News

22, May 2017

After Southern Cameroons: Thousands rally in Aden to support secession ⁰

Thousands of Yemenis have rallied in the port city of Aden in support of a so-called autonomous body set up to rule the south by officials of ex-president Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi. Protesters, who had reached the southwestern city from several southern provinces, chanted, “Independence is our objective,” the Middle East Eye news portal reported.

The autonomous body to manage the war-wracked country’s south was launched by Hadi’s governor for Yemen’s port city of Aden after he was fired by the Saudi-backed former president. Hadi sacked Maj. Gen. Aidarous al-Zubaidi over his perceived close ties with the United Arab Emirates after accusing the UAE of acting “like an occupation power in Yemen rather than a force of liberation.”

The autonomous body gathers 26 members, including the governors of five southern provinces and another Hadi minister. It has proclaimed that it aims to “run the southern provinces” and “represent them inside and outside” the country.

Hadi’s loyalists have accused the men of setting up secret liason with the Emirates, buying arms from it and forming military units. Yemen’s Houthi movement has also rejected the new council, calling it a “threat to the territorial unity of the Yemeni republic,” and a part of a “colonial plot.”

Yemeni supporters of the Houthi Ansarullah movement attend rally to protest two years of Saudi invasion of the country, in the capital Sana’a, March 26, 2017. (Photo by AFP)

Aden has been racked by armed clashes, explosions and assassinations since Houthi fighters were pushed out of the city in July 2015 by Saudi-backed militants. Al-Qaeda and Daesh terrorists are now audaciously driving their armed vehicles around the city, passing checkpoints set up by Hadi loyalists.

The United Arab Emirates has a strong military presence in the area as part of a Saudi-led coalition which has been pommeling Yemen for more than two years now in order to return Hadi to power and dislodge Houthis and their allies from their areas of control.

Aden has been grappling with a spread of arms, where arms possession is unprecedented, especially among young people. Residents in the city have complained that armed groups usually clash with one another in the streets and go unpunished when they kill civilians.

Source: Presstv

22, May 2017

CNPS General Manager is being investigated for fraud ⁰

A Prosecutor at the Special Criminal Court has opened an investigation against the current General Manager of the National Social Insurance Fund, CNPS. According to several sources, the State of Cameroon is suing Mekulu Mvondo Akame Alain Noel Olivier for “suspicions tax evasion” in complicity with the firm TSEKANE. Cameroon Concord News gathered that he made” SPECIAL DEDUCTIONS” on the salaries of some employees without any legal basis and transferred the money to a firm where he had vested interest.

Mvondo Akame Alain Noel Olivier was appointed head of the National Social Insurance Fund (CNPS) by a presidential decree on 7 April 2008. He was previously a secretary in the Economic Affairs Division at the Presidency of the Republic. The 58-year-old CEO of the CNPS is a product of the National School of Administration and Judiciary.

In 1998, the former Minister of State Control, Mrs Gwanmesia got Mekulu Mvondo arrested and detained for six months in the central prison at Kondengui, in a preventive detention, until the verdict of a scandal that had rocked the Douala ports vindicated him. Alain Olivier Noël Mekulu Mvondo left Kondegui and State Control and joined Hévéa du Cameroun (Hévécam), a privatized company in which the State remains a shareholder, where he held the position of Deputy Managing Director in charge of human resources management.

By Rita Akana with cables from CIN

21, May 2017

5,000 refugees rescued in 48 hours off Libya’s shores ⁰

Some 5,000 refugees bound for Italy have been rescued in waters off the coast of Libya between Thursday and Saturday morning by Italian and Libyan coastguards, statements from both countries say.

Around 2,900 people were rescued Thursday, 2,300 of whom were found in international waters and taken to Italy, while 580 picked up in Libyan waters were returned to the North African country.

Through Friday until Saturday morning, coastguards rescued another 2,100 refugees packed in 17 vessels, but found the body of one man who drowned, the Italian coastguard said.

The number of refugees arriving in Italy has soared this year by more than 30 percent in comparison with the same period last year, with 46,000 people arriving so far.

But of every 39 refugees, who survive the perilous journey across the Mediterranean, one dies, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said, adding that 1,244 refugees were known to have died so far this year.

(Source: AFP)

20, May 2017

May 20th Celebration: Attendance in Yaounde noticeably less than expected!! Photo shows complete boycott in Southern Cameroon ⁰

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

20, May 2017

Comey to testify in ‘open session’ of Senate Intelligence Committee ⁰

Ousted FBI Director James Comey has agreed to testify in an “open session” of the Senate Intelligence Committee to answer questions on the investigation into possible links between President Donald Trump’s election campaign and Russia.

The committee said in a statement late on Friday that it planned to schedule the hearing for some time after Memorial Day. “The committee looks forward to receiving testimony from the former director on his role in the development of the intelligence community assessment on Russian interference in the 2016 US elections,” said Senator Richard Burr, the committee chairman.

