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5, September 2022

Boko Haram: General Blama from Cameroon is New Deputy Commander of Multinational Joint Task Force ⁰

The newly appointed Deputy Force Commander (DFC) of the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF), Brigadier General Assoualai Blama from Cameroun resumed duty on Friday 02 September 2022 after the out gone DFC, Brigadier General Harouna Assoumane from Niger Republic completed his tenure.

The handover ceremony was presided over by the Force Commander (FC) MNJTF Major General Abdul Khalifah Ibrahim. The FC thanked the outgoing DFC for his contributions to the MNJTF and wished him a safe journey back to his home country and success in his future endeavours.

The new DFC in his remarks thanked the FC for the warm reception accorded him and promised to contribute positively to the success of the MNJTF. He added that though all military staff officers (MSOs) were from the different Troop Contributing Countries of Cameroon, Chad, Niger, Nigeria and Benin Republic, there was the need for all to cooperate to end the insurgency. He pledged to put in his best in fulfilling his duties as the DFC.

Source: PrNigeria

5, September 2022

Kenya’s Supreme Court upholds Ruto’s presidential victory over Odinga ⁰

Kenya’s Supreme Court on Monday upheld William Ruto’s victory in the August 9 presidential election, ending weeks of political uncertainty and delivering a blow to challenger Raila Odinga who had alleged fraud in the poll.

“This is a unanimous decision. The petitions are hereby dismissed, as a consequence we declare the first respondent (Ruto) as president-elect,” Chief Justice Martha Koome said.

Deputy President Ruto, 55, scraped to victory by a margin of less than two percentage points in a tightly-fought race against Odinga, a veteran opposition politician now backed by the ruling party.

Odinga filed a petition to Kenya’s top court last month, claiming he had “enough evidence” to show he had in fact won the election, which ranked as one of Africa’s most expensive polls.

Although voting day passed off peacefully, the results sparked angry protests in Odinga strongholds and there are fears that the dispute could fuel violence in a country with a history of post-poll unrest.

Judges spent the last two weeks sifting through boxes of evidence to establish if any irregularities were substantial enough to nullify the election, as was the case with the August 2017 presidential poll, which Odinga also challenged.

Koome began reading out the verdict shortly after midday (0900 GMT), methodically listing the court’s response to the nine issues at the heart of the case.

She said the technology used by the Independent and Electoral Boundaries Commission (IEBC) met the standards of “integrity, verifiability, security and transparency”.

Any “irregularities were not of such magnitude as to affect the final results of the presidential election”, she said, dismissing all the claims made by the petitioners.

Odinga’s 72-page petition alleged hackers broke into IEBC servers and uploaded doctored result forms, but the claim was dismissed by the court.

Both the candidates had pledged to respect the verdict, which sparked celebrations by Ruto supporters.

Cost of living crisis

After 2017’s annulment, the IEBC was under heavy pressure to deliver a clean poll.

But this year’s outcome sparked a rift within the IEBC itself, with four of its seven commissioners accusing chairman Wafula Chebukati of running an “opaque” process.

Chebukati denied the allegations, insisting he carried out his duties according to the law of the land despite facing “intimidation and harassment”.

Since 2002, no presidential poll outcome in Kenya has gone uncontested.

At around 65 percent, turnout was sharply lower than in the August 2017 election, with observers saying it reflected growing disillusionment among citizens.

Odinga, who previously said he was cheated of victory in the 2007, 2013 and 2017 polls, had framed the legal battle as a fight “for democracy and good governance”.

Ruto in turn had urged the court to toss out the petition, accusing Odinga of trying “to have another bite at the cherry through a judicially-forced re-run”.

The 2017 poll saw dozens of protesters killed at the hands of police.

Kenya’s worst electoral violence occurred after the 2007 vote, when more than 1,100 people died in politically motivated clashes involving rival tribes.

Ruto will be sworn in on September 13, becoming Kenya’s fifth president since independence from Britain in 1963 and taking the reins of a country beset by inflation, high unemployment and a crippling drought.

