In one of the most scantily attended 20^th May celebrations in the country’s history amid early morning heavy downpour, the army and a cross section of the civilian population congregated at the 20th May Boulevard for the ceremony chaired by the 84 year old dictator, President Biya. The wet weather gave way to a sunny bright sky that allowed the Francophone dominated security agents to perform the normal rituals before the arrival of the presidential couple.

The ceremony recorded the presence of members of the Diplomatic Corps, the numerous cabinet ministers, the Prime Minister and Head of Government, the Speaker of National Assembly and the President of Senate. First Lady Chantal Biya arrived differently and her entourage was preceded by the motorcade escorting President Paul Biya. The Military orchestra was on-board and trumpeted the best of music to grace the unpopular event boycotted by many political parties and civil society organizations..

The Minister Delegate in charge of Defense at the Presidency, Joseph Beti Assomo welcomed the Commander in-Chief of the Armed Forces, Paul Biya and after the national anthem the aging leader inspected some detachments of the military and witnessed the military match past under the Command of  General Edzo’o Mvondo Simon, assisted by Colonel Enow Eyong.

Events in the Buea province of Southern Cameroons took a dramatic u-turn as heavy rains including the call for  a boycott by the Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium rocked the boat. Our chief correspondent in the South West who contributed to this report observed that “I feared Governor Okala would collapse and die following the massive boycott of the occasion.”  The situation was the same in the Bamenda province as many Southern Cameroonians observed the ghost town operation put in place by the Consortium.

Some conclusions could be drawn from the successful failure of today’s nationwide celebrations among them is simply that President Biya’s days as Head of State are numbered.

By Rita Akana

Cameroon Concord News

Cameroon military says it has killed a senior Boko Haram commander in Kaka Goubdo inside Nigeria. Abu Nazir was shot by elite troops from the Rapid Intervention Battalion engaged in Operation Thunder 4. Our military informant hinted that the body of Abu Nazir was identified by a combined team of Nigerian and Cameroon military experts.

Operation Thunder 4 began on May 9, 2017 and during this operation, Cameroonian soldiers penetrated Boko Haram controlled territories in a vast sector of nearly forty kilometers in Nigeria. Abu Nazir suspected of having family relations in Cameroon operated between Limani and Waza and terrorized the national road N ° 1.  To be sure, he and other militants of the Nigerian Islamic sect had made traffic on this road impossible. The area between Doublé and Dabanga, which became a throat cutting factory, was called “the axis of death.”

Correspondingly, Abu Nazir always managed with his gang to escape into Nigeria because he reportedly had good knowledge of the encyclopedic terrain. It was intelligence information on his hideout that enabled the success of the operation jointly carried out by the Cameroon commandos of Operation Alpha and those serving with BIR in the Joint Multinational Force.

By Fru James

Cameroon Concord News

President Biya has banned the use of mobile phones inside the presidency of the republic during the reception to be hosted by him and wife Chantal Biya tomorrow May the 2oth 2017. As the world continues to evolve and smartphone users have adopted the tendency to immortalize moments of happiness and to share with their entourage, the Cameroonian dictator, 84, who has spent almost 35 years in power, has forbidden mobile phones inside the presidential palace on the evening of May the 20th.

The decision was announced on state radio and television with standing instructions that dignitaries invited by the head of state will not be allowed to enter State House with their mobile phones. The decision has generated a huge public debate and aroused controversy throughout the nation’s capital, Yaounde.

Some political commentators have opined that the presidential security wants to avoid people taken private videos and photos of the president who is struggling to cope with old age but intends to continue to rule a country where a majority of the population is under 35 years of age.

Cameroon Concord News gathered that the presidential clan wants to protect the head of state and prevent guest taken photos and posting on social networks such as the one that occurred on May 20, 2016, when the limousine transporting President Biya broke down.

“The photo, taken by a guest from the rostrum was circulated on social media round the globe and made us uncomfortable,” said a highly placed government official who sued for anonymity. Security services are also considering a possible ban on the use of mobile phones during the parade at the 20^th May Boulevard.

