Publisher/Editor: OJONG Steven AYUKOGEM. Tel: (+237) 77 07 27 79. E-mail: themedianpaper@yahoo.com
Monday, 22 June 2020
Manyu Leadership: The Need for Unity!
By Dr. Joachim Arrey in Canada*
The land known as Manyu Division used to be a land of love
and unity, even when poverty was still stalking the inhabitants of the division
like a stubborn shadow.
 |
Manyu political leader, Victor Mengot Arrey Nkongho,
presiding at the finals of a subdivisional football
tournament for men and
women, in Eyumojock, in 2017
|
There
were disagreements, but the general atmosphere was characterized by love and
understanding.
Personalities
such as A.D. Mengot, Emmanuel Tabi Egbe, W.N.O Effiom and others were great
sources of inspiration.
Emmanuel
Tabi Egbe, who was the Minister of Post and Telecommunications, was a symbol of
what many young people of Manyu Division wanted to become. His success in
politics was a great inspiration.
But it
was the love he had for his people that made him the special one. In his
Village, Batchuo Akagbe, he was highly loved and respected, and that love
spilled over to the larger society.
He helped many people of Manyu descent and it
was normal for people from other parts of the country to hold that the Post
Offices in the country belonged to Manyu Division.
Each
time there was a cabinet reshuffle, the people of Manyu had only one thought in
mind - Was E.T Egbe still part of the cabinet? That was how much he had
endeared himself to his people.
Then
came the Minister of Mines and Power, Michael Kima Tabong, who did his very
best. He had the people's blessing immediately he was appointed and he made
sure he never disappointed. Michael Kima Tabong has remained in so many minds despite
his demise.
Others
like Jacob Ayuk Takem, Ebot Ogork Ntui, Jerome Eta and Peter Agbortabi, all
have done their best. Their best might not be as good as some would have loved
it, but these people could do only so much.
Life is
like a storey building. Some people build the foundation and different people
put up the various floors. That is how the people of Manyu should view life.
No
single Minister or leader from that division will ever help everybody. Their
best should be appreciated and built upon. It should not always be the blame
game. The people of Manyu must also learn how to be appreciative. You never
look at a gift horse in the mouth.
Today,
our leaders are few and they do not really occupy strategic positions. But they
need to be supported so that they too can gain greater visibility.
Manyu
has the population. It abounds in intellectual resources. Its Diaspora is
vibrant and the numbers are there to help the Division grow by leaps and
bounds.
But
this can only happen if the people stand by their leaders as they did in the
70s and 80s. Minister Mengot Victor Arrey Nkongho and Senator George Tabetando
are incontestably the current leaders of that Division.
They
must have come under heavy criticism over the last years because of the
conflict that is tearing the country apart, but they need the support of the
people if they must make those giant strides that will enable them bring home
the bacon.
Manyu:
The Blame Game Should Not Be Our Game
For decades, I have heard generations of Manyu sons and
daughters blame their misfortunes on others. If it is not a minister, it is a
village chief that is responsible for our unfortunate fate.
 |
| Dr. Joachim Arrey, technical writer, journalist and translator |
If the
issue is not with a brother or a cousin, then their wives are very bad or too
greedy. This blame game has been on for a long time. Everybody seems to be bad
except us. And if every Manyu man is bad, who then is good among us?
If we
stand in public and condemn others, who then will ever be good among us? Have
we forgotten that when we point one finger at the other person, we are
unconsciously pointing four of our own fingers at ourselves?
The
blame game should not be our game. It is a game for the weak. A game designed
for the lazy and desperate. We don’t have to fall into that trap. It is not
designed for us.
I grew
up with the mentality that in life, only two people owed me something – my
father and mother. They were the two people who decided to bring me here on
earth. If along the line someone decides to give me a helping hand, I would
thank them and praise God.
But I
always make sure that I replicate that act of goodness without expecting any
gratitude from the receiver of my act of kindness. I cannot ask everybody to be
like me. I just want the world in which my children will live to be a better
place than the one I met.
The
worst thing that can happen to a man is for him to spend time speaking evil
about someone else. Let’s not forget that what we put out there is exactly what
might come back to us.
But how
can the people of Manyu walk away from their blame game? Instead of blaming, I
think we should be doing. If we think our ministers and lawmakers are not good
for us, we must do something to demonstrate that we are different. What are we
therefore doing to be different from them?
We must
make common cause to achieve some of our collective goals. There is power in
numbers and we are many. We cannot sit and wait for others to come and bail us
out of the underdevelopment that has been ours for decades. We must act. We
must use our numbers to make a difference.
Presidential Plan for Reconstruction & Development:
Paul Tasong Begins 2-Week Mission to NW & SW
-The ‘awareness and sensitization’ mission instructed by the
Prime Minister, Head of Government, Chief Dr. Joseph Dion Ngute, will run from
Monday 22 June to Friday 3 July 2020.
Paul Njukang Tasong, Minister Delegate to the Minister of
Economy, Planning and Regional Development In Charge of Planning will begin a
12-day mission to the North West and South West Regions on Monday, 22 June
2020.
 |
| The National Coordinator of the PPRD-NW/SW, Paul Njukang Tasong |
“Under
the High instructions of the Prime Minister, Head of Government, Chief Dr.
Joseph Dion Ngute, the National Coordinator of the Presidential Plan for the
Reconstruction and Development of the North West and South West Regions
(PPRD-NW/SW) hereby announces that he is embarking on an Awareness and
Sensitization Campaign from Monday June 22 to Friday July 3, 2020,” Tasong said
in a press release.
