The comptroller of the Taraba State Command of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), Halid Usman Kwa, has asserted that the upsurge in the number of refugees in Taraba State is a direct consequence of the ongoing crisis in the Ambazonian region of neighbouring Cameroon.

During a meeting with Rev. Fr. Anthony Bature, the founder of the Foundation for Peace, Hope, and Conflict Management (FPHCM), Kwa highlighted the social challenges arising from the presence of these refugees in host communities.

According to him: “The influx of refugees in Taraba is due to the Ambazonian crisis in neighbouring Cameroon, specifically in Sardauna, Takum, and Kurmi. The presence of these refugees has reportedly led to social challenges in their host communities.”

Expressing the commitment of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) to address the complex issues surrounding migration and the well-being of displaced populations in Taraba State, Kwa emphasised the necessity for collaboration with the Foundation for Peace, Hope, and Conflict Management.

The comptroller shed light on the intricate nature of migration, citing factors such as economic prosperity, safety, conflicts, and natural disasters as major contributors. He underscored the importance of a coordinated effort to navigate these challenges.

Rev. Fr. Anthony Bature echoed the foundation’s dedication to ensuring the safety of migrants and explored avenues for civil society organisations to positively impact the lives of the vulnerable population.

Calling for a robust partnership between FPHCM, NIS, and the government, Bature emphasised the need to address the multifaceted challenges faced by migrants.

Source: Daily Post

The United Nations called Thursday for the swift release of at least 10 civilians abducted during a deadly attack this week on a village in Cameroon, which is being blamed on Southern Cameroons Restoration Forces.

Cameroon’s primarily English-speaking Northwest and Southwest regions have been gripped by conflict since separatists declared independence in 2017.

That followed decades of grievances over perceived discrimination by the country’s French-speaking majority.

Armed anglophone separatists killed nine villagers early Tuesday in western Cameroon, the scene of seven years of unrest, local officials said.

“We deplore the November 21 attack on Bamenyam market in western Cameroon in which nine civilians were killed. Those responsible must be held to account,” UN rights office spokesman Seif Magango said in a statement.

“Suspected armed separatist fighters from the English-speaking Northwest region stormed the market in the French-speaking Bamboutos area, shooting randomly and setting businesses on fire. They also abducted at least 10 civilians and looted property.

“Attacks against civilians are unacceptable. We call for the prompt release of all those abducted, and for thorough, impartial, and independent investigations into all attacks on civilians with a view to ensuring justice and accountability.”

Cameroon’s state television said the dead included a woman, adding that two security guards were wounded in a gun battle.

Magango noted that it was the second major attack by armed groups this month, after at least 25 civilians were reportedly killed in Egbekaw village in western Cameroon on November 6.

“Thousands of civilians have been killed, injured, or displaced since the crisis began,” he added.

Both the separatists and government forces have been accused of atrocities in the years of fighting.

Armed groups are regularly accused of abducting, killing or injuring civilians whom they accuse of collaborating with Cameroonian authorities.

Security forces are also often accused by international NGOs and the UN of killings and torture against civilians suspected of sympathising with the rebels.

In July, Amnesty International reported that security forces, separatist rebels and ethnic militiamen had committed “atrocities” in the Northwest region, including executions, torture and rape.

President Paul Biya, 90, who has ruled Cameroon with an iron fist for 41 years, has resisted calls for wider autonomy and responded with a crackdown.

The conflict has claimed more than 6,000 lives and forced more than a million people to flee their homes, according to the International Crisis Group.

Source: AFP

The Vice President of the Ambazonia Interim Government Dabney Yerima says he is confident that Southern Cameroons Restoration Forces will emerge victorious in their journey to Buea and that the French Cameroun regime even after Biya will suffer a decisive defeat.

Dabney Yerima made the remarks in a meeting with members of the Southern Cameroons Department of Foreign Affairs in Den Hague on Tuesday, during which they discussed the latest Ambazonia attack deep inside French Cameroun’s West region.

Yerima hailed the resistance of people in Ground Zero and hinted that support will soon resume from the Southern Cameroons diaspora to Amba fighters in various fronts.

Professor Carlson Anyangwe, for his part, outlined diplomatic efforts and consultations over recent months about possible ways to help Southern Cameroons women and children in the Federal Republic of Nigeria and in the rural areas of the Ambazonian homeland.

Anyangwe said nothing has come out of the Canadian peace initiative and no agreement has been reached between the Francophone government in Yaoundé and the Ambazonia Interim Government leaders in the Maximum Security Prison in Kondengui.

The Den Hague meeting also focused on possible future events in French Cameroun amid speculation that the 90-year-old dictator is on his way out.

By Chi Prudence Asong

Armed anglophone separatists early Tuesday killed nine villagers in western Cameroon, the scene of seven years of unrest, officials said.

Cameroon’s primarily English-speaking Northwest and Southwest regions have been gripped by conflict since separatists declared independence in 2017.

That followed decades of grievances over perceived discrimination by the country’s francophone majority.

“There are nine dead,” David Dibango, local prefect for the West Region department of Bamboutos, told local radio after the raid on the village of Bamenyam.

The West region borders the restive Northwest.

A police officer confirmed the toll to AFP and blamed “secessionists” who he said had “entered the village on motorcycles the night before”.

“They circulated a message asking the population to remain indoors the following day but those who were not aware of the warning and ventured out became the victims of secessionists,” he added.

Cameroon’s state television said the dead included a woman, adding that two security guards were wounded in a gunbattle. It said the attackers torched several shops.

