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African press review 02 July 2016

Pension worries in South Africa, a diplomatic storm over the murder of a human rights lawyer in Kenya, a Zimbabwean view of Britain's Brexit and a stone depicting a woman giving birth capturing the hearts of Egyptology fans on Facebook. Find out what's making the news across Africa in today's African press review.

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In South Africa the Sowetan is warning its readers to be wary of financial advice on their pensions.

According to the paper, a trend that resulted in a large number of public servants cashing in their pension funds last year could have been fuelled by self-centred financial advisers driven by greed.

Ismail Momoniat, the deputy director-general of the National Treasury, is reported as giving this warning during an interview at the launch of Savings Month yesterday.

He advises that what your financial adviser is not telling you is that he or she is going to make money if you cash out.

SA students union demands free uniforms for poor

The Sowetan also carries a story on the Congress of South African Students (Cosas) who want the government to provide free uniforms to poor pupils from next year.

The organisation believes that, if the government is already feeding pupils through the national school nutrition programme and is also providing free textbooks and other pupil-teacher support material, it should also understand that there are pupils who cannot afford school uniforms.

Cosas secretary-general Khulekani Skosana said that there are still students in South Africa who walk barefoot to school.

Cosas was calling on not only the government but the community at large to ensure that come 2017, no student will go to school without a proper uniform, he said.

Diplomatic storm over lawyer's murder

A top story in Kenya's Standard this morning concerns the news about missing city lawyer Willy Kimani and two other people who were found brutally murdered yesterday. Their bodies were discovered dumped in a river.

The Standard reports that the murders have sucked Kenya into a diplomatic storm, with the US ambassador and eight other Western envoys publicly demanding a thorough investigation into the case.

The paper calls it "a gruesome end" to a week-long search for the human rights advocate, who was abducted with his client on his way from the hearing of a controversial case involving administration policemen.

Kidnap kingpins

This morning's edition of the Vanguard in Nigeria is reporting that the Department of State Security Service has recorded a major success against criminals posing serious challenges to the nation through attacks on oil installations and the kidnapping of prominent Nigerians for financial gains.

The DSS said last night that it foiled fresh planned attacks on vital oil facilities in the Niger Delta region by arresting the masterminds before they were able to carry out their actions.

According to a security agency statement printed in the Vanguard, the DSS arrested no fewer than 15 kidnap kingpins from various parts of the country, including the man who kidnapped the Personal Assistant to the Transport Minister, Igo Chinda.

A Zimbabwean view of Brexit

An editorial in Zimbabwe's Herald this morning takes a stab at Britons who it describes as "whining and wailing" about leaving the European Union.

Journalist Nathaniel Manheru chastises the "what will happen to our Britain" mentality, asking a rhetorical question about whether Britons ever wailed when Zimbabwe left the Commonwealth, from which, he adds, Britain continues to draw colonial lucre without opprobium.

Stone of woman giving birth captures Egyptology fans' hearts

Egyptology fans have made their first selection for "piece of the month" from among the treasures in the Egyptian Museum, according to an article in the Egypt Independent.

The selected item is a stone relief depicting a woman giving birth assisted by two gods.

The stone, which dates back to the Ptolemaic era, will now be placed on display in a special area of the museum throughout July.

Voters made their selection via the museum's Facebook page from a list of 10 items of special interest proposed by museum staff.

An antique wig came in second place, while third place was awarded to a blue statuette of a hippopotamus, which will also be on special display starting 1 July.

Election preparations in Central African Republic

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has called on all Central Africans to ensure that the presidential run-off and the new round of legislative elections, set to take place on Sunday, are conducted in a peaceful and credible manner, Newstime Africa reports.

In a statement issued by his spokesperson in New York, Ban commended Transitional Authorities of the Central African Republic for their efforts to complete the transition process by 31 March 2016.

“Sunday’s polls will bring the country closer to the end of the transition and a return to constitutional order," Ban is quoted as saying/. "These are important steps towards political stability and long-term economic recovery.”

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