Governance and Administrative Disarray Facing the SABC Must Be Investigated

29 March 2015, Johannesburg

The South African Communist Party (SACP) calls for thoroughgoing investigations into the state of the SABC, our public broadcaster, which is clearly facing serious governance and administrative disarray. This must be dealt with now and for good!

The SABC has suffered chronic governance and management issues which seem to be deepening rather than being resolved. In less than three months only, since 15 January, one member of its board resigned, and four other board members were removed from the SABC board. Three of the board members, seemingly removed illegally, have reportedly since declared that they will either challenge those removals through the court and/or request the Parliamentary Communications Portfolio Committee to review the validity of those disputed removals. One of the board members, Ms Ellen Tshabalala, was removed lawfully for lying on her CV and claiming qualifications leading to her appointment which she permanently failed to prove that she had.

To the SACP it seems there are three matters at the centre of some of the crises at the SABC:

the controversial appointment of Mr Hlaudi Motsoeneng who does not have a Grade 12 certificate and who allegedly lied about having one;
a commercial agreement between the SABC and private pay TV monopoly, MultiChoice which apparently involves collusive aspects and cedes or alienates important public broadcasting rights and assets from the SABC to MultiChoice;
purging of board members who were not in support of the appointment and the MultiChoice agreement, including allegations of corruption surrounding this deal as well as violation of key aspects of corporate governance.

All of these issues must form part of the investigation that the SACP is calling for.

Issued by the SACP

Contact:

Alex Mashilo - National Spokesperson
Mobile: 082 9200 308
Office: 011 339 3621/2
Twitter: SACP1921

"Cecil John Rhodes Statue Must Fall", SACP Brian Bunting District

24 March 2015, Brian Bunting District, Western Cape Province

The SACP Brian Bunting District is proud of student action at the University of Cape Town (UCT), in particular the campaign to achieve transformation at the university. The SACP supports this struggle and will seek ways to broaden it to its zenith. The students have certainly made the country talking on the persisting issues of racial discrimination and institutionalised racism at some of our universities.

We also commend a section of the white students on campus who have shown a deep understanding of the National Democratic Revolution by creating a forum for the discussion of white privilege. We commend the academic staff who have brought to the fore the sharp contradictions in their working lives.

We are, however, not surprised by the apologetic statements made by recently-elected convocation president Professor Barney Pityana. Pityana behaves like a de facto Vice Chancellor of UCT when he says "The university authorities cannot be faulted for addressing the unlawful actions of the protesters. But it must never end there. A more intelligent engagement within the academic community (our emphasis) must wrestle with the issues."

We echo the words by the Minister of higher education Dr Blade Nzimande when he said "History cannot be swept under the carpet, but this does not mean that we should celebrate its most dubious and anti-democratic characters who used their ill-gotten power to promote bigotry and the subjugation of Africa`s indigenous people".

Indeed the pace of transformation within the higher education sector has generally been slow. However, it is clear that UCT has been the hub of a hybrid of conservatism and neoliberalism, and continues to promote policies which seek to undermine the current democratically elected government policies - an example being the proposed amendment of its admission policies.

Issued by SACP Brian Bunting District

Contact:

Masonwabe Sokoyi - SACP Western Cape Provincial Spokesperson
Cell: 0815846138/0765243242
Office: 021 696 2522
Fax: 086 558 2481
Twitter: @SACPWC
Facebook: SACP Western Cape
Email: sacpwc.media@gmail.com

COSATU Special Central Executive Committee Statement-30th to 31st March 2015

31 March 2015

The Congress of South African Trade Unions [COSATU] held its Special Central Executive Committee [CEC] from the 30th to the 31st March 2015.

The meeting was held in terms of the COSATU constitution.
It was attended by the National Office Bearers, 12 Affilliates and Provinces, including SAMWU and DENOSA.

The meeting on amongst others discussed and agreed on the following:
1. Taking forward the applications for affiliation.

On SEAPU : The meeting agreed that there would be a follow up meeting with SEAPU and other affected unions to ensure proper admission of the union into COSATU.

On LIMUSA : The meeting reaffirmed its satisfaction that LIMUSA satisfied all the constitutional requirement of the COSATU constitution and therefore accepted LIMUSA as a new COSATU affilliate.

The process which will be followed moving forward, includes the induction of the new union and other necessary Constitutional processes.

2. On Campaigns
The meeting agreed to vigoureously take forward the Living Wage campaign including a focus on the National Minimum Wage.
We believe that this will help address the inequalities and high levels of poverty engulfing our country .

The Federation is now gearing for a mother of all battles in the streets to achive a living wage and to fitght against all manifestations of racism in the workplace.
The CEC took place within the context of the season of collective bargaining in various sectors.

As we speak, the Public Sector are warming for action against the intregence of the employer who did something unprecedent to drop from their intial offer.
This represented the worst form of bad faith negotiations.
Our members are angry and are prepared to figh to the bitte end for their demands.

3. On the UIF – Tax holiday
The CEC was angry that the government wanted to introduce changes to the UIF without proper consultation and was giving a comnmitment to give a tax holiday to capital whilst many of our people remain unemployed and cannot access the UIF.

In this regard the CEC was clear that anty surplus created in the UIF should be directed at adressing unemployment and poverty .

4. May Day Activities
The CEC greed that the National May Day activities for 2015 will be held in KZN and the focus will be on 60 years of the Freedom Charter, 30 years of COSATU, the National Minimum Wage, the living wage campaign, vulnerable workers such as farm workers,workers in the hospitality industry.

And will focusing in the battle against Labour brokers, and the fight against threats on our hard won right to strike.

Affilliates committed to provide resources including deplpoying personnel at COSATU House take the campaign

5. Sizwe Ntsaluba Gobodo report
The two reports have now been adopted by the CEC.
The task team of general Secretaries must now interogate the two reports and source legal advise where necessary .

Where they have identified fraudulent activities, we will take the issues to he Law Enforcement Agencies

6. Special National Congress
The Special National Congress will be held in July 2015.

7. On the failure and refusal of the general Secretary to perform his duties and carry out his responsibililies .
7.1. The Central Executive Committee noting with concern that:
7.2. After the Special Central Executive Committee meeting held on the 7th November 2014 in which a decision was taken to expel NUMSA, the General Secretary did not attend the media conference which was convened to communicate the decisions of this CEC.

Instead he wrote a letter which was also accessed by the media in which he expressed his opposition to the decision of this CEC to expel NUMSA. This was a CEC which he had convened and in which he was also present and participated in its deliberations.
7.3. He did not attend the joint Political and Socio- Economic Commission which he had convened on the 24th January 2015, saying that he will not attend the meeting because the other affiliates who went public about boycotting the CEC had also not attended the meeting.
7.4. He did not attend the properly constituted ordinary CEC held from the 2nd to 4th March 2015 which was convened by himself, citing the absence of the unions which had openly boycotted the meeting as the reasons for his non-attendance. Throughout the proceedings of the meeting he spoke to the media communicating views that were in opposition to or contrary to the interests of the Federation which he had been elected by the 11th Congress to lead as its General Secretary.
7.5. At its properly constituted ordinary CEC held from the 2nd to 4th March 2015 which he convened , in the light of the failure of the General Secretary to attend this meeting o to explain his behavior which went against the expressed provisions of the COSATU constitution and the code of conduct for staff and leaders, it was decided that the General Secretary be called upon to attend the meeting of the Special Central Executive Committee scheduled from 30th to 31st March 2015 to explain his failure to attend the ordinary CEC held from the 2nd to 4th March 2015.
By not coming to this CEC to explain his conduct, he therefore waved his right to put his side of the story.
This is in addition to his refusal to cooperate in giving his side of the story on serious allegations contained in the Sizwe Ntsaluba Gobodo report.
7.6. The General Secretary refused and failed to attend these meetings . The failure of the General Secretary to attend the meeting of the 2nd to 4th March 2015, including the Special CEC convened from the 30th to 31st March 2015 had major implications on the management and administration of the affairs of the Federation.
7.7. The duties of the General Secretary in terms of the constitution include being responsible for the following :

