Politics

This picture represents just about 2 percent of the very long Kumba-Mamfe-Ekok road. Those travelling this road from Kumba are giving early pictures. These are early pictures. A lot of work is still to be done. Most parts of the road remains in the usual style we know of. The sad thing is that the corpse of Prof Agbor Tabi might not be able to be transported through this road. It will surely go through Bamenda. By every indication, the corpse will be beaten by the road before it arrives his village.

We are told this project funding comes from so many sources with the government providing a very small chunk of its funds. While this is good for a start, the government must start thinking of making double lane roads if Cameroon must emerge. It would also lead to less accidents. Recall that once this road is completed, Kumba, which used to be the economic capital of Southern Cameroons might regain it lost status and competes with Douala.

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Mark Bareta

05.May.2016

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Father George Nkeze has declared that if he was made Bishop of the newly created Kumba diocese, he will be killed. He made the declaration in an extensive interview with the Sun newspaper. It should be recalled that prior to the creation of Kumba diocese, priests in Buea Diocese were largely fragmented in two or three different Camps: Bishop Bushu/Nkeze camp Vs Anti-Nkeze camp (a camp which thinks Father Nkeze has lorded over the Bishop) Vs the traditional/liberal camp. This also fragmented the Buea Diocese Christians and parishioners into pro and anti Nkeze camps.

Information were rife that Father George Nkeze could be named the Bishop of Kumba Diocese. His Holiness Pope Francis went instead for an outsider. Father Nkeze just confirmed that his life would have been in danger if he was appointed Bishop.

I am a bit saddened that even as I write some priests in the Diocese of Buea do not greet each other. Some could not even stand the sight of others. Some have resulted in white collar scamming (BaretaNews had earlier written on this and would bring this later). God should bless and protect our priests.

Information reaching BaretaNews say most of the so called recalcitrant priests have been transferred and would remain under Kumba Diocese probably sanctifying Buea Diocese again.

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Mark Bareta

04.May.2016

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Cameroon’s First Lady, Mrs Chantal Biya and the Wife of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Mrs Aisha Muhammadu Buhari, yesterday, May 3, 2016, at the office of Mrs Buhari had a get-together which was termed “Family Reunion”. During the meeting that lasted over two hours, Mrs Buhari told her sister from Cameroon whom she was meeting for the first time that Mrs Chantal Biya’s fourth sojourn in Nigeria will be the best time she has ever spent in Nigeria. As the women shared niceties, it was an opportunity for both First Ladies to talk about their common vision which is that of accelerating ongoing efforts to improve the living standards of their compatriots, end preventable maternal, newborn and adolescent deaths through advocacy and humanitarian actions.

The meeting which was meant to take place between Mrs Chantal Biya and Mrs Aisha Buhari turned out to be a family gathering between African sisters. Besides both First Ladies, there was the wife of the Vice President of Nigeria, wives of Nigeria State governors, former female deputy governors, former female ministers, party women leaders, female politician and business women. These women came from across Nigeria not only to welcome their sister from Cameroon, Mrs Chantal Biya, but also to express their joy of having her amongst them while ensuring that she enjoys her stay in Abuja. The women told their sister from Cameroon to feel at home and discuss whatever she had in mind.

A visibly happy Chantal Biya told the women how happy she was to be treated to such an exceptional welcome. To Mrs Chantal Biya, it was some kind of a family encounter which she appreciated so much. “Thanks for the hospitality. I am very happy,” Mrs Biya told her Nigerian sisters. Mrs Buhari, on her part, said although the Constitution does not have a specific role attached to a First Lady, as First Ladies, they have to established activities that will have an impact on the population. She noted that the humanitarian services they carry out as First Ladies are out to build a bridge between the government and the people in a bid to construct a stronger nation. While mentioning the remarkable job Mrs Chantal Biya is doing in terms of humanitarian works in Cameroon and Africa, through her Foundation, the Circle of Friends of Cameroon (CERAC), African Synergy Against AIDs and Suffering, Mrs Buhari said through her Foundation called “Future Assured”, she too is determined to use her privileged position to become an advocacy champion for raising attention and resources necessary to make a difference to improve health outcomes for mothers and children.

The Wife of the President of Nigeria hoped that her meeting with Cameroon’s First Lady will create a platform through which they will build stronger humanitarian works for the benefit of their compatriots. As she thanked Mrs Biya for her visit, Mrs Buhari wished that they could start establishing common humanitarian goals. The meeting which ended with merrymaking was graced with an exchange of gifts between both First Ladies.

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Elangwe Pauline

04.May.2016

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Yves Michel Fotso, the former General Manager of the defunct national carrier, Cameroon Airlines, Camair, will probably go down in the annals of the Special Criminal Court in Yaounde as the first accused to receive two life sentences in less than a week. After being sentenced to life imprisonment on April 25, 2016, for embezzling 32.4 billion FCFA in Phase II of the two corruption trials before the court, he was again slammed another life sentence on April 29, 2016, in Phase I of the trial. This time around, Fotso was accused of embezzling over 10 billion FCFA between 2000 and 2002. 

Yves Michel Fotso and all five of his counsel were absent in court, having decided last February not to attend any more hearings, alleging deliberate attempts by court officials to prevent them from having a fair hearing. Delivering the ruling, the leader of the trial team, Mr. Justice Francis Claude Moukouri, ordered the confiscation of about 12 of Michel Fosto's frozen accounts in both local and foreign banks. He is also to pay 9 billion FCFA to the State as compensation for losses caused by the embezzlement, and 958 million FCFA as the cost of the trial.

