WEST AFRICA: Seven Togolese UN Missionaries killed in Mali

A bomb explosion in the Bandiagara of the Mopti region in central Mali has killed seven and injured several others. The victims were Togolese peacekeeping emissaries accompanying some military logistics being sent to a peacekeeping force in Mali by the United Nations mission. The convoy with security apparatus was headed the town of Severe in Mali when it struck the explosion device at the Bandiagara area. The seven deaths were recorded instantly, even before they could be attended to. We record this sad incident in Bandiagara as second in one week after attackers believed to be affiliated to al-Qaeda murder some thirty-three person on a public transport on December 4, 2021.

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WEST AFRICA: Laurent Gbagbo attends Captain Kojo Tsikata’s funeral, plans meeting with Ivorian Refugees in Ghana, Benin, and Togo.

Former Ivorian President Laurent Gbagbo arrived in Ghana on Wednesday December 8,2021 to commiserate with the family of Captain Kojo Tsikata(Rtd) and Ghana on the loss of his longtime crony. 

Born in 1936, Kojo Tsikata was a Ghanaian military officer and politician, who became the Head of National Security and Foreign Affairs in 1993, under President Jerry John Rawlings of blessed memory. He was an appointees of former Lybian revolutionary leader Muammar Muhammad Abu Minyar al-Gaddafi to serve in a senior advisory position in charge of the Al Mathaba central committee, a support center for the liberation movement and anti-imperialist and anti-Zionist organizations in Lybia during his supremacy.

Captain Kojo Tsikata was a recipient of Angola’s highest honors, identified as Carlos Silva among Angolan fighters, for his role in the struggle for national independence, plus he was a holder of the Solidarity Award and of the Order of “Carlos Manuel de Céspedes”, conferred by the Council of State of the Republic of Cuba, amongst several honors to his credit.

As part of his visit to Ghana, Former President Laurent Gbagbo would meet with Ivorian refugees in Ghana, Togo and Benin who sort asylum in these neighboring countries during the post-election crisis in Ivory Coast in 2011. These refugees have resisted persuasion by the Ivorian Commissioner for Refugees and the Ghana Refugees board to get them back into their country even after being given a grace period of up to June 2022 to vacate their various refugee camps of resident.

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COVID-19: Boris Johnson accused of ‘treating public as fools’ as photo of Downing Street quiz emerges

The Sunday Mirror has obtained a photograph showing the PM on a screen reading out Christmas quiz questions for Number 10 staff, reportedly taken on 15 December last year when London was under Tier 2 restrictions, banning indoor household mixing, apart from support bubbles.

Boris Johnson was respecting COVID lockdown rules at a Downing Street Christmas quiz last year, a Cabinet minister has said.

An image obtained by the Sunday Mirror shows the prime minister on a screen in his office flanked by two colleagues and reading out quiz questions for Number 10 staff.

Coming amid a series of alleged rule-breaking parties in Downing Street and Whitehall, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer accused the government for “treating the public as fools” and argued Boris Johnson was the “worst possible leader at the worst possible time”, as the UK faces the highly contagious COVID-19 Omicron variant.

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1:17

PM ‘worst leader at worst time’ – Starmer

However, Education Secretary Nadhim Zahawi defended the prime minister.

“What do we see in that picture? We see a prime minister on a virtual quiz night for 10 to 15 minutes to thank his staff, who by the way, had no choice but to come in every single day,” he told Trevor Phillips On Sunday.

“Sitting in his office are the two people who are closest working with him, no alcohol on the table, not drinking, on a Zoom call or a Teams call, a virtual call respecting the lockdown rules.

“Many people would have had similar Zoom quiz nights around the country.”

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The image was reportedly taken on 15 December last year when London was under Tier 2 restrictions, banning indoor household mixing, apart from support bubbles.

Official guidance at the time also stated: “You must not have a work Christmas lunch or party, where that is a primarily social activity and is not otherwise permitted by the rules in your tier.”

Workers who took part in the Christmas quiz reportedly huddled around computers, with groups said to have broken rules on gatherings, and drinking alcohol bought from a nearby supermarket.

