3, August 2023

SOBA UK ANNUAL RESIDENTIAL CONVENTION: Every Step of the Way ⁰

This year, precisely from the 20th to 22^nd of October 2023, SOBA UK will bring the world together again at Celtic Manor Resort, Newport in Wales.

SOBA UK’s innovation theme has been revealed to both Cameroon Intelligence Report and the Cameroon Concord News.

“Empowering for Success: Unlocking the potential of the boy child” is the theme that will be executed by renowned academics and business leaders. Cameroon Concord News Group is proud to have been invited for this event.

Each year, SOBA UK creates immersive experiences where guests feel like members in the UK House of Lords!! This particular year, guests will feel like Royals!!

We of the Cameroon Concord News Group understand that the exquisite Celtic Manor Resort, nestled amidst the enchanting Coldra Wood in Newport is a model that engages your senses, surprises you throughout the convention, excites you to interact with hands-on activities, and takes down barriers so guests feel comfortable to network with everyone at the event.

As Chairman and Editor-In-Chief of the Concord Group, I have requested our London Bureau to visit the Celtic Manor Resort!! We’ll give you a hint after the visit!!

To this I put my name:

Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai

2, August 2023

Football: Italian legend Gianluigi Buffon retires at 45 ⁰

Gianluigi Buffon announced his retirement from football on Wednesday, bringing down the curtain on a glorious career as one of the world’s greatest ever goalkeepers.

“That’s all folks! You gave me everything. I gave you everything. We did it together,” he posted in English on social media.

Buffon, 45, hangs up his gloves after two final years at Parma, the club where it all began nearly three decades ago when Italian football was Europe’s gold standard.

He had a contract which ran until next summer with Parma but he will no longer be a part of the Serie B club’s bid to return to the top flight after two years away.

Buffon is a symbol of a halcyon age when the best footballers went to play in Serie A and Italy developed dozens of world class players.

The former Italy captain has a record 176 caps for his country while also holding the record for Serie A matches played – 657, stretching back to 1995.

After bursting onto the scene as a 17-year-old, keeping out the likes of George Weah and Roberto Baggio in his Parma debut against AC Milan, Buffon won 27 major trophies.

The majority came over 19 seasons at Juventus, where he won 10 Serie A titles, five Italian Cups, while he also won the UEFA Cup in 1999 for Parma as part of possibly the best team in the club’s history.

He also won Ligue 1 with Paris Saint-Germain in 2019 before returning to Juve, but he will be most fondly remembered for Italy’s victory at the 2006 World Cup.

Buffon was one of the stars as an Azzurri team battered by the ‘Calciopoli’ match-fixing scandal – which would cost him as Juve keeper two league titles – beat France on penalties after knocking out hosts Germany in the semi-finals.

That was the last hurrah for a generation which had made Italy one of the world’s dominant football nations, and as their fortunes slowly declined he suffered the ignominy of two straight group stage exits before bowing out not long after failure to qualify for the 2018 tournament.

Buffon won his last trophy in his final season with Juve two years ago, lifting the Italian Cup alongside Federico Chiesa, 22 years after he triumphed with Parma alongside his teammate’s father Enrico.

‘I shouldn’t have apologised’

However Buffon’s career has also been plagued by scandal, not least consistent rumours that is, or at least once was, a sympathiser of the far-right.

He drew fierce criticism for choosing the number 88, a neo-Nazi code for ‘Heil Hitler’, on his jersey for the 2000-01 season.

Two years before he wore a t-shirt with the neo-fascist slogan ‘Boia chi molla’, which loosely translated means death before surrender, under his kit for a match against Lazio, who have some of Europe’s most hard-right supporters.

He publicly apologised for the t-shirt, claiming he had no idea of the source of the phrase, but in his 2010 book ‘Number One’ he said that he was still shocked at how he was “crucified”.

Buffon also claimed he chose the number 88 because he wasn’t allowed 00, which he wanted to represent “balls”, as a symbol of his comeback from a period out injured, and that 88 was simply four balls.

He changed his number to 77 but in his book he expressed outrage at the criticism he received from Rome’s Jewish Community, saying his only mistake was “being weak”.

“I shouldn’t have apologised and I should have pushed to keep the number I had already chosen,” he said.

