Kioo17 Journal

Computer giant Microsoft has donated dozens of computers to the school in Ghana where an IT teacher won worldwide praise after improvising with chalk-drawn sketches to bring to life his lessons on Microsoft Word. Richard Akoto (Owura Kwadwo Hottish) had no computer to demonstrate Microsoft Word to his students, so he drew it on the chalkboard. In a Facebook post, he wrote: "Teaching I.C.T in Ghana’s school is very funny. I.C.T on the board paa. I love ma (my) students so have to do what will make them understand what am [I’m] The tech giant had pledged to equip him after his pictures went viral. Mr Akoto, 33, was also hosted at Microsoft’s 2018 Global Education Exchange Summit (E2) in Singapore making him a MIE. Microsoft has now donated technological resources, including 27 laptops, to equip a computer lab at Betenase Junior High School, located in Sekyedumase, Ashanti Region, Ghana. In collaboration with eSolutions Consulting – a local Education partner...

Cutud, PHILIPPINES: A Philippine man who has been nailed to a cross every Easter for the past 32 years in a Good Friday re-enactment of Jesus Christ’s crucifixion says he no longer feels any pain from his wounds. Ruben Enaje, 58, again portrayed Christ on Friday in the traditional religious rite in Cutud village, about 47 miles from the capital Manila. “In the past, I went home injured and limping, but this year I feel so great,” Enaje said after the ritual held under a sweltering sun. He said he believed his strong Catholic faith helped him avoid pain. “I feel like he is telling me ‘go ahead, keep it up’,” he said, referring to God. Easter is a festival marking the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ. About 80 percent of the 105 million people in the Philippines, a former Spanish colony, are Catholic. Enaje said he felt strong enough to perform in two or three more crucifixions until he turns 60. Enaje was among three devotees nailed ...

The dodgy project involving Air Zimbabwe (AirZim) and new airline Zimbabwe Airways is getting murkier, amid allegations that some senior government officials are deliberately sabotaging the debt-ridden national flag carrier to pave way for the new private airline, which will also be emblazoned with national colours. Aviation sources told the Zimbabwe Independent this week that Zim Airways planes, which were bought using public funds provided by the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe, will soon land in the country. The planes include four Boeing 777 bought in Malaysia and two Embraer ERJ145 bought from the United States. Last year, the Independent reported that Zimbabwe's Transport minister Jorum Gumbo and former AirZim chief operating officer Simba Chikore, who is former president Robert Mugabe’s son-in-law, have been assisting in setting up the private airline at the expense of the flag carrier, AirZim, which fell under their purview and supervision, raising a serious confl...

By  ISAAC MWANZA(Columnist) | LUSAKA TIMES: Shortly before the South African Parliament was to pass a motion of no confidence in President Zuma, Opposition Economic Freedom Fighters’ (EFF) begun calls for Parliament to be dissolved and fresh elections held before a new president of the country is elected. EFF leader Julius Malema stated, “Once we remove Zuma, Parliament must be dissolved. The Constitutional Court made a ruling that Parliament failed to discharge its responsibility when it couldn’t protect the Public Protector, including holding the president accountable” The Democratic Alliance leader Mmusi Maimane said they were calling for early elections because the ruling party is holding the country to ransom while the African Christian Democratic Party leader Reverend Kenneth Meshoe says this is not about just Zuma: “As a collective, we’re saying the man (Zuma) is not the only problem. The proof is that with all the motions of no confidence and having sta...

Johannesburg, SOUTH AFRICA: Earlier in March, South African National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) head Shaun Abrahams announced that former President Jacob Zuma would be prosecuted on 16 charges of corruption dating back to the arms deal. Mr.Zuma has now officially been summoned to appear in the Durban, Kwazulu Natal High Court next week(6 April 2018). The 16 charges are broken down into corruption, money laundering and fraud. Zuma is accused of receiving 783 payments from Schabir Shaik or his companies between 1995 to 2005. At the time, the payments to Zuma from Schaik and his companies included links to purchases for the South African Navy and even proposed waterfront developments in Durban. During Shaik’s trial, he was shown to have awarded Zuma a bribe of R500 000 per year to Zuma. In return, Zuma would give him support for the defence contractor Thomson CSF. Shaik was found guilty and sentenced to 15 years in prison while Zuma was let off the hook. ...

A shocking 2017 study published in Ebiomedicine (a peer-reviewed open access online-only medical journal) reveals that the DTP vaccine kills ten times more babies than it saves.  Researcher Søren Wengel Mogensen examined the mortality rates of infants between the ages of 5 and 5 months who were given early vaccinations for DTP (Diptheria-Tetanus-Pertussis) and OPV (Oral Polio Vaccine). They found that there was a 10-fold mortality rate compared to infants who did not receive the vaccine: Results Among 3–5-month-old children, having received DTP (± OPV) was associated with a mortality hazard ratio (HR) of 5.00 (95% CI 1.53–16.3) compared with not-yet-DTP-vaccinated children. Differences in background factors did not explain the effect. The negative effect was particularly strong for children who had received DTP-only and no OPV (HR = 10.0 (2.61–38.6)). All-cause infant mortality after 3 months of age increased after the introduction of these vaccines (HR = 2...

