Police in Zimbabwe have confirmed the arrest of the two men – Hopewell Chin’ono and Jacob Ngarivhume stating that the arrest was “in connection with allegations of contravening Section 187 (1) (a) as read with Section 37 (1) (a) of the Criminal Law (Codification & Reform) Act, Chapter 9:23, “incitement to participate in public violence.”
“The duo will appear in court soon and are currently in police custody,” a statement signed by an Assistant Police Commissioner read. It was, however, dated July 21, 2020, instead of 20. The statement was shared by Ministry of Information and Publicity on Twitter.
Go deeper: Chin’ono was behind the recent exposé of alleged COVID-19 procurement fraud involving the now sacked Health Minister Obadiah Moyo. Moyo is currently in court facing corruption charges.
Chin’ono has gained notoriety in political circles for consistently calling out government corruption and excesses.
It has also been revealed that a call Chin’ono made for a July 31 protest is the reason for his arrest. The activist who is also leader of Transform Zimbabwe movement had recently announced poor governance protests slated for July 31.
Zimbabwe has routinely sent heavily armed security operatives to dismiss protesters and planned protests.
Tanzania farmers grow mushrooms to fight climate change
Recurring drought spells triggered by the impact of climate change has affected crop yields, and farmers in Tanzania have now resorted to growing protein-rich oyster mushrooms to raise incomes, improve livelihoods, and protect forests.
A move other African leaders can learn from to profit from difficult situations.
Go deeper: Tanzania has one of the highest rates of deforestation in sub-Saharan Africa, with around 372,000 hectares of forests destroyed every year, according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation.
While mushrooms have traditionally been eaten in different parts of Tanzania, it was not a commercial crop. Now, the government and various non-profit organisations are now pushing commercial production of oyster mushrooms, to increase incomes and curb deforestation.
Local farmers, who depend on rain-fed crop growing and charcoal burning, are learning new skills to grow environmentally friendly mushrooms.
UN, Libya officials to resume peace talks
The United Nations (UN) and Libyan officials Monday, discussed resuming political dialogue in war-torn Libya, according to a UN statement.
Acting head of the United Nations Support Mission in Libya, Stephanie Williams, and head of Libya’s High Council of State, Khalid al-Mishri, met via a video conference call. The two addressed “possible ways to resume the political talks as per Berlin Conference conclusions,” a statement by the UN Support Mission in Libya said.
Both sides of the political divide in Libya have refused to reach a definite agreement.
Go deeper: Since April 2019, forces attached to the Commander of the Tobruk-based Libyan National Army (LNA), Khalifa Haftar, have launched attacks on the Libyan capital of Tripoli and other parts of northwestern Libya, resulting in more than 1,000 deaths, including civilian women and children.
A conference took place in January, in Berlin, Germany, in order to reach a permanent cease-fire in war-weary Libya. Global powers and regional actors expressed commitment to support a cease-fire, respect arms embargo and support the UN-facilitated political process.
15 heavily armed men attack voting centre in Ghana
At least fifteen gunmen attacked a voting centre in Ghana’s Awutu Senya East Constituency, forcing the Electoral Commission to shut down the centre.
They had tried to sack potential voters, and a disagreement led to the firing of gunshots.
Meanwhile, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) in the Awutu Senya East constituency has accused the Member of Parliament (MP) for the area, Mavis Hawa Koomson, of instigating the tensions in the build-up to the elections. Seworkpor said the incident was “another testimony that going into the 2020 election, for the NPP led by Mavis Hawa Koomson, the basic strategy is to wage violence against members of the National Democratic Congress.”
He claimed the MP had men with her who used pepper spray and shockers on NDC supporters.
Go deeper: Africa is still grappling with upholding the ideals of democracy, and so, elections across the continent do not fail to come with all the drama. The killings, the do-or-die affair, the godfatherism, voter intimidation, snatching of ballot, rewriting numbers are what we experience once an election is called in Africa.
Coronavirus dashboard
‘The Covid-19 pandemic won’t give rise to a lost generation like the 1976 Soweto uprising did, but it could result in lost schooling.’
East African countries have moved to ease movement of goods with the roll-out of a system that will allow them to share Covid-19 test results of truck drivers electronically.
Schools stand to lose food stocks worth millions of shillings after the Covid-19 pandemic saw them closed in March.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has warned of rising coronavirus cases in sub-Saharan Africa.
More than 600,000 chicks have been destroyed by poultry farmers in Ethiopia because of a loss of demand from hotels whose business has been restricted as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, Reuters news agency reports.
