Burundi’s President Pierre Nkurunziza has warned against vengeance following the assassination of a senior general.

“Vengeance can wipe out an entire generation,” he said, in an address to the nation on Sunday, urging calm.

A presidential spokesman told the BBC it was too early to blame anyone for the killing of Gen Adolphe Nshimirimana in a rocket and gun attack on his car.

Mr Nkurunziza won a third term last month, amid deadly protests over his decision to run for office again.

Opponents argued this contravened the constitution and there was a failed coup attempt in May.

“Adolphe Nshimirimana was the regime’s number two, not officially, but unofficially. This assassination is a very serious blow to Burundi’s government,” International Crisis Group analyst Thierry Vircoulon told BBC Afrique.

The attackers reportedly targeted the general’s car with machine guns and rocket launchers in the Kamenge district of the capital Bujumbura.

Presidential spokesperson Gerve Abehayo rejected suggestions that the attack could have been carried out by elements within Burundi’s own security apparatus, after witnesses reported four men in military uniform spraying the general’s car with bullets.

“The government is not losing support… the army remains strong and united… one general was killed, but this does not mean the whole military has been wiped out of this country,” he told the BBC’s Newsday programme.

President Nkurunziza has called for an investigation into the general’s killing to be concluded within a week.

The African Union, European Union and the US have all condemned the attack, with AU chairperson Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma describing it as a “barbaric act that is likely to further destabilise the country”.

Prominent Burundian journalist Esdras Ndikumana, who works for AFP news agency and Radio France Internationale (RFI), says he was detained by intelligence officers and badly beaten after trying to take photos at the scene of the attack.

More than 70 people have been killed since the unrest began in April, and 180,000 have fled the country, according to the UN refugee agency.

Mr Nkurunziza came to power in 2005, after 300,000 were killed in a 12-year conflict between ethnic Hutus and Tutsis.

Stories Continues after ad

Work has come to a standstill at all the seven public universities in the country following a strike over ‘little pay’ by the non-teaching staff.

Last Friday, through the Public Universities’’ Non- Teaching  staff   Executive  Forum (PUNTSEF), the various groups resolved that all custodians of halls of residence should not open; Makerere security hand over to police  and that registrars should not give out provisional admission forms to students seeking to join university.

Sources at Makerere University, the oldest university in the country, intimated to this reporter that the striking workers led by their chairperson Jackson Betihamah, wanted the strike to coincide with the opening of the first semester, in two weeks’ time.

And, when this reporter visited Makerere University today, all the offices, faculties including the Main and Senate buildings were locked.  The Directorate of ICT has as well switched off the internet at the campus. Security at the university is being manned by the police as the university guards are absent.

Uganda has got seven public universities namely: Makerere, Busitema University, Gulu University, Kyambogo University, Mbarara University of Science and Technology, Muni University and Soroti University and all the non-teaching staff at the universities have laid down their tools.

“We, Makerere university non-teaching staff have resolved to lay down our tools with effect from 3^rd August until government enhances our salaries. All staff have been advised not to report on duty until further notice. Whoever will be found working will be disciplined,” said Bruce Twesigye, PUNTSEF’s General Secretary.

According to Twesigye, President Museveni discriminated against the non-teaching staff when he promised a pay rise to all academic staff in public universities. Subsequently, in the 2015/16 budget the government allocated sh50b to cater for the increment and a professor will now earn Shs15 million.

“Much as the presidential pay rise pledge emphasized only academic staff, the non-teaching staff looks at it as unfair and instead thinks the president should have pledged to all public universities’ staff without segregating,” said Twesigye.

Twesigye also revealed that the non-teaching staff are demanding 39 billion, and that they have held numerous meetings with all the relevant stakeholders including the Prime Minister, the Minister of Education and with members of the parliamentary committee on public service to no avail, prompting them to lay down their tools.

Last Thursday, during a closed-door meeting chaired by Education minister Jessica Alupo, the workers vowed to go on strike after the Minister said government did not have the money to meet their demands.

“We are aware that they are to lay down their tools but we are not able to enhance their salaries this financial year as requested because government has financial constraints and has to keep other public sectors running,” the minister said. After the meeting, PUNTSEF chairman Mr Betihamah said he was disappointed.

Earlier on in April members of PUNTSEF petitioned the Speaker of Parliament, arguing that the proposed enhancement will be in gross violation of the principle of equal opportunity and an act of open discrimination among the three categories of staff of the public universities in Uganda.

“We request that the proposed gradual enhancement of the salaries should cover all the categories of the workers in all public universities on pro-rata to enable us to avoid the pain staking and laborious industrial and court action by all public universities including the upcoming new ones like Muni and Soroti,” read the petition.

