Monthly Archives: December 2019

8, December 2019

North Korea says denuclearization is off the table in talks with US ⁰

North Korea’s ambassador to the United Nations said on Saturday that denuclearization is off the negotiating table with the United States and lengthy talks with Washington are not needed, the starkest statement yet emphasizing the gulf between the two sides ahead of a year-end deadline set by Pyongyang.

US President Donald Trump sought to play down a recent surge in tensions with North Korea, stressing what he said was his good relationship with its leader Kim Jong Un and saying he thought Kim wanted a deal, not to interfere in next year’s US presidential election.

“We’ll see about North Korea. I’d be surprised if North Korea acted hostilely,” Trump told reporters at the White House before leaving for Florida.

“He knows I have an election coming up. I don’t think he wants to interfere with that, but we’ll have to see … I think he’d like to see something happen. The relationship is very good, but you know, there is certain hostility, there’s no question about it.”

Trump has invested considerable time trying to persuade North Korea to give up a nuclear weapons program that has grown to threaten the United States, but progress has been scant in spite of his three meetings with Kim Jong Un.

Tensions have risen ahead of a year-end deadline set by North Korea, which has called on the United States to change its policy of insisting on Pyongyang’s unilateral denuclearization and demanded relief from punishing sanctions.

Kim Jong Un has warned of an unspecified “new path” next year, raising fears this could mean an end to a suspension in nuclear bomb and long-range missile testing in place since 2017 that Trump has held up as a key win from his engagement efforts.

U.N. Ambassador Kim Song said in a statement the “sustained and substantial dialogue” sought by the United States was a “time-saving trick” to suit its domestic political agenda, a reference to Trump’s 2020 reelection bid.

“We do not need to have lengthy talks with the US now and denuclearization is already gone out of the negotiating table,” he said.

Kim Song’s comments appeared to go further than North Korea’s earlier warning that discussions related to its nuclear weapons program might have to be taken off the table given Washington’s refusal to offer concessions.

On Tuesday, North Korea’s Foreign Ministry repeated a call for Washington to change its “hostile policies” and said it was up to Washington to decide what “Christmas gift” came at the end of the year.

Kim Song also hit out at a statement this week from EU members of the UN Security Council criticizing recent short range launches by North Korea, calling it a “serious provocation” and saying they were playing the role of “pet dog” of the United States.

Summits, but little progress

Recent days have seen a return to the highly charged rhetoric that raised fears of war two years ago.

In 2017, Trump and Kim Jung Un famously engaged in a war of words, with Trump calling Kim Jong Un “Rocket Man” and North Korea calling Trump, now 73, a “dotard.”

On Tuesday, Trump once again called Kim “Rocket Man” and said the United States reserved the right to use military force against North Korea. Pyongyang said any repeat of such language would represent “the relapse of the dotage of a dotard.”

In spite of Trump’s reprise of the Rocket Man meme, he has still expressed hope that Kim Jong Un would denuclearize. On Friday the US ambassador to the United Nations said the United States had not yet decided whether to have a U.N. Security Council meeting to discuss North Korean human rights abuses that has angered Pyongyang.

On Friday, South Korea said Trump and South Korean President Moon Jae-in held a half-hour phone discussion on ways to maintain diplomacy with North Korea.

It said the two leaders agreed the situation has become “severe” and “dialogue momentum should be maintained to achieve prompt results from denuclearization negotiations.”

Many diplomats, analysts and US officials have long doubted North Korea’s willingness to negotiate away a nuclear program it has invested decades and a large proportion of limited national resources in creating.

Even so, Jenny Town of 38 North, a Washington-based North Korea project, said it was unclear how literally Kim Song’s words should be taken.

“It’s an interesting choice of spokesperson. Kim Song is not directly involved in the negotiation process,” she said. “These kinds of hardline messages are increasing in frequency as the deadline approaches, perhaps to try to compel a last-minute offer. Although the more they push like this, the less likely they are to get what they want.”

Town said North Korea has previously indicated a willingness to give up parts of its nuclear program as a first-phase deal, but not to discuss complete denuclearization up front.

