Headline News

13, July 2018

Snarling orange ‘Trump baby’ blimp flies outside British parliament ⁰

A blimp depicting Donald Trump as an orange, snarling nappy-wearing baby flew outside the British parliament in London on Friday, launched by critics of the U.S. president who are demonstrating throughout his visit to the country.

Trump, who arrived on Thursday, said he would avoid London as much as possible to avoid the protests.

“I guess when they put out blimps to make me feel unwelcome, no reason for me to go to London,” he told the Sun newspaper. “I used to love London as a city. I haven’t been there in a long time. But when they make you feel unwelcome, why would I stay there?”

Many British politicians regard close ties with the United States, which they call “the special relationship”, as a pillar of foreign policy and Prime Minister Theresa May has courted Trump before the country’s departure from the European Union.

But some Britons see Trump as crude, volatile and opposed to their values on a range of issues. More than 64,000 people have signed up to demonstrate in London against the visit while other protests are expected around the country.

Around 1,000 people gathered to watch the blimp launch in Parliament Square, with organizers of the stunt wearing red boiler suits and baseball caps emblazoned with “TRUMP BABYSITTER”.

Nicola Tanner, a 33-year-old public official from the southwestern city of Bristol, took the day off work to demonstrate. Wearing a t-shirt with the word “RESIST” on it, she said it was great that the blimp had “touched a nerve” with Trump.

“It’s embarrassing how much our government is falling over themselves to try to appease someone who has no interest in any sort of give-and-take in the UK-U.S. relationship at all, and is so capricious he can change his mind between the end of one tweet and the start of the next one,” she told Reuters.

Pedestrians walk past as a giant balloon depicting US President Donald Trump as an orange baby floats next to the towers of Westminster Abbey during a demonstration against Trump’s visit to the UK in Parliament Square in London on July 13, 2018. (AFP photo)

After a countdown from 10, a cheer went up as the six-meter (20 foot) high balloon rose up. It hovered around 10 meters off the ground, next to the Westminster parliament building and near the River Thames.

Organizer Daniel Jones, 26, a charity communications officer, said they were trying to make people laugh as well as making a serious point. “It’s also about giving a boost to those in America resisting his policies,” he said.

One man dressed as a gorilla and wearing a plastic Trump mask, stood inside a large metal cage.

London Mayor Sadiq Khan, who was criticized by Trump in the Sun interview for failing to control crime and prevent militant attacks, gave his blessing for the blimp to be flown.

Khan rejected suggestions this showed a lack of respect for the U.S. president. “The idea that we restrict freedom of speech, the right to assemble, the right to protest because somebody might be offended is a slippery slope,” he told BBC radio. “We have a rich history in this country of having a sense of humor as well.”

(Source: Reuters)

13, July 2018

Paul Biya to contest in October polls to extend reign till 2025 ⁰

President of Cameroon, Paul Biya, has confirmed his candidacy for presidential polls slated for October 7 this year.

This will be his seventh consecutive mandate which will also extend his reign till 2025. It will, however, be the fifth universal suffrage with multiple candidates.

The octogenarian who is considered one of Africa’s longest-serving leaders made the announcement vis his social media handles on early Friday morning.

Dear Compatriots in Cameroon & the Diaspora, Aware of the challenges we must take up together to ensure a more united, stable & prosperous Cameroon, I am willing to respond positively to your overwhelming calls. I will stand as Your Candidate in the upcoming presidential election, his post read.

Paul Biya of Cameroon

Full Name/Age: Paul Biya, 85 years
Profession: Technocrat/Politician
Became President: November 1982, having served as Prime Minister since June 1975
Predecessor: Ahmadou Ahidjo
Presidential reign: 36 years. 43 years (PM and presidential era)

Source: Africa News

13, July 2018

Cameroon is facing a growing danger of economic collapse and a civil war ⁰

Cameroon is facing a growing danger of economic collapse and a civil war, provoked in large part by French government support for the 85 year President Paul Biya. This week Biya tweeted his intention to run for the October presidential elections amid worsening security situation in the country. The Biya move came after the United States ambassador Peter Barlerin sounded a note of caution to the CPDM Chairman to step aside. The Biya action has failed to win wide support in the entire nation.

In announcing his decision, Biya is responding to intensifying pressure from the Western powers particularly the US. The US Senate recently held a hearing on the crisis in Southern Cameroons which will eventually commit Washington to use its influence to block all international aid and financial assistance for Cameroon. This comes on top of sanctions already implemented by the Federal Republic of Germany.