10.1.1 Financial affairs including –
10.1.1.1. The keeping of books and accounts as may be required by the CEC;
10.1.1.2. The collection of affiliate fees;
10.1.1.3. The banking of monies received in the name of the Federation;
10.1.1.4. The preparation and circulation of detailed monthly financial statements to the Provinces and affiliates of the Federation;
10.1.2 Correspondence and notices including –
10.1.2.1. Tabling correspondence where necessary, at CEC meetings;
10.1.2.2. Sending out notices and minutes of all meetings of the NC, CC, CEC and other related committees and sub-committees;
10.1.3 Reports including –
10.1.3.1. The preparation and circulation of the Financial Annual Report which must include statements of income and expenditure and the balance sheet; and
10.1.3.2. The circulation of the auditor`s report to the CEC;
10.1.4 General co-ordination and supervision including –
10.1.4.1. Office work and administration of the affairs and activities of the Federation; and
10.1.4.2. The supervision of staff and the Provincial Secretaries,
10.1.5 Other duties including tasks issued by the NC, CC and CEC.
7.8. It is important and necessary that at all times unless duly authorized, both the General Secretary and the Deputy General Secretary must be available to perform their functions and carry out their responsibilities.

8. The Central Executive Committee further noting that:
8.1. The General Secretary has failed and refused to attend the meeting to explain his behavior
8.2. The General Secretary has failed to obtain leave of absence for his non-attendance of the properly constituted ordinary Central Executive Committee meeting including the Special CEC of the 30th to 31st March 2015;

9. The Central Executive Committee further noting that:
9.1. The General Secretary held a press conference on the 29th March 2015 where on amongst others he said the following: “from this point I will no longer participate in the internal factional wrangling in the organization” page 30 para-43 . “ I will not attend the meetings of the federation” page 31 para-44 . …”I cannot attend the pending Special CEC“ page 31 para-45 . If my refusal to attend the Special CEC is used as a pretext to fire me, then so be it” page 32 para 65. “ This is a deliberate act of defiance on my part …”, page 34 para-71. “I am making a statement that COSATU belongs to its members , not to any faction or clique, page 43 , para-72. Please see the document titled Zwelinzima Vavi’s Public statement , 29 March 2015

10. The Central Executive Committee further noting that:
10.1. The General Secretary continues to divide unions by addressing unconstitutional meetings.
10.2. He continues to use the resources of the federation to service NUMSA an expelled union which has declared intentions to destroy COSATU affiliates and openly undermined the founding principles of the federation of One Union, One Industry .
10.3. He continues to meet with people who have been suspended, some dismissed for corruption by COSATU unions. Many of these have declared intentions to destroy COSATU unions and thereby destroy the federation as a whole.

11. The General Secretary violated the COSATU code of conduct for staff and leaders which on amongst others says that leaders are the face of the organization, the custodians of organisational decisions and must be alert to, and make others aware of any potential damages to the local and global image of the Federation.
Therefore leaders will support and promote the wellbeing of the Federation including organisational cohesion.

12. Taking into account the COSATU code of conduct for staff and elected leaders violated by the General Secretary on the General duties of leaders of the Federation which says that:
6.1. Every leader and employee occupies a position of trust towards his or her structure and all other structures of the Federation;
6.2. Every leader has a fiduciary duty to the Federation, which requires that he or she, at all times, acts with fidelity, honesty, integrity and in good faith; and in the best interest of the Federation;
6.3. Leaders must advance the principles of co-operative governance between the structures by ensuring that: they conduct their activities without impeding nor contradicting the spirit and efforts of the Federation’s constitution, its policies and decisions; and
6.4. co-operate with other structures within the Federation in a spirit of mutual trust and good faith by: assisting and supporting one another; informing one another of, and consulting one another on matters of common interest;
7. Taking into account the code of Conduct for staff and elected leadership which the General Secretary violated on the use of the Federation’s Property, Assets and Resources:
6.1. A leader and or a staff member shall not make unauthorized use of any property, assets or other resources of the Federation for any personal reasons.
6.2. A leader and or a staff member shall only use the Federation’s property, assets or resources for activities associated with discharge of their duties, unless otherwise authorized;
6.3. The intellectual property and any work produced by a leader or a staff member of the Federation in the course of his or her leadership, employment or association with the Federation are exclusive property of the Federation;
7. Taking into account the COSATU Code of Conduct for staff and elected which the General Secretary violated on Discipline:
7.1. A leader and or staff member will strive for the maximum unity of purpose and functioning of the Federation;
7.2. A leader and or staff member will observe discipline, behave honestly and carry out decisions of the majority, of the collective and of higher bodies;
7.3. A leader and or staff member will respect decisions taken by the Federation in terms of its structures, whether or not he or she personally agrees with them and he/she will report such decisions in a positive manner to avoid undermining them;
7.4. A leader and or staff member will not behave in a manner that brings the Federation or its structures into disrepute or which manifests a flagrant violation of the moral integrity expected of a leader;
7.5. A leader and or staff member will refrain from publishing, leading and /or distributing any media, which purport to be the views of any organized grouping, faction or tendency within the Federation;
7.6. A leader and or staff member will defend the unity and integrity of the Federation and its principles and combat any tendency - towards disruption and factionalism. This includes combating propaganda detrimental to the interests of the Federation and defending its policies, aims and programmes.

8. Noting the COSATU code of conduct for staff and elected leadership on the duty to avoid conflicts of interest when it says that:
8.1. Every leader and or staff member must:
8.1.1. Take every possible step to avoid a conflict of interest between his/her personal interest and the interests of the Federation;
8.1.2. not place himself or herself in a position where his or her personal interest could conflict with his or her duties to the Federation.

9. Noting that:
9.1. Over the years the federation has been operating on the basis of trust and intergrity that those occupying positions of leadership will always respect collective decisions and will always act to advance the best interests of the federation
9.2. Based on this trust the federation has allowed individual leaders enough space to execute their tasks without hinderances and in the process this have created a space for the accumulation of unchecked power.
9.3. The General Secretary’s has in the recent past abused the trust given to him by the federation and workers affilliated to COSATU unions and he continues to do so with impunity whichcluminated to the unauthorised press conference of 29th March 2015, This rebelious conduct has broaght the federation into desrepute.( Please refer to item 1 above )
9.4. He has in the process behaved in a manner which placed him above the organisation , as an untouchable leader. He treated the organisation as his own , including the the COSATU leadership collective and the entire membership as his inferior subjects.
9.5. His behaviour has undermined all the efforts to achieve unity and cohession in the federation as facilitated by the ANC.
Believing that:
9.6. No individual leader is above COSATU as an organisation and its constitution
9.7. Collective leadership, organisational discipline, trust , intergrity and revolutionary morality is the bedrock upon which COSATU ‘s work is predicated .
9.8. The General Secretary as part of the collective at the helm of ensuring the functionality of the federation has behaved in a manner which corroded the moral and revolutionary soul of the federation and undermined each of the principles stated above.
9.9. The General Secretary has behaved in a manner which reduces the federation to his own entity where he can do as he wish including negleting his duties, making public statements which puts the name of the federation into desrepute and has openly defied and undermined COSATU’s constitution.
Based on the COSATU constitution on clause 10.4 on the removal of officials which says that:
10.4.1 The CEC may suspend or dismiss the General Secretary or any other official, if in the opinion of the CEC the official –
10.4.1.1. Has committed misconduct;

10.4.1.2. Has neglected his / her duties;

10.4.1.3. Has acted in a manner detrimental to the Federation; or

10.4.1.4. Has acted in a manner which conflicts with this Constitution.

10.4.2 The CEC or the NC may suspend or dismiss the General Secretary or any other official for any other reason deemed sufficient.

