Editorial

Indomitable Lions: When will Minister Mouelle Kombi end his tragi-comedy?

12, June 2024

Indomitable Lions: When will Minister Mouelle Kombi end his tragi-comedy? 0

One would have thought that following FIFA’s letter of May 6, 2024, urging Cameroon’s ministry of sports and FECAFOOT to comply with agreements they had signed, especially as the global soccer governing body had clearly stated in its letter that FECAFOOT was the body which had to appoint technical team members for the country’s national team, the country’s sports minister, Narcisse Mouelle Kombi, would see the errors of his ways and seek reconciliation.

On the contrary, the professor of law and practicing lawyer has gradually morphed into a practicing liar by inventing tricks and, sometimes issuing veiled threats to get his way around a rule that has stood the test of time.

Mouelle Kombi seems to think that the world operates with the rules established by Cameroon’s lawless government.

During the match pitting the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon against the Blue Sharks of Cape Verde in Cameroon, Minister Mouelle Kombi took his comedy and chaos to the stadium.

Due to his greed and lawlessness, two different technical teams had to put Cameroon’s lawlessness and disorder on display for all to see although Cameroon’s major television network, the Cameroon Radio and Television Corporation  (CRTV) did a good job of sparing its viewers the pain of seeing the country being ridiculed due to Mouelle Kombi’s Amerisized ego.

Both technical teams were kicked out of the coaching zone and were reduced to sorry spectators of the match.

Before the stadium incident, other scenes of Mouelle Kombi’s drama had played out at the Hilton Hotel in Yaoundé and even at the training grounds. The “puppet master” has been using the “Belgian farmer” who now moonlights as a coach of the Indomitable Lions to destabilize the same team he is expected to coach.

The “Belgian farmer” knows that the chaos the practicing liar has outsourced to him will only hurt him in the long run and he is now cutting a conciliatory figure.

But it is not up to the Belgian farmer to put an end to Mouelle Kombi’s unacceptable drama. The Belgian farmer has already eaten and danced with the devil. He is therefore caged in silence forever.

He cannot talk and, on Sunday, Mouelle Kombi’s ghost followed the Belgian farmer to Luanda in Angola. A new act in Mouelle Kombi’s tragi-comedy played out at the Nsimalen International airport with the Minister’s appointed technical team being refused access to the aircraft that was transporting the Cameroonian delegation to Luanda.

After long and tedious negotiations, members of Mouelle Kombi-appointed technical team were allowed into the aircraft but had to be squeezed in the tail of the airplane.

Omam Biyik, a once venerated Indomitable Lions striker and members of Mouelle Kombi’s cast knew that the headaches ahead would expose them to more humiliation but they must obey their puppet master.

Hunger and poverty hardly breed virtue and they have successfully reduced Omam Biyik to a beggar. He has lost his sense of dignity and he is willing and ready to implement Mouelle Kombi’s devilish plan without batting an eyelid. He prefers to err on the side of illegality if only he can receive a meagre salary. Many wonder where he has kept the money he earned as a player.

Omam is today a member of the Kombi cult. From Nsimalen, they flew into Luanda conscious of the fact that they could face enormous embarrassment. Omam and his fellow Kombi loyalists came out of the airplane with stomachs full of butterflies. The scene had changed.

Angolans were not going to help Mouelle Kombi’s men stage their tragi-comedy on Angolan soil. Their names were not on the match list submitted by FECAFOOT. Another round of negotiations had to start. Before Omam and his fellow Kombi disciples earn their first salaries, they would have run out of saliva. The negotiations are always tough and long. When you side with illegality, know that yours will be the kingdom of humiliation.

Despite the preaching, begging and talking, Kombi’s disciples had to pay their visa fees and many of them did not have much money on them. Angolans are tough with their visas, and sometimes, even with a diplomatic passport, you still have to answer some head-breaking questions.

Though Kombi’s disciples had been let into the country, they knew they might not have a good place to rest. Luanda is a very expensive city. Hotel rates are astronomically high and it was when Omam and his colleagues in crime reached the hotel wherein the Indomitable Lions were being lodged, that they finally figured out that they would be homeless for two days.

FECAFOOT does not recognize the Kombi disciples and had not reserved any rooms for them. Cameroon’s chaos cannot play out in Angola. The scenes are different and the law works in Angola.

Omam, the man who had brought fame to Cameroon in the 1990 World Cup competition was reduced to a beggar. Like other members of the Kombi technical team, he had to share a room with the younger players, many of whom could be his children. Worst of all, the days-long fatigue caused Omam and his colleagues to snore all night long as if they wanted to generate more electricity for the city of Luanda. Poverty has a way of humiliating people!

Despite Mouelle Kombi’s attempt via telephone to talk the Angolan sports minister into his chaos, the Angolan football federation made it clear that only documents forwarded by FECAFOOT had the force of law. Federations don’t deal with sports ministries. They deal with sister federations and in Luanda, Omam and other disciples of Kombi knew that they were in real trouble. Hunger and thirst kept Kombi disciples company throughout their stay in Luanda.

They were allowed into the stadium only after having paid for their tickets like ordinary spectators. Many of them could be seen cutting lonely and miserable figures. Only the FECAFOOT appointed technical team members enjoyed their full benefits. They played their roles fully while Kombi’s disciples watched in utter dismay.

Mouelle Kombi had lost the battle of Luanda but had succeeded not only to expose his disciples to humiliation in its superlative degree, but also to frustration. He had also carefully crafted a plan to expose them to hunger and desperation. And the plan actually worked.

With all what has played out over the last week, Mouelle Kombi must understand that more humiliation will be downloaded on his illegal technical team as the Indomitable Lions work hard to obtain a spot in the upcoming World Cup competition.

But there are more problems for Minister Mouelle Kombi. The invoices of the companies he signed mutual agreements with are already due. FECAFOOT only pays for contracts it negotiates. It has no business with third-party contracts. Over the last two days, the beleaguered minister of sports has been calling on the FECAFOOT finance officer to pay the invoices for contracts he signed, but the FECAFOOT finance officer cannot disburse any money without approval from the FECAFOOT boss.

The finance officer has clearly stated that he cannot make any errors of judgment as auditors will hold him responsible for any poorly managed finances. The finance officer understands that the justice system would come after him like a Tasmanian devil if he breached the law.

Mouelle Kombi is running out of steam. He has been bruised and ruffled by a FECAFOOT President who likes to err on the side of the law and has a tough personality. Omam and his fellow disciples may never receive a salary for the unpalatable drama they have helped Mouelle Kombi to stage.

Kombi has a choice! Sue for peace or continue making a fool of himself. If he does not embrace decency and collaboration, then he should know that there is more disgrace for him on the horizon.

By Staffman Alain Agbor Ebot

Exclusive: Dr Joachim Arrey speaks of Biya, Manyu politics and Cameroon in 2025

9, June 2024

Exclusive: Dr Joachim Arrey speaks of Biya, Manyu politics and Cameroon in 2025 0

“Manyu needs a new generation of politicians if it must be relevant in Cameroon’s new political landscape as elections approach. Our past politicians like Samson Georges, Emmanuel Tabi Egbe, Michael Kima Tabong, W.N.O Effiom etc. were men of unparalleled integrity and wisdom. They inspired many of us in more ways than one and young people of Manyu descent should be engaging in politics to make Manyu great again,” says Dr. Joachim Arrey of the Global Think Tank for Africa.