A source told the newspaper that in one instance 24 people gathered in an office – in four teams of six people.

Teams from the PM’s private office, the policy unit and press office were among those taking part, according to the Sunday Mirror.

What parties are alleged to have taken place in government during lockdown?

A Number 10 spokesperson confirmed the quiz took place but said the PM was involved “briefly”.

A statement said: “This was a virtual quiz. Downing Street staff were often required to be in the office to work on the pandemic response so those who were in the office for work may have attended virtually from their desks.

“The prime minister briefly took part virtually in a quiz to thank staff for their hard work throughout the year.”

3:46

PM faces parliamentary fury

Responding to the image, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer pointed out it was reportedly taken three days before an alleged rule-breaking Christmas party at Downing Street on the 18 December, with a leaked video later showing senior Downing Street aides joking about it.

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He said: “We have to remember at this time, the vast majority of the public were not seeing loved one’s because they were following the rules.

“Some of them didn’t see them over Christmas and some of them didn’t see their loved one’s ever again.

“To see Downing Street making the rules, then breaking rules, then treating the public as fools and laughing at them, I think runs very, very deep with the British public.”

Sir Keir added: “The prime minister’s lost the authority to lead. He’s so weak, his party’s so divided, he can’t provide the leadership we need at this crucial time.

“He’s the worst possible leader at the worst possible time.”

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Leaked Downing St ‘party’ video

Senior Tory MP Steve Baker told Trevor Phillips: “Any member of the public is going to rightly demand that politicians not only comply with the rules that they impose on other people, but that they are seen to comply with their spirit and it is pretty obvious now that that hasn’t happened and that is a very bad position to be in.”

He added: “I want to see Boris turn this situation around, I want to see him rescue his position, I want to see him go on to be a great success, but he is not going to do it by paying lip service to rules and being incautious about how his staff behave and comply with them.”

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Kenya: ‘We are the bad ones’, police recruits brag

Kenya’s national police have condemned a video showing a group of newly graduated officers boasting about how they are “the bad ones”.

It has been widely circulated on social media in the east African country, with many users voicing concerns.

Police bosses have called their remarks “irresponsible, unacceptable and reckless”.

The video goes to reinforce the view of many Kenyans that some of their police officers can behave like thugs.

“This is it, this it … we have finished, we are done. We are representing, what is this? Red beret!” one of the group says in the video in the Kenyan slang, Sheng.

“We are coming outside now [graduating], and we are the bad ones! Pa! Pa! Pa! Squad 26! We are the bad ones.”

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Kenyans on social media have been sharing concerns over the video, with some saying it portrays a group of men more keen on issuing threats than serving the people.

Others say their words imply the group is threatening to harshly deal with civilians upon graduating.

The video comes at a time when cases of police brutality in Kenya have been increasing, just months before the general election.

Kenya has a long history of officers using excessive force when enforcing law, often resulting in deaths, but security officers are rarely held to account.

In a statement, the national police said an internal review was ongoing with a view of taking appropriate measures regarding the incident.

The police said the clip did not reflect the views of the General Service Unit (GSU), a paramilitary wing in the Kenyan police service.

But some on social media mocked this assertion.

The controversy comes after a Kenyan police officer shot dead his wife and five other people with an AK-47 on Tuesday.

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COVID-19: Police officers disciplined for breaking lockdown rules

Sussex Police says it takes "COVID-related breaches very seriously and we do not tolerate this kind of behaviour".

Two police officers who attended a party that broke COVID lockdown rules have been disciplined.

Other officers found a number of off-duty colleagues after being called to a gathering in Hove, East Sussex, on the evening of 15 May.

At the time, coronavirus regulations stipulated that people should socialise only with their own household or with linked households.

Ten officers were later issued with £200 fixed penalty notices for breaching the rules.

Now, a constable and an acting sergeant have been sanctioned by Sussex Police’s professional standards department.

One of them has received a written warning while the other has been given “reflective practice”, which requires the officer to “reflect on their actions and improve their performance”, the force said.

Detective Superintendent Rachel Carr said: “We have taken COVID-related breaches very seriously and we do not tolerate this kind of behaviour which falls below the standards we expect of our officers and staff.”

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