Monthly Archives: November 2017

Gabonese Defense Minister in Yaounde

7, November 2017

Gabonese Defense Minister in Yaounde 0

The Gabonese Minister of Presidential Affairs and National Defence, Etienne Massard Kabinda Makaga has paid a one-day working visit to Cameroon. It was about 10 am when Etienne Massard Kabinda Makaga arrived the premises of the Ministry of Defence.

After the usual military ritual was staged, he discussed ways of reinforcing ties between his country and Cameroon especially in the domains of defence and free circulation of goods within the CEMAC sub region. The audience gave way to a guided tour supervised by the Secretary of State in charge of the National Gendarmerie, Jean Baptiste Bokam.

The first stop was at the Military Engineering Corps in the Ngoa-Nkelle neighbourhood where the achievements of this department were highlighted.

From Ngoa-Nkelle, the Gabonese Minister was led to the Combined Armed Services Military Academy, EMIA, created in 1962. It was then time to stop over at the over-a decade-old, International War College, Simbock which has trained senior military officers from both CEMAC and non-CEMAC countries.

The August guest later visited the International School for Security Forces created in 2008; a visit which did not leave the Gabonese Defence Minister, indifferent. It is the hope of many that this visit paves the way to better relations between Cameroon and Gabon.

 

Source: CRTV


Boko Haram attack kills six in Nigeria

7, November 2017

Boko Haram attack kills six in Nigeria 0

At least six people were killed when suspected Boko Haram fighters attacked a town in northeast Nigeria, in the latest attack against vulnerable, isolated rural communities, the local government said on Monday.

Bukar Wakil Tawu, secretary of the Magumeri local government area, said about 20 people believed to be from the jihadist group attacked Jaddannam at about 21:00 (2000 GMT) on Friday.

“They killed six people and burnt almost the whole town. They also burnt livestock and food supplies from recent harvests,” he told AFP from the Borno state capital, Maiduguri, nearly 50km away.

“I went to the town yesterday (Sunday), where I met the poor residents. They are peasants who rely on subsistence farming and their livestock.

“They have now lost all their belongings. We are appealing to the government to come to their aid and for patrols to be intensified because the area is remote and it has relatively huge population.”

Eight years of conflict have left at least 20 000 people dead and more than 2.6 million homeless in northeast Nigeria but has also devastated infrastructure, including telecommunications, leaving communities virtually cut off.

Local residents had to travel to Maiduguri to report the attack. Recent weeks have seen an increase in Boko Haram activity in northeast Nigeria and the Far North region of neighbouring Cameroon after the end of the rainy season in September.

At least 20 people were killed in a series of raids and suicide bomb attacks in the space of a few days last month, while civilians were also killed when their vehicles hit landmines planted by the Islamists. Those deaths – and the latest in Jaddannam – underline the continued threat posed by Boko Haram, despite claims from the military and the government that the insurgency is nearing an end.

Boko Haram fighters loyal to factional leader Abu Mus’ab al-Barnawi have been known to operate in the Magumeri area. In July, 19 soldiers and 33 militia members were among 69 killed when Boko Haram ambushed a heavily-armed convoy of oil exploration workers.

 

Source: News24


The Butcher of Yaounde clocks 35 years in office

6, November 2017

The Butcher of Yaounde clocks 35 years in office 0

Monday marked 35 years since Cameroon’s President Paul Biya took office. His supporters are marking the anniversary with celebrations. His opponents are calling for him to stand aside when the country holds a presidential election next year.

A song, praising Biya for bringing peace and development to Cameroon, blasted through loud speakers in Nanga Eboko, a town in central Cameroon, where thousands of people have been brought in to celebrate the anniversary of Paul Biya’s rise to power.

In power for 35 years

Among the speakers was Benjamin Zibi, an official of Biya’s CPDM party. He said Biya’s supporters are proud because a majority of Cameroonians have adhered to the party’s policies for 35 straight years.

