Monthly Archives: December 2019

31, December 2019

Boston: Rev. Sister Agnes Njume celebrates Forty Years as a Religious ⁰

Christians of the Cameroon Catholic Community of Boston, gathered in their numbers to celebrate with Sister Agnes Njume on the occasion of her fortieth anniversary as a professed religious with the Sisters of Saint Therese of Buea on Sunday December 28, 2019, Feast of the Holy Family at St. Anne’s Parish Salem of the Archdiocese of Boston.Equally in attendance, were several religious, former students of Sister Agnes, the Alumni of her High School, her family, friends and the Bakossi Community of New England.

The Anniversary Mass which started at 1pm ET was presided by Bishop Arthur Kennedy PhD, Auxiliary Bishop of Boston. The Entrance Procession was beautifully led the CWA of Boston, nicely clad in their CWA Uniform. Sister Agnes Njume is an alumnus of Queen of the Rosary College Okoyong and is an active member of their alumni association known by the acronym OPSA. OPSA New England led the Lectionary Procession. In his homily, which lasted 12 minutes, Bishop Kennedy commended Sister Agnes Njume for the role she played in nurturing young girls in Cameroon and preparing them to lead families which are God fearing following the example of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph.

Bishop Kennedy forcefully denounced the German philosopher, Karl Marx’s book, The Holy Family, published in 1884, which was a scathing attack on Christianity and on the person of Jesus, and mocked everything which the Holy Family of Nazareth stood for. Of course, under Marxist philosophy, everything is guided by economics and politics and the state controlled absolutely everything. Basically, the book promoted distrust within the family, with parents not trusting children and vice versa. Consequently, the family itself could not be trusted. Sister Agnes Njume, throughout her forty years of dedicated, committed and passionate service, fought against the ills promoted by a Marxist cultural attack on the family which completely undermines Christian doctrine. Sister Agnes has been a champion for the family, a champion for the poor and a champion for the girl child. Consequently, it was providential that herFortieth Anniversary celebration as a Religious took place when the Holy Mother Church was celebrating the Feast of Holy Family.

After the Profession of Faith, Sister Agnes Njume once more as she did forty years ago and as she has done several times within the past forty years, while kneeling at the foot of sanctuary, solemnly, passionately and joyfully renewed her religious vows of celibate chastity, poverty and obedience in front of Bishop Kennedy. At the end, the assembly applauded her with joy and the famous Bakossionsoonsoonso was chanted.

During the offertory, after the first collection, Sister Agnes Njume and the other women religious present, led the offertory procession with beautiful liturgical dances accompanied by popular songs in the Bakossi language (Akosse). The entire assembly stood up and danced with their monetary gifts to thank God for the gift of Sister Agnes Njume to the church. After the Prayer After Communion, Fr. Maurice Ashley Agbaw-Ebai, Pastor of the St. Anne Parish thanked all for coming and presented to the assembly, the many religious who had turned out for the beautiful liturgy to pray and celebrate with Sister Agnes Njume. He was also very appreciative of Bishop Kennedy who willingly accepted to preside over the Mass and persevered with a long Cameroonian Liturgy. In response, Bishop Kennedy expressed his joy to celebrate for the first time with the Cameroonian Catholic community in Massachusetts and in particular with Sister Agnes Njume who had done a lot to promote Christian values and teach not only by words but by the example of her life following the example of St Therese of the Child Jesus. Bishop Kennedy gave the final blessing and the Mass ended at 2:50pm ET. After Mass, groups and individuals took various photographs to immortalize the event.

By 3:30pm, all had gathered in the Parish Hall for the Reception. Sister Agnes Njume thanked God for having chosen her, though unworthy to consecrate her entire life to the service of God and God’s people. She was immensely grateful to her parents especially her dad who initially introduced her to the idea of being a woman religious. She rendered her sincere thanks to all who have supported her in her formation and throughout her life as a religious and now as a Graduate Theology Student at Boston College especially the wonderful Cameroonian community in Massachusetts. She thanked all dearly for coming especially those who had travelled from various states within the United States of America to celebrate with her and more importantly, to pray with and for her. She was particularly grateful to Rev. Maurice Ashley Agbaw-Ebai, who she described as a son, for having made this celebration possible. She was very appreciative of the organizing committee for their sacrifices. From the remarks made by her friends, colleagues, former students and those who had had a personal encounter with Sister Agnes Njume, the following characteristics of her life stood out, which not only young religious can emulate, but all those who come in contact with Sister Agnes Njume: her self-less service, her commitment, her unparalleled dedication, her straightforwardness, her prayer life and most importantly her sincere love for God and God’s people.

