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Uganda to hold elections in 2021, campaign rallies banned

Uganda will hold a presidential election between January 10 and February 8, 2021, authorities said on Tuesday, introducing restrictions it said were aimed at slowing the spread of the new coronavirus (COVID-19).

Simon Mugenyi Byabakama, the election commission chairman, said the commission had banned campaign rallies and urged candidates to use media instead to get their messages to voters.

Opposition parties have previously complained about restricted access to broadcast media, especially in rural areas where they say security agencies bar them from appearing on political shows.

The commission will set the exact date of the election, also for parliament and local governments, later this year, Byabakama said.

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Uganda’s health ministry has reported 823 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and no deaths. It began easing a 45-day lockdown, one of the strictest on the continent, in mid-May.

Incumbent President Yoweri Museveni had said it would have been “madness” to hold the elections if the coronavirus persisted.

In power since 1986, former rebel fighter Museveni has not confirmed whether he would run again, but the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) party has already asked him to stand.

The strongest opposition presidential aspirant is pop star and lawmaker Robert Kyagulanyi, also known as Bobi Wine, whose angry, political music has made him a sensation.

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On Monday, Wine announced an alliance with veteran opposition leader Kizza Besigye, who has challenged Museveni for the presidency three times. But the substance of the agreement was unclear, including whether the two opposition parties would field joint candidates.

In a potential taste of things to come, the public broadcaster Uganda Broadcasting Corporation refused to air Besigye’s advertisements during the 2011 presidential campaign despite being paid for the airtime. Dr Besigye later sued the public broadcaster for bias and won $21,000 in damages in 2018.  -Reuters

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 Intake of ‘Gobe’ can prevent heart diseases —Nutritionists

Gari and beans is good for the heart
Gari and beans is good for the heart

Nutritionists have advised Ghanaians to eat more beans-based meals, including the popular local dish, gari and beans, also known as ‘Gobe’ to prevent heart diseases. They said incidenc­es of obesity and cancer could be minimised with the regular intake of beans meals.

At a programme in Accra to mark the World Pulses ( Beans) Day on Monday, Mr Wise Chukudi Letsa, Nu­tritionist and Dietician, who spoke on the topic: ‘Beans: The Super Food for Healthy Living and Healthy Farmlands,’ admonished Ghanaians to include beans in their diets.

Mr Letsa said beans was rich in protein, fibre, vitamins, miner­als, irons and other nutrients and contained just a little fat. Mr Letsa, a Nutritionist with Lets Consult, stated that the presence of those nutrients in beans explained why its intake could prevent heart diseases and other ailments, hence the need to consume it regularly.

The event, dubbed: ‘Meatless Monday’ was organised by the Com­munications Initiative for Change (CIC), a Ghanaian non-profit organ­isation.

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The ‘Meatless Monday’ is an initiative aimed at encouraging Ghanaians to reduce their intake of meat by taking in more beans-based meals on every Monday of a week.

It was launched after the United Nations in 2019, set aside Febru­ary 10 to celebrate and encourage the consumption of pulses (beans) worldwide. This year’s celebration was hinged on the theme: ‘Bringing Diversity to Agrifood Systems.’

Mr Peter Agbovi, National Secre­tary, Chefs Association of Ghana, said a variety of meals could be prepared with beans, which include Waakye (rice and beans), Kose (beans paste made into cakes), Ayikple, Aboboi, Tuo Zaafi, Akyeke, and kakro.

He encouraged Ghanaians to con­sume more of those foods to stay healthy.

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Mr Emmanuel Fiagbey, the Ex­ecutive Director, CIC, indicated that even if people could not eat beans-based meals regularly, efforts should be made to consume them every Monday.

He said that was the essence of the introduction of the ‘Meatless Monday’ initiative. -GNA

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 Restore beauty of Kwame Nkrumah Circle area / State of Kwame Nkrumah Circle an eyesore!

A homeless man sleeping in the sand close to the removed blocks
A homeless man sleeping in the sand close to the removed blocks

Small size quarry stones fixed at open spac­es under the Kwame Nkrumah Circle Interchange was to leave the place open and free from activities of beggars and other activities of the homeless.

By the way the stones were fixed, it makes the area, particularly the VIP and Neoplan Station stretch of the Interchange, inhabit­able by the destitute.

But a walk through the area currently suggest the opposite.

At the median where pavement blocks have been taken over by these home­less and destitute, the area has been turned into a hotel where a number of these unfortunate ones have com­fortably laid their mattress­es and other stuff to rest from the day’s activities.

They have crossed over to the SSNIT and Kaneshie Station area with their activ­ities and have removed the quarry stones which were to ward them off the place to enable them find spaces to sleep comfortably.

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The pavement blocks re­moved from different loca­tions under the interchange now serves as foundations on which beds were laid and in some cases, mosquito nets erected.

Their continued pres­ence is not only creating a nuisance for commuters but marring the beauty and serenity of the place.

Sadly, the activities of these deprived fellows have been ignored while the numbers keep increasing day by day.

The Spectator finds the development very worrying and calls on the responsible authorities to clear the area to restore the beauty and serenity of the area.

 By Victor A. Buxton

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