THE CAMEROON DILEMMA
By
Denis A. Foretia, M.D.
Progressive societies thrive not only from constructive government economic policies but equally from a significant growth in private sector investments and marked involvement of the citizenry. The upward mobility in certain African countries can be directly, or at least, partially attributable to the implementation of fair investment policies in these politically stable societies. For the last decade, we have witnessed continued erosion of democratic and social institutions in Cameroon. We have seen the increasing proliferation and institutionalization n of many corrupt practices throughout every sector of government and private institutions. Not surprising, there has been no indication of a reduction in capital flight and the handicapping of investment opportunities in our country.
With a gross domestic product (GDP) of more than 25 billion dollars, significantly greater than that of Ghana or Cote D’ivoire, it is extremely worrisome that economic and infrastructural development continue to lag behind. Cameroon’s Human Development Index (the United Nations comparative measure of life expectancy, education, literacy and standards of living for countries worldwide) for 2008 was just 0.51, indeed, shockingly lower than that of Equatorial Guinea or the Republic of Congo. The situation is even worse. Prime Minister, Ephraim Inoni, in the 2009 draft budget submitted to Parliament, made what many would consider extremely bold predictions among which was his expectation for Cameroon to be increasingly seen within the international community as a business-friendly hub in sub-Saharan Africa. The reality is not only bleak, but indeed very far from his predictions. The 2009 Doing Business Report (the World Bank Groups’ ranking of objective measures of business regulations, enforcements and the suitability for foreign investments across 181 countries of the world) has Cameroon ranked at 164, six spots worse compared to the 2008 ranking and indeed our country is even worse than Robert Mugabe’s Zimbabwe. Think about it: investors would rather go to Zimbabwe than come to Cameroon! It is extremely appalling that it takes an average of 426 days to obtain a Construction Permit by a local or foreign firm in Cameroon compared to the less than 100 days required to obtain these permits in Kenya. How do we really expect to lure investors to Douala, Bafoussam or Kribi? For a country that enjoyed a healthy annual growth rate of 6-7% from 1970 -1985, the current predicted growth rate of ~2% crystallizes just how deplorable the situation has become.
The failure to implement any sort of economic reforms has had the predictable effect of alienating both local and foreign investors. For a country in dire need of investment capital, it is very telling that at least 30% of federal capital is being hidden in foreign banks or bundled up in foreign assets. The political climate has only deepened the economic frustration. The arrival of multiparty politics in the 1990s was indeed welcomed as a potential to align ourselves as a strong emerging democracy in continental Africa. Yet the constant manipulation of the people, the restriction of political and social critique and multiple violations of human rights have served to completely erase whatever progress had been made. The constant use of the state police and the military to incite terror only compounds the problem. This has helped to create a nation governed by two laws: that for the poor and another for the rich and connected. The economic frustration has no doubt had the effect of hemorrhaging intellectuals who flee the country in search for better opportunities abroad. Not surprising, a 2006 report by the Ministry of Health projected that most of the 3000 practicing medical doctors may leave the country by 2009 in search of better remuneration abroad.
OUR DAILY STRUGGLES
Despite the fact that the government can be squarely blamed for being passive, ignorant and indifferent to the plight of the economy especially in relation to the standard of living in the vast majority of the country, we as Cameroonians, have to directly confront our unwillingness to forcefully seek concrete solutions to these predicaments. While the government continues to sheppard an economy that, on a daily basis edges towards the end of the cliff, the police state of the Cameroonian government notwithstanding, Cameroonians can no longer afford to remain insignificant bystanders. As we all know, history teaches us that a government indifferent to its people has ceased to be a government and we must be mindful of this.
To propagate any significant improvements in Cameroon, we, the Cameroonian people must, unequivocally, confront what yours truly has termed the Cameroonian Curse. While Cameroonians have been blessed with one of the highest literacy level in the world, we have very little to show for it. We are very quick to complain about an issue, slow to propose any critical steps to reverse course and we are even very unwilling to work, to dedicate the time and commitment necessary to make a difference. When push comes to shove, we recline on our armchairs and let others deal with the problem. This is the Cameroonian Curse. We see this everyday in our lives, in most of our business ventures, in community organizations and in other joint projects. We deplore the corrupt state of affairs in the government and in the country. Yet at every juncture, in most of our njangis, in most of our family meetings and community projects, in most of our student organizations and professional societies both in Cameroon and in the diaspora, we have been unable and unwilling to rid ourselves of this corrupt gene. Truth be told, there are many individuals, groups and organizations that are leading the way in reforming the process, that are spearheading projects that seek to transform the modus operandi in the communities to make inclusivity and accountability a central priority. The reality is that these reformers currently make up an insignificant minority amongst us. We are called to not only shed ourselves of the curse but also to realize that a reasonable transformation of OUR country cannot and will not occur if we continue to remain on the sidelines.
