Opinion: Karamoja is burning over mineral explorations…

A total of 17,083 square kilometers of land in Karamoja is licensed for mineral exploration and extraction activities, according to official data. Twenty-six companies currently have exploratory or mining rights in the region. In 2018, Chinese mining company Sunbelt was given 3.3 square kilometers of land to set up a $13 million dollar marble mining factory in Rupa sub-county. A year later, the company expanded its operations to cover an additional 4.1 square kilometers, ostensibly after a deal with local leaders. Hundreds of families have since been pushed out of their ancestral homes, local officials say. Locals accuse Rupa Community development trust, a community trustee group created three years ago, of conniving with investors to steal their land” (Diana Taremwa Karakire – ‘Mining Rush Threatens Indigenous Peoples in Karamoja, Uganda’ 01.09.2021).

What I feared the most seems to be reason for the joint operation of the Uganda Police Force (UPF) and Uganda People’s Defence Force (UDPF) in the Karamoja sub-region. Which is an continues operation and it is persisting. The state is even furthering it’s investments into it by deploying 6,000 Local Defence Units or LDUs in Karamjoa. Therefore, the burning and bleeding will persist for a long time.

The lack of accountability and transparency is very clear. The obvious reasons for that is the licensed land and territories given to mineral extraction corporation over the indigenous people. The people and the citizens are neglected. They are perpetrators and the unlawful one in the mind of the state, but not by their rights as people.

The Government and the Authorities are coming in as a colonial government. They are occupying and violently removing people. The state is blaming the cattle rustling, but it is obviously more too it. Because, it is not like the government would create so much and damage over some livestock. However, it would do so over the mineral extraction and possible gold-rush in Karamoja.

We know they have given this state operation the name of “Usalama Kwa Wote” to disarm and take away illegal guns, but I wouldn’t be shocked if it was an alternate motive. A cash enterprise and a possible profit objective of the state. As they know the values of the land and what it possesses. When knowing that… they might find it easier to scare people away and not take ownership of land. Make them displaced and ensure their fear to return. As the mineral exploration and exploitation can start. In such a manner, that the government and the companies can start their trading.

The unfortunate families, villages and the Karimojong is just dying. While they are defending their land and we don’t have any idea about the amount of fatalities. As the GoU, the State House and UPDF doesn’t release any sort of update on their Joint Operation there. Only in the beginning and stopped when the public outcry ceased to exist.

The Karamoja sub-region continues to burn, be looted and is destroyed by government entities. While they are blaming old cultural factors and blaming the herders. That just shows their sinister motives. Because, we are not supposed to know about the vast licensing agreements and the planned mineral exploitation, which has been sanctioned without the concern of the locals or the Karimojong in general. They just have to accept the loss of land, livelihood and where they have lived for generations.

Because, that is the “steady progress” and “securing your future” means for Karamoja these days. The state don’t mind violating or destroying, as long as it has a prosperous future ahead of it. Peace.

Ghana: Tertiary Education Institutions Network (T.E.I.N) – TEIN Upsa congratulates the MP for Madina Constituency, Hon. Francis Xavier Sosu for Introduction of Private Member’s Bill to Substitute Death Penalty for Life Imprisonment (16.04.2022)

Sudan: Khartoum 3 Resistance Committees – The Initiative of The Revolutionary Front to Solve the Sudanese Crisis… Sudan first (15.04.2022)

Our people resisting the coup:

We followed the Revolutionary Front’s launching of what it called an initiative (the initiative of the Revolutionary Front to solve the Sudanese crisis… Sudan first).

This description of the Revolutionary Front, in our opinion, is inaccurate and incorrect, and it is a complete transgression and disregards what happened, which is the coup of October 25, 2021, which resulted from an alliance between the coup authorities, led by the head of the Coup Sovereignty Council, Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, and he made a two-and-a-half-year political deal. It concluded with the restoration of the deposed regime, the ousted Islamic movement, and the dissolved National Congress Party, as well as the revocation of the provisions and articles of the law aimed at dismantling the regime of June 30, 1989, and recovering public funds, and returned all looted assets to them.

