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22, December 2022

Yaoundé: Former CRTV General Manager sentenced to 12 years in prison ⁰

Amadou Vamoulke, the former general manager of the Cameroon Radio and Television Corporation (CRTV), was sentenced Tuesday, December 20, 2022 to 12 years in prison by the Special Criminal Court and he was also fined 47 million FCFA.

Vamoulké spent six years in detention without being convicted on any charge-a situation described by Reporters Without Borders as falling far below even the most basic standards of justice and human dignity.

Adjourned 90 times, his trial is the longest to have been held as part of the anti-corruption drive known as Operation Sparrowhawk that the Biya Francophone government launched in 2006.

Arrested on 29 July 2016, Vamoulké was the subject of two distinct grotesque proceedings on charges of misusing public funds as general manager of the Cameroon Radio and Television (CRTV) – charges for which absolutely no evidence and no witness has ever been produced by the prosecution.

The denouement lasted more than 16 hours, before the reading of a 600-page document that provided a detailed account of the trial since the beginning in 2016.

Amadou Vamoulke was found guilty of embezzlement of the sum of 617.5 million FCFA in coaction with the former Minister of Finance, Polycarpe Abah Abah, who was sentenced to 17 years in prison.

The former general manager of CRTV was arrested and remanded to Kondengui Central Prison in 2016. He stayed there for six years before his fate was finally decided this week. Despite multiple calls for his release by the NGO Reporters Without Borders (RSF), nothing was done.

Depicting the Special Criminal Court established to prosecute alleged corrupt government officials and the several Alibabas responsible for pilfering from the public treasury as President Biya’s court is no misnomer. Cameroon Concord News Group calls it the President’s court because it is one instrument of power through which President Biya is reining in on perceived opponents from within his CPDM power conduit.

An attribute of a genuine court is the fairness of the trial proceedings in cases which are brought before the court. It is not the number of convictions entered against accused. A court is legitimate and recognized as such because of its exercise of judicial, executive, legislative and administrative independence. A court that is independent must be accessible to all citizens after all, is equality before the law, not a constitutionally protected value? The Special Criminal Court is lacking in these attributes of impartiality, judicial independence and accessibility. It is perceived more as the President’s Court than a Court of Justice.

Establishing this court was President Biya’s way of saving himself the embarrassment of being humiliated during his perennial trips abroad as the President of the most corrupt countries in the world. This ranking of the country as the most corrupt or one of the most corrupt countries had a potential to hamper President Biya’s personal pecuniary interests far from the borders of Cameroon. There was therefore a personal interest need to establish the court. Another personal interest need was to avail himself of a legal tool under his direct control to consolidate absolute power, blackmail potential rebels and competitors within the system and to stifle any form of institutional opposition. He perceived the court as a tool with which to whitewash his more than thirty years of corrupt governance and the rape of the economy.

With the war against Boko Haram, the fight against corruption using the Special Criminal Court has afforded Paul Biya justification contest in the next institutionally flawed elections in order to eternalize power purportedly to direct the war against terror and the war against corruption. True to the name the President’s Court, Biya has exclusive preserve in referring cases to the Special Court and the power to terminate them. He decides who will be arrested, who will be investigated and who will serve time and who will not.

In one instance, he ordered a detained Minister Bapes Bapes released from remand custody at Kondengui when a warrant was issued for his arrest without the presidential fiat. Cameroonians want the rule of law to be the guarding principle on which justice is administered in the name of the people.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai

22, December 2022

Pele to spend Christmas in hospital as cancer worsens ⁰

Brazilian football great Pele will spend Christmas in hospital, his medical team and family said Wednesday, as he receives treatment for worsening cancer as well as kidney and heart problems.

The 82-year-old “requires greater care related to renal and cardiac dysfunctions,” said the Albert Einstein Hospital in Sao Paulo.

It also reported a “progression” of his cancer, but said Pele was not in intensive care.

