African press review 16 May 2016

With its tax take lagging far behind government borrowing, Kenya is going to have trouble paying its creditors. There's trouble of a different sort brewing in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where presidential elections look ever less likely to be held in time to replace President Joseph Kabila in accordance with the constitution. And Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni tells cash-strapped soldiers to raise pigs.

DR

Regional paper the East African looks to Kenya with a main story reporting that Nairobi will have to spend nearly five billion euros on public debt repayments in the financial year starting next month. That will effectively lock 20 percent of national expenditure into debt repayment and put Kenya’s hopes of a lower inflation and interest rate regime in doubt.

Kenya currently owes creditors a total of 30 billion euros, the highest in the region, and nearly 70 percent higher than the debt level three years ago.

Tax revenues have grown by only 40 percent over the same period.

Kabila at centre of constitutional clash in DRC

The East African also reports that the Democratic Republic of Congo risks violence after the Constitutional Court ruled that President Joseph Kabila can stay on after his term ends later this year, if the country does not hold elections by November.

Local and international observers warn that last week's court ruling and the continued crackdown on dissent are a recipe for widespread violence.

Stephanie Wolters of the Institute for Security Studies in Pretoria says the court decision will make it difficult for the international community to intervene because it gives Kabila’s continued stay in office domestic legitimacy.

Amnesty International says it will be difficult to organise credible elections by November due to an obsolete voter register that has not been updated since 2006, lack of resources and the absence of political will on the part of the government to hold polls. The rights group warns that political and social tensions are likely to rise as a result.

Delays in the preparation for elections have raised concerns among the opposition that Kabila is bent on triggering a constitutional crisis. His efforts to change the constitution last year were met with violent protests in Kinshasa and Lubumbashi.

Let them raise pigs

The Monitor in Kampala reports that President Yoweri Museveni has been giving advice to the Ugandan security forces.

Speaking to security personnel at the weekend in Kampala, to thank them for their work during the recent elections, Museveni advised soldiers and other security personnel to start rearing pigs, instead of expecting high salaries.

Mueseveni said high salaries were the main cause of weakness in security and defence of past governments and his National Resistance Movement cannot repeat the same mistake.

The president said too much spent on wages would leave the government without the money to buy weapons.

“Go and rear pigs to augment your income," Museveni said. "Even in the barracks where you stay, start some income generating activity. Let your wives engage in something."

Journalists further detained in Egypt

The Cairo-based Egypt Independent reports that Egyptian prosecutors have renewed for 15 days the detention of two journalists arrested at the Journalists Union headquarters earlier this month.

Amr Badr and Mahmoud al-Sakka were arrested after security forces raided the union’s Cairo headquarters on 1 May.

Yesterday the prosecution presented the two journalists with new charges related to posts on social media networks including Facebook and Twitter, as well as articles published in the press.

The two men were originally accused of inciting protest, attempting to overthrow the regime and broadcasting false news with the aim of disturbing public peace.

Is Pravin Gordhan on his way to jail?

South African financial paper BusinessDay is full of a story suggesting that a special police unit is preparing to arrest the country's finance minister.

According to BusinessDay, the battle between the minister, Pravin Gordhan, and the economic crime unit known as the Hawks has been thrust into the spotlight again following a report in yesterday's Sunday Times that Gordhan faces "imminent arrest". The timing could hardly be worse: ratings agency Standard & Poor’s is due in the country this week on a fact-finding mission ahead of its review of South Africa’s sovereign status.

Fitch is also set to conduct its investigations this week.

The Sunday Times says the Hawks want Gordhan prosecuted over the alleged rogue unit at the South African Revenue Service when he was commissioner. Quoting senior Hawks sources, the report said the unit handed over its case docket to the National Prosecuting Authority to prosecute Gordhan and eight others.

President Jacob Zuma is set to answer questions tomorrow in Parliament, which is likely to be rowdy once again after the opposition Economic Freedom Fighters took a decision not to allow the president to speak due to the Constitutional Court judgement on Nkandla that found his handling of the public protector’s report on public spending on the president's private residence was inconsistent with the constitution.