Continued……Former Chief Justice David Maraga condemned her arrest and detention, stating that it undermined the spirit of Madaraka Day. Police confiscated the phone, laptop and hard drives of Njeri, a mother of two, according to the BBC, which spoke to Boniface Mwangi, a Kenyan activist who visited Njeri in detention.

The 2025 finance bill proposes taxing digital loans, granting the tax authority the right to access personal data without a court order and replacing the zero-rated tax provision on essential commodities. If approved, this proposal could lead to higher prices or decreased purchasing power for low-income Kenyans.

In 2024, youth-led protests against the finance bill erupted nationwide. Demonstrators, many of whom were unemployed, called for the withdrawal of the 2024 finance bill that contained tax hikes and programme cuts that the International Monetary Fund had suggested. Growing local and global pressure ultimately forced President William Ruto to decline to assent to the bill, leaving the government to raise revenue using existing tax laws.

However, last month, the World Bank expressed concern over Kenya's debt levels, categorising the situation as 'high risk of default.'

Image credit: @eastleighvoice (X)

Sources

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jun/03/outrage-over-arrest-of-kenyan-software-developer-rose-njeri-as-regional-repression-grows

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cgmjlp1gnp8o

https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/kenyas-finance-bill-why-has-it-triggered-protests-2024-06-25/

https://www.citizen.digital/business/kenya-at-high-risk-of-debt-default-and-austerity-measures-not-enough-world-bank-warns-n363573

https://www.ey.com/en_gl/technical/tax-alerts/kenya-s-president-declines-to-assent-to-the-finance-bill-2024

https://www.citizen.digital/news/rose-njeri-released-on-ksh100000-bond-n363932

MARCUS GARVEY: A UNITED AFRICA IS UNBEATABLE

On this day, 10th June 1940, Marcus Garvey, a prominent figure in early 20th-century Pan-Africanism, passed away at the age of 52.

In this 1998 video, Guyanese-born performer Ron Bobb-Semple (1952-2022) brought the spirit of Marcus Garvey to life in a powerful one-man show in New York. Bobb-Semple eloquently captured Garvey's powerful message of African pride, self-reliance, and, critically, the unification of Africa.  

Marcus Garvey tirelessly advocated for the liberation and self-determination of African nations and the global Black diaspora. His core message called for a united and economically independent Africa, one that was strong enough to protect its people worldwide.

Continued……. He established the Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA) and the Black Star Line, aiming to facilitate both trade and the eventual return of people of African descent to their ancestral homeland.

In 1923, Garvey was sentenced to 5 years in US federal prison (where he spent nearly 3 years) supposedly for mail fraud. This was the first of several significant actions taken by the notoriously racist former FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover against revolutionary Black leaders in the United States.

Garvey illustrated Africa's potential for unbeatable strength by reminding his audience of Jack Johnson, the first Black world heavyweight boxing champion who vanquished his white opponents wherever he fought them. Garvey believed that a similarly strong, unified Africa was essential to achieving true liberation and global respect for the Black race. 

Garvey's influence extended far beyond his lifetime, inspiring later generations of Pan-Africanists and liberation movements across the continent. Leaders like Kwame Nkrumah of Ghana openly acknowledged their indebtedness to Garvey's political teachings.

The Black Star on Ghana's national flag was inspired by Marcus Garvey's Black Star Line. The national football team, the Black Stars, also derives its name from the same source.

Long live the spirit of Marcus Garvey!

Sources

https://blackhistorystudies.com/resources/resources/25-facts-about-marcus-mosiah-garvey/

https://www.modernghana.com/news/1327613/reviving-the-black-star-line-a-pathway-to-economi.html

https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/garvey-biography/

https://nmaahc.si.edu/explore/stories/jack-johnson-heavyweight-boxer-defied-america

https://www.nytimes.com/1923/06/22/archives/garvey-sentenced-to-5-years-in-jail-black-star-promoter-also-fined.html

https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2025/jan/26/marcus-garvey-pardon-campaign

NIGER'S PRESIDENT: T*RRORISM HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH ISLAM

T*rrorism has nothing to do with Islam. That is the message Niger's president, General Abdourahamane Tiani, delivered during a stunning interview he gave on 31 May. 

As Tiani explained, Islam has existed in Niger for well over a millennium, yet t*rrorism is a recent phenomenon linked to Western imperialism. He mentioned France, the European Union and the United States as culprits, saying France backs t*rrorist group Jama'a Nusrat ul-Islam wa al-Muslimin (JNIM).

As Tiani pointed out, the targets and victims of t*rrorism in the Sahel are overwhelmingly Muslims. Niger is roughly 98 per cent Muslim. Mali is around 95 per cent Muslim. Burkina Faso is approximately 63.8 per cent Muslim. Where is the logic in religious zealots m*rdering members of their faith? Tiani put that question forward to the world.

