Category: General

By Ngombet Claudia

In view of the 2025 electoral period in Cameroon, Defyhatenow through the ALL AFFCameroon Conference 2024 has strategized on how to effectively combat mis/disinformation, fake news and hate speech.

Drawing from past lessons and experiences in identifying digital threats posed by mis/disinformation, fake news and hate speech during election periods in Africa and Cameroon in particular, the All AFFCameroon Conference 2024, with theme ‘Combating digital threats to elections in Cameroon: Strategies for combating disinformation during the electoral period’ brought together diverse stakeholders who discussed on strategies towards combating disinformation during electoral period.

‘We are looking at developing and designing more counter strategies to entrepreneurs of violence and conflicts on the digital spaces’, the Cameroon Project Manager for Defyhatenow, Ngala Desmond Ngala said.

On his part, the Technical Adviser, Office of the Chairperson, ELECAM, Ntonye Njoya Mohamed said, ‘our presence
here today is to accompany this organisation in this brilliant initiative that we are commending, and we will do our best to bring together all the stakeholders so that they can understand the importance of combating disinformation in the electoral process, with the view of consolidating democracy in Cameroon’.

‘With the increasing rise of the use of social media in election processes, we want to make sure that we as Cameroonians can enjoy our civic rights and go to elections without being influenced. That is why we are engaging first and foremost, our fellows that have been trained for the past four years in this, but also partnering with different stakeholders and representatives of government institutions, other organisations and the diplomagic corps’, Ngala Desmond Ngala reiterated.

The two-day conference which took place in Yaounde from 27 to 28 March, had in attendance over 200 participants and representatives from the Ministry of Communication (MINCOM), the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications (M
INPOSTEL), National Communication Council (NCC), Election Cameroon (ELECAM), Cameroon National Youth Council (CNYC), Civil society organisations, the media, fact-checkers and fellows among others.

Source: Cameroon News Agency

The Intercity STC Terminal in Tudu, Accra, was on Good Friday flooded by travellers with no buses to convey them to their destinations.

Some of the passengers who spoke to the Ghana News Agency (GNA) said they were travelling to Ho, Aflo in the Volta Region and some parts of the Oti region and had waited for about four hours without a bus.

Ms Helen Adjo, a passenger travelling to Aflo, said she got to the lorry terminal as early as 0700 hours and was still in the queue as of 1030 hours.

Madam Stella Ashinyo, a regular patron of the terminal, also arrived at 0700 hours and was told that the bus to the Oti region would arrive at 1400 hours.

She said buses had always been available on normal days, attributing the situation to the Easter celebration.

At the Koforidua terminal, near Tema station in Accra, though buses were available, drivers were struggling to get full loads.

Mr. Joshua Ntim, a driver, said he had been loading his vehicle since 0700 hours and still waiting at about 1100 hours.

He told the
GNA that many people had travelled the previous days for the celebration.

The Metro Mass Transit (MMT) buses and the Aayalolo Bus Rapid Transit terminals in Accra were empty, the GNA gathered that such buses do not operate on holidays.

Last week, the National Road Safety Authority (NRSA) launched this year’s Easter Road Safety campaign, urging drivers to reduce speed, respect speed limits and stay alive.

Mr Felix Owusu, Greater Accra Regional Planning Manager of the NRSA, advised drivers not to take advantage of the number of travellers waiting at the various terminals, adding that such acts could cause crashes and fatalities.

Source: Ghana News Agency

The United States Government through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), has launched a five-year Performance Accountability Activity (PAA).

The activity supports local organizations, women and youth groups, and traditional and religious leaders to advocate for improved public service delivery.

It also equips service providers to be more responsive to citizens’ demands for quality essential services, particularly in basic education, health, water and sanitation, agriculture, and fisheries.

The PAA is being implemented by Democracy International (DI) in close collaboration with the Government of Ghana partners and local CSOs, including the Global Action for Women Empowerment (GLOWA) and the Africa Disability Institute (ADI), GLOWA and ADI are the sub-awardees, leading activity implementation in the Oti Region.

Speaking at the launch, the PAA Deputy Chief of Party, Madam Linda Ofori-Kwafo, underscored the project’s core objectives.

‘The project will enhance the capacity of Government pa
rtners including sector agencies, district Assemblies, CSOs, and community-based organizations, to implement behaviour-led capacity building and institutional strengthening interventions.

During the activity launch, GLOWA and ADI also facilitated a regional sensitization workshop to introduce the project to key stakeholders including representatives from Regional Coordinating Councils, Municipal and District Assemblies, CSOs, community-based organizations, Non-governmental Organisations, influential leaders, and representatives from Democracy International.

Reverend Harry Nii Kwatei Owoo, the Acting Regional Chief Coordinating Director thanked sponsors for the programme being launched in Oti.

