Spain are European Champions

The Euro 2008 ended yesterday the 29 of June 2008 and Spain are the European champions.Striker Fernando Torres out-muscled Germany's Philipp Lahm in the 33 minute of play to provide the lone score of the game.The Spanish team add another major trophy to their collection for the first time since 1964.They ended up with the best attack in the competition(12 goals scored) and they did not concede a goal from the knockout stage of the competition.David Villa ended up with the golden boats for best striker in the competition with 4 goals.The Spanish team played an attractive brand of soccer and their triumph here will be hail as a victory for the beautiful game of soccer.They were very entertaining and their Iberian build up style of play from the defence all the way to the front line is just beautiful to watch.Midfield play was the key to the team and will continue to be the strength of the team.Their starting four midfielders are excellent ball handlers and their isn't any drop off in play quality when the team made midfield substitutions(strength in depth).Once the Spanish team beat Italy in the quarter-final penalty shoot-out, you had the feeling that the team has finally come of age and nothing was going to stop them this time around.After being branded as perennial underachievers for such a long time, Spain has now found the winning formula and now join Germany,Italy and France as European Nations to be reckoned with come any major competition.The question on everybody's lips now is which competition is harder to win,the world cup or the Euro?The European teams(who else)claim that the Euro is a more difficult competition to win and that there are no minors(whipping boys) in the European championship.French soccer superstar Thierry Henry claimed that the European championship that the French won back in 2000 was more difficult than the 1998 World cup that they had won just two years earlier.Current Argentina soccer coach Alfio Basile recently said that he has been watching the current Euro and was not impressed at all.The South American nations have won a total of 9 world cups,Brazil 5,Argentina 2 and Uruguay 2.The Europeans have won a total of 9 world cups,Italy4,Germany 3,France 1 and England 1.So three teams from South America and four Europeans nations for a total of 7 teams have split the world cup victories amongst themselves.The number of victories for each continent is split equally in half.9 for the Europeans and 9 for the South Americans.In the history of the European nations cup a total of nine teams have split the spoils,Germany 3,France 2,Spain2,Italy 1,Russia 1,Czech Republic 1,Holland 1,Denmark 1,Greek 1.So a total of 9 different teams have won the 13 Euros that have been staged since 1960.For the World cup a total of 7 teams have won the world cup that has been staged since 1930,18 in total.So if winning that Euro is much tougher how come countries like Greece,Spain,Denmark and the Czech Republic(nations that have won the Euro) have not won the World cup?The other side of the argument will be that a country like England that won the World cup back in 1966 has not been able to win the Euro.In their current formats teams need to play a total of 7 games to win the world cup while for the Euro you need only six games.The European championship now features only 16 teams as oppose to the world cup that features 32.So it might be tougher to get out of the group stages in the Euro than in the world cup because the Euro is already narrowed down to 16 teams.Part of the reason that more teams have won the Euro than the world cup is that the European teams are playing against each other and they are pretty familiar with each other's style of play.That is why a team like Greece in 2004 and Denmark in 1992 can spring a surprise and win the competition.When European teams get to the world cup they see a different brand of football.The South American teams do not play as structured a game as the Europeans.You see more individual play in the South Americans way of playing.Traditionally in world cups the South Americans give the European teams quite a few problems because they are much faster.The exception here will be the Italians,they adapt well during the world cup and can take on the South American teams much easily.I have not mentioned teams from Africa,North America,Asia and Australia because so far none of these teams has come closed to lifting the world cup trophy.Apart from Mexico(which actually plays like a Latino team)the rest of the world still has a lot of work to do to be considered as world cup threats.European nations always point to the Italians(4 times world champions and 1 time European champion)as a clear example of how easy it is for a European team to win the world cup than the European nations cup.My answer to this is let the likes of Greece,Czech Republic,Spain,Denmark go win a world cup.The world cup has to be the more gruelling competition.A total of 32 teams(including of cause all the European qualifiers)playing for one trophy over a month period.They are going to be minors in the competition,but which countries do you classify as minors now are days.Ask Argentina in World cup 1990(against Cameroon)and France in World cup 2002(against Senegal)how it feels like to play against so called "minors".Now that Spain has found their winning touch lets see how they perform come South Africa 2010.

Euro 2008

Turkey ended a great run in the Europe 2008, heading home after a thrilling 3 goals to 2 defeat in the hands of the Germans. Reduced to only 14 outfield players due to suspensions and injuries, the Turks took the game to the Germans in the opening half of play and were rewarded with a goal in the 22 minute of play by Ugur Boral. The Germans responded in style though, with Lukas Podolski crossing the ball in for Bastien Schweinsteiger to flick in the equaliser in the 26 minute. That is how the game ended in the first half. Germany took a 2 to 1 lead in the 79 minute of play through a Miroslav Klose header but the Turks came right back with an equaliser four minutes to the end of the match through Semih Senturk. Defense man Philipp Lahm sealed the victory for Germany in the 90 minute of play. The Turks (the comeback kid of the competition) head home with a team that found itself in this competition. Watch out for them in South Africa 2010. This edition of the Germany team has quite a few players that have been hiding in the German Bundesliga. Michael Ballack and Miroslav Klose have been stars in the German national team since the 2002 World Cup. But how about Lukas Podolski and Bastien Schweinsteiger. Both players are deadly in Coach Joachim Low's 4-2-3-1 formation. Podolski can flat out play, has great speed and can both set up goals and finish just as well. Bastien Schweinsteiger is the showman of the team. The Guy has recovered fully from the red card that he picked up during the Croatian game on match day two of the competition. He covers a lot of ground and scores some great goals. The flick in for the equaliser was just a thing of beauty. Defense man Philipp Lahm can defend as well as attack as a winger, scoring the third goal for his side to seal the victory. Germany would now wait for the winner of the Spain versus Russia game scheduled for today,Thursday the 26 of June, to know their opponents for the finals due to take place on Sunday the 29 of June.This classic game will be remembered for something else though.There were quite a few power outages during the second half of the encounter and watching the game somewhere in Douala,Cameroon I thought it was a problem with signals getting to us in Africa.But it turned out the power failure was due to a severe thunderstorm that hit the Vienna area where the satellite feeds were coming from. We got to see the first two goals of the match live and Lahm's late winning goal.Germany's second goal and Turkey's equaliser came when the TV sets were displaying apology's due to power interruption. Never seen anything like this on a live major competition.Spain will be playing in the finals of Euro 2008 on Sunday 29 of June after defeating Russia by 3 goals to 0.It will be Spain's first participation in the final of the European championship since 1984 when they lost to France.Spain dominating a Russian team that had completely ran out of steam after such a brilliant run into the semi-final.The first half ended in a goalless tie, but goals from Xavi Hernandez(50'),Daniel Guiza(73') and David Silva(82')completed a brilliant all around performance of the Spanish team.Andres Iniesta got the man of the match award but Cesc Fabregas was just as brilliant, setting up goals for Danial Guiza and David Silva.Spain's leading goalscorer for the competition;David Villa, picked up an injury in the 34 minute of play and was substituted for Cesc Fabregas.Villa will thus be missing Sunday's final match against Germany.

