Continued…….. According to Medafrica Times, the senior Bakonga was sentenced in 2021 to three years in prison for money laundering and illegal transfer of capital abroad. In the same case, a court convicted the younger Bakonga to six months in prison. When authorities arrested the father and son in Brazzaville on a Paris-bound plane, they reportedly found $30,000 on the duo before extraditing them to Kinshasa. However, a presidential pardon released both men after seven months.

The Bakongas’ case showcases the stark contrast between the opulent lifestyles of the DRC elite and the harsh realities the majority of its citizens face. According to the World Bank, an estimated 73.5 per cent of Congolese live on less than $2.15 per day. A small group of well-connected people collaborating with foreign interests is siphoning off Congo’s estimated $24 trillion in mineral reserves.

While rich politicians in Kinshasa enjoy lavish parties, complete with imported champagne and gourmet food, their soldiers in the war-torn eastern provinces of North Kivu and South Kivu have retreated in the face of lightning advances by the Rwanda- and Uganda-backed M23 militia, partly due to a lack of modern arms and low pay.

Video credits: @congomood.cd / @peoplecd243 (IG) / @kivunews24 (X)

Sources

https://x.com/kivunews24/status/1896521299209699495

https://www.caranddriver.com/tesla/cybertruck

https://www.tesla.com/cybertruck

https://www.barrons.com/articles/dr-congo-ex-minister-gets-three-years-for-money-laundering-01619789116

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mBirsuDxrU0

https://www.instagram.com/joebak7?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet&igsh=ZDNlZDc0MzIxNw==

https://medafricatimes.com/tag/joel-bakonga

https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/drc/overview

https://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/tea/news/east-africa/congo-army-desertion-trials-cast-spotlight-on-a-broken-force-4949376

https://www.dw.com/en/mapped-out-why-isnt-the-dr-congo-the-worlds-richest-country/video-70620354

IS U.S. HELPING GABON COUP LEADER RUN FOR PRESIDENT?

Gabon’s coup leader, Brice Oligui Nguema, has officially announced his candidacy for the 2025 elections on 12 April. However, unlike recent coups in French-speaking Africa, some suspect the West backs this one. 

In this video, we look at how Gabon has inched closer to France and the United States since Nguema took power on 30 August 2023. 

Most notable may be the recently dismantled US Agency for International Development (USAID) granting the Gabonese government $5 million in October 2024 for the upcoming elections despite the US accusing other countries of interfering in US presidential elections. 

Is this not hypocritical? Let us know in the comments.

DRC CUTTING OUT THE MIDDLEMAN?

Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) President Félix Tshisekedi’s administration is offering the US exclusive access to its critical minerals and infrastructure projects in exchange for military assistance against Rwanda- and Uganda-backed M23 rebels. 

This proposal, outlined in a letter from the Africa-USA Business Council lobbying on behalf of the DRC government to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, seeks urgent discussions between Tshisekedi and US President Donald Trump. The president’s brother, Jacques, also travelled to the UAE to secure military equipment. However, the feasibility of these diplomatic efforts remains uncertain, given the US and UAE's strong ties with Rwanda. 

Continued……. Despite over two years of M23 activity, the US sanctioned a Rwandan official and an M23 militia spokesperson who don’t rank high in Rwanda, raising questions about whether a direct deal would prompt a shift in US policy. 

Additionally, the DRC is going in the opposite direction of the Alliance of Sahel States (AES)—made up of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger—which has taken greater control of its resources, expelled foreign powers and secured better mining deals following coups d’état over the past few years. Questions remain about how well recent talks went between Malian President Assimi Goïta and the DRC’s justice minister, Constant Mutamba.

Let us know what you think in the comments.

Sources

https://www.mining.com/web/congo-courts-trump-for-strategic-minerals-tie-up-as-war-looms/

https://archive.ph/kwI0A#selection-1193.4-1193.69

https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/us-open-minerals-partnerships-with-democratic-republic-congo-2025-03-09/

https://archive.ph/4j8DC

https://www.africaintelligence.com/central-africa/2025/03/05/tshisekedi-dangles-mineral-resources-in-exchange-for-help-against-m23,110382753-eve

https://globalwitness.org/en/campaigns/transition-minerals/the-itsci-laundromat/#resource-library

https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/sb0022

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/czjd70mzge2o

https://www.kaieteurnewsonline.com/2024/09/04/burkina-faso-reclaims-gold-mines-from-largest-british-mining-firm/

https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/new-mali-mining-law-could-boost-state-local-interest-projects-35-2023-07-14/

JOHN LEGEND BLASTED OVER RWANDA CONCERT

As Rwanda faces increasing criticism for supporting the M23 militia in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), public figures, including musicians, are feeling the heat to boycott the East African state.