Cameroon Concord News:   It is always a pleasure talking with you. I have been reading your articles on many sites and you have been writing a lot about 2025 which is an important year in Cameroon’s political history. There will be presidential, parliamentary, senatorial and municipal elections in 2025 and many people around the world are hoping for the best for Cameroon. In which direction do you think these elections will take the country?

Dr Joachim Arrey: Thanks for granting me the opportunity to share my thoughts with you on what is happening in Cameroon. Cameroon is an important country in the Central African region and what happens in Cameroon could have a huge impact on the other Central African countries. That is why there is a lot of interest in what is playing out in the country. 2025 will really be a crucial year. There will be presidential elections and many people are wondering if the country’s current president will still be a candidate given his age. He is almost 92 and the burden of responsibility as well as the passage of time has taken a toll on him and his health. Very few people of his age are in good health and carrying such a burden again for the next seven years and given his current health may not be good for the country.

 If I were to advise him, I would urge him to take a deserved rest. After 42 years as a president, it is obvious that he is tired. He should stop thinking that he is indispensable. Cemeteries around the world are full of people who once thought they were indispensable. I have seen him in public a couple of times, especially in the last couple of years, and I can say without fear of contradiction that he is not the vibrant person I knew when he came to office in 1982. Aging is a natural process, and it is the way of every flesh, and it is necessary for him to leave the stage when the ovation is still loud. At his age, there is no way he can be actively involved in the country’s economic and political efforts, and he cannot be abreast of what is happening around the world, especially as technological advancement has triggered significant transformations in the way young people think. Young people make up about 70% of the country’s population and engineering the type of economic and political transformation that will trigger change to meet the needs of this young population cannot be an old man’s job. Changing demographics must also imply a change in leadership.

For parliamentary and senatorial elections, they are as important as the presidential elections. The ruling party will have to work hard to keep its majority in both chambers, and this will require injecting new blood and people of integrity into the party. The CPDM has a tough battle on its hands, and old tricks might not deliver the results they have always had. The country is now like a keg of gun powder and any mistake could cause the country to go up in smoke. Cameroonians are angry and only new and reassuring faces can calm down our young people whose frustration is already reaching boiling point. Many young Cameroonians hold that the ruling party, the CPDM, is to blame for their problems, especially unemployment which is sucking life out of them.  It will be important for the ruling party just like the opposition parties, to incorporate young, dynamic and politically conscious men and women into their political plans. Young people should be the leaders of our country and not old people whose future is clearly behind them. I would like to use this opportunity to urge young Cameroonians to engage in politics. As their grandfathers exit the stage due to old age and death, they should be ready to take over the mantle of leadership. However, they must understand that nobody grants you power on a platter of gold. Joining a political party very early in life will help our young men and women to learn the ropes.

Cameroon Concord News: Would you like to run for any of these positions in your native Manyu as you are urging dynamic and politically conscious people to engage in politics?

Dr Joachim Arrey: I am a bona fide Manyu son who has proven that he loves his people through my humanitarian actions. I am driven by a passion to make Cameroon a better place than I met it. Our people in Manyu Division are suffering and they are looking for people with fresh ideas to lead them both economically and politically down a different path. The Division needs new leaders who can take it down a different and prosperous path.  Our people are intelligent, but they have been strapped to poverty for decades because they do not have the right people to teach them how to activate the code of financial success that is embedded in their minds. This is an area that is of interest to me. Manyu needs to create its own millionaires, and this is a job I would like to undertake sometime in my life. Money is the easiest thing to get but it takes Soviet-style discipline and the right mindset to keep it. Discipline and not desire determines our destiny. Our people must be taught how to sacrifice the present to build that bright future they are all hankering after for themselves and their children. They must shed their cargo-cult mentality if they must see the hope on the horizon. Financial success is a dividend of sweat and sacrifice, and fortune only favors the brave. This is the message I want to deliver to my people.  Someone needs to bring this secret wisdom to our people to help them out of their grinding and humiliating poverty.

Regarding politics, Manyu needs a new generation of politicians if it must be relevant in Cameroon’s new political landscape as elections approach. Our past politicians like Samson Georges, Emmanuel Tabi Egbe, Michael Kima Tabong, W.N.O Effiom etc. were men of unparalleled integrity and wisdom. They inspired many of us in more ways than one and young people of Manyu descent should be engaging in politics to make Manyu great again. They can belong to any party of their choice, but they must know that Manyu development is the reason for their political engagement. As you know, many Cameroonians keep on complaining about the political decay in their country, but very few are thinking of throwing their hats into the ring. I don’t want to be part of that crowd which complains and does not take any action. Man is by nature a political animal. Like Plato, I hold that one of the penalties of refusing to participate in politics is that you end up being governed by your inferiors. I am inching closer to retirement, and it is becoming obvious that my political input in Cameroon’s political debate is important. I am weighing my options, and I will see where I will be more effective if I throw my hat into the ring. It is always good to look before you leap. 

However, be advised that Manyu has many young men who can play key roles in Cameroon’s politics. Many may not show any interest in politics due to their financial circumstances. Poverty has a way of caging people in silence, and this may be why many of our young men are distancing themselves from politics. I do not have such a problem. If I opt to join politics, it will not be because of money. I have already had more than my fair share of life. I have already worked for decades both in Cameroon and abroad and being an international civil servant and an investor, I think politics is not a good place for me to seek wealth. I know where and how to make money.

Cameroon Concord News: But many Cameroonians hold that the Cameroon political landscape is replete with tensions and unnecessary headaches. Do you think you can cope in such an environment?

Dr Joachim Arrey: Mr. Editor, I was born with fire in my stomach, and I grew up in a blast furnace. I am blessed with the determination of a honey-badger, and I am endowed with a very strong coping mechanism which has stood the test of time. I never throw in the towel, and I never lose my focus. My dad of blessed memory taught me how to cope in tough situations and despite my age, I still have a stomach for a fight. Age and wisdom are on my side, and they are key tools which have enabled me to navigate even the murkiest waters on earth. However, be advised that if I must join politics, it will not be to fight but to see how we can build consensus around those issues which could be so dear to the minds of our fellow Cameroonians. Politics is not about fighting; it is about addressing those issues which are constraining the efforts of our people. It is also about leaving an enduring legacy to future generations and there is no legacy greater than honesty, especially political honesty. If politics is considered a fight, then it should be a fight to bring the greatest happiness to the greatest number, if not, those in the political arena are clearly fighting the wrong fight. Such politicians have a hidden agenda which is predicated upon financial gain. Politics was never designed for anybody to be rich. Politics is service to the people. Anybody in politics who wants to be rich is not in the right place. The business sector is where rich people are made. Similarly, politics requires a lot of flexibility and sometimes you must yield to the will of the majority. When that happens, it must not be seen as a weakness or an act of betrayal. I have learned over the years, and I hold that I should put that sound knowledge to the service of my beloved Cameroon. We cannot all be on the sidelines, hoping that a miracle will one day happen for our country to make giant strides forward.

Cameroon Concord News: If you make up your mind to jump into the fray, will you join the opposition or the ruling party?

