Agency Reporter

Kyrgyz President Sooronbai Jeenbekov, on Friday officially announced his resignation at an extraordinary session of the parliament.

Jeenbekov at the meeting said “I decided to leave the presidency in order to preserve peace in our country and prevent a split in society.

“For me above all is the integrity of our country, the unity of the people, and harmony in our society. The most precious thing for me is the health of every citizen, the life of every compatriot.’’

He also expressed gratitude to all Kyrgyz people who believed in him and supported the three years of his presidency.

Jeenbekov also wished success to the new government, which has placed responsibility for the fate of the country and people on its shoulders.

During the meeting, Speaker of the Parliament Kanatbek Isayev refused to serve as acting president of Kyrgyzstan and Prime Minister Sadyr Zhaparov became the acting president.

According to the Kyrgyz Constitution, if the president leaves office ahead of schedule, his powers are performed by the speaker.

If it is impossible for the speaker to exercise the powers of the president, the powers are performed by the prime minister.

Jeenbekov declared his intention to resign on Thursday. (Xinhua/NAN)

Agency Reporter

Kyrgyzstan’s President, Sooronbay Jeenbekov, has resigned after a disputed parliamentary election triggered mass protests, according to a speech published by his office on Thursday.

“I am not holding on to power,’’ Jeenbekov said in the statement.

He did not want to be remembered by history as the president who opened fire on his own citizens, he said.

Violent unrest broke out in Kyrgyzstan in early October, after parliamentary elections resulted in a win for candidates with ties to the sitting president.

Kyrgyzstan, a country of 6.5 million people located on the border with China, was plunged into chaos following the Oct. 4 vote that was swept by pro-government parties.

The opposition said the election was tainted by vote-buying and other irregularities

Observers called the elections unfair, and shortly afterwards protesters stormed government buildings in the capital, calling on Jeenbekov to resign.

Jeenbekov introduced a state of emergency in the capital that was endorsed Tuesday by parliament.

READ ALSO: COVID-19: Chinese medical team returns from Kyrgyzstan

Authorities deployed troops to Bishkek over the weekend and introduced the curfew.

The move eased tensions in the city, where residents feared looting that accompanied previous uprisings and began forming vigilante groups to protect property.

Stores and banks that were closed last week have reopened.

The turmoil marks the third time in 15 years that demonstrators have moved to oust a government in Kyrgyzstan, one of the poorest nations to emerge from the former Soviet Union.

As in the uprisings that ousted presidents in 2005 and 2010, the current protests have been driven by clan rivalries that shape the country’s politics.

(dpa/NAN)

By Tony Akowe, Abuja

Speakers and Heads of African Parliaments have begun taking measures that will culminate in foreign loan debt relief for African countries.

The push for debt cancellation being spearheaded by Nigeria’s House of Representatives Speaker Femi Gbajabiamila is coming with a pledge by the lawmakers to improve oversight over loan approvals and ensure judicious utilisation of loans in their respective countries.

Special Adviser to the Speaker on Media and Publicity Lanre Lasisi said in a statement yesterday that the measures followed the official formation and launching of the Conference of Speakers and Heads of African Parliaments (CoSAP) initiated by  Gbajabiamila due to the shared concern over the socio-economic effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on African counties.

Members of the group include Tagesse Chafo, Speaker, House of Peoples’ Parliament of Ethiopia; Hon. Prof. Aaron Mike Oquaye, MP, Speaker of Parliament, Republic of Ghana, and Hon. Justin Bedan Muturi, Speaker, National Assembly, Kenya.

Others are Hon. Donatille Mukabalisa, Speaker, Chamber of Deputies, Rwanda; Hon. Moustapha Niasse, President, National Assembly, Republic of Senegal; and Hon. Thandi Modise, Speaker, National Assembly, South Africa.

Lasisi said during a virtual meeting yesterday, the Heads of African Parliament assured of their commitment to advocate for debt relief and to ensure that all resources made available from the debt relief efforts are transparently used and fully accounted for.

