Headline News

22, October 2020

Spain becomes first EU nation to reach 1 million Covid-19 cases ⁰

Spain has become the first European Union nation to surpass a million coronavirus infections, official data showed Wednesday. The Mediterranean country doubled its tally in just six weeks despite the government’s fresh restrictions on public life to curb the spread of the disease.

The country recorded 16,973 confirmed cases of Covid-19 over the past 24 hours, the health ministry announced Wednesday, taking the total to 1,005,295 since its first case was diagnosed on January 31 on the remote island of La Gomera, in the Canary Islands.

Of this number, 34,366 people have died, after 156 more deaths were recorded in the previous 24 hours.

After slowing to a trickle in the wake of Spain’s strict March to June lockdown, the infection rate accelerated to frequently exceed 10,000 cases a day from late August, and hit a new peak of more than 16,000 last week.

Hurried lockdown exit

A hurried exit from confinement before tracing systems were in place let transmission get out of hand faster than in other countries, said Dr. Rafael Bengoa, co-founder of Bilbao’s Institute for Health and Strategy.

Spain, which is home to around 47 million people, is only the sixth country in the world to cross this grim milestone after the United States, India, Brazil, Russia and Argentina, according to an AFP tally based on official figures.

The new wave of contagion has been less deadly than in late March and April and the height of the health crisis, when fatalities routinely exceeded 800 per day, as the median age of new infections has dropped.

But with healthcare workers warning the spike could once again overwhelm hospitals, health minister Salvador Illa said Tuesday the government is considering several new measures, including night-time curfews such as those recently put in place in France and Belgium.

“We are facing very tough weeks ahead, winter is coming, the second wave is no longer a threat, it is a reality across Europe,” he told a news conference, adding the government was “open to everything” to contain the virus.

‘Political weapon’

The health ministry is set to meet Thursday with representatives from Spain’s powerful regional governments, who are in charge of healthcare, to update the country’s plan to respond to the pandemic.

Spain was one of the worst-affected countries when the coronavirus struck Europe early this year before one of the world’s most stringent lockdowns helped reduce the outbreak’s spread.

But infections have surged since the lockdown measures were fully removed at the end of June, with the rise blamed on the rapid return of nightlife and a lack of an efficient system to track and trace infections.

Messy disagreements between the central and regional governments, and between political parties, have also hampered the response, experts say. “The pandemic has been used as a political weapon to fight and argue with your adversaries instead of trying to find a middle ground and the best solution for everyone,” Salvador Macip, an expert in health sciences at Catalonia’s Open University who has written a book called “The Great Modern Plagues”, told AFP.

Fresh restrictions in Madrid, Catalonia, La Rioja and Navarre

As infections have picked up, Spanish regional authorities started imposing fresh restrictions.

While daily deaths have been hovering around 100 – a far cry from the peak of nearly 900 registered in late March – nationwide hospital admissions have jumped 20 percent in two weeks and 70 percent in the north-eastern region of Catalonia. That may potentially force some Barcelona hospitals to suspend non-urgent procedures

Madrid and several satellite cities have since early October been under a partial lockdown, while Catalonia has imposed a 15-day shutdown of all bars and restaurants.

The tiny wine-producing region of La Rioja joined nearby Navarre in announcing a blanket ban for all non-essential travel to and from the area.

Angela Hernandez Puente, a doctor and the deputy secretary of Madrid’s Amtys medical association, said the situation was very worrying, but not comparable with the overwhelming pressure the health system came under in March when intensive care units were full and staff lacked personal protective equipment.

‘Tired and angry health staff’

But she said the gains of Spain’s tough lockdown were wasted due a lack of preparation for a second wave of infections, citing as an example the failure to hire more doctors for public primary care centres, the first line of defence against the virus as they handle testing and tracing potential cases as well as treating the sick.

“It’s as if they thought that since infections lowered over the summer, ‘That’s it, it’s over’, when in fact it was the moment to prepare,” Hernandez Puente told AFP.

