The Soil announces the vocalist to #ExperienceTheSoil

It’s been a startlingprocess but theThe Soil, SA’s most loved a capella band, has finally found their female vocalist to take over from Buhle.

Following the announcement in January 2016 that Buhle Mda, the group’s only female vocalist will be taking a break from performing,The Soil held auditions for a female vocalist to join the group from March 2016.

Niger election 2016: Can a prisoner beat the president?

 

Voters in Niger voted on  Sunday's elections, as 15 candidates, including a prisoner,  ran for the presidency.

The West African state is seen as an important ally of Western powers in the fight against militant Islamists in the fragile Sahara region, but the country is far from stable.
President Mahamadou Issoufou is standing for a second term in the impoverished, uranium-producing West African nation, but the election is already marred by accusations of repression and disqualification of voters.

Why is this election important?

Ethiopian Protesters Subject to 'Lethal Force': HRW

People mourn an alleged Oromo protester shot dead by Ethiopian security forces, in the Oromia region, December 17, 2015. Getty Images

 

 

Ethiopian security forces are guilty of “lethal force” in an ongoing crackdown against opponents of the expansion of the capital Addis Ababa, according to Human Rights Watch (HRW).
Protests have been ongoing in Ethiopia’s Oromia region—home to the Oromo, the country’s majority ethnic group—since November 2015 over plans to expand the capital. The government wanted to take over territory in parts of Oromia surrounding Addis, which could have potentially resulted in loss of farming land and forced evictions of farmers from one of the country’s most arable regions. At least 140 protesters had been killed by January 7, according to HRW.

Uganda 2016: Russia Gives Praise, EU and U.S. Cry Foul

Supporters of Yoweri Museveni celebrate his election victory in Kampala, Uganda, February 20. Some members of the international community were less pleased with how the elections were conducted.  Reuters

 

 

Yoweri Museveni triumphed in Uganda’s presidential elections on Thursday, prompting a range of reactions from the international community.
Museveni, who has been in power since 1986, won 60.8 percent of the vote, ahead of main rival Kizza Besigye on 35.4 percent in a highly contentious election. The day was marred by a social media blackout and seven-hour delays in ballots being delivered to some polling stations.

Social media driving couples to divorce

Porn and sexting are increasingly cited in divorce cases.

From the woman who discovered on Facebook that her husband had another family, to the wife who found an online video of her husband dancing with a naked woman, social media are driving South Africans into the arms of divorce lawyers.

"People enter into cyber relationships which become an emotional relationship and a lot of people get caught out talking to someone else via WhatsApp or Facebook," said Cape Town divorce lawyer Bertus Preller.
January and February are known as divorce season, as couples who have spent more time than usual together over the end-of-year holiday realise their relationship has run its course.

Photos: How Cheap Oil Handicaps Nigeria's Fight Against Boko Haram

The crash in global oil prices has pushed Nigeria -- Africa’s biggest economy -- into economic crisis, with potentially dangerous implications for civilians vulnerable to attack by militant group Boko Haram.
The price of U.S. crude oil has plummeted by 75 percent since mid-2014. That’s a disaster for Nigeria, which depends on revenue from its oil production to fund about three-fourths of the government’s budget.

Ethiopia: It's the 'political capital' of Africa, but how much of a melting pot of cultures is it? By Elias Meseret

 AU BUILDING ADDIS ABABA

 DECADES ago Ethiopia was in the headlines for famine, but in a dramatic change of fortunes, in recent years it is a rising star, posting Africa’s and one of the world’s highest rates of economic growth.
However, some still debate how much “Africa facing” Ethiopia is. It is an issue that arises partly because not enough attention is given to the other social and cultural developments in Ethiopia.

Photos: Nigerian Army Destroys Boko Haram Camps Sambisa Forest

 Members of 81 Battalion and 251 Task Force Battalion patrol team of the Nigerian army on Tuesday 16th Feburary 2016 destroyed Boko haram camps located at Komala, Dole, Kumshi and Moadori around the frings of Alagarno forest. More pics after cut...

