Biya sets his spies on reporters

Paul Biya regularly orders spy chiefs to investigate, control and monitor  journalists, its was claimed  last week.

The president approves what can be see as illegal activities such as conversation tapping, following journalists movement, tracking them wherever they go, destruction of materials, setting fire and arbitrary arrest according to a revoked police officer.

Ebene, former commissioner who worked as a member of a selective team of domestic spy service in Cameroon from the CENER,( Centre National des Etudes et des Recherches...a french institution that train spies in Cameroon)  was revoked for gross misconduct by a presidential decree and now running for the presidency.

These are some of departments that the government use to monitor journalist activities and tract down leaders of the opposition movement as well.

DGRE, ( Direction General des Renseignements Exterieur , another French institution that not only train spies inside and abroad, monitor potential activists in Cameroon and abroad and they have unconstitutional right to kill when its necessary, members there have the obligation to inform the government of any activities conducted by some opposition leaders or their member`s activity's abroad, basically they work with Cameroon High Commission wherever they are in the world, 

DGSN,( Direction Generale a la Surete Nationale,) BRQ,  Bulletin du Renseignement Quotidien, another French machine that update the head of state and his assistant on daily basis on what is going on in the country regarding what would be considered as illegal activities or subversive, made the announcement while presenting his presidential candidature in Paris after being revoked by Paul Biya.

From his communication its appears that, the newly communication department at the presidency in Cameroon chaired by a formal political editor and presidential reporter Joseph Le, that the head of state has instructed the general secretary of the presidency to set up a unit dedicated to tracking journalists and their sources, it alleged.

Spies acting as journalists always work closely with journalists and police officers. Leading independent newspapers as Le Messager and his rival La Nouvelle Expression have been targeted and visited many times by government spies.

Mutations, a daily newspaper that officially is an independent newspaper but receive public funding through government adverts and others benefits  before the split that saw the birth of Le Jour has receiveded visits from spies during the night at the print..

In Cameroon as the media law does not permit journalist to sue  this kind of activities makes things very difficult for journalists. while in French for example Le Monde is preparing to sue the French government for wire-tapping a source.

Journalists who write critical articles against the government and Paul Biya are listed and known by spies and police officers. They can be invited at any police or military police office to respond to some interrogation and question about their articles and journalism work.

Most of the time without having their lawyer with them. The law is not working for journalists but against them in Cameroon and that would explain  why journalists always end-up in jails or prison without a fair trial. As the presidential election is looming, spies will now back on the streets to monitor closely journalist`s work....in a so called democratic state of cameroon?

UK Government to act on human rights abuses in cameroon

The latest UK-Parliamentary Human Rights Group report on Cameroon found out that too many people are afraid to report crimes and corruption to authorities.


 Sadly this is the reality in Cameroon and less is done by those who are in total control of the power. As this report details, members of the parliamentary human rights group met with many people who described in their own words enforced disappearances, unlawful arrests and detention, organised beatings in police and military police cells and jails, house-burnings in the night and torture by specialised armed forces.

 An extreme culture of impunity has been installed in Cameroon ,especially for military police and armed forces. This is mean that most  people are too afraid to report crimes and even those with courage reported do not generally result in thorough investigation and prosecution.

Lord Frank Judd, one of the writer of the Parliamentary Human Rights Group finding mission report , and president of Africa Inequality and Millennium Development Goals campaign


There have been in recent months a small change of tactic after the international community complaint to the United Nations meeting about human rights abuses committed in Cameroon by military police and armed forces. Few of them have been sent in prison and other are still walking free on the streets.

 There is no real Parliamentary scrutiny or transparency over what President Biya  and his Government are doing, not helped by the fact that 75%  of the National Assembly is on the hands of the ruling party, the Cameroon people democratic movement ( CPDM) where all members belong to the same party (CPDM). Cameroonian`s own Human Rights Ombudsman is hostile to the concept of independent NGOs holding the Government to account.

One Ntarikon`s villager told us: "Biya  laws do not protect me"." You cannot take a police officer who verbally abuse you and even torture you to court and face a simple trial, just because they think that they are above the law and they can do to you whatever they want to..This is what it is happening in the North-West of Cameroon even there is a little change of that behaviour..But for how long?". .

Turning a blind eye to human rights abuses under the misplaced assumption that Cameroon  is stable under Paul Biya and his armed forces general council 's iron regime only stores up problems for the future.

An extra £4 bn to help poor countries for the next 4 years

While the domestic spending in UK is being slashed, the foreign aid budget will increase by 37%.

By increasing is foreign aid, Britain is sending a strong message to the rest of the G20 members that its will honour his promises made to some of the poorest people in the world.

In deciding to increase the foreign aid in the next 4 years, Britain now become the first country in the world to hit one of the United Nations target of donate 0.7% of its national income to the poorest in the world by 2013.

This is still at the moment on the register of a governmental promise to the world`s poor. A promise that need to be respected. From the spending review its appears that the foreign aid budget will grow from £6.3 billion to £9.4 billion by 2014/2015.

This extra aid money would halve according to the Chancellor, George Osborne, the death from malaria and also save around the world lives of 50.000 pregnant women and 250.000 babies.

Philip Davies, Tory Mp decided to scrutinise cameroon used of uk foreign aid.





Aid fund will target in a country like Cameroon, the fight against corruption, the capacity building program to improve the judicial system and his total independence from the state implication, improve the governance and accountability and the independence of the national commission to supervise the elections.

These are the areas that the UK foreign aid in the next 4 years will be allocated in Cameroon. and the government will need to continue its efforts in transparent governance and fighting corruption.

To avoid lots of critics, the coalition government has decided to set up an Independent Commission for Aid Impact with mission to monitor the spending of aid.