Not long after winning the World Cup he was cleared of illegally betting on Serie A matches, allegations which reared their head at the height of the ‘Calciopoli’ scandal.

Source: AFP

2, August 2023

Nigeria cuts electricity to Niger following coup ⁰

Nigeria has cut its electricity supply to Niger after West African neighbours imposed sanctions on the junta that ousted the country’s elected leader last week, a Niger power company source has told AFP.

“Since yesterday, Nigeria has disconnected the high-voltage line transporting electricity to Niger,” a source at Niger’s power company Nigelec said.

Niger depends on Nigeria for 70 percent of its power.

Source: France 24

2, August 2023

Pope Francis arrives in Portugal for World Youth Day ⁰

Pope Francis headed to Portugal on Wednesday to open the first post-pandemic edition of World Youth Day, hoping to inspire the next generation of Catholics.

More than 1 million young people from around the world were expected to attend the gathering in Lisbon, which takes place over several days. Busloads of pilgrims started arriving before Tuesday despite temperatures forecast to hit 35 degrees Celsius (95 degrees Fahrenheit) by the weekend’s final papal Mass.

“Stay hydrated!” read a slogan promoted by the Portugal’s General Directorate for Health for the event. Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa advised youth day volunteers Monday to keep with them “a lot of water, because it’s very hot, and a hat.”

Cardinal-elect Americo Aguiar, a Lisbon bishop who is organizing the festival, said two years of COVID-19 lockdowns made this year’s edition of World Youth Day unique. He said it was an important encounter for Catholic youths, especially with war raging now in Europe and economic uncertainties around the globe.

“The pope always says this event is the joy and the possibility of coming together, of the culture of coming together,” Aguiar said in an interview. “After such limitations and difficulties, young people from all over the world will be able to meet again, with certain freedom.”

Francis arrives Wednesday and is scheduled to spend the morning meeting with Portuguese officials at the Belem National Palace, the official presidential residence west of Lisbon, from where Portugal’s maritime explorers of the 15th and 16th centuries set sail.

In the afternoon, Francis makes his way to the 16th century Jeronimos Monastery and church, arguably Portugal’s greatest monument. There, he is set to meet with the Portuguese Catholic hierarchy, which recently began the process of reckoning with its legacy of clergy sexual abuse.

Meeting with sex abuse survivors

Francis is widely expected to meet in private with abuse survivors this week and could well refer to the problem in his public remarks, as he has done during past foreign trips. Portuguese bishops were widely criticized for their initial response to the findings of an independent commission, which reported in February that at least 4,815 boys and girls were abused in the country since 1950, most of them ages 10-14.

The bishops long insisted there were only a handful of cases, and they initially balked at suspending active members of the clergy who were named in the commission’s report. They also flip-flopped on paying reparations to victims, at first insisting they would only pay if ordered to by court rulings.

The Portuguese Catholic Church also promised in March to build a memorial to victims that would be unveiled during World Youth Day, but organizers scrapped the plan a few weeks ago.

In its place, victims’ advocates have launched a campaign called “This is our memorial” and plan to put up billboards around Lisbon this week reading “4,800+ Children Abused.”

St. John Paul II launched World Youth Day in the 1980s as a way to invigorate the next generation of Catholics in their faith, and the event is returning to European soil for the first time since 2016.

Ukrainian and Russian youths were expected to attend, and the war in Ukraine will likely take center stage Saturday when Francis visits Fatima, the Catholic shrine which for over a century has been associated with an apocalyptic prophecy about peace and Russia.

“I think World Youth Day brings hope, after the pandemic, after being locked down, not able to live our faith as we were used to, as we wished for,” Alfredo Hernandez, a World Youth Day volunteer from Guatemala, said. “The event gives a ray of hope to get out on the streets again.”

Coping with the heatwave

Hot weather could be an issue during the five-day visit, given temperatures in Lisbon are expected to hit 35 C (95 F) on Sunday. Many young people were expected to camp out in the vast, unshaded Tagus Park starting Saturday afternoon, first to participate in an evening vigil and then to be in place Sunday morning for Francis’ final Mass.

Organizers said they installed 32 water tanks with 640 taps for filling water bottles, while the Lisbon City Council says it doubled the number of drinking fountains in the city to around 400.

