Editorial

Southern Cameroons is on an Indefinite Strike against Colonial “La Republique” until Self-Rule is Restored

2, January 2017

Southern Cameroons is on an Indefinite Strike against Colonial “La Republique” until Self-Rule is Restored 0

Most presidential speeches are unpredictable. Not so with speeches by Paul Biya, the President of “La Republique du Cameroun”. Last Saturday was the president’s 35th end-of-year address and it proved, anew, that Mr. Biya’s newest problem is an old one. His every outing is stubbornly true to form and style. Boring. Predictable. Fact free. Power drunk. Sickening. Removed from reality. Overloaded with empty promises. Full of spin and half truths… Even outright lies.

Those, including some members of the Movement for the Restoration of the Independence of Southern Cameroons (MoRISC), who had hoped that Mr. Biya could use the speech to demonstrate that he is, indeed, the president of the two Cameroons say they were stunned by it. Mr. Biya could have been speaking to the inhabitants of Mars as an actor in some “Alice in Wonderland” movie; oblivious of any reality. With so much at stake, Mr. Biya blew another golden opportunity to make history… to be presidential.

The speech came on the heels of the most violent and tragic government crackdown of peaceful street protests by Southern Cameroonians. Like Pharaoh in Egypt, Mr. Biya sounded God has “hardened his heart”. The time devoted to this issue very early in the speech, betrayed how much the regime has been rattled by ongoing strikes by lawyers and teachers as well as by the wave of street protests across the world and campaigns involving the Diaspora calling, among others, for the restoration of self-rule for Southern Cameroons.

It would have been laughable were it not so tragic. The same Mr. Biya who, by presidential fiat destroyed the “Union of the Cameroons” in February 1984 when he unilaterally reverted to the name of “La Republique du Cameroun”, claimed that he is walking in the footsteps of the founding fathers. Ahmadou Ahidjo, Um Nyobe, Ernest Ouandie, John Ngu Foncha, E. M. L. Endeley and Augustine Ngom Jua must be turning in their graves. The “best pupil” of a certain French president would “eat the earth” (swear) that imposing the worst form of colonial rule on Southern Cameroons creates a “ONE and INDIVISIBLE” country than the two-state federation set up by the founders. Not true!

What is true is the following: only divided families and countries afflicted with divisions would find the need to issue loud sounding declarations about being “ONE and INDIVISIBLE”. Gabon is not proclaiming that it is “ONE and INDIVISIBLE”. Mr. Biya found it important to do so twice in the same speech. Very telling of the gravity of the profound divisions that he knows must exist yet must pretend they don’t exist. A believer in the “argument of force”, the abusive spouse (“La Republique du Cameroun”) in the “union of the Cameroons” wants divorce denied simply because the couple is “ONE and INDIVISIBLE”.

After disseminating a December 15, 2016 “Diplomatic Note” in which it distorts facts and tells outright lies about the events unfolding across Southern Cameroons, Mr. Biya claims in the speech to be “deeply concerned” by these events. A power hungry regime whose secret motto must be “in Machiavelli we trust” slams “The Coffin Revolution” as “a group of manipulated and exploited extremist rioters”. Amazing, right?

Like every abusive spouse, Mr. Biya misidentifies and belittles the problems of the couple. He dismisses the problems raised by the abused spouse as unimportant compared to other ideals and values of the marriage: the sanctity of the matrimonial bed (such as the flag and Constitution) or what Mr. Biya calls the very “foundations of our togetherness”. The president argues that the couple is still “standing on its feet”; that the abused spouse seeking divorce “can rightfully opine on any aspect of national life, including through duly declared peaceful strike action”.

Did anyone warn the regime to be careful what it wishes for? Too late now! MoRISC has already evoked this “inalienable” right… the “fundamental civil right… enshrined in the Constitution” to declare (see our Roadmap at www.morisc.org/roadmap) that Southern Cameroonians, with effect from this first day of January 2017, have “duly declared” an indefinite “peaceful strike” against the colonial “La Republique du Cameroun” until self-rule is restored to the former British Southern Cameroons.

Threat of divorce has a way of reminding abusive spouses of the need to woo their partners as before, charming them with care, love, gifts and flowers. Our first love (Ahidjo) wooed Southern Cameroons on the constitutional promise not to violate the sanctity of the federation of two equal states. In the hope of convincing the abused spouse to stay on in the union, Mr. Biya offered a bribe. He wishes to “personally supervise” (?) the building of a dam on the Menchum River, not far from the site of another project (The Ring Road) whose construction he also pledged to supervised only months into his now 35-year reign. The big problem with telling lies is that the teller has to remember them.

The regime reminds the abused spouse that the “marriage certificate” was based not just on democracy – pure and simple – but “in the model of democracy which I (the abusive spouse) have proposed”. Go figure what this “model of democracy” means! Is it about upholding only those parts of the Constitution that serve the dictatorship? Why has Mr. Biya’s regime not implement the current Constitution, 20 years since it was adopted in 1996? “La Republique du Cameroun” has notably failed to hold a dialogue envisaged in the hope of saving the union of the Cameroons under a 2009 ruling by a court accredited to the African Union. The regime is so abusive it won’t even abide by the court orders to hold a dialogue with the abused spouse within 180 days.

Mr. Biya lacks credibility to point an accusing finger at Southern Cameroonians. Why is it okay for the president to resurrect “La Republique” dead and buried on 1 October 1961 and not okay for the spouse to raise from the death Southern Cameroons? Truth be told. President Biya – not Southern Cameroonians – is the hostage of a few, manipulated regime and party extremists. Their only job over the past 35 years has consisted of shielding the “absentee tenant of Etoudi Palace” from coming face-to-face with the ugly reality of misery, poverty, hopelessness and despair that nearly four decades of his misrule has visited on the peoples of the Cameroons. The extremists include Prof. Fame Ndongo, who has never stopped undermining the Anglo-Saxon system of education. Extremists like Paul Atanga Nji who deny the existence of any problem. Extremists and “agents provocateurs” like Premier Yang, who descended on Buea and Bamenda, looking for a crowd to rent to “Dimabola” for the regime. The extremists include those who violated students, “disappeared” and killed demonstrators. Extremists like those who chased leaders of teachers’ and lawyers’ trade unions in the closing days of 2016 in the hope of signing a deal lifting their strikes. Unable to reach a deal, the regime’s extremists simply “cooked” one up.

What else could it be called but playing desperado? Plain. Simple. Mr. Biya was defiant, warning no doubt that his regime will not retreat into a hole. However, the regime dropped a heavy hint that it could be waving the white flag. At his discretion, Mr. Biya says he may convene discussions on the same problems extremists within claim do not exist.

The dust in Southern Cameroons won’t settle until a deal is reached. Southern Cameroonians are only getting started. They won’t stop mobilizing until they win self-rule. The regime can work for a bargain or it can play ostrich, hiding behind empty slogans like “ONE and INDIVISIBLE”. History is full of the story of countries that once claimed exactly the same bull yet could not prevent the birth of new nations. The people of Southern Cameroons are a different people from those of “La Republique du Cameroun”. They have a right to self-determination that cannot be denied by Yaounde. The march to freedom and self-rule can’t be stopped. Certainly, “La Republique du Cameroun” is “ONE and INDIVISIBLE”. But so, too, Southern Cameroons is “ONE and INDIVISIBLE”.

By Boh Herbert

Biya speaks to the nation

31, December 2016

Biya speaks to the nation 0

Fellow Cameroonians,

My Dear Compatriots,

The year 2016 which is drawing to an end was marked by many events of great significance for our nation. This year we got off to a good start. Donors, including the International Monetary Fund, hailed the resilience of our economy despite an unfavourable context. Our defence and security forces beat back Boko Haram and put it on the defensive. Our country resolutely embarked on a new phase of its grand project to accelerate growth and create jobs and wealth.

As the months rolled by, circumstances put this positive momentum to the test. Similarly, some social and political unrest occasionally seemed to undermine the very foundations of our togetherness; but, ultimately, we were able to hold our ground. Therefore, I would like, first and foremost, to solemnly state tonight that, more than ever before, Cameroon is standing on its feet. A country that is ONE and INDIVISIBLE, proud of its cultural diversity and jealous of its freedom. A country that is replete with talented and enterprising people. A country that is endowed with abundant resources. A country that is looking to the future with confidence and determination, resolved to meet the challenges of ensuring social progress and prosperity for all. As the year 2016 draws to a close, I must recall the unprecedented bereavement our country suffered during the Eseka railway disaster. It was a time of profound grief for the entire nation. Our people demonstrated solidarity during that tragedy. The probe I have ordered will reveal the truth. I will draw the conclusions thereon, as promised.

My dear compatriots,

I would now like to dwell on the events that have unfolded recently in the North-West and South-West Regions. Physically and emotionally, we are deeply concerned about these events. Due to the acts of a group of manipulated and exploited extremist rioters, Cameroonians have lost their lives; public and private buildings have been destroyed; the most sacred symbols of our nation have been desecrated; economic activities have been paralyzed momentarily.

You would agree with me that all of this is UNACCEPTABLE. Our country does enjoy political and trade union freedoms which are guaranteed and governed by our laws and regulations. Against this backdrop, every citizen can rightfully opine on any aspect of national life, including through duly declared peaceful strike action. This is a fundamental civil right as desired by the Cameroonian people given that it is enshrined in the Constitution. This right is inalienable in the model of democracy which I proposed to the Cameroonian people and which, TOGETHER, we have been building daily, patiently and resolutely. It is unbecoming of some people to use this context of freedom to commit acts of violence and try to undermine our country’s unity. Under such circumstances, it is the State’s bounden duty to restore order, in the name of the law and in the interest of all. To act otherwise is to jeopardize our democracy and allow anarchy to prevail over the rule of law.

I strongly condemn all acts of violence, regardless of their sources and their perpetrators. We will fully draw conclusions from the various inquiries being conducted on the matter. Let me make this very clear: it is not forbidden to voice any concerns in the Republic. However, nothing great can be achieved by using verbal excesses, street violence, and defying authority. Lasting solutions to problems can be found only through peaceful dialogue. All the voices that spoke have been heard. They have, in many cases, raised substantive issues that cannot be overlooked. I have enjoined the Government to engage in frank dialogue with the various parties concerned to find appropriate solutions to the issues raised. I urge them to participate, without any bias, in the various discussions. However, we should never forget that we are walking in the footsteps of our country’s founding fathers, our national heroes, who shed their blood to bequeath to posterity a nation that is united in its diversity. Cameroon’s unity is therefore a precious legacy with which no one should take liberties. Any claim, no matter how relevant, loses its legitimacy once it jeopardizes, even slightly, the building of national unity.