Dr Joachim Arrey: There are many political parties in Cameroon and the one that will require new and innovative ideas will be attractive. There is no political party that is bad. It is the party members who make the parties bad. The ruling party has been tagged as a party that is not working for the country and its long stay in power makes it unattractive to many Cameroonians. However, I still believe that internal revolutions do occur and there are people within that party who have the intension of making things better but the hawks in the party and regime are those who are hell bent on keeping things the way they are. If the CPDM wants to attract new and meaningful members, it must reinvent itself. It must package itself as a party which works for the people. The opposition, for its part, also needs to work hard to attract more people. The objective of every political party is to win elections and Cameroon’s opposition parties must package themselves differently. Instead of bashing Biya every day, opposition parties should tell the people how they will be different if they win elections. How do they want to put an end to the corruption that has become the country’s hallmark? How do they intend to promote human and women’s rights in a country wherein laws are not respected, and law enforcement agencies are used to adopting autocratic enforcement methods. It does not just suffice to point out that there are no roads in Cameroon. It is not enough to shout on rooftops that there is corruption in Cameroon.

Opposition parties must let the electorate know how they will do better. Coming out with a clear plan on how to check corruption will go a long way in making opposition parties more attractive.  Where will opposition parties get the funds to finance their development projects. If they present a good plan to the populace, that will be music to the ears of many Cameroonians who are looking for change in the country.  As a committed observer, I will try as much as I can not to characterize any party as bad. It is not because opposition parties have not been tested that they are necessarily different from the ruling CPDM. Cameroon’s opposition parties need to be given a chance but let them know that they will not get that chance on a platter of gold. They must earn it through their political agenda and how they package their messages. They must tell Cameroonians that they are different with clear evidence to support their claims. Their candidates for the elections must be people with sterling characters.

Cameroon Concord News: Thank you, Dr. Arrey, for agreeing to talk to us. Any last word?

Dr Joachim Arrey: It is always a pleasure to share my perspective with you. Cameroonians must remain hopeful. They should understand that they are the only ones who can change their destiny. They should therefore get registered for the upcoming elections and should ensure that they have their voting cards. Elections remain the most appropriate way of changing things in any country, especially in Cameroon which is really ripe for change. Though the country’s electoral laws are not the best, there is still room for meaningful change. Thanks, once more, for giving me this opportunity.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai

Cameroon: A ticking time bomb!

8, June 2024

Cameroon: A ticking time bomb! 0

Not many in the international community are paying attention, but Cameroon, a once prosperous nation, is inching closer to an implosion. A storm of epic proportion is gathering in Cameroon.

With the country’s long-serving and narcissistic president, Paul Biya, quietly being elbowed out of power by members of his inner circle who are misusing power and misappropriating the country’s resources, it is becoming clear that the country’s 30-million population is being manipulated by a bunch of people with a secret agenda.

Paul Biya is over ninety years and he has been in power for forty-two years and there is very little to show for such a long stay in power.  His incompetence is legendary and during his time in power, he has used intimidation and trickery to keep the people in utter silence.

The country is bereft of all forms of infrastructure. Thousands of Cameroonians die each year on what passes off as roads in Cameroon. The railway network, which once brought goods and people to the country’s towns and cities, is today a shadow of its former self.

The country’s lone air career, Camerco, has just one airliner and most of the career’s staff are hardly sure of the next paycheck. Mismanagement and corruption had earlier put Cameroon Airlines, Camerco’s predecessor, out of business due to the government’s mismanagement and poor policies and Camerco is very likely to face the same fate. Old habits die hard and the architects of Cameroon Airlines’ demise are still in power, displaying the same mindset which killed Cameroon Airlines.

The country’s economy is on life support. Almost every sector has been hit hard by the corruption which has become the government’s hallmark. The economy is in the throes of a painful economic crisis which has emasculated the population.

It is easier to find a dog’s tears than to find a job in Cameroon. Unemployment has hit its apex, leaving many young Cameroonians desperate. Many have found solace in alcohol and drugs, and the breweries are making a fortune out of desperate and alcohol-loving Cameroonians.

The government understands the importance of alcohol in Cameroon. It knows that with alcohol, it can control Cameroonians and it is using these liquids to keep them subservient. A typical Cameroonian is permanently under influence, thereby robbing him of the power to think properly and out of the box. In Cameroon, the price of beer and other bottled concoctions are determined by decrees issued by the head(ache) of state whose cardinal objective even at 92 is to die in power.

Most of the country’s youths are looking outwards for solutions to their humbling problems and misfortunes, hoping that someday, they will find a way out of their country. Many hold that their government has disappointed them, but the government’s autocratic implementation of laws and tough crackdowns on dissenting voices are deterring any young men who might think of taking their grievances to the public square.

The country’s police and military have been tribalized. Once ordered to operate in other regions of the country, the military goes crazy, killing and maiming anything with flesh and blood. Most senior officials of the country’s military are from the president’s region, making it hard for any coup d’état to be planned.

Cameroonians have been zombified. Theirs is the kingdom of alcohol and prayers. A brand new economic sector has popped up – churches. Unfortunately, this sector is not driving funds to government coffers because the conmen running this scams are also in need of money. They hold that their need for money is greater than the government’s.

The so-called men of God are desperate for money and are not leaving any stone unturned when it comes to pressuring their followers into paying tithes. The sick and unemployed are flocking to those churches in the hope that a miracle could occur, enabling them to witness a different lifestyle.

But prayers alone are not helping them. Their desperation is growing by the day but they must pay their tithes or take their prayers and problems to somewhere else.

According to these dishonest men of God, it costs money to get in touch with God and it is even costlier to tell God to solve a problem, a great departure from what traditional churches used to preach.

Stress has triggered huge health problems in Cameroon. Heart and kidney problems are commonplace today. The poor and sick do not have the right resources to go to government hospitals which are more of consultation clinics.

The doctors are underpaid and many, if not all of them, take on second jobs  in private clinics just to make ends meet. Cameroonians are dying like flies or mosquitoes on which repellent has been sprayed. Hunger and diseases are driving young Cameroonians to an early grave, but the government is simply indifferent to their plight.

Young girls have been reduced to prostitutes by hunger and poverty. Nothing disarms a person morally like poverty and this can clearly been seen in Cameroon where young able-bodied men and women have been caged in silence due to degrading poverty.

But the real bomb will go off once Mr. Biya dies. His collaborators are already fighting. Factions have developed within the government and the fight between the FECAFOOT President, Samuel Eto’o, and the country’s Sports Minister, Narcisse Mouelle Kombi, is just a foretaste of what will play out once Mr. Biya exits.

For now, nobody is seeking to defuse the bomb. Though almost brain dead, Mr. Biya is still in charge and he is the only person authorized by the country’s poorly designed constitution to make policies and decisions for the country.

The time bomb is still ticking and many Cameroonians are still drinking themselves into a stupor, oblivious of the disaster that is staring them in the face.

By Staffman Alain Agbor Ebot in Douala

‘Dictator’ Eto’o and chaos in Cameroonian football

7, June 2024

‘Dictator’ Eto’o and chaos in Cameroonian football 0

Cameroonian football is in a state of chaos.

For a proud country which boasts five continental titles and the most World Cup finals appearances by an African nation, the past two months have seen a very public row play out over who should coach the Indomitable Lions.

Last week Belgian Marc Brys was removed as boss – only to be reappointed within 48 hours.

But the sideshow off the pitch ahead of crunch 2026 World Cup qualifiers is only the tip of the iceberg in a battle for control of the game.

The man now running football in the Central African nation is former Barcelona and Inter Milan striker Samuel Eto’o, a legend of the game on the continent and Cameroon’s record goalscorer, who was elected football federation (Fecafoot) president in December 2021.

