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African press review 25 January 2017

The Gambia first - where the breaking news in the Freedom newspaper is "Halifa Sallah Debunks Mai Fatty’s Claims Of Jammeh Stealing $11 M Within Two Weeks!" 

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Sallah - the spokesman of the new government - told journalists there is no factual evidence to substantiate what he called - wild allegations - against the former Gambian leader - Yahya Jammeh - now in exile in Equatorial Guinea.

Sallah said all financial institutions in Gambia - including the Central Bank - are functioning well, and that there are no missing funds.

Mai Fatty, the lawyer who leads the Gambia Moral Congress, part of the of the Coalition for last year's Presidential election, where Adama Barrow was the coalition's candidate and subsequently won, told newsmen earlier : “As we take over the new government, the Gambia is in financial distress."

“The coffers are virtually empty. It has been confirmed by the officials of the Ministry of Finance and the Central Bank of the Gambia that Jammeh left with over $11 million dollars,” he claimed.

Sallah's response, reports the Freedom newspaper, was that allegations of theft cannot just be made by any member of an Executive. Allegations of anything that is a crime must be passed onto the Inspector General of police. They are the competent authority that should conduct investigation of anything reported to them.

Stay tuned on that one.

In South Africa the Sowetan tells readers Rhodes Must Fall activist's Oxford scholarship sparks social media backlash.

Two Rhodes Must Fall activists Joshua Nott and Mbali Matandela have accepted scholarships worth 670‚000 Rand each from the Rhodes Trust to study at Oxford University.

Both were involved in the 2015 protests at the University of Cape Town‚ calling for a statue of Cecil John Rhodes to be removed from the campus.

There was parallel campaign to remove a statue of Rhodes from Oriel College in Oxford.

Rhodes Must Fall Facebook page has disowned Nott him as a member of the campaign, the Sowetan reports.

Others labelled him a hypocrite.

One Facebook comment noted that Nott, who is 23 and the son of wealthy Johannesburg lawyer, said that the Rhodes statue was ‘like a swastika in Jerusalem’.

Nonetheless, he has just been handed a £40‚000 post graduate Rhodes Scholarship at Oxford university.

Happy to take the money like a proper hypocrite though.”

For those who didn't know, Cecil Rhoes was a 19th century British businessman, mining magnate and politician in South Africa, who served as Prime Minister of the Cape Colony.

An ardent believer in British imperialism, he set up the Rhodes Scholarship, which is funded by his estate.

It was the world's first international study programme enabling students from territories under British rule or formerly under British rule to study at his alma mater the University of Oxford.

Rhodes' aims were to promote leadership marked by public spirit and good character, and to "render war impossible" by promoting friendship between the great powers.

Laudable goals - surely.

Meanwhile - in Kenya the Standard online ledes with latest twist in a long running story about the country's doctors.

Doctors reject pay offer as jail beckons is the headline.

Hopes of ending the impasse between doctors and the Government were yesterday derailed after the medics declined the latest offer.

Health Cabinet Secretary Cleopa Mailu said it was unanimously agreed at a meeting that started at 6am yesterday - and would have seen doctors elevated to the next job group.

This was in line with the demands tabled by the Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists Union.

However - after meeting union officials made several demands.

Among them was that the offer made by President Uhuru Kenyatta that increased their salaries by 40 per cent should be made effective starting right now.

The medics also want a new risk allowance of Sh10,000 and a 100 per cent increment of call out from Sh30,000 to Sh66,000.

Doctors' representatives are expected to be sent to jail tomorrow; the paper says, and they have threatened not to continue talks if this happens.

 

 

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