News

3, June 2016

There are reasons why Minister Minette Libom was at the Special Criminal Court ⁰

By Vincent Ebong

Minette Libom Li Likeng, Cameroon’s Minister of Posts and Telecommunications (MINPOSTEL), with some highly placed government officials were interrogated by investigators from the judicial police unit attached to the Special Criminal Court on May 26, 2016. The MINPOSTEL was summoned by a pro CPDM police commissioner Enyegue Mbolong on May the 10th, 2016.

Minister Minette Libom was questioned over an issue of misappropriation of public funds during her time at the General Directorate of Customs. Cameroon Intelligence Report gathered from government sources that the Minette Libom Affair is connected to the “Project Nexus “launched ever since August 4, 2009.

The matter has become intractable following revelations that the complaint was filed to the court by the current Minister of Finance, Ousman Mey Alamine who reportedly was at daggers-drawn positions with Minette Libom at the time she was Director General (DG) of the Cameroon Customs.

It is now left for prosecutors of the Legal Affairs Division to shed light on the allegations listed in the Minister Mey Alamine correspondence. At the time of filing this report, our intel unit learnt that the Finance Ministry has forwarded the findings of an internal investigation to the Special Criminal Court.

3, June 2016

Cameroon: Two suspected highway robbers killed at Touboro ⁰

The bodies of two suspected highway robbers were discovered early on Friday morning at Touboro in the North of the country. Cameroon Intelligence Report gathered from security sources that the two men were chased for days by elements of the mechanized infantry division (BIM) located in Touboro in the Mayo-Rey district. The heavily armed men fired the first salvo and were subsequently killed during exchanges of fire with Cameroon government forces.

Insecurity is growing in this small town in northern Cameroon. People live with fear every day. Traders are kidnapped and ransoms demanded. On May 24, some road bandits were killed in Bougoué, near Touboro, by plain cloth police officers operating within the locality. On the 1^st of June, a trader from the Mbai- Mboum village located 35 km from Touboro was kidnapped by heavily armed men. A ransom of 15 million CFA francs was demanded by the criminals.

3, June 2016

Angola’s President appoints daughter as head of oil company ⁰

Angola’s President Jose Eduardo dos Santos has appointed his daughter as head of the state oil company Sonangol.

Isabel dos Santos, named by Forbes magazine as Africa’s richest woman, worth an estimated $3.3bn (£2.3bn), takes on the job after the entire board was sacked by her father in April.

Angola and Nigeria are Africa’s largest oil producers. Critics accuse President dos Santos, who has ruled since 1979, of being increasingly authoritarian.

BBC

3, June 2016

Berlin says too early to discuss easing Russia sanctions ⁰

Germany says it is too early to discuss lifting the European Union’s economic sanctions against Russia over Moscow’s alleged interference in the Ukraine crisis. “I think the discussion about lifting of sanctions has come far too early. We are not anywhere close to having Minsk implemented,” said Christoph Heusgen, a foreign policy adviser to German Chancellor Angela Merkel, on Thursday. Heusgen added it was difficult to imagine the sanctions would not be extended for another half year given the ongoing fighting in eastern Ukraine.

The EU imposed a series of sanctions on Russia in 2014 over allegations that Moscow played a role in the separation of the Crimea peninsula from Ukraine and its reunification with Russia, which took place through a local referendum. However, Moscow has repeatedly rejected the claims. The remarks came as a number of EU states have suggested easing anti-Russia sanctions, which will expire in July, in order to defuse tension with Moscow even though a peace deal struck at Minsk early last year has not ended the conflict in eastern Ukraine.

The EU members will decide about extending the bans against Moscow during a summit later this month. Any decision for the roll-over of sanctions needs unanimity. EU Ambassador to Russia Vygaudas Usackas said also on Thursday that the 28-nation bloc will lift the sanctions “entirely” when the Minsk agreements are fulfilled. Meanwhile, Kremlin has been engaged in diplomatic efforts over the past few weeks to influence the EU decision and relax the restrictions on its economy.

Last week, Russian President Vladimir Putin traveled to Greece, one of the supporters of lifting sanctions. The visit came days after Moscow freed Ukrainian pilot Nadiya Savchenko in a prisoner swap that is viewed as a measure to ease diplomatic tension between the two countries. Differences remain within the EU over the issue of extending sanctions. France and Germany, the former staunch supporters of the sanctions, are calling for a rethink of the decision.

