The Judicial Service Commission (JSC) has criticised the recent boycott of some judges and judicial officers by lawyers, warning that the action undermines the administration of justice by disrupting court proceedings and delaying the hearing of cases. In a statement issued after a consultative meeting with the Law Society of Kenya (LSK) and the Senior Counsel Bar (SCB), Chief Justice and JSC Chairperson Martha Koome said while concerns over the conduct of judicial officers are legitimate, they should be addressed through the constitutional and legal mechanisms established under the Constitution and the Judicial Service Act. The statement comes days after…
Author: Oki Bin Oki
Nigerians might be surprised to learn they live in a landlocked country and people in Ivory Coast shocked that they are East African not West African – but that is what a map used by a US official at a recent conference showed. Not only that, the cartographic malfunction included completely unrecognisable shapes of the six misidentified countries. The erroneous map appeared during a State Department slide presentation about Washington’s funding for programmes tackling HIV at an Aids conference in Brazil on Sunday. The State Department has described it as “an unfortunate error” caused when a team member “hurriedly altered”…
Ghana’s government on Thursday accepted a proposal to extend the presidential term to five years and lower the minimum age for candidates to 35. Ghana, one of Africa’s leading gold and cocoa producers, has maintained a stable democratic system since 1992. President John Dramani Mahama established a committee last year to review the constitution. The committee submitted its final report to him on Thursday. “The government has accepted the recommendation to extend the term of office of the president from four years to five years,” Justice Minister Dominic Ayine told journalists. The committee said parliament’s term should also be increased…
FIFA vowed on Friday to press on with its “open and democratic” consultation with stakeholders on a proposed private investment plan despite fierce backlash from European football governing body UEFA and others. “Our planned consultation process was disrupted by incorrect media reports,” world football governing body FIFA said in a statement. “We will proceed with this consultation process to ensure that each (member association) has the ability to express its vote based on facts.” European football’s governing body UEFA said Thursday it would boycott the World Cup should FIFA press ahead with its private investor plan. “No UEFA national teams…
One of the most recognised figures in mountaineering today, British-Nepali climber Nirmal Purja holds multiple records. But his most famous feat was in 2019, when he climbed the world’s 14 tallest peaks in just over six months – setting a record at the time for the fastest anyone had scaled all 14 mountains. Purja, also known as Nims Dai, is among 10 climbers who went missing after an avalanche on Thursday on Broad Peak, a 8,047m (26,400ft) mountain in Pakistan-administered Gilgit-Baltistan. Search operations are under way. Here’s what to know about Purja. From military to mountaineering The 43-year-old was born…
About 60,000 migrants have crossed into Spain’s North African territory of Ceuta from Morocco in the last 24 hours, Ceuta’s president said, adding that at least 34 others died during the crossing. The influx comes after Spain’s Supreme Court ruled that migrants stopped at sea while trying to reach Ceuta or Melilla, another Spanish exclave, cannot be summarily returned to Morocco. Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez described the situation as an “attack” and said all illegal migrants would be returned to Morocco “as soon as possible”. Several European leaders have expressed concern, some promising to tighten border controls. More than 25,000…
Just days after South African singer Tyla released the dates for her upcoming world tour, Nigeria has been removed from the list of destinations. On Monday, the Grammy winner announced details of her headline tour in the wake of last week’s release of her second album A*POP. Her official website initially named 34 cities, including Lagos, Johannesburg and Cape Town, where she would be performing, but by Friday, an updated list was published without the Nigerian city. No reason has been given for the change but there have been growing calls in Nigeria for the 24-year-old to cancel her concert…
President William Ruto officially launched the process of developing Kenya’s next long-term development blueprint to succeed Vision 2030, unveiling plans for a nationwide public participation exercise that he says will shape the country’s future beyond the current strategy. In a national address on Thursday evening, President Ruto announced that the government will formally launch a National Conversation on Kenya’s Future Beyond Vision 2030 on August 12, 2026, describing it as the most consequential public participation exercise since the promulgation of the 2010 Constitution. The President said the process would bring together every institution of the Republic, all 47 counties and…
Hundreds of migrants have entered Spain’s North African enclave of Ceuta from Morocco over the past week, the territory’s leader has said. Juan Jesús Vivas said the influx is overwhelming resources and urged the Spanish government to intervene. Spain’s Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska is expected to visit on Friday, according to news agency Reuters. Footage showed migrants swimming and using inflatable rings and other flotation devices to swim to Ceuta on Thursday, while others ran through a gate in the border fence. Ceuta, on Morocco’s northern coast, is separated from mainland Spain by the Strait of Gibraltar and has long…
Nominated Senator Crystal Asige spoke out after being removed from the Senate Committee on Roads, Transport and Housing. She described the move as a setback to her advocacy for persons with disabilities but insisting it would not deter her from serving Kenyans. In a statement shared on X on Thursday evening, Asige said she had used her position on the committee to champion inclusive transport, sustainable cities and accessibility in the built environment for more than eight million persons with disabilities. “Today everyone’s getting it! They removed me from the Senate Committee on Roads, Transport & Housing where I champion…
European football’s 55 member associations have voted to boycott World Cups if the sport’s governing body proceeds with a plan to sell stakes in its competitions to private investors. The decision was made at an emergency meeting called to discuss the proposals announced earlier this week by Fifa, which oversees world football. Uefa, which governs European football, had already made its opposition clear by releasing two damning statements – and that strength of feeling has been reaffirmed. The boycott would cover all Fifa competitions, including the men’s and women’s World Cups and Club World Cup, and be triggered if Fifa…
Brazilian President Luis Inacio Lula da Silva has confirmed that his government has denied visas to two US officials who planned to travel to Brazil, accusing them of trying to interfere in October’s election. “We had to deny visas to two young folks they were sending to Brazil to meddle in Brazil’s elections,” Lula said on Wednesday. Two state department officials were due in Brazil in late July for what they said was a visit regarding freedom of expression and religion, and election integrity. They were also expected to meet the right-wing candidate Flávio Bolsonaro. Previously, the US state department…
US talk-show host Oprah Winfrey says the school for girls that she launched in South Africa nearly 20 years will close next year. At the end of the 2027 academic year, the expansive boarding school campus near Johannesburg is to be handed over to local education authorities as per the original agreement, her statement says. Students enrolled at the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls (OWLAG) who will not have graduated when it closes will be offered full scholarships elsewhere. More than 1,000 girls have graduated from the school aimed at those from under-privileged backgrounds and inspired after Winfrey met…
A Singapore court has fined a French student S$600 ($465; £348) for licking a straw from an orange juice vending machine and putting it back into its dispenser. Didier Gaspard Owen Maximilien, 19, pleaded guilty to one count of public nuisance. Maximilien, who is studying in Singapore, posted the video of himself licking the straw on Instagram with the caption “city is not safe”. Many online reacted with disgust to his video, which was reposted on a community page and picked up by local news outlets. The company that owns the vending machine, iJooz, said it replaced all 500 straws…
The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) has dismissed media reports claiming that the proposed Election Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2026 seeks to abolish live transmission of election results, ban media coverage of polling results, and reintroduce manual voter identification similar to the system used during the 2007 General Election. In a statement issued by IEBC Chairperson Erastus Edung Ethekon, the Commission described the reports as inaccurate and a misrepresentation of the Bill currently before Parliament. The Commission clarified that the Bill does not propose any changes to Section 44 of the Elections Act, which provides for the use of the…