Childhood

I became aware that I was a living being about the age of three to four years old, I think.This was in Bokwango,Buea in Cameroon.I was actually born in Besongabang,Mamfe in the South West Province on the 13 of April 1962.My parents then relocated to Buea due to my father's teaching job.He was a grade two teacher then.All I can remember from my time in Bokwango was that there were a lots of cows in the area and I was pretty much at home most of the time.We got transfer to Ndongo Camp in Tiko around 1968 and that was when I was to begin school.My father taught at the same institution and my mother worked as a seamstress in Tiko town.So from Monday through Saturday my mother was gone from the house until about 6pm when she returned.She had a store in the Tiko market where she did most of her sowing of clothes.We lived in the Teacher's campus and our closest family friend then was Mr. Orock.At this time our family was made up of Helen, the first child, Dennis, the second,Agi the third, Eric, the fourth, that was me, Olivia, the fifth, Charles & Ebenezar the twin.Betek, the last child was to be born in 1970.Mr Orock,our family friend had Adolfus, the first child,Felicia, the second,Orock the third,Enow the fourth and Mami Sousi,the firth and last child.The headmaster at the time was Mr Ndumbe.Other members of the teachers compound included Mr. Ngide, Miss Asong,Mr.Orum, the lone grade one teacher in Ndongo School, Mr Mokuri who worked for the CDC, so did Mr Taboko and Mr Medal.I remember doing well in my first year of school and passing to class two.In class two I had some difficulties and I believed I had to repeat the class.After that, I pretty much picked up and it was straight sailing throughout primary school.Our childhood was good.We got along well as a family.We used to love pets, dogs in particular.We had a female dog and we would love it when she gave birth and everybody will be fighting to own a puppy.We use to feed them with powder milk and garri, so that they would grow really fat.My mom would then start given them away and we will be very angry.Throughout my childhood, up to the age to 12 years old; when I finished primary school, life was pretty much structured.Sundays, was for church going(Most of our family is Protestant), our mother made sure that we attended service in the Presbyterian church in Likomba,Tiko. I was very active in church to the point of becoming a member of the Christian youth Fellowship,(YP)as it was popularly called then.Monday through Friday was spend in school.School started at about 7am in the morning and ran until 2pm in the afternoon.The school was just a stone throw from where we lived, so we pretty much walked to school.Our dad loved to go out after school was over.He would come to the house, have his lunch and then leave for Tiko Town.We were very happy, because this gave us the time to go and play.We made sure that we got back home before he returns.This was not usually the case, there were surprise early arrivals by my dad and this will get us into trouble.I spend most of the time playing soccer.There was a handball field that we used and also the Ndongo school soccer field, when there was quite a crowd that needed to play.Ndongo is what you call a CDC camp, so there were a lot of children whose parents worked in the Banana and Oil palm plantation.We could get a pick up game going at anytime in the afternoon and all Saturday and Sunday.None of the teachers liked to see their children playing soccer.At that time, I believe they were afraid of us picking up an injury that will cause the family time and money.The punishment for being caught playing soccer was serious lashing.We had a way of getting information on the arrival of any of our parents.Everybody of playing age had some skills.I was pretty good.I will go out and take my chances and play until sunset.If I get caught, I will take the lashes, but this will not discourage me or any of the other kids to go out and play as soon as our parents were gone.There is something about children that make you think only of the thrill of the game and totally forget about the consequences of being caught.

