and my children, we drink and we follow a treatment based on the CovidOrganics concoction.”

President Rajoelina promoted the brew for export, saying it is the country’s “green gold” that will “change history”.

The potential benefits of CovidOrganics - a tonic derived from artemisia, a plant with proven efficacy in malaria treatment, and other indigenous herbs - have not been validated by any scientific study.

In a new development, Nigeria research institute has claimed the drugs is not effective for the cure of Covid-19 and do not encourage its usage in Nigeria.

The Need to Establish Fresh Water and Marine Protected Areas in Nigeria

By HOMEF

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arine protected areas (MPAs) are important and powerful tools for biodiversity conservation and management of aquatic ecosystems and balanced cycles. Unfortunately, Nigeria has no formally established marine or fresh water protected areas and is not engaging in constructive mangrove restoration programmes. Also, there is no nationally designated marine park in Nigeria.

The country is highly endowed with coastal and marine resources and has several water bodies which serve as habitat to several biological species including fish, aquatic mammals, reptiles, and other freshwater resources. However, the coastline is faced with numerous challenges (such as climate change, flooding, overfishing, and pollution from industrial, domestic and agricultural effluents) that have predisposed it to rapid and ill- managed degradation. Diverse activities carried out in the coastline including oil and gas exploration and exploitation, shipping, agriculture, transportation and tourism

impact negatively on the marine environment and therefore, marine and coastal ecosystems are not delivering the full suite of ecosystem services upon which humans (especially the coastal communities) rely.

Already, experts and villagers have started noticing rapid decline in fish, planktons, shrimps, tortoise, crabs, crayfish and other species in the Niger Delta coastal territories of the Atlantic Ocean due to unprecedented levels of oil spills caused by inordinate exploitation and exploration of petroleum resources in the region. Environmental pollution in the Niger Delta coastal zone has caused eutrophication and oxygen depletion in lagoon systems, particularly around urban centers, resulting in decreased fish reproduction levels and waterborne diseases.

There is need to develop institutional framework and an all-inclusive fresh water and marine protected areas policy to protect the aquatic ecosystem against destructive and extinctive practices. Although there are no official gazettes of fresh water and marine protected areas in Nigeria, community people through cultural and local knowledge have led and managed the creation of protected areas, protection of some aquatic animal species and even scheduling of fishing periods.

Apart from biodiversity conservation, fresh water and marine protected areas are tools to curb overfishing and the threat of stock collapse which can exacerbate by-catch problems—such as the unwanted interaction with other fisheries, turtles, and even birds while fishing—which lead to waste and increased fish and marine life mortality as non-target species are caught and then discarded.

This policy paper calls for the mapping out and creation of fresh water and marine protected areas in Nigeria, especially in the Niger Delta region. It outlines the need for and benefits of such areas, sources of inputs and steps in their establishment, and the associated legal institutional and policy frameworks. This paper can well be adapted and replicated for use across the Congo Basin and the Gulf of Guinea.

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Hon. Abike Dabiri Erewa derogative use of words on the Diaspora.

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t is highly an unbecoming and unprofessional conducts of the chairman of NIDCOM, Hon. Abike not to be very sensitive in her use of words while addressing issues in relation to Nigerians in the diaspora since assuming her new office.

For some obvious reasons best known to Hon. Abike, she has been antagonistic and hostile to many Nigerians in the diaspora, most especially certain leaders/ members of Nigeria In Diaspora Organisation, either in Europe, Africa, Asia, and America. Anyone that is not in agreement with her views or ways is regarded as an enemy and then targeted.

During an online Diaspora Town Hall Meeting organised by NidoAmerica on the 9th of May, which I was privileged to participate in, as a matter of interest to understand the strange relationship and engagement challenges between NIDO Worldwide and NIDCOM since the one year of the commission’s existence.

On one of the key questions asked, in relation to the above, I was shocked, but then highly disappointed and disheartened by the response of Hon. Abike, who in her capacity as chairman of the Diaspora Commission, should understand the use of words or phrases during a public engagement with an open space media network.

For her to use such an open public space, for name calling, and self promotion, rather than being constructive and professional in addressing issues affecting Nigeria Diasporas in the right context, goes to show the high level mental and intellectual disconnection of leadership.

Hon. Abike had the boldness and audacity to call me and other Nigerians In Diaspora “Beggars, and Charlatans” what an affront and disrespect to the diaspora community, she went further by stating emphatically that the likes of Kenneth Gbandi, Collins Nweke and Godson cannot “Bully” her around with social media attacks.

May I use this opportunity to make very clear and I remain to be challenged by anyone, anywhere, that I Mazi

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Godson Azu, in my over 12 years of financial and moral membership of Nido and the diaspora community, have not gone out of my way to “Beg” anyone, either in government of any sort, for money, favours or job, not even Hon. Abike herself; to all those who know me in person or spirit, home and abroad can testify that am not a “Charlatan”, I don’t live a fake life, moreover am not a “Bully”.

I am certainly sure that the same goes with my diaspora colleagues, Mr. Gbandi and Collins both of whom I have come to know over many years in our great diaspora community works.

May I then with all humility and due respect ask that Hon. Abike Dabiri Erewa, publicly make a statement of withdrawal of her derogative words or phrases of Diaspora as “Beggars and Charlatans”, and with the reference as Social Media “Bullies”.

Because her statements in line with mistrust communication, and as an act is defamatory.

It is equally important to let it known to all public or political office holders in Nigeria, that the office they hold, does not give them the audacity to insult or dehumanize others.

To end my discontent with Hon Abike’s actions, I want to once again repeat the question that led to her unprofessional response and insults.

What is the relationship and engagement challenges between NIDOWW and NIDCOM, then secondly what is delaying the formation or constituting of NIDCOM Board of Management one year after its establishment? Are this not logical and rational issues, that requires simple answers, rather than name calling and throwing insults at us.

“Those who live in glass houses, do not throw stones”, the wisdom of a leader is to think, before acting.

I lay in waiting, but forever ready and prepared for any further action

By Mazi Godson Azu.

Equality and Acceptance

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wo pillars of society that are necessary for a democratic country to truly be free. Free from violence, free from discrimination, free from suffering. After decades of dissent and social upset, what started, as a small group of protesters has become a global phenomenon. The passing of George Floyd in Minneapolis ignited an unprecedented number of protests both in the US and the world, from Paris to Amsterdam, Barcelona to Berlin, Melbourne to Tokyo.

As such, the United States has been a catalyst for a global grassroots movement addressing institutional and systemic racism, the undermining of basic human rights, and societies duty to stand up for diversity, inclusion, unity, equality and justice.

Gender Concerns has always made it a mission to achieve social justice for all people, in all places. Director Sabra Bano has conveyed her “admiration and support for the protesters, the movement, and the changes it will bring”, as well as expressing “solidarity and empathy for the pain and anger being felt by the impacted communities, individuals, and victims of systematically discriminatory regimes”.

The issue was further addressed by Minister of Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation, Sigrid Kraag, who spoke out against the systemic racism in the Netherlands pointing out that “many people forget that we may not have the same history as the USA, yet we do have a history of colonization”.

Citing her own family experience, she recalled the everyday struggle that those with ‘darker skin’ face, highlighting that “it has been creeping into the system. From the tax authorities to the labor market and employment agencies, racism is still part of these agencies and bureaucracies.”

In symmetry with US citizens, many Dutch took to the streets reminding nations and persons alike that the core value of

free nations is the unwavering belief that everyone is born free and equal with dignity and rights. An ironic parallel to a notion first codified in the Declaration of Independence and taken up by many other sovereign governments, including the Netherlands, it is a fundamental building block of society that those in which we trust to lead and protect us have a responsibility to uphold these values, and hold the perpetuators responsible for their violation – whoever they may be.

Gender Concerns International stands in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement, Minister Kraag, and all other organizations and individuals who support and take

part in the fight against systemic discrimination everywhere.

As a women’s development organization, Gender Concerns recognizes the importance of defending ideals and working towards a peaceful equal-opportunity world while denouncing all forms of discrimination and inequality, and will continue its own fight for social justice.

