Baltasar Engonga, the Director General of the National Financial Investigation Agency (ANIF) in Equatorial Guinea, has been arrested after a shocking discovery of over 400 sex tapes involving the wives of prominent individuals in the country.

The tapes were found during a fraud investigation, where officials conducted a surprise search of Engonga’s home and office.

The tapes, stored on CDs, revealed his sexual encounters with high-profile women, including the wife of his brother, the cousin and sister of the country’s president, the wife of the Director General of Police, and the spouses of about 20 ministers.

The footage, which has since leaked online, was allegedly recorded with the consent of the women.

Local media reported that the scandal has sent shockwaves across the nation. Some of the encounters took place in Engonga’s office, with one scene reportedly showing him engaging in sexual activities next to the national flag.

“Baltasar EBANG ENGONGA is said to have filmed these scenes with the consent of the women themselves, which exonerates him from a possible crime of violation of integrity. In the videos, he is seen having unprotected sex with several women, including those married to powerful and well-known people in the country, but also with the most “diva and influential” single women in Equatorial Guinea. Some scenes take place in hotel rooms, houses, even in the protagonist’s office at the Ministry of Finance,” a report on Ahora EG added.

Equatorial Guinea’s government has responded swiftly, suspending all officials involved in sexual activities within ministry offices.

The Vice President, Nguema Mangue, condemned the actions, stating they violate the country’s Code of Conduct and Public Ethics Law. He reiterated the government’s “zero tolerance” policy for behaviour that tarnishes the integrity of public service, stressing the need for ethics and respect.

While Engonga faces charges related to corruption, authorities have noted that consensual sexual acts do not constitute a crime unless coercion or violence is proven. However, the Attorney General has urged victims of sexual abuse to come forward, stressing the public health risks posed by such widespread sexual encounters.

The scandal has sparked widespread outrage, with calls for stricter oversight of public officials in Equatorial Guinea.

Human rights organisation Amnesty International said three sub-Saharan African countries considering ending the death penalty must act now and abolish the death penalty once and for all, paving the way for others around the world to follow in their footsteps.

Kenya and Zimbabwe currently have bills tabled to abolish the death penalty for all crimes while the Gambia, which has made steady progress against the punishment since 2017, has commenced a constitutional amendment process that will, among other things, effectively abolish the death penalty.

Amnesty International said that in 2023, it recorded 1,153 executions, an increase of 31% (270) from the 883 known executions in 2022.

It noted that the year 2023 has continued a worrying trend with an alarming surge in executions in Iran and Saudi Arabia, a decision in the Democratic Republic of Congo to resume executions, and Taiwan’s Supreme Court’s failure to abolish the death penalty.

Yet countries in sub-Saharan Africa offer a glimmer of hope on the way toward the global abolition of the death penalty.

So far, 113 countries around the world have abolished the death penalty for all crimes. In 2023, Amnesty International documented a sharp increase in the use of the death penalty across sub-Saharan Africa.

Recorded executions more than tripled and recorded death sentences increased significantly by 66%. Somalia was the only country in the region known to have carried out executions.

Death sentences were recorded in 14 countries, a decrease of 2 compared to 2022. Four countries took positive legislative steps towards the abolition of the death penalty.

Amnesty stated that so far, 24 countries across sub-Saharan Africa have abolished the death penalty for all crimes while two additional countries have abolished it for ordinary crimes only.

Although the sub-Saharan Africa region saw a surge in both recorded executions and recorded death sentences in 2023, Gambia, Kenya and Zimbabwe have the opportunity to buck that trend in the region,” Amnesty International’s legal adviser on the death penalty, Oluwatosin Popoola, said.

She explained that: “Countries that still retain the death penalty are an isolated minority as the world continues to decidedly move away from this cruel punishment.

“The more countries that abolish the death penalty for all crimes, the more isolated the remaining countries will become and the weaker their position on the death penalty will be.

“The majority of countries in the world have abolished the death penalty for all crimes. It’s time for all countries to move away from this cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment once and for all.”

Gambia, Kenya and Zimbabwe haven’t carried out an execution in over a decade while each country has commuted multiple death sentences in the same period. The last known execution in Kenya was recorded in 1987.

