🎬 Guilty or not guilty

January 08, 2025

Good morning, And Happy New Year. While we’re late to the party, the statute of limitations to wish someone a ‘Happy New Year’ ended this past weekend.

That being said, let us be the first to wish you a happy National Take Down the Christmas Tree Day, though you really should have done it a week ago.

— Benyin Ogar, Edna Akanni.

CURRENCIES

Currency exchange rates against the US dollar as of market close. Here’s what these numbers mean

SECURITY
Kenya’s Safaricom under fire for alleged collusion with Kenyan Government

Thomas Mukoya/Reuters

Kenya’s largest telecom provider, Safaricom has been under fire for ensuring that your late-night calls are a three-way affair.

Activists have accused Safaricom of sharing customer call records and location data with alleged state agents, and they believe it has led to unexplained abductions of prominent government critics following last year’s bout of protests against an unpopular finance bill.

What we know

At least 82 Kenyans have disappeared since protests began in June, including six in the past two weeks. The disappearances seem to display a strategic pattern, targeting individuals who have been critical of the government, particularly those who have voiced their opposition on social media platforms like X.

Five men who disappeared shortly before the Christmas holidays — including cartoonist Gideon Kibet, known for his satirical depictions of Kenyan President William Ruto, and 24-year-old Billy Mwangi, who had shared AI-generated images of Ruto in a funeral casket — were found alive on Monday.

Guilty or not guilty? Despite Safaricom denying any involvement in the abductions, citing their inability to share customer data without court orders, Kenyan news outlet, the Nation revealed in October, that the telecoms giant had granted the government nearly unfettered access to customer data through its internal management system.

Not surprising, considering the Kenyan government owns a 35% stake in Safaricom, with Vodacom and Vodafone being the other major stakeholders.

Business worries. For Safaricom, any potential boycott could have profound financial implications, as associating with Ruto’s unpopular administration could see it lose market share, especially following the entry of US rival, Starlink into the Kenyan market. -BO.

TRENDING
Outtawa: Canada’s PM Trudeau says peace out

Patrick Doyle/Reuters

Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will bid the premiership adieu/farewell, announcing yesterday that he’ll end his nine-year tenure once his Liberal Party chooses a successor.

Trudeau quitting shocked no one, given that he’s about as popular in Canada as weed in the Vatican, with a measly 22% approval rating as of December. Even before President-elect Donald Trump’s recent threats to impose a punishing 25% blanket tariff on all Canadian goods sparked new anxieties, the PM has dealt with a whirlwind of economic woes with members of his own party publicly calling on him to step down, while opponents argued he was unequipped to handle tough trade talks with Trump, who mockingly called him the “governor” of the “great state of Canada.”

SHOWER THOUGHTS

“Insurance is the only industry whose entire business model is not giving you what you paid for. It's also the only industry where you don't want to have to get what you paid for.”

NEWS
Round the continent

Nipah Dennis/AFP

  • Ghana’s John Mahama was sworn in yesterday as President for the 3rd time in his political career.

  • President Macron’s claim of helping to sustain the sovereignty of French colonies in Africa has been shot down by Chad and Senegal

  • Kenya Airways is back to trading its shares after the airline posted its first profit in over 6 years.

  • Ghana has said all African passport holders would be able to visit the country without a visa, beginning this month.

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