By Chi Prudence Asong

Cameroon Concord News Group

Torrential rains have made travelling within Yaoundé the nation’s capital almost impossible. The inhabitants of Yaoundé seem to be caught in the trap of the current rainy season, with a succession of flashes and violent thunderstorms that follow each day given way to mud, making circulation difficult in certain districts.

The situation in Olembé, seen here on photo located at the northern outskirts of Yaoundé is a tangle tale. Correspondingly, movement of people has become almost impossible after each rain, precisely at a place called “Pétrolex”.

“We suffer here at Olembe, after every rain, it’s mud. Even vehicles can no longer move normally. We are obliged to go out every time, with two pairs of shoes. The second pair of shoe is used once we are in town or in the office, “says an Olembe resident

Another inhabitant of the “Pétrolex” district said that he is obliged to wash his car every morning before going to work. Clearly, the people of this part of the capital are used to mud as a majority are militants of the ruling CPDM crime syndicate and have not bothered to inform the authorities that their area has been cut off from the entire Yaoundé.

By Sama Ernest

The Francophone governor of the Buea province of Southern Cameroons has revealed that the Yaoundé regime will henceforth monitor telephone conversations of West Cameroonians in order to identify secessionists and persons fanning the flames of the Anglophone uprising. The land grabber governor made the revelation last week during a meeting to assess the security situation in his administrative unit. He added that he was acting following instructions from the presidency of the republic.

According to Bernard Okala, the objective of this mission of Big Brother surveillance is to identify the secessionists and any person feeding the current situation in the Northwest and Southwest. “We plan to stop all the actors involved in the uprising. Some people claim to be disturbed by the situation, but support the secessionists behind the scenes, “said Bernard Okala, who also hinted that about ten names of people who disrupt peace in Southern Cameroons have already been spotted.

The French Cameroun Commissioner for the Buea province emphasized that the South West region cannot be demilitarized when people continue to burn government buildings and intimidate the population. However, it should be noted that telephone conversations are protected. According to the law n2010 / 013 of 21 December 2010 governing telephone calls in Cameroon, the protection of privacy with respect to private telephone calls are twofold. The first relates to the prohibition of unauthorized telephone tapping and the second concerns the protection of consumers against anonymous infringements via telephone calls.

By Chi Prudence Asong

Cameroon Concord News

The Francophone regime in Yaoundé has announced two competitive entrance examinations for the special recruitment of 50 magistrates and 30 court registrars from Southern Cameroons in a move interpreted by the Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium as a desperate attempt at stifling the West Cameroon revolution.

The Biya regime, dominated by vicious anti Anglophone elements launched the so-called recruitment examination at the Advanced School of Administration and Magistracy, ENAM. A statement aired by the state owned radio and television stated that the competitive entrance organized by the Ministry of Public Service and Administrative Reforms is for the 2017/2018 academic year.

The information was contained in a press release signed by a Francophone cabinet Minister, Michel Ange Angouing. The release further stated that the written part of the examination shall be only in the English language. The Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium has called on Southern Cameroonians not to take part in the process. A spokesperson for the Consortium said the recruitment of 50 magistrates and 30 court registrars will not resolve the acute unemployment in Southern Cameroons.

The Francophone political elites say the examination will be written in four of the ten regions notably Centre, North, North West and South West. Potential examiners have been referred to the notice board of the Ministry and regional delegations or the website of the Ministry of Public Service for details.

By Rita Akana with files from CRTV

The Secretary General of the Popular Action Party, PAP, Akoson Raymond has announced the party’s decision to boycott the May 20 celebration in Cameroon.

In a release signed by the Scribe, PAP explained that the events from October 2016 portrayed a lack of unity between the two peoples that make up Cameroon. PAP pointed out that the continuous detention of Anglophones arrested during the heart of the crisis and the failure by the Yaoundé regime to open constructive political dialogue as recommended by International bodies like AU, UN,UK and the US prompted its leadership to adopt the boycott strategy.

Lord Justice Ayah Paul Abine’ s secretary general in his release, reiterated that it will join other Southern Cameroon groups to observe ghost town on May 20 and that PAP members and sympathizers will dress in black attires in memory of all those who have died during the crisis.

The leader of PAP, Lord Justice Ayah Paul Abine is one of the prominent Southern Cameroonians arrested during the crisis and the SG revealed that the decision to boycott the parade came after intensive consultation with the Advocate General of the Supreme Court.