All Cameroonians, without exception, have embarked on building a united, inclusive and bilingual nation. This is a unique experience in Africa. Like any human endeavour, our experience is not perfect. There are aspects that can be improved. We should therefore listen to each other. We should remain open to constructive ideas, to the exclusion,however, of those that would affect the form of our State. Besides the bodies that I instructed the Government to set up and which are already at work, we are ready to go an extra mile. We are willing to move in the footsteps and spirit of the architects of Reunification, and put in place a national entity which will be tasked with proposing solutions aimed at maintaining peace, consolidating our country’s unity and strengthening our resolve, and our day-to-day experiences of LIVING TOGETHER. And this should be done in strict compliance with our Constitution and our Institutions.

Do I need to repeat this? CAMEROON IS ONE AND INDIVISIBLE! It shall so remain. Its wealth and strength are derived from the diversity of its people, its cultures and its languages. Such is the pluralism that has earned our country the esteem, respect and admiration it enjoys. Cameroon is a democratic country, a State governed by the rule of law. Its problems should be resolved within the ambit of the law and through dialogue. Our compatriots want to live in peace and harmony. They should not be disturbed! That is also why our country is engaged in the war against Boko Haram.

In this regard, I can safely say that in 2016, this terrorist group was driven to the wall. There seems to be hope that this shady terrorist group may not recover from the setbacks it has suffered. However, there is a need to remain vigilant; the possibility of isolated suicide attacks, like that of 25 December last, cannot be ruled out. Credit for this positive development goes to our national defence and security forces, the Joint Multinational Task Force and cooperation with the Nigerian authorities. We should also commend the support given us by our international partners to whom I extend my thanks.

Also, I should mention the key role of vigilante committees which, thanks to their courage and devotedness, were, on many occasions, able to foil planned attacks. I must once again commend the Cameroonian people for their steadfast patriotism during these difficult times.

Yes, ordeals help forge national unity.

We must now ramp up internal security, reconstruct, organize the return of displaced persons, and revive the local economy. In short, bring back life and tranquillity to the affected areas. To that end, the State will do its utmost, while counting on the dynamism of the people and support from development partners. Despite the burden of security spending, the Government has not relented in its effort to promote our economic growth. Many of our major first-generation projects such as the Kribi Port, the Lom Pangar Dam and the Memve’ele and Mekin power plants are virtually operational or about to be commissioned. To bridge the energy gap and end load shedding, other major projects such as the Bini à Warak, Menchum, Song Dong and Nachtigal power plants will supplement this programme. Our power transmission and management problems will be resolved with the establishment of the National Electricity Transmission Corporation.

The development of our road network is also progressing. An extensive road construction or rehabilitation programme is ongoing nationwide. I will mention only the most notable of them, such as the Yaounde-Douala and Nsimalen-Yaounde motorways where work is going on normally, but also the east or west entryways to Douala and the second bridge over the Wouri. In the longer term, there are plans to create an inter-regional road and rail network to ease access to our mineral deposits and stimulate trade with neighbouring countries. Cameroon lies at the crossroads of two major economic blocks, namely West and Central Africa. Why therefore should it not seek to become the hub it is geographically predisposed to be?

The main objective of boosting our energy capacity and extending our road network is to create the best conditions for our country’s industrialization. This is our major challenge for the coming decades. It will also confirm the positive employment trends observed in recent years. For instance, as at October 2016, 320 000 new jobs were recorded, representing an increase of nearly 20% compared with the previous financial year. Given the overall gloomy economic situation, this performance is commendable.

However, we should do better. To that end, we must improve the management of all the economies of our sub-region. That is why I deemed it necessary to convene a meeting of all CEMAC Heads of State in Yaounde recently. This meeting enabled us to take measures to revive growth in our zone, while accelerating the integration of our economies and the free movement of goods and people. Cameroon will fulfil its duty to that end.

In keeping with our ambition of achieving emergence by 2035, we are relentlessly working to increase our agricultural production, ensure the industrial processing of our raw materials and expand the digital economy. The 2017 State budget truly reflects this resolve to increase momentum on these highly strategic sectors.

My dear compatriots,

There are many ongoing projects designed to promote social progress and prosperity in our country. Our assets are known to all. However, we are still having difficulty unlocking our potential. It was in a bid to reflect on such difficulty that in May 2016, I initiated the International Economic Conference on the theme “Investing in Cameroon: Land of Opportunities”. Besides important business meetings held during the conference, this unique initiative which was hailed by our development partners, enabled us to share extremely valuable experiences on the path to economic emergence. In this interconnected world, we sought, in all simplicity, to get others’ views on our capacity to access the global economy. The harvest has been bountiful in terms of the principles of the actions adopted to improve the business climate in Cameroon. This will be reflected in our institutions in the near future. I have already expressed my view on this issue on many occasions: our progress is constrained by various forms of resistance or inertia. We should remove such obstacles and create a sound and attractive business environment that accelerates progress in our country by aligning with the appropriate global dynamics. Responsibility here lies with the government. I will see to it resolutely. Though I believe that the State should play the role of regulator and facilitator, and even investor in some specific domains, I also believe that the private sector should invest wherever there are opportunities. At a time when diversification is a veritable lifeline for CEMAC economies, our investors should, for instance, take advantage of the opportunities offered by regional integration or various economic partnership agreements to which Cameroon is a signatory. I am therefore appealing to the creators of our wealth to fully play their role in stimulating our economic growth in everyone’s interest. The Cameroonian people who are beginning to reap the benefits of the sacrifices made over the years do not wish to return to austerity. I see with them. This requires us all to put our hands on deck in perfect patriotic fervour, like our heroic Indomitable Lionesses.

For many years they gave their all without seeking vain and early glories; they demonstrated hard work, resolve, talent, and bravery; they won hearts through the quality of their performance in the game; they appealed through their moral quality and the ethics of the game which earned them the fair play trophy; they reflected Cameroon’s great diversity as they defended the national colours; and though they did not win the coveted trophy of the 2016 women AFCON, they brought joy and pride to an entire nation.

Such an excellent demonstration of patriotic fervour is an appeal to everyone, each in his or her specific sphere, to defend Cameroon’s future everywhere, in an exemplary manner.

My dear compatriots,

Before concluding, I would like to invite you to spare a thought for our soldiers and civilians who fell while defending our fatherland in 2016, as well as for the victims of the recent Eseka railway disaster. I would now like to express the wish, for our nation, that the year 2017 would abound with the fruits of peace and harmony, progress and economic prosperity for everyone.

Happy and Prosperous New Year 2017

Long Live Cameroon

Prof. GHOGOMU Paul MINGO: Statement by the Judas Iscariot after the failed Bamenda meeting

29, December 2016

Prof. GHOGOMU Paul MINGO: Statement by the Judas Iscariot after the failed Bamenda meeting 3

After deliberations, the Francophone surrogate passing for a chairman of the Adhoc Interministerial Committee made public this communique;

1-    The Ad hoc Committee wished to work with all members. However, based on claims which have nothing to do with education, trade unions and other associations left the hall. Only representatives of confessional private education and private higher education displayed a sense of good faith to contribute to the working session.

2-     The three ministers of basic, secondary and higher education presented Government efforts towards the English-speaking subsystem of education and its willingness to continue dialogue. I will cite, amongst others, the on-going census of secondary school teachers to redeploy them to fill the gap observed in the English-speaking subsystem of education. It is also the same for the draft Order to set the duration of studies and naming the certificates obtained in technical education of the English-speaking subsystem of education. I also wish to mention the holding of the National Forum on Education in 2017, which brings lots of hope for the education community as a whole and the English subsystem in particular.

3-    I wish to congratulate all participants who had a sense of efficiency and patriotism.

4-     Within the framework of its sovereign missions, the State will continue towards dialogue and concertation with all stakeholders to achieve realistic and progressive results to technical concerns of one sub-system of education or the other (English-speaking subsystem, French sub-system).

5-     Both sub-systems are bound to coexist in Cameroon, each in its specificity and originality without anyone trying to absorb the other.

6-    With regard to extremist trade unionists who publicly refused to be part of this working session for reasons that have nothing to do with the education of young Cameroonians, Government will take its responsibility.

7-    The State shall not allow individuals who do not show proof of good faith to take pupils, students, parents, Civil Society Organizations hostage; they who have just one wish: That the English-speaking sub-system of education  should function effectively in the interest of our nursery, primary, secondary and university youth of the English-speaking subsystem, who are an integral part of the national educational system.

8-    The Adhoc committee shall continue to work with people who display good faith to preserve the specificity, the originality and the radiance of the English-speaking subsystem of education in a Cameroon that is united in diversity.

9-     The Adhoc Committee is determined to find efficient solutions to genuine problems in the English-speaking subsystem of education, in accordance with the laws and regulations of the Republic.

10-    I wish to inform you that we have met with students, teachers in their large majority, parents and all people of good will. They are against this manipulation of trade unions, and will want schools to start as soon as possible. That is the Government’s stand point. Let us not jeopardize our children’s future.

11-    We call on all men and women, Cameroonians of good will to do all so that classes resume early January in all parts of the North West and South West Regions. The Government will take her responsibility. Cameroonian children in the North West and South West regions must be educated as their brothers and sisters in the other eight regions.

Southern Cameroons: Anglophone Bishops write to President Biya

29, December 2016

Southern Cameroons: Anglophone Bishops write to President Biya 3

*BAMENDA PROVINCIAL EPISCOPAL CONFERENCE [BAPEC] ON THE SOUTHERN CAMEROONIAN ISSUES*

THE SECRETARIAT

ARCHBISHOP’S HOUSE

P.O. BOX 82, BAMENDA

NORTH WEST REGION

C A M E R O O N

BAPEC/PRES/2016/30

22 December 2016

*MEMORANDUM PRESENTED TO THE HEAD OF STATE, HIS EXCELLENCY PRESIDENT PAUL BIYA, BY THE BISHOPS OF THE ECCLESIASTICAL PROVINCE OF BAMENDA ON THE CURRENT SITUATION OF UNREST IN THE NORTHWEST AND SOUTHWEST REGIONS OF CAMEROON*

Your Excellency,

For almost one month now there has been a series of unrests and violence in some towns of the Northwest and Southwest Regions(1) of Cameroon occasioned by the strike of the Anglophone Lawyers and of the Teachers’ Trade Unions of the English Sub-system of Education. These have led to the loss of human life andto the destruction of property of some of our citizens. There have been flagrant abuses of human rights, as demonstrated by credible eyewitness accounts and by pictures on local television channels and social media. This has led to a premature end to the first term of the school year and paralysed the court system in these regions to the detriment of school children, students, parents and the administration of justice. At the moment, it seems that the government and the striking groups have reached an impasse and it is not likely that the schools are going to open even when the second term begins for the rest of the country. These unrests are symptomatic of a deeper unease among the inhabitants of this geographical circumscription of our nation.

