Headline News

9, November 2020

Southern Cameroons Crisis: Bamenda teacher killed by stray bullet ⁰

Amah Franco Anchebe, a physics and mathematics teacher at GSS Bawum in Bafut was killed by a stray bullet in his house in Alabukam in Bamenda.

Cameroon Concord News gathered that the bullet came from an altercation between Ambazonia Restoration Forces and soldiers loyal to the regime in Yaoundé in the Mankon district not far from the road to the Bamenda airport.

The French Cameroun governor Adolphe Lele Afrique reportedly summoned a meeting grouping the so-called security heads and reassured the population about the security situation in the Northern Zone of the Federal Republic of Ambazonia.

Southern Cameroons have seen an escalation of insecurity in recent days. Cardinal Christian Tumi was kidnapped and then released by armed men. The traditional ruler of Liwu Lawale in Buea was recently assassinated. And the most appalling is the massacre of 7 children during an attack on a school in Kumba in the Meme County by armed men working for Minister Paul Atanga Nji.

By Fon Lawrence in Bamenda

9, November 2020

Biya Southern Cameroons war failed, proud Ambazonians stand tall ⁰

Southern Cameroons Vice President Dabney Yerima says the Biya French Cameroun policy of targeting Ambazonia women and children including the clergies in order to force British Southern Cameroonians into submission has failed along with all the Atanga Nji charlatans behind it while the Ambazonian resistance still stands tall.

Vice President Dabney Yerima made the remarks in a Sunday telephone conversation with Cameroon Concord News London Bureau Chief in response to a provocative visit to Buea by French Cameroun Minister for Defense, Beti Assomo in which he insulted the Ambazonia people by describing the numerous atrocities committed against Southern Cameroons women and children as “inconsequential” and claiming that Southern Cameroonians are suffering as a result of their “stupidity”.

Reacting to Minister Beti Assomo’s insulting remarks, Comrade Dabney Yerima said the Biya French Cameroun war in Southern Cameroons has failed along with the gang of CPDM criminals behind it. Yerima added that the reason behind Beti Assomo’s anger was understandable; because he is furious the war is almost entering its fifth year signaling an embarrassing failure on the part of the Biya Francophone Beti Ewondo regime.

By Chi Prudence Asong

9, November 2020

With Biden, EU must still ‘live without US global leadership’ ⁰

The EU will once again have a cooperative US partner when Joe Biden becomes president, but Europeans should harbour no illusions: Washington will be no globo-cop nor NATO’s big protector, leaders and analysts say.

“Great day for US and Europe, we look forward to working together with new administration to rebuild our partnership,” the EU’s top diplomat Josep Borrell said in a tweet congratulating Biden on his election victory over President Donald Trump.

But Jean-Claude Juncker, former European Commission president, earlier offered a typically blunt assessment: “Joe Biden isn’t going to change Washington’s approach to international issues overnight, because he can’t.”

And Sebastien Maillard, head of the Jacques Delors Institute named after an influential former EU chief, cautioned that “the Europeans need to learn to live without American global leadership.”

“For the foreseeable future, the US will be preoccupied with itself,” agreed German political scientist, Markus Kaim.

The comments spoke to an expectation that there was no going back to seeing America as the West’s sheriff, flexing military muscles across the world in the ways it did in the decades following the Cold War.

While the US still maintains aircraft carrier battle groups in different regions, and bases including in Europe, South Korea, Japan, Afghanistan and Bahrain, it has been withdrawing from conflict zones under a trend accelerated by Trump but started by his predecessor Barack Obama.

More notably, within the past two decades much of its military focus has moved to Asia, away from Europe.

Nathalie Tocci, head of the Italian think tank the Instituto Affari Internazionali, added: “We are witnessing the end of American imperialism with the United States no longer wanting to be the world’s policeman.”

So what can Europeans expect from the new US president?

“Things are going to get a lot easier, because Joe Biden understands Europe better than Donald Trump,” Juncker said.

Nevertheless, cautioned a diplomat posted to Brussels, “you shouldn’t expect radical change”.

Europeans will “once again have a partner, an ally, but they need to bolster their strategic autonomy in the economic arena and in terms of security, to be able to defend their interests,” he continued.

Jean-Dominique Giuliani, head of the Schuman Foundation, reinforced that point by saying EU leaders must “define what they want to do with America, and not simply wait for it to tell them”.

Trade and climate change

“With Biden as president, the EU could expect and welcome a much more predictable and constructive US-EU relationship on trade, NATO, Iran, the Middle East and above all on climate change, if the US re-enters the Paris climate agreement,” predicted Mujtaba Rahman, director of the Europe office of the Eurasia Group risk analysis firm.