He said he can spend the whole night enumerating what Biya has achieved as president, but that the important thing is that he has constantly made sure all Cameroonians live in peace and feel happy in their country.

Professor Elvis Ngolle Ngolle of the University of Yaounde, an ally of Biya’s and a former government minister, said the president has stayed in power because he has positively impacted the lives of all Cameroonians.

“We are celebrating not only the progress, the accomplishments of the new deal, but we are also re-awakening caring for one another, making sure that we are assets to one another, making sure that each Cameroonian feels like they belong to the same Cameroon, making sure that we continue to preserve, consolidate, reinforce our national unity, national integrity and peace,” he said.

Biya became president on November 6, 1982, after the resignation of the Central African state’s first leader, Ahmadou Ahidjo. He has won five elections since then, and in 2008 he revised the 1996 constitution to remove term limits.

Unchallenged

A CPDM supporter, 27-year-old Lucas Ndiforba, sees no one inside or outside the party willing to challenge the president.

“No, he wants to remain in power, so we are there,” he said. “The day he will say that he wants to step down, we will instead go to the streets for him to remain. We have accepted him as our life president.”

Not all Cameroonians feel that way, and parties like the main opposition SDF have been calling on Biya not to be a candidate in next year’s election.

The SDF says Biya’s policies have reduced economic growth, raised unemployment and allowed corruption to flourish. They say he also has a poor human rights record and throws his opponents in jail.

An official of the opposition NUDP, 34-year-old Ndansi Elvis, said he regrets that since he was born, he has known only one leader. He said instead of celebration, Cameroonians should be mourning this day.

“I have heard my comrades all over Africa celebrate a new president coming to power,” he said. “Some have celebrated three, some have celebrated two, but in Cameroon we have seen just one person… How can it be that we can be celebrating 35 years of a monster, that at the 21st century we still have women who can not deliver safely in safe facilities because of lack of hospitals or hospital personnel. How can we be celebrating 35 years of misery, pain?”

But the CPDM, in this song, says at 84 Biya is still strong enough to lead and are urging him to be their candidate again in next year’s presidential election.

 

Source: Africa News


CHIPOLOPOLO regroups for the Indomitable Lions

6, November 2017

CHIPOLOPOLO regroups for the Indomitable Lions 0

The Zambia National Football team has regrouped in Ndola ahead of the 2018 RUSSIA world cup qualifier against Cameroon.

Football Association of Zambia- FAZ communications manager Desmond Katongo has confirmed the development to ZNBC news.

Katongo says Justine Shonga, Kennedy Mweene, Lewis Macha and Brian Mwila have already joined camp.

He also confirmed that Fashion Sakala, Enock Mwepu, Patson Daka and Stopila Sunzu are expected to join camp on Tuesday. The game will be played at Levy Mwanawasa stadium in Ndola.

 


Texas Mass Shooting: Democrats blame Republicans for loose gun control laws

6, November 2017

Texas Mass Shooting: Democrats blame Republicans for loose gun control laws 0

The deadly mass shooting in a Texas church that killed over two dozen people on Sunday has once again sparked gun control debates in the US, with former President Barack Obama and other figures weighing in on the issue.

“May God also grant all of us the wisdom to ask what concrete steps we can take to reduce the violence and weaponry in our midst,” Obama wrote in a tweet on Sunday night, after a former US Air Force serviceman killed 27 people at the First Baptist Church of Sutherland Springs, Texas.

Former vice president Joe Biden also reacted by urging Americans not to give in to “hopelessness” and “persist in our efforts to prevent gun violence.”

The shooting came a little more than a month after the deadliest mass shooting in modern US history in Las Vegas, which killed over 50 people and injured hundreds more at a concert.

Following in footsteps of the former Democrat president, Democratic Senators Bob Casey Jr., Dick Durbin and Kamala Harris also voiced concern and urged the Republican-dominated Congress to act in response to the latest deadly shooting.

