Headline News

18, August 2023

Cash-strapped Biya regime suspends work contracts, says foreign workers must leave ⁰

Officials in Cameroon suspended the work contracts of several thousand foreign workers, including Africans, Chinese and Europeans, and ordered them to obtain work permits and pay taxes within a month or leave the country.

The Cameroon government said that only about 100 of more than 2,000 foreign workers from China, Nigeria, the Central African Republic and Chad are authorized to work in gold mines and export timber near Cameroon’s eastern border with the Central African Republic.

More than 10,500 of an estimated 11,000 foreign workers in the central African nation do not have work permits, government officials said.

Issa Tchiroma Bakary, Cameroon’s employment minister, said a majority of foreign workers are acting in bad faith. By not paying taxes, foreign workers have deprived Cameroon of more than $25 million since January, he said.

Bakary said that this week government officials in Cameroon’s 360 districts were ordered to make sure foreign workers obtain work permits and pay taxes or leave within 30 days.

Cameroon’s employment ministry said that a relaunch of construction, mining and exploration for gas and oil has caused an influx of Chinese and European engineers.

The government said several thousand foreign workers in northern and eastern gold mines and forests deceived Cameroon consular officers to receive tourist visas.

The government said it cannot afford to allow more than 10,000 illegal foreign workers in Cameroon when more than 70% of its 27 million citizens either lack jobs or are underemployed.

Florent Djounou, who owns a wood company that employs 30 Chinese and eight Europeans, spoke on behalf of foreign workers at a meeting with Cameroon’s employment minister in Batouri, near Cameroon’s border with the Central African Republic.

He said that foreign workers understand they should respect Cameroon’s laws before carrying out economic activity, but that they were surprised when at least 1,000 contracts were suspended even before the Cameroon government publicly asked foreign workers to obtain permits.

European and Chinese workers often are able to obtain work permits, Djounou said, but Africans, especially those displaced by conflicts in their own countries, may not have the financial means to pay for their permits.

Prices of timber and wood have risen 15% because huge quantities of wood cannot leave eastern forests where the government has put a stop to activities of foreign workers, he said.

Bakary said foreign laborers will be allowed to work freely when they obtain their permits.

The employment of foreign workers is subject to special procedures in Cameroon. Potential workers are obliged to declare their wages and allowances, including transportation and accommodation, which are used to determine how much is paid to obtain a visa.

A 2022 law institutes a fee equivalent of two months’ wages for non-African workers and one month’s wages for African workers before work permits are issued. The law went into effect this year.

Source: VOA

17, August 2023

Frozen accounts forced MTN Cameroon to borrow funds for continuity of operations ⁰

MTN Cameroon borrowed CFAF91.5 billion (at the current South African Rand value) in the first half of 2023, according to data collected by Business in Cameroon. The funds, which represented almost 98% of the company’s operating expenses during the period, were raised in the form of syndicated loans from undisclosed banks.

In 2022, it took no new loan and even settled almost CFAF18 billion of debt. What’s more, as of January 1, 2023, its net cash position was positive, at CFAF29.15 billion. However, at the end of June this year, its cash position showed a net debt of CFAF13 billion.

One plausible hypothesis to explain this situation is the impact of its accounts being frozen following the legal action initiated by Cameroonian business mogul Baba Danpullo to dispute what he considers the illegitimate expropriation of his assets in South Africa. According to internal MTN sources, the telecom operator had to indebt itself to ensure the continuation of its operations.

Uncertainties

MTN Cameroon’s solid performance –with a CFAF156 billion turnover, a 36% operating margin, and 51.4% market share– as of the end of the first half of 2023 strengthens its credibility with Cameroonian banks. However, this confidence could be challenged.

Financial data for the first half of 2023 show that its interest-bearing liabilities (CFAF95.8 billion) exceed its liquidity (CFAF83 billion). What’s more, some of this cash has been seized by the courts, making it impossible to use it for day-to-day operations. It is also uncertain if the telecom operator’s holding company (based in South Africa) will easily intervene in the event of challenges since its debt has also grown to 1.5 times its equity.