10. The CEC concludes that the provisions of the COSATU constitution and the code of conduct for staff and leaders have been violated by the General Secretary.

10.1 The conduct of the General Secretary constitute gross misconduct

17. It is hereby resolved that:
10.1.1 Comrade Zwelinzima Vavi is dismissed as the General Secretary of COSATU with immediate effect.
10.1.2 He must return all the property of the federation with immediate effect of this resolution being communicated to him.
10.1.3 He must henceforth stop speaking on behalf of the federation as he is no longer the General Secretary of COSATU.
10.1.4 In an instance where comrade Zwelinzima Vavi wants to access the COSATU offices as part of clearing his office desk, he should do so in consultation with the National Office Bearers.
10.1.5 The National Office Bearers will work to ensure that the security of the federation’s communication and information is maximized. This will include ensuring that there are no interceptions and hacking of computers.
10.1.6 No structure of the federation shall be allowed to undermine this decision. This includes inviting him or creating platforms for him to address members affiliated to COSATU unions.
10.1.7 No staff member including Provincial Secretaries should take instructions from comrade Zwelinzima Vavi.
10.1.8 The National office Bearers will immediately communicate this decision to all our structures including the Alliance structures and our international bodies we are affiliated to .
10.1.9 Special Provincial Executive Committee meeting will be convened as a matter of urgency to communicate this decision.
10.1.10 All units of COSATU are instructed to henceforth stop using our media platform or any COSATU platforms to profile comrade Zwelinzima Vavi.
10.1.11 All staff members, particularly Provincial Secretaries of the federation and of our unions are instructed to desist from participating in comrade Zwelinzima Vavi’ led activities.

These are not consistent with the policies and decisions of the federation and they are intended to destroy and not to build COSATU.
10.1.12 The NOBs should continue to facilitate the work directed at achieving the unity of the federation.
This includes coordinating activities and campaigns of the federation on the ground. Affiliates should continue to escalate the provision of quality service to members.
10.1.13 All outstanding allegations against the General Secretary will be processed by the National Office Bearers through a properly constituted task team which will be working with various
experts.
Issued by : COSATU Special CEC

For more information contact:

Bheki Ntshalintshali
COSATU Deputy General Secretary
Cell: 0825636973
Tell: 0113394910
___________
Ntai Norman Mampane (Communications Officer)
Congress of South African Trade Unions
110 Jorissen Cnr Simmonds Street
Braamfontein
2017
P.O.Box 1019
Johannesburg
2000
South Africa
Tel: +27 11 339-4911 or Direct: +27 10 219-1342
Mobile: +27 72 416 3790
Twitter: @_cosatu / @COSATU2015_
Web: www.cosatu.org.za

Dearth of Revolutionary Feminists in the Congress Movement: Challenge for the ANC Led Alliance

A friend posted a comment on his Facebook page questioning the seeming disappearance of feminists "in our movement" which I assume to mean the Congress movement. Accompanying his comment was a picture of young half naked girls wearing ANC Youth League T-shirts washing cars, I guess, as part of some campaign. I was touched and felt compelled to echo his question in marvel; where are the feminists in the Congress movement?

During campaigns it is not uncommon to see young girls in ANC attire being paraded in flashy vehicles in an attempt to woo votes towards the ANC. What this says, in essence, is that - though I pray not - the glorious movement of the people whose revolutionary morality has more than better life to offer but also 'flowers of the revolution'.

There are cynics who would be heard saying, "But women have the real power: bottom power." (An expression for a woman who uses her sexuality to get things from men.) It can't be that this glorious Congress movement is following this backward thinking. The salient message, in this society where violence against women and girls has reached epidemic proportions, is that we value women more for their bodies and less for their human capacity.

Let's be clear, the argument is not about the way they dress as one holds the view that there is nothing wrong with women choosing to dress however they please! The issue of contention is parading these 'flowers of the revolution' - a term of endearment coined by the late Oliver Reginald Tambo in reference to women of uMkhonto weSizwe - without political content and ONLY to parade their bodies.

Bottom power is not power at all, because the woman with bottom power is actually not powerful; she just has a good route to tap another person's power.

This is a problem that must be challenged before it gets out of hand!

In doing so, I think we need to start by challenging the common understanding of what feminists want as commonly understood in this day and age. Feminists seek to "define, establish, and achieve equal political, economic, cultural, personal, and social rights for women." Obviously, this minimalistic view, as we should recognize, may have achieved its minimum goals; it has not ended sexism.

Or maybe the problem is in the nuances around feminism arising out of patriarchal stereotypes where women are socialized to know that their 'place is in the kitchen' or in reproduction. These women tell girls that they should never call themselves 'feminist', since feminists are women who are unhappy because they cannot find husbands.

Sometimes, as Chamamanda Ngozi Adichie puts it, they are told that 'feminism' is not our culture, that feminism was "un-African" and they would only call themselves feminists because they had been "influenced by western books".

Consistently on the lips of comrades in our movement are the words of Frederick Douglass, "Where there is oppression, there is resistance." This formulation helps us to understand that the motive force of our society, the oppressed working class, will free humanity from the bowels of capitalism.

Our movement, objectively, has fallen short in fully developing this correct analysis. This is most glaring in the failure to grasp the essence of the oppression of women, as workers and as women. Much lip service has been given to the triple oppression of women by both our movement and the feminist movement. Attend a meeting on the question of women and you will find a woman on the programme. She will have been encouraged to speak to some concrete examples of her triple oppression. This process is duplicated among the feminists.

Our failure to grasp the advanced character of women's oppression is telling by the lack of theoretical work done on this question. Our moral approach to the question of sexism flows from our failure to grasp the material basis of sexism. The result of this has been to hold back our movement and parade them as symbols during campaigns and not to see anything wrong with it.

Within the movement, we are faced with two approaches to the woman question: a moral approach or a materialist approach.

A moral approach to the woman's question is not based on an objective analysis of the conditions that woman are faced with in society. It is based on a shallow and narrow perception of women as an oppressed sector of society, who are confronted with sexism and discrimination.

Therefore, while we recognize that a moral approach has educated a sector of our movement on the human and social position of women i.e. discrimination at the workplace, lack of social services, and the social and psychological effects of male chauvinism, etc.; we must also recognize that this approach has also diverted our movement from grasping the essence and material basis of women's oppression.

As a movement we must agree that we are all revolutionary feminists, first and foremost. This will lay the concrete basis and will be key to the defeat of bourgeois feminism. We must then approach the question of women's oppression from its material basis. The day to day experiences lends clarity to the oppressive and exploitative conditions women are in today. However, the exposure of the hidden basis for this oppression is our task.

We must recognize that parading half naked girls feeds into this chauvinistic and backward agenda. We must place the question of women's oppression high on the agenda of priorities at all times. Related to this is that the theoretical work around women must be taken up and sharpened.

Finally, we must view the struggle against sexism as part of the struggle to develop revolutionary morality. We need to stress the importance of developing principled political and personal relationships between all members, minority and white, women and men.

Cde Chris Maxon is a member of the ANC - Newlands East Branch (Ward 11), KwaZulu-Natal.

Garissa University Under Attack in Kenya

THURSDAY, APRIL 2, 2015
Kenya Daily Nation

In Summary

There is heavy police presence around the institution and several ambulances are on standby.
The gunmen are said to have attacked the institution around 5.30am Thursday.

By ABDIMALIK HAJIR

Two guards were killed and several people injured after gunmen attacked Garissa University College on Thursday morning.

Kenya Red Cross officials say two policemen and a student were injured by the attackers and have been rushed to hospital.

The gunmen are said to have attacked the institution around 5.30am Thursday.

Unconfirmed reports state that students may have been taken hostage.