The constant oppression of the Cameroonian people by the government especially during the height of late Forchive’s tenure at the Intelligence Services has had the unique role of trampling on the morale and community ethos of the country. Cameroon is indeed an oppressed nation. If there is anything that has been learnt from studying oppressed societies, it would be the fact that the oppressed, like the bullied kid, will one day find the strength to stand-up to the oppressor. Cameroonians for decades now have been led to believe they are not of any good, that their lives should and will be controlled by a handful of elites who are almost completely removed from the constant struggles of the bayam-sellam in Marché Mbopi, of the plight of the pousseur in Marché Mokollo or the struggles of students at the university of Buea or Ngoa-Ekele, who are begging everyday just to live to see tomorrow. By doing what they do, the Bayam-sellam and pousseur are able to send their equally hardworking children to the University of Buea and Ngoa-Ekele. Yet, these children are quite aware that upon completing university, they will go back to do what their parents are doing because there are no jobs available for them anywhere. We know of many Bayam-sellams and pousseurs; hardworking people who form the backbone of Cameroon. Yet they are treated as the nobodies in Cameroon, they are told they don’t matter and that they don’t have an opinion. They are told there is no hope for them because they do not count. Despite these, they continue to toil in the factories, the proceeds of their hard labor stashed in many unidentified foreign bank accounts by members of the administration. We have become increasingly familiar with permutations of these stories.
Our elites cruise on the expressways of these foreign cities to verify their recent bank deposits and upon their return are strikingly not bothered by the foot-deep, pot-holed pavements that are considered motorable roads in Cameroon. Have they not been to Accra-Ghana, Abuja-Nigeria, Lilongwe-Malawi or Gaborone-Botswana? Have they not seen what some of our African brothers are doing? The paradox is particularly vexing when you consider the fact that banks cannot function in our country because of a paucity of capital but at the same time Cameroonian elites have millions in foreign banks, helping to capitalize an already well-capitalized system. It is indeed very sad that in our country, which is tremendously blessed with abundant natural resources, the appointment of an individual to any position of responsibility is seen as a license to embezzle. Nominations to strategic positions are left to politicians and not technocrats with the ability to bring about meaningful and durable change. One cannot help but wonder what the future holds. How unpatriotic have we become?
REMITTANCES FROM ABROAD
A study from the Development Prospects Group at the World Bank revealed that in 2005, approximately 232,000 Cameroonians immigrated to western countries mostly to France, Germany, the UK and the United States, representing an alarming 1.5% of the total population. Most of these migrants were skilled workers with about 15% holding advanced degrees. They represent the ever increasing number of emigrants from Cameroon and the ballooning Cameroonian diaspora. Remittances to Cameroon from the diaspora in 2005 were at least 65 million US dollars. Realizing that this represents only officially recorded remittances, the true size of remittances including unrecorded flows through formal and informal channels is believed to be much larger. The contribution of the diaspora to the country’s gross domestic product is significant in that it gives the people access to direct, hard currency rather than having the capital holed up in foreign banks. Cameroonians in the diaspora contribute greatly to our country’s wellbeing and must now take the lead in articulating and spearheading the economic, social, infrastructural and political transformation that is paramount to reversing the current deplorable conditions in the country.
CREATION OF HUMAN CAPITAL
Reflecting on the paucity of leadership in the “Negro” population of the United States, the famed historian W.E.B Dubois in a landmark paper in 1903 - The Talented Tenth, argued that there was a need to train at least 10 percent of the population to become “leaders of thought and missionaries of culture among their people.” These individuals, he argued, would develop the leadership capacity to fight for social change and the end of white oppression in the United States. Today, I submit to you that Cameroon is in dire need of talented leaders, across all sectors of the management spectrum. We are in need of leaders who are not afraid to challenge the status quo, individuals who inspire trust and demand innovative strategies to positively affect others, men and women with sound intellect and compassion, who use their power of influence to promote our development. We need these leaders in every aspect of society – we need them in administration, business, politics, academics, the arts and sciences; we need them in our schools, in journalism, the civil service, the military and police academies; we need them to finally stand up for justice and accomplish the difficult responsibilities they are being called to shoulder.
WHAT CAN WE DO?
