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Catholic Bishops Write to President Biya

 Bishops worldwide have written to Biya on the killings in NOSO

Dear President Biya,
We, the undersigned Roman Catholic bishops from across the globe, write to respectfully urge your government to participate in proposed Swiss-led peace talks aimed at ending the violence in Cameroon’s North West and South West regions.
    We stress that we are impartial. We are motivated by our concern about the suffering of unarmed civilians, and the stability and prosperity of Cameroon. Violence and atrocities on all sides have forced 656,000 Anglophone Cameroonians from their homes, kept 800,000 children from school (including 400,000 from Catholic schools), caused 50,000 people to flee to Nigeria, destroyed hundreds of villages and resulted in a death toll of at least 2,000. Each of these lives is precious, and we mourn their suffering and wish to prevent more loss of life and innocence.
    There will be no military victory for any side. A lasting solution to Cameroon’s problems must come from a mediated process that includes Anglophone armed-separatist groups and nonviolent civil-society leaders. If all parties treat each other as they wish to be treated, a solution is possible.
    We applaud the Cameroonian government’s Major National Dialogue several months ago.

Kumbo Diocese Mourns Victims of Ngarbuh Massacre

Kumbo Diocese mourns

Friday was declared a day of mourning in the Diocese of Kumbo, a week after at least 24 people – most of them children – were killed in Ngarbuh, a village in Cameroon’s North West region.
    “We have been reliably informed about a very sad incident, which took place on the 14th of February in the village of Ngarbuh-Ntumbaw in Saint Martin de Porres Parish Ndu,” Bishop George Nkuo said in a statement.
    “On Friday, February 14, 2020, the military invaded Ngarbuh at 4 a.m. and we are told that 24 people were killed among whom were pregnant women and little children. Some of the victims were burnt alive and several others wounded. A total of nine houses were burnt down. Hundreds of people from Ngarbuh are currently displaced and seeking for refuge in nearby villages under deplorable human conditions,” the bishop continued.
    Nkuo said that while investigations are continuing about this “ruthless massacre, it is incumbent on us Christians not only to locally condemn these atrocities, but also to immediately reach out to help the new victims find support and livelihood among us.”
    The bishop said Caritas, the charitable arm of the local Church, is reaching out to the affected population to offer support.
    He said that the day of mourning was meant as a declaration of “Yes to Life and No to death.”
    The North West and South West regions of Cameroon are majority English-speaking, and the inhabitants make up 20 percent of the country’s majority French-speaking population.
The two regions have been the center of a growing conflict since 2016, when a protest by Anglophone lawyers and teachers over attempts to change the education and common law systems practiced in the English-speaking regions quickly degenerated into an armed rebellion with many English speakers demanding for outright independence.
    The conflict has killed at least 3000 people, and left over 500,000 others displaced, according to the United Nations.
    Some of the separatists have declared the independence of a new country – called Ambazonia – although this action hasn’t been supported by the local Catholic Church.
    In October last year, the Cameroon government organized what it described as “a Major National Dialogue” to propose solutions to the crisis. A major outcome was the granting of a ‘Special Status’ for the Anglophone communities.
    The massacre in Ngarbuh is the worst violence since the plan was announced.
    Nkuo celebrated a Requiem Mass and prayed “for an end to this socio-political crisis that has plunged us into a senseless and painful war.”

Ngarbuh Massacre:

Agbor Balla Has Dismissed Army’s “Unfortunate Accident” Claim                      

Three days after blood and tears flowed in Ngarbuh, a locality in Cameroon’s North West region, the country’s army has denied claims that those who died Friday, February 14, 2020 were massacred by soldiers.

Barrister Nkongho Felix Agbor

Contrary to reports that no fewer than 27 people were killed including pregnant women and children in a Valentine’s Day attack in Ngarbuh, the army says only 12 people died – seven armed separatists and five civilians.

                In two separate communiqués signed by army spokesman Colonel Cyrille Atonfack Guemo and Defense Minister Joseph Beti Assomo, government says the civilian deaths were the result of an “unfortunate accident” which happened when fuel exploded in an exchange of gunfire with separatists in the area.

                The military spokesperson said security forces indeed carried out an operation in the area in a bid to dislodge a “separatist arms and logistics base”. He says in an attack that ensued, “seven terrorists and bandits” were killed.

                He says given that the separatist base was lodged in a civilian environment, a woman and four children died when fuel exploded in an exchange of gunfire with separatists in the area.

                According to the communique, the photos depicting scores of deaths is the handiwork of “secessionist terrorist propaganda”. It argues that pictures of separatists killed in Mezam Division in 2019 are now being brandished as those from Ngarbuh.

                It went on to hail the professionalism of Cameroon’s security and defense forces before warning that “the Ministry of Defense reserves the right to drag authors of fake news before competent courts in keeping with relevant provisions of the law.”

Diplomatic Blunder:

President Macron’s Inelegant Remarks Spark Outrage in Y’de

-The government in Yaounde has joined its voice to that of some individual ministers and members of the public to condemn what they describe as a diplomatic blunder by the French President, Emmanuel Macron, when he revealed to an anti-Biya activist, Cabrili Cabrilo, in France, on Saturday, that he (Macron) ordered President Biya to free Kamto from jail in order to be accepted entry into France. 

Presidents Biya and Macron are strange bed-fellows

The government in Yaounde has reacted angrily to French President, Emmanuel Macron’s revelation that he pressured President Paul Biya to release his opposition rival Maurice Kamto from jail.

                The French President made the revelation to a Cameroonian-born anti-Biya activist, Cabrili Cabrilo, who confronted him on Saturday, 22 February, in Paris, France.

                The activist asked President Macron why he was supporting what he described as a dictatorial regime that was carrying out genocide in Cameroon. In response, Macron said he has been pressuring President Biya to stop the ‘intolerable killings’ in Cameroon.

                Worse still, the French President said he pressured Biya to release Kamto from jail, if not he should not bother to come for the World Summit on HIV-AIDS, TB and Malaria that was hosted in Lyon, France, in 2019.

                Kamto and some of his supporters had spent over eight months in jail when Paul Biya ordered their release in early October 2019, following the Major National Dialogue.

                But French President Emmanuel Macron has now revealed he was at the other end of the telephone putting pressure on Biya to release Kamto and other opposition leaders in detention.