The Formations

As the recent Euro just kicked off,you are going to be seeing a lot of coaches come up with different formations to give their team an advantage in the games.Soccer formation describes how the teams will line up on the field of play,from the defense,the midfield and the forward positions.The formation that is settled on will be greatly influenced by whether the team wants to play either an attacking or a defensive brand of football(soccer).There is also something that is called the number system that began in the 50s with the developing of the 4-2-4 formation.So you can have a 3 number formation like the 4-4-2, a 4 number formation like the 4-1-4-1 and at times a 5 number formation like the 4-1-2-1-2.Coaches will go with the formations that will match the talent that they have available.More that one formation can be used during a match,for example teams would go from a 4-3-3 attacking position when on the attack and switch to a 4-5-1 when on the defense.The types of players you have available will also influence the formation.The formations could be changed as the match progresses due to injury to a key player,substitution to try and get a goal,or substitution to try and preserve a lead.The best coaches are those that will be able to choose a system that will enhance the teams strength while covering its weaknesses.As you substitute during games,the formation is also likely to change.Here are some modern day formations and some of the teams that used them.4-4-2(Greece in their 2004 campaign,France,Italy,Germany,Croatia),4-2-3-1(French and Spanish teams,Portugal,Romania,Russia),4-1-4-1(Turkey),4-3-3(Greece),3-4-3,4-5-1(Austria,Poland),4-1-2-3(Spain),4-1-3-2(Switzerland,Czech Republic,Sweden,Romania),3-3-3-1,4-4-1-1(Italy in their 2006 world cup win),3-5-2,5-4-1,4-3-2-1(Holland) and 5-3-2,this last formation is the one that contains the sweeper or libero position which is fast fading.Remember Franz Beckenbauer,Franco Baresi.These are just some of the formations that you will get to see.You might have noticed by now that the 4-2-4 is not used anymore.It was one of the most offensive at its time(used by Brazil in their 1958 and 1970 world cup winning sides with a team that had the great Pele).It had four defenders,two midfielders and four forwards.You needed very skilled players who could hold that ball for extended period of times.The system put a lot of pressure on your defense and two midfield players when your opposition was on the attack.The 3-5-2 is a popular system today as games are won or lost by the play in the midfield.Coaches will line up five midfielders to fight for possession and for the creation of scoring chances for the two forwards.This system works well if two of your midfielders can play well on a defensive role.It looks like the key in the modern game,especially in the midfield is versatility.Skill and discipline is also needed for the teams to effectively carry out their formations.You need players that can defend very well as well as effectively provide an attack option.Going back in time I remember what is referred to as the pyramid,the 2-3-5.You had two defenders(referred to as fullbacks),three midfielders(referred to as halfbacks)and up front there were two wingers,left and right wingers,two inside forwards and a centre forward to complete the 2-3-5 package.Our primary school used this formation.This formation was popular up till the late 1940s.From the 50s to the 1970s it was mainly the 4-2-4.The modern formations now are plentiful and teams have adapted a caution first approach to the games instead of the attack,attack,attack approaches of the past.After a poor showing in their first outing against Romania using a 4-4-2 French Coach Domenech decided to go with the 4-2-3-1 that served the French national team well during their final run in the 2006 world cup.Italian Coach Roberto Donadoni started with this formation in their match against Romania,playing Toni as the lone striker and Del Piero lining up with midfielders Perrotta and Camoranesi.The four teams that made it to the semi-finals of Euro 2008 are Spain,Germany,Russia and Turkey.Spain and Germany like to line up with a 4-4-2 formation and just play.The Spanish two forwards are David Villa and Fernando Torres.Germany use Miroslav Klose and Lukas Podolski to spearhead their attack.Russia has been lining up in a 4-1-3-2 with Andrei Arshavin and Roman Pavlyuchenko spearheading the attack.Turkey have lined up like the Russians in a 4-1-3-2 formation with Kazim Kazim and Nihat kahveci playing up front.

Euro 2008

Goals from man of the match Bastien Schweinsteiger in the 22 minute,Miroslav Klose in the 26 minute and Michael Ballack in the 61 minute gave Germany a 3-2 victory over Portugal in the first quarterfinals match in the competition.The Germans led twice by two goals,but the Portuguese kept fighting their way back into the match.First it was Nuno Gomes in the 40 minute to cut the deficit to 2-1 and later on Helder Postiga in the 87 minute to it make 3-2.The Germans just had a powerful presence in the field throughout the match and used a power style of soccer to get the victory.They move on to the semi-finals and will play the winner of the Croatia versus Turkey match that is schedule for Friday the 20 of June.The Friday match between Croatia and Turkey ended with a Turk shoot-out victory.After a goal less 90 minute of play in which the Croatian team dominated, the two teams headed for 30 minute extra-time.This is where all the drama took place. Croatia opened the scoring in the 119 minute with Ivan Klasnic putting in a cross from playmaker Luka Modric.With Croatia thinking they were through to the semi-finals the Turks answered the bell for the third straight game in style with an equaliser just a few seconds to go in the extra-time with a goal from super-sub Semih Senturk to make 1 all.Croatia squandered a lot of scoring chances in the match(Ivica Olic hitting the cross bar from dead close range).Turkey went on to win the penalty shoot-out by 3-1.The Croatians were totally shock and went into the penalty shoot-out with their spirits clearly down.The Turks thus move on to play Germany in the first semi-final schedule for Wednesday the 25 of June.The Russians continue their surprise run to the title with a superb 3-1 extra-time victory over the Dutch.The Russians clearly dominated the match and opened the scoring in the 56 minute of play through Roman Pavlyuchenko.The Dutch got a late equaliser from Ruud van Nistelrooy in the 86 minute to force extra-time.Goals from Dmitri Torbinski in the 22 minute of extra-time and Andrei Arshavin in the 26 minute of extra-time sealed a great performance from the Russians.They move on to play on Thursday the 26 of June, the winner of the Spain versus Italy quarter finals match.The Italians did play Spain on Sunday the 22 of June and the game went into penalty shoot-out that saw Spain through to the semi-finals,where they will play a Russian side that they had beaten during the group stages of the competition by 4 goals to 1.Spain had the upper hand in the encounter that ended in a 0-0 draw after 120 minutes.In the penalty shoot-out Spain's Goalkeeper Casillas stopped penalties from Daniele De Rossi and Antonio Di Natale.Italian Goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon stopped Daniel Guiza's of Spain spot kick.Final shoot-out result,4-2 in favor of Spain.After four days of quarterfinals play favorites Germany and Spain are still around,together with gatecrashers Russia and a Turkish side that is depleted with injuries and suspensions.