However, John Legend forged ahead to headline a concert in Kigali on 21 February, organised by ‘Move Afrika,’ a touring initiative by NGO Global Citizen to create economic opportunities for young Africans in the creative sectors. @johnlegend stood by his choice to perform in Rwanda, saying that the Rwandan people shouldn’t be punished for their leaders’ choices.

Continued……. However, in this video, Legend received pushback from Carine Kanimba, a human-rights activist and the daughter of Paul Rusesabagina, the hero portrayed in the film, ‘Hotel Rwanda.’ Rusesabagina is known for providing refuge to more than 1,200 Hutus and Tutsis during the 1994 gen*cide by sheltering people in a hotel. He fled Rwanda in 1996 due to threats from his outspoken criticism of the Kagame government. Then, in 2020, Rusesabagina was forcibly returned after boarding a flight in Dubai. The United Arab Emirates' relationship to Rwanda involves buying gold looted from the DRC and smuggled through Rwanda, per multiple sources. In September 2021, a Rwandan court convicted @rusesabaginapaul (IG) on t*rrorism-related charges, sentencing him to 25 years. Following a letter requesting a pardon in October 2022, his sentence was commuted, and he was released in March 2023.

Carine criticised Legend for accepting what she termed ‘dirty dollars’ from a dictator, accusing him of ignoring the suffering Rwandan youth as they are dispatched to exploit the DRC.

In a contrasting move, Nigerian singer Tems (@temsbaby on X), also a Grammy winner, decided to cancel a 22 March concert in Kigali, citing her awareness of the real-world implications of the three-decade-long, Western-backed conflict over natural resources that had k*lled at least 6 million people by 2010 and internally displaced more than 7 million by 2024.

Video credit: @ckanimba (IG + X)

sources

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cly8nzpwnn4o

https://www.hrw.org/news/2020/09/10/rwanda-rusesabagina-was-forcibly-disappeared

https://forbiddenstories.org/paul-rusesabagina-no-one-can-silence-me/

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-58604468

https://www.okayafrica.com/tems-rwanda-concert-cancellation-drc-unrest/

TRAORÉ UPLIFTS WOMEN FARMERS

International Women’s Day, or as it was initially called, International Working Women’s Day, is a revolutionary holiday founded to recognise working-class women’s quest for humanity.

The first known celebration took place in 1909 in New York. In 1910, German communist Clara Zetkin (1857-1933) changed it from ‘Women’s Day’ to ‘Working Women’s Day.’ In 1922, Russian revolutionary Vladimir Lenin (1870-1924) announced that 8 March would be celebrated as ‘International Women’s Day’ to honour women’s contributions to the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution.

Continued……In Burkina Faso, the holiday has retained much of its revolutionary roots, largely thanks to the liberatory work of assassinated Pan-African leader Thomas Sankara (1949-87). Today, President Ibrahim Traoré continues to honour, celebrate and uplift women.

On 8 March, Traoré visited the village of Zongo, located in the department of Loumbila in the Central Plateau region, to meet with a cooperative of women farmers. The women were surprised and thrilled to be face to face, exchanging with the president. Traoré thanked them for their hard work and promised to relieve many of their hardships with more tools and resources necessary for their agricultural production. Traoré called women farmers the backbone of the country’s economy.

Let us know in the comments how you or your country honours the day.

Video credit: @faso7_bf (IG + X) / @sigbf (X)

Hear Us Roar: https://news.1rj.ru/str/AfricanStream

The ending of slavery or colonial rule is often presented in history books as some kind of act of kindness by enlightened, morally upright imperialists. But we know that’s false. Had our people not fought tooth and nail for liberation, our independence - although still incomplete - would not have been possible.

The struggle goes on and we too must fight for our freedom. As pan-African revolutionary and first president of Ghana Kwame Nkrumah (1909-72) said, it’s never a given.

Sources

https://www.oxfordreference.com/display/10.1093/acref/9780191826719.001.0001/q-oro-ed4-00007911

CHINA BUILDS HOSPITAL IN BURKINA FASO

China and Burkina Faso are working hand in hand to build a brighter future. At least, that is the case with their collaboration on a teaching hospital on the outskirts of Bobo Dioulasso. The hospital, set to open in 2025, would be West Africa’s largest.

Karim Démé, president of the Focal Point of the People’s Republic of China in Burkina Faso, initially proposed the project and contacted Chinese authorities to develop the idea. Chinese doctors will train Burkinabé physicians for the first three years, after which the Burkinabé people will run the hospital by 2028.

