Monthly Archives: September 2018

8, September 2018

Yaounde gambling on Seedorf amid African coaching changes ⁰

Former Netherlands star Clarence Seedorf is among more than a dozen coaches who will make Africa Cup of Nations debuts this weekend in 2019 qualifiers.

Despite underperforming in three previous managerial posts, the 42-year-old has been given a four-year contract by reigning African champions Cameroon.

His first match in charge of the ‘Indomitable Lions’ is away to minnows Comoros in Group B on Saturday.

Cameroon are guaranteed a place in the expanded 24-team 2019 Cup of Nations as hosts, but were included in the qualifying competition to give them match practice.

Vastly experienced and widely travelled Swede Sven-Goran Eriksson had been favourite for the Cameroon post after 2017 Cup of Nations-winning coach Hugo Broos was sacked.

Having masterminded a surprise fifth African title, Belgian Broos did not deliver at the 2017 Confederations Cup and failure to qualify for the 2018 World Cup was the final straw.

Seedorf got the nod, with fellow former Dutch star Patrick Kluivert as his assistant, having had brief, unsuccessful spells at AC Milan, Shenzhen and Deportivo la Coruna as manager.

“I feel honoured to be given the opportunity to manage this great country,” Seedorf said when appointed.

The big test for the former Ajax Amsterdam, AC Milan and Real Madrid midfielder will come next June when Cameroon host the biennial African football showpiece.

Only another title will satisfy Cameroonian officials and supporters as the country stages the tournament for the first time since 1972, when it was a mere eight-nation event.

Egypt have appointed Mexican Javier Aguirre, a 59-year-old who has coached his homeland and Japan as well as several Spanish clubs, including Atletico Madrid.

He succeeds Hector Cuper, the Argentine not offered a contract extension after the ‘Pharaohs’ flopped at the World Cup, losing all three group matches.

His first assignment is at home to modest Niger and the main issue would appear to be how many goals Mohamed Salah-inspired Egypt win by.

Aguirre got the job ahead of Bosnian Vahid Halilhodzic, who took Algeria to the last 16 at the 2014 World Cup before quitting over what he considered hostile media coverage.

“I am really honoured to be here,” the Mexican said when introduced to the media. “It is my first job in Africa and a big challenge.”

Cuper was often criticised for overly defensive tactics and much attention will now centre on whether Aguirre opts for a more adventurous approach.

While many of the new coaches are non-Africans, Tanzanian officials tired of a lack of delivery by numerous Europeans have signed former Nigeria star Emmanuel Amuneke.

Amuneke scored the goals that gave Nigeria the 1994 Cup of Nations title and played for Barcelona and Sporting Lisbon.

After coaching success with Nigeria at age-limit level, Tanzania hope he can lift them out of mediocrity with their only previous Cup of Nations appearance 38 years ago.

The Ivory Coast are rebuilding after age caught up with “golden generation” stars like Didier Drogba, Salomon Kalou and Kolo Toure.

Belgian Marc Wilmots disappointed as coach of the ‘Elephants’, failing to qualify for this year’s World Cup and losing at home to Guinea in a 2019 Cup of Nations eliminator.

His successor is local Ibrahim Kamara, who plans a pragmatic “counterattacking” system to stabilise the team and achieve results, starting in Rwanda this Sunday.

AFP

7, September 2018

Prosecutor confirms probe into Italian minister’s treatment of migrants ⁰

Prosecutors in Sicily on Friday confirmed a probe into far-right Italian Interior Minister Matteo Salvini for illegal confinement after he refused to allow more than 100 rescued migrants off of a coastguard ship for 10 days.

The public prosecutor’s office in Palermo notified Salvini in a letter that the minister opened and read in a video broadcast live on his Facebook page.

“An organ of the state is probing another organ of the state. With the small difference that you (the voters) elected this organ of the state,” Salvini said in the video.

“The others have not been elected by anyone and are not answerable (for their actions) to anyone.

“It is you who asked this minister to control the borders, to control the ports, to limit arrivals, to limit the departure of illegal migrants,” he added.

The migrants on the Diciotti coastguard ship had been stranded at a port in Sicily before Salvini finally allowed them to disembark on August 26 after Ireland, Albania and the Italian Catholic church agreed to take most of them in.

The 10-day blocking of the Diciotti migrants followed a number of similar standoffs in which Italy turned away ships with migrants rescued at sea in a campaign to make EU countries take their share.

The government has also threatened to stop billions of euros of EU funding over the issue, accusing Europe of turning its back as Italy grapples with seemingly endless migrant arrivals.

