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Zambian Miners kill Chinese Manager During Pay Dispute

Zambian miners have killed a Chinese manager by pushing a mine trolley at him during a riot at a coal mine in the south of the country.

A second Chinese was injured, as were several Zambians, during the riot on Saturday.

The workers were on strike at the mine in protest against delays in implementing a new minimum wage.

They were angry their wages were lower than a new minimum of $220 (£140) a month paid to shop workers.

Zambia’s minister of labour has gone to the Chinese-owned Collum coal mine in Sinazongwe, 325km (200 miles) south of the capital, Lusaka. Continue reading “Zambian Miners kill Chinese Manager During Pay Dispute”

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Presidential Mortality in Africa is Higher than Infant Mortality

Being an African President is a Dangerous Business: Presidential Mortality is Just one of the Risks

Since 2008, eight Head of States or Presidents have died in Africa; the latest the drink the curse is Ghana’s John Atta Mills. Before President Mills, other presidents who left for the ancestral land include Guinea-Bissau’s Malam Bacai Sanha, Malawi’s Bingu wa Mutharika, Libya’s Muammar Gaddafi, Nigeria’s Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, Zambia’s Levy Mwanawasa, Guinea’s Lansana Conté and Gabon’s Omar Bongo.

Considering that there are 54 countries in Africa, this translates to a presidential mortality rate of approximately 15%. If this doesn’t scare you, compare it to the infant mortality rate of Afghanistan and Sierra Leone which are 14 and 13.5% respectively (Afghanistan and Sierra Leone top the world in infant mortality rates). What this means is that even a baby born in Afghanistan or Sierra Leone has a higher chance of surviving the first four to 5  years in life than an African presidents has in surviving a couple of terms in office.

Why is this so, considering that over the same period (from 2008), no president died in South America, only one president died in Asia (North Korea), one president died in Europe (Poland), only one died in North America (Barbados).

So what is happening in Africa? Continue reading “Presidential Mortality in Africa is Higher than Infant Mortality”

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David Cameron Rebukes Mitt Romney After London Olympic Gaffe

Mitt Romney, in his first trip abroad as the presumptive GOP presidential nominee, is trying to walk back comments he made questioning London’s Olympics preparation — comments that have drawn a sharp response from Prime Minister David Cameron.

The dustup began Wednesday, as Romney, who ran the 2002 Salt Lake City games, said there were “disconcerting” signs in the days before this year’s games.

“The stories about the private security firm not having enough people, the supposed strike of the immigration and customs officials — that obviously is not something which is encouraging,” he told NBC News.

“Do they come together and celebrate the Olympic moment? And that’s something which we only find out once the games actually begin,” he said.

Cameron soon rebuked Romney. “We are holding an Olympic Games in one of the busiest, most active, bustling cities anywhere in the world. Of course, it’s easier if you hold an Olympic Games in the middle of nowhere,” he said.

“I think we will show the whole world not just that we come together as a United Kingdom, but also we’re extremely good at welcoming people from across the world,” Cameron added. “I will obviously make those points to Mitt Romney. I look forward to meeting him.” Continue reading “David Cameron Rebukes Mitt Romney After London Olympic Gaffe”

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Ghana’s New President John Dramani Mahama Promises Stability

Ghana’s new President John Dramani Mahama has pledged to uphold stability following the death of his predecessor John Atta Mills.

Mr Mahama, 53, was sworn in several hours after the 68-year-old president died at a hospital in the capital, Accra.

The opposition has praised the swift transition to Mr Mahama, saying it showed Ghana was a mature democracy.

Mr Atta Mills, who suffered from throat cancer, had governed since 2009.

He had planned to run for a second term in elections in December.

The BBC’s Sammy Darko, in Accra, says Mr Mahama will now serve as president until the election, but it is unclear whether he will be the candidate of the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC) party.

Taking the oath at an emergency parliamentary session, Mr Mahama said he would govern for all Ghanaians.

“I wish Ghanaians to be assured that all is well,” Mr Mahama said. Continue reading “Ghana’s New President John Dramani Mahama Promises Stability”

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Ghana President John Atta Mills is Dead

ACCRA, July 24 (Reuters) – Ghana’s President John Atta Mills has died unexpectedly, a presidential statement said, and an aide said his death occurred on Tuesday after he took ill on Monday night.

The death of the president of the world’s No. 2 cocoa grower comes months before Mills was due to stand for re-election at the helm of the West African country that posted double-digit growth in 2011 and has been praised for its strong democracy in a turbulent region.

“It is with a heavy heart…that we announce the sudden and untimely death of the president of the Republic of Ghana,” a statement sent to Reuters by the president’s office said.

It said that Mills, 68, died a few hours after being taken ill but no further details were given. Continue reading “Ghana President John Atta Mills is Dead”

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President Atta Mills of Ghana is dead

RadioXYZonline.com can sadly confirm that President John Evans Atta Mills has died.

The President died on Tuesday afternoon hours after announcing to Parliament that he was leaving for the Nigeria.

He is said to have died from an acute cardiac arrest.

President Mills on Saturday celebrated his 68th birthday on a low key with orphans in Accra.

A statement sent from the Presidency, Chief of Staff John Henry Martey Newman, said “it is with a heavy heart and deep sorrow that we announce the sudden untimely death of the President of the Republic of Ghana – His Excellency, John Evans Atta Mills.” Continue reading “President Atta Mills of Ghana is dead”

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President of Ghana Atta Mills is Dead

Ghana’s President John Atta Mills, who was suffering from throat cancer, has died in the capital, Accra.

A statement from his office said the 68-year-old died a few hours after being taken ill, but did not give details.

“It is with a heavy heart…that we announce the sudden and untimely death of the president of the Republic of Ghana,” the statement said.

Mr Atta Mills has ruled the West African country since 2009.

The BBC’s Sammy Darko, who is at the military hospital in Accra, says Mr Atta Mill’s voice has been degenerating in the last few months.

A presidential aide said the leader had complained of suffering pains on Monday evening and he died on Tuesday afternoon, Reuters reports.

He had returned to Ghana after visiting the US for medical checks, the news agency says.

Mr Atta Mills came to power after narrowly winning against a candidate from the then governing New Patriotic Party, Nana Akufo-Addo, in polls in December 2008.

He was to run for a second term in December.

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South Sudan Has the World’s Worst Maternal mortality Rate

South Sudan has the worst reported maternal mortality rate in the world.

“More women die in child birth, per capita, in South Sudan, than in any country in the world,” says Caroline Delany, a health specialist with the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) in South Sudan which is funding a raft of maternal health programmes.

A 2012 report entitled Women’s Security in South Sudan: Threats in the Home by Geneva-based think-tank Small Arms Survey (SAS) says a national survey carried out in 2006 indicating 2,054 deaths per 100,000 live births may have been an underestimation.

“Many deaths are not reported, in part because 90 percent of women give birth away from formal medical facilities and without the help of professionally trained assistants,” it said.

Childbirth and pregnancy, rather than conflict, are the nation’s biggest killers of girls and women. Continue reading “South Sudan Has the World’s Worst Maternal mortality Rate”

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