18, October 2016

British bank to close down the accounts of Russian broadcaster RT ⁰

The British bank National Westminster has decided to close down the accounts of the Russian broadcaster RT without offering any explanation.“They’ve closed our accounts in Britain. All our accounts. ‘The decision is not subject to review.’ Praise be to freedom of speech!” the network’s Editor-in-chief Margarita Simonyan said in a tweet on Monday.

In a letter to RT’s London office, NatWest announced that it would no longer count the channel as a client, but stopped short of specifying the reason. “We have recently undertaken a review of your banking arrangements with us and reached the conclusion that we will no longer provide these facilities,” the bank’s letter read, adding that the entire Royal Bank of Scotland Group, which owns NatWest, will never service RT.

NatWest said the decision was final and that it was “not prepared to enter into any discussion in relation to it.”Despite the initial statement, Simonyan wrote in tweet on Tuesday that the both parties had agreed to discuss the issue.

She even joked that the bank may simply blame the whole thing on a “computer glitch” and resume its normal business with the network.

No matter the outcome, the RT press office noted that its UK branch “will continue its operations uninterrupted.” NatWest’s decision elicited angry reactions from Russian MPs, the foreign ministry and human rights officials, who unanimously blasted the British government for violating freedom of the press and exercising double standards. “It seems that freedom of speech is completely lost in Albion’s Russophobic fog,” said Konstantin Dolgov, Russia’s foreign ministry commissioner for human rights.

The backlash was so severe that London weighed in on the issue, denying any role in the bank’s decision. “It’s a matter for the bank and it’s for them to decide who they offer services to based on their own risk appetite,” UK Prime Minister Theresa May’s spokesperson told reporters.

The UK Treasury also insisted that the decision was made independently by the bank. This is not the first time that a network is being subjected to double policies by the British. In 2012, Ofcom, the UK’s communications regulator, banned Press TV’s broadcast in the UK and removed the channel from the Sky platform.

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18, October 2016

Austria: Adolf Hitler’s birth house to be demolish ⁰

The Austrian government says the house where Adolf Hitler was born is to be torn down to stop it from becoming a shrine for neo-Nazis. The mansion will be replaced with a new building that has no association with the Nazi dictator and used by either a charity or the local authorities, according to Interior Minister Wolfgang Sobotka. The property has been empty since 2011 amid a government order for the compulsory purchase of the building in a town on the border with Germany, and a dispute with its owner.

The government this year launched formal legal procedures to dispossess the home’s owner after she had repeatedly refused to sell the building. Now a committee of experts including historians, officials and the head of Austria’s main Jewish organization has recommended that a “thorough architectural rearrangement” be carried out.

The plan still has to be formalized in legislation and voted on in parliament. Austria, which was annexed by Hitler’s Germany in 1938, has confronted its Nazi past far less directly than its larger neighbour. The controversial building draws Nazi sympathizers from around the world, visiting and posing in front of the house with the Hitler salute.

The street where the house is located also witnesses anti-fascist protests annually where demonstrators organize rallies outside the building. The news prompted some residents to call for a refugee centre to be built in place of the building amid an unprecedented influx of refugees fleeing conflict-ridden zones in Africa and the Middle East.

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18, October 2016

Trump says large-scale voter fraud is underway in America ⁰

US Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has repeated his assertion that the 2016 election is rigged, saying a “large-scale voter fraud” is taking place. Over the last week, Trump has intensified his criticism of the American electoral system. He called the election process rigged, and said the media is colluding with Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton in order to beat him.

On Monday, Trump called his party leaders naive for denying the vote rigging. “Of course there is large scale voter fraud happening on and before Election Day,” the GOP nominee tweeted. “Why do Republican leaders deny what is going on? So naive!” he added.

Many Republicans, including House Speaker Paul Ryan, have rejected Trump’s claims, saying such voter fraud is impossible for the November election. They have warned that such allegations could cause unrest.

The White House also denounced Trump’s claim that the presidential election could be “rigged” against him. “Not at all,” White House spokesman Josh Earnest said on Monday when asked whether the Obama administration is concerned the election could be stolen from the Republican nominee.

“The president is very confident in election officials in both parties in states all across the country” to ensure the elections are “conducted freely and fairly,” the spokesman said.

A day earlier, Trump strongly questioned the legitimacy of the US elections, saying that he believed the vote was already being “rigged” at many polling places.

“The election is absolutely being rigged by the dishonest and distorted media pushing Crooked Hillary – but also at many polling places – SAD,” Trump wrote on Twitter on Sunday.

According to a new poll released on Monday, 41 percent of American voters are now saying the 2016 presidential election could be “stolen” from Trump due to widespread voter fraud.

And 73 percent of Republican voters think the election could be stolen from the billionaire businessman, while 17 percent of Democrats agree with the prospect of rigging.

