News

Anglophone Crisis: Synod Clerk says arrests, torture, high handedness and threats to life won’t solve the problem

15, March 2017

Anglophone Crisis: Synod Clerk says arrests, torture, high handedness and threats to life won’t solve the problem 0

The Synod Clerk of the Presbyterian Church in Cameroon, Rev Babila Fochang has said that university students cannot go back to school and study smoothly without internet in this present generation. In his recent homily, the Right Rev. Babila Fochang observed that the Church as a body will never play games with the future of children nor can tell lies in the face of the current crisis that has rocked the two English speaking regions of the country.

The Presbyterian Church leader pointed out that Anglophone Christian churches in Cameroon have been under serious attack with some Anglophone members of government making lame and ridiculous claims  that the churches are playing Pontus Pilate role in the on-going Southern Cameroons uprising. The Man of God noted that some church leaders are under surveillance with threats of arrests while pastors have been bullied to say all is well in West Cameroon.

Revered Babila Fochang declared, “Now that media houses have been threatened that they will be shut down if they mention anything concerning what is going on, the prophetic voices remains the only outlet of truth.” He reminded the laity of the threat on Jeremiah’s life because he prophesied the word of the Lord just as the Lord asked him to and added that Jeremiah told them he had only spoken what he was asked to by the Lord. Like Jeremiah the true prophetic voice can only say, “…Now reform your ways and your actions and obey the Lord your God… As for me, I am in your hands, do with me whatever you think is good and right.”

“My people, history have demonstrated that killing of prophets and human rights activists have never been the solution to suppress truth! Let us face issues and deal with them upfront! Arrests, torture, high handedness and threats to life won’t solve our problems. Don’t treat fellow humans as animals! You can’t expect university students to go to school and function smoothly without internet! Not in this generation! God forbid this inhuman treatment and violation of human rights! Fear God and allow good citizens to enjoy their just rights; and by so doing we would all escape the wrath of God.”

Cameroun Info.Net

Bamenda: Corrupt Government Delegate attacks the Consortium

15, March 2017

Bamenda: Corrupt Government Delegate attacks the Consortium 5

The frustrated and corrupt Government Delegate to the Bamenda City Council, Vincent NDUMU NJI, has urged traders in Bamenda major markets not to respect ghost town days but to go about their usual activities. The man who attempted to claim a building at T-Junction belonging to a late business tycoon, made the call on Tuesday March 14, 2017 at the City Council hall during a crisis meeting held to discuss the way forward after a fire incident ravaged close to 60 shops in the market.

The loud sounding nothing CPDM militant opined that ghost town was helping to paralyze activities of traders than the killings, rapes and militarization of the Bamenda province of Southern Cameroons. Vincent Ndumu sounded like his Buea counterpart, Patrick Ekema by appealing to all traders to send their children to school and forget about school boycott.

Without any security backing from the Francophone dominated police establishment in Bamenda, Mr. Ndumu reiterated that the fire incident was perpetrated by those people who do not want children to go back to school. His suspicion he claimed was based on tracks which were reportedly circulated Monday warning traders who continue to boycott ghost town days.

In an attack on the Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium that has legitimate authority in Southern Cameroons, Vincent NDUMU stated that people should not be obeying leaders they cannot see. He added that if the Government had succeeded to take Bakassi from Nigeria, defeat Boko Haram, then it would be able to track down perpetrators of the burnings in Bamenda.

During the enlarged meeting with victims of the fire incident and market Masters of some major markets, Vincent NDUMU NJI promised that the burnt shops will be reconstructed within three months and that the new ones will be modernized.

The fire incident occurred early Tuesday ravaging about 60 shops, it was only contained by army rescue unit and police who exploited water Canons that were previously used on innocent students at the University of Bamenda. The Bamenda so-called government delegate avoided to comment about traders whose children have been abducted and ferried to unknown destination in La Republique du Cameroun.

By Rita Akana with files from CIN

Ethiopia: Death toll from landslide rises to 82

15, March 2017

Ethiopia: Death toll from landslide rises to 82 0

The death toll from a landslide at Ethiopia’s largest rubbish dump reached 82 on Tuesday as the country’s parliament declared three days of national mourning, a government minister said. Communications Minister Negeri Lencho said, rescuers are still searching for survivors and victims’ bodies.