The initiative of the Revolutionary Front, which we reviewed some of its articles, called for allocating 100 seats in the Legislative Council to resistance committees, with 15 representatives from the state of Khartoum and five representatives from each state, and each party receiving one seat, the Sudanese Professionals Association receiving two seats, and armed movements receiving 25%. It is merely a bargaining position, rather than a crisis-resolution initiative, as the Revolutionary Front has described it. This is an example of the mentality and thinking of the leaders of the armed movements on the issues of the democratic transition and the overthrow of the revolution, bearing in mind that the pre-coup constitutional document had established a framework that granted the Revolutionary Front and its armed movements a good political status. Nonetheless, it backed the coup against the transitional government and the revolution, as well as taking positions in favor of the coup authorities and upholding its stances, making it an obvious and clear participant in the coup.

Our brave people:

The Revolutionary Front’s position and presence in the coup authority, as well as its retention of all the privileges of the Juba Peace Agreement, which was included in the 2019 constitutional document in November 2020, do not qualify it to launch a political initiative that does not include the conditions and demands of the Sudanese people who reject the coup, because it is a partner in the current government and its forces have been involved in arresting, killing, and running over peaceful revolutionaries for last six months.

This initiative is rejected by us because it does not reflect the aspirations of the Sudanese people who reject the coup, but rather is a negotiating position and an attempt by the Revolutionary Front to remain relevant because they know the coup’s downfall is imminent, which will necessitate reconsidering the Juba Peace Agreement, which did not benefit the sons and daughters of our great people in Darfur, eastern, northern, or central Sudan. However, the signatories of this agreement benefited politically and socially the benefit of a small group of the affiliates of their movements.

Ukraine: WFP appeals for access to encircled cities in Ukraine (15.04.2022)

WFP ED Visit to a local church and meets with Sergei Anohin, a local pastor in Bucha, took in 160 people who lived inside the church for ten days as fighting raged. WFP is providing assistance here.
WFP has scaled up significantly in the past 6 weeks. So far, we have already supported 30,000 people with cash assistance and over 1.3 million (mostly in hard to reach areas) with in-kind food

KYIV — The United Nations World Food Programme today called for unimpeded access to families trapped in conflict areas and encircled cities in Ukraine, saying lack of access was the biggest obstacle to its life-saving operations in the war-torn country.

“We’re calling on everyone to give us the access we need to reach the people in besieged cities,” WFP Executive Director David Beasley said at the end of a three-day visit to Ukraine. “It’s one thing when people are suffering from the devastation of war. It’s another thing when they’re being starved to death.”

The encircled city of Mariupol in southern Ukraine is thought to be running out of its last reserves of food and water. No humanitarian aid has been allowed into the city since it was encircled more than two weeks ago. To the west, the city of Mykolaev remains unreachable due to active conflict in the area. WFP is also concerned about several cities in the east.

WFP has so far delivered food assistance to 1.4 million people in Ukraine and is ramping up to reach 2.3 million people this month. But getting safe access to cities like Mariupol, where more than 100,000 people are believed to be trapped, will be key.

WFP this week expanded food assistance operations to areas which until recently were on the war’s front lines. In towns such as Bucha, Hostomel, Borodyanka and Irpin, near Kyiv, WFP is now distributing boxes of pasta, rice, canned meat and cooking oil to traumatized survivors amid the rubble of their former homes.

WFP chief Beasley went to Bucha on Thursday to see first-hand the operations being carried out in the area with the help of local church communities. He also spoke with women and children in a nearby centre for displaced people.

“I am shocked. The horror of war is so visible here and I shudder to think what these people have been through,” he said after walking through streets littered with unexploded mortar shells and visiting a bombed out orphanage. “But I see hope. I see a community working with energy to clean up and rebuild. We need to support that process.”