“Health care staff are tired and angry, many doctors feel that more should have been done in June, July and August to not let the public health system become overburdened as it is now,” she added.

(FRANCE 24 with AFP & REUTERS)

22, October 2020

Nigeria: Protests escalate after deadly crackdown by security forces ⁰

Buildings were torched in Nigeria’s biggest city Lagos on Wednesday as authorities shut down the economic hub, after the shooting of peaceful protesters by security forces caused international outrage.

At least 12 people were killed by the Nigerian army and police in two locations in Lagos on Tuesday in a deadly crackdown on demonstrations, Amnesty International said.

Peaceful protesters had gathered despite a curfew imposed to end spiralling protests over police brutality and deep-rooted social grievances.

“Evidence gathered from eyewitnesses, video footage and hospital reports confirm that between 6:45pm (1745 GMT) and 9:00pm (2000 GMT) on Tuesday 20 October, the Nigerian military opened fire on thousands of people,” Amnesty said in a statement.

The Lagos governor at first insisted no fatalities had been recorded but later said the authorities were investigating the death of one person resulting from “blunt force trauma to the head”.

He said at least 25 people were wounded.

Demonstrator Paul Sunday who was at the scene told AFP that the men who shot at the crowd were wearing masks and had army uniforms.

“They attacked us from back and front,” he said. “They came around 7pm when everywhere is dark.”

Pictures and videos showing scenes of chaos in the aftermath of the shooting were widely shared on social media.

The shooting drew international condemnation, with the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet saying reports suggested it could have been premeditated.

“There is little doubt that this was a case of excessive use of force, resulting in unlawful killings with live ammunition, by Nigerian armed forces,” she said.

“Reports that CCTV cameras and lighting were deliberately disabled prior to the shooting are even more disturbing as, if confirmed, they suggest this deplorable attack on peaceful protestors was premeditated, planned and coordinated.”

Human Rights Watch corroborated reports that the Nigerian army had opened fire on the crowd in “a shooting spree”.

“The authorities should immediately withdraw the military from the streets,” said Anietie Ewang, a Nigeria researcher with the rights group.

The Nigerian army did not respond to AFP’s requests for comment but on Twitter it called reports of soldiers firing on protesters “fake news”.

The west African ECOWAS bloc appealed to the Nigerian government, its youth and civil society “to urgently pursue dialogue for an early and amicable resolution of this social unrest and maintain the Nigerian image as a bastion of law and order.”

Nana Akufo-Addo, chairman of ECOWAS and president of neighbouring Ghana, said in a statement that he had spoken with Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari, who had “begun the processes that will lead to reform”.

‘Inferno’

The centre of Lagos, a sprawling city that is home to 20 million people, was largely deserted and shops were closed on Wednesday under a curfew.

An AFP journalist said several buildings were burnt around the area of the shooting and remnants of the violence—broken glass, torn banners—could be seen.

A few people were drifting around, but protest hotspot Lekki Toll Gate had emptied out, only graffiti denouncing police violence and bad governance remaining.

A dozen soldiers and heavily armed police officers patrolled nearby.

In another district a bus station was set ablaze and there were sporadic clashes between bottle-throwing youths and police, who occasionally fired into the air.

A TV station linked to one of the ruling party’s most powerful politicians was also torched.

Concerned by the escalating violence reported on Wednesday in a string of cities including Lagos, the International Committee for the Red Cross called for restraint.

“It is of paramount importance that first responders and ambulances are respected by all, so they can reach injured people safely,” said Eloi Fillion, head of the ICRC delegation in Nigeria.

In a television broadcast, Lagos state governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu ordered all “state activities” to be halted across the city for three days.

He said he had asked for a probe into “the rules of engagement employed by the men of the Nigerian army that were deployed” at the scene during the shooting on Tuesday.

“Soldiers clearly had one intention – to kill without consequences,” said Osai Ojigho, Country Director of Amnesty International Nigeria.