But Eto’o has been described as a “dictator” by one former international team-mate because of the way he is steering the organisation – epitomised by the spat with the nation’s Ministry of Sport (Minsep) over Brys.

“Samuel was the biggest player in Africa but there’s a lot of trouble around him,” the retired player, who asked to remain anonymous for fear of a backlash, told BBC Sport Africa.

“He does not listen to advice. When you manage people you do not need to [act] like a dictator.

“I didn’t know he would be like that, and it will be hard for him to continue.”

Players have issued a plea for the team to be kept “politically free” but some fans have become so desperate that they have called on world governing body Fifa to suspend Cameroon.

The curious case of Marc Brys

The arrival of Brys as coach in April, after the departure of Rigobert Song following a last-16 exit at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon), created a storm few would have expected.

Fecafoot expressed its “great surprise” when Minsep announced the appointment of the 62-year-old whose coaching career has been with clubs in Belgium, the Netherlands and Saudi Arabia.

Eto’o’s alternative list of high-profile candidates had reportedly included two-time Afcon-winning coach Herve Renard, Italian World Cup winner Fabio Cannavaro and ex-Nigeria boss Jose Peserio.

“The only problem was the salaries,” Cameroonian sports journalist Giovanni Wanneh told BBC Sport Africa.

“Brys is not the best, but we’re not talking about someone we picked from the gutters. Minsep has played this card before and it worked out fine for Cameroon.”

In Cameroon, as is the case in several other African countries, the government pays the salaries of the national team’s coaching staff and feels entitled to weigh into Fecafoot’s affairs.

Eto’o did not turn up to the presentation where Brys signed his contract on 8 April, and their first in-person meeting on 28 May quickly descended into an unseemly row.

An empty chair sits behind a desk with a place card for the Fecafoot president, microphones and flowers
Image caption,Eto’o was absent for Brys’ unveiling, with the Fecafoot president saying he only received an invitation two hours before the event and was busy organising his father’s funeral

Fecafoot reacted by replacing Brys with an interim coach, only to quickly backtrack after pressure was applied by Minsep.

Yet a tense atmosphere continued this week when the Indomitable Lions squad assembled in Yaounde ahead of the visit of Cape Verde in World Cup qualifying on Saturday.

Players were met by two different sets of administrators at the team hotel, and Fecafoot did not provide kit for the first training session due to be held by Brys – leading forward Moumi Ngamaleu to call for unity.

“The responsibility is for you to help keep the team politically free and to maintain a clean environment for us to perform without problems,” his Instagram message read.

“We hereby approach you to overcome the differences, put the ego aside and remember we are all here to put the people of Cameroon on the map and give them honour.”

Manchester United goalkeeper Andre Onana was among several players who reposted Ngamaleu’s message.

A senior Confederation of African Football (Caf) official said it is open to mediating in the row between Fecafoot and Minsep, although such a request is yet to be received.

‘Grave irregularities’ under Eto’o

Eto’o’s treatment of Brys is only the latest instance of his behaviour garnering negative attention since he assumed control of Fecafoot.

“The fact that you are a top footballer doesn’t automatically make you a great administrator,” said Wanneh.

“When he came in, I thought he was going to change the narrative in our football. But Cameroon football is living its worst moment.”

In July last year, a group representing amateur clubs in Cameroon called on the 43-year-old to resign, citing “grave irregularities” in the organisation.

That included Eto’o taking an ambassadorial role with a sports betting company – potentially in violation of both Fifa and Fecafoot rules.

Moreover, an investigation by Caf into allegations of improper conduct against Eto’o is ongoing.

“He is the legitimate president of the federation. But nobody is above the law,” Caf secretary general Veron Mosengo-Omba told BBC Sport Africa.

A battle for control

Cameroon's President Paul Biya and First Lady Chantal Biya wave at the crowd from a car during the opening ceremony of the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations
Image caption,Several footballing decisions in Cameroon have been made “on very high instructions” from President Paul Biya (left), who has been in power since 1982

In Cameroonian sport, the influence of President Paul Biya has been keenly felt in the past.

He insisted on Roger Milla being included in the squad for the 1990 World Cup – with the then-38-year-old netting four times – while the appointment of Brys’ predecessor Rigobert Song in 2022 was made “on very high instructions” of President Biya.

It is the government financing and pumping in the money,” said Wanneh.

“Fecafoot is not structured in a way that it can cater for its burden and expenditure,” the journalist added. “If it was then we would not have this scenario.”

Countries whose governments interfere in footballing affairs are at risk of suspension by Fifa – a fate that has befallen many African nations in the past, including Cameroon – yet Minsep has so far trodden a path which has not provoked the Zurich-based governing body.

While Fifa’s social media channels have been bombarded by messages to take action, Eto’o retains the backing of many Indomitable Lions supporters in his bid to break free of perceived governmental control.

Cameroon fans hold out their hands in the stands of a football stadium
Image caption,Eto’o’s running of the game has split opinion among Cameroon fans

“Eto’o knows the challenge he’s getting into,” said Heuyo Hubert on the streets of Yaounde.

“I can only wish him good luck because it’s not easy to have Cameroonians who can fight for their rights to be restored nowadays.”

Another fan, Calvin Ngimbond, felt the row with Brys “had its place”.

“There was need for things to be made clear. Marc Brys must align himself with the requirements of the Fecafoot president,” he added.

“We hope things will improve for peace to reign.”

Fecafoot, Minsep and Fifa were all contacted by BBC Sport Africa to comment on recent developments, but none of the parties responded.

World Cup qualifiers now loom large against two sides who out-performed Cameroon at the 2023 Afcon, with a trip to Angola on Tuesday following the tie against Cape Verde.

Brys has already endured a turbulent start to his new job and will be aware the pressure could soon increase.

“Cameroon are no longer the biggest national team in Africa,” the anonymous former international added.

“I am very sad when I look at what’s going on. If they want to be back at the top level, they need to reorganise everything.”

Headlines being made ‘for wrong reasons’

Analysis by Paul Njie, BBC reporter in Cameroon

The ruckus in Cameroonian football is not new, but the way the rift between Fecafoot and the Ministry of Sports has morphed is staggering.

Now, not only are football stakeholders divided, but Indomitable Lions supporters are also at odds over who is right and wrong.

In many ways the row has been seen as a true test of Eto’o’s leadership in a country where government interference in football is almost the norm rather than an exception.

Despite the deluge of allegations against his management and the investigation by Caf over alleged misconduct, the four-time African Player of the Year’s popularity has not waned much. He continues to enjoy widespread love, admiration and support in the country and beyond.

It is unclear how the uproar will end, but there have been growing calls for the country’s President Paul Biya to personally address it once and for all – especially as both rival camps claim to be implementing “high instructions” from him.

Until then, much of the discourse on the streets, in markets, bars, and local media, will continue to be dominated by doubts as to whether the Indomitable Lions will even play their World Cup qualifiers against Cape Verde and Angola.

Cameroonian football is once again making headlines across the world, but for all the wrong reasons.

Source: BBC

Southern Cameroons Rebellion: A major and forgotten crisis

4, June 2024

Southern Cameroons Rebellion: A major and forgotten crisis 0

In its report on the world’s most neglected crises, the Norwegian Refugee Council highlighted Cameroon, a country struck by two conflicts that barely make the headlines.

