Politics
Southwest Governor, Bernard Okalia Bilai, has placed the new Fako Senior Divisional Officer (SDO) Emmanuel Engamba Ledoux, on tenterhooks over the activities of the Southern Cameroons National Council (SCNC).
Governor Okalia Bilai told Ledoux that SCNC activists are planning to strike Cameroon from Nigeria as such; the SDO must be vigilant and galvanised security forces to quell any such attacks.
The South West Chief Executive Officer was speaking in Limbe recently, while commissioning the new SDO into his function.
After cautioning the SDO about the impending SCNC attack, the Governor handed over the files of a decade long unresolved Limbe Paramount Chieftaincy Crisis to the new Fako SDO.
The file, which the Governor handed over to Ledoux was the same file that was handed over to him (Okalia) when he was appointed Fako SDO in July, 2007.
But Okalia departed Fako without resolving the problem. Even his numerous successors were afraid to dabble into deadly chieftaincy crisis in Limbe.
Since the demise of the late Paramount Chief of Limbe, Chief Ferguson Manga Williams, the royal family has been unable to designate a new successor to occupy the vacant Paramount stool.
Because of the volatile nature of the problem, the Governor admonished the new SDO to use his sense of wisdom and spirit of good judgment to hold consultative talks with the Kingmakers of Buea and Limbe Paramount Chiefdoms, so that new chiefs would be designated to occupy these long vacant stools.
“Your Division is also known as a village where chieftaincy disputes or ascending to chieftaincy stools baffles all reasons. Potentially, everyone here is ready to mislead you and make you their scapegoat, after attaining their objectives,” Okalia said.
He urged the new SDO to steer clear of those who will come just to derail him.
He further urged him to do his utmost best to work towards the development of the Division and avoid being misled.
Okalia further beseeched Ledoux to work closely with the people “because you will face both threat from SCNC and those you administer. Always remember that I am here to help and guard you,” he said.
- Details
- Abeh Valery
- Hits: 1917
The Biya Government has begun erecting surveillance cameras in strategic positions in the North West and South West Regions in a bid to unmask more Anglophones who embark on any strike action.
The towering cameras are carefully implanted at road junctions, markets, motorcar parks, schools and major streets.
The installation of the street security cameras comes barely months after the Governor of the Southwest Region, Bernard Okalia Bilai, confessed during a meeting that Government was tapping into people’s private phone conversations and is keeping track of whatever thing they say.
He also boasted that he has compiled a blacklist of people who have already been found wanting due to the conversation they had with others in private.
Hear him: “I have a blacklist, and if I read 10 names here, at least three people sitting in this meeting will feature in there.”
In the wake of the phone tapping confession, some individuals also complained that their social media accounts have been hacked, blocked and even suspended.
The installation of street cameras has been criticised by many, who do not see it as a means of solving the Anglophone Crises.
Tongues are already wagging that the cameras have been installed by the forces of law and order to uncover crime in strategic areas, especially as the burning down of schools, public buildings and business premises of those who refuse to respect Ghost Town calls in the two English-speaking Regions of Cameroon surges.
“We have been begging Government to install street lights in our town to fight rising insecurity to no avail; instead they have come with surveillance cameras to be watching our every move. How will this help the population? Are thieves stealing on the streets?” an inhabitant of Buea stated.
In the North West Regional capital of Bamenda, the cameras are erected everywhere.
According to a cap driver, “we know what they are doing, we know the cameras very well, although they are made to look like street lights...this Government is funny, instead of solving problems, they want to hide and spy on everyone”.
The driver, who refused to be named, further said, “I move around town carrying and dropping people, I have seen many of the Cameras and I wonder why the Government can take huge sums of money to buy equipment like that and spy on its citizens.”
Meanwhile, despite repeated attempts by this reporter to have the administrative and security authorities comment on the cameras, all of them maintain sealed lips.
- Details
- Abeh Valery
- Hits: 1646
CPDM youths have beseeched their National Chairman, Paul Biya, to rescue them from yawning unemployment and heavy taxes.
They were speaking in Mbonge during a party conference convened by the Section President, Senator Andrew Otte Mofa.
According to the youths, heavy taxes are sending hundreds of youth out of business.
“The numerous would certainly push some of us into activities which are not accepted in the society.”
The youths acknowledged the importance of taxes to the Government, but pleaded that the tax drive could be done with reservation, regarding the situation of things in the Anglophone Regions.
“The unending challenges youths go through sometimes account for the disdain which some of us develop in the activities of our party.
Despite all these challenges, we have remained patriotic to the activities of the party.”
The youths saluted the President resolve to sustain Cameroon's cultural identity and unity through the creation of the National Commission for the Promotion of Bilingualism and Multiculturalism and the steps which President Biya has taken to resolve the Anglophone Crisis and the Boko Haram attacks in the Northern Regions of Cameroon.