Trade in particular is expected to flow with much less of the friction that marked the Trump years.

Under Trump, Washington flexed trade muscles by slapping higher tariffs on steel and aluminium, prompting Europe to prepare a riposte. A truce was reached on the promise of a mini trade deal, but that has still not been realised.

On climate change, Biden has already stated he wants to return the US to the Paris climate accord.

He has likewise signalled he wants to reverse pullouts Trump ordered for the World Health Organization and the Iran nuclear deal.

But there are some repairs Biden is not likely to carry out, among them the US show of force to China’s assertive policies and the desire to reduce American involvement in conflicts far from its soil.

Those stances are popular domestically, explained Nicole Koenig, a Berlin-based defence specialist for the Jacques Delors Institute.

What will change will be the style.

“Joe Biden will inform and coordinate with his allies,” she said.

‘Division of labour’

Trump’s unilateral decisions and antagonism towards some of leaders of NATO countries created tensions and divisions within the Alliance.

Its chief, Jen Stoltenberg, expended a lot of energy “to appease the beast,” one diplomat said.

NATO can hope for a normalisation with Biden, but analysts believe Washington will stay retrenched in looking out for US interests.

“That will be uncomfortable for the Europeans,” whose NATO members are split between a pro-Europe camp and an Atlanticist one, said Kaim.

“Illusions of European strategic autonomy must come to an end: Europeans will not be able to replace America’s crucial role as a security provider,” warned Germany’s defence minister, Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, in an opinion piece for the Politico website.

Kaim suggested that Biden’s approach would be to propose to the Europeans “a simple division of labour: you will help us in Europe so that we can become more involved in Asia”.

Source: AFP

9, November 2020

Trump, who never admits defeat, will get evicted from the White House ⁰

President Donald Trump never admits defeat. But he faces a stark choice now that Democrat Joe Biden has won the White House: Concede graciously for the sake of the nation or don’t — and get evicted anyway.

After nearly four tortured days of counting yielded a victory for Biden, Trump was still insisting the race was not over. He threw out baseless allegations that the election wasn’t fair and “illegal” votes were counted, promised a flurry of legal action and fired off all-caps tweets falsely insisting he’d “WON THIS ELECTION, BY A LOT.”

While some in his circle were nudging Trump to concede graciously, many of his Republican allies, including on Capitol Hill, were egging him on or giving him space to process his loss — at least for the time being.

“Trump has not lost,” declared South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham in an appearance on Fox News Channel’s “Sunday Morning Futures,” rejecting the reality of the situation. “Do not concede, Mr. President. Fight hard,” he urged.

Republicans ‘very disappointed’ after Biden win

Trump is not expected to formally concede, according to people close to him, but is likely to grudgingly vacate the White House at the end of his term. His ongoing efforts to paint the election as unfair are seen both as an effort to soothe a bruised ego and to show his loyal base of supporters that he is still fighting. That could be key to keeping them energized for what comes next.

“He intends to fight,” Trump economic adviser Larry Kudlow said as it was becoming clear that the president was headed for defeat.

Would Trump ever concede? “I doubt it,” said Trump’s longtime friend and adviser Roger Stone, whose prison sentence was commuted by Trump in July. Stone asserted that Biden, as a result, will have “a cloud over his presidency with half the people in the country believing that he was illegitimately elected.”

Allies suggested that if Trump wants to launch a media empire in coming years, he has an incentive to prolong the drama. So, too, if he intends to keep the door open to a possible 2024 comeback — he would be only a year older than Biden is now.

Trump’s allies egg him on

There are many in his inner circle egging him on, including his personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani. The former New York mayor has been promising to provide the president with evidence of voter fraud but has produced little, including during a press conference he held Saturday in the parking lot of a small Philadelphia landscaping company next to an adult bookstore.

Trump’s adult sons, Donald Jr. and Eric, have also urged their father to keep fighting and challenged Republicans to stand with them, as have congressional allies like Graham.

“What I would tell President Trump is: Don’t give up. My advice is do not concede,” said Republican Rep. Andy Biggs of Arizona in a podcast interview. “Let’s fight this thing through. It is too important to give up.”

Some in the president’s orbit have been nervously looking toward Capitol Hill for signs of a Republican defection. But so far, most seemed to be giving him time.

“I look forward to the president dealing with this however he needs to deal with it,” Sen. Roy Blunt of Missouri said Sunday on ABC’s “This Week.” Still, he said it was time for Trump “to turn this discussion over to his lawyers, time for the lawyers to make the case that they have, both in court and to the American people, and then we’re going to have to deal with those facts as they’re presented. That has to happen and then we move forward.”

