Table of contents for 2023-02-09 in Mercury

A warning has been issued to MPs who attempt to disrupt tonight’s State of the Nation Address (Sona) in which President Cyril Ramaphosa is expected to unpack plans to tackle the energy crisis. On Monday, EFF leader Julius Malema, speaking in the Free State, said the party would use its platform to disrupt Ramaphosa’s speech. The president will deliver the Sona on the back of the Phala Phala farm robbery scandal and ongoing investigations. Ramaphosa has asked the Constitutional Court to review and set aside the Section 89 panel report into the matter that found that he may have a case to answer. Despite the warning from the EFF, ANC chief whip Pemmy Majodina said that Ramaphosa would be able to deliver his address. Parliament’s presiding officers say they expect…

O flower of Scotland, When shall we see your like again … THE sacred turf of Twickers. That Six Nations/Calcutta Cup rugby match at Twickenham between Scotland and England was a see-saw classic, Scotland winning 29-23 in a game that saw the lead change again and again. Thrilling stuff! Near faultless three-quarters on both sides, great running and handling skills; the same true of the forward play, both sides pretty near faultless. And it’s surely a justification for South Africa’s provincial rugby getting involved in the Northern Hemisphere. It all rubs off eventually. And what a game Scotland’s Duhan van der Merwe had – two magnificent tries. The Van der Merwe clan must be doing highland flings of delight. For myself, it was a kind of déjà vu. The first…

Uppermost on everyone’s lips are the power outages gripping the country and, central to the crisis is the state-owned entity called Eskom. When the ANC came into power, it introduced legislation and policies that would fast-track the inclusion of black people in supply-chain processes. Eskom depends largely on coal and diesel, both commodities are monopolised by established white companies. Most coal mines and diesel suppliers are white-owned. The only way to introduce black people into the supply chain is to create middlemen or agencies that would supply coal and diesel to Eskom. This process has been mired in controversy as those selected are elite black business people with close links to ANC politicians. Eskom is now effectively held at ransom by these middlemen. Two years ago Andre de Ruyter, former…

Johnny-come-lately statements by some political parties about the criminal culpability of eThekwini Municipality in the Durban sewerage crisis reveals nothing new. Through a series of oversights and parliamentary questions, the DA has, for months, known that three criminal charges have been laid against the city. This has been coupled with a flurry of directives in terms of the National Environmental Management Act (Nema). Under the so-called leadership of the ANC, Durban has consistently allocated only half of the capital expenditure needed to maintain and repair sewerage infrastructure. It has always been the DA’s stance that the city manager must be held accountable for the failure of his administration, while voters must hold politicians accountable for poor budgetary processes. Consequence management remains the only tool in compelling officials to comply with…

South Africa, once looked at as a place of refuge for Zimbabweans, is gearing up for what is expected to be one of the largest exoduses of Zimbabwean nationals this year. This comes after a directive by Home Affairs Minister Aaron Motsoaledi that the six-month extension granted for the Zimbabwean Exemption Permits (ZEP) until June 30 would be the final extension granted. According to the “Country Report: Complementary pathways and the Zimbabwean Dispensation Project”, authored by Dr Fatima Khan, this will impact 178 000 holders of the temporary protection permit. The ZEPs were due to expire on December 31, 2022, but were extended last year. The ZEP was the government’s temporary response to the large numbers of Zimbabweans seeking to enter the country since 2008, due to the precarious economic…

A Limpopo court has convicted and sentenced 45-year-old Zimbabwean national Oliver Mupanga to five years’ direct imprisonment for possession of illicit cigarettes and entering South Africa without a valid passport. Limpopo regional spokesperson for the National Prosecuting Authority, Mashudu Malabi-Dzhangi, said Mupanga was found in possession of over 1 000 cartons of Remington Gold cigarettes, valued at more than R300 000. He was stopped by police while travelling on the Polokwane highway. When the police searched the vehicle, they found 1 104 cartons. “According to an affidavit from the Department of Home Affairs, the accused is illegally in the country,” said Malabi-Dzhangi. Mupanga was convicted on January 23 in the Senwabarwana Regional Court. The court sentenced Mupanga to five years’ direct imprisonment, without option of a fine, for the possession…