                In a release issued by the Minister of Communication, Rene Sadi, he condemned the remarks by the French President, saying it was not only condescending and paternalistic, but constituted an insult to the Cameroonian people and their elected head of state and president, Paul Biya.

                Rene Sadi said the Cameroonian people did not take kindly the inelegant remarks of the French President addressed to the President of Cameroon. He said the indignation and outrage of the government and people of Cameroon was the more because France is a long-time partner of Cameroon.

Cabrili Cabrilo, the Anti-Biya Activist who Confronted President Macron on the Crisis in Anglophone Cameroon

He is rarely known yet he took the unmatched courage to interview French president, Macron on the ongoing armed conflict in the Anglophone crisis. His name is Tiam Adoulaye, a frontline anti-Biya activist who continuously maintains a low profile.

               

Tiam Adoulaye alias Cabrili Cabrilo

The video in which he interviewed Macron has become one of the most shared in the past months in Cameroon.

                It shows how the Brigade Anti Sadinard Founder and staunch critic of the Yaounde government, Tiam Abdoulaye, confronted French President, Emmanual Macron in Paris, Saturday 22nd February 20202.

                Tiam Abdoulaye, popularly known as Calibri Calibro is not a social media fanatic. But he took what has today been described as one of the boldest and remarkable steps since a wave of anti-Biya protests gained momentum among Cameroonians in the diaspora.

                In his chat with French President, Emmanuel Macron, the latter broke his silence on the killings in the North West and South West regions of Cameroon. 

                In a viral video, Calibri cries out to the French president asking him to intervene in Cameroon.

                 “Mr Macron, Paul Biya is killing Cameroonians … There is a genocide in Cameroon,” he cried.

                In response to the activist, President Macron noted that he was versed with the happenings in Anglophone Cameroon.

                “I put pressure on Biya so that he first of all handles the issue of the Anglophone regions and his opposition,” he told Calibri.

                Before President Paul Biya could meet him in Lyon, Macron added, he (Biya) had to release Maurice Kamto, an indication of maximum pressure on the Yaounde regime.

                With regards to African States as a whole and young persons risking all to leave the continent through the Mediterranean Sea, Macron noted one of the challenges is leaders that are not democratically elected.

                In Africa like elsewhere, he said he too wants “democratically elected leaders and where they are not democratically elected, I work with their civil society”.

                President Biya, the French leader went on has to “… decentralise, release political opponents and respect human rights”.

Harboring & Protecting Ambazonia Terrorists:

Cameroonians Sue US Gov’t, FBI for Abetting Terrorism

By Doh Bertrand Nua in Yaounde

Barr. Nsalai and members of CAVAT during the press conference in Yaounde

Members of the Cameroon Association of Victims of Ambazonia Terrorism, CAVAT, have through their attorneys led by US-based Cameroonian licensed lawyer, Barrister Emmanuel Nsahlai of the Nsahlai Law Firm, sued several US federal institutions for failing to prosecute those they call Ambazonia international terrorists.

                Nsahlai told reporters he has filed on behalf of CAVAT a Writ of mandamus against the FBI, the Department of Treasury, Department of Homeland Security, and the Department of Justice.

He made the disclosure during a press conference Friday 21 February 2020 at the Franco Hotel in Yaounde.

                The lawyer said he is requesting the Federal Judge to order the aforementioned Federal agencies to properly apply their anti-terrorism and other penal laws to prosecute Ambazonia terrorists living in the USA. 

                He explained that the lawsuits against the institutions comes after filing several criminal reports beginning 2019 alongside multiple meetings with the FBI, Houston police department, Los Angeles police department and other federal agencies without any criminal indictments against Ambazonian leaders from these institutions.

                However, Nsahlai, revealed that thanks to dozens of criminal complaints filed against Ambazonia leaders and their major supporters in USA, UK and Norway, criminal reports, multiple criminal investigations are ongoing in these home countries.

Anglophone Crisis:

Jailed Ambazonia Leaders Isolate Tassang Wilfred

-Disclaim his comments against Prof. Maurice Kamto

Nine of the ten separatist kingpins arrested at the Nera Hotel in Abuja on 5 January 2018 and serving a life sentence at the Yaoundé Principal Prison have distanced themselves from one of theirs, Tassang Wilfred, following his missive to Prof. Maurice Kamto, President of the Cameroon Renaissance Movement.

"This lying Professor is worse than Paul Biya. Avoid him," Tassang had said of Professor Kamto in a message that went viral February 12, 2020.

                In a disclaimer dated February 18, 2020, his other prison mates said Tassang’s views are in no way a reflection of what they stand for. The said disclaimer carries the signatures of: Julius Ayuk Tabe, Nfor Ngala Nfor, Barrister Shufai Blaise Sevidzem Berinyuy, Barrister Eyambe Elias Ebai, Dr. Fidelis Ndeh Che, Dr Egbe Ntui Ogork, Dr. Cornelius Njikimbi Kwanga, Dr. Kimeng Henry Tata and Prof. Cheh Augustine Awasum.

Banga Bakundu, Mile 40:

Meme SDO Signs Peace Pact with Villagers

By Ekoko Willies in Kumba

Inhabitants of Banga Bakundu and Mile 40, two roadside villages along the Kumba-Buea highway in Meme Division have signed a peace deal with the SDO for Meme, Chamberlin Ntou’ou Ndong, to lure and convince their kith and kin who have taken up arms against the state to drop their guns, leave the bushes and return to normal life.

                The deal was the outcome of a surprise meet the people tour that the Prefect embarked on Friday 21 February 2020. The population turned out massively but refused allegations of recent killing in the area.

Ngarbuh Massacre:

Gov’t Refutes Allegations Against Military

By Doh Bertrand Nua in Yaounde

Reactions have continued flowing in from both national and international personalities and institutions to condemn the recent killings in Ngarbuh, in the North West region after government denied all allegations concerning the involvement of the military.

                Contrary to reports that over 25 persons were killed during the incident, government through the separate voices of the army spokesman, Colonel Cyrille Atonfack Guemo, Minister Delegate at the Presidency in Charge of Defense, Joseph Beti Assomo and later through a press conference organized by Rene Emmanuel Sadi, Communication Minister and Government spokesperson debunked all claims saying only five civilians were accidentally killed in the incident.

                The trio in their separate outings revealed that the deaths were as a result of an “unfortunate accident” which happened when fuel exploded in an exchange of gunfire with separatists in the area during a military operation in the area in a bid to dislodge a “separatist arms and logistics base”.