A cake was prepared in her honor which she cut. There was much merry making by all. By 6pm ET the celebration came to an end.

By Anselm Ndumbe)

31, December 2019

Angola freezes Isabel dos Santos’ assets ⁰

Authorities in Angola have ordered the freezing of assets held by former president Eduardo dos Santos’ daughter, Isabel, her husband and a business associate as part of a corruption probe, a copy of the order seen by Reuters shows.

The asset freeze follows an injunction application by the government, which is seeking to recover around $1 billion of funds that it says it is owed by Isabel dos Santos and her associates.

It is one of the highest-profile moves in an anti-corruption drive launched by President Joao Lourenço, who ended dos Santos’ nearly 40-year grip on power when he became head of state in 2017.

The road is long, the truth will prevail.

Isabel reassures employees

Isabel dos Santos, who owns stakes in companies including telecoms firm Unitel and financial firms, has denied wrongdoing during her father’s time in office.

“I would like to leave a message of tranquillity and confidence to my teams,” she tweeted on Monday.

“We will continue, every day, in every business, doing our best and fighting for what I believe in for Angola. The road is long, the truth will prevail. United we stand stronger.”

Ranked as Africa’s wealthiest woman by Forbes, Isabel dos Santos chaired the state oil company Sonangol – a crucial pillar of Angola’s oil-dependent economy – before being sacked by Lourenço in late 2017.

The court order, dated Dec. 23, said the asset freezes applied to Isabel dos Santos, her husband, Sindika Dokolo, and Mário Filipe Moreira Leite da Silva, chairman of Banco Fomento Angola (BFA).

It freezes their personal bank accounts in Angola, as well as their stakes in Angolan firms including Unitel, BFA and ZAP MIDIA.

Reuters was not immediately able to reach dos Santos, Dokolo or da Silva for comment on Tuesday.

The order said the central bank would be responsible for ensuring that no funds leave the personal bank accounts of the three accused.

The boards of directors of the companies subject to the asset freezes are responsible for ensuring no profits are transferred to the accused directly or through intermediaries, until a court makes a further ruling.

REUTERS

31, December 2019

4,000 trapped on Australian beach as wildfires approach ⁰

Four thousand people have been trapped on a beach in southeast Australia after being forced to flee their homes as huge fires encircled swathes of territory and left no escape route by land.

The figure included tourists and locals who had sought refuge on the foreshore of the Australian town of Mallacoota, in the state of Victoria, on Tuesday as wildfires raged across the region.

Smoke in Mallacoota was reported to have turned day to night, with local authorities saying nearby fires were causing extreme thunderstorms and “ember attacks.”

Early in the morning, town officials had ordered the activation of emergency sirens to warn of the imminent fire threat, which prompted residents to rush to the seaside following an evacuation plan previously outlined in community meetings.

But the plan was to merely shelter people at the beach.

People are seen evacuating on boat in Mallacoota, Victoria State, Australia, in this still image from a December 31, 2019 social media video. (Via Reuters)

“We’ve got three strike teams in Mallacoota that will be looking after 4,000 people down on the beach there,” said Andrew Crisp, Victoria’s Emergency Management commissioner. “We’re naturally very concerned about communities that have become isolated.”

Large numbers of residents and visitors, enjoying summer holidays, were also forced to seek refuge in towns up and down a 200-kilometer strip of coast in southeast Australia, with some taking to the sea with boats in the hope of surviving from the country’s months-long bushfire crisis.

This handout photo, taken on December 29, 2019, and received on December 30 from Victoria’s Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning (DELWP), shows a helicopter dumping water on a fire in Victoria’s East Gippsland region. (Via AFP)

Australian media reports said dozens of properties had been destroyed since late Monday and at least seven people were missing in New South Wales (NSW) and Victoria states.

“In some places the flames were so intense, the smoke so thick, and the fire-provoked dry lightning storms so severe that aerial reconnaissance and waterbombing had to be halted,” the Rural Fire Service in NSW was quoted as saying by AFP.

Burning embers cover the ground as firefighters (back-R) battle against bushfires around the town of Nowra, in the Australian state of New South Wales, Australia, on December 31, 2019. (Photo by AFP)

More than 900 homes have been destroyed in NSW alone, and the number will likely increase as firefighters struggle to contain the massive fires.

