Politics
The Anglophone Civil Society Consortium has reacted to recent happenings in the ongoing strike action in the English-speaking regions of Cameroon. They have condemned the declarations of government spokesman, the tyranic administration of the South West Governor and Fako SDO, desperate attempts by the VC of UB to get some key SYNES members arrested as well as the illegal arrest of a graduate in Douala.
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- Rita Akana
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According toIssa Tchiroma Bakary,the leader of the Social Democratic Front worked for a return to calm in the Northwest and South-West Regions.In its December 13, 2016 issue of the daily newspaper Le Jour, Minister of Communications (MINCOM) Isa Tchiroma Bakary suggested that Ni John Fru Ndi, the leader of the Social Democratic Front (SDF), is one of the “statesmen” who worked to restore calm in the English-speaking Regions.
Today, they are emerging, little by little, manymood swings that have been accompanied by numerous violence and repression decried by public opinion. The newspaper surprised by the MINCOM’s congratulations to the leader of the first opposition political party in Cameroon, in this same edition, wonders whether “the SDF and the power of Yaounde work hand in hand in these times of anglophone demands” .A question that arises from the fact that the SDF and the Government so far have had quite divergent positions. First point of divergence: the idea of Ni John Fru Ndi on the establishment of federalism in Cameroon.
“The subject was declared taboo by the Government. And Issa Tchiroma Bakary reiterated this position during its press conference last December 10,“the paper said.It should be added that the MINCOM then explained that the return to federalism is “in total dislocation with the founding principle of our Republic that is our national unity“.Another point of divergence between the Government and John Fru Ndi that the daily paper raises is the question of the so-called anglophone problem. One recalls that the president of the SDF had declared that “the Anglophone problem is real in Cameroon“. Yet the members of the Government in all their statements have always indicated that they do not exist.
The newspaper in its analysis notes that there is however in these congratulations “the underlying question about the stakes of the political transactions that could exist between the power of Yaounde and the main opposition party which is an undeniable force in the Anglophone Regions“of Cameroon.
MP Joshua Osih of the SDF, met by the daily,said that there is no rapprochement between the political formation and the Government: “we are an opposition force and will not do the work of the Government in its place. The Government can consult our political agenda and if it does not understand, we can always provide it with insights, “he said.
Cameroontoday
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- Rita Akana
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Mwalimu George Ngwane, renowned writer and notorious Pan Africanist who is equally a Chevening, common wealth, Rotary and United Nations minority rights fellow in Geneva, Switzerland has in an interview granted to Cameroon Concord proposed that the best solution to the ongoing crisis in Anglophone Cameroon is to conduct a referendum.
The scholar opined that while some Anglophones are for independence others are for the institution of a federal government and in a bid to ensure that every one is given the chance to choose among the two, a referendum like that conducted in 1961 when West Cameron became a state should be carried out in Camerroon.
Speaking earlier this week in Buea, George Ngwane who is executive director of the Pan African Association, AFRICAphonie and author of over seven books including “The Cameroon condition”, “The Mungo Bridge” and “Settling Dispute in Africa” among others explained that in the near future a referendum could just be the best way as it will help Cameroonians of the English Speaking expression who for over two months now have been on strike to decide their faith.
His words “…now the question is, would most Anglophones prefer a federalist structure or go for an outright independence? But I think the way to either of them can only through a referendum and now it is incumbent of the powers that be or the policy makers to understand that there is a possibility of creating a referendum like it was done in 1961 and 1972 when West Cameroon state was destroyed.
Therefore there is a possibility of also doing a referendum in the years ahead for Anglophones to equally decide their future within or without Cameroon” Commenting on the aching silence of the Etundi resident, which has been on everyone’s lips lately, George Ngwane who aside publishing his own newspaper equally writes and acts as an editor for numerous international magazines and newspapers was categorical that “anyone who is used to President Paul Biya will not be surprised that he is silent but that does not speak well because the more you keep silent the more the issues escalate and I would say that his silent has further radicalized the position of those who were moderate.” “When I return from the United Nation some weeks ago, one of the items I wrote in one of the papers that its time Biya makes a public statement about the Anglophone problem, something he has never ever done since he became head of state. It is time to address the Anglophone problem as a separate problem that beset Cameroonians” To him, the consequences of the strike action are deeper that the government thinks and not only will it take Anglophones a long time to bounce back especially as all sectors of the economy is affected but he fears that is nothing is done urgently more havoc will plague the two English speaking regions of Cameroon.
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- Amos Fofung in Buea
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Gambian President Yahya Jammeh's ruling party challenged his defeat in a Dec. 1 election at the Supreme Court on Tuesday as West African leaders failed to reach a deal that would see him accept the result and end a deepening political crisis.
Soldiers also seized the headquarters of the national elections commission and sealed it off just hours before the mediation delegation representing regional bloc ECOWAS touched down in the tiny riverside nation.
Jammeh, who has ruled Gambia since taking power in a 1994 coup and is accused of widespread rights abuses, initially conceded defeat to his main challenger, Adama Barrow. But in a dramatic about-face that drew international condemnation he then rejected the poll results last Friday.