A KwaZulu-Natal man who killed the mother of his two children has been sentenced to life imprisonment. Nkosinathi Nkosi Zondo, 37, was convicted of the murders of his ex-girlfriend, Nomvula Annacletta Ndlovu, and her new boyfriend, Zethembe Makhathini. He pleaded not guilty but was convicted of killing the couple on Christmas Day in 2021. Zondo and Ndlovu had been in a relationship. When it became acrimonious, Ndlovu ended it, and this angered Zondo. She then got into a relationship with Makhathini. On December 25, 2021, Zondo went to visit his children and demanded Ndlovu take him back but she refused. He accused Makhathini of taking the mother of his children away from him and threatened to stab him with the two knives he was carrying. Another person who was there,…

Local government in KwaZulu-Natal is in desperate need of leadership and there is hope that Bongi Sithole-Moloi, who was unveiled on Tuesday as the new Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) MEC, will come to the fore and steer municipalities out of the difficult position that many find themselves in. This was the view of the IFP and South African Local Government Association (Salga). However, the DA has already predicted doom and gloom for local government in the province, saying that the new MEC’s past performance did not inspire confidence. Salga KZN chairperson Thami Ntuli said they were hoping for greater co-operation with the new MEC, who was described as an engaging leader. “The fact is that many municipalities are struggling at the moment and need all the support they…

PRESIDENT Cyril Ramaphosa will need no reminder that his previous State of the Nation Addresses have led to little to no change in the lives of millions of South Africans. In fact, his critics may want to take that argument further and say that life under his leadership has become worse. Why argue with them when they cite the price of fuel, rising cost of living, unemployment, rampant corruption, including the president being implicated in the Phala Phala farm scandal, and violent crime, especially against women and children. One of those critics is the DA’s John Steenhuisen, who states: “The reality for ordinary South Africans – as opposed to the pampered ANC elite who have insulated themselves from the government failures they engineered – is that life has progressively become…

WASHINGTON: For a surreal moment, just as US President Joe Biden prepared to deliver his State of the Union speech, his wife Jill stole the show by appearing to plant a kiss smack on the lips of the vice president’s husband. After sweeping into Congress to cheers, the first lady made her way over to the second gentleman, Doug Emhoff, and clasped his hand. Then they leaned in for a friendly embrace, but at least one of them appears to have miscalculated and the result was a kiss either on, or very close, to the lips. “Smooch of the Union,” teased the New York Post tabloid. | AFP…

Uganda said yesterday it would not renew the mandate for the UN’s rights office, a move criticised by the opposition in a country where freedoms are regularly threatened. State minister for foreign affairs Henry Okello Oryem said Uganda had developed “vibrant” internal bodies such as the Uganda Human Rights Commission and civil society groups which monitored its human rights performance. The East African country has seen a series of crackdowns on those opposed to President Yoweri Museveni’s 36-year rule, with journalists attacked, lawyers jailed and opposition leaders violently muzzled. Last year, the UN voiced its concern about reports that “torture and ill-treatment continued”. Uganda wrote to the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to announce it would not be renewing the mandate beyond its current term.…

Paris: The Antarctic Ocean area covered by ice was the lowest on record for January, exposing Earth to even more planet-warming heat, scientists reported yesterday. Last month was also the third warmest January on record in Europe, with temperatures reaching all-time highs in some parts of the continent, the EU’s Copernicus climate monitor (C3S) showed. Globally, last year was the fifth or sixth warmest on record despite the cooling influence of a La Nina weather pattern. Europe clocked its hottest summer, which fuelled droughts and wildfires. Antarctic sea ice extent was 31% below average and well below the previous record for January. | AFP…

LIMA: The death toll from a massive landslide that struck southern Peru rose to at least 15, according to a government tally Dozens of homes were swallowed by dirt and mud after heavy rainfall at the weekend. The landslide struck on Sunday near the town of Secocha, about 200km north-west of the city of Arequipia. President Dina Boluarte flew over the disaster zone and offered her condolences to the victims. She noted that past landslide clean-up efforts had too often suffered major delays. “We will now show a big difference, so that in the shortest amount of time we can recover,” she said. | Reuters…

