EP 2 Africa For The Taking? | African News Review

Africa is not asking anymore. Four stories. One conversation. All Afrocentric.

This week on African News Review, Adesoji Iginla, alongside Milton Allimadi and Aya Fubara Eneli, break down four stories reshaping the continent's narrative — and ask the questions mainstream media won't. No colonial lens. No saviour complex. Just Africa, on its own terms.

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STORY 1 — FRANCE'S $27BN AFRICA RESET: NAIROBI SUMMIT
Macron arrives in English-speaking Kenya with a $27 billion pledge covering energy, AI, agriculture and the maritime economy. We ask: is this a genuine reset or a rebranding of Françafrique? What does the Sahel's rejection of France really mean — and what does Kenya gain by hosting?

STORY 2 — RAMAPHOSA IMPEACHMENT: PHALA PHALA REVIVED
South Africa's Constitutional Court has restarted the Phala Phala impeachment process. Ramaphosa says he will not resign. With the ANC no longer holding a parliamentary majority, can South Africa's institutions hold the line — and what does this moment reveal about accountability across the continent?

STORY 3 — THE MAP THAT LIED: TOGO CHALLENGES MERCATOR AT THE UN
Greenland appears almost as large as Africa on the world's most widely used map. Africa is 14 times larger. Togo — with African Union backing — is taking a formal proposal to the UN General Assembly in September to replace the Mercator projection. We go deeper on how a distorted map shapes investment decisions, diplomatic weight, and how the world perceives Africa's economic potential.

STORY 4 — CYNTHIA SHANGE 1949–2026: SHE RAISED HER FIST
The first Black South African woman to compete at Miss World walked into the Royal Albert Hall in December 1972 and raised her fist in a Black Power salute — representing a country called "Africa South" that did not exist. We honour her life, her five decades on South African screens, and ask what it means to assert your humanity on a stage designed to erase you.

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 Key  Takeaways

*US immigration laws and their impact on rights
*France's influence and neocolonial tactics in Africa
*Africa's representation in global maps and perception
*South Africa's political crisis and Ramaphosa's impeachment
*African leaders' strategies and resistance against neo-colonialism

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to African News Review
01:05 Current Events and Rights Assaults
04:19 International Relations and Global Power Dynamics
10:29 Public Health Concerns: Ebola Outbreak
12:28 Neocolonialism and African Leadership
13:22 France's New Approach to Africa
22:59 Historical Context of French Colonialism
24:20 Cyril Ramaphosa's Impeachment Dilemma
34:31 The Implications of Leadership in South Africa
40:04 Togo's Map Controversy and African Representation
48:11 Cynthia Shange: A Symbol of Resistance

Transcript

Adesoji Iginla (00:01.646)
Yes, greetings, greetings, and welcome to another episode of African News Review, the podcast that reframes the African narratives from an African perspective based on articles in the Western media. Here we do know colonial lens. We give you our take on those news stories according to context in history. I'm your host, Adesuji Gengela. I will meet as usual.

Ayafabeira and Elyes Choir, Author, Yourself Revolution, and Kwanzaa A Celebration Guide. Welcome, Sister.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (00:38.683)
Thank you for having me.

Adesoji Iginla (00:41.166)
Yes, the comrade is comrade Milton Almadi. He is also a manufacturer in hate and he's host of Black Star News on WBI 99.5 FM New York.

Milton Allimadi (00:53.665)
Thank you.

Adesoji Iginla (00:56.354)
Yeah, welcome, welcome, welcome, both of you. So as is customary here, we do news where you're at. So starting with sister, what's the news that you think the world should know with regards to where you're situated?

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (01:12.284)
The world is on fire, literally, it feels that way. It's one thing after the other just in terms of the assault on our rights. And so in this past week, the Fifth Circuit Court affirmed, well, no, no, the lower court had stayed.

a law that Texas had passed basically allowing the state apparatus to stop people that they thought were, had illegally crossed the border and to arrest them and to even start deportation procedures against them. And there was a lawsuit brought because that is typically the purview of the federal government, not the state apparatus. Well,

Adesoji Iginla (01:44.728)
Mm-hmm.

Adesoji Iginla (02:01.422)
Correct.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (02:05.626)
the lower court stayed that bill initially saying, hey, no, it can't go any further for now. Well, the Fifth Circuit came back and said, nope, we can go ahead. And one of the concurrent opinions was written by James Ho, who is an immigrant from Taiwan.

Adesoji Iginla (02:09.56)
judgment.

Adesoji Iginla (02:18.584)
can go ahead.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (02:35.222)
Naturalized as a U.S. citizen at age nine is a member of the Federalist Society who cited a book stating that Mexico and other countries are using immigration, are weaponizing immigration against the United States. Therefore, the state of Texas has the right to fight back. And so,

fighting immigration should no longer just be the purview of the federal government. And so we continue to see these attacks, whether it's the redistricting, which of course the area that I live in was redistricted racially gerrymandered.

Adesoji Iginla (03:05.643)
of federal government.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (03:25.166)
before this 2025 redistricting that they started, we were redistricted before. And there's still black people who are supporting the white elected official. I'll name him. If I can even pull his name out of my head right now. Gosh, Buckley.

That's how much I can't stand him. But there are still black people supporting him because we're just not even paying attention and connecting the dots. This man has voted against women's rights. He's voted against our history being taught in schools. He's voted to racially gerrymander our area. And there's still black people supporting him. So the attacks are coming left, right and center. We do have a couple of runoff elections coming up in the city of Harker Heights and

We have an African-American woman veteran who is in the runoff for mayor, Linda Nash, hoping that our people will go out and support her, not just because she's a veteran or because she's African-American or because she's female, but because she actually has the goods to deliver for all people and not just some people. But we'll see what happens. We fight on. Of course, yesterday we had the All Roads Elite 2, the South, which Latasha Brown and

many other civil rights leaders. We're in Selma and we are definitely going to take this fight to them and when we fight we win.