“The shooter turned his gun on people — kids — in a place of worship. America is in the grips of a gun violence crisis. Congress must act,” Durbin wrote in a tweet.

Harris, a possible 2020 presidential contender, condemned “senseless gun violence” after the incident.

Senator Richard Blumenthal, another Democrat, went one step further and accused Congress of “complicity.”

“Enough is enough. Now is the time for commonsense gun violence prevention steps. Congressional complicity must end,” he wrote on Twitter.

Other Democratic heavyweights like Senators Dianne Feinstein and Elizabeth Warren also commented on the issue. While Feinstein called for immediate action, Warren pointed the finger at Republicans.

“Thoughts & prayers are not enough, GOP. We must end this violence. We must stop these tragedies. People are dying while you wait,” she wrote in a tweet.

Republican reaction

The issue of gun violence has provoked a lot heated debates under Republican President Donald Trump, one of the most pro-gun US heads of state.

Once a strict supporter of banning assault weapons, Trump’s views on gun control have shifted so much he now takes pride in defending the constitutional right to own arms and refuses to tighten up gun regulations.

Facing questions in the wake of the Las Vegas shooting, Trump reluctantly said the US will “be talking about gun laws as time goes by.”

There was no hints towards a possible change of views in his response to the recent church shooting either.

“May God be w/ the people of Sutherland Springs, Texas. The FBI & law enforcement are on the scene. I am monitoring the situation from Japan,” wrote the president, who is on a 12-day trip to Asia.

The lackluster Republican response to the issue continued after Representative Steve Scalise, a victim of a shooting himself, called the shooting “devastating” in a tweet. House Speaker Paul Ryan also said the shooting was “devastating.”

 

Source: Presstv


Queen Elizabeth has millions stashed in offshore tax havens

6, November 2017

Queen Elizabeth has millions stashed in offshore tax havens 0

Newly-leaked documents reveal the private estate of Britain’s Queen Elizabeth has invested millions of pounds in the British Caribbean tax havens of the Cayman Islands and Bermuda.

According to documents obtained by the International Consortium of Journalists, around 10 million pounds (13 million dollars) of the queen’s private cash is said to have been tied up in offshore portfolios.

The leak, dubbed the Paradise Papers, contains 13.4 million documents, mostly from one leading firm in offshore finance. Nearly 100 media groups are investigating the leaked papers.

The core of the leak, totaling more than 13.4 million documents, focuses on the Bermudan law firm Appleby, a 119-year-old company, whose clients are corporations and very wealthy people. Appleby helps clients reduce their tax burden; obscure their ownership of assets like companies, private aircraft, real estate and yachts; and set up huge offshore trusts that in some cases hold billions of dollars.

Many of the leaked documents reveal how politicians, multinationals, celebrities and high-net-worth individuals use complex structures of trusts, foundations and shell companies to protect their cash from tax officials or hide their dealings behind a veil of secrecy.

The files show the offshore empire is bigger and more complicated than many had imagined.

What are the offshore tax havens?

Essentially the tax havens are places outside a country’s regulations, to which companies or individuals can redirect money, assets or profits to take advantage of lower taxes rates than their own country.

These jurisdictions are known as offshore tax havens, to use the more technical jargon, offshore financial centers (OFCs). They are generally stable, secretive and reliable, often small islands but not exclusively so, and can vary on how rigorously they carry out checks on wrongdoing.

Britain has a big role in the flourishing of these entities, not simply because so many of its overseas territories and crown dependencies are OFCs, but many of the lawyers, accountants and bankers working in the offshore industry operate out of the city of London.

Who hides the cash?

Wealthy individuals and large companies have one thing in common: enormous amounts of money they want to hide from taxing.

Some of the world’s biggest multinationals feature in the leak, including Apple, Nike and Facebook, as well as some of the richest people in the world, from the British monarch to Bono, and from the stars of British sitcoms to the stars of Hollywood.

Brooke Harrington, renowned author of Capital Without Borders: Wealth Managers and the One Percent, said offshore finance is not for the 1 percent but the .001 percent.