Nation.co.ke reporter Abdimalik Hajir said he saw the bodies of the guards near the university's main gate.

Inspector General of Police Joseph Boinnet said there was a shootout between attackers and police officers who were guarding the students’ hostels.

"The attackers shot indiscriminately while inside the university compound.

“However, the attackers retreated and gained entry into the hostels….a joint force composed of NPS officers and other security agencies arrived and are engaged in an elaborative process of flushing out the gunmen from the hostels,” he said in a statement posted on his Twitter account.

KDF and police have entered the university’s compound.

Masked Gunmen Attack University in Eastern Kenya

A police official says attackers have stormed a university in Garissa, exchanging gunfire with security services for several hours

Thursday 2 April 2015
Guardian

Masked gunmen stormed a university campus in eastern Kenya on Thursday, setting off explosions and exchanging gunfire with security forces for several hours.

It is believed the attackers could have taken hostages after killing two guards, police and media reports said.

Police who encircled the campus at the university in Garissa were joined by Kenyan soldiers as the standoff continued over several hours, Kenya’s Daily Nation newspaper and Capital FM radio station reported.

A policewoman at the scene told Reuters two security guards at the campus had been killed and the gunmen were likely to have taken hostages because many students remain trapped inside the campus.

“Two guards who were manning the gate at the university have been killed,” she said. “We can hear gunshots from inside the compound but at this point we can’t tell who is shooting at who or what.”

The BBC’s Bashkas Jugsoda’ay was on the scene and said that the gunmen stormed the campus at 4am local time. Fighting had continued since then.

Some students had managed to escape from the university, which he estimated has 500 students.

Kenya’s northern and eastern regions, which border Somalia, have been most affected by attacks blamed on al-Qaida-linked al-Shabaab Islamists from Somalia. They have vowed retribution against Kenya for sending its troops to Somalia.

Mumia Abu-Jamal Visitation Update

MUMIA ABU-JAMAL

Dear Mauri,

Thank you all for the persistent calls today to Mahanoy and Schuylkill.

We have new information:

Mumia's youngest brother Bill Cook and his oldest son Jamal Hart have been able to visit him today for 30 minutes each.

As of today, a new prison rule is going to prevent his wife Wadiya and his brother Keith from visiting again for an entire week. The new rule states that only one visit per week per immediate family member will be allowed.

This also means that there will be many times when we will not have any contact with Mumia during this critical week.

Please do continue calling the prison and medical center to demand that Wadiya and Keith can visit Mumia again this week!

Thank you for being determined with us:

Call now to demand that Mumia's wife Wadiya
and brother Keith can visit Mumia again this week:

SCI Mahanoy- Superindendent John Kerestes
570-773-2158 x8102

Schuylkill Medical Center
570-621-5000
_____
 
SOME ADDITIONAL BACKGROUND INFO

Dateline: Intensive Care Unit Schuylkill Medical Center in Pottsville, PA

Mumia Abu-Jamal in Medical Crisis

Here is an excerpt from the hospital press conference yesterday:

Mumia's wife and brother were allowed to see him separately for 30 minutes each late this morning. The mobilization worked. But our job is not yet done. On the morning of March 30, 2015 Mumia fainted in the prison and was taken to the ICU of a nearby clinic. His blood sugar count was dangerously high at 779. He was in a diabetic shock. For perspective: diabetic coma is 800.

He is recovering slowly and still in ICU. His blood sugar is currently at 333. That Mumia had diabetes was a complete shock to all of us. For the last 3 months, he has been under medical care in the prison and diagnosed with eczema. And since he had three "comprehensive" blood tests since February, diabetes should have been diagnosed and treated accordingly. But it never was. Instead he has been subjected to hell by the prison medical system.

In January Mumia was shaken out of a deep sleep by guards during count. For the infraction of not being awake during count he was punished for 2 weeks, without calls or yard. Deep trance-like sleep and lethargy were the first signs of the problem. In addition to the physical depletion produced by untreated diabetes, he was/is also dealing with a severe outbreak of eczema. He likened his skin to that of an elephant's. It was raw, blistered and bloody all over. He was so sick that he was not taking visitors. The "meds" he was given for his skin produced an extreme adverse reaction. His skin swelled and ruptured and he was put in the prison infirmary for 2 weeks.

There's more, but the above point to negligence of the worse kind if not an outright attempt on Mumia's life. We are demanding review of his case by outside doctors and...since the world is watching, we are calling for Mumia's immediate release. It's time to bring our brother home. Johanna Fernandez

These two very very brief visits by his immediate family were important.  But the OUTRAGEOUS actions by the PA DOC continue.  They are controlling the hospitals actions and LIMITING all information about his condition.  Preventing the Mumia Abu-Jamal and his family from getting access to the critical information they need for his care.

His family and lawyers still have very very little information about his treatment and his conditions. They are trying to limit additional visits.

It was inhumane that his family continues to be limited in accessing and monitoring his condition and his health.  Literally for 20 hours his family was in the Intensive Care ICU and were told nothing.

Now that they have had a visit.  They are attempting to speak with the doctors and get medical records.

Literally after 20 hours of torture Mumia remains in intensive care. .  

Mumia's family is keeping vigil in the ICU critical care visiting room. Schuylkill Medical Center in Pottsville, PA.    

His supporters and lawyers were at trial challenging the Revictimization Review Act aka the "Mumia Silencing Act"  in Harrisburg, PA when they received word that he had been taken to the hospital.

The Abolitionist Law Center's Bret Grote is in Pottsville and taking all necessary steps  to gain access to his client for the family and access to his medical records so that independent doctors can intervene.  

Mumia Abu-Jamal's brother Keith Cook stated "The rules that the prisons have are very arcane. They don't give out any information about prisoners to their families or anyone else. It's like you have your hands tied because you don't know how the prisoner is and you have no way of talking to him. I remember a month ago--- Phil Africa exercising in the prison, next thing they know they moved him to a hospital and didn't tell his family where he was, and three days later he was dead.

"It's scary.  This situation needs to change. The prison authorities need to be more humane to the families of prisoners."

Pam Africa stated "Prison Officials are lying.  Mumia is going through torture at the hands of Department of Corrections through medical neglect.   It is clear to people that they want to kill Mumia.  They gave him the wrong medication which made his condition worse. Inmates on the inside who questioned what was happening have been subjected to direct retaliation by the superintendent.   They have been moving concerned inmates out of Mumia's unit in an effort to both bury and keep this critical information from the public."

Johanna Fernandez of the New York Campaign to Bring Mumia Home noted "Mumia has been complaining about being ill since January. If he had gotten the proper care he needed originally, he would not be in this situation. This crisis illustrates the problem of health care in American prisons as a basic human rights violation. I am personally concerned because Phil Africa of the MOVE organization was rushed to the hospital not long ago in good health and a few days later he was dead. We need to fight to defend Mumia's life, and that of all prisoners."

Bret Grote   bretgrote@abolitionistlawcenter.org    412-654-9070
Johanna Fernandez 917-930-0804 jfernandez1202@gmail.com
Pam Africa 267-760-7344
Keith Cook kdc52@aol.com 919-302-4177
Noelle Hanrahan info@prisonradio.org 415-706-5222

The Abolitionist Law Center is a public interest law firm inspired by the struggle of political and politicized prisoners, and organized for the purpose of abolishing class and race based mass incarceration in the United States.

A Tribute To An  African Brother

By Heather Gray (1996)

Integrity...
grounded in the soil of human dignity.

Hope...
beyond the confines of the individual.

Of the organized masses...
with a compassionate grasp of social, political and
economic dynamics.

Of the ancient and profound collective...
with a voice for universal justice.

Our brother...our messenger...our teacher ...
wisdom amidst the depths of American barbarism.