Adesoji Iginla (04:54.52)
Thank you, thank you. So brother.

Milton Allimadi (04:58.045)
Yes, so, you know, one of the good things with, you know, this president is that sometimes in his unsophisticatedness, you know, he reveals some truth. So in his visit to China, you know, he's definitely revealed that China

He's a co-global power now. You see? Before he went, remember months ago, he was tearing down China, kept talking about the 150 % tariff and all that. Now he's coming back, saying, oh, Xi is his friend. They could work together very well. And they ask him, said, oh, one reporter asked him, what about the planned sale of weapons to Taiwan?

because the US has planned billion dollar, multi-billion dollar sale of weapons. He said, I have to talk with the leader of Taiwan. That was his response.

You know, so anybody else, not him, would couch it in such a way that you would not be, you would not understand what is being said. But obviously he's making it clear that Taiwan is not going to get any weapons, not after this visit anyway, you see? You're right, so people that understand the relationship between China and the United States can really analyze and see the impact of this visit.

Obviously China is the biggest winner from this visit. So to me that is the interesting development this week.

Adesoji Iginla (06:41.944)
Yeah.

Adesoji Iginla (06:45.87)
Okay, show you can.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (06:47.152)
Could I add something to that visit? Something very little that is not even political, but just shows the complete stupidity of not just Donald Trump, but all of you still supporting him. This man.

Milton Allimadi (06:48.55)
Yeah, that's what's going on.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (07:04.94)
on a tour is marveling at, wait a second, how old are those trees? And they were like, those trees are between 200 and 300 years. wow. First of all, of course, in a sense, those trees are older than your so-called republic. But on the other hand, understand that this idiot of a felon,

Milton Allimadi (07:11.602)
.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (07:33.199)
tore down uprooted trees as old as that surrounding the white house because he has no respect for anything. This is the idiot you people elected and continue to prop up. And now he has his golden statues that you're all worshiping as though you have chosen to not read that part of the Bible as to what happens to the people who worship the golden cup.

Adesoji Iginla (07:34.478)
trees.

Adesoji Iginla (07:45.516)
Hmm.

Adesoji Iginla (08:00.79)
to the golden calf. Yes, yes.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (08:03.665)
cannot stand it. It is not about Trump. Trump did not get there by himself. You guys put him there and you guys are maintaining him there.

Milton Allimadi (08:04.606)
Forget... But he got roses.

Milton Allimadi (08:12.379)
He got roses though.

Yeah, he gave him roses, you know, and he was very happy about that. And he also.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (08:16.08)
you

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (08:21.7)
You mean the roses his wife uprooted from the rose garden as well?

Milton Allimadi (08:24.403)
And then he also asked, so this garden, every leader that comes to visit China, are they torn around? And she said, rarely, very few. It's not her. said, Putin is going to next week when he comes. So Trump felt very special as a result. And that's why.

Adesoji Iginla (08:34.826)
Yeah, yeah, that's what I was about to add.

Adesoji Iginla (08:41.438)
Really, even Putin was not brought in.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (08:46.744)
Yes, yes.

Adesoji Iginla (08:46.753)
Yeah

Adesoji Iginla (08:50.958)
You

Milton Allimadi (08:54.023)
Taiwan is not going to get any weapons, guaranteed.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (08:59.886)
He said, look, America is doing so well. They're wearing blue jeans in China. Idiots, the blue jeans have made it.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (09:12.368)
Okay, I know we've got real music cover, but my God, level of EBSC is, if someone had made a movie, you would say, come on now, you can't suspend all reality, but that's what we're living in.

Milton Allimadi (09:15.0)
Yeah, we are ready.

Adesoji Iginla (09:19.085)
Okay, two.

Milton Allimadi (09:26.064)
Yeah, the closest that comes is that movie, Being There, with Peter Sellers, Being There. Chauncey Gardner, the guy who used to talk nonsense, and people thought, it must be very sophisticated what he's saying. If you haven't seen that movie, you must see it. So he became a presidential advisor.

Adesoji Iginla (09:41.954)
then.

Adesoji Iginla (09:53.408)
I in the UK, we might have a new prime minister shortly because the government of, what's his name? Why do I even forget his name now? Mr. Stalmer. Yeah, Mr. Stalmer. Yeah. He is cratering. There was a series of resignations in the course of the week owing to his

Milton Allimadi (09:59.152)
Mm-hmm.

Milton Allimadi (10:09.286)
You're prime ministers. All right.

Adesoji Iginla (10:21.422)
electoral defeat in the local elections where his party hemorrhaged over 1,100 local seats, which were largely won by the Greens, but then Reform, the party of Faraj, also made inroads. And so there's been the night of long knives, as they would say over here.

We are about to, with my witness, a vote of no confidence in the course of the week. So that's to watch. And it stems from the Epstein fallout, his subsequent handling of other matters with regards to Iran, Israel, and a host of other contentious issues in the United Kingdom. But mostly to do with his lack of judgment when it came to the issue of Peter Mandersen being sent.

as ambassador to the United States. So that's it.

Milton Allimadi (11:22.195)
Which is pretty insane because the people that gained are actually 10 times worse than him.

Adesoji Iginla (11:27.491)
Who?

Yes, yes, yes. And to think that the people who actually are the center of the entire debacle and not even moved one iota to even, you know, I mean, I think someone resigned in the course of the week, a cabinet member. I think it was, what's his name? Lotnik. I Lotnik was thinking of resigning. I'm not sure if he has pulled the lever yet.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (12:00.047)
You mean Howard Larkinick in here in the US? No, no, he's not. No, he's not. I do want to say that this isn't news where I am, but it's news that we should all be concerned about. And I want to thank Ms. King for bringing this up. The World Health Organization has officially declared the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda a public health emergency of international concern. This is the...