Registered participants are receiving reusable water bottles and sunhats in their welcome knapsacks, but some were more worried for Francis, given his weakened condition: The 86-year-old Argentine pope was hospitalized for nine days in June to repair a hernia and remove scar tissue from previous intestinal surgeries.

Francis, who travels with a doctor and nurse on his foreign trips, is likely to refer to the heat given his repeated alarm about climate change, including as recently as last week, when he urged action in the face of wildfires ravaging Greece.

“I’m going to pray that he is going to be OK,” Theresa Guettler, a nurse from Florida who is volunteering at the event, said. She recommended that Francis stay hydrated and follow his medical team’s advice. “I trust that he has good doctors and good people taking care of him.”

Source: AP

2, August 2023

US: Trump indicted for efforts to overturn results of 2020 presidential election ⁰

Donald Trump was charged Tuesday in a Justice Department investigation into his efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in the run-up to the violent riot by his supporters at the US Capitol.

The charges include conspiracy to defraud the United States government and witness tampering.

The indictment, the third criminal case brought against the former president as he seeks to reclaim the White House in 2024, follows a long-running federal investigation into schemes by Trump and his allies to subvert the peaceful transfer of power and keep him in office despite a decisive loss to Joe Biden.

Even in a year of rapid-succession legal reckonings for Trump, Tuesday’s criminal case was especially stunning in its allegations that a former president assaulted the underpinnings of democracy in a frantic and ultimately failed effort to cling to power.

Federal prosecutors say Donald Trump was “determined to remain in power” in conspiracies that targeted a “bedrock function of the United States federal government: the nation’s process of collecting, counting and certifying the results of the presidential election.” Trump is due in court on Thursday before US District Judge Tanya Chutkan.

The criminal case comes while Trump leads the field of Republicans vying to capture their party’s presidential nomination. It is sure to be dismissed by the former president and his supporters – and even some of his rivals – as just another politically motivated prosecution. Yet the charges stem from one of the most serious threats to American democracy in modern history.

Refusal to accept loss

They focus on the turbulent two months after the November 2020 election in which Trump refused to accept his loss and spread lies that victory was stolen from him. The turmoil resulted in the US Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021, when Trump loyalists violently broke into the building, attacked police officers and disrupted the congressional counting of electoral votes.

In between the election and the riot, Trump urged local election officials to undo voting results in their states, pressured former Vice President Mike Pence to halt the certification of electoral votes and falsely claimed that the election had been stolen – a notion repeatedly rejected by judges.

The indictment had been expected since Trump said in mid-July that the Justice Department informed him he was a target of its long-running Jan. 6 investigation. A bipartisan House committee that spent months investigating the run-up to the Capitol riot also recommended prosecuting Trump on charges, including aiding an insurrection and obstructing an official proceeding.

The mounting criminal cases against Trump – not to mention multiple civil cases – are unfolding in the heat of the 2024 race. A conviction in this case, or any other, would not prevent Trump from pursuing the White House or serving as president.

In New York, state prosecutors have charged Trump with falsifying business records about a hush money payoff to a porn actor before the 2016 election. The trial begins in late March.

In Florida, the Justice Department has brought more than three dozen felony counts against Trump accusing him of illegally possessing classified documents after leaving the White House and concealing them from the government. The trial begins in late May.

Trial to be held in Washington

The latest federal indictment against Trump focuses heavily on actions taken in Washington, and the trial will be held there, in a courthouse located between the White House he once occupied and the Capitol his supporters once stormed. No trial date has been set.

Prosecutors in Georgia are investigating efforts by Trump and his allies to reverse his election loss to Biden there in 2020. The district attorney of Fulton County is expected to announce a decision on whether to indict the former president in early August.

The investigation of Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election was led by Justice Department special counsel Jack Smith. His team of prosecutors has questioned senior Trump administration officials before a grand jury in Washington, including Pence and top lawyers from the Trump White House.

Rudy Giuliani, a Trump lawyer who pursued post-election legal challenges, spoke voluntarily to prosecutors as part of a proffer agreement, in which a person’s statements can’t be used against them in any future criminal case that is brought.

