Headline News

21, April 2026

The floodgates are open: Who is next? ⁰

News of the death of Senator George Tabetando Ndiepnso has hit Yaoundé like a ton of bricks, causing many old and ailing government officials to scramble for cover and solutions to old health issues they have been managing for decades.

The spirits of the death are known to take away people’s life after midnight and that was when Chief Tabetando had his last breath, and many government officials who are over 85 years old are making plans not to sleep after midnight to avoid being carried away by the spirits of the death.

Many are now seeking to know who will be the next following Marcel Niat Njifendji’s opening of the floodgates.

Some are already analyzing that since the country’s senate has already lost two distinguished personalities – Marcel Niat Njifendji and George Tabetando – death might take a break from its senate attack to besiege other institutions of the Republic which are housing many old and ailing officials.

President Paul Biya, himself visibly old and tired, had announced during his inauguration late last year that his focus will be on empowering younger Cameroonians and reconciling and including the Diaspora in the country’s development agenda, and death seems to have head his plea.

There is a natural clean-up campaign taking place in Yaoundé, with many, especially those who are over 85 years living in total fear and spending more time praying than enjoying life. Many of them are now figuring out that prayers do not work all the time.

According to our source in Yaoundé, the country’s senators and members of Parliament living with debilitating health issues are no longer at ease. They are scared for their lives and they know that Senator Tabetando’s fate might be their anytime soon.

Some are already doubling their medication doses without their doctors’ knowledge and advice, arguing that they are their own first doctors, just in an attempt to stave off death.

The source adds that the former Speaker of the House, Cavaye Yeguie Djibril, has been on the phone with his doctors across the world just to obtain assurances that he is not the next in line after Senator Tabetando. Desperation is pushing the country’s octogenarians into taking overdoses of their own medication.

Some are proposing to their doctors that they be moved into their clinics just to be sure that when death comes, their doctors can at least give them a fighting chance. Some are already ensuring that pharmacies providing them with their medication put large stocks of their medication aside just for them. Many are even thinking of buying entire pharmacies just to be sure that they would not run out of medication when the spirits show up.

Their fear has been heightened by the fact that the situation of the President of the Constitutional Council is worrisome, as his diabetes and prostrate are acting up following the death of Marcel Niat Njifendji.

But death is not only looking at the three arms of government. It is spreading fear even in state corporations. Currently, Adolphe Mudiki, the SNH General Manager, is at death’s door. For years, his wife has been running the national hydrocarbons corporation on his behalf while he stays helpless on his sick bed.

The bilingualism commission is also going through a scary moment as the boss, Peter Mafany Musonge, a one-time Prime Minister, is fighting for his life in the USA, a source close to the bilingualism boss said.

The floodgates are wide open and many people in Yaoundé are in the grip of fear. The death of two senior political officials in less than a month has left many politicians in search of appetite.

Fear does not keep death away. Years of political and financial stress have taken a toll on the health of most of the country’s political elite.

The time to exit the political scene and the world has come. Nothing lasts forever and neither money nor power can stop death from accomplishing its mission, especially as lifestyle diseases have run down the health of those old politicians. Death is a certainty after a certain age and the question on many lips is: Who is next?

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai

21, April 2026

Senator Chief Tabetando leaves behind not just a record, but a reckoning ⁰

Early this morning, Hon. Victor Mengot, Minister of Special Duties at the presidency of the republic made public the passing into eternity of His Royal Highness Chief Barrister Tabetando CPDM Senator for the Mamfe Central Sub constituency. The late political figure also moonlighted as the traditional ruler of Bachuo-Ntai village.

Minister Victor Mengot posted “Dear Comrades, it is with a heavy heart that I announce the passing into glory of the last standing senior politician of his generation. Senator Nfor Tabetando passed on this night after a protracted illness. May his soul find solace at the bosom of the Lord.”