 

Source: Presstv


Ambazonia: Governor of Cross River State says UN Paying Lip Service to Crisis in Southern Cameroon

6, November 2017

Ambazonia: Governor of Cross River State says UN Paying Lip Service to Crisis in Southern Cameroon 0

As thousands of Camerounians flee their country into Nigeria and particularly Cross River State, as a result of the crisis in Southern Cameroun, the state Governor, Prof Ben Ayade, has charged the United Nations to always nip each crisis in the bud before it morphs into a humanitarian crisis.

Ayade stated this at the weekend when he received the Federal Commissioner, National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons, Sadiya Umar Farouq, and the Country Representative to Nigeria and ECOWAS High Commission for Refugees, Antonio Canhandula, during a courtesy call on him in Calabar, the state capital.

The governor who clarified that he was speaking as a human being and not as a governor, maintained: “In the video clips going round the world today, I think humanity is being debased and I think UN must sit up because what you are doing is medicine after death and a lip service.”

Flaying what he described as reactionary on the part of the federal government and the UN, Ayade’ said: “You cannot watch the dislocation of family structures, kids being separated from their parents, husbands separated from their wives and all you do is to rush with food to their corridors and create squatters and camp for them and you think that is UN? You have failed. What is united about that? There is nothing united, if we are indeed a UN, the issue on Cameroon should be at the forefront of UN today.”

Insisting that he was yet to see any serious issue being made out of the crisis on either CNN or BBC, the governor said: “Any form of relocation of a people, no matter how temporary, is a failure of the world to address the issues that border on humanity, and I think UN must take this message very clearly that it has gotten too involved in the politics of redistribution of wealth and has forgotten its essence which was peace, unity and love.”

Frowning at the alleged closure of the Cameroon international borders against the Anglophones Camerounians, Ayade, who described the act as criminal, said: “Today, the Cameroon international borders are all sealed against the Anglophone Cameroonians, and UN is watching and coming with food, that is not food. That is poison because indeed you know their real trouble and ypur silence has done nothing today; just note that it will hunt you one day.”

The governor who explained the supportive roles played by Cameroon at the height of Biafra, IPOB and Boko Haram, enjoined President Muhammadu Buhari as the leader of Africa not to get involved in the politics of the Cameroon issues but should  interfere in the lives of every single Black man on earth.

Recounting the associated challenges of the crisis prone area, Ayade said: “The young people’s lives have been cut short, young kids don’t go to school, the entire southern part of Cameroon, the English speaking part is  completely shut down, hospitals are not working and people’s lives are in danger.”

The governor who disclosed that with about 2,430 refugees already  in Cross River State,   which he said was an indication of a near cataclysm, stated that the state government would partner the federal government to bring succour in order to return the victims to their homes within the shortest possible time.

He also assured the people that “we will join hands with UN to find a political solution and a lasting peaceful option for the people of Cameroon to live in peace as well as have prosperity and realise their full potential as human beings.”

Earlier, Farouq told the governor that the team was in the state to applaud him for hosting the refugees who sneaked into the state through Ikom and Amaga in Obudu, as well as meet with the victims who were at the moment being attended to through the distribution of relief materials.

The Country Representative Canhandula, intimated that “the solutions to the crisis could not be offered by one person, hence we are here  to offer our partnership towards resolving these problems,” adding: “We also have other UN agencies that have been accredited in your state, we will synergise with them to boost humanity care.”

 

Source: Thisday


Tit-for-tat measure: Moscow slaps sanctions on dozens of Canadians

5, November 2017

Tit-for-tat measure: Moscow slaps sanctions on dozens of Canadians 0

Moscow has banned dozens of Canadian individuals from entering Russia in retaliation for sanctions recently imposed by Ottawa against 30 Russian officials.

The move was prompted after Canada’s government on Friday banned and froze the assets of 30 Russians over alleged accusations of corruption and human rights violations.

