Headline News

14, October 2022

Nigeria: Ex-pupils of St Joseph Primary School (RCM Mamfe) Cameroon holds first convention ⁰

Members of the 1985 batch of the Roman Catholic Mission (RCM) Mamfe who pride themselves as being the children of Mrs. Getrude Jingwa, Late Pa Ojong, late Mr Nkeze, Mr Abang Vitalis, Mrs. Bridget Agbaw-Ebai, late Mr Peter Okafor, late Pa Ojongfong, late Teacher Orock Café and the tough disciplinarian the late Arrey Michael who was their headmaster met recently in Enugu, Nigeria as depicted in the picture below. From left to right,

(Police officer)ASP Okereke Roseline Ekemma of the Rivers Police Headquarters in Rivers State, Ayim Christopher Tanye of Enugu state, Kalu Anthonia Chibuzor of Umuahia Abia state, Okoye Cordelia Chinasa Jemeni from Lagos, Prophetess Okafor Eugenia Nkolika Uchendu of Onitsha in Anambra state and Pastor Acholam James Ekpo Eze ( Amoros) of Abakaliki in Ebonyi State.

The Class of 85 Nigeria Chapter used the opportunity to thank their brothers and sisters, those on ground Zero (Cameroon) and those in the Diaspora for making the reunion a remarkable one.

The Great Head Master of RCM Mamfe the late Arrey Michael

Members are also looking forward to other reunions which should result in fundraising efforts for their beloved Alma Mater.

They urged those who are not yet part of the reunion effort to join and to make meaningful contributions towards the development of the group which reminds them of their childhood days in Mamfe.

Members of the group promised to keep in touch and to keep the flame burning.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai (Class of 85)

13, October 2022

Wum: Cameroon gov’t soldiers in shooting spree ⁰

Cameroon government troops have opened fire in Naikom Overside, a popular neighborhood in Wum, the chief town in Menchum Division killing several people, believed to be civilians, eyewitnesses say.

The shooting came after a soldier was killed by Ambazonia fighters late yesterday.

Wum has been under the control of Amba fighters seeking to restore the Federal Republic of Ambazonia.

Eyewitnesses in Wum said soldiers began to indiscriminately open fire on residents and set fire to homes and businesses.

Our correspondent in Wum said the Francophone soldiers that came after their colleague was killed harassed residents and whipped them. But later they went on a shooting spree and started setting homes and shops on fire.

A Naikom Overside resident said the soldiers shot everybody in sight.

The number of people killed or injured in the incident has not yet been verified independently.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai with files from Wum

13, October 2022

Archbishop Andrew Nkea takes Boston by storm ⁰

The Most Rev. Andrew F. Nkea, Metropolitan Archbishop of Bamenda and President of the National Episcopal Conference of Cameroon visited the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston in the US.

The man in the clerical collar was in Boston as part of a partnership formed to foster collaboration between the Archdiocese of Bamenda and the Church in Cameroon with the Archdiocese of Boston and the Church in the United States of America.

Archbishop Nkea had traveled back and forth before, but this recent visit was a chance to share the Roman Catholic faith and build relationships.

Revered Father Maurice Agbaw-Ebai who initiated the visit told Cameroon Concord News that what caused the Cameroonian Archbishop to come to Boston is love and that love is what propels partnership.

His Grace Archbishop Andrew Nkea spent the week touring the archdiocese and meeting with the Rector of St. John’s Seminary, Boston MA, the President of Boston College and above all with His Eminence Cardinal O’Malley, Metropolitan Archbishop of Boston.

Archbishop Nkea also met the Most Rev. Robert P. Reed, Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Boston, the Dean of Woods College of Advancing Studies, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, Solemn Vespers at St. John’s Seminary and Faculty/Seminarians of Pope St. John XXIII National Seminary, the President, Merrimack College, North Andover, MA and with Representatives of the Pontifical Missionary Societies, Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston.

By Soter Agbaw-Ebai with files

12, October 2022

Southern Cameroons Crisis: The killing is going on unnoticed and unreported! ⁰

It is now seven years since the conflict pitting Cameroon’s English-speaking minority and the country’s Francophone-dominated government hit the global stage and despite some behind-the-scenes efforts to reach a negotiated settlement, things have continued to deteriorate though the government continues to give the impression that things are gradually returning to normal.

In some towns like Bamenda, Kumba, Limbe, Buea, Kumbo, etc, there is a semblance of peace as soldiers and separatist fighters are no longer clashing as much as they used to when the conflict just started. However, this does not imply that peace has returned to the towns and life is going on as it was before the fighting which has already claimed more than seven thousand lives.

