Vol 48 No 16 | SIERRA LEONE The first-round fight 3rd August 2007 The governing party may be on its way out and the campaign seems to be turning nasty Solomon Berewa wants a first-round victory on 11 August. As more than 2.6 million Sierra Leoneans prepare to elect a new president and 112 members of parliament, the...
Vol 48 No 16 | SIERRA LEONE Personal not proportional 3rd August 2007 In these elections, the proportional representation system is replaced by voting in first-past-the-post constituencies. This makes personalities more important and increases the sway of paramount chiefs, almost all...
Vol 48 No 16 | NIGERIA Making haste slowly 3rd August 2007 President Yar'Adua shows he is prepared to make sweeping changes – even if the pace of decision-making remains slow Essentially, the new presidency started last week. President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua appointed his cabinet on 26 July and followed this four days later with a sweeping shake-up of...
Vol 48 No 16 | LIBERIA Rumours and plots 3rd August 2007 President Johnson-Sirleaf's enemies have come out in the open with a raft of allegations and threats of military action Murky reports of coup plots and corruption are tarnishing President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf’s government. Local political scheming undermines her high international credibility and that of her Finance Minister, Antoinette...
Vol 48 No 15 | GHANA Everyone's in the race 20th July 2007 Would-be presidential candidates crop up everywhere, with pots of money and hopes of oil The race for Ghana's presidency is heating up at last after eight ministers and presidential hopefuls walked out of President John Agyekum Kufuor's government on 6 July. They...
Vol 48 No 15 | GHANA Ministerial and musical chairs 20th July 2007 Promotions, demotions and sideways shuffles Who's where in the government reshuffle?
Vol 48 No 15 | SIERRA LEONE Justice at a price 20th July 2007 The court that is trying Sierra Leone's war-crimes is costly and, so far, not very effective The Special Court for Sierra Leone is well past its sell-by date. Intended to last only three years, until 2005, the SCSL now aims to wind up at...
Vol 48 No 15 | SIERRA LEONE Judging the judges 20th July 2007 By local standards, the 13 judges serving on the Sierra Leone Special Court are well paid. Critics say this explains why the trials are dragging on.
Vol 48 No 13 | GUINEA BISSAUWEST AFRICA The cocaine web spreads 22nd June 2007 Latin America's druglords are doing multimillion dollar business with West Africa's military and their politician pals From their heydays in Nigeria in the 1980s, Latin America's druglords are diversifying their business in Africa. Nigerian traders still play a key role: they are regarded as...
Vol 48 No 12 | NIGERIA The new man in Abuja 8th June 2007 Vested interests in the police and political class are already trying to block President Umaru Yar'Adua's reform efforts At a subdued and well guarded inauguration ceremony in Abuja's Eagle Square parade ground on 29 May, President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua talked about reforming Nigeria's rotten political system....