In his remarks, Gbajabiamila emphasised the need for advocacy for the expansion and the buy-in of other African Speakers and Heads of Parliaments, saying the President of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), Ms Gabriela Cuevas Barron, has shown tremendous support for CoSAP.

He said: “Today, officially marks the beginning of this historic initiative, and I want us to remember this as a historical day, not just for us as Speakers and Heads of Parliaments with a vision but for our continent, Africa.

“We have managed to achieve so much in this little time, but this is not the time to rest on our oars but to work even harder. We must put more pressure and effort than before and act with more strength and vigour that we can muster so that our voices can be heard more clearly both domestically and internationally.

“The next couple of weeks will serve as a major determinant of this initiative, but I’m confident that we are more than capable, especially because we are aware that our people are relying on us to see this vision and initiative to fruition.”

The members, however, agreed to ensure, through the assigned constitutional powers of the legislature, that freed-up resources are not misused, but are invested in social, economic and human capital development.

They said: “We pledge to include citizens in open and participatory processes to decide the appropriate use of such funds, to publish all relevant budget information, and to implement open procurement and contracting for all funds expended.

“We pledge to revise the current loan application procedures of our countries to ensure that subsequent loan collections are properly monitored, from commencement to completion, through our respective legislative powers.

“We pledge to work collaboratively as Speakers and Heads of African parliaments to ensure that all resources invested in Africa are channelled into the wholesome development of the continent.

“We pledge to partner with international and national organizations, public and private sectors as well as civil society organizations to keep us accountable and actualize our stated commitments to ensure that government is more transparent and accountable to our citizens”.

Lasisi said further that the members set for themselves some objectives that include to discuss and agree on a Plan of Action on how to collaborate and contribute in the ongoing campaign for Africa’s debt relief and also resolved to engage with other Speakers across the continent with the possibility of organizing the first Conference of Speakers and Heads of African Parliaments (COSAP) by 2021.

In a communique at the end of the virtual meeting, they emphasised the need for debt cancellation for Africa because of the extra burden of debt servicing, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic on African countries.

“The emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic has posed an extra burden on African countries such that extra expenditure is required on health and other related sectors that were not budgeted for to curb the spread of the virus;

“We accept that our various Parliaments have a role to play on issues of transparency and accountability, tackling corruption, and improving oversight over loan approvals and judicious utilization of the same in our respective countries.

“The Debt Cancellation Campaign Initiative (DCCI) therefore, seeks to campaign for the cancellation of African debts in order to provide fiscal space for economic recovery and development on the continent in the wake of Covid-19”.

Accordingly, a plan of action, a debt cancellation advocacy strategy and an outreach strategy for ensuring other Speakers across the continent are engaged was adopted by the Speakers and Head of Parliaments.

Head of the Ghanaian Parliament, Prof. Quaye said the vision of CoSAP, as well as the accountability pledge undertaken, were necessary because African bilateral and multilateral partners needed to be assured of the sincerity of the leadership of the African parliaments to ensure accountability in the application of the forgiven debt.

Also, Hon. Muturi, who is the Speaker, National Assembly, Kenya, while endorsing the launch of the group and the accountability pledge, said the event of the day was significant and showed how committed the leadership of African parliaments was by staking their integrity through the application of the forgiven debt.

Hon. Niasse, President, National Assembly, Republic of Senegal said the launch of CoSAP was not only historic for Africa and the evolution of the world, but it has also provided an opportunity for change, considering the effect of the coronavirus pandemic on the socio-economic and human capital development on the continent.

In her remarks, Hon. Modise of National Assembly of South Africa emphasised that the documents would aid her advocacy for CoSAP in the Southern African sub-region presenting the new movement to her counterparts in the region and regional bodies like the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) parliamentary forum

 

UNITED States (U.S.) academics Paul Milgrom and Robert Wilson won the 2020 Nobel Economics yesterday for work on auctions hailed as benefiting buyers and sellers around the world of everything from fishing quotas to aircraft landing slots.