The legal petition filed by the Alliance for Patriotic Reorientation and Construction now raises the prospect that Barrow's narrow victory, which was poised to end years of Jammeh's autocratic rule, may be overturned.
"The petition prays that it be determined that the said Adama Barrow was not duly elected or returned as president and that the said election was void," read the text of the document submitted to the court and seen by Reuters.
Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, a Nobel peace laureate, led the ECOWAS delegation that also included Nigeria's Muhammadu Buhari, Sierra Leone's Ernest Bai Koroma and Ghana's John Mahama, who lost an election last week and conceded defeat.
"It is not time for a deal. It is not something that can happen in one day. It is something that we have to work on," Johnson Sirleaf said as the presidents prepared to leave Gambia.
Regional leaders will discuss the crisis at an ECOWAS summit in Nigeria on Saturday, she said, adding Jammeh had given her assurances that peace and stability would be preserved.
But in an apparent sign that Jammeh was further entrenching his position, security forces seized control of the Independent Electoral Commission headquarters, which holds the original poll records.
"The military came to my office and said I am not to touch anything and told me to leave," said commission chairman Alieu Momarr Njai. "I am worried for my safety."
Reuters
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- Rita Akana
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Cameroon's Minister of Communication says that Government can't dialogue with the SCNC until they constitute themselves into a political party. Issa Tchiroma Bakary was speaking in Yaounde Saturday as he gave government's position on the upheavals in the English-speaking regions of the country.
Reacting to a question, from Kini Nsom, journalist at The Post newspaper and member of the National Press Card Commission, he reiterated that the SCNC is an illegal movement and can't discuss with Biya unless they operate under a legalised political platform.
Tchiroma strongly condemned the recent hoisting of the Ambazonian flag in Bamenda and later Kumba. Promising a harsh dose of sanctions on scape goats. "Perpetrators of the protests will face the rigor of the law and receive the rightly deserved punishment for the abuses .The state will leave no stone unturned to keep the laws of the republic. The government will fulfill its mission of protecting the population, property and guarantee freedom of movement of citizens. " he warned.
The former critic, now disciple of the Biya regime mocked recent calls for a return to federalism by angry Anglophones, qualifying it as "Secessionist."
The communication minister also promised to track down social media activists who "derail" public opinion. "The state will do everything in its power with support of friendly countries to search, arrest and take to court those who are misinforming, inciting hatred on social media." he hammered.
While expressing the sympathy of the head of state to families whose closed ones were shot in Bamenda, the songbird backed the trigger happy soldiers for, "handling the street protest professionally and with strict respect for human rights."
Tchiroma also said the head of state has not given a deaf ear to the demands of the striking lawyers and teachers and that proper solutions will be reached to put the situation under control. He maintains that, "there is no Anglophone problem."
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- Rita Akana
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The President of the Cameroon Peoples Party, CPP has lashed out at government for its recklessness resulting in the death of people in Bamenda. Edith Kah Walla has blamed administrative and security forces for not banning the CPDM party in a city that has "expressed its rejection of the current government."
FULL STATEMENT HERE IN:
STOP THE KILLING IN #BAMENDA !
Today, live bullets were fired on the youth of Bamenda as they took to the streets to protest the holding of a CPDM rally in their town.
The reason for political parties declaring meetings in Cameroon is to enable the forces of law and order to determine whether the security situation will allow the meeting to hold without risk to human beings.
Everyday in this country opposition parties are told they cannot hold their meetings because hey might trouble public order (trouble à l'ordre public).
Are you meaning to tell me that when the CPDM decided to hold its meeting in #Bamenda at this very moment when #Bamenda has loudly and clearly expressed its rejection of the current government;
The divisional officer, the senior divisional officer, the governor, the heads of different armed forces branches, the President of the Republic who happens to be the president of that particular party, NOBODY, not one of these people could imagine that with #Bamenda being in the state it is, having this meeting was not a good idea?
Since yesterday, #Bamenda Boys were circulating messages on social media that they would not stand for a CPDM Unity March in their town, still no one thought that this political party's meeting should be cancelled?
Would any opposition party have been allowed to hold a meeting, not to talk of a march in these conditions? Why oh why has our government lost all of its senses?!?!
It would be amusing, were it not for the fact that those children lying on the ground are our children, not theirs.
It would be amusing were it not for the fact that this government has pushed people to the edge to the point where a significant number want leave the union.
It would be amusing were it not for the fact that this is our lives, the lives of our children, our present our future.
We are not amused.
Today more than ever, we must stand in solidarity with the anglophone regions. Francophones must stand up and cry out against the state murder of our children, leaders must stand up, join hands and take whatever action necessary to stop this killing.
Reports from Bamenda talk of 5, 6, 10, 16 dead. Whatever the actual figure it is too many. We cannot stand by and watch. We must take action. We must come together and put an end to the killing of our children.
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- Peter Nsoesie
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# Paul Biya and his regime
Explore the political landscape of Cameroon under the rule of Paul Biya, the longest-serving president in Africa who has been in power since 1982. Our Paul Biya and his regime section examines the policies, actions, and controversies of his government, as well as the opposition movements, civil society groups, and international actors that challenge or support his leadership. You'll also find profiles, interviews, and opinions on the key figures and events that shape the political dynamics of Cameroon.
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