The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Cameroon

  • Chibok girls: FG to verify female suicide bomber’s claim

    The Nigerian government plans to send some members of the Chibok community to Cameroon to verify the claim of a female suicide bomber arrested in Borno state on Friday that she is one of the missing schoolgirls abducted in Chibok almost two years ago.

    A statement on Saturday by the Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity to the President, Garba Shehu, said that the Minister of Women Affairs, Senator Aisha Alhassan and Nigerian high commissioner in Cameroon have already swung into action and are receiving a lot of cooperation from the Cameroonian authorities.

    The statement also said that it has been confirmed that one of two girls is claiming to be among the girls stolen from Chibok on 14th April 2014, noting that doubts have creeped into the claim following new information from Cameroon that the two girls were aged about ten years.

    “One of the two is also believed to be heavily drugged and therefore not in full control of her senses,” Garba said.

    Malam Garba also revealed that the Nigerian high commissioner in Cameroon, Ambassador Hadiza Zakari Mustapha had confirmed that the arrested girls may be brought to the Capital, Younde by Monday, at which point the High Commission will seek permission to meet with them.

    The Murtala Mohammed Foundation, the statement said, has offered to cooperate with Nigeriaan government in sponsoring two parents from Chibok who have been selected to embark on the trip to Cameroon.

    The two are Yakubu Nkeki, Chairman of the Parents of the Abducted Girls from Chibok association, and Yana Galang, the group’s women leader.

    “The Nigerian High Commission will receive the two and will facilitate their access to the two girls once permission to meet and verify their identity is obtained from the Cameroonian authorities.” The statement stated

  • Self proclaimed Chibok bomber, a victim, says #BringBackOurGirls group

    Self proclaimed Chibok bomber, a victim, says #BringBackOurGirls group

    The #BringBackOurGirls (#BBOG) advocacy group has said that the teenager bomber who claimed to be one of the Chibok girls when she was apprehended in Cameroon‎ is a victim despite the situation.

    The group said that the claim by the young girl should re-awaken the Federal Government on the need to speedily rescue the Chibok girls who will soon be celebrating two years in captivity.

    #BBOG said that the arrest of the girl means that ‎the government now has a means of credible intelligence as to the location of the other girls and the need to rescue them.

    The group responded to the arrest in a press statement signed by‎ its leaders, Aisha Yesufu, Oby Ezekwesili and Hadiza Bala-Usman.

    “We received news yesterday Friday 25 March, of an arrested girl-child suicide bomber in Cameroon who identified herself as one of our abducted Chibok girls.

    “We are presently unable to respond to this news conclusively until we have facts from the Nigerian government; from whom we requested and have eagerly been awaiting official information on the matter.

    “In the interim however, our thoughts are as follows:

    “The claim by the young woman that she is a Chibok girl should reawaken the Nigerian government to the zeal and commitment necessary for ensuring that they are rescued and brought back;

    “This development suggests that we now have a possible source of credible intelligence as to what transpired, where the others are, and other leads required to facilitate their rescue.

    “Regardless of whether she is one of our Chibok girls or not, our thoughts and sentiments remain the same:

    “Using children, girls who should be in school (or any humans at all) as suicide bombers is not only tragic and cruel, it is completely reprehensible and we denounce it;

    “These children suicide bomber are themselves victims, and must be seen and treated as such;

    “We all must hasten to free all those in captivity. For as long as they are with the monsters, we all are ourselves unsafe and equally in captivity;

    “A few weeks ago, a girl suicide bomber did not detonate her device at an IDP camp because she knew her family was most likely in that camp, and she could not kill them. It is important to send out messages that counter the programming of the terrorists. This may help in empowering these victims from detonating the explosives and accessing help;

    “This particular experience highlights the importance of building not only a regional coalition among neighbouring countries to counter terror, but a global one.

    “The Nigerian government as a matter of urgency, needs to swiftly act to ascertain the facts of this matter and make them public. It is getting to 24 hours since the news broke. We need to know her name and identity, her parents’ names, where she is from, possibly extract DNA samples for quick testing and matching, etc.

    “This should be a wakeup call to the Nigerian government to adopt and utilise our citizens-developed tool the Verification, Authentication, and Reunification System (VARS) designed by our movement for such scenarios as these. This tool was accepted by the federal government on 8 July 2015 during our meeting with the president, but has not been deployed.

    “Likewise, the Missing Persons Register which would have been useful in tracking this young victim in order to commence her rehabilitation, reunification, and reintegration process with her family and community,” the group stated.

  • Cameroon court sentences 89 Boko Haram men to death

    Cameroon court sentences 89 Boko Haram men to death

    Cameroon court has sentenced 89 Boko Haram men to death.

    They were convicted on terror charges by a military court for their roles in several attacks in Cameroon’s northern region which borders Nigeria.

    Cameroon passed an anti-terror law in 2014 which introduced the death sentence.

    This is the first time the death sentenced has been used since that law was passed.

    The 89 are among 850 people arrested in Cameroon on charges of links to Boko Haram.

    Following the death sentences, a local human rights group has called for reforms to Cameroon’s justice system.