The major crises dividing Cameroon remain largely unnoticed on the international agenda, the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) noted in its June 3 report. Almost no one mentioned the war or the Lake Chad crisis impacting the two Anglophone regions since 2017.

Anglophone rebellion

The conflict in the Northwest and Southwest Anglophone provinces began in 2017 following a crackdown by security forces on the 2016 protests, which demanded an end to the marginalization of Anglophones in this predominantly French-speaking country. In response to the military and police brutality, an Anglophone independence movement took up arms and attacked government representatives. This led to the military’s mobilization and intervention in the two provinces. Since then, violence has continued between both sides, with each committing atrocities and holding the population hostage.

Schools especially targeted

The Anglophone crisis has claimed over 6,000 lives since 2016, according to Human Rights Watch. The crisis has displaced 638,000 people within the country. Schools are a particular target for the separatists: 2,245 schools, or 36% of the educational institutions in the anglophone region, have been forced to close. The NRC noted that residents suffer terrible hardships, ranging from murder to kidnapping.

Cameroon is grappling with deteriorating security in its northern region bordering Nigeria and Chad. Since 2013, the area has been disrupted by attacks from the Nigerian-based jihadist group Boko Haram. The group’s presence was bolstered by the Cameroonian government’s inability to secure its borders with Nigeria and Chad and its failure to develop the region increasingly affected by climate change, leading to youth unemployment and poverty.

Impact of the crisis in the Central African Republic

Cameroon has also been dealing with the influx of refugees fleeing neighboring countries, primarily the Central African Republic. According to the UNHCR, there are 332,000 refugees, mostly settled in towns and villages in eastern Cameroon. Additionally, nearly 120,000 Nigerian refugees are living in the Far North region. “52% of the refugees are women and girls, and 55% are children,” the UNHCR reported.

“The prolonged crisis is increasingly taking on a socio-economic dimension, with all sectors of the economy affected and rising food prices exacerbating rampant food insecurity. At least 2.5 million people are dangerously short of food,” the NRC observed, noting that only “32% of the humanitarian response plan was covered by international donors, the lowest rate since 2016.” The NRC concluded: “The growing levels of unmet needs, coupled with a lethargic response from the international community, mean that another difficult year awaits Cameroon in 2024.”

Each year, the NRC publishes a report on the ten most neglected crises affecting displaced people worldwide. It aims to highlight the plight of the displaced who rarely make international headlines, receive little or no aid, and are ignored by international diplomacy.

Culled from Crux International by Besong Eunice Nchong

Etoudi and FECAFOOT: The death of high instructions!

28, May 2024

Etoudi and FECAFOOT: The death of high instructions! 0

The bruising fight between FECAFOOT’s President, Samuel Eto’o, and the Minister of Sports, Moelle Kombi, finally played out in public today with the minister’s technical adviser asked to leave  FECAFOOT premises.

The matter did not end there. The minister’s appointed coach was also given a beating and reminded that he had an interest in attending the meeting with FECAFOOT officials, an idea which did not go down well with the Belgian who saw his technical staff refused entry into the FECAFOOT building.

In this fight, it is Cameroon’s football which will suffer as Eto’o and minister Kombi engage in a struggle which could have been avoided if the laws had been respected. Cameroon’s laws are, at all levels, like shifting sands or a maze, and this unfortunate situation is hurting Cameroonians.

The frustrating thing is that Eto’o cannot be dismissed even by the country’s president. He was voted while the minister was appointed. In this confusion, FIFA might step in with a normalization committee which will see Eto’o out while the minister could be fired by the president for not posting acceptable results.

The mess playing out in the football sub-sector in Cameroon is simply the tip of the massive iceberg which is buried in the ocean of corruption, incompetence and influence trafficking.

Cameroon appears to be a rudderless ship for decades. For many years, the country has been ruled by decree or what is known in Cameroon as HIGH INSTRUCTIONS, something which clearly points to the fact that the country has drifted into a full-blown dictatorship.

Nobody respects the constitution. Nobody cares about the good running of the system. When a minister wants to implement his private agenda, he immediately invokes the famous high instructions. Everyone sings the president’s praises to hide their crimes and sins, and nothing gets done.

Cameroon is sinking and it appears there is no rescue squad. With the fight between Eto’o and Kombi playing out live, it is clear that those high instructions can be torn and put in the garbage bin. It is clear that the era of HIGH INSTRUCTIONS is coming to an end.

Cameroon needs principled people. The group of hypocrites surrounding the president have steered the country down a chaotic and dangerous path.

If Cameroon has to come out of its current mess which has lasted for almost five decades, a new system needs to be engineered and that system must rules-based with a clear separation of powers.

Cameroon’s highly centralized system has created more problems without even seeking to address old issues. A federal structure, especially a parliamentary system which allows only elected officials to exercise power will not only reduce the type of fights we are now witnessing, it will also reduce abuse and corruption which have been huge constraints on Cameroon’s economic and political development.

Cameroon simply needs a new system. High instructions clearly belong to the past. Repairing Cameroon will be an uphill climb but the job must be done and all those who have participated, directly or indirectly, in reducing Cameroon to an Augean Stable should be clearly cut out of the new system.

By Dr Joachim Arrey

Cameroon in 2025

30, April 2024

Cameroon in 2025 0

In the forthcoming presidential elections in 2025, the front runner is a 94 years old sickly candidate who has been in power for close to 50 years and is the only leader the youth have known in many generations.

The image of him presented by the state-controlled media is far from reality, that of a youthful and energetic individual, rather than the geriatric patient that should be left to rest.

It’s therefore not surprising that a survey of youths across the main cities of the country has revealed that 97% of youths want to leave the country given the slightest opportunity.

This mindset in the youths in every way reflects the success of the 50 year old Biya regime in stirring up ambition and hope in the majority of Cameroon’s youthful population to seek for a better prospect in foreign lands. They are now leaving the country at a rate estimated at 6,000 each year.

There couldn’t be a better measure of the success of Biya’s ruler ship of 50 years, if there were any doubts as to why he should not be given another 7 years term.

Voting will be ceremonial in Cameroon as the lead candidate is head of state, supreme commander of the arm forces, first magistrate, creator of Elecam (election governing body), the real coach of the Indomitable Lions, captain of the Indomitable Lions, player , referee , match commissioner and spectator. All 10 regions are under his command.

It would be another testimony to the enactment of the kleptocratic credentials of the country whose constitution was changed to enable Biya to rule for life in 1996.

By Kcastech Ra

Bishop Francis T. Lysinge @ 25!

25, April 2024

Bishop Francis T. Lysinge @ 25! 0

Pastores dabo vobis, iuxtacor meum, the Lord says to the Prophet Jeremiah (Jer. 3:15) – I will give you shepherds after my own heart! Bishops are primarily, pastors, successors of the apostles. That is how the Catholic tradition understands them. And this process of self-understanding, of ecclesial maturation, has unfolded in the Church’s long history. At the First Vatican Council (1869-1870), in the Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, Pastor Aeternus, the Council taught the infallibility of the Bishop of Rome. It taught that the Bishop of Rome as Supreme Pontiff, when he teaches ex cathedra, that is, from the chair, meaning in his capacity as Pope, Successor to the Apostle Peter, what he teaches, pertaining to faith and morals, is solemnly binding on the universal church and Catholics are expected to give an assent of mind and heart to such a proclamation. The outbreak of the Franco-Prussian War (1870-1871) interrupted the Council and prematurely ended it. That left Catholicism with an unbridled monarchical papacy, in which the Bishop of Rome was left hanging alone, as it where, above the Church.

