[Egyptian Prime Minister Essam Sharaf said Monday that clashes between army forces and pro-Coptic Christian protesters had “brought us back” to the tense, violent period at the onset of the recent revolution]
BURUNDI :
RWANDA :
Rwanda: NIgerian President in Key Trade Visit to Rwanda Seeks Trade Ties
Berna Namata/The East African/9 October 2011
Rwanda last week turned its attention to Africa’s biggest country, Nigeria, in its drive to attract new investments and find new markets for its exports.
At the invitation of President Paul Kagame, Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan visited Kigali on Wednesday and Thursday to sign a comprehensive agreement to strengthen trade ties between the two nations.
President Kagame has been globe-trotting since the beginning of this year, cementing ties with big economies, the most recent being France and the USA.
While details of the deal remain scanty, President Jonathan’s delegation, which included a dozen of the biggest names in corporate Nigeria, signalled that the West African leader viewed the visit as a serious opportunity to do business.
The delegation included Alhaji Aliko Dangote of Dangote Group, Nigeria’s largest industrial group, which deals in food processing, cement manufacturing and freight services; Aigboje Aig-Imokhuede, managing director of Access Bank; Jim Ovia, founder of Visafone, a communications firm; and Tony Elumelu, chairman of Heirs Holdings, a multi-million dollar African investment company.
Kigali is particularly keen on attracting Nigerian investment into key sectors such as banking, agriculture and manufacturing.
The country is cultivating new international trading partners to help build the economy as the world slowly slides into another recession.
“We already have some Nigerian investors talking to the Rwanda Development Board,” said Minister of Trade and Industry Francois Kanimba. RDB said it was targeting at least $500 million in new investments both local and foreign in 2011.
“Every day, the boundaries are become thinner and thinner… Leaders must continue to discuss to see how we can accelerate economic development. [That’s why] I came with a few businessmen,” said President Jonathan.
“We are talking about RwandAir having an opportunity to fly to most of our cities to encourage that level of interaction,” President Jonathan added.
RwandAir, the national carrier, is planning new routes to West Africa, with Lagos as the first likely point of entry.
At present, Access Bank and insurance company Sonarwa are the only major Nigerian investments in the country.
Other Nigerian businesses in Kigali are Food Concepts Plc, a company dealing in retail food business and Oando Plc, one of the biggest energy companies in Nigeria.
“In the next 3-5 years, we should be able to invest about $10-15 million in Rwanda.
The country is strategically located between the big countries of East Africa,” said Deji Akinyanju, founder and CEO of Food Concepts.
MTN group acquires 25% stake in MTN Rwanda from govt .
Monday, 10 October 2011 /www.businessdayonline.com/ Bill Okonedo with agency report .
Crystal Ventures Limited and the Government of Rwanda have collectively sold a 25% stake in MTN Rwandacell Limited to the MTN Group Limited (“MTN Group”).
The transaction, which was concluded in Kigali last week and brokered by Renaissance Capital, saw MTN Group increase its ownership in MTN Rwanda from 55% to 80%. Crystal Ventures will retain a 20% interest in MTN Rwanda and will remain an active minority shareholder in the Company.
In a statement issued by Crystal Ventures, its Chairman Nshuti Manasseh said: “We have held our investment in MTN Rwanda since its inception 13 years ago, and together created the foremost telecommunications company in Rwanda with more than 2.7 million subscribers. Following our partial divestment in 2007, this further partial divestment provides another opportunity for Crystal Ventures to redeploy capital in other sectors of the Rwandan economy. As we remain a significant shareholder in MTN Rwanda, we look forward to working with MTN Group to ensure the continued growth of the company”.
John Rwangombwa, Minister of Finance said: “Since 1998, MTN Rwanda has been an excellent investment for the Government of Rwanda and has helped us to achieve our objective of growing and developing the telecommunications industry in Rwanda. Government has for some time now, indicated its desire to no longer participate in the sector as an investor. We are pleased that we have been able to reach agreement with MTN on the terms of our exit”.
MTN Group President and CEO Sifiso Dabengwa added: “Our increased investment in MTN Rwanda demonstrates our strong commitment to Rwanda and the broader East African region. We look forward to many more years of operating in Rwanda in partnership with Crystal Ventures”.
RDC CONGO:
Arrestation d’hommes armés qui projetaient “d’attaquer” Kinshasa
(belga) /10/10/11
Les autorités de la République démocratique du Congo (RDC) ont arrêté vendredi cinq hommes armés venus du Congo voisin, soupçonnés d’appartenir à un groupe qui projetait “d’attaquer simultanément” six villes en RDC, dont la capitale Kinshasa, a rapporté dimanche la presse kinoise, citant des sources officielles.
Vendredi vers 02H00 (03h00 HB) “une bande d’éléments armés” en provenance de Loukolola au Congo-Brazzaville, a “franchi le fleuve (Congo) et attaqué la cité de Lukolela”, dans la province de l’Equateur dans le nord-ouest de la RDC, a indiqué le vice-Premier ministre et ministre de l’Intérieur, Adolphe Lumanu Mulenda Bwana N’Sefu, évoquant une “attaque armée des forces du mal”.
Les services de sécurité congolais “ont neutralisé cinq assaillants” détenteurs “de cartes de résidents au Congo-Brazzaville” et de 18 armes légères de types Kalashnikov et Uzi, ajoute le texte.
“Interrogés à chaud, les assaillants (…) ont fait plusieurs révélations tant sur les ordres reçus de leurs commanditaires que sur le modus operandi des actes de déstabilisation qu’ils devraient commettre en RDC, notamment la mission d’attaquer simultanément Mbandaka, Lukolela, Bolobo, Kwamouth, Kinshasa et Matadi”, six villes de l’ouest de la RDC, selon le ministre.
