Foreign News
No Recruitment Scandal In ECOWAS Parliament, says Committee Chair
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Parliament has debunked the allegation by some Nigerian lawmakers on recruitment irregularities at the institution.
Sen. Edwin Snowe, Leader of the Liberian Delegation, who is also Vice Chair of the Parliament’s recruitment Committee said this, while speaking with the Parliamentary correspondents on Sunday in Abuja.
Snowe was reacting to the outrage that erupted over the alleged recruitment irregularities process on ECOWAS.
Newsmen report that Nigerians Lawmakers had threatened to pull out of the Parliament alleging that Nigerians were being shortchanged in its recruitment exercise.
The Nigerian delegation also threatened to withdraw the country’s membership of the regional bloc if it refused to suspend the ongoing recruitment exercise as recently directed in the 2022 First Ordinary Session of the ECOWAS Parliament in Abuja.
Snowe, however, refuted the allegation describing it as ” a misrepresentation” of the real issues by the Nigerian delegation, stressing that the recruitment process at the Parliament was competitive.
He also said that the Nigeria delegation that raised the alleged scandal were filibustering to impress Nigerians so as to canvass for votes ahead of the 2023 general elections in Nigeria.
“Recruitment into the ECOWAS institutions is very competitive and cannot shortchange any country let alone Nigeria that has made invaluable contributions to the development of the community.
“There was no resolution reached at the plenary to suspend recruitment into the P5 positions as is being insinuated by Nigerian legislators. Nigerians are adequately represented in ECOWAS Parliament and other institutions of the community,” Snowe said.
Regarding the recruitment, Snowe insisted that the report of a resolution to suspend the recruitment process was not true.
He explained that a motion was entertained by the First Deputy Speaker who was the presiding officer on the issues raised by Nigerian MPs on Nigerians being shortchanged.
Snowe said the issue of recruitment was being handled by a Nigerian firm contracted by the Community to take applications and shortlist successful citizens of the sub-region for interview and wondered why Nigerian lawmakers are crying foul.
He added that the matter was referred to the Bureau for further action, adding that it does not constitutes a resolution to suspend the process as the whole community activities could not be stopped because some lawmakers from a member country raised issues.
“There was no vote taken on this matter, two Nigerian lawmakers raised the issue about the recruitment process.
“There was this staff skill audit that was done at ECOWAS and the results came out not too favorable to some of the staff occupying certain positions. So, the lawmakers linked the staff skill audit debate to the recruitment process.
“But the Deputy Speaker asked the Bureau to take seize of the matter and investigate it and get back to the Parliament’s Plenary at the earliest possible time.
“There was no vote taken because resolution at Parliament is based on vote”, Snowe further explained.
Snowe said that apart from the P1 to P3 positions which were junior cadre, there was no record of recruitment into the P5 positions, which was the bone of contention, as no decision had been reached on it.
He further explained that the recruitment for the P5 position was within the jurisdiction of the Management Succession Committee( MSC) of the ECOWAS Commission which was chaired by the President of the Commission.
He pointed out that the regional bloc recognised the immense contributions of Nigeria and had taken steps to give Nigeria adequate representation in ECOWAS institutions.
“At the Parliament as I speak to you, there are 73 staff members and 35 of them are Nigerians.
“We breached the Rule of Procedure, we breached the Supplementary Act and gave Nigeria a deserving platform at the Parliament.
“This consideration made is not out of weakness, it is out of our own appreciation for the role Nigeria has played in our sub-region.
“For Example at the Authority of Heads of State and Government the chairmanship is rotational. At the Parliament, the Speakership is rotational on alphabetical order.
“But on our own, outside the Protocol – the Supplementary Act of the Parliament, outside our standing rule, we have agreed that when Nigeria is not chairing as Speaker, Nigeria should always serve as First Deputy Speaker even when there is no rule that supports that.
“Each country has a committee chair at the Parliament currently with the exception of Guinea Bissau.
“We also said that because of Nigeria’s magnanimity we have given Nigeria two committee chairmen positions because of our respect for what tax payers money has done for the region.
“Nigeria permanently chairs the Finance Committee and and another committee in addition to the First Deputy Speaker when Nigeria is not serving as Speaker,” Snowe noted.