You are MUMIA ABU-JAMAL

Detroit, Wayne County Facing Massive Tax Foreclosure Crisis Extends Deadline to May 12

Abayomi Azikiwe with homeowner outside the Wayne County
Treasurer on March 31, 2015. The treasurer declared a six week
moratorium on  the same day extending the deadline to May 12.
(Photo: Valerie Jean)

Despite claims of a “revitalized” city hundreds of thousands remain imperiled

By Abayomi Azikiwe
Editor, Pan-African News Wire

To watch a local news report on the March 31 demonstration just click on the website below:
http://www.myfoxdetroit.com/story/28675429/foreclosure-deadline-extended-for-wayne-county-homeowners?fb_action_ids=10206179205424236&fb_action_types=og.shares

A broad based coalition of Detroit organizations is fighting for a moratorium on property tax foreclosures where 62,000 homes, apartment buildings, small businesses and lots are slated for seizure by Wayne County. Another 15,000 are also scheduled for the broader county.

In addition, tens of thousands more will revert back to foreclosure since they were not able to keep up with payment plans established last year. The Wayne County Treasurer’s office has encouraged people to come forward and sign agreements to make payments in installments.

However, with declining properties being over assessed by the city government and at least 40 percent of Detroit residents living in poverty, it is highly unlikely that these agreements will be honored.

One woman living with disabilities told this writer on conditions of anonymity that she receives $769 per month in benefits. Nonetheless, in a desperate attempt to stave off homelessness, she signed an agreement with the Treasurer’s office to pay $500 a month until her delinquent property taxes are paid off.

A State of Emergency Should Be Declared

On Thurs. March 19, members of the Moratorium NOW! Coalition, Detroit Eviction Defense and others took the issue to the Wayne County Commissioners meeting demanding an immediate halt to the foreclosures. Over a dozen people testified before the elected legislative body placing a human face on the crisis.

Many households have had delinquent water bills placed on their property taxes. Oftentimes the water bills are in excess of the tax payments that are in arrears.

The following week on Tues. March 24 a rally and press conference was held outside the Coleman A. Young Municipal Center (CAYMAC) prior to an intervention at the City Council meeting where dozens testified about the crisis also calling for a moratorium. During the public comment section of the meeting people came forward to discuss their plight under these repressive tax laws.

Speaking before the City Council were representatives of the Russell Woods Neighborhood Association, Moratorium NOW! Coalition, Detroit Eviction Defense, Michigan Welfare Rights Organization, Detroit People’s Platform, We the People, as well as unaffiliated residents of Detroit seeking some guidance and relief from their elected representatives. Although several City Council members express concern and discussed a resolution they were preparing for the following Mon. March 30, the ultimate decisions lie with the County treasurer and Gov. Rick Snyder.

Moratorium NOW! Coalition members emphasized numerous points spelled out in a fact sheet distributed to all members of the City Council that “”The fund are sitting in Lansing to stop these foreclosures. According to the Jan. 2015 Helping Michigan’s Hardest Hit Homeowner report, $251 million of the $498 million in federal Helping Hardest Hit Homeowner funds that were provided to the state in 2010 remain unspent.”

This same statement goes on to stress that “These funds could be used to pay off delinquent property tax bills for occupied homes and prevent thousands of foreclosures which will further destroy our neighborhoods. Release of these funds will not only stop the destruction of our communities, but go a long way to resolving the financial crisis in Wayne County and Detroit which in large part is a result of declining revenues as a result of tax foreclosures.”

After the Council meeting people marched from City Hall to the Wayne County Treasurer's Office. The deputy treasurer came out to respond to the demonstration saying they are doing more than anyone else to stop the foreclosures.

Later on March 31, the City Council did pass a resolution calling for a moratorium.

Community Outreach Continues

A demonstration organized by the clergy in honor of the 50th anniversary of the Selma to Montgomery March was leafleted on March 28 calling for people to take political action.

Another demonstration took place at the Wayne County treasurer's office on Tues. March 31, the deadline for the payments on taxes three years behind to be made. The demonstration attracted much public attention and media coverage demanding action by the treasurer.

Due to public pressure, the treasurer declared a six week moratorium on March 31 extending the deadline for payments or arrangements to May 12. Organizers say they will push for a further extension to ensure that no one loses their home.

After May 12, if delinquent taxes for 2012 are not paid or arrangements made, residents will lose title to their homes. Within six months, the homes could be sold in an auction where unscrupulous so-called “developers” are given priority over the residents who may seek to repurchase the properties lost to foreclosure.

The scene at the Wayne County Treasurer’s office was chaotic on March 27 as members of Detroit Eviction Defense, the Detroit Active Retirees and Employees Association (DAREA) and Moratorium NOW! Coalition distributed thousands of leaflets to people crowding into the building in a desperate attempt to avoid foreclosure. The following Sun. March 29, members of Moratorium NOW! Coalition and DAREA walked door-to-door leafleting for the March 31 demonstration in the Boston Edison Historic District, one of the hardest hit residential sections of the city where many of the homes are vacant due to mortgage and tax foreclosures.

Plans undertaken by the quasi-governmental agency, the Detroit Land Bank Authority and the Detroit Blight Removal Task Force, headed by billionaire banker and corporate mogul Dan Gilbert, has failed miserably in their program aimed at auctioning or demolishing homes throughout the city. Tens of millions of dollars have already been wasted by the bankers’ initiatives on blight removal, where federal funds which should have been utilized to keep people in their homes are being misappropriated to tear down structures creating more flight and abandonment across key neighborhoods.

Moreover, Wayne County is being threatened with emergency management and bankruptcy later this year, similar to what Detroit went through in 2013-14. Consequently, the massive foreclosures will not prevent a state takeover of the operations of Wayne County.

Under emergency management and bankruptcy in Detroit, billions in healthcare benefits, pensions and public assets were seized by the State of Michigan and turned over to private interests. March 1 represented the first month of pension payment cuts for 32,000 City of Detroit retirees and their families, whose healthcare benefits were severed one year ago, months prior to the approval by the federal court of a post-bankruptcy “plan of adjustment.”

The so-called “plan of adjustment” is already unraveling with retirees facing foreclosures resulting in pension cuts, rising healthcare costs and the failure of corporate-imposed white mayor, Mike Duggan, the first in forty years, to attract the necessary investment that could create jobs and economic opportunities for the African American majority, some 82 percent of the overall population.

Duggan on March 24, the day where hundreds of people rallied and attended the City Council meeting demanding a moratorium on tax foreclosures, attempted a diversionary tactic by announcing a program to provide supposedly “interest-free” loans to city residents up to $25,000 to carry out home repairs. Such a project will not be effective since approximately 37,000 of the 62,000 properties slated for foreclosure are owner-occupied.

Nonetheless, by March 29, Duggan was already crying broke saying that the blight removal funds were drying up and that more money was needed from Washington to tear down vacant homes in Detroit.

In a front page article published in the Sunday Free Press it says “with 40,000 structures meeting the Detroit Blight Removal Task Force's definition of blight — structurally unsound, fire-damaged or open to the elements — and another 38,000 unoccupied, abandoned and likely to become blighted in the future, the city still has a very long way to go. Even if Duggan finds the $400 million he's looking for, at an estimate of $12,000 per demolition, he could still pull down only 33,000 properties, leaving tens of thousands remaining.”

Obviously, the banks, corporations and their surrogates in government have no real plans to revitalize Detroit. Only a coalition of neighborhood and mass organizations rooted in the working class can create the conditions for the overturning of the bank-led Snyder-Duggan program of fiscal austerity, mass impoverishment and forced removals.

Saudi Arabia, GCC Launches Bombing Campaign in Yemen

Egypt calls for regional force to conduct ground invasion

By Abayomi Azikiwe
Editor, Pan-African News Wire

On March 26 the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), under the direction of Saudi Arabia, announced that it began to bomb Ansurallah (Houthi) positions in Yemen.

This Shiite-led movement has been in conflict with the western-backed Yemeni government for over a decade.

