News

30, October 2016

Another accident disrupts the flow of traffic on the Yaounde-Douala Highway ⁰

Another major accident on the Douala-Yaoundé highway has once again prevented the flow of traffic between the two main cities in the country. Cameroon Concord News gathered that the accident occurred late yesterday Saturday the 29^th of October 2016 some 15 km after Boumnyebel.

This new disruption of traffic on the Yaoundé-Douala comes only a week after the collapse of the pavement in Mányai that completely cut off movement on the Yaoundé-Douala axis and caused the train accident in Eseka.

A tractor-trailer carrying a container from Douala and heading to Yaoundé spilled across the width of the road. The accident involved a long plug of several kilometers and traffic was interrupted for four hours. At the time of filing this report only small vehicles were allowed to circulate.

By Sama Ernest

29, October 2016

Nigeria: Things fall apart for former first lady Patience Jonathan ¹

Cameroon Concord News has learned that things are not looking good for Patience Jonathan, former first lady of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

After the freezing of her bank accounts, there are reports that financial crime experts have begun listing and confiscating material assets belonging to Patience Jonathan. Nigeria’s anti-corruption body, the EFCC has ordered detectives to identify the houses and property belonging to Patience in cities like Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt and Yenagoa.

Pending the outcome of this action, a federal court in Lagos has fixed the 7^th of December 2016 as the date to hear the complaint filed by Mrs. Jonathan for her bank accounts to be unfrozen. She is also asking the government of Nigeria to pay her the sum of 200 million dollars in damages for violating her rights.

By Chi Prudence Asong

29, October 2016

Nigeria: Two bomb explosions kills nine ⁰

Two bomb explosions, blamed on the Boko Haram terrorist group, have killed at least nine people and injured 24 others in Nigeria’s northeastern restive province of Borno, officials say. The almost simultaneous blasts rocked the provincial capital, Maiduguri, at around 0600 GMT on Saturday, said military spokesman Colonel Mustapha Anka in a statement released in the wake of the deadly incidents.

In the first attack, he added, a female bomber, detonated her explosive vest in front of the Bakasi camp, set up for internally displaced persons (IDP), on the outskirts of the city, killing five men and injuring 11 women. The second explosion, which claimed the lives of four people, occurred about one kilometer away from the first one, when a tricycle taxi was exploded outside a fuel depot of state oil firm NNPC, when the driver failed to enter the facility, Anka further said.

He added that the bomber was following a fuel tanker “with the sole aim of gaining entry to cause maximum damage and casualty.” The spokesman for the National Emergency Management Agency, Sani Datta, said nine bodies, including those of the bombers, were recovered from the blast sites. The wounded were taken to nearby hospitals, she added. The Bakasi camp is home to some 16,000 refugees, who fled Boko Haram’s reign of terror.

Boko Haram started its campaign in 2009 with the aim of toppling the Nigerian government. The terror group later expanded its activities to the neighboring countries of Cameroon, Chad and Niger. These countries have, in return, stepped up counter-offensives in the form of unilateral operations or contributing to a multinational force against the militant group.

The group has pledged allegiance to the Daesh Takfiri terrorist group, which is mainly operating in Iraq and Syria. Many blame corrupt officials in the Nigerian government and army for the continued militancy, as recent reports say Boko Haram is receiving some of its arms and ammunition from corrupt Nigerian officials. Boko Haram terrorists have so far killed more than 20,000 people and forced over 2.7 million others from their homes.

Presstv

29, October 2016

Chadian Leader in Yaounde to comfort the Cameroonian people ⁰

President Biya has thanked his Chadian counterpart and Chairman of the African Union for coming to comfort the Cameroonian people after the railway accident that shocked the entire nation. The Chadian leader Idriss Deby Itno paid a 48 hour visit to Cameroon on Friday, October 28, 2016.

The two heads of State met head-to-head at the Unity Palace during a dinner offered by the presidential couple. Paul Biya thanked Deby for his presence after the tragic train accident on the 21^st of October at Eséka. Said Biya, “As soon as you were informed of the rail disaster in my country, you sent us the condolences of the Chadian people and those of the people of the African continent in your capacity as Chairman of the African Union. This tragedy, this disaster, this event, shocked the entire Cameroonian people. Many of our compatriots have died … So many others were wounded.”

