Headline News

9, April 2020

Cameroonians are worried about coronavirus but also about an absent president ⁰

Like elsewhere, Cameroonians at home and abroad are very worried over the novel coronavirus which has been rapidly spreading across the country.

By the close of April 7, Cameroon had registered 685 cases of Covid-19, with nine deaths, overtaking other countries to become the second hardest hit in Sub-Saharan Africa after South Africa. Cameroon now has over 15 times as many confirmed cases as any other country in the central African sub-region and one of the highest numbers of daily new cases on the continent. Like many other African countries, Cameroon is not well-equipped to handle a major outbreak of the disease.

But as Cameroonians grapple with the spread of Covid-19, they are also preoccupied with the absence of their leader. President Paul Biya, 87, who in 2018 secured another mandate to extend his 36-year rule to 2025, has not publicly addressed his compatriots since the country registered its first case on March 6. His next-door peer, Ali Bongo Ondimba of Gabon, with just 30 confirmed cases, has addressed his people on at least three occasions, despite still recuperating from a stroke.

Biya was last seen in public on Mar. 11, when he received the US ambassador to Cameroon at the Unity Palace in Yaoundé. No official mention has been made of his whereabouts thereafter. Even pressure from activists and opposition leaders has not forced the African strongman out in public.

Two weeks ago, Cameroon’s main opposition leader, Maurice Kamto issued an initial seven-day ultimatum, calling on president Biya to personally address the nation. On April 3, Kamto called on the population of coronavirus-affected regions to stay at home—a move the runner-up of the 2018 presidential election said he took because “the Head of State has refused to assume his functions in the fight against the coronavirus.”

The Popular Action Party on its part expressed concerns over the inaction of President Biya and accused Yaounde authorities of playing “a hide-and-seek game.” The party promised to seize the country’s constitutional council to make a declaratory statement on the vacancy or not of the presidency.

Despite his country exhibiting multiple layers of vulnerability to Covid-19, Biya has stuck with his reticence for public speaking. He however instructed the prime minister to put in place a 13-point response strategy and has through social media called on Cameroonians to respect the measures put in place. From wherever he is, the president has also signed several decrees, including one instituting a national solidarity fund to fight COVID-19 and another appointing officials to lead the reconstruction of the conflict-ravaged English-speaking regions in the country’s southwest.

It isn’t unprecedented for Biya to be unseen or silent during critical moments in the life of the country. Even recent widespread rumors of his demise on social media have not forced his hand. His aides and supporters have described this phenomenon as “presidential silence” and have often argued that “his attitude is a sign of maturity and wisdom.”

Biya’s “private visits” to his usual retreat at the Intercontinental Hotel in Geneva has often been a source of political controversy and quiet embarrassment. One estimate is that he’s spent 15% of his time in power, abroad.

Over the last decade, Biya has made the top floor suites of the five-star luxury hotel into his home away from home spending months at a time even as his country has slowly descended into conflict from Boko Haram Islamic terrorists in the north and an Anglophone-led insurgency in north- and southwest of the country.

Culled from Quartz Africa

8, April 2020

French Cameroun: Bombing Kills 10, Triggers Renewed Boko Haram Fear ⁰

Cameroon is calling on people living in two villages bordering Nigeria to return from their hideouts after two teenagers detonated explosives and killed at least 10 civilians. The military says it has secured the area, but civilians maintain that the villages have been infiltrated by Boko Haram terrorists.

Speaking via a messaging app from the northern village of Blama Kamsoulou, community official Adamu Sidiki says dozens of people have fled since Sunday night’s suicide bombing, fearing Boko Haram.

About 70 people have escaped to the bushes and nearest towns because they believe Boko Haram is making a powerful comeback, Sidiki said, adding that barely two weeks ago, the terrorist group killed at least 90 Chadian soldiers in the nearby Boma peninsula. It is high time Cameroon protected its citizens by redeploying its military to border zones that terrorists are again occupying, he said.