“The North Koreans have always preferred a step by step approach rather than negotiating everything all at once,” Town said. “It is possible this is what Kim Song means, since we haven’t heard anything quite so stark from those involved in the negotiations.”
(REUTERS)

8, December 2019

How the France-backed African CFA franc works as an enabler and barrier to development ⁰

Last month Benin president Patrice Talon shook the establishment table of France-Africa relations when he said in an interview the Francophone nations in West Africa want take more control over their CFA franc currency and plan to move some of their reserves away from France

“Psychologically, with regards to the vision of sovereignty and managing your own money, it’s not good that this model continues,” is reported to have told Radio France Internationale.

But while Talon’s comments was a something of a surprise, it was no longer a shock. Where once the idea of the questioning the status of the France-backed CFA franc seemed heresy, discussions around its future are becoming more common both from grassroots activists and in offices of African governments and opposition leaders.

Earlier this year, Luigi Di Maio, Italy’s former deputy prime minister and current minister of foreign affairs revived the controversy about the role of the CFA franc on Africa’s development with a provocative statement:“France is one of those countries that by printing money for 14 African states prevents their economic development and contributes to the fact that the refugees leave and then die in the sea or arrive on our coasts.”

Although President Emmanuel Macron of France said he would “not respond” to the statement, he did note that in the past “France will go along with the solution put forward by your [African] leaders.” The statement, however, has brought to question the CFA franc currency zone, the relations between the 14 countries within the CFA zone and France, and their impact on economic and development performance.

There is also a clear divergence in opinion among African leaders using the currency. In a recent trip to France, president Alassane Ouattara of Cote d’Ivoire qualified the discussion about the CFA franc as a “false debate,” considering that the currency is “solid and well-managed” as well as “stabilizing” African economies.

But Chad’s president Idriss Debby said back in 2015 he considers the CFA as “pulling African economies down,” and that “time has come to cut the cordon that prevent Africa to develop.” He called for a restructuring of the currency in order to “enable African countries which are still using it to develop.”

In my book Innovating Development strategies in Africa: The Role of International, Regional, and National Actors, I examine the political economy of the performance and economic development strategies of the countries from CFA franc zone from 1960 to 2010. Building on it and additional research, it is important to address this debate dispassionately with impartial analysis of how the CFA works, the arguments of its supporters and opponents both academically and politically, its broader impact on economic performance, and the options ahead.

The origin story

France’s Treasury guaranteed the CFA Franc under a fixed exchange rate dependent on the deposit of 50% of its reserves in the French central bank

The CFA franc was created in December 1945 when the French government ratified the Bretton Woods Agreement and became the currency of les colonies françaises de l’Afrique or the CFA (“French Colonies of Africa”). The French Treasury guaranteed the currency under a fixed exchange rate dependent on the deposit of 50% of CFA franc reserves into the French central bank. The CFA was later split into the Communauté Financière d’Afrique (“Financial Community of Africa”) which included the West African countries Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Niger, Senegal, and Togo and the Communauté Financière de l’Afrique Centrale(“Financial Community of Central Africa”) including Cameroon, the Central African Republic, Chad, the Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, and Gabon.

The Central Bank of West African States and the Bank of Central African States are responsible for coordinating monetary exchanges through operating accounts with the French Treasury. These accounts operate according to several rules, including:

Each central bank must maintain at least 50% of foreign assets with the French Treasury,
Foreign exchange cover of at least 20% should be maintained for “sight liabilities”
Each government is limited to a ceiling of 20% of that country’s revenue from the previous year.

The CFA franc monetary system is designed to guarantee the franc currency in international markets, while simultaneously preventing overdraft and inflation in CFA member countries. Between the early 1950s and the mid-1980s, CFA franc countries had stronger real GDP growth and lower inflation than other sub-Saharan African countries. For example, within the past fifty years, Côte d’Ivoire experienced an average inflation rate of 6%— a much lower rate than its neighbor Ghana, which averaged 29% inflation.

From 1960 to 1978, Cote d’Ivoire averaged an annual GDP growth rate of 9.5%, which then stagnated, while Ghana’s GDP responded positively to structural adjustment programs in the 1980s. Cote d’Ivoire, among other CFA countries, did not respond immediately to structural adjustment programs. Strong growth and low inflation from the early independence period did not survive the economic shocks of 1986 to 1993, and the CFA became significantly overvalued and subject to increasing deficits in the French Treasury’s operations accounts. Domestic production lapsed, and African countries increasingly relied on imported materials. CFA countries’ public debt increased and central banks exceeded statutory ceilings, leading to significant fiscal imbalances.

