🔅 An American Imperial Podcaster & Tanzania's Statuegate
Plus: Cape Town's Unpleasant Surprise and X Settles Scores in Africa
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Erik Prince: From Blackwater Mercenary to Imperialist Podcaster
In the latest episode of "Erik Prince Does Life," the founder of the US mercenary group, Blackwater, has now donned the podcaster cap. He is the voice behind "Off Leash," a podcast that promises insights into our "increasingly volatile world."
But on a recent episode, Prince decided to throw it back, not to the '90s, but several centuries earlier, advocating for the US to "put the imperial hat back on" and take over huge parts of the globe. Because, according to him, if there's one thing history has taught us, it's that imperialism always ends well, right? His spotlight was on countries that he deems "incapable of governing themselves," with a broad-brush stroke painting almost all of Africa.
His co-host, presumably doing a spit-take with his coffee, quickly pointed out that this might come off as, oh, just a tad colonialist. To which Prince responded with a hearty "Absolutely, yes." Because why back down when you can double down?
Statuegate: Tanzania's Founding Father Lost in Translation
In the latest episode of "When Statues Don't Quite Statue," Tanzanians are scratching their heads over a new tribute to Julius Nyerere, the nation's founding president, which recently took the spotlight—or perhaps, stepped into the shadows—outside the African Union headquarters in Addis Ababa. The statue, intended as a grand homage, has sparked a flurry of online chatter not for its grandeur but for its puzzling lack of resemblance to the revered leader.
Comments on X (the platform formerly known as Twitter) ranged from the diplomatic, "I know the gesture counts..." to the more pointed "That is not our Nyerere." It seems the sculptor might have been working off a description given over a crackly phone line rather than a photograph.
Julius Nyerere, the titan of Tanzanian independence and a stalwart pan-Africanist, is remembered for a legacy of unity, freedom, and the struggle for justice.
Cape Town's Great Stench: A Tale of Cattle and Ships
South Africa's Cape Town found itself enveloped in a mysterious stench that had residents and authorities sniffing for clues early this week. The source of the olfactory offence? A ship harboured in the city's docks, its cargo hold brimming not with none other than 19,000 live cattle that were making their way from Brazil to Iraq.
Zahid Badroodien, Cape Town's guardian of water and sanitation, took to the digital town square of social media to reveal the cause of the "sewage smell blanketing parts of the city" – the livestock aboard the Al Kuwait, a Kuwaiti-flagged leviathan of the seas. The ship, which paused in Cape Town to stock up on cattle feed, has now become an unwitting focal point for a heated debate on animal welfare.
The stench, far from being just an unpleasant nuisance, was a stark indicator of the grim conditions faced by the cattle. The National Council of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) highlighted the severity of the situation, describing the onboard environment as one that resulted from faeces and ammonia accumulation over their two-and-a-half-week voyage.
X Marks the Spot: Social Media Giant Finally Settles Scores in Africa
X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, has finally coughed up the redundancy payments to its former employees in Ghana, over a year after they found themselves on the sharp end of a corporate guillotine. The issue started in Accra in November 2022, where most of the African team, numbering less than 20 and fresh to their roles, were abruptly shown the door with an elusive promise of a severance package.
The twist in the tale came when the staff aired their grievances publicly, revealing a battle for compensation that was as draining mentally as it was financially. "It's difficult when it's the world's richest man owing you money and closure," lamented one, highlighting the David vs. Goliath nature of their struggle.
As for Musk, he's previously claimed that laid-off employees received three months' severance, a statement seemingly at odds with the experience of the Accra team, who felt left out in the cold without the promised severance.
Guinea Military Leaders Dissolve Government
Guinea's military rulers have decided to hit the reset button on the government. The presidency's secretary-general, Amara Camara, announced via a pre-recorded video that the government is no more. Since September 2021, Guinea has been under the thumb of a military group following a coup.
With the West African powerhouse, ECOWAS, breathing down its neck, demanding elections and a return to civilian rule, the leaders agreed to a 24-month transition period back in October 2022. Fast forward to now, and it seems they may have decided on a bit of spring cleaning.
But Camara's announcement left more questions than answers, offering no reason for the government's dissolution. In the meantime, directors of cabinet, secretary-generals, and their deputies are left holding the fort until a new government magically appears.
What does this mean for Guinea? Stay tuned.
Food for Thought
“We desire to bequeath two things to our children. The first one is roots; the other one is wings."
— Sudanese Proverb
I appreciate hearing stories and learning about culture, history and traditions around the world.