If the Cameroonian courts do not quickly rule on the case, MTN Cameroon could have to face short-term liquidity issues. Developments in the telecommunications sector will also be decisive for the operator. A slowdown in activity could exacerbate its difficulties in meeting its financial commitments. This should be of concern to creditors and suppliers because, in an unfavorable economic climate, they may have to wait longer for payment.

Source: Business in Cameroon

17, August 2023

French Cameroun: 11-month-old baby dies of hunger with mum in custody ⁰

Caroline Ngum ‘s 11 -month-old baby has been buried in their family residence in Penja-Moungo division in the Littoral region of Cameroon under the watch of his heart broken mother.

Caroline Ngum, who reportedly lost her baby while on detention at the Penja police district disclosed she was denied the opportunity to breastfeed her baby by Police officers:

“I received a convocation for the police district which I responded to. I was heard but told I will stay longer…I told them I am a nursing mother as my family brought the baby to feed. After that, they sent away my family. I was detained for two days and my baby did not feed within these two days. Now the baby is gone.”

Off Camera, the commissioner of the police unit said they were not informed Caroline had a baby. The aggrieved mother was called up detained following accusations of theft and breach of trust “I know I am owing my in-law F CFA 270,000 that is why they called me at the police station. I know”

Caroline has returned home to mourn her baby with no details on how the case with her in-law ended.

Source: Cameroon News Agency

17, August 2023

Former French president Sarkozy calls for ‘compromise’ with Russia ⁰

France’s former president Nicolas Sarkozy has stirred outrage in Kyiv and Paris by suggesting Russia’s invasion of Ukraine could be ended with new referendums in occupied territories.

“The Ukrainians… will want to reconquer what has been unjustly taken from them. But if they can’t manage it completely, the choice will be between a frozen conflict… or taking the high road out with referendums strictly overseen by the international community,” Sarkozy told conservative newspaper Le Figaro on Wednesday.

Speaking particularly about the Crimean peninsula, which Russia claimed to have annexed in 2014, the former French leader said that “any return to the way things were before is an illusion”.

“An incontestable referendum… will be needed to solidify the current state of affairs,” he added.

The ex-president insisted that Russian leader Vladimir Putin was “not irrational” and could be reached with the right kind of diplomacy from Europe, harking back to Moscow’s 2008 invasion of Georgia when Sarkozy said he “convinced (Putin) to withdraw his tanks”.

“Russia is Europe’s neighbour and will remain so,” he said. “Diplomacy, discussion and talks remain the only way to find an acceptable solution. Nothing is possible without compromise.”

Sarkozy added that Ukraine should remain “neutral” and had no place in the EU or NATO.

The remarks drew an immediate response from Kyiv, with Mykhailo Podolyak — a senior aide to President Volodymyr Zelensky — saying they were based on “criminal logic”.

“You cannot trade other people’s territories because you are afraid of someone or because you are friends with criminals,” Podolyak added.

While in office, Sarkozy had “deliberately participated in a criminal conspiracy for Russia’s seizure of Ukrainian territories,” he charged.

The ex-president — who has spent much of his time since leaving office battling a slew of legal cases — was also attacked at home in France.

Sarkozy “should be considered a Russian influencer,” said Julien Bayou, a senior Green Party MP, telling broadcaster LCI the interview was “lunatic” and “shocking”.

Bayou recalled an ongoing investigation into Sarkozy’s lucrative ties to a Russian insurance company on suspicion of influence peddling and concealing crimes.

Sarkozy’s former intelligence advisor Jerome Poirot told LCI that the ex-president’s words were “shameful”.

“He has no perspective on what’s happened or on what he did” during his 2007-2012 term, Poirot said, recalling that Sarkozy was one of the key voices against Georgia and Ukraine joining NATO in 2008 — which did not prevent Russia’s later invasions of both countries.

“What were President Sarkozy’s red lines? What was his vision for France’s security? Just giving in to whatever Vladimir Putin wanted?” he asked.