Although the country does not have an official moratorium on executions, it has an established practice of not carrying them out.

While the courts in Kenya continue to impose death sentences, the country continues to make good progress against the death penalty.

In 2023, 606 commutations of death sentences were granted, while four bills to abolish the death penalty are currently pending in Parliament.

The last known execution in Zimbabwe was carried out in 2005 even though courts continue to impose death sentences.

However, since President Emmerson Mnangagwa assumed office in November 2017, he has made his opposition to the death penalty clear.

“Zimbabwe’s President himself was sentenced to death for terrorism as a young man due to his involvement in Zimbabwe’s liberation struggle. He narrowly avoided execution as he was below the age of 21 at the time and was sentenced to 10 years in prison instead,”mPopoola said.

“The President knows what it’s like to be facing the death penalty and he now has the opportunity to ensure no one else goes through that.”

Kenya’s parliament was set to vote on Tuesday on impeaching Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua in a political drama that has exposed a rift in the governing party.

Lawmakers have accused the 59-year-old deputy to President William Ruto of corruption, undermining the government and practising ethnically divisive politics, among a host of other charges.

At a press conference on Monday, Gachagua denied the accusations as “outrageous” and “sheer propaganda”, saying it was a scheme to hound him out of office.

Gachagua is a businessman from Kenya’s biggest tribe, the Kikuyu. He weathered previous corruption scandals to become deputy leader as Ruto’s running mate in a closely fought election in August 2022.

But in recent weeks, he has complained of being sidelined by his boss and been accused of supporting youth-led anti-government protests that broke out in June.

Political tensions have been running high since the sometimes deadly demonstrations erupted over unpopular tax hikes, exposing divisions between Gachagua and Ruto — with the deputy leader admitting the motion cannot proceed without Ruto’s approval.

Several MPs allied with Gachagua were summoned by police last month, accused of funding the protests.

No formal charges have been lodged by prosecutors and no judicial inquiry has been opened against Gachagua.

But lawmakers have listed 11 grounds for impeachment, including accusations that he amassed assets worth 5.2 billion shillings ($40 million) since the last election, despite an annual salary of just $93,000.

Among the listed assets was Kenya’s renowned Treetops Hotel, where Britain’s then-Princess Elizabeth was staying when she became queen.

Gachagua says his wealth has come entirely through legitimate business deals and an inheritance from his late brother.

He has warned his removal would stir discontent among his supporters, and insisted on the eve of the vote he would not resign.

“I will fight to the end,” he said.

– ‘Lacks political patience’ –

Kenyan lawmakers initiated the impeachment process on October 1, with 291 members of parliament backing the motion, well beyond the 117 minimum required.

Gachagua will take to the floor of parliament to defend himself from 5:00 pm (1400 GMT), before the motion’s sponsor — an MP from the ruling Kenya Kwanza coalition — is allowed a 30-minute rebuttal.

A long evening is expected, with lawmakers due to vote only after further debate in the lower house.

Two-thirds, or 233 MPs, must back the motion for it to pass. If passed, the motion will then move to the upper house, the Senate.

And if impeached, Gachagua would become the first deputy president to be removed in this way since the possibility was introduced in Kenya’s revised 2010 constitution.

Dismas Mokua, a Nairobi-based political risk analyst, told AFP that Gachagua had assumed he would co-lead with Ruto.

“He lacked the strategic political patience needed for the role, succumbing to the same fate as other deputies or vice presidents who sought quick, ‘instant coffee’ solutions,” he said.

While his potential impeachment was unlikely to cause organic protests, Mokua warned that “the probability of orchestrated unrest is very high”.

On Tuesday, Kenya’s parliament was scheduled to cast votes regarding the impeachment of Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua, unfolding a political saga that has revealed a division within the ruling party.

The 59-year-old Gachagua, who serves alongside President William Ruto, has faced accusations of corruption, destabilizing the government, and engaging in politics that exacerbate ethnic tensions, among various other allegations.

During a press conference held on Monday, Gachagua dismissed these claims as “outrageous” and “sheer propaganda,” asserting that they were part of a plot to force him out of his position.