“We have to respond with mirror-image sanctions,” Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said in a statement. “If our Canadian partners like playing sanctions games, we will be forced to respond, although we certainly prefer to develop constructive cooperation on the issues important for the peoples of both countries.”

“The list is long and contains dozens of names — the Russophobic Canadian citizens that have been systematically destroying bilateral relations,” Zakharova said, without offering names.

The Russian Foreign Ministry also warned that Canada must step back from a “destructive course, leading to further aggravation of bilateral relations.”

Meanwhile, the Russian diplomatic mission in Canada censured Ottawa’s measure as “a false pretext of a hypocritical protection of human rights,” which is “absolutely senseless and reprehensible.”

Ottawa “is isolating itself from one of the key global powers” and “pushes Canada’s foreign policy back to the narrow black-and-white world view, incompatible with modern geopolitics,” the mission added.

“At the moment, dozens of Canadians have been banned from entering Russia; this is not our choice, but in case of new sanctions, our response will be unchanged and reciprocal in terms of amount and quality,” it said.

Canada’s sanctions list came after the country earlier this year passed its own version of the United States’ Magnitsky Law, a measure that punishes Russian officials linked to the case of Russian lawyer Sergei Magnitsky, who died in prison after exposing an alleged tax fraud scheme in 2009.

The Magnitsky Act in the US has led to sanctions on more than 40 senior Russian officials so far. The list includes names of those whose assets under US jurisdiction are frozen and are barred from doing business with Americans or receiving US visas.

 

Culled from Presstv


CEMAC Regional Bloc Creates Six-country Visa-Free Zone

5, November 2017

CEMAC Regional Bloc Creates Six-country Visa-Free Zone 0

The Central African Economic and Monetary Community reached a key milestone this week. Heads of state meeting in Chad lifted visa requirements for their citizens traveling within the six-member regional bloc. But challenges remain to ensuring free movement and deepening economic integration.

The announcement marked the culmination of 23 years of negotiation. Citizens of Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Central Africa Republic, Congo-Brazzaville, Gabon and Chad no longer need visas to travel within the six-member economic bloc.

Chadian President Idris Deby made the announcement at the CEMAC heads of state summit in Ndjamena. Deby said the people have rightfully been waiting for strong actions that concretely demonstrate that the integration of central Africa is a reality, which is the main reason the Central African Economic and Monetary Community was created. He said everyone who visited Chad this week can testify that they were exempted from visa charges.

CEMAC was founded in 1994, but has trailed behind other regional blocs on the continent in lifting visa restrictions. Economist Youssouf Saleh, Chad’s former prime minister, said for CEMAC, it is better late than never. But he added that the effectiveness of the free movement of goods and people will depend on whether there is also an integrated and competitive economy and whether political divides that have hampered economic activity are broken.

Last year, the economies of Gabon and Equatorial Guinea took a hit amid the global drop in oil prices. The two countries sealed their borders to stop job-seeking youths flooding into their countries and even began expelling some migrants from other CEMAC countries.

Only Chad, Cameroon and Gabon have started issuing the CEMAC biometric passports, despite a January 2014 deadline. Security concerns are also hindering free movement. At Garoua-Boulai on Cameroon’s eastern border with the C.A.R., border controls remain with travelers prevented from crossing on both sides. Cameroonian Colonel Etienne Detou said they have arrested rebel combatants from the Central African Republic trying to cross disguised as business persons and refugees.

He said although there is relative peace on the Cameroon side. But he added it should be noted there are regular incursions by armed groups and highway robbers from Central African Republic. He said the military and the police should be very vigilant and self-defense groups should participate in safeguarding their territory.

Cameroon and Chad are also limiting free movement of people at their common border. Both countries have suffered Boko Haram atrocities as well and want to make it harder for the terrorists to penetrate. CEMAC Commission President Pierre Moussa said the states are taking measures to address security concerns.