Adesoji Iginla (12:00.152)
But Howard Lothnick, yeah, yeah, no, OK, OK, OK. I he was going.

Milton Allimadi (12:06.132)
Yeah, but for me, you are-

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (12:28.72)
WHO's highest global alert level, short of declaring a pandemic. And the outbreak is centered primarily in the Eastern Congo's Ituru province near the Ugandan border. And they're saying that the outbreak involves a strain, is more, it's the Bondigo-Bugyo strain, which is much rarer than the Zaire strain. There are no approved vaccines for it.

There are no approved targeted treatments for it. And the outbreak is occurring in conflict zones and mining regions with heavy population movements. So, so far they're saying more than 300 suspected cases between 80 to 88 suspected deaths, cases confirmed in Eastern Congo, Uganda, and at least one case linked to Goma.

So... something for us too.

Adesoji Iginla (13:34.67)
Okay, yeah.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (13:36.14)
be aware of, pray about, and certainly if you're traveling, be careful about.

Adesoji Iginla (13:43.246)
And to buttress that point, Ms. King said in the chat, people will die because of the inhumanity and ignorance of the current federal government in the United States. That is, Yeah. Especially them having pulled out of the World Health Organization resources that could help have, you know, mitigates will not be available.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (13:51.982)
Yes, absolutely.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (14:05.552)
And just all the aid that has been canceled as well. Yeah.

Adesoji Iginla (14:08.852)
Yeah, yeah, yeah. There you go. There you go.

Milton Allimadi (14:10.329)
I blame those African governments more than anything else. You should not be beholden or dependent on Europeans. Europeans colonized you, enslaved you, and now you're leaving your health to them.

Adesoji Iginla (14:14.702)
Of course, of-

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (14:25.696)
I I agree wholeheartedly.

Milton Allimadi (14:26.376)
You know, the young people in Africa, you're listening to us. My lesson and message is the same all the time. Get rid of governments that don't serve your interests.

Adesoji Iginla (14:27.18)
Yeah. True, true,

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (14:39.056)
I agree.

Adesoji Iginla (14:40.718)
Speaking of serving interest, France was in Nairobi and let that sink in for a moment. France has been expelled from the Sahel, has lost influence in Central Africa, now arrives in Nairobi with a $27 billion check. Is this a new partnership or is this the oldest story in African history dressed in a new language? For that story, we go to the BBC.

And it's that the French president, Emmanuel Macron, was in Nairobi calling the minions to come in for a chat. The BBC says France seeks to move beyond colonial ties by meeting African leaders in Kenya. And there is with one of the African elites, William Ruto, the president of Kenya.

Accused of neocolonial meddling in many African countries where it has traditionally had close ties, France is broadening its horizon by co-hosting a summit of African leaders in English-speaking Kenya for the first time. Speaking at the African Forward Summit in the capital, Nairobi, on Tuesday, French President Emmanuel Macron repeatedly spoke of co-investment, equal footing partnership, as he described shared challenges including security, economic dependence,

and geopolitical competition. You've read the story. What is your take? comrade.

Milton Allimadi (16:16.775)
So, brother, there's an echo. I don't know if I'm the only one that hear it. I don't know if the sister can hear it. Everything you said is being repeated.

Adesoji Iginla (16:30.222)
It's probably only at your end. Go on.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (16:35.376)
You may have two tabs open.

Adesoji Iginla (16:38.232)
Do you have two tabs open?

Adesoji Iginla (16:45.646)
If you want to go back out and come back in, then OK.

So yeah, think it's on someone saying in the chat that there is no echo, so it must have been on his end. So.

Milton Allimadi (17:06.793)
All right, so I'm back now, can you hear me?

Adesoji Iginla (17:09.92)
Yeah, I can hear you clearly. Do you still have an echo?

Milton Allimadi (17:12.915)
Say something? Yeah, unfortunately I can still hear it, but fine, I can hear you. So if it's only on my end, let's continue then, okay?

Adesoji Iginla (17:18.368)
OK, OK, OK, OK. So go on.

Milton Allimadi (17:22.558)
All right, so.

So first of all, it's, I mean, I go back to the analogy that Sister Aya likes to give. And it is like, can you, you know, the chicken and the fox, you know, coexist or live in the same pen? It's preposterous that you are, the chicken and the fox are co-sponsoring this summit.

And it's supposed to be for mutual benefit. I think that's the best way to start off with this analogy. So sorry, sister, that I stole the analogy that you use all the time. On this occasion, there was nothing better than that. Number one. Number two, they talk about investment. The only investment that African countries need is the one that creates factories.

so that they can use their natural resources to produce manufactured products. There's no reason why they should continue to import automobiles, right? Let alone cheese. They said there's a French department store in Nairobi selling cheese and wine.

Adesoji Iginla (18:58.147)
flowers.

Adesoji Iginla (19:07.918)
You

Adesoji Iginla (19:19.262)
he's gone. He will be back. So you want to proceed with the hen? I mean, I do have a different question for you with regards to this particular story and it's to do with the equal footing. I think he's back. Okay. Okay. Go on, comrade.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (19:34.737)
I have a lot to say about this story. First of all, put that, put the article back up. I just want our audience to look at that picture, that image. Because an image, as they say, is worth what, a thousand words? This may be a million, maybe 27 million, billion.

Milton Allimadi (19:35.533)
I am willing to bet there's not a Kenyan supermarket in Paris sending Kenyan

Adesoji Iginla (19:54.734)
a thousand words yet.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (20:03.657)
Dear Ruto, my brother, will still call you. What in the hell are you doing?