This is the first step in building a society that is free of violence, hate, discrimination, and exclusion. It constitutes our opportunity to create an equal and just world in which everyone can live without fear of being discriminated against. This is the time to advocate in favor of human rights. This is the time to put an end to discrimination in all of its forms.

For further information please contact:

By Madeleine Wagner, E: madeleine@genderconcerns.org Gender Concerns International Benoordenhoutseweg 23, 2596 BA, The Hague, the Netherlands P: +31 (0) 74445082 W: www.genderconcerns. org www.thevoicenewsmagazine.com

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Inflation rises by 1.6%, Netherlands outpaces most of Europe

People are finding it increasingly difficult to keep 1.5 metres Inflation rises by 1.6%, Netherlands outpaces most of Europe Inflation in the Netherlands went up by 1.6% in June, making the country one of the fastest risers in Europe, figures from statistics agency CBS show. Rising petrol prices and a higher tax on tobacco were the main drivers, the CBS said. The coronavirus crisis brought down demand for petrol and pump prices, CBS chief economist Peter Hein van Mulligen told broadcaster NOS. ‘But now that there are signs of economic recovery, traffic is increasing and the rise in demand for energy means petrol prices are going up again.’ A visit to the hairdresser became around 4% more expensive and clothes also went up in price. The Dutch tax increase on tobacco in April was cited as another contributory factor. Bar and restaurant bills did not show a similar increase. Van Mulligen said prices may go up in the coming months as more people go out and owners look to recoup their losses in the past couple of months. Rising petrol prices are fuelling inflation across Europe, but the increase is much higher in the Netherlands than other countries. Inflation in Belgium and Germany, for instance, is 0.2 % and 0.8% respectively.

Tanzanian miner finds record tanzanite gems becomes overnight millionaire

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small-scale miner from Tanzania become an overnight millionaire on Wednesday after he sold two rough tanzanite gemstones said to be the largest ever found in the country.

Saniniu Laizer, 52, announced he would slaughter one of his 2,000 cows and build a school to celebrate. The two dark violet-blue gemstones weighed a total of 33 pounds. He sold them for 7.74 billion Tanzanian shillings ($3.4 million U.S. dollars).

“There will be a big party tomorrow,” Laizer, from the

Manyara region, told the BBC. “I want to build a shopping mall and a school. I want to build this school near my home.

There are many poor people around here who can’t afford to take their children to school.”

“I am not educated but I like things run in a professional way,” he added. “So I would like my children to run the business professionally.”

The BBC reported that he has more than 30 children.

Laizer mined the two stones weighing 20.3 and 12.7 pounds last week before he sold them Wednesday during a trading event. The previous record for a tanzanite gemstone was roughly 7.3 pounds, according to the news organization.

Tanzanite is said to be a gemstone found only in the northern region of the country. It’s reportedly used to make ornaments -- with its rarity defined by how clear or well defined the color is, the BBC reported.

“Today’s event ... is to recognize the two largest tanzanite gemstones in history since the beginning of mining activities in Mirerani,” Simon Msanjila, mines ministry permanent secretary, said at a ceremony in Tanzania’s northern Manyara region, according to the Guardian.

Saniniu Laizer, 52 sold two rough Tanzanite stones, said to be the largest ever found in the country.

(TANZANIA MINISTRY OF MINERALS)

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Amsterdam new holiday rental rules begin

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hree quarters of people who responded to new rules about holiday rentals in Amsterdam support the ban in three central districts, according to the city council. From next Wednesday – July 1 – Amsterdam’s new rules will be in force, meaning that ‘Airbnb’ style rentals are banned entirely in three central districts.

Across the whole of Amsterdam, anyone wanting to let out their main residence while they are away will now have to get a new €45 permit, and inform the city of every single rental in advance. Failure to get this permit could

incur a fine of €20,750. ‘A lot of people responded to this ruling,’ city housing spokeswoman Anouk Panman told the press. ‘It is a subject that evokes strong feelings amongst Amsterdammers, and 75% were in favour.’ The consultancy period for people to respond to the new rules ended on May 28, and the city received 780 submissions – an unusually high number, also compared to previous proposals on holiday rental. Nuisance ‘If you want to get into your house and out of the busy streets, and then both of your next door neighbours are renting out as holiday hires, these tourists have a completely different rhythm and you may experience nuisance,’ Panman said. The

same rules as before apply, meaning that people can let out their whole home for 30 nights a year to up to four guests at a time, if they are normally resident in the house. ‘If you hire out a house where you don’t live, then you are an illegal hotel,’ she added. Amsterdam – which has asked for emergency powers to shut down hotels and holiday lets if there is a risk of a second wave of corona infection due to overcrowding – also has new rules and permits for bed and breakfast accommodation, with quotas in different areas. Some experts such as Stephen Hodes, of think tank Amsterdam in Progress, have said the city should go further to ‘ban all Airbnb holiday rentals’ as well as having a total hotel stop. Legislation Airbnb – which according to its own research lists the vast majority of home holiday rentals in Amsterdam – said in a comment that it has been working on measures to reduce nuisance, and supports the Dutch government’s efforts to develop new national legislation on holiday rentals. ‘[About] 95% of Airbnb accommodation is outside these areas and so helps to spread tourism outside the centre,’ it said in a statement. ‘We are very concerned that these proposals are illegal and violate the fundamental rights of Amsterdam residents as well as decreasing income in these difficult times… ‘We want to work with Amsterdam on sustainable solutions, not shortterm ones that are expensive, confusing and harmful to Amsterdammers and the local business community in this challenging period.’ A petition asking Amsterdam municipal council to limit the number of tourists visiting the capital to 12 million a year has been signed by almost 30,000 residents

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Jawar Mohammed: The Ethiopian media mogul taking on Abiy Ahmed

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aving previously warned that Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed risked turning into an “illegitimate” ruler, Jawar Mohammed, 34, has now become the most high-profile opposition politician to be detained since the Nobel Peace laureate took office in April 2018.

An ethno-nationalist with a Facebook following of nearly two million, Mr. Jawar is accused of being linked to the murder of a policeman during the violence, which erupted last week after music star Hachalu Handessa was gunned down in the capital Addis Ababa.

His allies deny his involvement in the murder, saying Mr. Abiy ordered his arrest to neutralize the popular opposition politician.

Both Mr. Abiy and Mr. Jawar hail from Ethiopia’s largest ethnic group, the Oromos, but have differed sharply over the future direction of Ethiopia since Mr. Abiy took power in 2018, with a promise to democratize and unite the ethnically divided nation after decades of authoritarian rule.

For government supporters, Mr. Jawar’s arrest was vital to help quell the ethnic nationalism and violence that they accuse him of fanning to derail the prime minister’s “coming together” vision, aimed at forging a new sense of national unity in the country of more than 100 million.

But for Mr. Jawar’s supporters, his arrest showed that the prime minister had become intolerant of the 34-year-old’s alternative vision, which revolved around the federal state

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giving self-rule to Oromos and other ethnic groups in regions where they constitute the majority.

He was born in 1986 to a Muslim father and an Orthodox Christian mother, Mr. Jawar established his credentials as an Oromo nationalist in a 2013. In an interview, he declared, “I am an Oromo first,” Mr. Jawar - then exiled in the US declared, adding that Ethiopia had been “imposed” on him.

His comments unleashed what Keele University law lecturer Awol Alo described at the time as a “political tsunami”, with people either passionately supporting him or harshly criticizing him in a highly polarized debate that swept through Ethiopia and the diaspora.

“I am an Oromo first” later grew into a political campaign, with the-then Minnesota-based Mr. Jawar criss-crossing the US to rally the diaspora to oppose the regime back home and to win their “freedom”.

The campaign culminated with the launch later in 2013 of a satellite television station - along with social media accounts - under the banner of the Oromia Media Network (OMN).

“We’ve now liberated the airwaves of Oromia. We will liberate the land in the coming years,” Mr. Jawar said at its launch.