Agbor Balla reacts

                Barrister Nkongho Felix Agbor head of the Centre for Human Rights and Democracy in Africa, CHRDA, has called for an independent commission of inquiry into the case.

                “I just read the reaction of the Ministry of Defense on the Ngarbuh Massacre. My recommendation is that, In order to lay this matter to rest, an independent Commission of Inquiry should be set up to investigate the killings. The Commission should include members of the civil society, clergy and government. The Commission should be headed by a clergy of impeccable character.”

                In an earlier reaction shortly after images of the gruesome act emerged on social media said, Balla, said, “The death toll from the massacre in Ngarbuh-Ntubaw in Cameroon has risen to 32 with some children and pregnant women still missing. The military officers responsible for these heinous crimes must be brought to justice. These crimes clearly amount to crimes against humanity. The culture of impunity must stop. No to Impunity and Yes to Accountability.”

Gutterres Shocked

                Antonio Gutterres, Secretary General of the United Nations has expressed concerns over the same killings and called on government to conduct a thorough investigation into the incident and ensure those responsible are held accountable.

                “The Secretary-General is deeply concerned over reports about the killing of civilians, including children, in an attack on the village of Ngarbuh in the North-West Region of Cameroon on 14 February. He extends his deepest condolences to the families and calls on the Government of Cameroon to conduct an investigation and to ensure that those responsible are held accountable,” partly read a statement of the UN scribe.

                “The Secretary-General calls on armed actors to refrain from attacks against civilians and to respect international humanitarian and international human rights law. He reiterates the readiness of the United Nations to work with all stakeholders towards a political solution to the crisis in the North-West and South-West Regions of Cameroon through meaningful dialogue,” it added.

Commonwealth Condemns

                Commonwealth Secretary-General, Patricia Scotland, has also issued a statement condemning the massacre and calling for an impartial investigation so that the perpetrators of the act can be identified and held accountable.

                “I strongly condemn the recent killings of civilians, including women and children in the Northwest of Cameroon on 14 February 2020. We noted the Government announcement that there would be a full investigation into the incident. We encourage the Government to conduct an impartial investigation, for perpetrators to be held accountable and for results to be made public,” she said.

                “The Commonwealth strongly condemns all forms of violence, and in particular, the loss of lives of innocent civilians including women and children. Cameroon is a noted member of the Human Rights Council and as such we are minded of General Comment 13 to the Convention on the Rights of the Child to freedom from all forms of violence which is underscored by the understanding that no violence against children is justifiable, all violence against children is preventable,” Scotland said, adding, that the Commonwealth stands ready to support solutions that will address the root causes of the conflict that has dragged on since 2016.

9 February Legislative Polls:

Constitutional Council Examines Petitions Today

By Doh Bertrand Nua in Yaounde

The Constitutional Council will begin hearing petitions for the just ended 9 February Legislative polls Monday 24 February 2020 at the Yaounde Conference Centre.

                The information inviting political parties for post-election hearings beginning Monday was made known at the end of a ceremony that culminated the handing over of the results of the vote national vote counting committee to the President of the Constitutional Council.

Mafany Namange Is New Mayor of Buea

New Buea Mayor Mafany Namange congratulated by  Limbe Gov’t Delegate Andrew Motanga and others

A stormy session of the Buea Council held on Tuesday, 18 February 2020 saw the election of David Mafani Namange as the new mayor of the administrative capital of the Southwest region following the victory of the CPDM list in the municipal elections 9 February 2020.

                The very discreet banker, lawyer, longtime CPDM section president triumphed over his challengers including Dr George Mafany Teke, journalist Kange Williams Wasaloko and Dr Amos Namanga Ngongi.

After intense negotiations with the aforementioned aspirants under the leadership of Dima Gabriel and Motanga Gerald of the CPDM Central Committee, Mafani Namange tipped the scales in his favor.

                Mafani, who became president of the Fako III section of the CPDM in 2015 with a mission of change and renewal, won 39 out of 40 votes. The Buea council has 41 councilors. One of the candidates, Kange Wasaloko, staged a walkout against the overbearing precepts of the Party’s Central Committee. The party had opted for investitures rather than primaries to choose municipal officials.

Women’s Day in Black:

Women Activists Call for Women’s Day Boycott 

-Urge women nationwide to wear black cloths to mourn the dead and stand up against repression by the Yaounde regime

By Doh Bertrand Nua in Yaounde

Political and Women’s Rights Activists, Kah Walla, Alice Nkom, NdockiMichelle have called for 

boycott of Women’s Day activities on 8 March

Edith Kah Walla, leader of ‘Stand Up for Cameroon Movement’,  Barristers Alice Nkom, Michele Ndoki, Charlotte Tchakounte and a group of other women have under the banner of a group call “Mothers of the Nation” called on women nationwide to boycott the upcoming women’s day celebration on March 8.

                They urged women nationwide to distance themselves from buying, wearing the women’s day fabric and put on black cloths in honor of the fallen civilians in the two crisis-hit Anglophone and the Northern regions. The decision was made at the end of a meeting in Douala Friday 21 February 2020.  

                The women seized the opportunity to remind themselves of the role played by other women groups in fighting oppressors during conflicts situations in other parts of the world and urged all and sundry to federate forces and stand for their rights as mothers from the Yaoundé regime.

                “…Our mothers of Anlu fought the British colonizer, while our sisters of UDEFEC (Union Démocratique des Femmes Camerounaises) fought the French colonizer. Our mothers used Mevengu, Ko’o and Takumbeng to right the wrongs of society. We cannot sit today and do nothing as the society falls apart,” partly read a statement they issued at the end of the meeting, which, equally condemned deaths of their children across the conflict-hit regions.

                “…4,000 or more in the Extreme North, 3000 and more in the North West and South West regions. Our children are out of school. 600 000 in the Anglophone regions, but surely over one million if we add in the parts of the country where there are no schools, where there are no teachers or where parents can simply not afford to pay fees,” they revealed, stating, that they as women are paying the ultimate price for the decisions of a regime that has absolutely no regard for them. 

Limbe Councils Know their New Mayors

By Ticha Melanis in Limbe

Following CPDM victory in all the councils in Fako division after the February 9 election across the nation, the SDO for Fako Engamba Emmanuel Ledoux has begun the process where councilors will elect their mayors and deputy mayors as stipulated by law.  He started the process on Tuesday February 18 in Idenau and all the three councils in Limbe.