Although
hostilities are yet to end between state forces battling armed separatists in
the area, Tasong says the Campaign, which is aimed to reach out to the
beneficiaries of the reconstruction and development of the conflict-hit regions
will afford his team the opportunity to expound on the reconstruction
activities envisaged.
For 12
days, they will outline the processes and mechanisms for the implementation of
the Plan as well as define the methods of organization and support for the
various beneficiaries and ensure ownership of the Plan by the said
beneficiaries.
It is expected
that from Monday 22 June to Friday 3 July, Paul Tasong and his team will hold
meetings with beneficiary populations of reconstruction and development plan,
as well as engage with other actors in the field.
Abandoned Up-Station Road Project:
K’ba City Mayor, SDO Playing Hide & Seek Over Missing
Funds
Authorities charged with execution of the said road
alongside other technical collaborators have been playing a hide and seek game
over money that was disbursed to rehabilitate two streets in Kumba three years
ago by the then MINEPAT, Louis Paul Motaze. Recent outings made by the City
Mayor, Victor Ngoh Nkele, and the SDO, Chamberlain Ntou Ndong, point to some
foul play as they insinuate that the money had long been “chopped”.
By Ekoko Willies in K’ba & Doh Bertrand in Y’de
The cold war pitting Kumba City Mayor, Ngoh Nkelle Victor
and Meme SDO, Chamberlin Ntou’ou Ndong has taken a new twist following recent
disagreements related to the funds that had long been disbursed to rehabilitate
some two streets in Kumba.
 |
| Abandoned road leading to SDo’s residence at Kumba Up-Station |
The
contractor whose business name The Median got as KOGEDI BUISNESS EXCHANGE AND
NEGOCE, B.P 15334, Yaounde, had lured the SDO and the Government Delegate (now
City Mayor) to award her the contract worth FCFA 366.968025 for a 3.125km
stretch from the CPDM hall to the SDO’s residence.
On
Monday 20 April 2020, Ngoh Nkelle made it known to reporters that the
contractor had disappeared with money for the job and was nowhere to be found.
He said the council will forget about the escapee contractor and see how they
can get other competent persons to do the works. But Nkele did not however say
how and where he intends to get the funds to pay the new contractors, after the
funds provided by government had been ‘disappeared’.
The
City Mayor’s declaration seem not to have gone down well with the SDO, who has
in a recent outing told reporters that he is re-launching a manhunt to track
down the runaway contractor.
Ntou’ou
Ndong has also frowned at all those concerned with the award of contracts in
Meme Division for handing the job to an outsider who cannot be easily traced.
The SDO’s alibi has been considered by many as a
smokescreen, and a desperate move to wash his hands off the ‘mess’ he and
others contributed to plunge the city of Kumba into. Informed observers say the
SDO, who now appears to be playing the blame game and shifting all
responsibility to the City Mayor and others, was at the fore-front of the
contract award process.
The
contractor is said to have lured the members of the contract award commission
with claims of her alleged connections at the Presidency.
Commentators
have questioned why the SDO is coming out only now, after the job had been
abandoned three years ago, and with the road seriously degraded.
Recruitment of 3000 Contract Teachers:
Angry Candidates Storm MINEDUB Demanding Adjustments
By Doh Bertrand Nua in Yaoundé
Some disgruntled primary school teachers whose names did not
appear in the list of some 3000 primary school teachers recently recruited into
the public service by the Ministry of Basic Education have continued a protest
action launched to demand justice and adjustment on the recruitment criteria.
 |
| Striking applicants sitting in front of the Minedub in Yaounde |
They
teachers have denounced irregularities that surrounded the said recruitment
process and castigated the Minister, Prof. Laurent Serge Etoundi, for not
respecting the seniority criteria he set in place prior to the exercise for
candidates with older diplomas. They
explained that most of those recruited are candidates with 2018 diplomas
whereas those with 2010 certificates are left out.
The
recruitment involves some 3000 contract teachers who are to be absorbed into
the public service and deployed to the ten regions ahead of the 2020/2021
academic year to solve the problem of shortage of teachers.
New Decentralisation Delegate Evaluates Challenges of
Councils
By Doh Bertrand Nua in Yaoundé
The pioneer Divisional Delegate of Decentralisation and
Local Development for Meme has embarked on his maiden meet-the-people tour to
familiarise himself with his collaborators and take stock of their challenges,
Daniel
Meombo Linonge, disclosed his tour was within the framework of getting an
understanding on how the six councils in the Division operate. The six day tour
started Tuesday at the Kumba II council where he was received by the Mayor,
Jacob Mbachu Kay and his close collaborators. Issues affecting the council
within the new decentralization context were discuss by the officials.
Strengthening Bilateral Ties:
FCFA 224bn for Chad-Cameroon Electrical Link
By Doh Bertrand Nua in Yaoundé
Cameroon and Chad will soon benefit electrical
interconnection through the International Development Association (IDA) to the
tune of 385 million dollars (nearly 224.14 billion FCFA). The approval was made
known by the World Bank will 16 June 2020.
 |
| Chad and Cameroon will soon share the same electrical grid |
A World
Bank statement to that effect indicates that the operation approved is
considered by the two countries as a priority project which will enable them
tackle challenges facing their respective energy sectors.
The
Director of Regional Integration for Sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East and
North Africa at the World Bank, Deborah Wetzel, elained that the project will
be of great importance for the future of the sub region.