Prosecutors also interviewed election officials in Georgia, Wisconsin, Michigan and elsewhere who came under pressure from Trump and his associates to change voting results in states won by Biden, a Democrat.

Focal points of the Justice Department’s election meddling investigation included the role played by some of Trump’s lawyers, post-election fundraising, a chaotic December 2020 meeting at the White House in which some Trump aides discussed the possibility of seizing voting machines and the enlistment of fake electors to submit certificates to the National Archives and Congress falsely asserting that Trump, not Biden, had won their states’ votes.

For Trump, this is a witch hunt

Trump has been trying to use the mounting legal troubles to his political advantage, claiming without evidence on social media and at public events that the cases are being driven by Democratic prosecutors out to hurt his 2024 election campaign.

The indictments have helped his campaign raise millions of dollars from supporters, though he raised less after the second than the first, raising questions about whether subsequent charges will have the same impact.

A fundraising committee backing Trump’s candidacy began soliciting contributions just hours after the ex-president revealed he was the focus of the Justice Department’s Jan. 6 investigation, casting it as “just another vicious act of Election Interference on behalf of the Deep State to try and stop the Silent Majority from having a voice in your own country.”

Attorney General Merrick Garland last year appointed Smith, an international war crimes prosecutor who also led the Justice Department’s public corruption section, as special counsel to investigate efforts to undo the 2020 election and Trump’s retention of hundreds of classified documents at his Palm Beach, Florida, home, Mar-a-Lago. Although Trump has derided him as “deranged” and suggested that he is politically motivated, Smith’s past experience includes overseeing significant prosecutions against high-profile Democrats.

The Justice Department’s investigation into the efforts to overturn the 2020 election began well before Smith’s appointment, proceeding alongside separate criminal probes into the Jan. 6 rioters themselves.

More than 1,000 people have been charged in connection with the insurrection, including some with seditious conspiracy.

Source: AP

1, August 2023

Hamburg: Youssoufa Moukoko’s family leave mansion to live in refugee home ⁰

The mother and siblings of Borussia Dortmund youngster, Youssoufa Moukoko, are reportedly residing in a refugee home.

On the field, the Cameroon-born forward holds Bundesliga records as the youngest debutant and scorer, with his age is officially listed as 18.

On a personal note, Moukoko has been dogged by claims of age-cheating and most recently, heartbreaking reports about the current state of his family.

Earlier in the year, a birth certificate was made public from his adoptive father, indicating that he was born in the year 2000 – which would make him much older than 18.

In addition, German newspaper, BILD, has recently released images of Marie Moukoko, aged 35, escorting her son and daughter – who happen to be siblings of the player – to a refugee home on the outskirts of Hamburg.

According to the newspaper, Youssoufa’s family made the move to the refugee home as he ceased to provide financial support for their rent, despite his annual earnings of £5.1 million from Borussia Dortmund.

The report further states the 3,767-square-foot villa, where the family had resided, is now up for sale.

Despite being under the mother’s name and her having six children, the property is being seized due to outstanding debts amounting to £442,277.

Marie declined to criticise her son, per the Daily Star:

“It’s not an issue; he’s still young. After all, I have not just one child, but six children. The municipality found good accommodation for us – that’s all right. And I work too.”

Joseph, the father of the Dortmund prodigy, added:

“Our son no longer supports us. But do you think I would speak badly of him?”

Youssoufa was reportedly born in Yaounde, Cameroon, in November 2004 before moving to live in Germany in 2014.

Source: Sportsbrief

1, August 2023

Cameroon under Biya on path toward collapse, fragmentation ⁰

The Vice President of the Ambazonia Interim Government says the 40-year-old French Cameroun far-right regime’s insistence on pushing ahead with its war in Southern Cameroons-Ambazonia has put Yaoundé on the path to collapse.

Dabney Yerima made the remarks in a Sunday conversation with Cameroon Concord News London Bureau Chief Asu Isong after the 90-year-old President Biya posthumously elevated on Saturday the late SDF Chairman Ni John Fru Ndi to the rank of Grand Cordon of Merit.

“Granting Fru Ndi that honour in a very dusty Southern Cameroons village has been the worst day in the history of the Yaoundé regime,” Yerima said, adding, “This is what puts Biya and his Francophone regime on the path of collapse, fragmentation, and disappearance.”