The capital Saana was lost to the Ansurallah fighters in September 2014. Recently Taiz was taken by the Houthis and the southern port city of Aden is under siege.

Saudi Arabia has framed the current conflict as a battle against Iranian influence in Yemen. A series of aerial bombardments have killed and injured dozens of Yemeni civilians.

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) announced on March 30 that 45 people were killed and 65 others wounded in air attacks on the northwest of the country. Those who suffered in the bombings were taking refuge from the ongoing conflicts which have intensified in the last six years. (AFP)

Another humanitarian organization, Doctors Without Borders, also known as Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), reported that the airstrike killed at least 15 people. MSF’s manager of programs in the Middle East, Pablo Marco, indicated that the corpses of the civilians and those injured in the airstrike were taken to Haradh Hospital near the al-Mazrak camp in the province of Hajja.

“It was an airstrike,” Marco declared, noting that he was anticipating that “more dead are at al-Mazrak camp.” The al-Mazrak camp has been providing shelter to the people dislocated by the struggle pitting the Houthi fighters against the central government since 2009.

Press TV stated on March 30 that the bombing of al-Mazrak camp represented an escalation of the Saudi operation. The monarchy has intervened in Yemen before seeking to bolster the previous government of former President Saleh who was forced to resign after a nationwide uprising in 2011.

Recent reports suggests that Yemeni military forces loyal to former leader Ali Abdullah Saleh have opposed the Saudi airstrikes and are working with the Ansurallah fighters. This alliance has given the Houthi forces a decisive advantage in their offensive in the south of the country. (New York Times, March 25)

According to Press TV “The airstrikes began late Sunday (March 29) and continued unabated for almost nine hours, with Saudi bombers targeting positions of the Houthi fighters and the soldiers from the Republican Guard around the presidential palace. A base operated by the Republican Guard in southern Sanaa was also targeted by the strikes.”

This same articles goes on to note that “Riyadh says it has launched the airstrikes, the first round of which was carried out on March 26, to defend the ‘legitimate government’ of Yemen’s fugitive president, Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, who fled to the Saudi capital on the same day. Riyadh has vowed to press ahead with the bombing until Hadi is reinstated.”

Ansarullah (Houthis) are a Zaidi Shia group operating in Yemen. The movement takes its name from Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi, who launched an uprising in 2004 and was said to have been killed by Yemeni army forces that September. Led by Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, the movement made substantial gains beginning in Sept. 2014 continuing through the current period.

 At present Ansurallah controls of the Yemeni capital Sanaa including the parliament. Saudi Arabia took action when the movement was on the verge of a major offensive in the southern port city of Aden.

United States Foreign Policy Destabilizes Yemen

This bombing operation by the GCC represents the collapse of US foreign policy in Yemen. The Pentagon withdrew 100 special forces and diplomatic personnel in recent weeks.

U.S. State Department spokesman Jeff Rathke was quoted by the British Broadcasting Corporation as saying that "Due to the deteriorating security situation in Yemen, the U.S. government has temporarily relocated its remaining personnel out of Yemen." (BBC, March 25)

He went on to stress that the Obama administration would continue to support Yemen's "political transition" and monitor “terrorist threats” emerging from the Middle Eastern state, the most underdeveloped in the region. Nonetheless Rathke added that "There is no military solution to Yemen's current crisis."

The Pentagon’s withdrawal from the al-Anad air base took place after an alleged offensive by al-Qaeda fighters in the nearby city of al-Houta. Additional reports said that al-Qaeda was soon forced to retreat from the city as a result of the defensive operations carried out by Yemen's military forces.

Pentagon military forces stationed at the base, including special forces, were conducting training operations for Yemeni soldiers to allegedly support their fight against al-Qaeda. The U.S. has engaged in drone attacks, targeted assassinations and other counter-insurgency efforts for several years.

The struggle in Yemen involving the Ansurallah movement is being framed by the western media as being representative of a proxy war between Saudi forces seeking to curb Iranian and other Shiite influence in the region. Washington is closely allied with the Saudi monarchy and supplies weapons, military and intelligence support to the ruling family.

In addition to the struggle between the Ansurallah fighters against the Hadi government, a secessionist movement is also rising in the South where a socialist-oriented republic existed between 1967 and the late 1980s. Large demonstrations have been held in recent months where the flag of the People’s Democratic Republic of Yemen has been flown.

Egypt Calls for Ground Intervention at Arab League Summit

Egyptian military leader turned civilian president, Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi, presented a proposal to the Arab League Summit in Sharm el-Sheikh on March 28 to establish a regional military force that would intervene in states facing internal conflicts.

It is quite obvious that Saudi airstrikes will not be enough to halt the advances of the Houthi fighters or to stabilize the security situation in the country based on U.S. interests. Al-Manar Television of Lebanon said in a report that thousands of Islamic Sunni rebels are being deployed by Saudi Arabia to fight against the Ansarullah movement.

The report said that “Five Persian Gulf States -- Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain, Qatar and Kuwait -- backed by the U.S. have declared war on Yemen in a joint statement issued earlier Thursday (March 26). U.S. President Barack Obama authorized the provision of logistical and intelligence support to the military operations, National Security Council Spokesperson Bernadette Meehan said late Wednesday night. She added that while U.S. forces were not taking direct military action in Yemen, Washington was establishing a Joint Planning Cell with Saudi Arabia to coordinate U.S. military and intelligence support.” (March 29)

At the same time there is the ongoing war of regime-change in Syria where Islamic State fighters and other opposition groups are continuing to seek the overthrow of President Bashar al-Assad. In Iraq, the Pentagon has carried out aerial bombardments alongside those taking place in neighboring Syria, as well as the deployment of over 3,100 U.S. troops under the guise of providing training to Iraq forces.

“The challenges facing Arab national security are immense,” Egyptian President Abdel Fatah al-Sissi said during the final session of the Arab League summit. The Egyptian leader said such a regional force was essential to “defend our [Arab] nation­. . . and gives it an active role in the future of human civilization.” (Washington Post, March 30)

Objectively such a regional military force would be compelled to carry out the foreign policy aims of Washington and Wall Street since the bulk of arms and intelligence sharing is provided by the U.S. in both Egypt and the GCC states. With the U.S. military being tied up through airstrikes and ground operations in Iraq and Syria, the Obama administration is attempting to utilize pro-western regimes in the region to implement both aerial campaigns and ground invasions designed to support imperialist interests. 

Abayomi Azikiwe, PANW Editor, Featured in Press TV Interview: 'Saudis Miscalculated in Yemen Invasion: Analyst'

Sun Mar 29, 2015 9:21AM

To watch this interview with Abayomi Azikiwe over Press TV just click on the website below:
http://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2015/03/29/403817/Riyadh-underestimates-Houthis-might

Press TV has conducted an interview with Abayomi Azikiwe, an editor at Pan-African News Wire from Detroit, to discuss various aspects of the ongoing Saudi military intervention in Yemen.

The analyst maintains that there was clearly a miscalculation on the part of the Saudi monarchy and its backers in Washington, saying they have underestimated the power of Ansarullah movement, which enjoys widespread public support inside Yemen.

President Barack Obama administration’s response to the ongoing crisis in Yemen clearly demonstrates that the American foreign policy on the Middle East has failed, Azikiwe says.

He strongly criticizes the Saudi-led aerial campaign against Yemen, saying the Arab League serves the Washington’s “imperial interests” in the region.

Abayomi Azikiwe, PANW Editor, Delivers Statement to Press TV: 'Very Little Freedom of Speech in US: Journalist'

Tue Mar 31, 2015 6:10PM

To listen to this statement delivered to Press TV by Abayomi Azikiwe, editor of the Pan-African News Wire, just click on the website below:
http://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2015/03/31/404138/Very-little-freedom-of-speech-in-US

Abayomi Azikiwe says freedom of speech in the United States is restricted by the mass media amid efforts by the US government to “suppress” protests against police brutality.