Among the insights of the two Stanford University economists is an explanation of how bidders seek to avoid the so-called “winner’s curse” of over-paying, and what happens when bidders gain a better understanding of their rivals’ sense of value.

“Auctions are everywhere and affect our everyday lives. This year’s Economic Sciences Laureates, Paul Milgrom and Robert Wilson, have improved auction theory and invented new auction formats, benefiting sellers, buyers and taxpayers around the world,” the Nobel Prize’s official website tweeted.

Milgrom and Wilson notably came up with formats for selling interrelated items simultaneously. In 1994, U.S. authorities used one of their auction designs to sell radio frequencies to telecom operators, a move since copied in other countries.

In a statement, Stanford, which with Milgrom and Wilson now counts 19 living Nobel laureates, said their design had been used worldwide to allocate over $100 billion of licences.

Wilson showed that rational bidders tend to place bids below their own best estimate of what he called the “common value” – that is, when the value of an item is deemed to be the same for everyone – for fear of paying too much.

Wilson showed that rational bidders tend to place bids below their own best estimate of what he called the “common value” – that is, when the value of an item is deemed to be the same for everyone – for fear of paying too much.

Milgrom complemented that with theories on “private values”, when the perceived value of something differs from bidder to bidder.

He demonstrated that an auction format will give the seller higher expected revenue when bidders learn more about each other’s estimated values during the bidding process.

Speaking to reporters by telephone, Wilson welcomed the “happy news” of the award and revealed that his own personal experience of auction participation was limited.

“Myself, I have never actively participated in an auction,” the 83-year-old Wilson said. “My wife points out that we bought skiboots on eBay – I guess that was an auction.”

Milgrom, 72, told Reuters that Wilson, who lives across the street from him in Stanford, California, came to knock on his door in the early morning hours to tell him of their shared award as his phone had been on silent mode to let him sleep.

Asked if was anything in his research applicable to helping bidders avoid the “winner’s curse”, he said: “(It) is mostly a matter of being aware of it, knowing how to adjust…You better be sure there’s a reason that you assigned a higher value than other bidders, so that it doesn’t just mean that you’ve overestimated what the thing is worth.”

Even with all the data available today, bidders are often paying for uncertainty, Milgrom said.

The 10-million-Swedish-crown ($1.14 million) economics prize is not one of the original five awards created in the 1895 will of industrialist and dynamite inventor Alfred Nobel, but was established by Sweden’s central bank and first awarded in 1969.

The Norwegian Nobel Committee plans to go ahead with an award ceremony, albeit in a reduced format due to the coronavirus pandemic, in Oslo on Dec. 10, the anniversary of the death of Alfred Nobel.

PRESIDENT Donald Trump has called on Republicans to skip the four-day Supreme Court confirmation hearings for Judge Amy Coney Barrett and approve his nominee quickly so they could work on approving a stimulus package instead.

“The Republicans are giving the Democrats a great deal of time, which is not mandated, to make their self-serving statements relative to our great new future Supreme Court Justice,” he wrote on Twitter.

“Personally, I would pull back, approve, and go for stimulus for the people!!” he said.

The Senate Judiciary Committee started the confirmation hearings yesterday for Judge Amy Coney Barrett, Trump’s nominee for the high court. If confirmed towards the end of October, Barrett would lock in a 6-3 conservative majority on the Supreme Court.

Democrats have been critical of the proceedings because of the rapid timetable, and they’ve also argued it’s coming at the expense of a federal rescue package. Sen. Patrick Leahy of Vermont said in his opening remarks “we shouldn’t spending time on this when we are doing absolutely nothing to pass a much-needed Covid bill.”