As of 2020, Burkina Faso had 0.2 hospital beds per 1,000 people compared to the global average of 3.3 beds per 1,000 people.

Video credit: @bf1tv (X)

Sources

https://china.aiddata.org/projects/60057

https://lefaso.net/spip.php?article110036

https://lefaso.net/?page=impression&id_article=136152

https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SH.MED.BEDS.ZS

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uY15eiMl8Tc

Burkina Faso has acquired an oil depot at Ghana's Tema Multi-Purpose Terminal, one of West Africa's major ports. The storage units will strengthen energy security and facilitate the import of products from partner countries via Ghana's sea access.

It’s an important step for landlocked Burkina Faso, whose president, Ibrahim Traoré, has repeatedly stressed the need to decrease his country’s dependence on Western powers.

Being landlocked is a major challenge for Ouagadougou in its pursuit of greater self-determination and sovereignty. The same goes for its two neighbouring allies, Mali and Niger.

Together, the three countries have formed the Alliance of Sahel States (AES) Confederation - after recently exiting the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), a bloc accused of being an instrument of the West.

Continued……Due to the trio’s landlocked status, Ghana's role is critical. Under its previous leadership, Accra was Western-aligned and an ECOWAS bastion. But now, under President John Mahama, Ghana is seeking to rebuild trust with the AES, signalling a repositioning of its foreign policy.

Will West Africa at large stay divided between foreign-controlled states and those fighting for sovereignty - or unite for true African independence?

Hear Us Roar: https://news.1rj.ru/str/AfricanStream

Kenya splashed $4 million on veteran politician Raila Odinga’s unsuccessful campaign for the African Union chairmanship, as revealed by documents submitted to parliament by the Defence, Intelligence and Foreign Relations Committee.

The money was used for chartered flights, hotel accommodations, airport transfers and lavish promotional materials. In a nation where the average monthly income hovers around $200 and youth unemployment is at 67%, such lavish expenditure on a political endeavour has sparked anger at what many are describing as a lack of fiscal responsibility. Critics say the funds squandered on Odinga’s campaign could have been better spent on critical national infrastructure, such as roads, schools and hospitals, or on hiring additional medical personnel.

Kenyans are struggling with a cost-of-living crisis. Less than a year ago, widespread protests broke out against IMF-backed tax increases, with reports of police brutality resulting in over 60 fatalities.

Continued……The National Assembly’s Liaison Committee justified the campaign spending under Article 223 of the Kenyan constitution, which permits government expenditures without prior parliamentary consent.

Despite Kenya flexing its financial muscle, and President William Ruto’s vocal support for Odinga’s candidacy, Djibouti’s foreign minister Mahamoud Ali Youssuf bagged the AU’s top job after securing the required 33 votes in the 7th round of voting on 15 February. In the aftermath, Odinga has entered into a memorandum of understanding with Ruto to establish a unity government.

As Kenya approaches another contentious budgetary season, the Ruto administration risks further inflaming public sentiment, adding to the growing list of grievances that citizens are accumulating in anticipation of more financial burdens.

The question remains: when will the government prioritise the needs of its people over political ambitions?

Sources

https://www.the-star.co.ke/news/realtime/2025-03-11-kenya-spent-sh524m-on-railas-auc-bid-mps-told

https://data.worldbank.org/country/kenya

https://www.citizen.digital/news/only-3-of-kenyans-earn-a-monthly-income-of-above-ksh50k-tifa-n322893

https://www.ceicdata.com/en/indicator/kenya/monthly-earnings

https://www.fke-kenya.org/policy-issues/youth-employment

https://www.aljazeera.com/features/2024/6/27/not-afraid-to-die-kenya-tax-protests-inspire-broader-demand-for-change

FOREIGN-OWNED MINE POLLUTES KEY RIVER IN ZAMBIA

A huge spillage of mining waste has polluted two key rivers in Zambia - destroying crops and farmers’ livelihoods in the process. It’s reignited debate over the flagrant disregard for safety and environmental regulations by multinational corporations operating in Africa. The breach happened at the Chinese-owned Sino Metals Leach Zambia Ltd. copper mine. Zambia, Africa’s second-largest producer of copper, has suffered several environmental disasters caused by foreign mining companies. It’s a double tragedy for local communities, which rarely see the benefits of their mining activities - with most of the revenue ending up in bank accounts abroad.