Cameroon’s government said in a release Monday that two male suicide bombers were spotted by civilians Sunday near the Blama Kamsoulou village primary school. When the attackers noticed that they were being monitored, they rushed to the traditional ruler’s palace and detonated the explosives they were carrying.

Roger Saffo, secretary general of the Far North Region governor’s office, said the blasts took the lives of many villagers.

“On the spot, there were nine people killed and 15 people wounded,” Saffo said. “I want to seize this opportunity to appeal to our population to be more vigilant, to be cautious, to collaborate with the forces of law and security.”

FILE - Cameroonian soldiers stand guard at a lookout post as they take part in operations against Boko Haram militants on Elbeid bridge that separates northern Cameroon form Nigeria's Borno state near the village of Fotokol, Cameroon, Feb. 25, 2015. — FILE – Cameroonian soldiers stand guard at a lookout post as they take part in operations against Boko Haram militants on Elbeid bridge that separates northern Cameroon form Nigeria’s Borno state near the village of Fotokol, Cameroon, Feb. 25, 2015.

Suffo said the wounded were transported to a hospital in the nearby town of Mora, where one person died. Nine others are in critical condition.

Midjiyawa Bakary, governor of the Far North region, said he has ordered soldiers to deploy to the border villages that Boko Haram fighters have allegedly infiltrated.

Local vigilante committees should be reinforced immediately and civilians should work in collaboration with the militias to make sure both the military and administrative authorities are informed anytime strange people are found in their villages, Bakary said.

On March 24, Chad’s president, Idriss Deby, announced that 92 Chadian troops were killed in a Boko Haram attack that lasted several hours. He said 24 army vehicles were destroyed, and captured military arms were taken away in speedboats by Boko Haram.

Boko Haram has also renewed attacks on the Nigerian military, with the killing of at least 50 soldiers in an ambush near Goneri village in Nigeria’s northern Yobe state in March.

Cameroon has not reported a large-scale Boko Haram attack for the past two months, but the Islamist militant group invades the territory regularly for supplies or to kidnap citizens for ransom.

Source: VOA

8, April 2020

Bernie Sanders quits 2020 US Democratic presidential campaign ⁰

Leading US Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders has ended his presidential campaign, paving the way for his rival, former Vice President Joe Biden, to win the Democratic presidential race.

This is Sanders’ second failed attempt to grab the Democratic party’s nomination after he fell short of defeating former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in 2016 primaries.

“The path toward victory is virtually impossible,” Sanders said in a livestreamed speech to supporters from his hometown of Burlington, Vermont, on Wednesday.

“I have concluded that this battle for the Democratic nomination will not be successful. And so today, I am announcing the suspension of my campaign,” the 78-year-old US senator added.

Sanders’ exit comes after a series of losses to Biden, beginning in South Carolina in late February and continuing with losses in crucial states like Michigan and Florida last month.

Source: Presstv

8, April 2020

Trump threatens to withhold funds from WHO, says UN body is ‘China-centric’ ⁰

President Donald Trump on Tuesday threatened to cut US funding to the World Health Organization, accusing it of bias toward China during the coronavirus pandemic.

Trump told reporters he was “going to put a very powerful hold on” funding to WHO, the UN body whose biggest funding source is the United States.

“We’re going to put a hold on money spent to the WHO,” said Trump, who pursues an “America First” agenda and has previously criticised other UN and multilateral agencies.

He gave no details about how much money would be withheld and minutes later during the same press conference he said: “I’m not saying I’m going to do it.”

“We will look at ending funding,” he added.

According to Trump, the WHO “seems to be very biased toward China. That’s not right.”

His comments built on an earlier statement on Twitter in which he accused the WHO of being “very China centric.”

Trump asked why the WHO had given “such a faulty recommendation,” apparently referring to the UN body’s advice against curtailing international travel to stop the virus which first spread from China.

“Fortunately I rejected their advice on keeping our borders open to China early on,” Trump wrote, referring to his decision to ban travel from the country.