Biya added that “in addition to your message of condolence, you wanted to come in person today to bring us the comfort of your friendship. Thank you, Mr. President and dear brother. It is in trouble, they say, that one recognizes his true friends.”

President Biya did not miss the opportunity to magnify the relations linking the two countries in Central Africa. “These links are based on woven relations in history, between two neighboring peoples who have much in common. In the latest period, these relationships have shown that when the safety or even the existence of our country was threatened, we were able together to face and reverse the common enemy.” President Deby will leave Cameroon today, October 29, 2016.

By Sama Ernest

29, October 2016

Eseka train disaster: Biya comes under attack for not appointing a broader commission ⁰

Dr. Christopher Fomunyoh has called on the CPDM government dominated commission to publish its findings on the October 21, 2016 Eséka tragedy immediately. The man widely believed to be the only credible challenger to the 83 year old Cameroonian dictator, made the appeal at the Yaoundé Central Hospital on October 28, 2016 as he donated blood to those badly wounded in the train crash.

The winner of The Guardian Post Awards 2015 told news reporters that he considered his gesture a patriotic act: “I came to donate blood, which is an act of citizenship in the sense of our solidarity towards our compatriots who are now survivors,” said Dr. Christopher Fomunyoh.

Dr Fomunyoh added that the Cameroonian people were waiting for the truth about the accident. He criticized President Biya for not appointing a broader commission with independent personalities and religious authorities.

By Ebong Kingsley

28, October 2016

UNICEF has negotiated the release of 876 children held in detention by Nigerian government forces ⁰

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has negotiated the release of scores of children held in detention by Nigerian government forces for their possible association with the Boko Haram Takfiri militants. UNICEF’s Manuel Fontaine said after visiting the capital city of the northeastern state of Borno on Friday that “876 children had been held in the barracks in Maiduguri.”

It was not immediately clear how long they had been detained, but the army routinely keeps close tabs on civilians who have been living in areas that had been under the control of the militants on suspicion that they too might be linked to terrorist activities. Rights groups say there is no proper legal process for such civilians, including the children, since they do not get formally charged and some end up in so-called rehabilitation centers, which the groups say have lots of resemblance to prisons.

The United Nations insists that children should not be kept in detention. “We fear that there are still kids who are being at least temporarily detained because they are being released from Boko Haram areas by the army but then kept for a while,” Fontaine, UNICEF’S regional director for Western and Central Africa, told reporters by telephone. He gave no details of the ages of the children or how long they had been held at the barracks.

Meanwhile, despite the government’s fight against the militants, the security situation remains volatile in Borno and its capital Maiduguri because Boko Haram still stages terrorist attacks and bombings, often using women or teenagers for the attacks. Fontaine also said the conflict, which has killed thousands and displaced more than two million, had separated about 20,000 children from their parents, of which 5,000 had since been reunited with their families.

“Once we get children out, there is a major issue of stigmatization in the communities,” Fontaine said. “There is a sense that children who have been associated with Boko Haram for a while, could be, and in some cases we have some evidence, are rejected by community and people around them.”

This was also a problem for the girls freed from the town of Chibok, he said. Nigeria this month negotiated the release of 21 of more than 200 girls Boko Haram kidnapped in April 2014. Boko Haram started its campaign of militancy in 2009 with the aim of toppling the central government in Nigeria. The group has pledged allegiance to the Daesh Takfiri terrorists.

Presstv

28, October 2016

President Idriss Deby of Chad expected in Yaounde ⁰

The President of the Republic of Chad and current Chairman of the African Union, Idriss Deby Itno will begin a two day state visit to Cameroon today Friday the 28^th of October 2016.The Chadian dictator is expected in Yaounde at about 3:00pm local time.

President Idriss Deby will be received at the Nsimalen International airport by his Cameroonian counterpart Paul Biya. The two men will have a brief discussion at the Hilton Hotel in Yaounde.

Idriss Deby Itno and Biya will have a tete a tete at the Unity Palace at 5:00pm.Chad and Cameroon are neighbouring countries that share strong bilateral ties. Both countries are currently combating the terrorist group Boko Haram. The Chad – Cameroon pipeline project remains concrete example of the brotherly ties that both countries share. The Idriss Deby visit ends on Saturday.

CRTV

27, October 2016

2 babies who survived the Eseka train crash reunited with their Dad ⁰

Two babies who survived the Eseka Train crash have been reunited with their biological dad. Mamadou Apraw, the father of the kids came and duly presented authentic documentation that linked him to the children but according to administrative procedures, he had to wait a little longer.

