3, August 2017

Motor officer killed during Bishop Bala funeral procession ⁰

The funeral procession carrying the body of the late Bishop Jean Marie Benoit Bala of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Bafia, to the eponymous city was involved in a serious road accident.

According to information provided by concordant community and security sources, a motorcyclist charged with securing the convoy of transporting the remains to Bafia violently hit a Toyota Corolla vehicle that approached the procession from Efok.

The injured in the vehicle were taken to the emergency ward of the Obala hospital while the rider of the motorcycle who was seriously injured, was driven urgently to the general hospital in Yaoundé from where he was pronounced dead.

By Sama Ernest
Cameroon Concord News Group

3, August 2017

Southern Cameroons Revolution: Ministers Laurent Esso, Lejuene Mbella Mbella en route to Brussels ⁰

To counter the Southern Cameroons resistance movement that is gaining more and more grounds at home and abroad, the French Cameroun dictator Paul Biya has launched a major offensive in the countries that are hosting powerful international organizations.

The Biya Francophone Beti Ewondo regime has decided to send a ministerial delegation to Belgium, precisely in Brussels, the capital of the European Union (EU), to meet on Saturday 05 August 2017 from 3pm in the ACP Secretariat room At 451 Avenue Georges Henri, 1200 Brussels, the Cameroonian Community residing in Belgium.

According to a press release published by the Embassy of the Republic of Cameroon in Brussels, to provide the Cameroonian community with clarifications on the situation in Southern Cameroons, a delegation will leave Yaoundé and is made up of three personalities namely Tanyitiku Enoh Achuo, attaché in the services of the Prime Minister, Lejeune Mbella Mbella Minister of External Relations and Laurent Esso the Minister of Justice who has also been appointed as head of the mission.

This delegation is the second that the Biya regime, in power for more than three decades has sent out of the country for the same mission. The first, headed by a pro Biya comedian, Paul Mingo Ghogomu, is scheduled to meet today Thursday, August 03 in New York, USA at the headquarters of the United Nations (UN).

For a week in Uncle Sam’s country, this delegation will try to present the Francophone government’s version of the Southern Cameroons revolution and the measures taken by the CPDM authorities to put an end to the demands of their Anglophone compatriots.

By Chi Prudence Asong
Cameroon Concord News Group

2, August 2017

Cameroon/Nigeria clash: FIFA names refs ⁰

FIFA has released appointments of officials for the Match days 3 and 4 of the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifying race (Africa series), with Egyptian top official Gehad Grisha and respected Gambian Papa Gassama to take charge of the two potentially –explosive encounters between Nigeria’s Super Eagles and the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon.

Grisha, full name Gehad Zaghloul Ibrahim Selim Grisha, has been designated to be at the centre for the big clash between the reigning African champions and the three –time African champions in Uyo on Friday, 1st September 2017, to be assisted by Redouane Achik (Moroccan, Assistant Referee 1), Waleed Ahmed Ali (Sudanese, Assistant Referee 2) and Mahmoud Zakaria Mohamed (Egyptian, Fourth Official). Former FIFA referee Felix Onias Tangawarima from Zimbabwe has been assigned as Referee Assessor, with Congolese Jean Médard Kossa as Match Commissioner. The match will start at 5pm Nigeria time at the Godswill Akpabio Stadium.

For the return leg scheduled for the Ahmadou Ahidjo stadium in Yaoundé on Monday, 4th September 2017, Papa Bakary Gassama will be at the centre, to be assisted by Jean Claude Birumushahu (Burundian, Assistant Referee 1), Aden Marwa Range (Kenyan, Assistant Referee 2) and Maudo Jallo (Gambian, Fourth Official). Jerome Kelvyn Damon, a former FIFA referee from South Africa, will be Referee Assessor, while Sudanese Osama Ataaelmanan Hassan will be Match Commissioner. The match starts at 6pm Cameroon time.

