National And International News Roundup – 25th November 2020

Workers of the Cameroon Baptist Convention, CBC are witnessing pay delays due to the Anglophone crisis. According to an announcement by the establishment, 50% of workers’ salaries will be saved for four months before being laid them. Many have expressed worries with the projected drop in income and standard of living, given the difficulties they already face.

Some Traditional rulers in the West region have urged the Biya regime to organise fresh dialogue as the way out of the impasse witnessed in the North West and South West regions for the last four years today. They also called on government to consider revising the constitution as part of solution to Cameroon’s crises. Details later on MMI

Archbishop of the Metropolitan Diocese of  Douala has been given an award by a consumers association headed by Francis Eyala. The award is for Archbishop Samuel Kleda’s remarkable discovery of the COVID-19 drug at a time the world desperately needed medicine to combat the deadly Coronavirus.

Some inhabitants of Quatier Bafia in Douala are calling on Douala City Council to construct speed breaks along the road from Marché de Fleur to Elf Roundabout. This follows a deadly accident this morning along the road that left two persons dead and others wounded.

The government has projected a 3.5 percent growth rate in Cameroon in 2021. PM Joseph Dion Ngute presented the socio-political, economic and financial orientation at the National Assembly today. The 2021 state budget will focus on the organisation of football competitions, security and the fight against COVID-19.

Nkambe Council is currently preoccupied with how to boost water sources in Nkambe Sub-Division, North West Region.  Officials of the council have embarked on a project of progressively cutting down eucalyptus trees said to have been draining water in the area over the years. The project is expected to solve the problem of acute water shortage in the Sub-Division.

Cameroonians have been posting condolence messages on social media following the death of Diego Maradona, the legendary Argentine footballer. He became famous in Cameroon when Cameroon defeated Argentina 1 goal to zero in an opening world cup match in 1990.

Ahmad Ahmad’s lawyers have tweeted he is filing a law suit at the Court of Arbitration for Sports against FIFA’s decision to suspend the CAF boss for five years. Ahmad Ahmad says FIFA’s decision last week was unfair and was a plot to prevent him from standing for a second term in the upcoming CAF elections. Ahmad was suspended for five years on charges of mismanagement, corruption and breach of professionsional ethics. (Read more on MMI Sports).

Gunshots have rocked parts of Bamenda in the North West Region this evening, leaving many in fear and uncertainty. Locals recount that the shooting started at about 8:30 PM local time and lasted for over 30 minutes, and was heard in several parts of town especially the Old Town area. No one knows the cause of the gunshots yet.

Three soldiers accused of perpetrating the Ngarbuh Massacre will stand trial in the weeks ahead. The members of the Cameroon army, sources revealed, will be heard in court on December 17th. This comes after several calls for justice after the February 14th incident. The Government is yet to make any statement on the other accomplices implicated in this incident.

Confederation of African Football (Caf) president Ahmad has announced his intention to appeal the five-year ban handed to him by Fifa on Monday. The Fifa vice-president was adjudged to have broken various ethics codes between 2017, when he was elected Caf president, and 2019. “An appeal will be made before the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) to challenge this incomprehensible and shocking decision,” said a statement on behalf of Ahmad.

Former Nigerian head of state Lt Col Yakubu Gowon has denied an accusation made by a British MP of “stealing half of Nigeria’s Central Bank”. The Conservative MP Tom Tugendhat said in the UK parliament on Monday: “Some people will remember when General Gowon left Nigeria with half the Central Bank of Nigeria, so it is said, and moved to London.” But, in an exclusive interview with the BBC, Lt Col Gowon took issue with accusation.

Four soldiers in south-west Chad were killed and dozens injured in an explosion on a boat thought to have been caused by an improvised bomb, Reuters news agency reports. “The explosive device was placed at the bottom of the boat… We are trying to find out if this is a new technique of Boko Haram, Baga Sola district administrator Dimoya Souapebe is quoted as saying. Reuters adds that Mr Souapebe said the explosion happened on Tuesday night near Ngouboua, around 25km (15 miles) from the Nigerian border.

Two million Kenyans fell below the poverty line between March and June this year, according to a World Bank report. The rate of unemployment in East Africa’s largest economy increased from 5% cent to 21% within the period. This increased the number of people living below $1.90 ($1.42) per day by 4% to two million. Factory workers and those working in tourism and agriculture were especially affected.

Mozambique has asked its former coloniser, Portugal, to guarantee immediate access to the Covid-19 vaccine as soon as it becomes available on the world market. President Filipe Nyusi made the request to Portuguese Prime Minister António Costa on Tuesday through a phone conversation. Mr Costa agreed, according to a press release from the Mozambican presidency.

Algerians on social media have started asking questions about their president who was last seen in public almost a month ago. President Abdelmadjid Tebboune was flown to Germany in late October for treatment following after he caught coronavirus. Since then very little has been revealed to the public about his condition which has fuelled speculation and concern in the country. For many Algerians, Mr Tebboune’s situation is reminiscent of a troubling situation when former president Abdelaziz Bouteflika was hit by a stroke in 2013 and had to stay for months in a French hospital.

Foreign news: BBC