Considered by many to be the greatest footballer of all time, Pele was hospitalized in Sao Paulo on November 29 for what his medical team called a re-evaluation of his chemotherapy treatments, which he has been receiving since having surgery to remove a colon tumor in September 2021.

Doctors have also diagnosed Pele — whose real name is Edson Arantes do Nascimento — with a respiratory infection.

Earlier this month, Pele’s daughters Kely Nascimento and Flavia Arantes sought to reassure fans about his health, denying reports that Pele had been placed in end-of-life care as supporters held a vigil outside the hospital.

They said Wednesday on Instagram that they would be spending Christmas with their father at the hospital.

“Our Christmas at home has been suspended,” they wrote.

“We decided with the doctors that, for various reasons, it would be better for us to stay here with all the care that this new family at Einstein gives us!!”

Accompanied by a picture of them smiling, the sisters thanked Pele’s fans for their support and wished them a happy festive season.

“We are going to turn this room into a Sambodrome (just kidding), we will even make caipirinhas (not kidding!!),” they joked, referencing Brazil’s famous cocktail.

The siblings promised an update next week.

‘The King’

Pele dazzled from an early age and took the 1958 World Cup by storm when he was 17 years old, netting a hat trick in the semifinals and two more goals in the final, catapulting his own career and launching the soccer dynasty of the Brazilian national team.

Pele scored more than 1,000 goals in one of the most storied careers in sport. He is the only player in history to have won three World Cups (1958, 1962 and 1970).

In recent years, the man dubbed “The King” has faced deteriorating health and his public appearances have grown rare.

He has dealt with his ailments with trademark good humor, remaining active on social media.

Pele posted regularly during the Qatar World Cup, including a message of congratulations to captain Lionel Messi after Argentina took the top prize.

“Congratulations to Argentina! Diego (Maradona, who died on November 25, 2020) is probably smiling now,” he wrote.

Pele also watched from hospital as star player Neymar equalled his goal record of 77 with the “Selecao.”

Pele has received messages from well-wishers all over the world, also recently from French striker Kylian Mbappe who called on fans earlier this month to “pray for the King.”

It was with Mbappe that Pele made one of his last public appearances, in April 2019, in Paris, for a promotional event.

World Cup host nation Qatar also showed its support for Pele, lighting up buildings with a “Get well soon” message.

Source: AFP

21, December 2022

Biya: the ’embarasser-in-chief’ ⁰

For many years now, many Cameroonians, especially those in the Diaspora, are being considered as those who are hurting the country’s reputation because of their call for a regime change in Cameroon.

The Yaoundé government, which has been struggling to project itself as being progressive and responsible, has been facing tough challenges from its Diaspora.

In North America, the Southern Cameroonian Diaspora is doing its best to give the beleaguered Yaoundé government a really big and bad name.

There are more than two million Southern Cameroonians in North America and they are not sparing any opportunity when it comes to demonstrating that the Yaoundé government led by the 90-year-old president, Paul Biya, is the worst thing that has ever happened to the country.

Recently in Washington DC, demonstrators bearing the Southern Cameroonian flag and public address systems brought the world’s attention to the bloody massacres being committed in the country’s two English-speaking regions during the US-AFRICA Leaders Summit held in the US capital.

Though uninvited, the demonstrators made sure their opinion was heard. They chanted songs depicting Mr. Biya as the architect of the bloody political and economic mess in Cameroon.

But it was Mr. Biya himself who actually stole the show in Washington DC. His mental confusion made many African leaders to ask if he was actually capable of running the country.

In a video which has really gone viral, Mr. Biya’s dementia was put on display for all to see. Mr. Biya confused questions in a high-level meeting were testimonies to his senility.

In another video, despite the tons of steroids he took in Geneva before heading to the US, Mr. Biya could not even get out of his own car and was bundled out of the car like a baby in diapers.

No Cameroonian is hurting the country’s reputation like the country’s senile president who has made up his mind to die in power though he is no longer effective as a leader.

