15, July 2016
Morocco to rejoin the African Union 0
Morocco is reportedly set to rejoin the African Union (AU) after leaving the pan-African organization more than three decades ago. An anonymous diplomatic source told Moroccan newspaper Akhbar al-Youm that the historic move is anticipated to be announced during the 27th AU Summit scheduled to take place in the Rwandan capital, Kigali, on July 17-18.
The source refused to confirm whether King Mohammed VI would attend the upcoming AU summit starting this Sunday. However, it said Moroccan Foreign Minister Salaheddine Mezouar has recently been on a diplomatic trip to several African capitals, including Egypt, Libya, Sudan, Senegal, Tunisia Cameroon, Cote D’ivoire and Ethiopia, to inform them all of Morocco’s decision.
Morocco has access to services available to all AU states, but remains the only African UN member not to be a member of the AU. In recent years, several African officials have urged Rabat to return to its seat at the AU. “Morocco is a fully-fledged member of the African family, and no-one has the right to exclude the Kingdom from the AU,” Senegalese Foreign Minister Mankeur Ndiaye said during King Mohammed’s visit to Senegal in May 2015, adding, “We think that now is the time for Morocco to return to the African Union.”
The AU, which replaced the Organization of African Unity (OAU) in 2001, includes all 54 African states besides Morocco that are members of the United Nations. The country decided to withdraw from the continental organization in 1984 over the union’s decision to accept the self-proclaimed Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) as a formal member. Morocco considers the territory as part of the kingdom and insists its sovereignty cannot be challenged. Morocco annexed the vast, mineral-rich territory of the Western Sahara after Spain withdrew in 1975. It is currently viewed as Morocco’s “southern provinces” and the government continues to carry out multi-million-dollar development projects in the area.
However, neighboring Algeria, like numerous other African countries, recognizes the territory as the SADR, and hosts the headquarters of the Sahrawi liberation movement, the Polisario Front. Morocco has offered wide-ranging autonomy for the region; but the Polisario Front movement, which claims the disputed territory belongs to the ethnic Sahrawis, insists that a referendum be held so that the local population can decide their fate. For decades, the UN has been seeking to hold a referendum on independence for the territory.
Presstv
15, July 2016
Biya’s continued stay in power: CPDM barons disagree on holding early presidential elections 0
A huge political divide has developed inside the presidency of the republic among senior government officials wanting to guarantee Biya’s continued stay in power. Cameroon Concord News has been reliably informed that it is a war between those supporting the holding of early presidential elections before 2018 and the followers of the serene continuation of the current seven-year term so that the election is held on the date as prescribed by the constitution.
Martin Belinga Eboutou, Director of the Civil Cabinet of the Presidency of the Republic, Jacques Fame Ndongo, Minister of Higher Education, Paul Atanga Nji, Minister of Special Duties at the Presidency of the Republic and Henri Eyebe Ayissi, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development are among other personalities supporting a constitutional amendment to shorten the presidential term and call for early general elections.
The group started a trend to please President Biya with multiplying calls claiming that it is the desire of the people to see him stay in power forever. However, some political opinions have indicated it was the head of state that inspired and sponsored the petitions. The followers of a presidential election to be held as scheduled referred to by our informant as the conservative group includes Grégoire Owona, Minister of Labour and Social Security, Martin Mbarga Nguele, Delegate General for National Security, and a good bunch of Beti-Ewondo CPDM members of the Government.
Sama Ernest (Cameroon Concord News Group)