We, the Bishops of the Ecclesiastical Province of Bamenda, which is coterminous with the Northwest and Southwest Regions, where we hold responsibility as Shepherds, cannot remain indifferent to this situation. The Church,in this season, celebrates the birth of Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace. She has as mandate to proclaim the message of peace (Luke 10:5; Matthew 5:9), and has always stood for justice and peace, and worked for the attainment of the common good of society.Because of her role and competence, the Church is not identified in any way with the political community nor bound to any political system(2). This places her in a uniquely privileged position to provide a balanced perspective on the current problem between the government of Cameroon and the population of significant segments of the Northwest and Southwest Regions of Cameroon. It is for this reason that we have presumed to seize the moment and to make the following submission, with a view to assisting the government to seek a lasting solution to this problem and enable its citizens to live in peace and harmony.

*Historical Background of the Problem*

Most of the territory known today as the Republic of Cameroon was a German protectorate from 1884. However, German Kamerun also included British Northern Cameroons, which elected to become part of Nigeria in the plebiscite of 1961. This protectorate was divided into British and French Cameroons in 1916 and confirmed, with some slight modifications, by the Milner-Simon Agreement of 10 July 1919. British Cameroons, which was comprised of Northern and Southern Cameroons, was one fifth and French Cameroun was four-fifths of the entire territory. They were Class B Mandated Territories of the League of Nationsuntil 1946 when they became United Nations Trust Territories.

British Cameroons and French Cameroun were separate legal and political entities and historians have postulated that although this partition was said to be temporary Britain and France instituted two different administrative styles and systems which were to impact on any subsequent movement towards eradicating the provisional nature of the partition and facilitating reunification.(3) After the Second World War, the United Nations (Article 76, b) explicitly called on the British and French to administer their respective spheres of Cameroon towards self-government. It called on the Administering Authorities to “promote the political, economic, social and educational advancement of the inhabitants of the Trust Territories, and theirprogressive development towards self-government or independence as may be appropriate to the particular circumstances of each territory and its peoples…”

Before the London Constitutional Conferences of 1957 and 1958, three political options had emerged in British Southern Cameroons, namely independence as a separate political entity, independence in association with Nigeria, and independence by reuniting with French Cameroun. The Mamfe Conference of August 1959, which was called to hammer out consensus among Southern Cameroonians on one of the options, did not succeed to arrive at a consensus. The three political options persisted, with the most popular being independence as a separate political entity, the next being association with Nigeria and the least popular being reunification with French Cameroun.

Paradoxically, the UN General Assembly Resolution 1352 (xiv) on the British Cameroons’ Plebiscite of 1961, clearly ruled out the separate independence of Southern Cameroons(4), the most popular of the three options. This was thanks to the British who tactfully blocked every chance of the Southern Cameroonians voting for independence as a separate entity, convincing the United Nations that Southern Cameroon was not economically viable and could only survive by leaning on Nigeria or the Republic of Cameroon, and recklessly steering the Mamfe All Party Conference of August 1959 to ensure that the parties did not achieve consensus(5). In fact, the British wanted Southern Cameroons to gain independence in association with Nigeria. Consequently, the two questions adopted for the plebiscite were:

  1. Do you wish to achieve independence by joining the independent Federation of Nigeria?

OR

  1. Do you wish to achieve independence by joining the independent Republic of Cameroun?

Southern Cameroonians were apprehensive of this move and put pressure on John Ngu Foncha to lead a delegation to London in November 1960 to include the option of independence as a separate political entity. The request was rejected. Nevertheless, according to United Nations Resolution 1541(XV) Principles VII and VIII, Southern Cameroons was qualified to achieve independence either through association or integration which “should be on the basis of complete equality between the peoples of the erstwhile Non-Self-Governing Territory and those of the independent country with which it is integrated. The peoples of both territories should have equal status and rights”. It was with this understanding that on the 11th of February 1961 British Southern Cameroons voted to join French Cameroun while British Northern Cameroons voted to join the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

The Foumban Conference of 17th- 21st July 1961 agreed broadly what the “marriage” between the two Cameroons was going to look like. The Yaoundé Tripartite Conference of 2nd-7th August 1961 put this agreement in legal form. Worthy of note here is the fact that the draft 1961 Constitution was never presented to the Southern Cameroons House of Chiefs (SCHC) and the Southern Cameroons House of Assembly(SCHA) for deliberation and approval as should have been the case. Further, it was signed by President Ahidjo on the 1stof September 1961 as President of the Republic of Cameroon when the Federal Republic of Cameroon had not yet come into existence. Be it as it may, the two territories came together in this union as a Federation of East Cameroon and West Cameroon (1961 Constitution, Article 1-1).(6)

In September 1966, all the political parties went into dissolution to form one party in the Federal Republic of Cameroon (the Cameroon National Union), giving birth to one party rule. In 1968, Honourable Solomon Tandeng Muna was appointed to replace Honourable Augustine Ngom Jua without the required Parliamentary endorsement and in contravention of the law which did not permit Muna to handle the posts of Federal Vice President and Prime Minister of the State of West Cameroon concomitantly. Southern Cameroonians saw these moves as dictatorial and undemocratic. They had come from a multi-party democratic society where free debate, alliances, consensus, and respect for the Constitution were the accepted modus operandi.

*Referendum of 20th May 1972*

While West Cameroonians were still bracing themselves for life in a political dispensation which they regarded as imposed on them by circumstances beyond their control and struggling to cope with the manoeuvres of President Ahmadou Ahidjo, he proposed a Constitution that would make the Federal Republic a unitary state, the United Republic of Cameroon. As we all know, in those days it was politically unwise and even unsafe to hold and express views different from those of the President on any issue, and so there was no public debate on the constitution. This constitution was voted on in a national referendum organized and conducted by the Cameroon National Union (CNU), by now the sole political party in the Republic. The results show that the overwhelming majority of the electors in East and West Cameroon voted in favour of a unitary state. Looking back at what happened, many Anglophone Cameroonians now believe that this was the high-water mark of Ahidjo’s deceit and manipulation of West Cameroonians, and some have linked the birth of separatist movements in Anglophone Cameroon to this referendum.

*Subsequent Constitutional Amendments*

Three years later, the Constitution was amended to include the post of Prime Minister, appointed by the President. Following another amendment in 1979 the Prime Minister would be the constitutional successor of the President of the Republic.In 1984, a constitutional amendment changed the country’s name from the United Republic of Cameroon to the Republic of Cameroon. In the eyes of West Cameroonians, Law No 84-1 of 4 February 1984, was incontrovertible evidence that the original intentions of our Francophone brothers and sisters were to absorb Southern Cameroon and not to treat with it as equals. After thirty-threeyears of union, we had all ended up as citizens of the Republic of Cameroon or East Cameroon.

*The Anglophone Problem*

It should be clear, from the brief historical sketch presented above, what the crux of the so-called Anglophone Problem is. No matter what some self-appointed elite and spokespersons for Anglophone Cameroonians as well as government Ministers say in public, the participation of various strata of the population and the growing popularity of separatist movements among young and older members of the Anglophone community demonstrates that there is an Anglophone Problem. There is a consciousness among Anglophone Cameroonians that all is not well and something needs to be done about their plight.

_What it is_

The Anglophone Problem is:

  1. The failure of successive governments of Cameroon, since 1961, to respect and implement the articles of the Constitution that uphold and safeguard what British Southern Cameroons brought along to the Union in 1961.
  2. The flagrant disregard for the Constitution, demonstrated by the dissolution of political parties and the formation of one political party in 1966, the sacking of Jua and the appointment of Muna in 1968 as the Prime Minister of West Cameroon, and other such acts judged by West Cameroonians to be unconstitutional and undemocratic

iii. The cavalier management of the 1972 Referendum which took out the foundational element (Federalism) of the 1961 Constitution.

  1. The 1984 Law amending the Constitution, which gave the country the original East Cameroon name (The Republic of Cameroon) and thereby erased the identity of the West Cameroonians from the original union. West Cameroon, which had entered the union as an equal partner, effectively ceased to exist.
  2. The deliberate and systematic erosion of the West Cameroon cultural identity which the 1961 Constitution sought to preserve and protect by providing for a bi-cultural federation.

*The Management of the Anglophone Problem*

It is our conviction that the Anglophone Problem would have been solved, or at least mitigated, if it had been well managed by those concerned. A lack of proper management seems to be what has aggravated the problem.

_The Government and Government Ministers_

It is unfortunate to note that the government of Cameroon seems to have made every attempt to downplay or even deny the existence of an Anglophone Problem. Government Ministers (even those of former West Cameroon extraction) have denied the existence of any such problem in the media and in public speeches. Furthermore, it is widely believed in Anglophone Cameroon that government has consciously created divisions among the English-speaking elite, remunerating some allies with prestigious positions in the state apparatus previously reserved for Francophones only, and repressing all actions designed to improve on the status of Anglophone Cameroonians in the union. This seems to have been proven true in the recent unrests by the utterances of government Ministers in the Press Conference on CRTV, in the dispatch of an Anglophone Elite delegation to the Northwest Region, and in the brutal suppression of protests by certain professional groups and sections of the Northwest and Southwest Regions.

_Secessionist Groups_

In the face of this denial of the existence of an Anglophone Problem by government and the consequent deafening silence from the government to the cries and protests of Anglophone Cameroonians, certain groups have emerged in Anglophone Cameroon that call for the secession of Anglophone from Francophone Cameroon. The Southern Cameroons Youth League, the Southern Cameroons National Council, and the Ambazonia Movement are some of the most strident of these groups and are currently members of the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organisation (UNPO) in The Hague.

