Headline News

10, July 2017

Prominent Southern Cameroon CPDM politician with questionable academic papers ⁰

A top political leader and high officer of the ruling CPDM crime syndicate in the Fako constituency has been caught up in an academic certificate forgery fiasco that threatens his professional and political career. The Mayor of Buea, Patrick Ekema is the first Southern Cameroonian CPDM baron to be mired in the potentially damaging farce ever since the beginning of the Anglophone crisis.

The South West Regional Secretary for Human Rights and Freedom, Barrister Tambe Tiku told journalists that investigations are ongoing to establish the validity of the academic papers of various public servants, including prominent West Cameroon government officials, senior and junior South West regional officers.

Recently, Barrister Tambe Tiku said the mayor of Buea has fake academic papers and recommended that the Minister of Public Service prosecute him. Tambe Tiku revealed that the vocal mayor presented forged certificates to gain admission into the University of Buea and used the same fake certificate as he sought nomination in the run-up to the General Election that made him mayor. Patrick Ekema’s Masters degree including his O and A level certificates Diploma Certificates were forged.

Barrister Tambe Tiku’s investigations further revealed that the mayor made a false declaration under oath through a self-declaration form to the ruling CPDM Central Committee. The Barrister Tambe Tiku report, whose findings has been endorsed recommends that Mayor Patrick Ekema be charged with numerous counts of forgery.

The degree and diploma certificates of some key CPDM leaders, including governors, MPs and heads of government bodies, have never been subjected to security authentication, after questions were raised on how they were acquired many years ago in Yaoundé. Mayor Ekema has also been involved in forgery of academic papers to secure employment for his acolytes and mistresses in the Buea Council.

The Tambe Tiku revelations backed by a cream of prominent academics, showed that Mayor Ekema Patrick submitted forged GCE Advance level Certificate during his admission and subsequent promotion in the Buea city council. Mayor Ekema has since not denied forging the certificates and is yet to make public his certificate number. Ekema supporters have declared that he was a bona fide student of the University of Buea and have also been fighting allegations that he did not graduate from the University.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai
Cameroon Concord News

10, July 2017

Australia: Cardinal Pell returns home to face sexual abuse charges ⁰

Vatican finance chief Cardinal George Pell arrived back in Australia on Monday ahead of a court appearance later this month over historical sex abuse charges. The 76-year-old, a top advisor to Pope Francis, touched down in Sydney and was met by security before being whisked away in a waiting car.

He has been ordered to face a Melbourne court on July 26 for a preliminary hearing on multiple sexual assault charges related to offences allegedly committed decades ago, when he was a senior cleric in Australia. The former Sydney and Melbourne archbishop has always maintained his innocence and strenuously denies the allegations. Details of the charges have not been made public although police said they involved “multiple complainants.”

A spokesperson for Pell said in a statement he would be making no comment, but was grateful for “the numerous messages of support he continues to receive.” “When he was told of the charges by Victoria Police Cardinal Pell said in Rome he totally rejected the allegations, was completely innocent of the charges and would return to Australia to vigorously defend himself and clear his name,” said the statement.

Pell, unofficially considered the number three in the Vatican hierarchy, said from Rome after being charged late last month that he was “looking forward finally to having my day in court.” Pell has been granted a leave of absence by the Pope, who made clear the cardinal would not be forced to resign his post as head of the Vatican’s powerful economic ministry.

The charges coincided with the final stages of Australia’s Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sex Abuse, ordered in 2012 after a decade of pressure to investigate widespread allegations of institutional paedophilia.

The commission has spoken to thousands of survivors and heard claims of child abuse involving churches, orphanages, sporting clubs, youth groups and schools. Pell appeared before the commission three times, once in person and twice via video-link from Rome. In one hearing, he admitted that he “mucked up” in dealing with paedophile priests in Victoria State in the 1970s.

(Source: AFP)

10, July 2017

Huge fire rips through London’s Camden Market ⁰

Ten fire engines and more than 70 firefighters have battled a large fire in a building in London’s popular Camden Lock Market, a well-known tourist attraction, the London Fire Brigade has said. According to the Fire Brigade, the fire which erupted a few minutes before midnight was under control by around 3:00 a.m. local time on Monday, but firefighters would continue to “damp down” the site in order to prevent any re-ignition.