A woman hands over a 10,000 CFA ($16.50) note to pay for food during the attieke and fish festival in Abidjan, Ivory Coast,

In 1994, France devalued the CFA franc, raising the parity rate from 50 CFA francs per French franc to 100 CFA francs per French franc. CFA member countries’ governments imposed wage freezes and layoffs in the wake of the CFA devaluation, leading to widespread unrest over inaccessible goods for consumers and unmanageable price controls for suppliers.

Then Senegalese president Abdou Diouf had promised citizens during his 1993 campaign that franc would not be devalued. So in 1994 thousands of demonstrators responded to this broken promise as many suffered the effects of France bowing to Western pressure to increase the CFA franc’s parity rate. Just one month before the devaluation, Michel Roussin, the French Cooperation Minister, had said there was no chance at devaluing the CFA Franc because France was “very attached to the Franc Zone”.

Growing debates

The challenge of implementing effective monetary policies for growth and stability throughout Africa has led to years of debate over the CFA franc zone. Many European and African leaders have supported its continuation, while others seek separation between France, the European Union, and Francophone African countries.

The debates over the CFA franc often begin with the question of exchange rates and devaluation. Studies have shown that the CFA franc’s convertibility at a fixed exchange rate was the impetus for the 1994 devaluation; an average of 730 million French francs was being converted each month before 1992, which was a massive increase from the less than 284 million French francs converted monthly before 1984.

All the presidents. Burkina Faso’s Roch Marc Christian Kabore, Mauritania’s Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, France’s Emmanuel Macron, Mali’s Ibrahim Boubacar Keita, Chad’s Idriss Deby and Niger’s Mahamadou Issoufou pose during G5 Sahel Summit in Bamako, Mali, July 2, 2017.

Monetary policies that were effective in achieving real exchange rate depreciation also resulted in a reduction in government expenditures and a decline in investment. As a positive effect, the unlimited convertibility of the CFA franc to the euro has generally reduced the risk of foreign investment in CFA countries. Though, foreign investment in CFA countries remains low relative to other emerging economies, such as the BRICS economies that include South Africa.

Guinea, which has its own currency, still stands as an example for supporters of the CFA zone. Guinea frequently experiences currency shortages and its central bank does not have sufficient policies to ensure stability, so the CFA zone is presented as a solution to instability in this particular case.

Côte d’Ivoire president Alassane Ouattara has in the recent past contended that CFA zone countries are better off than Anglophone countries due to growth and low inflation, whereas the poor are disproportionately affected by unpredictable inflation in Anglophone countries. What is rarely discussed is that similar or better outcomes could be achieved with other policy options.

In terms of trade, the CFA’s fixed exchange rate to the euro has led to a greater facilitation of trade through the reduction of uncertainty and stabilization of domestic prices. The logic of fixed exchange rates traces back to the Bretton Woods period when 63% of developing countries had their currency pegged to that of an industrial country.

The potential problems with a fixed exchange rate are mostly offset in Central African Economic and Monetary Union (CAEMU) countries, due to these countries’ high levels of excess liquidity from oil revenues. However, West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU) countries have experienced declining liquidity since 2004, thus suffering from the volatility of a fixed rate amidst external shocks.

Ideally, countries in the same monetary union should coordinate member countries’ fiscal policies to offset shocks in different parts of the union. However, no such coordination occurs in the CFA zone.

The CFA franc zone as a whole has thus resulted in:

Limited intra-regional trade, especially in Central Africa.
High dependence on producing and exporting a limited number of primary commodities.
A narrow industrial base.
A high vulnerability to external shocks.

A focus on primary commodities and limited intra-regional trade are broadly reflective of CFA franc member countries’ lack of export diversification and low industrialization. Intra-regional trade accounted for about 11% of total external trade of WAEMU countries, 6% of CAEMU countries, and only 9% of all CFA countries’ total external trade.The CFA franc’s fixed exchange rate is vulnerable to being a pawn on international markets to the detriment of the African economies.

The French government again considered devaluation in 2012, which, while disregarded as a rumor, was assumed to be a method of safeguarding the euro and maintain France’s credit rating. The CFA franc’s exchange rate could thus become a pawn in international markets to the detriment of CFA economies. In 2014, a drop in oil prices increased fiscal and current-account deficits within the monetary zone. Though, African leaders agreed to IMF-supported programs that inspired spending cuts to remedy the deficits instead of changing the exchange rate. This adamant support for the CFA franc’s peg to the Euro challenges the perspective that only European leaders support the fixed rate of CFA francs to Euros.