‘Indefinite curfew’

At least 56 people have died across the country since the protests began on October 8, with about 38 killed on Tuesday alone, according to Amnesty.

President Buhari was yet to directly address Tuesday’s incident but in a statement on the protests the presidency said he had appealed for “understanding and calm across the nation”.

A coalition of civil society organisations in Nigeria said on Wednesday that they were “deeply shocked by the killing of peaceful protesters”.

“The attempt to fight for justice over police brutality has again revealed the brutal nature of the Nigerian state,” it said in a statement.

According to the group, “not less than 40 Nigerians have lost their lives as a result of violent attempts to crack down or disrupt the ongoing protests against police brutality.”

Nigeria, where the median age is 18, is a tinderbox of profound economic and social grievances.

British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said on Wednesday he was “deeply concerned” by violence in Nigeria.

“The Nigerian government must urgently investigate reports of brutality at the hands of the security forces and hold those responsible to account,” he said in a statement.

Since Tuesday, Rihanna, Beyonce, Nicki Minaj, Ugandan pop star-turned politician Bobi Wine and Manchester United striker Odion Ighalo added their names to a list of celebrities who have supported the protesters.

Source: AFP

22, October 2020

British PM Johnson lambasted by EU lawmakers ⁰

Never before in the European Parliament has a British Prime Minister attracted so much criticism. In a debate on Wednesday, MEP after MEP lambasted Boris Johnson over his handling of the UK’s withdrawal from the EU.

Boris Johnson has been lying to the people in the UK. The Brexit transition period ends on the 31st of December. If the EU and UK fail to reach a trade deal before then, chaos will ensue, many argue.

Johnson says there will be no further face-to-face negotiations with the EU until such time as the bloc takes the UK’s position seriously. However, almost every lawmaker in the Brussels chamber is blaming him for the impasse. A no trade deal scenario could lead to mayhem at borders between the EU and UK. Experts warn disruption to major trading corridors will have wide-ranging economic consequences.

Although very much in the minority, some eurosceptics in the European Parliament blame Brussels’ bureaucracy for the breakdown in EU-UK relations. But there are warnings that millions of jobs are at risk, and the livelihoods of fishermen and farmers hang in the balance. Most MEPs say no agreement on a future EU-UK relationship would be disastrous.

During the debate one lawmakers suggested there are now a maximum of two weeks to reach a deal, so as to allow time for parliaments to scrutinise and endorse any accord that might be agreed.

Source: Presstv

22, October 2020

Eto’o says Moukoko should be Messi’s successor at Barcelona ⁰

The Cameroon superstar has urged his former employers to sign the Borussia Dortmund sensation. Barcelona should target Borussia Dortmund wonderkid Youssoufa Moukoko as the long-term successor to Lionel Messi, according to Samuel Eto’o.

The 15-year-old has been included in BVB’s Champions League squad this season, even though he isn’t eligible to feature in Europe’s premier club competition until he turns 16 on November 20.

Despite not yet making his senior debut for Dortmund, Moukoko is the player Barca should be targeting as they look for a long-term successor to 33-year-old Messi according to the Argentine’s former teammate Eto’o, who was twice a Champions League winner during five years at Camp Nou.

“[There’s] a young player who plays for Dortmund called Youssoufa Moukoko,” Eto’o told Goal when asked who he’d love to see as Barcelona’s next big signing. “[He’s] 15 years of age, and he’s the next top player, for me, after Messi.

“As Messi gets older, we could prepare the future of Barcelona very well.”

Eto’o believes that Moukoko could form a dream post-Messi front three alongside France duo Antoine Griezmann and current Paris Saint-Germain attacker Kylian Mbappe, who is another player he’d love to see move to the Camp Nou.

“With Antoine and Youssoufa [up front together], that team would go forward very well,” Eto’o concluded. “[I’d like to see] Kylian Mbappe at Barcelona also.”

