20, March 2023
Brenda Biya Eyenga sued for defamation by singer Dencia 0
A Cameroonian singer is suing a daughter of the president of the plaintiff’s native African country, alleging in a multimillion- dollar complaint that the defendant and her friend defamed her on the social media in 2021 by accusing her of dealing drugs and being involved in identity theft and fraud.
Singer Dencia, whose real name is Reprudentia Sonkey, brought the Van Nuys Superior Court lawsuit on Wednesday against Anastasie Brenda Biya Eyenga, the daughter of Cameroon President Paul Biya, and a friend of Eyenga, Marie Therese Yabit. The complaint also alleges civil harassment and both intentional and negligent infliction of emotional distress.
“Defendants’ baseless smears succeeded in backlashing at (Dencia) and destroying her professional career,” the suit states.
Dencia seeks at least $75 million in damages. Representatives for Eyenga and Yabit could not be immediately reached for comment on the suit brought Wednesday, which the Thousand Oaks resident filed on her own behalf without an attorney.
In addition to being an entertainer, Dencia has created several skin care and clothing brands, set up various businesses and founded the skin care brand “Whitenicious by Dencia,” of which she was the president and CEO, the suit states.
Her companies flourished due to her reputation as a popular Cameroonian singer and trustworthy entrepreneur in skin care products, the suit states.
In July 2015, Dencia was contacted by Eyenga’s public relations manager, who told the plaintiff that Eyenga, who eventually moved to Beverly Hills, admired her work and wanted her help in producing a photo shoot and in setting up her own brand, the suit states.
“During the years that followed, both (Dencia) and Eyenga maintained a cordial relationship,” the suit states. “They would both make text exchanges on a regularly basis.”
Eyenga returned to Cameroon in 2019 and the two lost contact, the suit states. In June 2021, Dencia was preparing to go to Cameroon the next month in the company of other musicians, including rapper Trey Songz, when a representative for Eyenga allegedly contacted the plaintiff about a birthday engagement and performing at Eyenga’s new hotel.
Eyenga asked Dencia for help getting her Instagram account certified, the suit states. But in a subsequent dispute, Eyenga accused Dencia of creating a fake account and trying to impersonate her, even though the plaintiff explained she was preoccupied with the death of her sister from cancer and could not help Eyenga get her account certified as the plaintiff had hoped, the suit states.
Eyenga, allegedly with Yabit’s help, accused Dencia on social media of identity theft and of being a “scammer” and a “fraudster,” the suit states.
“The news quickly made a media buzz about (Dencia) based on Eyenga’s allegations,” the suit states. “(Dencia’s) reputation was being trampled on by the daughter of the president of the Republic of Cameroon in a totally unjustified way.”
Dencia’s companies suffered losses and the stature she worked hard to establish has been damaged, causing her emotional distress, according to her suit, which further seeks a court order preventing any more allegedly defamatory postings.
Source: City News Service
20, March 2023
Scramble For Africa: Gunmen kill 9 Chinese at mine in Central African Republic 0
Gunmen stormed a Chinese-operated gold mining site that had recently been launched in Central African Republic, killing nine Chinese nationals and wounding two others Sunday, authorities said.
However, the rebel coalition initially blamed by some for the attack put out a statement later in the day. Without providing evidence, it accused Russian mercenaries from the Wagner Group of being behind the violence.
The attack early Sunday came just days after gunmen kidnapped three Chinese nationals in the country’s west near the border with Cameroon, prompting President Faustin Archange Touadera to plan a trip to China in a bid to reassure investors.
The assault on the Chimbolo gold mine began around 5 a.m. when the gunmen overpowered the site’s guards and opened fire, said Abel Matipata, mayor of the nearby town of Bambari, located 25 kilometers (16 miles) away. The mining site’s launch had taken place just days earlier, he added.
The bodies of the victims were brought to the capital, Bangui, later Sunday. Local authorities said they were pursuing the assailants, but declined further comment. Residents said that the violence was the latest incident undermining confidence in security forces.
“The government is having difficulty proving its ability to protect Central Africans and foreigners living in the country,” said Ange Morel Gbatangue, a resident of Bambari.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility, but suspicion fell on the Coalition of Patriots for Change, or CPC, which is active in the area and regularly launches attacks on the country’s armed forces. The alliance of rebel groups is aligned with former President Francois Bozize.
Anselme Bangue, who supports the current president’s administration, called the attack on Chinese businessmen an act of “indescribable cowardice.”
“The CPC has not only slowed down the country’s economic momentum, but is now attacking the foundation of development. This is unacceptable,” Bangue said.
However, CPC military spokesman Mamadou Koura said those allegations were false. He claimed without evidence that Russian mercenaries had planned the attack “with the goal of scaring Chinese who have been present long before the Russians settled in this part of the country.”
The shadowy Russian mercenary group was hired by Touadera to provide security and military training, but has been accused by U.N. observers of committing human rights abuses including massacres.
Central African Republic remains one of the poorest countries in the world despite its vast mineral wealth of gold and diamonds among others. A myriad of rebel groups have operated with impunity across the embattled country over the past decade, thwarting mining exploration by foreign companies.
Many of those now operating in the country are Chinese-run and have faced security challenges. In 2020, two Chinese nationals died when local residents led an uprising against a Chinese-operated mine in Sosso Nakombo. And in 2018, three Chinese citizens were killed by angry community members after a local leader died in a boating accident while accompanying Chinese miners to a site.
Source: ABC News