With the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965), the Bishops gathered in Council, as Successors of the Apostles, sought to do an ecclesial balancing act of the unfinished business of the First Vatican Council. In the Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, Lumen Gentium, and in the Decree Concerning the Pastoral Office of Bishops in the Church, Christus Dominus, the Bishops taught that as Successors of the Apostles, Bishops were not mere emissaries or ambassadors of the Pope. Pertaining to their local churches, they are proper pastors who, certainly, together with the Pope, sub et cum Petro, constitute an apostolic college charged with the governance of the universal Church. In this way, Vatican II enfleshed the monarchical character of governance of the Petrine ministry, with a collegial character of the Episcopate.

This is the body, the Episcopate, into which on April 21, 1999, Francis Teke Lysinge was called into, by the Grace of God and the Apostolic See. Born in Bokwango on December 28, 1938, to Albert Lysinge and Juliana JofiMbua, Francis Teke Lysinge is the second son in a family of four boys and three girls. His father was from Bokwango Village while his mother was from Buea Town. His father was a teacher in the Native Authority (NA) School of Muea and so eventually moved from Bokwango to Muea. His parents were Protestants, and so originally Bishop Lysinge was baptized in the Basel Mission Church Bimbia-Victoria where he started his Primary School in 1945 as Godwill Teke Lysinge (Agbaw-Ebai, 2013: Bishop Francis T. Lysinge, A Retrospective Legacy).

As a young man, Godwill Teke Lysinge, as he was then known, had gone to Sasse College, the Premier Secondary School in the then West Cameroon, to pursue the dreams of a brighter future, the aspiration of every young person. He studied in Sasse from 1953-1958. Bishop Lysinge did not go to Sasse to become a priest! It was in 1955, while in Sasse, that the young Lysinge felt that the Lord, whom he had always loved and knew, might have other plans for him. Living with Bishop Lysinge as his private secretary, he repeatedly told me that priesthood was never in his mind when he entered Sasse. He will later on say YES to the Lord, proceeding to Bigard Memorial Seminary, Enugu, Nigeria, for Major Seminary Studies in Philosophy and Theology. On April 17th, 1966, together with his lifelong friend, Christian Cardinal Tumi, and others, Godwill Teke Lysinge who, upon “converting” to Catholicism had taken the name Francis after St. Francis Xavier, said ad sum to the Lord’s call, and was ordained a priest of God, secundum ordine Melchizedek. His service as Spiritual Director in St. Thomas Aquinas’ Major Seminary is legendary.

Now is not the time to offer an assessment of the rich episcopacy of Francis Teke Lysinge. I will offer two indications that are pointers to what I consider to be the most enduring legacy of our beloved Bishop  Lysinge. And all are derived from the choices he made from the Word of God, first, at his ordination as priest, and second, at his episcopal appointment.

At his ordination as a priest, the young Fr. Francis Lysinge chose as his ordination motto, the self-effacing words of St. Paul: I am what I am, by the grace of God (1 Corinthians 15:10). To Aquinas, no being can act beyond the limits of its specific nature since the cause must always be of a higher potency than its effect. The gift of grace therefore surpasses every capacity of created nature, since it is nothing other than a certain participation in the divine nature, which surpasses every other nature. For just as it is impossible for anything to make fiery but fire alone, so it is necessary that God alone should make Godlike, by communicating a share in his divine nature by participation and assimilation – Summa Theologica, I, II, Q. 112, 1.Anyone who has ever encountered Bishop Lysinge knows that it is never about Francis Lysinge. Meeting Bishop Lysinge, it is always about God. His instinctual temperament could best be described with the words of John the Baptist vis-à-vis Our Lord: He must increase, I must decrease (Jn. 3:30).As a teacher and spiritual director, Bishop Lysinge often repeated the classical maxim on grace: grace before, grace during, grace after, all is grace.

And this is what grace essentially does to nature, it brings nature to its fullest potential, which is, the Christification of nature. Human freedom is not God leaving me alone to get on with things. True freedom means my actions are caused by God without me ceasing to be free – gratia operans and gratis cooperans – as Aquinas teaches, Summa Theologica, I, II, q. 111, 2. Grace is the result of God’s action in me that draws me to God’s self. Grace is not just some help to my acting on my own. Hence, only God is the cause of grace, for only what is divine can impart divine life.As Karl Rahner explains, in receiving God, the human being does not cease to be human. Rather, God’s ontological, total, self-communication actualizes humanity’s deepest potential. We are spirit-in-the-world in that we are radically conditioned by matter and history, on the one hand, and radically opened to the absolute holy Mystery, on the other hand. That explains why Rahner describes the human being as  das übernatürlicheExistenzial, the supernatural existential. We are supernatural existential because we are intrinsically oriented to intimacy with the Absolute Mystery, God. Supernatural existential is the longing for God’s presence, longing to be with God, a longing that exists in us because God freely planted it there. (Foundationsof Christian Faith). In effect, the more we become like God through the gift of Grace, the more human we become. Our humanization takes place in direct, not inverse, proportion to our divinization. And this is the beauty of the witness of Bishop Lysinge that has attracted so many: with the grace of God, he has consistently chosen to live for God, and by so doing, live for all persons placed on his path by God. For to live for God is to live for our brothers and sisters.

If the date of one’s birth can have a significance for one’s life, then the birth of Francis Teke Lysinge on December 28, 1938, could very well be read as prophetically symbolic. December 28 is still within the Octave of Christmas, which is a time when the Church recalls in her liturgical and spiritual life, that at the fullness of time, God sent his Son into the world (Gal. 4:4). At the heart of Christmas is the basic, essential truth: God has entered the world. God is close to us. God is near us. We are not alone. I am not alone. God is hidden in the world, to reference Rahner once more. I am what I am, by the grace of God! Isn’t this essentially what the Christmas message causes to happen? Because God has entered history, I am! I am! I have being. I am someone. I am being, to cite Heidegger. I am not nothingness. I have a name. God knows my name. Even if the powerful of the world do not know me, do not acknowledge me, do not recognize me, I am, by God’s grace. In this priestly ordination motto of the young Lysinge, one encounters a deeper theological metaphysics. It is an affirmation that my life is grounded on the firmer ground of the Lord: “The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock” (Matthew 7:25).