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18, October 2016

Ndop police have arrested a gang smuggling some 600kgs of cannabis from Nigeria to Bamenda. ⁰

Ndop police have arrested a gang smuggling some 600kgs of cannabis from Nigeria to Bamenda. The drug traffickers and their booty were picked up by officers of the public security department. The members of the group were presented to the Senior Divisional Officer for Ngoketunjia, Norbert Valery Kuela.

The prefect of the division prescribed stronger measures to check the phenomenon of drug trafficking. This latest catch revealed the divisional officer was indication that the Cameroon policing establishments were on a high alert. Cameroon Concord News understands that there has been a significant drop in drug smuggling via Ndop to Bamenda.

CRTV

17, October 2016

Yaounde hosting forum on learning and teaching of Mathematics ⁰

Pedagogic Inspectors of Mathematics in the Ministry of Secondary Education have begun a training programme in Yaounde to develop strategies towards inculcating the love for Mathematics in students. Placed under the theme, “Learning and Teaching Mathematics Differently”, the programme to run till 28th October 2016 is aimed at strengthening the content and delivery of Mathematics in secondary schools in the country.

The Secretary of State at the Ministry of Secondary Education in charge of Teachers’ Training, Boniface Bayaola chaired the ceremony to open the session which is being organised with assistance from the African Institute for Mathematical Sciences. The representatives of the Institute indicate the need to change the style of teaching Mathematics and encourage the use of technology for example, the recording of lessons.

Over the years, pedagogic officials proposed the use of cartoons and other images to incite the desire and love for maths especially in little children. This has yielded some positive results. However, much is still desired since students still complain of the long, complicated mathematics problems and the many formulae. The training programme which shall spread over a period of five years is expected to incite the love for Mathematics in about 1.700.000 Cameroonian students.

CRTV

17, October 2016

The United States has been rigging elections for nearly 200 years ⁰

The United States has been rigging elections for nearly 200 years in order to keep anti-establishment candidates away from the White House, says Stephen Lendman, an American writer, journalist and political commentator. According to a new poll released on Monday, 41 percent of American voters are now saying the 2016 presidential election could be “stolen” from Republican nominee Donald Trump due to widespread voter fraud.

And 73 percent of Republican voters think the election could be stolen from the billionaire businessman, while 17 percent of Democrats agree with the prospect of rigging. Over the last week, Trump has intensified his criticism of the American electoral system. He called the election process rigged, and said the media is colluding with Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton in order to beat him.

Lendman told Press TV on Monday that voter fraud in America is not a new phenomenon. “It’s a phenomenon that goes back to the early days of the Republic, and I have written a number of times in my articles.” “I remember an article where I cited elections going back to around 1820 in America – my God almost 200 years ago! – when an election was rigged to ensure that one candidate got into office as president, and the other candidate was defeated,” he added.

The analyst said elections at all levels are rigged in the United States. “In my own city of Chicago the election was rigged to install the current mayor, and then rigged again to see that he was re-elected. So it goes on all levels of government in America.”

“No other country I am aware of meddles in the internal affairs of America in its elections or anything else, and all the claims that America is making about Russia meddling in America’s elections and wanted to influence Trump win over Clinton, all that is a bunch of rubbish. There’s no evidence proving it,” the commentator said.

“Trump is right saying elections are rigged,” he emphasized. Lendman stated that if Clinton wins and Trump loses in November, elections are absolutely rigged “because he sounds like an anti-establishment candidate.” However, he said, “Nobody becomes a billionaire by being anti-establishment. He’s very much part of the establishment, but he’s a little independent-minded based on the things he talks about.”

The US media has launched an offensive against Trump in recent days, running reports of several women claiming the billionaire businessman has groped and forcibly kissed them. Trump has called the allegations “slander and libel” and part of a “concerted, coordinated and vicious attack” launched by Clinton and the news media to destroy his campaign.

Presstv

17, October 2016

Iran to expand relations with African countries ⁰

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani says the expansion of relations with African countries is among the Islamic Republic’s central policies. In a Monday meeting with visiting Ivory Coast Foreign Minister Abdallah Albert Toikeusse Mabri in Tehran, Rouhani expressed Iran’s readiness to enhance cooperation with Yamoussoukro in all fields, particularly in economic areas.

The Iranian chief executive said that the two countries should make use of their capacities to promote relations. Rouhani highlighted the Islamic Republic’s progress in the fields of technology and engineering, saying Tehran is prepared to help the West African nation advance its development projects.

Elsewhere in his remarks, the Iranian president called for collective efforts by all countries to counter terrorism. He describe the terrorism as a “major scourge for the world,” adding that the “terrorists have nothing to do with Islam, which is the religion of love, peace and peaceful coexistence.”

More than17, 000 Iranians have fallen victim to terrorist attacks since the victory of the 1979 Islamic Revolution, said President Rouhani, adding that Iran “will spare no effort” to help those countries seeking assistance and cooperation in their anti-terror fight.