“Strengthening
regional electricity interconnection is particularly important for growth, job
creation and economic transformation. The new project will clearly demonstrate
the economic benefits of regional integration, but it will also play a crucial
role in improving access to electricity for some of the continent’s poorest
populations, thereby helping to reduce inequality,” he explained.
Apart
of supporting national energy development strategies in Cameroon and Chad, the
project is said to be in line with the strategy for supporting regional integration
and cooperation pursued by the World Bank Group which aims at laying the
foundations for the establishment of energy pools based on cross-border
interconnection systems.
Fight COVID-19:
K’ba III Schools Equipped with Protective Kits
By Doh Bertrand Nua in Yaoundé
Some private and public primary and secondary school
authorities within Kumba III municipality have been handed hygiene and
protective materials that would help them curb the spread of the coronavirus
within their school campuses ahead of official end of year examinations.
 |
| Kumba III Mayor handing covid-19 Protective kits to a school authority |
He
stated that the donation falls within the framework of supporting government's
response pan to completely eradicate the virus in the country, adding that the
council will continue to be at the front of the fight within the municipality.
CCAS Kumba:
New Principal Charged To Reinstate Discipline, Improve GCE
Score
By Ekoko Willies in Kumba
 |
| New principal Atinda Martin takes command |
Former Member of Parliament for Meme West Constituency, Hon.
Atinda Martin Mboni, recently appointment as interim principal of the Cameroon
College of Arts and Sciences, CCAS Kumba, has been told to improve on discipline
within the school campus as well as improve on the overall core of students at
the end of end of year examinations.
The instructions were handed to him while being commissioned
into his functions by the Third Assistant SDO for Meme, Kaffe Samson Rouka
Tuesday 16 June 2020.
The
administrator reminded Atinda of the fact that CCAS Kumba is a citadel of
learning and has a trade mark of success which is exhibited through the
teachers’ hard work and the students’ zeal to learn that has to be maintained
and fostered to carry the success story of the school on a higher scale.
Chief Foanyi Nkamayang Paul:
The Most Cruel Exit of a Militant Media Guru
By Sylvester Atemnkeng
On June 18, the dreadful giant and enigma, called death,
descended on a towering Journalism icon and mentor. The sad news stormed my
ears with the force of a tornado. I prayed hard that the news should turn out
to be one of those April fool jokes. “But how can we have this kind of cruel
joke in the night of June 18” I wondered.
 |
| Chief Foanyi Nkamayang Paul |
My scepticism was further fuelled by the
journalistic instincts in me-that discipline of the verification of facts and
going the whole gamut of the reportorial enterprise, just to separate facts
from fiction. As my mind did a tour of the abstract world, another family
member lent a bold tongue to my colleague’s tidings. “Yeah, the man is dead,”
he confirmed.
After
coming face to face with the reality, I consoled myself in the words of the
English poet. “Death, be not proud”. I told death, the great enigma, not to be
proud for having harvested a great intellectual, because Chief Foanyi Nkamayang
Paul lives on.Yes, he lives on in his legacy.
His
legacy is a simulacrum of his immortality. It was the English poet and
sermonist, John Donne, who typified death as “a mere cessation of breathing”.
So even without breathing, Chief Foanyi Nkamayang Paul lives on in the critical
contributions he made towards the repair of Cameroon’s Journalism edifice.
The
fearless Chief Foanyi Nkamayang Paul is an exceptional star in the galaxy of
the few media providence who chose to call issues by their real names in the
country’s policies. He was a daring Journalist whose ideas were unsparingly
frontal and catholic in scope.
All the
same, death, that callous reaper, harvested him at his media apogee. It has
reaped many fine brains in our country.
His
contributions as a Journalist, President of Cameroon Association of English
Speaking Journalists (CAMASEJ), Commonwealth Journalists Association in
Cameroon (CJA) and Vice in Africa, just to name a few and his participation for press freedom and
onslaught for change, proved that he was a genuine intellectual.
Dirge for Ako Kingsley
By Franklin Sone Bayen
King, go you to sleep
Going could be a leap
Lay thy head, sleep to rest
Upon the Saviour's breast
 |
| Late Cameroon Herald Publisher, Ako Kingsley Tanyi |
Dying is not losing
Though not our choosing
It's a matter of time
Dying is not a crime
Somehow for you
Confinement had to be true
Now finally confined
Even if not fined
I write thee farewell
I'm still well
Yet whatever may be
They'll write about me
Man can't hide
So, you died!
Dying is no crime
Just a matter of time
Funeral Ceremony:
Thousands Celebrate the Life of Dr. Chuwanga
By Walter Wilson Nana
A mammoth crowd of family members, friends, well wishers,
colleagues in the medical and para-medical corps, former patients and admirers
of the late Dr John Ndengue Chuwanga from across Cameroon and abroad came out
on Saturday, June 20 2020 to celebrate
the iconic medic during his funeral and burial in Buea.
 |
| Late Dr. John Ndengue Chuwanga |
According
to Mgr. Bibi in order to rise with Christ, humanity has to do that via death,
indicating that through Christ’s resurrection, he has transformed death. He
mentioned that death is the end of man’s earthly journey.
The flurry
of eulogies that followed all described Dr Chuwanga as a fine-quality medic,
passionate and selfless in his work, ever-ready-to-help and be at the service
of his patients and community, a generous man, God-fearing, very prayerful and
a loving father.
Dr. John Chuwanga was born on December 27 1956 in Tiko to
Papa Lawrence Chuwanga from Bassap, Bafang and Mama Cecilia Chouomu from
Babone, Bafang all of blessed memory.
