8, July 2016
USA: A nation ruled by a culture of white supremacy 0
A human rights attorney says US investigations into police killing of two African-Americans in Louisiana and Minnesota recently will not lead to the administration of justice. A video that shows the aftermath of police shooting can be investigated as a federal crime, but the investigation “will not ensure there is going to be justice for the victim,” human rights attorney from New York Roger Wareham told Press TV.
Two graphic videos shot in the US states of Louisiana and Minnesota shocked the American nation this week which showed the deaths of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile in the hands of US police officers. “In an almost all those cases the officer who killed an unarmed black civilian does not even get indicted, much less prosecuted, much less convicted or even go to jail,” Wareham said.
He said African Americans are the constant victim of a system in which the law enforcement or white vigilantes can kill black people with impunity and without any sort of retribution and accountability. “So, there is a culture of white supremacy, there is an attitude that says you can do anything to a black or brown person, because you will not be punished for it,” he added. Lawrence Korb, a former assistant secretary of the US Department of Defense, said the police officer who killed Philando Castile should be held accountable
It is “because the act is tragic and a video record proves that the victim was unarmed, but he was shot four times,” Korb said. The use of excessive force by US law enforcement forces has become the focus of national debate, particularly over high-profile killings of African Americans by mainly white officers during the last several years. Police in the United States killed over 1,150 people in 2015, with the largest police departments disproportionately killing at least 321 African Americans.
Presstv
8, July 2016
Eneo angers Yaounde city dwellers with sharp increase in electricity bills 0
Households in the nation’s capital Yaoundé have registered their protest following a sudden increase in electricity bills. The offices of Eneo, the company responsible for the distribution of electricity have all been receiving large numbers of complaints this week. Cameroon Concord News spoke to some of the Yaoundé city dwellers who revealed that the bills moved from 30,000 to 50,000 CFA francs in the month of June 2016. Some electricity customers claimed their amounts rose from 13,000 to 20,000 FCFA.
Many customers of the distribution company, Eneo do not understand what caused the sharp increase. A spokes person for the electricity company, Eneo was quoted as saying that “Change can only occur with a decision from the regulatory agency for the electricity sector (Arsel). To date, invoice is based on the rates set in 2012”.
Eneo issued a statement late last week stating that “rates are set according to consumption brackets between 0 and 110 kWh, it costs 50 CFA francs, without Vat. But as long as people buy appliances or even simple light bulbs that consume a lot, or they leave phone chargers and various other devices connected all night, and consumption increases when you exceed 110 kWh, it you apply another minimum charging period is 79 FCFA with more Vat”
It is also common in the major cities for dubious electricians to tap electricity from a neighbor without his knowledge and “you pay for two or three households”. At the time of filing this report, an Eneo official admitted that there were billing problems, due to some mistakes.
Rita Akana (Cameroon Concord News)