“At this point, we do not know who has prevailed in the election,” said Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, telling Fox News he believes Trump “still has a path to victory.”

Other political allies and White House officials, however, have pressed Trump to change his tone and commit to a smooth transition. They’ve emphasized to him that history will be a harsh judge of any action he takes that is seen as undermining his successor. And they have advised him to deliver a speech in the coming week pledging to support the transition.

Trump senior adviser and son-in-law Jared Kushner has told others that he is among those who have urged the president to accept the outcome of the race — even if Trump won’t come to terms with how it was reached.

At Fox News, where prime-time hosts wield enormous influence over Trump, Laura Ingraham gave voice to the president’s belief that the election had been unfair, while also pleading with him to keep his legacy in mind — and preserve his status as a GOP kingmaker — by gracefully leaving office.

“President Trump’s legacy will only become more significant if he focuses on moving the country forward,” she said Thursday.

This story is based on interviews with more than a dozen Trump aides and allies, many of whom spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss internal discussions.

That the peaceful transfer of power was even in doubt reflected the norm-shattering habits of the now-lame duck president, who even in victory never admitted that he had lost the popular vote in 2016.

Most aides believed the president would take the weekend to decide on a plan, which will most certainly involve more legal action. But some aides believe the legal skirmishes are more about putting up the appearance of a fight than producing results.

There were some indications Trump was moving in a less contentious direction, even as he continued to angrily complain to aides, reviving old grievances about the Russia investigation that began under President Barack Obama.

In a statement Friday, Trump suggested he would avail himself of every avenue under the law to challenge the election’s result. But allies interpreted it as a begrudging acknowledgement of the likely outcome.

“We will pursue this process through every aspect of the law to guarantee that the American people have confidence in our government,” he said Trump said. “I will never give up fighting for you and our nation.”

On Saturday, the White House added that the president “will accept the results of a free and fair election” and that the administration “is following all statutory requirements.”

Still, there were concerns that Trump’s rhetoric would inflame tensions in a nation that was already bitterly divided before the election. Isolated scuffles were reported near tabulation centers in Philadelphia and Phoenix.

Pro-Trump protesters — some of them openly carrying rifles and handguns — have rallied outside tallying facilities in several cities around the country, responding to Trump’s groundless accusations that the Democrats were trying to steal the White House.

Trump’s campaign and the Republican National Committee have bombarded supporters with impassioned pleas for cash, raking in tens of millions of dollars since Tuesday, according to people familiar with the matter. Some of the money was earmarked to retire campaign debt, but the rest could be used to keep up an aggressive public campaign to continue to undermine faith in the election outcome.

Biden, meanwhile, has called on the country to come together.

“For all those of you who voted for President Trump, I understand the disappointment tonight. I’ve lost a couple of times myself. But now, let’s give each other a chance,” he said in his Saturday night victory speech.

Trump, whose voluminous Twitter account seems to provide an apt entry for any occasion, offered this advice in 2016: “Vladimir Putin said today about Hillary and Dems: “In my opinion, it is humiliating. One must be able to lose with dignity,” So true!”

Source: AP

8, November 2020

Southern Cameroons Crisis: Abducted Cardinal Tumi released ⁰

Cameroonian Media reported that armed men kidnapped Cardinal Christian Wiyghan Tumi in the restive North West region of the country on Thursday. Cardinal Tumi, who is the Archbishop Emeritus of Douala, was in the company of the paramount ruler of Nso. The traditional ruler was heading back to his traditional palace after months of self-imposed exile due to the armed conflicts between government troops and secessionists. Sources say the convoy was stopped by a roadblock mounted by alleged separatist fighters who abducted the Cardinal and took him to an unknown location. In an interview with Vatican News, Archbishop Samuel Kleda of Douala said that he estimates that Cardinal Tumi was abducted around 6:00pm on his way from Bamenda to Kumbo because he had been in touch with him just an hour before. Much later on Thursday evening, Archbishop Kleda received a phone call from the Cardinal who informed him that he had been interrogated by kidnappers. His subsequent attempts to reach the Cardinal by phone on Friday morning were futile. However, the Cardinal was released later in the day on Friday after spending a night in the den of the kidnappers. Cardinal Tumi, 90, has been vocal in calling for dialogue and peace amid the four-year-long conflict in the North West and South West regions of the country.