After a
rich academic career that took him through primary school, from 1963 in Catholic
School, Malende to Secondary School in 1968 in St. Joseph College, Sasse, Buea,
high school in CCAS Kumba and thereafter the University of Calabar in Nigeria,
where he settled for Medicine and subsequently specialized in Surgery, the
young and energetic Dr Chuwanga returned to Cameroon to begin a fabulous career
in the health sector. His multiple work stations included; Nkongsamba, Batcham,
Wum, Limbe, Yaounde and Buea, where he retired. While a medical student in
Nigeria, he had professional stints at the General Hospital in Bauchi State and
at the Murtala Mohamed General Hospital in Kano State.
Anglophone Conflict:
Cameroonian Runs for His Life, Seeks Asylum Abroad
According to sources, Mr. Wokomia Mokonde Paul has fled from
his native Munyenge-Muyuka in the SW region and is now living at the mercy of
friends and the Church, in Italy, where he is seeking protection from the Italian
government
By Maurice Mbutaka in Muyuka
 |
| Over one million people have been displaced by the conflict in Southern Cameroon |
Muyuka-based civil society activist and businessman, Wokomia
Mokonde Paul, aged about 50, is presently seeking asylum in Italy, where he is
said to have sought safe sanctuary, after fleeing the conflict in Cameroon.
According
to sources, the father of one was left with no option than to abandon his
business and escape. He first escaped to safer areas in Cameroon, but was
forced to leave the country when Anglophone separatist fighters threatened to
come after him.
The
fighters had since 2017, engaged a war of secession against the majority
Francophone government in Yaounde, in what they say is a determined effort to
create a separate state from Cameroon which they call Ambazonia. They wanted
Mokonde Paul, who was a prominent figure in the area, to join their ranks and
give needed support to the secessionist struggle. They put a price on his head
when Paul would not heed their request.
Confirmed reports say Mokonde Paul was kidnapped several
times by the fighters and was only released after paying huge sums as ransom.
When he could no longer bear the persecution and threats to his life and that
of his family, Mokonde Paul was left with no option than to flee, abandoning
his business and other activities.
His
wife who stayed behind when Paul fled, also later escaped, and this was after
the separatists fighters kept persecuting and torturing her, asking her to
indicate where her husband was hiding. Today, she is living as an internally
displaced person, IDP, with their lone child, in a yet unknown destination in
Cameroon. Sources say she might have escaped into the bushes to join thousands
others who have also fled their homes, as the conflict in NW and SW Cameroon
rages on.
As for
Wokomia Mokonde Paul, he fears that if he returns home with the conflict still
ongoing, he might be killed like the over 5.000 persons who have lost their
lives since the start of the conflict in 2017.
What Goes Around, Comes Around:
Lessons from Journalist Obama’s Humiliating Arrest
As a journalist and human rights activist, it would never
occur to me to celebrate the unhappiness of someone who is more than a fellow
journalist. In the name of respecting the right to the presumption of innocence
and human dignity, I therefore condemn with the last energy the humiliating
arrest of Mr. Ernest Obama Nana this Thursday, June 18, 2020 at the
headquarters of the press group Anecdote in Yaounde. I plead for this former
general manager of television vision 4 (one of the products of this press group)
to have the right to a fair trial while respecting the right to defense.
 |
| Ernest Obama and his boss, Jean Pierre Amougou |
Who
does not remember the call Ernest Obama made to the General Delegate for
National Security, DGSN, Mbarga Nguele, to have Cameroonian diaspora activists
Boris Bertolt, Ndzana Seme and Patrice Nouma arrested just for their opinions
expressed against the Yaounde regime?
When
the video of the assassination by Cameroonian soldiers of two women and their
babies in the Far North was circulated on social networks in July 2018, Obama
rushed to the sets of Vision 4 to shout to “a plot against the Cameroonian
army.” Today, the same soldiers he defended are facing the trial at the Yaoundé
Military Court.
Mbouo-Bandjoun:
Fotso Victor Buried with His Mobile Phone
Fotso Victor was buried Saturday in his native Bandjoun,
after a ceremony that saw the richissime businessman raised posthumously to the
dignity of Commander of the Cameroon Order of the Agriculture Merit.
 |
| Fotso Victor |
The SG
of the CPDM Central Committee, Jean Nkuete, personal representative of the head
of state, placed the medal on Fotso’s casket.
Before
his death, Fotso was successively Grand Officer and Grand Cordon of the
Cameroon Order of Valor and Merit respectively.
Life & Death of Business Tycoon, Fotso Victor
94-year-old business mogul and politician, Fotso Victor, who
died on Friday, 20 March 2020 in Paris, has been buried in his native town,
Bandjoun in the West region.
Fotso Victor owned the Société de Fabrication de Cahiers,
Safca, an exercise book manufacturing company, Pilcam (Electric Batteries),
Unalor (Matches) and Commercial Bank of Cameroon (CBC) among other chain of
businesses.
 |
| Fotso Victor’s casket |
In
1970, he created the Société Africaine de Fabrication de Cahiers (SAFCA). He
later created PILCAM, specialised in the production of electric batteries.
With
his business growing, he diversified after 1960 to public transport. In
partnership with Frenchman, Pierre Castel, a big boss at Brasseries et
Glacières Internationales (BGI), he invested in wine and spirits import.
Some
years later, another French man, Jacques Lacombe, then Managing Director of
Société Industrielle et Forestière des Allumettes (SIFA), a subsidiary of
Compagnie du Midi, introduced him to the industry. With the support of this
former Polytechnique student, who passed away in 1996, Victor Fotso gradually
expanded his activities.