Part of the largest hill at the Koshe rubbish dump in the capital Addis Ababa gave way on Saturday, swallowing up a slum that had been built on the trash and burying families alive in their homes. Most of the dead are women and children. Rescuers on Tuesday pulled a woman alive from the rubble more than two days after the disaster, said Dagmawit Moges, a spokeswoman for the Addis Ababa city administration. Starting Wednesday, flags in Ethiopia will fly at half-mast as the country observes three days of mourning for the victims.

The Koshe landfill has for more than 40 years been the main garbage dump for Addis Ababa. Hundreds of people lived at the landfill on the outskirts of the capital, collecting recyclables trucked in from neighborhoods around the city of about four million people. The government tried last year to close the dump and move it to a different location, but opposition from residents at the new site forced the authorities to back down.

Residents blamed the landslide on the construction of a new biogas facility on top of the rubbish. Lencho rejected that claim, saying slum dwellers had caused the collapse by digging into the soil to find rubbish to sell.

Presstv

Nigeria: Reform of Internal Security System

14, March 2017

Nigeria: Reform of Internal Security System 0

Demands for increased operational effectiveness in internal security operations in Nigeria has grown in the past decade due to increasing level of public perception of insecurity. Growing terror campaign since 2010 has further worsened calls for overhaul and restructuring in Nigerian Policing and Law enforcement system. Several reforms later, Nigerian security environment is now populated by Pretoria of security agencies performing overlapping functions, thereby leading to confusions and chaos.

As internal security agencies has been bundled under the ministry of interior, under a seasoned security professional for the first time in the history of the country, the whole world awaits the institution of a well-orchestrated Programme for thorough reform of this sector.

Three major issues –aside from normal security problem any state surfers from- challenges law enforcement operations in Nigeria today; the Niger Delta militants operation, the Fulani Herdsmen attacks and the Boko Haram terrorism in Northeast Nigeria. Unfortunately, policing authorities in Nigeria has always been bedeviled with high level of public mistrust. Policing can only succeed if the people could relate with local law enforcement institutions with some amount of trust.

To improve policing operations in Nigeria the Ministry of Interior could:

Improve the Police to Population Ratio: The ratio of police to population in Nigeria is clearly below international average. The Nigeria Police Force has about 390,000 and the NSCDC has about 80,000 officers and men, direct policing in Nigeria is expectedly performed by less than 500,000 officers in a country of about 180,000,000 million people, an average of 1 policeman securing 400 people. This number though higher than the UN basic average would have been sufficed, but the use of police officers as; security guards for the elites and government functionaries, escorts for banks and money movements, admin and other non-operational functions. To top this there are no direct operational supports between the NPF and the NSCDC leading to duplication of functions.

Integration of Policing Units: There exists need for a formal integration of NPF and NSCDC functions towards achieving a better focus in policing operations. As both organizations enjoys constitutional backing, merging them might not be the right solution, but a formal management of functions to reduce current rivalry could help in improvement of the deliverables in the short run.

  • Deployment: Security operative deployments are currently done without any proper interagency collaboration. This lack of institutional cooperation is reflected on the field as joint operations have severally turned to turf war while the project suffers. There has been several calls by practitioners for the setting up of a committee on Internal security, comprising of all Heads of security agencies operating in the Nigerian Homeland and an office of Head of Internal Security (HIS) which should constitutionally be the Inspector-General of Police. The roles of this office should include among other things:
  • Joint internal security planning and operational roles delimitation during joint ops
  • Information and intelligence sharing and analysis
  • Policy formulation and harmonization
  • Act as central operation command in time of national crises
  • Draw up joint internal security development Programme for the MOI in sequence with overall needs of all agencies

Recruitment: The process of security personnel recruitment in the country is too politicized. Hence mediocrity is allowed under the guise of catering to favored candidates. To improve this process recruitment of security personnel should be done with all professional conduct. All recruitment process should be supervised by the MOI to reduce influence peddling.

Patrols: Security operatives in Nigeria are mostly reactive and never proactive. This was due to operational environment and no personal ties with the people there. Policing can only survive when the people are part of its operations. The lack of synergy between policing authorities and the people was the basis of failure of security in all areas of Nigeria. Current vehicular patrol system with arms never endears the security personnel to the people. The foot patrol system is still used globally and is reputed to bring cohesion between security personnel and the public.