You have been the lapdog for the United States going into Haiti to do I don't know what as though you did not study any history. And now that all of these and I will not even insult them by using that term that they used to delineate who was colonized by what country did now that certain West African countries have kicked.

France out, you decide that you're going to make nice, you're looking into the eyes of a president of a country that just a few weeks ago ruled and said, yeah, enslaving you guys, enslaving your ancestors, not a big deal. We're just going to be noncommittal on that.

Adesoji Iginla (20:44.706)
Yeah. To give them an in-road.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (21:13.786)
Do you need investment or do you need them to return all that they have stolen?

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (21:23.05)
So instead of you partnering with your brothers and sisters, who they were still pillaging and exploiting, you decide you're going to go along with this centuries old divide and conquer. But it's not just William Ruto, because about 30 other African nations, including the leader of Nigeria,

So many of them showed up.

Adesoji Iginla (21:53.165)
Yeah.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (21:56.013)
All of you had in hand for what this man can't even consolidate power in France, but he can come to Africa and all of you show up begging. and wait a second. How are they treating your people in France? What are all the anti-immigration bills in France? How are they? Are you freaking kidding me? Like when do

Frederick Douglass said they cannot ride your back if you're not bent. What are we doing, African so-called leaders?

Adesoji Iginla (22:30.126)
course.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (22:36.812)
So African countries are supposed to bring 9 billion. They're going to bring 18 billion. What? Wait a second. You took a hundred billion from me. You're going to give me acts like you're giving me back 18 billion as a way to extract a hundred billion more. Like the math isn't even mathy. Do you think any of this is altruistic?

Adesoji Iginla (22:57.07)
Yeah, yeah.

Adesoji Iginla (23:00.61)
None at all, none at all, none at all.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (23:03.276)
And wait a second, this is not like it's news to us. Kwame Nkrumah has written about this. Frans Fanon, Sankara, Azikiwe could have told you about this. Ibrahim Trare is telling you about this right now. Walter Rodney wrote a whole book about this decades ago. Like,

Adesoji Iginla (23:10.358)
Yeah, neocolonialism, last stage of imperialism.

Adesoji Iginla (23:23.524)
Sakitu re... Sakitu!

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (23:30.594)
It's right there in our faces. What are we doing? All right, let me stop.

Adesoji Iginla (23:37.87)
I you could go on actually. The reason I said...

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (23:41.934)
Look at that picture. Like we're friends. We're making eye contact. Like I can trust you. Are you freaking kidding me?

Adesoji Iginla (23:53.932)
I don't know what this picture was supposed to convey but the dynamics

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (23:58.105)
You might need to watch the karate kid. You understand what you do as a snake charmer? They actually teach this in neuro-linguistic programming. You tailor, you mirror the person's mannerisms, you mirror their breathing.

Adesoji Iginla (24:01.112)
the

Adesoji Iginla (24:09.102)
Mm.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (24:18.648)
You get eye control, all of that, and then you can control that person's thoughts and movements. This is real. I've taken those courses. What is Ruto doing? And why are so many of our leaders, have we not studied?

Adesoji Iginla (24:40.76)
Well, somebody was probably looking out the window while the lesson was going on in the class.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (24:44.026)
But it's the same thing as what James Ho has done, immigrant in Texas. It's the same thing as what Clarence Thomas is doing. It's the same thing as what's the idiot who was just not backed for Kentucky, who was okay with Breonna Taylor being killed. Cameron, mean, what are you people drinking? What Kool-Aid are they giving you?

Adesoji Iginla (25:01.12)
Cameron. Cameron.

Adesoji Iginla (25:12.738)
There is also the notion that, like you said, if three of your brothers have rejected the same person and you now think you are wiser than them, owing to their history, then obviously...

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (25:29.486)
Not just three of your brothers, look at all of those countries that used to be colonized by France. And look at the agreement where they had to deposit their reserves in France. And you know what? Till today, we don't even have an accurate accounting because France never had to share their bookkeeping with them.

Adesoji Iginla (25:34.956)
Mm-hmm.

Adesoji Iginla (25:43.606)
in France.

Adesoji Iginla (25:53.346)
Yeah, yeah, yeah, it's, it's one of the it's considered one of the greatest theory. I mean, it's considered one of greatest theory in history. For those who are not aware, following the Second World War, and the move for independence, France, led by Charles de Gaulle at the time, put forward a motion for independence.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (25:58.619)
This is beyond sleeping with the enemy. What are we doing?

Adesoji Iginla (26:21.154)
based on the referendum within the former colonial states and the treaty itself is called the Treaty for the Continued Colonization but obviously lose independence. You can have a flag but everything about your country is controlled from Paris. Only one country in 1958 said no and that was Guinea. Guinea's crime was not only saying no

but also losing all of its infrastructure, which is destroyed, its schools, its hospitals, roads were dug up. Yeah, the Sea France is exactly the two. There is a book out there on the SIFA called The Last Colonial Currency by Pigard and Silla. It's a very, very interesting read for people who might want to understand the

France negative influence in in 14, what's it for, no 16 African countries at the time. I'm minded, I think the committee is having technical issues and so we'll go on to the next story and that is coming from South Africa.

And the story reads...

So the story reads, Cyril Ramaphosa might be in trouble. And it's that the Constitutional Court has decided to revisit his issues of 2022. So the story comes from Deutervella, the German outlet. And the headline reads, can South Africa's presidential Ramaphosa avoid impeachment?

Adesoji Iginla (28:13.996)
Ramaphosa sidestepped an impeachment inquiry in 2022 when his ANC-dominated parliament blocked it. Now the South African top court has revived the case. Can he escape with a parliament accommodating former adversaries? There he is. And South African President Sere Ramaphosa is right back to where he is in late 2022 on the renewed scrutiny over Aled Rongduin facing an impeachment process and mounting calls to step down.