European Football:
UEFA Champions League Resumes on 7 August
The 2019/20 UEFA Champions League quarter-finals,
semi-finals and final will be played as a straight knockout tournament in
Lisbon, Portugal in August. All these ties will be single-leg fixtures. The
games will be split between Benfica's Estádio do Sport Lisboa e Benfica (which
will host the final) and Sporting CP's Estádio José Alvalade.
A
decision is pending on whether the remaining round of 16 second legs will take
place at the home team's stadium or in Portugal. The Estádio do Dragão in Porto
and the Estádio D. Afonso Henriques in Guimarães will host the four outstanding
second legs if required.
The
2019/20 UEFA Champions League has been on hold since Wednesday 11 March due to
the COVID-19 outbreak. The revised schedule to conclude this season's
competition was confirmed following Wednesday's UEFA Executive Committee
meeting.
2019/20 UEFA Champions League schedule
7-8 August: Round of 16 second legs (venues to be confirmed)
12-15 August: Quarter-finals (Lisbon)
18-19 August: Semi-finals (Lisbon)
23 August: Final (Estádio do Sport Lisboa e Benfica, Lisbon)
All
fixtures will kick off at 21:00 CET. The quarter-final and semi-final draws
will take place in Nyon on 10 July; the exact match schedule will then follow.
Reviewing the Pandemic:
Sports Minister Evaluates Impact of Covid-19 on Athletes
By Doh Bertrand Nua in Yaounde
Sports and Physical Education Minister, Professor Narcisse
Mouelle Kombi has evaluated the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the sports
sector in the country as well other international completions that were to be
hosted by Cameroon.
 |
| Prof. Narcisse Mouelle Kombi |
Both
officials during the audience brainstorm on strategies that can be adopted to
maintain Cameroonian athletes in top form ahead of upcoming competitions while
respecting the barrier measures prescribed by the President of the Republic to
curb the spread of the deadly virus.
Mouelle
Kombi urged his collaborators to federate efforts with the NOSC in order to
bring together sports activities and sports management within the renovated
budget as a result of the health crisis.
Continental Football:
AFCON 2021 to Kick-Off In January
The Confederation of African Football (Caf) is still
maintaining a January start for the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations, despite ongoing
uncertainty about the continent’s football because of coronavirus.
 |
| Ahmad Ahmad |
Caf
itself has yet to confirm a restart date for any of its own tournaments amidst
the pandemic, with Cameroon the sixth worst-affected country in Africa with
nearly 10,000 reported cases.
Four of
the six rounds of Nations Cup qualifying have still to take place.
“The
Africa Cup of Nations is still planned for Cameroon from 10 January to 8
February 2021,” Caf’s competitions director Samson Adamu told BBC Sport Africa.
“That
is subject to change as the Nations Cup is still being assessed. The final
decision is to be taken by the Executive Committee soon.”
Last
week Caf’s Acting Secretary General Abdel Bah told Cameroon media that ‘hosting
the Nations Cup next January remains Caf’s number one priority amid
considerations.’
Yet if
qualifying does not take place in the international windows in October and
November (playing two rounds each month), staging the expanded 24-team
tournament in seven months’ time is unlikely to happen.
Rounds
three and four of qualifying should have been played in March, with the
penultimate round in early June and the final round between 31 August-8 September.
All
these dates have been cancelled though because of the coronavirus, whose true
impact on Africa is unclear because of a testing shortage in many countries.
Njie Clinton: Covid-19 Positive Yet Confident
Indomitable Lions striker, Njie Clinton, has reassured
Cameroonians and his fans in particular that he is in good physical and mental
shape. The Dynamo Moscow goal poacher spoke Saturday evening through his
Cameroon-based media relations assistant, Rene Katche, shortly after testing
positive for covid-19.
 |
| Clinton Njie |
Clinton
Njie revealed in his characteristic joviality that he is physically and
mentally strong, adding that he will strictly follow his medical protocol with
the help of his Dynamo Moscow medical staff.
He also
revealed that he was self-isolating in his Moscow residence where he is
comfortable. He revealed that all other related tests including cardiac are
negative.
“I’m
fine and comfortable at my home, so don’t be scared,” the former Lyon and
Tottenham striker assured.
Speaking
through video call, Njie also reassured his family including his mom and
siblings who have been very worried.
“I called to reassure them that I am in good shape, and that
they shouldn’t be worried.”
Last month Njie joined the battle against covid-19 with a
donation of over Fcfa 3 million to the Buea General Hospital.
Monday, 15 June 2020
Gruesome Murder of Five Boys in Eshobi, Mamfe:
Resort to ‘Juju’ To Destroy ‘Amba’ in Manyu, Boomerangs?
-Manyu Diaspora urge the elites and chiefs to apologize,
describing their decision as insane, brazen, misguided and arrogant
-Others, mostly CPDM regime apologists, defend the elite and
chiefs, declaring approval and support to the ‘last resort’ decision
By Ayukogem Steven Ojong in Yaounde
A decision by some elites and chiefs of Manyu to invoke Juju
to curse and destroy separatist fighters in the division has sparked outrage
among Manyu sons and daughters at home and in the Diaspora.