Formal Policy Management Body: Lack of a formal body to manage internal security in Nigeria. NPF, NSCDC, NIS, DSS, NPS and other bodies are operating individually in securing Nigerian Homeland without a direct policy making, monitoring and evaluating and supervisory management body. Nigerian Defense is better managed through the office of the Chief of Defense Staff (CDS) unifying and managing the three arms of defense. Lack of centralized body has occasioned several mishaps in the homeland security operations.

Creation of the office of the Director of Homeland Security to manage the affairs of internal security reporting to the Minister of Interior. The DHS federal operations may compose of all policing heads in the country and should meet weekly to analyze and plan security operations in Nigeria. At state levels, DHS could discus policies made at federal level and adapt to suit local operations; dividing operational duties according to personnel capabilities to agencies and setting basic monitoring and evaluation deliverables for all allotted tasks. The DHS in states could compose of all heads of law enforcement units in each state.

Internal Affairs Office: Lack of independent supervisory body for internal security has led to several cases of abuse of power by security personnel in and out of duty. Set up department of internal affairs to monitor, supervise and recommend disciplinary measures for officers’ infringements and abuse of power and process. This may increase the operational efficiency of the security personnel and at the same time increase public supports for the security institution.

Introduction of a Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) with responsibility for supervising and monitoring policing operations in Nigeria will improve local perception of the forces and efficiency of the policing agents. The DIA could be designed to be independent of current policing organisation and based in the MOI with offices in all states of the federation. This department could be in state and federal levels.

Clear Definition of Roles: Overlapping functions of several agencies needed to be redefined. The Nigerian public is sometimes confused on whom to defer to on security issues. The MOI may need to rearrange functions of agencies and publish to guide the agents and the public on roles, duties and responsibilities of all agencies to clear all ambiguities.

The MOI may control security information decimation to reduce ongoing security mediatization in the country. The need to showcase operational abilities of agencies above others has occasioned this unrelenting performance for media camera by all agencies. Security information that might need proper vetting are divulged by agencies to score points in the media. The public needed to be informed but there has to be a process for doing this.

Monitoring and Evaluation: Who really guards the guardians? Power corrupt has been the bane of public supports for policing in Nigeria. There are no direct authority managing policing operations in Nigeria. This lack has been blamed for increasing lack of proper services delivery in this sector. There should exist an independent body charged with overseeing the operations of law enforcement agencies in Nigeria.

Legal Development: The MOI could sponsor better law enforcement laws to bring policing into the next generation in Nigeria. Nigeria Criminal Code is still in the last generation and needed proper development to meet 21st century policing challenges.

Training and Retraining: To meet the challenges of the future, there is need for training and retraining of current policing personnel. There exists need for a reorientation of the psyche of an average security operative in Nigeria. Aside from lack of appropriate level of force in operation and the need to respect the suspect, security men are known to become judge and accusers at the same time while on duty. There is need for attitudinal and operational development training and retraining for them. The MOI could design and supervise major training for the development of personnel in policing agencies to achieve stated goals.

Promotion, postings and welfare: All internal security agencies are bedeviled with unethical favoritism in promotions, postings and welfare distribution in the past twelve years. This has led to high incidence of indifference and indiscipline in the services. This challenge has to be revised towards improving operational efficiencies and incentive to perform. There is need for a review of personnel promotions in the past ten years towards achieving proper justice in the service. The practice in which favored officers without any special performance or abilities are promoted several rungs above their colleagues and seniors should be revised and remediate to ensure justice and equity in the system.

Recognize and Integrate Informal Policing Organizations: Policing in Nigeria currently encompasses the formal and informal sectors. Increase reliance of the public on informal policing organization in day-to-day security needs is a pointer to the importance of this sector in Nigerian internal security operation. There is need for formal regularization and inclusion of the informal sector in Nigerian security planning and operations.

Regularization of this sector under the MOI might improve its standardization and improve services delivery within the sector. The MOI could undertake the certification of proficiency and professionalization of corporate bodies and professionals in the industry. Proper standards will ensure better trusts in this growing industry.

