The National Communication Council (NCC) has dismissed multiple defamation complaints filed by opposition leader Prof. Maurice Kamto against several media outlets that alleged his association with the diaspora-based “Brigade Anti-Sardinards” (BAS) movement.
The NCC, Cameroon’s media regulatory authority, reviewed cases involving publications by News Watch, The Reporter, Le Soir Hebdo, Génération Libre, Le Quotidien, Réalités Plus, and Le Pélican. These outlets had reported on purported links between Prof. Kamto, leader of the Cameroon Renaissance Movement (MRC), and violent incidents attributed to the BAS movement in Belgium.
In its findings, the NCC noted that News Watch and The Reporter exercised caution and maintained professional distance in their reporting, leading to the dismissal of complaints against them. Regarding Le Soir Hebdo, the council found that the specific issue cited did not contain the alleged defamatory content, resulting in another dismissal.
For Génération Libre, L’Expression, Le Quotidien, Réalités Plus, and Le Pélican, the NCC acknowledged that the accusations bordered on defamation. However, it declared itself incompetent to adjudicate defamation cases under Article 305 of the Penal Code, which falls outside its jurisdiction.
In a separate decision, the NCC suspended Ernest Obama, host of “Le Club” on Bnews1, for one month due to failure to moderate a talk show during which insinuating remarks were made about the President of the Republic.
Additionally, journalists Ngono Ulrich and Kameni Hubert Michel of Equinoxe Television received warnings for broadcasting a report containing unfounded allegations concerning the dismissal of Mokolo Mayor Vohod Deguime.