                In all the councils, the councilors voted their mayors by acclamation as only one candidate was presented in all the various councils. Reports say, the central committee had sent a delegation to conduct internal election to produce lone candidates before the proper election of mayors.  The SDO who supervised the election process in all the council cautioned all the mayors to take work seriously and be proactive because they will be the ones to fully implement the decentralization process. He was happy with how smooth the election of the mayors went as he urged them to use the occasion to celebrate their February 9 victory. In all the council, the eldest and youngest councilors were called upon to conduct the election.

                In Idenau, Tonde Lifanje Gabriel was reelected alongside two newly elected deputies Emmanuel Penda and Wulu Mary. Mayor Tonde Gabriel expressed his joy on being reelected as he stated that “it is due to the spirit of togetherness because if you are not together with your people, they cannot renew their confidence in you”.  He intends to continue with the development of the municipality as he pronounced that the town is a dream land for investment.  He used the opportunity to call on people to come and invest in Idenau because there is enough land as he promised to double his efforts to more.  He added that he is very happy because it is not easy to serve two mandates as a mayor and he call on the population to count him as he will equally count on them.

                Unlike other councils in Limbe, the wing of change as preached by the CPDM party took place at the Limbe 11 council where youth took over the leadership of the council. Chief Ndive Woka Daniel 11 of Bobende was unanimously elected by the councilors as the mayor of the new Limbe. He takes over from Duncan molindo who has served as mayor of the council for two mandates. His deputies are Iluke Mbai Ephraim and Nzelle Panje Veronica respectively.

Fair To Market Cameroon’s Tourism Envisaged

By Ticha Melanis in Limbe

Despite Cameroon’s rich and diverse cultural and tourism potential, it is unfortunate that the country is not well known abroad. This is because Cameroonians do not promote their tourism as expected.

               

Participants at the launch of the Limbe Tourism Fair

This was the opinion shared by the CEO of Flora Travels and Tour, Agatha Iyok, while speaking at a ceremony to announce the holding of a tourism fair from 4 to 7 November this year. She was speaking in on Friday in Limbe.

Iyok frowned at the fact that most Cameroonians neither visit nor explore other parts of their country making them strangers in their own country.

                She says it is for this reason that she came up with the idea of a tourism fair to showcase Cameroon’s tourist potentials, its cultures and traditions among others.

                She noted that the tourism sector in Cameroon has the potential of creating thousands of jobs and boosting the country’s economy and ensure environmental sustainability. 

                Iyok underscored the need for needed investments to be directed to the tourism sector in order to expand it.

                “Tourism is experiencing a number of setbacks in recent years, notably the effect of climate change as well as the crisis in the Anglophone regions. She called on all to be honest to identify the major challenges in the sector as she proposed some strategies to mitigate them. The facilitation of the process to obtain entry into Cameroon for tourist, an improvement in the transport sector, sensitization and proliferation of authentic information on tourism options in Cameroon were some of her proposals.

After Successful Twin Polls:

ELECAM Getting Set for Regional Elections

-Board members of Elections Cameroon met for their 7th ordinary session in Yaounde last week

By Doh Bertrand Nua in Yaounde

After organising the twin municipal and legislative polls which he qualified as free, fair and holding within an atmosphere of serenity and calm, the Chairman of the Electoral Board of Elections Cameroon (ELECAM), Governor Enow Egbe Abrams, has said the body will immediately begin preparations for the upcoming regional polls.              

Elecam Board Chair, Enow Egbe Abrams

He made the observations while opening the deliberations of the 7th Session as of right of the Electoral Board holding in accordance with the provisions of section 19(2) of the Electoral Code which states that “The Electoral Board shall meet at least once every fortnight upon the convening of the electorate.”

                 “It is worth noting that, this will be the first election of its kind and, which means we don’t have to spare our efforts, for we must without any delay get back to work,” Enow Abrams said, adding, that ELECAM’s ultimate objective, guided by the orgainsation of free and fair elections, is to continue contributing towards boosting the credibility of the democratic process, in order to consolidate peace, stability and social cohesion in the country.

Boko Haram Render Hundreds Homeless

By Doh Bertrand Nua in Yaounde

Recent attacks from Boko Haram terrorist sects has rendered hundreds of Mandoussa, Oudal, Kouva and Hitere inhabitants in the Mayo-Moskotoa subdivision, Mayo-Tsanaga Division in the Far North Region homeless. The inhabitants have all fled their villages to seek safety in other localities following recurrent attacks from the terrorists.

                In one of the attacks, the llone health facility Ouzal was completely burnt down and materials destroyed. Two reports from Douala-based Equinoxe Television indicated that at least two persons were killed in the attacks while others were left wounded.

                The some of the inhabitants interview by the TV revealed they were leaving with all their possible belongings for safety. Old mothers, children were captured by the TV station as they trekked long distances out of the subdivision for fear of the unknown.

                The locals said at least 300 homes were burnt in the attack that lasted over four hours. They said the terrorists looted the local health centre and made away with valuables. Several cattle were also slaughtered by the attackers.

CBC Doctors Deny Presence of Coronavirus in Douala

By Doh Bertrand Nua in Yaounde

Authorities of the Cameroon Baptist Convention, CBC have debunked social media rumours indicating that a case of patient with the deadly Coronavirus has been identified in their establishment in Douala. The clarification was recently made in a disclaimer issued Monday 17 February 2020 by Prof. Pius Tih Pius Muffih, CBC Director of Health Services. 

                The health establishment stated that the two patients who unfortunately died on Saturday at the Mboppi Baptist Hospital in Douala had a history of diarrhea and vomiting, rubbishing rumours of a coronavirus outbreak adding, that they are not selling preventive medicine for coronavirus.

                “The information circulating in the social media that Mboppi Baptist Hospital is dispensing medicines for the prevention of coronavirus is false and should not be respected. Please do not rush to Mboppi Baptist Hospital or to anybody to buy preventive medicines for coronavirus. The information is not true and there is no suspicion of coronavirus linked to the cases that came to Mboppi Baptist hospital, Douala last weekend,” said Muffih.

Ngarbur Massacre:

K’bo Declares Day of Mourning, Payers  

By Doh Bertrand Nua in Yaounde

His Lordship George Nkuo, Bishop of Kumbo Diocese has in a release issued Tuesday 18 February 2020 contradicted the figures presented by government through the Ministries of Defense and Communication on the number of deaths recorded in the killings in Nagrbur in the Northwest Region.