As its then-chief executive officer, he turned the OMN into a powerful voice of the youth, whom he called “Qeerroo”, which literally means “young unmarried man” - a term first popularized in the 1990s by the-then banned Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) rebel group in its bid to attract recruits.

Having grown up in the small town of Dhumuga where the OLF had a strong presence, Mr. Jawar often said: “I was born in the Oromo struggle,” as he recalled learning about the “oppression” of Oromos under the rule of emperors and autocrats alike.

Despite being the largest ethnic group in Ethiopia, Mr. Abiy was the first Oromo prime minister, while during the time of Emperor Haile Selassie, their language and traditional religion were banned.

A bright student, Mr. Jawar left Ethiopia in his teens when he won a fellowship to study in Singapore in 2003. Two years later he moved to the US where he graduated with a political science degree from Stanford University and a masters degree in human rights at Colombia University in 2013.

As a university student, Mr. Jawar distanced himself from

the OLF he had revered as a child, writing in a blog that it was “broken beyond repair” because of leadership disputes and factionalism.

But he continued to rally the large number of Oromos in the diaspora to support the “struggle” back home, which gained momentum after mass protests broke out in 2015, forcing the resignation of Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn three years later.

When Mr. Abiy first emerged as Mr. Hailemariam’s potential successor, Mr. Jawar warned that it would be a “strategic blunder” to give him the premiership, indicating a preference for current Defence Minister Lemma Megersa, whose political vision, Mr. Jawar felt, was closer to his own.

But once Mr. Abiy became the first Oromo to ever secure the premiership, the 34-year-old supported him, especially after he embarked on a series of reforms that saw the unbanning of opposition groups, the release of thousands of political prisoners, and the dropping of terrorism-related charges against exiles, including Mr. Jawar, who then returned home to set up the OMN’s headquarters in Addis Ababa as the voice of the “Qeerroo”.

Mr. Jawar’s support for Mr. Abiy, however, did not last long, as he maintained that self-rule was the key to stability and economic development for all ethnic groups, putting him on a collision course with the prime minister.

For Mr. Jawar’s followers, his incarceration last week was further proof that Mr. Abiy had betrayed their hopes - especially as his detention had come after much-awaited elections due next month had been indefinitely postponed. Election officials cited the coronavirus outbreak for the postponement.

Mr. Abiy had planned to contest the poll under the banner of his Prosperity Party, which he launched last year by getting eight ethnically based parties to rally behind his “coming together” vision.

In contrast, Mr. Jawar joined the opposition Oromo Federalist Congress (OFC), and stepped down as the chief executive of the OMN’s television station.

The OFC had planned to form an alliance with the OLF and the Oromo National Party (ONP) to contest the election on what was expected to be a strong ethno-nationalist ticket, threatening Mr. Abiy’s support among Oromos in the ethnic group’s heartland of Oromia.

Following the postponement of the poll, Mr. Jawar warned Mr. Abiy that he would be an “illegitimate” prime minister once the term of the current parliament ended at the end of September.

Now, Mr. Jawar finds himself incarcerated, with his party saying that both his lawyer and family had been denied access to him, and that he had embarked on a hunger strike.

For their part, police say they are pressing ahead with investigations to put Mr. Jawar on trial for the murder of an officer allegedly shot by one of his bodyguards during protests which broke out last week in Addis Ababa following the killing of Hachalu - a musician who often sang about the Oromo’s struggle for freedom.

Mr. Jawar’s supporters said another officer, following a disagreement within their ranks over whether the opposition politician should be arrested, killed the policeman.

Police said Mr. Jawar would also be prosecuted over protests that led to the deaths of 97 people last October after the politician released a video, alleging that the government was endangering his life by ordering the removal of his security detail.

The allegation - which police denied at the time - triggered

a wave of protests that saw some of Mr. Jawar’s supporters burn copies of a book that Mr. Abiy had published, outlining his “coming together” vision.

While Mr. Jawar denied inciting violence, the incident was seen as an attempt to embarrass the prime minister soon after he had won the Nobel Peace Prize for ending a border war with Ethiopia and for his efforts to democratize Ethiopia.

Police also raided the offices of the OMN in Addis Ababa last month, forcing its television station to once again start broadcasting from the US. Whether Mr. Abiy can now regain the political initiative - or whether Mr. Mohammed’s detention galvanizes the “Qeerroo” to step up their opposition to him - will become clear in the months ahead, leaving many Ethiopians anxious about the future.

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Scientists have some theories on why hundreds of elephants are mysteriously dying in Botswana

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orrying news has recently come to light: hundreds of elephants have been found dead in Botswana, and as yet, there is no clear cause of death. But as

an expert in elephants and their conservation, I believe we can at least rule out a few possible answers.

Here’s what we do know: the first deaths were reported

in March, but significant numbers were only recorded from May onwards. To date, it’s thought that the death toll stands at nearly 400 elephants of both sexes and all ages. Most of the deaths have occurred near the village of Seronga on the northern fringes of the Okavango Delta, a vast swampy inland region that hosts huge wildlife populations. Many of the carcasses have been found near to water.

Of those discovered so far, some lay on their knees and faces (rather than on their side), suggesting sudden death, although there are also reports of elephants looking disoriented and even walking in circles. The tusks of the dead elephants are still in place and, as yet, no other species have died under similar circumstances.

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the continent’s population. While elephant numbers have widely declined in recent decades, largely due to poaching, Botswana’s population has grown.

However, this growth has been outpaced by the everincreasing human population. With more elephants and more people, competition for space has escalated and increasingly, elephants and people find themselves at odds. Some communities see elephants as pests, as they feed on and trample crops, cause damage to infrastructure and threaten the lives of people and livestock. In return, people retaliate by killing and injuring offending elephants.

With large rural communities struggling to coexist with elephants, the issue has become highly politicized. In 2019, in a controversial move, president Mokgweetsi Masisi lifted a ban on the hunting of elephants in Botswana, reasoning that hunting could both reduce their numbers and generate income for struggling rural communities. This, against a backdrop of rising poaching, suggests that times are changing for Botswana’s elephants.

This has sparked speculation about the recent deaths.

However, given what we know, we can address some of the rumors.

Firstly, it seems unlikely that poachers are to blame, since the tusks of the dead elephants have not been removed. It’s estimated that illegal black-market ivory trade is responsible for the deaths of 20,000 elephants annually.

The elephants could have been killed by frustrated local people, typically by shooting or spearing. In this case however, the sheer number of dead elephants and the lack of reports of gunshot or spearing wounds, does not support this hypothesis.

Poisoning could be used instead, either by poachers or in retaliation by locals. A few years ago hundreds of elephants in Zimbabwe died after drinking from watering holes laced with cyanide, and the proximity of many of the recent deaths to water has given the idea some foundation.

However, in the event of poisoning, we would expect to see other species dying as well, either because they drank from the same poisoned water source or because they fed on the poisoned carcass of the elephant, and this has not been reported.

If the evidence currently available doesn’t support foul play, that leads us to consider natural causes.

Drought can cause significant deaths. In 2009, a drought

By Vicky Boult Postdoctoral Researcher in Conservation Biology, University of Reading, UK

killed around 400 elephants in Amboseli, Kenya, a quarter of the local population. But drought tends to kill the very young and old, while the deaths recently reported in Botswana show elephants of all ages are affected. Moreover, rainfall in recent months has been near normal, ruling out the influence of drought.

Perhaps because wildlife disease has gained much attention in light of the Covid-19 pandemic, the remaining possibility that has been widely suggested is disease. While Covid-19 itself is unlikely, elephants, like humans, are affected by a range of diseases.

For instance, over 100 were suspected to have died from an anthrax outbreak in Botswana in 2019. Those elephants that seemed disoriented and to be walking in circles might suggest a disease causing a neurological condition.

Still, the information currently available is inconclusive. The Botswana government has released a statement explaining that investigations are ongoing and that laboratories had been identified to process samples taken from the carcasses of dead elephants.

To avoid further speculation and prevent the deaths of more elephants in their last remaining stronghold, it’s vital that investigations are expedited so that the cause of death can be determined and suitable action taken.