ACADEMICS in the education field have called on the government to provide sufficient support to foundation-phase teachers, cautioning that failure to do so could have a devastating effect on pupils. The warning comes after a report by advocacy group 2030 Reading Panel revealed that pupils at foundation phase were unable to read for meaning by age 10. The report, which looked at new research on learning losses in the Western Cape, concluded that 82% of South Africa’s Grade 4 children could not read for meaning, up from 78% pre-pandemic. The report added that the national learning losses may be even greater than those in the Western Cape since many studies have found that no-fee schools experienced greater learning losses than fee-charging schools. The report indicated that: It would take South…

QUICK fixes to life’s problems annoy me. The Art of Living Well is a process. It’s a life-long process. It’s a journey of joy and some sadness and many struggles. Its challenges pivot on being willing to embrace and understand the unavoidable juxtaposition of the Beauty and the Brutality of life simultaneously occurring for most people. And yet, there are some simple (not easy) things that we can all do that will immediately enhance the journey, make it even more meaningful, more beautiful and rewarding, despite the inevitable dilemmas that are served up most days: Take full responsibility for yourself – blame no one for anything at all, find your role in whatever you face – and your journey will be enhanced. Choose generosity at every possibility – and your…

Waiting in a queue at my bank on Tuesday, I got chatting to a lady who asked me if I knew of any available jobs. She is a teacher at a rural school in the Upper Highway area and said her salary hadn’t changed since 2018 but as we all know, the cost of everything has changed drastically – upwards. She said she could not live on what she earned and was looking for another job. For her sake, and for the many other underpaid and under-appreciated teachers out there, I pray that in the forthcoming Cabinet reshuffle, a new minister of basic education is found who understands the challenges pupils and their teachers in under-resourced schools have to face, and is able to make meaningful changes to the current…

According to the official advertisement for the position of CEO of Eskom, applicants must have a post-graduate degree in engineering along with a substantial track record in business management (Business Report, February 6). However, the reality is that none of those attributes actually matters because the new CEO will be required “to comply with government policies”. Outgoing CEO André de Ruyter was handed a poisoned chalice from the outset. He was set up to fail because of the prevalence of powerful syndicates within the coal, diesel, plant and accounting sectors which had no intention of adhering to reforms and restructuring. The alleged attempt to kill De Ruyter by poisoning him makes that clear. So the sound-bytes of Ramaphosa and the ANC proclaiming they are doing everything to stabilise the electricity…

THE Department of Basic Education (DBE) has identified the Western Cape and Gauteng as the provinces experiencing the most pressure from a spike in applications from parents moving their children from independent schools to public schools. According to the department, this is due to financial distress, as parents who previously opted for independent schools were returning to public schools due to fees being more affordable. The department said other challenges plaguing the two provinces included incomplete application submissions; fraudulent proof of residence; schools in high-pressure areas being over-subscribed; limited infrastructure and unavailability of land. The DBE briefed the portfolio committee on basic education this week about the readiness for the 2023 school academic year. DBE director-general Mathanzima Mweli said: “We have experienced some level of challenges in all nine provinces.…

A life-sized marble statue of a Roman emperor posing as the classical hero Hercules has been discovered during sewer repair works near the Appia Antica (Appian Way), ancient Rome’s first highway. It emerged, face first, as a bulldozer was tearing through old pipelines that needed replacing. An archaeologist overseeing the work immediately intervened. “This face appeared, and it was then immediately identified as a character dressed as Hercules,” Francesca Romana Paolillo, archaeologist at the Appia Antica park, said. The sculpture, showing a Hercules-like figure with the hero’s trademark lion skin and club, was unearthed on January 25 at the Scott Park, in the Appia Antica green area. | Reuters…

Civil Society organisations, DNA For Africa and Action s ociety are putting pressure on President Cyril Ramaphosa to declare the Criminal Law (Forensic Procedures) Amendment Act – better known as the DNA Act, operational. Almost two months after Ramaphosa signed the bill into law in December, it remains inactive. The bill was adopted by the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) without amendments in September after a seven-year process. Once enacted, the act would compel the government to take DNA samples of schedule 8 offenders and add them to the convicted offenders’ database before the said offenders are released on parole. Schedule 8 offences include murder, rape, serious assault, theft, kidnapping and public violence, among others. Action Society community safety director Ian Cameron said setting the date for the operation of…