The
indignation expressed by critics of the ‘desperate and last resort’ decision by
the elites and chiefs, became even more widespread following the gruesome
murder of five young men in Eshobi village barely days after the elites and
chiefs invoked the gods to strike sons and daughters of Manyu, and any other
persons who are involved in, or who support the heinous activities of
separatists in Manyu.
 |
| Chiefs of Eyumojock invoking the gods to cleanse their land of amba activities |
Observers
described the pronouncements of some elites and chiefs, at a ceremony that
brought together internal and external elite, chiefs and the general public, in
Mamfe, on 16 June, as insane, brazen, misguided and arrogant. The enlarged
meeting at the Mamfe Town Hall, was at the behest of the Manyu SDO, Joseph Oum
II, who wanted to review the security situation in the division with the
populations, following the brutal murder of the 35-year-old Mayor of Mamfe,
Ashu Priestley Ojong, along the Mamfe-Eshobi stretch, on 10 June 2020.
“The
elites and chiefs must apologize or be dethroned as chiefs,” opined Boston,
USA-based public intellectual and critic, Ekinneh Agbaw-Ebai.
“It
must be stated in no ambiguous terms that the brazen decision to invoke Manyu
gods to curse and destroy Manyu people who have taken up arms in legitimate
self-defense against Biya’s genocidal forces constitutes a collective assault
on the psyche of Manyu people,” further opined Ekinneh Agbaw-Ebai.
Describing
the Chiefs as ‘Royal Beggars, who have woefully failed to stand with their own
people at their greatest hour,’ Ekinneh dismissed the verbiage of one of the
chiefs at the Mamfe event as “insensitive, obscene, appalling and too crude to
be associated with the exalted office of traditional ruler.”
Covid-19 & Hospital Personnel:
Biya Provides 100.000 Protective Kits for Health
Workers
The modern hospital equipment, and protective kits for
medical personnel, who expose themselves in the course of diagnosing, treating
and managing covid-19 patients, were handed to the Minister of Public Health at
the Emergency Operations Centre in Messa, Yaoundé, by the Minister of
Territorial Administration, Paul Atanga Nji, on Friday, 12 June 2020.
By Doh Bertrand in Yaounde
 |
| Minat boss Atanga Nji presents the protective kits to the Minsante |
Speaking while handing over the gifts from President Paul
Biya to Public Health Minister, Dr. Manounda Malachie, at the Emergency
Operations Centre in Messa, Yaoundé, Territorial Administration boss, Paul
Atanga Nji, said the gifts are aimed to boost the morale of medics who expose
themselves in their ‘wonderful’ effort to contain the spread of the deadly
covid-19 in the country.
Atanga
Nji explained that the donation comprising 100.000 surgical masks, 20 ResMed
brand respirators, 700 protective jumpsuits, 700 pairs of gloves, 700 safety
glasses, 700 caps and an ambulance, falls within the framework of government’s
response strategies to combat the spread of the covid-19.
“I
think the Minister of Public Health and his collaborators are doing a wonderful
job and when President Paul Biya made his speech on 19 May, he said the
personnel of the Ministry are doing wonderfully well. So, now I think the
gesture that the Head of State has made today is another strong and very
powerful message that he is determined to fight this pandemic,” Atanga Nji
said.
He
reiterated the President’s call for Cameroonians to remain vigilant and
responsible in their behaviour in the face of the covid-19 pandemic, adding
that combatting the virus entails not only individual but a collective
responsibility of all and sundry.
The French Knee on Africa's Neck
***By Martin EWOMA***
By some coincidence, I saw in 2020 in the French capital of
Paris and of course enjoyed the many delights of what France and Paris is known
for. During one of our dinners complete with all the trimmings of a French
soiree, one of the guest said, “L'anne 2020 sera parfaite parce que, Dieu lui
meme a déjà donne 20 sur 20”
 |
| Chief Martin Ewoma |
That
was in January and everything seems fine then with some very faint news reports
about some virus (now called Covid 19) in Wuhan China. This seemed very far
away then.
While
the world was and is still grappling with its response to the Covid 19 global
pandemic, we all watched in horror an even more dangerous virus that has been
with us for more than 400 years.
While
Covid19 is new and frantic efforts are being made to find a vaccine and
possible cure, the 400 year old virus called “Racism” is very much alive and efforts to find a vaccine talk more
of a cure are at best limited to fine speeches by some well-meaning individuals
and leaders.
We
cannot not talk about the horrific death or execution or lynching of Mr. George
Floyd on May 25, 2020. His death should not have happened. One can only postulate
that, the cavalier and nonchalant attitude with which his killer carried out this heinous act is a strongly held belief and
confidence that the system in place would condone and in some cases has
sort to make excuses for such inhumane behaviour.
Thankfully,
it seems the world is waking up to what black folks (people) have been crying
about for far too long. Or as Will Smith famously put it, “ Racism has not
changed, its now only being filmed”. If anything good does comes out of this
sad episode, then we can say Mr. Floyd’s death like others before him has not
been in vain. I feel duty bound at the point to pay homage to his family and to
all those who have lost their lives senselessly because of their skin colour.
What
Mr. Floyd’s death represents is a system that allows for a people to be denied
their humanity. For them to be put in a position of perpetual servitude so the
other, the "white race" remains prosperous and thereby claim
superiority.
The
so-called advanced western democratic countries whose wealth has been built on
the backs of the slave trade most now begin to reckon with the realities of the
21 century. The black man and black race has had enough and to quote the Rev.