Special Invitation: The Pacesetters Church March Edition of "IGNITE". Theme: SUPERNATURAL RESULTS.

Special Ministration by Rev Ndeda of the Eagles Christian Church, Wyburg @ the Pacesetters Church auditorium by 3pm-5pm  on Saturday 5th of March 2016.
Theme: Supernatural Results
Venue: Pacesetters Church Auditorium on Main street, opposite Melville Spar, Melville. Johannesburg, South Africa.

Photo: President Buhari Appoints Hon Abike Dabiri Erewa As SSA On Foreign Affairs and Diaspora

 President Buhari has appointed Hon Abike Dabiri Erewa, a former National House of Assembly member from Lagos State and Former Chairman House committee on Diaspora and top APC chieftain as his Senior Special Assistant on Foreign Affairs and Diaspora. Congratulations Hon Abike on your new appointment. Another pic after cut...

Burundi's Independent Media Aren't Going Down Without a Fight

The Press House in Bujumbura, from which independent radios were blocked access.

Journalists in Burundi, where an escalating crisis has imperiled freedom of expression,
have persevered, especially online, preventing the situation from passing silently.
Insecurity nevertheless demands creativity and discretion. Online channels have gained
 new importance, using streamed radio and social media to inform citizens.
These news outlets challenge narratives published by official or pro-ruling party 
CNDD-FDD media, which regularly disregard testimonies contrary to the
government-sanctioned story.

Five years after Gaddafi, Libya torn by civil war and battles with Isis

 
Five years ago he picked up a gun and joined Libya’s rebels to depose Muammar Gaddafi in a blaze of patriotic vigour. Half a decade later the Tripoli medical student will mark Wednesday’s anniversary of the Arab spring revolution treating militia fighters wounded in battles with Islamic State.
Libya marks the fifth anniversary of its revolution with the country torn by civil war and Isis expanding quickly into the chaos. “Back then it was simple, we fought for freedom,” says the medical student, who asked to remain anonymous. “But a lot of time, you wonder was it worth it?”

Uganda election: Museveni Bids to Extend 30-Year Uganda Rule as Security High

Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni looks set to extend his three-decade rule in Thursday’s elections, as security forces pack the capital to quell potential unrest and the opposition voices fears of intimidation.

16 Girls Get Pregnant After A Boy Ejaculated In A Swimming Pool

 
A simple weekend pool party turned to tragedy when one of the young men (Tommy Coulter) attending the birthday celebration ejaculated in the pool without warning the house guests, accidentally ending up impregnating half of the girls present at the celebration.

Zimbabwean Former Vice President, Joice Mujuru sets up rival Zimbabwe party

  Joice Mujuru.

We are 'People First'," Mujuru told AFP by telephone, confirming the name of her new party but giving no further details."We don't lead the people, but people lead themselves."
Mujuru, the widow of Zimbabwe's first post-independence army general, was fired from the government and the ruling ZANU-PF party in December 2014.

‘Generations The Legacy’ actor Rapulana Seiphemo in critical condition after car accident, Underwent Surgery.

 

Actor, Rapulana Seiphemo is reportedly fighting for his life at Milpark hospital after being involved in a collision on the N14 near Diepsloot north of Johannesburg last night.
The Generations: The Legacy lead actor underwent surgery on Monday, for critical injuries he sustained during the accident on Sunday night.

EFF Leader, Julius Malema to President Zuma ‘You are not a legitimate president.. bye bye’

 Julius Malema

“You are not a legitimate president…bye bye‚” Malema said to Zuma.
Speaking during the debate on the President’s state of the nation address‚ the EFF leader said South Africa had been relegated to a junk status country due to the actions of one man “who blames everything on the global economy".

Cassper Nyovest and iFani give R100,000 to #FeesMustFall movement

R10 million is the amount the Wits SRC aims to raise for disadvantaged students who can't affford their tuition.
So far, the drive has gotten off to a good start with rappers iFani and Cassper helping out by giving R50,000 each.