“I am hopeful that he will clarify for the American people recent events that have been broadly reported in the media,” the North Carolina Republican added. Trump fired Comey in a surprise move last week, triggering accusations that the president obstructed justice by seeking to thwart an ongoing FBI probe about alleged Russian interference in last November’s election. The Senate Intelligence Committee is also investigating the alleged meddling by Moscow and any possible links between Russian officials and the Trump team.

Senator Mark Warner, the committee’s vice chairman, said he hoped Comey’s testimony would “shed light on issues critical” to the investigation. “Director Comey served his country with honor for many years, and he deserves an opportunity to tell his story. Moreover, the American people deserve an opportunity to hear it,” the Virginia Democrat said.

The US Justice Department appointed a special counsel to oversee the probe, potentially limiting the Congress’s ability to look into the matter separately. There is concern that the counsel, former FBI Director Robert Mueller, would object to Comey speaking in public about an ongoing probe.

Trump has condemned the investigation as the “greatest witch hunt” in the US history. Last week, the president warned Comey against leaking information to the media. “James Comey better hope that there are no ‘tapes’ of our conversations before he starts leaking to the press,” he tweeted on May 12.

The latest twist in the controversy came on Friday when The New York Times reported that Trump allegedly told senior Russian officials visiting the White House that Comey was a “nut job” and that his termination relieved “great pressure.”

Source: Presstv

20, May 2017

Cameroon army claims to have killed a senior Boko Haram commander ⁰

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

19, May 2017

UK police ready to arrest Assange if he leaves embassy, possibly extradite him to US ⁰

British police are prepared to arrest WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange on charges of skipping his bail if he leaves the Ecuadorian Embassy in London, and possibly extradite him to the United States where the Trump administration has prepared charges against him, according to reports.

On Friday, prosecutors in Sweden dropped their rape investigation into Assange, who sought refuge in the Ecuadorean embassy five years ago.

A spokesman for England’s Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) told AFP on Friday that after Assange’s arrest his case would be referred to a judge and he could face a maximum one year prison term in the UK.

According to The Guardian, police cars are parked near the Ecuadorian embassy building in Knightsbridge, London, presumably ready to arrest the WikiLeaks founder for breaching his bail, which the Metropolitan Police Force has claimed he is still wanted for.

Journalists outside the Ecuadorian embassy in London on Friday. (Photo by European Press photo Agency)

Dozens of media persons are waiting outside the embassy but there has been no sign of Assange emerging from the building yet, reports said.

Britain ‘must grant safe passage to Assange’

Meanwhile, Ecuador’s foreign minister called on Britain on Friday to “grant safe passage” out of the country to Assange. “The European Arrest Warrant no longer holds. The UK must now grant safe passage to Mr Julian Assange,” Guillaume Long wrote on Twitter, shortly after Swedish prosecutors announced they had dropped their rape probe against the WikiLeaks founder. Assange took refuge in Ecuador’s London embassy in London in June 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden after Swedish prosecutors issued a European arrest warrant against him.

The Australian has denied the rape accusations, and says the claims are part of an attempt to ultimately have him extradited to the United States, where he could be charged over WikiLeaks’ release of 500,000 secret military files on the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. British police said an arrest warrant was issued against Assange in 2012. “The Metropolitan Police Service is obliged to execute that warrant should he leave the embassy.”

Possible extradition to the US

The police spokesman said he did not know whether Britain had received an extradition request from the United States.

“The UK government’s policy is to neither confirm nor deny any request for extradition until and unless an arrest is made,” he said.

The head of America’s Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) has called WikiLeaks a “non-state hostile intelligence service,” accusing its chief of helping the enemies of the US.

CIA Director Mike Pompeo on April 13 accused Pompeo WikiLeaks of overwhelmingly focused on the US and encouraging its followers to join the CIA with the sole purpose of obtaining intelligence.

He said WikiLeaks under the leadership of Assange “directed Chelsea Manning to intercept specific secret information, and it overwhelmingly focuses on the United States.”

American whistleblower and former US Army soldier Chelsea Manning (formerly Bradley Manning) was released from prison on Wednesday after serving seven years for leaking hundreds of thousands of classified documents to WikiLeaks.

US prepares charges to seek Assange’s arrest

The Trump administration has reportedly prepared charges against Assange in an attempt to arrest him.

Since 2010, US prosecutors have struggled with whether the First Amendment of the US Constitution prohibited the prosecution of Assange.

However, now they believe they have found a way to arrest the man who published thousands of files taken away by Manning, the former US Army intelligence analyst.

File photo shows American whistleblower and former US Army soldier Chelsea Manning, formerly known as Bradley Manning.

In an interview with RT on Tuesday, Assange described the CIA as “dangerously incompetent.” “The CIA is the world’s most dangerously incompetent spy agency. It has armed terrorists, destroyed democracies and installed and maintained dictatorships the world over,” Assange said.

Culled from Presstv

19, May 2017

Yaounde: Active debate over hand held cell phone ban by President Biya ⁰

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

19, May 2017

Torrential rains and mudslides strikes Yaounde ⁰

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

18, May 2017

Revealed: Biya Francophone gov’t monitors literally every phone call in Southern Cameroons ⁰

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