                “On Friday 14th February 2020, the military invaded Ngarbuh at 4a.m., and we are told that twenty-four (24) people were killed among were pregnant women and little children. Some of the victims were burnt and several others wounded,” read the communique in parts, adding, that nine houses were burnt down. 

                The Bishop called on persons of goodwill to assist and reach out to the hundreds of grief-stricken and traumatized persons displaced and seeking refuge in nearby villages under deplorable human conditions. He equally called for prayers to be said for victims of the incident.

                “I hereby declare Friday 21st February 2020 as a day of prayer and mourning in the entire Diocese of Kumbo for the Victims of the Ngarguh disaster. In this way, we shall vehemently say, “Yes to life and No to death” in solidarity with the recent message of the National Episcopal Conference of Cameroon,” the release read, urging all priests, religious, the faithful and men and women of good will in the Diocese to observe the day in prayer and mourning for those brutally killed, wounded and rendered homeless. 

UN Demands Probe into Ngarbuh Massacre

By Doh Bertrand Nua in Yaounde

The United Nations, UN, has in a statement issued Tuesday 18 February 2020 on recent killings of about 23 persons in Ngarbuh, in Donga Mantung Division urged government to conduct an independent investigation and bring the perpetrators to book.

               

UN wants Biya to order a probe into Ngarbuh massacre

"We urge the authorities to ensure that the investigation is independent, impartial and thorough and that those responsible are held fully to account," it said in a statement which, which, while citing information from UN colleagues on the ground, revealed two pregnant women and 15 children-nine of them under the age of five-were among those killed in the incident which many have blamed on government forces. 

Ngarbuh Massacre:

Agbor Balla, Kamto to Be Arrested Again?

Following reports in several newspapers last week pointing to the imminent arrest of frontline Anglophone enthusiast and activist, Barrister Felix Agbor Balla, and opposition leader, Prof. Maurice Kamto, over their utterances relating to the Ngarbuh massacre, the government has said no such arrests were ever contemplated.

Amid lead stories of some French language newspapers hinting on plans by the Yaounde regime to arrest Barristers Nkongho Felix Agbor Balla, Akere Muna and Maurice Kamto over their comments relating to the Ngarbuh killings of last Friday 14 February, the government through the voice of the Minister of Defence, MINDEF, Joseph Beti Assomo, has denied nursing any such plans to arrest the lawyers or to drag them to justice over their positions concerning the killings in Ngarbuh.

              

Is government planning to arrest these lawyers?

  The Mindef disclaimed the newspaper reports in a press release he issued last week.

The release followed an earlier statement by the Mindef exonerating government forces from blame for the death of 7 persons in Ngarbuh. He stated that the deaths were the result of an ‘unfortunate accident’ that occurred due to gunfire exchange between rebels and government forces.

                The Mindef’s position, which was later echoed by the minister of communication, Rene Sadi, at a press briefing in Yaounde, contrasted with the position held by the Bishop of the Diocese of Kumbo, the United Nations and other international rights groups suggesting that no fewer than 23 persons were killed in Ngarbuh on Friday, 14 February following a military operation in the area.

                The army spokesman Colonel Cyrille Atonfack Guemo, corroborated his boss when he too said the killings were due to an ‘unfortunate accident’, and that 12 persons died when fuel exploded in an exchange of gunfire with separatists in the area. He said the twelve persons that died included seven separatist fighters and five civilians.

                The statements by the government officials said defense and security forces carried out a “reconnaissance operation” in the area to dislodge a “separatist arms and logistics base”.  They said in an exchange of gunfire that ensued, “seven terrorists and bandits” were killed.

                “During the clashes, a fire broke out in the terrorists’ fortification in the same house, causing explosions, before spreading to neighboring houses. This fire reportedly claimed the lives of five persons – a woman and four children – far from the massacre relayed on social media,” Defense Minister Beti Assomo Joseph said in a press release February 17, 2020, a version corroborated by Communication Minister Rene Sadi Tuesday.

                Contrary to Government account, Barrister Nkongho Felix Agbor Anyior alias Agbor Balla, Founder/CEO of the Centre for Human Rights and Democracy in Africa, CHRDA, said at least 27 civilians were “murdered by state defense forces”.

                Taking to Facebook in a post on Sunday 16 February, the human rights lawyer writes: “The gruesome murder of 27 civilians including women and children by the State Defense Forces on 14 February 2020 in Ngarbuh, Donga Mantung Division of the North West Region in Cameroon must be investigated and the perpetrators of such egregious crimes brought to justice.”

                He furthered on Monday that: “The death toll from the massacre in Ngarbuh-Ntubaw in Cameroon has risen to 32 with some children and pregnant women still missing. The military officers responsible for these heinous crimes must be brought to justice. These crimes clearly amount to crimes against humanity. The culture of impunity must stop. No to Impunity and Yes to Accountability.”

                After the communiqué from the Minister of Defense, Agbor Balla insisted that there is need for an independent inquiry into what happened in Ngarbuh.

Anglophone Secessionists Will Not Drop their Arms

– Political critic, Dieudonne Essomba

The massacres of the populations in a village in the North West lead me to recall what I asked long before the outbreak of events, namely that it was necessary to immediately return to the 1961 Federation or any other renewed formula and this for many reasons:

Dieudonne Essomba

1. Anglophones no longer want a unitary state. They really don’t want more, no matter what reforms they can make. The unitary state reminds them of all that has been done underhanded, violent, brutal and dishonest. It is the word “unitary” itself that fuels the war and it must be noted. We do not know exactly what the government gains by maintaining this word despite the blood flows;

                2. In matters of Secession, the English-speaking Community enjoys three decisive advantages which have made it impossible to maintain them in a unitary State:

                a. They are too numerous because a secession which covers 20% of the population is no longer controllable by a unitary state; for information, the Secession of Cabinda, Casamance, Corsica or Tibet does not cover 2% of the population;

                b. They have already lived under a federal regime, and they perceive this time as an age or which harbored an irrepressible nostalgia;

vs. They have international legitimacy because they came to French-speaking Cameroon under the aegis of the United Nations. In the event of a conflict, their situation will attract the attention of the international community, which will impose its solutions.