Most of the fighting has simply migrated to rural areas where separatist fighters are hiding in the bushes and are practicing hit-and-run tactics which are really delivering some unexpected, but spectacular results.

Many of the country’s army soldiers are still being killed and this unfortunate news does not get reported. The pseudo-calm gives the soldiers the impression that things are returning to normal, and this is causing them to let down their guard, making it easy for separatist fighters to score some victories, albeit unnecessary as there is no joy in taking somebody else’s life.

Cameroonians do not need to kill each other to find solutions to their problems. If the government had adopted a different approach to the crisis, the peace Cameroon was noted for, would not have been tampered with. The government still holds that old ways can produce spectacular results, but times have changed, and the dynamics are totally different.

The Internet has reshaped the way people think and the myth that government forces cannot be attacked has been broken. Successes by separatist fighters only go a long way in underscoring this unfortunate fact. Besides, with the Internet, Cameroonians can get jobs in other parts of the world without seeking to join the country’s civil service which the government thought was a “holy grail” to many of its citizens. Globalization, driven by the Internet, has changed the Cameroonian mindset and the civil service with its derisory salaries is no longer attractive.

Also, the country’s English-speaking minority which has known marginalization and injustice for more than half a century now has a massive Diaspora which is a key ingredient in the country’s socio-economic and political development. This Diaspora has the resources to help move forward the country’s development agenda if the government decides to carry out reforms and turn to new ways which have enabled other countries on the continent to make giant strides forwards towards economic development.

However, if the government decides to keep its laws and its questionable methods of governance which are indeed outdated, the Diaspora will continue to drag its feet when it comes to helping development efforts in the country. It is the government’s unrealistic approach to the crisis which pushed the Diaspora into supporting the armed struggle. Nobody in his right mind will stand by watching how his family being murdered.

Every human being has survival instincts and the Diaspora simply felt it necessary to jump into the struggle and provide much-needed support to those who felt they could roll back a threatening military.

The Yaoundé government has always thought that bullying will work in any case and that was why it rolled out its arsenal of deadly military equipment against a people who just wanted justice and peace in a country which is rightfully theirs.

Today, even if the separatists fail in their bid to split the country, their message has been heard far and wide. They have proven that killing is no man’s preserve and that being in military fatigue is no license to kill other people.

Besides, a military uniform is no vaccine against death. Thousands of Cameroon’s army soldiers have died due to the unnecessary war, and thousands have been maimed and scarred for life. These are unfortunate situations which could have been avoided if the government had prioritized peace over war.

Though there is a semblance of peace in the country’s two English-speaking regions, it should not be assumed that a peace conference is not necessary. Sweeping the issue under the carpet does not imply that it has been addressed. The Southern Cameroons crisis is like an inactive volcano. It is, indeed, like Mount Etna in Italy which erupts from time to time, claiming innocent lives due to bad politics, corruption and greed.

While people in the towns and cities of Southern Cameroons are enjoying some relative calm which should not be misconstrued for peace, those in villages are still in the grip of fear where separatist fighters call the shots.

Many children in rural parts of the two regions are still not in school. Their collective and individual futures are being compromised and these children will be the next warriors and criminals who will vent their anger on the government and the separatist fighters who are robbing them of their future.

For school closures in rural parts of Southern Cameroons, separatist fighters are totally to blame. Their reckless and irresponsible behavior is jeopardizing the lives and destinies of their own children and brothers. They need a rethink of their strategy if they must remain relevant. No country has ever developed when its citizens lack the brainpower to face the challenges of their time.

The recklessness demonstrated by separatist fighters over the last two years has transformed them into millstones around the necks of the same civilian population they claim to protect. They kidnap innocent people and ask for a king’s ransom. To them, they are in the business of fighting to make money and not to liberate their land.

The last time Cameroon Concord News Group checked, the five priests kidnapped about a month in Nchang, a small town some five kilometers from Mamfe town, are still in captivity.

The church, in which the priests were delivering solace to their desperate faithful, was set ablaze as the fighters took their captives into a jungle which provides them some safety from military attacks.

These ‘freedom fighters’ are still insisting on having a ransom from the Catholic Church even when Archbishop Nkea has told them, loud and clear, that the Church is not in the business of paying ransoms.

Crimes committed by these separatist fighters are getting more shocking every day. Some have even turned to armed robbery. They have morphed from freedom fighters to bank robbers, and it is held by many that that their masters, some of whom are living in the United States, are supplying them with the latest bank robbery tactics which are netting them huge amounts of money.

