News

11, July 2017

China dispatches troops to set up military base in Djibouti ⁰

China has dispatched its naval forces to the Horn of Africa to set up an army base in Djibouti, where several global players have a military presence. Members of China’s People’s Liberation Army marked the incident at a ceremony at a naval base in the southern Chinese port of Zhanjiang on Tuesday, the Chinese Defense Ministry announced on its website.

China says it will use the base to assist anti-piracy operations, UN peacekeeping and humanitarian relief missions in Africa and western Asia. Beijing also says it will use the base to facilitate military cooperation and joint exercises, as Chinese navy and other services seek to expand their international presence in line with the country’s growing economic and political influence.

The Horn of Africa nation, strategically located in the critical entrance from the Indian Ocean to the Red Sea, lies at the gateway to the busy Suez Canal waterway and provides a port to neighboring landlocked Ethiopia. The US, France, Japan and several other countries already have a military presence in Djibouti.

In April, US Defense Secretary James Mattis visited Djibouti, which houses Camp Lemonnier, the largest known US military base in the African continent. Mattis also discussed the issue of China’s growing influence in Djibouti with officials of the African country.

Touted by military experts as one of the most strategically important US military bases abroad, Camp Lemonnier has been dramatically expanded since it was built in 2001. The number of personnel stationed there, for example, has jumped from 900 to 5,000 since 2002. The US has been using a fleet of drones stationed at the base to conduct bombing missions against several Muslim countries in the region.

Washington has also deployed a number of drones to the Chabelley Airfield, located some 6 miles (9.5km) to the southwest of Djibouti’s capital. China’s military base in Djibouti will be established just a few miles from Camp Lemonnier, a decision that Washington says would raise “security concerns.”

In August 2015, Djibouti had reportedly ordered the US to vacate its secondary Obock military base in the country in a bid to turn over the installation to the Chinese military and its contingent of 10,000 troops.

The US Defense Department reportedly paid Djibouti nearly $63 million per year for the use of the Camp Lemonnier military base. However China, reportedly offered Djibouti a far more generous offer, namely the completion of a $3-billion railroad project from the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa to Djibouti.

The West is concerned that closer ties between Djibouti and China may prompt the African country to impose restrictions on US access to the Camp Lemonnier base, which the US uses to collect intelligence on terrorist groups in the region.

Source: Presstv

11, July 2017

Momo Division: A constituency in grief ⁰

Consternation gripped the people of Momo division in the North West region after two prominent Fons disappeared in a road accident which occurred last Saturday July 8, 2017 in the west region.

A witness recounts that the two Fons were on their way to Yaoundé when road safety Gendarmes stopped them around Batoum in Bangante but the driver reportedly added speed but unfortunately met face-to-face with an oncoming vehicle.

The two Fons passed on shortly after. A source disclosed that HRH Dr Akam of Kai village and HRH Jokem of Mbwngwi were heading to Yaoundé to answer the call of Minister Mbah Acha Rose of Supreme State Audit for her maiden outing.

It is believed that several other Fons were awaited in Yaoundé for the meeting. HRH Dr Akam was a lecturer in the Faculty of Arts in the University of Buea.

The Secretary General of National Fons Union,HRH Chaffa XI of Bangolan told CIN that he was aware of the incident but could not give further detailes adding that North West Fons Union could react on that because it falls within their competence.

Source: Cameroon Info.Net

11, July 2017

16 dead as US military plane crashes in Mississippi ⁰

Sixteen US servicemen have died after the military plane carrying them went down in rural Mississippi, police say. There were 16 people on board the Marine Corps KC-130 when it crashed Monday afternoon in a soybean field in Leflore County, leaving a debris field five miles in radius.

“A USMC KC-130 mishap occurred the evening of July 10. Further information will be released as available,” the US Marine Corps Twitter account said immediately after the incident. Officials said they had recovered 12 bodies from the crash site. “Most of them are going to be Marines,” Leflore County EMA Director Frank Randle, adding he did not assess there were any civilian casualties resulting from the crash.

