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Ruth Khakame

AdminNovember 7, 2022

Image of Ruth Namachanja playing with her kid

Image of Ruth Namachanja playing with her kid

Image of Ruth Namachanja watering plants at her place

Image of Ruth Namachanja watering plants at her place

photographs of Ruth Namchanja

photographs of Ruth Namchanja

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A New Outbreak Tanzania Has Recorded an Outbreak of the Marburg Virus

March 26, 2023

2023 Election Updates Daily Briefings from The Republic

March 24, 2023

Black Mecca A Brief History of Black Islam from Africa to the Diaspora

March 23, 2023

Interim Royals The Marginalization of Women-Regents in Present-Day Yoruba Monarchy

March 23, 2023

The Conductor of Chaos MC Oluomo’s Dangerous Rise and Rhetoric

March 21, 2023

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Latest

A New Outbreak Tanzania Has Recorded an Outbreak of the Marburg Virus

March 26, 2023

2023 Election Updates Daily Briefings from The Republic

March 24, 2023

Black Mecca A Brief History of Black Islam from Africa to the Diaspora

March 23, 2023

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Today in 1994, the Shell House Massacre happened.

Today in 1994, the Shell House Massacre happened. #RxHistory⏳

On 28 March 1994, about 20,000 Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) supporters marched to Shell House, Johannesburg in protest against the 1994 elections. At the time, Shell House was the headquarters of the African National Congress (ANC) in South Africa. ANC security guards opened fire and killed more than 50 people.

The incident reflected the rising tensions between the ANC and IFP, which had begun in the 1980s in KwaZulu-Natal and had then spread to other provinces in the 1990s. The IFP claimed that the ANC was intent on undermining traditional authorities and the power of Zulu chiefs.

The incident, coined the ‘Shell House Massacre’ by the media, occurred at the height of election campaigns when the ANC was attempting to establish itself as an organization that had been transformed from a revolutionary liberation movement to a responsible political party capable of governing the country.

In June 1995, then-President Nelson Mandela claimed that he had ordered the guards to defend Shell House, ‘even if they had to kill people’.

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📝: Ibukun Olokode and Ugonna Eronini
🎥: Zulu supporters of the Inkatha Freedom Party demonstrate in Johannesburg, South Africa, in the run up to the country's first General Election to be held with universal adult suffrage, 1994. (Photo by Tom Stoddart/Getty Images)

Tanzania Has Recorded an Outbreak of the Marburg V

Tanzania Has Recorded an Outbreak of the Marburg Virus #RxNews📡

On 21 March, the Republic of Tanzania declared its first-ever outbreak of Marburg virus disease (MVD) after identifying eight confirmed cases in the Bukoba district, Kagera region, north-west Tanzania.

Marburg virus is transmitted to people from fruit bats and spreads among humans through direct contact with the bodily fluids of infected people, surfaces and materials. The virus spreads between people through close contact only after they show symptoms.

In Africa, outbreaks have occurred and been reported in Uganda, Kenya, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Angola. In 2022, Ghana recorded two positive fatal cases; the outbreak was declared over after 42 days had passed without any new cases. Tanzania and Equatorial Guinea are the latest countries to tackle an outbreak of the virus; Equatorial Guinea confirmed its first-ever outbreak of Marburg virus disease in February with one confirmed case and 24 suspected cases.

Read the full story by clicking the link in our bio.

___________
📝: Hillary Essien, Senior Associate Editor
📷: Onyinye Dike

Today in 1927, Nigerian football player and coach,

Today in 1927, Nigerian football player and coach, Teslim Balogun, was born. #RxHistory⏳

On 27 March 1927, Nigerian Football player, Teslim Olawale Balogun was born in Lagos, Nigeria. Balogun played as a striker at both professional and international levels, eventually becoming Africa’s first ever qualified football coach. Balogun is still regarded as one of Nigeria’s most popular football players and a pioneer for African footballers.

Balogun attended St. Patrick’s Primary School in Oke-Awo, Lagos. He later graduated from St. Mary’s Catholic School in Port Harcourt, where he played for the school’s Marine Athletic Club. Outside his school’s club, Balogun played for a number of Nigerian teams, including the Apapa Bobbers, the Jos XI, the Railways XI, the Pank Bank Team, the Dynamos Club and SCOA XI.

