National and International News Roundup – March 3rd 2020

Human Rights Watch has described as fake, media reports that the NGO deleted its findings and report on the Ngarbuh-Ntumbaw massacre from its official website and Facebook page as reported by the state media-CRTV. Reacting on her official social media handle, Illaria Allegrozi, senior human rights watch researcher tagged one of such reports as fake. HRW has accused soldiers in Cameroon for deliberately shooting and killing innocent civilians in Ngarbuh, North West Region of Cameroon on February 14, 2020.

The government in its usual manner of self-defence has dismissed claims that soldiers killed over ten people in Small Babanki, Tubah Subdivision, Mezam Division, in the North-West Region. “The instigators of the acts of horror and abomination perpetrated by secessionist armed bands in the North-West and South-West Regions have, as usual, been spreading false propaganda through online media” Emmanuel Sadi, Minister of Communication said Monday evening. MMI however independently verified and documented photos, videos and testimonies from persons on the ground, confirming that of the over ten killed by government soldiers, only one was a separatist fighter.

Aid group says it has found the child whose mother was slain in his presence in Small Babanki. Peacefulness is the name of the four months old baby whose mother was shot dead after government soldiers recently raided Small Babanki, in Mezam Division, North West region of Cameroon. Shocking pictures and videos of him lying beside his deceased mother, on Saturday, February 29 after the killings, left no one indifferent. The mother of Peacefulness was shot dead alongside 9 other women and children in the village. In a statement on Tuesday, the founder of the International Ayah Foundation, AIF said it “has finally got in touch with Peacefulness, the four months old suckling kid, now an orphan, after the slaughter of her mum at Small Babanki late last week”.

At least four persons have been severely wounded after Boko Haram militants launched an explosive attack in the locality of Tagawa, 5 km away from Waza in Cameroon’s Far North region. Local sources say the terrorists targeted a truckload of commercial goods on its way to Waza. Amnesty International says 275 persons mainly civilians, have been killed in the Far North region in 2019 alone.

Traditional rulers of Sawa villages in Douala- Cameroon says “a hegemonic plan” to take over control of the city is being hatched by some sons and daughters of the West region of the country resident in Douala. In a release issued after their traditional meeting on Sunday, the traditional rulers say a group of elites from the West Region held a meeting in Douala, during which they said:” they made Douala what it is today, and should be recognized by the Head of State, as the town’s indigenous people”.

A deadlock has ensued as politicians meet to elect the pioneer city Mayor of Douala at the Salle De Fete Akwa. The five candidates, all of the CPDM party have refused to bow to the candidate chosen by the CPDM for the post of Douala City Mayor. The candidates are: Mbassa Dine- invested by the CPDM; Ngwem Mode Isaac -self-declared; Lengue Malapa Jean-Jacques Émile- self-declared and Gérémi Solle- self-declared. The election of the City Mayor of Douala has finally been postponed for Wednesday 4th March 2020 following several hours of debate. Some Councilors of the CPDM say they will not respect a decision from their party hierarchy to vote someone that is incompetent.

Victor Ngoh Nkelle has been elected pioneer city Mayor of Kumba City Council. He is a former government delegate to the Kumba city council. In Garoua, Dr Ousmalai Mohamadou has equally been elected City Mayor of the town.

Popular Action Party (PAP) says military men targeted and killed civilians in Babanki Tubah subdivision in the North West region of Cameroon. In a release published on the Facebook page of Njang Denis, national president of the party, he says “government is specialized in denying the wrongdoings of the soldiers”.

“Yaoundé Olembe sports complex will be ready in July 2020”. Officials of the construction company made the promise to the minister of sports today. Observers say the annexe stadium might not be ready to host matches for CHAN 2020 following the slow pace of work.

President Paul Biya is expected to attend an African/French summit billed for June this year in France. An invitation to that effect has been handed today to the 87-year-old leader. This comes when militants of the ruling CPDM party have been criticizing President Emmanuel Macron for mounting pressure on Paul Biya on burning issues in the country. It remains uncertain how members of Brigade Anti Sardinards (BAS) will react to Biya’s eminent visit to France.