Faustin Munene
“Les fugitifs se sont repliés vers Loukolela” au Congo-Brazzaville, est-il indiqué sans précision sur le nombre des ces personnes. Les assaillants arrêtés seraient “un prétendu colonel, chef de bande, un certain major, deux capitaines et un lieutenant”, et ils portaient sur eux “un ordre de mission signé Faustin Munene”, un général retraité de l’armée de RDC arrêté en début d’année au Congo-Brazzaville où il est détenu depuis, ajoute le ministre de l’Intérieur.
Ex-chef d’état-major des forces aériennes congolaises sous Laurent-Désiré Kabila, le précédent président et père de l’actuel chef de l’Etat, le général Benoît-Faustin Munene a fui la RDC à l’automne 2009.
Il a été accusé par le gouvernement de Kinshasa d’avoir formé une rébellion – l’Armée de résistance populaire (ARP) – début novembre 2010 dans la province du Bandundu (ouest), dont il est originaire, et a été condamné par contumace à la prison à vie pour ces faits par un tribunal militaire congolais en mars.
Tensions
Le général Munene est également soupçonné par les autorités de RDC d’avoir été mêlé à l’attaque ratée de la résidence du président Kabila en février dernier dans la capitale. Le cas Munene est un point de friction entre les deux Congo, Kinshasa réclamant l’extradition du général, Brazzaville s’y opposant jusque-là.
Et le ministre de l’Intérieur du Congo-Brazzaville, Raymond Zéphirin Mboulou, a rejeté les accusations de Kinshasa sur la responsabilité de l’attaque de Lukolela, dénonçant, selon Radio France International (RFI), un “montage” des autorités de RDC pour repousser les élections présidentielle et législatives prévues le 28 novembre prochain. (belga)
10/10/11
Présidentielle Congo RDC: Antoine Gizenga soutien Kabila
Pana /10/10/2011
RD Congo Présidentielle – Antoine Gizenga annonce son soutien à Kabila à la présidentielle de novembre – Le Parti lumumbiste unifié (PALU), parti du patriarche Antoine Gizenga, soutiendra le chef de l’Etat, Joseph Kabila, pour la présidentielle de novembre prochain en République Démocratique du Congo (RDC), a annoncé M. Gizenga vendredi à Kinshasa, au cours d’une allocution prononcée dans la perspective des prochaines élections présidentielle et législatives dans le pays.
Pour Antoine Gizenga, le chef de l’Etat Joseph Kabila est le seul qui est apparenté à la mouvance nationaliste lumumbiste parmi les onze candidats retenus. ‘Il est aussi le seul à avoir présenté un programme à sensibilité nationaliste de gauche, visant principalement la grandeur de la Nation, la préservation de l’unité et de la souveraineté du peuple et l’amélioration de la situation sociale de la population’, a-t-il affirmé.
‘De tous ces candidats, Kabila est le seul qui ne recherche pas des accointances douteuses avec l’étranger au moment où les grands ténors de la droite ne cachent plus leurs jeux d’alliance avec des puissances ne relevant pas du peuple congolais’, a poursuivi le secrétaire général du PALU, avant d’inviter les Congolais ‘nationalistes et patriotes’ à soutenir le candidat Kabila et les candidats députés du PALU.
Le Parti lumumbiste unifié compte parmi les grandes formations politiques de la RDC. En 2006, rappelle-t-on, Antoine Gizenga, fort de ses 13,06 % des voix au premier tour de la présidentielle, avait fait alliance avec Kabila avant le second tour d’octobre 2006, pour séduire les coins du pays qui étaient encore hostiles à ce dernier, le pays étant à l’époque divisé par les années de guerre civile entre l’Est et l’Ouest.
UGANDA :
Uganda: EU Welcomes Indictment of Ruling Party Ministers
Emmanuel Gyezaho/The Monitor/9 October 2011
The European Union, one of Uganda’s leading development partners, has welcomed the indictment of three more senior members of the ruling NRM party, who stand accused of fiddling with Commonwealth Head of Governments summit funds.
The EU’s head of delegation, Ambassador Roberto Ridolfi, told this newspaper that in dragging to court ministers Sam Kutesa (Foreign Affairs), Mwesigwa Rukutana (State Labour) and John Nasasira (NRM Chief Whip), acting IGG Raphael Baku was exercising his constitutional mandate.
“The recent development shows that the authorities in charge of investigations are executing their mandate, as indeed has been publicly said by HE the President,” Mr Ridolfi said.
The three top officials joined jailed ex-vice president Gilbert Bukenya this week on indictments for abuse of office and causing financial loss in the run-up to the Kampala 2007 Chogm summit, a development that has since moved to thwart claims of selective persecution in the fight against corruption.
In an email correspondence, Mr Ridolfi, who speaks on behalf of the EU’s 10 member countries in Uganda, said: “While it would be inappropriate for me to comment on the merits of the investigations or on-going court cases, the determination to address and tackle corruption across the board is very important.”
“It is vital in ensuring sustainable development of this country,” he added.
Followed events
A lead campaigner for democracy and good governance in Uganda, the EU paid close attention to the 8th Parliament’s botched probe into the misuse of Chogm funds, which eventually exonerated all nine implicated senior members of the President’s cabinet.
The EU then joined other international donors in stating they would trim at least 10 per cent of their $320m (Shs915b) contribution to Uganda in the year to June 2011 because of concerns over failure to address corruption.
While it is still not clear whether those threats are responsible for the IGG’s latest onslaught, overall donor support to Uganda has since climbed from 24 per cent last financial year to 26 per cent in the Shs9 trillion 2011/2012 budget.
Mr Ridolfi admitted that the EU “is obviously following governance issues very closely”, but said he would not comment on the substance of the Chogm corruption cases because “the presumption of innocence is a fundamental principle and must hold at all times”.
Several donors have been critical of President Museveni’s administration, stating that graft has become endemic and that government’s refusal to pursue cases of grand corruption was breeding a culture of impunity.
But in prosecuting four senior NRM officials, government is saving face to beef up its rhetoric of zero tolerance to corruption.
Ex-VP Gilbert Bukenya. He was charged with abuse of office and causing financial loss of Shs9b in a botched deal to hire vehicles for visiting delegates. Bukenya was remanded to Luzira Prison pending trial at the High Court to which he was committed.