His behavior has made many in Cameroon to view him as the country’s “embarasser-in-chief.”

Many Cameroonians are very disappointed with Mr. Biya who was supposed to have transformed the country into an earthly El-Dorado.

The country’s economy has taken a nose-dive, leaving millions in a dire situation. The rate of unemployment is unprecedented, causing many young Cameroonians to look outward in search of opportunities.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai

21, December 2022

African team can reach 2026 World Cup final – CAF boss Motsepe ⁰

African football boss Patrice Motsepe told a press conference in Johannesburg on Wednesday he believes a team from the continent can reach the 2026 World Cup final.

“Morocco opened the door by reaching the semi-finals this month and I am confident an African nation will go further at the next World Cup,” said the South African billionaire.

“The main objective of CAF (Confederation of African Football) is for an African nation to win the World Cup and that goal is within reach.”

There will be nine or 10 African qualifiers for an expanded 48-team 2026 World Cup in the United Stages, Canada and Mexico — up from five in Qatar.

Morocco made history in Qatar by becoming the first African representatives to reach the semi-finals.

The Atlas Lions stunned Belgium in the group stage, then eliminated two more powerful European sides, Spain and Portugal, in the knockout stage before losing to France in the semi-finals.

“There are at least 10 African nations that can compete at the highest level and win the World Cup,” added Motsepe.

He also hailed Cameroon and Tunisia for shock group victories over five-time World Cup winners Brazil and twice champions France respectively.

“We should be proud of what Cameroon and Tunisia achieved. These and other African countries must learn from Morocco,” said the CAF president.

The shock victories were not enough to get Cameroon and Tunisia past the first round, but Senegal did make the last 16 before being eliminated after a heavy loss to England.

Reigning African champions Senegal suffered a massive pre-tournament blow when star forward Sadio Mane was ruled out by injury.

Motsepe disclosed that a dispute between CAF and sports agency Lagardere had been “resolved amicably”, but refused to give details, citing a confidentiality clause.

Lagardere signed a one billion dollar (940 million euros) contract with the Cairo-based African football body in 2017, which was supposed to last until 2028.

However, just one year into the television and marketing deal, it was scrapped after two legal judgments said it breached competition rules.

A senior CAF official, who requested anonymity, told AFP his organisation would pay Lagardere 25 million dollars in instalments to settle the dispute.

Motsepe said Algeria, Benin, Morocco, Nigeria and Zambia were among countries wanting to host the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations after Guinea withdrew recently, saying they were “not ready”.

Source: AFP

21, December 2022

Southern Cameroons Crisis: Pope Francis man in Yaoundé leaves behind a divided country ⁰

As the pope’s ambassador to Cameroon moves on, leaving behind a country still torn apart by ethnic and linguistic divides despite his best efforts at peace, his final plea to the country was to embrace a spirit of “dialogue without prejudice.”

Archbishop Julio Murat, a Turkish prelate who’s served in Cameroon and Equatorial Guinea since 2018, was named the new Apostolic Nuncio, or ambassador, to Sweden and Iceland Nov. 9.

During a Mass to bid him farewell organized by the Cameroon Episcopal Conference on December 12, 2022, Murat asked God and the Christians to forgive him “for his sins of omission.”

“If I hurt anyone unknowingly, please, forgive me,” he said.

“There are things you can’t forget in life, even if you have so much to do,” the nuncio said, and acknowledged the “tremendous” support he received from the Cameroon Bishops’ Conference, the Christians and the country’s authorities.

He expressed gratitude to Pope Francis for trusting him with the position and called for dialogue whenever there are differences.

“The Church wasn’t meant to separate people, but to unite those who are separated. And if there are differences as a result of different sensibilities, we should always be open to listen, to dialogue, without prejudice.”

Murat didn’t mention the one issue that has divided Cameroon and threatens to bring down the country’s very foundations: A separatist war in the country’s English-speaking regions, which has been raging since 2016.