Mabri, in turn, stressed the need for concerted efforts to counter terrorism, saying the growth and prosperity of all countries hinges on the establishment of peace and security. He further voiced his country’s determination to enhance cooperation with the Islamic Republic in all areas, especially in the economic sector.

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17, October 2016

Female Africa Cup of Nations: How prepared is the city of Yaounde? ⁰

Yaoundé is an environmental scandal. Several neighbourhoods in the political capital of Cameroon are now littered with garbage. From Olembe, Messassi, Emana, Etoudi, Manguier, Etoa-Meki, Nkozoa, Mokolo, Mvan, Odza and Obili, garbage has overshadowed all the trash bins and rocked all the pavements, piled up on sidewalks and spilled onto the roadway.

Banana skins and pineapples, plastics, leftovers, packaging of all kinds constitute the filth on which dogs defecate in Yaounde, the nation’s capital. The situation has become more intractable as the mentally ill visit the garbage heaps in search of their daily bread. Breeders seeking to feed their pigs have made these places their favourite homes.

At Etoudi some few meters from the presidency of the republic is a heap of animal entrails that give off strong odour and a sea of flies that usually settle on foodstuffs such as bread retailed in a nearby market. Inhabitants of the capital city are constantly being fed stories of a political dispute between HYSACAM, the company responsible for keeping the city clean and the Yaounde City Council.

Whereas, efforts are being made by British Southern Cameroons mayors of Tiko, Limbe and Buea to keep the cities clean for the Female Africa Cup of Nations, those of Douala and Yaounde are persisting with their “bras de fer” with HYSACAM.

Whosoever is going by that name Government Delegate to the Yaounde City Council should be told that visitors will start coming into our country soon as the female Africa Cup of Nations starts on the 19^th of November.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai with cables from Sama Ernest

17, October 2016

Another baron of the CPDM crime syndicate arrested in Yaounde ⁰

The National Coordinator of the Revenue Securement Programme (PSRR) has been arrested and detained at the Yaounde central prison located in Kondengui. Cameroon Concord News was reliably informed that the arrest was made on the 13^th of October 2016 after Hamadou Yanoussa had a brief interrogation at the Special Criminal Court.

An audit mission initiated by the Minister of Public Works on the 25^th of May 2016 revealed that huge amounts of money collected from truckers at the weighing station at Nomayos at the outskirt of Yaounde, Nkakanzock to Edea, Bekoko, Bonaberi and Njombe-Penja in Mungo were not being paid into the treasury.

The monitoring mission reported the disappearance of 750 million CFA francs. A journalist with a sister publication, Cameroon Intelligence Report noted that 549 million collected from the Nomayos post; 10 million FCFA from Edea; 4.3 million from Njombe-Penja and 165 million from Bekoko were not paid into the national treasury.

The Public Prosecutor of the Special Criminal Court, Justine Aimée Ngounou Tchokonthieu after receiving the complaint from the Public Works minister decided to order the arrest of Hamadou Yanoussa who is also a chartered member of the ruling CPDM crime syndicate. Information also filtered at the time of filing this report that some of his colleagues have been summoned to appear before prosecutors at the Special Criminal Court soon.

By Sama Ernest with files from CIN and Rita Akana

17, October 2016

Syria: French President Francois Hollande says Paris will not change its stance on Moscow ⁰

French President Francois Hollande says Paris will not change its stance on Moscow’s support for the Syrian government, but is willing to discuss the conflict in the country with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“Vladimir Putin does not want to seriously discuss Syria. I am ready at any time, but I will not ease the pressure,” said Hollande during a Sunday interview.

He noted that the subject of the talks would be the halting of anti-terrorist bombing raids, a ceasefire, and the transfer of humanitarian aid. On October 19, a meeting between Putin and Hollande in Paris was canceled after the French president announced he was only willing to talk about the conflict in Syria.

Earlier on Sunday, Putin censured France over its lack of contribution to international efforts aimed at ending the crisis in Syria, saying Paris has not properly responded to Russia’s calls for joint action on Syria.

While noting that “France is not so deeply involved in the settlement of the Syrian conflict,” Putin added that Russia is always prepared to talk about Syria, especially with France.

He also stressed that Putin’s Paris trip was canceled by French authorities who suddenly decided to change the agenda of the trip and raise the issue of Syria.

“We have other issues apart from Syria, we could have discussed other issues,” he said.

Paris-Moscow tensions escalated since Russia vetoed a French resolution at the United Nations Security Council which called for a halt to the bombing of the Syrian city of Aleppo.

Syrian militants fire an anti-aircraft machine gun mounted on a vehicle deploy during clashes in the northern Syrian village of Yahmoul in the Marj Dabiq area north of the embattled city of Aleppo on October 10, 2016.

Putin had accused France of deliberately pushing for the UN proposal to heap pressure on Russia as it knew that Moscow would veto the resolution. He said the move was aimed at “inflaming the situation and fanning hysteria around Russia.” Syria has been gripped by foreign-sponsored militancy over the past five and a half years.

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