 In Cameroon, where there is a real presence of a dictatorship power, some criticism said that foreign aid there is a waste of taxpayers money.

 A group of Mps will be travelling back to Cameroon before the end of the year to re-scrutinise the use of the foreign aid.

Philip Davies, a Tory member of the Parliament said in an interview with the BBC that he and his colleagues will launch an inquiry in Cameroon to scrutinise the government used of the foreign aid they received from the UK.

Cameron`s controversial independence for its judicial system reform has already affect millions of its people.

Davies really think that money should be wisely spent in area where people really need UK support and not where the government is using the UK taxpayers money to buy arms and ammunition to fight against his own people and diminish their freedom of speech and expression

Scnc: Can Britain back the secession intention or will of the British-Cameroon?

1st October 1961-1st October 2010. 49 years now activists from the Southern cameroon are still fighting against the forcibly annexation of the british cameroon to the french cameroon. 

This year  in London, a group that describes itself  as a  < self determination organisation>  which is seeking the Independence (---?) of the anglophone Southern Cameroon from the francophone of the La Republique du Cameroun will hand a signed number of petitions to David Cameron, leader of the Conservative Party and Prime minister in support of the call to back the secession of the anglophone or the so called british cameroon from the french cameroon.

One of the leader of that group, Paulette Mengnjo, acting chairperson speaking to me on the phone earlier , explained that they are calling to people who love cameroon and support  the idea of secession to come in numbers on Friday October 1st  in front of No 10 Downing Street to witness the history when they will hand petitions to the Prime minister.

That petition is a call for secession of the british cameroon from the french cameroon. At the moment it is difficult to know if there have been a kind of referendum to determine exactly the will of the people from the Southern cameroon.

What is real is that there will be some activists in town on Friday to celebrate the 49th anniversary of the idea what  some of the founding fathers have left their life on the field of the fight and struggle against the dictatorial government of the La Republique du cameroun.

Paulette and her colleagues are still trying to put the final touch on the programme. It is difficult to say who exactly will be there at No10 to receive the petition that its calling for the secession of the southern cameroon. How many are there in that group that the cameroonian government through his embassy in London is monitoring the movement and activities of that goup around the country?

Even the chairperson was not able to give that number and has expected the propaganda person to give the number. Another curiosity of that celebration is whether there will be a message from the acting chair or vice chair of the Southern Cameroon National Council.

Dr Nfor Ngala Nfor, national vice chair of the Scnc has not yet confirmed that it will be possible. But what it is already known by some is the programme that the scnc will try to put in place during the next coming year.

And for that, activists who are based in Us, Geneva, Norway, and most of them in the Uk believe that Britain has a huge responsibility on that intention of withdrawal the former part of the cameroon from the rest of the country.

Dr Nfor Ngala Nfor said in an interview with Francis Ngwa, that the secession of the british cameroon from the french cameroon is just now a matter of time, as people still have in their memories the collapse of the Berlin wall.

Comparing Cameroon to Germany would not necessary help bring on the table of the negociations the historic signed agreement between leaders of the southern cameroon and the northern cameroon.

On the ground away from London, the scnc now have challengers on the way they want to divide the country. Ambazonia, Scapo have different ideas and intention and all proclaim to speak on behalf the southern cameroon people. Chief Ayamba pictured down has been one fo the leader in the fight of the recognisance of the Southern cameroon as a free and an independent region in cameroon from the La Republique..

The Social Democratic Front, the leading opposition party in cameroon whose leader is from the southern cameroon has never speak about the secession or the independence of that part of the country.

 Today and after 49 years, has time come for Britain to back the secession of the southern cameroon or just decide once again  to send back both brothers and sisters from the same country ( Cameroon-Cameroun) to the negociation table and find out what is or will be best for the country. But these activists are impatient and very angry because they have been abused and lied to for long.

For the moment David Cameron as a Prime Minister is facing a huge and first national demonstration or strike by the Unions over the cuts and losts of jobs in the Uk. Will he find time to look at the secession idea, intention or will of the scnc activists ?

Could Cameroon (smes) benefit from the AGF?

If it is right to suggest that pooled aid as a way to overcome excessive fragmentation in bilateral programmes, the transparency and accountability from government in Africa and specially in Cameroon can improve the fight again corruption.

 Speaking at the Millennium Development Goals summit in New-York on Tuesday 22 September 2010, president Paul Biya of Cameroon avoid to mention that international influences in Africa are largely responsible for the non-achievement of the millennium development goals in Africa.

 By avoid saying tha he was protection his relationships with those who are responsible for the large scale of corruption that is fuelled today in Africa by American, European and Asian companies. Paul Biya just represente those who use aid fund for their own purpose and not for the interest of the population. Poverty in cameroon is still growing and the middle class citizen is struggling like the poor ones.

 But pooled ressources complemented by private capital can increase aid effectiveness, improve harmonisation and minimise transaction costs, implementing the principles agreed with the Paris Declaration. It is in that spirit that the African Development Bank, the government of Danmark and Spain are setting up an African Guarantee Fund ( AGF) for small and medium enterprises ( SMEs).

 This is a newly innovative initiative public-private parternship which will provide guarantees to financial institutions combined with technical assistance to stimulate new lending to African SMEs. It is known that small businesses play today a key role in stimulating sustainable economic growth and by the same time they are still facing huge amount of problems and barriers.

 Access to bank credit still the main barrier for the economic growth of the SMEs. Promoting the access to the external finance by the Smes is now the key priority for the community development.

As an innovative initiative, the AGF will regionalise support and pool resources in order to catalyse the private sector investment for the medium term. It will address specific market failures, complementing private credit markets.  Financial and economic additionnality will be periodically evaluated in order to increase transparency and accountability, said  Pietro Calice and Torben from the Adb