Praised for his powerful shots, Balogun was the first player to score a hat-trick in the Challenge Cup. He won the tournament five times and played in seven finals, affirming his position as a formidable center forward and skilled player. In 1949, Balogun briefly toured with a Nigerian select squad before departing for London, where he worked as a letterpress printer.

Balogun became the first ever football export from Nigeria when he arrived in England. He signed for Peterborough United, and Queens Park Rangers, respectively. Balogun eventually left the Queens Park Rangers and returned to non-league football, playing with Holbeach United.

In 1961, Balogun returned back to Nigeria and became the first qualified football coach in Africa. He was a coach for Nigeria’s team at the 1968 Summer Olympics and a member of the national side for 12 years.

Balogun died on 30 July 1972, at the age of 45, but his legacy still lives on. The Teslim Balogun stadium in Surulere, Lagos was named in his honor, as well as, the Teslim Balogun Foundation which was founded after his death.

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📝: Sinmi Sowande, Editorial Intern
📷: A statue of Teslim Balogun outside the Teslim Balogun Stadium during the FIFA U17 World Cup on October 22, 2009 in Lagos, Nigeria. Photo by Jamie McDonald - FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images)

3 Books to Include in Your Ramadan Reading List 📚

If you're looking to add more books to your Ramadan reading list this season, the following recommendations are just great. These books explore themes such as spirituality and faith, migration, and the history of Islam in the continent.

Have you read any of these books? What books would you recommend?

For more book recommendations from African authors, click the link in our bio.

________________________________
#ReadSomethingAfrican
📝: Peace Onafuye, Associate Editor

Today in 2005, the first Senior Advocate of Nigeri

Today in 2005, the first Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Frederick Rotimi Alade Williams, died aged 84. #RxHistory⏳

On 26 March 2005, prominent Nigerian lawyer and politician, Frederick Rotimi Williams, died at the age of 84. He was the first black Attorney General in Africa, the first African to be appointed to the rank of Queen’s Counsel (QC), and the first Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN).

Williams was born in Lagos in 1920. He attended C.M.S Grammar School for his secondary education and was given a full scholarship to study mechanical engineering at Yaba Higher College but refused and studied law instead. In 1948, he set up the first indigenous Nigerian law firm with Chief Remilekun Fani-Kayode and Chief Bode Thomas, called ‘Thomas, Williams and Kayode’.

Williams became the president of the Nigerian Bar Association in 1959. On 18 October 1975, Rotimi Williams became the chairman of the Constitutional Drafting Committee that drafted the 1979 Constitution. The 1979 Constitution has formed the foundation of subsequent constitutions, including the prevailing 1999 Constitution.

Throughout his career, Rotimi Williams was involved in many landmark court cases, such as Lakanmi vs the Western Government of Nigeria. The case restricted the military government from making laws used to appropriate private, individual property.

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📝: Ibukun Olokode and Ugonna Eronini
📷: 1) Chief F.R.A. Williams, Nigerian Minister of Justice and Local Government, taking notes at a proceeding in Lagos. 24 March 1957. IMS Vintage Photos.
2) Chief F.R.A. Williams being greeted by Major Tufton Beamish at the House of Commons. England, UK. UNKNOWN PHOTOGRAPHER.

The Muslim women Aisha Salaudeen has been reading.

The Muslim women Aisha Salaudeen has been reading. #OnSite⚡

Multimedia journalist and creator of the I Like Girls podcast, Aisha Salaudeen, believes you can find a story in anything: ‘Every place, thing, person, item, etc., has a story. And you can find a story in anything; you just have to know where to look. Whether or not it’s a good story or a story worth telling is an entirely different conversation.’

This week, we’re bringing back our 2022 interview with Aisha Salaudeen. Salaudeen’s interview features book recommendations for the Ramadan season, and her interesting perspectives on reading and writing.

According to Salaudeen: ‘African journalists are not lazy; they’re faced with a barrage of challenges such as the lack of press freedom, poor salaries, inadequate infrastructure and resources, and an almost non-existent business model for the media. With all of these things, it’s a miracle that our storytelling has evolved to be as crisp as it is today. And I am not listing these challenges to excuse lousy journalism, which by the way, exists all over the world; I’m just providing context.’

Read the full interview at the link in our bio.

_________________
📝: Aisha Salaudeen
🎨: Ojima Abalaka

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