The Syrian Conundrum

Syria was a very peaceful country with a lively population a decade ago. Damascus, the capital city used to be one of the oldest cities in the world. In fact Syria had one of the World Heritage Sites at Palmyra with well preserved historical artifacts. All of a sudden this peaceful and lively country was thrown into a never ending confusion with some citizens calling for the stepping down of the President, Bashir Al-Assad. These protests started six years ago which later turned into a full blown civil war which has been raging on ever since. More than half a million people have lost their lives in this never ending conflict. At first all seemed to be going well for the so called moderate rebels who were being sponsored by their western friends through Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Oman with military hardware and money. Since Russia saw it as very strategic to support Assad due to her interests, the Syrian government started gaining the upper hand with the help of the Russian military and air support.

The Assad regime had to deal with rebel factions and ISIS on several fronts and this stretched his army thin, so Russian support was so welcoming and this helped the Syrian government to push the so called moderate rebels out of their controlled territory. Russia also joined the fight against ISIS in Syria and used her military base at Latakia in Syria as a launch pad for airstrikes against the terrorist organization. In 2013 the Syrian government was accused of allegedly using chemical weapons on its citizens, but Assad’s regime denied this accusation. Russia and the US then called for a destruction of Syria’s chemical weapons. These two powers had representatives on the ground to supervise and ensure that Syria’s chemical weapons were destroyed.

Fast forward to April, 2017, the Syrian government is suspected to have launched a chemical attack in Khan Shekoun in the Idlib Province killing many children. The Syrian government comes out to deny this accusation and they accept the fact that they launched an airstrike against a rebel warehouse with no knowledge of chemical weapons in it. The western biased media decide to blame the Assad government for the deaths. In the early hours of 7^th April, 2017, the US launches a barrage of cruise missiles, more than 50 missiles against a Syrian airbase near Homs. Before they did that they contacted the Russians to make sure no Russian was caught in the strike. Several questions need to be answered.

Why will Assad gas his own people? Knowing very well that the international community will never forgive him for such an act, why will he do that? Is it true that the sarin gas that was the cause of the deaths of these innocent children was shipped from Libya to the Syrian rebels with the tacit approval of a former US Secretary of State? Why will the UN Security Council allow the US to take a unilateral decision to launch strikes on Syria? Is it not a breach of international law? Why was the US and her allies quick to blame Assad for the gas attack hours after it happened? Why didn’t they allow independent investigators to do their work?

The world must tread cautiously in relation to the Syrian civil war, because the exit of Assad will burn the Middle East. Isis and the various factions in the Syrian conflict will resort to fighting each other once Assad is kicked out and another Iraq and Libya will rear its ugly head in the region. The Syrian people should be allowed to choose their own leaders. There should be no meddling from any other foreign power. Syria needs peace and a political solution should be found as soon as possible to end the suffering of the Syrian people.

South Africa: When The Rainbow Loses Its Colors

Is Africa a united continent? Are we serious about being each other’s keeper in Africa? Why should we fight amongst ourselves to the extent of killing each other? February 21^st, 2017 will go down in the history of the African continent as one of the saddest days for Mother Africa. This was a day when some black South Africans decided to attack other nationals in their country. Most of those attacked were Nigerians and other African nationals. Their shops and businesses were vandalized and burnt to the ground. Some of these foreign nationals also lost their lives as a result of these attacks.

Whiles the police moved in to protect the lives and properties of these foreign nationals, the attackers fought running street battles with them. They were complaining about not getting jobs as a result of these foreign nationals taking over jobs that were meant for them. But in my humble opinion and from my readings, these same South African citizens are not ready and willing to take up some of these so called menial jobs which the foreigners have taken up.  The South African government should condemn these xenophobic attacks and put in place measures to curb future occurrences of this nature. My question is, why is it that most black South Africans are still under economic apartheid? Why have they not been empowered economically? Why do they look down on certain menial jobs but when other nationals take up these jobs, they turn around to attack them? Should the ANC government be blamed for these acts of lawlessness being perpetuated by some black South African citizens? Meanwhile, I have not heard the African Union condemn these xenophobic attacks.