Above all, the Nigerian Homeland need a well-structured security operation with evaluable achievement over time. The MOI could use this opportunity to instill professionalism in local security operations through formal and informal reorganization and upgrade of current system. The obvious low productivity in this sector is clearly a function of uncleared vision, obvious lack of direction; purpose; supervision; and lack of coordinated cooperating system by all agencies involved.

There are many more process that might improve current standard, this was not a direct indictment of the internal security system in Nigeria, yet we all surmised, there exists need to tinker with current operations towards achieving a better value chain in our security system.

Towards achieving this, proper identification of the challenges of these agencies has to be elucidated, properly itemized and proffer workable solutions to before we could start shouting ‘Uhuru” This is the onerous task before the MOI and the time for this to be done is now.

By Don Michael Adeniji

Senior Contributing Editor

Cameroon Concord News Group

Anglophone Crisis: Fire ravages Bamenda Food Market

14, March 2017

Anglophone Crisis: Fire ravages Bamenda Food Market 0

Some 10 shops at the Bamenda Food market in Southern Cameroons have been reduced to ashes following a fire incident which occurred early Tuesday March 14, 2017. Cameroun Info.Net reported that bags of rice, ‘garri’, sugar, soap and other goods vanished in the flames whose origin is yet to be determined by security agents.

Locals around the Food Market say they saw an unusual light in the market early Tuesday by 2am and suspected it was a fire. Upon their arrival, the inferno had already gone wild. Buckets of sand and other items used to stop the flames proofed futile. Fire fighters from the Rapid Intervention Battalion Unit only succeeded to put off the flames by 6am.

Traders are suspecting that it was an action by some disgruntled Southern Cameroons activists who had circulated tracks warning the occupants of the Food Market not to continue to trade on ghost town days. The Senior Divisional Officer for Mezam, Songo Pierre and the North West regional Police boss were present early Tuesday to take stock of what happened. Investigations have been opened.

National Assembly opens as MP, hundreds of Southern Cameroonians flee the country

14, March 2017

National Assembly opens as MP, hundreds of Southern Cameroonians flee the country 2

The Member of Parliament for the Jakiri constituency, Hon. Joseph Wirba was conspicuously absent yesterday the 13 of 2017 March during the opening of the parliamentary session. The absence of the MP who gained widespread popularity after his intervention in the November session of 2016 and his stance on Anglophone problem was evident as speculations were rife that ‘Joe’ as he is fondly called had escaped to an unknown destination after it was alleged that his immunity would be stripped to pave the way for his arrest.

Local media reports say Hon Wirba Joseph left the country after gotten intelligence that the Biya Francophone had ordered his arrest. Cameroun Info.Net reported that the MP was informed by a well-placed source on January 19, 2017 that he was blacklisted for either assassination or arrest. Reports have it that the Southern Cameroon hero of recent times and hundreds of Southern Cameroonians have sneaked into Nigeria. The MP was last seen at the US embassy in Abuja from where he could move to the US.

Cameroun Info.Net

Battle for Southern Cameroons: Plans to assassinate senior activists in Nigeria uncovered

14, March 2017

Battle for Southern Cameroons: Plans to assassinate senior activists in Nigeria uncovered 6

Recently there has been an influx of Francophones into IDP camps in Nigeria. The number which increases by the day is not unconnected with the ongoing struggle in Southern Cameroons, which has caused many Anglophones to flee to neighboring Nigeria for refuge.

According to Cameroon Intelligence Report sources in Abuja where one of such IDP camps are found, the Cameroun Francophones are about 30 persons- a majority of whom speak the French language with the Beti accent. Our source revealed that these men are being sent to eliminate Southern Cameroonians who fled and some believed to take refuge in Abuja.

Our intelligence officers in Abuja have also disclosed that most of the Francophone Cameroonians are secret service personnel who are currently using their so called refugee status to enroll in private schools to gain a mastery of the English language. The Yaoundé regime has opened command centers at the Cameroun Consulates in Calabar and Lagos and is running a huge spying network on Southern Cameroonians in Nigeria.