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Diary: BUHARI’S PHONEY GALLANTRY Tony Enahoro: A Noble Life of State Pardons

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ontinued in August 2002 edition (Final edition)

He was at home in Benin when security operatives arrived from Lagos to conduct a search for what they said was a secret document. They did not find whatever they were looking for.

On to Lagos in handcuffs they took him to Ikoyi Hotel where they knew he kept rooms. They found the report with his annotations in ink. The searchers were not satisfied with his explanation of how the secret state document came into his possession. They took him to Moloney Street Police headquarters for continued interrogation.

Three weeks later a judge ordered his release on his wife’s petition for habeas corpus. He however was rearrested outside the court and taken back to Police Hq. This time his wife, Helen, went straight off to see Gen. Musa Yar’Adua.

Hours of waiting paid off. The Number Two man in Obasanjo’s military administration called up InspectorGeneral of Police M. D. Yussuf. Why was Chief Enahoro rearrested? Orders from the top man, the IG retorted. If the court says he should be discharged so it should be, said Yar’Adua overruling the boss.

Helen reported she was at the door when Yar’Adua stopped her. “Madam, please tell Chief to try see the Head of State.”

Yar Adua claimed he once asked why there was all the palaver with Chief Enahoro and quoted Obasanjo saying it was being sorted, adding,” leave it to us Southerners.”

Tony was more upset about the allegation that he had acted corruptly than about the fact his properties were seized. He insisted they were properties he acquired before his serving in the Federal Government. I think though deeply hurt, he believed it was only a matter of time before the folly would be exposed. He was quite content to leave protests in the hands of his friend and lawyer, Kessington Momoh.

Obasanjo had been vindictive.

His letter ordering Tony to vacate his Ministerial quarters was brusque and callous. I personally have a philosophy that if a brute writes a rude letter be rude back!

Tony kept his public profile cool, the pain and embarrassment was contained in the letter he wrote exclusively to his sister and brothers. He categorically denied he’d done anything to shame us. He laid the blame for the pernicious attacks on his person, at the feet of Obasanjo. He said he’d thought long and hard why. He could think only of Obasanjo’s disappointment at not securing Festac Village for his Italian friends. Set the hurt aside, there didn’t appear to be a threat that the Assets Investigation Panel’s indictment would be taken to the next level: i.e., prosecution.

The year I returned to experiment with resettling in Nigeria was when President Babangida’s govt returned assets seized

by Muritala/Obasanjo regime. I knew nothing of this. It was a long time after the Gazette announcement that a friend at golf asked if I knew why my brother was I excluded from “the generosity”.

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I confessed my ignorance. But I did think why would they do that? Here we go again.

My informer said, “I’m sure Chief knows the right people, but he refuses to do the right thing.” Mafia script. He must have seen The Godfather.

Tony knew I’d made the acquaintance of Vice-President Augustus Aikhomu. It would have been very unlike him or any of my brothers to ask me to intercede. If I proposed it, fine.

My parents passed on during my first sortie in exile. Maybe by way of compensation for not being at either funeral I travelled to visit their graves as frequently as I could during a four-year stint in Nigeria. On one of my visits, I was returning to Lagos and coming up to Admiral Aikhomu’s walled compound in the heart of Irrua Town, I decided to make an unplanned stop for a quick “hello”. It was Boxing Day. Coming into the living room I recognised only three faces among the Vice President’s guests: Cousin Anenih, Chief Tom Ikimi and Edo State Governor Oyegun. Strangers all put me on my guard.

I was thrown when Aikhomu said to me, “Ah, Peter you will

live long. We were just talking about you and your brother.

Why he has never supported us. He goes past my house every day on his way to Uromi. He has never stopped by to say hello.”

I couldn’t say something jokey instantly, which would have been my preference, so I said the first thing that came into my head: “Admiral, he might say you’ve never invited him.”

Aikhomu pressed his case: “He calling doesn’t need invitation. You think Tony Enahoro would be at the gate and anybody will stop him?”

I asked to use the phone. I called Tony, told him where I was and narrated the proceedings exactly as had happened.

He agreed with my reasoning that the Vice President had never invited him to his home. At my request Tony agreed to say this to the VP himself.

My understanding was that they’d never previously spoken.

Aikhomu was visibly thrilled at the end of their brief chat.

He took a note pad and wrote, “Owanlen, you know you are always welcome in my home”. Owanlen, literally “wise man” is an everyday Esan address to an older man, hence its connotation, respectfully is, “My Elder”. Aikhomu was beaming disarmingly. He took the phone and dialled a number. IBB was at the other end. He was scheduled to visit Benin as part of a tour before stepping aside.

Aikhomu said to him, “When you come to Benin I have a big surprise for you. I have Peter Enahoro here. You will meet Tony Enahoro one on one. Just the two of you. You will ask why he never supported us.”

I delivered the note in the sealed envelope to Helen.

Tony was having a nap. I told Helen the content. She was pleased. Naively the issue of the properties had not been on my mind.

Not one bit.

I stopped by Tony’s the next morning. Chief Olu Akpata was presiding over the bottle of gin he kept in Tony’s house for a refreshing after golf, because he was no longer allowed it at home. I got a tongue lashing from him.

“You’re a foolish boy,”Chief Akpata swore at me.” You brought an insulting letter from Aikhomu. He says your brother should come to his house. It is he who should come here and apologise for the nonsense they’re doing.”

At the time a 24-hour surveillance check was posted in front of Tony’s compound in Benin. The black Peugeot salon number followed him wherever he went.

Tony tried to mitigate my sin. “Pete since it will be the first time of meeting I think it should be on neutral grounds. It can be in your house when I’m in Lagos.”

It took me two days to summon the courage to call the Vice President.

A meeting wasn’t going to happen, I told him. He laughed.

“Don’t worry,” “We know your brother. When I didn’t hear from you, I knew what must have happened.”

After Tony passed on, my late brother, Christian, was brought in by Tony’s children to help out. He was appalled by what he saw in what I described as the Obasanjo Papers.

Christian suggested the two of us as elders of Tony’s birth family should petition President Jonathan, urging him to order the return of Tony’s properties to his children.

President Jonathan referred the petition to a standing committee, Civil Service style.

The committee wrote to us in language only Civil Servants meaning to frustrate are capable of. We went no further.

My belief is that our petition was laid to rest dead under a heap of bureaucratic claptrap.

Copies had around the same time gone to the Governors of Lagos and Edo States soliciting their support. Governor Fashola of Lagos was incredibly supportive, mentioning in particular Akhigbe’s extraordinary cheek the way he disposed of it to his buddy, Abdulsalami Abubakar.

Adams Oshiomhole was Governor of our home State. We expected the little guy to act big and take a lead in defence of Tony. He did not even acknowledge receipt of our covering letter. It is an irony that by a turn of fate his name Continued on Page 58

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Continued from Page 57 is linked with a backroad to the running controversy over a pardon that should never have been associated with Tony.

Oshiomhole is in a bitter feud with incumbent Governor Godwin Obaseki. Oshiomhole has delusions that he can fill the boots of godfather of Edo State politics currently too big for him.

In your dreams Obaseki tells him.

One of Obaseki’s strategies in order to crush his under formed rival is to secure the support of Esan land. There Oshiomhole disadvantaged himself when he chose to build a third university in Edo State : additional to Federalowned Uniben in Benin City, and State-owned Ambrose Ali University In Ali’s Ekpoma hometown, in Esan heartland.

Oshiomhole’s project is located directly opposite his house off the North-bound highway exit of Auchi Town. It is a massive instant growth in an area that includes Iyanmho, Oshiomhol’s birth place; a hamlet so reclusive when three or four are gathered they make a crowd.

The tertiary institution means that all the main Edo State clans each now has a university they can acclaim their own.

But it has been costly for Ambrose Ali Un i v e r s it y which saw its resources thinned down as funds went to the founding of Iyanmho.