A local association, the Development Committee of Bamenyam, said three shopkeepers, including an octogenarian, were killed.

Both the separatists and government forces have been accused of atrocities in the fighting.

Armed groups are regularly accused of abducting, killing or injuring civilians whom they accuse of collaborating with Cameroonian authorities.

Security forces are also often accused by international NGOs and the United Nations of killings and torture against civilians suspected of sympathising with the rebels.

In July, Amnesty International reported that security forces, separatist rebels and ethnic militiamen had committed “atrocities” in the Northwest Region, including executions, torture and rape.

President Paul Biya, 90, who has ruled Cameroon with an iron fist for 41 years, has resisted calls for wider autonomy and responded with a crackdown.

The conflict has claimed more than 6,000 lives and forced more than a million people to flee their homes, according to the International Crisis Group.

Source: AFP

Professor Carlson Anyangwe has said that the French Cameroun military is openly attacking health centers and academic establishments in Southern Cameroons under pathetic excuses, stressing that recent assaults on Egbekaw in Mamfe the chief town in Manyu Division reflect the Francophone spirit of vengeance.

Anyangwe told Cameroon Intelligence Report that a number of French Cameroun officials have said that all this carnage and barbaric actions being carried out in Southern Cameroons by Francophone army soldiers have one main objective, which is subjugation.

The much respected Southern Cameroons academic pointed out that the 90-year-old French Cameroun dictator and his gang are trying to say that the cost of demanding Ambazonia right as an independent nation is very high.

Anyangwe furthered that the French Cameroun military considers every home and every family in Southern Cameroons to be a legitimate target.

By Chi Prudence Asong

Ngaoundéré notables have written to Prime Minister Joseph Dion Ngute calling on the Head of Government to dismiss the Lamido of Ngaoundéré from his royal duties following several rape allegations and adultery including sleeping with minors.

The royals also stated in their letter dated November 9, 2023 and signed by Ibrahima Saidou, on behalf of all the members of the Royal Court that failure to act against Mohamadou Hayatou Issa, the Lamido of Ngaoundéré will allow the traditional ruler to continue to offend and to victimise young girls.

The Lamidat of Ngaoundéré is one of the most important of the three northern regions. Located in the heart of the capital of the Adamaoua Region, it was founded in 1839 by Chief Ndjobdi of Foulbé. The reigning Lamido was elected from among the members of the ruling family. He is the 18th Lamido in the dynasty and has been in office since 1997.

Cameroon Intelligence Report gathered that there are up to 35 minors who have been subject to a range of offences including multiple rapes by Lamido Mohamadou Hayatou Issa.

According to our chief correspondent in Ngaoundéré, the Lamido’s reckless actions have been ongoing ever since he ascended the throne.

The Prime Minister’s office recently admitted that Dr Dion Ngute is facing growing pressure to launch an investigation into the matter.

A prominent Muslim scholar contacted by this reporter who sued for anonymity, said it was of utmost importance that the deeply concerning and extremely serious allegations against the Lamido were thoroughly investigated by the Government.

“The allegations in the letter from the notables are deeply disturbing to read. Nobody is above the law” he stated.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai with files

The exiled leader of the Ambazonia Interim Government says restoration forces had no role in the recent attack by an armed group in Egbekaw Village in Manyu Division.

“The armed groups in both the Northern and Southern Zones of the Federal Republic of Ambazonia that are attacking pro French Cameroun interests, are making their own decisions,” Dabney Yerima told Cameroon Concord News during a telephone conversation on Wednesday.

Pointing to the Biya regime’s genocide against the people of Southern Cameroons over the past 7 years, Dabney Yerima expressed the Interim Government’s strong opposition to attacks on civilians and kidnappings in the Ambazonian homeland.

“We really didn’t want this war of liberation to affect our people in Ground Zero. But Biya and his criminal gang have been intensifying military operations in Southern Cameroons,” the Ambazonian Vice President emphasized.

Dabney Yerima dismissed allegations that the Interim Government was responsible for the attack in Egbekaw Village in Mamfe.

“Other restoration groups make their own decisions and act independently,” Dabney Yerima said.

By Toto Roland Motuba

Biya’s forty-one year rule has been very chaotic. It has been a mixture of ineptitude and wilful incompetence and chaos. Yaoundé has collapsed and the Editor-in-Chief of the Cameroon Intelligence Report is having a terrible feeling about the political disaster.

Citing two senior intelligence sources familiar with the current situation in Yaoundé, Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai noted that the 90-year-old Biya is longer in charge of state affairs.

Soter Agbaw-Ebai revealed during an editorial meeting that he has obtained evidence from people who asked not to be named indicating that Biya is now a thing of the past.

“Biya’s kinsmen from his Beti-Bulu extraction are crippling the state” said one of the people who spoke to Agbaw-Ebai.

Agbaw-Ebai observed that two security officials in Yaoundé have shared intelligence with him on Biya’s health.

Speaking during the meeting, Agbaw-Ebai said the situation in Gabon has sent worrying signals to the gang in Yaoundé that has been pushing for Franck Biya to succeed the father.

“Even the security apparatus of the state is fed up with the many constitutional, legal and electoral changes before and after every elections and the creation of 40 new political parties recently is making matters more intractable” Agbaw-Ebai furthered.

“All the changes being designed to give the Biya family an advantage in the succession process will crash” Agbaw-Ebai concluded.

By Toto Roland Motuba