Continued……He is not the first leader in the Sahel to accuse France of backing these groups. In 2022, Mali’s then-Prime Minister Abdoulaye Maïga accused France of supporting t*rrorists, providing them with arms and intelligence. Mali also sent a letter to the UN Security Council that year stating that France repeatedly violated Mali’s airspace and spied on the country to grant intelligence to t*rrorist organisations, and distributed arms to these paramilitaries. 

Video credit: @ortntele (X)

Sources

https://www.state.gov/reports/2023-report-on-international-religious-freedom/niger/#:~:text=Religious%20Demography,the%20Maliki%20school%20of%20jurisprudence.

https://www.state.gov/reports/2023-report-on-international-religious-freedom/mali

https://www.state.gov/reports/2022-report-on-international-religious-freedom/burkina-faso

https://www.lemonde.fr/en/le-monde-africa/article/2022/08/18/mali-s-junta-continues-to-mount-accusations-against-france-after-troop-withdrawal_5993953_124.html

https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/mali-accuses-france-arming-islamist-fighters-letter-un-2022-08-17

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bHjVl6dZx8o&t=355s

https://main.un.org/securitycouncil/en/content/jamaa-nusrat-ul-islam-wa-al-muslimin-jnim

CLAIM YOUR AFRICAN IDENTITY

For the subjugation of Africa to succeed, the imperialists redefined what it meant to be African. Europeans wiped knowledge of our continent clean, denying many the opportunity to learn about the civilisations that held their own from Mali to the East African coast.

On the 85th anniversary of Pan-Africanist Marcus Garvey's death at the age of 52, we aim to illustrate what reclaiming Africanness would mean by reposting this clip featuring psychologist Amos Wilson (1941-95). In it, he pointed to an African-centred school in the US bearing Garvey’s name, where kindergarten students (5-year-olds) read sixth-grade material (for 11-year-olds). 

Garvey, who inspired Wilson, died on 10 June 1940 in London following multiple strokes. He became one of the most influential Pan-Africanists to have ever lived, inspiring some of our beloved Pan-Africanist leaders, such as Kwame Nkrumah (1909-72) and Malcolm X (1925-65), whose parents were Garveyites.

Continued……Garvey (1887-1940) was a political activist, publisher, journalist and orator. He founded the Universal Negro Improvement Association and African Communities League (UNIA-ACL), a Pan-Africanist organisation that counted millions of members during Garvey’s life and branches in many countries. However, his dedication to African liberation during the Jim Crow era of racially discriminatory laws in the US and amidst the surge in interest in communism following the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution put the arrow on his back.

Soon-to-be FBI Director J Edgar Hoover (1895-1972) aimed to destroy Garvey's mass movement by sending an undercover agent to infiltrate the UNIA-ACL. The sting operation led to Garvey serving jail time and sunk hopes of using his Black Star Line steamship to transport Africans in the US back to their ancestral home.

Despite this, Garvey's legacy endures as a towering symbol of African pride, unity and resistance. Although he faced relentless opposition and persecution, his vision of a free and self-determined Africa inspired generations of leaders and movements worldwide.

Sources

https://face2faceafrica.com/article/john-edgar-hoover-the-fbi-director-who-destroyed-civil-rights-groups-using-state-sponsored-terrorism1234

https://www.npr.org/2021/02/08/965503687/marcus-garvey-pan-africanist

https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/garvey-impact/

https://thepanafrica.com/marcus-garvey-the-visionary-who-shaped-pan-africanism/

Continued……. However, Kenyans have long decried the soldiers violating locals’ human rights. For example, the recent incident comes a few years after 21-year-old Agnes Wanjiru’s body was found mutilated in a hotel septic tank. Over a decade later, the suspect has still not faced justice despite soldiers reportedly joking about it on the BATUK base.

In 2024, Kenyan MPs established a public enquiry to investigate the citizens’ claims. The allegations included a hit-and-run incident, gang r*pe, and claims that some British soldiers had abandoned local women they had impregnated.

Image credits: Malindikenya.net , @GovUK (X), @BritishArmy (X)

Sources

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cx27vqvkn9vo?at_link_id=A82CEC9E-454A-11F0-AC9F-BE350FE8C88F&at_campaign=Social_Flow&at_medium=social&at_link_type=web_link&at_bbc_team=editorial&at_format=image&at_link_origin=BBCAfrica&at_ptr_name=twitter&at_campaign_type=owned
https://kenyanforeignpolicy.com/wanjirus-murder-justice-delayed-diplomacy-ducked/

https://apnews.com/article/kenya-agnes-wanjiru-death-britain-0389c1ecb7f2a593796869e77180e79e

https://nation.africa/kenya/news/british-soldiers-in-nanyuki-having-unprotected-sex-with-prostitutes-as-part-of-initiation-4582532

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cedd92vn5lko

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2024/sep/27/mod-investigate-british-troops-kenya-itv-documentary
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cedd92vn5lko

https://www.rt.com/africa/588263-british-army-kenya-murder-trial/

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-13904207/british-troops-joked-killer-death-kenyan-mother-septic-tank.html

https://www.thecitizen.co.tz/tanzania/news/east-africa-news/british-soldiers-in-kenya-having-unprotected-sex-with-prostitutes-as-part-of-initiation-4583050

https://www.voanews.com/a/kenyan-mps-probe-alleged-british-army-crimes/7636391.html

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/619672438fa8f503764ed360/EM_CS_Kenya.1.2021_Defence_Cooperation_Agreement.odt

U.S. PROFITS FROM ENDLESS WAR

‘War is a racket.’

