Monthly Archives: March 2017

31, March 2017

Southern Cameroons Crisis: Biya Francophone Beti Ewondo government retreating ⁶

Justice Minister, Laurent Esso seen here with a sea of Francophone cabinet members of government announced on Thursday some measures taken by President Biya, for a definitive exit from the socio-political crisis in Southern Cameroons.

Known for his anti-Anglophone stance, Laurent Esso made public the creation of a section of Common Law at ENAM, the National School of Administration and Judiciary and the Supreme Court. Esso and his Beti Ewondo gang also announced a massive recruitment of Southern Cameroonians into the magistracy and vowed to respect the bilingual nature of the country in the appointment of magistrates into courts in British Southern Cameroons.

It is evidently clear that Southern Cameroonians are winning as the Biya Francophone Beti Ewondo government is retreating. The government had declared that there was no “Anglophone problem” in Cameroon. The Biya regime is taking the last kicks of a dying horse. In order to make up for the time lost by schools since November 2016, in the English-speaking part of the country, the Francophone government decided to cancel the holidays of the second quarter of the school year 2016/2017.

Students in high schools and colleges in the North West and South West regions will not have the second trimester holidays, which run from March 31 to April 17, 2017. The Francophone authorities intend to recover the hours lost during the strike period which is still on-going. According to Biya and his CPDM acolytes, Southern Cameroon students will now have 17 hours of additional classes.

The Arithmetic is that from March 6 to May 31, students will receive two additional hours of teaching on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. The students will also have classes on Wednesday three o’clock and Saturday, 6 o’clock. It is vital to state in this report that the Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society has made it abundantly clear that only the detained leaders have legitimate authority to dialogue with the Biya regime.

By Besong Esther Agbor

31, March 2017

Indomitable Lions: Eto’o says Brussels scandal has vindicated him ¹

Samuel Eto’o, the former captain of the indomitable Lions of Cameroon has reacted to the scandal that has rocked the national football team in Brussels. Eto’o made his opinion public on Thursday stating that the recent affair in Belgium falls in line with what he had all along been criticizing in the management of Cameroon football.

The French Cameroun football legend said that history has finally vindicated him because he often suffered the wrath of the leaders of the Cameroonian Football Federation when he happened to denounce the bad organization of the national team.

Eto’o’s misfortunes began in November 2011 after the LG Cup tournament in Marrakech. For claiming the payment of bonuses and forcing his teammates to refuse to play a friendly against Algeria, he was suspended for 15 matches before the sentence was reduced to eight months.

As a reminder, the Lions of Cameroon were blocked in a hotel in the Belgian capital, Brussels. The players were refused food before a friendly against Guinea Conakry due to unpaid bills.

By Fru James

31, March 2017

Germany, France pledge stronger ties after Brexit ⁰

German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier has called for stronger ties with France in order to ensure the European Union’s future a day after Britain triggered the formal process of leaving the bloc. Steinmeier visited Paris on Thursday on his first foreign trip as president since he was elected last month. He met French President Francois Hollande to discuss the path forward after the Brexit vote.

“I’m glad that the Germans and the French are ready to keep moving forward side by side,” he said in a joint statement with Hollande. “Whether we want it or not, Germany and France will have to assume a greater responsibility … to build Europeans’ hopes,” Steinmeier added. For his part, Hollande said the two countries needed to move forward “arm in arm” to create “the Europe of tomorrow”.

Hollande warned against “the trap of nationalism” that EU counties faced, adding that the members needed to show greater commitment to EU solidarity. The two European heavyweights are encountering new challenges after Britain’s exit from the European Union. On Thursday, Hollande told UK Prime Minister Theresa May on behalf of the 27 remaining EU member states that the conditions of the Brexit must be settled.

“First, we must begin discussions on the modalities of the withdrawal, especially on the rights of citizens and the obligations arising from the commitments that the United Kingdom has made,” Hollande told May on phone. After the conditions is settled, “we could then open discussions on the framework of the future relations between the United Kingdom and the European Union,” he said, according to a statement released by the Elysée Palace.

Downing Street, however, said it believed negotiations between London and Brussels regarding the Brexit and the conditions for future cooperation between Britain and the EU bloc “should take place in parallel.” May wrote in articles published in several European newspapers on Thursday morning that she wanted the UK’s new relationship with the EU to ensure the region’s security remained intact.