There were no immediate reports of any casualties or cause of the blaze. The London Fire Brigade said on Twitter in an earlier statement that the first three floors and roof of a building within the market were alight. “The Brigade’s 999 Control Officers have taken multiple calls to the highly visible blaze and people are asked to avoid the area,” it said on Facebook.

This is the second major fire incident in London in recent weeks. On June 14, a fire tore through the Grenfell Tower residential building, killing at least 80 people. Cheap materials used to refurbish the tower were cited as the reason for the Grenfell inferno, according to a report published in The Times.

The 24-story building block with 120 apartments was home to many Muslim residents. Reports said a lack of suitable equipment; low water pressure and radio problems hindered the response to the Grenfell Tower disaster. Fire crews have told the BBC that low water pressure, radio problems and equipment that was either lacking or did not arrive before the fire got out of control.

Source: Presstv

10, July 2017

Trump son met Russian lawyer linked to Kremlin ⁰

US President Donald Trump’s son met with a Russian lawyer linked to the Kremlin in the run-up to the 2016 presidential election, a report reveals. Donald Trump Jr., had been promised damaging information about his father’s opponent, Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton, ahead of meeting with Natalia Veselnitskaya, The New York Times reported on Sunday, citing US officials.

In a declassified report released in January, the intelligence community concluded that Russia helped with the New York billionaire’s campaign effort ahead of winning the White House, an allegation dismissed both by Moscow and Trump.

According to the Times, the meeting represents “the first public indication that at least some in the campaign were willing to accept Russian help.” Then-Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort and the president’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, also took part in a meeting with the Russian lawyer. In a statement sent to the newspaper, Trump Jr. denied that he had received any information about the former secretary of state, asserting that the meeting had been held at the request of an acquaintance.

“After pleasantries were exchanged, the woman stated that she had information that individuals connected to Russia were funding the Democratic National Committee and supporting Ms. Clinton,” Trump Jr. said in his statement. “Her statements were vague, ambiguous and made no sense. No details or supporting information was provided or even offered. It quickly became clear that she had no meaningful information.”

He added that claims of helpful information by the lawyer were just an excuse to get him to attend the meeting over American adoptions of Russian children. “It became clear to me that this was the true agenda all along and that the claims of potentially helpful information were a pretext for the meeting,” he said.

Source: Presstv

9, July 2017

Peter Mafany Musonge: Star of the Cameroonian road ⁰

The Grand Chancellor of the National Orders and senior politician in the Biya Francophone Beti Ewondo regime has infuriated many Southern Cameroonians in the poverty-stricken South West region by throwing a shockingly extravagant wedding.

The former Prime Minister got married to Mrs Mbangue, who moonlights as deputy general manager of the Conference Center in Yaoundé. The extravagant bash is thought to have cost the ex-CPDM Senator and current Chairman of the so-called Commission on Bilingualism and Multiculturalism huge amount of money. We are yet to establish the cost of bride Mbangue’s jewelry for the wedding.

Guests were invited to the wedding based on their loyalty to the ruling CPDM crime syndicate. Musonge and his wife were filmed lip-syncing to a song that was composed specifically for the nuptials. The lavish wedding was also an opportunity to show case the rich Bakweri culture.

By Rita Akana
Cameroon Concord News

9, July 2017

Nairobi: Kenyan interior minister dies in hospital ⁰

Kenya’s government on Saturday announced the death of Interior Minister Joseph Nkaissery at a hospital in the capital Nairobi. Nkaissery, 68, a retired army officer, had held the position of cabinet secretary for interior and coordination of national government since late 2014.

“It is with deep sorrow and shock that we announce the sudden passing on of Interior CS Retired General Joseph Nkaissery,” said a statement from Kenya’s State House. It said Nkaissery died “at Karen Hospital in Nairobi a few hours after being admitted for a check-up” without providing further details on the cause of death.

Nkaissery was a Member of Parliament from 2002 until 2014 when President Uhuru Kenyatta named him interior minister to replace Joseph Ole Lenku who was dismissed following a spike in insecurity and terror attacks in the country.