Source: AFP

4, September 2022

Football: Man Utd sinks Arsenal ⁰

Erik ten Hag hailed Antony’s deadly partnership with Marcus Rashford as Manchester United’s new signing scored on his debut while his strike partner’s brace sent Arsenal crashing to 3-1 defeat on Sunday.

Antony made a dream debut as the Brazil forward scored just 35 minutes into his first appearance following his £82 million ($94 million) move from Ajax.

Some pundits questioned United’s decision to splash out such a big fee on the 22-year-old.

But Ten Hag knows all about Antony from their time together at Ajax, where the United manager worked before taking charge of the Premier League club in the summer.

And Antony appeared to the manor born as he unfurled an array of skills and intelligent play to dazzle the Old Trafford crowd.

He formed an instant relationship with fellow forward Rashford, who provided an astute assist for Antony’s clinical finish.

After Bukayo Saka’s equaliser, Rashford took the game away from Arsenal with a pair of composed strikes to end the Premier League leaders’ perfect start to the season.

“They both played great, a continual threat. I know our offensive is really strong, they are creative and have speed,” Ten Hag said of Antony and Rashford.

“This is the first time they have played together and this performance is great to see.

“I thought the first 10 minutes was the best we have played so far this season.”

Arsenal had won their first five games but United’s four-match winning run is their longest in the Premier League since winning five in a row in 2021 under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

It is exactly the kind of streak Ten Hag needed his team to go after his reign started with embarrassing defeats against Brighton and Brentford.

Spirited United

The 4-0 loss at Brentford was especially chastening, but since then Ten Hag has got the response he wanted after calling for his players to show more hunger and character.

“We are happy and satisfied with the win, also the performance against a really good team,” Ten Hag said.

“The spirit from this team, they can deal with setbacks. It is really great and shows your mentality. We have really improved on that.

“We have the right characters and now it is about cooperation. We have to stay calm, stay composed and play our game.”

Old Trafford was buzzing in the aftermath of another encouraging result that showed United’s 2-1 success against bitter rivals Liverpool was no fluke.

But, well aware of the flaws in a team that finished a woeful sixth last season, Ten Hag warned United not to get carried away.

The winning streak has lifted them to fifth place after they were bottom of the table following the Brentford debacle, yet Ten Hag sees plenty of room for improvement.

“We could’ve done things better but we are not as long together as Arsenal,” he said.

“When we get that we will have better control of the game. That’s hard work. There’s a lot of room for improvement.

“We can have better pressing and organisation. We can control the game more.

“We can be better in possession with better composure on the ball then we will dictate the game even more.

“We haven’t been together long so we’ll work on it. You can see that Arsenal are more together, but our team spirit brings us the win.”

Source: AFP

4, September 2022

Ambazonia Interim Gov’t condemns killing of Ossing man ⁰

The Ambazonia Interim Government accused pro Yaoundé militants on Sunday of killing a cocoa famer Peter Agbor, 37, who was found hanging on a tree in Ossing village in Manyu Division.

Initial reports spoke of suicide, but as the investigations continued, it was discovered that there were more questions than answers in the quest for the truth.

Sources in Ossing which saw Mr. Agbor hanging on the tree said he had been killed before being tied up to the tree, but no bullets or wounds had been found on his body, causing many people to think that he might have been forced to drink poison by his enemies.

The Senior Divisional Officer for Manyu had no immediate comment.

Southern Cameroons is now ruled jointly by the Biya regime in French Cameroun and the Ambazonia Interim Government.

Vice President Dabney Yerima said in his weekly press briefing yesterday that the African Union should pressure the Biya Francophone regime to launch a probe into the incident. “It is clearly a cold-blooded execution, committed in broad day light,” Vice President Dabney Yerima said.

The fighting in Southern Cameroons which was designed to bring independence to the country’s English-speaking minority is turning out to be a massive disappointment to Ambazonians.