Messi appeared close to an exit from Barcelona at one point this summer, having handed in a transfer request following a tumultuous 2019-20 season, which saw the Catalan heavyweights humiliated 8-2 by Bayern Munich in the Champions League quarter-finals and dethroned by Real Madrid in La Liga.

The six-time Ballon d’Or winner ultimately opted to remain at the Camp Nou this term, despite reservations about the direction the club are heading in under Ronald Koeman.

Barca, who begin their Champions League campaign against Ferencvaros on Wednesday, are currently ninth in La Liga after four matches, having fallen to a 1-0 defeat at Getafe on Saturday.

German-Cameroonian forward Moukoko, who was ranked 44th in Goal’s NxGn 2020 list celebrating the 50 best wonderkids in football, is the youngest player to play and score in the Uefa Youth League.

He has already represented Germany at U-20 level, and has scored an eye-watering 134 goals in 86 appearances for Dortmund between U-17 and U-19 levels.

Source: Goal.com

21, October 2020

US: President Trump records show Chinese business pursuits and bank account ⁰

Donald Trump spent years cultivating business projects in China, where he maintained a previously unknown bank account, The New York Times reported Tuesday, as the US president attempts to portray election rival Joe Biden as weaker on Beijing.

Trump has spent recent days promoting a murky claim that Biden’s son Hunter sold access to his father in Ukraine and China when he was vice president under Barack Obama.

It is Trump, however, who maintained an office in China during his first run for president, and partnered with a major government-controlled company, the Times reported.

Trump additionally keeps a previously unknown bank account in China, controlled by Trump International Hotels Management, according to an analysis of his tax records by the paper. It is one of only three foreign nations — including Britain and Ireland — in which he does so.

The tax records show the company “paid $188,561 in taxes in China while pursuing licensing deals there from 2013 to 2015,” the Times reported.

Trump Organization lawyer Alan Garten said the company had “opened an account with a Chinese bank having offices in the United States in order to pay the local taxes.”

“No deals, transactions or other business activities ever materialized and, since 2015, the office has remained inactive,” he told The Times. “Though the bank account remains open, it has never been used for any other purpose.”

Under his “America First” banner, Trump has portrayed China as the greatest threat to the United States and global democracy.

He has launched a massive trade war that has cost China billions of dollars, harangued Chinese tech firms and laid blame for the coronavirus pandemic with Beijing.

Even so, in 2008 Trump attempted an ultimately unsuccessful office tower project in Guangzhou, and in 2012 he opened a Shanghai office, the Times said.

Additionally, Trump Hotel Collection (THC) negotiated with the State Grid Corporation of China — an electricity company, and the country’s largest state-owned enterprise — to brand and manage a major development in Beijing, sources told AFP. But the bid was later abandoned.

Biden’s income tax returns and financial dealings meanwhile show no business connection to China.

Source: AFP

21, October 2020

Federal Republic of Ambazonia: Leader calls for unity ⁰

“Collaboration we need, not collaboration we want. Ultimately, we will get that which we deserve.”

1. The lives of 8 million Ambazonians are in our hands.

2. The destiny of future generations of Ambazonians is in our hands.

3. The fate of our people in the different detention centers across our land and in La République du Cameroun is in our hands.

4. The return of our people from refugee camps in America, across Africa, especially in Nigeria, Cameroun and Ghana, as well as those internally displaced within homeland is in our hands.

5. The freedom and restoration of the Independence of our nation is in our hands. We have more in common than the minor issues that challenge and divide us.

The Restoration of our Independence and Sovereignty.

Our people are watching us; the International Community is watching us, and we are failing to conduct ourselves in a manner that reflects maturity and leadership. These qualities are needed to truly represent our people in every sphere. We are delaying attainment of our ultimate goal and deepening the suffering of our people instead of alleviating it. Are we blinded by our self-interests to their pain?