Read Also: I’m free of COVID-19, says Trump

 

Trump’s remarks come after the White House increased its stimulus offer to $1.8 trillion on Friday, its largest one yet during a turbulent stretch of negotiations with Democrats. The president revived the talks after abruptly ending them last week.

But Senate Republicans and Democrats blasted the White House proposal. Republicans said the price tag was too costly and criticized several measures.

Meanwhile, Speaker Nancy Pelosi called it “wholly insufficient” in a letter to colleagues on Sunday, laying out concerns about health funding and testing.

She’s also taken issue with the administration’s plan on federal funding for state and local aid, unemployment insurance, and tax credits for families and low-income individuals.

UNITED Kingdom (UK) Prime Minister Boris Johnson has announced a new three-tier lockdown alert system, as the country struggles to contain a second wave of coronavirus.

He said the UK would suffer an “intolerable death toll” and the NHS would “fall over”, if he simply let the virus “rip”.

He said the country would be divided according to areas of medium, high and very high infection levels.

Liverpool is the first city to fall under high alert and will see the closure of pubs, restaurants and gyms within days.

The city recorded 600 cases per 100,000 people in the week ending October 6. The average for English towns and cities was 74.

Under very high alert, all cross-household mixing will be banned in all environments, except outdoor public spaces, where the rule of six applies.

Read Also: Johnson defends COVID-19 strategy as UK infections soar

 

Pubs, restaurants, gyms and leisure centres are to close.

People will also be told to avoid non-essential travel in and out of areas with a very high alert level.

Medium alert covers most of England with restrictions, including the current rule of six and 10pm curfew on pubs and restaurants.

Johnson said the country needed to walk a tightrope of protecting lives and the economy.

The prime minister said it would be wrong to “let the virus rip” and put the NHS under “unbearable pressure”.

He told the MPs: “If we let the virus rip the bleak mathematics say we would suffer an intolerable death toll.

“The virus would spread with such velocity, there would be no way to stop it.”

Johnson pleaded with angry local mayors to “work with us on these necessary but difficult measures,” telling them it would be “unforgivable” not to curb the spread of the virus.

Mayors in cities with high infection rates will be encouraged to sign off on a high alert level, rather than the government imposing tough measures, the prime minister said.

He said increased funding for testing and support for industries such as the shuttered hospitality industry would follow.

 

China will continue to support Africa and will resolve the debt issue through friendly consultations with African countries, the Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Zhao Lijian, said yesterday in Beijing.

Lijian made this remarks at a news conference in response to certain Western countries’ false accusations against China of not fully participating in the Group of 20 Debt Service Suspension Initiative.

Also, it was added that China had failed to help African countries to reduce their debt burdens.

Lijian said China had attached great importance to debt suspension and alleviation in Africa and is committed to fully implementing the G20 debt relief initiative.

China has announced important measures to alleviate African debt at the Extraordinary China-Africa Summit on Solidarity against COVID-19.

“We are following the consensus reached by the leaders of China and Africa and the G20 Debt Service Suspension Initiative and are actively responding to the concerns of the African side,” said Lijian.

He added that the Export-Import Bank of China, as an official bilateral creditor, had signed debt suspension agreements with 11 African countries.

Lijian also said non-official creditors had also reached consensus on debt relief with some African countries.

Read Also: Why Africa must ensure beneficial ties with China, others, by experts

 

Lijian said China would exempt 15 African countries from interest-free loans by the end of 2020 and continue to promote the international community, especially the G20, to further extend the duration of debt suspension.

The debts held by multilateral financial institutions and commercial creditors account for more than three-quarters of the total foreign debt of African countries, he said.

He added that those institutions and creditors should bear a greater responsibility for debt relief.

“China’s cooperation with Africa never interferes in the internal affairs of African countries and political conditions are never attached.

“Those are the principles we hold when dealing with Africa’s debt problems.

“The label “debt trap” cannot be handed to China,” he said.

The country stands ready to strengthen communication and coordination with African countries and resolve the debt problem through friendly consultations, Lijian said.