Cameroonians undying love for Nollywood
Although majority of Cameroonians speak French, their love for Nigerian movies and actors is great. A resident, Ferdinand, said the locals enjoyed watching Nigerian movies, especially at weekends.
Ferdinand, who lives in Yaounde, travels six hours to Bamenda, an English-speaking area in Cameroon, to buy Nigerian videos. Bamenda shares a border with Ekok in the South-South region of Nigeria. According to him, a video CD sells for 1000 CFA.
“I love Nigerian films because they are educative, informative, and entertaining. My best actors are Mr. Mbu and Ukwa. I love Ukwa because he talks too much. I have watched so many movies and I can’t stop watching. I have many Nigerian films at home and I watch them on Saturdays and Sundays,” he said.
Setback for media
The majority of media organisations were denied access to cover yesterday’s Matchday 47 clash between Morocco and Egypt at the Ahmadou Ahidjo Stadium, Yaounde, due to the shortage of media passes.
It was gathered that the players complained to CAF that they were assaulted and abused by some journalists. Since the start of the tournament, journalists have been given access to the media tribune, press conference as well as the mixed zone. But the situation was different yesterday as only media that are in partnership with CAF, were given access to all areas, including mixed zone, press conference, and media tribune, while other organisations were given either press conference or media tribune.
“It was a new directive from CAF. After Saturday’s game, players complained that they were harassed and assaulted. This is why CAF limited access to the stadium and mixed zones,” a CAF official told NationSport.
Moroccan, Egyptian journalists in derby clash
Even before the quarter-final game between Morocco and Egypt at the Ahmadou Ahidjo Stadium, Yaounde yesterday, journalists from both countries had a face-off before the game. It was a fierce face-off between them, as they jostled for the little available media pass on ground to cover the game.
There was a shortage of media passes for the game and journalists from the two countries wanted to be at the forefront, which led to a heated argument. The impasse was quickly resolved by a CAF official who provided the equal number of passes for journalists from both countries to have access to the press conference and mixed zone.
Media houses grounded in Garoua
Information , is a source of learning, they say, but the situation in the city of Garoua in Cameroon leaves much to be desired. Garoua is a port city and the capital of the north region of Cameroon.The city had approximately 836,899 inhabitants in 2018, mostly Fulbe/Fulani, according to Wikipedia.
For the number of days spent in the city for the coverage of the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations before heading to another city, it was observed that there were no newspaper vendors in the city.Though it was gathered that there were newspaper organisations in the state in the past, they were all rested due to low patronage.