Debates over the persistence of the CFA franc zone also focus on African states’ independence and sovereignty. Large numbers of unemployed youth throughout sub-Saharan Africa—which may reach over 350 million over the next two decades—are often the loudest opponents of the CFA zone. Other pro-democracy movements, like Y’en a Marre in Senegal and Le Balai Citoyen in Burkina Faso, consider the dismantling of the CFA zone as essential to their campaigns to reform their countries’ respective governments. Other protests have included Kemi Seba, the Benin-born French activist who was charged with burning CFA notes in Senegal before being deported.

Some African economists consider the broader dependency on European monetary policies as a restriction to growth due to a hyper-fixation on inflation. However, African elite and wealthy individuals, the primary beneficiaries of the CFA franc zone configuration, support its continuation. Thus, debates will continue within the various dimensions of class, power, and politics.

The future

Scholars and policymakers have proposed several options to improve the viability of the CFA franc or replace the currency. Each option has advocates and opponents because the different policies target distinct challenges, such as exchange rate independence, inflation control, GDP-growth incentives, and capital mobility. The four most prominent options are to:

l. Tie the CFA franc to a basket of currencies, such as the dollar and the yuan. Pegging the CFA franc to multiple currencies will increase the relative stability of the currency in the event of exchange rate fluctuations of any of WAEMU or CAEMU’s trading partners. A basket peg based on an import-weighted index, as proposed by Crokett and Nsouli (1977), has also been evidenced to be more beneficial for developing countries. An import-weighted index would be most beneficial for WAEMU due to its high levels of import diversification, while a different configuration, such as an export-weighted index, a bilateral trade index, or an index based on the SDR (special drawing rights) might be more appropriate for the CAEMU zone that is highly focused on primary commodities. Though, in general, severe depreciation of basket currencies would have much graver effects on countries that mainly export primary products, such as CFA countries.

2. Restructure the reserve requirements for CFA franc countries. Higher levels of reserves will ensure the convertibility of the CFA franc, which is currently threatened by changing French and European fiscal policies. This option could be considered a short-term strategy, or precursor to other strategies, that may lead to greater monetary independence for CFA countries. However, in many CFA member countries, high reserves are derived from natural resource revenues, which are subject to changes in world prices and difficult to accommodate in the short-term.

3. Separate WAEMU and CAEMU into optimum currency areas. Optimum currency areas (OCA) have the benefits of high factor mobility, economic interdependence, sectoral diversification, and wage and price flexibility. The challenge is to support the costs related to the establishment of OCAs and ensure the establishment and compliance of uniform regulations. Though undoubtedly difficult to implement, this configuration could likely benefit both monetary unions because member states’ fiscal policies will be easier to coordinate within a similar regional context. Some research suggests West African CFA members of ECOWAS, the Economic Community of West African States, are already primed to become an OCA because these countries are best suited to integrate their real exchange rates. Although ECOWAS is mulling the launch of “Eco,” a new currency to be used by its 15 member states, including Nigeria, Aloysius Uche Ordu, former Vice President of the African Development Bank recently evaluated its prospects, and argues launching Eco by January 2020 “is, at best, an expensive distraction that the people of West Africa can ill afford at this particular moment”.

4. The establishment of the African Monetary Union. An African Monetary Union would be most challenging to implement and require countries to adhere to strict fiscal rules similar to the CFA zone until stability was achieved. This strategy requires significant investment and capital mobility to ensure a strong exchange rate union and currency convertibility. Movement of labor and capital are necessary to spur economic growth and stabilize relatively different economies. The appeal of an integrated African Monetary Union is the tremendous potential to increase intra-regional trade and encourage domestic production capabilities. However, another monetary union may lead to similar problems of dependence as the CFA franc zone.

Overall, policymakers from the CFA franc zone should analyze the various options to determine a short-term and long-term plan that will increase growth and lead to equitable development of countries that are at different stages. African and European leaders must be resolute and accountable to the various interest groups throughout their two continents.

Any restructuring of the CFA franc will have drastic macroeconomic effects that will require an increase to public investment and provision of public goods, attractive investment policies, development aid, and resource mobilization. The future of the CFA franc is yet to be determined, but it deserves comprehensive, sensitive analysis.