Marine Corps spokeswoman Lt. Kristine Rascicot also confirmed the crash but refused to release more details. The Lockheed Martin KC-130 aircraft is an extended-range tanker variant of the famous Lockheed C-130 Hercules, modified for aerial refueling operations.

Aircraft based on the C-130 Hercules have four turboprop engines and are primarily used for military transportation. The aircraft also has a heavily-armed AC-130 variant that carries a wide array of anti-ground weapons. The latest notable use of the weapon was in October 2015, when the gunship “mistakenly” attacked a Doctors Without Borders hospital in Kunduz, Afghanistan.

Source: Presstv

10, July 2017

Prominent Southern Cameroon CPDM politician with questionable academic papers ⁰

A top political leader and high officer of the ruling CPDM crime syndicate in the Fako constituency has been caught up in an academic certificate forgery fiasco that threatens his professional and political career. The Mayor of Buea, Patrick Ekema is the first Southern Cameroonian CPDM baron to be mired in the potentially damaging farce ever since the beginning of the Anglophone crisis.

The South West Regional Secretary for Human Rights and Freedom, Barrister Tambe Tiku told journalists that investigations are ongoing to establish the validity of the academic papers of various public servants, including prominent West Cameroon government officials, senior and junior South West regional officers.

Recently, Barrister Tambe Tiku said the mayor of Buea has fake academic papers and recommended that the Minister of Public Service prosecute him. Tambe Tiku revealed that the vocal mayor presented forged certificates to gain admission into the University of Buea and used the same fake certificate as he sought nomination in the run-up to the General Election that made him mayor. Patrick Ekema’s Masters degree including his O and A level certificates Diploma Certificates were forged.

Barrister Tambe Tiku’s investigations further revealed that the mayor made a false declaration under oath through a self-declaration form to the ruling CPDM Central Committee. The Barrister Tambe Tiku report, whose findings has been endorsed recommends that Mayor Patrick Ekema be charged with numerous counts of forgery.

The degree and diploma certificates of some key CPDM leaders, including governors, MPs and heads of government bodies, have never been subjected to security authentication, after questions were raised on how they were acquired many years ago in Yaoundé. Mayor Ekema has also been involved in forgery of academic papers to secure employment for his acolytes and mistresses in the Buea Council.

The Tambe Tiku revelations backed by a cream of prominent academics, showed that Mayor Ekema Patrick submitted forged GCE Advance level Certificate during his admission and subsequent promotion in the Buea city council. Mayor Ekema has since not denied forging the certificates and is yet to make public his certificate number. Ekema supporters have declared that he was a bona fide student of the University of Buea and have also been fighting allegations that he did not graduate from the University.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai
Cameroon Concord News

10, July 2017

Huge fire rips through London’s Camden Market ⁰

Ten fire engines and more than 70 firefighters have battled a large fire in a building in London’s popular Camden Lock Market, a well-known tourist attraction, the London Fire Brigade has said. According to the Fire Brigade, the fire which erupted a few minutes before midnight was under control by around 3:00 a.m. local time on Monday, but firefighters would continue to “damp down” the site in order to prevent any re-ignition.

There were no immediate reports of any casualties or cause of the blaze. The London Fire Brigade said on Twitter in an earlier statement that the first three floors and roof of a building within the market were alight. “The Brigade’s 999 Control Officers have taken multiple calls to the highly visible blaze and people are asked to avoid the area,” it said on Facebook.

This is the second major fire incident in London in recent weeks. On June 14, a fire tore through the Grenfell Tower residential building, killing at least 80 people. Cheap materials used to refurbish the tower were cited as the reason for the Grenfell inferno, according to a report published in The Times.

The 24-story building block with 120 apartments was home to many Muslim residents. Reports said a lack of suitable equipment; low water pressure and radio problems hindered the response to the Grenfell Tower disaster. Fire crews have told the BBC that low water pressure, radio problems and equipment that was either lacking or did not arrive before the fire got out of control.

Source: Presstv

9, July 2017

Nairobi: Kenyan interior minister dies in hospital ⁰

Kenya’s government on Saturday announced the death of Interior Minister Joseph Nkaissery at a hospital in the capital Nairobi. Nkaissery, 68, a retired army officer, had held the position of cabinet secretary for interior and coordination of national government since late 2014.