The journey of Senator Chief Tabetando to the land of his ancestors invites not just mourning, but reflection on a life well spent and a life that seemed to straddle ambition and duty, power and responsibility, legacy and contradiction.

There are prominent Anglophone political and academic figures that pass through the Cameroon political and business spaces like brief weather but there are those like Chief Tabetando who alter the atmosphere itself. Chief Tabetando’s voice hin und zu unyielding, unexpectedly conciliatory but carried across chambers and communities alike. Whether Cameroonians both Francophones and Anglophones agreed with him or not, it was extremely difficult to ignore him!

Ever since his passing, tributes have been flowing with predictable reverence from Manyu citizens at home and in the diaspora. Words like “icon,” “pillar,” and “visionary” appear readily in the public lexicon of grief. However, we of the Cameroon Concord Group think that a more honest remembrance of His Royal Highness Chief Tabetando demands we resist flattening him into something too polished. The Supreme Leader of the Bachou-Ntai people was not carved from marble; he was shaped in the friction of real business and politics, where ideals meet compromise and conviction meets consequence.

As a student of the great Chief Emmanuel Tabi Egbe, His Royal Highness Chief Tabetando rose, as many admired Anglophone leaders do, from circumstances that required resilience. His early struggles so often cited in his speeches were not merely narrative decoration; they informed his instincts, his alliances, the Chief’s sense of what was worth fighting for. This begs the question: Did Chief Tabetando remain anchored to those humble beginnings, or did the machinery of political power in Yaoundé slowly redraw his compass? The answer, depending on whom you ask from both sides of the river Moungo, is both.

Frankly speaking, there were moments when His Royal Highness Chief Tabetando embodied the highest aspirations of public service, championing policies that spoke to equity, advocating for voices long sidelined in both the South West and North West regions. And there were other moments, harder to reconcile, when his silence over the Cameroon government teleguided killings in Southern Cameroons spoke louder than any speech he gave. These contradictions do not diminish Chief Tabetando’s legacy; they define it. To remember Chief Tabetando truthfully is to hold both the light and the shadow.

Death has a way of clarifying what life obscures. It strips away the immediacy of political rivalry and leaves behind a more enduring question: after Chief Tabetando, what remains? Not the headlines, nor the victories, but the imprint on people’s lives including the hundreds of well-paid jobs created in Euroil, medic care for all in his Bachuo-Ntai Kingdom, roads built and the laws passed or blocked during his time in the Senate.

Perhaps the deeper, more uncomfortable reflection is not about His Royal Highness Chief Barrister Tabetando alone, but about the Cameroon political system in Yaoundé that shaped him. Political and business elites do not emerge in isolation; they are products of collective expectations, pressures, and permissions. In examining Chief Tabetando’s life, we are also examining ourselves—what we reward, what we tolerate, what we demand.

There is a great temptation in moments like this to seek closure. To be sure, to wrap a life in a neat conclusion and declare it either triumph or cautionary tale! But His Royal Highness Chief Tabetando resists that simplicity. Chief Tabetando’s story feels unfinished not because of its abrupt end this morning, but because his life story asks questions that outlive him.

What does it mean to serve your people with integrity when compromise is inevitable? How does a great political elite wield power without becoming defined by it?

And when the final reckoning comes—as it does for all—what measure truly matters?

As he passes into eternity, His Royal Highness Chief Tabetando leaves behind not just a record, but a reckoning. Not just memories, but mirrors.

And perhaps that is the most enduring legacy of all.

To this I put my name

Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai

21, April 2026

Tehran warns of ‘very dangerous consequences’ after US aggression against Iranian vessel ⁰

Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has condemned the US aggression against an Iranian commercial vessel and the taking of its crew and their families as hostages, warning of “very dangerous consequences.”

In a statement released on Tuesday, the ministry emphasized the need for the immediate release of the Iranian ship, its sailors, crew members, and their families.