Sam Kutesa, Foreign Affairs minister. He has been summoned together with two other senior ministers, John Nasasira (Chief Whip) and Mwesigwa Rukutana (State Labour) by the Anti-graft court to answer charges abuse of office and causing financial loss.
Uganda: The Golden Memories of Independence Day in 1962
John K. Abimanyi & Michael J Ssali/The Monitor/9 October 2011
opinion
Uganda’s Independence Day forms a great mysterious void, especially for those that were not alive in 1962. How did the day feel like, what atmosphere hang in the air, what did it feel like to be alive in time to witness Uganda take its own destiny into its hands, and how far have we moved away, in terms of development, from that Tuesday in October, back in 1962
Questions were randomly put across to an older generation of Ugandans, those who were alive 49 years ago, to witness history with their own eyes. The category of answers fell into: those who looked back with nostalgia, temporarily taken out of the realm of the real and into one of imagination, delightfully surprised at being asked to remember the day, and, those who looked back with disgust, portraying a sense of disillusionment as the country has not grown into what they expected it to grow into. Here are excerpts.
Apollo Okia, 68
I remember I was in Senior four at that time, in a school in Tororo. It was a season of jubilation, we were all very jubilant. I was among the students who matched around with posters and banners in the school and in the town. Although we were young, we fully understood what independence meant. But all that excitement has been undone by many things. The country was first developing in the first years. There were fewer secondary schools by independence but they increased to about 50 in two years. You would see that there was some progress taking place. But now, there is little development because most of the riches are among the few and 90 per cent of the people are in poverty.
Martin Okot, late 60s
I wanted to attend the celebrations because it was such an important day. But we were still at school and I was very young. But you knew that something very important was taking place. There was a lot of rejoicing, and people were very happy. But today, there is no government. The government only serves the interests of certain people, hospitals are now only doing business and it is no longer a profession. Today, for leaders to serve you, they first ask, “Do you have something?” Back then, leaders had the country at heart, but not now. That is why today I do not go to the independence celebrations anymore because there is nothing to celebrate anymore.
Julius Sewati, late 60s
During that time, my father used to work for a certain white man. The man had told my father that we were now becoming adults to take care of our country for ourselves. One of the big people in Kyaggwe (Mukono district), I think he was the chief, had a celebration at his home. So, my father went to the party on Independence Day. There were also other people who went for the main celebrations in Kampala, and when they came back they told us about all the celebrations and the cars they saw at the event. But for most of us, the day went on just like that. Since that day, I think Uganda has had so many changes. There have been many bad days when we feared death to come any time. But things have also improved.
Bonny Mukiibi, late 60s
I was in Masaka at that time. At school, teachers had been talking about getting independence and we were ready for the big day. I don’t think we went to school that day. Everybody was happy. There was celebration in every place. Early in the morning, people had been drumming and singing, praising the Kabaka for having brought independence to Uganda. People actually started singing the day before. The roads were decorated with plants and flowers.
Uganda had tough times around the seventies, after the Kabaka had run away and then Amin became president. Things were very hard at that time. Things are still hard now, you see even the Kabaka now cannot be allowed to visit areas in his region. But slowly, the country is moving forward.
Lwanga Gonzaga, 69
I only came to Kampala after 1969. I did not come to see the celebrations. But the people who went there said it was a very powerful. I was a young man living in Mityana at that time. I don’t remember much on what happened on that day, but I know it was a very big day. People were talking about being independent a lot. Uganda is developing, people now have many cars. Although things are very expensive now. Hospitals also do not treat us like they used to.
ed house and also go to bed without eating food,” he says with a smile on his face.
– John Abimanyi
Enos Kahikaho, 71
I remember, around that time, we were still very young and in school. I was still in the village, so I did not manage to come here for the celebrations. But it was a very big day. Everybody was so happy, even us the young ones, because the white man was going away and we were going to rule ourselves. There was a lot of celebration. I was living in the village in Bushenyi. At the county and sub county headquarters, people cooked a lot of food and celebrated, singing songs and chanting phrases with words that were chasing the white men. Oh we were very happy.
There was little change a first, as the country was still run like the way the white men had left it. But after some years, it started changing, and Obote brought his Common Man’s Charter after which Amin came and there was hardly any development there. You can imagine you could not even buy a car or build a house because people would ask, where did you get that money? But now at least, we are seeing some development.
Michael J Ssali
The farmer, retired teacher and journalist, was in Primary Six at Kyanukuzi Primary School in Lwengo District. “We were all given little Independence day budges to pin on our shirts and small paper flags of Uganda to run about with everywhere as children. There was a lot of drumming at midnight and some people even rung bells. I think everyone except a few people like my late father Edward Ddungu thought that independence actually meant the Kabaka now taking over all the country’s administration. My father was a DP member and some people came to our house at night crying out that all DP members were traitors. We thought we were going to be attacked, but they only shouted drunkenly and went away. Most of the Independence Day was spent merry making with people drinking and drumming at road junctions in most villages.”
Mr Deus Mugambe
The Member of the certified chartered accountants, and auditor in Masaka Town, was a teacher of commercial subjects at St Joseph Commercial School Kitovu during that time. “I must confess that I was by then a member of the Kabaka Yekka Party and very loyal to my Kabaka, so Independence, which came with the Kabaka. Edward Mutesa II as the head of state, was a most exciting moment. But all that excitement was all short lived as we soon realised that the Kabaka Yekka UPC alliance was based on deceit. I quickly changed my mind and joined the Democratic Party.”