Police in Durban are on the hunt for suspects following a shoot-out in Newlands East earlier this week. KwaZulu-Natal police spokesperson Colonel Robert Netshiunda said the suspects were linked to a string of gang- and drug-related crimes. “Police were following up a positive lead when they spotted four suspects in Newlands East. “Upon realising the presence of the police, the suspects fled into the bushes on Galjoen Road and police gave chase,” he said. Netshiunda said the suspects started firing at the police and a shoot-out ensued. “After the shoot-out, two suspects, aged 16 and 35, were found to have sustained fatal gunshot wounds. “Two unlicensed firearms and two magazines with ammunition were found in the possession of the deceased suspects. The search for the other two suspects who evaded…

THE State of the Nation Address (Sona) is upon us. What can South Africans look forward to in this address? According to the Presidency, the president will focus on the energy crisis and the blackouts. He will hopefully also shed some light on the disaster legislation the government intends to implement to address the energy crisis. Reports that the ANC wants Dr Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma to oversee the load shedding state of disaster do not inspire confidence. What we should take serious note of is what the president will have to say about the plans to move Eskom to the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy, a move criticised and, frankly, feared. Also, according to the Presidency, the outcomes of the Investing in Africa Mining Indaba, which started on Tuesday,…

New Delhi: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi yesterday defended his record after criticism of his close association with tycoon Gautam Adani, whose business empire has been rocked by fraud allegations. Investors wiped out around $120 billion (about R2 trillion) in value from Adani Group after claims of accounting fraud by short-seller US investment group Hindenburg Research last month. Political opponents accuse Modi of abetting Adani’s rapid rise, allowing the billionaire to unfairly win contracts and avoid proper oversight. Modi said in parliament that the people of India trusted that his government acted with integrity. Modi was speaking a day after Rahul Gandhi of the opposition Congress party told the legislature that Adani’s close ties with Modi had led to “tremendous growth and expansion of his businesses”. Parliament has been adjourned…

UKRAINE’S President Volodymyr Zelenskiy used a visit to London yesterday to urge allies to send combat aircraft to his war-torn country, as Britain promised to train Ukrainian fighter pilots. As the one-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion looms and Ukraine braces for a fresh Russian offensive in the east, Zelenskiy is pushing ever harder for friendly nations to send tanks, jets and missiles. Zelenskiy received waves of applause as he made a historic address to both the lower and upper houses of the British parliament on what is only his second overseas trip since the war began. “I appeal to you and the world ... for combat aircraft for Ukraine, wings for freedom,” he said. “The UK is marching with us towards the most ... important victory of our lifetime; it…

PARIS: French farmers drove hundreds of tractors into Paris yesterday to protest against pesticide restrictions and other environmental regulations they say are threatening farm production in the EU’s largest agricultural power. The action follows an EU court ruling last month that overturned a French policy allowing sugar beet growers to use an insecticide banned by the EU, raising concern of a further decline in beet plantings and of sugar factory closures. The tractors rolled through Paris to join a gathering at the Invalides monument. France’s Agriculture Ministry will present a plan to representatives of the sugar beet sector today. | Reuters…

AUCKLAND: New Zealand authorities have seized more than three tons of cocaine wrapped into 81 bales and cached at a floating transit point in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, in the single largest drug bust in the nation’s history. The cache, worth about $315 million (R5.6 billion), is large enough to supply the Australian market for a year, and New Zealand’s for three decades, police said. The cocaine, which weighed 3.2 metric tons, came from South America and was destined for Australia. The cocaine bundle was “set up into nets” with flotation devices. The packages of cocaine had the Batman logo and symbols of the drug producers. | Washington Post…

AS the Netball World Cup edges closer, the Spar Proteas are looking to polish their game for that competitive edge for the global showpiece. They had a less than ideal start to the year as they ended the Quad Series without a win. The only positive from that tournament was that they faced top-ranked opposition in New Zealand, Australia and England. All these nations are tipped to win the World Cup scheduled for Cape Town in July and August this year. The South Africans will be expected to make use of their home advantage. Captain Bongi Msomi said the series was a great way to give all the players a run in preparation for the World Cup where winning is what matters. “The Quad Series gave us a sense of…