The President of the Bishops’ Conference, Archbishop Andrew Nkea lost no time in thanking the Apostolic Nuncio for his efforts at finding solutions to the crisis.

“You worked so hard to make sure that the poor and the vulnerable of our country are not forgotten,” Nkea said.

“Your love for peace, unity and reconciliation amongst Cameroonians characterized your stay in Cameroon. We will miss your spiritual diplomacy for the common good, especially for the people of the northwest and southwest regions.”

In those two territories, separatists have been fighting to create a new nation to be called “Ambazonia.” Fighting broke out in 2016 when the French-speaking central government took a hard stand against English-speaking teachers and lawyers who took to the streets to protest the over-bearing influence of French in Anglo-Saxon schools and Common Law Courts, which are signposts of the British colonial legacy to the two regions.

Nkea recalled that Murat was a key figure in the organization of a National Pilgrimage for Peace that took place at the Marian Shrine in Marienberg Edea from April 23-24, during which Cameroon was re-consecrated to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.

Noting that there was a time for everything, Nkea said that what’s important is “what happens between the time one is born and the moment one dies. It’s the same thing: when you arrive and when you leave is not important. What’s important is what happens between when you arrive and when you leave.”

Besides the search for peace in a divided nation, Nkea lauded the nuncio’s effort in creating a more harmonious atmosphere between the Church and the state.

“Your work in Cameroon filled a great void between the church and the state, and our church-state relations are now better understood,” he said.

In an apparent swipe at top government and religious officials present at the farewell mass, Nkea spoke at length about the notion of authority, and what it should mean in the exercise of their daily duties.

“A person in authority is not just anyone who wields coercive power over others,” the cleric said.

“The exercise of genuine authority is not to control, to keep in line, to command. On the contrary, it is to be an agent in releasing the potential that is in people: to be an empowering agent. Jesus didn’t wield coercive authority. He came not to be served but to serve. He came to lead people into the full development of what they could be, and what they were meant to be,” Nkea said.

The cleric explained that when Jesus went down on His knees to wash the feet of his disciples, it wasn’t a sign of weakness, “it was an act of authority, the authority of outreaching love.”

Noting that virtually everyone yielded some kind of authority, Nkea urged everyone to understand that all authority comes from God,” and we shall all one day answer to God how we used the authority that he gave us.”

“God gives us authority not to misuse, not to abuse, and not to impose our authority on others. All authority must be used in the fear of the Lord who is the source of all authority,” he explained.

With Christmas just days away, Nkea warned against “worldly, circular celebrations of Christmas,” and exhorted Christians to prepare to celebrate the coming Lord “with true joy and understanding…we cannot be distracted by all those excesses… and end up forgetting why we celebrate Christmas in the first place-our joy in the Lord’s coming and His salvation.”

Source: Crux

21, December 2022

Argentina’s World Cup heroes forced to abandon bus parade and tour in helicopter ⁰

Argentina’s World Cup heroes had to abandon an open-top bus parade in Bueno Aires on Tuesday as millions of ecstatic fans flooded onto the streets and brought the city to a standstill, with Lionel Messi and his team mates whisked into helicopters to complete the celebrations.

The players who were triumphant in Sunday’s World Cup final in Qatar were unable to reach the central Obelisco monument as planned because the route was completely blocked by the heaving crowd, estimated by local media at four million people.

With social media footage showing some fans trying to jump onto the team’s bus when it passed under a bridge, the scheduled eight-hour journey was cut short due to security fears. The players were transferred from their parade bus and into helicopters.

“The world champions are flying over the entire route in helicopters because it became impossible to continue on land due to the explosion of joy,” presidential spokeswoman Gabriela Cerruti wrote on Twitter.

Television images showed people all over the city, including those waiting around the Obelisco and on surrounding highways trying to catch a glimpse of their returning champions.

“It’s crazy, it’s incredible, it’s the best thing that can happen to you in life,” said 25-year-old metalworker Matias Gomez.