Mr Aloysius Kawuma
He is a photographer, farmer, and retired teacher and a resident of Nzizi Village, Kingo Sub-county, Lwengo District. He was a teacher at St. Pius Junior Secondary School Kitovu when Uganda got independence on October 9, 1962. “There was a lot of jubilation everywhere. We had to feel happy because we realised we were free from the control of Great Britain. We had also secured independence under a federal system of government. There was even greater jubilation here in Buganda because Kabaka Yekka had won the elections, so among Kabaka Yekka members, Independence had even greater meaning. I personally belonged to the Democratic Party and so I was among those laughed at. The Kabaka Yekka members celebrated their partnership with UPC, a relationship that involved the Kabaka, Edward Mutesa II into politics. But I want to assure you that to this day we still curse that partnership that the people of Mengo made with UPC and Apollo Milton Obote. All Mengo’s present problems stem from that partnership.”
Uganda: Seven Questions-Mohammad Nsereko
Risdel Kasasira/The Monitor/9 October 2011
interview
A number of NRM legislators have been vocal and critical to their party, a scenario that President Museveni has described as a connivance with the opposition to frustrate government programmes. He has threatened to expel these members from the party if they continue opposing and criticising government programmes. Some of these MPs are Mr Theodore Ssekikubo (Rwemiyaga), Mr Mohammed Nsereko (Kampala Central) and Winfred Niwagaba (Ndorwa East). Sunday Monitor spoke to Mohammed Nsereko about the President’s threats and why they are disagreeing with some party policies.
What’s your comment about those who say you are a decoy by government to make noise and divert the attention of the opposition?
That’s absolutely wrong. I think people who believe in partisan politics – when it comes to issues that affect the common man – are hypocrites. We cannot be agents of anybody in this government. We only oppose the bad tendencies of certain groups in government who are ripping Ugandans. It would be painful for us to keep quiet and keep our hands off these people when things are going wrong in the country. Even the President has admitted that the current sugar crisis is caused by illegal activities by some government officials. We cannot keep quiet when key sectors like health, transport and education are in poor conditions.
President Museveni recently warned some NRM MPs who “connive” with the opposition to frustrate government programmes and he specifically singled you out and Ssekikubo, saying you would be suspended and fresh elections be organised in your constituencies. Are you ready to lose your seat?
That’s a joke. He cannot be the petitioner, be the judge and in any case, what we are saying is true. The President should always remember that when we were canvassing for votes in the country, we supported him during elections but the problem is with some individuals who are abusing the system. He talks about zero tolerance to corruption and I think he should support us when we talk about poor education system and roads. He should be our greatest ally in this fight against corruption. We are not frustrating government programmes. Let them fix the roads, schools and hospitals. Why should we be blamed? Have we stolen bitumen for the roads? Are we the ones stealing drugs from Mulago? Are we the ones misappropriating government funds?
Are you angry that you were not appointed a minister of youth like some people have claimed?
Those are lies and absolute rubbish. I have never lobbied to be a minister and I’m happy to be a Member of Parliament. Being a minister is responsibility rather than a privilege. I just laugh at those who think being a minister is a big deal. I’m not dying to be a minister and I have never lobbied for it before the President. There is nothing much about being minister. I’m here to represent my people, not lobbying for a ministry. We want the public to know there are monsters in this country they are out there to fleece Uganda and it’s very easy to identify them. If you went to the streets and ask people about the most corrupt government officials, they will be listed. And this gives us confidence that they will not flee the country even with a single spoon of the ill-gotten wealth they have accumulated.
What is the cause of bad blood between you and the NRM secretary general, Mr Amama Mbabazi?
I don’t think we have any serious disagreements. He is just a Member of Parliament like me. He represents Kinkiizi in Kanungu and I represent Kampala Central. There is nothing much he has done. He is a mere MP. I know people want to portray him as someone big. But there is nothing big about him. We worked together during campaigns and I know his problem is his working ways. They are not proper and genuine.
What’s wrong with his working ways?
He is not straight forward. He will try as much as he can to bring you down if you are progressive. He will taint or destroy you if you have disagreements. His work methods are totally deceptive. He thinks if he continuously flashes the President with lies all the time, it will make him control everyone in the Movement. He thinks he is the sole-knower of the Movement. But he is lying to himself. He is not popular in the country and there is nothing he has done for the country including the people of Kanungu.
But you were part of the people who contested for Secretary General of NRM and he defeated you?
He was part of the rigging machinery. There is no secret about this. Funny people like Mbabazi with their funny ways of work will not save the country and the party. One thing they have specialised in is intrigue. It’s shared sentiment within the party that he and a few others are doing a disservice to the party and the country. I’m not a hypocrite and I will tell the truth all the time and I won’t hide my feelings. What I say during the day is what I say at night. Like on the proposed giveaway of Mabira and the planned scrap of bail, I will stand with Ugandans.
There has been a trend of young parliamentarians like you, becoming vocal, make noise and critical to the government at the beginning of every Parliament but they eventually fizzle out. Shall we see you following the same trend?
It’s not about age, it’s about Ugandans. For goodness sake, we are not just making noise. We are representing voices of our people. We are speaking for our people. That’s what brought us to Parliament. I’ m not dumb. I have to speak. Those who say, we are just making noise, are funny people benefiting from the regime.
If you are a Member of Parliament and you cannot speak about the sorry state of Mulago Hospital, what will you tell your constituents that you went to do in Parliament? We know very many MPs like Emmanuel Dombo who have consistently spoken out their minds and they are still here. Those who think that being in Parliament is a career are mistaken. Politics is not a job. It’s certainly people like Mbabazi who think without politics, they cannot survive.
SOUTH AFRICA:
South Africa Plans Regulator for Health-Care Price, Quality
October 10, 2011/Bloomberg
Oct. 4 (Bloomberg) — South Africa plans to set up a health-care pricing commission to regulate the private sector and “completely overhaul” the government medical service as the country prepares to introduce compulsory medical insurance.
“If we leave it only to market forces, we can’t reach our goals” of extending health care to the entire population, Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi said in a speech in Johannesburg today. “I am not saying there must not be commerce, but it must be reasonable.”
The government plans to introduce the National Health Insurance program over 14 years starting in April in an effort to improve an ailing public health system plagued by shortages of medicine and staff as well as maintenance backlogs. The country has the worst health outcomes among the major emerging markets of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, the minister said.