Source: Vanguard

2, August 2017

Bishop Bala Funeral: Biya regime deploys heavily armed soldiers to Bafia ⁰

Troops from the Rapid Intervention Battalion, BIR have been deployed to Bafia for the funeral ceremony of the late Bishop Jean Marie Benoit Bala. The late Bishop started his last journey yesterday evening with prayers, meditation and religious rites.

The decision to send soldiers to Bafia was made when information filtered that some Christians of the Bafia Diocese were preparing a violent anti government demonstration to demand a clear explanation on the killing of the Prelate.

Meanwhile, there has been a slight modification in the original program made by the Diocese. The new program certainly from Douala indicates that the funeral convoy will make a stop at the Sanaga Bridge, where the Late Bishop’s car was parked, with the alleged suicide note “I am in the water”.

The new program below reads:

Today Wednesday 2nd August 2017

Removal of the Corpse from the Yaounde General Hospital Mortuary at 9 a.m

Mass at the Our Lady of Victory Cathedral in Yaounde

Departure for Bafia

Arrival of the remains of the Prelate at the Ebebda Bridge via Balamba and Ombessa

Arrival at the entrance of Bafia town in a slowdown funeral procession

Laying in state at the Bafia Cathedral

First mass at 6 p.m. Mass after every three hours (9 p.m, midnight, 3 a.m and 6a.m)
Tomorrow Thursday 3rd August 2017

Requiem mass at 10 a.m
Burial

Source: Cameroon Info.Net

2, August 2017

US: Staff removal shows chaos in Trump administration ⁰

US President Donald Trump has dismissed his recently appointed communications director, Anthony Scaramucci. The abrupt removal of the controversial figure after some 10 days of a crude verbal tirade against other senior staff indicates the tensions rising within Trump’s inner circle. Brent Budowsky, columnist of The Hill, believes the recent staff removal shows that there is “chaos” in Trump’s administration, adding that his presidency is in “big trouble.”

“So what you have is a sequence of firings and removals – the national security adviser, the White House chief of staff, the communications director, the press secretary, there have been a lot of them,” he said.

The analyst further praised the appointment of John F. Kelly as the White House Chief of Staff, expressing hope that he will succeed in bringing back some order out of the chaos and imposing some discipline that would be very valuable and helpful to Trump and to the United States.

He also opined that Anthony Scaramucci was an “absolute epic disaster” as communications director, reasoning that attacking other people in the White House as he did with former chief of staff, Reince Priebus, is not acceptable.

This file photo taken on July 21, 2017 shows Anthony Scaramucci, former White House communications director during a press briefing at the White House in Washington, DC. (Photo by AFP)

Elsewhere in his remarks, Budowsky noted that Washington generally has a problem with conflict of interests, asserting that Trump is taking it to “new epic heights” which is going to get him in a lot of trouble.

He also emphasized that the Trump administration should stop attacking former Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton all the time, arguing that what it is doing right now is “wrong and silly”. The analyst concluded by saying that America’s political system is “dysfunctional”, stating that the American people in large numbers have rejected Trump politically and that they want change now.

However, Sameera Khan, the other panelist on the program, maintained that what is actually in chaos is the mainstream media which creates “an absolute frenzy” whenever the president fires one of his staff members. She also noted that the media as well as the Democratic elites want to portray Trump as “uniquely nefarious” which is the reason why they focus mostly on personality rather than policy positions.

The analyst further criticized the removal of Scaramucci, arguing that he was dismissed from the administration because of being a loud mouth, not his problematic policy positions. According to the analyst, the “US political discourse has been reduced to celebrity gossip” and that the basis of media coverage is not pro-facts or pro-objectivity.