“It is with deep sorrow and shock that we announce the sudden passing on of Interior CS Retired General Joseph Nkaissery,” said a statement from Kenya’s State House. It said Nkaissery died “at Karen Hospital in Nairobi a few hours after being admitted for a check-up” without providing further details on the cause of death.

Nkaissery was a Member of Parliament from 2002 until 2014 when President Uhuru Kenyatta named him interior minister to replace Joseph Ole Lenku who was dismissed following a spike in insecurity and terror attacks in the country.

(Source: AFP)

9, July 2017

Former Cameroon Defense Minister dies in Paris ⁰

Philippe Menye Me Mve, a former Governor and Minister for Defense who recently wrote a letter to President Biya begging for an appointment has died in Paris, France. The Francophone political elite reportedly suffered a stroke when news got to him that he had been dropped from government.

Born in 1937, Philippe Menye Me Mve was a senior civil administrator who held several positions of responsibility in the Biya Francophone Beti Ewondo regime.

He was Deputy Prefect of Mfou, then Prefect of Nkam, Prefect of Dja-et-Lobo, Prefect of Haut Nkam, Prefect of Moungo (as of 11 April 1984), Prefect of Mayo Tsanaga 1985), and Prefect of Mfoundi (as of 31 October 1989). On 10 January 1992, he was appointed Governor of the Western Region. From September 19, 1996 to December 7, 1997, he held the post of Minister for Defense.

As the defense boss, he targeted General James Tataw with numerous “demande des explications” and Tataw got Biya to give him a sack. He traveled abroad for treatment and upon his return lately, Menye Me Mve addressed a letter to President Biya saying Monsieur le président, Je suis là…» “Mr. President, I am here …”

By Rita Akana
Cameroon Concord News

9, July 2017

Bishop Bala Affair: National Episcopal Conference attack statement by Yaounde Prosecutor ⁰

The President of the National Episcopal Conference, Archbishop Samuel Kléda has reaffirmed the stance of the Cameroonian bishops that the late Bishop Jean-Marie Benoit Bala was brutally murdered. His Lordship Samuel Kleda made the revelation to the press on Saturday as part of the activities of the 11th plenary assembly of the bishops of Central Africa that is currently holding in Yaoundé.

Responding to questions from journalists at the headquarters of the National Episcopal Conference of Cameroon (NCPC), the man of God observed that the “Bishops maintained their position” that “Bishop Jean-Marie Benoit Bala was brutally murdered.”

The reaction of the Cameroonian episcopate was very much awaited since the publication on July 4 of a statement bearing the DNA of Jean-Fils Kléber Ntamack, the Prosecutor in charge of the investigation in which Ntamack reported that drowning was the most probable cause of death of the late Bishop Bala.

The confirmation of this position reinforces the Catholic faithful Christians and the national community in general, who were awaiting the reaction of the Bishops. For some days Christian resistance has been organized around this affair and Cameroon Concord News understands the resistance will continue until the truth is revealed.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai
Cameroon Concord News

8, July 2017

Biya orders parliament to lift Joseph Wirba’s immunity from prosecution ⁰

After a private meeting between National Assembly Speaker Cavaye Djibril and President Biya late on Thursday, an emergency meeting of the nation’s parliamentary bureau has been summoned 24 hours after the close of the second session of the legislative year 2017.

The Bureau of the National Assembly is meeting today Saturday the 8th of July 2017 in Yaoundé. The reason for this emergency session at the Chamber has not been made public.

However, reliable sources have hinted that the office of the National Assembly has been convened to trigger a procedure that will result in lifting the immunity of Honorable Joseph Wiba, the SDF MP from the Jakiri constituency.

This item is still developing

Camcordnews Desk

7, July 2017

Bakassi Peninsular: Fears mount as 97 deaths linked to Cameroon Gendarme attack ⁰

A Nigerian newspaper, Nigeria Today has reported that some 97 Nigerians are feared killed as Cameroon Gendarmes allegedly attacked residents of Bakassi over failure to pay a 100,000 Naira boat levy. The paper said our Gendarmes sacked mainly Nigerians from Akwa Ibom, Cross River and Ondo states. Many others escaped at midnight with their fishing boats and arrived at Ikang in Bakassi and Ibaka in Akwa Ibom.