Motsoaledi said he wants to deal “fairly and openly” with costs and that private medical care will continue to exist.
“Not in the African National Congress, Cabinet or any structure I belong to, have we discussed killing private health care,” the minister said. “It’s not on the agenda.”
Both the government and private medical systems are “destructive, unsustainable and need to change,” Motsoaledi said. “The quality of health care in the public sector has to be improved and isn’t a separate issue” from the insurance program’s development.
The country has a “mountain to climb” to reduce a “still extraordinarily high” child and maternal mortality rate and meet the United Nation’s Millennium Development Goals by 2015, Motsoaledi said. About 5.7 million South Africans have HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, more than any other nation.
–Editors: Tom Lavell, David Risser
Forget about morality, my China
2011-10-10 /www.news24.com/ Chris Moerdyk Columnist
The waves of moral indignation that swept through South Africa’s righteous wing over the Dalai Lama’s visa last week made me wonder whether morality is actually worth fighting for.
After all, it’s becoming a rare ingredient in most walks of life these days.
I can’t think of a single government that shows any visible commitment to morality as most of them, ours included, put staying in power or getting to power, on the top of their party political agendas.
Governments today have to be completely obsessed with economics to survive and this inevitably means kicking moral convictions into touch. They’re all doing it. South Africa denies the Dalai Lama a visa so as not to upset their biggest trading partner, China.
And every single one of those self-proclaimed guardians of democracy – the USA, UK, Europe and others might well cock a snoot at China by allowing the Dalia Lama to visit but at the same time they completely ignore China’s horrendous human rights record by falling over themselves to do business with this emerging but morally questionable giant.
Sure, right now the USA is facing up to a trade war with China but that doesn’t make them any more moral than the rest. The USA, like all the other major powers has pushed morality onto the sidelines in the their quest for oil, increased trade and waging war just to keep the armaments industry ticking over and which in turn keeps political parties in power.
But, it’s not only governments. Business the world over is completely lacking in moral fibre and really only puts on a philanthropic face when they can get some PR mileage.
There is no doubt that sidelining morality has become a way of life in almost every country in the world.
It’s everyone for himself these days. Screw the taxman if you can. Break the rules of road if you can. Fleece the consumer if you can. Get one up on your neighbour if you can. And who really cares about the Dalai Lama or Archbishop Tutu’s birthday party because we need China’s business more than we need pretty much anything else.
So, you have by now probably come to the conclusion that I am advocating that in the national interest, employment opportunities and the general economic stability of the country, we should stop getting so precious about morality and just accept that it’s all just pie in the sky idealism. Perhaps you have concluded that I am arguing in favour of just accepting that the world isn’t perfect and we might as well consign morality to the garbage heap for all the good it does us.
Well actually, all I am trying to do is demonstrate just how easy it is to push morality aside. How easy it is convince ourselves that morality isn’t that important in the greater scheme of things.
The reality, however, is that for human beings, morality is pretty much like essential vitamins, irons, fatty acids, food, water, love and myriad other things that sustain human life.
So, the question one needs to ask is can you be immoral and happy?
Rich? Yes. Powerful? yes. But happy? I doubt it.
Morality might have become outdated but I reckon its worth fighting for. Fighting long and fighting hard.
One has to believe that doing the right thing is not going to be detrimental. As Richard Branson said in a radio interview this week when he was commenting on the Dalai Lama visa issue – South Africa will have lost the respect of China for kow-towing to their policy with regard to the Dalai Lama. Makes you think, doesn’t it?
South African Markets – Factors to watch on Oct 10
Mon Oct 10, 2011 / Reuters
JOHANNESBURG |
JOHANNESBURG Oct 10 (Reuters) – The following company announcements, scheduled economic indicators, debt and currency market moves and political events may affect South African markets on Monday.
DIARY
For South Africa corporate diary, click on
For southern and South Africa diary, click on
COMPANIES
Firms trading ex-dividend: Discovery , DRDGold
, Aveng , Capshop , Old Mutual
SOUTH AFRICAN MARKETS
South African share prices rose for a third straight session on Friday, buoyed by stronger-than-expected jobs data out of the United States.
The Top-40 blue-chip index closed 327.31 points higher, or up 1.2 percent, at 27,001.46 and the All-Share index gained by a similar margin to 30,244.90.
South Africa’s rand steadied against the dollar on Friday and was on course to post its best week since early July as it recovered from a sell-off in the past few weeks.
GLOBAL MARKETS
The euro rose on Monday after the leaders of France and Germany pledged to unveil a plan to solve the euro zone’s sovereign debt crisis by the end of the month, but Asian shares struggled to make gains as Hong Kong and China stocks dragged.
WALL STREET
After nearly falling into bear-market territory, U.S. stocks on Friday finished the week higher, building gains on encouraging jobs data and hopes that Europe is dealing with its debt crisis.
GOLD
Gold prices rose 1 percent on Monday, reversing a decline in the previous session, after the leaders of France and Germany promised to unveil new steps by the end of the month to resolve the euro zone’s debt crisis, spurring commodities and equities.
EMERGING MARKETS
For the top emerging markets news, double click on
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Some of the main stories out in the South African press:
BUSINESS DAY
– Nationalisation scary, so drop the word – AngloGold’s CEO
– Brait has R1.7 bln war chest for acquisitions
– Raubex takes cautious outlook on state’s tolling projects
BUSINESS REPORT
– M&A activity involving SA groups slower than last year
– State downplays nuclear report (Compiled by Helen Nyambura-Mwaura)
Eugene Terreblanche ‘murderers’ on trial
10 October 2011/ www.bbc.co.uk
The two black farmworkers accused of beating to death South Africa’s white supremacist leader Eugene Terreblanche are due to go on trial shortly.
Chris Mahlangu, 29, and a 16-year-old boy face charges including murder and robbery with aggravating circumstances.
The pair handed themselves in to police after admitting they had clashed with their employer over pay.
The 2010 killing highlighted South Africa’s fragile race relations 16 years after white minority rule ended.