He cautioned the Nigerian lawmakers not to cast unnecessary aspersions on the Parliament and its Speaker Sidie Tunis by misrepresenting of facts.
“ECOWAS was founded on solidarity, there is nothing that makes might right in the community. The Nigerian delegation questioning the recruitment process is misrepresenting the decisions that emanate from the plenary.
“I understand that our brothers are going for election and sometimes they filibustering because they want the vote and support of their constituencies to feel that they represent Nigeria’s interest at the Parliament.
“But we will not allow the Parliament to be used as a stepping stone for the reelection of politicians,” Snowe added.
Nigerian representatives at the parliament issued the threat when some principal officers in the regional bloc allegedly defied the directives and embarked on the illegal process of recruiting their relatives and cronies.
The lawmakers cite the huge financial commitments which Nigeria makes to the body amid its internal security challenges.
They alleged that there was no commensurate return on investment for Nigeria in ECOWAS for all the country has done and is doing for the region from its inception in 1975. (NAN)
Foreign News
Horrors Must Never be Repeated, Says UN Chief
UN Secretary General António Guterres on Monday called for a peaceful future for Israelis and Palestinians ahead of the third anniversary of the Oct. 7 attacks by the militant organisation Hamas on Israel.
“Let this anniversary mark not only another year of mourning, but also a renewed determination to build a different future,” Guterres said in New York.
He said Israelis and Palestinians should be able to “live side by side in peace and security, with their rights, dignity, and aspirations fulfilled. “These horrors must never be repeated, “He added.On October 7, 2023, Hamas and other armed groups killed more than 1,200 Israelis and foreign nationals and abducted 251 people to Gaza.The attacks triggered the Gaza war, in which more than 74,000 Palestinians have since been killed, according to the Hamas-controlled health authority in Gaza.
A ceasefire has been in place since October 2025, although deadly attacks have continued.
Relations between the Israeli government and the United Nations remain deeply strained, with Israel accusing Guterres of bias and the UN chief repeatedly criticising Israel’s conduct in Gaza.
Guterres also paid tribute to the victims of the Oct. 7 attacks.
“Nothing can justify these atrocities,” he said.
“Their suffering, and the enduring grief of their families, must never be forgotten.”
The UN chief also highlighted the suffering of Palestinians in Gaza following the war.
“Their suffering, too, demands an end, now,” he said.
Guterres said the ceasefire had brought some relief but had yet to deliver security, adequate humanitarian assistance or a credible path to recovery and peace.
He urged all sides to fully implement their commitments and move to the next phase of the ceasefire.
“It is time for the ceasefire to become permanent. It is time to allow humanitarian assistance at scale.
“And it is time to respect international law,” he said.
“We must build the political path to lasting peace across the whole region.”
Foreign News
Kenya Confirms its First Ebola Death as Outbreak Spreads
Kenya has confirmed its first case of Ebola, a Kenyan citizen who has been living in the Democratic Republic of Congo for the past seven years.
Health Minister Aden Duale said the patient, who fell ill a month ago, and was treated in several hospitals in DR Congo, died days after arriving in Nairobi.
Duale said the patient boarded a flight on Saturday and underwent normal public screening at the main airport in Nairobi before he was transferred by a relative to a hospital in the city.
More than 4,000 people have died from Ebola in DR Congo this year, in what is the second most deadly known outbreak of the disease.
Shortly after DR Congo declared an outbreak of Ebola in May, it was also reported in Uganda, where two people have died. However, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the county free of the disease in August.
Since then, all cases of the disease have been declared in DR Congo.
The current outbreak has been caused by the Bundibugyo species of Ebola, which is relatively rare, with no known vaccine.
Duale confirmed that the Kenyan national had tested positive for the Bundibugyo species.
According to the minister, the patient first travelled by road from DR Congo to the Ugandan capital Kampala, where he boarded a flight to Nairobi
Duale said that after being taken to the Nairobi Hospital, the patient was transferred to an isolation facility which was built during the Covid-19.
It was there that the patient “developed fever, chills, intense fatigue and weakness, painful swallowing, muscle pain and bleeding under the skin”.
