Inside Cameroon

Nigerian National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has apprehended Dorothy Onyekasi, a mother of three, for faking pregnancy with 86 pellets of white powdery substance that tested positive for cocaine.

The drug was intercepted during the inward screening of passengers on an Emirates flight from Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE), NDLEA said in a statement.

The cocaine has a total weight of 1.720kg with an estimated street value of N20.6 million naira, spokesman Mitchell Ofoyeju said.

Chairman/Chief Executive of the Agency, Col. Muhammad Mustapha Abdallah (rtd,) has described recent drug seizures at the Lagos airport as a welcome development that is capable of forcing drug cartels to a retreat.

According to Abdallah, “in the past few days, the NDLEA has recorded numerous arrests and drug seizures at the Lagos airport. The drug cartels have also suffered huge losses from these operations. This particular suspect feigned pregnancy with wraps of cocaine but she was caught by vigilant narcotic agents. Some of the suspects recently apprehended concealed drugs in their socks and luggage while others ingested wraps of cocaine in disregard of the danger to their health. In spite of their craftineIn spite of their craftiness, we are daily stopping them from perpetrating their criminal act and forcing them to a retreat”.
NDLEA commander at the Lagos airport, Ahmadu Garba said that the wraps of cocaine would have been easily mistaken for pregnancy. “It was discovered that the suspect kept 86 wraps of cocaine inside a waist bag which was tied to her stomach. Unfortunately, the drug was detected by NDLEA officers on her arrival from Dubai. The drug was immediately packed and weighed in her presence. It had a gross weight of 1.720kgs” Ahmadu stated.

The forty-one year-old mother of three who is an importer of female bags and shoes from Dubai said that her involvement in drug trafficking was a mistake. In her words, “I am a business woman living in Lagos. I am separated from my husband who left me with three children. I used to import female bags and shoes from Dubai. My involvement in drug trafficking is a mistake and I take responsibility for my action. I travelled to Dubai to buy my goods. While I was preparing to return, I met a man in Dubai who gave me the drug and promised to give me enough money to expand my business. He also told me that when I get to Nigeria, he will call his partner to collect the drug and give me my money. When I got here, the drug was detected at the airport and I was arrested. It is all my fault. If only I was contented with the profit from the sales of my goods; I would not have been in this problem”.

Dorothy who hails from Enugu State is a Junior Secondary School certificate holder.
She will be charged to court soon.

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Simon Ateba

16.Apr.2016

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The body of missing Cameroonian student has been found in the woods in Slijk-Ewijk, a small village in Holland in an advanced state of decomposition.

Danielle Isabelle Hebhang left the home of her sister in Bielefeld, Germany, Wednesday, 03/09/2016 and never arrived her own apartment just a few miles in same city.Her body was found in neighbouring Holland almost 2 hours,25 Min drive time. (254,5 km) in the woods and the Police were quick to say there was no foul play.The African community in Germany is grieving with many questions left unanswered. 

What took Danielle to the woods in Holland? Her corpse was found 254 km away from her home address,why was the police so quick to rule out foul play?

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Elangwe Pauline

15.Apr.2016

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The rescue of a two-year-old Nigerian child has attracted extensive social and online media coverage across the world. Abandoned by his family after being accused of being a witch, the boy was saved by an aid worker who found him in Uyo, southeast Nigeria. The boy, known as Hope, is said to have been riddled with worms and had to have daily blood transfusions to be revived.

The unfortunate truth is that Hope is one of only a lucky few who survive the neglect, abuse, and physical and mental health insults that arise from the stigma created by child witch hunting in Nigeria.

Belief in witchcraft is central in Nigerian society - particularly in the Niger Delta region. Researchers have especially focused on my people, the Ibibio of southeastern Nigeria.

Anthropological research has shown how most Ibibio believe that certain people are witches. They argue that, through various supernatural feats, these people impoverish, harm or kill their fellow human beings. Other research shows both urban and rural people in the Ibibio society are entrapped in the deep-rooted fear of witches. It is enshrined in communal consciousness.

Having spent most of my life among the Ibibio in both urban and rural settings, I can bear witness to the truth of these observations. I grew up in Uyo, the town in which Hope was rescued.
Religion and poverty play a role

 Child health researchers, including psychologists, social workers and economists, believe that the stigmatisation of children as witches in Nigeria is a relatively recent phenomenon.

Some research notes the trend has become widespread since the early to mid-1990s. As a result, thousands of children have been accused of being witches. Many have been tortured, or even killed.

Others are subjected to inhumane abuse. They suffer severe beatings, maiming, burns caused by fire, boiling water or acid, poisoning, attempts to bury them alive, abandonment, rape and trafficking. They are denied access to health care and vaccinations. And they are blamed when they become ill and their diseases spread to other members of the family and community.

There are two factors that play a role in child witchcraft being perpetuated in Nigeria: religion and poverty.

One researcher has argued that the religious discourse of the new Christian Pentecostal movement has heightened the belief that child witches exist. The movement generally attributes failure and misfortune to the devil.
Some argue that the religious discourse of the Pentecostal movement may fuel beliefs about child witches.