When the pair were arrested, there were clashes between members of the local black community and Terreblanche’s supporters in the north-western town of Ventersdorp, where the trial is due to start.
Small groups from both sides have again gathered outside the court.
Terreblanche had been stabbed and beaten with a wooden club.
His Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging (Afrikaner Resistance Movement – AWB) waged a violent campaign to resist the end of apartheid and the establishment of democratic rule in 1994.
He spent three years in jail after the 2001 attempted murder of a farmworker.
The trial has twice been postponed but both the defence and the prosecution say they are now ready to start, reports the South Africa Press Association.
Zuma calls on all to be counted
October 10 2011/Sinegugu Ndlovu /sinegugu.ndlovu@inl.co.za / www.iol.co.za
The mammoth task of counting millions of South Africans got under way this morning with the launch of Census 2011.
According to Statistics South Africa, human capital is one of the most important issues in any society, and the census will help to complete a numerical profile of the country.
Stats SA says the information will inform decision-making at all levels, both in the government and the private sector.
“A population census is a total count of the country’s population where demographic, social and economic information as well as information about the housing conditions of the people who live in South Africa is gathered.
“This information could, for example, be applied by the agricultural industry for business planning purposes. If you know the number and spread of your consumers, you will know how to plan for the distribution of your product,” according to Statistics South Africa, which will be in charge of the census. This year’s census ends on October 31. The last one took place in 2001.
About 156 000 enumerators will go into the field. About R3 billion was budgeted for the census from 2006 to 2013, with R2bn of this amount to be spent during the census year alone. A total of 25 million questionnaires have been printed.
President Jacob Zuma said Census 2011 was another opportunity for the country to understand how far it had come and what challenges still needed to be addressed.
Preparation
“A lot of preparation has gone into this task. We call on all residents of South Africa to get ready for the count. We need to know these at the level of every village, suburb, farm, ward, municipality and province.
“We need to know where the old and the young, the rich and the poor, the employed and the unemployed, the learners, the educated and the uneducated live, work and play,” said Zuma.
He said the information collected would help the government to plan for the future.
“How many schools are we going to have to build to ensure quality education for all children? How many hospitals or clinics do we need for our sick and the infirm?
“How much food must we produce now and in the future to eradicate hunger? To obtain answers to these questions and others, thousands of census enumerators are going to visit every part of the country,” said Zuma.
Stats SA said all its employees were legally bound not to disclose any information gathered in the course of their duties, by signing an oath of confidentiality.
This oath still applied even after their employment with Stats SA ceased. Questions about respondents’ full names and records of physical addresses of the dwellings was done only for quality check purposes.
“This information is never given out, not even to other government agencies. You are furthermore protected by the Promotion of Access to Information Act and the constitution,” said the organisation.
Employees who did not adhere to the Statistics Act could face a fine of R10 000 and/or six months in prison.
Minister ups ante on road safety
Kim Helfrich /www.thenewage.co.za/Oct 10 2011
The man who drives South Africa’s transport sector and is also responsible for its road safety is the Southern African Development Community’s road safety champion.
This means Transport Minister Sbu Ndebele will now oversee the regional body’s initiatives that are part of the UN Decade of Action for Road Safety as well as being leader of the local programme. The UN initiative aims to cut by half the 1.3 million people killed on the world’s roads annually. He is on record as saying he wants SA to reach this mark in five years.
In his own constituency he is backing the national rolling enforcement plan as a major tool in making road users more aware of their responsibilities as well as cracking down on offenders.
The crackdown phase moved into a higher gear last month following a high number of crashes involving public transport and has also concentrated on removing drunk drivers from the roads.
The next phase in the “don’t drink and drive” initiative will see traffic officials arrest a drunk a month.
“As part of Operation Tshwara Setagwa (Arrest the Drunkard) each traffic officer will arrest one drunkard a month. Theoretically this means we should arrest a minimum of 10000 drunk drivers monthly. Arrests will include drunk pedestrians,” he told a SADC Committee of Ministers responsible for Transport in Centurion.
Ndebele also wants traffic officers to up the ante when it comes to distracted driving.
“It is becoming a huge problem. Motorists are seen daily talking on cellphones and now even texting while driving. Talking while driving increases the chances of a crash four times and texting is even more dangerous.”
kimh@thenewage.co.za
TANZANIA:
Tanzania Inflation May Drop to 9% by June, Bank Official Says
October 10, 2011/By David Malingha Doya/ Bloomberg
Oct. 10 (Bloomberg) — Inflation in Tanzania is set to decelerate as a slowdown in global growth reduces crude prices, curbing the cost of fuel imports for east Africa’s second- biggest economy, a Bank of Tanzania official said.
“We expect to return to single-digit inflation, around 9 percent by June,” Joseph Masawe, director of economic research and policy at the bank, said in a phone interview Oct. 7 from Dar es Salaam, the commercial capital. “We would at least reduce imported inflation” as oil falls, he said.
Inflation accelerated for a 10th month in August, reaching 14.1 percent as energy and food costs surged, the National Bureau of Statistics said Sept. 15. Oil prices have increased 22 percent since the start of 2009. The cost of Tanzania’s oil imports surged 65 percent in the three months through June compared with the previous quarter, and comprised 34 percent of total imports, according to central bank data.
The International Monetary Fund on Sept. 20 said it cut its forecast for global growth to 4 percent this year and next, compared with June forecasts of 4.3 percent in 2011 and 4.5 percent in 2012. Gross domestic product in sub-Saharan Africa may increase 5.2 percent this year, less than the 5.5 percent estimated in April, the IMF said.
Tanzania’s shilling has depreciated 13 percent this year against the dollar, reaching 1,714.5 on Oct. 7, the weakest level on record.
Shilling Drop ‘Benefit’
The central bank does “not mind benefiting” from depreciation of the shilling, which “will help our exporters gain more from selling their produce,” Masawe said. The weaker currency “will also control appetite for imports, and we need that given a wide current-account deficit.”