He said for the new visa-free policy to be fully effective, the heads of state have authorized the Development Bank of Central African States to pay $2 million as part of the debt they owe the International Police Organization so that they can help secure the borders of CEMAC. Other ambitious plans for CEMAC regional integration are yet to be executed, including plans to create a regional airline and to build roads linking the regional capitals.

 

Source: VOA


IMF Staff Team Completes Review Visit to La Republique

5, November 2017

IMF Staff Team Completes Review Visit to La Republique 0

IMF team reached a staff level agreement with the authorities on policies that could support approval of the first review. Growth is decelerating, mostly due to weaker oil production.

The team and authorities agreed on the need to implement without delays measures to strengthen the financial sector, enhance the business environment to boost private sector investment and economic diversification, and achieve a more inclusive growth.

An International Monetary Fund (IMF) team, led by Ms. Corinne Deléchat, visited Yaoundé from October 24 to November 3, 2017 to conduct discussions for the first review of the program supported by an Extended Credit Facility (ECF) that was approved in June this year.

At the conclusion of this visit, Ms. Deléchat issued the following statement:

“The IMF team reached staff level agreement with the authorities on economic and financial policies that could support approval of the first review of their three-year program under the ECF. The IMF Executive Board is expected to consider the first review mid-December 2017. The completion of the first review would enable a second disbursement of SDR 82.8 million (about US$116.3 million).

“The country’s economic program has remained on track, despite a challenging backdrop. All quantitative performance criteria under the program for end-June 2017 have been met. In addition, all structural benchmarks through end-October have been implemented except for two, which have been modified. The authorities have also implemented measures to improve revenue mobilization, increase transparency of budget execution, enhance cash management and maintain financial sector stability.

“Growth is decelerating, mostly due to weaker oil production. Growth for 2016 has been revised downward slightly from an earlier estimate of 4.7 percent to 4.5 percent. For 2017, growth is projected at 3.7 percent, while inflation is expected to remain low, falling to 0.5 percent. The fiscal deficit should decrease as projected from 6.2 to 3.1 percent of GDP in 2017 despite a shortfall in oil revenue, which will be mostly offset by a reduction in current spending.

“The draft 2018 budget envisages a further reduction of the budget deficit to 2.3 percent of GDP, in line with the objectives of the ECF-supported program. To reach this target, the authorities will implement a set of measures to strengthen revenue mobilization by continuing to widen the tax base while continuing to rationalize and enhance the quality of public spending. In particular, the authorities intend to strictly prioritize public investment, focusing on current priority infrastructure and related projects, and projects with a high socio-economic impact.

“The team highlighted the importance of containing new borrowing, particularly on non-concessional terms, to preserve debt sustainability. The large stock of contracted but yet undisbursed debt is a symptom of remaining weaknesses in project preparation and implementation, amid an ambitious public investment program. The team encouraged the authorities to promptly implement the measures they have identified to reduce this backlog and ensure higher project execution rates going forward.

“The IMF team welcomed the reform momentum in public financial management and discussed key reforms that have been highlighted by the recent Public Expenditure and Financial Accountability (PEFA) analysis. In particular, the recent progress with the transposition of the six Directives on public finances harmonization in the Central African Economic and Monetary Community (CEMAC), the imposition of limits on the use of exceptional budget procedures and the preparation of a strategy to enhance the coverage of the single treasury account should help enhance the credibility and transparency of the budget. Furthermore, the team and the authorities agreed on the necessity to implement without delays measures to strengthen the financial sector, enhance the business environment to boost private sector investment and economic diversification, and achieve a more inclusive growth.

“The team met with Prime Minister Philémon Yang, Minister Secretary General at the Presidency Ferdinand Ngoh Ngoh, Minister of Finance Alamine Ousmane Mey, Minister of Economy, Planning, and Regional Development Louis Paul Motaze, BEAC National Director Jean-Marie Mani, and other senior officials and representatives of the diplomatic community, development partners and private sector.

“The team wishes to thank the Cameroonian authorities for their hospitality, cooperation, and the constructive dialogue.”


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