What legacy do we leave behind? Would we leave success in taking our people to our homeland or failure in not attaining Ambazonia and in everything else we are trying to prioritize?

The Journey ahead of us might still be very long. Negotiations, if and when they happen, will be very tough. Should we not focus our energies and resources on that which is important to helping us attain our Independence?

Note

Power concedes nothing. LRC is not ready to concede anything. If we don’t stand together for that which we want; the restoration of the independence of Ambazonia, we will always be begging for a few crumbs under the LRC table. In our restoration struggle, there is no more room for spectators amongst Ambazonians. We all must be active participants. Remember that if there is no enemy within, the enemy outside can do us no harm. Given what we now know about what we are capable of accomplishing together, evidenced by the 2020 Takumbeng & Independence Days celebrations, why then do we have the infighting? I urge all and sundry to look up to the Ambazonian flag and refrain from attacking or insulting others.

For the attention of:

HRM Fon Gorji Dinka, Pa Nfor Ngalla Nfor, Sessekou Christmas Ebini. Hon Wirba,

Dr. Fontem Neba, Dr. David Makongo, Abdul Karim Ali, Milan Atam, Milton Taka,

Chris Anu, Dr Larry Ayamba, Eric Tataw, Mark Bareta, Tapang Ivo. Tassang

Wilfred, Patrick Ndangoh, Mancho Bibixy, Penn Terence Khan, Tita Tebit, Tsi

Conrad, Pa Augustine Ndangam, Rev Andrew Ambiazeh, Elvis Kometa.

Special attention:

Self-defense groups and our Takumbeng mothers

21, October 2020

The Southern Cameroons thieves of Maryland are all virtually baptized Christians ⁰

Once upon a time, there was indeed an Ambazonia struggle! To be sure, the people of Southern Cameroons and the Ambazonia Interim Government read from the same script. The rushed succession plan following the Abuja incident changed the whole concept and pattern of the Southern Cameroons war of independence. One cannot but wish for a different narrative, a different kind of story.

Every well-meaning Southern Cameroons citizen that is not worried about where the Ambazonian revolution is now and where we are headed must be living in Maryland, USA or in French Cameroun. Southern Cameroonians including President Sisiku Ayuk Tabe believed, and rightly so, that the corrupt leadership of the disgraced Dr Sako Ikome and Chris Anu was clueless and didn’t have the capacity to take Southern Cameroonians to the next level, and, therefore, instituted change.

But ever since President Sisiku Ayuk Tabe made public the Southern Cameroons dream Interim Government administration headed by Vice President Dabney Yerima, Sako Ikome and Chris Anu have blatantly refused to allow the Southern Cameroons Interim Government to put its acts together.

We of the Cameroon Concord News Group can now reveal that the Southern Cameroons resistance is in a free fall. The Federal Republic of Ambazonia seems to be on a standstill and, in recent times, the Biya French Cameroun regime that has slaughtered thousands of Southern Cameroons citizens including women and children is gaining an upper hand in the Ambazonia homeland.

Those who are complaining about the killing of prominent Amba fighters are no longer only President Sisiku Ayuk Tabe and Vice President Dabney Yerima but also the corrupt Southern Cameroons so-called front line leaders that are haunted by their sordid and avaricious past to whom the Sako-Chris Anu period had become the ultimate nemesis.

The real tragedy of the Southern Cameroons situation is that its diaspora and thousands in Ground Zero are not convinced that the struggle is making progress. We of the Concord Group are sad about what has become of the war to liberate the people of Southern Cameroons, and more so of what has become of Ambaland.

It is evidently clear that the silence maintained by men like Hon. Joseph Wirba is deliberate! If those still rallying behind the Maryland mafia group think that Southern Cameroons had made progress, the assassination of General Ayeke and the disappearance of the Field Marshal in the Lebialem County can now help them to see today how much the resistance had gone down the hill! Not only on the negative politics being played by the diaspora including members of the cabinet appointed to assist Vice President Yerima but things like armed robbery and kidnapping, robbery and thieving that were such a taboo in a typical Southern Cameroons society are now the hallmarks of the Ambazonia revolution. While fighters who are pro Sako and Chris Anu in Ground Zero are getting away with murder, the disgraced US based Ambazonia front liners are getting away with massive embezzlement of My Trip To Buea funds!! With these things, you just wonder where we are heading.”