Germany is reportedly considering options such as removing restrictions on Russian lawmakers’ travel, reducing the period of sanctions from six months to three or even easing sanctions in return for Moscow’s support for holding elections in Ukraine’s troubled east. Earlier this week, German businesses signed deals with Russia’s Kaluga and Kaliningrad regions worth €600 million in Munich to invest in farm equipment production in Russia. Since 2007, German companies have invested some €2 billion in production facilities of Kaluga, said Kaluga governor Anatoly Artamonov during a visit to Germany.

Presstv

3, June 2016

Amnesty says EU-Turkey deal on refugees illegal ⁰

Amnesty International has strongly denounced a recently-signed agreement between the European Union and Turkey to curb the flow of asylum seekers to Europe. The UK-based rights group said in a 35-page briefing on Friday that the EU-Turkey deal is “illegal” and “reckless,” urging the 28-nation bloc to stop plans to return asylum seekers to Turkey.

The rights body added that Ankara lacks the capacity to process asylum applications and cannot be considered “a safe third country.” The international rights group noted that the March deal is unlawful because refugees and asylum seekers do not have “effective protection” in Turkey. Turkey does not accord full refugee status, and most refugees in the country do not receive support from the Ankara government, Amnesty said.

The report also touched on the issue of forced returns, asserting that Syrians in Turkey are at risk of being forcibly sent back to their country. This comes as a number of rights activists and institutions, including the United Nations Refugee Agency, have voiced concern about the deal. Rights groups say the accord could lead to the collective expulsions of people fleeing war and violence, and is in violation of international law.

John Dalhuisen, Amnesty’s director for Europe and Central Asia, also took a swipe at the EU-Turkey deal on refugees, saying the bloc has misrepresented the realities on the ground. “In its relentless efforts to prevent irregular migrants to Europe, the EU has willfully misrepresented what is actually happening on the ground in Turkey.” Under the deal, Ankara is obliged to take back all refugees deported from Greece. In return, Ankara was promised financial aid, the acceleration of visa liberalization talks and progress in its EU membership negotiations.

The EU leaders are insisting that Turkey meet 72 conditions before the visa exemption is approved, including an end to prosecuting academics and journalists. Granting visa waiver to Turkey, a country of nearly 80 million, is highly controversial among EU states where some fear it would open the way for more refugees to the bloc already struggling with its worst migration crisis in decades. Europe is now concerned that the continent would face another refugee influx as President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has repeatedly warned that Turkey would allow the refugees to enter Europe if it failed to meet its commitments.

Presstv

3, June 2016

Yaounde: CPDM taxis still in circulation ⁰

In Yaounde, it is common to find township taxis circulating with shattered head lights, door handles fastened with ropes to enable them open or close, worn-out tyres, cracked windscreens, unstable seats and at times, too dirty with cockroaches running on passengers. This unkempt state of cabs in Yaounde has not only left passengers disappointed as they break down in the course of transportation but has also left others injured due to the presence of exposed sharp objects.

Most passengers in Yaounde, can testify on the risk in boarding a cab while wearing a white dress or carrying something delicate. Rose Ebot is one of those who got into a cab and after alighting she could not continue her other activities for the day just because the back of her dress was not only dirty but wet. Rose explained “the moment I stepped out of the taxi, a passer-by called my attention to the fact that my dress was dirty behind. I quickly patted my palms over and moved on thinking it was okay. But later I was made to understand that I was dirty because there was this visible trace of wetness around the buttock region of my dress.” It is at this point that Rose realised that the taxi she had entered was not only dirty but had wet chairs.

There are those who have sustained bruises and wounds because they came in contact with sharp objects in the taxi either from the ramshackle nature of the taxi chair or the instruments the driver has used to either support an old door or the widescreen. Helene B narrates how she sustained a wound on one of her legs as she struggled to alight from a cab. The driver of that cab instead said “be careful not to dirty my car chairs with blood”. In spite of the worrying state of cabs in Yaounde, the appearance of the cab drivers leaves much to be desired. Most cab drivers are very unkempt especially in the morning.

Most passengers say it is unbearable to pick up a cab in the morning because of the odour from the driver who had not even brushed his teeth before leaving his home. Some of them do not even clean their faces talk less of putting on a clean dress, another passenger Ebenye M noted. Only the smell from some taxi driver and the bad state of their taxis has left many wondering. But many people say despite such, they have had no choice but to board such cabs especially when in a hurry. The current decision by the government to clear Cameroonian roads of such taxis as the country awaits the Female African Nations Cup is welcomed.

Cameroon Tribune

3, June 2016

Iran braces for a decisive and difficult confrontation with the US ⁰

A senior military commander says Iran is ready for a “decisive and difficult confrontation” with the US after Hillary Clinton threatens Tehran with military action. Defining her hawkish foreign policy in a speech Thursday in San Diego, Clinton said the US could disarm Iran by military action if she became the president. “Although talk of all options being on the table against Iran is a propaganda show in the United States, the Islamic Iran is prepared for a decisive and difficult confrontation with any American option,” Brig. Gen. Massoud Jazayeri, deputy chief of staff of Iran armed forces, said on Friday.