Freedom of speech in the United States is restricted by mass media amid efforts by US government to “suppress” protests against police brutality, a journalist in Detroit says.

“America prides itself with the notion of freedom of speech, yet there is very little freedom of speech as far as the corporate media is concerned,” said Abayomi Azikiwe, editor of the Pan-African News Wire.

“The media is controlled by a small number of corporations, therefore they are able to suppress the news that they don’t think the ruling class is interested in hearing or watching,” Azikiwe told Press TV on Tuesday.

He made the comments after reports that four journalists arrested while covering racial unrest in Ferguson, Missouri, last year filed a lawsuit Monday claiming they were mistreated and falsely arrested by police trying to prevent them from covering the protests.

The lawsuit was filed by US citizen Ryan Devereaux of The Intercept and three German nationals living in the United States – Ansgar Graw of Die Welt, Frank Herrmann of the Rheinische Post group and freelance reporter Lukas Hermsmeier.

The lawsuit claims the actions against the journalists were part of a "concerted effort to suppress constitutionally protected newsgathering."

Protests erupted in Ferguson for several weeks in August after the shooting death of unarmed black teenager Michael Brown by white police officer Darren Wilson. Another wave of demonstrations broke out in November after a grand jury decided not to indict Wilson for the killing.

Excessive force by police against protesters “was carried out across the United States as the federal government attempted to suppress these anti-racist demonstrations,” Azikiwe said.

Pan-African Journal: Special Worldwide Radio Broadcast for Sun. March 29, 2015--Hosted by Abayomi Azikiwe

To access this program just click on the website below:
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/panafricanjournal/2015/03/29/pan-african-journal-special-worldwide-radio-broadcast

Listen to this special broadcast of the Pan-African Journal hosted by Abayomi Azikiwe, editor of the Pan-African News Wire.

This program presents our regular PANW reports on developments surrounding the Nigerian national elections held over the weekend.

In the second hour we conclude our commemoration of Women's History Month featuring excerpts from the speeches and interviews with Fannie Lou Hamer of SNCC and the MFDP.

The final hour presents more history of the Civil Rights Movement with an extended presentation by SNCC and labor activist Betty Gorman Robinson. 

Pan-African Journal: Worldwide Radio Broadcast Hosted by Abayomi Azikiwe--Sat. March 28, 2015

To have access to this broadcast just click on the website below:
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/panafricanjournal/2015/03/28/pan-african-journal-worldwide-radio-broadcast

Listen to this Sat. March 28, 2015 edition of the Pan-African Journal hosted by Abayomi Azikiwe, editor of the Pan-African News Wire.

We bring you our regular PANW reports on developments involving the economic crisis in the United States and the ongoing struggle against police brutality.

In the second hour we present an interview with Abayomi Azikiwe over Radio 786 in Capetown, Republic of South Africa conducted on March 26 discussing the one year anniversary of the Ebola Virus Disease pandemic in West Africa.

The final hour continues the commemoration of International Women's Day with an archived radio interview with Ramona Africa on the history of MOVE and Pam Africa of MOVE speaking at a public meeting in Philadelphia.

Wayne County Extends Foreclosure Deadline to May 12

Errol Jennings of Russell Woods speaking at Wayne County
Treasurer's Office on March 31, 2015. (Photo: Valerie Jean)

Christine MacDonald, Christine Ferretti and Joel Kurth
The Detroit News 12:49 p.m. EDT March 31, 2015

Detroit — Wayne County Treasurer Raymond Wojtowicz announced Tuesday afternoon he’s extending the deadline to May 12 for homeowners to pay their delinquent taxes and avoid foreclosure.

The move came the same day the Detroit City Council approved a resolution asking Wojtowicz for a moratorium to give lawmakers time to help homeowners.

Hundreds of property owners packed the treasurer’s offices Tuesday, which officials had said was the deadline to pay and avoid losing their homes. Those living in homes they own now have until May 12 to pay. Foreclosed properties are auctioned in the fall.

“We continue to do all we can to help taxpayers avoid foreclosure,” Chief Deputy Treasurer David Szymanski wrote in an email. “This is one step to make sure people can access the new programs granted by the legislature to reduce interest and save their homes.”

Recent legislation signed by Gov. Rick Snyder allows the treasurer to lower interest on debt from 18 percent to 6 percent for many homeowners. In many instances, homeowners can have taxes capped at a quarter of the market value of the home.

Wojtowicz is pursuing a record number of foreclosures this year, but his staff has said halting the process would only allow people to get further behind.

In June, the office started the foreclosure process on nearly 75,000 properties, the vast majority in Detroit. But as of mid-March, half of those property owners had paid or were in payment plans or other programs.

Of the remaining 38,000 facing foreclosure, about 16,000 are estimated to be occupied, Szymanski said. He expected that number to dwindle further after Tuesday.

Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan also announced Tuesday afternoon a new effort to give homeowners some relief on 2015 taxes.

The city will waive interest and penalties on 2015 taxes for homeowners in a county payment plan that reduced their interest rate, as long as they pay 2015 taxes by February 2016.

Nonprofits, the treasurer and other groups held numerous workshops over the past few months to get homeowners into payment plans to avoid foreclosure.

Around noon Tuesday outside the treasurer’s Greektown offices, a couple of dozen protesters held signs and chanted. Activists also picketed Wojtowicz’s home Monday night.

Surquetta Morgan, 38, showed up Tuesday in hopes of preventing her foreclosure. She said her husband recently died and she is worried about losing the home they shared for 17 years over her estimated $4,000 tax debt. She said if she’s homeless, she’s scared protective services will come for her two small children.

“I am worried my house is going to get taken. My kids are going to get taken,” Morgan said. “I am just praying.”

Housing advocates argued there wasn’t enough time to help everyone and pressed for a temporary halt on the foreclosures.

“This is a state of emergency,” Abayomi Azikiwe, of the Moratorium Now coalition of groups working to stop foreclosures, told the Wayne County Commission in March. “Ten thousand people could be removed from their homes if something isn’t done.”

Szymanski called that a “tremendous exaggeration.” The county doesn’t evict homeowners, he said, adding he’s “cautiously optimistic” most owner-occupants will be able to remain in their homes.

Szymanski said most foreclosed properties are abandoned and there is no good argument to allow people who don’t pay taxes to avoid foreclosure.

“The property receives government services — streetlights, police and fire protection, local schools and trash,” he said. “If you don’t pay your taxes, your neighbor is subsidizing you.”

Advocates argue that foreclosure leads to blight and will cost poor, old people their homes.

“You are never going to stop the blight until you stop the foreclosures,” said Dawn DeRose of Detroit Eviction Defense. “What kind of government are we having here in Detroit if you turn 80-year-olds out of their home?’

cmacdonald@detroitnews.com

Cosatu Suspends Vavi With Immediate Effect

April 1, 2015

CAPE TOWN. — The Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) has confirmed the suspension of general secretary Zwelinzima Vavi and accused him of several violations.

Deputy General Secretary Bheki Ntshalintshali told a Press conference that Vavi was a divisive figure in the federation and that he shifted Cosatu resources to aid Numsa.

According to Ntshalintshali Vavi violated organisational conduct and exposed Cosatu’s financial state.

The conduct of the General Secretary constitutes “gross misconduct” . . . and “Comrade Zwelinzima Vavi is dismissed as the General Secretary of Cosatu with immediate effect”, the union federation said at the conference.

“He must return all the property of the federation. Nobody in the federation will take instructions from Vavi,” he said.

Vavi has also been ordered to stop speaking to the media on behalf of Cosatu.

Yesterday, Vavi vowed to continue his fight. “I am a fighter. I do not just walk away when I think something is wrong,” he told Fin24 in response to reports that he intended accepting his dismissal as general secretary of Cosatu and would leave to establish a rival federation.

