Photo : Siphiwe Sibeko/Reuters/ Al Jazeera
NIAS Area Studies
AFRICA MONITOR
Photo : Siphiwe Sibeko/Reuters/ Al Jazeera
IN BRIEF
By Apoorva Sudhakar
Nigeria: President asks ministers with intentions to run for elections to resign
On 11 May, the information minister conveyed President Muhammadu Buhari’s message to his cabinet members. The minister said Buhari had called on members of the Federal Executive Council running for the elective office to resign before 16 May 2022. Currently, five cabinet members intend to succeed Buhari in 2023. The development comes after an appellate court ruled that part of the electoral law amended in 2021 was unconstitutional because it prevented a section of Nigerians from participating in elections. (“Nigeria’s Buhari asks ministers with political ambition to resign,” Al Jazeera, 11 May 2022)
Togo: Eight soldiers killed by suspected terrorists
On 11 May, eight soldiers were killed and 13 wounded in an ambush in Togo’s north, along the border wit Burkina Faso. This is the first attack of such kind in Togo and is suspected to be carried out by terrorists who have been operating in neighbouring countries like Mali and Burkina Faso. However, no group has claimed responsibility for the attack. The development comes after Togo announced that it had agreed to act as a mediator in Mali’s political crisis on 5 May. (“Togo: Eight soldiers killed in attack by suspected ‘terrorists’,” Al Jazeera, 11 May 2022)
Libya: Eastern-based parliament wants Bashagha to operate from Sirte
On 11 May, BBC reported that the eastern-based parallel parliament wanted Fathi Bashagha’s government to operate from Sirte. In February, the parliament in the east had appointed Bashagha as the new prime minister. The announcement is an indication that Bashagha cannot capture capital city Tripoli, which is currently under Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah. (“Libya MPs want rival PM to work from Sirte amid row,” BBC, 11 May 2022)