Culled from Presstv

2, August 2017

Yaounde: Canada to improve relations with French Cameroun ⁰

Canada is committed to strengthening bilateral relations in all domains with La Republique du Cameroun especially at the level of the economy. This was highlighted at a press conference on the 31st of July 2017 in Yaoundé. The Canadian High Commissioner to Cameroun, Rene Cremose and the Africa Vice President of Afrique Expansion, Beatrice Bediang invited French Cameroun businessmen to be part of the Afrique Expansion Forum, a Canadian networking platform for investment in Africa.

The forum that sits every two years is in its 8th edition and will feature great names from the international and national business communities and has been slated for the 2nd to the 3rd October 2017 in Montreal – Canada. The Canadian High Commissioner and his team explained that the event will serve in revealing La Republique’s potential while showcasing the French Cameroun’s potentials.

For his part, Afrique Expansion’s Investment Adviser, Georges Meka Abessolo explained that the forum will focus on 19 sectors of the economy including agriculture, mining, transport, ICTs, infrastructure, energy and insurance. The Afrique Expansion representative also revealed that this year’s event will be exceptional as it will examine the digital economy which is one area, the Biya Francophone regime is interested in.

Bilateral relations between French Cameroun and Canada is limited only to Canadian business interest in the small Sub Saharan country especially as Canada is involved in projects like the renovation and expansion of the Douala Japoma Stadium and its annex as well as other sports facilities in the country.

Source: CRTV

1, August 2017

Madagascar: Bus crash kills at least 34 ⁰

At least 34 people died when a bus carrying young Christian worshippers plunged down a steep ravine in central Madagascar, police and hospital officials said Tuesday.

Police said 12 badly burned bodies were counted at the site, 70 kilometers (45 miles) north of the capital Antananarivo. Hospitals said that 22 other deaths had been confirmed after the late-night crash.

“The bus struggled to climb a road on a hill and fell down a ravine about 20 meters deep,” police spokesman Herilalatiana Andrianarisaona told AFP. “It caught fire after rolling several times.”

The main hospital in the capital Antananarivo said it had accounted for 18 dead, while a hospital in the town of Ankazobe bear the crash scene reported four dead. Passengers on the packed bus were travelling from the central town of Soavinandriana to a church meeting in the north-western coastal port city of Mahajanga when the accident occurred.

(Source: AFP)

1, August 2017

Biya sends special team to help fight Southern Cameroons at the UN ⁰

Following the visit of the interim leader of Southern Cameroons to the Republic of South Africa and the successful briefing of the UN by Southern Cameroons human rights activists, a French Cameroun delegation is expected in New York this month to counter the offensive. Confirming the decision made by President Biya, the Prime Minister’s office made public a press release that was sent to the Cameroon embassy in the US detailing the mission of the French Cameroun team.

The delegation is composed of Professor Ghogomu Paul Mingo, Minister without portfolio attached to the prime minister’s office, Prof. Elvis Ngolle Ngolle, former Minister and head of the so-called ruling CPDM academic think tank and Prof. Fabien Nkot, Technical Adviser to Prime Minister Philemon Yang. The communique also stated that the men will stay from the 3rd of August to the 9th 2017 in New York.

In a bid to cover up the war crimes committed against the people of Southern Cameroons ever since the revolution started, the Francophone delegation comprised two prominent Anglophones who are serving the regime and have all their investments in Yaoundé. During the mission, the Cameroon government officials will play a similar role like those of the KNDP 1961 delegation and will prospect and strengthen links with the UN as a one and indivisible Cameroon.

The mission is led by Ghogomu Paul Mingo who is wanted in Southern Cameroons on charges of rapes, extra judicial killings and arrests orchestrated by the Francophone dominated army in West Cameroon main counties including Buea, Kumba, Bamenda, Jakiri, Kumbo and Wum. While in the US, the delegation from La Republique is also expected to meet with the CPDM Section executive for North America to reactivate their party there against an increasing backdrop of an upsurge in the numbers of Anglophones joining the secessionist movement.