Rescue teams were in a race against time this week as they scrambled to reach people still trapped under rubble or injured in southern Türkiye and northern Syria, which were hit hardest by the 7.8-magnitude earthquake that devastated the region. Low winter temperatures made rescue work even more pressing, amid fears that some people could freeze to death. Damage to roads, power grids and other infrastructure has hindered aid efforts in regions that were already struggling with a civil war and a refugee crisis. With more than 11 000 deaths and 30 000 injured, and numbers expected to rise, Monday’s quake, along with its 7.5-magnitude follow-up, is already one of the deadliest of the 21st century. On Tuesday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced a state of emergency across 10…

THE provincial Department of Economic Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs (Edtea) has spelt out in detail all the steps it has taken to compel the eThekwini Municipality to deal with sewage leaks in the city. These are contained in the department’s answering affidavit in response to a court application filed by ActionSA in November last year to compel the provincial government, national government and the eThekwini Municipality to fix the sewage crisis across the city. The party is seeking an order declaring that the respondents – the ministers of Tourism; Environment; and Water and Sanitation, and the MECs of Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs; and Economic Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs, respectively; as well as the eThekwini Municipality, and mayor Mxolisi Kaunda – were in contravention of several laws.…

The recent news report: “SA Tourism to sponsor a billion rand towards English Club, Tottenham Hotspur, as a move to attract millions of potential tourists to our struggling country” refers: This startling piece of cross-bar vibrating move reminds me of the times that I used to regularly visit India even in the mid-1990s during that country’s relative heyday and was asked by friends and relatives abroad if it was a good idea to visit South Africa as a good tourist destination. When I gave them the rundown about our most attractive sights, scenarios and sceneries, our delicious culinary dining tables and equally shaped mountainous world heritage sites and wild animals that in those days, used to be safely (for their own good!) enclosed securely behind vandal-proof fences, and comparatively low-cost…

The Chinese Balloon spy saga over the US is a flashback reminder of the U-2 spy plane affair over the then Soviet Union. In China in 500BC, Sun Tzu Wu, whose Art Of War is the oldest military treatise in the world, predicted almost all the permutations of espionage that we are witnessing today. During 2019, the US military conducted wide-area surveillance across six Midwest states using high-altitude balloons, according to documents filed with the Federal Communications Commission. These solar-powered balloons drifted 400km, travelling in the stratosphere at altitudes of up to 65 000ft. The Chinese balloon was at 60 000ft. A strange and uncanny coincidence. Their mission profiles were the same. The Chinese probably thought that they would escape detection. Chinese surveillance balloons flew over the USA at least…

The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) says the transnational organised crime networks targeting large conservation areas across southern Africa remain a serious concern. The WWF was reacting to the 2022 rhino-poaching statistics, which saw a 40% decline compared with 2021 in the Kruger Park and other national parks. However the poaching threat has shifted to KwaZulu-Natal, which lost 244 rhino last year – 228 killed in provincial parks, with the Hluhluwe iMfolozi Park specifically targeted. Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment Minister Barbara Creecy attributed the decline in poaching statistics at Kruger to the department’s anti-poaching machinery and a comprehensive de-horning programme. “We believe if provincial authorities in KZN follow our model, they will be able to significantly curb rhino poaching in their provincial parks.” WWF Africa Rhino lead, Dr…

The National Council of SPCAs (NSPCA) is expected to lay charges against a KwaZulu-Natal man after one of his dogs died and four others were found in a bad condition in Bethlehem and Newcastle, respectively. NSPCA senior inspector Nazareth Appalsamy said a report was received about two dogs apparently abandoned in a factory in Bethlehem in the eastern Free State. “What Bethlehem SPCA found at the time of their inspection was a clear case of animal cruelty and suffering, and a warrant was immediately obtained to remove the animals,” the SPCA said in a statement. One of the dogs was found trapped inside the building. The animal was so weak and so emaciated it could barely lift its head. “There was no food or water, and the room was…