Photos; Malawi Gets Its First Grammy Nomination, With Album by Prison Inmates

Members of the Zomba prison band performing last month at the maximum security institution in Zomba, Malawi.

Old, overcrowded and unsanitary, the maximum-security Zomba prison holds murderers, robbers, rapists — and Grammy-nominated singers.

In a makeshift studio near a carpentry workshop, 14 prisoners and two guards recorded an unusual album of lessons and loss, sin and forgiveness. Now it is going up against the works of well-known performers in the world music category, earning the small, impoverished nation of Malawi its first chance at a Grammy Award, which will be announced Monday night.

Uganda's Museveni looks to a fourth decade in power

Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni. File photo

The 71-year old former rebel leader seized power in 1986, ending years of brutal and murderous rule under Idi Amin and Milton Obote.

"Those who say, 'let him go, let him go', they need to know that this is not the right time," Museveni said at a recent campaign rally held ahead of the February 18 election he is expected to win.
"This old man who has saved the country, how do you want him to go? How can I go out of a banana plantation I have planted that has started bearing fruits?"

Photos: Ooni of Ife, Oba Enitan Adeyeye Ogunwusi Courtesy Visit To President Buhari

The Ooni of Ife, Oba Enitan Adeyeye Ogunwusi, visited President Buhari and Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, at the state house today February 16, 2016. More pics after cut...

Photos: Liberian President, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf State Visit To Abuja

 

President Buhari received visiting Liberian President, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, at the state house today February 16th. more pics after cut...

Which is Which President Buhari By Leo Igwe.

 

President Buhari is somebody who is not competent in addressing the press because he is not a man given to diplomacy. But diplomacy Buhari needs and must deploy if he must effectively function  as a president in today’s world. The few interviews which Buhari has granted since he assumed office have confirmed him as a man who is prone to making unguarded statements that reveal his deep seated prejudice, grudge and ignorance. 

Which modern-era man wants a submissive wife? By JAMES SSEKANDI

Akello also resurrected an old debate of which came first  the egg or the chicken; the love or the submission? JAMES SSEKANDI went in search of answers and found himself confronted by a different question: which modern-era man wants a submissive woman?

Perhaps Brian Tuka, a radio journalist in Kampala, is not your typical Ugandan man. Asked how much submission he expects from his wife of two years, Tuka can’t hide his embarrassment. For him, it is a throwback to an era long gone, to a generation he deems awkward.

A business administration graduate, Tuka says submissiveness would lead to communication difficulties and create a gulf between the woman and a man like him. Inevitably, he says, failed communication would lead to conflict, and what was love would easily become war.

“Submissiveness is a voluntary behaviour. I always make sure my marriage is built on common respect and there should be mutual servant-hood with trust, confidence for each other,” Tuka says.

He seems to represent the new, educated type of man who cannot stand the sight of his spouse showing the kind of don’t-challenge-me submissiveness that our great grandfathers demanded from their wives.

Greeting grandpa without kneeling down could earn the woman serious punishment. Moreover, grandma knew the futility of arguing with or fighting her husband. It was like the legendary clash between the egg and stone: no matter who attacked first, the winner was always the stone.

Feminism is not un-African or irrelevant By Danielle Bowler

 
  Danielle Bowler

‘Feminism as a way of life was born at my mama’s house, in a space that made woman power and intentional equality a survival strategy and mechanism to make up for oppression, the absence of men, and lifestyles that were without the luxury of adhering to strict gender scripts…I learned feminism from my mama and them, rural women who did not have the benefit of formal college education or fancy words for how they lived.  They would have no doubt, by strict standards, in the vulnerable moments of their lives that were necessary for sanity and survival, been called unfeminist while the world called them unfeminine. They would have had little investment in either label, learning from experience how dangerous it is to let outside people dictate your inside thoughts’

We're in a world with no safe havens left By Yoshito Hori

  Yoshito Hori

I have been to Davos eight times in the past 12 years, but this year’s World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos was held against a backdrop of global turmoil unprecedented in the event’s history.
With war in the Middle East, a migrant crisis in Europe, and an economic downturn in China buffeting global markets, we are in a world with no safe havens left.
I identified three major trends in this year’s discussions.

