Cameroon’s coronavirus cases now stand at 848 with 17 deaths. On a positive note, 28 new recoveries were recorded today, setting the total number of recoveries at 165. Cameroon is still the second most affected country in subsaharan Africa.
Calls from personalities in Cameroon continue to gain ground for the government to release prisoners and decongest detention facilities in the country. The President of the national commission for the promotion of human rights and freedoms Dr Chemuta Divine Banda and Dr Ako John Ako, a political analyst say keeping the inmates there is a threat during this period of COVID-19.
The Cameroon Renaissance Movement Political party is demanding an urgent medical attention for its detained militants, said to be presenting signs and symptoms of COVID-19 at the Yaounde Central Prison in Kondengui. In a correspondence addressed to the Minister of Justice keeper of the Seal in Cameroon, the Cameroon Renaissance Movement political party national President Maurice Kamto said six of its militants detained at the Kondengui Maximum security prison have been presenting signs and symptoms of the dreaded Coronavirus virus and should be given due medical attention.
There is panic among workers of the central services of some three ministries in Yaounde, following the confirmation of a positive case at their ministerial building in Yaounde. According to sources in Yaounde, the the COVID-19 case was discovered at the building hosting the central services of the ministries of Commerce, Tourism and leisure, and Economy Planning and Regional Development
Cameroon is not amongst African countries to benefit from debt cancellation relief plan. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) says by cancelling the debts, African countries concerned will redirect their financial resources to fight against COVID-19.
Some passengers arrested and later released in Mbanga- Moungo Division in the Littoral Region. Police officers pulled out these people from the bus for not wearing face masks. Meanwhile, others were charged for overloading.
Inhabitants of Mbouda- Bamboutos Division of the West Region of Cameroon have expressed fears of a possible rise in the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the area. Their fears follow the confirmation of 5 new cases in Mbouda Tuesday April 14th 2020. Few weeks ago, a Ghanaian priest celebrated mass with christians in Mbouda and later tested positive of COVID-19.
Officials of Atlantic Bank say its offices and branches have been dully disinfected, after five of its staff members tested positive of COVID-19. In a press release, the director Eric Valery ZOE says the victims have been handed to health officials in Cameroon for appropriate treatment.
French President has called for the annulment of the external debts of African countries to enable them effectively fight COVID-19. In his message to the French on the global health crisis, Emmanuel Macron says no nation will be able to combat Coronavirus alone, and countries across the globe must work in solidarity. To him, African countries have been weakened by huge external debts, which is adversely affecting its fight against COVID-19. The hardest hit African countries are said to be having a total of close to 400 billion fcfa external debts.
Several persons were arrested in Mamfe in the South West region today for not wearing face masks, a measure government has made compulsory to curb the coronavirus spread. Those arrested were taken to the DO’s office where they each paid the sum of 6000FCFA before regaining their freedom.
Calls from personalities in Cameroon continue to gain ground for the government to release prisoners and decongest detention facilities in the country. The President of the national commission for the promotion of human rights and freedoms Dr. Chemuta Divine Banda and Dr. Ako John Ako, a political analyst say keeping the inmates there is a threat during this period of COVID-19.
After the dismissal of Geoffroy Didier Mbock a year ago, Gaston Koumba has been appointed Secretary General of the National Assembly of Cameroon.
The former MP for the Nkam was appointed by a decree from the House speaker Hon Caveye Yeguié Djibril. Mbock Geoffroy was sacked a year ago, the post of Secretary General was assumed by Abdoulaye Daouda
Commercial motorcycle riders in Bamenda dare the administration matching to the Governor’s office to denounce arbitrary confiscation of motorcycles. They lament over the fact that their motorcycles are taken and even when they comply with the measures, their motorcycles are not returned them.
The president of Guinea, Alpha Conde, is making the wearing of face masks compulsory in a bid to curb the spread of Covid-19. In a televised address, he said the order would take effect from Saturday. People who fail to wear masks will be fined around $3 (£2.40).
Mozambique’s director of public health has warned that the use of gloves to prevent the spread of coronavirus creates a false sense of security which can lead to more infection. Speaking in Maputo on Monday, the national director of public health, Rosa Marlene, said: “These gloves don’t reduce the risk of infection when users touch contaminated objects and then touch the mouth and/or eyes.
A tiny island has triggered a nationwide blackout in Uganda after clogging a turbine in a hydroelectric power station. “It was at least two acres, almost two football size pitches,” an official, Simon Kasyate, told the BBC. The outage caused a broadcast by President Yoweri Museveni on the Covid-19 crisis to be delayed by an hour.
Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni has extended the nationwide coronavirus controls for 21 days. In his address to the nation at the end of an initial 14-day lockdown, the president said that all control guidelines previously announced will remain in place. The measures include closure of national borders, including Entebbe International Airport, to passenger travel, a dusk-to-dawn curfew, and a ban on public transport.
The European Union has donated €50m ($55m; £44m) to Nigeria to boost the fight against coronavirus. According to a statement from the Nigerian presidency, the funding will greatly help Nigeria in containing the virus and revitalising its healthcare system. Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari told an EU delegation he was touched and grateful that the EU had the foresight to help its allies around the world despite the fact that its member countries were also struggling with the coronavirus pandemic.
A Ugandan LGBTI refugee took his life outside the office of the UN refugee agency in Kenya’s capital, Nairobi. The man was allegedly beaten up moments before he killed himself, according to LGBTI refugees community leader Pio Pat. Mr Pat says Aneste Mwiru had gone to ask about funding that was cut off two months ago, when he was beaten up.
Dozens of people were arrested in Kenya over Easter after they were found drinking in bars and flouting strict measures announced by the government to deal with the spread of coronavirus. Those detained include a member of parliament, a magistrate and several police officers who were found drinking in bars.
The Burundi Football Federation has re-arranged the calendar for local matches, two weeks after the country confirmed its first case of coronavirus. The federation had earlier refused to suspend matches saying it had introduced measures to protect players against the virus.
Sudan’s capital Khartoum will from Saturday go on a three-week lockdown to curb the spread of coronavirus. Government spokesman Faisal Salih said the lockdown would also cover Omdurman, the twin city of Khartoum. The country over the weekend reported 10 new cases of coronavirus bringing the total to 29 including four deaths.
South Africa says it is succeeding in fighting the coronavirus pandemic, with a nationwide lockdown showing clear signs of containing the disease, for now. At a televised briefing, the chair of the government’s advisory committee said South Africa’s success in halting an exponential rise in cases was unprecedented.
Ugandan opposition politician Robert Kyagulanyi, popularly known as Bobi Wine, says he has partnered with an American businessman to airlift Africans being mistreated in China. This is after reports emerged of hundreds of Africans evicted from their homes and hotels in the Chinese city of Guangzhou over fears the coronavirus was spreading in African communities.
(Foreign news source: BBC)
