11, October 2022
Yaoundé sees 100% increase in mental health care seekers 0
Officials in Cameroon say the number of mental health patients in the country has more than doubled in the past year, as the country deals with a separatist crisis in its western regions and Boko Haram clashes in the north.
Fonbe Hedwick is the director of the Vine Mental Health Center, in Bameda, capital of Cameroon’s volatile Northwest region.
He says his center was chosen for World Mental Health Day activities in Bamenda because the number of psychiatric patients at the center increased from less than 20 in 2021 to over 100 in October 2022.
“We are receiving those who have gone through traumas, and they are sad, many who complain of sleeplessness, some who cannot be able to control themselves, they are so restless, so agitated. Some with severe anger issues. They present emotional and behavioral tendencies which are uncontrollable,” said Fonbe.
Fonbe said many families lack the resources to care for psychiatric patients at home and either abandon the patients at the center or put them on the streets.
Rebecca Nkwate is the highest government official in charge of mental patients in the Northwest region. She says the number of psychiatric patients seeking help in the region has increased from less than 2,500 to over 6,000 within the past year.
“Some of them come here already abused, so we listen to their story to increase their morale and in the course of looking for solutions, it may require that we go for home visits,” said Nkwate. “We help them at the level of the police and we work with those that go to the hospital when it comes to trauma management. We make sure that they enjoy the same human rights like other people.”
Overall, Cameroon says the number of mental patients in the central African state has more than doubled from about 10,000 to 23,000 in the past 12 months.
The government says with the separatist crisis in western regions and Boko Haram terrorism on the northern border decreasing, humanitarian workers are better able to find and assist patients abandoned in villages where fighting was intensive.
Laure Mengueme is the director of mental health at Cameroon’s Ministry of Health. She says many people lost family members in the conflicts or experienced acts of abuse, violence and trauma, triggering mental health crises.
She urges civilians to seek medical help instead of taking psychiatric patients to traditional healers or pastors who claim they have miracle solutions to mental health problems.
She says a majority of the mental patients government workers are assisting to recover their health are nervous, aggressive, irritated and violent. She simply says doctors and therapists should exercise more patience with psychiatric patients when the patients become violent. She says the country counts very much on doctors and therapists to reduce the growing number of mental patients.
The World Health Organization reports that growing social and economic inequalities, protracted conflicts, violence and public health emergencies continue to take a toll on mental health, in Cameroon and worldwide.
The U.N. says a staggering 84 million people worldwide were forcibly displaced in 2021 leading to an increase in the number of people in need of mental health care.
The 2022 World Mental Health Day theme is “Make mental health and well-being for all a global priority.”
Source: VOA
11, October 2022
FECAFOOT slams ‘insulting’ French report accusing Indomitable Lions of using voodoo at World Cup 0
Cameroon’s Football Federation has denounced statements that players from the national team will be using black magic against teams they face at Qatar’s World Cup later this year.
Speaking against the allegation by Radio France Internationale, Samuel Eto’o, President of Cameroon’s FA, has demanded an apology and requested proof be provided.
“I formally deny the content of this article and challenge journalists to your writing to prove their allegations. And I demand that this answer be fully published on your media’s website under Article 13 of Freedom of the Press Act 1881,” Eto’o remarked in a statement published on the media accounts of the Federation.
Eto’o also called the French claims absurd and disrespectful to the team and country.
“These remarks are not only lies but also represent an insult to all these generations of players who have won competitions thanks to their efforts in club and within selections,” Eto’o said.
“It is, moreover, totally ridiculous to claim that animals would be sacrificed in stadiums in the 21st century. Writing it when you haven’t seen it is fiction. Be that as it may, this process is unworthy of the reference media that is Radio France International.”
The French outlet has yet to take down its article that alleges Cameroonian footballers traveled to remote villages in search of witchcraft and magic.
The French story circulates on the testimony of Nji Ousseni, who allegedly suggests several players have visited his shrine for service.
“As the World Cup approaches, several players of the Indomitable Lions resort to witchcraft, magic, marabouts with the aim of destabilising their opponents,” Ousseni states in the published article.
“Everyone wants to be selected, or be a holder. Thus, for important competitions such as the World Cup or the African Cup of Nations, players often call on my services to invoke the gods in order to disturb the opponent,” Ousseni added.
The Indomitable Lions will mark their eighth appearance in Qatar’s World Cup, more than any other African country.
Ahead of their arrival in Qatar, the Cameroonians have not performed so well, losing to Uzbekistan and South Korea during the international break.
The African giants in Group G will face Brazil, Switzerland, and Serbia.
Source: Dohanews