Dabney Yerima noted that ever since Biya declared war against the people of Southern Cameroons, some 6,000 Cameroon government army soldiers have been killed by Ambazonia Restoration Forces and that the notion of the Biya regime’s invincibility with French support has started to change in French Cameroun.

“La Republique and its backers are now facing a cascade of crises and they are all over Europe begging for money to sustain their criminality, we see that it is on the path toward collapse,” Yerima furthered.

Biya went to Russia to beg as usual, using the Russia-Africa Summit as an excuse or a pretext but left the Russian capital, Moscow, with a bloodshot eye.

Russia may be in need of allies but it does not have money to give to irresponsible governments like the Yaoundé government which has been on a begging spree for decades.

By Ewang Miriam Metchane

1, August 2023

Yaoundé: Women protest Ambazonia war, cost of living ⁰

Hundreds of women and activists marched in the capital of Cameroon Monday, calling for an end to the country’s separatist crisis and for the government to provide more help to reduce the high cost of living. The march coincides with the observance of Pan African Women’s Day.

Several hundred women at a courtyard in the neighborhood of Tsinga listen or sing along with the song “Family Love” by singer Kareyce Fotso.

The song urges families to sincerely love each other and be united as they try to overcome difficulties caused by several crises Cameroon is experiencing.

Anne Anaba, one of the coordinators of Monday’s march, says the women assembled at the courtyard afterward to demand an end to the separatist war in Cameroon’s Northwest and Southwest regions.

The war has killed about 6,000 people and displaced 700,000 others.

The march was also part of activities marking the annual observance of Pan African Women’s Day. The holiday, declared by the African Union, is observed every July 31.

Anaba says poverty and hardships triggered by armed conflicts and unprecedented spikes in commodity prices have impacted families from building foundation stones for solid African societies. She says conflicts kill or displace men from communities and women spend time running for safety instead of teaching children to love, live together in peace and socially develop their communities.

She said women are the most affected by Cameroon’s separatist crisis.

Women and children are also deeply affected by food insecurity along the northern borders with Chad and Nigeria where an Islamist insurgency has left more than 36,000 people dead, and 3 million displaced.

Cameroon women say besides the armed conflicts, they are finding it extremely difficult to cope with the rising prices of goods— which they blame on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The government says since the Russian war began in February 2022, prices of rice, wheat, fuel and fertilizer have increased by between 40 to 60%.

Kiven Juliet, the president of Wheat Farmers in Cameroon’s Center region, says she followed the Russia-Africa summit on July 27 when Russian President Vladimir Putin said Moscow will begin free deliveries of 25,000 to 50,000 tons of grain to some African countries.

But Kiven says Cameroon can ensure sufficiency by growing its food at home.

“I heard during the Russia-Africa summit that Russia will be giving wheat to African countries free of charge, but that is not what we want. Our governments should give subsidies for farmers to buy fertilizers and produce the wheat themselves,” she said.

Marie-Therese Abena Ondoa, Cameroon’s minister of women’s empowerment, says in 2022, President Paul Biya ordered the disbursement of over $15 million to grow wheat in the central African state. She says women who apply will have funding for fertilizer, wheat and rice seeds.

“Women represent an essential agricultural workforce and undeniably contribute to [the] fight against hunger and poverty,” she said. “Women contribute significantly to the stability of life in the countryside and reduce the scale of rural exodus. They take care of their children, are involved in domestic and agricultural works to ensure food and nutrition for families and communities. They are also known for their support of movements for democracy, human rights and peace.”

Biya was among the African leaders who attended the summit in St. Petersburg. He asked Putin to help Africa by increasing investment and canceling debt from loans.

Source: VOA

30, July 2023

Babba II: Biya elevates Fru Ndi to the rank of Grand Cordon of Merit ⁰

John Fru Ndi, the founder of the Social Democratic Front (SDF) was posthumously elevated on Saturday to the rank of Cameroonian Grand Cordon of Merit. This is the highest distinction in the Cameroonian Order of Merit.

The pro French Cameroun Anglophone politician, who passed away on June 12 in Yaoundé, began his final trip on Thursday July 27 and was buried on Saturday in Babba II, his native village near Bamenda.