China faces criticism in Washington, particularly from Republicans, over the way it handled the pandemic and Trump has expressed doubt over the accuracy of Chinese statistics for cases and deaths.

However, Trump himself has been widely criticized for initially downplaying the virus, which he likened to an ordinary flu and said was under control in the United States, before later accepting that it was a national emergency.

More than 12,000 Americans have now died from COVID-19.

(AFP)

8, April 2020

Coronavirus: How President Biya is protecting himself ⁰

The last public appearance made by Cameroon’s president was on 11 March. On that date, he was paid a visit by Peter Henry Barlerin, the US ambassador to Cameroon, at his office in Etoudi Palace.

Unlike the vast majority of other heads of state in the region, Paul Biya did not address his fellow citizens to announce measures to combat the epidemic. Prime minister Joseph Dion Ngute and health minister Malachie Manaouda are regularly informing the public about the health crisis.

Biya’s absence has provoked criticism from the opposition and alarmist rumours about his state of health. However, according to our information, Biya has not tested positive for COVID-19.

To prevent any contamination, he has retreated to his hometown of Mvomeka’a, located 180km to the south of Yaoundé. Shut away in his home, he has prohibited nearly all work-related meetings and only sees a handful of people.

He still speaks to his loyal special adviser, Rear Admiral Joseph Fouda. He also receives the Deputy Chief of Civilian Staff, Samuel Mvondo Ayolo, while Biya’s aide-de-camp, Squadron Leader Mike Davy Ottou, makes himself available. Non-essential staff are no longer allowed to enter his home, which sits atop a hill overlooking the town. The government awaits his instructions to act.

Culled from The Africa Report

8, April 2020

CPDM crime syndicate sweeps coronavirus elections in Southern Cameroons ⁰

Cameroon’s ruling party has swept all 13 seats in parliamentary by-elections held late last month in the conflict-wracked anglophone west of the country, the constitutional council announced Tuesday.

Long-ruling President Paul Biya’s Cameroon People’s Democratic Movement (CPDM) won all 13 seats at stake in 11 constituencies in the North-West and South-West regions of the central African country.

The CPDM “ran the table” in 10 North-West districts and one in the South-West, state broadcaster CRTV reported.

The wins reinforced the party’s massive majority in the 180-member parliament to 152 seats.

The two anglophone regions have been rocked by deadly violence as armed separatists campaign for independence from the rest of Cameroon, which is majority French-speaking.

The conflict has killed more than 3,000 people and displaced nearly 700,000 in less than three years, according to humanitarian organisations.

Separatist fighters had called on people in the two regions to boycott nationwide municipal and legislative elections on February 9, issuing threats to anyone who planned to vote.

Several NGOs including Amnesty International reported multiple clashes between the separatists and the army ahead of the polling, though only one incident — in the North-West region — was reported on election day itself.

The constitutional council said on February 25 that the vote would have to be rerun in several parts of the two anglophone regions.

The opposition Social Democratic Front, dominated by anglophones, contested the results of the by-elections, but the constitutional court rejected their demand for another re-run.

Source: AFP

8, April 2020

France’s coronavirus death toll passes 10,000 after steep rise at nursing homes ⁰

France officially registered more than 10,000 deaths from coronavirus infections on Tuesday, becoming the fourth country to go beyond that threshold after Italy, Spain and the United States.

The total death toll from Covid-19 rose to 10,328 from 8,911 on Monday, Jérôme Salomon, head of the public health authority, told a press conference, warning that “the epidemic is continuing its progression.”

Salomon said 7,091 fatalities have been recorded at French hospitals since March 1. A further 3,237 people have died at care homes for the elderly, he added, giving a much higher figure than reported on Monday.

He stressed that the latter count was still partial, with some nursing homes yet to report.

More than 30,000 people were being treated in hospitals around the country, with 7,131 in intensive care, Salomon added.

“We are in the ascending phase of the epidemic, even if it is slowing a bit,” he warned. “We have not yet reached the peak.”