_Federalists_

There are different forms of federalism, and federalists in Anglophone Cameroon will differ as to the specific nature of the federal state they would want. However, they are all agreed that they do require a federation which recognises and preserves the region’s peculiarity, as did the 1961 Federal Constitution.

_Unitarists_

Successive amendments to the Constitution up to and including the Amendments of 1996 insist on the fact that Cameroon is one and indivisible (Article 1-2, 1996). Cameroon is described as a decentralised unitary state. Unitarists believe that everything must be done to avoid federalism or secession. However, even the decentralisation announced by the 1996 Constitution has not been implemented, and government and administration have been highly centralised.

*Symptoms of Discontent*

What some people mistake for the Anglophone Problem are just symptoms pointing to the fact that an overwhelming majority of Anglophone Cameroonians are not happy in the union which they entered with East Cameroon in 1961. They have complained against widespread and systematic marginalisation in various areas of public life which point to the existence of a huge problem. Some of these symptoms include the following:

_Marginalisation in Human Resource Development and Deployment_

  1. Anglophone Cameroonians have complained about the fact that National Entrance Examinations into Schools that develop the human resources of this country are set per the French Subsystem of Education which makes it very difficult for Anglophones and Francophones to compete on a level playing field. Majority of the membership of these Examination Boards are Francophone so that the interests of Anglophone candidates are hardly, if ever, protected.
  2. Out of the five Ministries concerned with Education, which is the means of the transmission of culture, none of the Minsters is Anglophone and none even qualifies to be a deputy or Secretary of State. This gives the impression of a calculated attempt to kill Anglophone culture.

iii. In human resource deployment, there is a gaping inequality in the distribution of posts of responsibility between Anglophones and Francophones. Of the 36 Ministers who defended the budgets for the Ministries last month, only one was Anglophone. In addition, there seem to be key ministries that have been reserved for Francophone Ministers only and Anglophones do not even qualify to be Secretaries of State under them. These include, but are not limited to, Defence, Finance, Territorial Administration, and Economy.

  1. In the 1961 Constitution, the Vice President was the second most important personality in state protocol. Today, the Prime Minister (appointed Anglophone) is the fourth most important person in State Protocol, after the President of the Senate and the President of the National Assembly. Even so, Anglophone Cameroonians believe that he wields no real authority and, like was the case with J.N. Foncha as First National Vice President of the CPDM, finds it “impossible to use [his] exalted position to help in any way shape or influence the policies of the party and nation.”(7) There are clearly Francophone ministers who wield more power than he does. This seems to have been proven true in the last Teachers’ strike. When the Prime Minister was in Bamenda negotiating with the Teachers’ Union Leaders, a group of Francophone Ministers were giving a Press Conference in Yaoundé on the same issue, giving the impression that the negotiations of the PM in Bamenda were of no consequence.

_The Treatment of the English Language_

There have been widespread protests about the way the English Language has been treated in the public life of the nation.

  1. State institutions produce documents and public notices in French, with no English translation, and expect English speaking Cameroonians to read and understand them.
  2. National Entrance Examinations into some professional schools are set in French only and Anglophone candidates are expected to answer them. Sometimes this happens even in the English-speaking regions.

iii. Visitors and clients to government offices are expected to express themselves in French, even in the English-speaking regions, since most of the bosses in the offices speak French and make no effort to speak English.

  1. Most Senior Administrators and members of the Forces of Law and Order in the Northwest and Southwest Regions are French-speaking and make no effort to understand the cultures and customs of the people they are appointed to govern.
  2. Members of Inspection Teams, Missions and Facilitators for Seminars sent from the Ministries in Yaoundé to the English-speaking Regions are generally predominantly French speaking, and expect to be understood by audiences which are predominantly English speaking.
  3. The Military Tribunals in the Northwest and Southwest Regions are basically French courts.

vii. Basic Finance documents which businesses and other institutions are expected to work with are all in French. Examples include the COBAC Code, the CIMA Code and the OHADA Code.

_The Flooding of Anglophone Cameroon with Francophone Administrators and Workers_

Apart from the fact that Ministers, Directors General, Heads of Parastatals, Senior Divisional Officers, Heads of Law Enforcement Institutions, etc. are disproportionately Francophone, there seems to have been a conscious effort made to flood the Northwest and Southwest Regions with Francophone Heads of Service.

  1. The Magistrates in these Regions are disproportionately Francophone. So are the Senior Divisional Officers, the Divisional Officers, Commissioners, and Commandants. In the educational sectors, there are increasingly Francophone principals posted to Anglophone schools. Personnel in Hospitals, Banks and Mobile Telephone Companies (even those which originate from Anglophone countries), are predominantly Francophone. And this extends to even non-expert workers in petrol stations.
  2. The situation is aggravated by the fact that these Francophone administrators are often overbearing, very arrogant and treat people as if they were second-class citizens, and have no iota of respect for the dignity of the human person.

_Mismanagement of ‘West Cameroon’ Patrimony_

Apart from neglect of infrastructure in the Northwest and Southwest Regions of Cameroon and the mismanagement and ruin of buoyant companies like Cameroon Bank, West Cameroon Marketing Board, WADA in Wum, West Cameroon Cooperative Movement, etc., oil revenues are alleged to be used by those in power to feed ‘the bellies’ of their allies, and to stimulate the economy in other regions. In addition, there is also great anxiety in Anglophone Cameroon that its major agro-industrial enterprises, especially the Cameroon Development Corporation (CDC) and Plantations Pamol du Cameroun Ltd (Pamol), are sold or their headquarters moved elsewhere.

_The ‘Francophonisation’ of the English Educational Subsystem and the Common-Law System_

The flooding of state Anglophone educational and legal institutions with French-trained and French speaking Cameroonians who understand neither our educational subsystem nor the English Common Law undermines Anglophone education and legal heritage and subverts the original intentions of the founders of the nation to build a bi-cultural nation, respecting the specificity of each region. This is the cause of the current strikes by common law lawyers and teachers.

_Admissions into State Professional Schools_

The exclusion of qualified Anglophones in admissions into state professional schools (especially Schools of Administration, Medicine and Medical Sciences and Higher Teacher Training) even in the Anglophone Regions is a glaring example of marginalisation which the Teachers Unions cited.

These, and many others, have led to the unease and discomfort of the people of the Northwest and Southwest Regions. They perceived this marginalisation as institutionalised as they have been labelled “Biafrans”, “enemies in the house” and “traitors” by highly placed government officials and ministers who were never reprimanded for doing so.

*Gradual Erosion of Anglophone Identity*

There has been a misleading argument from some quarters where some have argued that an Anglophone is anyone who can speak English, as a way of countering Anglophone Cameroonians who protest the issues we have enumerated above. It might be helpful, for the purposes of our presentation and future discourse, to note here that ‘Anglophonism’ goes beyond the mere ability to speak or understand the English language. It speaks to a core of values, beliefs, customs, and ways of relating to the other inherited from the British who ruled this region from 1916 to 1961. ‘Anglophonism’ is a culture, a way of being which cannot be transmitted by merely learning a language. In fact, as Dr. Anthony Ndi intimates, Southern Cameroonians had “a distinctive outlook and way of life that went further than the mere fact that the educated ones among them spoke the English Language or a version of it. So, therefore, language could not even be the qualifying factor”.(8) This Anglophone identity is the reason most Southern Cameroonians who voted to join the Republic of Cameroon in 1961 did so. It was to preserve their cultural identity as a distinct people.

Anglophone Cameroonians are slowly being asphyxiated as every element of their culture is systematically targeted and absorbed into the Francophone Cameroon culture and way of doing things. These include the language, the educational system, the system of administration and governance (where appointed leaders are sent to lord it over people who cherish elected leaders), the legal system, and a transparent democratic process where elected leaders are answerable to the electorate who put them there in the first place.

Anglophone Cameroonians have seen through this and are raising their voices in protest. The two All Anglophone Conferences (AAC I and II) of the early 1990s, the rise and popularity of the SCNC and other secessionist voices are born of the frustration of Anglophone Cameroonians of being ignored and ridiculed for asking for what they deem to be theirs by right, namely the preservation of their culture. You would remember that, in his resignation letter from the post of first Vice President of the CPDM on the 9th of June 1990, J.N. Foncha cited in point 9 of the letter, as a reason for resigning, the fact that the constitution was “in many respects being ignored and manipulated”.

*A Natural Reaction*

The reaction of Anglophone Cameroonians to preserve their culture can only be described as ‘natural’. Is it any surprise that the first Opposition party that forced the door open for multi-partyism in Cameroon, the Social Democratic Front (SDF), came from Anglophone Cameroon? Following the formation of the party, the architect who brought Southern Cameroonians into the union with the Republic of Cameroon, John Ngu Foncha, resigned in disillusionment as the First Vice-President of the CPDM. He explained:

The Anglophone Cameroonians whom I brought into the union have been ridiculed and referred to as ‘les Biafrians’, ‘les ennemies dans la maison’, ‘les traitres’ etc., and the constitutional provisions which protected this Anglophone minority have been suppressed, their voice drowned while the rule of the gun replaced the dialogue which the Anglophones cherish very much.(9)

This is not to say that we do not see the other side of the argument. In any polity formed bytwo or more ethnic, cultural, religious, or linguistic groups, there is bound to be a majority versus minority problem. In any such situation, the wise thing to do would be to make constitutional provisions which would protect and safeguard the existence and rights of the minority, rather than trample on them. The Church teaches that “not even the majority of a social body may violate these rights, by going against the minority, by isolating, oppressing, or exploiting it, or by attempting to annihilate it.”(10) Cameroon prides itself as a state of law. In this area, she is at one with the Church which teaches that society should be organised on the principle of the “rule of law”. This is the principle “in which the law is sovereign, and not the arbitrary will of individuals”(11) So, apart from the plethora of issues which enhance Anglophone disaffection with the union, there is the additional problem that they are a minority in that union.

*Proposed Way Forward*

It is not for us to dictate to the Cameroonian people what form the government of this countryshould take or what solutions should be provided for the problems we have highlighted. The Church respects the legitimate autonomy of the democratic order and is not entitled to express preferences for this or that institutional or constitutional solution. Her contribution to the political order is precisely her vision of the dignity of the person revealed in all its fullness in the mystery of the Incarnate Word(12). That notwithstanding, we feel obliged in conscience as the religious and moral leaders in this part of the country, who exercise care over a people who are hurting, to propose the following lines of action which, hopefully, should lead to peace and harmony among our people.