Source: Quartz Africa

8, December 2019

Boxing: Anthony Joshua regains his heavyweight titles ⁰

Joshua won by unanimous decision! The judges had it 118-110, 118-110 and 119-109. The two men hugged in the centre of the ring, it’s clear they have tremendous respect for each other and Joshua chatted with Ruiz for 30 seconds.

Joshua made a point of thanking the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and members of the royalty after his victory, which will not go down well with those who see the fight as little more than an exercise in sportswashing.

8, December 2019

Race For The White House: Trump declares self ‘greatest of all presidents’ ⁰

US President Donald Trump has called himself the “greatest of all presidents” as Democrats are meeting this weekend to prepare impeachment charges against him.

On Saturday, the US House of Representatives Judiciary Committee’s Democratic lawmakers released a 55-page report detailing offenses that could warrant impeachment against the Republican president.

The report covers the “constitutional grounds for presidential impeachment,” including bribery, abuse of power, betrayal of America’s national interest and corruption.

Trump, who has dismissed all the allegations ever since the impeachment inquiry was launched, took to Twitter Saturday afternoon, saying the American voters do not want him to be impeached.

Donald J. Trump✔@realDonaldTrump

“Not only have the Democrats not advanced key pieces of legislation that would help the economy, but the polls, especially in early states, are showing that voters are tuning out.” @PeteHegseth They don’t want our greatest of all presidents impeached!

Trump also said that Democrats’ “case” against him is not strong because they have been shifting from the alleged Russian interference in the 2016 US election to Ukraine and now back to Russia.

Donald J. Trump✔@realDonaldTrump

“Why re-elect Democrats when you know that this is what they are doing with their majority. Their case is not strong because first it was Russian Collusion, then it was obstruction, then it was Ukraine, now their pivoting back to Russia. Why would they be doing that?”

On Friday, the White House told Chairman of the Judiciary Committee Jerrold Nadler it would not participate in the hearings and called the impeachment inquiry “completely baseless” and said that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi had ordered Democrats to draft articles of impeachment “before your committee has heard a single shred of evidence.”

“House Democrats have wasted enough of America’s time with this charade,” White House counsel Pat Cipollone’s letter to Nadler said. “You should end this inquiry now and not waste even more time with additional hearings.”

Nadler said in a statement: “The American people deserve answers from President Trump.”

Pelosi on Thursday instructed the House Judiciary Committee to draft articles of impeachment against the president, assuring that a formal impeachment process against the president will proceed.

The committee could draft and recommend the articles by next Thursday and the House could vote on them by Christmas.

Source: Presstv

7, December 2019

Professor Ephraim Ngwafor suffers major setback in efforts to take control of SOBA UK LTD ⁰

The British legal system has brought untold misery to Prof Ephraim Ngwafor in his fight to take control of a UK limited company SOBA UK (SASSE OLD BOYS ASSOCIATION) – a name used by the original alumni group.

Cameroon Concord News understands that SOBA UK currently has two groups using the same name, the original group consisting of over 110 members who are the applicant in the matter, and a newly created dissident group with two members being the directors of the disputed limited company as well as the respondents. The pro CPDM smaller group has not published a registration list but our London Bureau Chief was reliably informed that they are less than 20 members involved.

The UK Company Names Tribunal is currently reviewing the witness statements from Professor Ephraim Ngwafor in support of the actions taken in August 2017 to incorporate a limited company called SOBA UK (Company Registration Number 10933239) by Thomas Adamu (as director) and Francis Niba Ngwa (as Secretary).

In a statement issued to the Cameroon Concord News Group prior to the historic SOBA UK Residential Convention in Colchester, members of original SOBA UK stated that this incorporation was done in bad faith as both Mr Adamu and Mr Ngwa held no positions of responsibility in SOBA and acted on their own to take advantage of the fact that the alumni association in the UK was not formally incorporated as a limited company, despite operating as a unincorporated alumni group for some 50 years in the UK.

Events took a dramatic turn and the incorporation of SOBA UK LTD precipitated a series of actions by Prof Ngwafor as National President of SOBA in Cameroon to take control by proxy and to give legitimacy to the directors of the company who are not members of the original group.

Prof Ngwafor’s actions have been painted as being out of line and illegitimate. But his diabolic harsh ploy was to rewrite and use a new SOBA constitution in 2018 without ratification to retrospectively make his intervention possible.