PAP now joins SDF, CPP, PADDEC to boycott the May 20 Parade in Cameroon. Cameroon Renaissance Movement of Maurice Kamto has also announce a boycott if security measures are not beefed up in the two regions.

Source: Cameroon Info.Net

The leader of the Cameroon Renaissance Movement, Prof. Maurice Kamto has announced that his party will not take part in 20^th May celebrations in the South West and North West regions of the country.  The Cameroon Renaissance Movement (MRC) said it wishes to preserve the safety of its militants during the next parade in which it will actively take part in other areas in French Cameroun.

“It is not, therefore, a boycott of the parade in these Regions, because to do so would be to validate the end of the Unity of our Nation, an idea that is unimaginable for the MRC and which no patriot can think of . It is only a matter of preserving the security of our militants, sympathizers and the populations of these regions, taking care not to add to the tensions prevailing there.” says Maurice Kamto, The president of the MRC.

Kamto reminded his militants that the 45th edition of the feast of National Unity has been interpreted by the Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society as provocative following the CPDM government’s posture of defiance faced with the deep political crisis born from legitimate Anglophone frustrations. He added that the unity of the nation now remains in danger.

In addition, the MRC reiterated that it stands shoulder-to-shoulder with the populations and leaders of West Cameroon and support the idea that only the release of all the English-speaking leaders currently held in Francophone prisons and the opening of a real political dialogue can reduce the situation which is slowly but surely going out of control due to an irresponsible and anachronistic approach of the crisis by the Biya Francophone Beti Ewondo regime.

By Sama Ernest

Cameroon Concord News

The Council of Protestant Churches has called on the Biya Francophone Beti-Ewondo regime to begin dialogue with the Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium. The Anglophone crisis was prominent in the menu during a meeting by the Council of Protestant Churches of Cameroon (CEPCA) that held from the 2^nd to the 7^th of May 2017.

The General Assembly of the Protestant Churches noted that the Anglophone problem if not properly handled could undermine the unity and peace in Cameroon. The body therefore called on the Government to give priority to approaches that will lead to a peaceful resolution of the conflict. The religious leaders hoped that the regime would pay great attention to the demands of the Anglophone lawyers and teachers and open fraternal dialogue that can contribute to the resumption of schools in Southern Cameroons.

Cepca also requested that there the government should pass an act of parliament legalizing proceedings and all decisions reached to alleviate the concerns expressed by the Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium. Reverend Jonas Kemogné, the Secretary General of Cepca was quoted as saying that the Anglophone crisis inspired the choice of the theme of the 46^th general assembly meeting.

The Protestant churches in Cameroon say they are frustrated by the fact that church leaders have been dragged to court for matters that have nothing to do with religion. “We criticize this situation. We ask the State to take a particular look at the situation of all those arrested in the English-speaking area. That procedures be legal and accelerated to avoid tensions, “said Rev. Jonas Kemoge.

By Sonne Peter, Camcordnews

The Cameroon military has launched what it described as Operation Thunder 4 focused on one of the last pockets of resistance by the Nigerian Islamic sect, Boko Haram near the borders with Nigeria. Operation Thunder involves a great mobilization and deployment of Cameroonian soldiers to Nigeria. The combat mission resumed on May 9, 2017 and it is the fourth intervention ever since the creation of the Joint Multinational Task Force.

Cameroon Concord News sources hinted that the army is now concentrating on crippling the remnants of Boko Haram fighters operating in the border towns and villages. The elite soldiers have been stationed between Limani and Waza from where they will penetrate the Federal Republic of Nigeria. It should be noted that the area between Limani and Waza provides Boko Haram militants’ enough space to protect themselves from drones. On May 9, 2017, the Cameroonian soldiers also launched Operation Alpha and engaged in Operation Thunder 4 on the Boko Haram sanctuary in Kumshe and Ngoshe.

As a reminder Operation Thunder began on the 19^th of December 2015. It was the first off-the-ground operation by the Cameroonian military inside Nigeria. Some 1,500 soldiers have been deployed for this longest and largest scale operation ever carried out by the Cameroonian army.

By Sama Ernest, Camcordnews