National And International News Roundup – 8th May 2020

Four US senators and a Member of congress have urged Cameroon’s President Paul Biya to release journalists Tsi Conrad, Thomas Awah and former CRTV GM, Amadou Vamoulke. Highlighting that arresting these men of the press in jail is the hallmark of an authoritarian regime, the US lawmakers say keeping them there even in poor medical condition is sheer cruelty… Details later!

Coronavirus in the Littoral region has infected over 40 medical workers. The figure given by the coronavirus control centre today as the Secretary of State at the Ministry of health visited hospital facilities treating COVID-19 patients. Work at the Mbapelepe stadium COVID-19 centre stands at 62% and expected to be completed next week.

Cameroonians have criticised the country’s textile company CICAM for selling face masks for 1.300 CFA. To critics, CICAM is using an unfortunate health situation to make a profit instead of reducing the price to encourage Cameroonians to buy and wear face masks. CICAM says tissue used for production is standard and reusable.

The Secretary of State in the Ministry of Public Health, Alim Hayatou says the city of Douala and the Littoral Region is adequately equipped to handle the second stage of the fight against COVID-19. He was speaking at the end of a visit to Douala, which had as aim, to evaluate the COVID-19 response strategy in place.

Survie Cameroun Survival Initiative (SCSI) put in place by Professor Maurice Kamto is seeking the assistance of the Minister of justice for them to hand over health kits to prevent the spread of coronavirus to prisoners. Last week, the Minister of public health rejected the gifts because the initiative was illegal.

Sexual harassment is on the rise in the department of Journalism and Mass Communication (JMC) at the University of Buea. The International Federation of Women Lawyers(FIDA), Cameroon chapter has written to the Vice-Chancellor of the University to ensure that allegations of sexual harassment are investigated. FIDA says a lecturer in the department of JMC has over the years exchanged marks for sex.

At least 4000 women and 22000 babies die in Cameroon yearly in the course of delivery. Figures have given today to mark African day for the reduction of maternal and neonatal mortality. The Minister of Public Health says health workers are working hard to improve the situation.

Makeshift structures used by local food sellers demolished at Nkolmitag quarter at Douala II. Food sellers have been accused of selling hard drugs to boys in the quarter reason why crime wave is on the rise. The demolition exercise was supervised by the Mayor of Douala II- Denise Famous.

The Minister of Secondary Education has described as fake, a social media document announcing the direct recruitment of 910 Anglophone contract teachers of secondary and high schools against the 2020/2021 academic year in response to the Anglophone educational problem. According to a communiqué released by Minister Nalova Lyonga, MINESEC does not operate any account as “MINESEX HRM MTN MOMO”, and only the Ministry of public service does recruitment.

Prisoners of the Kondengui maximum security prison in Yaounde staged a protest demonstration over what they call a looming threat from COVID-19 in the prison where there is no medical care.
They also say the recent released measure from government, was allotted according to bribes at the prison, and only those who could pay to leave were released . They insist that there was no qualification criteria that was respected and that has fueled a lot of resentment and anguish in the prisons in Cameroon.

Engelbert Lebon Datchoua, an official of the the Cameroon Renaissance Movement political party has been summoned by the military tribunal. According close party sources, the firebrand militant was served a convocation Friday May 8th, 2020 to appear before the military court in Douala Monday, May 10th, 2020 at 8 AM. It is not clear why he is being summoned

Janvier Mongui Sossomba has been replaced as President of the Chamber of Agriculture, fishing, forestry and wildlife. A Presidential decree Friday May 8th, 2020 appointed Joseph Roland Matta as new President of the consultative institution. Its objective is to ensure the proper representation of famers, fishermen, rearers and those from the forest industry in key national policies

Uganda has decided to allow imports of used clothing, reversing a previous decision introduced last month, to ban second-hand garments and footwear, amid fears they could spread coronavirus. The ban was welcomed by textile and clothing manufacturers as a boost to the Ugandan industry. But traders of used garments complained, saying goods that were already ordered were on the way, being transported by sea. They also insisted there was no evidence Covid-19 could survive the long time it takes to transport goods from China, Europe or the US.

Ivory Coast has reopened bars and restaurant in all provinces except the main city, Abidjan. While announcing the easing of restrictions, President Alassane Ouattara said there had been “satisfactory results” so far but warned that “we have not yet won the battle”. “No positive case has been detected in the interior of the country since April 21,” he said in an address on public television. Gatherings of up to 200 people are now allowed but social distancing has to be ensured.

Tanzania has sent troops to its southern border amidst a growing militant insurgency in Mozambique’s Cabo Delgado province. Islamist militants affiliated to the Islamic State group have attacked villages and towns in the province, killing hundreds and displacing thousands since 2017. Last month, at least 52 people in Cabo Delgado were “massacred”, with some beheaded, after some people refused to be recruited into the militant group, Mozambican police said. Tanzania’s State Minister Jenista Mhagama told MPs on Thursday that the troop deployment was done despite the situation being “generally calm” on the Tanzanian side, the local Citizen newspaper reports.

A court in Bahirdar, northern Ethiopia, has sentenced the country’s former communications minister and close ally of late Prime Minister Meles Zenawi to six years in prison for corruption. Bereket Simon was arrested in January 2019 at his residence in the capital, Addis Ababa, and taken to Bahirdar, capital of the Amhara region – the second largest of Ethiopia’s nine states. He has been in detention since. Bereket was found guilty on Tuesday. Some of his supporters had said the charges were politically motivated.

A major brewing company in South Africa has warned that it could be forced to destroy 130 million litres of beer if it does not begin to sell them in the next few days. South African Breweries (SAB) has been severely affected by a ban on all sales of alcohol as part of a nationwide lockdown to curb the spread of coronavirus. “Roughly 400 million bottles of beer are sitting in our beer tanks across the country,” SAB’s Zoleka Lisa is quoted as saying by news site EWN. “As SAB, [if] we’re not permitted to package and transport this beer to our storage depots across the country in the next few days, we will, unfortunately, be forced to discard this inventory.” SAB also warned that it could be forced to fire half of its front-line workforce – 2,000 people – should it not be able to continue bottling or distribution.

The United Nations says 85 children have been released from detention in South Sudan as part of efforts to ease crowding in jails during the coronavirus pandemic. Some 11 others will remain in prison because of the severity of their alleged offences. The UN children’s fund (Unicef) said those who had been freed were reunited with their parents or legal guardians. It said prisons in South Sudan were overcrowded, with inadequate sanitation and healthcare – conditions highly conducive to the spread of Covid-19. The country does not have a juvenile justice system, with many children locked in jail with adults, often for minor offences.

The European Union has added 12 countries to its money-laundering blacklist, putting their financial transactions under greater scrutiny. They include Botswana, Ghana, Mauritius and Zimbabwe. Others are Bahamas, Barbados, Jamaica, Nicaragua, Panama, Cambodia, Mongolia and Myanmar. Once approved by the European parliament the list will come into force in October. Valdis Dombrovskis, the commission’s vice-president said, the EU needed to put an end to dirty money infiltrating its financial system. Of the 22 blacklisted countries, only North Korea has refused to commit to trying to tackle the problem.

(Foreign news: BBC)