The rebellion has triggered a wave of kidnappings and massacres and is spreading pain and suffering among those who have been looking forward to the independence of the Federal Republic of Ambazonia.

For over five years, the joy of independence has turned into a nightmare as rogues are using the ongoing socio-political crisis to commit atrocities in towns and villages in Southern Cameroons.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai

4, September 2022

Barack Obama: president, Nobel laureate, and now an Emmy winner ⁰

Hollywood newcomer Barack Obama was awarded an Emmy for narrating his Netflix documentary series “Our Great National Parks,” the Television Academy announced Saturday.

The former two-term US president had already won a pair of Grammy Awards — for audio versions of his memoirs “The Audacity of Hope” and “Dreams from My Father” — so he now only needs an Oscar and a Tony to complete the estimable EGOT.

According to an Entertainment Weekly tracker, only 17 people have achieved an EGOT, including Mel Brooks, Whoopie Goldberg, Audrey Hepburn and — most recently — Jennifer Hudson.

One other president had already been awarded an Emmy — Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1956 — although his was an honorary award.

After leaving office in 2017, both Obama and his wife Michelle have each written best-selling memoirs, and in addition to their non-profit foundation, have established a production company which has inked a major deal with Netflix, reportedly worth tens of millions of dollars.

Their company’s first documentary for the streaming service, “American Factory,” won the Oscar for best documentary feature and an Emmy for directing, though the awards went to the filmmakers and not to the Obamas themselves.

Obama’s successor to the presidency, Donald Trump, did not win an Emmy for his reality competition show “The Apprentice,” although he was nominated twice.

Obama also received the Nobel Peace Prize after his 2008 presidential election win, for his “extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples.”

Source: AFP

4, September 2022

The Holy Father Pope Francis beatifies ‘Smiling’ John Paul I ⁰

Thousands of people gathered in St Peter’s Square on Sunday as Pope Francis presided over the beatification of John Paul I, the so-called “Smiling Pope” who led the Catholic Church for just 33 days before dying in contested circumstances.

John Paul I, the son of a bricklayer from the Dolomite mountains and a particularly warm and pastoral figure, was elected pope on August 26, 1978, at the age of 65.

He died just 33 days later, on September 28, 1978, of a heart attack, making him the shortest serving pontiff in modern church history.

A crowd of several thousand including Italian President Sergio Mattarella gathered under umbrellas through a thunderstorm to listen to the beatification mass — a step before canonization and becoming a “saint”.

“With a smile, Pope John Paul managed to communicate the goodness of the Lord,” said Pope Francis during Sunday’s mass.

“How beautiful is a Church with a happy, serene and smiling face, that never closes doors, never hardens hearts, never complains or harbours resentment, does not grow angry or impatient, does not look dour or suffer nostalgia for the past.”

A wall hanging representing the late pope was hung on the front of St Peter’s basilica.

The death of John Paul I death sparked intense speculation as to the cause, from suicide — he seemed reluctant to take on the position of pope — to murder, allegedly by those who opposed his plans to reform the church, particularly the powerful Vatican bank.

Many have since discounted this and biographer Christophe Henning said the swirling rumours can be explained by the sudden nature of his death and the “calamitous communication” by the Vatican at the time.

No autopsy was conducted to determine the cause of death, and the Vatican issued inconsistent and false information about what happened.

For example, his lifeless body — sitting in bed, his reading glasses on his nose and typewritten documents in his hand — was found by a nun.

However, the Vatican did not want to acknowledge the presence of a woman in his bedroom, so said his secretary found him.

“For me it does not seem that there is really a doubt” about his death by natural causes, particularly given “we know that he was in fragile health”, Henning told AFP.

‘Friendly to everybody’

The Vatican announced in October 2021 that it had recognised a miracle attributed to John Paul I, allowing him to become beatified, a process when a person becomes “blessed” and the final step before becoming a saint.

The miracle was the sudden healing of a gravely ill 11-year-old girl in Buenos Aires in 2011, after a local priest prayed to the late pontiff.