The UK, meanwhile, has decided to maintain a kind of deliberate silence on the crisis in Ambazonia but has however up the African activities of its foreign intelligence service MI6 in the Gulf of Guinea. Britain had long established a new ministerial committee, ostensibly to give advanced warning of coup attempts and threats of civil war in sub-Saharan Africa.

The ruling CPDM crime syndicate which is mainly based in the cities of Douala, Yaounde and Maroua including some towns and villages in the Center and South regions has alienated not only Southern Cameroonians but also the Bamilekes, the Bassas and the Sawas. The widening political division between Southern Cameroons and the Biya Francophone Beti Ewondo regime and the long standing grievance of the Ahmadou Ahidjo following contains the potential for civil war.

The sharp decline in living standards, 95 percent unemployment and the increasingly repressive character of Biya’s rule provoked popular opposition deep within Southern Cameroons and created conditions for violent social conflict. Aware of the extent of social and political tensions, Biya declared war against his own people-the people of the Federal Republic of Ambazonia. The 85 year old dictator has never accepted measures that would undermine his rule and as I write, his kinsmen and women in the army are moving like a train with no brakes crushing anyone on Biya’s way.

The US through the voice of its ambassador Peter Barlerin has decided that it was time to move against Biya. But the world’s strongest nation is yet to cut off funds and investment to Yaoundé and have failed to encourage the formation of an alternative political leadership that is more responsive to US and EU demands.

Biya offers no progressive response to Western demands and meddling. Instead, he is seeking to hold onto power by whipping up anger of the Francophones not only against Southern Cameroonians but also against the Bamilekes. For nearly four decades, Biya did little to make Ambazonians feel Cameroonian, resulting in an erosion of popular support in Southern Cameroons for his regime. In an attempt to reverse Biya’s decline and counter calls for an Anglophone head of state, Biya declared war on Southern Cameroons.

For the last two years, the Francophone dominated army has been patrolling Southern Cameroons towns and villages, killing innocent civilians and beating up people suspected of supporting the quest for an independent state.

By Rita Akana

13, July 2018

Southern Cameroons War: Defense Minister Beti Assomo convoy comes under attack ⁰

At least five persons were injured on Thursday following an attack by separatist fighters on the convoy of Cameroon’s Defense Minister along the Kumba-Ekondo-Titi road in the South West Region of the country, sources have confirmed.

According to credible reports, four soldiers and a journalist working for state -run newspaper Cameroun Tribune who were all part of the Minister’s convoy heading to a military camp in Small Ekombe along the Kumba-Ekondo Titi road were all injured in a shoot out that ensued between the military and separatist fighters.

Army spokesperson Colonel Didier Badjeck who was also part of the convoy said six “secessionists were neutralised” in the course of the shootout.

According Grégoire Djarmaila, the journalist, one of the embedded journalists who sustained an injury, their convoy met stiff resistance from the fighters who were stationed on both sides of the road after erecting barricades.

The convoy succeeded to reach its destination but once again under fierce attack on their way back with the attackers targeting the armored car in which the Defence Minister Joseph Beti Assomo was found.

In the course of the shootout, a shattered glass particle caught me on the jaw and I started bleeding,” Grégoire Djarmaila, the injured Cameroun Tribune journalist said.

However, they succeeded to get to Kumba safely before being air-lifted to Douala where the other injured four soldiers were given medical attention.

Thursday’s events followed days of fierce fighting in Kumba, Buea and other parts of the North West and South West Regions in Cameroon with several casualties recorded on both sides.

Culled from Journal du Cameroun

13, July 2018

Fighting in Southern Cameroons claims more lives ⁰

Clashes between army and anglophone separatists have claimed several lives in the town of Kumba in Cameroon’s troubled Southwest Region, sources said Thursday. “Several people, including civilians, have been killed in Kumba since Monday,” a source close to the town’s medical services told AFP, confirming witness accounts. “These people died during various army operations” after Kumba’s police superintendent was killed on Sunday, the source said.

The murder has been blamed on separatists who want secession from the French-speaking bulk of Cameroon. “There were exchanges of gunfire for much of (Wednesday) night,” one witness said. “I heard gunshots all night long. Things have quietened down, but people are beginning to leave town,” said a teacher who asked not be named.

The security situation has been tense for days in Southwest Region, which along with the Northwest Region was once under British rule before joining francophone Cameroon in 1961 after independence. At least three police officers have been killed since Sunday, at Kumba and in the regional capital Buea. For the first time since anglophone protest over perceived neglect by the central government erupted at the end of 2016, fighting took place on Monday in Buea, a city of more than 100,000 people patrolled by a large military force.