“The act, which involved the intimidation of the ship’s sailors, crew, and their families, constitutes maritime banditry and a terrorist act,” the statement read.

According to the ministry, the act is another example of a clear violation of the ceasefire understanding dated April 8, and is an aggressive act against the Islamic Republic of Iran.

“Iran, while warning about the very dangerous consequences of this illegal and criminal American act, emphasizes the necessity of the immediate release of the Iranian ship, its sailors, crew, and their families,” it said.

The statement added that the Islamic Republic of Iran would undoubtedly use all its capabilities to defend its national interests and security, and to protect the rights and dignity of Iranians.

It further stated that the United States clearly bore full responsibility for the situation in the region becoming more complicated.

21, April 2026

Hungary’s newly-elected PM says would carry out ICC warrant against Netanyahu ⁰

Hungary’s incoming prime minister Peter Magyar said Monday the country will execute International Criminal Court warrants against anyone, after he invited the Israeli regime’s leader Benjamin Netanyahu, wanted under just such a warrant, to Budapest later this year.

In 2024, the ICC issued an arrest warrant for Netanyahu over allegations of crimes against humanity and war crimes, including starvation as a method of warfare, in Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza.

Hungary’s outgoing leader Viktor Orban announced last year that his country was withdrawing from the ICC, after meeting with Netanyahu in Budapest.

The withdrawal was due to take effect by June 2 this year.

Last week Magyar made clear he wants Hungary to reverse that decision, but he also invited the Israel premier to visit Budapest again in October, according to an Israeli readout of a call between the two leaders.

Asked by a reporter to clarify, Magyar said he issued invitations to all prime ministers and presidents he spoke on the phone for the 70th anniversary of Hungary’s anti-Soviet uprising of 1956.

But he also said that he had made it clear, “even to the Israeli prime minister”, that it was his intention to stop the country’s withdrawal from the ICC.

“If someone is a member of the International Criminal Court and a person who is wanted enters our country, then they must be taken into custody,” the pro-EU conservative told reporters.

“I don’t need to spell everything out over the phone. I assume that every head of state and government is familiar with these laws,” he added.

Magyar also said his incoming government can halt the withdrawal process before Hungary formally leaves the ICC.

The United States has slapped sanctions on top ICC judges and prosecutors for issuing arrest warrants for Netanyahu over Gaza war crimes.

The United Nations has criticized the sanctions as “reprisals”.

Source: Press TV’

20, April 2026

Biya regime prepares a CFA25 billion financing to restore Hilton Hotel ⁰

Cameroon’s state-owned hotel operator announced a major financing plan to overhaul one of its flagship assets in Yaoundé.

The Cameroon Hotels Corporation (CHC) has selected a consortium made up of Attijari Securities Central Africa (ASCA), AFG Capital, and Financia Capital to structure the fundraising for the renovation of the Hilton Yaoundé and its adjoining shopping center, according to an official statement.

The mandate, awarded after a restricted tender process, covers the arrangement of a financing operation whose total amount has not been formally disclosed. However, the financial terms offer a clear indication of its scale. The consortium’s fee has been set at 1% of the funds raised, including taxes, or CFA250 million, pointing to a target of about CFA25 billion. Sources close to the Ministry of Finance estimate the full renovation cost at around CFA30 billion.

According to the statement signed by CHC’s acting CEO, the ASCA–AFG Capital–Financia Capital bid ranked first in the process, with a technical score of 89.5 out of 100, a perfect financial score of 50 out of 50, and an overall score of 91.6.

The two competing consortia were eliminated during the selection process. EDC Investment Corporation–Forvis Mazars Cameroon failed to meet the minimum technical threshold of 80%, while Horus Investment Capital–CCA Bourse–EB Partners was disqualified due to a non-compliant bid bond.

CHC also noted that, during negotiations, the parties agreed to remove reimbursable expenses and other ancillary costs initially included in the financial proposal. The arrangers have been given a six-month mandate.

