As per the rules of the Federal High Court, the Prosecution General Division of Ministry of Justice has filed its amended charges on individuals and companies in connection with criminal acts including; money laundering, financing of terrorism, illegally property confiscation and illegal money transfer.
It can be recalled that the then Federal Attorney General filed criminal charges on ten individuals and companies in relation to involvement with eight criminal acts in 2020.
The charge was filed at the Federal High Court- Lideta Criminal Bench and indicated that seven individuals and three companies had been sued on allegation of criminal acts that they did from 2016.
The individuals that were sued are Haregewoyne Tedla, Azeb Mihretab, Efrem Mulatu, Temesgen Yilma, Adefres Habte, Daniel Tibebu and Mesfin Asmamaw. The companies included on the charge file are: JJ Properties Management PLC, TTH Trading PLC, and Boston Real-estate.
However, as per the 3rd Customs Crime Bench of Lideta Division at Federal High Court ruling given on August 4, 2022, the Prosecution General of the Ministry of Justice has amended its charge and filed to the court last Friday.
As per the new charge, the Persecutor General has made Azeb Mihretab primary defendant and Temesgen Yilma, Adefris Habte, JJ Properties Management PLC, TTH Trading PLC and Boston Real-estate, and Mesfin Asmamaw as defendants from second to seventh respectively, while the rest who were mentioned in the previous charge have been excluded.
On its latest file the persecutor accused individuals and companies on the involvement of five criminal acts, of that, it claimed that the first two defendants have been involved on four criminal acts individually. The companies that are affiliated with them have also been included on some of the illegal participation.
The file argued that the individuals and companies had a role on abusing their power of attorney which they secured to administer Cosmo Trading PLC.
It said that the first and second defendants that have the right to administer the property of Cosmo Trading used the privilege and received a 61 million birr long term loan from Awash Bank,
“From the stated amount, the lender settled the 21 million birr for debt Cosmo owed Hibret Bank while the remaining 40 million birr was transferred to the company’s account at Awash,” it explained.
Besides the 61 million birr, Awash Bank has also approved and transferred additional 10 million birr for Cosmo Trade as over draft as a working capital.
Meanwhile, the prosecutor claimed that the defendants have used the money to benefit themselves or others rather than the benefit of the company.
Besides that the prosecutor claimed that the charged individuals and companies have a role for illegal banking activity, and money laundry besides breaching of trust.
The prosecutor has called 35 individuals as witnesses to testify the case besides 59 testimonial documents.
The court hearing is expected in October.
In another case, Haileyesus Mengistu, major shareholders of Cosmo Trading plc, has appealed to the Federal Higher Court Lideta Division 5th Civil Bench to lift suspended minutes regarding administrating the company on the aim to be able to operate the company’s day to day activity.
Court amends charges on well-known businessmen
‘Mezgebe Aemero’ 180 media personalities
A book titled ‘Mezgebe Aemero’ that literally means Record of Mind, which compiled the stories of one hundred and eighty media persons was inaugurated in the presence of invited guests at the national theater on Saturday August 6, 2022.
The book, which is unique in its kind and contains the life journey of many veteran and famous journalists, is a popular media that took its part in generating ideas for publication and organizing the entire event. Ezra Ejigu is the editor and publisher of the hard cover book in partnership with Tewedaj Media and Communication PLC.
During the launching event representative of Government Communication Affairs Office Zinabu Tulu said that his office will try its best to work with these kinds of projects in the future and offers his office’s full support in the future.
The book features different media personalities and their work that enlighten the public through their respective media.
During the ceremony Ezra said that it took him over a year to prepare the book and added that the most difficult part of preparing the book is to get hold of those that are featured in the book. “Most women rejected the idea only 35 women are featured in the book,” he said. “It was difficult to get hold of the men also, but hard work will finally pay.”
Participants of the ceremony also admired Ezra for his persistence in getting what he wants and applaud him.
Ezra is known for presenting the works of various historical and nationally famous individuals in print and audio.
The book includes the history of media people from 1950 to 2014.
The hardcover book has two meanings. First, because the book is bound by the system, it is more likely to last for many years. In addition, it is a book full of information for students and researchers in journalism schools, so it has many benefits. Because this book is prepared in this way, it makes it unique, including the fact that it contains the stories of many people that have been published to date.
Although the name is known as “Encyclopedia” at the international level, it was prepared with local content, so it needed a name that explained it well. On this, the linguist Takele Thadel and the culture and heritage expert Menker were consulted and believed that the name should be explained in the native language.
This book covers 54 years of work from the 1950s to the 2000s, including 180 of the past and still working journalists. The book, which includes the year in which the experts came to the media, divides the storytellers by era and places them as “1950s”, “1960s”, “1970s”, “1980s”, “1990s” and “2000s”.
Most of the people featured in this book have served their country as journalists and some of them have contributed to the media. Some of them have worked or are currently working as communication professionals.
UNECA holds forum to sensitize on climate financing
United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) calls on countries at large to increase financing in order to mitigate impacts of climate change in Africa. UNECA hosted the event in Addis Ababa from August 2-4 in light of the upcoming COP27, under the theme: ‘Towards COP27: African Regional Forum on Climate Initiatives to Finance Climate Action and the SDG.’
Speaking at the event, Vera Songwe, Executive Secretary of UNECA highlighted that 55 million people are facing food insecurity in the Horn of Africa due to the combined impact of successive years of drought and food chain supply disruptions. “African countries are experiencing the impact of climate change costing billions despite their limited contribution to the climate crises.”