- Details
- Rita Akana
- Hits: 1363
Two chiefs in the Bakassi peninsula have been dismissed by the Senior Divisional Officer of Ndian after discovering that they had spread false information that 97 Nigerian fishermen were killed by Cameroonian officials in connection with tax collection.
The decision was taken during a facts-finding mission co-ordinated by Nigerian and Cameroonian delegations on Thursday.
Both delegations concluded afterwards that no Nigerian had been murdered as was rumoured.
The chiefs of 'Diabame I' and 'Diabame II' were then found 'guilty' and sanctioned.
"From our intervention, we have come to realize even one person was not killed...," the SDO said on CRTV.
"[...] no Nigerian was killed," the consular assistant at the Nigerian consulate in Buea who led the Nigerian delegation said.
"Everywhere we find ourselves, we should be law-abiding," he cautioned.
The SDO also cut the tax from FCFA 75,000 to FCFA 37,500.
The story of Cameroon killing Nigerian fishermen had made headlines, as people feared a new escalation of violence between both states. The Bakassi peninsula was a highly disputed area between Cameroon and Nigeria until the International Court of Justice ruled in favour of Cameroon.
- Details
- Rita Akana
- Hits: 1929
Cameroon’s octogenarian President, Paul Biya, has outlawed the purchase of porch cars for officials of his bloated Government as salary cuts and heavy taxes looms over Cameroonians.
Biya’s embargo is contained in a recent presidential fiat, which gives orientation on the 2018 draft budget.
The presidential fiat is not unconnected to the activities of some Government predators, who have fashioned an administrative racket in which very expensive cars are bought every year.
The purchase of such cars, are not informed by the necessity of service or need, but by individual gains.
Going by recent statistics, Government officials in Cameroon bought over 14,000 administrative vehicles in 2015, but such cars were bought without the approval of the Prime Minister, Philemon Yang, as prescribed by the law.
Form the findings gnarled by Cameroon Concord, some top Government officials have about four to five very expensive service cars for themselves, but paradoxically, their ministries or institutions lack vehicles to perform their task.
Despite a well stipulated law that a car in a Government institution is supposed to be used for at least five years, some Government officials have made it a norm to buy cars every year and auction the old ones to themselves.
Besides the abusive buying of such cars, which the officials misuse, the cars also inflict an additional financial scare on the Government in terms of maintenance.
It is based on this financial burden on the State that President Biya has prohibited the reckless purchase of porch cars, especially at when there is looming rumours about a possible devaluation of the Francs CFA that will possibly lead to salary cuts and increase in taxation.
- Details
- Rita Akana
- Hits: 1852
A recent Boko Haram suicide bombing in Cameroon on Friday evening left at least two persons dead and four others injured and sent troops scrambling to apprehend one of the bombers on the run.
The latest bombing took place in Dabanga, a locality in Cameroon’s far north region where Boko Haram attacks have multiplied in recent months.
Cameroonian newspaper, L’Oeil du Sahel, who first reported the suicide attack, said one of the bombers was killed while troops were after another one.
Boko Haram has been wreaking havoc in Cameroon since 2014, killing thousands of civilians, in addition to hundreds of policemen and soldiers. The terrorists have also kidnapped thousands of people.
In neighboring Nigeria, the massacre has been even worse. At least 25, 000 people have died there while more than two million people remain displaced, several years after the insurgency began in the country’s northeast in 2009.
Thousands of people have also been kidnapped there, many of them turned into sex slaves or suicide bombers. At least hundred Chibok girls abducted in 2014 remain missing.
The United States Department of State in its 2016 Terrorism Report released on Wednesday said Boko Haram killed thousands of people in West Africa last year. Worse, Nigeria was among the five countries where 75 percent of all terrorism related deaths occurred in 2016.
- Details
- Simon Ateba
- Hits: 3140
Subcategories
Biya Article Count: 73
# 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.
Southern Cameroons Article Count: 549
.# Southern Cameroons, Ambazonia
Learn more about the history, culture, and politics of Ambazonia, the Anglophone regions of Cameroon that have been seeking self-determination and independence from the Francophone-dominated central government. Our Southern Cameroons section covers the ongoing conflict, the humanitarian crisis, the human rights violations, and the peace efforts in the region. You'll also find stories that highlight the rich and diverse heritage, traditions, and aspirations of the Southern Cameroonian people.
Editorial Article Count: 885
# Opinion
Get insights and perspectives on the issues that matter to Cameroon and the world with our opinion section. We feature opinions from our editors, columnists, and guest writers, who share their views and analysis on various topics, such as politics, economy, culture, and society. Our opinion section also welcomes contributions from our readers, who can submit their own opinions and comments. Join the conversation and express your opinions with our opinion section.