Gender-based organisations have reacted with outrage to the murder of a third-year student at Tshwane University of Technology (TUT). Ntokozo Xaba, of Newcastle in KwaZulu-Natal, was found dead in her room at the campus residence last week. The incident happened after a night out with friends. It has been alleged that she was killed by her former boyfriend, a one-time junior Blue Bulls player Ngcebo Thusi. He appeared in court on Monday and the matter was postponed to February 13 for a formal bail application. Commission for Gender Equality (CGE) spokesperson Javu Baloyi said they would get in touch with the leadership of the university following Xaba’s murder. “The CGE is saddened by this senseless killing, which adds to the list of gender-based violence (GBV) and femicide murders…

A violent incident at Skofill Secondary School in Bulwer, where pupils were fighting over desks due to a shortage, led the Education MEC Mbali Frazer to step in. In a statement, the KwaZulu- Natal Education Department said it was alleged that a group of pupils engaged in a fight on Friday, and the teacher who tried to diffuse the situation was also allegedly assaulted. Frazer held an urgent meeting on Tuesday with all stakeholders at Skofill Secondary. Due to the seriousness of the matter at the school, representatives from Dr Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma Local Municipality, local traditional authorities and members of the community were part of the meeting. During the meeting, the MEC received a report indicating that the school had a shortage of desks in some of its classrooms.…

South Africans need an address that sets the trajectory for workable solutions President Cyril Ramaphosa faces the arduous task of delivering his State of the Nation Address (Sona) at a time described by some as our lowest moment. Mounting concerns also affirm the necessity for a voice of reason, given the burgeoning social and economic challenges facing the country. Will this address be a gathering with proposed traceable and implementable plans, or just another talk shop? The malaise we face forces us to think outside of the box. The clarion call here is for a leadership that is not only bold but undiscouraged. What can we expect? For starters, expect gloating on the strides made since the last Sona in 2022. This is expected; the moment requires introspection of the…

Brazil’s central bank’s new-found independence that was designed to shield it from politics has turned it into a convenient punching bag for the new government that can use it to fire up its leftist base and blame it for economic woes. Since his January 1 inauguration, President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has attacked the bank, led by respected economist and financial markets executive Roberto Campos Neto, calling its interest rates excessively high and “shameful” and blaming them for stunting growth. Socialist leader Guilherme Boulos called Campos Neto an agent left in office by Lula’s far-right predecessor Jair Bolsonaro to “boycott” the economy. With the bank’s autonomy established by law under Bolsonaro in 2021, its board of directors is no longer changed at the same time when new governments take…

US President Joe Biden, 80, hit the road yesterday with trips to the election battlegrounds of Wisconsin and Florida, after a barnstorming State of the Union speech reinforcing expectations that he will seek a second term. Biden hasn’t announced a re- election bid yet and given his age, many, even from his own party, feel he should step aside in 2024. But his Tuesday night address to Congress and tens of millions of television viewers laid out what amounted to a campaign platform, which he will now pursue in DeForest, Wisconsin, with a speech on the economy, before heading today to the increasingly Republican stronghold of Florida. Standing before a packed chamber on Capitol Hill, Biden appeared energised as he delivered a message aimed at what he called “forgotten” working-…

BEIJING: The world should “calm down” about the possibility of new Covid-19 variants circulating in China, leading Chinese scientist George Gao said. A paper by Gao and colleagues published in the Lancet medical journal yesterday showed that no new variants had emerged in the initial weeks of China’s recent outbreak, after the end of its zero-Covid-19 policy saw a huge wave of cases. The variants causing infections in China were the same Omicron sub-variants, BA.5.2 and BF.7, seen elsewhere in the world, he said. The study analysed 413 new Covid-19 cases in Beijing from November 14 to December 20, 2022 and found all were likely caused by existing strains. | Reuters…

When Mohamed was hired at the construction site for the UN’s new west Africa headquarters in Senegal, he was proud to say he would be working “not only for Africa, but for the world”. The 25-year-old Sierra Leonean was a plumber on the site, the centrepiece of what is intended to be a futuristic city boasting an Olympic stadium, ministries and a commuter train line running 40km to the capital Dakar. But nine months ago, Mohamed’s dreams evaporated when an air conditioner he was installing fell on his hands, slicing off part of a finger and damaging a thumb. No longer so dextrous, he says he was fired without pay and unable to find steady work. Young men from Sierra Leone, Guinea and even distant Nigeria have flocked to Diamniadio,…