Presstv

31, March 2017

Tony Blair in Togo as Lomé seeks Commonwealth membership ⁰

Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair wanted by the anti-war movement for war crimes committed in Iraq paid a short visit yesterday Wednesday in Lomé and was received by President Faure Gnassingbé. The Communication Directorate of the Togolese presidency revealed that Tony Blair was accompanied by a high level delegation.

Last February, Togo received a Commonwealth delegation and the country is diversifying its partnerships and considering becoming part of the Commonwealth. It is expected that the presence of a former British Prime Minister in Togo will help to advance the process.

The Commonwealth is an intergovernmental organization created in 1949 and is composed of states traditionally made up of former territories under British rule. The Commonwealth has evolved into countries with a sense of peace, freedom and commitment to the values of democracy, human rights, good governance and respect for the principle of non-interference.

Togo’s desire to join the Commonwealth is not new, as the country had submitted its application in 2014. The accession process is continuing and accelerating. The influence of English in the world, especially in the business, is one of the strategic arguments that has pushed the German and French colony to seek membership into the Commonwealth.

By Chi Prudence Asong

31, March 2017

GCE 2017: Francophone Minister extends deadline for the fourth time ³

The Francophone Minister for Secondary Education, Jean Ernest Massena Ngale Bibehe has again extended registration deadline for the General Certificate of Education Examinations, GCE to April 15, 2017. This is the fourth time the Biya member of government is authorizing an extension.

Minister Jean Ernest Massena Ngale Bibehe known in Southern Cameroons as “the Clown,” made public his decision on Thursday March 30, 2017in Yaoundé. The minister added that the extension shall benefit only students in Buea and Bamenda centers who have not registered.

The Ministerial order comes some 10 days after the 3rd deadline expired on March 20, 2017. Ngale Bibehe also gave a two weeks period of grace for the GCE examination. Correspondingly, the examination will hold two week after the initial date.

Confirming that he was indeed a clown, the Francophone minister stated in his press release that Anglophone students should take advantage of this two weeks Easter holiday break and enroll in holiday classes to catch up with time lost. A leading figure of the Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium has rubbished the extension stating that schools and universities in Southern Cameroons will remained closed till both French and West Cameroon will open dialogue in the presence of a third party.

By Sama Ernest with files from CIN

30, March 2017

Fire destroys food market in Limbe ⁰

Fire has consumed seven shops at the Limbe New market early Thursday, razing all its contents to ashes. According to some Motor Bike riders who were the first to arrive the scene, the fire started around 4am. They recounted how they saw chunks of smoke in the air accompanied by sudden light that pierced the darkness sending an unusual signal that all was not well.

The people of Church Street Limbe accompanied by many bikers struggled to put off the fire three hours after. They did so with local means due to the absence of fire fighters. Cameroun Info.Net reported that the Fire fighters from the Limbe City Council and SONARA did not show up despite incessant calls.

Roofs of some of the shops got burst and the fire found its way out of the shops, several goods especially palm oil, clothes were consumed by the flames. The Divisional Officer for Limbe One, Epalle Seraphine together with some Francophone Gendarmes visited the site but refused to talk to the press saying on the Senior Divisional Officer, Zang III was in best place to issue a public statement. The cause of the tragic incident has not been established yet but traders are suspecting a criminal act.

Cameroun Info.Net

30, March 2017

French Cameroun: Another Biya committee holds session ⁰

The Biya regime has come up with a new style of governance which is that of creating committees. Correspondingly, members of the Finance Committee charged in putting in place the reforms of the Public Finances in the country began meeting this Tuesday 28 th March 2017 in Yaoundé. The 7th ordinary session focused on the relevance of reforms on results oriented for the country’s sustainable growth is being chaired by the Minister of Finance, Alamine Ousman Mey.

At the opening session he restated that the reforms of public finance will be based on the 2035 vision, the impact of climate change, gender equality and national debt strategy which focuses on growth, employment and good governance.

This will be carried out through Coordinate planning, programming, budgeting and evaluation; material and human resources will also be mobilized and used efficiently so to accomplish the goal. Mr. Alamine further emphasized the need for joint efforts by government, private sector, technical and financial partners.

Culled from CRTV

30, March 2017

Southern Cameroons digital businesses still relying on La Republique!! Diaspora won’t talk ⁰

Young businessmen and women from British Southern Cameroons have established a center at Bonako, a village some few kilometers from French Cameroun from where they are able to have access to internet services from La Republique du Cameroun.

