Burundi arrests 'coup plotters'

Thirteen soldiers in Burundi have been arrested for plotting a coup to overthrow President Pierre Nkurunziza, the army chief of staff has said.

Major Gen Godefroid Niyombare said the 12 soldiers and one officer had been caught in a meeting near Lake Tanganyika earlier on Friday.

Correspondents say there are fears this may affect elections due in June.

They will be the second polls to be held in country since the end of the deadly 12-year, ethnic-based civil war.

Major Gen Niyombare said those arrested were from both the Hutu and Tutsi ethnic groups.

Investigations were ongoing and more arrests should be expected, he added.

In 2007, former President Domitien Ndayizeye was acquitted of charges of plotting a coup.

A former rebel leader himself, President Nkurunziza was elected five years ago under a deal to end the years of conflict between the Tutsi army and Hutu rebels.

Some 300,000 people are believed to have died during the war.

Nigeria and its hijackers

Nigeria is in danger of entering an unprecedented stage as a hijacked entity. In fact, the polity is in the throes of what ought to be called its proper name, a coup-in-progress. A small but desperate cabal is surreptitiously consolidating its illegitimate power grab. Nigeria has been reduced to Umaru Yar’Adua’s private toy, a plaything reserved for the sole pleasure of the man and his cronies.
As I write, Mr. Yar’Adua (whose self-appellation as servant-leader has become the cruel joke it was designed to be) has been away from Nigeria for more than forty days. Apart from his wife, and a tiny circle of associates, few Nigerians can swear that they know for certain where Yar’Adua is. All we know for sure is that he’s not in Aso Rock, the official residence of the Nigerian president. Most Nigerians imagine, of course, that the man is in a hospital in Saudi Arabia – not because it’s proven fact, but it’s simply the official line. It’s impossible to vouch for any information that comes from a government that’s raised duplicity and deception to the level of art.Forget, for a moment, that Yar’Adua’s “presidency” still reeks – despite the shameful verdict of the Supreme Court – of illegality. Worse, before our very eyes, a cabal hitched to Yar’Adua is usurping the sovereign will of Nigerians. That group is acting in the name of an enfeebled man who (at this writing) has absconded from his post.Michael Aondoakaa, Yar’Adua’s Attorney General, may not be at the center of this usurpation, but he strikes me as chief coordinator of this orchestrated conquest of Nigeria. Yar’Adua’s wife, Turai – who’s perhaps the most ambitious “presidential” spouse in Nigeria’s history – appears to be the chief engineer.It no longer startles Nigerians to hear it said that Aondoakaa is the worst attorney general in his country’s history. Nigeria has had some pretty unimpressive attorney generals, but Aondoakaa stands in a class all his own for mediocrity and crassness. Now he’s adding something even more dangerous and troubling to his resume: a facility for defending the degradation of the Nigerian constitution.

Why is the Nigerian Army Promoting Senior Military Officers

VP Goodluck Jonathan at logger-heads with Turai Yar’adua but still plays his card cool, Coup rumours and secret meetings; why is the Nigerian Army announcing the promotion of officers in the cadre of General? To bribe and stop them from organising a coup?

Eight officers were elevated to the rank of Major General, while 49 others were moved to the rank of Brigadier General.
Nigerian sick President, Umaru Yar’adua still on AWOL in Jeddah Saudi Arabia, high-wire intrigues and intense power struggle goes on inside Aso Rock, Nigerian caught in US airline terrorist attack, more pipelines explode in the Niger Delta, Banks in melt-dwon, Economy in doldrums, Anambra political crisis nears a powder keg, Maryam Babangida is dead, letter bombs explode in Lagos, Concerned Nigerians wonder what will happen on January 1st 2010, when there won’t be a Chief Justice of the Federation of Nigerian to swear in Jonathan Goodluck even if the powers that be agree to declare Yar’Adua incapacitated by then. Pointblanknews.com reports that some notable politicians said to be close to the ailing President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua may have approached some top military personnel with a whooping N10 Billion to take over power and subsequently hand over to them after six months.
Saharareporters say the first lady, Turai, Yar’adua’s wife insists that the military be allowed to take over power after a vacuum would have been created by January 1st 2010, when there won’t be a Chief Justice of the Federation of Nigerian to swear in Jonathan even if they agree to declare Yar’Adua incapacitated. The military, under the plan, would intervene to “prevent chaos and unconstitutionality from derailing Nigeria’s unity and corporate existence”.