Continued……Foreign mining companies are also accused of engaging in widespread tax avoidance schemes. For instance, in 2021, British NGO Oxfam revealed that Anglo-Swiss mining giant Glencore, which operated in Zambia for over two decades, only paid $28 million in taxes from 2011 to 2018, despite raking in revenues of more than $6 billion during that period.

Sources

https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2025-03-04-chambishi-tailings-failure-a-canary-in-zambias-copperbelt/

https://www.daily-mail.co.zm/2025/02/25/eiz-undertakes-investigation-into-sino-metals-tailing-dam-incident/

https://newsite3.dailynationzambia.com/2025/03/we-are-sorry-sino-metals/

https://newsite3.dailynationzambia.com/2025/03/sino-metals-mining-disaster/

https://taxjusticeafrica.net/resources/blog/zambias-copper-amid-energy-transition-new-dawn-mining-or-repeating-past-mistakes#:~:text=The%20socio%2Deconomic%20cost%20of%20corporate%20tax%20abuse&text=One%20of%20the%20major%20factors,social%20protection%20and%20economic%20diversification.

JULIUS MALEMA: THE U.S. NO VICTIM OF DISINFORMATION

In his 6 March address to the South African National Assembly, revolutionary Julius Malema (@julius_s_malema on X, @julius.malema.sello on IG), president of the Pan-African political party, Economic Freedom Fighters (@effsouthafrica), called the US the biggest perpetrators of disinformation.

Malema gave a historical account of how the US and its foreign-intelligence arm, the CIA, have destabilised countries under false pretences, such as claiming Iraq held weapons of mass destruction (WMDs) to justify the 2003 invasion.

Continued……He also noted the US assassinated political figures, such as Pan-Africanist revolutionary Malcolm X (1925-65) and Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi (1942-2011), both of whom posed a threat to US hegemony.

The revolutionary pointed out that the US cutting HIV/AIDS funding to South Africa was not due to South African white-supremacist groups’ disinformation about the country's newly enacted land-reform laws. Instead, he said the US was attempting to punish South Africa for standing with the people of Palestine and against Israeli occupation and gen*cide.

Moreover, Malema stressed that South Africa would not fall for US bullying tactics and would proceed to implement policies intended to redress the legacy of apartheid, which continues to impact Black people to date.

Video credit: Parliament of the Republic of South Africa (@parliamentofRSA on X)

Sources

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/mar/06/aid-trump-south-africa

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2004/oct/07/usa.iraq1ay

https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna7634313

https://www.brookings.edu/articles/9-11-and-iraq-the-making-of-a-tragedy/

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c3rxzndzl7yo

WESTERN NGO WHITEWASHES KAGAME AMID DRC CARNAGE

Western countries have imposed only symbolic measures against Rwandan President Paul Kagame for backing a militia called M23 that has seized territory in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). At the same time, NGOs like Global Citizen continue to sanitise his administration, according to journalist Ann Garrison.

We spoke to Garrison (@anngarrison on X) after she reported for The Grayzone (@thegrayzonenews) that Global Citizen promotes a corporate-driven agenda that aligns with Western economic interests under the guise of activism.

Continued……. A recent example is when the NGO organised US-based musician @JohnLegend’s 21 February concert in Rwanda. Legend defended his decision to perform, stating that punishing the people of Rwanda for their leader’s actions was unfair. However, critics say any event in Rwanda is approved by Kagame and therefore supports his regime. Further, some have called Legend hypocritical because he has expressed support for Ukraine against Russia.

Global Citizen’s activism raises questions about its stance on Rwanda’s involvement in the DRC conflict. Its corporate partners, including tech giants like PayPal, Cisco, and Google, are accused of benefiting from the exploitation of DRC’s mineral wealth. Kigali plays a crucial role in smuggling valuable minerals like cobalt, which Western companies rely on.

Sources

Original
https://thegrayzone.com/2025/03/05/global-citizen-kagames-invasion-drc/

Global Citizen and USAID
https://www.globalcitizen.org/en/content/usaid-takes-powerful-strides-to-feed-the-future/

John Legend defends his performance
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/us-star-john-legend-defends-playing-rwanda-concert-during-war/ar-AA1zGoli

DRC loses $1 billion to Rwanda
https://www.ft.com/content/ecf89818-949b-4de7-9e8a-89f119c23a69

Rwanda cobalt exports beats DRC
https://www.africanews.com/2024/04/12/coltan-at-the-heart-of-drc-rwanda-tensions-business-africa/

M23 taxing mining
https://www.xtrafrica.com/congo/tons-of-minerals-extracted-from-rubaya-were-transported-to-rwanda%3A-un-reports

Rwanda backs M23
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/ckgyzl1mlkvo