Defence Minister Joseph Beti Assomo was paying an official visit on Thursday to the Southwest Region, where the separatist crisis became an armed struggle by radical foes of President Paul Biya’s regime late in 2017. In addition to targeting police and troops, the separatists have carried out arson attacks on perceived symbols of the state such as schools. They have also kidnapped civil servants, police officers, businessmen and sometimes foreigners. At the beginning of 2018, most of the conflict took place in the Northwest Region, but the epicentre of violence has gradually shifted south to a rural area between the towns of Kumba, Mamfe and the border with Nigeria. Clashes take place almost every day in both regions.

www.vanguardngr.com

13, July 2018

Credible evidence that French Cameroun army responsible for shocking extrajudicial executions caught on video ⁰

An investigation by Amnesty International experts has gathered credible evidence that it was Cameroonian soldiers depicted in a video carrying out the horrific extrajudicial executions of two women and two young children. While an investigation has now been announced, the Ministry of Communication earlier dismissed video footage of the killings as “fake news”.

Extensive analysis of the weapons, dialogue and uniforms that feature in the video, paired with digital verification techniques and testimonies taken from the ground, all strongly suggest that the perpetrators of the executions are Cameroonian soldiers.

The Cameroonian authorities’ initial claim that this shocking video is fake simply doesn’t stand up to scrutiny.

Samira Daoud, Deputy Director of Amnesty International’s West Africa office

“The Cameroonian authorities’ initial claim that this shocking video is fake simply doesn’t stand up to scrutiny. We can provide credible evidence to the contrary. Given the gravity of these horrific acts – the cold blooded and calculated slaughter of women and young children – these hasty and dismissive denials cast serious doubt over whether any investigation will be genuine,” said Samira Daoud, Deputy Director of Amnesty International’s West Africa office.

“It is imperative that a proper, impartial investigation is undertaken and those responsible for these abhorrent acts are brought to justice.”

While all the elements analyzed so far by Amnesty International strongly suggest the authenticity of the video, the date at which it was taken remains unclear.

The video shows the soldiers using either a Galil or a Zastava M21, in addition to Kalashnikov-style rifles. While AK-type weapons are common, the weapon we strongly believe was used in the execution – either a Galil or the very similar Zastava M21 – is comparatively rare. The Small Arms Survey lists the Galil as only “occasional” in sub-Saharan Africa among governments, and as unknown among non-state actors. The only force in the area carrying Galil’s are a small subset of the Cameroon Army. The Zastava M21 is not specifically reported in the Small Arms Survey online database.

Both the weapons and uniforms of the soldiers in the video are indicative of the Cameroon army, and display patterns consistent with a number of possible units, including regular infantry and the Rapid Intervention Battalion (BIR), the special forces of the Cameroonian army.

The person filming the video specifically identifies two members of the group as soldiers. The first is a second-rank soldier (soldat de deuxième grade) who he names as “Cobra”, the second a Master Corporal (caporal chef) who is named as “Tchotcho”. These names mean that the group can be identified.

The evidence we have provided forms a firm basis for strongly suggesting that the individuals committing these atrocities are members of Cameroon’s armed forces

Samira Daoud, Deputy Director of Amnesty International’s West Africa office

The Master Corporal’s uniform is a tiger stripe pattern that is standard among Cameroon regular army. The other soldiers are wearing black shirts and green-and-black woodland pants. While the Ministry of Communication claims that the mixed and casual nature of the uniforms indicates a lack of authenticity, Amnesty investigators have found the opposite. Mixed and partial uniforms are common among army personnel, especially in remote areas where this incident took place. Soldiers in the Far North region wearing casual flip flops and T-shirts, as well as a mix of tiger stripe print and woodland print, can be clearly seen in videos previously verified by Amnesty International.

The soldiers are followed by about 10 people whom the sources consulted said are most likely members of the local vigilantes’ committee (because they carry light weapons such as clubs and machetes) from the nearby village.

According to Amnesty International’s analysts, the video was likely filmed in the Mayo Tsanaga area in the Far North region of Cameroon. The vegetation is generally consistent and matches other footage from the area. Terrace cultivations, as visible in the video, are found in Mayo Tsanaga. The rocks, the mountains and the low-growing shrubs (locally known as “tchaski”) can also be found in Mayo Tsanaga. There is a military base located in Mozogo in this region.

“The evidence we have provided forms a firm basis for strongly suggesting that the individuals committing these atrocities are members of Cameroon’s armed forces. Some individuals are clearly identifiable and cannot be allowed to get away with such a heinous act with impunity,” said Samira Daoud.

