JEMMYX BLOG

Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta on Saturday declared three days of national mourning after Somali Islamist militant group al Shabaab gunmen entered a university campus and killed almost 150 people in one of the country’s worst massacres. “I declare three days of mourning during which our flags will fly at half mast,” Kenyatta said in a televised national address from the capital Nairobi, condemning the “barbaric slaughter” in his first address since the attack ended on Thursday. The leader also warned that planners and financiers of attacks like the one that took place in Garissa town are “deeply embedded in our communities”. Kenyatta said his administration would “respond in the severest ways possible” to the Garissa attack, which occurred Thursday when four gunmen entered a campus and slaughtered students. The military moved in hours later and the gunmen were killed. “We will fight terrorism to the end,” said Kenyatta. “I want you to know that our security force...

The President-elect, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), on Friday met behind closed doors with President Goodluck Jonathan inside the Presidential Villa, Abuja. That was the first time the two leaders would be meeting since the Independent National Electoral Commission declared Buhari winner of the March 28 presidential election. The meeting which was described as “private” was held inside the new Banquet Hall inside the President’s office. The National Chairman, All Progressives Congress, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, was said to have accompanied Buhari to the meeting that lasted about 30minutes. A former Head of State who is also the Chairman, National Peace Committee for the 2015 General Elections, Gen. Abdusalami Abubakar (retd.), was said to have joined them at the meeting. Abubakar reportedly arrived at the Presidential Villa ahead of Buhari. Details of their discussion were not available at the time of filing this report but it might not be unconnected with the tr...

Jonathan stops PDP’s bid to contest Buhari’s victory President Goodluck Jonathan may have prevailed on the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) not to challenge President-elect Gen. Muhammadu Buhari’s victory  in last Saturday’s election. Instead of planning a case for the Presidential Election Petitions Tribunal, the Presidency will raise a Transition Committee on Tuesday, a source told The Nation yesterday. Vice President-elect Prof. Yemi Osinbajo is likely to head the All Progressives Congress (APC) team which will join the committee ahead of the May 29 transition. Ministers have started preparing their handover notes, it was also learnt. It was gathered that although some PDP stalwarts wanted Buhari’s victory challenged at the tribunal, the President thought otherwise. The party stalwarts, it was said, believe that some irregularities in some states are strong enough to upturn the final results of the election, which was hailed at home and abroad a...