Pope Francis’ closeness

Pope Francis has expressed his closeness to Cameroon. At the weekly General Audience on 28 October, he prayed that “the tormented regions of the North West and South West of the country may find peace.”The Pope also prayed for the families of the young students killed on 24 October by gunmen at a private school in Kumba. He expressed sorrow at the “cruel and senseless act which tore the young innocents from life while they were attending lessons at school.”

Cameroon’s conflict

Armed separatists, also known as “Amba boys” have been engaged in an ongoing battle with government troops in their bid to create an independent state which they wish to be called “Ambazonia.”The crisis began in 2016 when educational and judicial institutions in the English-speaking North West and South West regions of the bi-lingual country protested the unjustified appointments of French speakers in their territory. By 2017, the situation had spiraled out of control and had become a full-fledged separatist war.The prolonged conflict has created thousands of casualties and widespread displacement. School children in the conflict zone have only returned to school this year after almost four year of closures. Last month, gunmen alleged to be linked to the separatist fighters, opened fire on students at Mother Francisca International Bilingual Academy in Kumba leaving at six of them dead in the deadly attack.

Source: Vatican News

8, November 2020

How to kill a country: Paul Biya Marks 38 Years in Power ⁰

Paul Biya is now 38 years as president of Cameroon, maintaining his position as Africa’s second longest-ruling leader.

He is only beaten by Teodoro Obiang Nguema of Equatorial Guinea, who has been in power for nearly 41 years.

87-year-old Biya first rose to Cameroon’s top seat on November 6, 1982 when a large number of the country’s 26.5 million citizens were not yet born. He inherited a country of 9.2 million people from Ahmadou Ahidjo, the first president.

The anniversary of Biya’s ascension to power is usually marked with colourful celebrations. Crowds of the octogenarian leader’s supporters, including members of government and militants of his ruling Cameroon People’s Democratic Movement (CPDM), clothed in fabrics with the veteran leader’s smiling face printed on them, gather at anniversary rallies across the country.

They will chant ego-massaging melodies to the one they consider their champion, then take a “support walk” across a distance that the mostly elderly supporters can cover on foot. They will then end with the reading of a motion of support in which they pledge their “unflinching” support to the president or “ask him to accept the call to be their candidate at the upcoming election”.

Biya himself is usually only present at such rallies through an imposing effigy taken when the ailing leader was still strong. This image is usually placed in front of the high table and carried by relatively young militants during support parades, but top government and party officials at such events usually promise to channel their messages of support to the leader in Yaounde.

The 38th anniversary of Biya’s ascension to the helm coincides with the second anniversary of his seventh mandate following his re-election in a disputed poll in October 2018, and swearing-in for a seventh seven-year term on November 6 the same year.

Many challenges

The current mandate ends in 2025, at which point Biya will be 92-years-old, a year younger than former Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe when he was ousted from power.

This year would have been a double anniversary with double “eating and drinking” for supporters of Mr Biya, but for the fact that the celebration is coming at a very challenging time for the leader and the country.

Biya, who adopted the name Lion Man after the 1990 World Cup during which his country’s soccer team, the Indomitable Lions, became the first African country to reach the quarter finals, has been able to weather many storms.

This time, however, Central Africa’s economic giant is beset with several challenges threatening peace and the president’s grip on power.

Biya apathetically accepted the introduction of multiparty politics in the country in the 90s and in 1992, the country organised its first multi-candidate presidential election which he won and has since remained a serial election winner despite rarely making campaign outings.

However, a tough challenge to his rule has no doubt been post-2018 presidential elections.

Prof Maurice Kamto, his former ally and now opposition leader and harshest critic, has openly called for “gigantic protests” to oust Biya.

Kamto, who now heads the opposition Cameroon Renaissance Movement (MRC), says he won the 2018 vote but that his victory was stolen by Biya.

The latest of Kamto’s popular protests on September 22, however, met with heavy force as government troops clamped down on his supporters. The government said they would be tried for attempting to destabilise the country.

45 of the arrestees were recently transferred to the Kondengui Maximum Security Prison in Yaounde while Mr Kamto has been under house arrest since September 21.

Separatists

Another challenge for Mr Biya is a separatist movement in the country’s two English-speaking regions that is threatening to tear the country apart. Separatist violence erupted when fighters declared the independence of the Anglophone Northwest and Southwest regions from the majority French-speaking country.

They also declared the creation of an independent English speaking state called Ambazonia.

This declaration of independence in October 2017 was met with a heavy military crackdown that has now escalated into armed conflict with over 3,000 people killed according to early 2020 statistics from the UN.