WFP is scaling up its response to the conflict in Ukraine on a “no-regrets” basis, giving out food and assistance very broadly, with the goal of eventually supporting 6 million people caught up in the world’s fastest growing humanitarian crisis. Families in conflict-affected areas are receiving food parcels similar to those distributed in Bucha. Meanwhile, in areas where markets are functioning, cash is being distributed so families can buy what they need.

Over 7 million people are displaced inside Ukraine and the pre-conflict supply chain systems for feeding the country’s population have broken down in many areas. WFP estimates one third of the people in the country and more than half (60 percent) internally displaced people are worried about finding enough to

The conflict in Ukraine is also triggering a wave of collateral hunger elsewhere in the world. Global food prices have increased sharply since the onset of the conflict and are now at an all-time high. These hikes are expected to further limit access to food for millions of people who are already under stress because of food inflation in their countries.

Ethiopia: UN Organizations celebrates mediocrity – Humanitarian Assistance Blockade still ravaging large in Tigray region

All 50 trucks just arrived safely in #Mekelle, bringing essential humanitarian supplies including:

➡️1,000mt of wheat & pulses

➡️700mt of health, nutrition & WASH items

+ 115,000 litres of fuel” (World Food Programme Ethiopia, 15.04.2022).

Since the humanitarian truce of 24th March 2022 and that is 22 days of supposed opening of entry to the Tigray region. However, previously there has only come about 21 trucks into the region early in April. Now by the middle of the month on the 15th April it has come another 50 trucks. The United Nations and World Food Programme (WFP) praising the FDRE over it is obnoxious. When you know how the state has been working and using food insecurity as a weapon.

The region by previous estimates of needs are 100 trucks per day. In the middle of only the humanitarian truce by now. It would mean the UN and WFP should have driven convoys of a 100, every single day. However, they are barely scraping that after two famous entries of about 75 trucks on max. That isn’t something to salute. In the time of the Humanitarian Truce the region should have seen about 2000 trucks and such. To be exact, the state should have ensured that the region could see 2200 trucks get into Tigray.

The recent OCHA reports states the situation like this:

Humanitarian partners have not been able to move any additional aid supplies into Tigray via the Semera-Abala-Mekelle since the convoy of 20 trucks with food and nutrition supplies and one fuel tanker that arrived on 1 and 2 April, the first convoy since 15 December 2021. Humanitarian organizations in Tigray are facing growing challenges in reaching people in need due to shortages of essential supplies, and the continuing suspension of basic essential services, including banking, electricity, and communications. Food partners, for instance, remain with only around 1,300 metric tons (MT) of food commodities within Tigray out of which, there is merely enough stock or 360 MT to feed about 21,000 people with a balanced three-commodity food basket for one round. Between 4 and 8 April, humanitarian partners airlifted 100 MT of nutrition and medical supplies to Mekelle, Tigray. As of 11 April, the total amount of medical and nutrition supplies airlifted since the first cargo flight on 24 January is about 538 MT, equivalent to only 13 trucks of humanitarian supplies. The supplies included about 36 MT of HIV anti-retroviral medicines, the first time since July 2021. This will be enough to treat 46,000 HIV patients for six months. The airlifts remain limited to low quantities between 5 and 13 MT per flight and were prioritized according to the most urgent lifesaving needs, therefore cannot fill in the significant gap between the needs on the ground and the supplies delivered” (OCHA, 14.04.2022).

More than 9 million people need food assistance in northern Ethiopia and food assistance will be required throughout 2022 across northern Ethiopia. Provision of food assistance in hard-to-reach areas in Tigray, Amhara and Afar. Increased food needs due to increased number of IDPs in parts of Amhara and in Afar” (OCHA, 14.04.2022).

So, when you read what the last round of humanitarian assistance was able to help, which is about 21,000 people. You know the amount of trucks of humanitarian assistance versus the needs of the millions of people. It is easy to see the gaps which is enormous. This just shows how the humanitarian assistance have been weaponized and it’s a man-made famine.

