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Burundi’s Nkurunziza hails chosen successor’s election victory
Burundi’s longtime President Pierre Nkurunziza has congratulated the governing party’s hand-picked successor on a “large victory” in the country’s presidential election, though the main opposition has pledged to contest the result in court.
The election commission on Monday declared Evariste Ndayishimiye, a former army general chosen by the CNDD-FDD party as heir to Nkurunziza, the winner of the May 20 poll with 68.72 per cent vote.
“I warmly congratulate the President-elect General Major Evariste Ndayishimiye for his large victory which confirms that the great majority of Burundians adhere to the projects and the values he embodies,” Nkurunziza, who chose not to run after 15 years in power, posted on Twitter.
Agathon Rwasa, Ndayishimiye’s main challenger in a race contested by seven candidates, came in a distant second with 24.19 per cent of the vote. His National Freedom Council (CNL), however, has rejected the results, alleging cheating by the CNDD-FDD.
CNL spokesman Therence Manirambona said on Monday his party was putting together a legal complaint to submit within days “so that the court can take a decision on the massive fraud that marked this electoral farce”.
The CNDD-FDD defeated the CNL by a similar margin in the legislative elections held on the same day.
The polls went ahead with scant regard to the coronavirus outbreak following a tense campaign marked by violence and arbitrary arrests. They also proceeded without the presence of international observers.
On May 8, 12 days to the polls and before the scheduled arrival of an East African Community mission to the country, the government said the regional bloc’s observers would have to be in quarantine for 14 days, effectively ruling them out of the election process.
Ndayishimiye is expected to be sworn in for a seven-year term in late August, when Nkurunziza’s term ends.
Nkurunziza has been in power since 2005, and his final years in office have been racked by turmoil.
His controversial decision to seek a third term in the last election in 2015 sparked mass unrest, violence and an opposition boycott.
Burundi is tightly controlled by the governing party and its youth wing has been linked to a forceful crackdown against the government’s critics.
State security forces have been accused by rights groups and the UN of crimes against humanity and abuses such as torture, disappearances, sexual violence and executions.
Ndayishimiye is set to inherit a deeply isolated country, under sanctions and cut off by foreign donors, its economy and national psyche damaged by the years of unrest.
It remains to be seen how much influence Nkurunziza will exert going forward, and how freely his successor can reign.
Nkurunziza was this year elevated by Burundi’s parliament to the rank of “supreme guide for patriotism” and he will continue to be chairman of the governing party’s powerful council of elders.
SOURCE: NEWS AGENCIES
Search and rescue operations are ongoing following a structural collapse at the Experimental D/A School in Accra Newtown.
The Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) confirmed that emergency teams were deployed to the scene to assist victims who may be trapped under the debris.
In an update, the service indicated that personnel from the Ghana Police Service, the National Ambulance Service and the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) are workin7g together to manage the situation and rescue affected persons.
It noted that the area has been cordoned off by the police to prevent members of the public from entering the scene and interfering with the operation.
According to the GNFS, the coordinated effort is aimed at ensuring that all trapped victims are safely rescued as quickly as possible.
The service advised residents and the general public to stay away from the area to allow emergency teams to carry out their work without obstruction.
The service added that further updates will be provided as the situation develops.
By: Jacob Aggrey
The New Times Corporation (NTC), publishers of The Ghanaian Times and The Spectator, on Wednesday held a staff get-together to commemorate the Ghana Month celebration.
The event was also to strengthen teamwork and bonding. It was attended by management members and staff from various departments.
The staff were engaged in activities such as apple eating, musical chairs competition, pick and act, and other interesting games.
Speaking at the gathering, the Chairperson of the Corporation’s Interim Management Committee (IMC), Dr (Mrs) Charity Binka, emphasised the importance of unity and collaboration in achieving organisational goals. She urged the staff to put aside their differences, work together, and also create a positive working environment.
In a welcome address, the Editor of The Spectator, Mrs Georgina Naa-Maku Quaitoo, urged the staff to have fun as “we climax the Ghana Month celebration with this get-together.”
The Acting Editor of The Ghanaian Times, Mr David Adadevoh, commended the staff for coming out in their numbers to join in the celebration and called for unity to transform the fortunes of the Corporation.
By Linda Abrefi Wadie
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