Beyond the procurement process, the operation carries strategic weight for the public company. The fundraising is intended to support a comprehensive modernization of the Hilton Yaoundé, a landmark property in Cameroon’s hospitality sector, which CHC aims to bring back to international five-star standards.

The move comes as competition intensifies in Yaoundé’s business travel, conference, and institutional events market. The renovation is meant to strengthen the hotel’s position against a growing private sector offering and rising expectations around service quality, infrastructure, and customer experience.

For CHC, the project is part of a broader effort to reshape the public hotel portfolio. Given the financial terms negotiated with the selected consortium, the group appears to be preparing one of the largest transactions seen in the segment in recent years in Cameroon.

Source: Business in Cameroon

19, April 2026

US: Trump’s approval rating at historic low amid concerns over economy, Iran war ⁰

A new poll has found that two-thirds of Americans disapprove of President Donald Trump’s handling of inflation as well as the war with Iran, revealing emerging divisions within his Republican support base.

According to an NBC News Decision Desk Poll powered by SurveyMonkey, Trump’s job approval rating has reached a new low, with only 37% of adults expressing approval of his presidency, while 63% disapprove—of which 50% disapprove strongly.

This marks the lowest approval rating recorded during his second term in the history of NBC News Decision Desk polling. Moreover, two-thirds of respondents voiced discontent with Trump’s approach to both inflation and the conflict with Iran.

The decline in Trump’s approval rating has been a consistent trend throughout his second term.

The latest findings show a deterioration in public perception of the president’s performance. Although Trump maintains substantial backing from his base, support among Republicans has waned compared to a prior poll conducted between late January and early February.

Currently, 83% of Republicans view him favorably, a decrease of 4 percentage points from earlier this year. Additionally, the proportion of Republicans who strongly approve of Trump’s job performance has fallen by 6 points, down from 58% to 52%.

Furthermore, a striking one-third of Americans believe the country is headed in the right direction, while two-thirds feel it is on the wrong track—representing the most pessimistic perspective in Decision Desk polling since Trump assumed office again last year.

Source: Presstv

19, April 2026

Yaoundé launches “Trust for Peace” initiative to address rising social tensions ⁰

Yaoundé is set to launch a “House of Trust for Peace” initiative, aimed at addressing underlying social tensions in Cameroon through early intervention and mediation.

The project will be unveiled alongside the apostolic visit of Leon XIV, in a national context marked by persistent tensions, including the protracted crisis in the Anglophone regions, strains on social cohesion, and recurring mistrust between citizens, communities, and institutions.

At its core is a simple premise: open conflicts are often preceded by a gradual erosion of trust. The initiative seeks to intervene at this early stage, before tensions escalate into violence. It is led by Catharsis, in partnership with The Okwelians and the Catholic University of Central Africa (UCAC).

Inspired by the “Trust Tree” framework developed by Pierre Winicki, the project combines conflict prevention, early warning, and community-based mediation. It aims to address what its promoters describe as the often invisible roots of conflict—mistrust.

A network of local mediation hubs

The initiative goes beyond the creation of a single space in Yaoundé. It is designed to operate as a national label, to be deployed through a network of third places and social mediation hubs across the country.

The first phase will focus on identifying and certifying these spaces, which will serve as local platforms for dialogue and conflict prevention.

The long-term objective is to establish locally grounded mediation mechanisms capable of restoring dialogue in areas where tensions are already weakening relationships between communities and institutions.

Another key component is the training of 20 “trust for peace practitioners.” These individuals will be selected from regions exposed to tensions, including Buea, Douala, Maroua, and Garoua-Boulaï. They may include traditional leaders, religious figures, civil society actors, and administrative representatives.

Their role will be to identify early warning signs of tension, facilitate dialogue among local stakeholders, and intervene before disputes escalate into open conflict. The approach relies on proximity and local knowledge.