Job Hunting

After being in Cameroon for about 4 months, I decided that it was time for me to look for a job. My uncle had aided me in preparing a curriculum vitae which is important for job hunting around here. It was early December 2005 and I was given by my Dad a number of companies and people to contact in Douala.Douala is the economic capital of Cameroon and if you are looking for a job, it is the place to start your search. That is where all the major companies are. The list that my dad gave me was handed to him by my late uncle’s wife; Mrs Ebai in Limbe.She has a lot of weight in the community and most of the people in the list she knows personally. I headed to Douala and the first place that I went to was Akintola Williams(now Deloitte & Touche).My elder brother had worked in this place in the early 80s and most of the people that are managers in the firm, he personally hired. The saying around here is that job searching is "man know man». You have to know somebody or else your job search will be doomed from the word go. I went to Deloitte and introduced myself. I gave them copies of my composed documents which included a CV, copy of my Accounting diploma and a copy of my CPA certification. They were impressed and promised giving me a call. They did call me twice for interviews but I never got a job offer. The other companies that I went to were Standard Chartered Bank, Ecobank and Guinness Cameroon. I did not get a call from any of these companies and subsequent follow ups did not lead to any job interviews. There was a company that I did go to that was mentioned to me as an after thought. The feeling was that I would be hired right away but the wages would not be very attractive. I did go to the company though and talked to the owner. He took my documents and promised that I could work for him if by February of 2006 I have not gotten a job offer from another company. This was the last company that I visited. I left for Tiko and spend the Christmas holidays there. Up until the Last week of January 2006, I did not get a job offer from any other company, so I decided to take on the offer of Akale & Co, that is the name of the firm that I could come work for in February. It is an Accounting Firm, the owner being a chartered accountant by profession. The owner is involved in different businesses and his firm has an accounting section that does auditing and tax work in the area. I came back to Douala 2 days before I was to start work. I had arranged to stay with a friend of mine for at least a month or two before I could get a place of my own. I worked for Akale& Co for a total of two months before things got very slow in the company and the owner and I agreed that we should split company. I headed back to the provinces but this time to Buea.I liked the weather in Buea. Places are not as hot as in Tiko or Douala. I rented a "mini-cité" in Molyko Buea, close to the Buea University Campus and started living there for some time. I had saved the money for the two months that I had worked so money was not a problem at that time. I had to look for another job. Since these are the days of the mobile phone, one could be reached from anywhere. You do not have to stay in Douala to look for a job. You can place your CVs with contact information and you will be reached if your services are needed. I stayed in Buea for about 5 months before I got a call from Deloitte& Touche. They had decided to set up a tax division and they needed somebody to come head the division. That will be me. I interviewed with them in late August 2006 and they said I would hear from them real soon. They called me up in the middle of September and I started work at Deloitte on the 16 of September 2006.I worked with them for a total of two full months before personal differences separated us. The salary was decent, the promised job description was great but the reality of working in the firm was different. We parted company after two months and I headed back to Buea. I had kept the "mini-cité" at Molyko during the two months that I was in Douala. During my stay at Deloitte, I lived with my aunt at her place in Bonaberi. I did return to Douala in June 2007 and this time I joined a company called Pro-Service Cameroon. I worked there as a consultant. The company provides travel management and business consultancy throughout the country. I have been at this company for a total of 9 months. It is a start up company so we are still building our clientele. The money is not flowing right now but that would change in the future. I am in charge of the business consultancy part of the business.

Euro 2008

Match day three saw a lot of drama.Switzerland bit outgoing coach Kobi Kuhn goodbye with a 2 nil defeat of Portugal.Portugal had already qualified for the knock-out stages and had finished group leaders,they therefore fielded a team of mainly reserved players.The other match of the day featuring Turkey and the Czech Republic provided all the drama as Turkey got three goals in the final quarter of the game to defeat the Czech Republic by 3 goals to two.Down 2 goals to 0 at the break, the Turks responded with goals from Arda Turan,75' and man of the match Nihat Kahveci87',89' to knock the Czech Republic out of the competition.Croatia showed their strength in depth by defeating Poland by 1 goal to nil.The Croatian team was mainly made up of substitute players.Germany's Michael Ballack thundering free kick shot in the 49 minute of play gave his side a 1 goal victory over ousted co-host Austria.The Germans are through to the quarterfinals and will play against Portugal in match that people expected to see in the semi-finals.Croatia will play Turkey in the other match of this bracket.So between,Germany,Portugal,Croatia and Turkey, we will get one of the teams that will be playing in the finals of the competition come June 29.France and Italy play today,so does Holland and Romania.There is much talk about whether the better strategy for the Dutch would be to allow Romania beat them,thus eliminating the French and the Italians.The Dutch fielded a team of second stringers but still pulled a 2 goal to 0 victory over Romania.The Dutch thus match Croatia with a perfect record after three matches and showed their strength in depth.Italy got a goal in the first half from the penalty spot,converted by Andrea Pirlo in the 25 minute and another goal by man of the match Daniele De Rossi in the 62 minute to complete a 2 to nil defeat of the French.Italy thus sneaks into the quarterfinal where they will meet Spain on Sunday.The Dutch will have to wait for the outcome of today's match between Sweden and Russia to know their quarterfinal opponent.The French and Romania thus fail to qualify for the knock-out stages of the competition.The quarterfinals pairing is now complete after Russia surprised Sweden with a 2 goals to zero defeat last night.Spain kept their group stage record perfect with a 2 to 1 victory over Greece.The second part of the Euro 2008 bracket now features Holland,Spain,Italy and Russia.Holland with play Russia on Saturday the 21 of June while Spain and Italy will continue their Iberian rivalry in a clash on Sunday the 22.Looking at the competition after the group stages at lot of the early favorites like Germany,Portugal,Spain and Italy are still around.So are some outsiders like Russia,Turkey and to a lesser extend Holland and Croatia.The French are home early due in part because they were drawn in the group of death that included the Dutch,Italians and Romania.They are some real tough match ups in these quarterfinals, including today's Portugal versus Germany and Sunday's Italy versus Spain.

Euro 2008

Match day two saw Portugal grab the first quarter final slot by defeating the Czech Republic by 3 goals to 1.It was the Cristiano Ronaldo show as he set up two goals and scored one to seal Portugal's place in the knockout stage.Turkey beat co-host country Switzerland by 2 goals to 1,throwing Switzerland out of the competition.A late goal from man of the match,Arda Turan in the 92 minute of play kept Turkey's hope of knock-out play alive while dooming the Swiss.Croatia stunned Germany by 2 goals to 1. A late goal from the penalty spot allowed Austria to stay alive by tying Poland 1-1.Croatia's victory and the tie in the Poland-Austrian match allowed Croatia to qualify for the knockout stages of the competition.The result also will allow them to top Group B and avoid Portugal in the quarterfinals.Great victory for Croatia and a big disappointment for Germany who now have a tougher road to go through if they are to become European champions.Holland continued their superb run by crushing France 4 goals to 1.Italy and Romania had a 1-1 tie.Spain got a late winner from David Villa to defeat Sweden by 2 goals to 1.Russia knocked defending champion Greece out of the competition with a 1-0 victory.After match day two, we know who all the group winners are.Portugal from group A,Croatia from group B,Holland from group C and Spain from group D.The surprise winners of the group stages have to be Croatia and Holland.Before the start of the competition most people including myself were picking Germany to win Group B and either France or Italy as group C winners.Holland are really the team of the tournament right now.With 7 goals scored and 1 goal conceded, the "orange" machine is running smoothly and the team is real fun to watch.It is not just the goals that they are scoring but the quality of the goals.Who do you try to stop in a team that in just two matches has had six different goal scorers?(Wesley Sneijder 2 goals,Bronckhorst,Robben,Van Nistelrooy,Van Persie and Dirk Kuyt with one each).For individual performances, Spain's David Villa is on pace for the golden boot award.His late winner that sank Sweden carries his tally to 4 goals in two matches.After match day two, the teams to congratulate have to be all the group winners.Portugal,Croatia,Holland and Spain.Not only did these teams qualify for the knock out stages of the competition,they also lock up the top spot in their various groups with one match left to play.The disappointing teams have to be Switzerland and Greece who are out of the competition and though still in the competition you have to be disappointed with the performances of Germany,Italy and France so far.