Cameroon Tribune

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Elangwe Pauline

03.May.2016

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A delegation led by the Army Chief of Staff of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, General Abayomi Gabriel Olonisakin has paid a 24 hour working visit to Cameroon.The General was accompanied by the Commander of the Multi National Joint Task Force, Major General Lamidi Oyebayo Adeosun and other top ranking military personnel of the federal army.

Shortly after touching down from the private jet at the Yaoundé Nsimalen International Airport, the Nigeria Delegation had a working session Defence Headquarters in Yaoundé with the Defence Chief of Staff of the Republic of Cameroon, Lieutenant General Rene Claude Meka.

Discussions centred on tactical and operational strategies to further strengthen military cooperation and synergise efforts to boost the fight against the terrorist group Boko Haram. Speaking to the press after the close door working session, General Abayomi Gabriel Olonisakin said his visit had two principal objectives, first the thank the government of Cameroon for the relentless efforts of Cameroonian troops fighting on both sides of the border to eradicate book haram from their strongholds. Secondly, the discuss modalities to enhance military cooperation.

The head of the Nigerian military delegation saluted the efforts of the Multinational Joint Task Force, supported by national troops from Cameroon and Nigeria in dealing with the Boko Haram menace. In relation to actions on the battle ground, he said battles need planning and the respective armies around planning a synergised action to bout out the terrorists from their hideouts.

After the working session, the Delegation was received at the Secretariat of State of the National Gendarmerie where General Abayomi Gabriel Olonisakin reviewed the troops before he was received in audience, by the Secretary of State in the Ministry of Defence in charge of the National Gendarmerie, Jean Baptiste Bokam on behalf of the Minister Delegate at the Presidency in charge of defence.

The global strategy to eradicate Boko haram was discussed during the close door audience. The Nigerian Delegation returned to Abuja, Nigeria shortly after the session.

The latest high level military encounter between top officers of Cameroon and Nigerian Armed forces comes less than a month after the Multinational Joint Task Forces evaluated its activities during the Special session of the Committee of Chiefs of Defence Staff of the Member Countries of the Lake Chad Basin Commission and Benin in Yaoundé on April 1st, 2016.

CRTV

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Elangwe Pauline

02.May.2016

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Cameroon is a highly divided country along linguistic lines, and authorities of the nation are doing their best to promote the divide. When it finally explode, probably most of them would have died and their children living abroad.Almost all occasions that bring Anglophones and Francophones together, have become harbingers of what is known today as the Anglophone Problem.

In the just ended All University Games of Cameroon for example, there were very visible signs of the divide as manifested in the way officials threated Anglophone participants. It appeared to have been carefully thought out and orchestrated by Francophones and some few Anglophones who have no consciences.

During the games, in any duel between a school from Anglophone Cameroon and a school from French Cameroon, Francophones officials would do all to make sure their team goes ahead, most often bending the rules. In one of the quarter finals of female football pitting the University of Bamenda (UBa) against the University of Ngaoundéré, for example, as Yaoundé authorities grew surprised at the collective play style of the Bamenda girls, they appeared resolved to do their best to make sure Bamenda girls didn’t sail through to the semifinals.

Consider this for example. The girls from Bamenda scored three goals but they were all canceled by either the referee on the centre of the field or his assistants in an incoherent manner. Sometimes the referee would allow the goal but his assistant would disallow it and vice versa. In spite of that, UBa girls finally won after post-match penalties.A similar situation was witnessed at the male football finals where the rules were interpreted to the favour of Yaoundé I University to allow them play a finals that, as per FIFA and FENASU rules, University of Buea had won since those of Yaoundé I came very late.

The question many asked is, if it was Buea that had come that late would the match not have been given to Yaoundé I?But the worst was yet to come. And this wasn’t at the pitch. On the eve of the closing ceremony, mobile telephone company MTN, organized what it called Miss Games. Despite the brilliant performance of the ladies from the University of Bamenda, who won the Gold, MTN chose to give the crown to a lady from the University of Douala who could not even address the people. The decision received booing from Anglophonesas well as some conscientious Francophones who observed that the partiality was so glaring.

It is a fair thing to say that the Games were all about Francophones. The rules were made by Francophone officials and imposed on Anglophones. The working language was French and instructions were given to teams from the North West and South West in French, whether they understood or not – their problem.

But the marginalization appeared to have strengthened solidarity amongst Anglophones at the Games. English speaking students from schools in French speaking cities could be seen rallying behind any team from either Buea or Bamenda each time they had a match. Students from the Catholic University Institute of the Diocese of Buea and their Fan club abandoned their sister school, Saint Jerome of Douala and Catholic University of Central Africa, based in Yaoundé and chose to rather rally behind any school from Buea and Bamenda.

Whether by accident or by design, in the official tribune, all Anglophones Vice Chancellors and Rectors of State Universities sad at one end where they could easily speak their common language. And when players and top officials of the Anglo-Saxon universities could no longer take it, they complained bitterly in public that it is because they are Anglophones. They have vowed not to let the mess repeat in 2017 as the games go to the University of Bamenda.

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Laarry Uchenna

02.May.2016

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