_Honesty in the face of the Anglophone Problem_

One of the most disingenuous things any enlightened Cameroonian, talk less of educated Cameroonian of Anglophone upbringing, can do is to deny that there is an Anglophone Problem. If former French President, Jacques Chirac, the Commonwealth, the European Union, and many others have recognised that there is an Anglophone Problem and advised that the government of Cameroon and the discontented Anglophones engage in dialogue, how can Cameroonians deny that there is a problem? To play the ostrich and bury our heads in the sand is to sow disaster for the future of the nation we all love. It is to give way to extremist tendencies in the Anglophone community born of frustration at not being listened to or understood. Is it possible that the government has not heard the cries of distress of the All Anglophone Conferences which represented a broad base of Anglophone Cameroonians? Is it possible that the government has not heard the Parent-Teacher Associations (PTA), the Common-Law Lawyers, the Teachers’ Trade Unions, Students, and others who are not only uncomfortable but are choking under the present dispensation?

Is it possible for us to look this beast in the eye, confront it together and overcome it for the sake of peace and unity in our country? The government’s continued denial of any Anglophone Problem, and its determination to defend the unitary state by all available means, including repression, could lead to an escalation of Anglophone demands past a point of no return, and this is not something any responsible citizen would wish for their country.

_The All Anglophone Conferences (AAC) of 1993 and 1994_

In May1993, the 65-member Anglophone Standing Committee established by the AAC submitted a draft constitution which would provide for major political, financial, and fiscal autonomy for the two federated states, for the provinces inside both, and for the communities inside each province. Theyproposed the usual separation of powers between the executive, legislative, and judiciary, and a senate and national assembly for each federated state, as well as a rotating presidency for the Federal Republic, whereby after at most two consecutive mandates of five years an Anglophone would succeed a Francophone (or vice versa). This proposal was even reiterated for each of the federated states to ensure alternation between the provinces. This would be for us a lasting solution to the irksome Anglophone Problem, and would be acceptable to the majority of Anglophone and Francophone Cameroonians.

_The Implementation of the 1996 Constitution_

We know there is never a perfect constitution and that is the reason why constitutions are amended to make them responsive to changes in time and situation. The 1996 Constitution, even though some have had issues with sections of it, is good enough as an immediate remedy for the ‘woes’ Anglophones are listing and which make life together in this nation burdensome to them. As the second-best option, we recommend an urgent and immediate implementation of the 1996 Constitution. We recommend that all the institutions created by that constitution be put in place, and that those put in place be empowered with persons charged with rendering them functional. This would include the Regions, the Senate and, by extension, the constitutional council, administrative courts, the minor courts of accounting/auditing. It is important for Cameroonians, especially those who seek protection under the ‘rule of law’ and of the Constitution, to know that the constitution has really been deployed as a means of regulating the political process in Cameroon. It is our firm belief that if this is done immediately, it would satisfy the majority of Anglophone Cameroonians and silence the calls for secession which have characterized this period of unrest.

_Constructive Dialogue and the Establishment of a Roadmap_

In the short term and, because the Lawyers and Teachers Strikes have paralysed our legal and school systems, it is imperative for the government to dialogue with the Lawyers and Teachers as soon as possible and agree a possible roadmap regarding their legitimate and genuine demands. We cannot solve a problem if we are unwilling to talk to each other. In the spirit of the African family, we would expect the father of the family to find out from a hurting (even if errant) child what the problem is and what they can do to alleviate their pain and suffering. There are a good number of the problems raised by our lawyers and teachers which can be solved now and there are others which can be solved later, but we need to agree a roadmap and respect it. This will enable the Teachers’ Unions to call off the strike and permit our children, who have already lost four weeks of schooling, to return to school. Indeed, openness to dialogue and to cooperation is required of all people of good will, and in particular of individuals and groups with specific responsibilities in the areas of politics, economics and social life, at both the national and international levels(13).

_Respect for Human Rights_

While it is the duty of administrative and law enforcement officers to maintain peace and order in their areas of jurisdiction, many of them have been unnecessarily overbearing and arrogant. Issuing orders and threats for teachers to return to school, for instance, is not the way to solve their problem. Further, the current unrests have shown up a very ugly and embarrassing side of our administrators and the forces of law and order. Without any provocation from the lawyers or students at the University of Buea (who carried placards saying ‘No to Violence’ and raised their hands in the air), the forces of law and order brutalized some of them so badly and so inhumanely that seeing the pictures one would have thought they came from the Stone Age. It was shameful to see law enforcement officers drag female students in the mud, spray students’ rooms with tear-gas and contaminated water, and then lock some up for days just for exercising a basic human right to make their voices heard in a peaceful manner.

The Church teaches that

“A just society can become a reality only when it is based on the respect of the transcendent dignity of the human person… Every political, economic, social, scientific, and cultural programme must be inspired by the awareness of the primacy of each human being over society… For this reason, neither his life nor the development of his thought, nor his good, nor those who are part of his personal and social activities can be subjected to unjust restrictions in the exercise of their rights and freedom.”(14)

Our administrators and the forces of law and order need to be called to order. In the exercise of their duties for the common good of all citizens, they must never trample on the rights of those citizens and deal out subhuman treatment to them. Such behaviour contravenes the law and provides a seedbed for deep resentment which later manifests itself in very ugly ways.

It is in light of this that we propose that the government should immediately withdraw the forces of law and order from the streets of the Anglophone towns to which they have been deployed, open proper investigations into any abuses of human rights by the forces of law and order, and release or charge those who have been locked up as a result of the recent unrests. In this way, we would have a better climate for the negotiations which have been proposed between the government and the teachers and lawyers.

_Justice for All_

Every Anglophone group that has raised its voice in protest has chronicled a number of perceived injustices which either the group or the Anglophone community in general suffers. Again, if the government gives them a listening ear, it would become clear to all whether these perceived injustices are founded or just imaginary. As long as these people, rightly or wrongly, continue to feel that they are the victims of injustice, we cannot build ‘the Island of Peace’ in Central and West Africa we have been proclaiming that we are, and we cannot develop our country without this peace either. We do not believe, in conscience, that locking up people who speak up against injustice (real or imagined) will kill dissent and bring peace. Maybe some examples will help clarify the point we are making.

On the 14th of December 1967, Martin Luther King, Jr. made a statement outside a California prison where Vietnam war protesters were being held. He said: There can be no justice without peace and there can be no peace without justice. On the World Day for Peace, 1st January 1972, Pope Paul VI had as theme for his Message: if you want peace, work for justice. These great crusaders for social justice teach us that without justice, peace will be an elusive goal.

Of course, you would remember the Apostolic Visit of Pope St. John Paul II to Cameroon in August 1985. In his Address to the President, Constituted Bodies, and the Members of the Diplomatic Corps, he said:

« Devant les conflits qui demeurent ou renaissent, tout le monde doit se poser honnêtement la question de leurs causes. Les injustices commises par certains régimes, concernant les droits de l’homme en général ou les revendications légitimes d’une partie de la population qui se voit refuser la participation aux responsabilités communes, déclenchent des soulèvements d’une violence regrettable, mais qui ne pourront être apaisés qu’avec le rétablissement de la justice. »

These examples show that we need to examine, in a dispassionate manner, the root causes of the unease and unrest in the Anglophone Region of Cameroon and, if these causes are connected to injustice in any form, do all we can to root out those injustices.

*Conclusion*

Your Excellency,

We stated at the beginning of this Memorandum that it is our bounden duty as Shepherds of the people in the Northwest and Southwest Regions of Cameroon where there are unrests and dissatisfaction, to make a contribution to the solution of the problems that have been posed. We hope that you will find our contribution helpful as you try to navigate this very sensitive and delicate period in our nation’s history. We are aware of the gravity of your responsibility before the people of Cameroon and before History, and that is why we tried to do all we could to help. In addition, we commend you and the people of Cameroon to God in prayer, in the belief that He will give you the wisdom you need to carry out this task. We can only add that in this case, time is of the essence as some of our children have already missed school for a month.

A certain religious leader is credited to have said: There really can be no peace without justice. There can be no justice without truth. And there can be no truth, unless someone rises up to tell you the truth. What we have set forth here is what we believe to be the truth, told as part of our prophetic mission, in the hope that it will bring justice, peace, and harmony to this country which we all hold dear to our hearts.

May Mary, Queen of Peace, and Patroness of Cameroon, intercede for us and for our country.

+George Nkuo,

Bishop of Kumbo and President of BAPEC

+Cornelius Fontem Esua,

Archbishop of Bamenda

+Immanuel Bushu,

Bishop of Buea

+Andrew Nkea,

Bishop of Mamfe

+Agapitus Nfon,

Bishop of Kumba

_________

ENDNOTES

  1. The territory which covers the Northwest and Southwest Regions has been called various names in the History of Cameroon: British Southern Cameroons, West Cameroon, Anglophone (English-speaking) Cameroon. These names will be used in this document as appropriate to the historical period in question.
  2. Gaudium et Spes, No. 76
  3. Ngoh, J. V., (2011:4), The Untold Story of Cameroon Reunification: 1955-1961, Limbe, Presprint Plc.
  4. Mukete, V. E., 2013:419, My Odyssey: The Story of Cameroon Reunification With Authentic Letters of Key Players, Yaounde, Sopecam.
  5. Ndi, A., (2013:6) Southern West Cameroon Revisited (1950-1972): Unveiling Inescapable Traps, Volume 1, Bamenda, Paul’s Press.
  6. Constitution reproduced in: Ndi, A. (2013), Southern West Cameroon Revisited (1950-1972): Unveiling Inescapable Traps, Volume 1, Bamenda, Paul’s Press. See Appendix IV
  7. J.N. Foncha, 9th June 1990: Letter of Resignation from the CPDM
  8. Ndi, A., (2005:249-50), Mill Hill Missionaries in Southern West Cameroon (1922-1972): Prime Partners in Nation Building, Paulines Publications Africa, Nairobi.
  9. J.N. Foncha, 9th June 1990: Letter of Resignation from the CPDM
  10. John Paul II, Centissimus Annus, No. 45.
  11. John Paul II, Centissimus Annus, No. 44.
  12. John Paul II, Centissimus Annus, No. 47.
  13. John Paul II, Centissimus Annus, No. 60
  14. Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, Compendium of the Social Teaching of the Church, Nos 128, 133
Barrister Agbor Balla and the Common Law: One year after

28, December 2016

Barrister Agbor Balla and the Common Law: One year after 1

Eighteen years ago, a few visionary young jurists, in whose symbolic shadow the common law stand today, created the Fako Lawyers Association, FAKLA. This association crawled from the shores of Limbe, to the creeks of Tiko via the foot of the Buea Mountain to the sunny town of Muyuka. We all have taken judicial notice that this association has evolved over the years to unimaginable proportions attaining a level akin to “jus cogens’’ in International law.