The death toll of 10,328 included 597 fatalities in hospital in the last 24 hours, according to a government update .

Paris bans daytime jogging

Earlier on Tuesday, Paris officials said they would ban lone daytime jogging as people continue to flout anti-coronavirus lockdown rules.

“Every excursion avoided aids the fight against the epidemic,” Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo and police chief Didier Lallement said in a statement announcing the partial jogging ban.

Paris bans daytime jogging in bid to slow spread of coronavirus

Paris and other cities have already closed public parks and gardens as part of the nationwide lockdown that requires people to carry a document justifying any excursion from the home.

Addressing parliament, Prime Minister Edouard Philippe said the unwinding of the lockdown, which at this stage is supposed to run until April 15, would not “happen overnight”.

The lockdown “is difficult for many French people, I am fully aware of this. But it is essential if we do not wish to find ourselves in an even worse situation than the one we are experiencing today”, he said.

(FRANCE 24 with AFP, REUTERS)

8, April 2020

EU to continue missions in Africa, Balkans despite covid-19 ⁰

The European Union says some of its training missions have seen personnel cuts in the Balkans and Africa. This is due to conditions imposed by hosting countries amid the Covid-19 pandemic. The bloc has no intention of halting those missions though, saying that security is the priority.

Speaking on Monday after chairing talks between EU defense ministers via video conference, the bloc’s foreign policy chief said it was important to keep the six missions going “to avoid a negative security impact.”

It’s also launched a new mission off the coast of Libya. The purported goal is to monitor the UN arms embargo on Libya. But what many fear, is that it’s just another attempt at keeping thousands of migrants off European shores. According to Human Rights Watch, EU states and institutions are sustaining a network of detention centers within Libya, where torture, sexual violence, extortion and forced labour are rife.

Part of the EU’s new mission is to continue training the Libyan coastguard, so they can intercept migrants and asylum seekers at sea more effectively. The EU says it is providing security, and stopping arms from being trafficked, as well as stemming the flow of migrant. But observers say security measures should not override humanitarian endeavors at a time when the world is facing a common threat.

Source: Presstv

8, April 2020

Ambazonia War of Independence: Unite in Manyu County, Unite the struggle ⁰

Paul Biya’s war on the peaceful people of Southern Cameroons is atrocious and constitutes crime against humanity. Cameroon Concord News Group believes his day in the International Criminal Court will surely arrive and that would be sooner than his ruling CPDM gang expects. On the 12th of February 2020, statistics from the renowned Human Rights Watch revealed that more than 3,000 civilians have been killed with over 679,000 internally displaced.

A Cameroon Concord News Group record indicates that over 321 villages have been burned down by French Cameroun forces and there are more than 800 political prisoners languishing in French Cameroun jails. We of this publication believe that the deliberate silence from the international community is the greatest dereliction of moral duty ever exhibited. Consequently, recent calls by the head of the African Union Commission, Moussa Faki Mahamat for all Africans to commemorate the 26th anniversary of the Rwanda genocide, which claimed over one million lives was seen as a joke within diplomatic circles.

Moussa Faki Mahamat made the plea on Tuesday after the Rwandan government announced last week that the commemoration would take place on April 7 but with limited events and participants due to the global coronavirus outbreak. Correspondingly, the good and courageous people of Southern Cameroons- Ambazonia should keep fighting for their inheritance and freedom for success will surely be theirs in the near future.

Cameroon Concord News Group considers the current Ambazonia governing structure in the Manyu county including a Senate, Congress and a “state government” cumbersome, excessive and ill-advised. The Manyu county leaders have indeed been biting more than they can chew. It takes intelligent people to realize that they made premature decisions but it takes wisdom and humility to reverse them. The time for the people of Manyu to display wisdom and humility has come. To make Manyu ungovernable as well as facilitate the liberation of Ambazonia, the county structure should be simplified with the leader being a County head and assisted by coordinators in Defense, Communication and Health. This abridged structure will be efficient and accountable.