– Hard line on migrants –

Salvini, who is also deputy prime minister and the leader of the far-right League party, said on Wednesday that 50 of the 144 Diciotti migrants had since disappeared without trace from reception centres.

These migrants “were so in need of protection, a roof and a blanket that they decided to leave and disappear,” he said on Facebook.

“This is the umpteenth confirmation that those who arrive in Italy are not skeletons fleeing war and famine,” he added.

Since Salvini’s League formed a government with the anti-establishment Five Star Movement (M5S) on June 1, the minister has implemented his party’s hard line on migrants.

Within days of becoming interior minister, he delivered on a campaign promise to close Italian ports to immigrants and asylum-seekers, starting with 600 plucked from the Mediterranean by NGO boat Aquarius, which was instead forced to take them to Valencia in Spain.

That crisis was only resolved after a meeting between Conte and his French President Emmanuel Macron.

Most of those aboard the Diciotti were Eritreans, along with a small number of Somalians, Syrians, Sudanese and Comorans.

Since the start of the year, 3,000 migrants from the former Italian colony of Eritrea have arrived in Italy but less than a thousand have applied for asylum, according to interior ministry figures.

Many Eritreans prefer to continue by land to Germany, Sweden or Britain, despite the heavy controls encountered at the French, Swiss and Austrian borders as well as the EU’s Dublin regulation under which a migrant can only make an asylum claim in the first European country the reach.

AFP

7, September 2018

France accuses Russia of trying to spy on Franco-Italian military satellite ⁰

Russia last year attempted to intercept transmissions from a Franco-Italian satellite used by both nations’ armies for secure communications, French Defence Minister Florence Parly said on Friday, describing the move as an “act of espionage”.

In a speech outlining France’s space policy for the coming years, Parly said Russian satellite Louch-Olymp had approached the Athena-Fidus satellite in 2017. Parly said it came so close “that anyone would have thought it was attempting to intercept our communications”.

“Attempting to listen to your neighbours is not only unfriendly, it’s an act of espionage,” she said. Parly said officials took the “appropriate measures” and continued to monitor the satellite after it left, and observed it manoeuvring near other targets as well, she said.

Last month Washington accused Moscow of developing anti-satellite weapons and cited “very abnormal behaviour” of a “space object” deployed by Russia last October.

“We are well aware that other major players in space are deploying intriguing objects into orbit, experimenting with potential offensive capabilities, conducting maneuvers which leave no doubt as to their aggressive intent,” Parly said.

Next year, French President Emmanuel Macron plans to lay out plans for a “space defence strategy” for France, with an advisory committee expected to make proposals by November. “We’re at risk, our communications, our military maneuvers and our daily operations are at risk if we don’t react,” Parly said.

(FRANCE 24 with AFP, REUTERS)

7, September 2018

Anglican diocese of Cameroon celebrates ten years ⁰

A CELEBRATION of ten years of the Anglican diocese of Cameroon was held in the open air at the largest city in Cameroon, Douala, on 26 August.

The day dawned bright and dry, and 1500 worshippers celebrated a eucharist, accompanied by choral music, and a sermon by the Bishop of Ohaji Egbema, in Nigeria, the Rt Revd Chidi Collins Oparaojiaku.

The eucharist was celebrated by the Bishop of Cameroon, the Rt Revd Dibo Thomas-Babyngton Elango. He also invested 15 Knights — lay members who have contributed spiritually and materially to the development of the Church — during the service.

The Bishop preached in the centre of the quadrangle of open-sided marquees erected to shade the congregation from the sun. He commended the faithfulness of the Anglican Church in Cameroon, and congratulated the diocese on its achievements over the past decade. He reminded listeners that all things were achieved only by the grace of God.

The congregation responded with loud Amens of approval, and joined enthusiastically when he began an unaccompanied rendition of “Great is thy faithfulness”.

Sustained by a packed lunch of chicken and rice, the congregation enjoyed musical contributions from the diocesan choir, which sang an anthem by Handel, and by visiting choirs, which sang traditional African spirituals and modern gospel. The Boys’ Brigade provided percussive interludes. The service was long, and at points chaotic, but always joyful.

The Church of England link diocese of Chichester was represented by Canon Mark Payne, the Rector of St Pancras, Chichester, and Canon of the Cathedral of St Michael and All Angels, Douala.

