Headline News

22, December 2017

“Commonwealth Secretary General has no idea on the happenings in Manyu” ⁰

A group of Southern Cameroons political elites including human rights activists who met with the visiting Secretary General of the Commonwealth, Patricia Scotland today in Buea, failed to deplore the atrocities committed by the Francophone dominated army in Manyu Division. Fru Ndi, Akere Muna and Co did not also urge for punishment of the perpetrators.

Our senior intelligence officer in Yaoundé revealed that President Biya and his gang of Francophone political elites approved the audience granted to the SDF Chairman Ni John Fru, the former Chairman of the outlawed Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium, Barrister Agbor Balla and the renowned Barrister Akere Muna by Mrs Scotland. None of the Southern Cameroonians reported the harrowing tales of torture, killings, abduction of women and children and sexual violence currently going in Manyu Division to the Secretary General of the Commonwealth.

A well-placed source in the Roman Catholic Church hinted Cameroon Intelligence Report that, the Bishop of the Mamfe Diocese His Lordship Bishop Andrew Nkea is very deeply disturbed by what he witnessed and heard throughout his visit to Kembong village in Eyumojock Sub Division. The deprivation and range of sexual violence are hard to describe, people are targeted and suffering just for being Anglophone.

The Buea meeting is the last lapse of the Secretary General’s five day official visit to the divided nation. No deal, according to the interim government of the Federal Republic of Ambazonia has come out of the Patricia Scotland trip which was interpreted by some political commentators as a “last chance” to stop the genocide going on in Southern Cameroons.

Fru Ndi and Akere failed to provide any accountability for serious crimes which is fueling impunity throughout West Cameroon. The leader of the Federal Republic of Ambazonia, Sisiku Ayuk Tabe has said that those responsible for this war against Southern Cameroonian civilians must be stopped with the perpetrators of these horrific acts brought to justice.

In Dadi in the Akwaya Sub Division, a mother told CIR that her husband and her two sons were shot in front of her by Cameroon government forces and she was gang-raped by several soldiers. Young men in Otu village were forced to rape relatives in front of family members.

The interim government of the Federal Republic of Ambazonia will be releasing a detail report soonest. Southern Cameroons has been gripped by conflict ever since the 84-old President Biya declared war against Anglophone Cameroonians. Hundreds of Southern Cameroonians have been killed and thousands have fled to neighboring Nigeria.

Culled from Cameroon Intelligence Report

22, December 2017

Pope Francis slams ‘the corrupt’ in Holy See ⁰

Pope Francis has denounced the “corrupted” elements and the “cancer” of cliques in the Catholic Church who portray themselves as “martyrs” when they are removed.

The Pope said on Thursday that while there were many faithful elements working at the Holy See, there were also elements that were “corrupted.”

When they are removed, “they falsely declare themselves martyrs of the system, of an ‘uninformed pope’ or the ‘old guard,’ when in fact they should have done a mea culpa,” he said.

On that same day, the pontiff attended the funeral service of dishonored US Cardinal Bernard Law at St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican.

Cardinal Law, who resigned as Archbishop of Boston after covering up years of sexual abuse of children by priests but was promoted at the Vatican, died Wednesday at age 86.

His funeral was held with about 200 people attending and no mention of what caused his downfall.

Pope Francis attended the funeral to recite blessings and conduct a brief service known as the Final Commendation and Farewell, which he does for all cardinals who die in Rome. The pope read out the Latin prayer of farewell and commendation to God without adding any comment.

About 15 cardinals were present, including Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Piero Parolin, but Law’s successor in Boston, Cardinal Sean O’Malley, did not attend.

Law was Archbishop of Boston — one of the most prestigious and wealthy American archdioceses — for 18 years when then-Pope John Paul reluctantly accepted his resignation on December 13, 2002, after a tumultuous year in Church history.

A succession of devastating news stories by Boston Globe reporters showed how priests who sexually abused children had been moved from parish to parish for years under Law’s tenure without parishioners or law authorities being informed.

Victim groups had expressed outrage that Law’s funeral would be held in St. Peter’s Basilica and that he would be buried in a crypt in a chapel of the Rome Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore, where he served as archpriest after leaving Boston.

About a half dozen ambassadors to the Vatican attended the Mass. The United States’ official representative was Louis Bono, the current chief of mission at the US embassy to the Vatican.

US Ambassador-designate to Vatican Callista Gingrich and her husband Newt Gingrich, former speaker of the House of Representatives, attended in a private capacity. Callista officially takes on her role as ambassador on Friday.

The ambassadors of Britain, Japan, and South Korea also attended.