During the year through June 2011, Tanzania’s current- account gap widened to $2.7 billion compared to $2.5 billion the previous year, the central Bank said in an e-mailed statement Sept. 22.
The central bank won’t increase supply of dollars from a monthly average of $100 million to strengthen the shilling, Masawe said. “We supply dollars for the monetary purpose of controlling liquidity not the foreign-exchange rate,” he said.
–Editors: Ana Monteiro, Ben Holland
Tanzania: TIC in Plea for ‘Kigoma’ Potential
9 October 2011/ Tanzania Daily News (Dar es Salaam)
THE Tanzania Investment Centre (TIC) has urged investors within and outside the country to take advantage of the huge investment opportunities available in the Lake Tanganyika Zone.
The call comes barely a week before the high profile Lake Tanganyika Zone Investors’ Forum to be held in Rukwa region next Monday. The meeting is expected to be opened by President Jakaya Kikwete.
The TIC Acting Director of Investment Promotion, Mr Mathew Mnali told journalists in Dar es Salaam over the weekend that the forum , under the theme: “Promotion of Lake Tanganyika Zone Investment Potentials” aims at encouraging potential investors to look at opportunities within three regions in that zone which are Rukwa, Kigoma and Katavi.
“We encourage potential investors to attend the forum and know what is on offer in Lake Tanganyika Zone,” he said. Mr Mnali explained that the Zone enjoys an abundance of natural wealth, which offers tremendous investment opportunities in agriculture, mining, tourism, cross border trade, fishing, and transportation.
There will be presentations on various topical issues on, group discussions and an exhibition that will offer valuable information to participants.
According to Mr Mnali, the government, through various institutions and agencies has been struggling to create conducive investment climate in various parts of the country and that the forum is one of such efforts.
Meanwhile, TIC has revised its corporate strategic objectives with a view to create a strong domestic investment base.
For example, one of the objectives focuses on raising profile and image of Tanzania as the best destination in the region while it also focuses on increasing investors in key sectors such as power generation and others.
TIC also looks at maximising benefits of new business to the economy where there will be more dialogue between local and foreign investors on possible joint ventures.
Another objective is to ensure competitive business investment by encouraging more good governance, efficiency and remove bureaucracy and red tape on work permits. Also, TIC wants to promote the establishment of a middle class of Tanzanians who will actively participate in nation building.
Tanzania: Ministry Not Unaware of Mine Abuse Probe Report
Finnigan Wa Simbeye/ Tanzania Daily News (Dar es Salaam) /9 October 2011
A PROBE team established by Anglogold Ashanti and International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine and General Workers Union last June to investigate gross violation of workers’ rights is not officially known by the Ministry of Labour, Employment and Youth Development.
The Minister for Labour, Gaudencia Kabaka told the ‘Daily News’ on Sunday that she is yet to get official communication from trade union leaders or Geita Gold Mine management of the probe team existence.
“If there are any problems let Tamico (Tanzania Mine and Construction Workers Union) write my office officially because I am not aware of the probe team,” Ms Kabaka who visited GGM end last month and is accused of siding with the company’s management by union leaders, argued.
The minister however conceded that she visited GGM in Mwanza region last month and met with both management and workers to listen to their differences and blamed Tamico of signing a deal with GGM management in 2005 which restricted union activities outside the company’s premises.
“I met the workers because Tamico signed a binding contract with the management in 2005 not to undertake union operations within the company’s premises,” she pointed out.
Ms Kabaka revealed that during her meeting with the workers’ forum, she was informed that both the Tamico branch Chairman and Secretary, Aloyce Shigela and Thomas Sabai respectively, were suspended.
Tamico leaders accused the minister of sneaking into GGM premises without their knowledge although the minister was well aware of the existing conflict between management and local workers.
Tamico Secretary General, Hassan Ameir accused the minister of sidelining union leaders during her visit.
“The minister did not talk to trade union leaders at the company. This was unfortunate after we had communicated to her several times on problems affecting our members’ rights at the mine,” Mr Ameir told a news conference soon after Kabaka’s visit.
Legal and Human Right Centre (LHRC) first brought to the public attention gross violation of workers’ rights at GGM last May when its team of investigators toured Resolute’ Resources’ Golden Pride in Nzega, Tabora and GGM mines.
Dar today, Nairobi tomorrow? Restless Museveni roams EA
By Julius Barigaba, Christine Mungai and Joseph Mwamunyange /www.theeastafrican.co.ke/
Posted Sunday, October 9 2011
President Yoweri Museveni last week flew into Dar es Salaam for a one-day private visit ith his Tanzanian counterpart Jakaya Kikwete, setting off a flurry of speculation about why the Uganda president is so restless these days.
Some observers said Museveni’s tete-a-tete with Kikwete was easily one of the most bizarre the Ugandan leader has had with any Head of State because aides did not sit in to take notes, and the presidential press unit photographers were allowed in to take a couple of shots, before being told to leave the big men to themselves.
Museveni’s press secretary Tamale Mirundi told The EastAfrican, “This was a private visit; the president did not want the media giving publicity to things that have not yet matured.”
However, the visit comes on the heels of another one Museveni made to India a few days that was again billed as “private” and led to speculation that even made it to the floor of parliament that the Ugandan leader, after nearly 30 years in power, was feeling the strain of power and losing his grip.
Yet that would be naïve, for even when his actions look irrational to outsiders, there is method in most of what Museveni does.
The Uganda economy is hurting.
While that is much the same story elsewhere in the world, Museveni has always been able to overcome criticism of his political highhandedness and corruption in his government because he delivered on the economy for years.
As he faces the beginning of his last years in power, Museveni is focusing on his legacy and possibly his succession as well.
Both will be easier if he can put the economy on a recovery path, which in turn means he must fix some of the things that have burdened the country’s economy in recent years — crumbling infrastructure; the high costs of exporting and importing goods; and the slow pace at which East African regional integration has delivered significant benefits to Uganda’s economy.
An exiting Museveni needs to be able to be seen as relevant by other East African leaders. If he is perceived as a lame duck and regional leaders begin waiting on his successor, he will be seriously weakened at home.