Photo: Bashir Ahmad Appointed as President Buhari Personal Assistant on New Media

President Muhammadu Buhari has appointed Bashir Ahmad as his Personal Assistant on New Media. Ahmad, 24, from Kano State made the announcement on twitter yesterday.

Photos: EFF kicked out of Parliament after Disrupting SONA 2016

 

The Economic Freedom Fighters were thrown out within the first hour of President Jacob Zuma’s State of the Nation address on Thursday, as they consistently heckled the president and raised ongoing points of orders around his speech.
The party’s caucus left the house chanting “Zupta must fall,” referencing their latest campaign to decry Zuma’s close ties with the controversial Gupta family, who have made headlines for capturing key state resources.More pics after cut...

Photos: Red Carpet at the opening of the State of the Nation Address in Parliament, Cape Town on 11 February 2016.

  Chief of Mvezo Mandla Mandela (left) 

More pics after cut.....

Almost 20 million women suffer genital mutilation in Nigeria: Unicef

Unicef flag.

Nigerian Pilot reports that in a statement issued by the organisation, female genital mutilation (FGM) was described as an extremely harmful traditional practice documented in 29 countries across the African continent.
Ratidzai Ndhlova, Nigeria's representative for the United Nations Fund for Population Activities (UNFPA), described the act as an "extreme form of violence against women", adding that it violated reproductive rights and bodily integrity.

Why Africa can’t afford to have an outbreak of the Zika virus By Adamson S. Muula

Group Leader, Dr Masafumi Inoue of Agency for Science Technology and Research's (A*STAR) Experimental Therapeutics Centre shows a sample to be tested with the Zika virus diagnostic test kit at their laboratory in Singapore, February 10, 2016. A*STAR and Singapore's Tan Tock Seng Hospital are collaborating to equip an existing diagnostic test kit with the capability to detect the Zika virus. If preliminary results are successful, the kits could be distributed to hospitals by the end of March in preparation for any outbreaks in Singapore. according to local media. File photo
Image by:  REUTERS

 

 

 Zika fever is a mosquito-borne viral disease caused by the Zika virus which is suspected of leading to the birth of deformed babies. The virus is transmitted to humans when an infected Aedes mosquito stings a person. Direct human to human transmission through sexhas also been reported.
The virus has spread to 23 countries in the South American region. Brazil has been the hardest hit with over 3700. Although the outbreak in Brazil has received the most attention, the virus has also since spread beyond the region to the Cape Verde Islands, which are off the coast of Senegal but are not part of the African mainland, Samoa and Tonga.

10 reasons Nigeria brodas will have your lady for Valentine By Cate Mukei |

Kenyan men have no idea why city women love Nigerian men to bits. Some of our women will even trek through Sahara Desert without water just to get one. Indeed, ‘Oga’ men have a way of wrapping local women around their west African fingers.
Here are 10 reasons Nairobi women would die to have a Naija broda:

LOL: English taught by naked tutors in Venezuelan

According to Daily Mail, The plan is for tutors to conduct lessons while appearing completely naked in a series of X-rated online videos. 
The website claims that students who manage to focus on their work and excel in a new language will receive a certificate of international recognition.
The less traditional method of teaching also makes use of placards and puppets during the lessons. More pics after cut...

Photos: Da Les’ 7th Annual All-White Pool Party

 AKA and Bonang Matheba
More pics after cut...

Thousands starving to death in South Sudan

The figures released in a UN report describe some of the worst conditions in more than two years of a civil war marked by atrocities and accusations of war crimes, including blockading food supplies.
Conditions are "escalating", the UN said, with more than 2.8million people needing aid.
"Nearly 25% of the country's population remains in urgent need of food assistance and at least 40 000 people are on the brink of catastrophe," the UN said.

Zika virus infection 'through sex' reported in United States

 Aedes mosquitoes

A rare case of the Zika virus being transmitted through sex, not a mosquito bite, has been reported in the US.