Ghana’s Parliament condemned the xenophobic attacks in South Africa and measures have been put in place to safeguard the lives and properties of Ghanaian citizens living and working in South Africa. When the attacks do not stop, I think we should boycott South African products and businesses in Ghana. This will put pressure on their government to act swiftly and curb the xenophobic attacks. Have they forgotten so soon when almost all the African countries came together to help them fight against the apartheid system? What if we also retaliated as it was reported that some Nigerians wanted to vandalize some MTN offices in Nigeria? One thing we should know is that Africans need each other to survive no matter the situation. I am sure the western world would be looking at South Africa with glee and their sensational media houses will have a field day giving 24 hour updates on the situation in South Africa. They always want to project bad news from Africa to the rest of the world. It’s time we proved them wrong. South Africans should be ready to coexist peacefully with Africans from other countries as they are in their country to do legitimate business and also pay taxes to help develop the country. United we stand, divided we fall. Africa must unite.

The Quest For Peace In Syria (When The Eagle and The Bear Agree)

The world witnessed a rare moment in the last few days. This was when the US and Russia agreed on a ceasefire and peace plan for Syria. This plan is supposed to gradually bring an end to the Syrian Civil War that has claimed so many lives. The whole world watched with much anticipation as the Russian Foreign Minister, Sergei Lavarov and the US Secretary of State, John Kerry met to agree on a peace plan for Syria. I had a feeling those who always prayed and hoped that these two super powers will fail again to agree on a peace plan for Syria.

It is a known fact that the Syrian President, Bashar Al Assad is being backed by the Kremlin likewise the various rebel movements notably the Free Syrian Army is also being backed by Washington. Both super powers are fighting a proxy war in Syria. But certain rebel groups such as the Al Nusra Front which is an affiliate of Al Qaeeda have to be forced to accept the ceasefire plan. In the plan the rebels have been granted the right of self defence if attacked by the Syrian Government. With ISIS also lurking around in Syria, I hope this plan will bring the various forces together to fight them and push them out of Syria. The world is watching as the two super powers have taken a bold step to ensure that they find a political solution to the Syrian Civil War. President Bashar Al Assad will definitely listen to the Russians as they have been his main backbone throughout the civil war. If not for the involvement of the Russians with their airstrikes on rebel targets, the Syrian President would have been long gone. The future of Syria is to be determined in the next few days if the ceasefire is to hold and that is if all the warring factions implement their parts in the agreement. So much blood has been spilt, women and children have borne the brunt of the carnage going on in Syria. Their attempt to flee the conflict too is being hampered by most of the countries bordering Syria refusing them entry. This has created a humanitarian crisis in the Middle East as Syria’s neighbors can’t take any more refugees with Europe being the worst affected.

The ceasefire holds for now, Bashar Al Assad has been emboldened but the opposition is wary and observing this latest initiative with caution and will be seriously monitoring the next moves of the other parties or factions involved in the civil war. Lets all hope the Eagle and the Bear continue to agree on major issues in this world. This will go a long way to reduce the tension between these two super powers in the international arena as they are both jostling to overpower each other in terms of diplomacy, intelligence and military capabilities. Don’t forget to #PrayForSyria and all the conflict zones all over the world.

#Brexit: When Britain Left Europe

The world was shocked and taken aback when the British voted in a referendum to leave the European Union and be on their own. Some of the leave voters claim they did not know about the consequences of what they were voting for. Those who voted for Britain to remain in the EU were equally shocked about the outcome of the referendum. Now faced with the consequences of Britain feeling isolated in Europe, the same people who voted to leave Europe have launched a petition for another referendum to be held so that they can overturn the "Leave" vote. But in my opinion, this will also take some time. For now they have to accept the fact that the harm has already been caused and they must impress on their government to put in place the necessary measures, plans and policies so as to halt the further falling of their currency, the Pound Sterling. This #Brexit vote has had a rippling effect across the Atlantic Ocean 3000 miles away in America, and this has seen the various stock exchanges react negatively to this decision.