On Monday he announced he will not resign, said he will challenge the impeachment proceedings against him. I therefore respectfully want to make it clear I will not resign. Ramaphosa said in a TV address. You've read the story, so what do you think? What do you think? What do you think?

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (29:03.628)
Okay, indulge me again. Can you go back, scroll back up to his picture?

Adesoji Iginla (29:09.351)
God. What is with your teachers? Yo, yo, yo.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (29:16.489)
Now doesn't he look like Ruto's twin brother?

Adesoji Iginla (29:21.752)
Come to think of it, does. It does. It does. You're having too much fun at this.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (29:29.454)
Listen, I see things in a lot of different ways, but yeah, I'm just saying. A little bit more meat on the face, but.

Okay, so I think that it would be helpful if you remind people about how this story began, because we covered this before. Tell us about the sofa and the money.

Adesoji Iginla (29:47.104)
Okay. Okay, so in 2020...

Okay, so in in 2022, Mr. Cyril Ramaphosa, then president, some president at the time, decided he did what you call an under table deal, and he got paid $4 million. I don't mean $4 million African dollars, $4 million USD. And he subsequently, obviously, didn't declare it.

But what can I say? The four million fell into his sofa. That's the best way to say it. Fell into his sofa and when someone dipped their hand into the sofa and felt $4 million, his retort was he couldn't take it to the bank because the money came to him Friday after banking hours. Suffice to say,

money was a deal that he made with setting people across the border in Namibia and he didn't declare it. Some will argue

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (30:56.9)
What does four million in cash actually look like? Like, I don't even know if I could even, but anyway, carry on with the story.

Adesoji Iginla (31:05.934)
So subsequently, was impeachment proceedings brought in the House of Parliament, I say in the House of in the South African Parliament. But it was voted down because at that time, the ANC had, yes, in its sofa, yes, yes, in its sofa, very huge sofa. Not the kind of sofa you and I have, but huge. So.

Because his party at the time had a majority in the parliament, it was voted down. And now the story has resurfaced that the higher court is seeking to revisit the allegation. And the constitutional court has said they can proceed with impeachment proceedings, to which he is now saying he's going to fight the proceedings.

your take on it on the possible dubious nature.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (32:12.132)
Well, actually, this is very concerning and looking at some of the other stories we covered in the past regarding his acceptance of Trump's ambassador appointee and then who he appointed as South Africa's ambassador to the United States, it's beginning to make a little bit more sense that this man is in a political fight for his life, if you will, or in a fight for his political life, I should say that.

Adesoji Iginla (32:19.021)
Mm-hmm.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (32:40.976)
And it has serious implications because the ANC is so fractured that there is no one clear leader that people will galvanize around. Certainly the deputy president perhaps, but there are many who will see that as continuing with a status quo and there are many younger ANC members who are going to say, hey, we're ready for change. And so when you look at the fact that the ANC already lost

their majority in the 2024 election, this becomes a very critical time. Will the Democratic Alliance, which is the apartheid group basically, you know, seize upon this weakness and become the ruling party in South Africa or create their own alliance with organizations or parties such as the

Adesoji Iginla (33:27.65)
Mm-hmm.

Adesoji Iginla (33:31.476)
In Sardive. Yep.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (33:38.167)
ATM, the African, what do they call them? The African Transformation Movement or something like that, which is a completely all-white group who actually filed this suit, if you will, with the Supreme Court. So there are a lot of issues at play here. Then when you also take into the consideration that EFF with Malema,

Adesoji Iginla (33:43.434)
on movement. Yeah, movement. Yeah.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (34:05.048)
You know, that case is in court, which we've talked about, and we don't know through the appeal process how many years he's gonna get and how that is going to impact EFF. You could be looking at South Africa going back to where, yeah, embraced, Junjun, yes, he embraced the Democratic Alliance as a way of keeping power, but they could now usurp that power.

Adesoji Iginla (34:22.657)
I buzz it.

Adesoji Iginla (34:28.814)
Keep being, yeah, keep being power.

Correct. Correct.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (34:34.262)
if they decide to vote to impeach him. So I think they need two thirds vote to impeach. They need 50 % for no confidence vote. And it's very dicey. It just depends on how he's able to play these cards. But in terms of the larger population of South Africa and what this means for our ongoing liberation movement.

Adesoji Iginla (34:38.466)
They need two tops majority. Yeah.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (34:59.212)
we could be seeing a big reversal in terms of some of the gains, all because we have had leaders who come into power, Black leaders who come into power, who unfortunately do not carry out the will of their people, these African elites that we talk about. And before Comrade comes on, because I know he has a lot to say, I just want to point out, I talked about the physical

Adesoji Iginla (35:02.344)
So yeah.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (35:28.854)
similarities between Ruto and Ramaphosa. But I also want to just point something out when we're talking about these African elites. When you look at Ramaphosa, right? How did he make a lot? He's a businessman. He made a lot of his money through the black economic empowerment deals. there are policies that are put in place to benefit people at large, but then you have these elites who are carving out things for themselves.

Adesoji Iginla (35:45.112)
Yeah, from.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (35:58.349)
mining investments, corporate board memberships, banking telecom partnerships, not to the benefit of his people, but just gathering for himself, right? So he transformed basically from a labor radical to a corporate statesman. Now let's look at Ruto, student Christian organizing. So Ramaphosa was labor organizing, Ruto was student Christian organizing, automatically your bell should be going off.

