By Eratus Ndueh The Minister of Communication, and spokesperson of the government, Rene Emmanuel Sadi has denied any claims on an outing that has been making waves on social media, where he is alleged to have warned Cameroonians against the use of the question 'What was there before' translated in French 'il y'avait quoi avant', or faces charges of hostility to fatherland and insult to institutions, coupled with the propagation of false news. According to a communiqué released on March 16, a director at the Ministry debunked the information, saying that 'It aims to sow confusion among public opinion.' He added that 'information which comes from the Ministry of Communication is always well organized and disseminated through official communication channels.' Also, the Minister of Communication, while condemning what he described as an unprofessional approach whose target is to harm his person and the values of the journalism profession, called for strick respect for ethics and deontology of the profession by media professionals, in the processing of information before sharing. The innocuous question 'il y'avait quoi avant' was pronounced in Maroua in the Far North of Cameroon by the Minister of Housing and Urban Development Célestine Ketcha Courtes on a working visit, where she questioned the population about what existed before Biya, who has been in power for 41 years. She insinuated that before Paul Biya, Maroua had no roads that anyone could boast about. Source: Cameroon News Agency Dr Donald Agumenu, a leadership and management expert, has described the internet blackout experienced in parts of the African continent as 'suspicious threat to its trade and democracy'. He said it was unfortunate that major trading blocs in Africa were hit by the cyber storm, disrupting trading activities. Dr Agumenu said it was also worrying that it occurred when some of those countries were seriously preparing for elections. He said the excuse for an undersea cable disruption should not be taken lightly, saying, there were more to it from a geo-cyberpolitical perspective that needed to be explored to its logical conclusion. 'Africa may experience a more complex internet and cyber warfare if the techno-revolutionary narrative remains the same. What is more worrying is the level of vulnerability it brings to a continent with over half a billion people online.' 'We need to wake up to the fact that the era of ICT and digital transformation has ushered in a new community with its own complexities and that we need to manage this paradigm shift with the utmost care to stay afloat in global affairs,' he cautioned. In a news brief, Dr Agumenu said the continent may experience a more complex internet and cyber warfare if its techno-revolutionary narrative remained the same. He said any continent or country that did not have absolute control over its cyber and internet architecture was exposed to serious security threats with devastating consequences. 'Our independence will be meaningless if our cyber security is controlled by others. This affects not only public and private business but also our dignity and privacy as a people,' he added. Dr Agumenu said as Ghana prepared for a historic election in less than a year, the issue must be given top priority to protect the sovereign will of the people and deepen its democracy. He stressed that innovations should be prioritised along with transparency to track free and fair elections, especially at a time when widespread unstable power supply was imminent. Source: Ghana News Agency