Schools and other government institutions have been targeted by armed men in the four-year-long conflict. At the time of this report, an official burial for seven school children killed by gunmen in their school was going on in Kumba in the Southwest region in the presence of the country’s Prime Minister, Dr Joseph Dion Ngute who was representing Mr Biya.

The leader had described the killing of the students of Mother Francisca International Bilingual Academy as “horrific murder” and later decreed a day of national mourning in their honour.

Culled from The Street Journal

8, November 2020

Africa Cup qualifiers to go ahead behind closed doors ⁰

All 48 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers between November 9 and 17 will be played behind closed doors because of the coronavirus pandemic, a Confederation of African Football (CAF) statement said Friday.

While Africa has avoided a second wave of Covid-19 that much of Europe is experiencing, there have been more than 1.8 million official cases and 44,200 deaths in the continent, according to an AFP tally.

“Our goal is to ensure uniformity of safety and security operations across Africa, emphasising that matches take place in a safe and secure environment,” said CAF head of security and safety Christian Emeruwa.

“We are aware of the enormous task that lies ahead, in particular to succeed in keeping spectators and fans away from the stadiums.”

The matches will be the first in the crown jewel of African football since last November when the first two Cup of Nations matchdays were played.

Another two matchdays are scheduled during nine days from this Monday and the final two rounds will be played next March.

There are 12 groups of four teams and the winners and runners-up in all except one qualify for the 2022 tournament in Cameroon.

Five-time African champions Cameroon qualify automatically from Group F because they are the hosts, with the highest placed finishers between Cape Verde, Mozambique and Rwanda filling the other place.

The Indomitable Lions of Cameroon are taking part in qualifying to achieve competitive match practice rather than rely on friendly internationals.

Algeria are the holders of the Cup of Nations after defeating Senegal 1-0 in the final in Cairo last year through a goal from Baghdad Bounedjah.

The Algerians boast a perfect Group H qualifying record after two rounds having trounced Zambia 5-0 at home before winning 1-0 in Botswana.

Source: AFP

8, November 2020

US: Campaign Grows to Release Hundreds of Cameroonian Asylum Seekers ⁰

Activists continue to demand the release of hundreds of Cameroonian asylum seekers in ICE custody. Sylvie Bello, founder of the Cameroonian American Council, spoke to Democracy Now ahead of her “Freedom Friday” campaign, a weekly day of action in solidarity with Cameroonians held in ICE prisons.

Sylvie Bello: “Freedom Friday was inspired by 40 Cameroonian hunger strikers who protested anti-Blackness, anti-Africanness and racism in Louisiana. Today, some of those Pine Prairie hunger strikers are set for deportation on Tuesday. Please join us in calling the Congressional Black Caucus to push for the release of these Cameroonians, for Cameroon TPS, and to lift Black immigrants, within the detention and outside of detention.”

8, November 2020

Football: Alex Song completes move to Djibouti ⁰

Former FC Barcelona and Cameroon midfielder, Alex Song, has joined Djiboutian side AS Arta Solar7 in a shock move on a permanent deal.

Since making his professional debut back in 2004 with Bastia in Ligue 1, Song seemed to be on the right path to success as his performances earned him a move to then Premier League champions Arsenal at sheer age of 17.

Seven years later, Spanish powerhouse FC Barcelona came calling and eventually acquired his services for a reported £15 million fee after 215 appearances with the Gunners.

However, Song struggled to break into the starting lineup ahead of Sergio Busquets, and the Catalans decided to loan him to Premier League outfit West Ham for the 2014/15 season.

Song settled quickly into the Hammers’ first team and became one of the Londoners’ top players.

In 2016, he was able to finalize a permanent move to Rubin Kazan on a free transfer coming from Barcelona but only played 23 matches in two years, before signing for Swiss side Sion.

Alex Song has now completed a shock move to Djiboutian side AS Arta Solar7 on a reported two-year deal.

Arta finished fourth on the Djibouti Premier League table last season with 24 points, four behind champions Total FC just missing out on the continental football.

Source: Kingfut.com

8, November 2020

Southern Cameroons Vice President congratulates Joe Biden on US election victory ⁰

CONGRATULATIONS TO JOE BIDEN AND KAMALA HARRIS

On behalf of the people of the Southern Cameroons, I write to congratulate President-elect Joe Biden on his election as the 46thPresident of the United States of America and to Kamala Harris on her remarkable accomplishment as the first female Vice President-elect.

President-elect Joe Biden brings a wealth of experience in foreign policy to the White House. At this challenging moment for the Southern Cameroons, we look forward to working closely together.

Congratulations again to Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.

Regards,

Dabney Yerima

Vice Prsident

Federal Republic of Ambazonia