A few days ago, some separatist fighters stormed a bank in Mamfe, killing two soldiers and making away with a huge wad of cash. Freedom fighters have become armed robbers. Instead of fighting army soldiers, they are now fighting banks which are creating jobs for their own people.

They have the weapon of power, but they have decided to use it to feather their own nests if the money from the Diaspora is no longer flowing. It is obvious that they will be staging more attacks on those financial institutions as they become more brazen.

If collecting ransoms was the only blemish on their character, one would cut them some slack, but separatist fighters have distinguished themselves through their summary and arbitrary execution of people they suspect of foul-play or misconduct. Their judgment is always expedited, and they have made death sentences to sound like a joke. Freedom fighters are now those who are robbing their people of their freedom. The madness in the struggle is now on display for all to see. These are the same people who accused the Biya regime of human rights abuses and corruption. The world is full of ironies, but this one is unfathomable.

Many people have been summarily executed by separatist fighters on mere suspicion that they are collaborating with the Yaoundé government. They hardly produce any evidence, and, in many cases, their victims get tortured during questioning.

Their victims are sometimes compelled to acknowledge crimes they have not committed in the hope that they would be freed. Unfortunately, their acknowledgement only sends them to an early grave, causing many people to question the idea of even challenging the Yaoundé government. The alternative, indeed, the solution is proving to be more painful than the initial problem. These deaths are going unnoticed.

Due to their ruthlessness, some people in the international community have even tagged separatist fighters as “fighters without a cause”. Some of the fighters hold that it is their right to knock up any young girl and they are doing a good job at that as many teenage girls are not struggling with unwanted pregnancies or children they cannot care for. Fighting for freedom comes with huge perks, at least in Southern Cameroons and, in Southern Cameroons, free sex is one of those glorified perks.

While there is a lull in the fighting, the government and the international community must not continue to be silent. Soldiers like separatist fighters are killing many people in rural areas. Most of the fighting has been exported to the rural areas and without any means to report actual numbers or who is to blame after such atrocities, many lives will be cut short, and the blood will continue to flow unnoticed and unreported.

By Dr. Joachim Arrey in Toronto, Canada

12, October 2022

Unlawful French Cameroun military presence in Ambazonia must end immediately ⁰

A senior aide to the Vice President of the Ambazonia Interim Government Dr Patrick Ayuk has condemned unlawful presence of Francophone army soldiers in the Federal Republic of Ambazonia, calling for an immediate end to such presence.

According to the Southern Cameroons Broadcasting Cooperation (SCBC), Dr Patrick Ayuk made the remark recently in South Africa, saying, “The unlawful presence of Francophone servicemen and women in Southern Cameroons must end immediately and unconditionally.”

“The 1961 plebiscite,” the Vice President Dabney Yerima aide added, “does not mean occupying British Southern Cameroons land and killing its people.”

The Francophone dominated Cameroon government military have been actively involved in Southern Cameroons under the guise of fighting separatists since 2017. Yaoundé extended its troops’ presence last month through a decree signed by the 89 year old President Biya.

Numerous reports and international human rights organizations have pointed to Yaoundé’s role in the genocide currently going on in Southern Cameroons.

The Biya regime has stationed forces and equipment in almost every county in Southern Cameroons with Etoudi claiming that the deployment is aimed at preventing Amba fighters from taken control of the entire Southern Cameroons territory. The Ambazonia Interim Government, however, asserts that the deployment is aimed at plundering Southern Cameroons rich resources.

By Toto Roland Motuba

11, October 2022

Angela Lansbury, star of ‘Murder, She Wrote’, dead at age 96 ⁰

Angela Lansbury, the scene-stealing British actress who kicked up her heels in the Broadway musicals “Mame” and “Gypsy” and solved endless murders as crime novelist Jessica Fletcher in the long-running TV series “Murder, She Wrote”, has died. She was 96.

Lansbury died Tuesday at her home in Los Angeles, according to a statement from her three children. She died five days shy of her 97th birthday.

Lansbury won five Tony Awards for her Broadway performances and a lifetime achievement award. She earned Academy Award nominations as supporting actress for two of her first three films, “Gaslight” (1945) and “The Picture of Dorian Gray” (1946), and was nominated again in 1962 for “The Manchurian Candidate” and her deadly portrayal of a Communist agent and the title character’s mother.