(Source: AFP)

9, July 2017

Yaounde: National Assembly Committee rejects lifting immunity from Joseph Wirba ⁰

The honorable members of parliament did not have any period of rest between Friday and Saturday the 8th of July 2017 immediately after the closure on Friday, July 07 of the second ordinary session of the legislative year 2017. The MPs in the Francophone dominated structure were ordered to discuss two pertinent issues involving the construction of a future headquarters of the National Assembly and the adjustments to be made in the administration of the body.

We however gathered that all attempts by House Speaker Cavaye Djibril to open the debate on Joseph Wirba’s immunity met with a stonewall erected by the deputies who attended the bureau meeting of the National Assembly yesterday.

An MP from the Far North region wondered aloud that “I do not understand why we want to focus on Wirba. He’s a star at home and abroad. He did what he did, for us it’s the past. Everyone has become aware of the Anglophone crisis and everything is being done to get out of this crisis. So we have better things to do than spend the time talking about Honorable Wirba.”

For about ten years, the idea of relocating the National Assembly has been hampered by problems related to funding and the appropriate site. “We debated how to give a boost to the building project”, noted our source.

By Sonne Peter
Cameroon Concord News

9, July 2017

Former Cameroon Defense Minister dies in Paris ⁰

Philippe Menye Me Mve, a former Governor and Minister for Defense who recently wrote a letter to President Biya begging for an appointment has died in Paris, France. The Francophone political elite reportedly suffered a stroke when news got to him that he had been dropped from government.

Born in 1937, Philippe Menye Me Mve was a senior civil administrator who held several positions of responsibility in the Biya Francophone Beti Ewondo regime.

He was Deputy Prefect of Mfou, then Prefect of Nkam, Prefect of Dja-et-Lobo, Prefect of Haut Nkam, Prefect of Moungo (as of 11 April 1984), Prefect of Mayo Tsanaga 1985), and Prefect of Mfoundi (as of 31 October 1989). On 10 January 1992, he was appointed Governor of the Western Region. From September 19, 1996 to December 7, 1997, he held the post of Minister for Defense.

As the defense boss, he targeted General James Tataw with numerous “demande des explications” and Tataw got Biya to give him a sack. He traveled abroad for treatment and upon his return lately, Menye Me Mve addressed a letter to President Biya saying Monsieur le président, Je suis là…» “Mr. President, I am here …”

By Rita Akana
Cameroon Concord News

9, July 2017

Bishop Bala Affair: National Episcopal Conference attack statement by Yaounde Prosecutor ⁰

The President of the National Episcopal Conference, Archbishop Samuel Kléda has reaffirmed the stance of the Cameroonian bishops that the late Bishop Jean-Marie Benoit Bala was brutally murdered. His Lordship Samuel Kleda made the revelation to the press on Saturday as part of the activities of the 11th plenary assembly of the bishops of Central Africa that is currently holding in Yaoundé.

Responding to questions from journalists at the headquarters of the National Episcopal Conference of Cameroon (NCPC), the man of God observed that the “Bishops maintained their position” that “Bishop Jean-Marie Benoit Bala was brutally murdered.”

The reaction of the Cameroonian episcopate was very much awaited since the publication on July 4 of a statement bearing the DNA of Jean-Fils Kléber Ntamack, the Prosecutor in charge of the investigation in which Ntamack reported that drowning was the most probable cause of death of the late Bishop Bala.

The confirmation of this position reinforces the Catholic faithful Christians and the national community in general, who were awaiting the reaction of the Bishops. For some days Christian resistance has been organized around this affair and Cameroon Concord News understands the resistance will continue until the truth is revealed.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai
Cameroon Concord News

8, July 2017

Biya orders parliament to lift Joseph Wirba’s immunity from prosecution ⁰

After a private meeting between National Assembly Speaker Cavaye Djibril and President Biya late on Thursday, an emergency meeting of the nation’s parliamentary bureau has been summoned 24 hours after the close of the second session of the legislative year 2017.

The Bureau of the National Assembly is meeting today Saturday the 8th of July 2017 in Yaoundé. The reason for this emergency session at the Chamber has not been made public.

However, reliable sources have hinted that the office of the National Assembly has been convened to trigger a procedure that will result in lifting the immunity of Honorable Joseph Wiba, the SDF MP from the Jakiri constituency.

This item is still developing

Camcordnews Desk