The Bakassi पेनिन्सुला-न्यू Items

The Bakassi Peninsula is a stretch of land that juts into the Gulf of Guinea,an area which may contain about 10 percent of the world's oil and gas reserves.The area is also rich in fish.About 90 percent of the people living in this area are Nigerian fishermen and following the agreement between the Cameroonian and Nigerian government,were given the option of staying in Bakassi under Cameroonian rule or being relocated to the Nigerian territory.It is worth noting that despite all the promises that have been made the Nigerian government had not provided any relocation area for its countrymen living in the Bakassi area.

On Monday the 9 of June 2008 there was report of unidentified gunmen abducting a Cameroonian envoy of 9 who were conducting a boating manoeuvre in the Bakassi area.The Sous-Prefect from Kombo,Mr. Felix Morfan was taken hostage together with 8 other men from the security and police services.Three of the police officers managed to escape.This information is coming in, after another incident that happened in the area in November 2007 resulting in the death of about 21 Cameroon military men who were in the area for peace keeping purposes.The Nigerian government claimed that they had nothing to do with the attacks and offered their full cooperation in investigating the incident.So far there has been no official story from either the Cameroonian nor the Nigerian government about what led to the death of the 21 Cameroonian soldiers.All we have been getting here in Cameroon is speculation, including an allegation that the military people were involved in an arm sales deal that went wrong.

The Bakassi Peninsula is an area rich in oil and fish resources and that has been the root cause of the problem.Cameroon and Nigeria have been involved in bloody clashes in the area dating back to 1981 and during the 1990s.Nigerians claim that Bakassi has been under their rule since independence in 1960.The Cameroonian claim is based on maps since the colonial area that have shown the area clearly as Cameroonian territory.After a series of conflicts in 1994 and 1996, Cameroon took the matter to the Hague,in order for the International Court of Justice to decide.After years of fact finding the ICJ decided that the Bakassi Peninsula belong to Cameroon.The decision was unpopular in Nigeria and then President Olusegun Obasanjo said he would not accept the ruling.A UN intervention followed, with a commission set up and headed by then UN Secretary General Kofi Annan to try and resolve the matter.Meeting in New York on the 13 of June 2006, an agreement was signed between then President Obasanjo of Nigeria and President Paul Biya of Cameroon(The Green Peace Agreement)whereby Nigeria agreed to pull their troops out of the area within 60 days of the agreement.On August 14 2006,3000 Nigerian troops began withdrawing from the Northern part of Bakassi.A ceremony marking the handing over of the territory was held on August 14 2006 in the fishing town of Archiborg.The ceremony,coming four years after the ICJ ruling saw the Nigerian flag being lowered while the Cameroonian flag was raised to mark the beginning of Cameroonian rule.It of worth nothing that only the Northern part of the Bakassi region had been handed over.The rest of the territory is to be handed over within a two year time frame.Nigerian inhabitants in the Bakassi area are very unhappy with the handing over of the territory to Cameroon and some have vowed to fight(calling on the assistance from militants in the Nigeria Niger Delta area)to help then in their course.Also on November 2007 the Nigerian Senate declared illegal the ruling to cede the Bakassi territory to Cameroon,claiming the National Assembly was not consulted before the agreement was signed.Newly elected Nigerian President Umaru Yar'Adua has visited Cameroon since his term of office started in May 2007 and reiterated his support of the ICJ ruling and the Green Peace agreement signed by his predecessor President Olusegun Obasanjo.

On Saturday the 14 of June 2008,on a press release by the Government of the Republic of Cameroon,CRTV(the national radio&television station)announced that the six people that were kidnapped on Monday the 9 of June,including the Sous Prefect were found dead with their bodies riddle with gun bullets.
There are rich natural resources in the Bakassi area but it looks like the area is also going to be a problem for Cameroon. First, about a week ago there was another attack in the area with four military men being injured. On the 24 of July though, there was an announcement from the military of defense claiming of a fight between rebels forces in the region and the militarymen that the government has deplored in the area. Two dead Cameroonians solders, four injured and evacuated to the Douala local hospital. Also there were ten rebel forces killed and 8 of them capture together with some of their ammunitions. The Cameroonian government has already seeked the assistance of the French government in preparation for further trouble in the region.

Euro 2008

Match day one includes the first games that each team plays at the Euro.So far in the opening match of the competition, Switzerland one of the co-host countries was defeated by the Czech Republic by 1 goal to 0.Later in the day Portugal,one of the favorites to lift the trophy defeated Turkey by 2 goals to 0.Croatia beat the other co-host country,Austria by 1 goal to 0,while Germany showed why they are considered one of the favorites to lift the trophy by defeating Poland by 2 goals to 0.France and Romania played a goalless draw.The shock of the competition so far has to be Holland's rout of world champion Italy by 3 goals to 0.Spain,playing in group D defeated the Soviet Union by 4 goals to 1.Greece went down by two goals to 0,confirming their status as outsiders to repeat their performance of 2004.Playing with 5 defenders and two defensive midfielders,the Greeks could not reproduce their magic of 2004.Sweden's Zlatan Ibrahimovic ended a 13 match goal drought while playing for his country with a superb 67th strike that opened the scoring for his country.His all around performance at the game will earn him man of the match honours.Spain look real good in their victory over the Soviet Union as David Villa put up a man of the match performance with 3 goals score for his side.The first hat trick by a Spanish player in the European Championship competition.After match day one the great team performances have come from Spain,Germany,Netherlands and Sweden.The disappointing team performances have come from Italy,France,Greece and Russia.For individual performances;David Villa of Spain,Zlatan Ibrahimovic of Sweden,Edwin van der Sar of Holland,Wesley Sneijder of Holland,Lukas Poldosky of Germany and Petr Cech of the Czech Republic have so far played real well.