‘New bishops worse than amateur Cardinal Law’

Law left Boston after revelations that he covered up for dozens of priests who raped and sexually molested children, moving them to different parishes without telling parents or police.

The scandal, exposed by The Boston Globe then spread throughout the US and the world, with thousands of people from all continents coming forward in ensuing years with claims their priests sexually abused them when they were children.

St. John Paul II’s decision to promote Law to head St. Mary Major in 2004 reinforced the impression that the Vatican — which had turned a blind eye to abuse for decades — still hadn’t grasped the scale of the problem, the trauma it caused its victims, and the moral credibility the church had lost as a result.

Rev. Thomas Doyle, a key whistleblower in the decades-old clerical sex abuse saga, said there were still bishops who have chosen to protect the Church and their priests more than children.

“One thing is certain: Bernard Law may be the remembered face of hierarchical cover-up and mendacity, but there are others who were far, far worse and carry a greater burden of guilt because they knew by then what the score was,” Doyle said in an email, ticking off a list of well-known bishops who have been publicly shamed — and in some cases prosecuted — for covering up for their priests.

“They make Law look like an amateur.”

Source: Presstv

22, December 2017

Four days to Christmas, Yaounde invaded by garbage ⁰

It is becoming extremely difficult in Yaoundé to take a step without falling on a pile of garbage deposited in the streets and not removed for ages.

This rubbish is now part of the decor to the chagrin of the people and the environment- a legacy of the Biya Francophone Beti-Ewondo regime.

Health and Safety Cameroun (Hysacam), the company in charge of the collection and management of waste appears overwhelmed by the tonnage of household waste.

The corrupt CPDM regime which recently liberalized the garbage collection and management sector is slow to find partners. As a result, garbage piles and trash cans are multiplying in the nation’s capital.

By Rita Akana

22, December 2017

Catalan separatists win absolute parliamentary majority ⁰

Catalan separatists won a crucial snap poll Thursday, plunging their region into further uncertainty after a failed independence bid rattled Europe and triggered Spain’s worst political crisis in decades.

With turnout at a record high and 99.6 percent of the ballots counted, the election handed a mandate back to the region’s ousted separatist leaders, even after they campaigned from exile and behind bars.

In a clear indicator of the huge gulf over independence afflicting Catalan society, anti-secessionist centrist party Ciudadanos was meanwhile on course to win the biggest individual result with 37 of the 135 seats in the regional parliament.

“It’s a strange feeling. We won the majority of seats, but we lost in votes. As such both sides will be able to claim victory,” 26-year-old doctor and separatist supporter Fran Robles told AFP after the results were announced.

“It’s a good reflection of the reality that Catalonia is politically divided,” he added. But unless the three pro-independence lists fail to clinch a deal to work together in the coming months, they will rule Catalonia with 70 of the 135 seats in parliament — two less than their previous tally of 72.

For Catalans on both sides of the divide the day had been a moment of truth, following weeks of upheaval and protests unseen since democracy was reinstated following the death in 1975 of dictator Francisco Franco.

“This is a result which no one can dispute,” deposed leader Carles Puigdemont said from self-imposed exile in Belgium, as he celebrated the separatists’ win.

“The Spanish state was defeated. (Spanish Prime Minister Mariano) Rajoy and his allies lost,” he told reporters.

Upset for Rajoy

The Spanish government called the election after it took the unprecedented step of stripping Catalonia of its treasured autonomy in the aftermath of an independence declaration on October 27 that rattled a Europe already shaken by Brexit.

At stake was the economy of a region that has seen its tourism sector suffer and more than 3,100 companies — including the largest banks, utilities and insurers — move their legal headquarters out of Catalonia since the referendum.

The declaration came weeks after a banned independence referendum on October 1, which saw a police crackdown that sent shockwaves around the world.

Rajoy and his conservative cabinet tried to nip the independence movement in the bud, sacking the regional government and dissolving its parliament.

In a further obstacle for the separatist cause, the judiciary pressed charges of rebellion, sedition and misuse of funds against the secessionist leaders.

Puigdemont, who had fled to Belgium where he tried to rally international support for the separatist cause, has not since returned to Spain, where he faces arrest. His Together for Catalonia list nonetheless secured the best result of the three separatist groupings — in a major upset for Rajoy’s government.

“Puigdemont president!” chanted Puigdemont’s campaign manager Elsa Artadi at a rally celebrating the result.

“The result we have obtained is heroic, we have won, Mr Rajoy,” Together for Catalonia candidate Eduard Pujol said.

What still remains unclear, however, is whether Puigdemont will be renamed president, and if so, whether he will return from Belgium and how he might govern.