Gachagua, a businessman from Kenya’s largest ethnic group, the Kikuyu, has previously navigated through corruption controversies to assume the role of deputy leader, partnering with Ruto in a tightly contested election in August 2022.

In the past few weeks, he has expressed frustration about being overlooked by his superior and has faced allegations of backing youth-led protests against the government that began in June.

Political tensions have escalated following the occasionally violent demonstrations sparked by unpopular tax increases, highlighting rifts between Gachagua and Ruto.

Last month, multiple MPs associated with Gachagua were called in by police, accused of financing the protests.

Prosecutors have not filed any official charges, nor has a court investigation been initiated against Gachagua.

However, legislators have cited 11 reasons for impeachment, including claims that he accumulated assets totaling 5.2 billion shillings ($40 million) since the previous election, despite earning an annual salary of only $93,000.

Included among these assets is Kenya’s famous Treetops Hotel, where the then-Princess Elizabeth of Britain was residing when she ascended to the throne.

Gachagua asserts that his wealth is solely the result of legitimate business transactions and an inheritance from his deceased brother.

He has cautioned that his ousting would incite dissatisfaction among his supporters.

On October 1, Kenyan legislators began the impeachment proceedings, with 291 parliament members endorsing the motion, significantly exceeding the required minimum of 117.

For the motion to succeed on Tuesday, it needs the approval of two-thirds of the National Assembly, which is the lower house. It would then be forwarded to the Senate, the upper house.

If Gachagua were to be impeached, he would be the first deputy president in Kenya to be ousted through this process since it was incorporated into the country’s amended constitution in 2010.

AFP

Uganda loses about $2.5 billion to corruption every year, equivalent to almost a quarter of its annual budget, the country’s anti-graft head told AFP on Monday.

Corruption is a huge issue in the East African nation, which is ranked a lowly 141 out of 180 countries on Transparency International’s corruption index.

While President Yoweri Museveni has repeatedly promised change, several major corruption scandals involving public officials have surfaced recently, triggering anti-graft demonstrations.

“The country loses about 9.144 trillion shillings ($2.5 billion) annually, money enough to cover 23 percent of this year’s national budget,” said Beti Kamya Turwomwe, head of the Inspectorate of Government.

“Losing such colossal sums that would have gone into delivery of services to the citizens is a wake-up call to all the citizens to fight the vice,” she said.

Turwomwe said her department had recovered just $2 million of the vanished money, which she blamed on a lack of funding and staffing.

Her comments follow the government body’s annual July-June report — based on research by international think tank the Government Transparency Institute — which was presented to parliament last week.

It found that the highest area of corruption was the environmental protection sector, estimating losses of 2.8 trillion shillings or $700 million a year.

A report summary shared online said the figures are based on a “variety of methods and data sources”, without being more specific.

“Overall, the estimates on cost of corruption are considered to be lower than actual in Uganda since some costs are in kind while others are non-measurable due to lack of data,” the summary said.

It found that utility costs, such as bribing officials for access to water and electricity, result in a loss of almost $130 million.

The report comes a week after Museveni pardoned a government official who had served five years of a 10-year sentence after swindling $1.2 million from government coffers, provoking outrage from civil society groups.

Three countries, Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger Republic have announced plans to launch a new biometric passport amid their exit from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).

The decision points towards the latest step in the growing alliance among the three West African nations who are currently being led by military juntas.

The military leaders of Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger seized power through a series of coups between 2020 and 2023 and in January 2024, they collectively announced their plan to withdraw from the ECOWAS.

The three West African nations have now decided to form the Alliance of Sahel States which is expected to take place “in the coming days.”

They decided to take this step following sanctions imposed by other West African countries in an attempt to pressure the juntas into restoring democracy in the three nations.

However, the Alliance of Sahel States has stood their ground in resisting these calls, instead deciding to fortify the partnership among themselves.

“In the coming days, a new biometric passport of the alliance will be put into circulation with the aim of harmonising travel documents in our common area,” said Col Assimi Goïta, the leader of Mali’s junta and acting president of the Sahel alliance in a televised speech on Sunday evening.