Australia’s bushfires have been burning for months, destroying more than 10 million acres and killing nine people since October, including three volunteer firefighters.

The crisis has also impacted the major cities of Sydney and Melbourne, home to several million people.

Australian firefighters worry about wildfires approaching Sydney

Bushfires are common in Australia’s hot, dry summers, but the ferocity and early arrival of the fires in the southern hemisphere this year is unprecedented, with experts saying climate change has left bushland tinder-dry.

31, December 2019

Former Ivory Coast political leader Blé Goudé says sentenced in absentia to 20 years jail ⁰

Former Ivory Coast political leader Charles Blé Goudé said Monday he had been sentenced in absentia to 20 years in prison by an Ivorian court over murder, rape and torture charges.

Blé Goudé was cleared of crimes against humanity at the International Criminal Court in the Hague this year, along with his former boss, Ivory Coast ex-president Laurent Gbagbo.

But following his acquittal, an Ivorian court brought a fresh trial against him over the 2010-2011 bloodshed which followed a disputed vote in the West African nation.

The former aide to Gbagbo, who has remained in the Netherlands following his ICC trial pending a possible appeal by the prosecution, told AFP the Ivorian court had convicted him on Monday.

He said he was “surprised by the verdict”, adding that he had been sentenced to 20 years in prison, 10 years deprivation of his civil rights, and a fine of 200 million CFA francs ($340,000) to be paid to the victims.

The court has issued an arrest warrant for him, he added.

About 3,000 people died in the turmoil that swept Abidjan — once one of Africa’s most cosmopolitan cities — in the aftermath of the November 2010 presidential polls when Gbagbo refused to accept defeat to bitter rival Alassane Ouattara, who remains in power.

Leonard Lebry, the prosecutor general at the Court of Appeal in Abidjan has previously said the case against Blé Goudé — once dubbed the “general of the streets” for his ability to mobilise Gbagbo supporters during the conflict — was “wider” than the ICC prosecution and covered different events.

“The court will try him (Blé Goudé)” for allegations of “torture, murder, rape”, Lebry said last month.

Gbagbo, the first former head of state to stand trial at the ICC, and Blé Goudé were tried over responsibility for murder, attempted murder, rape, persecution and “other inhumane acts” during five months of violence, both pleading not guilty.

They were released by the ICC to live in Belgium in February under conditions including that he would return to court for any prosecution appeal against his acquittal.

Blé Goudé is living in the Netherlands under similar conditions.

Last month the Ivorian court rejected an appeal over the January 2018 sentencing of Gbagbo and three aides for the “robbery” of the Central Bank of West African States (Bceao) during the post-election crisis.

The opposition has claimed Ouattara is attempting to prevent Gbagbo returning to the country ahead of 2020 elections expected to be a crucial test for Ivory Coast, which has long been west Africa’s top economic performer and is the world’s leading cocoa producer.

The court conviction comes in the same month that an arrest warrant was issued for former rebel leader and would-be Ivory Coast presidential candidate Guillaume Soro, who aborted his planned return to the country at the last minute.

(AFP)

31, December 2019

Ex-Nissan boss flees Japan to Lebanon ⁰

Ousted Nissan chief Carlos Ghosn has escaped Japan, where he is facing charges of financial misconduct, and arrived in Lebanon, slamming the Japanese justice system as “rigged.”

“I am now in Lebanon and will no longer be held hostage by a rigged Japanese justice system where guilt is presumed, discrimination is rampant, and basic human rights are denied,” the 65-year-old Ghosn, who is of Lebanese origin, said in a brief statement on Tuesday.

“I have not fled justice — I have escaped injustice and political persecution. I can now finally communicate freely with the media, and look forward to starting next week,” he added.

It was unclear how Ghosn, who was out on bail, was able to escape Japan, where he had been under strict surveillance.

Japanese public broadcaster NHK cited an unidentified Lebanese security official as saying that a person resembling Ghosn had entered Beirut international airport under a different name after flying in aboard a private jet.

NHK also reported that Japanese immigration authorities had no record of Ghosn departing the country.

Ghosn, who holds French, Brazilian, and Lebanese citizenship, fell from grace in Japan after his arrest last year, but he still retains more popularity in Lebanon.

One of Ghosn’s lawyers said on Tuesday that his client’s three passports were held by his lawyers as required by the terms of his bail and he could not have used any of them to escape Japan.