Adesoji Iginla (36:09.741)
Yep. Yep.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (36:28.004)
because anytime you got an African leader who's already bought into a certain religious ideology, he rolls through Kenya's ruling party networks, patronage politics, and then populist campaigning. So he talks about, I'm a hustler, but he's tied to the political elite, land accumulation for himself, donor institutions, and then this whole issue of

Adesoji Iginla (36:33.89)
mindset.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (36:57.026)
international capital. Both of them favor privatization. Both of them favor foreign investment. IMF World Bank Corporation. And so you see Ruto going in with all these austerity measures that by the way, while he is helping to appoint women into positions in his government, at the same time, his policies are hurting women the most because they're the ones who are mostly in that

Adesoji Iginla (37:20.055)
And yeah.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (37:26.128)
of trading and so on. He has weakened labor protections, he's deepened debt dependency, and he's prioritized investors over ordinary citizens. So when you look at these two people, their politics varies much the same. On the one hand, the outsiders like them because they provide a certain amount of stability.

Adesoji Iginla (37:50.082)
That's it, yeah, for the capital.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (37:53.231)
The people on the inside are hurt by them. And yet, if you take them out of power, it could create a whole lot of chaos that also the people on the inside. Yeah. They do need to go. I agree with you. I agree with you. But please go ahead, comrade.

Milton Allimadi (38:04.548)
and they're low. They need to go.

They need to go.

Adesoji Iginla (38:12.952)
Go on. No, well, comrade, before you go, I want to preface what you're about to say with this. It's actually part question, part statement. So the South African Constitutional Court has done its job. Parliament is also doing its job. But for the millions of South Africans living without adequate housing, clean water, or consistent electricity, how does this drama play out to them when it's their very occupation of their

roles as political officers have not changed their lives.

Milton Allimadi (38:47.801)
No, ironically, a way, it's actually good because these are the kind of things you need to happen before you have authentic revolution. And that's what these countries need, you know, all of these countries. So with me, I look at the structure of the system, not so much the individuals. mean, of course, these guys are exceptional crooks, Ruto, Kamaphosa, but any other name in their position would probably be exceptional crooks as well.

And I have no sympathy for Ramaphosa, course. He's a guy who's betrayed the revolution. How do you have $4 million in cash?

Think about that in your home. And first of all, this story was very badly written too. You don't realize that they're referring to the $4 million in cash until the very end of the article. All the worst edited articles are received from a major media network as well. So the people that stole the money were hoping that there's no way Ramaphosa is going to come publicly and admit that money was stolen from his farm.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (39:35.321)
Yes.

Adesoji Iginla (39:41.344)
And very much so, very much so, yeah.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (39:42.028)
Yeah.

Milton Allimadi (40:00.793)
because the public would then say, a minute, why did you have 4 million in your farm in the first place? But being how greedy he was, even though he knew he would be opening up Pandora's box, there was no way would he allow 4 million to just go like that. So he actually sent South Africa intelligence officers to Namibia to arrest the people who had stolen the money and bring them back. So it was an

Adesoji Iginla (40:03.288)
What did you?

Milton Allimadi (40:29.815)
illegal operation, right? He dug himself further. Sorry. Sorry.

Adesoji Iginla (40:33.966)
Using the tools of states. Using the tools of states. Using the tools of states.

Milton Allimadi (40:41.312)
Absolutely the truth of state over his private corrupt enterprise, you see So now and sister is correct He's in a dilemma Because now to continue as president he may have to depend. Well, he may not even with the Democratic Alliance against him There may not be sufficient for two-thirds if they decide to go against him but

Adesoji Iginla (40:47.949)
Hmm.

Milton Allimadi (41:10.901)
economic freedom fighters might also vote against him. know, Malema's party. And Zuma's party, definitely also. Zuma hates him, you see? So now it means that he really needs the Democratic Alliance. And the Democratic Alliance, if you think he controls him now, imagine to what extent would they be controlling him. So it's actually probably better that he be removed as president.

Adesoji Iginla (41:21.007)
Yeah, with the passion.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (41:21.753)
Yep.

Milton Allimadi (41:40.348)
for the sake of South Africa. But here's another thing I want to say for both South Africa and Kenya.

This political system is relatively maturing in these countries, right? They have a system that can actually remove a president like Ramaphosa, which is a good sign, partially. But they need to go beyond that because they're still operating in the typical bourgeois state. Whatever comes afterwards is not going to address the needs of the people, as Sister said, the population, the regular people.

And then finally, I want to say this for our system brothers listening, go listen to the interview on YouTube with Steve Biko. Just put Steve Biko interview and it will pop up. It's about 27 or 28 minutes. And this is something you said in 1977 and we are seeing it materialized today. He said, if we think ending apartheid is just a question of changing the color of the people running the system,

then it's going to be as if yesterday is the same as today. And he's a complete 100 % right. In South Africa, yesterday is the same as today. Now what they have is a neo-apartheid state. That's what they have.

Adesoji Iginla (43:05.23)
OK. Yeah. So to audience, if you're finding value, please consider subscribing to the channel. Like, share, subscribe, do all the good stuff. And there's no other place you would get this sort of analysis other than on African News Review. So that's it. We're going to a question of geography. And it's that Togo.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (43:05.872)
Yeah.

Adesoji Iginla (43:36.59)
couple of days ago took his fight against, so Togo's, the story comes from Radio France International, and it's the Togo fight against centuries old map revives debate over African representation. Some are asked the question, what's the big deal? Well, it's a plan by Togo to ask the United Nations General Assembly in September to move away from a Makato world map has revived the broader debate.

over how different projections can shape perception of Africa. And it is that, what's the story? Faya Ndiaye, a co-founder and deputy executive director of advocacy organization, Speak Up Africa, argues that distorting the true size of countries on map can quietly shape how people view who matters in the world. I think it is important to know that the maps are not neutral, she told RFI. Of the widely used Mercato map, she said, Greenland.

appears almost as large as Africa, when in reality Africa is 14 times larger than Greenland. She went further. For Africa, India, said, being shown as smaller than a true size can send a damaging message about the continent's importance and even cause it to be sidelined in negotiation. The African Union publicized a decision during

published a decision during his federal summit backing the use of Equal Earth's map despite the Mercato outline still appearing in its own logo. Talk about irony. So sister, I'm sure you did geography in secondary school.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (45:20.889)
I think we covered this story a little while ago, still on this issue of, you know.