Arriving Home

I arrived Douala International Airport at about 4pm local time.Just flying into the city,everything looks totally different.The view from the plane showed a city that is built without much planning at all.I arrived the Airport and it looked totally different from the one that I had left behind about 20 years ago.After seeing what real Airports look like, the one here in Douala was like an Airstrip.Checking my luggage out of the Airport was no problem at all.You had to go to Airport security to get your passport stamped and that was done with no complications.I did some money exchange at one of the airport counters.I exchanged a one hundred dollar bill and got 50,000francs in Cameroonian currency(CFA),is what it is called.I had Ebenezar,one of my twin junior brother and Agi,my elder sister waiting for me.EB as Ebenezar is called was inside the Airport while Agi was outside.I greeted Eb and he help take my things to the car that Agi had gotten to take me home.The ride from the Airport was quick.The first thing you notice once you start hitting the city is the number of motorbikes that you see in the city.The place was full of bikes.I talk to EB and he said with the economic hardship that had hit the country,motorbikes have become a major source of transportation.There are no jobs around so people had to get creative.On our way home,we stop by a patisserie and Agi bought some mineral water and some bread for me to take home.The ride at the Tiko-Douala road was quite exciting.Agi's friend was almost flying with his car.We reached Tiko safely though.Some of the places I could still recognise.The round-about at Likomba was still there.It had not changed much.I passed by Upper-Cu stains school,Girl's School,Christ the King College.With the exception of Christ the King College the rest of the places look much smaller.I looked at Clerk's quarter where I lived for about ten years and the place was still the same.This is something that you noticed in most third world countries.Some things do not change at all.You can be gone for about a quarter of a century and you come back and places are still the same as you left them.Close to Clerk's quarters there is a guy called Elias.He had a place that he used to sow clothes before I left Cameroon in 1985.Guess what,he was still sowing dresses in the same location.He had changed a bit over the years but his store location was still there.Airport hotel,a night club that we frequented in our youth was still around.The place has been around since the 70s.Remarkable,the club does not function anymore but the hotel still does.You can go there and rent a room to spent the night.Arriving at the house in "New Layout"Tiko,there were people who had heard that I was coming and had come to greet me.My Dad was there,he had recently returned from the village.My mom was around.She is in charge of the house in Tiko.The house looked decent.Large parlor and four bedrooms.There was a flush toilet thought the guy who did the job installed it poorly.It does not flush well,so you have to carry water in a bucket to complete the job when you go to the toilet.There is a bathroom where you can take a shower.The shower works well,though in order to save on the water bill,my parents used water coming from a well.There is a well right in front of the house.I was told that it cost about 50,000FCFA to get a good one dug.Christy Namage was there to greet me.My uncle from Buea,Doctor Egbewatt came later on with his wife and children to greet me.A lot of the people that came,I did not recognised them at all.I have been gone for so long.Our house also has an outdoor toilet and an outdoor section,what is normally referred to as a "boys"quarter.This section had two bedrooms, a spare room in which a deep freezer and a gas cooker were stored and a kitchen area that you could cook using firewood.The room that I was going to be sleeping in was EB's.He gave it up to me when I arrived.Amongst the visitors of the first day was Mr Napoleon and his wife.She looked real youthful.A lot of my mom's friends also came to greet me.There was lots of foodstuffs that had been prepared.Drinks were bought and everybody that came enjoyed themselves.When I arrived Cameroon is was around June the 25th.This is traditionally the raining season and there was a lot of rain falling especially at night.After all I had been through before arriving Cameroon,I slept a lot at night.I am not a good sleeper in the afternoon.I avoid sleeping in the afternoons because when I do,it becomes difficult for me to sleep at night.A lot of people were surprised to see me come back to Cameroon.They kept wanting to know when I will be going back.I told them that I was here to stay.I guess after a while you begin to see why.Most people here are looking for a way to get out of the country.It is very difficult because of the financial situation that is around here.Money is really had to come by.So for the moment,Tiko was were I was going to be based for some time.My plans were to look for work later,but for the moment I needed to clear my mind and reflect on what direction my life will be taking.A number of old friends came to visit later.Ashu Arrey came,Eno Arrey,Ernest Takor and Angel Emmanuel.My aunt from Buea,we all refer to her as Mrs Besong came about three days later with her driver.The first few days after my return,I spend just around the Tiko area looking at places that I have not seen for such a long time.I went to Tiko market and looked at the place that I had spend so much time in my youth.My mom had a store there in her days as a seamstress.A went to see the Airstrip at the Likomba round-about.The place had a few planes that are being used by CDC(Cameroon Development Corporation) to spray fertilisers on their banana plantations.I walked the length of the airstrip,thinking that if there happened to be a war this place could still be of some use.The place was guarded by a few military people who did not bother me once I told them that I was just going for a stroll.I remember former President of Cameroon,Ahmadou Ahidjo's plane use to land and takeoff from this Airstrip.That was when I attended Primary school in Ndongo,Tiko.All the schools from the Tiko vicinity will go and line up patiently waiting for the arrival of the President.I went down to the Rubber factory,the place still stinks.The Senior Service quarters was just around the corner.I went there.I also went to where the main hospital,government general hospital is.The bridge there needs some major work to be done.I visited some of the wards in the hospital.I remember my dad had been hospitalised in one of the wards before.Also when Angel Emmanuel had an accident with his father's motorbike he was hospitalised in one of the wards.I just used to get up in the morning and take a walk around town.I went down beach.You could still see canoes and fishermen ready to travel to neighbouring villages.I remember the first time that I saw the sea,it was at this area.There was so much water,it was just awesome seeing much water in one area.Dad at one time was transferred to one of the villages in the creeks to teach.We could not go with him for obvious reasons.We use to come and wait for him each Saturday as he came home for the weekend.It was quiet an experience for everybody.Within about a week,I had to make a national identity card.I used a passport and an old birth certificate that I always keep with my belongings.I went to one of the court houses to get a proof of nationality done.The court house I remember because while at secondary school,during the holidays we will go listen to court cases.The processing of the proof of Cameroonian nationality took some time,so I spend the time listening to current court sessions,reminiscent of the past.After that the police station took care of the rest.You are given a temporary card as proof that a national identity if being processed for you.In about 2 to 3 months you come for the real thing.Total cost is less then 8 dollars.(about 5,000francs CFA).The reason I had to make a national identity card was that during my travels to Likomba or Mutengene,I got stopped a couple of times and my passport was not sufficient identity.I was not harassed but I was advised to get a national identity card as soon as possible.I was curious to go see some places out of town.Buea was the first place that I visited.I actually stopped at "Lycee Molyko"where I had attended secondary school.Though the place had change, a lot of the infrastructures from the past were still intact.I went to the soccer field where we had some great memories.There is a tall towel at the side of the soccer field,it is still there.Inside the towel you could climb the stairs and go as far up as possible.I recognised some of the names that had been written on the walls.Students from the past,both junior and senior students as well as some classmates.The road leading to Molyko had been tarred.The problem was travelling from Mutengene to mile 17.From the time that I arrived Cameroon in June 2005,the road has been fixed.You can have a smooth ride from Tiko to Buea with no problem.The road is now tarred up to Muea.Construction work has started for the stretch from Muea to Kumba to be tarred also.The next town that I visited was Limbe,a town located along the Atlantic coast of West Africa.Limbe has changed quite a bit.The town is noted for its oil refinery factory(SONARA)which is located at the coastline of the Atlantic ocean.The roads were now all tarred.The oil revenue saw to that.The town is also booming with activities all day long as young men try to make a buck transporting people around in motorbikes.Limbe has a couple of nice beaches.There is one in mile six that I went to back in December 2005.I hear that it is being renovated at this time.There is another, located at mile 11(Seme beach).It is the more popular of the two and you would see a lot of people there from the Limbe and Douala area especially during the weekends.The Seme beach is a natural beach with dark earth and you could get good hotel accommodation also in the place.