Al Sharpton speaking at Mr. Floyd’s memorial, “ We have been denied education
and even though we were put in underfunded schools, we still rose and would do
better if we did not have your knee on our neck”
This
“Knee on the Neck” by the French since granting independence to its African
colonies has stifled growth and any other form of human advancement in these
countries. The so called “Colonial Pact” that France forced on all African
countries to sign as a prelude to
independence cannot be described in any better way than that, “The French
firmly placed their Knee on the neck of these African countries.
As an
example, in 1958 the late President of Guinea, Mr. Sekou Toure refused to sign
what amounted to an acceptance of the
French knee on the neck of Guinea. His rejection was put in very simple
terms,“I prefer freedom in poverty than riches in slavery”
This
singular act of defiance drew the wrath of the French state who reduced
themselves to the meanest acts to spite and punish Toure by crippling the
economy before they left. It is alleged that even the toilets were blocked with
concrete to ensure a most difficult and frustrating start to the nascent state of Guinea.
‘Coup des Coeurs’ Against Covid-19:
Watchdog Backs at Alleged Embezzlement of Funds
-Urges Cameroon gov’t to probe into ‘missing funds’ and
publish its findings
By Doh Bertrand in Yaounde
International rights organization, Human Rights Watch (HRW)
has urged government to show some transparency in its management of money meant
to combat the Covid-19 pandemic in the country.
 |
| The authorities are doing their utmost to prevent spread of covid |
The
report compiled after interviews done between 6 April and 24 May 2020 from
eight medical staff, including six doctors and two nurses, three lawyers, and
several representatives from local NGOs across the country nails government for
failing to support hospitals responding to covid-19 despite the mandatory 10%
monthly contributions made into the country’s emergency fund from revenues of
hospitals for over 25 years as required by the 1993 law.
The
fund falls under the responsibility of the health ministry and was established
to provide support during health emergencies but as per the report, hospitals
still lack adequate resources to respond to the covid-19 pandemic with medics
indicating shortages in basic hospital goods, including thermometers,
disinfectants and basic drugs, as well as ventilators, artificial oxygen and
protective gear for doctors and nurses such as masks, gloves, and glasses.
Covid-19 in Cameroon:
Living Standards Drop Drastically in Households
-Gov’t Urged to Support Households and provide incentives
for health workers
By Doh Bertrand in Yaounde
The National Institute of Statistics (NIS) has in a study
carried out to access the socio-economic impact of the Coronavirus on the lives
of Cameroonians revealed that there is a drastic drop in the living conditions
of households.
The
study carried out between on households and businesses from 27 April to 10 May
2020 was done with the support of the United Nations Development Program
(UNDP).
According
to results obtained from the 1000 sampled families, most of their jobs have
been maintained despite the Covid-19 pandemic but with a drop in the general
income to about 65%.
This
according to the study has led to an 81% drop in the living standard of
households with the North West, South West and Douala in the Littoral among the
very poor and most affected regions in the health crisis.
On
businesses, of the 770 companies analysed in all sectors, 93% of business
owners admitted the pandemic has negatively affected their production units
with 14% companies in the informal sector and 18% of SMEs in temporary or
permanent closure.
The
study states that the most affected companies are found in education, forestry,
and accommodation and catering sectors. The panemic according to the study has
led to the 95% decrease in domestic demand with 90% of companies finding it
difficult to sell their products.
Briefs
Compiled by Doh Bertrand in Yaounde
More Covid-19 Testing Centres Created
Government has increased the number of Covid-19 testing
centres in Yaounde in the Centre Region as a means to help combat the spread of
the virus. About ten new sampling centres have gone operational with residents
urged to go and get tested. The testing centres operate between 8am and 4pm and
beyond. Test results are delivered within 72 hours by SMS and at the centres.
Gov’t to Increase Support to Medics
Officials of the Ministry of Public Health have stressed the
need to provide more psychological and psycho-social support to health workers
fighting to contain the Covid-19 pandemic given the challenges. Dr. Alain
Georges Etoundi Mballa, Director of Pandemics and Epidemics at the Ministry
made the appeal Tuesday during the daily briefing on the epidemiological
situation of the virus in Cameroon.
He said
such care should also be extended to family members who have lost their lost
ones, those confined at home as well as those receiving treatment at the
various assigned health centres. The population has also been cautioned to shun
all practices which tend to stigmatize health workers, patients or family
members of covid-19 patients.
French Groups Support Cameroon with Covid-19 Kits
A group of French businesses in Cameroon have lent their
support to government in the fight to contain the coronavirus. The delegation
led by the French Ambassador to Cameroon, H.E. Christophe Guilhou had fruitful
discussions with the Minister of Public Health, Dr. Malachie Manaouda.
The
items coomprised 16.000 test kits and other donations comprising four tons of
protective equipment, notably 15.000 surgical masks, 2000 washable masks,
45.000 gloves, 200 cans of disinfectants, detergents. Manaouda thanked the
donors for the gesture which he said will boost the health workers on the
frontline in the fight against the pandemic.
Recruitment of 3000 Contract Teachers:
Anglophone Applicants Decry Bias, Marginalization
By Doh Bertrand in Yaounde
Some disgruntled primary school teachers whose names did not
appear in the list of some 3000 primary school teachers recently recruited into
the public service by the Ministry of Basic Education have taken to the streets
in Yaoundé to protest what they qualify as bias procedure and non-respect of
the recruitment criteria that was laid down by the Minister.
 |
| Minister explaining recruitment criteria to disgruntled applicants |
They
denounced irregularities that surrounded the said recruitment process and
castigated the Minister, Prof. Laurent Serge Etoundi, for not respecting the
seniority criteria he set in place prior to the exercise for candidates with
older diplomas. They explained that most of those recruited are candidates with
2018 diplomas whereas those with 2010 certificates are left out.