Unsurprisingly, in recent months, Museveni has been taking care of neglected business in the neighbourhood. He overcame his suspicion of the Rwanda leadership that arose from the clashes over influence in eastern DRC by visiting with President Paul Kagame, and invited Eritrea’s Isaias Afewerki, a leader he viciously criticised as the backer of Islamic extremist militias in Somalia, to Kampala — where the two men hugged and proclaimed they had made up.
“He has obviously been trying to mend fences. He visited Kagame after a long time, and followed that up with an invitation to Afewerki to Kampala recently. In meeting Kikwete privately, Museveni is trying to clear the bushes around his house,” said Ugandan legislator Hussein Kyanjo.
The issues Museveni discussed with Kikwete remain secret as neither leader issued a press statement after their meeting.
However, reports later emerged that during the talks the two had agreed to expedite the construction of Tanga-Musoma railway line.
This came as a surprise to long-time watchers of Tanzania-Uganda relations, because the Tanga-Musoma railway line, and the Dar es Salaam port are among those issues that are discussed with drama between the two countries every few years. There are usually launch ceremonies, lots of press coverage, and nothing comes of it.
As early as 1998, when there seemed to be no end to the money that donors were willing to pour into infrastructure in Uganda, both the Ugandan and international media reported in December that plans to develop Tanga into a larger port dedicated mainly to Uganda’s seaborne trade had been shelved, although at that time it was due to the failure by Tanzania to secure funding for the project.
The project was conceived at a time of heightened political mistrust between Kenya and Uganda during president Daniel arap Moi’s Kanu regime, and Museveni believed it to be a viable alternative to Mombasa.
This time, there are again some who argue that given the fallout of the December 2007-January 2008 post-election violence in Kenya, Museveni is trying to open a reliable southern route to the Coast, to avoid the recurrence of the damage to the Uganda economy witnessed four years ago. Kenya, the EAC partner state that is Uganda’s main transit route, goes to the polls next year.
There could be a common thread linking the political to the economic.
Next year could produce election hiccups in Kenya again. However, even if that were to happen, like 2008 it would not be permanent. The more permanent outcome of Kenya 2012 could be a leader who doesn’t care much for the ageing Museveni as a regional political elder, and who is less inclined to be helpful than President Mwai Kibaki.
Kenya, like Tanzania, has moved on infrastructure at a pace that has largely left Kampala looking sluggish over the years, although corruption and the distraction of internal and regional wars in Kampala are to equally blame.
This is a good time to bring up the Tanga port issue, because it has the potential to get Kenya to move more quickly on other critical infrastructure like the railway, which has been bogged down by local politics at the Coast. Indeed, fixing the port of Mombasa is one strategic issue that lies at the heart of Kampala’s national interest.
In a report issued in June 2010, the World Bank demonstrated how delays at the port, multiple police roadblocks and inefficient border crossing points translated into significantly high costs of doing business in Uganda, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo. The World Bank estimated that it takes 20 days for a container cargo to get through from Mombasa to Nairobi.
The same journey takes 22 days to Kampala and 24 days to Kigali. A study by CPCS Transcom published this June and sponsored by USAid established that road transport costs and indirect costs of port delays account for 35 and 42 per cent of the cost of importation of transit cargo through Kenya by road.
In uncertain times like now, when the region is facing an exchange-rate crisis, this situation quickly fires up inflation, which in Uganda’s case currently stands at 25 per cent. Uganda is the biggest regional customer for the port of Mombasa, accounting for 80 per cent of cargo. Tanzania, DR Congo and Rwanda account for five per cent each and Sudan 3.5 per cent.
This year, Museveni faced a major political problem during the Walk to Work protests arising out of inflation and a currency crisis that could largely be traced to the inefficiency of the Mombasa port. It forced Museveni to make a private trip to Nairobi to discuss the issue with President Kibaki.
“This issue has come up at EAC Heads of States Summit level,” said David Nalo, Kenya’s Permanent Secretary of EAC Affairs. “Our neighbours have been complaining that they cannot see significant progress on the ground when it comes to these non-tariff barriers to trade at a time when they are looking to be globally competitive.”
Mr Nalo said it was time Kenya started acting as a big brother “who is the greatest beneficiary of regional trade, and who should bear the greatest responsibility to reform.” He added that Museveni’s visit to Kikwete could have been “deliberately designed to irritate Kenyans into action on the issue of the Mombasa port; there is certainly justification for it.”
Mr Nalo said Kenya needs to urgently reflect on the strategic interests of each of its neighbouring countries and work toward helping them to promote these interests as opposed to cultivating a “fertile ground for discontent.”
Transporting goods from Mombasa through the Northern Corridor remains cheaper and relatively efficient compared with the alternative Central Corridor route from Dar es Saalam that Museveni is proposing. Constructing the Central Corridor will cost around $3 billion. It may be a pipe dream, but could be what is required to force Kenya to take political action towards fixing its port.
And Kikwete, who has never been a member of the Museveni fan club, will nevertheless realise that with the promise of riches from Uganda’s recently found, supposedly fabulous oilfields, the country that transports it would benefit greatly.
Most of the businesses in Kenya that could benefit from Uganda’s oil are supposedly sympathetic to Kibaki, so if nothing else, Kibaki too is more likely to break the deadlock and help Museveni.
If these things come together in the next few months, a Museveni who can point to either Tanzania or Kenya — preferably both — finally working on long-talked-about infrastructure, will have his hand strengthened.
And if Afewerki were to reward him by reining in the militants in Somalia, where Uganda troops form the bulk of the AU peacekeeping force Amisom, and Kagame is a little more deferential to him in future, Museveni would be in a good position to manage his last years in power and his exit.
However, to do he would need to bring a level of cohesion to his ruling NRM that is sorely lacking, and restore his credibility by acting on corruption, nepotism, and widespread incompetence and neglect by his government. On past form, that would be a tough call. But the pursuit of a legacy can transform many an African strongman.
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