Victor Nkelle Ngo is the Pioneer City mayor of Kumba City in the South West region. The Government Delegate to the Kumba City Council got re-elected as city mayor Wednesday, March 3rd 2020. Ngoh Nkelle Victor got 38 votes, Gregory Mewanu, 31 votes and Ekoko Stephen Mwelle 6 votes. The elected Kumba city Deputy Mayors are: Barr. Ebanja and Sako Macmillan.

Passengers who left other Cameroon major cities for Bamenda last night were stranded this morning as all buses entering Bamenda this morning remained blocked at Mile 10 Santa, since 6:00 AM. This was after a tanker breakdown in a delicate position and cut off the road.

More pictures have surfaced from Banbanki after a military raid in the area. Sources say several houses and business premises were destroyed. Government soldiers arrived Small Babanki, in Cameroon’s North West region early Saturday, February 29th, shot women and children dead after killing one Amba General.  In all, ten civilians were killed excluding “General Fire”. The attack has left many people without shelter.

The American Senate in its latest published resolution has called on the Cameroonian authorities and Separatists in North-West and South-West regions of Cameroon to respect human rights. Among other things, it notes that “fact-finding missions in Cameroon could serve to advance peace and enforce justice by holding responsible parties accountable for human right abuses, and promoting reconciliation.” The resolution also highlights sanctions Cameroon is facing as a result of human rights violations.

Public Health Minister, Manaouda Malachie is not impressed at the way preventive measures against the coronavirus are being received by Cameroonians. “Instead of being proud of their country’s efforts to prepare for this epidemic, they are the first to denigrate what has been done, while some countries admire it. We will do our part of the work” he said. Minister Manaouda yesterday had visited airports in the country, assuring the media that isolation centres had also been set up in some parts of the national territory.

Finance Minister, Louis Paul Motaze has instructed tax inspector Mahamadi Haskadi to repay money lost to the national treasury. In a release, the minister stated that he has recorded 74 million 113 thousand 500 FCFA, as deficit. The release also stated how the state was going to recover the said amount.

The last Ebola patient in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo) has been discharged from a treatment centre in the eastern city of Beni, the World Health Organization (WHO) has said. More than 2,300 people have been killed since the outbreak began in DR Congo in 2018. DR Congo would have to go for 42 days without reporting a case for the outbreak to be declared over.

Togo’s President Faure Gnassingbé has won elections with 71% of the vote, according to final results from the Constitutional Court, news agency Reuters reports. The main opposition says the election, held on 22 February, was marred by fraud.

A mayor in a Zambian city has been removed from a powerful post in the governing party, the Patriotic Front (PF) after he refused to greet the wife of President Edgar Lungu, the state-owned Daily Mail newspaper reports. Kitwe Mayor Christopher Kang’ombe was suspended from the party last week but has now been stripped of his position as the PF’s vice-chairman in the Copperbelt Province, the report says.

Kenyans risk being fined $50,000 (£39,000) or be jailed for two years for publishing or sharing fake news about the outbreak of coronavirus. The country has no confirmed case of the virus, although a high court judge last week temporarily suspended all direct flights from China after public fears over the virus. The authorities say they have enhanced monitoring of social media and other digital platforms to check the spread of misinformation about coronavirus. Kenya’s Ministry of Health has warned that a WhatsApp audio message – which sounds like a government press conference announcing a case of coronavirus in the country – was, in fact, a simulation exercise.

Tanzania’s State House has shared a picture of President John Magufuli exchanging a foot greeting with opposition politician Maalim Seif Sharif Hamad, observing new measures by the health ministry to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. Governments around the world, including Tanzania, have advised people to avoid hugging, kissing and greeting people by hand to prevent the spread of the virus. Tanzania has not registered any suspected cases. Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia, Nigeria and Senegal are the only countries in Africa to report positive cases of the coronavirus. The deadly virus, which broke out in January in China’s central city of Wuhan, has killed more than 3,000 people globally.

African football legend Samuel Eto’o believes the game has the power to unite people as political upheavals divide millions across the continent. “There’s no perfect continent or country in the world (and) I believe this beautiful game can unite people of Africa like nothing else,” said Eto’o. “Football has a massive power to create unity out of division, joy from sadness and turn a multi-cultural community into one. The four-time African Player of the Year winner announced his retirement from football at the age of 38 last September. (Source Foreign News: BBC Africa).

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