The
recruitment involves some 3000 contract teachers who are to be absorbed into
the public service and deployed to the ten regions ahead of the 2020/2021
academic year to solve the problem of shortage of teachers.
Covid-19 Scare:
Gov’t Launches E-Filing of ‘Concours’ Applications
-DOs authorized to also certify ‘Attestation of presentation
originals of certificates’
By Doh Bertrand in Yaounde
 |
| Job seekers and prospective candidates for public exams can now apply or register online |
Candidates seeking recruitment into the public service
through competitive examinations organised by the Ministry of Public Service
and Administration Reform can now submit their application files via an online
platform created by the Ministry to ease the process.
The
innovation was made known through a release issued Monday 7 June 2020 by
Minister Joseph LE with reference No. 000006/MINFOPRA/CAB. According to the
release, the website, www.concoursonline.minfopra.gov.cm to be used for the
process effectively went operational 8 June 2020.
Minister
LE in the release explains that the platform will assist in the reception and
registration of applications through the filling of the registration form,
digital submission of required documents, obtaining a clearance from the
administration for the payment of examinations fees.
It shall equally systematically communicate to registered
candidates practical information on the organisation of the competitive
examination they have applied for notably; the dates, examination centres and
rooms as well as results of the written part and final results.
Aside
reduction in harassment and long queues, streaming and simplification,
reduction in the number of disputes related to the management of applications
and improvement in the processing of files, Minister LE, underscored the
necessity of the reform which to him is timely with the present context marked
by the Covid-19 pandemic, that requires strict respect of hygiene measures and
social distancing.
Biya’s Triennial Plan for Youths:
32.000 Projects Shortlisted for Financing
By Doh Bertrand in Yaounde
Some 32 000 projects have been presented in the
pre-validation phase of the “Special Youth Triennial
 |
| Participants at the video conference |
The
projects were presented Tuesday 9 June 2020 during a videoconference chaired by
Youth and Civic Education Minister, Mounouna Foutsou, who, explained that
programme is a gift from the Head of State worth FCFA 102 billion intended to
accelerate and facilitate the socio-economic integration of youth in the
country.
He
seized the opportunity to thank the Head of State prioritizing the project in
the recent budget adjustment as a result of the Covid-19. Statistics presented
during the conference shows nearly one million young people have registered
with the National Youth Observatory (ONJ) and around 32,000 consolidated
business plans.
Slaughter of Five Youths in Eshobi, Mamfe Sparks Outrage
 |
Gruesome images of corpses of five young men butchered in
Eshobi, circulated on social media throughout last week
|
There has been outrage and a wave of condemnation following
the brutal killing of five young men in Eshobi village, a locality in the Manyu
Division, SW Region.
Sources said the young men were returning from Mamfe where
they attended the funeral of the late Mayor Ashu Priestly Ojong when they were
attacked by men heavily armed with machetes killing them all.
No armed
group in Manyu has claimed responsibility for the gruesome act as the
population is clamouring for the perpetrators to be brought to book.
Doctors Without Borders Quits Mamfe:
Covid-19 Patients in Manyu Abandoned to Themselves
Covid-19 patients and persons with symptoms of the disease and
who need to be tested, in Mamfe and other parts of Manyu division, will now
have to move to Bamenda, Kumba or Buea to run their tests and get treatment.
This is the only way out for these patients and suspected cases, as the NGO,
Doctors Without Borders, DWB, which used to help out these patients in
partnership with the Mamfe District Hospital, has said it is pulling out of
Mamfe temporarily.
 |
Doctors Without Borders has parked out of Mamfe, evoking
lack ofadequate personnel and equipment
due to covid-19
restrictions on travel
|
DWB
says the temporal suspension of its activities in Mamfe will run until the end
of July, and the “decision would be evaluated in the light of new
developments.”
DWB
announced that it is suspending its ambulance service in Mamfe and that it no
longer has its medical staff present at the Mamfe District Hospital. It however
says it will continue to support community health workers, and also cover the
hospital fees for patients they refer until the end of July.
It is
however intriguing that DWB has not also suspended its activities in other
parts of the NW and SW or in Yaounde and Far North. This has led many to
conclude that the ‘difficult decision’ by DWB is not unconnected to the recent
upsurge of gruesome killings in Manyu division and in the environs of Mamfe in
particular.
Recall
that on 10 May 2020, the 35-year old mayor of Mamfe, Ashu Priestley Ojong was
brutally murdered in his car, as he was travelling to his village, Eshobi, for
official assignment. Barely days after Mayor Ashu’s murder, a prince of Bakebe
village was pulled out of his home and slaughtered before being dumped on the
Kumba-Mamfe highway.
As if
that was not enough, five Eshobi youths who attended the funeral of the slain
Mayor, Ashu Priestley, in Mamfe, on Saturday 6 June, were gruesomely butchered
upon their return to Eshobi.
It
should be noted that Doctors Without Borders is the sole medical service
provider for covid-19 cases in Manyu division. Apart from the ambulance service
they operate in Mamfe, DWB had erected a tent where covid-19 patients were
quarantined and treated. The NGO also collected samples from persons, which it
took to specialized laboratories in the country to test for covid-19.
Needless
to note that with the departure of DWB from Mamfe, the health sector in Manyu
has lost an indispensable partner. It is the hope of many that DWB would
revisit its ‘difficult decision’ at the end of July 2020. Let’s wait and see.
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