    Hundreds of people have been killed in a spate of attacks in Cameroon since it joined a regional force set up to tackle the militants last year.

  • Nigeria, Cameroon to sign MoU on River Benue Basin management

    Nigeria, Cameroon to sign MoU on River Benue Basin management

    Nigeria is set to sign a Memorandum of Understanding with the Republic of Cameroon on the management of water resources in the River Benue Basin.

    Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Water Resources, Mrs. Rabi Jimeta, made this known in Abuja while declaring open the Technical Experts Meeting between the two countries on the MOU document.

    The official signing of the MoU by both countries is expected to hold next month.

    Jimeta, in a statement issued by the ministry’s Director of Information, Mrs. Margaret Umoh, recalled that in 2013, the former Minister of Water Resources, Mrs. Sarah Ochekpe, visited the Republic of Cameroon as a result of the 2012 flooding that led to the loss of lives and properties in Nigeria.

    Jimeta said both countries, during the visit, agreed that there was the need to establish a framework of cooperation for exchange of data and information on reservoir management and water released from Lagdo Dam and similar structures in the entire River Benue Basin.

    She said that Nigeria and Cameroon agreed to sign a MoU for the exchange of data and information on the management of the shared basin for better planning and sustainable development of both countries among others.

    The permanent secretary said that several meetings of experts have been held to harmonise the MoU between the two countries.

    “The document before us today is for experts from both countries to clean up in readiness for endorsement to serve as an instrument in joint management of water resources. It is hoped that the outcome of the deliberations will be beneficial to both countries,” Mrs. Jimeta said in the statement.

    Speaking with journalists after the meeting, the Cameroun High Commissioner to Nigeria, Mr. Salahiddine Abbas, said that the MOU would harmonise all efforts of the two countries in managing the River Benue Basin.

  • Nigeria, Cameroon to curb trans-border crimes

    Nigeria, Cameroon to curb trans-border crimes

    Nigeria and Cameroon are set to curb trans-border crimes as a means of tackling insecurity in both countries.

    This formed part of the joint communiqué at the end of the 4th Session of the Nigeria-Cameroon Trans-border Security Committee in Abuja at the weekend.

    The communiqué was signed by Mrs. Khadijah Ibrahim, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs and Mr. Emmanuel Sadi, Head of the Cameroonian Delegation.

    The committee in the communiqué encouraged both parties to facilitate the signing of the various agreements and memoranda of understanding in the areas of trans-border crimes.

    The agreements to be signed include the draft agreements on Non-Proliferation of Small Arms and Light Weapons and Trans-Border Trade on Forestry Resources.

    Others include the MoU on Establishment of Regular Consultations Mechanism between Authorities of Border Regions/States in Nigeria and Cameroon.

    The meeting also recommended the need for both countries to consider proposed agreements on combating drug and human trafficking, money laundering and related fraudulent trade transactions.

    The committee also suggested that both parties consider the agreements on combating poaching, illegal lumbering, combating maritime crimes and the draft extradition treaty between both countries.

    It also urged both parties to organise joint training exercises for border security personnel to promote mutual understanding and enhance border security operations.

    It also recommended the need for both governments to explore other sources of funding for the Multinational Joint Task Force from the African Union and international community.

    The committee also urged parties to establish a common data bank on criminal activities along the borders of both countries to facilitate effective monitoring of criminal activities of boarder communities.

    It was also recommended that the next session would hold in Cameroon “not later than six months from this session” on a date to be agreed by both governments.

  • World Cup qualifiers: Nigeria may draw Ghana, Cameroon

    World Cup qualifiers: Nigeria may draw Ghana, Cameroon

    Five-time World Cup finalists, Nigeria could well draw arch-rivals Ghana and Cameroon in the group phase of the qualifying tournament for the 2018 World Cup should the FIFA rankings be mainly used to seed teams.

    No date has been fixed yet for the draw for this final round of the World Cup qualifiers, which will be played on league basis, but speculations are rife that it could be before the end of the year.

    Currently, Nigeria are the 59th ranked team in the world and on this count, they will fall in pot 3 of seeds along with Egypt (57), Mali (63), Uganda (68) and Zambia (71).

    Pot 1 will have the continent’s top teams Cote d’Ivoire (22), Algeria (26), Ghana (30), Cape Verde (32) and Senegal (39).

    Pot 2 will be made up of Tunisia (41), Cameroon (51), Congo Brazzaville (52), Guinea (53) and DR Congo (55).

    The last pot of 20 qualifiers could then be Gabon (73), South Africa (75), Morocco (79), Burkina Faso (93) and Libya (113).

    A team from each pot will be picked out to form a qualifying group of five teams with the overall winners advancing to the World Cup in Russia.

  • Nigeria 3-0 Cameroon: EAGLES FEAST ON LIONS

    Nigeria 3-0 Cameroon: EAGLES FEAST ON LIONS

    Nigeria defeated Cameroon 3-0 in yesterday’s international friendly played at the Edmond Machtens-Stadion, Belgium.