The entries of the about the 75 trucks is only an anomaly and only patches the hurt, but it doesn’t fix the problems. This isn’t something to celebrate or sound victories. No, this is just disgraceful and shows how distasteful the FDRE are. The FDRE and Tripartite Alliance has created this monster, they are proud of blocking people’s ability to eat and starve them on-mass. That’s why they have allowed 75 trucks in a period the state should have seen over 2000 trucks should have entered the same area. That’s how unserious and careless they are about the plights of the Tigray region. The Addis Ababa and Asmara ruling elites wouldn’t care if Mekelle would burn to the ground and be left in the dust. That is what they are doing and we are not supposed to say anything.

The 75 trucks isn’t worth texts of gravitas and sending pigeons to Bahir Dar. No, it deserves contempt, as much contempt as the current regime has for the Tigray region. Peace.

Opinion: Burnley deserve relegation now

Firstly, we would like to place on record our sincere thanks to Sean and his staff for their achievements at the Club over the last decade” – Alan Pace (15.04.2022).

The owners and board of Burnley Football Club has today sacked manager Sean Dyche. Dyche has been the Burnley manager since 31st October 2012. He was the manager for the total of 425 matches. Where he was able to get the club up twice from the Championship. The first time got them up in the 2013/14 season and the club returned back to Premier League in 2016/17.

So, until today… the Dyche kept the club up for 6 seasons in a row, even if he had gotten the club relegated this season. Which is an achievement in itself and with the financial levels of Burnley. Burnley is the underdog and has been so.

Dyche was even able to get Burnley to the 7th Position in the Premier League in the 2017/18 season. Last season the club just avoided relegation with a 17th Position in the 2020/21. With this in mind, the club haven’t invested or ensured the manager could strengthen his squad. Therefore, the sacking today with 8 matches to go is foolish.

It is only in September 2021, the club said this after signing a new 4 year contract with Dyche: “Burnley Football Club is delighted to announce manager Sean Dyche and assistant manager Ian Woan have both signed new long-term deals until the end of the 2024-25 season. The deal secures Dyche’s future at the club for another four years as the Clarets compete in a sixth-successive season in the Premier League. The longest-serving manager in the Premier League will be extending a successful nine-year spell at the helm which has seen two promotions from the Championship, two top-half Premier League finishes and qualification for Europe for the first time in 51 years” (Burnley, 16.09.2021).

Today, this is the statement by the same club: “Burnley Football Club can confirm the Club has parted company with manager Sean Dyche, assistant manager Ian Woan, first-team coach Steve Stone and goalkeeping coach Billy Mercer” (Burnley, 15.04.2022).

It is really a strange timing of sacking Dyche. As his four points behind Everton and still had time to save the club. If someone would make it possible. It would be likes of Dyche. Now, the club is searching for a replacement and they have no transfer-window to get players fitting the new manager. The club is throwing a curveball in the middle of the battle against relegation.

With that in mind. The club deserves to go down now. They are not prepared and taking away a man that has the experience and the managerial charisma to save them. He has proven them and the new owners clearly cannot see that. They want quick results and not to build with actually money. The new owners has piled up debt on the club, but not invested in it. That’s why his getting the short end of the stick.

Dyche has proven his abilities and capable of. The next club to have him as manager should feel lucky. Since, he can do so much with so little transfer kit and only with his drive behind it. Burnley still had matches, which it could achieve victories and possibly pass Everton on the table. That wasn’t over just yet.

When a club does this and takes away the foundation for why it’s in the Premier League. The owners will struggle to find someone who will be able and create what he did there. The club now deserves to fail and Burnley has shown that it will not make things better. It don’t matter now. The club has betrayed its fans and the ones that made it possible for it to be there. Burnley was lucky to have someone as wise and able to achieve what he did.

The board of directors and such should look into itself. They better get Jesus Christ to resurrect in the next match or get the best manager of the decade to come to Burnley. Because, they need a miracle now and dropping Dyche at this very moment is reckless.

8 matches to go… Burnley deserve an award for bad timing and lack of clarity. Because, this sacking doesn’t make sense. Sean Dyche was the man to save it and no one can take that away from him. The new owners did… but they will not carry the club or the legacy of Dyche.