We gathered that Prof Ngwafor has directly managed the witness submissions from Cameroon through a UK representative, Mr Aaron Wood, and has roped in the principal of Sasse College to give a witness statement on a UK limited company dispute which has nothing to do with Sasse College.

Interestingly, the president of SOBA America Dr Betrand Fote stated in his witness statement for the respondents that he had pledged his allegiance to Prof Ngwafor upon his own election as president of SOBA America. The intervention of these overseas power actors for the respondents has rendered any form of mediation between the disputed parties virtually impossible, given that the directors of the limited company are merely spectators of the unfolding drama.

The Company Names Tribunal has accepted the validity of the complaints made by members of the original SOBA UK Group, against the incorporation of the SOBA UK LTD. However, the respondent’s witness statements have suffered a setback when the UK adjudicator stated that “they did not refer to the proceedings to which they relate”.

The adjudicator specifically listed witness statements for the respondents from Professor Ephraim Ndeh Ngwafor, Reverend Father Kevin Sakwe Nanje (Principal of Sasse College), Emanuel Junior Eta-Besong, Sako Burnley, Dr Bertrand Pokam Fote (President of SOBA America) and Mr Aaron Ronald Wood and has given them 2 weeks to resubmit. This is a huge setback because the directors of the company are relying on the intervention of SOBA Cameroon rather than on the validity of the reason for the incorporation of the limited company.

The Tribunal also stated that upon reviewing the witness statements from Mr Wood and his exhibits, it proposes to treat them as hearsay evidence and the adjudicator will give such weight as they deserve.

Cameroon Concord News believes that the defence being put forward by Prof Ngwafor and other witnesses for the respondents remains unclear, given that they are domiciled overseas and do not have any legal responsibilities for a UK limited company, either as directors or shareholders. The current company directors being absent have deferred the responsibilities for the defence of their limited company to SOBA Cameroon and the president of SOBA America, Dr Bertrand Fote.

Regardless of whether the directors play a role in the proceedings or not they are the ones listed as respondents and any claims for costs, if they were not successful, will still fall on them. Mr Thomas Adamu, who as a student was expelled from Sasse College in his third year in 1984 for truancy and disruptive behavior is the man setting the scene for the latest impasse in SOBA.

The General Assembly of SOBA UK took action to suspend Mr Adamu in 2017 for being consistently inconsistent with SOBA UK code of conduct. It is ironic that the incumbent Principal of Sasse College, Reverend Father Kevin Sakwe Nanje is providing a witness statement to a UK limited company dispute to align with the callous actions of Mr Adamu who as a student was dismissed by his predecessor. Sasse College is going through hard times with only about 250 students remaining and receiving education in temporary accommodation away from the college campus.

A senior UK law practitioner opined that, whilst the latest update from the adjudicator will not affect the substantive legal grounds on which the matter is judged, it does help enforce the picture that the respondents are chaotic and ill-advised.

The legal arguments of this dispute, which is a test case of its kind, will be on whether Mr Thomas Adamu incorporated the limited company in good faith at the time of the registration, knowing fully well that he was not authorized by the group to which he was registered and a group that existed and used the name for many decades prior to this singular action in August 2017.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai with files from Chi Prudence Asong in London

7, December 2019

Football: United win battle of Manchester to leave City 14 points off top ⁰

Manchester United landed another body blow to Manchester City’s hopes of retaining the Premier League title with a 2-1 derby win at the Etihad that leaves the champions 14 points adrift of runaway leaders Liverpool.

Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial scored the goals for the visitors, who should have made the margin of victory even greater with a host of first half chances.

Nicolas Otamendi pulled a goal back to give City hope five minutes from time, but that was too little, too late for Pep Guardiola’s men, who suffered a fourth league defeat in 16 games.

United remain eight points adrift of their neighbours, but move up to fifth and within five points of fourth-placed Chelsea to haul themselves back into contention for a return to the Champions League next season.

City’s priority may also now be limited to securing a top-four finish with the gap to Liverpool growing by the week and a makeshift defence that has now failed to keep a clean sheet in nine games.

In the midst of another testing season for United, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men have often saved their best for the toughest opposition having beaten Tottenham, Leicester and Chelsea and been the only side yet to take Premier League points off Liverpool.

City were powerless to stop the visitors pace on the break in the opening quarter in which United should have scored more than twice.

Ederson made a hat-trick of big saves to deny Daniel James, Jesse Lingard and Martial before United were awarded a penalty when Rashford was chopped down by Bernardo Silva inside the area.