Source: AFP

17, August 2023

Fr Tatah Humphrey’s Christological Problem ⁰

Fr. Tatah Humphrey should most certainly be commended for his assiduous commitment to African scholarship. It is no small feat to have 25 books and counting under one’s belt. That is a number most scholars would envy. Though I am yet to get a copy of Studying the Faith of Our Ancestors: A New Approach to African Traditional Religion (it is not yet available on AMAZON), there are many statements that Fr. Tatah made in his August 12 Crux interview with Ngala Killian that faithful Catholic theologians would agree with. For example: Fr. Tatah asserts the historicity of the Incarnation of Jesus as the God-Man; he asserts the unicity and salvific universality of the Christ; he likewise asserts the mediatory place of the Church in the economy of the Christ-event. I very much appreciate the fact that Fr. Tatah highlights the necessity for inculturation rightly understood and implemented, which is mightily different from adaptation. Another strength of his interview is the case that he makes about Christianity not being a European religious expression. That Fr. Tatah decries what Engelbert Mveng famously characterized as Africa’s anthropological deficiency is also worth commending, for the African has much to offer global Catholicism, especially given the waning of Christian faith in large sectors of the Western world today.

In fact, I think the strongest part of Fr.Tatah’s interview could very well be these lines: “That God, historically, came into human history in the person of Jesus the Christ. We cannot deny that. That’s a historical fact. That Christ, at Caesarea Philippi, established the one holy Catholic and apostolic Church. That you can’t deny. That’s historical (…).” And in another paragraph, Fr.Tatah says, “Christ is God and that is the only direction we lead people to. There can be nothing else, no salvation except through God and Christ is God made man.” These lines capture the center of Christology, Ecclesiology, and Missiology, and one could build a profound reflection on Christian discipleship and evangelization on these positions for today’s African Church.

The above being said, it is equally the case that a close reading of Fr.Tatah’sCrux interview leaves one with a serious Christological problem, especially in terms of the logicality and inner coherence of his religious claims of the enduring value of (African Traditional Religion) ATR, vis-à-vis the figure of Jesus of Nazareth as the God-Man. It is one thing to say that Godentered history in the God-Man, Jesus of Nazareth, as Chalcedon taught. However, it is entirely another to, for all intents and purposes, to relativize the wholly otherness of the Christ-event so much so that it becomes a part of the evolutionary process of the history of religion, perhaps in the sense of Comte or Hegel.

To me, the central nexus of the difficulty a dogmatic theologian must have with Fr. Tatah appears to be this: what is the salvific significance of natural revelation as opposed to, or different from, supernatural revelation? In effect, there appears a blurring or obscuring of lines in terms of the good, the beautiful, and the true that we find in ATR, on the one hand, and the wholly otherness of the Christ-event, on the other hand. Fr. Tatah himself appears to indicate this dialectic when he says in his interview: “So, if you are looking for religion as it has evolved, it has evolved from our own reasoning of how God is to God himself coming into our midst and from there everything goes on.” Now, is there a distinction between religion evolving from our own reasoning and religion as God himself coming into our midst? I believe Fr. Tatah would say, certainly, there is a distinction between the former and the latter. But is this distinction just an evolutionary process as Fr.Tatah appears to characterize it, or is this distinction really the beef of the matter? Along this line of reasoning, one can readily see other problems that the claims in Fr. Tatah’s interview leaves unresolved:

Is Biblical Christian monotheism African, or (or even European)?

Is there an ontological and an existential difference between the first article of the Nicene Creed, I Believe in One God, and the concept of the Supreme Deity or Being that we find in ATR?

How does Fr.Tatah understand the Trinitarian character of Christian monotheism if, as he claims, ATR already had the understanding of Christian monotheism?

Is the Supreme Being of ATR identifiable with the God, the Father of Jesus Christ, or is this reality of the Supreme Being in ATR an opening that should lead us to a deeper understanding of this God whom Jesus of Nazareth alone called Father?

How does Fr.Tatah understand the metaphor of the seed and tree that he employs to explain that Christianity is the tree that has blossomed from the seed of ATR, – a position any serious dogmatic theologian would find utterly problematic, – in the light of say, St. John Henry Newman’s teaching on the organic development of doctrine? If the Immanent Trinity was not present in the monotheism of ATR, would the Economic Trinity be present?