That classic take on US imperialism by US Marine Corps Major General Smedley Butler (1881-1940) many decades ago described Washington's fixation on endless wars to dominate the world in its quest to expand and protect corporate profits.

Here, Ben & Jerry’s co-founder Ben Cohen (@YoBenCohen on X) reads from Butler's 1935 book, ‘War is a Racket: The Profit that Fuels Warfare,’ which revealed the strong commercial interests that shape US foreign and military policy. Butler’s military work helped US corporations establish their presence in Latin America, the Caribbean and Asia. Looking back, Butler realised he had been a ‘gangster for capitalism.’

Continued……. Imperialism involves a country using military force to ensure profits outside its borders. While researcher David Vine has stated that the United States operates at least 750 military bases in over 80 countries, US military veteran and psychologist Monisha Rios claimed in 2023 that at least 3,000 US military installations exist if counting non-base structures.

US warmongering has led some US states to rely on military contracts to bolster their economies. For instance, in 2024, Missouri congress member Ann Wagner pointed out that delays in ammunition shipments to Israel were negatively impacting workers in her district. 

Unfortunately, whether it's mutilated infants in Palestine, slaughtered peoples in the Horn of Africa, or s*xually assaulted women who live near US military bases, victims of US militarism pay the highest price.

Video credit: (@TCNetwork on X)

Sources

https://www.coffeeordie.com/article/smedley-butler-business-plot

https://www.vvaw.org/veteran/article/?id=4053

https://www.saturdayeveningpost.com/2023/11/considering-history-remembering-general-smedley-butlers-anti-war-activism-for-veterans-day

https://www.nytimes.com/1931/04/29/archives/haiti-gave-butler-medal-for-exploit-capture-of-fort-riviere-was.html#:~:text=Smedley%20D.,President%20Dartiguenave%20for%20his%20services.

https://workersvoiceus.org/2023/09/19/smedley-butler-a-gangster-for-u-s-imperialism

https://www.bbh.com/us/en/bbh-who-we-are/our-story/200-years-of-partnership/brown-brothers-co-in-latin-america.html

https://www.cliffsnotes.com/study-notes/21251330

https://archive.ph/Huqig

https://wagner.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/wagner-demands-answers-biden-administration-withholding-key-aid-israel

https://www.democracynow.org/2023/2/14/david_vine_us_bases_china_philippines

https://towardfreedom.org/story/archives/americas/protesters-rally-in-washington-d-c-against-u-s-wars-and-militarism-on-20th-anniversary-of-u-s-invasion-of-iraq

https://www.forbes.com/sites/lorenthompson/2023/01/18/how-the-defense-industry-became-a-defining-feature-of-the-us-economy

Continued……. The same policies that once ravaged African economies during IMF-backed Structural Adjustment Programmes in the 1980s are now back in full swing, disguised in the language of “fiscal discipline.” Just 19% of respondents in any region reported economic improvement, with no region exceeding that figure.

Discontent cuts across political lines, with 85% of opponents of the Broad-Based Government (BBG) and 52% of its supporters reporting they are worse off.

Sources
https://eastleighvoice.co.ke/national/156441/rutos-government-faces-backlash-as-most-kenyans-say-theyre-worse-off-than-in-2022

https://www.tuko.co.ke/kenya/590861-75-kenyans-country-rutos-leadership-headed-wrong-direction-poll-shows/

https://nairobilawmonthly.com/tifa-poll-kenya-headed-wrong-direction/

https://www.instagram.com/p/DKOzQM-I_zv/

https://darubininews.co.ke/2023/12/17/for-every-10-shillings-i-collect-7-shillings-go-to-paying-debt-ruto-says/

https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/kenya-president-spoke-imf-chief-after-pulling-tax-hikes-sources-say-2024-07-04/

WHEN, NOT IF. WHAT DOES NIGERIA'S MILITARY KNOW?

Not ‘if’ but ‘when.’ Nigeria's Chief of Defence Staff appears to have made a Freudian slip. Speaking during the Voice of Nigeria (VON) Forum 2025, General Christopher Musa said that Nigeria will be the next target when - not if - the Sahel falls to terrorism. That simple word choice is raising concerns about what exactly Nigeria's military knows regarding the security situation in the Sahel. 

Bear in mind that neighbouring Niger has accused Nigeria of collusion with France in its efforts to destabilise the Sahel. According to Niamey, Paris has partnered with terrorist groups in the Lake Chad region to destabilise Niger, with the tacit complicity of Abuja. The suspicion becomes more credible in light of utterances by certain French officials. For example, former spy Vincent Crouzet admitted that the departure of France from Niger gives Paris leeway to engage in more covert destabilisation as 'there are no French hostages’ in the country.