It has been extremely difficult for this writer to understand why the few still passing for a Sako IG, with their overt religiosity, find it difficult to walk their religious talk. The Southern Cameroons thieves of Maryland are all virtually baptized Christians. And since most Southern Cameroonians are Christians, most of the thieves are Christians too!!

Is it that President Sisiku Ayuk Tabe and the Ambazonia Interim Government have not put in their best? If so, is their best so bad or so poor that Southern Cameroonians haven’t made any significant difference? The leader’s recent call for unity from his cell in the Kondengui High Security Prison and the Maryland reaction that followed with the endorsement of Deacon Tassang, gave we of this publication a dissenting sense of defeatism.

We believe and fervently too that the Southern Cameroons diaspora have failed their fellow citizens in Ground Zero and this failure is slowly but surely generating a kind of frustration among the jailed leaders which is gradually translating to regrets.

Of course, like many living in the bushes and in refugee camps in Ghana and Nigeria, Southern Cameroonians can always console themselves with the Prince of Peace, Jesus Christ of Nazareth. But Let Vice President Yerima continue to do all that he can, while Prof Carlson Anyangwe remains steadfast in diplomacy, hoping that another generation may stand on their shoulder and stand higher and do better for the suffering and oppressed people of the Federal Republic of Ambazonia. But it goes without saying that President Sisiku Ayuk Tabe has done his bit.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai

20, October 2020

CPDM Crime Syndicate: Yaounde defers new tax on smartphones and tablets ⁰

Cameroon’s President Paul Biya has requested the suspension of a new tax regime that would have compelled consumers to pay a levy equivalent to 33 percent of the cost of any imported phone or tablet purchased from mid-October as import duty. Citing the official statement, Investir au Cameroun reports that the President’s decision will force the government to rethink the method of collection of the new tax, which was supposed to rely on a new online platform developed by data management firm Arintech.

Introduced by the 2019 finance bill, the duty would have reportedly been collected by the country’s mobile operators via deductions from consumers’ call credit, using IMEI numbers to identify taxable devices.

The country’s association of mobile operators (AOTMC) had urged a rethink of this process, highlighting a number of technical problems with Arintech’s new online platform. It is proposing an alternative method of collection that would, among its other benefits, better inform and protect consumers.

According to Investir au Cameroun, the 2019 finance bill also stipulates an additional measure to increase tax receipts from imported products, consisting of a fixed duty of XAF 200 (approximately EUR 0.30) for taxable mobile applications once downloaded onto a consumer device.

Source: Telecompaper

20, October 2020

Southern Cameroons Crisis: Pro French Cameroun Chiefs Create Militias for Protection from Amba Fighters ⁰

Traditional village chiefs in Cameroon’s restive western regions are for the first time creating armed militias for protection against separatists. Cameroon’s government has been asking traditional rulers who fled the separatist conflict to return to their palaces and take part in December’s regional elections. But a majority of the chiefs has been reluctant to return due to threats from the rebels.

The Nso people of Cameroon’s Northwest region shout and applaud in the town of Kumbo. They came out to listen to a plea from their elders and palace notables to give a memorable welcome to their traditional leader, Sehm Mbinglo, whenever he returns.

Mbinglo fled the area three years ago after separatists abducted him three times and killed two of his children for unknown reasons.

Among the nearly 1,000 people who came to listen to the notables was Dorothy Yekong, who said she is longing to see her Fon, or traditional ruler.