In the TatahianWeltanschauung of ATR, is Christianity a qualitative or quantitative leap?

Do the cultic rites/rituals of the stones, rivers, and mountains that Fr.Tatah alludes to in his interview have a salvific value from the Christian perspective? If they don’t, how does Fr.Tatah square these with this position that ATR is the seed for tree that is Christianity? And if they do, why burden Africans with Christianity?

In addition, is there a difference between “seeds of the Gospel,” as used in inculturation theology in the understanding of the Second Vatican Council, and ATR as the “seed of Christianity” as espoused by Fr.Tatah?

What are the limits to appropriating Rahner’s problematic concept of “anonymous Christianity” and applying that to ATR as Fr.Tatah does in his work? In effect, does this appropriation of Rahner serve the urgent task of evangelization in the vast continent of Africa today?

In all, Fr.Tatah leaves us with an inner tension between fidelity to the liberating truths of Christianity, on the one hand, and a somewhat nostalgic attachment to ATR, on the other hand. While such an attachment is understandable, particularly when viewed from the perspective of a world that in many ways has lost its religious roots, an embellished proclamation of ATR does not only leave us in an anachronistic no-man’s land, but even more, it could unintentionally impede the urgency and necessity of living out the Great Commission of Mathew 28, which is more urgent today than when Jesus first gave it, especially as we prepare for the second millennium of the Great Commission of Mathew coming up in 2033. I happened to have taught a course Christianity in Africa at Boston College for some years now. Often times students would ask me to account for the reasons for the growth of Christianity in Africa. Amongst others, I would point to the liberating experience that the Christian message brings to many an African. Achebe seems to think likewise in the figure of Nwoye in Things Fall Apart. I do not see this liberating impact of Christianity in Fr.Tatah’s presentation of the relationship between ATR and Christianity.

In the final analysis, faith begins, as Ratzinger taught, when we move, like Abraham, from the clan to the unknown territory directed by God (Genesis 12). Faith begins when we go out of the city to the hill of Calvary with the Crucified One. For the Christian, Christ called himself truth, not culture (Tertullian). This is not to downplay our culture, but a gentle reminder that anthropology is not theology, and faith is not sociology, important as these are to the human reality. Christianity has a name and a face, Jesus of Nazareth. Everything else is secondary, even ATR.

By Maurice Agbaw-Ebai

17, August 2023

Inspector of Basic Education in Manyu Calls for help for IDP ⁰

The inspector of Basic Education for Manyu Division, Arreyngang Harman Taku, has called on Manyu sons and daughters at home and abroad to come to the assistance of young IDPs who will soon be returning to school, unfortunately without the necessary school supplies due to the prevailing economic hardship.

Mr. Arreyngang made the call in a touching letter on Tuesday, August 16, 2023, urging those who have the means to reach out to some 10,000 pupils who will be struggling in the coming academic year due to economic hardship.

The pupils, most of whom are from rural areas of Manyu Division where schools have been shut down due to the Southern Cameroons crisis which has been going on for over 6 years, will be facing tough challenges as the economic and financial situation gets more complicated by the day.

Below is the letter from the Manyu Basic Education Inspector.

Greetings to all the internal and external elites of Manyu Division, all your ranks and titles duly acknowledged.

The 2023/2024 school year will start in under two weeks. Mamfe boasts of above 10,000 children going to school, most of them IDPs from all over manyu Division.

It is not easy for a large number of these children to meet their school needs in terms of didactic materials such as exercise books, pens, pencils, school bags etc.

Your generous donation of some of these materials to these unfortunate children will put a smile on their faces as well as make teaching and learning less cumbersome for their teachers.

I therefore make this fervent appeal to all of you of good heart to do something for these children.

As the Inspector of Basic Education for Mamfe, my office is open to receive from you, whatever you offer and I would acknowledge it.

Thanks for your usual support.