At the intersection of expertise and local engagement

The launch of the initiative coincides with broader calls for peace linked to the visit of Leon XIV. Its promoters see it as a way to translate these calls into concrete action through structured prevention and mediation tools.

The project brings together Catharsis, The Okwelians, and UCAC, combining expertise in trust-building, knowledge of local social dynamics, and academic support. Backed by an international foundation, it also aims to test a model that could be replicated in other contexts facing similar challenges.

Its effectiveness, however, will depend on its ability to deliver sustained results at the local level. Beyond its symbolic dimension, the initiative will be judged on whether it can foster practical mechanisms of dialogue capable of preventing the escalation of conflicts.

Source: Business in Cameroon

19, April 2026

Douala Port turns to PPP to rebuild its regional trade hub at Boscam ⁰

The Port of Douala has signed a public-private partnership (PPP) with Douala Terre-Port to rehabilitate and modernize the regional terminal at the Boscam quay.

The agreement, concluded on April 10, 2026, involves a total investment of CFA126.3 billion, fully financed by the private partner under a 30-year concession.

According to the port authority, the project includes the rehabilitation of the existing site, the development of a new 20-hectare platform, and, in an optional phase, the construction of a 700-meter quay. The initiative is also expected to generate around 500 direct and indirect jobs.

The Port of Douala estimates a projected return of 12.2% over the concession period, supporting the financial viability of the project.

Located on the left bank of the Wouri River, the Boscam quay was historically dedicated to sub-regional traffic. However, it gradually lost competitiveness from the 1990s due to silting and the accumulation of abandoned vessels. Cleanup operations in recent years have helped restore access to the site.

Through this project, the port aims to revive regional trade by promoting cabotage for goods and passengers between Douala and ports across the CEMAC region.

The initiative is also aligned with the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), with the objective of facilitating intra-African trade.

In this context, the port plans to introduce simplified procedures for cargo and vessel clearance once the works are completed, in order to reduce operating costs and processing times.

The modernization of the Boscam quay is part of the port’s broader development master plan through 2050, which aims to strengthen Douala’s competitiveness in regional trade.

Source: Business in Cameroon

18, April 2026

Manyu: We must play as a team! ⁰

It is not unusual for people of Manyu descent to talk and openly demonstrate, albeit hypocritically, that they love each other. We have Manyu associations all over the world where we eat and dance as if without the other person, our lives will be incomplete.

Orally, our love of the land given to us by God is immeasurable but genuine love is never measured in words. It is measured by our actions and deeds, and an assessment of our actions as a people clearly falls short of our own expectations. We usually get deceived by our oral profession of love for Manyu. But if we scratch beyond the surface, we will always figure out that the foundation of our unity and love for Manyu is shaky. We have been paying lip service to the notion of Manyu unity for far too long and it is time for us to engineer a mindset shift.

The first crack in the dam always shows up when someone else is in the spotlight. The demon in our minds will always rear its ugly head when one of us is stealing the show. The taste of the pudding is always in the eating and, on many occasions, we have fallen short of our own expectation. Our ego is our worst enemy. It will, on many occasions, stand in the way of collective action. Nothing destroys unity like a bloated ego and nothing ruins lives like the love of the spotlight.

For decades, concerned Manyu citizens have been asking why our oral love cannot be leveraged to give Manyu development a shot in the arm.

Our formal education is supposed to inject a deep sense of humility and collective action in us, unfortunately it has only shattered our hope for unity. Many of us are usually unwilling to participate in flagship development projects because we do not like or agree with those who are leading the charge. We have the nasty habit of throwing away the child with the bath water because of our warp thinking.

We live in the permanent and morbid fear of project leaders being known. We feel diminished when others get known. We spend a lot of time and resources just to deny those among us who can lead our Division into a new and modern era. Gossiping and defamation have become our favorite sports. If we cannot get the prize, then none of us should have it.