Two years ago, at a public celebration in memory of Ambrose Ali in Ekpoma, Obaseki made two pledges to a cheering crowd: 1) He would pump the town’s university with new funding; 2) He would fight to his toe nail for State Pardon for Ambrose Ali. Ali was sentenced to 100 years imprisonment in 1984, on conviction allegedly for misappropriating N983, 000. It was a period of shaming history in Nigeria’s judicial process.

Ludicrously long jail terms were spewing out of courtrooms encouraged by madcap Decrees and fascistic rhetoric’s of the military government.

What had Ambrose Ali done Wong?

He was Governor of defunct Bendel State. A grateful contractor offered him a “dash” following conclusion of a road project. Ali refused the largesse and directed the insistent contractor to contribute it to his party, UPN, led

by Chief Obafemi Awolowo. The court’s judgement was that he should have had the money refunded to govt coffers.

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Ambrose Ali had no money when he died. He came out of prison a broken man. He had lost his sight. His jailers must have known he was walking to his death the day he left prison. It is a pity the State cannot be sent to prison when it does this to a man.

I have not succeeded in finding out how Tony’s name came to be included in the State Pardon list. As I’ve clearly shown he was not convicted by the Panel.

Before setting out to write this, not being a lawyer, I took the precaution to ask the opinion of a learned friend: “Is a Panel of Inquiry/Administrative Panel and subsequent confiscation of properties a conviction under the law that requires a pardon?”

My lawyer friend is a cautious person. So, before replying he consulted the opinion of a lawyer friend who wrote: “The fact that the family of Enahoro ignorantly accepted and swallowed a Greek gift does not mean we can’t interrogate the correctness or otherwise of the so-called pardon.

“Pardon for what? Do you pardon an innocent man or woman not first convicted of any offence? I think not.”

I was grateful for the free advice.

Yet I was touched, thinking of my brother, the children, my nephews and nieces, cousins , grandchildren, daughters, and spouses — these are “the family of Enahoro” — inadvertently portrayed as a bunch of ignoramuses, who gave Buhari’s pardon a thumbs up.

No, they have not.

But I understood. Tony’s eldest surviving son, Eugene, signed an explanatory note that urged “appreciation” and he signed it “for and on behalf of the family of Late Chief Anthony Enahoro”.

My opinion as I expressed to everyone that contacted me urging repudiation was how to make clear that the claim was on behalf of Tony’ immediate family only. -assuming he had obtained that authority.

In fairness to the siblings, there are properties involved.

That is their inheritance; their entitlement. Unfortunately, entitlement frequently evolves as free lunch whereas free lunch is never an entitlement.

If the Buhari cabal really wishes to honour Tony’s memory it should erase the stigma of a dodgy indictment by restoring his legitimate properties to his children.

By his Brother: Peter Enahoro (Peter Pan)

Zambia denies accusations President Edgar Lungu bankrolled Rwandan rebels

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ambia’s government last month rejected claims that President Edgar Lungu had bankrolled a Rwandan rebel leader accused of orchestrating deadly attacks in his country’s border regions.

The claims were made by the rebel chief, Callixte Nsabimana, who is on trial for terrorism and other charges. He has already admitted to working with other foreign governments against Rwanda.

During his latest hearing last month, Nsabimana told a Rwandan high court that Lungu had promised his National Liberation Front (FLN) $1 million to help oust the administration in Kigali.

He said Lungu had made a down payment of $150 000 in support of “rebel attacks to remove President Paul Kagame from power”.

In a statement made available to the press, the Zambian presidency said it “would like to categorically refute these claims”. It stated “unequivocally that these allegations are false and must be treated with the contempt they deserve”.

“The governments and peoples of Zambia and Rwanda continue to enjoy strong and fraternal relations founded

on mutual respect,” said the statement from presidential spokesperson Isaac Chipambe.

Nsabimana, also known as “Sankara”, has in previous hearings named Burundi and Uganda as supporters of the rebel activities against Rwanda.

Ebola spreading in Western Congo with nearly 50 confirmed cases - WHO

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bola is spreading in western Democratic Republic of Congo, with nearly 50 known cases across a large region bordering the Republic of Congo and Central African Republic, the World Health Organization (WHO) said

last month.

Since authorities announced the outbreak on June 1, 48 cases have been confirmed in Congo’s Equateur province, with a further three probable cases and a total of 20 deaths, WHO’s top emergencies expert Mike Ryan said.

“This is still a very active outbreak, and I would say it is still a great concern,” Ryan told a news briefing.

The province includes part of the River Congo, he said, adding that it was a large geographical area where communities were linked and people travelled long distances.

“I would caution everyone that while the numbers in this event are low, again in the era of COVID-19 it is very important that we do not take our eyes off these other emerging diseases and we saw in North Kivu and other previous outbreaks of Ebola that these can get out of control very easily,” he said.

Ryan was referring to a separate outbreak of Ebola in Ituri and North Kivu provinces of eastern Congo that was declared over last month. That epidemic, the second largest on record, saw 3,463 confirmed and probable cases and 2,277 deaths over two years. www.thevoicenewsmagazine.com

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FBI used Instagram and Snapchat to track down an alleged scammer in Dubai

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ast month, the Dubai Police Force arrested twelve alleged Nigerian scammers living in the United Arab Emirates as part of their now-viral special operation dubbed “Fox Hunt 2.”

Six raids were conducted concurrently while the suspects were asleep; among several items, Dubai police reportedly seized more than $40 million in cash and hard disks containing the addresses of nearly two million victims.

One of the fraudsters was Ramon Olorunwa Abbas aka “Hushpuppi,” a social media celebrity known for flaunting his opulent lifestyle to over two million Instagram followers with posts of him in luxury cars, private jets, and designer clothes, globe-trotting to fashion shows and dining with celebrities, soccer stars and Nigerian politicians.

The arrest was part of a United States’ FBI investigation that unveiled Abbas as one of the kingpins of a transnational cybercrime network specializing in Business Email

Compromise (BEC) scams, a fast-growing form of cyberfraud that involves hacking corporate emails and sending fake messages to clients in order to redirect financial transfers and steal bank details.

Abbas, 37, was extradited from the UAE to the US to face criminal charges for allegedly conspiring to launder hundreds 60

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of millions of dollars through online heists, including those targeting a US law firm, a foreign bank and an English Premier League soccer club, according to a criminal complaint filed in a US federal court last month.

Investigators used Abbas’s social media accounts on Instagram and Snapchat to track and confirm his whereabouts, and gather evidence to charge him.

An FBI affidavit details how the Bureau initially discovered Abbas and his social media handle through two co-conspirators.

One of these accomplices, a non-Nigerian manager of the criminal organization’s money mules, had a UAE number saved as “Hush” tied to the Snapchat username “hushpuppi5.”

The FBI similarly found and reviewed Hushpuppi’s Instagram account—where he also mentions the same Snapchat username and styles himself as a real estate developer—and matched his posts to photos from Abbas’s passports and other identification documents. The account gave the detectives insight into their target’s lifestyle of “substantial wealth.”

Snap Inc., Instagram and Apple provided records for the investigation that helped the FBI to make connections between chat histories, phone contacts and email addresses, which allowed investigators to confirm Abbas’s correspondences and his Dubai residence at the Palazzo Versace.

According to the FBI, Abbas was a “key player” in a large conspiracy that purportedly provided “safe havens for stolen money around the world.”

Born in Lagos, Abbas had reportedly been a second-hand clothes street trader before he started his ostentatious lifestyle presumably through his alleged fraudulent activity.

The Hushpuppi case is reminiscent of last year’s FBI arrest of Obinwanne Okeke, a more refined fraudster who, posing as a successful entrepreneur, was featured on the Forbes 30-under-30 magazine cover, spoke at the London School of Economics Africa Summit and was lauded by the BBC as a “rising star.” Two weeks before Abbas appeared in court in Chicago, Okeke pled guilty to an $11 million fraud scheme.