“It is an enormous joy to see all these happy people, all together, one with the other, holding hands, giving each other hugs, kisses. We are all one today.”

The team had arrived in the early hours of Tuesday at Ezeiza airport. Despite it being around 3am local time (0600 GMT), thousands were waiting with banners, flags and flares and howling with joy after Messi and his team mates ended the country’s 36-year wait to win the World Cup.

By around midday millions had already congregated in downtown Buenos Aires, with major roads shut down for the parade. People held up banners of Messi and late icon Diego Maradona, played instruments or climbed lamp-posts or bus stops.

Roads started to clear after the players took to the sky in helicopters, with some people left disappointed not to see the team.

The Argentine capital has been in party mode since the dramatic victory over France in Sunday’s final in Qatar, which has helped mask economic woes in the South American nation battling one of the world’s highest inflation rates.

The penalty shootout victory made the country world champions for the first time since Maradona hoisted the trophy in 1986 and the third in total.

The government made Tuesday a national holiday to allow fans to celebrate the win.

‘I can’t cry and more’

As the open-top bus snaked through the city, players danced and cheered with fans who circled the bus. Police were having to hold people back to allow the vehicle to move forward on its slow journey towards the centre of town.

But eventually they could go no further.

“They don’t let us get to greet all the people who were at the Obelisco. The security agents that escorted us won’t allow us to move forward,” tweeted Chiqui Tapia, president of the Argentine Football Association (AFA).

“A thousand apologies on behalf of all the champion players.”

Messi, 35, has burnished his reputation as one of the world’s greatest ever with the win as Argentina beat France 4-2 on penalties after a scintillating 3-3 draw after extra time.

He has said it was his last match in the World Cup, though he plans to play a few more games for the national side.

At times it has felt that the whole country has been partying through the night from Sunday onwards in the southern hemisphere summer, the joy of victory infecting everyone with cars regularly blaring their horns in celebration.

“There are people lying on the floor who came straight from the last party to get up and keep partying,” said Elio Maisares, 25, as he celebrated in the city where everyone and everything was covered in the white-and-blue of the “Albiceleste”.

“Just look at all this, look at everything that is painted in light blue and white. Along the roads, the highways, all the people are rooting for Argentina,” he said.

“It’s really impressive, it’s unique, what a way to cry. I cried this morning, yesterday, the day before yesterday, I can’t cry anymore, it’s incredible!”

Source: REUTERS

21, December 2022

Ghana goes ‘bankrupt’ ⁰

The Ghanaian government has announced it can no longer honor its payment of external debts to creditors. Bondholders were shocked when the government announced it can no longer pay about 13 billion Euros in debt to its creditors.

The announcement was made by the country’s Finance ministry on Monday December 19, 2022.

Ghanaian Government says it’s a short term move intended to carry out IMF lead structural reforms but former Ghanaian President disagreed tweeting “Tragic! Ghana officially bankrupt”

Ghana was misled by France to lead an economy embargo against Mali’s military government when they chased the French away. Ghanaian government stopped all trade with Bamako and ended ties. The move prompted Burkina Faso government to recalled its ambassador from Accra further straining Ghana’s fragile economy

Ghanian government also led a West African campaign to oust Russia from the region, dismantling ties with Moscow on the behest of US and France.

Source: Freelancer

21, December 2022

Magnitude 6.4 quake shakes Northern California, leaving thousands without power ⁰

A magnitude 6.4 earthquake jolted the extreme northern coast of California before dawn on Tuesday, injuring at least two people, damaging roads, bridges and power lines and leaving tens of thousands of homes and businesses without electricity.

The tremor, which struck at 2:30 am PST and was followed by more than three dozen aftershocks, was centered 215 miles (350 km) north of San Francisco offshore of Humboldt County, a largely rural area known for its redwood forests, local seafood, lumber industry and dairy farms.

The region also is known for relatively frequent seismic activity, although the latest quake appeared to cause more disruption than others in recent years.