We believe that Sessekou Dr. Peter Ako, the current leader of the Manyu County, has the energy, pedigree and commands the respect within and without the county to continue leading any future streamlined structure during this liberation struggle and all Manyu people of goodwill should support this noble initiative and his leadership. No Manyu citizen should be allowed to derail this revolution in this operationally significant county. Any attempt from individuals within and outside the current structure to repel this positive change would be ruthlessly crushed and severely dealt with!

Sessekou Dr Peter Ako deserves some criticisms over certain decisions last year but overall, his leadership has multiplied and consolidated Manyu County gains and is moving in the right direction at a grim time. What is at stake in Manyu and by extrapolation in the Federal Republic of Ambazonia is four years of sweat, blood and immense sacrifice. Logic must prevail over emotions and egos. Once we get to Buea, the Southern Cameroons Interim Government would create senates and congresses. Success in this struggle requires great ingenuity, organization and cooperation, as well as a strong base in favour of calm and strong leadership including accountability.

A social media emotional rebuttal of this proposal to get Manyu back on track is expected but that would none of Cameroon Concord News Group business. The simple fact is that over the last few weeks, Manyu has stalled in defense operations but this important county can’t afford to start shrinking. True believers who are proud to wear that Ambazonia label must embrace this opportunity and initiative.

Cameroon Concord News and Cameroon Intelligence Report warns any Manyu citizen attempting to experiment bogus and cumbersome administrative and legislative exercises that produces no positive results in the middle of this struggle to stop or face severe consequences. The implementation of democracy and the rule of law can’t and should never be used as an excuse to satisfy the ego. Southern Cameroons is at war!

Paul Biya has already proven his willingness to kill our people in Ambazonia with impunity by giving his marauding and lawless forces carte blanche to implement his criminal orders. Manyu can’t help and abate him with needless wrangling over ill-advice changes in the leadership in the next few months. Any persons who threaten to derail this impending structure at this crucial period will be branded an enemy to the Ambazonian nation and will be treated as such!! To clasp to the drivel of power sharing within LGAs and the sovereignty of an ineffective and ill-advised county senate and congress is a triumph of emotions over logic.

Over the last nine months, some within the Manyu community particularly in the diaspora have blamed the current structures for a lack of progress on the ground, so, the time for change is now.

Isong Asu

London Bureau Chief

7, April 2020

Yaounde: 19-year-old diagnosed with coronavirus gives birth to baby girl ⁰

Doctors in Cameroon helped a 19-year-old, who tested positive for coronavirus, safely deliver a baby girl.

The patient had initially complained about breathing problems but medics at the Central Hospital of Yaoundé kept her in isolation after her result showed she had the virus, Dr. Sone Charles told CNN.

Charles said the teenager, whom authorities have not named, went into premature labor on Saturday night and doctors on duty raced to protect the baby and the mother.

The delivery happened within an hour with no complications, according to Dr. Yaneu Ngaha, who led the team that assisted with the birth.

“It was quite fast. The baby came out and we separated her from the mother, who did not touch the child,” Ngaha said. “We wore protective jackets and the mother also wore a mask.”

The mother and baby are in good condition, Ngaha said.

She added that samples were taken from the baby 14 hours after her delivery and the hospital is awaiting her test results.

“The baby has been transferred to the neonatal unit and kept in an incubator because she is premature, weighing about 2,000 grams. We check her temperature three times per day,” Ngaha told CNN.

Cameroon has reported 650 cases of coronavirus within a month of its first case, according to the World Health Organization.

The spike in cases has been blamed on indiscipline from people with travel history abroad who evaded quarantine, Erick Tandi with the Public Health Emergency Operations Center in Yaounde said.

“When the Minister of Public Health announced, before the closing of borders, that those who have come from abroad within early March should quarantine themselves in their homes — this was not respected fully,” Tandi said.

“That is the result of the community Covid-19 cases we are having now,” he added.

Source: Erie News Now