A patient infected in Dallas, Texas, is likely to have been infected by sexual contact, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) told the BBC.
The person had not travelled to infected areas but their partner had returned from Venezuela.
Zika is carried by mosquitoes and has been linked to thousands of babies being born with underdeveloped brains.
It is spreading through the Americas and the World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the disease linked to the virus a global public health emergency.

Raila accuses African Union of encouraging Burundi violence

. CORD Leader Raila Odinga (PHOTO: COURTESY)
Read more at: http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/article/2000190181/raila-blasts-au-over-burundi-icc

. CORD Leader Raila Odinga (PHOTO: COURTESY)
Read more at: http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/article/2000190181/raila-blasts-au-over-burundi-icc

 

CORD Leader Raila Odinga (PHOTO: COURTESY)
Read more at: http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/article/2000190181/raila-blasts-au-over-burundi-icc

Cord leader Raila Odinga has accused the African Union of endorsing human rights abuse by failure to deploy troops to quell the conflict in Burundi, and instead concentrating on withdrawal from the International Criminal Court (ICC).

In a press release sent to the Nation, Mr Odinga observed that the country is in the precipice of a genocide and all efforts should be directed at restoring peace, democracy and equity.

Bottled water: 'The new gold' in drought-hit Harare

The joke in Harare these days is that more people per square metre are drinking bottled water here — in the drought-hit capital of Zimbabwe — than in wealthy Manhattan.
Harare has developed a huge appetite for bottled water. An estimated 300 000 litres change hands daily in this city of just over 1.6 million inhabitants, with Zimbabwe's finance minister, Patrick Chinamasa, saying that imports have reached "crazy" proportions.

Want to live a healthier life? Make friends

Social isolation is harmful and raises risks to health like blood pressure and waist circumference, a key report has found.
For example, isolation is as great a risk in adolescents as physical inactivity while in old age it is worse than diabetes for blood pressure.
It may be easy to neglect social arrangements and stay at home to watch the latest TV series, but the report demonstrates a clear link between medical risks and a lack of connections.

Photos: 2016 J&B Met In CapeTown, South Africa

Feathers, wigs, tuxedos and couture dresses blended quite well at the 39th installment of the J&B Met in Cape Town

Every year the met attracts over 50 000 fashion lovers and horse racing enthusiasts at what has been dubbed Cape Towns biggest horsing event.
Long Street in the province's capital was abuzz since friday afternoon with activities as last minute outfit preparations were underway for those who were not going to miss the event.
Mzansi A-listers and industry usuals such as Boity Thulo, Jen Su,  Nandi Mngoma, Blue Mbombo, Khanyi Mbau, Mbali Nkosi ,  Leeann Williams and Sinazo Yolanda were also graced the occasion. More pics after cut..

The African Union and African leaders back push for ICC pull out. Your Opinion?

 

"Elsewhere in the world, many things happen - many flagrant violations of human rights - but nobody cares," Deby said.
Image by: REUTERS

Chad's President Idriss Deby, elected African Union chairman at the two-day summit, criticised the court for focusing its efforts on African leaders.
"Elsewhere in the world, many things happen -- many flagrant violations of human rights -- but nobody cares," Deby said at the close of the summit late Sunday, which had an official theme of protecting human rights.

France aided Ivory Coast's Outtara to take 'power by force' Former Ivorian leader Laurent Gbagbo

 

In an opening statement on the third day of Gbagbo's landmark trial on charges of crimes against humanity, defence lawyer Emmanuel Altit sought to unmask what he called a deliberate "smear campaign" against his client.
"Ouattara and his supporters wanted to seize power by force and the battle of Abidjan was, simply put, the very implementation of this strategy," defence lawyer Emmanuel Altit told the International Criminal Court (ICC).

Art and Picasso's goddesses

He was one of the art world's most famous womanisers, once saying: "There are only two kinds of women, goddesses and doormats."

 

Yet there was a softer side to Pablo Picasso, which is revealed in his personal collection showing the six women who were his muses.
These are to be sold after his family arranged an auction of nearly 200 items from his studio. Pics after cut...