Nigerian scammers first gained notoriety for defrauding Westerners in the 1990s through advance-fee schemes that became known as “419,” after the section of the Nigerian penal code that combats such crimes. In the internet era, the cons evolved into phishing email scams. Abbas and Okeke’s arrests and the BEC scams signal an evolution of the global online fraud perpetuated by Yahoo Yahoo Boys, Nigerians’ nickname for the fraudsters.

Among Nigerians, reactions to Abbas’s arrest were mixed as some blamed the country’s economic woes for making online scamming attractive, particularly to young Nigerians besieged by rising unemployment in a country where six people fall into extreme poverty every minute.

While many would point out tough economic conditions are no excuse to commit fraud, others point out both Abbas and Okeke are products of the morally ambiguous modern culture and society enabled by Nigeria’s perennially corrupt political elite, many of whom evade punishment for pilfering public funds. According to the UK’s Chatham House, an estimated $586 billion has been stolen from Nigeria since its independence. Legislators rotate in and out of office and prison with similar frequency and little damage to their credibility among their party or constituents.

Early this month, the leader of country’s chief anti-graft agency, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, was suspended over corruption charges. The country ranks 26 out of 100 (zero is highly corrupt) in Transparency

International’s Corruption Perceptions Index.

Indicators of this moral ambiguity are seen among those who lauded Abbas and only criticized him for being too ostentatious thereby tipping off the FBI. While there are hopes the recent arrests will deter more would-be scammers, ordinary Nigerians are especially

concerned about the impact these scams continue to have on the reputation of the country and its citizens as they travel abroad, apply for visas and seek international jobs and investors for legitimate businesses. There are reportedly claims that some Dubai companies have begun rejecting Nigerian job applicants.

Abbas is currently being detained in Chicago and is legally represented by the Chicago-based law firm, Pissetzky & Berliner. In an interview, Gal Pissetzky said his client is “an entrepreneur” who ran a legitimate business and a very legitimate Instagram account and did not take part in any scam or fraud.”

“He was promoting brands and that’s how he was very legitimately making his money.”

Abbas is expected to be transferred to Los Angeles in the coming weeks, according to the FBI affidavit. If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in federal prison. There more persons of interest in the watchful eyes of the FBI, most of them we are told has fled from United States of America and hiding in different parts of Nigeria.

The present government made anticorruption is major agenda over six years ago, but it seem that corruption at all levels of government is threatening the achievements of the government and the President said when he took office that he would do his best to kill corruption or corruption will kill Nigeria. No one is sure who is winning the war against corruption.

NOTE: We are in no way promoting people of whose source of income or revenue is not known to us, however people need to read this type of report to be aware of what is happening as we continue to get emails and questions on how Nigerians in particular make their money and spend it.

However not until proven guilty in a court of law, a person is assumed innocent. www.thevoicenewsmagazine.com

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REMEMBERING THE LATE SPORTING PRESIDENT OF BURUNDI, PIERRE NKURUNZIZA

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ven in death, his name continue to be talked about in Burundi, not for his political accomplishments as many still blame him for all the human rights abuses that took place under his watch over 15 years he ruled the country of Burundi.

His death shocked the names beyond words and not until his body was paraded in the clear view of the nation, many people were in denial that he has truly passed away. He was a figure known to his people as their sporting President. He was the President known as seen on his bikes, his love for playing football with his people. He invested into sports and no surprise that many still find it unbelievable that he passed away so suddenly at 55 years of age.

If fitness was a measure of how long a leader stayed or lived, Pierre would outlive a seizable number of those still in charge of their countries in Africa and around the world.

While he was out of controversy, the former President is on his bike riding around the city with his escorts close to bye to watch that nothing happens to the President. He was a rider and also a footballer.

He ascended to power at the age of 40; he was undoubtedly one of the youngest across the continent at the time. He

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rose to the role from being a rebel leader but one that came in with sporting credentials. Late Nkurunziza was a former sports teacher at a university before he joined politics and won election to reunite a divided country. He describes himself as a lifelong fitness coach and football enthusiast. As president, he still played football and coached his team, Halleluya FC. He often wore the club’s tracksuit during outings. One incident stood out when in 2018, a number of opponents in a football match were picked up for rough tackling the president. It was also during his tenure that Burundi qualified for her first African Cup of Nations in Egypt 2019. Football was President Pierre’s passion, actually sought to intervene in the post-2015 political crisis after it emerged in 2016 that the then FIFA president Sepp Blatter had offered Nkurunziza a top post in exchange for quitting the presidency but he stayed on.

When he was not playing football, then he takes to cycling tracks, Nkurunziza undoubtedly loved his bicycle. It was often his preferred mode of transport when he was going to cast his ballots – during 2010 vote, the 2018 referendum and in the last elections before he passed away.

He was also a patron of the Tour de Burundi event during which he usually pedaled off the competition – a typical case in point being in 2018. But beyond the voting booth, he is on record to have cycled to his farm and to other events of course under heavy security.

In 2017, photos were shared on social media showing the former president out cycling with an armed convoy driving behind him. Wearing his helmet, Nkurunziza was pictured on what seemed to be a major road with some residents watching him from the sides of the road and applauding him, he made some few stops to greet and chat with the people. Such was his personality despite is unpopularity internationally.

He was loved in his home country of Burundi.

One can think of a few other African leaders being as sporty as Pierre. In the region, Ugandan president Yoweri Museveni often rides his bike to farm and recently shared keep fitness tips for citizens under lockdown.

South African president Cyril Ramaphosa often goes for walks, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed in 2018 engaged rioting soldiers in a press-up contest, Tanzania’s John Magufuli, five years ago, did press ups on the campaign trail; but we would love to see more fit African leaders than what we currently parade globally.

Even before his death, he was reported to have watched a game of Volleyball on a Saturday, took ill on Sunday and died on Monday morning. His last cabinet meeting was on May 27; his last tweet was a day before. A message posted in French congratulating Evariste Ndayishimiye, the new president who has taken power before the August set date.

One thing is sure, that Pierre for all the zigzag that characterized his 15-years in charge, he was fun to be around with and Africa’s most sporty leader by a mile. If fitness were a measure of how long a leader stayed, Pierre would outlive a sizeable number of those still in charge.

Pierre Nkurunziza on June 8 joined the list of African leaders who died whiles in office.

He entered the category at a time he was lacing – maybe unlacing – his boots to leave office. Death caught him in office.

Aside the news of his loss to cardiac arrest according to the official government account, you are likely to find conspiracy theories about what exactly led to his demise, some reports pointing to COVID-19.

All we can say and pray is that his precious soul rest in peace and the country take a clue from his sporting life style.

Is Dr. Besigye not running for President? asks FDC party

By ERIASA MUKIIBI SSERUNJOGI

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pposition activist Kizza Besigye is playing hardball with his Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) colleagues, refusing to yield to calls to challenge for the presidency for a fifth time, which has left many party faithful sitting uneasy.

The party has fielded Dr Besigye on all three occasions since its founding in 2005, and Dr Besigye had competed for the presidency one other time in 2001 before political parties were reintroduced.

Since the founding of the FDC, the only person who has challenged Dr Besigye for the party ticket is Maj Gen Mugisha Muntu, who has since left the party to found the Alliance for National Transformation (ANT).

The possibility of Dr Besigye not running for president has therefore, caused unease within FDC, which is fast running out of time to find a replacement they consider suitable for the task.

“Dr Besigye has said he is not running,” Mr Nathan Nandala Mafabi, the FDC secretary general, said.

Pressed on whether he thought Dr Besigye could change his mind, Mr Mafabi said: “That is a personal decision”.

Even on the previous occasions, Dr Besigye voiced reluctance to stand, citing different reasons.

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AFCON to be played in 2022

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he Executive Committee of the Confederation of African Football, CAF, has announced the postponement of the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations, AFCON to January 2022 citing the coronavirus pandemic. The tournament had been scheduled to take place between January and February next year. The football governing body, however decided that the local version of the AFCON, the Championship of African Nations, CHAN, will take place in January 2021.

It had originally been slated to be played in April this year (2020).

Both competitions will be hosted

by Cameroon.