Milton Allimadi (45:25.169)
Yeah.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (45:30.48)
Okay, kudos to Togo, kudos to African nations. It looks like every UN meeting now, we are not just coming as spectators, we are coming with, yes, and no, well, we're coming with plans and demands and so on and so forth. So I give them kudos on that. Having said that, you don't need the UN to approve anything for you to do what you need to do yourselves.

Adesoji Iginla (45:42.946)
maps.

Adesoji Iginla (45:47.095)
issues.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (45:59.759)
So let me tell you on a very basic level, something that I noticed. So we have a school that we are sponsoring in Oporto in Nigeria. We wanted to decorate some of the classrooms, particularly the kindergarten classrooms. So we're looking for those charts that have a, as in, know, so on and so forth, right?

All of the ones that, so I'm here in the US and I'm saying, no, before you buy it, I want to see it. All of the things that they're showing me are so Eurocentric. Q is for queen and it's got a picture of a white woman. D is for doctor. It's got a picture of a white person as a doctor. And this is in Nigeria. We had to create, we had to create our own, like I had to commission someone.

Milton Allimadi (46:43.774)
Yeah.

It is very distressing.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (46:54.084)
to go, okay, for the alphabet and for the animals. And then they would come up with these animals that did not exist in Africa. And I'm like, wait a second, we have animals with these names that start, that live in Africa. Why are we coming up with, and I'm not saying we don't want to expose our children to animals that live outside of Africa, but let's start with things that they can relate to first. But that was even a struggle for the people I was working with. So I say all of that to say,

Adesoji Iginla (47:17.294)
Correct.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (47:23.022)
Representation absolutely matters. We don't need to wait for the UN. Our own schools, our own countries can make that decision to say, this is a map that fairly represents us. We are going to start implementing them in our own countries, on our pamphlets, with our own curriculum. And yes, you can still take that up to the UN, but nothing stops you from implementing it with your own curriculum. And while we're doing that,

Go back and reclaim your names with everything. No more Victoria Falls. Just like Ghana left Gold Coast, why are we still having Ivory Coast? Why do we still have Port Harcourt? Why do we still, no, go back and claim your names in all the different ways. Why do we still have Cyril as the president of our country? Even Kwame Nkrumah had the sense to change from Francis back to Kwame.

So it is 2026 in every way. Let us reclaim our representation. And we do not need to go to the UN to get permission for that.

Adesoji Iginla (48:32.462)
Comrade.

Milton Allimadi (48:33.917)
All right. So to me, that struck me the most. okay, fine, Togo, because you need a country to bring it before the UN. But I think the story gives Togo too much credit. I think this private initiative by this organization, absolutely, they should have the preponderance of the credit. FAYA and DIA should be in the lead.

Adesoji Iginla (48:54.702)
Speak up Africa.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (48:56.088)
Yes, yes.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (49:00.942)
Yes.

Milton Allimadi (49:04.133)
Right? Because this is the kind of private individual initiative that we need to promote and encourage throughout Africa. So Togo introduced it there. At the same time, I don't hear Togo or any other African countries pushing for a borderless Africa, pushing for a United States or Africa. Something like this, it only has benefits. You get the kudos, but

Adesoji Iginla (49:05.016)
Mm.

Milton Allimadi (49:33.623)
It's not that it's very important, but why do you stop there then? Then if you care so much about this big Africa, which of course needs to get its just dues and because it affects perception, of course, you know, China, even before it became a power, the size of China alone, you know, it affected the perception that people had of China. Same thing with India, another emerging power. So of course,

like China and India, Africa, should get its just dues as well in terms of the dimension. And why are we still talking about projection? Mercator or Philips? When we can have the accurate, precise dimension from outer space now. So why are we even still referring to the Philips, you know, projection? We don't need projection because we know the actuals now. So to me, the biggest thing is I want

And of course, they won't come from these leaderships because it would involve sacrificing their own role. Everybody wants to be a president in a small pond. So they want this big lake, but they still want to have all these small ponds, right, within that big lake. It's the biggest irony of this story.

Adesoji Iginla (50:39.64)
their positions.

Adesoji Iginla (50:53.326)
you

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (50:57.424)
And we definitely saw Namdi as equal a champion just that ideology. I would say this, to the extent that we've been doing Women in Resistance for what? Half a year, feels like, more than. One year plus now, wow. To the extent that this initiative is also headed by a woman, yeah, we can't give her too much credit. I was surprised they even mentioned her name in the article.

Adesoji Iginla (51:09.934)
Yeah, one year plus now.

Adesoji Iginla (51:25.846)
Well, OK. So is that your final take on the story? So kudos to Speak Up Africa. yeah, like the good comrade said, we now have satellites. We don't need lines on map anymore. So we're coming to the end of the program. And if you do find value, do like, share, subscribe, and do all the good stuff.

Milton Allimadi (51:44.406)
right.

Adesoji Iginla (51:54.542)
Thank you, Miss June, for the super chats. And we go to the last story, and it's one that sister will probably enjoy. And it's from New York Times, which I know the good comrade has fond memories of. So this last story comes from the New York Times, and it is titled Cynthia Chagay.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (52:05.424)
Really?

Milton Allimadi (52:10.869)
I actually do.

Adesoji Iginla (52:23.566)
who defied apartheid at a beauty pageant dies at the age of 76. She was the first black South African to enter Miss World Contest placing in the top five in 1972. And let's give her our flowers. There she is. Stunning. And for me, the key part of this story is this. And then I'll allow you to take.