“While the crimes under international law, including war crimes, and human rights violations committed by Boko Haram in Cameroon are despicable, absolutely nothing can justify the crimes being committed by some members of the armed forces.”

Amnesty International is calling for those suspected of criminal responsibility for these crimes under international law, including superiors who knew or should have known that subordinates were committing the extrajudicial executions, to be brought to justice in fair trials before ordinary civilian courts.

Background

Amnesty International has documented crimes under international law, some amounting to war crimes, as well as human rights violations by members of the Cameroonian security forces in their fight against the armed group Boko Haram in the Far North region of the country.

This includes the widespread use of torture to extract ‘confessions’ from hundreds of people accused – often with little or no evidence – of being affiliated with Boko Haram.

Source: Amnesty International

12, July 2018

US President saddened by Africa’s vicious and violent conflicts ⁰

President of the United States, Donald Trump, says he is on a mission to achieve global peace especially peace on the African continent.

In comments made to journalists on the sidelines of a North America Treaty Organization (Nato) summit in Brussels, Trump stressed that Africa’s problems were so complicated that only few people could understand it.

Trump said in part: “Africa right now has got problems like few people would understand. They have got things going on there that nobody could believe in this room.

“If you saw some of the things that I see through intelligence – what’s going on in Africa – it is so sad, it is so vicious and violent – and we want peace. We want peace for Africa. We want peace all over the world.

The U.S. is a strong partner to governments across Africa in several areas of cooperation. Washington’s diplomacy is by far the strongest on the continent. It also has strong ties in the area of economic, anti-terrorism and humanitarian endeavours.

“That’s my number one goal – peace all over the world and we are building up a tremendous military because I really believe through strength you get peace. We are going to have a military like we never had before,” he added.

The U.S. is estimated to have thousands of troops and over thirty military bases across Africa. Security watchers have also averred that it has other facilities that remain secret. The most recent loss the army suffered was when four special forces were killed in an ambush in Niger last year.

Source: Africa News

12, July 2018

ELECAM says Southern Cameroons to partake in presidential polls ⁰

Cameroon’s Anglophone regions will participate in presidential polls slated for October 7, 2018. This is according to the country’s electoral organizing body, Elections Cameroon (ELECAM).

The said regions – North West and South West – have been restive for months now amid armed exchanges between government forces and secessionists under the banner of the so-called Ambazonia Republic.

The elections organizer assured that elections will take place in the regions stressing that the issue of security for all stakeholders in the process was the responsibility of the government.

ELECAM’s Assistant Director, Abdoul Karimou is quoted as saying, “Elections will hold in the North West and South West regions but ensuring security is the responsibility of the State.”

The government recently announced an October 7 date for the presidential elections. Political and security watchers have expressed worry over the worsening situation in the region and averred that peaceful polls could not hold in the affected areas.

The presidential poll is the biggest contest for a busy election year. Voters have already elected other legislative representatives earlier this year.

There were security challenges in the Anglophone regions during some of the polls. These challenges were also present during a national examination – there was heavy security presence at exam centers but some centers were burnt down by suspected separatists.

Source: Africa News

12, July 2018

Municipal elections in Cameroon latest to be postponed ⁰

Local elections in Cameroon have been pushed back a year without explanation, according to a statement read out on state radio on Wednesday.

“The mandate of municipal councillors has been extended for a period of 12 months from October 15, 2018,” said the decree signed by President Paul Biya, who has been in power for 35 years.

The elections were supposed to be held before the end of the year, in parallel with presidential and legislative elections. No reason was given for the delay.

Legislative elections were also postponed earlier this month after Biya said that holding all three votes in the same period would be “difficult” due to “overlapping electoral operations”.

One of Africa’s longest serving leaders, the 85-year-old Biya could run for yet another presidential term in an election scheduled for October.

The presidential election will take place amid ongoing Boko Haram attacks in the far north of the country and unrest in its two English-speaking regions.

Source: AFP

12, July 2018

SOBA UK clarifies its management team and says Professor Ephraim Ngwafor has no legitimacy ⁰

SOBA UK Press Statement No. 3

12^thJuly, 2018

Fellow Sobans,

SOBA UK wishes to confirm that the recent elections organised by the UK Splinter group members instructed by Professor Ephraim Ngwafor in Cameroon had nothing to do with the legitimate SOBA UK entity that has been operating for the past 48 years in the United Kingdom.