In a March 2020 announcement suspending the 2020 CHAN, CAF Organizing after a meeting in Cameroon cited amongst others, the confinement of population in many countries, restrictions imposed on grouping of teams and officials and the closure of borders as well as disruptions in air links between many countries as factors.

At the time, the decision followed the postponement of the AFCON 2021 qualifiers by CAF. The African football governing body had earlier this year decided to maintain the organization of its competitions.

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After consultation with stakeholders and taking into consideration the current global situation, the tournament has been rescheduled for January 2022. The date for the final tournament and the remaining matches of the qualifiers will be communicated in due course.

“The CAF Executive Committee is satisfied with the Cameroonian authorities for their commitment towards the hosting of the two competitions. Cameroon is ready to host either competition and are within schedule,” CAF President Ahmad Ahmad said.

The Total CAF Champions League and Total CAF Confederation Cup, will resume in September with a Final Four (4) format. Semi-Final matches will be played in a single match.

Total CAF Champions League = Venue for Final Four to be decided Total CAF Confederation Cup = Morocco will host the Final Four Due to challenging conditions, the 2020 edition of the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations has been cancelled.

Meanwhile, the CAF Women’s Champions League will be launched in 2021. The format and other details will be communicated in due course.

Zonal Qualifiers for U-20 & U-17 Africa Cup of Nations A meeting with the Organising Competitions for Youth Football and the Zonal Unions has been proposed to finalize the arrangements for the zonal qualifiers. Meanwhile, the U-17 AFCON will take place in July 2021.

Beach Soccer Africa Cup of Nations 2020 Following the withdrawal of Uganda, a new hosting bid will be launched for the organization of the final tournament either in 2020 or 2021.

Headquarters Agreement CAF President Ahmad Ahmad commended the Government of the Arab Republic of Egypt under the leadership of His Excellency Abdel Fattah El Sisi, who appended his signature to the 10-year agreement on 24 June 2020.

With the new agreement, CAF and its officials will benefit from immunities and privileges granted to diplomatic missions in the territory of the Arab Republic of Egypt in accordance with the 1961 Vienna Convention.

CAF Ordinary General Assembly The 42nd CAF Ordinary General Assembly has been rescheduled for December 2020 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

As per the recommendations of the CAF Governance Committee, the Elective General Assembly will be held on 12 March 2021.

CAF Awards 2020 Cancellation of the 2020 edition. Major partners for the event, Pickalbatros Group, has re-affirmed their contractual commitment towards the next two (2) editions.

Financial Support to Member Associations CAF has allocated an additional USD 16.2 Million to assist Member Associations to mitigate challenges as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Each Member Associations will be entitled to USD 300,000.

Appointment of Commercial Director Confirmation of the appointment of Ali Aissaoui as Commercial Director. Prior to joining CAF, the Moroccan served as Business Development Manager of FC Barcelona.

Did CAF make a good decision to cancel the 2020 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations?

Update on Transform CAF 2021 There has been giant stride in the execution of Transform CAF 2021 which was launched during the CAF Executive Committee in Doha, Qatar, last February. The CAF Administration will continue with the implementation of the major points towards achieving the targets of the project.

many is going on within the world sporting calendar and Liverpool won the British Premier League with amazing performances throughout the season and not the corona virus would rob them of the well deserved celebration coming after 30 years.

With the outcry that followed the announcement, it is hard to think so. The World football governing body FIFA reacted to the cancellation with disappointment last month.

The world football boss, Gianni Infantino, spoke about their dedication to promote women’s football globally. And as Senegal ends season, the bidding process to host the Beach Soccer Africa Cup of Nations 2020 is open, again, after Uganda withdrew.

In Europe, Cas has lifted the two-year Champions League ban on Manchester City while Liverpool manager, Jurgen Klopp, was impressed by the euphoria of his two African gems, Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah. Despite the lock down,

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Sports Feature: The extraordinary ups and downs of Saido Berahino’s journey from Burundi to Belgium

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he Eastern African nation of Burundi is one of the most underdeveloped countries on the planet. Its progress has been hacked at by horrific violence, ethnic division and government corruption over many decades.

It’s ranked as the poorest country in the world by Global Finance Magazine and found to be the unhappiest country in the world by the UN’s World Happiness Report. Around 80 percent of its population lives in poverty, with 90 percent of the working population working in agriculture. Not too long ago, coming out of Burundi alive was an achievement in itself, let alone emerging as a professional footballer.

Saido Berahino was born in Bujumbura, then Burundi’s capital, in August 1993. The nation, as it had been for some time, was split by animosity between two ethnic groups, the Hutus and the Tutsis. Three months after Berahino’s birth, proHutu president Melchior Ndadaye was murdered

by Tutsis, sparking a fierce backlash from the government.

The following year, new pro-Hutu president Sylvestre Ntibantunganya was killed in neighbouring Rwanda alongside Rwandan president Juvenal Habyarimana when their plane was shot down by a pro-Tutsi group. The event sparked the mass genocide of Tutsis in Rwanda, with the bloodshed spilling over into Burundi, where civil war was raging.

“You’d see bodies on the street covered up, little kids. You’d see bullet shells on the floor in the streets,” Berahino told Channel 4 in 2014. During the civil war, Berahino’s father was one of an estimated 300,000 people killed. Six years after his father’s death, Berahino fled to the UK at the age of ten, separated from his mother and sisters on arrival.

His mother was eventually traced and the pair were only reunited in Birmingham once DNA tests had confirmed their relation. When he landed on British soil, Berahino knew no English, only French and Swahili, the language he continues to speak to his mother in. Skilled in several sports, the youngster started to stand out at school and, above all, on the football pitch.

Just a year after leaving Burundi, he was invited to join West

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Brom’s School of Excellence at under-12 level. The innocent Manchester United fan didn’t quite know what to think of it.

“I used to play for my local team, and the manager told me I’d been sent to West Brom for a trial. At the time I didn’t really know who they were, because I didn’t know the English teams apart from the big four,” Berahino told FourFourTwo in 2010.

He’d always been a striker but was, in his own words, “not pacy, but powerful and with good technique.” As is often the way in youth football, the attention always draws to those making a telling impact in front of goal.

“He improved year after year, we will always remember him scoring four goals for the Under-15s in a game up at Liverpool.

All the other academy teams would always talk about Saido after games,” Steve Hopcroft, head of academy recruitment at West Brom, told the Telegraph in 2014.

At the age of 18, Berahino was offered his first professional contract by the Baggies and called up to train with the first team

by Roy Hodgson. He didn’t make his senior debut for the club until after a couple of eye-catching loan spells at Northampton and Brentford in Leagues 2 and 1 respectively. During his time in west London, Berahino never quite saw eye to eye with boss Uwe Rösler.

Nevertheless, when he returned to the Hawthorns in the summer of 2012, Hodgson was gone and Steve Clarke was now the man to impress. The new head coach handed Berahino his West Brom bow in the League Cup against Yeovil but, with Romelu Lukaku joining from Chelsea, another loan was laid out.

Championship side Peterborough snapped up the 20-year-old and, if it wasn’t for a knee injury midway through the campaign, his goals may well have helped them avoid relegation.

However, with Lukaku heading back to Stamford Bridge and Peter Odemwingie leaving for Cardiff, a slot opened up in Clarke’s squad ahead of the 2013/14 season.

Having netted a hat-trick against Newport in the League Cup second round, it wasn’t just the West Brom coach who wanted to see a bit more of this exciting forward. Berahino was included in Gareth Southgate’s first squad as England under-21

boss and scored on his debut in a 1-0 win over Moldova.

If his reputation wasn’t already on a rapid rise, it was about to soar. Berahino’s first Premier League goal came against reigning champions then, Manchester United, at Old Trafford. It was the winner, too – a ping into the bottom corner with his weaker left foot from the edge of the box. David de Gea stood no chance.

The striker’s displays in the top flight would earn him further under-21 call-ups, with the question of international allegiance not an issue for the Bujumbura-born prodigy. “Burundi is motherland to me. I will always be a Burundian regardless of what happens, even if I become a successful Premier League player. I will still have the Burundi culture in me,” he told the Telegraph at the time.