Fiat VoluntasTua – Thy Will be Done!On April 21,1999, Francis Teke Lysinge who all along had always seen himself as a being, thanks to grace of God, -I am what I am by the grace of God,-  entered into a new consciousness of what it means to live by the grace of God. For his episcopal motto, he chose, Fiat VoluntasTua(Matthew 6:10). This is taken from the prayer of Jesus to the Father. The Our Father mirrors the relationship of intimacy between the Father and the Son. With this choice, Francis Teke Lysinge, in his unassuming way, manifested the core of his rich spiritual life: God is the center. My responsibility is to follow God. But what does it mean to follow God? Essentially, and Bishop Lysinge’s life is a testimony to this, it is not a calculatedness in which I fashion God into my own image and likeness. To follow God is to place my life in the hands of God, knowing that it will ultimately end well, for even if I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for your shepherd rod and staff protects me (Ps. 23:4). Bishop Lysinge often repeated to me, “God will vindicate the innocent man.” And again, “every priest has his own unique calling. If priests were to realize that each one has his own unique calling, there won’t be wrangling amongst priests.” As if to drive home his point, he surprised me with a gift, a book by Jesuit, Herbert Alphonso, The Personal Vocation. He repeatedly stressed to me, Maurice, discover your personal calling, find out why the Lord called you to the priesthood. In many ways, these words of Bishop Lysinge have never left me. As I mature in the priesthood, it is increasingly becoming clear to me that every priest has three vocations: the vocation of a being a Christian; the vocation of the priesthood; and the specific vocation that God assigns to that priest within the priestly vocation. How I love these words of John Henry Cardinal Newman: God has created me to do Him some definite service. He has committed some work to me which He has not committed to another. I have my mission. I may never know it in this life, but I shall be told it in the next. I have a part in a great work. I am a link in a chain, a bond of connection between persons. He has not created me for naught (…) Therefore I will trust Him. Whatever, where ever I am, I can never be thrown away. I firmly believe that once a priest finds out the specific mission the Lord has assigned to him in the priesthood, he becomes truly happy. All else ceases to matter. And that is how Boethius defines happiness in the Consolation of Philosophy, an understanding of happiness that I continue to find most beautiful and compelling.

I am what I am by the grace of God! Thy Will Be Done!In these two texts from Scripture, and the consistent and admirable way in which Bishop Lysinge is living them, we can be sure, that in Bishop Lysinge, the Diocese of Mamfe and the Church in Africa, is offering the universal Church a sign of God’s presence, a mark of lowliness and humility, a presence of translucent holiness. I grew in my appreciation of the holiness and saintliness of Bishop Lysinge. I remember one particular incident that has stayed with me ever since. Shortly after he ordained me priest, we were sitting in the chapel one Friday morning, when he turned to me and asked me to hear his confession. I spontaneously protested: Domine, non sum Dignus. I am not worthy to hear your confession, My Lord, I told him. He won’t take no for an answer! He insisted. He said to me: I ordained you a priest. You were validly ordained. And before I realized it, he imposed a purple stole over my shoulders, and began his confession! And that started a Friday rendezvous that became mutual. Living with Bishop Lysinge, I increasingly became convinced that I was living with a living saint. If sainthood is found in the little things that are really the big things, then God has blessed us with a saintly witness in Bishop Lysinge. I have always felt it one of the greatest blessings of my life, to have begun my priesthood with Bishop Lysinge in the same house. He put up with my failures, weaknesses and youthfulness, with a graciousness that could only be the mark of a saint. I never for once doubted that his father love. And the remarkable thing about Bishop Lysinge is that everyone that encounters him, can say the same thing. He has this capacity for loving everyone, of supporting everyone, that left all those who met him feeling cared for. After he retired and his sight began deteriorating faster, his successor, now Archbishop Andrew Nkea, sent him to Rome, Italy, for medical attention. I left next door Germany to visit him. I can never forget one of the statements he made to me:Fr Maurice, though I am retired, I am not retired from prayers. I pray for you daily. The only work I do now for Mamfe is to pray for Mamfe and for my successor, so that Mamfe diocese will continue to grow. It was a deeply emotional moment for me, listening to him utter those words. I am not retired from the work of prayer. So Ratzingerian a choice of words! Only saints like Lysinge and Ratzinger speak with such spiritual succinctness and depthness.

We can be sure, that now that his sight has failed him, Bishop Lysinge is seeing much more now with the heart, like Blessed John Henry Newman – Cor ad cor loquitur – Heart speaks to heart. The one who throughout his life has spent countless hours before the Lord in the Blessed Sacrament, gazing at the Lord, looking at him, listening to him, falling in love with the Lord, speaking with the Lord, now has those biological eyes that give him physical sight, taken away. Bishop Lysinge, like the saints before him, has entered into his own via Crucis. And like most of the saints, has accepted the crosses that come with aging:

“O Lord, it is you who are my portion and cup; it is you yourself who are my prize.
The lot marked out for me is my delight: welcome indeed the heritage that falls to me! I will bless the Lord who gives me counsel, who even at night directs my heart. I keep the Lord ever in my sight:since he is at my right hand, I shall stand firm. And so, my heart rejoices, my soul is glad;even my body shall rest in safety.For you will not leave my soul among the dead, nor let your beloved know decay. You will show me the path of life, the fullness of joy in your presence, at your right-hand happiness forever” (Ps 16:5-11).

Thank you, God, for the gift of your priest, holy Bishop Francis Teke Lysinge. May your grace sustain him during this Nunc Dimittis period of his life. And may his prayers for Mamfe, for his successor, for Church, and for  the world, continue to keep the window of the world open to the life-giving breath of God, saving us from a suffocating despairing nihilism! As your servant, Benedict XVI reminded us in his Bundestag Address, a world without God is a life in a bunker with no widows! Thank you that Bishop Lysinge is such a window of you, God. Thank you for giving him to us as a gift, and may his prayers continue to sustain us, transforming our world into something beautiful for you, Trice Holy God, Amen.

Concluding Unscientific Post-Script

When the very dear Fr Christopher Eboka of the Communications Office of Mamfe Diocese contacted me to write a few words to mark the 25th anniversary of the episcopal ordination of Bishop Lysinge, I immediately protested. I told him I was in the middle of a conference on Ratzinger and the Philosophical Tradition at the Panamericana University, Mexico City, Mexico, and that, given time constraints, I did not think I could do justice to the task he was assigning me, especially if he has to go to Press by Monday, April 22, 2024. If you find the words above insufficient and inadequate, I crave your indulgence and I understand your feelings. And I ask to be forgiven, trusting that Providence will give me another opportunity to write a more substantial tribute to this future saint of the Church.

Rev. Maurice Agbaw-Ebai

Sunday, April 21, 2024.

Understanding the Biya Francophone regime’s support for the Israeli genocide in Gaza

22, April 2024

Understanding the Biya Francophone regime’s support for the Israeli genocide in Gaza 0

The Biya Francophone regime in Yaoundé habitually dodges voting at the UNGA either by abstaining to vote or by simply absenting itself when a vote is being taken on some matter. But last week, the Francophone dominated ruling CPDM crime syndicate cast a vote that in effect supported Israel in what many characterize as an Israeli war of genocide against Palestinians. The vote also opposed sovereign statehood for Palestine. It amounted to a constructive support of Israeli apartheid and colonization in the occupied territories of Palestine.

According to unverified sources, Arab and Muslim countries in the world and other friends of Palestinians have taken note of the Biya French Cameroun provocative vote.  La Republique du Cameroun has for the past eight years been openly committing genocidal in the former British Southern Cameroons, the Anglophone country of Ambazonia. French Cameroun is also opposed to sovereign statehood for Ambazonia-a territory that some decades ago, French Cameroun seized through fraud, violence, and terror and brought under its colonial occupation and subjugation. The pro-Israeli voter therefore comes as no surprise to the Biya Francophone Beti Bulu regime watchers. Birds of the same feather, it is said, flock together.

There are many reasons why the Yaoundé vote came as no surprise to many observers. Israel is the main supplier of the Biya regime means and methods of violence. Like the Netanyahu regime in Israel, Biya and his Francophone regime continues to colonize, occupy, and subjugate the people of Ambazonia, subjecting the people to extreme repression and servitude. Many French Cameroun crooks, corrupt political cronies, and thieving regime bigwigs have stashed away their looted money in Israel, and some have even hidden their families in that country.