Anglicanism was brought to Cameroon in the mid-20th century by an expatriate community of West African business owners, who set up churches, including what is now the cathedral. Cameroon was initially a missionary area under the Church of the Province of West Africa (CPWA). It was only in 2008 that it achieved full status as a diocese in the CPWA, and Bishop Elango was ordained and consecrated to the office of Bishop: the first Cameroonian to hold the position.

The diocese has now expanded to 28 churches across nine parishes, served by 16 full-time clergy and eleven catechists. The diocese has an ambitious and largely self-funded building programme of churches, clergy accommodation, schools, and a health clinic. In a country without a welfare state, this contribution to education and health care has a significant impact on the life chances of young people in particular.

The tenth anniversary comes at a time of significant civil unrest in Cameroon, as anger and frustration in Anglophone regions about perceived marginalisation by the Francophone majority spills over into violence. The Anglican Church ministers to both English and French speaking communities.

Culled from Church Times

7, September 2018

Twenty-seven bodies found after French Cameroun army attack in Menchum ⁰

Twenty-seven bodies were found in the Menchum County after the French Cameroun army carried out an onslaught in the Ambazonian constituency precisely in the Yemngeh locality some few kilometers from Zhoa sources have confirmed to Cameroon Intelligence Report, adding to concern about abuse by the Francophone security forces in their fight against Southern Cameroons Restoration Forces.

Our correspondent in Wum, the chief town in the Menchum County reported that the 27 bodies were found in two mass graves. The grim discovery was made after the French Cameroun army said in a statement that it had killed several Southern Cameroon separatist fighters in the area during an operation it carried out on Tuesday night.

Correspondingly, a senior Christian figure in Weh hinted that the first grave had 17 bodies and the second held 10. The regime in Yaounde has always announced an inquiry but regularly denies these accusations of summary executions.

Many innocent Southern Cameroons civilians were reportedly injured during the French Cameroun government attack in the Menchum County and many including women and children have all escaped into the bushes. The army destroyed the bridge linking Weh to Wum during the attacks and several houses were burnt down.

By Rita Akana in Wum

7, September 2018

British Airways website suffers data breach; 380,000 payments affected ⁰

Financial data has been stolen from potentially hundreds of thousands of British Airways customers who made online bookings in recent weeks, extending a run of embarrassing technological mishaps suffered by the UK flag carrier.

The thefts occurred during a data breach that affected bookings made on the airline’s website between Aug. 21 and Sept. 5, parent International Airlines Group said on Thursday.

Around 380,000 card payments were “compromised”, it said. In May 2017, the carrier suffered a massive computer system failure caused by a power supply issue near London’s Heathrow, which stranded 75,000 customers at Europe’s busiest airport over
a holiday weekend.

Its chief executive said at the time it would take steps to ensure such an incident never happened again, but in July it was forced to cancel and delay flights out of the same airport due to problems with a supplier’s IT systems.

IAG said the data breach had been resolved and the website was working normally, and that no travel or passport details were stolen.

It was communicating with affected customers but advised any others who believed they might have been affected to contact their banks or credit card providers.

The airline had launched an investigation and notified police and other relevant authorities.

(Source: Reuters)

7, September 2018

Africa Oil Week 2018 announces partnership with SuperReturn Africa ⁰

Africa Oil Week (AOW) has announced their partnership with SuperReturn. This new partnership offers delegates attending SuperReturn Africa, the continent’s biggest investor conference, access to Africa Oil Week on Thursday 8 November 2018.

For operators across the continent, raising capital remains one of the biggest challenges; whether it is funding exploration and production, or financing key infrastructure projects that will secure asset monetization for the long term. Africa Oil Week, in partnership with SuperReturn Africa, will now be able to offer an enhanced environment for operators to meet prospective financial partners, as well as ministers, senior government officials, national and independent oil company executives to exchange ideas and network.

In celebration of this exciting partnership, Africa Oil Week will be welcoming SuperReturn delegates to attend AOW on Thursday 8 November. The day will kick off with a live panel debate on ‘Global Funding Strategies and M&A for the African Upstream’ broadcast on CNBC Africa. Speakers confirmed for this important panel include Samaila Zubairu, President & CEO of the Africa Finance Corporation (AFC), Solomon Asamoah, CEO of the Ghana Infrastructure Investment Fund and Paul McDade, CEO of Tullow Oil.

Following the live broadcast, AOW will host two breakout finance sessions addressing some of the key issues raised in the CNBC panel in greater detail, these include: the role of global finance in the African upstream and how to drive transactions in African infrastructure.

Through this partnership, AOW looks forward to welcoming the continent’s most active energy investors who will gain unrivalled access to the opportunities spread across Africa’s upstream oil and gas markets.