Arguments about the pros and cons of Brexit have focused on two main areas: the economy, and immigration. For both sides, the question “should Britain stay in the EU?” can only be answered with speculation – whatever the result of the EU referendum, it will be impossible to test whether the alternative would have been better – but that speculation has variable grounds.
For an overview of of Brexit pros and cons, read on.

Economy

That verdict is backed up by the CBI, which has warned that leaving the EU would cost £100 billion to GDP by 2020 and lead to the loss of 950,000 jobs.
The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee, meanwhile, claims that Brexit is likely to lead to a weak currency– good for UK exporters, bad for UK tourists and the price of imported goods.
The Leave campaign has countered that pulling out the EU will allow Britain to retain the money it currently pays in .
Leave also claims that it would be possible to renegotiate trade deals quickly after Brexit, although it doesn’t specify how snubbed EU partners could be induced into favourable terms.

Security

Should Britain stay in the EU to enhance its security? The Remain campaign highlights the benefits of international cooperation in implementing sanctions, sharing intelligence and enforcing arrest warrants.
Leave has a very different account of the pros and cons of Brexit. According to Leave, the EU “stops us controlling who comes into our country, on what terms, and who can be removed.”

World Power

The Leave campaign has chosen “Let’s take back control” as its slogan, arguing that Britain will be freer to assert its will when not working through the EU. Remain counters that, by engaging with the EU, Britain has more influence than it would outside.

Source: http://www.newstatesman.com/politics/staggers/2016/07

Fantastically Corrupt: An International Perspective

We were all baffled and surprised to hear an off the record statement made by the British Prime Minister, Mr. David Cameron in a conversation with the Queen, described Nigeria and Afghanistan as the two most fantastically corrupt countries in the world. Little did he know that he was being recorded. The Nigerian Government swiftly responded and told the world media that it was embarrassed by that statement made by the British PM. The Afghan Government also responded. But, the British PM ironically had invited several leaders, including the Nigerian leader, President Buhari to an anti-corruption summit in London. I kept on asking myself, what at all were they going to talk about corruption that we don’t already know? We all accept the fact that Nigeria has been bedeviled with the issue of corruption and the current President was trying his best to curb the menace. President Buhari told the British PM that Nigeria does not need an apology from him but the British Government should make sure to return all assets and monies stolen by Nigerians which are being kept in Britain. This statement by the Nigerian President made my day. In the first place the British PM is behaving like the proverbial pot calling the kettle black. He is indirectly “fantastically corrupt”.

His father owns an offshore account in one of the tax havens, according to the #PanamaPapers and he benefited from it. What is the British Government doing about that? When Libya was invaded and their president was murdered, this same British PM told his fellow countrymen to move into Libya and secure all the oil contracts. Definitely some percentage will trickle down to and his close associates will get their cut from the numerous oil deals. Are they not the same people who come down to Africa, bribe our public officials to loot our natural resources, dodge taxes, repatriate their income back to their countries leaving their host countries in an economic quagmire? Have they returned all the artifacts they forcibly took away from Africa?  Someone who is fantastically corrupt is able to identify others who are fantastically corrupt.

Stoking The Fires of Corruption: An International Perspective

Over the past few months there has been several governments tainted with corruption on the international scene, and these revelations have come about as a result of investigative journalists becoming more daring and their quest to tell the story as it is, and not the usual distorted views. Several huge amounts of monies badly needed to build hospitals, health centers, provide portable and good drinking water etc etc have been siphoned by certain individuals within their respective governments into numerous offshore bank accounts, leaving the innocent and vulnerable citizens in deplorable conditions.

In South Africa, the President is alleged to have used the state’s money to renovate his private residence in his hometown, Nkandla. This has been debated several times in the South African Parliament several times with some MPs calling for him to step down, but surprisingly Jacob Zuma survived a vote of “no confidence” when the matter was put to the vote. He would have been impeached if the vote had gone contrary. South Africa is also facing a problem where the Guptas who are very influential when it comes to appointments by the government and the awarding of contracts. All these are traces of corrupt practices that is giving South Africa a bad image on the international scene.