(Source: AFP)

22, December 2017

Hand-in-hand with few survivors, Bishop Nkea in historic visit to Kembong ghost village ⁰

The Bishop of the Diocese of Mamfe, His Lordship Bishop Andrew Nkea has visited Kembong village destroyed by the Francophone dominated armed forces recently in one of the most deadliest attack ever since the Southern Cameroons uprising.

Cameroon Concord News gathered the man of God was speechless as he walked across the numerous houses burnt down by the Francophone army. 6 Cameroonian soldiers were also killed, 6 riffles were seized by the Southern Cameroons militants and a pickup 4×4 hilux truck was damaged along the Mfuni road that left some of the passengers seriously wounded.

For a reminder, the village of Kembong in Eyumojock Sub constituency suffered casualties with the most pathetic being the burning down of the home of the late UNDP parliamentarian Chief Alfred Besong by government soldiers. The Cameroon government troops also set fire on the only hotel in kembong including five other buildings. A new brand Siena car was destroyed and a civilian shot on the leg. The villagers have all escaped to the forest and kembong is now a ghost village.

By Judith Fon

21, December 2017

Africa Cup of Nations: CAF renews warning to Cameroon ⁰

Confederation of African Football (CAF) president, Ahmad, has reiterated his warning to Cameroon about their hosting of the Africa Cup of Nations. Ahmad Ahmad In response to a question about Cameroon holding on to the hosting of the tournament in its new expanded 24-team format in 2019 Ahmad wasted few words.

“If the host country is unable to organise it, we will find a country that will organise it,” he said. “The authorities in the country, up to the head of state, have always confirmed to us that they will be ready.” Before CAF approved changes to the format and timing of the Nations Cup, Cameroon’s sports minister Ismael Bidoung had been forced to deny preparations were behind schedule.

Cameroon once again insisted it would be ready to host the tournament soon after Caf moved it to June/July and increased it from 16 to 24 teams. In August Ahmad said: “Cameroon will have to work to convince Caf on its ability to host the event.” He again clarified that it will be down to an independent company conducting inspections to let Caf know if Cameroon are fit to host the event. “We will leave it to the host country to work with an independent private firm without any influence from us whatsoever,” “It is up to them to provide us with the information that will enable us to say that Cameroon will be ready or Cameroon will not be ready. But we won’t negotiate anything.”

Audit firm PriceWaterhouseCoopers was due to conduct an inspection in August but they withdrew at short notice without giving reasons. An inspection is now due to happen early in 2018.

Source: Vanguard

21, December 2017

Thousands flee violence in Southern Cameroons ⁰

Thousands of people are fleeing unrest in English-speaking areas of southern Cameroon into southern Nigeria.

The government has banned public gatherings, suspended transportation and shut businesses as activists seek a state independent from the majority French-speaking areas.

The more than 30,000 refugees now in southern Nigeria are being looked after by the Nigeria refugee agency and a few non-governmental organizations.

But many say they don’t have much to eat or anywhere suitable to live.

Source: Aljazeera

21, December 2017

Prime Minister Philemon Yang weighs in on ENAM scandal ⁰

Prime Minister Philemon Yang has said that he wants to know how a student who died months ago gained admission into the National School of Administration and Magistracy (ENAM). Cameroon Concord News gathered that Mr. Philemon Yang has ordered an investigation to shed light on what appears to be a new scandal in Cameroon’s prestigious school, which is going to accommodate Junior and Brenda Biya, the son and the daughter of the President of the Republic for the 2018 academic year.

The controversy came to light after it was revealed the name of a candidate Njdomo Millsaints Claude, who died well before the entrance examination, ended up in the list of those admitted with a score of 14/20. The late Njdomo Millsaints Claude was among the 5 successful candidates into Cycle A of the Faculty of Administration.

The Prime Minister is aware that the late student did not do the oral session of the examination but came first in the scoring. Philemon Yang has created a commission of inquiry composed of representatives from the PM office, the Ministry of Public Civil Service and Administrative Reform (MINFOPRA), the president of the board of directors of ENAM and the rector of the school.

It is the third scandal that has rocked ENAM’s 2017 entrance examination process. On November the 16th, the results of the eligibility candidates published by the rector, Linus Toussaint Mendjana and announced over state radio and television were immediately annulled by the Minister of Public Service, Angel Michel Angouing. Following presidency arbitrations, other results were published on the 17^th of November by the MINFOPRA that were also affected by many inconsistencies.

By Sama Ernest

21, December 2017

Ferry with 251 aboard capsizes off Philippines, 3 killed ⁰

A Philippine ferry carrying 251 people capsized on Thursday off an island south of Manila, the capital, a coast guard spokesman said, amid a storm bringing heavy downpours.