“We are really excited to announce this partnership with SuperReturn Africa. This partnership will allow us to continue to provide a business and intelligence transaction platform and meeting place for Africa’s upstream oil and gas markets.“ – Paul Sinclair, Conference Director, Africa Oil Week.

Africa Oil Week will take place at the CTICC in Cape Town, South Africa on the 5 – 9 November 2018.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Africa Oil Week.

7, September 2018

Kenya: Gigiri police told to produce Cameroonian ⁰

The High Court has ordered the Officer Commanding Station at Gigiri police to produce a Cameroonian national who is being detained despite being released on Sh50,000 bail.

Justice Chacha Mwita directed that Peter Doccta be produced before court next week on Wednesday if he will not have been released from police custody.

But the DCI says Doccta’s current detention in police custody is for the purposes of ensuring his safe removal from the country since he is in Kenya unlawfully as a prohibited immigrant.

In a sworn affidavit, police officer Paul Mutethia says Doccta has not been detained incommunicado and is allowed to have access to lawyers.

Doccta was declared to be a prohibited immigrant by late Interior CS Joseph Nkaissery last year. The declaration was done after Doctta was found to be engaged in several criminal activities, including obtaining money by false pretenses from unsuspecting Kenyans. He did so by falsely representing himself as Peter Doccta Longa having magical powers to make money.

“His continued criminal activities of defrauding Kenyans, his presence in Kenya became a threat to the public interest and that of national security. As a result, he was deported back to his Cameroon. The deportation was done within the ambit of the law,” Muteithia says.

But in July this year, Doccta sneaked back into the country and made a false report at Parklands police station to the effect that he had lost his Cameroonian passport.

His passport had been stamped “prohibited immigrant” by the Immigration Department. The DCI now says Doccta’s unauthorised re-entry to Kenya was a clear disregard and violation of the law and should not be protected from the same laws he has sought to violate.

Source: The Star

6, September 2018

Former France international Jean-Alain Boumsong joins Cameroon staff ⁰

Cameroon-born former France international Jean Alain Boumsong has been appointed as part of the Indomitable Lions coaching staff.

The 38-year-old was born in Douala but went on to play 27 times for France

He will now work with Dutch coach Clarence Seedorf and assistant Patrick Kluivert.

The former Newcastle United and Rangers played has been working with the Cameroon Football Federation (Fecafoot) since June.

He has been heading up a committee charged with reforming Cameroon’s national set up as well as establishing an efficient technical team for the national teams.

Boumsong was appointed alongside former Indomitable Lions attacker Joel Epalle, who will be serving as Seedorf’s third deputy.

Epalle, 40, won a gold medal with Cameroon at the 2000 Sydney Olympics and won the Africa Cup of Nations two years later.

The duo will be linking up with another former Cameroon international Bill Tchato, who was named team manager.

The team is preparing for a 2019 Nations Cup game against Comoros on 8 September in Mitsamiouli.

Culled from the BBC

6, September 2018

French Cameroun army kills three as tension ruins schools’ resumption in Bamenda ⁰

The Francophone dominated army on Wednesday said it had killed three Southern Cameroonian citizens in Bamenda. The French Cameroun army spokesman revealed that the killings took place on the same day that the education minister visited the capital of the Northern Zone, with tensions spiking as children return to school.

Didier Badjeck opined that those killed were separatist fighters operating in the Mezam County. He further pointed out that the three Ambazonians were in a car planning to assassinate the Minister of Education. The exiled Southern Cameroons government says the education system marginalises Anglophone pupils and has decreed a boycott of schools in the areas they lay claim to.

Numerous shots were heard Tuesday around the hotel where Education Minister Youssouf Adidja Alim was staying during a visit to the city to coincide with the reopening of schools. AFP reported that a source close to Minister Alim said the occupants of the vehicle had been “spotted and repelled” before they could reach the minister.

The war in Southern Cameroons has left more than 2000 Ambazonians dead and displaced about 200,000 people since late 2016. Years of resentment at perceived discrimination at the hands of Cameroon’s majority French speakers have led to almost daily acts of violence and retribution, triggering an army crackdown.

On Monday seven pupils and a headmaster were kidnapped by armed men at a school in Bafut, near Bamenda. Two students and the school head were freed on Tuesday, according to information obtained by AFP.

The Ambazonian Interim Government has said on social media that they could not guarantee the security of children who returned to school in defiance of the boycott.

Reported with files and extracts from AFP