The Cameroon Dilemma is seen in our inability, as Cameroonians, to look squarely at our problems and forge a unitary agenda to attempt to change course. It is seen in our unwillingness, at least in the political arena, to unite diverse schools of thought on the patriotic demands of our country. We have, for the most part, relegated the functioning of our country into the hands of a select few, who are apparently aloof to the daily struggles of the average Cameroonian family. To tackle this dilemma and attempt to correct the current lamentable direction of our country would require, at the very least, a renaissance of our nationalistic values. We must realize that Cameroon is OUR country, our motherland and we ought to treat it like that: a source of our cultural identity and social mores which have combined to produce a superb citizenry. Cameroonians across the board must seek to continuously nourish the motherland and not attempt, at every opportunity, to suck it dry of its natural resources, its economic potential or its ability to nourish the next generation of fledgling Cameroonians. This is why the embezzlement of public funds and the ravaging of our country’s resources is indeed a terribly unpatriotic act that we see repeated a hundred fold by individuals in government and beyond.
We must emulate the examples of our African brothers especially the fledgling democracy in Ghana and the institution of financial and economic reforms in Nigeria. What does it say of a country in which inter-ministerial financial transactions are carried out by the deposition of huge sums of raw cash – transported in bags! – From one ministry to the other? What does this say of our banking system, of our financial entrepreneurship or our ability, as a government, to function in the 21st century? Indeed, if the government is not interested in developing our country, then the time has come for all Cameroonians to ask it to make way for fresh, uplifting and patriotic leadership. The time has come for us to stop being passive bystanders while our country is being raped of its full potential. This is the time for us to speak loud and clear, in Cameroon and abroad, that we expect better leadership from those currently in-charge.
At the same time, we, as individuals, must take concrete steps in contributing to the growth and development of our country. Do we really want our country to become the new “Somalia” or do we want it to steer in the direction of prosperous democracies like Malawi and Botswana? Our answer to this question would determine how involved we want to contribute to our development. The Cameroonian diaspora is in a unique position to provide novel leadership for us all. We must organize ourselves into instruments for economic progress and vehicles for social change. We must lead in the creation of economic, social, political and policy think-tanks that would lobby and pressure the local and central government to effectuate major changes in economic and investment policies. These changes will undoubtedly lead to our economic prosperity. Various institutes and independent think-tanks such as the IMANI Center for Policy and Education in Ghana and the Kenya Institute for Public Policy have been central in the growth and development of these nations and we must learn from what they have been able to accomplish.
Despite the poor business environment, we, Cameroonians from all walks of life but especially those in the diaspora, must lead the way in investing in our motherland and stop the exodus of capital into foreign banks. The government, on its part, must seriously truncate its dependence on foreign aid which has had the unfortunate but predictable consequence of curbing Cameroonian ingenuity and entrepreneurship and has propagated deep-seated corruption across all sectors of the economy. Even if Cameroon does not borrow a single dollar again, according to the World Bank, it would only finish paying its current debt by the year 2050. Now think about that. Where is the money going?
IN A NUTSHEL
All of us, as Cameroonians, must increase our level of philanthropy, our level of community involvement and promote the spirit of lifting our brothers and sisters when they fall. Some of us have been incredibly blessed to be able to afford three-square meals a day, but we should never forget that in this same country of ours, thousands of folks go to sleep everyday with empty stomachs, unsure of what tomorrow brings. We should never forget that thousands of our countrymen are languishing in pre-trial detention with no prospects of answering charges in a court of law for many years. We must not forget that while hardworking Cameroonians struggle on a daily basis to setup business ventures and strive for financial success, their every move is being castigated by pot-belly politicians and administrators at the Douala seaport and other bureaus who demand preposterous bribes for services they are supposed to be providing to the citizenry. The pervasiveness of corruption can only be confronted if there is sincere political will and, with the current government waist-deep in the corruption game, any expectation of a credible anti-graft campaign is at best a fickle whisper and at most, impossible. Indeed, what type of a country have we become? Where are we heading with these types of practices?
Now is the time for us to usher in a new brass of leaders to replace this old vanguard whom, by all indications, have ran out of any durable ideas and are gripped, rather, with inexplicable fear and a determination to beat down its people to submission.
This is the time for us all to remember that the status quo would remain unchanged and would most likely worsen except we all stand up and speak with one voice, loud and clear and demand the implementation of progressive policies and that the Cameroonian people must be first on the agenda rather than the pot-bellies of the political elites.
The time has come for Cameroonians all over the world to categorically reject the divisive policies of the government and participate, constructively, in nation-building and the advancement of ethnic, tribal, religious and political tolerance across all sectors of the social strata.
We can no longer afford to continuously exit our country because of an inflexible political culture which is very repressive to novel ideas.
Indeed, we, as individuals and groups, can and must make significant contributions in our communities, in our villages and in our country. We must rid ourselves of the ambivalence of the past, we must collectively embrace each other, put aside our petty differences and take concrete steps towards forging a more holistic, dynamic and prosperous Cameroon.
*Dr.Denis Foretia is a Resident in General Surgery at the Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta, GA-USA*
