“NO ELECTRICITY, NO VOTE,” SOUTH AFRICANS THREATEN TO SHUN RULING PARTY ANC. (PHOTO)

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 “No electricity, no vote,” South Africans threaten to shun ruling party ANC Residents in Katlehong, a township outside Johannesburg, have resolved to boycott South Africa's upcoming local elections on November 4 due to long-standing failures by authorities to provide basic services like electricity. For over 20 years, around 180 households in the community have relied on illegal electrical connections pulled from neighboring areas to power their homes. Angry over the lack of formal grid infrastructure, residents are directing their frustration at the ruling African National Congress (ANC). "We have made a collective decision: no electricity, no vote," said community leader Lesiba Rankapole, 59. "We know it is illegal, but we had no choice because we cannot live without electricity. Our children cannot progress without electricity." "I was born ANC, but today I do not want anyone to tell me about the ANC because I am suffering," added 57-year-old resid...

SOUTH SUDAN SETS DATE FOR FIRST-EVER ELECTION AFTER DELAYS. (PHOTO).


 South Sudan sets date for first-ever election after delays


Authorities in South Sudan announced the date of December 22 for the country's first general election since independence in 2011, AP reported.


Elections have been repeatedly postponed amid recurring armed conflict. There is also a long-standing political dispute between President Salva Kiir and opposition leader Riek Machar, who was suspended as the country's first vice president last year after he faced treason charges.


While the National Elections Commission says preparations for the election are underway, the opposition and some observers note legal issues and logistical hurdles.


Machar's group, known as Sudan People's Liberation Movement-in-Opposition, or SPLM-IO, said unresolved disagreements with Kiir's administration make the pursuit of elections a dangerous matter.


While Kiir is expected to be a presidential candidate in December’s election, it remains unclear if Machar, who still faces criminal charges, would be allowed to stand.


South Sudanese government troops have been fighting opposition forces since a 2018 peace deal broke down over a year ago. While fighting persists in some remote areas, Machar is under house arrest in Juba, the capital, occasionally appearing in a cage to answer charges his group says are politically motivated.


A UN inquiry has found that South Sudan’s leaders are “systematically dismantling” the 2018 peace agreement, signed to end a civil war and return Machar to a unity government with Kiir.


The UN mission in South Sudan has warned of worsening humanitarian conditions and called for a cessation of hostilities.

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