Three people were killed in the accident, domestic radio said. Rescue operations were hampered by bad weather and huge waves caused by a typhoon in the south.

Coast guard boats and army helicopters rushed to the vicinity of Polilio Island in the province of Quezon to rescue passengers, taking advantage of daylight, spokesman Armand Balilo said on television.

“We heard about casualties, but we are still trying to get a complete picture,” Balilo said, adding that the ferry, which had the capacity to carry 280 people, had not been overloaded.

Boat accidents are common in the Philippines, which is frequently lashed by storms and typhoons.

(Source: Reuters)

21, December 2017

Abuja says Cameroonian troops crossed into Nigeria without seeking authorization ⁰

Cameroonian troops this month crossed into Nigeria in pursuit of rebels without seeking authorization from Nigeria, causing a falling-out between the governments behind the scenes, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.

At least one incursion was confirmed by a Nigerian government official, two Nigerian military officers and two foreign diplomats, all of whom spoke on condition of anonymity.

Nigerian security forces were deployed to the border to stop any further crossings, said a military source. The Cameroonian and Nigerian governments said in separate statements there were no incursions. Relations between the two countries are good, Cameroon said.

Cameroonian military officials and pro-government media accuse Nigeria of sheltering Anglophone insurgents. For the past year they have been based in the dense equatorial forests that straddle the border between the two countries, fighting for an independent state they call Ambazonia.

At least 7,000 people have fled as refugees from Anglophone Cameroon to Nigeria following a crackdown ordered this year by President Paul Biya to quell the insurgency, which represents the gravest challenge yet to his 35-year rule.

French is the official language for most of Cameroon but two regions speak English and these border Nigeria, which is also Anglophone. “Cameroonian troops were in Nigeria,” said a foreign diplomat. “Zero warning, zero authorization.”

The troops crossed into Nigeria at least twice this month, the diplomat and a Nigerian military official told Reuters.

The incidents have caused anger on both sides and could sour diplomatic relations further as Cameroon increases pressure on its Anglophone regions, according to the diplomat and a Nigerian government official.

“Tensions are high and could escalate,” the government official said.

Cameroon government spokesman Issa Tchiroma Bakary denied that troops had crossed the border illegally.

“Relations between the two countries are cohesive when it comes to fighting against terrorism. Cameroon and Nigeria are on the same wavelength.”

Nigeria’s foreign minister, speaking to Reuters after a cabinet meeting in Abuja, also denied the incursions.

“The (Nigerian) government had investigated and discovered that it’s not true,” said Geoffrey Onyeama, Nigeria’s foreign minister.

But the Nigerian government official and a diplomat said Cameroon had threatened to suspend senior Nigerian embassy officials in Yaounde after they lodged complaints. Tchiroma and Onyeama denied this.

Governments in Africa often play down diplomatic disputes and present a show of harmony even during bitter rows.

On Monday, rebels killed four gendarmes, Cameroon’s government said, the latest raid on police and military positions in the country’s southwest region.

“TERRITORIAL INTEGRITY”

Nigeria has for decades been West Africa’s powerhouse but the militaries of the two countries have cooperated extensively to confront a threat posed by Islamist militant group Boko Haram. The group has staged attacks in Nigeria for years but more recently it has also conducted deadly assaults in Cameroon.

Cameroon has repeatedly pressed Nigeria to allow it the right of hot pursuit for Boko Haram militants and the issue has left the countries at loggerheads. After Cameroon’s military crossed the border this month in pursuit of separatist insurgents, Nigeria sent security forces to deter any future attempts, said one of the military sources.

“We were not for war but keeping the peace and protecting our territorial integrity. They were asked to leave and they did and everything has been brought under control,” the source said.

“Many refugees have crossed into Nigeria and many more are still crossing and the Cameroon authorities appear to be concerned that the situation may escalate if they keep coming into Nigeria.”

Two Cameroonian military officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Reuters separatists had set up bases and launched attacks from Nigeria.

One attack was on Dec. 14 and involved two groups of at least 100 separatists, one of the officials said.

“How do you explain that these guys come to attack us and then leave without being troubled across the border? When we drive them back, these separatists withdraw toward Nigeria,” the official said.

Julius Ayuk Tabe, the Nigeria-based chairman of the Ambazonian Governing Council, the political wing of the armed resistance, said he was not aware of any separatist military bases in Nigeria.

Cameroon’s linguistic divide harks back to the end of World War One, when the German colony of Kamerun was carved up between allied French and British victors.

The English-speaking regions joined the French-speaking Republic of Cameroon the year after its independence in 1960. French speakers have dominated the country’s politics since.

Source: Reuters