Her mature demeanor prompted producers to cast her much older than her actual age. In 1948, when she was 23, her hair was streaked with gray so she could play a fortyish newspaper publisher with a yen for Spencer Tracy in “State of the Union.”

Her stardom came in middle age when she became the hit of the New York theater, winning Tony Awards for “Mame” (1966), “Dear World” (1969), “Gypsy” (1975) and “Sweeney Todd” (1979).

She was back on Broadway and got another Tony nomination in 2007 in Terrence McNally’s “Deuce,” playing a scrappy, brash former tennis star, reflecting with another ex-star as she watches a modern-day match from the stands. In 2009 she collected her fifth Tony, for best featured actress in a revival of Noel Coward’s “Blithe Spirit” and in 2015 won an Olivier Award in the role.

But Lansbury’s widest fame began in 1984 when she launched “Murder, She Wrote” on CBS. Based loosely on Agatha Christie’s Miss Marple stories, the series centered on Jessica Fletcher, a middle-aged widow and former substitute school teacher living in the seaside village of Cabot Cove, Maine. She had achieved notice as a mystery novelist and amateur sleuth.

The actress found the first series season exhausting.

“I was shocked when I learned that had to work 12-15 hours a day, relentlessly, day in, day out,” she recalled. “I had to lay down the law at one point and say `Look, I can’t do these shows in seven days; it will have to be eight days.‘”

CBS and the production company, Universal Studio, agreed, especially since “Murder, She Wrote” had become a Sunday night hit. Despite the long days — she left her home at Brentwood in West Los Angeles at 6 a.m. and returned after dark — and reams of dialogue to memorize, Lansbury maintained a steady pace. She was pleased that Jessica Fletcher served as an inspiration for older women.

“Women in motion pictures have always had a difficult time being role models for other women,” she observed. “They’ve always been considered glamorous in their jobs.”

In the series’ first season, Jessica wore clothes that were almost frumpy. Then she acquired smartness, Lansbury reasoning that, as a successful woman, Jessica should dress the part.

“Murder, She Wrote” stayed high in the ratings through its 11th year. Then CBS, seeking a younger audience for Sunday night, shifted the series to a less favorable midweek slot. Lansbury protested vigorously to no avail. As expected, the ratings plummeted and the show was canceled. For consolation, CBS contracted for two-hour movies of “Murder, She Wrote” and other specials starring Lansbury.

“Murder, She Wrote” and other television work brought her 18 Emmy nominations but she never won one. She holds the record for the most Golden Globe nominations and wins for best actress in a television drama series and the most Emmy nominations for lead actress in a drama series.

In a 2008 Associated Press interview, Lansbury said she still welcomed the right script but did not want to play “old, decrepit women,” she said. “I want women my age to be represented the way they are, which is vital, productive members of society.”

“I’m astonished at the amount of stuff I managed to pack into the years that I have been in the business. And I’m still here!”

Source: AP

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

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

Southern Cameroons Crisis: Yerima urges Francophone soldiers to help oust Biya ⁰

The Vice President of the Ambazonia Interim Government Dabney Yerima has called on the Francophone dominated military to stop the war in Southern Cameroons by ousting the 89 year-old President Paul Biya as head of state and allowing the two Cameroons to hold genuine dialogue.

Speaking exclusively to Cameroon Concord News, the exiled Southern Cameroons leader said once Biya is removed from office, the army should get a moderate and decent French Cameroun political figure to lead a temporary administration on a strictly time-limited basis in Yaoundé with the aim of holding very intensive and productive discussions with the jailed Ambazonian leaders.

Dabney Yerima made it clear that Biya is now an X Factor and French Cameroonians were badly in need of a caretaker government in Yaoundé. Yerima furthered that Biya is not the person who is going to be able to build an even temporal structure that can accommodate the two Cameroons.

Vice President Dabney Yerima said he will offer talks with Yaoundé if Biya is kicked out. “If French Cameroonians are serious about stopping the war in Southern Cameroons, then their military will have to get Biya out” Yerima concluded.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai

10, October 2022

Six Amba fighters killed in North West region ⁰

At least six separatist fighters have been killed in clashes with government forces in Cameroon’s war-torn English-speaking region of Northwest, security sources said on Sunday.

They were killed after the army raided their camp in Djotin of the region on Saturday, a military official in the region who asked not to be named said.

Three fighters were captured alive and ammunition was seized during the operation, the official added.

Northwest is one of the two English-speaking regions of the Central African country where separatists have been clashing with government forces since 2017 in an attempt to establish an independent state they called “Federal Republic of Ambazonia”.

Source: Xinhuanet