Cynthia Chang'e, who was at the height of apartheid, was the first Black woman from South Africa to compete in Miss World Beauty Pageant, placing her in the top five at 1972, contest becoming an enduring symbol of glamour and resistance, died on April 20 in Kwanzulu-Natal, South Africa. was 76. She well understood the variation of her participation in Miss World when she arrived at the Royal Abbot Hall in London.

where the contest was held in December 1972. Ms. Shangei then 23 raised her fist in the air in a Black Power salute. She later said, even so, the moment was bittersweet. South Africa's official Miss World Contest that year was Miss Stefanie Remke, who was white and blonde. Ms. Shangei was in London representing African South, a country that did not exist, she told the Times of London in a 2010 interview.

The last part is this. There she is. And where is it? Yeah. But returning to originally said South Africa was a stark letdown. She traveled across the country for modeling work. She said in a 2010 interview, she had to stop at road houses to eat and ask for food through the back door. One final piece, and it's here. At the height of apartheid, the statement read. This is a statement issued by the parliament.

when Black people were excluded from mainstream recognition and representation. Shanguay's presence on that stage asserted beauty, worth, and humanity of Black women in a society that sought to erase them. So let's go first to the sister in light of, no, no, we'll go first to you in light of the fact that you do women and resistance, or you've now been doing that for a year and some months. And so.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (54:32.002)
No, no, let's go to let's go to comrade first.

Adesoji Iginla (54:45.1)
you get a fast take.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (54:50.912)
Me? I'm trying to give it up. I'm trying to give it over to comrade first.

Adesoji Iginla (54:51.575)
Yeah, we're waiting.

Milton Allimadi (54:55.032)
No, I mean, I don't have a few words anyway, so.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (54:58.137)
Yes, please go.

Adesoji Iginla (54:58.294)
Okay, good.

Milton Allimadi (55:00.432)
So I'm just happy to see she lived long enough to see apartheid South Africa replaced with neo apartheid South Africa, which is slightly better than apartheid South Africa. So she lived to see that era. She did not die before the official demise of apartheid South Africa. know, beyond that, I would like to say that

Adesoji Iginla (55:22.807)
Over and about that.

Milton Allimadi (55:30.817)
one of the most enduring damages that the apartheid state and system did to Africans in South Africa is actually in a way similar to what was also done in this country to our sisters and brothers. But in South Africa it was much more intense. So that even today in South Africa, I'm not sure they would embrace

a standard of beauty as a person look like Lupita Nyong'o. You see what I'm saying? Africa and many African countries, by the way, still a long way from there. Because in South Africa, and I think we discussed this several episodes ago, they had what was called, we discussed it in fact very recently, the population register. Remember what saying? I was saying sister, brown skin could actually argue

Adesoji Iginla (56:05.902)
Mmm. Mmm.

Milton Allimadi (56:29.707)
that she's not black, she's colored, or in fact, she could actually make a claim that she's white. The incentive was, yes, come as close as possible to white, you see? So that damage was very deep-seated, and that damage is still very intense in South Africa, but in many African camps as well. So that's all I want to say about this particular story.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (56:37.125)
Hehehe!

Adesoji Iginla (56:42.926)
Mm-mm.

Adesoji Iginla (56:55.926)
Okay, so sister.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (56:59.94)
May her brave soul rest in peace and rise in power because I cannot even imagine what that experience felt like to be in those spaces in that time. Having said that, I echo everything that Comrade has already said. Glad that she lived long enough, that she had a farm. She was, according to the article,

She was able to go and breathe. You know, she talked about leaving the country when she went for the Miss World pageant and being treated like a human being, being able to eat and just that process of like actually rediscovering your own humanity. And that just brought tears to my eyes. So having said that, let me just officially say this.

even though I at one point had been in a beauty pageant myself, I am categorically opposed to those pieces of crap because it just flies into this patriarchal system of objectifying women and.

Milton Allimadi (58:04.79)
and grow.

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (58:14.062)
diminishing who we are and you are a thing of enjoyment for someone else, fetishizing. You hear that again, this idiot, felon in chief, adjudicated sexual offender in the White House talking about, well, because I was sponsoring the pageant, I would go and watch these girls in various states of undress and nobody could stop me. And you're just something to be used.

And then to the extent that even with social media now, so many young women are taking their sense of worth from how they look. You know, the Michael Jackson story just came out and we're seeing how his father's words to him about how he looked, his nose, how that impacted not just Michael, but almost every member of his family who went on to get their noses done, including his father.

You know, so these issues of beauty and how we are supposed to present ourselves and how that ties into our humanity are deeply troubling to me. I'm glad that that was something that she was able to use at that point as her ticket out and she became an actress and she told many of our own stories. I hope that moving forward that we no longer find a need to.

participate in our own objectification, in our own dehumanization for the benefit of.

less evolved people, quite frankly. Yeah.

Adesoji Iginla (59:54.136)
OK, OK. And so with that story, we've come to the end of this week's episode of African News Review. The four stories we've brought to you have highlighted the fact that Africa does have agency. Unfortunately, we choose not to exercise it. And so we continue the work next week. And final thoughts, Comrade Milton.

Milton Allimadi (59:56.609)
Yep.

Milton Allimadi (01:00:20.544)
Well, as I say all the time, support this platform so that we can continue to expand, bring you more analysis, critique, and evaluations on a weekly basis. Aluta continua.

Adesoji Iginla (01:00:35.832)
Drill Setup. And sister?

Aya Fubara Eneli, Esq. (01:00:40.762)
Thank you for the work you continue to do and for bringing our awareness to these stories week in and week out.

Adesoji Iginla (01:00:47.55)
And to the audience, thank you for joining us week in, week out. And so until next week, it's good night and God bless.