Harman taku Arreyngang,

lBE mamfe

Reported for Cameroon Concord News Group by Ewang Miriam Metchane

16, August 2023

Coup crisis is deepening Niger food insecurity, UN says ⁰

The United Nations warned Wednesday that the ongoing crisis in Niger could significantly worsen food insecurity in the impoverished country, urging humanitarian exemptions to sanctions and border closures to avert catastrophe.

The UN humanitarian agency OCHA highlighted that even before Niger’s democratically elected president Mohamed Bazoum was toppled in a coup late last month, the country counted more than three million acutely food-insecure people.

More than seven million others, who are currently considered to be moderately food-insecure, “could see their situation worsen due to the unfolding crisis”, it warned, citing a preliminary analysis from the World Food Programme.

“We urge all parties to facilitate humanitarian exemptions, enabling immediate access to people in need of critical food and basic necessities,” Margot van der Velden, WFP’s acting regional director for Western Africa, said in a statement.

She also called for more financial support, warning the worsening humanitarian situation in Niger is coming at a time when WFP is being forced to cut rations globally due to lacking funds.

Source: France 24

16, August 2023

Football: Man City beat Sevilla on penalties to win UEFA Super Cup ⁰

Manchester City won the UEFA Super Cup for the first time on Wednesday but needed penalties to beat Sevilla after a 1-1 draw in Athens.

Youssef En-Nesyri’s towering first-half header gave the Spaniards the lead.

European champions City were far from their slick best, but hit back to force the game to penalties through Cole Palmer’s header.

City were then perfect from the spot and prevailed 5-4 in the shootout after Sevilla defender Nemanja Gudelj smashed against the bar.

Pep Guardiola has bemoaned his side’s lack of preparation for the new season and it showed under the baking heat in the Greek capital.

City badly missed the creative presence of Kevin De Bruyne and Bernardo Silva through a combination of injury and illness.

A four-month absence for De Bruyne due to a serious hamstring injury has exacerbated the loss of firepower offered by Ilkay Gundogan and Riyad Mahrez since last season.

West Ham’s Brazilian international Lucas Paqueta has been linked with a move to the Etihad and this performance may serve as further proof City need to strengthen before the end of the transfer market.

Sevilla began their La Liga season with a disappointing 2-1 home defeat to Valencia.

But just as they did last season in lifting a seventh Europa League despite a 12th-placed league finish, they rose to the big occasion.

Sevilla goalkeeper Yassine Bounou was playing what is expected to be his final game for the club before a move to Saudi side Al Hilal.

The Moroccan international denied City a perfect start when he clawed away Nathan Ake’s powerful header that was destined for the bottom corner.

But Guardiola’s men soon became ponderous in possession and were punished on 25 minutes.

Gvardiol start

Josko Gvardiol was making his first start for City since a 90 million euro ($99 million) move from RB Leipzig.

The Croatian international was beaten to Marcos Acuna’s cross by En-Nesyri, who bulleted a header in off the post.

City’s sluggishness was in evidence again at the start of the second-half when Lucas Ocampos skipped past Kyle Walker’s desperate lunge to set up En-Nesyri with a golden chance to double Sevilla’s lead.

The Moroccan striker was one-on-one with Ederson but fired straight into the Brazilian goalkeeper’s legs.

Sevilla were left to rue that miss as City hit back against the run of play on 63 minutes.

Mahrez’s departure has opened the door to City academy graduate Palmer to the first-team and the England under-21 international, who also scored against Arsenal in the Community Shield, is taking his chance.

Rodri was City’s hero with the only goal in the Champions League final against Inter Milan and the Spaniard this time provided the assist with a perfectly measured cross for Palmer to cushion a header past Bounou.

En-Nesyri was guilty of another wasted one-on-one moments later as Ederson flew off his line to make a block.

Erling Haaland had scored twice in all of his previous three appearances against Sevilla, but the Norwegian barely got a sight of goal before the spot-kicks.

Instead, City’s best chance to win the game in normal time fell to Ake as the Dutchman’s downward header was tipped over.

However, there was no perfect ending for Bounou as Haaland, Julian Alvarez, Mateo Kovacic, Jack Grealish and Walker all held their nerve to score in the shootout.