Songwe also called on for the scale up of private sector investment, development of Africa’s sustainable finance market, invest in mitigation and adaptation for development, creation of sustainable value chains and invest in a green digital transformation.
The forum was held with the aim of deliberating on opportunities to scale and learn from countries that are leveraging investment opportunities for climate action, and thus sparked discussions to catalyze climate finance and investment flows towards building climate resilience in Africa.
The forum also encompassed devising climate-oriented solutions that would earn Africa carbon credits, tackle key barriers precluding large scale debt swaps, and enhance collaboration between public, private stakeholders and different countries to improve risk management.
Furthermore at the event, projects that were ready for implementation were identified for scale up and replication to be showcased at the COP27. Sessions on financial vehicles for transition finance, up scaling investment in adaptation, green business matchmaking in Africa, and private sector networking for climate action were further looked into.
“COP27 summit is happening in very difficult circumstances and challenges for financing more than ever before,” said Jean Paul Adam, Director of the Technology, Climate Change, and Natural Resource Management Division, whilst indicating that the aim of the session was to gather different partners to pledge finance including from the private sector. “We need the private sector to invest in projects and mobilize finance,” he added.
As indicated on the sessions, there is need to mobilize new financial resources in the face of multiple crises, including through amplifying the role of private capital markets in the development financing landscape. Africa will require investments of over 3 trillion dollars in mitigation and adaptation by 2030 in order to implement its Nationally Determined Contribution (NDCs).
Additional to increasing the finance, participant also suggested allocation of climate finance to be transparent and accountable.
UN Climate Change High-Level Champion, Mahmoud Mohieldin, commented that the initiative aims to discuss investment opportunities in the sectors of food, water, irrigation systems development, increasing agricultural productivity, new and renewable sources of energy, relevant infrastructure, and digital transformation in those sectors, in a way that helps in implementing climate projects on the ground and, therefore, achieving climate goals and providing job opportunities in the countries of the five regions.
SUSTAINING SUSTAINABLE ENERGY
In the absolute philosophical or even scientific sense, there is no such thing as sustainability. When we talk about sustainability, it is always in relative and comparative terms. As far as humanity is concerned, fossil fuel deposits are considered finite, in relation to our feeble and temporal existence. The arduous replenishment process of fossil fuel, besides requiring certain unique conditions, resides deep in the geologic or even cosmic zone, literally unimaginable by Homo sapiens, a creature that is seemingly prone to self-destruction.
For instance, certain members of this delicate and relatively complex species think nuclear power is viable and more sustainable. To start with, the element uranium is not only finite (since it is just one element in our finite planet) but is also crudely used by humans. Due to lack of safe and effective converting technology, a whole lot of resources are wasted only to heat water (nuclear reactors are glorified tea pots, kettles to boil water). Moreover, the process of nuclear fission, the one currently used to generate useable power (electrical), produces waste products that are emphatically anti-life!
In the last few months the global price of oil has been rising, mostly as a result of the interplay between supply & demand as well as the war in Ukraine. We will not go into the details of these. Our interest today is to point out the temporal opportunity that can be employed to facilitate our general effort is securing more green energy sources. We believe, instead of adjusting the retail price of fuel (that takes place every month in our country), the Ethiopian government should utilize the differential to help it start, augment, etc. the development of more green or ‘sustainable’ energy projects, like hydro, wind, solar, etc.
Don’t forget, in our global economic regime, which is very stupid and irrational, the whole logic of production and reproduction revolves around the blind and almost suicidal logic of capital and not necessarily that of human. For instance, the grave consequences of burning fossil fuel are hardly appreciated by the unthinking economic system, at least in terms and manners that matter and can make significant differences in the life of not only humans, but also the cumulative life- sustaining ecosystem. The useless conventions (COPs, etc.) that are drummed up here and there are only noises to detract and distract the committed. As we have been saying all along; the beast must completely abandon the nonsense of the status quo and determinedly pursue the project of saving life and the planet on its own, without relying on the cynical shortsighted destructive established order!
For example, oil producing Arab kingdoms/countries own significant shares in almost all the major vehicle manufacturers of the world, either directly through their various sovereign funds, private equity funds, etc. mostly fronted by their minion loyalists. Moreover, tentacles of the industry, distributors, etc. (wherever possible), operate under their fat and not very clean thumbs. Supporting gas-guzzling transport systems across the world is the main task of their elites. All kinds of silly and climate impacting stunts are used to this end. Giving expensive cars to mistresses, chauffeurs, butlers, shoeshine boys, etc. as well as flying a wide bodied jet as a sole passenger, with probably a mistress or two, is another of the decadent value system that is promoted world wide by the polluting entrenched interests. This world doesn’t belong only to this wasteful and degenerate entities, it belongs to all of us (the living) as well as posterity. Those abusing it as if there is no tomorrow, need to be incriminated!
Unfortunately, some countries like India and China still think the nuclear option is a viable and somewhat sustainable proposition; again, we beg to differ! The war in the African Sahel region (to some extent, part of north Africa) is also about another resource war, which of course is hidden from the public eye by the nauseating mainstream media. The resource in question is uranium. France is very dependent on nuclear energy and feels it has to secure uranium, by hook or a crook. When the Chinese signed a big contract to mine uranium ore in the region, all of a sudden instability, coup d’état, terrorism, pestilence and many other things started to emerge. What a coincidence!
Beware, unless we change our life style all together and very, very, soon there will not be any future for humanity. Comfortable life should not be confused with imbecilic and decadent life style. Luckily, the more active global youth has started to deconstruct the childishly archaic ideology and life style perpetuated by the likes of Hollywood, Bollywood, etc.