Under the rules of the Catholic Church, in most cases a second miracle needs to be recognised before someone can be made a saint.

Born as Albino Luciani on October 17, 1912, in the northern Italian town of Canale d’Agordo, John Paul I rose to become Patriarch of Venice, Cardinal and then head of the Catholic Church.

The last Italian pope, he was seen as a man of consensus, of humility and simplicity and a strong sense of pastoral duty.

“Open to dialogue and listening, he gave priority to pastoral visits and direct contact with the faithful,” the Vatican said in a beatification brochure.

He defended the church’s opposition to abortion and contraception while also seeking to reform its governance.

Sister Margherita Marin, who helped John Paul I in the papal apartments, recalled a man who was “friendly to everyone”.

“He knew how to treat his colleagues with a lot of respect,” she told a Vatican press conference on Friday.

Among the most recent popes, John XXIII (1958-1963), Paul VI (1963-1978) and John Paul II (1978-2005) were proclaimed saints.

The predecessor of Pope Francis, Benedict XVI, is still alive and living in the Vatican after resigning in 2013.

Source: AFP

3, September 2022

Southern Cameroons Crisis: Amba fighters suspected in killing in Ossing ⁰

The fighting in the two English-speaking regions of Cameroon which was designed to bring independence to the country’s English-speaking minority is turning out to be a massive disappointment to the people.

From every indication, the rebellion, which has triggered a wave of kidnapping and massacres, is spreading pain and suffering among those who have been looking forward to that independence.

For over five years, the joy of independence has turned into a nightmare as rogues are using the ongoing socio-political crisis to commit atrocities in towns and villages in the Southwest and Northwest regions.

Summary executions and settling of scores have become rampart and envy, the sore of the soul, has been thrown into the mix and this has created a very toxic situation.

Yesterday in Ossing, a town some seven kilometres from Mamfe, the Division’s chief town, a man known as Peter Agbor, 37, was found hanging on a tree.

Initial reports spoke of suicide, but as the investigations continued, it was discovered that there were more questions than answers in the quest for the truth.

Most people who spoke to the Cameroon Concord News on condition of anonymity said they suspected Amba fighters as Mr. Agbor did not have any enemies they knew of in the village.

However, the investigations are ongoing and some residents who have spoken to the police say they have an idea of what happened and they are helping the police with their investigations.

It is also being reported that some Amba fighters in Mfuni were head discussing the situation and one of the fighters claimed that he and his colleagues had taught Mr. Agbor a bitter lesson.

Mr. Agbor has been buried close to the cocoa tree where he was found dead according to the customs and traditions of the people of Ossing.

The police have promised to track down the criminals as pictures clearly point to a crime committed to hurt the victim’s family.

The position of his legs clearly indicates that it was not a suicide by hanging and Mr. Agbor could not have gone up the cocoa tree to tie up the rope and come down to stand on his feet and die.

Those who witnessed the situation said his eyes were closed which points to something else and his tongue was still intact and this does not happen when someone commits suicide by hanging.

Our correspondent in Mamfe is investigating the issue and will be delivering reports as he gets more information.

By Bryan Tambe Ashu

2, September 2022

CPDM Crime Syndicate: Cocoa exporters get the lion’s share while farmers continue to struggle ⁰

Cocoa exports during the 2021-22 campaign in Cameroon generated a total of CFA288.7 billion in revenue, according to data from the national cocoa coffee office (ONCC). This sum, collected by the 38 active exporters identified over the period, is largely higher than the profit made by producers. This means that producers, who are the real workforce of the sector, benefit less than others.

This problem is also observed on the global market. The International Cocoa Organization (ICCO) reported that the annual turnover of the global cocoa industry reaches $100 billion, but only $2 billion (2%) goes to producers. Chocolate manufacturers reap the largest share with 35% of the turnover, while the remaining is shared between the grinding industry and transporters.