According to leaked reports from the CEC meeting, 31 of the CEC delegates voted for his expulsion, with one against. However, seven Cosatu affiliates boycotted the meeting which also agreed to accept the membership of a small, rival metalworkers’ union, Limusa, headed by former National Union of Metalworkers (Numsa) president Cedric Gina.

By accepting membership of Limusa, the CEC majority underlined their claim that the expulsion of Numsa is final. However, like the dismissal of Vavi, it is not — at least not in terms of the federation’s democratic constitution. — Fin24.

From a Medieval Text, A Weapon Against a Modern Superbug Emerges

By MELISSA HEALY
Scientific Research Biology Texas Tech University
Los Angeles Times

At the University of Nottingham in Britain, researchers have rediscovered an ancient medicinal elixir that appears to fight a very modern scourge: a deadly drug-resistant bacterial infection rampant in hospitals.

The discovery melds medieval potion-making with modern pharmacology. In its crosshairs: Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, better known as MRSA.

Let's imagine that during a nighttime escape through Sherwood Forest, an early archetype for the legendary figure Robin Hood scratched his cornea on a branch and developed an eye infection. In nearby Nottingham, he might well have consulted an herbalist, who would fetch a brass vessel, brew a remedy of bile from a cow's stomach and Allium - a plant from the garlic family - and create an unguent to treat the patient's inflamed eye.

Until recently, the recipe for that medieval remedy lay unnoticed in the brittle pages of a 1,000-year-old text - titled "Bald's Leechbook" - shelved in the library of the University of Nottingham's Institute for Medieval Research.

Leafing through that folio, Viking studies professor Christina Lee wondered what its ancient recipes revealed about the state of medieval medical knowledge, and whether and how, a millennium before the germ theory of disease was understood, healers and herbalists had guessed right in choosing their treatments.

Lee translated the recipe for the eye salve from the original Old English recipe in "Bald's Leechbook," and enlisted chemists at her university's Center for Biomolecular Sciences to recreate the unguent and test its effect.

Lee's request came at a crucial time. With a paucity of new antimicrobial medications in the development pipeline, Nottingham microbiologist Freya Harrison was looking for inspiration. Lee's idea might allow her team to reach deep into the past in search of undiscovered or underappreciated antimicrobial agents.

Scientists in Harrison's lab followed the recipe precisely, making four separate batches with fresh ingredients each time. They also devised a control treatment using the same quantity of distilled water and brass sheet to mimic the brewing container, but leaving the vegetable compounds out.

In lab conditions that set off riotous growth of the Staphylococcus aureus bacteria, the 1,000-year-old recipe had a powerful killing effect: roughly 1 in 1,000 bacterial cells growing in plugs of collagen survived when doused with the ancient salve.

Harrison says she was "absolutely blown away" with the antique recipe's effects. She had assumed it might show "a small amount of antibiotic activity." Researchers have found some of its elements - copper and bile salts in particular - to have some effect on bacteria in the lab. And plants in the garlic family are known to make chemicals that interfere with bacteria’s ability to damage infected tissues.

But compared with the control substance, there was something powerful about the combination of these elements in this ancient formulation, Harrison said. The eye salve had the power even to breach the sticky coating and the dense clustering of mature colonies of bacteria, which are notorious resistant to antibacterial treatments.

When Harrison's lab diluted the salve to see whether it would continue to work, they perceived what they believe is the medication's mechanism of action: Even when the diluted salve failed to kill S. aureus, it interfered with communication among cells in the bacterial colony - a key finding because those signals switch on genes that allow bacteria to damage infected tissues. Blocking this signaling is seen as a promising way to treat infection.

"We know that MRSA-infected wounds are exceptionally difficult to treat in people and in mouse models," said Kendra Rumbaugh, who performed the testing of Bald’s remedy on MRSA-infected skin wounds in mice. "We have not tested a single antibiotic or experimental therapeutic that is completely effective," added Rumbaugh, a professor of surgery at Texas Tech University's School of Medicine. But she said the ancient remedy was at least as effective - "if not better than the conventional antibiotics we used.”

The collaboration between Old English remedies and microbiology has given rise to a program called AncientBiotics at Nottingham, where researchers will seek funding to extend research combining the ancient arts and modern sciences.

Follow me on Twitter @LATMelissaHealy and "like" Los Angeles Times Science & Health on Facebook.

Troops Repel Boko Haram Raid on Niger: Chad Military

By EDITOR on March 31, 2015
Nigerian Guardian

Troops from Niger and Chad killed 47 Boko Haram fighters when they repelled an attack by the Islamist insurgents in southeastern Niger, Chad’s army said on Tuesday.

The fighting took place in Bosso, a Niger village near the border with Nigeria.

The government forces did not suffer any fatalities, Chad’s army said in a statement.

Casualty figures are often hard to independently verify. However, a humanitarian source confirmed the losses saying 40 to 47 Boko Haram militants had been killed in Bosso and its surroundings.

The rebels were pushed back to Nigeria, and at least four Boko Haram vehicles — one of them armoured — were also destroyed, a Chad military source said.

A Niger member of parliament said they had fled to Malam Fatori, a Nigerian border town near Bosso that Chad and Niger say they want to take back from Boko Haram.

The Nigerian army, however, says that Malam Fatori is under its control.

The private radio station Anfani, based in the city of Diffa in southeastern Niger also close to the border with Nigeria, reported “heavy aerial bombing” on Monday, mainly around Bosso and Malam Fatori.

Another Chad and Niger army operation on Sunday in Talagam — a small town situated between Damasak, a town that was recaptured from the Islamic insurgents, and Malam Fatori — led to the deaths of 54 Boko Haram fighters, Chad’s military said.

Two soldiers from the coalition were also killed and 15 were injured, the military added.

A humanitarian organisation source reported the deaths of three Chadian soldiers after the fighting on Sunday.

Thousands of soldiers from Niger and Chad have been stationed for nearly three months in southeastern Niger. They launched an offensive in early March across the border into northeastern Nigeria, parts of which are a stronghold of the Islamic insurgents.

“The situation is totally under control” in Niger, said former foreign minister Mohamed Bazoum, who is close to the country’s president Mahamadou Issoufou.

“The risk of attacks taking place are very low due to the elimination of all potential players,” said Bazoum.

The jihadists made sweeping territorial gains in Nigeria’s northeast in 2014 but appear to have been weakened by a sustained regional fight-back since February.

More than 13,000 people have been killed and some 1.5 million made homeless since Boko Haram launched its bloody insurgency in 2009.

Another Coup Among Rebels in Neo-Colonial Libya

Omar al-Hassi was appointed head of Libya's alternative government in August

The leader of one of Libya's rival regimes - backed by Islamists and based in Tripoli - has been sacked by its parliament, officials say.

Omar al-Hassi was appointed in August to lead an alternative government after Islamist militia seized the capital.

MPs voted to oust him on Tuesday following allegations he misled parliament about government finances.

Libya has been in turmoil since the Nato-backed removal of former leader Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.

The country has had two governments and parliaments since Islamist militia seized Tripoli in August and established the General National Congress (GNC) that was led by Mr al-Hassi.

The seizure of Tripoli forced Libya's existing and internationally recognised junta to flee to the eastern city of Tobruk.

The rival so-called "parliaments" have been holding UN-sponsored talks in Morocco in an attempt to end a period of lawlessness which many fear could strengthen militants allied to Islamic State.

GNC spokesman Omar Humeidan told reporters Mr al-Hassi was removed after an investigation revealed he had exaggerated the government's revenues, amid complaints it could not afford to pay salaries.

"The head of the government was dismissed by the parliament in a vote on Tuesday that was backed by the rest of the ministers," a member of the parliament told AFP.

One of his Mr al-Hassi's aides, Khalifa Ghweil, has reportedly taken over as interim leader.