Our undercover reporter spoke to a senior UN official in Abuja on Friday the 10th of March who hinted that concerns have been raised at the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Abuja following the huge demand for asylum by French speaking Cameroonians. The UN Abuja Mission has reportedly informed the leadership of the Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium operating in Nigeria and many Southern Cameroons activists have been handed to foster families in a bid to avoid the IDP camps now inhabited by agents loyal to the regime in Yaoundé.

We gathered the wife and children of the Secretary General of the Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium, Wilfred Tassang have arrived at an undisclosed location in Nigeria and are now under tide security.  Our chief correspondent in Southern Cameroons based in Buea noted at the time of filing this that the Biya Francophone Beti Ewondo regime has frozen the bank accounts of four prominent Southern Cameroons activists namely: Barrister Eyambe, Paul Nilong, Tem Martin and Tina Nene Nganda.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai for CIR 

Anglophone Crisis: Fako Chiefs split over blood money from the Presidency

14, March 2017

Anglophone Crisis: Fako Chiefs split over blood money from the Presidency 2

Three Fako Chiefs have been expelled from the Fako Chiefs conference, over money believed to have been given to the Chiefs by Biya Francophone Beti Ewondo regime to kick against the ongoing struggle in Southern Cameroons.

Cameroon Intelligence Report sources say the three Bakweri traditional authorities include the great His Royal Highness Samuel Epupa Ekum of Dikolo Bimbia and His Royal Highness Chief Etina Monono of Great Soppo.

We are withholding the name of the third Chief as requested by our senior intelligence officer in Buea. The three are said to have distanced themselves from what they termed blood money from La Republique and have accused their counterparts for supporting the regime’s diabolic actions towards Southern Cameroon.

Cameroon Intelligence Report

Douala-Edea road accident kills 5

13, March 2017

Douala-Edea road accident kills 5 0

A fatal collision between a coach belonging to the General Travel Agency and a pick up vehicle has claimed the lives of 5 people. The accident occurred today March the 13th 2017 along the Douala-Edea road precisely on national road Number 3.

Police sources say the General Travel Agency bus almost flattened the van. The five occupants of the van were all crushed to death. A spokesman for the Edea police told the press that the identities of the victims remain to be uncovered.

By Fru James

13, March 2017

Anglophone Crisis: Troops deployed to Ekok as ghost town rocks Manyu Division 2

The positions of many CPDM elites from Manyu Division have been put in jeopardy as the population has backed the anti-La Republique ghost town operations as one of the civil disobedience measures taken by the Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium to stop the marginalization of Southern Cameroons by the Francophone political structure.

Manyus made the claim today as all commercial activities from Tinto via Mamfe to Eyumojock and Akawaya remained closed. The Manyu constituency had all along been a private preserve for the ruling CPDM crime syndicate without an iota of development in the area.

Our sources in Mamfe revealed that the Peter Mafany Musonge South West CPDM gang attempted to sabotage the actions of the Consortium and the resistance by using a prominent Manyu family. We also gathered that two Consortium coordinators in Mamfe have been placed under house arrest-one of them from the Abunaw family.

The regime in Yaoundé has reportedly opted for a deliberate silence and systematic abductions all in a bid to stifle the revolution. However, the Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium’s long-stated plans are now set to become reality, and over the coming months Southern Cameroonians will be celebrating the creation of an independent state.

The Biya Francophone regime is said to be under consideration pressure both at home and abroad following the successful holding of an important Southern Cameroons forum in Houston, USA. A well-placed source at the French embassy in Yaoundé told Cameroon Intelligence Report that close aides to Biya are urging the French government to get rid of the 84 year old and dialogue with the detained leaders of the Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium.

Many Southern Cameroon activists have fled to neighboring Nigeria via Mamfe, the chief town in Manyu Division. Troops loyal to the Biya regime have been deployed to Ekok, a border town with the Cross River State of Nigeria. Though there was little signs of extra military activity at the time of filing this report, with uncertainly increasing about what will happen over the next months after the Houston meeting, many Nigerians living in Manyu Division are returning home.

The Senior Divisional Officer and the military commander have played down reports of the creation of a Southern Cameroons Defense Force. But a prominent member of the Consortium was quoted as saying that  “We are about to enter into a phase of civil disobedience to hamper any decision by Mr. Biya and La Republique and we fully support the role our Diaspora is playing.”

Cameroon Intelligence Report

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