                3. Finally, in operational terms, the Federation makes it possible to better combat the Secession by 3 mechanisms:

                a. It dries up the activity of the Secession since it also has its supporters

                b. It opposes a local police force that comes from the same sociological background, a better knowledge of the terrain and has less of the same legitimacy.

                The national army then comes to support. Conversely, the National Army directly confronts the Secession, it does not enjoy popular support and commits a large number of blunders which gives it the appearance of an occupying force.

vs. It makes the attacks of the Secessionists very difficult, the majority of the infrastructures are visible specific to the local state.

                The people do not know that they expect nothing from the central state if these infrastructures are destroyed, which leads them to dissociate themselves from the actions of the Separatists.

                Unfortunately, our positions were fought on emotional and ideological bases. Furthermore, we have been accused of all the names of birds: antipatriots, pro-Ambazonians, traitors, etc.

Because what these wanted, it is to get rid of our posture of cold analyst and great patriot to encourage the government to go to sink in the stinking swamp where it struggles now desperately, without that we see exactly problem.

                And the facts are there, hard and relentless: the English-speaking Secessionists will never lay down their arms unless they are beaten, which is unlikely with the unitary state! You must never believe that there will come a time when the Secessionists, listening to the voice of wisdom, will quietly lay down their arms to return humbly to the unitary state. Of course, there will be some defections, but with little impact on the course of events.

After Ngarbuh Massacre:

Catholic Church Urges Biya to Dialogue with Separatists

By Doh Bertrand Nua in Yaounde

At least sixteen Bishops from the Roman Catholic Church across the world grouped under the “Global Campaign for Peace and Justice in Cameroon” have in a letter dated Monday 17 February 2020, addressed to President Paul Biya, urged him to accept the Swiss-led negotiations with separatist leaders as a means towards finding lasting solutions to the ongoing crisis rocking the Anglophone regions.

                The Bishops in their letter, a copy of which was sent to the Pope, noted they are touched by the constant suffering of unarmed civilian population caught in the violence between in the two regions pitting government security forces and separatists fighters.

                “There will be no military victory for any side. A lasting solution to Cameroon’s problems must come from a mediated process that includes Anglophone armed-separatist groups and nonviolent civil-society leaders. If all parties treat each other as they wish to be treated, a solution is possible,” part of the letter read.

Drawing a Line in the sand:

UN Has Responsibility to Protect English Speakers in Cameroon

By Felix Agbor Nkongho and Rebecca Tinsley

It is an odd thing to live somewhere gripped by deadly conflict. One may imagine that the pain and challenges of one’s day-to-day life would also weigh heavily on the outside world. But that is not usually the case. In many crises, the rest of the world does not know – or does not want to know.

              

President Biya says he thought Anglophones couldbe assimilated, but they proved difficult

  If you live in the English-speaking regions of Cameroon, for instance, you might wonder why the atrocities that have been happening on your doorstep for the past three years are rarely mentioned in the global media or at United Nations meetings. There are no consequences for Cameroon’s government soldiers and radicalized separatist militias’ actions, which have looted and burned homes and schools, while killing and mutilating civilians. Some 656,000 English-speaking Cameroonians have abandoned their besieged villages. And on Feb. 14, state forces allegedly perpetrated a massacre in the remote locality of Ngarbuh, killing at least 20 people – including many children. Only then did the crisis manage to make the news.

                The Cameroonian government, led by Paul Biya, who has served as President since 1982, has signed numerous UN conventions promising to uphold human rights; yet, it repeatedly violates them without repercussions. Cameroonians are left to feel that impunity will triumph so long as the UN lacks the power or will to enforce its high-minded conventions.

                To cite Juan Mendez – an Argentine lawyer, torture survivor and former UN rapporteur and adviser on the prevention of genocide – one must be a grain of sand in the eyes of the world’s diplomats and decision-makers. That is how suffering gets attention: with persistent irritation of international bodies such as the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC).

                With a firmly lodged grain of sand, would the UN be able to end Cameroon’s impunity using international law? Yes, if the 2005 Responsibility to Protect doctrine (R2P) is invoked.

                The UNHRC meets in Geneva at the end of the month, and it is doubtful that the worsening security situation in Cameroon will be on its agenda. However, the council surely has enough information on what is happening in Cameroon to consider R2P. In 2016, peaceful demonstrations by English speakers were met with disproportionate force. In 2017, the UNHRC received a report detailing the UN’s concerns about the lack of freedom of expression or assembly in Cameroon, the arbitrary detention and torture of journalists and opposition politicians, the lack of independence among the judiciary and the people running elections, and discrimination against the English-speaking minority.

                In 2018 and 2019, the conflict in Cameroon spiralled out of control. International human-rights groups have reported that the francophone-dominated government allows the military to use lethal force against armed separatists and civilians alike. As a result, some separatist militias have become increasingly extremist and violent, and social-media platform WhatsApp is now saturated with videos of torture and death perpetrated by both sides. Moderate anglophone activists and innocent civilians are caught in the middle, and cruel violence and horrific acts increased in the period around legislative and municipal elections held on Feb. 9, with no end in sight – all this, before last week’s Valentine’s Day massacre.

                The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights visited Cameroon in May, 2019, and urged the government to hold members of its security forces committing abuses to account. This diplomatic language was echoed by the Council of the European Union. However, it is not just a few rogue elements committing human-rights violations: Cracking down on the English-speaking regions is actually government policy.

Cameroon Confident After CHAN 2020 Draw

Cameroon sports officials expressed full confidence that the national football team will perform “exceptionally” after draw of 2020 African Nations Championship (CHAN) was conducted here on Monday evening.

              

CHAN 2020 Cup Draw in Yaounde

  “We have been waiting for this competition to come and we will undoubtedly strive to put in an exceptional performance. We are here in our land with the supporters behind us, so we have to work hard to reach the final,” Cameroon’s Minister of Sports and Physical Education Narcisse Mouelle Kombi told reporters during the glamorous ceremony at the Yaounde Sports Complex.

                Hosts Cameroon will face Mali, Burkina Faso and Zimbabwe in Group A of the tournament.

                “We are ready to face any team. We have been working hard in a bit to reach the finals and win the championship. So we are ready to win CHAN,” Cameroonian coach Yves Clement Arroga said.

                Defending champions Morocco are in Group C with Uganda, Rwanda and debutants Togo.

                The tournament’s most successful team DR Congo who have won the tournament two times will headline Group B where they compete against Congo Brazzaville, Libya and Niger

                In Group D, Zambia, Guinea, Namibia and Tanzania will square out.