For some religious leaders there is the lure of economic gain attached to child witchcraft accusations. The purported capacity to deliver people from the power of witches can generate huge earnings for pastor-prophets who engage in deliverance sessions. Research shows that those religious leaders encourage congregants to repeatedly attend church programmes, pay tithes regularly and give offerings and vows, all with the aim of generating more and more income from their followers.

Widespread poverty is another explanatory factor. In 2006 the United Nations Development Programme reported that within the Niger Delta region high rates of poverty and environmental degradation are especially prevalent. 

Researchers argue that poverty and other misfortunes are in many parts of Nigeria attributed to metaphysical causes. As a result, child witches are simply an easy target to blame for the economic misfortunes that befall families and communities in this region.

Interestingly, research notes that the belief in child witchcraft is also considered to be reflected in and perpetuated by Nigerian popular media. Nollywood, the Nigerian movie industry, has been blamed for making films that have played a role in popularising and disseminating the belief in child witches. Many of the older movies were produced by Pentecostal churches.

 
A glimmer of hope

 
Fortunately there has been a turnaround in the past few years. Nigerian Pentecostal churches have started to join the fight against child witchcraft stigmatisation. After a series of meetings promoted by concerned government agencies, several religious and civil liberty organisations are working together to end the trend.

Some are actively helping to create awareness of the issue and mobilise people through sermons, in print media and even through Nollywood. Churches have started to produce movies that highlight the ills of witchcraft accusations, offering hope to victims and their families.

But the case of Hope indicates that there is more to be done.

There is an urgent need for legislative reform to deter future incidents of abuse due to child witchcraft stigmatisation. Nigeria needs laws that prohibit discrimination based on witchcraft beliefs. Even more importantly, the laws need to be effectively enforced so that religious leaders and community members who choose to continue down this treacherous path are brought to book.

Ultimately, it comes down to revitalising the Nigerian economy and bringing people out of poverty. As long as people find it impossible to make ends meet they will continue to look for solutions in the supernatural.

Utibe Effiong

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Utibe Effiong

15.Apr.2016

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The funeral program for late Monique was made known to the public by the family. Monique Koumateke's family decided to organize the funeral of the late on April 30 , nearly 50 days after her death at the hands of negligence at the Laquintini hospital in Douala .

Media coverage of events surrounding the death of Monique Koumateke and her twins had triggered widespread outrage , leading the Ministry of Health to dismiss the director of the hospital in question(Laquintini-Douala) and the introduction of new measures for the treatment of life-threatening emergencies in public hospitals .  

The governor of the Littoral region and the leader of Cameroon's main opposition party-SDF, Ni John Fru Ndi paid courtesy visits to the family home to offer condolences .

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Elangwe Pauline

14.Apr.2016

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On April 6, 2016 over 500 students, teachers, pedagogic inspectors, and other Ministry of Secondary Education officials gathered in the multipurpose hall of the Government Technical High School Bafoussam to witness the first Spelling Bee event in the West Region of Cameroon. Organized by the U.S Embassy in Yaounde, in partnership with the delegation for secondary education, and the Cameroon English Language and Literature Teachers Association (CAMELTA), the Bafoussam Spelling Bee competition brought together 18 candidates from nine public and private schools in eight divisions of the West Region. It took three hours, 11 rounds, and 58 words spelled for Wongibe Bernard Venyujika, a student of the Government Bilingual High School (GBHS) Bafoussam to emerge the champion. During the final of the competition against runner up Nguimfack Njiencheu Darryl from GBHS Mbouda, Bernard Wongibe correctly spelled the winning word: “Rhapsodic.”

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Elangwe Pauline

13.Apr.2016

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The Minister of Social Affairs handed over financial assistance worth 9 Million FCFA to 30 former street children in Yaounde on April 7, 2016.

Activities of the Vulnerable Persons’ Integration and Socio-professional Reintegration Support Programmes were launched in Yaounde on Thursday April 7, 2016. The event saw the handing over of financial support worth 9 Million FCFA to 30 former street children by the Ministry of Social Affairs to enable them begin micro income generating projects.

Minister Pauline Irène Nguene said the socio-economic integration and reintegration of socially vulnerable people is a major priority of her ministry. She called on beneficiaries to be responsible and assured them of continuous psychosocial support from the ministry. She promised that the ministry will continue to liaise with their respective families to ensure successful social reintegration, appealing to stakeholders to support the socio economic inclusion of vulnerable people.  

In a bid to fight juvenile delinquency, the Ministry of Social Affairs and the National Employment Fund (NEF) signed an agreement in 2006 on implementing the Vulnerable Persons’ Integration and Socio-professional Reintegration Support Programmes (PAIRPPEP).

The programme offers socially vulnerable people opportunities for direct integration, training, promotion of self-employed projects, monitoring of projects and training. The Ministry of Social Affairs is targeting 5,000 vulnerable people for the period 2016-2018. The next project will cost 100 Million FCFA.

(CT)

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Elangwe Pauline

12.Apr.2016

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