Referee Anthony Taylor amazingly did not point to the spot in the first instance, but was quickly corrected by a VAR review.

Rashford stepped up to continue his fine form with a 13th goal in 14 games for club and country.

The 22-year-old’s 13 for United this season also matches his career-high for a single campaign and he should have had a couple more in the minutes after opening the scoring.

Firstly, Rashford curled an effort wide with just Ederson to beat form a fine pass by Martial before he fired another effort off the bar.

A United second was a matter of time as they continued to cut City open at will on the counter-attack and it duly arrived as James and Martial skipped around a host of half-hearted challenges before the Frenchman caught Ederson out at his near post.

City restored some semblance of order in the closing stages of the first half and should have been given a route back into the game by Gabriel Jesus when he headed Kevin de Bruyne’s inch-perfect cross wide.

The home side were also furious when Fred was not penalised for handball as he blocked Kyle Walker’s cross inside his own area with VAR this time backing Taylor’s decision not to give a spot-kick.

City applied the pressure after half-time but seemed devoid of ideas bar De Bruyne.

The Belgian’s driven effort was deflected over by a brilliant last-ditch challenge from Victor Lindelof before Rodrigo’s effort from De Bruyne’s layoff was tipped over by David de Gea.

Otamendi gave City life five minutes from time when he rose highest to meet Riyad Mahrez’s corner.

United were suddenly rocking and De Gea had to make a brilliant save moments later to deny Mahrez an equaliser.

But they held out to round off a huge week for Solskjaer.

The Norwegian was facing questions over his future just six days ago after a 2-2 draw with Aston Villa left United with just four wins from their opening 14 league games.

However, victories over Jose Mourinho on his return to Old Trafford with Tottenham on Wednesday and now the side who have left United second best in their own city in recent times, massively relieves the pressure on Solskjaer.

Source: AFP

7, December 2019

Bundesliga: Gladbach sinks Bayern,”Was Bayern könnte, kann Gladbach besser” ⁰

Match-winner Ramy Bensebaini admitted needing a reminder before taking the late penalty which sealed a 2-1 win for Bundesliga leaders Borussia Moenchengladbach and left ten-man Bayern Munich sixth in the table.

Defending champions Bayern now trail Gladbach by seven points after their second league loss in a week as Bensebaini scored two second-half goals to seal the hosts’ comeback win at Borussia Park.

A superb Ivan Perisic shot put Bayern ahead before Algeria international Bensebaini powered home a header on the hour mark.

He then showed nerves of steel to convert a late penalty after Javi Martinez was sent off for a second yellow card.

However, the 24-year-old Bensebaini admitted that, in the heat of the moment, he had forgotten being nominated Gladbach’s penalty taker.

“After (last Saturday’s 4-2 win against) Freiburg, we decided Breel (Embolo) wouldn’t be taking penalties anymore and it was agreed that I would take the next one, but I had forgotten,” Bensebaini told Sky.

Embolo had missed a penalty in last week’s victory.

“It was (replacement goalkeeper) Tobias Sippel who reminded me that it was down to me to take the kick.”

The left-back coolly converted the spot kick, conceded by Bayern defender Martinez, who was shown a second yellow and sent off, for a clumsy tackle on Gladbach winger Marcus Thuram.

“We’re going to do everything we can to stay top of the league. We’re going to go hard into all the games, then we’ll see,” Bensebaini added as Gladbach celebrated their ninth week in first place.

For Bayern, it was poor preparation for their attempt to become the first German club to win all six matches in the Champions League group stages when they host Jose Mourinho’s Tottenham at the Allianz Arena on Wednesday.

– ‘It’s not nice’ –

Bayern only had themselves to blame after squandering a string of chances, six of which came in the first-half alone, just as they did in last Saturday’s 2-1 home defeat to Bayer Leverkusen.

“It annoys me to have lost the last two games when we were always the better team and created the most chances,” said interim coach Hansi Flick.

“Of course, the situation is not nice — we’re all unhappy with what we have gotten out of the last two games.”

“We clearly dominated in the first-half and missed a lot of goal chances. After going 1-0 up, we forgot to play.

“Now we have to win our last three games before the (January) winter break and make up one or two points.”

Having been put in charge until January after Niko Kovac was sacked in early November, Flick, 54, had been tipped to see out the season as coach after winning his first five games, but two straight defeats have narrowed his chances.