Our Editor-in-Chief, Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai met the president of FAKLA Barrister Agbor Balla at the prestigious Eta Palace Hotel in Buea in 2015 and shared this interesting conversation. We are bringing it to our readers again to provide an insight into the man who has exposed the vicious francophonization policy of Minister Laurent Esso.

Cameroon Concord News: Thank you for your time Barrister. Our readers would love to have an insight into the Fako Lawyers Association.

Barrister Agbor Balla: It is indeed an honour for me to meet with you in this great country of ours. The Fako Lawyers Association from its name does not need too much elaboration.

We are a 300 member organization made up of the finest Barristers, Solicitors and Notaries in the country. This great association has been blessed with a former President of the Bar Council, a former President of the General Assembly, two members of the Bar Council and members in International organizations and the great halls of international Courts and Tribunals. This is a testament to the role that FAKLA is playing both at the national and international level.

Cameroon Concord News: From Dublin to London, and from Essen to Boston, Anglophone Cameroonians are being fed stories of how the English language is no longer an entity in the courts in the South West and North West region!! Is this true?

Barrister Agbor Balla: The challenges facing the common Law are daunting and since FAKLA has emerged as the guarantor of our bijural and bicultural heritage, we of FAKLA are protecting and promoting the common law heritage for ourselves, our people, posterity and our common destiny.

English speaking Cameroonians in the Diaspora should be rest assured that we will fight against the erosion of the common law. We are ready to kill or to die. I have had high-level international meetings to discuss issues that not only affect the common law but that affects Anglophones in general.

As the president of FAKLA and as one family we can protect and promote our common destiny. In addition, I will make sure that FAKLA is proactive by standing up against harmonization of the laws in the manner in which it is presently being done.

Whilst acknowledging that harmonization is not necessarily bad, harmonization has become a back-door attempt to circumvent the constitutional protections afforded the common law. If it must be done, I will lead the fight for FAKLA to be represented in the Committees on Harmonization.

Cameroon Concord News: Barrister, mindful of the fact that elections into the Cameroon Football Association is coming up and my sources tells me you will be participating! How do you intend to run this new office accorded you by FAKLA?

Barrister Agbor Balla: I am a president for each and every FAKLAN without discrimination; a President who respect and defend the constitution of FAKLA; a President who is as a bridge between senior and junior colleagues; a President who instills greater transparency, accountability and humility in the management of FAKLA affairs; a President who encourages and support various groupings to operate but also able to harness their strengths for the benefit of FAKLA.

To be sure Mr. Soter Agbaw-Ebai, a Presidency characterized by humility, open door policy and respect for the traditions of the bar; a President who leads by example through personal contributions and participation in matters that advance our individual and collective interest.

Cameroon Concord News: You are avoiding the FECAFOOT part of my question!!! However, who is Barrister Nkongho Felix Agbor- Balla?

Barrister Agbor-Balla: (laughs) He is a Legal Practitioner resident in Federal Quarters, Buea and the Head of The Agbor Nkongho Law Firm, Biaka Street Upper Bonduma, P.O Box 524, Buea. He is a registered and committed member of FAKLA with registration No: 80.

He was called to the Cameroon Bar in 2001. Barrister Agbor-Balla attended secondary school and High School respectively at St. Joseph College Sasse Buea and CCAS Kumba.

He graduated from the University of Yaoundé with an LLB in English Private Law, after which he attended the Nigerian Law school in Lagos wherein he graduated with a BL Second class Upper Division with a 1st Prize Civil Procedure.

He was enrolled as a Barrister and Solicitor of the Supreme Court of Nigeria in December 1996. Barrister Agbor Balla holds an LLM (Cum Laude) in International and European Comparative Law at the University of Brussels and also an LLM (Cum laude) in International Human Rights and Humanitarian Law at the University of Notre Dame, USA.

He also holds a Diploma in Public International Law at Academy of International Law, Hague, Holland and also a Diploma on Theory and Practice of Conflict Prevention in Africa, the University of Leipzig, Germany.

Barrister Agbor-Balla worked as a Doctoral Researcher at the Centre for International Law University of Brussels, Associate Legal Officer at the International Criminal Court for Sierra Leone, Legal Adviser Trial Chamber International Criminal Court for Sierra Leone, Human Rights Officer United Nations mission in Afghanistan, Legal Adviser United Nations Police in Congo and Legal Adviser UN Mission in Afghanistan.

He is the Founder and Executive Director of Centre for Human Rights and Democracy in Africa and the publisher of NewBroom Magazine; an extreme Left Magazine that addresses issues affecting Anglophone Cameroonians.

Barrister Agbor-Balla was the first Chairperson of the Southern Cameroons European Coordinating Committee (SCECC) and led a delegation with Albert Mukong to the President of the EU Commission to discuss the issues of Southern Cameroons.

Barrister Agbor-Balla has written extensively on: “The Right of the Southern Cameroonians to Self- Determination under International Law,” “An Appraisal of the Special Court for Sierra Leone”, Referral of Sudan to the International Criminal Court, “The Law as a Mechanism for Women Discrimination in Sub-Saharan Africa”. He is a member of Cameron Bar Association, Nigerian Bar Association, International Bar Association, Hague Academy of International Law

Cameroon Concord News: The Anglophone community in the Diaspora reading this interview will obviously be seeking to know how you and FAKLA intend to stop this Francophone onslaught on the Common Law.

Barrister Agbor Balla: As I noted during the beginning of our conversation, the fight against the erosion of the common law will be a principal focus of my mandate. I will lead FAKLA to protect and promote the Common Law.

I have the experience in doing this by my participation, contributions and support of FAKLA efforts but individually also through the NEWBROOM Magazine and a robust human rights organization which I run in Buea.

I will work in close contact with MELA, Manyu Lawyers and NOWELA, and all the common law lawyers in the Country including civil law colleagues who are sympathetic to our cause to put pressure on the Minister of Justice and the Presidency to respect the bijural and bicultural nature of the country.

I will hold regular meetings with members of the bar council and push the bar council to place our matters of interest (such as, common law problems, harmonization, appointment of magistrates) on the bar agenda and follow up to obtain positive outcomes.

Taking into cognizance that the fight against the erosion of the Common Law is a political affair, I will lobby Parliamentarians, Senators, and politicians from all the various political Parties. I will also take up the issues directly with the competent government departments and lead action if need be.

I will confront the national authorities on that but will also lobby the EU, Commonwealth, UN, and other international organizations to put pressure on our behalf.

Cameroon Concord News: It was nice chatting with you!! Thank you again for your time

Barrister Agbor Balla: It’s my pleasure Soter



Anglophone Nationalism: Barrister Eyambe says “hidden plans are at work”

28, December 2016

Anglophone Nationalism: Barrister Eyambe says “hidden plans are at work” 12

I am minded to give you a synopsis of what has transpired since the setting up of this ad hoc committee by the Prime Minister. You all know those who were named in the committee and how myself and Balla  were left out. On the 24th I received a call from an attaché in the prime minister’s office informing me of our inclusion in the list. I considered it a non event. Because of the teachers meeting in Bamenda on the 27th a consortium meeting was summoned for the 26th. I left my family on Christmas day traveled to Buea and met Balla and we both left for Bamenda at 8.30 pm. We arrived Bamenda at 5pm. We had a heated meeting that lasted almost 8 hrs. It was in the said meeting that the consortium agreed that we should attend the ad hoc committee meetings in Bamenda and Yaounde but with guidelines. We were to table a preliminary objection on certain issues and stage a walk out.

Gentlemen you all saw the communique. We were asked by the teachers to be part of an enlarged meeting with the teachers who had some issues to sought out. Because the meeting rose late the communique of the consortium could not be ready that same day. We had to travel to Yaounde early morning at 3 am. The ad hoc meeting started late because we arrived late and those who were there informed the minister that the meeting cannot start without I and Balla. When the meeting commenced we raised the PO agreed on by the consortium orally because we could not have the written resolution of the consortium. All common law lawyers spoke on the PO like one man. We told the minister the meeting can not continue until the composition of the committee is adjusted to our satisfaction, the children who are under arrest release unconditionally, the ban on Mela, Fakla and Nowela uplifted and many others. The meeting rose for a break because the minister wanted to make some consultations. We could not stage a walk out as planned because the government was bending towards our pressure. We were in contact with the other members of the consortium with regards to the situation.

Upon resumption the minister said the government was ready to give us our demands except federation. Meanwhile we were presented with an agenda which we amended to be able to raise the PO. The minister kept insisting on going ahead with the agenda. I am the one who kept on hammering the fact that in our Anglo Saxon tradition once a point is raised, the threshold issues must be ascertained before we can move forward. I move for the meeting to be adjourned to a further date until when this issues had been resolved.

Gentlemen the minister got upset and asked me not to speak again until the end. Pressure now came from the others. The minister excused himself for 20 mins. Upon return he conceded to my motion but pleaded that we adjourn to this morning. As I post there are words that the children arrested and taken to Yaounde are being released. When we resume today, we have our next plan of action which I can not post here for security reasons. Gentlemen I took this pains to give you these details because I want you to trust and believe in your leaders. The strike continues and there are no plans to call it off despite the fact that the government seems to be playing into our game. We shall soon get on the negotiations table where the topic will be FEDERALISM.

Aluta Continua.barrister Eyambe MELA

President Biya is Cameroon Concord News Man of the Year 2016

22, December 2016

President Biya is Cameroon Concord News Man of the Year 2016 3

Blood and intrigues have earned President Paul Biya Cameroon Concord News Man of the Year nomination. This may seem unprecedented but justifiable. Blood and intrigues are the defining attributes of Paul Biya’s presidency. Indeed, blood and intrigues are at its highest as we write.  They, therefore merit special attention in our choice of our man of the year.

The choice of Mr Biya as Cameroon Concord News Man of the Year 2016 is not without difficulties. The first difficulty is that it is unprecedented and requires some explanation for reasonable people to contextualize and understand.