In Brazil, the President, Dilma Roussef is facing a possible impeachment over allegations that she manipulated the government finances to prop up the government on a sound economic footing. Thus she did not tell her people the true and real nature of Brazil’s economy. Most of her coalition partners have already deserted her and she is now accusing them of being traitors. The outcome of the impeachment proceedings will be out for the whole world to see. She has denied all the allegations leveled against her and the government.

Then here comes the #PanamaPapers or #PanamaLeaks which has revealed the hiding of huge sums of monies by several past and present leaders, politicians and influential businessmen and women in tax havens in several countries managed by the law firm Mossack Fonseca. Cronies and friends of several leaders have also been cited in the leaks. My question is why will they hide their monies in tax havens while the ordinary citizens in their respective countries pay the taxes to develop the countries? Indeed, these revelations have really highlighted the issue of money laundering and the dirty money used by some governments, drug barons and other individuals to propagate their nefarious, frivolous, luxurious and opulent lifestyles. As with several leaks, this one too will go unpunished as several tax havens exist in the Cayman Islands, Virgin Islands, Macau etc etc. The fires of corruption has been really stoked for a long time and the international dimension that it has gotten to needs to be addressed otherwise the ordinary citizens will rise up one day and put an end to it.

Why Always Africa?

The world is experiencing an influx of diseases every year and this is greatly affecting the continuous existence of humanity. These diseases are seriously reducing the population of the world and we must tackle them with all the seriousness that they deserve.

Sometimes I sit down and ponder over how these diseases emerge. Are they natural or man made? Were these diseases created in the laboratories somewhere by someone or a group of people connected to the big pharmaceutical companies? Who benefits when these diseases emerge and wreak havoc on humanity? These questions, I know the answers will be forthcoming soon from my esteemed and cherished readers and followers.

Some of the diseases are the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), Bird Flu/ Avian Influenza (which is known to have affected human beings too), the Ebola Virus, HIV AIDS Virus, Swine Flu, Mad Cow Disease, Dengue Fever, Lassa Fever and now the Zika Virus. In fact these are just a few of the numerous diseases that one can make mention of. But the plot thickens when every time a disease wreaks havoc, the western scientists quickly trace its origins to Africa. They did same with the HIV AIDS Virus, Ebola Virus and now the Zika Virus too.

We are being told by these same scientists that the Zika Virus originated from Uganda, Africa. Africa must stand up and debunk these lies being peddled by the western scientific community. Why blame everything bad on Africa? Just like how the western media always like to portray Africa as a land ravaged by famine, drought, war, conflicts and under development, their scientists seem to be towing that same line. The western media seldom show good pictures from Africa. Even if they show good pictures the time allotted to these pictures is just a minute fraction of the time they will give to bad news from Africa. These same western media houses will show a bad story from Africa over and over again just to tell to the whole world how bad the situation in Africa is.

Back to the diseases ravaging the world. From what I read (I stand to be corrected), a certain NGO being sponsored by one of the richest men in the world recently released Genetically Modified mosquitoes in Brazil, and a few months down the line the Zika Virus emerged and the epicenter of the outbreak is in Brazil. Mosquitoes are seen as the main organisms that spread the Zika Virus.  This baffles me and I still cannot come to terms with it as to why that was allegedly done. Is it a ploy to control the world population or a conspiracy by the big pharmaceutical companies to make money by selling their vaccines or antidotes? This same strategy is being used by the big arms and weapons producers. They create conflicts in many parts of the world through their proxies and they use it as an opportunity to sell their weapons to both sides. Lets see what the WHO will do about the spread of the Zika Virus.

I will end by asking these questions, are these diseases being used to control the world’s population? Why blame Africa all the time? Your comments are welcome and don’t forget to follow and subscribe to my blog.