Potentially Illegal Request for External Interference:
Eddy Kayihura, the suspended CEO, has been exposed for masterminding a plot to bypass resource members and secretly appoint directors nominated by the ATU (African Telecommunications Union). A series of court documents have been uncovered that cast a dark shadow on the potentially illegal actions being carried out by the suspended CEO of AFRINIC. These court documents show that Mr Kayihura has requested that the ATU appoint candidates that will act as directors of AFRINIC.
This is potentially illegal because AFRINIC as an organization has its bylaws and rules that govern its members and leadership. These bylaws clearly state that directors within the organization must be elected through a free and fair electoral process. Directors cannot simply be appointed as this goes against the very nature and fabric of the organization.
Furthermore, we have obtained ATU's reply to this appeal in which 4 candidates were proposed. However, one of these candidates is shockingly involved in multiple fraud proceedings. By bypassing the nominations put forward by resource members and proposing their own nominations, Eddy has once again disappointed the community by defying the bottom-up approach of the RIR system.
This strange and unbelievable story, however, gets even murkier. Eddy himself, has decided to sue AFRINIC in court. He filed court documents against AFRINIC, in which he requested the Supreme Court in Mauritius to appoint the candidates from ATU to be the directors of AFRINIC. In the court documents submitted, he confirms that AFRINIC lacks quorum, which means that AFRINIC is not able to take any action to defend itself from Eddy's actions. This is a classic example of the misuse of law for political gain.
The irony is that Eddy himself, is still being held in contempt of court for not heeding the court order asking him to step down as AFRINIC CEO. Yet, he wants those same courts he disrespected to agree to his unreasonable requests.
Blatant Disregard for the Rule of Law:
The actions of Eddy expose the blatant and shocking abuse of power by an individual who by all intents and purposes, as far as the law is concerned, has no authority. Mr Kayihura's actions have violated a widely held belief by the internet community, that RIRs should be free from government and intergovernmental control.
Regardless of how Eddy feels and his vendetta, these are the indisputable facts:
The actions he has taken are intentionally malicious as AFRINIC cannot legally defend itself. He has potentially used a legal loophole to exploit and take advantage of AFRINIC by suing the very organization he used to run.
Eddy is desperately trying to avoid having a legal AFRINIC election at all costs by asking the ATU to appoint the director AFRINIC. Doing this defies the community-driven, bottom-up process on which RIR were built upon.
These actions violate and strip the community members of their rights to nominate and vote for their own director through a free, fair and open election.
Finally, the law and judicial system in Mauritius disagrees and are shocked by the lengths Eddy will go to undermine court orders and the rule of law.
Endangering the RIR System:
It may seem like a lifetime ago but once upon a time, the RIR system was free of corruption, mismanagement and lawsuits. Every RIR, including AFRINIC, was respected and not constantly mired in controversy. The system seemed to work as intended and now one must wonder what these new developments mean to the future of the RIR going forward. Looking at this through narrow lenses is esoteric because this will have a damning effect in the future.
Eddy's behaviour doesn't only affect AFRINIC, it endangers the entire RIR system. Mr Kayihura has been exposed as a close contact of a terrorist sympathizer, muffled the voices of resource members through limiting freedom of speech on community mailing lists, changed the bylaws without undergoing the appropriate due process and now he is asking an inter-governmental body to interfere in an RIR election.
Most of his shortcomings have been touched on previously but his new blunder warrants a deeper discussion. Making an unusual request by asking a governmental body to interfere in the RIR system is exactly what the whole RIR has tried to avoid for decades since its creation in order to keep its independent non-partial status.
We must therefore ask an important and difficult question; if the ATU successfully appoints the director for AFRINIC today, what stops the ITU from doing the same to other RIRs?
This debacle serves as a fatal and dangerous warning sign and example to the other RIRs. If this is allowed to happen, a string of similar "appointments" may take place as a result. This strips the RIRs of all their independence and autonomy.
Putting the Cat Back in the Bag:
Eddy had attempted to keep this move secret but was given away by a declaration on the AFRINIC website which was hastily deleted. But it wasn't done so in time before many resource members and the concerned internet community at large took wind of it.
Diving deeper, we reached out to the organization asking why the post was deleted. Upon further investigation, we discovered that the Mauritius courts have a respect for the rule of law and this was how we retrieved the letters from the public case Eddy filed against AFRINIC in the Mauritian courts.
Further examination of court documents show that Eddy's affidavit confirms that AFRINIC is lacking in quorum and cannot defend its own case. He is simply trying to bypass the election that gives members and opportunity to have their voice heard in an attempt to appoint four directors suggested by ATU as elected directors.
By uncovering this sinister plot, we can expose him and his plans. His behaviour shows that he is desperate and ready to bypass the views and legitimate concerns of resource members as well as ignore direct court orders. Every country, community or organization has a hierarchy and a rule of law that allows us to live in a society free from chaos and anarchy.
But in spite of that, the actions of Eddy have proven that order and lawlessness can still run rampant regardless. On any level, his actions are unacceptable and show that under his former leadership, AFRINIC is a failed and rogue organization.
Despite reaching out to his campy for retorts or explanations, Eddy Kayihura has yet to respond nor offer up any explanations to the resource members or the internet community as a whole. But if he is willing to sue his own organization, we don't expect him to come out of the shadows.
Eddy is out of control. AFRINIC is leaderless and is open to legal attack by its former CEO. All members of all RIR need to call for an immediate action to stop this illegitimate abuse of power through the means of a fair and open election. This must end, once and for all.
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