The patient died at 23:30 (20:30 GMT) on Monday and his burial is planned for later on Tuesday in line with public health safety protocols.
At least 28 contacts, including family members and healthcare workers, have been identified, while health authorities are tracing a further 23 passengers and four crew members who travelled on the same flight.
So far, WHO has recorded 4,082 deaths out of 8,463 cases since the emergence of the Bundibugyo species of the virus.
There are currently no approved vaccines or treatments for the species, which is highly infectious.
Foreign News
Trump Escalates Media Fight after Week of Setbacks
President Donald Trump has infused his ongoing feud with the White House press with a new level of acrimony.
Journalists from three major media outlets – CNN, Politico and MS Now – were denied access and had their press credentials confiscated on Saturday morning as they attempted to enter the White House grounds for work.
As media watchdog organisations and the White House Correspondents Association cry foul, Trump appears set to press ahead with a sweeping effort to punish these outlets.
In his Truth Social post announcing his decision on Friday, he said he was “banning” the organisations because “of their constant ‘reporting’ of fake news”.
In remarks later that day, he complained that “something is wrong with a country that can allow people to write purposely negative stories”.“If they want to write them, that’s fine,” he continued. “I don’t have to let them into the people’s house”, he said, referring to the White House.
The president’s frustration at the media, however, came after a week of setbacks in which major institutions handed him a series of losses across his agenda.
First, the Supreme Court blocked his plan to restrict mail-in voting ahead of the midterms. This prompted Trump to lash out at the court’s justices including those he had appointed. “These are not the people I interviewed to serve on the United States Supreme Court,” he said.
The Federal Reserve, the US central bank, then raised interest rates after Trump had spent months arguing they should be cut. This was followed by a judge ordering his administration to give 30 days’ notice before making any changes to the Kennedy Center arts venue in Washington DC after the president warned it could be “ripped down”.
These headlines, combined with approval ratings that recently sunk to record lows for his second term, suggest Trump is facing challenging political headwinds.
His latest attack on the press, however, raises clear legal questions.
The First Amendment to the US Constitution forbids Congress from “abridging” the freedom of the press. It is language that courts have long interpreted as preventing the government from discriminating against the media based on the content of their coverage.
All three targeted news outlets have promised to file lawsuits challenging Trump’s decision.
Although the breadth of this move is unprecedented, it is far from the first time the Trump administration has attempted to limit or deny access to the White House to members of mainstream media outlets.
In his first term, the administration revoked CNN correspondent Jim Acosta’s press credentials, setting off a legal battle that was ultimately resolved in the journalist’s favour. It also temporarily suspended the pass of a reporter who had a heated argument with White House adviser Sebastian Gorka – a move that also was subsequently blocked by the courts.
Last year, the White House banned reporters for the Associated Press from participating in the president’s press pool – which allows media outlets access to smaller in-town and travelling presidential appearances – because the newswire service would not follow Trump’s move to rename the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America.
That dispute also led to a protracted – and yet to be fully resolved – legal battle, prompting the White House to change press pool rules to drop the guaranteed spot for all wire services.
The White House bans, however, represent a dramatic escalation.
The restrictions include access to the entirety of the White House grounds, not just the press pool. And they target entire news organisations, not just a single disfavoured correspondent.
While Trump has been clear about the motives behind his decision, he has shed little light on why he has acted now. He has regularly criticised his press coverage since he first entered national politics more than a decade ago, but he said on Friday there was no specific incident that prompted his announcement.
At the moment, however, the president is embattled.
Even beyond the week of clear setbacks, he is in the midst of an unpopular and difficult-to-resolve war of choice in Iran, which has led to a surge in energy and other consumer prices, deflating his standing with the American public.
Polls also suggest his party faces an uphill battle to retain control of the House of Representatives and perhaps the Senate in November’s crucial midterm congressional elections.
His attempts to improve the public’s mood by touting his accomplishments in campaign events and at his Republican Party’s convention earlier this month in Texas have, at least so far, proven ineffective.
There may be more behind Trump’s decision to lash out at the media this weekend. But it could also simply be an indication of presidential frustration in the face of events and circumstances, some of his own making, that are turning against him.