Tuesday’s temblor set off one structure fire, which was quickly extinguished, and caused two other buildings to collapse, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CalFire).

The department said its dispatchers fielded 70 emergency calls after the quake, including one report of a person left trapped who needed rescuing, spokesperson Tran Beyea said.

The county sheriff’s office reported two people injured near the quake’s epicenter, where damage to homes and roads was widespread. One of those victims was a child with a head injury and the other an older person with a broken hip, according to local media reports citing the sheriff’s office.

There were no immediate official reports of fatalities.

Police closed the main bridge crossing the Eel River into Ferndale, a picturesque town notable for its gingerbread-style Victorian storefronts and homes, after four large cracks were discovered in the span. The California Highway Patrol also said the roadway foundation there was at risk of sliding.

The highway patrol reported at least four other roads in Humboldt County closed due to earthquake damage, and a possible gas line rupture under investigation. One section of roadway was reportedly sinking, the agency said.

“The shaking was really intense,” said Daniel Holsapple, 33, a resident of nearby Arcata, who recounted grabbing his pet cat and running outside after he was jostled awake in pitch darkness by the motion of the house and an emergency alert from his cellphone.

“There was no seeing what was going on. It was just the sensation and that general low rumbling sound of the foundation of the whole house vibrating,” he said.

Janet Calderon, 32, who lives in the adjacent town of Eureka, said she was already awake and noticed her two cats seemed agitated moments before the quake struck, shaking her second-flood bedroom “really hard.”

“Everything on my desk fell over,” she said.

While earthquakes producing noticeable shaking are routine in California, tremors at a magnitude 6.4 are less commonplace and potentially dangerous, capable of causing substantial damage to buildings, such as a partial collapse or the shifting of structures off their foundations.

Weak shaking from Tuesday’s quake, which occurred at the relatively shallow depth of 11.1 miles (17.9 km) was felt as far away as San Francisco, the US Geological Survey reported.

About five earthquakes of magnitudes ranging from 6.0 to 7.0 are recorded annually in California and Nevada, according to recent data cited by the Los Angeles Times.

Caroline Titus, editor and publisher of the Ferndale Enterprise, posted video on Twitter of toppled furniture and household items scattered on the floor of her Ferndale home.

“Sorry for dark video,” she wrote. “Power still out.”

Some 79,000 homes and businesses were without power in Ferndale and surrounding Humboldt County, according to the electric grid tracking website PowerOutage.us.

PG&E crews were out assessing the utility’s gas and electric system for any damage and hazards, which could take several days, company spokesperson Karly Hernandez said.

Source: REUTERS

20, December 2022

Video shows Biden saying Iran nuclear deal is ‘dead’ ⁰

US President Joe Biden said last month that the multi-state deal with Iran to limit its nuclear program was “dead,” but he would not announce that publicly, according to a video that surfaced Tuesday.

The video, which appears genuine and was apparently taken on November 3 during Biden’s visit to California, shows him being asked by a woman to announce that the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) is no longer in effect.

“President Biden, could you please announce that the JCPOA is dead,” the woman, who appears to wear a hair ribbon in Iran’s flag colors, asks as Biden passes by shaking hands.

“No,” Biden replies.

“Why not?” the woman retorts.

“It is dead, but we are not going to announce it,” the US leader said. “Long story,” he adds.

The woman, and others next to her, urge him to not make deals with the Tehran government.

“They don’t represent us,” she said. “They are not our government,” another added.

“I know they don’t represent you. But they will have a nuclear weapon,” Biden says, as the video clip ends.

Biden’s comments, which the White House did not deny, came as Iran has not bowed to months of pressure to accept the final stipulations of an agreement to revive the JCPOA, which was abandoned by his predecessor Donald Trump in 2018.

Talks to revive the deal have been ongoing in Vienna since April 2021, and at one point early this year Iran and Washington appeared extremely close to a deal.