He assured that the Municipal and District Assemblies would make good use of the opportunity in their respective areas.

He urged the MDAs to work closely with the partners to ensure that the Oti Region became one of the best areas.

Source: Ghana News Agency

By Charity Nginyu

A Toyota Avensis, on March 29, 2024, collided head-on with a Vatican Bus en route from Yaoundé to Bamenda, on the Yaoundé-Bafia road, near the area of Boutourou, claiming at least three lives.

According to eyewitness reports, the driver of the Toyota Avensis, allegedly asleep at the wheel, veered into oncoming traffic and crashed into the Vatican bus with significant force.

The impact of the collision was so severe that it resulted in the immediate engulfment of the Avensis in flames.

Tragically, all occupants of the Avensis, including the driver, were pronounced dead at the scene, due to the unrecognizable state of their bodies.

Meanwhile, the passengers aboard the Vatican Bus, in their part escaped with minor injuries on their body. The injured survivors were evacuated by passersby, and are currently receiving treatment at nearby medical facilities.

Source: Cameroon News Agency

Apostle Dr Samuel Vincent Ansah, the Chairman of the Ghana National Council of the Great Commission Church International (GCCI), has appealed to Christians to devote themselves to doing what is good.

He reiterated that good works flow naturally out of the heart of a redeemed Christian.

‘We are children of God today because we trusted him as Saviour and are serving him as Lord in the fellowship of his Church,’ Apostle Dr Ansah stated on Thursday in his Easter Message to Ghanaians, in an interview with the Ghana News Agency in Accra.

‘Our people must learn to devote themselves to doing what is good, in order that they may provide for daily necessities and not live unproductive lives,’ he stated.

The Chairman noted that in the Bible, according to Apostle Paul, the Christian must not be eager to do what was good only but also devote himself and his life to doing what was good.

He said eagerness and devotion to doing what was good would be actualised when the Christian meditation was right and reflective of
the character and actions of God.

Apostle Dr Ansah said in the Bible, Apostle Paul exhorted Christians, in the Epistle to the Philippians to think of true, noble, right and lovely things, among others.

Apostle Dr Ansah said since Christians were in the majority in the Ghanaian population when their thinking and meditations were right, their actions would be right and their impact in every facet of Ghanaian society would be good.

‘We can then expect that the majority of the population of Ghana, which is Christian together with other members of the Ghanaian society, would help in no small way for peaceful elections to be organized in Ghana in December 2024. God then would be glorified,’ the Chairman said

Source: Ghana News Agency

Some major transport operators in Accra have bemoaned low patronage on their major routes at the beginning of the Easter festivities.

Checks conducted by the Ghana News Agency at the terminals of the State Transport Company (STC), V.I.P Jeoun Transport Limited, and O.A Travel and Tours at the Kwame Nkrumah Circle on Friday afternoon showed a relative decline in patronage.

Contrary to the usual long queues that characterise the premises of the major bus terminals, the situation was different on Easter Friday, with some of the terminals recording less than 20 trips on the Accra-Kumasi route as of 14:30 hours.

The news team also observed empty seats in the passenger waiting areas, which is an unexpected scene during the festive season as many people living in Accra travel back home to reconnect with their families.

The transport operators told the GNA that passenger volumes had declined by about 30 per cent compared to the same period last year.

They attributed the situation to the Ramadan fasting period a
nd the general decline in economic activities largely as a result of the economic challenges confronting the country.

Mr Adakabre Frimpong Manso, the General Manager of the V.I.P Jeoun, told the GNA that as of 14:00 hours, the terminal had recorded 5,000 passengers on all of its major routes.

He said the figure had dropped by more than 30 per cent within the same period last year.

‘Things have been slow today. On Thursday we recorded about 10,000 passengers. We believe the fasting period is also a factor,’ he said.

Mr Adakabre said the Company would commission a study into the numbers at the end of the festive season to guide its future plans.

At the STC terminal, which runs the Accra-Kumasi route, as of 14:45 hours, only 744 passengers had been conveyed to Kumasi.

Mr Brefoh Frank, Operations Officer, STC, said the figure was ‘quite low’ and expressed hope that patronage would increase in the rest of the days marking the festive period.

The O.A. Bust terminal appeared to be less busy as many of its bus
es were yet to be filled as of Friday afternoon.

Sources at the terminal told the GNA that business had been slow and the figures recorded ‘are not encouraging’.

As of 15:00 hours, only 31 passengers had patronised its Accra-Wassa Akropong route, while 93 passengers had travelled from Accra to Bolgatanga.

The transport operators were optimistic that the situation would improve in the coming days to enable them to make enough profit as they projected at the beginning of the year.

Source: Ghana News Agency