Great cordon of Cameroonian merit as an honorary distinction was posthumously bestowed upon the Chairman of the SDF. The attributes of this mark of recognition of the Nation were laid on his coffin by Jean Nkuete, personal representative of the Head of State.

Fru Ndi’s funeral was reportedly attended by senior members of the Biya regime including representatives of the diplomatic corps and the business community.

By Ewang Miriam Metchane with files from Fon Lawrence

29, July 2023

2023 SOBA UK Residential Convention: The President’s statement ⁰

2023 SOBA UK ANNUAL RESIDENTIAL CONVENTION LAUNCH

2023 Convention theme: “Empowering for Success: Unlocking the potential of the boy child”

Dear Guest,

We trust that you and your family are well and enjoying the British summer.

We invite you to an unparalleled event of sophistication and compassion—the 2023 SOBA UK Annual Residential Convention. Prepare to be captivated at the exquisite Celtic Manor Resort, nestled amidst the enchanting Coldra Wood in Newport from 20^th to 22^nd October 2023.The Celtic Manor Resort, a true 5-Star Luxury Resort sprawling across 2000 acres of picturesque parkland in the breathtaking Usk Valley, is renowned as the best hotel in the UK for nine out of the last ten years, has hosted the 2014 NATO summit and the 2010 Ryder’s Cup golf tournament. It truly offers the most unique experience and the perfect family getaway in breathtaking surroundings.

The Celtic Manor Resort offers state-of-the-art facilities among them is the award-winning Forum Spa, as well as 5 restaurants and 3 championship golf courses. There are 2 adventure golf courses and the treetop adventure course Forest Jump.

Convention theme

The theme for this year’s Convention, “Empowering for Success: Unlocking the Potential of the Boy Child”, embodies our unwavering dedication to community education and empowerment initiatives. Our heartfelt commitment extends to empowering young boys, paving the way for their journey towards success. This year, our focus lies in empowering students at Sasse College, our beloved Alma Mater, by enhancing their educational resources. Additionally, we aim to provide opportunities for boys in the neighboring Sasse village and Tole village communities, enabling them to pursue a quality higher education and turn their dreams into reality. To accomplish these noble aspirations, we humbly seek your generous support. We wholeheartedly invite you to join us at the gala dinner on Saturday, October 21, 2023, where your presence and contribution will make an immeasurable impact. Together, let’s empower the boy child, ignite their potential, and create a brighter future for all.

Family-friendly convention

We appreciate that our guests are bringing their families along to the convention and we seek to lighten the responsibility of parents in keeping our children engaged.

We have allowed free time on the Saturday 21^st October up to 4pm for Sobans to spend quality time with their families and friends at the grounds engaging in any of the numerous outdoor activities for children and adults.As before, we maintain our Annual General Assembly Meeting off the convention premises, to take place a week prior to the convention via Zoom.
We will also be making available a nanny service (for a fee to paid for prior to arrival at the venue) on the Saturday night whilst parents attend the convention ball at the Caernarfon Suite.Please note your place is reserved upon booking prior to Saturday, 21 October 2023.

Ticket price

SOBA UK has accomplished the extraordinary by providing an unparalleled 5-Star experience at an astonishingly affordable early-bird price of £100 for a standard ticket until August 31st, 2023. After this date, the ticket price will revert to £125, reflecting the true value of the event. Our early-bird offer ensures that the ticket cost remains consistent with last year’s rate, despite the enhanced offerings this year. Don’t miss out on this exceptional opportunity! Secure your place at the early-bird price before August 31st.

Hotel rooms

There are numerous options at, and near to the resort for you to book your stay for the weekend. Rooms can be booked directly with the resort via their website: https://www.celtic-manor.com. We encourage guests to book their stay as soon as possible to avoid the inevitable price hikes nearer to the event date.

The Events Management team looks forward to welcoming you to the 2023 convention. We encourage you to buy your tickets as soon as possible and take advantage of the early-bird offer.

Join us at The Celtic Manor Resort for an unforgettable experience where luxury and philanthropy intertwine.

Kind regards,

Franklin Egbe

President, SOBA UK

On behalf of the SOBA UK Events Management team

Contacts:Obale: +44(0)7540977896 Atem: +44(0)7766757376