Until we purge our minds of this negative mindset that has bred visceral hatred in us, we, as a people, will not make any giant strides forward. Progress, if not collective and generational, will not see the light of day, or if it does, it will not stand the test of time.

Over the last thirty years, real development has suffered in Manyu Division, though the Division’s human development index has grown exponentially. This unfortunate situation has been exacerbated over the last ten years due to the socio-political crisis which has killed many and left thousands in the throes of a devastating financial crisis.

Our towns and villages are today shadows of their former selves. At best, they look more like war zones waiting for a messiah with sound town planning knowledge and skills to step in to engineer a modern urbanization solution.

The Division’s economy has taken a nosedive, causing thousands of our young men and women to flee their ancestral land for greener pastures in other parts of the country or the world.

However, rather than focus on the issues which have strapped us to poverty and underdevelopment in Manyu Division, it will be smart for us to identify possible solutions which can help us detach our self from the claws of underdevelopment. Of course, our insidious disunity has constrained our ability to unlock Manyu’s sophisticated development potential but it is time for us to collectively face our demons in order to bring about transformative change in Manyu Division..

Manyu is blessed with many formally educated people in various domains. Our academic prowess and achievements have never been questioned. Our personal academic achievements speak to our determination to be at the zenith of the intellectual world. Many development experts are usually fast to point out that no community or country can make giant development strides forward without soundly educated minds.

Strangely, Manyu’s physical development achievements are at variance with the educational narrative that has become our hallmark.

Our villages are chaotic. Despite our high-sounding academic titles, development outcomes on the ground in our Division demonstrate that in spite of our academic titles, our minds are still bereft of that structural thinking that is born of deep philosophical thoughts.

The true proof of our educated minds is how we think and how we perceive collective action, leadership and the spotlight. We are chaotic naturally like most species on the face of the earth. We like to lead without having followed. True, reliable and experienced leaders are usually those who have learned the ropes and have humbly followed others who have shown the light for them to follow.

Strangely, most people of Manyu descent confuse academic achievement with leadership. We hold that if we hold high-sounding academic titles, then we are natural leaders. That is absolutely not true!

Leadership is about character. It is about selflessness. It is about playing by established rules to set the right examples so that others can follow without questioning the order of things. Leadership is the courage to serve and not the power to command. It is not about being in the spotlight. It is about playing a key role in joint efforts without seeking to crush others. It is about disagreeing without being disagreeable. It is not about hurting others just because we want to attain personal goals.

Our perception of leadership is warped. We think leaders know it all and when they make mistakes we become so disappointed. Leaders are humans. Until we see them as being fallible, we will not stop fighting them. We are supposed to support our leaders, especially our political leaders who are putting their best foot forward while playing our roles in whatever we are collectively doing. Every one of us has a role in Manyu’s development efforts and regardless of what we achieve, not all of us will be in the spotlight.

The objective should never be the spotlight but the development of our beloved Manyu. If we learn to shrink our ego, we will build solid teams which will deliver the development results we all are looking forward to.

Development, indeed transformative development, cannot only come from Yaoundé. As a community of educated men and women, we can change the negative development narrative which has characterized our Division for decades.

If we spend more time fighting our political and traditional leaders, we will be running all over the place like neckless chicken, thereby wasting valuable development time. Violent divisions only tear people apart. What is the benefit to the Division if we continue to openly challenge our ministers, Members of Parliament, Senators, etc, when we know that with our unwavering support, they can fight for us? We don’t appoint our ministers. The president does.

I hold that once somebody has been appointed as a minister, we should sink our differences and stand by him so that we can post some impressive development results.

We don’t have to love the person. We are not going to love every action of his. We must however understand the person is not infallible and, regardless of how united we are, we will never see everything in the same light.

We must learn to accept that when we disagree, we should avoid destroying our unity of purpose. By so doing, we will build a solid team which will help transform Manyu Division into the El-dorado we all have been looking forward to for decades. Everyone on a team must not be a star, even if everyone was a star; some stars would definitely outshine others. A word to the wise is sufficient!