Accra, GHANA: Thousands of protesters marched in the streets of Accra, Ghana, on Wednesday to protest a deal between the Trump administration and Ghana's government that would expand military cooperation. Protesters take part in demonstration organised by Ghana First Patriotic Front (GFPF), in downtown Accra against a Ghana-US defence cooperation agreement which was ratified by the Ghanaian Parliament last week.  Image: AFP. The New York Times reported that thousands of marchers demanded an end to a deal struck last week between top Ghanaian officials and their American counterparts. The deal would have the U.S. invest $20 million into Ghana's military and greatly expand U.S. soldiers' authority on Ghanaian soil. U.S. troops would be given access to the country's radio frequencies and one airport runway, as well as have immunity and receive tax exemptions for military equipment imports, according to the Times. Some of the provisions, like l...

Vicky Momberg. A former estate agent in South Africa has been jailed for racist abuse in what has been called a landmark ruling. A court jailed Vicky Momberg for three years, with one year suspended, for using a derogatory word against a black police officer 48 times. Her lawyer said she was not in a normal state at the time, as she had just been the victim of a smash-and-grab robbery. Racism remains a major issue in South Africa, almost 24 years after white minority rule ended. Momberg was convicted of four counts of crimen injuria after her racist rant was caught on video, and went viral on social media. She hurled insults at black officers trying to assist her after she was robbed on the outskirts of the main city, Johannesburg, in 2016, and complained about the "calibre of blacks in Johannesburg compared to black people in Durban", where she was based. Handing down her ruling, magistrate Pravina Raghoonandan said some may think the sentence ...

Kwale, KENYA: It's a cloudy Sunday morning in Kenya's Kwale county and Sande Ramadan just woke up to get ready for another weekend of work. Wearing a green vest and khaki shorts, he washes his face and proceeds to the living room where his wife Janet Wambui serves him breakfast. "Thanks for waking me up, I hate being late for my client," the dreadlocked father of three tells his wife. "She asked me to be with her until next weekend," he adds as he sips black tea. Ramadan is a male sex worker. Wambui, his tall dark-skinned wife, works in the same industry. She came back home two nights ago after spending 10 days with a German tourist in an expensive cottage house, a few kilometres from Maweni village where the couple resides. Ramadan and Wambui have been married for 20 years now. But it wasn't always like this. One day in 2006, Ramadan was hawking clothes to tourists along Diani Beach in Kwale town, 30km southwest of Mombasa, ...

Kigali, RWANDA: Leon Orsmond, a South African advertising executive, has ”disappeared” in Kigali, Rwanda. He has not been seen for about a month. Leon has been living in Kigali for about eight years, running an advertising business. Leon Orsmond. It is not rocket science to figure out what might have happened to Leon, because of the following two reasons: First, Leon was outspoken on Twitter and Facebook about Kagame and lack of freedom of speech in Rwanda. Second, Leon ran Diane Rwigara’s social media campaign before she was blocked from running for Rwandan presidency — and later thrown in jail along with her mother, Adeline Rwigara. Diane Shima Rwigara is a Rwandan businesswoman and women's rights activist who stood as an independent candidate in the Rwandan presidential election, 2017 . Leon Orsmond was putting the final touches to a book that was critical of the Rwandan state‚ according to the statement. His disappearance was report...

Jose Filomeno de Sousa dos Santos is a son of  Angolan former president, Jose Eduardo dos Santos who serves as the Chairman of Fundo Soberano de Angola , the country's sovereign wealth fund .He was appointed to the board in 2012 and succeeded Armando Manuel as Chairman in June 2013. In August 2013, dos Santos was ranked at number 26 out of the top 100 wealth fund chiefs in the world. The rankings are an annual measurement process run by The Sovereign Wealth Fund. Luanda, ANGOLA: The son of Angola's ex-President José Eduardo dos Santos has been formally accused of fraud over the alleged illegal transfer of $500m (£350m) from the central bank to the United Kingdom. José Filomeno dos Santos born on 9 January 1978 (age 40) is also barred from leaving the country, deputy Attorney General Luis Benza Zanga said. Mr Dos Santos is the highest profile person targeted in new President João Lourenço's anti-corruption drive. He had led oil-rich Angola's sovereig...

Chishimba Kambwili, a former Zambian minister. He has been arrested over allegations of making profits from criminal activity. Image: AFP. Lusaka, ZAMBIA: The family of Roan PF Member of Parliament Chishimba Kambwili has spoken out publicly about the manner in which government wanted to have the outspoken Lawmarker evacuated to South Africa for speacialist medical treatment. Opposition National Democratic Congress consultant Chishimba Kambwili was last rushed to the hospital on March 22 after suffering discomfort while in detention at Woodlands Police station in Lusaka. Kambwili has a history of hypertension and diabetes. He was arrested earlier in the day after being charged with 37 counts of criminal offences. In an interview, Mr Kambwili’s elder brother Pastor Mutale Kamwbwili charged that the plan by the state to evacuate his brother to South Africa was part of the plan to have him killed. Pastor Mutale said the offer by the state was ill intentioned, full ...