Flick must wait until after Bayern’s final game of the year — at home to Wolfsburg in a fortnight — before discovering his fate.

“I am not thinking about it at all, because there are lots of other things I need to take care of,” he said with the Spurs match looming.

Former Germany forward Thomas Mueller said Flick is the right man for Bayern.

“It fits… but now we have to win our next three (league) games. Whenever FC Bayern loses, it’s not very nice.”

Source: AFP

7, December 2019

India: 2 Cameroon nationals among five held for online fraud ⁰

A criminal gang having involvement in multiple formats of crime landed in the police dragnet in Kadapa on Saturday.

With a lodge in Kadapa city as its headquarters, the team of five, including two Cameroon nationals, allegedly committed online fraud by offering medicines at cheaper rate, printed fake currency with the face value of ₹2,000 and even traded in cannabis.

It all started with a complaint on WhatsApp by Abdul Karim of Kerala to the police, which was accepted as a petition under ‘Spandana’ and passed on to Chinna Chowk police for investigation.

Acting on a tip-off to Deputy Superintendent of Police U. Suryanarayana, a police team zeroed in on the private lodge and arrested Mbi Adolf Ashu (31), Akow Bronson Enow (30), both Cameroon nationals and now living in Bengaluru, Chimpiri Sai Krishna (24) of Kadapa, Pangi Dasu Babu (29) and Kurra Jagannath (26), hailing from Paderu and Araku taluks respectively of Visakhapatnam district.

“In the garb of selling wigs and medical products, the two Cameroon nationals allegedly lured online customers with low prices, but never sent the products after getting the money into their accounts,” Superintendent of Police K.K.N. Anburajan said.

The police seized a laptop computer, printer, counterfeit currency with a face value of ₹7.28 lakh and cannabis weighing 9 kg.

Source: The Hindu.com

7, December 2019

Qatar postpones launch of new 2022 World Cup venue ⁰

Qatar has postponed to next year the opening of Education City stadium, its second newly built venue for the 2022 football World Cup, FIFA said on Saturday.

The venue was due to be inaugurated when it hosted the semi-final of the Club World Cup between Liverpool and an as yet undetermined side on December 18.

But delays to the certification of the stadium by the authorities will mean that the fixture will instead be played at Khalifa International Stadium which was already due to host several Club World Cup fixtures.

Education City will now be opened in 2020 although the world football governing body did not give an exact date.

“Construction at Education City stadium is complete and the venue is now operational,” FIFA said in a statement.

“However, the necessary certification process took longer than expected and therefore the stadium was unable to host the required test events prior to the semi-final and final of the FIFA Club World Cup at full capacity.

“The priority is to ensure an enjoyable experience for all fans so it was decided to open the stadium at a later date.”

Three years ahead of the start of the 2022 tournament, Qatar has already launched the brand new 40,000-capacity Al-Janoub stadium and the refurbished Khalifa International ground.

Five new stadia remain under construction. On Tuesday, Qatar will open the remaining line and stations on its new three-line metro system.

Source: AFP

7, December 2019

Senior UK diplomat in US resigns over government Brexit ‘half-truths’ ⁰

Alexandra Hall Hall, the British diplomat in charge of explaining Brexit to the US government, Congress and public, ended her 33-year foreign service career saying she is no longer prepared to “peddle half-truths” about Brexit on behalf of a government she does not trust.

In her searing resignation letter addressed to deputy ambassador Michael Tatham and dated December 3, she accused politicians of a “reluctance to address honesty.”

“I have been increasingly dismayed by the way in which our political leaders have tried to deliver Brexit, with reluctance to address honesty, even with our own citizens, the challenges and trade-offs which Brexit involves; the use of misleading or disingenuous arguments about the implications of the various options before us; and some behaviour towards our institutions, which, were it happening in another country, we would almost certainly as diplomats have received instructions to register our concern.”

The 55-year old senior British diplomat in Washington said her position had become “unbearable personally and untenable professionally”.

Her letter, seen by US broadcaster CNN, was said to have been shared widely with colleagues in the diplomatic service.

The Foreign Office said it would not comment on details of her resignation. Ms Hall is the second senior diplomatic figure to quit the mission in Washington in dramatic fashion this year.

On September 10, the UK ambassador Lord Darroch was forced to step down amid a storm over leaked memos in which he branded Donald Trump’s administration ‘inept and insecure’.

Source: Presstv