Dr. Joachim Arrey

Executive Director, the Global Think Tank for Africa

18, April 2026

Douala: The Holy Father challenges wealth distribution amid rampant corruption ⁰

In a half-day visit to the economic capital of Cameroon Friday, Pope Leo offered the local population an extended reflection on the just and equitable distribution of resources in a country notorious for corruption.

In his April 17 homily at Japoma Stadium in Douala, the pope framed his message in the context of the day’s Gospel reading recounting Jesus’s multiplication of the loaves and fish upon discovering there was not enough food to feed the hungry crowd gathered to hear him preach.

Seeing the problem of inadequate resources, he said, “Jesus asks us today, just as he asked his disciples then: How will you solve this problem? Look at all these hungry people, weighed down by fatigue. What will you do?”

“This question is posed to each one of us,” Leo said, saying it applies to families trying to make ends meet, as well as the pastors of the church and to “those who bear social and political responsibility for the people and seek their well-being.”

Every person, strong or weak, rich or poor, has the same hunger, and nourishment is necessary in order to live, he said, asking, “where is God in the face of people’s hunger?”

Jesus offers his own answer to this question when he took the loaves and fish, gave thanks to God, and distributed them among the crowd.

“A serious problem was solved by blessing the little food that was present and sharing it with all who were hungry. The multiplication of the loaves and the fish happened while sharing: that is the miracle,” the pope said, saying, “There is bread for everyone if it is given to everyone.”

There is enough bread for everyone, Pope Leo said, “if it is taken, not with a hand that snatches away, but with a hand that gives.”

He highlighted Jesus’s act of gratitude to God before performing the miracle, saying this is what made the food abundant.

“It was not rationed out of necessity. It was not stolen in strife. It was not wasted by those who gorge themselves in the presence of those who have nothing to eat,” but rather, passing from Jesus, to his disciples, and then to the people, “the food increased for everyone; indeed, it was superabundant.”

When the crowds immediately declaring Jesus to be a prophet, Jesus, Leo said, “did not use those words for personal gain. He did not want to become king, because he had come to serve with love, not to dominate,” but to serve the good of all.

Pope Leo spoke on his third day in Cameroon, which is part of a broader April 13-23 tour of Africa that began in Algeria, and which will also take him to Angola and Equatorial Guinea.

He will celebrate Mass in the capital city of Yaoundé Saturday before flying to the Angolan capital of Luanda.

A consistent appeal

Pope Leo, whose very name and magisterium so far are seeped in issues of social justice, spent over two decades as a missionary in Peru, serving in the country’s most impoverished regions in the north during a massive financial and political crisis, leading to terrorism and widespread social instability.

Throughout the nearly complete first year of his pontificate, Leo has condemned income inequalities and the unjust distribution of wealth, saying in an exclusive interview for this journalist’s biography of his life, Pope Leo XIV: The Biography, set for publication in English later this month, that employers now make around 600 times more than their employees.

In that interview, he questioned extreme wealth concentrated in the hands of a few, noting that last summer Elon Musk was declared the first trillionaire in the world, saying, “What does that mean and what’s that about? And if that is the only thing that has value anymore, then we’re in big trouble. We have to talk about these things.”

Later, in a general audience Dec. 17, he condemned bloated, “out of control” investment portfolios of the extremely wealthy, while vast portions of the global population live in poverty.

“In the heart that true treasure is kept, not in earthly safes, not in large financial investments, which today more than ever before are out of control and unjustly concentrated at the bloody price of millions of human lives and the devastation of God’s creation,” he said on that occasion.

Continuing to drive this point, this time speaking from a continent whose lands are notoriously exploited by foreign powers and extractive industries for resources while their populations live in poverty, indicates this will be a consistent major talking point for the American missionary pontiff.