Junichiro Hironaka, speaking to reporters in comments broadcast live by NHK, slammed Ghosn’s escape as “inexcusable.”

Ghosn was arrested at a Tokyo airport shortly after his private jet landed there in November 2018. He faces four charges, including enriching himself through payments to dealerships in the Middle East. He denies the charges.

Nissan’s Ghosn arrested in Japan for alleged financial misconduct

Nissan dismissed him as chairman for misconduct.

Ghosn’s lawyers have asked the court to dismiss all charges, accusing prosecutors of colluding with government officials and Nissan executives to dismiss him to block any takeover by the Japanese automaker’s biggest shareholder Renault.

He was released in March on a nine-million-dollar bail, and was placed under surveillance.

Source: Presstv

31, December 2019

Andrew Nkea Fuanya: The Family, Community and Traditional Value Archbishop ⁰

Pope Francis has promoted an African bishop known for his emphasis on family, community, and traditional values. In an announcement released on Monday, the Holy See Press Office confirmed that the pope has named Bishop Andrew Nkea Fuanya as the new Archbishop of Bamenda in Cameroon.

Bishop Fuanya, 54, has served as the Bishop of Mamfe, also in Cameroon, since 2014. He came to international attention during the 2018 meeting of the Synod of Bishops on young people, faith, and vocational discernment.

In contrast to the situation in many European countries, Fuanya said during the synod, the Church in Cameroon and in many parts of Africa is growing – including among young peoples.

“My churches are all bursting, and I don’t have space to keep the young people,” Fuanya during a Vatican press conference in October last year. “And my shortest Mass would be about two and a half hours.”

A 2018 study by Pew Research found that church attendance and prayer frequency was highest in sub-Saharan Africa and lowest in Western Europe. Four out of five Christians in Cameroon said that they pray every day.

Bishop Fuanya was born in 1965 and ordained a priest for the Diocese of Buéa, Cameroon, in 1992, at the age of 26. In 2013, he was appointed as coadjutor bishop of the Diocese of Mamfe, becoming the diocesan bishop the following year.

Bishop Fuanya’s new see, Bamenda, was erected as a diocese in 1970 and elevated to a metropolitan archdiocese by St. John Paul II in 1982. In recent years, the archdiocese has shown clear signs of growth and evalgelization. While the population of the archdiocese remained stable at 1.4 million people between 2015 and 2018, the percentage of Catholics rose from 29% to 42% during the same period.

During the Synod on young people, Fuanya credited the Church’s growth in Cameroon to the alignment between Church teaching and the values of wider society, and the strength of the family as a cultural institution.

“People ask me, ‘Why are your churches full?’” Fuanya said in 2018. “Coming from Africa, the family is a very, very strong institution.”

“We come from a culture in which tradition normally is handed from one generation to the other.”

Bishop Fuanya has also spoken about the need for the Church to teach unambiguously on issues of morals and sexuality, remarking during the 2018 synod that he would not accept any usage of so-called LGBT terminology in Church documents because “99.9 percent” of the young people in his diocese would “stand at my door and say, ‘What’s this?’”

“Our traditional values still equate to the values of the Church, and so we hand over the tradition to our young people undiluted and uncontaminated,” he continued, noting that a strong sense of community in the Church is something “very important that Europe can learn from Africa.”

In Africa, the newly-named Archbishop said, “there’s still a lot of things we do as community. That is the difference..”

“What we are trying to do in these small Christian communities is to fight the in-creeping of individualism,” he said.

Source: National Catholic Register

30, December 2019

Resignations and Appointments: Bishop Andrew Nkea is metropolitan Archbishop of Bamenda ⁰

The Archbishop of the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Bamenda, His Grace Cornelius Fontem Esua tendered his resignation letter to His Holiness Pope Francis. The Prelate handed over his resignation letter to Pope Francis in prelude to his 75th anniversary

The Holy Father has accepted the resignation from the pastoral care of the archdiocese of Bamenda, Cameroon, presented by Archbishop Cornelius Fontem Esua.

The Pope has appointed Bishop Andrew Nkea Fuanya of Mamfe as metropolitan archbishop of Bamenda.

By Ewang Miriam Metchane

30, December 2019

Biya regime says no talks with Ambazonian leaders until after February polls ⁰

The Cameroonian government does not intend to participate in talks with the Ambazonians until local elections have been held.