Italy,Euro 2008

Italy begins its Euro 2008 campaign in the Stade de Suisse,Berne-Switzerland on the 9 of June 2008, against the Netherlands.They will later on take on the Republic of Romania, on the 13 and play their last group stage match on June 17 against France in Zurich,Letzigrund stadium.Group C, in which the "Azzurri"have been drawn is widely considered as the "group of death".Cameroon, with their "Indomitable Lions", are not part of the European union and therefore can not take part in the European Championship.I will therefore adopt the Italian national team and assume Italian citizenship throughout Euro 2008.I had adopted European nationalities in past tournaments such as Dutch nationality during Euro 1988 and French Nationality during Euro 2000.The Italians, were last champions of Europe in 1968 when they defeated then Yugoslavia after a replay of the final by a score of 2 goals to zero.The Italians came close to lifting the trophy, a couple of times since then, finishing in third place in 1980,and losing a heartbreaker in the 2000 finals to the French.Italy's trademark is its defense, which is usually stifling, keeping them in just about every soccer match that they play in.They also have a tradition of good goalkeepers, starting with the legendary Dino Zoff, Walter Zenga,Francesco Toldo and current keeper Gianluigi Buffon.Italy's current coach is former AC Milan and Italian midfield international Roberto Donadoni.The following players make up the official list of 23 announced on Wednesday the 28 of May by coach Roberto Donadoni to represent Italy in Euro 2008.Goalkeepers:Gianluigi Buffon(Juventus),Marco Amelia(Livorno),Morgan De Sanctis(Sevilla)
Defenders:Fabio Cannavaro(Real Madrid),Marco Materazzi(Inter Milan),Christian Panucci(As Roma),Andrea Barzagli(Palermo)Gianluca Zambrotta(Barcelona),Giorgio Chiellini(Juventus),Fabio Grosso(Lyon)
Midfielders:Andrea Pirlo(AC Milan),Gennaro Gattuso(AC Milan),Massimo Ambrosini(AC Milan),Daniele De Rossi(AS Roma),Simone Perrotta(AS Roma),Alberto Aquilani(AS Roma),Mauro Camoranesi(Juventus)
Forwards:Luca Toni(Bayern Munich),Alessandro Del Piero(Juventus),Antonio Di Natale(Udinese),Marco Borriello(Genoa),Fabio Quagliarella(Udinese),Antonio Cassano(Sampdoria,on loan from Real Madrid).
The bad news coming out of Modling,Austria where the Azzurri had their first training session was that Captain Fabio Cannavaro has been lost for the Euro following a rupture in his left ankle that occured during the team's first training session on Monday the 2 of June.Coach Donadoni has called up Florentina's defender Alessandro Gamberini as his replacement.Gamberini has had just two previous caps but enjoyed a consistent season during which he appeared 40 times in Serie A and UEFA cup competition for his side.With skipper Fabio Cannavaro out with an injury,Gianluigi Buffon will captain the "Azzurri"during their opening match against Romania on Monday.This information was confirmed on Sunday the 8 by the goalkeeper himself who said"Yes,I will be the captain".Holland 3 Italy 0,Monday 9 of June 2008.Bad news yesterday for my adopted country.The Dutch really handed it to us.Traditionally strong in the defense,it is had to believe that we conceded three goals,our worst ever defeat at the Euro.When you get beat by three goals to zero there is a lot of blame to go around.Starting with the coach,he just signed a new two year contract.If the "Azzurri"continue to play like they did yesterday Coach Donadoni will be gone by the end of this competition.Picked as one of the favorites to lift the trophy come June 29th,the Italians will now have to fight real hard to make it out of the group stages.The whole team played poorly,goalkeeper,defense,midfield and forwards.The Dutch were the team that was filled with injured players.The coach has to strengthened the defense.If you do not concede any goals you at least come out with a draw.The Dutch got on the attack from the word go and got their opening goal from Ruud van Nistelrooy in the 26 minutes of play.After the goal it was an uphill struggle for the Italians as they try to get an equaliser.The next goal for the Dutch came in the 31st minutes from a counter attack that resulted in a goal from the man of the match,Wesley Sneijder.That is the problem with trying to play from behind.As you move forward to get an equaliser,your defense it exposed.The last goal for the Dutch came at the 79 minute from Giovanni van Bronckhorst to complete the rout.All the talk about the Dutch not being able to beat the Italians in thirty years or so went completely down the drain.Was it over confidence?It is now back to the drawing board as the Italians try to fight their way back into this competition.The following players lined up for the Italians .Goalkeeper:Gianluigi Buffon,Defenders:Christian Panucci,Marco Materrazzi(Fabio Grosso)54',Gianluca Zambrotta,Midfielders:Andrea Pirlo,Daniele De Rossi, Gennaro Gattuso,Massimo Ambrosini,Forwards:Luca Toni,Antonio Di Natale(Alessandro Del Piero)64',Mauro Camoranesi(Antonio Cassano)75'.On Thursday the 12 of June 2008 Coach Donadoni