“When the peace makers said the Fon will be coming back, we just felt some peace in Kumbo because when we were there without the Fon it was just as if to say the child is there surrounded by lions. So, if he finally comes, we are sure that peace will return in Kumbo. He is the father of everybody in Kumbo,” she said.

Yekong said she was pleading with separatists fighting to create an English-speaking state in Cameroon not to attack palaces and notables who are only there to promote African cultures and traditions.

But shortly after the Nso elders and notable made the plea on people to welcome their village chiefs, separatist groups on social media warned against the chiefs returning.

Donatus Kewa, who said he is a spokesperson for separatist fighters in the North West region, says the chiefs act as informants for the military.

He said the village chiefs and their notables who escaped from the English-speaking regions to the French-speaking zones, especially Cameroon’s capital, Yaounde, will be killed if they return. He said the chiefs received help in escaping from the Cameroon military, which he said is an enemy that all English speakers should fight against.

John Ewome Eko, traditional chief of the southwestern village of Boassa, said he is ready to face the separatists. He said he has armed a militia to protect his palace, notables and all traditional artifacts.

“I have put in place a strong vigilante group of more than 100 youths ready to stand and face the Amba guys. They came and burned down parts of my own palace. They left with two girls and they stayed with them in the bushes for two weeks. They were raped, they tortured them, they came back with wounds all over their bodies. They came again, they seized goods from my villagers,” he said.

Deben Tchoffo, governor of the Northwest region, said militias created by chiefs should collaborate with government troops. He said no one should fear the separatists, whom he says are only intimidating chiefs and civilians.

“The traditional rulers are committed. The municipal counselors are committed. Elections Cameroon is ready. The security services are securing the region to allow us come the sixth of December to organize those elections in a peaceful environment,” he said.

Tchoffo said they were giving fighters another opportunity to drop their weapons and be pardoned or to be crushed by the military.

The separatist crisis that is in its fourth year has killed at least 3,000 people and displaced 550,000, according to the United Nations.

Culled from VOA

20, October 2020

Guinea opposition candidate claims victory before official results ⁰

Guinea opposition candidate Cellou Dalein Diallo said on Monday he had won the first round of the Oct. 18 presidential election, but his claim was quickly disputed by the electoral commission and the government, setting the stage for a stand-off.

“Despite the serious anomalies that marred the smooth running of the … election and in view of the results that came out of the ballot boxes, I am victorious in this election in the first round,” Diallo told journalists and cheering supporters.

He did not give any figures but said the tally was based on his party’s count, not an official tally being conducted by the national election commission, which has yet to publish results.

The electoral commission said Diallo’s claim carried no weight.

“The Independent National Electoral Commission is the only body authorised to give provisional results. It is neither for a political party nor for any individual to do so,” Mamadi 3 Kaba, a spokesman for the commission, told Reuters.

“We regret the attitude of Mr. Diallo and we say that this declaration is null and void,” he added.

Guinea’s government said in a statement late on Monday that Diallo’s statement was irresponsible and could sow confusion and undermine peace in the West African state. It warned it could launch criminal charges against him.

The government said results from over 15,000 polling stations were still being tallied. “It is impossible, at this stage of the process, to have neither trends, let alone the results of the vote.”

Diallo is the main challenger to Guinea’s 82-year-old incumbent president, Alpha Conde, who is seeking a third mandate after a constitutional change in March which sparked deadly protests.

Following his announcement, Diallo’s supporters swept into the streets in his strongholds, declaring their alleged victory.

Diallo said on Twitter that three young men were killed in the capital, and several others were injured by security forces while they celebrated his victory.

The government was not immediately available to comment on the deaths.

Security Minister Damantang Albert Camara earlier accused Diallo’s party of publishing false results, and warned it risked triggering violence.

“This strategy of forced, premature and unjustified celebration was carefully planned well before the election,” Camara said in a statement.

Rights groups say at least 50 people having been killed over the past year during demonstrations against the constitutional change that allowed Conde to seek at least six more years in power.

(REUTERS)