“Our nation and armed forces have never sought a war, but they have not neglected their defensive preparation for a moment,” the commander said. “In case the American military threats are implemented, they (Iranians) are ready to rid humanity of the evil of America’s warmongering and hegemonic policies in a real and direct battle,” he added. In her speech, Clinton took credit for a nuclear agreement that allows Iran to continue its peaceful nuclear program but keeps Clinton’s hypothetical war with Iran on the table.

“The world must understand that the United States will act decisively if necessary, including with military action, to stop Iran from getting a nuclear weapon,” Clinton said. “In particular, Israel’s security is non-negotiable. They’re our closest ally in the region and we have a moral obligation to defend them,” she added. The nuclear agreement was reached after the UN confirmed the peaceful nature of Iran’s program after years of inspections. A self-imposed ban under a fatwa issued by Iran’s top religious authority prohibits the country from acquiring nuclear weapons. Iran’s biggest enemy in the region, Israel, is widely believed to possess the only arsenal of nuclear warheads in the Middle East.

Culled from Presstv

3, June 2016

In or Out: Cameron hits out at Brexiters ⁰

British Prime Minister David Cameron has hit out at ‘Brexiters’ who grilled him during a live TV debate on the future of the United Kingdom in the European Union. The debate aired by Sky News shows Cameron criticizing UK’s possible exit from the EU as an act of “economic self-harm.” Audience in the debate, however, slammed Cameron, accusing him of scaremongering over the impact of quitting the 28-nation bloc.

On thorny issues such as immigration, Cameron said a Brexit was not the solution. “There are good ways of controlling migration and there are bad ways,” Cameron said. On economy, he lashed out at critics of Britain’s continued membership in the EU, saying, “It would be madness to try to do that by trashing our economy and pulling out of the single market.” Cameron conceded, however, that he often found dealings with the EU frustrating. “Sometimes this organization drives me crazy,” he said. “But do I sit there thinking Britain would be better off if we left? Are we quitters? Absolutely not.”

Britain will vote on June 23 on whether or not it should stay in the EU. The decision has far-reaching consequences for both the country and the bloc. Membership of the European Union has been a controversial issue in the UK since the country joined the then European Economic Community in 1973.Those in favor of remaining in the bloc argue that leaving it would risk the UK’s prosperity, diminish its influence over world affairs, and result in trade barriers between the UK and the EU.

On the spectrum, Britons who favor withdrawal believe that outside the bloc, the UK would be better off in conducting its own trade negotiations, better able to control immigration and free from what they believe to be excessive EU regulations and bureaucracy.

Presstv

3, June 2016

Francoise Hollande declares natural disaster in Paris ⁰

French President Francois Hollande has declared “natural disaster” in Paris amid torrential downpours which have caused River Seine in the capital to reach its highest level in three decades. Days of torrential rains raised the level of the River Seine in Paris to five meters above normal levels on Thursday, flooding the lower embankments and forcing the nearby Louvre Museum to close down.

Several roads in the capital were also severely hit by the flooding. Since records began in 1873, it is the first time that Paris experiences so much rain in the month of May. Thousands of people were evacuated in central and northeastern France due to deadly flooding in the country, which has forced the closure of Louvre, the world’s most visited museum. People were warned to stay away from banks of Seine, which is expected to reach a peak of six meters later on Friday.

Culled from Presstv

3, June 2016

Prime Minister Philemon Yang chairs national road board forum ⁰

The Prime Minister, Head of Government, Philemon Yang chaired the 20th meeting of the National Road Board that held recently in Yaounde. The meeting focused on the projects carried out in 2015, those of 2016 and mechanisms for financing road projects. During the session it was disclosed that the sum of 325 billion CFAF was used in 2015 to construct and repair roads and bridges in the country.

In the meantime, the 2016 projects include the construction of the Yaounde – Douala and Edea – Kribi motorways, CEMAC corridors and the Bachou Akagbe – Mamfe – Ekok roads, amongst others. On-going projects like the repair of some roads in Douala were also discussed. The Prime Minister emphasized the urgent need to execute the major road projects listed so as to improve urban mobility during the major sporting events Cameroon is to host in 2016 and 2019.

Mr Philemon Yang also called on the Minister of Public Works to pay attention to road projects leading to agropastoral areas and key touristic sites. Statutory members of the board, took part in the over three-hour exchange.