We are conscious that no matter what explanation we may give, there will be significant questions begging for answers.  The choice is unconventional and fails to meet the conventional criteria for the choice of a classic man of the year. But we hasten to state that this choice is not intended to celebrate any remarkable achievement of Mr Paul Biya for the public good. Far from that,  it is intended to create international awareness and focus on the acts and conduct of the man whom if the international community fails to act promptly, may set the entire sub-region on an internecine war of attrition and possible genocide.

President Paul Biya is an African strongman who over a period of thirty-four years has established an absolute brutal dictatorship.  During these long years in power, he has succeeded to make Cameroon a deeply divided nation. He is a master of the politics of ethnicity.

His staying power is mired in dividing and playing one ethnic group against the others in order to compel subservience.  His reign is characterized by a state of fear, a permanent state of emergency symbolized by daily motions of support broadcast by the national radio-television network and published by the national daily Cameroon Tribune.   These motions of support convey a sublime sense of potential political instability, fear and the anxiety of a nation at war with its soul.

In thirty-four years President Biya has established a system of government which may be characterized as a pyramid scheme of institutional corruption. With it, he manipulates, controls and dominates Cameroon’s political life. From the summit of this corrupt enterprise, he politicizes and supervises a supposed war against corruption. He relies on this war against corruption to keep in check a frightened and docile nation.

Among the many victims of this war are, some ambitious members of his crime syndicate  who initiated a premature contest for power; at a moment Biya needed their unalloyed support to eternalize power. For daring, he put them in jail. The next are the rats in Paul Biya’s Alibaba Empire of corruption.  They are the gate-keepers of the corrupt empire. Their crime is that they helped themselves beyond their permitted limit from the sesame treasure of Paul Biya’s prurient corrupt government. While he has encouraged and promoted this category of stooges, he has on occasion sacrificed them as disposable fodder aimed at concealing or deflating international attention and spotlight on the dire consequences of his failed economic policies, systemic corruption, egregious violations and crass misgovernance.

 The third category is made up of potential troubling witnesses whom he brought too close to his regime of personal power, but whose long term allegiance, he cannot vouchsafe.  To instill fear and compel allegiance from the political power elite he created and nurtured to serve him and him alone, he created a Special Criminal Court which he uses against adversaries, real or apparent at his will and caprices.

A key consideration in our choice of Mr Paul Biya as Cameroon Concord News Man of the Year is his presidency of blood and intrigues.  These are key attributes on which his presidency was firmly established from inception.  From one stage-managed attempted coup d’état aimed at expunging the lingering political influence of his “illustrious predecessor” Ahmadou Ahidjo an attempted coup d’état which was savagely repressed was organized. The toll in human and material cost of the violent repression has never been made public.   Timid attempts by Northern Cameroon’s power elite to seek an answer to this lingering and smoldering powder keg has so far been ignored.

That massacre set the stage for President Paul Biya to establish a platform for the fulfillment of a long term French- inspired ambition to completely wipe out the internationally recognized identity of the Southern Cameroons as a means of securing its gulf of Guinea oil economy.  President Biya engineered and enacted a law re-emphasizing and clarifying the identity of La Republique du Cameroun and its inherited boundaries at independence on January 1, 1960.  This action was the powder keg that ignited the identity crisis that has bedeviled Cameroon ever since, with the Southern Cameroons arguing with international law and history on its side that by redefining its identity within its international recognized borders consistent with its international identity at the UN and the AU,, La Republique du Cameroun must withdraw  its forces and administrators on the territory of the Southern Cameroons to its said internationally recognized boundaries forthwith.

The ongoing mayhem, crimes against humanity and a drift towards potential genocide in the territory of the Southern Cameroons perpetrated by forces deployed by President Paul Biya to suppress a popular uprising clamoring for freedom and independence arose from resistance to annexation, cultural asphyxiation and colonial imposition.   The ongoing uprising therefore arises from the arrogance of power, political and geostrategic choices that are endangering the peace and security in the gulf of Guinea requiring urgent United Nations Intervention.

The plethora of deliberate but uninvestigated human disasters in Lake Nyos, the Nsam fire disaster, the University of Yaounde Zero Mort student massacres, the University of Buea students massacred during various student protests, the February 28, 2008 massacre of peaceful protesters all over the national territory, the recent Eseka train disaster and persistent shameful attempts to conceal responsibility for these crimes against humanity bear the stamp of presidential responsibility. The legitimate question to ask is who stands to benefit from these crimes if not the President who holds the constitutional mandate to protect all citizens and uphold fundamental freedoms?

The use of the constitutional institutions of governance like the National Assembly and the Judiciary as tools for the entrenchment of tyranny and oppression makes President Paul Biya, an imperial president, endowed with the power of life and death over a citizenry resigned to their fate and the forces of nature for survival.

Rather than confront the ills afflicting the nation, like the institutional pauperization of the masses, the paucity of basic necessities like water, electricity, affordable medical care, road infrastructure, and rising insecurity, the President relies on these depravities as political tools to compel allegiance and political control.

The resolution of the Bakassi crisis was supposed to be celebrated as a defining achievement of a Biya presidency, but the Southern Cameroons problem of which Bakassi is a significant component if not satisfactorily resolved, will lead to reigniting with ferocious intensity,  the Bakassi crisis with sub-regional and regional consequences.

The President declared war against Boko Haram from a foreign capital, Paris. That again was an unprecedented.  However, while due credit must be given to the Cameroon Army for their war effort against Boko Haram,  the economic neglect which was exploited to recruit Cameroonians into these terrorist organization must be addressed.  Doing so needs adequate resources and a national Marshall Development plan which President Biya has in thirty-four years failed to establish. Cameroon is instead economically on the decline and has become a heavily indebted nation, mortgaging the future of the nation far into posterity.

Without any form of stylistic felicity, Cameroon Concord News holds the firm opinion that under the circumstances painted above, Cameroon is living on the heart pulse of one individual. There is no visible possibility of democratic change of government in Cameroon. The institutional framework does not exist. There is no constitutional court envisaged by the Constitution to adjudicate on constitutional issues including the political transition, should there be a constitutional imperative. This is a powerful indication that Mr Biya does not envisage retiring from politics and relinquishing power through constitutional means.

President Paul Biya is undoubtedly the undisputed heart pulse of a nation of twenty-three million people who are living at his pleasure.   He is deified by his supporters who additionally credit him for being the master of time and destiny of the nation. One of them, Professor Fame Ndongo claimed the status of the President’s slave and invited the nation to follow. These attributes confer considerable power and authority on President Paul Biya next to, if not at par with God.   This indeed, is the problem with Cameroon.

By nominating Mr Biya Cameroon Concord News Man of the Year, Cameroon Concord Group does not in any way subscribe to or validate these attributes or the policies of Mr Biya that have earned him this nomination.   Cameroon is besieged from the East, the North and now the Southern Cameroons in international conflicts.  These conflicts are a product of a deliberate policy of blood and intrigues.

Behind this facade of the power of blood and intrigues, there are visible cracks on the walls of absolute power and the tyranny of absolute personal power. Will the His Excellency the pulse of the nation, the master and controller of time, beat the timeless time of  one and only true God to mend the visible cracks  to sustain his eternal power? The answer lies in a clear understanding of the parable of the rich fool.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai 

Editor-in-Chief

Cameroon Concord News Group

 

Southern Cameroons 54 years after: Anglophones are perpetually subdued, victimized and traumatized as house slaves

22, December 2016

Southern Cameroons 54 years after: Anglophones are perpetually subdued, victimized and traumatized as house slaves 0

It is now 54 years since the Republic of Cameroun and the UN trusteeship state of Southern Cameroons came together in 1961. The now bastardized, skewed and imbalanced Unification gave birth to a premature and deformed baby we Christened bilingualism. 54 years after, the hapless child is still limping with one leg while the Union is standing on a tripod of injustice, discrimination and inequality of opportunity.

In honest, genuine bilingualism has never existed in Cameroon. The Francophones have never respected bilingualism in practical terms. What we have on ground is a charade, a Francophone fad and a masquerade- a fake! It is a sleazy stratagem, a shameless swindle, a freaky farce and a spineless political slogan engineered by the Francophones to get what they want from the Anglophones. Now that they have our crude, timber, cocoa…; they shamelessly and with great avarice grab and reserve all the juicy appointments and positions for themselves. The Anglophones are perpetually subdued, victimized and traumatized as house slaves and nannies, carriers of water and cutters of wood in a land where Communal Liberalism is a national mantra.

No Anglophone has ever headed ministries like Finance, Territorial Administration, Defense, Foreign Affairs … No Anglophone has ever been the General Manager of S.N.H., SONARA, S.C.D.P., despite the existence of these state corporations more than 40 years ago. From the current political configuration, it is very likely that no Anglophone can become the President and Head of State in this country in the next 100 years. As a matter of urgency the Anglophones need to begin NOW to protest and insist that as stakeholders in our bigoted and discriminating Union, thy also must start getting and enjoying some of the goodies and special privileges illegally and unconstitutionally reserved only for the Francophones beginning from the next Cabinet reshuffle.

Francophones are using bilingualism as a carrot, a political ploy, a cultural vogue and a hype to hoodwink and placate the Anglophones. It is a well-planned smokescreen to distract the attention of the Anglophones from their predicaments and the negative realities of their marginalization; a strategic cover up to give them a false sense of belonging and to mollify their suppression so as to keep them loyal, subdued, subservient and gullible to their mischievous whims and sneaky machinations.

In Cameroon, our democracy is on trial. Our country is engulfed in the flames a diabolical precipice and senseless cultural cold war masterminded by French language zealots, lingual saboteurs and cultural terrorists. Our bilingualism is under attack and the English language, the inheritance, the pride, identity and legacy of the Anglophones in the Union has been under siege and the target of elimination since 1961. The culture and language of every group of people is sacrosanct to them- so is English language to the Anglophones in Cameroon. This campaign of exclusion and war of attrition against the English language is a colossal and collective gang up spear headed by over ambitious Francophone elites: the ruling class, the academia, politicians, professionals, and the mainstream press including the religious leaders. A repressive miasma of resentment, a paroxysm of discontent and dark clouds of subjugation and uncertainty still hang over the controversial, one-sided and unfair Union.

The Anglophone Problem and the imperative for a National Conference

20, December 2016

The Anglophone Problem and the imperative for a National Conference 1

The government needs not see a national conference as a threat; but as a great political opportunity to make Cameroon great again for all Cameroonians.