Source: AFP

15, August 2023

Roger Milla weighs in on CAF-Eto’o affair ⁰

While the Confederation of African Football has announced the opening of an investigation against the President of the Cameroon Football Federation over allegations of inappropriate conduct, Samuel Eto’o is receiving support from a number of Cameroonian soccer players, including Indomitable Lions legend Roger Milla.

The CAF vs Eto’o split is likely to occupy the media landscape of African soccer, and Cameroon in particular, for a long time to come. Following concerns raised by Cameroonian soccer stakeholders, FECAFOOT president Samuel Eto’o is facing an investigation opened by CAF into “allegations of inappropriate conduct”. A wave of support for Cameroon has risen up to oppose CAF’s decision.

While Samuel Eto’o defended himself in a statement issued by his lawyer, castigating the accusers and expressing indignation at CAF’s stance, an Indomitable Lions legend came to the rescue of the Cameroon national team’s all-time top scorer. Roger Milla doesn’t beat about the bush when it comes to attacking CAF. As far as I’m concerned, they (CAF) don’t have the right,” raged the 1976 and 1990 African Ballon d’Or winner. We’re not playing in an African Cup. This is a national championship.They can’t come and investigate Cameroonian soccer.What do they give to Cameroonian soccer to allow themselves to carry out an investigation? Nothing at all! So let’s not exaggerate, we don’t need an investigation here”.

Comex comes to Samuel Eto’o’s rescue

In addition to the Cameroon soccer legend, Samuel Eto’o has also received the support of the Executive Committee of the Cameroon Football Federation. In a statement published on its official website on Saturday August 12, 2023, the Comex said: “The Cameroon Football Federation is surprised and outraged by such an approach adopted by the apex body of continental soccer, which, having received complaints from so-called ‘Cameroonian soccer players’ denouncing ‘reprehensible behavior’ did not see fit to officially refer the matter to it. Such an attitude violates the principles of adversarial proceedings, respect for fairness and sporting ethics, which are essential in the resolution of disputes” we read.

Source: Sportsnewsafrica

15, August 2023

Olusegun Obasanjo heading to Yaoundé with Bakassi transfer on his agenda ⁰

Former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo is expected in Yaoundé for the celebrations of the 15th anniversary of the transfer of the Bakassi peninsula to Cameroon by Nigeria. The arrival is announced in a letter sent on July 31 by Felix Mbayu, Minister Delegate to the Minister of External Relations, to Paul Atanga Nji, Minister of Territorial Administration. “I am pleased to inform you that the eve of the celebration of the 15th anniversary of the transfer of the Bakassi peninsula to Cameroon by Nigeria (…) will be marked by the presence of the former Nigerian Head of State, Olusegun Obasanjo, as a guest of honor of the Head of State Paul Biya…,” wrote Felix Mbayu.

The letter provides no further details on this forthcoming event. The subject of the letter is an incident involving Nigerian fishermen. According to the letter, on July 25 the Mouanko subdivisional officer, Roland Ngah Koa, temporarily suspended the Nigerian community of Mbiako from all fishing activities on the grounds that they boycotted the preparations for the 51st National Day (May 20, 2023).

For Felix Mbayu, this decision is likely to disrupt the celebrations marking the 15th anniversary of the transfer. According to Mbayu, the decision “is bound to give rise to speculation as to the treatment reserved for the Nigerian community living in Cameroon.” He, therefore, asked the Minister of Territorial Administration to take steps to “preserve social cohesion and harmony in this administrative unit“.

The Nigerian army left the Bakassi peninsula in the South-West region on August 14, 2008. This followed a judicial marathon that culminated in October 2002 with the International Court of Justice’s decision to recognize Cameroon’s sovereignty over this oil-rich part of the territory. The shared management of Bakassi -home to many Nigerians- came to an end on August 14, 2013, and the Greentree agreements were implemented with Cameroon becoming the sole authority in that peninsula. Olusegun Obasanjo, President of Nigeria from May 29, 1999, to May 29, 2007, greatly contributed to the peaceful resolution of this dispute.

Source: Stopblablacam