“Playing for England is totally different. They have given me a second chance in life, provided my family with a different type of lifestyle. I feel very, very grateful to what England have done for me and my family. So, when I play for England, I play with passion and excitement, joy and desire to win.’’

By then, he had already represented the Three Lions at every age-group, from under-16 to under-20, and was becoming a central figure in Southgate’s side. After scoring the first of a double against Finland at Stadium MK in November, Berahino raised his shirt to reveal a touching message. “RIP, Love U Dad,” it read. A poignant moment that proved Burundi was very much still on his mind and in his heart, while still doing his job for another nation.

At the halfway point of his first season in the big time, there were some who strained as far as World Cup selection the following summer. Despite having a major say in West Brom’s survival success towards the end of the campaign, there was no place for Berahino on the plane to Brazil.

Back in West Bromwich, Pepe Mel made way for Alan Irvine, who brought in Brown Ideye from Dynamo Kyiv to bolster his attacking options. Even with his added competition for places, Berahino’s early-season form saw his spot up front untouchable.

Crystal Palace and Burnley fell victim to his prolific finishing as he began to perfect his poaching game. One-touch finishes, mostly from inside the penalty area, became a pillar of his play.

So did penalties, with one coming in the form of an equalizer at Anfield during a 2-1 defeat. Transfer gossip saw Berahino linked with a January move to Liverpool, with Tottenham also reportedly willing to part with considerable cash in order to secure his signature.

He certainly gave Manchester United a run for their money on their visit to the Hawthorns in October, putting the hosts in front in the second half, this time with a cool, guided effort into the bottom corner, displaying both the clinical and composed natures of his game.

Berahino’s purple patch in front of goal was too appeasing for Hodgson to resist, with the striker receiving his first senior England call-up for the November fixtures against Slovenia and Scotland. “It’s up to Saido to show he can make this step up from his own level, under-21, to the senior level,” Berahino’s former West Brom boss said – but the opportunity never arose.

Hodgson didn’t opt to play the 21-year-old in either the Euro 2016 qualifier at Wembley or the friendly at Celtic Park. A harsh omission from the outside, but the England boss may have had a reason. A couple of weeks after that international break, it emerged that Berahino had been arrested for drink-driving the month before. He was charged with the offence in January, but personal and professional lives stayed apart for the time being.

With Tony Pulis appointed as the sacked Irvine’s successor, the forward still appeared regularly on the scoresheet over the rest of the season. However, the smiles started to disappear. A four-goal haul against Gateshead in the FA Cup didn’t produce a single ounce of emotion on the front man’s face. “I was just handling business and acting professionally and that’s it,” he said. “There’s no need for me to explain myself on not celebrating goals.”

Attitude issues and rumoured unrest saw West Brom scrap plans to give Berahino a new contract, accepting that they’d have to sell him on in the summer but, when Tottenham came calling, their bids were rejected, prompting fury from the player himself.

When he was denied a move to Spurs on deadline day, Berahino threatened to strike, saying that he’d never play under Chairman Jeremy Peace again.

September rolled around and the striker was still stuck at the Hawthorns. A sort of ceasefire was instilled to cool the tensions between player, club and coach, allowing Berahino to remain involved with the first team. Any grudges the supporters held against him were all but forgotten, if not forgiven, when he stuck his leg out to deflect James Morrison’s shot past Brad Guzan at Villa Park, sealing a 1-0 victory for the visitors.

It was an ice-breaking moment that was met with sheer joy by

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Berahino himself in his celebrations as his teammates surrounded him in support. They knew this special yet rugged talent was worth the effort of keeping happy, but that viewpoint wasn’t shared by their manager.

More approaches from other clubs were rebuffed by West Brom in January and again the following summer as Pulis eventually froze the player out for the disruption he was causing. Berahino’s stay at the Hawthorns came to a sour end as Stoke finally agreed a deal to take him north, where he would also find himself singled out for criticism by Paul Lambert as the Potters were relegated to the Championship.

Just as it seemed this downward turn would spiral out of control, there was salvation. In the summer of 2018, as his former under-21 teammates Raheem Sterling, John Stones and Jesse Lingard starred for England at the World Cup, Berahino was re-introduced to international football.

In his first cap for the country of his birth later that year, Berahino found the net as Burundi drew 1-1 with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s Gabon in Libreville. Burundi had never qualified for any major tournament before but, with the Africa Cup of Nations expanding in size, they were beginning to dream.

DRC gets first woman to head large football club [Football Planet]

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When Gabon visited Bujumbura the following March, the Swallows needed just a point to secure a place at the finals. A defeat, though, and Gabon would take their place in Egypt. Despite the odds stacked against them, the fairytale, one that had seemed more like a roller coaster for Burundi’s captain, did have a happy ending as the match finished 1-1 and euphoria erupted around the stands of the Intwari stadium, the city and the country.

After decades of despair, a fleeting moment of joy, and, at last, Burundi had something to look forward to.

For young Burundians growing up, they now had someone to idolise. Someone who had been in their shoes, not literally, and had gone on to achieve big things. Even if the minnows’ AFCON campaign ended without a win, a point or even a goal, the armband wearing Saido Berahino is still a hero for many.

After personal misdemeanours ended his stay in Stoke early, the 26-year-old is rebuilding his career with Zulte Waregem in Belgium, but there’s still a long way to go. Significant doubts remain over whether he’ll be able to fulfil his full potential in football but, either way, his father will definitely be proud.

By Billy Munday @billymunday08

Bestine Kazadi is taking over leadership of a team that has been on tabs with the successes of TP Mazembe in Lubumbashi The game is slowly but surely getting dominated by women…

In the Democratic Republic of Congo, one woman has just moved to manage one of the country’s large football clubs – AS Vita in Kinshasa.

Bestine Kazadi is taking over leadership of a team that has been on tabs with the successes of TP Mazembe in Lubumbashi. Her predecessor was president for 13 years and she is the first woman at the top of the club since it was created in 1935.

This and other highlights including the additional time for the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations hosts as the tournament is pushed to January 2022 to their relief, plus highlights from around Europe to see how African players are performing in Serie A, Premier League, and La Liga

FIFA to implement Premier League VAR changes

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AR has endured a controversial debut season in English football and the Premier League have lost control over their use of VAR after FIFA took full control of the technology protocol.

Pierluigi Collina, the former Italian referee, who is now the chairman of Fifa’s Referees’ Committee, will oversee VARs and he has made it clear that he wants the system to be used the same way across the world.

VAR has endured a controversial first season in English football with fans growingly frustrated with the technology and its inconsistent use compared to other European league and competitions.

One major sticking point has been the Premier League’s reluctance to allow referees to consult with the pitchside monitors, which have been used to good effect overseas and in the Champions League and European League.

However, Fifa has sent a letter to national associations (the FA) and leagues saying it has taken over all VAR-related activities from the International FA Board (IFAB), who govern

the game’s laws.

It means Collina will now be in charge instead of David Elleray, the former English referee who is IFAB’s technical director and had been seen as the chief architect of VAR. The letter states: “All VARrelated activities will now transfer to Fifa. Therefore, please address all your VAR-related questions, comments or suggestions directly to Fifa Refereeing.”

The Premier League, which has had 94 decisions overturned during the season, expects to push ahead with plans to have a margin of error for offside decisions next season.

The Premier League has also insisted on not using VAR to judge whether a goalkeeper has moved off his line at penalty kicks, contrary to Collina’s wishes, and giving a defender more leeway when the ball strikes their arm.

As well as the reduction in Elleray’s influence, FIFA’s decision means that the four British associations, who have privileged positions on IFAB, will now have less of a voice on the VAR protocol.

The four home nations have one vote each and Fifa has four votes, with any IFBA decision needing six votes to pass a motion.

It will also give former Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger, who is now FIFA’s head of global football development, a much greater say in VAR developments.

Under his guidance, FIFA is set to trial changing the offside law so that there has to be clear daylight between the attacker and defender for an offside offence to occur.

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