politics
News Brief
Rufaro Samanga
Apr. 21, 2021 06:30AM EST
Image by STR/AFP via Getty Images.

Chad's President Idriss Deby Itno (L) decorates general of the Chadian contingent in Mali Oumar Bikimo (L) and his second-in-command major and son of the president Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno (C) during a welcome ceremony, on May 13, 2013, in N'Djamena.

Son of Late Chadian President Idriss Deby to Take Over

Following the recent death of Chadian President Idriss Deby, the country's military has announced that his son, Mahamat Idriss Deby, will take over as interim president.

Chadian President Idriss Deby succumbed to his injuries on Tuesday, April 20, following a confrontation with armed rebels in the capital of N'Djamena, north of the country. The late head of state was recently re-elected into office for a sixth term after he had already spent the last three decades ruling the the North African country. According to Chad's transitional military council, the 68-year-old's son, Mahamat Idriss Deby, will take over as interim president.

READ: Tanzanian President John Magufuli Has Died

According to Al Jazeera, Chad has now entered a period of political uncertainty. However, the nexts steps have reportedly been set out by the current governance structure in place, the National Council of Transition. Chad's constitution has been suspended with the intention of replacing it with a transitional charter, a nationwide curfew has been imposed in addition to a 14-day mourning period, among several agenda points.

The transition period is set to continue for the next 18 months after which "free and democratic" elections will take place, according to the BBC. At just 37-years-old, Deby now becomes the youngest head of state on the continent.

However, news of Deby's appointment has angered the rebels responsible for his father's death. The rebel group, which is known as the Front for Change and Concord in Chad, or FACT) is based in Libya and has clashed regularly with Chad's military. In a recent statement issued by the group, they said, "Chad is not a monarchy. There can be no dynastic devolution of power in our country." They went on to add that, "The forces of the Front for Change and Concord are heading toward N'Djamena at this very moment. With confidence, but above all with courage and determination."

Fears of further violence in the country are admittedly high.

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Chad Ranked Last in Global Air Quality Report

Air quality in Chad shows levels of pollutants 17 times higher than the World Health Organization's guideline, according to the 2022 World Air Quality Report.

Chad has replaced Bangladesh as the country with the most polluted air in the world, according to the 2022 World Air Quality Report, published on Tuesday. The report, by Swiss air quality technology company IQAir, analyzed data from 131 countries and compared it to the World Health Organization's global air quality guidelines (AQG). Data collected from Chad last year shows air pollutants at a level more than 17 times higher than the WHO guideline. In last year's report, Chad ranked just under Bangladesh as the country with the second most polluted air.

"Air pollution continues to be the world’s largest environmental health threat," this year's report began. "Worldwide, poor air quality accounts for 93 billion days lived with illness and over six million deaths each year... Exposure to air pollution causes and aggravates several health conditions which include, but are not limited to, asthma, cancer, lung illnesses, heart disease, and premature mortality."

The report also notes that the data for Chad is only collected from a single monitoring point in the city of N'Djamena. Of Africa's 54 countries, only 19 have sufficient air quality data to be included in the report. However, that number increased from only 12 countries in the previous year. This underscores how the lack of access to monitoring stations in Africa and the Middle East has heightened the air pollution problem. From 2021 to 2022, the number of air pollutants (weighted by population) rose by 18% in Chad.

In 2021, the WHO set more strict guidelines by reducing acceptable amounts of delicate particulate matter used to measure air quality to reduce air pollution-related deaths and overall threats to global health. The change was based on new data that showed increased evidence of the detrimental health effects of poor air quality.

"Improving air quality can enhance climate change mitigation efforts while reducing emissions will, in turn, improve air quality," the WHO said in a news release about the new guidelines. "By striving to achieve these guideline levels, countries will be both protecting health and mitigating global climate change.”

Only six countries met the WHO guideline this year — an annual average of 5 micrograms of pollutants per cubic meter or less. They were Australia, Estonia, Finland, Grenada, Iceland, and New Zealand.

"Citizens in only 10% of the global countries, regions, and territories are breathing air that does not pose a risk to their health," reads IQAir's 2022 report.

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Kenyan Senator Sparks Debate About "Period Shaming"

Kenyan Senator Gloria Orwoba received opposition from colleagues after pulling off a stunt to raise awareness around "period stigma."

A Kenyan senator was relieved from her duties at the Kenyan parliament after attending a Senate hearing session wearing a white suit stained with red, in what was a menstrual activism campaign.

The senator is Gloria Orwoba and she is a part of the ruling coalition. On Tuesday afternoon, she was due to table a motion on a bill that would give out free sanitary pads to some of Kenya's underprivileged. During the session, Kenyan senators disrupted Tuesday’s afternoon senate session to draw the Speaker’s attention to Orwoba’s “inappropriate dress code."

In response to the allegations, Orwoba protested that it was unbecoming for members of the parliament to call her out because she was on her menstrual cycle.

“I am shocked that someone can stand here and say that the House has been disgraced because a woman has had her periods,” Orwoba said.

In response to her comment, Amason Kingi, Speaker of the Senate of Kenya, asked Orwoba to change her outfit before returning to the chambers.

“Having periods is never a crime… Senator Gloria, I sympathize with you that you are going through the natural act of menstruation, you have stained your wonderful suit, I’m asking you to leave so that you go change and come back with clothes that are not stained,” Kingi said, according to BBC.

According to The Star, the stain was artificial coloring, and not blood.

While talking to BBC, Orwoba said that she was proud of the stance she took in an effort to dismantle period shame.

"Since I am always advocating against period shame, I thought I should go ahead and walk the talk," Orwoba said.

Following the incident, several senators criticized her stance, stating that it was not appropriate.

Tabitha Mutinda, an active member of the senate stated that she found Orwoba's conduct uncomfortable and inappropriate.

"You don't understand if she's on the normal woman cycle or she's faking it, and it is so indecent," Mutinda said before adding that there were better ways to address the issue.

Orwoba is advocating for a motion that increase government funding for free female hygiene products and menstrual pads in all public schools, and end "period stigma." The incident at the senate building was apart of her advocacy.

In an interview with Hot 96 FM in Kenya, Orwoba said she has received hateful comments on social media since her act. So much so that she talked about stepping away from social media.

“This thing of having thick skin is not for the faint-hearted. In fact, I am really contemplating leaving Twitter…that whole cyber-bullying has gotten to me. It’s intense and it gets to you,” Orwoba said.

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Uganda's President Will "Go To War" Over New Anti-LGBTQ+ Bill

President Museveni is defending the world's harshest anti-human rights bill, threatening death for being gay.

Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni has declared that he will go to war to protect the country's anti-LGBTQ+ bill passed this week. "The NRM (National Resistance Movement) has never had two languages," he said in a statement released by his office on Wednesday, "What we tell you in the day is what we shall say to you at night. The signing of the Anti-Homosexuality Bill is finished; nobody will move us, and we should be ready for a war. Remember, war is not for the soft." Museveni made an onslaught of chaotic comments when he met with lawmakers from his ruling party this week, as he continues to defend signing one of the world's harshest anti-LGBTQ+ bills to date.

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