In his latest address to Southern Cameroonians, the interim leader of the Southern Cameroons Ambazonia Governing Council, Sisiku Ayuk Tabe noted that the journey to the restoration of the independence of our nation is in full gear. The leader said “We have heard your voices from Australia, China, Europe, Americas and Africa. We are very encouraged by the enormous show of support and solidarity from our people back home. We want you all to be reassured that we are in this journey together until we get to Buea, in a country that we will call our own.”

By Chi Prudence Asong
Cameroon Concord News

1, August 2017

The looting of Cameroon: Catastrophic revelations puts GM of CNPS in jeopardy ⁰

A French Cameroun newspaper La Tribune de l’Est Economie that recently reported on the salary situation of the current general manager of the National Social Insurance Fund CNPS, Noel Alain Olivier Mekulu Mvondo Akame has again made public disturbing revelations on the matter.

After threats against the publisher, Chantal Roger Tuile that reportedly came from the management of the CNPS, the newspaper does not seem intimidated. With additional new information on the monthly earnings of the boss of the National Social Insurance Fund, the paper opined in its lead story released on Monday, July 31, 2017 that “Biya’s nephews are running the country dry.”

The weekly in the first stanza of the report published a quote attributed to the general manager of CNPS. “I am the nephew of the Head of State. My name is Mekulu Mvondo, and everyone knows that the head of state’s father was called Mvondo. I’ll have Tuilé and all his acolytes shut up. My friends in the National Communications Council will dissolve La Tribune de l’Est Economie as they did with the other newspapers that were bothering us. People don’t mess around with me … Who are these Tuilés even? Are they stronger than the Roman Catholic bishops? His days on earth are numbered.”

The paper which announced earlier that the general manager of CNPS had a monthly salary of 11 million CFA francs has now revealed that instead of 11 million, the GM of CNPS has a monthly salary of 23 million. The newspaper also added that 200,000 francs have been allocated for the GMs water bills, 400,000 frs for electricity, 400,000 for the “telephone-Internet-Cable” section, and 900,000 for fuel.

The housing allowance amounts to CFAF 1,125,000 and the cost of sovereignty amounts to 16,700,000. La Tribune de l’Est Economie stated that “it is necessary to add to all this, the sum of 35 thousand for the “Health insurance, home management about 3 million, the mansion 7 million two hundred thousand, GM home furnishings and equipment, 40 million, two vehicles 100 million, installation premium 8 million.”

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai with files from Cameroon Info.Net

1, August 2017

North Korea can hit most of US ⁰

North Korea’s missiles are capable of hitting targets across most of the United States, American intelligence officials claim, citing evidence from Pyongyang’s latest missile test. North Korea test-launched a Hwasong-14 ballistic missile on Saturday, calling it a “stern warning” to the US that it would not be safe if it resorts to military action.

The consensus in Washington is that the Hwasong-14 in many ways resembled an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) and proved the North’s ability to hit targets on American soil, Reuters reported Monday, citing two US intelligence officials.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, the officials said the missile’s 47-minute flight time was indicative of a greater range compared to another missile that was tested on July 4^th, which flew 39 minutes.

This picture taken on July 4, 2017 and released by North Korea shows an intercontinental ballistic missile reportedly capable of reaching the US. (Photo by AFP)

The Hwasong-14 also made use of force stabilizing engines that gave it greater height, range and power by deflecting the effects of winds and other forces that could knock it off course while ascending. The Pentagon says the missile’s trajectory, although not direct enough to reach the US, showed that it had the potential.

In a press briefing, Pentagon spokesman Navy Captain Jeff Davis refused to reveal the US military’s assessment but confirmed that the missile could fly at least 5,500 km (3,420 miles), the minimum range for what the Pentagon classifies as an ICBM.

“You could have the debate back and forth of whether the capability is proven or not, the fact of the matter is we take it seriously and we are prepared to defend against (it),” he noted. Last month, the United Nations Security Council imposed a fresh array of sanctions on Pyongyang in response to a number of missile tests carried out this year.

Source: Presstv