Linda Namaganda a cleaner, said that increasing the salary for one category of staff and leaving out others is “discriminatory, unfair, demotivating, destroys team work and will negatively affect the achievement of the institutions’ goals and objectives.”

Meanwhile, the students at the universities are reportedly in support of the striking staff, with Makerere University Guild President David Bala Bwiruka assuring the striking staff of support.

“Your cause is a struggle against injustice and for us as students’ guild we have sat and agreed that we will support you. When things become abnormal you also become abnormal. As guild presidents in all public universities, we are meeting next week Tuesday where we shall arrange to meet the Minister for Education and the IGP to chat a way forward, ”Bala said.

Bala also warned that with two weeks remaining for the semester to begin, the students might also take action.

The Makerere University Convocation also weighed in on the strike, saying they support efforts aimed at staff welfare.

“Makerere Convocation comprises all staff, students and the alumni therefore we shall support anything to do with the staff welfare .We want to assure you that we will not depart from that mandate and we are supporting you,” Deus Kamunyu Muhwezi, the Publicity Secretary of the Convocation said.

In a related development, a 10-man committee has been set up oversee and manage the strike at Makerere University. It comprises Bruce Twesigye, Yunus Musisi, Denis Mbabazi, Francis Angida, Wilberforce Bubolu, Joseph Musoke, Isaac Egesa, Nelson Akampulira, John Muhumuza and Justine Namuddu.

And for now it is not known how long the strike will last because the government insists there is no money.

Stories Continues after ad

Grain farmers in East Africa will be able to sell their produce at competitive prices, following the launch of an online platform to ease marketing.

According to an EAC release, the platform dubbed G-Soko was developed by a Kenyan company, Virtual City in partnership with the Eastern Africa Grain Council (EAGC) and the Food Trade Eastern and Southern Africa Organization.

The Secretary General of the East African Community, Amb. Dr. Richard Sezibera commended EAGC for partnering with the Secretariat to implement the EAC Food Security Action Plan, which is the EAC strategy to achieve food security in the region.

Dr Sezibera, who was represented by the Director for Productive Sectors Mr. Jean Baptiste Havugimana, also hailed the EAGC for the online initiative.

“EAC continued support in automating agricultural crops trading systems and processes to reduce commercialisation cost and all related challenges and bridge the gap between farmers, traders and consumers for increased food security in the region,” The EAC SG was quoted as saying.

Speaking at the same occasion, the Executive Director of EAGC, Mr. Gerald Masila disclosed that G-Soko was part of a five-year trade enhancement and promotion programme in the region. He said linking rural food production zones in East Africa to urban consumption centres requires a well-functioning regional market and that by adhering to the system, farmers in the region will be able to access credit while waiting for prices to increase through pledging the electronic warehouse receipt with the banks and agro-dealers.

‘The farmers will also benefit from reduced post-harvest losses through access to professional storage, cleaning, drying and will benefit from improved prices discovery since many of them rely on farm-gate prices that deliver cash at lower prices,’ the release states.

The Director of Agriculture in the Ministry of Agriculture of the Republic of Kenya commended the initiative saying: “We have seen very positive changes in the breadth and depth of the EAC integration and this is encouraging as we all hope to reap the benefits of regional integration”.

 The G-Soko is now operational in Uganda and Kenya, and arrangements are underway to extend the system to Tanzania and Rwanda before the Grains Farmers Summit scheduled to take place in Rwanda in early October 2015.

Stories Continues after ad

It always happens; men fighting over women or vice versa. The scene raises dust but it settles fast after the parties have been separated and told to part ways. But when a fight gets nasty and someone loses his/her life, then it is no longer a matter of parting ways, but one involving the police.

An eye witness who prefers anonymity but was at the Club says she saw it all:

“They first fought in the section of the Club ‘40+’ up to the washrooms. Then Ivan ran away for some time before returning with a piece of broken Heineken bottle which he used to cut Johnnie’s throat.

Johnnie’s intention wasn’t fighting Ivan but Nina (his ex-wife) so Ivan came to defend Nina, who is reportedly his current girlfriend.

Johnnie bled too much but the club bouncers and security personnel didn’t come to his rescue as they looked for Ivan.

It took almost one hour for the bouncers to come to his rescue and because of the crowded venue, it was difficult for Johnnie to be taken out quickly (of the club) since there was confusion, with others suggesting the injured man be given first aid.”

Who takes blame?

When the incident happened, the managers and bouncers tried to distract the attention of the party goers by increasing the volume of the music and stopping them from screaming.

In fact most people didn’t know what was happening until they saw Johnnie’s friends crying and screaming.

Getting the body out

The bouncers then dragged Johnnie’s body through the exit door…

Stories Continues after ad