Israel is a prop of highly authoritarian regimes and life-long rulers in Africa such as Biya. It is a merchant of death and desolation. Its principal export consists of selling the means and methods of death to the old, putrid, and blood-soaked 42-year-old regime of 92-year-old of Biya who has very diminished cognitive ability and can hardly stand or walk for more than a couple of minutes. The creation of French Cameroun’s infamous Brigade d’Intervention Rapid (BIR) and the sadistic methods it commonly uses are the brainchild of Israel and fashioned after those of the Israeli Defense Force. The BIR is notorious for the systematic odious torture of its victims, the assassination of perceived regime opponents, egregious atrocities, and military terrorism in Ambazonia – the systematic murder of civilians, including children and babies.  

Israel gets away with genocide in Gaza. It does so even in the face of a UNSC vote for a ceasefire in Gaza, and an ICJ decision calling on Israel to refrain from committing further widespread and indiscriminate killings in Gaza. By getting away with genocide, Israel indirectly lends moral and armed support to a French Cameroun engaged in perpetrating genocide. This amounts to encouraging the brutal French Cameroun dictatorship not to resolve the Ambazonian Decolonization Question peacefully but rather to demonize British Southern Cameroonians as an ‘inconvenient people’ and expendable people to be exterminated through wholesale industrial slaughter without fear of any repercussions.

Israel is one of the countries to which Western weapons are sold and in which they are battle-tested. Not surprisingly, one of Israel’s biggest exports to La Republique du Cameroun is military expertise. They train Special Forces for the old elderly President Biya. They provide personal security for him and so dictate his allegiance. They also provide militarized training to the French Cameroun police. The brutality of the methods of that militarized police is the daily complaint of the people of that country precisely because the line between the methods and means of the military and the police in that country is very thin.

Israel also sells advanced surveillance technology that the Biya despotic regime uses, hoping to track opponents and keep tabs on them. The highly violent and repressive tribal regime of Biya is comforted by the fact that Israel helps it stay in power indefinitely. That is why that pernicious tribal regime is so warmly in bed with Israel.

Israel has created a situation that endangers all post-WW2 international organizations. It continues to defy them. Israel spits in their faces. Israel rips their letter in public and insults them. Israel insults and ridicules the ICJ. Israel makes a mockery of the UN itself. In relation to America, Israel is the tail that wags the dog. It has pushed America to cheapen the veto power in the UNSC by its whimsical, abusive, and irresponsible veto at every turn in blind support of Israel. As a result, the UN and other international organizations are steadily losing credibility. No one will be surprised if some other countries engaged in international delinquency like Israel does. No one will even be surprised if some states start withdrawing their memberships of some international organizations or start reneging on their international obligations.

Israel defies the UN and gets away with it. There is no reason to expect some other country not to follow suit. For example, authoritarian regimes might behave like Israel by committing pogroms on perceived inconvenient people without being held to account. A case in point is La Republique du Cameroun’s ongoing genocide in Southern Cameroons, like Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza. Furthermore, the Biya regime in Yaoundé celebrated when Russia launched its war on Ukraine, and unverified reports have it that there are French Cameroun troops fighting on the side of Russia. Further still, Yaoundé excitedly celebrated when Israel launched its war on Gaza, and it is happy with the progress of the Israeli genocide campaign. The Biya regime takes these amoral positions because in the present world context it knows no one cares about its campaign of extermination in Southern Cameroons. Unfortunately for Mr Biya and his acolytes, every dog has its day. In the final analysis the human spirit remains unconquerable, as Napoleon Bonaparte of France and Hitler of Germany learnt after years of conducting massive and widespread human butchery.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai

Chairman/Editor-In-Chief

Cameroon Concord News Group

Poverty under Biya: Cameroonians embrace Chinese language for brighter futures

21, April 2024

Poverty under Biya: Cameroonians embrace Chinese language for brighter futures 0

In a bustling classroom at the University of Buea in southwestern Cameroon, students are immersed in learning the Chinese language. Their teacher, known as Sema, originally studied physics but found a passion for Chinese language and culture at the Confucius Institute.

After obtaining a master’s degree in Chinese language in China, Sema returned to Cameroon, where he now teaches Chinese language and culture at the university.

Sema expressed his deep connection to Chinese culture, saying, “When I was in China, I felt like I was a Chinese person because their culture is very similar to African culture.”

He emphasized the opportunities that speaking Chinese has brought him, including a significant increase in income. “When I returned from China, I started with 500,000 francs CFA (about 814 U.S. dollars) as monthly salary working as an interpreter for some Chinese. That is a lot of money for a Cameroonian,” he said.

Completing a Chinese language course opens up a wealth of opportunities. Graduates can pursue careers as interpreters or explore various fields beyond language, and moreover, they have the option to further their studies in China in any discipline, Sema said.

Sema gives a Chinese language class at the University of Buea in southwestern Cameroon, April 18, 2024. (Xinhua/Muleng Timngum)

Rokis Petou, a business manager for the Chinese firm Sinohydro Corporation Limited in Yaounde, the capital city of Cameroon, also highlighted the advantages of learning Chinese.

In 2017, Petou traveled to China for PhD research studies in geophysics and geological engineering. Despite pursuing his research without a language requirement, Petou recognized the value of speaking Chinese in his professional life.

He said his ability to communicate in Chinese has not only provided him with a well-paid job but has also elevated his social standing. “Being able to speak a language that very few people understand in my environment makes one be treated with special attention,” he added.

Similarly, Eric Sama Doh found employment in 2014 working with Chinese engineers on a construction project in Cameroon.

“When some of my Cameroonian colleagues see me, they always say ‘ni hao’ (hello),” said Doh who has been working with China Machinery Engineering Corporation.

“With this job, I am able to feed my family and send my children to school. In fact, I am living a comfortable life thanks to the opportunity that Chinese language has offered me,” he said.

These stories are just a few examples of how learning Chinese has opened doors for Cameroonians in a challenging job market. According to Didier Nama, national pedagogic inspector of Chinese Language in the Ministry of Secondary Education of Cameroon, there are nearly 20,000 Chinese learners in the country, with nearly 200 secondary schools providing Chinese courses.

Nama highlighted the government’s efforts to promote Chinese language learning, with several state universities now offering Chinese courses and hundreds of Cameroonians trained to teach Chinese in schools across the country.

Sema gives a Chinese language class at the University of Buea in southwestern Cameroon, April 18, 2024.(Xinhua/Muleng Timngum)

In 2008, only one state university in the country offered a Chinese language diploma. However, as of now, four other state universities have formally applied to offer Chinese courses, Nama said, adding that nearly 300 Cameroonians, co-trained by the University of Maroua and the Confucius Institute, are currently teaching the Chinese language in schools nationwide.

Sandra Mefou and Viviane Limunga, two students attending Sema’s lecture, expressed their intentions to pursue further studies in Chinese language and linguistics in China after graduation, citing the limitless opportunities that speaking Chinese provides.

“Chinese-owned companies are everywhere in Cameroon and across the African continent. I want to learn the language to work with them,” Mefou said.

“I plan to pursue further studies in Mandarin and linguistics in China after graduation,” Viviane Limunga added.

“These young people represent a growing trend of cultural exchanges and understanding between Cameroon and China,” Sema said. 

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