During the 2012-13 campaign, for example, at a time when the farm gate price was close to CFA1,500 per kg in Cameroon, local cocoa farmers sold about CFA250 billion of beans, according to ICCO data. However, during the same period, the global sector generated a total of CFA4,500 billion, said Jean-Marc Anga, then ICCO executive secretary, during the 2013 edition of the Cameroonian cocoa festival (Festicacao 2013).

To boost revenue for producers, the major producing countries on the continent such as Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, and Cameroon launched with the European Union (EU), the world’s largest importer of cocoa beans, an initiative called Cocoa Talks. It is presented as a dialogue on sustainable cocoa production.

“Sustainability means protecting the environment. But, sustainability also means the survival of producers […] Sustainability rhymes with the protection of the environment, the prohibition of child labor, and ultimately, the prosperity of producers. That is what we want from this discussion,” said Minister Mbarga Atangana, at the opening of the Cocoa Talks on November 18, 2021, in Yaoundé.

Source: Business in Cameroon

2, September 2022

Indomitable Lions: Rigobert Song unveils squad for pre-World Cup friendlies ⁰

Rigobert Song, head coach of Cameroon’s national team, announced on Friday a provisional list of 36 players for pre-FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 friendlies against South Korea and Uzbekistan.

The list contains four goalkeepers, 10 defenders, eight midfielders and 14 forwards. Two local players are included in the squad while midfielder Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa is absent.

Cameroon will kick off their trip on September 23 against Uzbekistan in Goyang, a northern South Korea city, before they return to Seoul to play South Korea on September 27 at the Seoul World Cup Stadium.

Cameroon has been drawn in Group G with Switzerland, Serbia and five-time world champions Brazil. The Indomitable Lions will kick off their group stage against Switzerland on November 24.

Source: Xinhuanet

2, September 2022

Covid-19: City of 21 million in new lockdown as China maintains strict policy ⁰

China has placed millions of its citizens under renewed lockdown following fresh outbreaks of COVID-19, authorities reported Tuesday, as the government persists in its hard-line policy on containing the virus.

The measures affected about half of the 6 million residents of the port city of Dalian, along with an undisclosed number in Chengde and Shijiazhuang in Hebei province, both around three hours from the capital Beijing.

Dalian’s lockdown was due to last five days, although authorities have in past extended restrictions depending on the number of new cases.

Beijing has been relatively unaffected thus far, although travel in and out of the capital has been discouraged and residents are subject to testing on an almost daily basis.

Partial lockdowns have also been imposed on cities such as Chengdu in the southwest, Shenyang in the northeast and Jishui in the southeast.

Such measures are mandated under China’s “zero-COVID” policy, which contrasts starkly with moves by other nations to coexist with the virus through gradual easing of restrictions, vaccinations, improved therapeutics and voluntary isolation.

China has largely kept its borders closed to foreign visitors, while requiring those who do come to submit to more than a week of quarantine in hotels where sanitary conditions are often poor. Masking and regular testing are also standard and anyone found to have been in close contact with a person confirmed to have the virus is forcibly transported to field hospitals.

The World Health Organization has called China’s policy unsustainable and on Monday, a Chinese think tank issued a rare public disagreement with the ruling Communist Party, saying the curbs that have shut down cities and disrupted trade, travel and industry must change to prevent an “economic stall.”

The Anbound Research Center gave no details of possible changes but said President Xi Jinping’s government needs to focus on shoring up sinking growth. It noted the United States, Europe and Japan are recovering economically after easing anti-disease curbs.

“Preventing the risk of economic stall should be the priority task,” the think tank said in a report titled, “It’s Time for China to Adjust Its Virus Control and Prevention Policies.”

Previous lockdowns have seen tens of millions confined to their homes, sometimes for weeks. A strict lockdown in the largest city and commercial hub of Shanghai earlier this year led to protests online and in person over lack of food and medical services.

China on Tuesday reported 1,717 cases of local transmission, 52 of them in Liaoning province where Dalian is located. Most of the cases were reported in Sichuan province, whose capital is Chengdu, and the vast majority were asymptomatic.

Source: AP