There is little doubt that Cameroon is presently in an unhealthy state that needs urgent redress. And having regard to the country’s complexities – in terms of population, multiple ethnic nationalities, languages, diverse culture, interests, and various natural resources located in different places – a most acceptable way to bring about the redress is to engage in a discussion that will involve all stakeholders. Democratic governance has not delivered the desired dividends. Cameroonians remain largely poor; in fact, among the poorest people in the world. At a time like this when the country is facing frightening prognostications and the drums of war are sounding in the horizon, any forum grouping Cameroon’s ethnic nationalities obviously provides a platform for all component groups, to search for an ideal system for a country that has been stuck in political quagmire since independence and re-unification in 1961. Indeed, the Anglophone demonstrations for system change, is a function of disillusionment with the status quo. Against this background should be situated the urgent need for the President to organize a national conference to discuss issues that currently cause friction in the country.

Amid the current clamor for independence by disgruntled Anglophones protesting marginalization, President Biya told the US Ambassador to Cameroon, Michael Hoza, that he is disposed to dialogue to resolve these issues. The fact that the President himself has reportedly underscored the need for dialogue is a welcome and laudable development. Cameroonians should hold the President to his word. But whatever form such a dialogue will take and whether or not it will be a national conference, the high hope and expectation of many Cameroonians is that such a forum will provide all Cameroonians a vent to reflect on the health of the nation. Of great importance and a cause for concern to the public is the time framework of such a dialogue. Whatever the permutation, the dialogue must hold before the 2018 presidential election and the number of participants should not be too large as to make it unwieldy. And its report should not be subjected to a nauseating bureaucratic process of a further review by another committee, a pattern that has earned the administration the label of a “government by committees.”

 Against this backdrop, it may be useful for the forum to consider the following issues. First; the political system. In considering a way out of the quagmire of abuse of the political system, the forum/conference should not lose sight of the fact that the problem is not so much about the absence of prescriptions for overcoming the socio-economic and political inertia of the country, as the absence of political will by those in authority positions to do what is right for Cameroon. It is clear that Cameroon’s problems center on the primary issue of co-existence among its component nationalities; the institutionalization of the political foundation of governance, the super-structural framework and system of government; democracy deficit within political parties, effective fight against corruption; high cost of governance; and the thorny issue of marginalization and under-development of natural resource-endowed regions.

To which end, any useful reform should begin with a review of the current semi-presidential system of government because of its inherent financial burden and vulnerability to corruption. This necessarily engenders some questions: Has Cameroon a constitutional problem or human integrity problem? In point of fact, the overriding objective for adopting the semi-presidential system was the desire to build a strong center in order to avert the centrifugal strains from the nation’s diversity and consolidate national unity. An additional reason was probably to allow whoever would lead the country, the opportunity to solicit votes and win a measure of national legitimacy. This however, has not healed the many contradictions of the nation. Cries of marginalization have persisted along with hegemonic politicking. Some have argued that the problem is not with the system of government, insisting that Cameroon has a human integrity problem. The point is driven home that Cameroonians are corrupt and the human deficits are transferred unto the political institutions to create an institutional integrity crisis for the country.

Next is the governance structure. There is near consensus that the current governance structure is doomed. The existing 10 regions constitute a drainpipe on national coffers as the nation continues to fund moribund and unproductive regional bureaucracies, which together with the central administration consume over 70% of the budget. It is imperative that the cost of governance is whittled down to the barest minimum to unleash resources for priority development projects in the country. Therefore, as it should by now be clear to all, the envisaged federalism should not become the obsession of rent-seeking elite, to accentuate ethnic and other primordial fault-lines across the country. In addition, slashing the jumbo pay of lawmakers and even introducing part-time legislators as practiced in some countries will be invaluable to cutting the cost of governance.

Equally, the structure of a government is a reflection of the structure of the economy and unless there is change in the relations of production which currently rewards indolence and allows for all forms of conspicuous consumption and primitive accumulation of state resources outside genuine production processes, whatever system adopted will fail. After independence, agriculture fueled the venality of public officials. Today, the vice has quadrupled. It has produced a bizarre practice in which government machinery is in the hands of a vampire elite of octogenarians who have captured and taken the country hostage. Rather than be seen as the logical conclusion of service to the country, retirement is now seen as punishment; and nobody wants to go on retirement. The situation in the military is even worse, as Generals don’t go on retirement. The national dialogue must address this anomaly, which is by far the most fundamental contradiction of our democratic system since the return to multiparty.

The dialogue must also, as a matter of urgency address the worrisome democracy deficit within existing political parties. Political parties, the engine room of modern democracy, have been emasculated by the founding fathers. There have been no changes in the leadership of political parties as the founders see the parties as their personal property, and run them like their private kitchens. Officials elected on political party platforms must show “gratitude” to the founder by paying “royalties” to the party leader as obtains in the SDF, where MPs contribute FCFA 100,000 monthly for “the upkeep of the chairman”.  In the ruling CPDM, the situation is even more pathetic; underlined by arbitrariness and imposition of candidates qualified as “consensus.” Internal democracy bothers on legitimacy, which inheres in the principle of consent. Therefore, it should be operationalized and consolidated to create space for free political competition within legitimate rules and institutions. Cameroon is replete with instances of contempt and absolute disregard for the rule of law by politicians, which accounts a great deal for the poor governance output and do-or-die politics.

Above all, the dialogue must also address the vexing issue of revenue allocation which has been a source of tension in the country, given that the Anglophone region produces over 60%, yet does not get back even 5% in terms of development projects and appointments into high public office. The main contention is resource control. An unencumbered federation should allow federating States to control their resources based on the principle of 100% derivation with taxes paid to the central government. Available statistics show that there is hardly any part of Cameroon without any natural endowment. States should have full control of whatever natural resources that they are endowed with by providence. This will obviate the overt no-man’s-land mentality with which the national patrimony is viewed and engender a new form of production relations in the country. Finally, the national dialogue must face the issue of corruption and the entrenched waywardness of politicians and public officials, who have conspired to bleed Cameroon into bankruptcy.

 Lastly, it is simultaneously imperative that whatever new reforms emanate from the national dialogue be subjected to popular affirmation through a referendum. After many false starts, dashed hopes, and perennially low expectation, there is now need for Cameroon at 55, to seek a change of direction. The national dialogue must reset the agenda for the country to correct the contradictions in the polity; infuse hope and renewed sense of purpose in the citizens. A government is best remembered by the fundamental policies it enunciates, not by how long that government lasts. In theory and practice, it has been sufficiently demonstrated that sovereignty resides in the people and the very idea of a dialogue meets the expectation of Cameroonians. Cameroon can come out of such a forum a galvanized country, moving in a totally new direction, with emphasis on the interest of the Cameroonian people, not the temporary occupants of high offices.

By Valerian Ekinneh Agbaw-Ebai

Understanding our Anglophone freedom fighters

14, December 2016

Understanding our Anglophone freedom fighters 1

POWERCAM: It was a hydro electricity dam located in Yoke Muyuka that was supplying electricity to the entire British Southern Cameroons.  This dam was closed down deliberately by the Francophone led government after reunification.

CAMEROON BANK: This was our Anglophone bank created by the government in Buea and was the biggest bank in the two Cameroons and operated under the Barclays Bank UK standards in West Africa. It was completely destroyed by both Ahidjo and Biya’s men in La Eepublique du Cameroun.

National Produce MARKETING BOARD: It was the cocoa and coffee authority of British Southern Cameroons headquartered in Victoria (Not Limbe as the Biya comedian Inoni Ephraim wants us to call it}. It provided Anglophone farmers with details of all what was happening in the world market. It invested in reserves in the Cameroon Bank and kept the our young men off the streets by running football clubs. This was completely shattered by La Republique.

Cooperative Societies: This was a Dutch culture implanted in Anglophone Cameroon. Farmers had to work in cooperative groups. Those who were sailing from a Port in Douala via Malabo in Equatorial Guinea to France to be assimilated came and destroyed it.

Mobile Wing Police: It was a well trained British police force that we Anglophones inherited and was noted for its discipline.  Ahidjo replaced them with a ruthless force known as the French Gendarmerie

What can we say about the following?

EMPIRE DAY

CAMDEV

CONFIDENCE HOTEL ORCHESTRA

BALI MODERN JAZZ

LIDO ORCHESTRA

CHRYSTAL GARDEN ORCHESTRA

MOUNTAIN HOTEL ORCHESTRA

WEST CAMEROON HOTELS LTD         

CAT (CAMEROON AIR TRANSPORT): The main hub was Tiko international airport. It was transporting CDC produce and also running domestic flights. Was an airline representing British Southern Cameroon values and was a fast growing airline in West Africa at that time. It was closed down by a Francophone dominated government in Yaoundé.

PWD: The Public Works Department was an Anglophone identity of heavy duty machines placed at the doors of councils for road maintenance and repairs. Their pride was also seen in the football clubs; PWD Kumba and PWD Bamenda and it was the fastest road construction and maintenance body growing in West Africa. It was maliciously stifled by vicious elements of La Republique du Cameroun.

MEDINO: This was a body of trained roving Agric experts who moved around helping farmers by educating them on farming methods. The seat of MEDINO’s government was in Bamenda. It was ruined by La Republique du Cameroun.

Ekona Research Centre was created by the Americans and was the best research centre in West Africa. It was systematically Francophonised and now is a sham.

Tiko international airport was indeed the fastest growing international airport in West Africa that hosted the late Dr Nkwame Nkrumah of Ghana during his maiden official visit to British Southern Cameroons. It was shut down by people we call brothers from La Republique du Cameroun.

Tiko Wharf: It Linked maritime transport between West Cameroon via Nigeria to the entire West Africa and  was growing to the status of a seaport!! This was Killed by La Republique du Cameroun.

FONADE was created through a British Southern Cameroons initiative to subsidies farmers both financially and materially. It was transferred to Yaoundé by Ahmadou Ahidjo and the name changed to Credit Agricole and destroyed by Francophones.

Ombe Trade centre: Equipped with heavy industrial machines and training Southern Cameroonians to master the maintenance culture was laid to rest by La Republique du Cameroun.

George Pompidou (French President) including Ahmadou Ahidjo and Paul Biya agreed that, all these Anglophone companies should be eliminated so that, we can be the slaves to La Republique du Cameroun.

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