Apraw was surprise to find out that the two children were alive and that gave him a reason to smile even in pain and sorrow following the death of his wife who unfortunately was among the over 76 deaths.

The native of the Far North Region based in Douala, has been authorized to reunite with his children at the Regional Delegation of Social Affairs in the Littoral Region. His emotional testimony on National television on Wednesday the 26^th of October 2016 was a kind of good news to Cameroonians even as the nation is still in a state of shock and disbelief.

CRTV

27, October 2016

Disgraced former general manager of SIC, Giles Roger Belinga in hospital ⁰

Cameroon-info.net has reported that the former general manager of the Cameroon Real Estate Company, SIC was rushed to the Yaounde General Hospital after he suffered a stroke. The disgraced Giles Roger Belinga has been in intensive care at the Yaounde General Hospital for almost a week.

Ever since he was imprisoned, family sources say his health has deteriorated. He was arrested by agents of Operation Sparrow hawk and was sentenced to 35 years in prison and ordered to pay the sum of 3 billion FCFA to the State of Cameroon, on the 27^th of September 2007.

After an appeal, his sentence and fine were reduced to 20 years in prison and 233 million FCFA respectively. He again lodged another appeal with the Supreme Court which was subsequently referred back to the Special Criminal Court.

Arrested on February the 26th, 2006, Giles Roger Belinga is being held in a cell at the Secretariat for Defence in the gendarmerie headquarters in Yaoundé. He was charged with embezzlement of public funds.

By Chi Prudence Asong

27, October 2016

UK: May facing growing criticism over her comments about Brexit ⁰

British Prime Minister Theresa May is facing growing criticism over her comments about Brexit at a leaked private speech to Goldman Sachs. The premier, who has publicly made the case for a hard Brexit following a June referendum, speaks of the “benefits” of being an EU member in the hour-long session, whose audio file was leaked to the Guardian on Tuesday night, drawing harsh criticism on Wednesday.

“I think the economic arguments are clear. I think being part of a 500 million [population] trading bloc is significant for us. I think, as I was saying to you a little earlier, that one of the issues is that a lot of people will invest here in the UK because it is the UK in Europe,” she is heard saying. “If we were not in Europe, I think there would be firms and companies who would be looking to say, do they need to develop a mainland Europe presence rather than a UK presence? So I think there are definite benefits for us in economic terms.”

The leader of the rival Labour Party, Jeremy Corbyn, attacked the prime minister for having failed to address her own concerns about leaving the European Union. Corbyn has previously been calling on the Tory-held government for a clear plan to exit the bloc.

A video grab from footage broadcast by the UK Parliament’s Parliamentary Recording Unit (PRU) shows British opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn (R) as he responds during Prime Minister’s Questions (PMQs) in the House of Commons in London on October 12, 2016. (Photo by AFP)

“The prime minister has given her private views on Brexit to Goldman Sachs bankers, but refuses to give the British people a clear plan for negotiations,” said the Labour leader. “It shouldn’t take a leaked tape for the public to find out what she really thinks.”

The former Labour leader and leading member of the Open Britain campaign group, Ed Miliband, also reacted to the comments, saying, the leaked comments prove that May shares the concerns of all the Britons on Brexit. “If private warnings are to be matched by proper public debate, it is essential that the government is not allowed to hoard vital analysis of the impact on our economy of leaving the single market. This work is being done in government and it must now be published,” he said, asserting that May’s comments “demonstrated that the prime minister was just as worried privately as the rest of us are publicly about the economic impact of the hard, destructive Brexit her government seems set on.”

According to the Guardian, the audio file was leaked as May was “prioritizing cutting immigration over staying in the single market, while refusing to elaborate any further on her plans for taking the UK out of the EU.”

British Foreign Minister Boris Johnson leaves the weekly cabinet meeting at 10 Downing Street in London on October 25, 2016. (Photo by AFP)

In an unpublished newspaper column written before the June 23 referendum for the Telegraph, UK Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs Boris Johnson, who is another Leave campaigner in the public, also defended remaining an EU member.

“This is a market on our doorstep, ready for further exploitation by British firms. The membership fee seems rather small for all that access. Why are we so determined to turn our back on it?” he wrote, calling the EU a “boon for the world and for Europe.”

Presstv