National And International News Roundup – 5th February 2021

Human Rights Watch has published a report on the attacks of Mautu village. The report shows that elements of the 21st Motorised Infantry Brigade in Buea were responsible for the killing of 9 civilians including a 6-year-old baby and a 50-years old woman. The government had previously rejected these claims and said the military only opened fire on Separatist fighters after they attacked first.

Cameroon International goalkeeper Onana was today suspended by the UEFA for 12 months for failing an anti-doping test some months ago. The Ajax Amsterdam goalkeeper allegedly consumed a banned product Furosemide. He has promised to appeal the ban as he said he had done it by mistake and had no bad intentions.

Cameroon Intermediate Lions say they will do all to defeat Guinea tomorrow to occupy the third position at the ongoing African Nations Championship. In a press conference this afternoon at Bepanda rlReunification Stadium, head coach, Martin Ndtougho Mpile dismissed rumours of mystical practices in the Lion’s den.

The President of the African Nations Championship Organising Committee says preparations have gained steam for a spotless CHAN final ceremony this Sunday February 7th. Minister Narcisse Mouelle Kombi warned that matches for the third place in Douala and final in Yaoundé will receive 25% of the capacity of each stadium in strict adherence of COVID-19 pandemic preventive measures.

Some Cameroonians have waved aside calls to cheer the Intermediate Lions to victory tomorrow. To them, the humiliating defeat the team suffered from Morocco is an indication that Guinea will equally win the match. Guinea, it should be noted, lost to Mali at the semi final after 120 minutes of play. They are therefore a strong force to reckon with in the championship.

The President of the Confederation of African Football, the Malagasy, Ahmad Ahmad, is in Cameroon in preparation for the closing ceremony and the finals of the CHAN. He was reinstated at the helm of CAF after being previously suspended by FIFA for 5 years for alleged corruption charges.

Five students of Government Bilingual High School Kribi in the South Region are in detention for practising occultism. These students say they joined this Benin-based cult in order to make quick money. They were also asked to initiate 24 other school mates and to spend the 1 million FCFA that was given to them in just 24 hours. These students were reported by their peers when they allegedly started spending unusually huge amounts of money on girls.

Cameroon’s first parliamentary session for the year 2021 will start on Thursday 11th February 2021. It was convened by the president of the National Assembly; Hon. Cavaye Yeguié Djibril.

About 5000 Nigerian refugees have expressed their desire to return to their motherland. A meeting to that effect was held, bringing together officials of the United Nations High Commission for Refugees-UNCHR, Federal Republic of Nigeria and those of Cameroon represented by the Governor of the Far North region. In August 2019, 133 Nigerians returned home voluntarily.

The state mining company in the Democratic Republic of Congo has replaced its secretary general and other senior officials. The reshuffle at Gecamines marks the latest move to bolster President Félix Tshisekedi’s influence over that of his predecessor Joseph Kabila. Gecamines controls minority stakes in most of the country’s copper and cobalt mines.

Those accused of plotting a coup in Burundi in 2015 were sentenced to life imprisonment by the Supreme Court last year, documents made pubic on Friday reveal. They include former army generals, politicians, journalists and right activists – all sentenced in absentia. Burundi was plunged into a political crisis following the coup attempt in which thousands were killed and hundreds of thousands others fled to neighbouring countries.

The French military says Swedish troops have joined a new European special forces mission fighting Islamist insurgents in Mali. Last year, parliament in Stockholm approved the deployment of up to 150 soldiers. The troops, who have joined the Takuba elite force, are stationed in a volatile area bordering Niger and Burkina Faso.

The deadlock over the appointment of the new World Trade Organization chief appears to have ended, and Nigeria’s Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala looks set to become its first woman, and first African, Director-General. Ms Okonja-Iweala said there was vital work ahead, and called on everybody to pull together. Her comments came after the South Korean Trade Minister Yoo Myung-hee withdrew her candidacy following consultations with the US – her main backer – and other countries.

Fifteen members of Ghanaian parliament and 56 staff members have contracted coronavirus, local media report quoting the speaker. They returned positive tests following a recent round of testing, Speaker Alban Bagbin is quoted as saying in parliament on Thursday. The infected lawmakers and staff have been asked to self-isolate while undergoing treatment, according to reports.

Malawi is setting up field hospitals to cope with Covid-19 as the country is facing a resurgence of the virus. President Lazarus Chakwera lost two Cabinet ministers to the disease at the start of the year. He has said the health system is facing a quite desperate situation. The head of the presidential committee on Covid-19 Dr John Phuka told BBC’s Newsday the disease was spread a lot during the festive season.

Foreign news: BBC