    After the shambolic showing against  Congo DR in Mons last Thursday, the Super Eagles raised their game against the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon to cruise to an emphatic win and ease pressure on coach Sunday Oliseh after his major fall out with Lille goalkeeper, Vincent Enyeama.

    The Eagles took a well deserved lead in the 39th minute through Efe Ambrose.

    The Celtic defender rose above the Cameroon defence to power home a free kick from the right taken by Mikel Obi.

    Incidentally, it was just minutes after that Ambrose almost put the ball into his own net when his back pass beat an on-rushing goalkeeper Carl Ikeme.

    Outstanding Moses Simon scored his second Eagles goal on the hour when he blasted past the Cameroon goalkeeper after he was released by skipper Ahmed Musa.

    Substitute Odion Ighalo took the game beyond the Indomitable Lions with a third goal two minutes from time when he headed home off a delightful cross by Elderson Echiejile from the left flank.

    Cameroon would also struggle when skipper Stephane Mbia was sent off in the 47th minute after his second booking of the night.

    Before then, Cameroon young goalkeeper Fabrice Ondoa had to pull off at least two big saves to deny the Super Eagles.

    In the ninth minute, the Barcelona second team shot stopper had to go down quickly to keep out a menacing ball heading for goal.

    He got a strong hand to a pile driver by Emmanuel Emenike after 31 minutes.

    But after Nigeria’s goal, Cameroon raised their game and ought to have at least drawn level particularly in the 44th minute when Spurs winger Clinton Njie got behind the Eagles defence, but Leonard Kweuku could not get a touch to the final pass from inside the six-yard box.

  • Nigeria beats Cameroon 3-0

    Nigeria’s Super Eagles on Sunday defeated Cameroon’s the Indomitable Lions 3-0 in an international friendly played in Brussels.

  • Amoo, Erico, others charge Eagles to beat Cameroon

    Amoo, Erico, others charge Eagles to beat Cameroon

    Some football enthusiasts on Friday urged the Super Eagles to be focused on winning subsequent matches in spite of their 0-2 loss to the Leopards of DR Congo.

    While speaking in separate interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos, they urged the team to put the loss to Congo behind them and prepare for Sunday’s friendly game against the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon.

    According to most of them, the team needs to improve in subsequent matches.

    They also suggested that Enyeama’s decision to retire from international matches should not have effect on the team’s performance.

    NAN reports that the Leopards of DR Congo defeated the Eagles of Nigeria 2-0 in the international friendly played in Belgium on Thursday.

    The Eagles would be looking to redeem themselves from the defeat, when they take on the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon in another friendly international at Stade Edmond Matchens, Brussels tomorrow.

    A former Eagles’ player, Fatai Amoo said he was unhappy at the substandard performance of the team against Congo.

    He said he hoped the team’s Chief Coach, Sunday Oliseh, would make necessary adjustments to the team ahead of Sunday’s game.

    “I am not happy about the defeat by Congo; Oliseh needs to work on the players and I believe positively they could do better against Cameroon.

    “Enyeama’s resignation has nothing to do with the defeat, they would be able to cope.

    “Mikel Obi has great responsibilities, he has to show experience in Sunday’s game and train the younger players,’’ Amoo said.

    Former Super Falcon’s Chief Coach, Paul Hamilton, told NAN that the team must work hard to see changes and secure victory against the Lions.

    “It seems things are not going well at the moment but I will advise them to get back to camp, work hard, be friendly with each other; that is the most important thing for the team right now.’’

    Another former Falcons’ coach, Nnena Etim, urged the team to work together and take instructions from their coach, regardless of what could have happened earlier in the team.

    “We all saw yesterday’s (Thursday’) game and there is no way to predict what the team will do or play next; all they need to do is play according to their coach’s instruction.

    “Enyeama’s decision to leave the team does not mean the National team cannot continue; he has done his best and it is his decision, however ,we must continue to go forward.’’

    Coach Joe Erico, a former Eagles’ goalkeeper trainer, urged Oliseh to make credible adjustments to the team.

    “It is not a good result but it is part of football; sometimes you win, other times you lose, but I want the coach to make relevant changes before crucial matches,’’ Erico said.

    A Eagles’ defender, Bright Omokaro, said he was happy they lost the match against DR Congo, saying the loss could cause the coach to improve in subsequent matches.

    “I am in a way happy they did not win because if they did, Oliseh might think he has arrived; I believe it will help Oliseh re-strategise.

    “The result shows they need to sit down and work hard, so that a strong team can be built. I believe they will do much better in the game against Cameroon,’’ Omokaro said.

  • Brussels to host Nigeria, Cameroon venue friendly

    Brussels to host Nigeria, Cameroon venue friendly

    •Game for 8pm

    The friendly between Nigeria Super Eagles and Cameroon will now be played at the Edmond Machtens Stadium in Brussels.

    The capacity has a 11,000 capacity and it is the home ground of a Belgian second division club.

    The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) confirmed the venue change on Wednesday.

    The match will be played on Sunday and kick-off time is 8pm.

    The last time both countries clashed at full international level was at the 2004 AFCON with Nigeria winning 2-1 to qualify for the semi-final of the tournament in Tunisia.