A delegation from the Center for Humanitarian Dialogue (HD) was to go to Cameroon at the end of November to meet the government, but the government canceled the meeting without re-scheduling.

According to our sources, Yaoundé does not intend to participate in talks with the Ambazonians until the implementation of the measures emerging from the Great National Dialogue in October (in particular the special status for the region’s English speakers) and until local elections – slated for February – are held.

Two opposing camps at the presidential palace

Even after these deadlines, the holding of talks remains uncertain.

The separatists themselves are divided.

And, at the presidential palace, two camps clash.

On the one hand, the supporters of a hard line, rather opposed to dialogue and represented by Samuel Mvondo Ayolo, the director of the civil cabinet, and by Joseph Dion Ngute, the Prime Minister.

On the other, a more open-minded group, embodied by Ferdinand Ngoh Ngoh, the secretary general of the presidency.

Abroad, mediation also has its supporters and its detractors: the United States is very favourable, while France is more opposed to it.

By Besong Eunice Nchong

30, December 2019

Bishop Andrew Nkea to be announced as the new Archbishop of Bamenda ⁰

Pope Francis has appointed Bishop Andrew Nkea of the Mamfe Diocese as Archbishop of Bamenda. Cameroon Intelligence Report understands an announcement will be made soon inside the Bamenda Cathedral.

The Bishop of Mamfe will take over the role from Retired Archbishop Cornelius Esua.

30, December 2019

Southern Cameroons Crisis: Ossing loses its regent ⁰

Ossing is once more bereaved. Its regent chief, Mr. Mathias Ako, a retired civil servant, has been murdered by some men of the underworld. His body was dumped between Kembong and Mfuni and pictures of what was done to his body are too graphic to be posted online.

This unfortunate situation is playing out just a few months after the city lost its chief, General James Tataw Tabe-Orock, a man who ensured that soldiers did not come into the city when the Southern Cameroons crisis began.

This is a big blow to the city and many hands are on deck to bring those responsible for this heinous crime to book. Eyewitness reports have indicated that the hit-men are natives of Kembong, a town some 4km from Ossing, while the masterminds of the crime are natives of Ossing.

Two scenarios have emerged, all pointing to personal grudges against the regent chief who was just deputizing for the late chief Tataw. The people of Ossing are still investigating and are enabling government authorities to do their job.

It should be underscored that the regent chief was not interested in assuming that role, but the people of Ossing had brought pressure to bear on him and being a development-oriented person, he yielded; a decision that has cost him his life.

Since the matter is still under investigation, the names of the suspects have been withheld to let the authorities do their job in all neutrality and since the current socio-political situation is unsettling and chaotic, witnesses are unwilling to speak up.

Various citizens of Ossing have said they saw the hit-men taking away the regent chief and he never returned to his native Ossing. They added that that was not the first time they were kidnapping him. On other occasions, the hit men had been brought to the city because it was alleged that the regent chief had some money on him.

The criminals, who are using the current socio-political situation in the country, had once accused the city’s regent chief of collaborating with government officials, an allegation that has been proven to be unfounded.

Some outsiders have been floating the idea that a chieftaincy dispute could be at the center of the murder, a point that is being verified. It should however be pointed out that Ossing has stood out as an example of democracy in the entire Southwest region where there has never been a chieftaincy dispute.

Ossing is the place where Manyu Division’s major languages converge. That is why it is generally referred to as a bilingual village because both major languages native to Ossing. The city is constituted of two ethnic groups, the Bayangs and Ejaghams who have come out with a governing model that has spared them the scourge of war that has devastated the city’s neighbors.

Ossing has a rotatory governing system that allows power to move from one ethnic group to the other in a very seamless manner. Late General Tataw was made chief by his Ejagham folks and after his death, the Bayangs are now choosing their chief in all serenity. The regent chief could not have qualified to be the chief and killing him on such grounds makes no sense to the people of Ossing.

It should also be pointed out that the military is not to blame for the regent chief’s death and any insinuation that the government might have targeted the regent chief is being rejected by the people of Ossing who hold that they know some of the hit-men.

The investigations are ongoing, and the police are hot on the trails of those who took away the life of a man who simply wanted to hold his community together.

The people of Ossing are peace-loving people and they have worked very hard to live in peace with their neighbors, especially as many of their relatives come from neighboring villages and towns. However, it is hard to vouch for all the citizens of a city, as everybody grows up to have their own character and approach to life.

By Dr. Joachim Arrey