No matter who comes in now. They will not be able takeover and make a difference within such a short time. The biggest name and most experience of them all. However, that person don’t know the players or their form. The one who knew that is already sacked and he also know perfectly well what was at stake. He has already been relegated twice. Therefore, he knew and knows what was ahead of him. Dyche had been there before and with the same club.

That’s why Burnley in April 2022 deserves the relegation now. They are by default making it possible with the tensions and uncertainty of staff. Which will cause issues with the players and bury them even further. This is why the club deserves it now.

Most of us… would have hoped that Dyche would save them yet again. In front of Everton and show that the stability and the resilience of Burnley matters. Now… we won’t mind, because the owners took away the man that built the club and made things possible there. In the lack of time and opportunities they sacked him. If it had been when the season was over. It would have made some sense and then the new manager could come in with fresh air ahead of next season.

Now… it is just throwing a curveball and hoping something would stick. That’s bad planning and even worse as a strategy. However, that is what Pace and the other directors are hoping for. Peace.

Opinion: Time to smell the coffee… [Veni, vidi, vici]

The last few days the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development (MoFPED) has defended it’s agreements with Uganda Vinci Coffee Company Limited. This stems from the agreements, addenda’s and whatnot.

This is the same investor that is building the Lubowa Specialized Hospital. When seeing the results of that and lack of progress. The sort of deals and agreements with UVCC is only beneficial for the owners and the ones arranging it in the state.

The coffee-farmers had no say in this and the monopoly of trading beans will possibly destroy the exports of coffee. Especially, when the company has been working on the factory since the investor with a delegation held a meeting at the State House in January 2014. This means it has gone 8 years and little to nothing has been moving. Just like there Hospital that been in the works since 2015. It is not like any of these has seen the lights of day and it isn’t getting any better.

The UVCC is getting tax-holidays and monopoly on coffee beans. Uganda Coffee Development Authority (UCDA) should have a say in this and you can wonder why the Minister of Agriculture doesn’t want to have any play in it. That just shows the shoddiness, since one of their own and loyal cadres in Frank Tumwebaze is downplaying his role.

Finance Minister Matia Kasaija and Permanent Secretary Ramathan Ggoobi is both busy defending and selling the agreement in concern to UVCC. The company is given 10 years with monopoly and a tax-holiday, which is respectfully a terrible agreement. Especially, when there is no proof of the profitability or even if it is able to trade in this market. Secondly, the company has used years on end without any movements. The last proven change of the plot has been a field investigation in March 2020. Therefore, giving them a ten year monopoly two years later. Make you wonder why? What is so special and unique about UVCC? What leverage does this company has on the paper and makes it reasonable for the state to give away everything to it?

It is like the state owns the UVCC and the Italian investor for something. Even if there is no proof of profits or even able to carry it out. The reason why this can be said, because neither projects is anywhere close lights of day. At least the Soroti Fruit Factory actually exists, even if it is producing for the wrong fruit and isn’t profitable. Neither the hospital or the coffee factory is existing.

The Vinci Company is selling dreams… and the state is catching nightmares. The MoFPED is busy selling stories and fairytales. Since, the coffee processing plant is far from being built. There is no movement and proof of such. Neither is the Hospital getting into a stage of being operational. It is all on paper and agreements made by trading ghosts. The government is giving away a lot to a business, which is not even operational or has the proven ability of trading the commodities on the world market.

That’s why this whole deal is a mess. The naive will believe the numbers and the charts that Ggoobi was shelling out today and yesterday. The coffee market worldwide is huge, but how will a paper-tiger compete with the international companies and the ones that has been up and running for generations? Aha… that he will not answer too. Because, the trade and the business is already in motion. The state has already signed off it’s rights to a non-existent coffee factory and a company, which isn’t operational. That’s why the state has to patch the hurt, but the ones in-charge should smell the coffee, because this will get bitter very soon. Peace.

Guinee: Front National pour la Defense de la Constitution (FNDC) – Communique No. 191 (14.04.2022)

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