A message to Cameroon

Pope Leo’s visit to Douala for Mass took him to the economic capital of Cameroon, which is currently afflicted by violent protests and paralysis over President Paul Biya’s disputed re-election last October.

Barricades, looting, and violent clashes with security forces have afflicted the city for the past six months, threatening the national economy and general social stability in a nation already gripped by violence amid the ongoing Anglophone Crisis.

One of central Africa’s largest ports, Douala has been the site of its own spat of violence as authorities resorted to forceful measures to quell protests against Biya’s election, and the population is still reeling.

Some Cameroonians feared the papal visit could lend support to Biya, 93, who has ruled since 1982 and is the world’s oldest head of state. Pope Leo met with Biya privately on his first day in Cameroon.

Cameroon, notorious for corrupt practices such as bribery, embezzlement, and nepotism, is rich in natural resources such as oil, timber, cocoa, coffee and minerals, which for decades have been pillaged by both large foreign firms and local elites.

Some 600,000 people were expected to turn out for the pope’s Mass in Douala; however, the crowds were notably smaller, perhaps due to extreme heat and tight security.

Catholics in Cameroon make up around a third of the population of 30 million, and play a fundamental role in the country’s social life. After Mass, the pope is set to visit Saint Paul’s Catholic hospital before returning to Yaoundé, where he will meet with university students and professors.

Equality as rooted in love

In his homily, symbolically delivered in both French and English, the pope said Jesus’s multiplication of the loaves and fish was done primarily as an act of love for the people, which is why it is seen as a foreshadowing of the Eucharist.

“It shows us not only how God provides humanity with the bread of life, but how we can share this sustenance with all men and women who, like ourselves, hunger for peace, freedom and justice,” he said.

Each act of solidarity and forgiveness and every effort to improve one’s circumstances, he said, “becomes a morsel of bread for humanity in need of care.”

“Yet this alone is not enough,” he said, saying it must also be accompanied by acts of charity that feed the soul, forming the conscience and sustaining people “in dark hours of fear and amid the shadows of suffering.”

In this regard, Leo stressed the importance of the sacraments, especially the Eucharist, which he said, “does not merely revive a distant memory; it brings about a ‘companionship’ that transforms us because it sanctifies us.”

The Eucharist, he said, is “a proclamation of hope amid the trials of history and the injustices we see around us.”

“By becoming man to save us, he chose to share in the simplest and most everyday needs of humanity. Hunger thus speaks to us not only of our poverty but, above all, of his love,” he said.

Pope Leo urged attendees to remember this whenever they see someone who lacks life’s basic necessities.

“Through their eyes, the question that Jesus posed to his disciples is repeated: ‘What are you going to do for all these people?’” he said.

He cautioned that being a true witness to Christ and imitating his love for others implies facing certain difficulties and obstacles, “from without and from within us, where pride can corrupt the heart.”

The pope then offered a special message to young people, who make up the majority of the African continent, telling them to be “the first faces and hands that bring the bread of life to your neighbors.”

He told youth to provide others primarily “with the food of wisdom and deliverance from all that does not nourish them but rather obscures good desires and robs them of their dignity.”

In this regard, Leo lamented that despite Cameroon’s wealth of natural resources, “many experience both material and spiritual poverty.”

“Do not give in to distrust and discouragement. Reject every form of abuse or violence, which deceives by promising easy gains but hardens the heart and makes it insensitive,” he said.

Pope Leo likewise told youths not to let themselves “be corrupted by temptations that waste your energies and do not serve the progress of society.”

He noted that Jesus carried out his ministry in spite of threats, persecution and urged them to continue proclaiming the Gospel even amid difficulty, saying, “Christian proclamation changes our lives, transforming minds and hearts.”

“Proclaiming the risen Jesus means leaving signs of justice in a suffering and oppressed land, signs of peace amid rivalry and corruption, signs of faith that free us from superstition and indifference,” he said, closing his remarks.

Source: Crux