announced that there will be some line-up changes, the first being giving Alessandro Del Piero a place in the starting 11 for the game on Friday against Romania. This will be Del Piero's first start for the "Azzurri" since last September when he was dropped from the squad following a poor showing against France. With 87 caps already under his belt, he will also captain the match against Romania.Defender Giorgio Chiellini is also expected to be start in a line up that could see up to five changes,said the coach.There is talk also of a change in formation, going from the 4-3-3 to say a 4-3-1-2(Luca Toni and Alessandro Del Piero being the two inside forwards. A lot of pressure here and Coach Roberto Donadoni will surely resign his position as head coach if the Azzurri were to lose the game against Romania.A 1-1 tie against Romania on Friday the 13 of June really deems our chances of qualifying for the next round of the competition.There was enough controversy in the game itself as a late first half goal by Luca Toni was disallowed for offside and the referee awarded a controversial penalty to Romania which fortunately for us was stopped by Buffon.With one point out of a possible six after two matches played, we are really in trouble.We have to beat France and hope that Holland beat or tie Romania for us to qualify.Changes were made in the line up as coach Donadoni had promised but we did not get the victory.We came real close to elimination,but were saved by Andrian Mutu's late miss from the penalty spot.Traditionally the Italians are slow starters in major competitions(take the 1982 World cup for example)They made it through to the second round on goals scored following three draws and went on to win the competition.So if we can get out of the group stages I believe that we will be okay.The shock defeat against Holland was the real blow and it is difficult at times to come out of a defeat like that.For the game against Romania the Azzurri lined up the following players;Goalkeeper:Gianluigi Buffon,Defenders:Christian Panucci,Giorgio Chiellini,Fabio Grosso,Gianluca Zambrotta,Midfielders:Andrea Pirlo,Daniele De Rossi,Simone Perrotta(Antonio Cassano)57',Mauro Camoranesi(Massimo Ambrosini)85',Forwards:Alessandro Del Piero(Fabio Quagliarella)77',Luca Toni.Tuesday the 17 of June 2008,Italy defeats France by 2 goals to 0.A goal by Andrea Pirlo in the 25 minute of play from the penalty spot got the Azzurri going.Luca Toni was brought down deep into the penalty area by French defender Eric Abidal who was sent off and the referee awaided a penalty.The second goal came from man of the match Daniele De Rossi(in the 62 minute) from a free kick that deflected off the leg of Thierry Henry into the net for a two goal to nil victory for the Italians.The Italians move on to face their Iberian counterpart Spain on Sunday.Gettuso Gennaro and Andrea Pirlo each picked up a second yellow card and will both be suspended for the quaterfinal encounter.The Italians lined up the following players for the match;Goalkeeper:Gianluigi Buffon,Defenders:Christian Panucci,Fabio Grosso,Giorgio Chiellini,Gianluca Zambrotta,Midfielders:Andrea Pirlo(Massimo Ambrosini)55',Daniele De Rossi,Simone Perrotta(Mauro Camoranesi)64',Gennaro Gattuso(Alberto Aquilani)82',Forwards:Antonia Cassano,Luca Toni.Andrea Barzagli will miss the rest of the Euro after picking up a knee injury during training on Thursday.Further checks reveal a tear in the meniscus of the left knee and he will undergo an operation in a few days.Since the team is in the middle of the competition,he can not be replaced.He will be undergoing an operation according to information from the Italian Football Federation.Italy are home thanks to penalty shoot-out misses from Daniele De Rossi and Antonio Di Natale.A tense quarterfinal contest against Spain ended in a 0-0 tie after 120 minutes of play.The Italians were provided with a lifeline when Holland beat Romania and thus allowed them to get into the knockout stages of the competition with only 4 out of a possible 9 points.The failed to capitalise on their new lease to life though as Spain clearly had the upperhand thoughout the encounter.But the Italians defended very well and took the game into extra-time and eventually into penalty shoot-out.Gianluigi Buffon stopped Daniel Guiza's spot kick,but Spain converted on 4 others.Spain's Casillas was the hero for his side as he saved penalty kicks from Daniele De Rossi and Antonio Di Natale.The Italians now have to set their sight on qualifications for South Africa 2010.The Azzurri line up the following players for the quarterfinal encounter against Spain.Goalkeeper:Gianluigi Buffon,Defenders:Christina Panucci,Giorgio Chiellini,Fabio Grosso,Gianluca Zambrotta,Midfielders:Massimo Ambrosini,Daniele De Rossi,Simone Perrotta(Mauro Camoranesi)58',Alberto Aquilani(Alessandro Del Piero)18x,Forwards:Luca Toni,Antonio Cassano(Antonio Di Natale)75'.If the Italians have to look back on what went wrong in the competition,look no further than their forward line that did not produce a single goal thoughout the competition.