Manchester City Banned From Champions League for 2 Seasons

The club was also fined 30 million euros for “serious breaches” of European soccer’s financial regulations.

Manchester City has said it will fight any ruling thatbans the club from the Champions League

Manchester City, the reigning Premier League champion and one of the world’s richest soccer clubs, has been barred from the Champions League for the next two seasons for “serious breaches” of European soccer’s financial regulations.

                The decision, announced Friday by an independent financial control body of UEFA, the governing body for soccer in Europe, found that Manchester City had been guilty of multiple violations related to club licensing and so-called financial fair play rules — cost controls put in place by UEFA to try to mitigate the growing gap between rich clubs and poor ones in European leagues, and to tackle a growing debt crisis. The club, which also was criticized for failing to cooperate with UEFA’s investigators, also was fined 30 million euros ($32.5 million).

The penalty is the most significant punishment UEFA has handed out in the decade since it created its financial fair play regulations, and if upheld its consequences for Manchester City’s balance sheet and its competitive future could be severe. Participation in the Champions League is worth about $100 million a year to the club, and missing out on it could factor into the career decisions of some of the team’s star players, potential signings and even City’s coach, Pep Guardiola.

Leo Messi Extends Lead as Top Scorer in La Liga

We take a look at the stats left behind by the Argentine's stellar performance at against Eibar at Camp Nou

                Another great performance from Leo Messi as the Argentine found the net four times in the 5-0 win over Eibar. The Barça number 10 extends his lead at the top of the goalscoring charts in La Liga - we take a look at some other stats that spring to mind:

- The Argentine now has 18 goals in La Liga, five more than second placed Karim Benzema of Real Madrid.

- Messi ends a run of four games without a goal by scoring four!

- Messi now has seven goals in 2020 in all competitions.

2020 Mount Cameroon Race of Hope:

Gabsibuin Godlove, Tatah Carine Emerge Champions

-Soldiers ensured tight security as enthusiastic crowds cheered the runners up and down the ‘Chariots of the gods’, during the 2020 Mt. Cameroon Race of Hope, that was run on Saturday 22 February in Buea

Athletes from the NW carried the day at the 2020 edition of the Mt. Cameroon Race of Hope that was run in Buea on Saturday 22 February.

             

Gabsibuin Godlove emerged the champion of the 2020edition of the Mount Cameroon Race of Hope

   Like was the case in 2018, Godlove Gabsibuin Bobuin and Tatah Carine – both from the North West Region – emerged champions respectively in the male and female categories of the 25th edition of the Race of Hope. 

                Godlove Gabsibuin covered the 38kilomtres race course from the Molyko Omnisport Stadium to the summit of Mount Cameroon and back in 4 hours 36 minutes, emerging overall champion and first in the male category. He smiled home with a trophy and cash prize of FCFA 10 million.

                The 32-year-old Gabsibuin had emerged champion in 2012, 2013, 2015 and 2018. He therefore clinched his fifth title this year after beating 44-year-old Ndunguh Simplice, from Lebialem in the SW, and Elvis Nsahbinla from the NW to the second and third positions respectively. 

                Tatah Carine triumphed in the female category. The 21-year-old mountaineer from the North West Region won the race in 2018 and 2019. This 2020 victory is her third in a row.

                Tatah Carine was closely followed by 24-year-old Mildred Kitan who finished second. Wirngo Kpuufanla emerged third in the female senior category like was the case in 2017 and 2018.

                All three athletes who mounted the podium in the female category hail from the North West region of Cameroon.

                Some 550 athletes took part in the 25th edition of the Mount Cameroon Race of Hope this Saturday, February 22. The athletes were divided into the senior category, juniors and the veteran categories.

                The senior category had a total of 331 athletes, made up of 45 women and 286 men. The junior category had 76 athletes; 28 females and 48 males. The veteran category had some 143 athletes with a total of 26 women and 117 men.

2020 Mt Cameroon Race of Hope:

Mbacha Eric Misses Race, Evokes Threats to Life

Mbacha Eric will not be among over 550 athletes to challenge the Chariots of the gods in Buea this Saturday February 22 2020.

Mbacha Eric did not participate in the 2020 Race of Hope

The three time winner of the Mount Cameroon Race in a video released on social media says “I will not take part in the race this year 2020 because of security reasons. I won the race in 2019 and after that I received death threats from unknown persons. They called me asking me to support the struggle. They continued and extended it to my family. So I had to seek for international protection with my family in Finland.”

                Mbacha Eric a native of Donga Mantung division in the North West region of Cameroon regrets his absence for the race this year but wishes other athletes and his fans in Cameroon well in the course of the race.

                Being a household name in mountaineering in Cameroon, Mbacha Eric won the Mount Cameroon Race in 2011, 2014 and 2019 and has participated over ten times.

                While seeking international protection in Finland, the talented athlete has been using his time judiciously. On August 17th 2019, he took part in “Torko Marathon” covering a distance of 42 kilometres. He emerged the 2nd position in two hours 29 minutes.

Book Launch:

‘Golden Book’ Reviews 60 Years of Cameroon Football

By Doh Bertrand Nua in Yaounde

A book reviewing the contribution of football and football legends to Cameroon’s unity and indivisibility has been published. The book titled: “Golden Book of Cameroon Football” also highlights President Paul Biya’s contribution to the growth and development of football in Cameroon since ascending to power in 1982. 

               

A veritable reference document published by the Cameroon News and Publishing Corporation, SOPECAM, the ‘Golden Book’ is prefaced by President Paul Biya, while the postscript is penned by erstwhile CAF President, Issa Hayatou.

                Chairing the book launch at the Yaounde Hilton Hotel, on Friday 21 February 2020, Communication Minister, Rene Emmanuel Sadi, hailed the initiative by SOPECAM and praised President Paul Biya’s contribution towards the development of football.

                Sadi described the publication as a “wonderful and timely piece” coming barely weeks to Cameroon’s hosting of the African Nations Championship, CHAN and the 2021 African Cup of Nations.

                The launch was attended among others by the Director of Civil Cabinet at the Presidency, Samuel Mvondo Ayolo, government ministers, past and present football stars, football managers, football lovers, stakeholders and sport journalists.

                Veteran Indomitable Lions represented by two former captains - Emmanuel Mve and Stephen Tataw, saluted the initiative of a ‘Golden Book’ which touches on every aspect of Cameroon football for past 60 years and its role in fostering the country’s unity.