Since then there has not been any progress, and the European Union’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell warned in September that the parties were actually “diverging.”

Asked about the video, White House national security spokesman John Kirby said nobody was questioning its authenticity.

He said Washington still wants to restore the JCPOA, but that doing so is not priority, given the Ukraine war.

“The president’s comments are very much in line with everything we’ve been saying about the JCPOA, which is just not our focus right now,” Kirby told reporters.

“There is no progress happening with respect to the Iran deal now. We don’t anticipate any progress anytime in the near future,” he said.

“We simply don’t see a deal coming together anytime soon, while Iran continues to kill its own citizens and is selling UAVs to Russia,” he said, making references to Tehran’s campaign to repress months-long demonstrations over its treatment of women, and to Tehran’s supplying attack drones to Russia for use in Ukraine.

Source: AFP

19, December 2022

Why is this evil man still receiving Holy Communion? ⁰

Roman Catholic Bishops in many countries in the world have reportedly barred prominent political figures from receiving Holy Communion and in some cases the Bishops have asked the politicians to confess and receive absolution of their grave sins in the sacrament of Penance. This has never been the case in Cameroon where Roman Catholic clerics are regularly killed and their bodies dumped in waters.

Last year, Cameroon Concord News Group challenged Cameroonian bishops to begin prohibiting corrupt and vicious political figures from receiving Holy Communion, but the Bishops including Archbishop Andrew Nkea and Bishop George Nkuo insisted that it would be inherently political, not pastoral. The Metropolitan Archbishop of the Bamenda Ecclesiastic Province in a conversation with this reporter opined that in as much as the Holy Roman Catholic Church is concerned about public policy, its main focus is on the spiritual care of individual Catholics. Well, that is exactly why the butcher of Yaoundé, 89-year-old President Paul Biya is still receiving Holy Communion.

The Bishops have maintained that conversation with the failed regime in Yaoundé is always better than exclusion and that the church prefers dialogue and persuasion. But regarding Mr. Paul Biya, we of the Concord Group think that for forty years in power, the policies of dialogue and persuasion have clearly been made. It is now time to bar Biya from receiving Holy Communion.

All what Biya has done for forty years as head of state ranges from plain fiction to the most absurd and for more than six years now, Cameroon has been battling an insurgency in the country’s two English-speaking regions which is hard to overcome though the Yaoundé government has thrown everything it has at the insurgents.

More than ten thousand Cameroonians, including four thousand soldiers, have died because of the conflict in the country’s two English-speaking regions and the country’s economy is still reeling from the government generated chaos.

We of the Cameroon Concord News and the Cameroon Intelligence Report are appealing to all Cameroonian Bishops to come to the understanding that there is nothing more that can be done by the Holy Roman Catholic Church at this point to help President Biya and his ruling criminal gangs to understand the seriousness of the evil his forty year old regime is perpetrating on the Cameroonian nation. In barring President Paul Biya from receiving Holy Communion, we of the Concord Group believe that the Cameroonian Bishops will have the complete support of the Cameroonian people and the Holy Father Pope Francis who in a recent revision of the canon law spoke of responding to the demands of justice, moving the offending party to conversion, and repairing the scandal caused. Biya should even be excommunicated from the Holy Roman Catholic Church.

The Bishop of the Kumbo Diocese, His Lordship Bishop George Nkuo acknowledged some years ago in the city of Essen in Germany that he has struggled with what he should do regarding a pastoral situation in Cameroon where so many Roman Catholic political figures were in jail charged with corruption. Bishop Nkuo left the ex-students of Sacred Heart Mankon with the normal Roman Catholic prescriptions: prayer, fasting, and consultation with a broad spectrum of Catholic leaders-nothing have changed ever since the Bishop left the North Rhein Westphalia region of Germany.

Allowing Mr. Biya to continue receiving the Holy Eucharist, the Cameroonian Bishops are apparently saying that Cameroon’s Misruler-In-Chief President Paul Biya is a good Catholic.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai