President Biya has finally joined forces with his kinsman, Edgar Alain Mebe Ngo’o the Minister of Transport and gotten rid of the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Camair-Co Mefiro Oumarou. The emergency Camair-Co board meeting yesterday in Yaounde recorded a dramatic and an incredible turnaround situation.

State radio and television including other independent media sources announced the sacking of the general manager, Ernest Dikoum and later on information was made public that he was retained by members who attended the Hilton Hotel forum in Yaoundé. The Biya Beti Ewondo surprise came where it was least expected.

Mefiro Oumarou, the Chairman of the Board of Directors, was disembarked only eight months after his appointment and was replaced by Louis Georges Njipendi. The latter appointed by presidential decree, was immediately installed by Edgar Alain Mebe Ngo’o, Minister of Transport. Thus, in the quarrel between the former Board Chairman and the Minister of Transport over the management of the recovery plan of Camair-co, Paul Biya decided in favor of the Minister Edgar Alain Mebe Ngo’o.

By Chi Prudence Asong

Two new Boeing A180 aircraft will be acquired by Camair-Co for the purpose of strengthening its fleet. Edgard Alain Mebe Ngo’o, the Francophone Minister of Transport who has been hiding ever since the Eseka train disaster will today Wednesday in Yaoundé sign a contract with the partners of Cameroon, for the final acquisition of the two new aircraft, as part of the national airline’s recovery plan.

Since its creation, just over six years ago, the Camair-Co has been shaken by corruption, fraud and management problems that have paved the way for negotiations to adopt a recovery plan for the company. The numerous financial scandal that has rocked Camair-Co was debated in National Assembly during the last session.

Edgard Alain Mebe Ngo’o told parliamentarians that the state was ready to inject 60 billion FCFA for the re-launch of Camair-Co. In recent weeks, the airstrips of the Douala airport have been redesigned in view of the relaunch of the national airlines carrier.

French NGO Internet Without Borders has reported that in 60 days, the Internet cut in Southern Cameroons has cost 2.69 million euros or nearly 2 billion FCFA to the Cameroonian economy.  The international body also did observe that Southern Cameroons internet shutdown is one of the longest recorded in Africa. Mobile operators, including Orange and MTN were ordered by the Francophone regime to suspend Internet services in the English part of the country.

The situation has been more detrimental for Southern Cameroons entrepreneurs and has completely destroyed the development of a significant number of digital start-ups. Young businessmen such as Churchill Mambe, Njorku, based in Buea, drives everyday to Bonako-a small village in French Cameroon to be able to have access to internet.

Cameroon Concord News understands the Internet cuts have also had a negative and direct influence on national and regional economies, thus delaying progress towards the achievement of development objectives. Financial experts say the cuts present significant risks to investors in the provision of fixed and mobile network infrastructure and that some investors have opted to leave Cameroon. The Minister of Telecommunications, Minette Limbo Li Likeng has maintained a kind of deliberate silence on this recent revelation.

By Fru James

The political port created by the Biya Francophone government in Kribi at the expense of that in Limbe has still not gone operational. Cameroon Concord News understands the infrastructure of the Kribi port is technically ready to be exploited for months now but delays exist at the level of the award of contracts for the management of the multipurpose terminals and containers.

Recognized by the State of Cameroon, the Dutch company Smit Lamnaco, the contractor for the towing and landing contract, signed its agreement since the 2^nd of February 2015. The consortia Necotrans-KPMO (polyvalent terminal) and Bolloré-CMA CGM-CHEC (Container terminal), both were recruited since August 2015 and continue to wait for the government’s anointing to enter service on their respective terminals.

However, heavy equipment that were procured by the CPDM government for the Autonomous Port of Kribi continue to rust. The two tugs acquired and received by the State of Cameroon since 2014 will be sent for technical revision in the coming days, as they have long been stagnant at the port.

Built by the Chinese company CHEC, thanks to financing from Eximbank China, the deep water port of Kribi has 650 m of platforms, of which 350 m for the container terminal and 265,5 m for the multipurpose terminal. The two terminals have respective capacity of 300,000 Equivalent Unit (TEU) per year and 1.2 million tonnes per year.

The second phase of construction of this white elephant scheme includes the extension of the 700 m container terminal to 1050 m, as well as the construction of mineral and hydrocarbon terminals. With a 15.5 m channel, this port infrastructure, which will accommodate ships with a draft of 16m, is presented by experts as the best on the West African coast.

By Sama Ernest

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

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

Credit Foncier du Cameroun (CFC) has sued a former employee for alleged misappropriation of the sum of 157 million FCFA. The money in dispute was reportedly siphoned from the Buea branch in the South West region by Rose Ngala Mokate, who until March 2015 held the position of cashier.

Lawyers representing the bank revealed that two years ago, Rose Ngala Mokate requested for permission from her hierarchy to stay away for a week in order to attend the funeral of her late sister. During her absence, an interim cashier discovered that money paid in by certain customers shown on the booklets, did not correspond with the figures which recorded by the computers.

An in-house investigation was ordered and it found out that there was a cash deficit that amounted to the sum of 17 million FCFA. Madam Rose Ngala Mokate was told to provide an explanation upon her return from leave. She did acknowledge the alleged offense and Credit Foncier sources say her paid the back the disputed sum. Unfortunately, a second audit team that re-examined the files from the 3^rd to 10^th of  March 2015, announced to the management that more than 157 million FCFA had disappeared during Rose Ngala’s time as cashier.  She was dismissed and legal proceedings opened against her.

State prosecutors at the Special Criminal Court in Yaounde are now of the opinion that the accused could not have succeeded in mounting such a scheme without having a few complicities. Four former colleagues of Rose Ngala Mokate have already been questioned at the Special Criminal Court. The next hearing is scheduled for the 7^th of April 2017. However, since her dismissal from the bank, nothing has been heard about Rose Ngala Mokate.

By Sonne Peter with cables from CIN

The Cameroon Airlines Company, Camair Co is expected to acquire new generation planes to boosts it’s haggard and grounded fleet. The company that currently has only five planes is presently under a seven year restructuring plan with America’s Boeing Company. The overall objective of the reforms is to revamp the company and get it back to business.

According to the Director General of Cameroon Airlines Corporation, Ernest Dikoum, the priority of the company presently is to give priority to local and sub continental flights. Ernest Dikoum says strict measures will be put in place to end the issuance of free tickets; accordingly, even government officials will have to pay flight tickets.

Camair-Co intends to fly 23 destinations including eight local flights to Bafoussam, Bamenda, Yaoundé, Douala, Bertoua, Ngaoundéré, Maroua, and Garoua. The company has also scheduled regular flights to four inter-continental airports including Bruxelles, Paris, Washington, and London.  At the regional level, eleven destinations have been scheduled: Abidjan, Bamako, Bangui, Cotonou, Johannesburg, Kinshasa, Libreville, Ndjamena and Lagos.

As the airliner seeks to regain its clientele and enhance customer satisfaction and efficiency in service delivery, it has sort the expertise of the aero plane manufacture Boeing in the elaboration and implementation of its seven year restricting plan. The Minister of Transport, Edgard Alain Mebe Ngo’o, presented the details of the restructuring plan during a ceremony in Yaoundé attended by the Minister Delegate for Transport Méfiro Oumarou, chairman of the board of Administration of Camair-Co.

The new plan replaces that elaborated June last year. It lays emphasis on the acquisition of new air carriers and the diversification of destinations. According to the director of sales at Boeing, Michael Bangue-Tandet, in the next seven years the company will acquire twelve new passenger planes and a cargo plane and two turbo propulseurs 777 200 ER (Extended Range) as temporal measures while expecting the Boeing 787 in the course of the third and fourth year.

In line with the plan, Camairco will purchase a 737 cargo plane in the first year while the MA60, the 737 and the SF will be replaced in five years by new generation aeroplanes. In the course of the second and third year, turbo propulseurs Q400 manufactured by Bombardier will be added while the 737 800 will be acquired to boost regional flights. In the meantime, the 767, christened the Dja will be revised and used for support missions. The 787 will be returned to their owners after two or three years of exploitation.

In July 2020, the company will acquire two Boeing 787 “Dream liner”. Minister Edgard Alain Mebe Ngo’o, noted that one of the two Dreamliners will be available by December 2018, Ahead of the Africa Cup of Nations, AFCON 2019. The rehabilitation of Camair Co has been estimated at 60 billion CFA francs and so far, 30 billion CFA francs has already been raised by a consortium of banks lead by Ecobank.

The Minister added that the remaining 30 billion CFA francs will be provided by the government of Cameroon. The Transport boss commended the management team of Camair Co for raising the punctuality of flights by the national carrier to 76% and performing 72 domestic flights per week. He says this is proof of management’s ability to efficiently carryout the renovation of the company.

CRTV

The Minister of Post and Telecommunication made a fool of herself and President Biya while presenting a paper at the so-called Cameroon Business Forum. Minnette Libom Li Likeng was asked about the suspension of Internet in the English-speaking regions of the country and the Biya acolyte acknowledged that the expansion of the digital economy as requested by President Paul Biya cannot be done without Internet.

“The Head of State has said that the whole Government should mobilize to achieve the expansion of the digital economy. And it cannot be done without the Internet.”  The inefficient cabinet minister also observed that internet will be reinstated in Southern Cameroons only when things return to normal.

Since 17 January 2017, the two English-speaking regions of Cameroon have been deprived of Internet services by the Francophone dominated regime in Yaoundé.  Numerous international organizations have denounced the move with little or no results.  By the end of February 2017, the NGO Internet Without Borders estimated the losses related to this cut at about 832 million FCFA.

By Rita Akana with files from CIN