                The duo thanked SOPECAM for immortalizing their contribution to nation building in the publication, qualifying the book as a reference document for football in the continent.

                Stephen Tataw particularly qualified the book as a tribute to President Biya. He expressed gratitude on behalf of all football legends, who fought hard to make the country’s name adorned in the annals of world football.

                The 263-page bilingual publication is sub-divided in chapters with incisive and captivating testimonies of the Lions, trainers, sports leaders and other informed observers.

                It focuses on the genesis of Cameroon football, President Biya’s engagement, lions’ brand, major strides, key victories, challenging years, major actors, Cameroon and international football bodies, legendary clubs as major nurseries, touch of feminine football, football as a passion, infrastructure, ensuring relay, Hayatou at the helm of CAF national teams, clubs and youth football and training centres among others issues.  

Front page

Anglophone Crisis:

US Citizens in Cameroon Told To Avoid Crowded Areas

American citizens living in Cameroon have been warned to be careful

Following a stir after the body of the teacher who was fatally stabbed at the Lycée de Nkol-Bisson was lifted, the American Embassy in Cameroon feared for the safety of Americans living in Cameroon by giving them specific instructions to protect themselves.
    More than a thousand demonstrators invaded the surroundings of the University Hospital Center in Yaoundé (CHUY) on January 30, 2020. The came to witness the lifting of the body of the late Boris Njoni Tchakounté who was killed in the exercise of his duties a week ago.
    The defense forces repressed the crowds which comprised mostly teachers and students. The soldiers sprayed water canons and teargas at the crowds which went violent in response. It caused fear around the University of Yaoundé 1 and the American School of Yaoundé (ASOY) located not far from there.
    The US Embassy had no option than to call its citizens to be watchful.
    “American citizens are advised to avoid this area until further notice,” reads a note published by the American Embassy..

What a Disgrace to Traditional Institutions!

SDO Bans Petition-Writing L’be Chiefs Confab
-Accuses Limbe Chiefs of posing a threat to social peace and cohesion, and of setting confusion with a view to destabilizing the chieftaincy institution in Fako
By Ticha Melanis in Limbe

President of FCC, HRH Fonderson Henry

“Order Pass Power!” Talkative Limbe Chiefs must respect themselves and shut up, at least for once. This is the interpretation that the public makes from the prefectoral order No 32 signed on Friday 31 January, by the SDO of Fako, Engamba Emmanuel Ledoux, suspending all activities of the Limbe Chiefs Conference till further notice.
    “Considering the threats to social peace and cohesion……Considering the risk of destabilizing the chieftaincy institution in Fako, and considering the maintenance of public order within Fako division, I, the undersigned Engamba Emmanuel Ledoux, Senior Civil Administrator, Knight of the Cameroon Order of Valour and SDO for Fako division, do hereby orders as follows: 1)…….That as from the date of signing of the present Order, all activities of the Limbe Chiefs Conference are hereby suspended. 2)…That anyone who violates this Order shall be prosecuted according to the rules and regulations in force. 3)…That the DOs and heads of forces of defense and security are each in their spheres of competence charged with the strict and immediate application of the present Order…”
    The SDO’s Order thus short-circuits a planned media outing by the LImbe Chiefs to further drag the Limbe Government Delegate deeper into the mud.
The Chiefs who last week published a stinking open letter castigating the Limbe Gov’t Delegate, Andrew Motanga, accusing him of all kinds of wrongdoings at the City Council including notably allegations of abuse of office and power, corruption, embezzlement etc, had given the GD seven (7) working days to answer to the accusations failing which they would call a press conference during which they would further spill the beans. 
    But the Fako SDO intervenes just in time, to stop the Chiefs and spare Andrew Motanga further embarrassment and opprobrium.
    However, keen observers say the SDO’s decision to suspend Limbe Chiefs Confab might be upon the instruction of CPDM hierarchy in Yaounde that could not stand aside complacently and watch how the party in Fako is being split into shreds by the activities of local chiefs, and at this crucial period of elections.
    It should be mentioned that even before the SDO’s Order on Friday, the National Scribe of the CPDM Central Committee, Jean Kuete, had during an outing in Limbe on Thursday 30 January, frowned at division within the ranks of Fako CPDM. Jean Kuete ceased the occasion to call for renewed unity within and among militants and leaders of Fako CPDM.

Salt on Injury:

Security Forces Brutalize Teachers Honoring Slain Colleague
By Boris Esono Nwenfor in Buea

Students march in honour of teacher Tchakounte Boris, killed by a student

Cameroon’s security forces have used tear gas and water cannons to disperse teachers who were protesting the killing of one of their colleague by a student.
    Teachers turned out en masse in the nation’s political capital Yaounde to pay their last respect to their colleague, Boris Tchakounte, stabbed to death by his student at Lycée Classique de Nkolbisson on January 14, 2020. The student report indicates is still under police custody.
    As the teachers paid their last respect for their departed colleague, they were met with a harsh response from the forces of law and order that used tear gas to disperse the teachers.
    According to reports, the security officers forcefully took the corpse away from the teachers and ordered it be taken the West Region, where it is to be buried. Images and videos of the incident quickly went viral on social media as security forces tried to contain the teachers who were bent on protesting and raising awareness of the plight they currently face.
    A family source told journal du Cameroon that “authorities in place said the body cannot go to his former school. The funeral program indicated that the late teacher’s corpse was supposed to be taken to Lycée Nkolbisson, where he was stabbed, for academic honors, then to church, and finally to his family house.
    Thousands of teachers, friends of the deceased, students all came out to bid farewell, chanting songs in honor of the late teacher. The population was, however, stopped at the EMIA round about by security forces that used tear gas and water to disperse the crowd.

Who Is To Blame?

Tchiroma Decries Extreme Poverty, Misery in Garoua
By Doh Bertrand Nua in Yaounde
The Chairman of the Cameroon National Salvation Front (FSNC) party, Issa Tchiroma Bakary, has said the only solution to bring the North region in General and Garoua in particular from acute poverty and misery is to vote for the FSNC party that is out to bring them the much needed change they want.
    Tchiroma made the declarations during a campaign rally in the Garoua over the weekend. He frowned at the rate of poverty and suffering in Garoua and promised to in no distant time change the situation of the people who have being failed by their elite and opinion leaders if his party is voted into the council and parliament.