The killing and sacking of Nigerians in former Bakassi is believed to be a violation of the 2005 Green Tree Agreement (GTA) by the Nigeria-Cameroon Mixed Commission which stipulates that the Bakassi returnees must be properly resettled to their natural habitat so that they can have a meaningful living. The GTA also states that Nigerians who choose to remain in Cameroon can do so without any molestation. The agreement makes it clear that there would be a committee monitoring the activities but since the day the treaty was signed, Bakassi people have not seen any monitoring team.

Nigerian Federal government officials yesterday evaded questions from The Guardian as government spokesmen failed to respond to inquiries. Three text messages seeking clarification on what the official reaction of Nigeria would be did not elicit any response. At Ikang beach, it was a picture of abandoned and traumatised people. Most of them remained at the jetty looking disillusioned and rejected, while a few women with their babies and children moved into Ikang village for shelter.

They looked helpless, as they pondered on how to survive, pointing at some of the boats they managed to rescue — apparently the only property they came back with. The fate of the Bakassi people at the hands of the Cameroon Gendarmes, and even back home since the International Court of Justice (ICJ) judgment, has been that of neglect by the Nigerian government. The internally displaced persons from Bakassi Cameroon since the GTA 12 years ago have lived in squalor in rickety mosquito-infested classroom blocks in Cross River and Akwa Ibom despite complaints from notable leaders like Senator Florence Ita-Giwa and the Bakassi paramount ruler, Etinyin Etim Okon Edet.

The situation is so bad that in the Akwa Ikot Edem Udo IDP camp, over 1,000 children are not in school. The Bakassi IDPs and the latest returnees have accused the Cross River State government and Federal Government of playing politics with their lives and means of livelihood. At the Ikang Beach in the new Bakassi yesterday, many of the returnees with their wooden engine boats were seen hanging around the jetty, lamenting their fate.

They alleged constant harassment and raping of their women by the gendarmes. They said yesterday’s incident was the climax as the attackers came shooting and chasing them away for refusing to pay the N100,000 engine boat tax.
One of the returnees, Chief Umoh Umoh Inyang, said that from Akpankanya in Abana, the headquarters of former Bakassi “the Cameroonian gendarmes have been harassing us. They destroyed our boats, beat us and shot many of us to death. They make a lot of trouble for us in Akpankanya in Bakassi.

“They would not let us carry on with our lives and livelihood in peace. The suffering is so much that we have to come back. They would not let us go to the sea for our fishing, and in our houses where we were just staying, they came and asked us to pay N100, 000 for each boat and when we said we did not have such money, they started beating us. They shot many of us.

“We had to leave suddenly, and so many people missed their children and members of their families. We got to this Ikang jetty around 2:00 a.m. today. They even raped our wives. Many of our people have been held captive there. They have killed about 97 people. Many people ran into the bush, many are scattered along the waterways. We came in all these boats you are seeing here. We were over 2,000 who were scattered over there. At least 94 were killed in Atabong where we were. We don’t know about other areas. We were hearing gunshots all over the place. We have about 137 who landed here in Ikang. The number is actually growing because we were 132 when we first got here and the immigration officials are registering us.”

Another returnee Mr. Nse Okon, from Akpankanya in Abana, said: “They destroyed everything. In 2008 they killed three people who worked with me. The government should come to our aid and resettle us properly in our own country. This time around, they came and told me to pay N100, 000 tax for this engine and I said I did not have that kind of money. That is why they started beating us.

“The Nigerian government should intervene urgently in this matter. Let the international community also intervene in this matter. Our land has been ceded and the people are not accommodating us there. If we can be resettled here and given work to survive, we would be grateful. They should note that we cannot survive upland too because we are all fishermen and most of us did not go to school. So they should resettle us and create alternatives for us to survive.”

Culled from Nigeria Today