We also wish to confirm that no registered members of SOBA UK (over 80 strong members) took part in these elections following;

the General Assembly resolution of the 24th of February 2018 to reject calls for such elections from overseas, which undermine the integrity and autonomy of SOBA UK
the failure to uphold the provisions set out in Article 28 of the SOBA UK Constitution which stipulates the requirements for voters and candidates in any legitimate elections in SOBA UK

Therefore, the outcome of the elections organised by the Splinter group and under the unprecedented orders of an overseas person(s) has no UK constitutional backing. SOBA UK is confirming that these recent elections and Professor Ephraim Ngwafor’s dubious endorsement of the results as a means to rebuild his own shattered legitimacy in SOBA is null and void. We have noted that Professor Ephraim Ngwafor’s legitimacy as president general ended on 4^th March 2018 when a Revival General Assembly held as a result of his failure to hold a general assembly meeting in 4 years or to render financial accountability and other issues raised. These issues remain unresolved to date.

SOBA UK is advising members of the public and Sobans worldwide to disregard any individuals purporting to be the Executive of SOBA UK who are not listed herein. For the avoidance of doubt, we confirm that SOBA UK’s Executive remains as follows:

Ayuk Akoh-Arrey -President

Bime Lafon -Vice President

John Bawak- Secretary General

Babangida Usamatu- Assistant SecretaryGeneral

BateyTako- Financial Secretary

Dennis Angafor- Assistant Financial Secretary

Franklin Egbe – Executive Treasurer

The SOBA UK Executive wishes to clarify that the SOBA UK programme for the rest of 2018 continues as planned. The SOBA UK Events team are delighted to announce that the Annual Residential Convention will be held on 21st to 23rd September 2018 at one of Britain’s most prestigious venues. The next SOBA UK General Assembly meeting will be held on Saturday 22nd September 2018 from 10am. The formal launch of the Convention and full details will be announced shortly. We are very mindful of the Anglophone crisis in Cameroon which has led to the displacement of hundreds of thousands of Anglophones and significant loss of lives, as well as the worsening situation. This is a theme that will be picked up at this year’s convention.

Over the past 5 years the SOBA UK Conventions have been well attended by many Cameroonian families in the UK as well as for those looking to network with the Cameroonian community. SOBA UK enjoys significant goodwill support from our community for what we are, the examples we set and the opportunities that we bring to the community. There is also a symbiotic relationship between SOBA UK and other alumni groups in the UK. For example, registered members of SOBA UK made a contribution of £2,300 on 5^th May 2018 to OPSA UK at their annual convention to support their “Education of a Girl” programme. This level of support to another alumni group shows the goodwill of our members which can be harnessed for the education of our children in Cameroon.

A key part of what we do is to collaborate and empower Sobans around the world. In the last 12 months alone SOBA UK has been represented by our president Mr Ayuk Akoh-Arrey (FIA) and other members to conventions at SOBA America, SOBA Foundation (in Germany), and SOBA Ireland. Also, in the past 4 out of 5 years SOBA UK has been represented at SOBA America conventions including at Montreal Canada in 2015. In 2014 SOBA UK made a contribution of £2,600 to support the 75^th Anniversary celebrations in Cameroon and many members attended the event at St Joseph’s College, Sasse.

The alma mater, St Joseph’s College Sasse remains dear to Sobans in the UK and that is why the Sasse Sick Bay project was initiated and implemented by SOBA UK with nearly £18,000 spent from the coffers of SOBA UK. An MOU was put in place in December of 2014 between SOBA UK and the Bishop of the Diocese of Buea, which would have allowed significant funds tobe injected to complete the projectbut was sabotaged by Professor Ephraim Ngwafor. In 2016, the SOBA UK General Assembly regrettably voted to withdraw from the Sickbay project, which has since then collapsed with Professor Ngwafor failing to either show the merits of his actions on the MOU or complete the project. SOBA UK remains open to showing goodwill to the alma mater.

In respect of our UK membership, SOBA UK continues to lead the way in terms of what our fraternity should be about. In the last 15 months alone 7 of our registered members lost a parent in an unprecedented spate of losses never seen before in the history of SOBA UK. Thankfully, the goodwill of our members and the association enabled significant financial support of over £14,000 to be provided to those bereaved, as well as emotional support.The strength and diligence of what we have built in SOBA UK has seen us through such a difficult year and may the souls of those who have departed rest in peace.

Kind regards,

Mr John Bawak

SG SOBA UK

On behalf of the Executive Team

Counter Signed

Mr Ayuk Akoh-Arrey,

President SOBA UK