Not to see their businesses crumble, the Southern Cameroons entrepreneurs particularly start-ups have decided to create an “oasis” of the Internet following cuts ordered by the 84 year old dictator, President Paul Biya.

Bonako has become the largest internet hub in the world for Southern Cameroonians. “Several start-ups have rented rooms in the village of Bonako, furnished it with chairs and tables and installed electricity using generators. Dozens with start-ups now operate here, each using their own phone as an internet modem.’

It is tedious and the remoteness of the village is not easy to manage. However, the so-called Anglophone CPDM political elites are satisfied with the internet shutdown and have claimed that La Republique du Cameroun will eventually stifle the Southern Cameroons revolution.

Southern Cameroons have been cut off from the world after months of violent protest. The Francophone dominated government decided to deprive the Anglophones of any internet connection-a radical policy that has endangered the highly developed digital ecosystem in the Southern Cameroons.

The absence of the internet does not only affect exchanges among British Southern Cameroonians, but it has also weighed heavily on the economy and the fact that the Southern Cameroons Diaspora is maintaining a kind of deliberate silence on the matter is disturbing.

By Chi Prudence Asong

30, March 2017

UK prime minister triggers Brexit process ⁰

UK Prime Minister Theresa May has triggered the formal, two-year process of withdrawing Britain from the European Union (EU), likely to be the most complex London has held since World War Two. Launching the process of Britain’s exit from the EU, popularly known as Brexit, was announced by the prime minister on Wednesday at the UK Parliament, after more than 40 years of membership in the bloc.

On behalf of May, British Ambassador to the EU Tim Barrow hand-delivered a letter to European Council President Donald Tusk in Brussels to officially notify the EU of Britain’s decision to withdraw from the bloc. The six page letter invoked Article 50 of the EU Treaty, the mechanism for starting Britain’s divorce process. In her speech to Parliament, which was planned to coincide with the letter’s delivery, May urged the country to come together as it embarks on a “momentous journey.” “The Article 50 process is now under way and in accordance with the wishes of the British people, the United Kingdom is leaving the European Union,” she said. “This is a historic moment from which there can be no turning back.”

Brussels is expected to deliver its first response to London on Friday, followed by a summit of EU leaders on April 29 to adopt their own guidelines, possibly taking weeks before formal talks start. The United Kingdom held a referendum last June in which Britons voted by a 52-48 percent margin to leave the EU, the first member state ever to do so. However, there is a chance that the Brexit negotiations will break down and the UK will be forced to exit the EU without any deal in place. The EU is determined to preserve its own unity and has said that any Brexit agreement must not encourage other member states to leave the bloc.

Although Britain as whole voted to leave the EU, Scotland and Northern Ireland voted to stay in the bloc. The Brexit referendum has prompted nationalists in Scotland and Northern Ireland to call for a referendum on independence from the United Kingdom. There is broad consensus among economists that Brexit will have a prolonged effect of the British economy and will ultimately diminish output, jobs and wealth to some degree. Many business leaders are also concerned about May’s decision to leave the EU single market, a free trade area of 500 million people, fearing its impact on jobs and economic growth.

Presstv

30, March 2017

146 feared missing after boat capsizes in Mediterranean ⁰

A Gambian man rescued from a refugee vessel sunken in the Mediterranean has told the United Nations officials that around 150 were on board when the ship capsized off Libya. The UN refugee agency said Wednesday that some 146 refugees, among them children and several pregnant women, were feared missing after the capsizing, which purportedly occurred earlier this week.

The agency said the Gambian man was interviewed in a hospital in the Italian island of Lampedusa after he was spotted almost by accident by a Spanish military ship sailing in the Mediterranean as part of a European Union operation to crack down on smugglers. The International Organization for Migration (IOM) said the Spanish ship had found the man while he was desperately holding on a fuel can to survive.

The Gambian told a member of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees that the refugee vessel, which left on Sunday or Monday from Sabratha, western Libya, began taking on water a few hours after setting off. He said passengers included refugees from Nigeria, Mali and The Gambia.

A deal between the EU and Turkey in March last year forced many to dare the risky journey through the Central Mediterranean from Libya to Italy. Smugglers have also benefited from the chaos and lawlessness in Libya to dispatch more people on board unsafe dinghies.

More than 23,000 refugees have managed to make it to the Italian shores since the beginning of 2017, Italian authorities say. The IOM says 590 refugees have died or gone missing along the Libyan coast, without considering the figure from the recent disaster.

Presstv