Changing the Educational Orientation of the Oroko People

 

                                              

by Jackson W. Nanje

     After a long period of observing the trend of how Cameroonians in Atlanta and in the United States make donations and contributions to annual fundraising events, a friend of mine came to the conclusion that, in general, the people of the Northwest Region of Cameroon make more donations in every fund raiser event than those of the Southwest Region. She also found out that there was a vast contrast in the professional composition of each of the donors from the two regions. She concluded that most of the donors from the Northwest Region were professionals with careers in Pharmacy, Nursing, law, Medicine, engineering etc, while their Southwest professional counterparts were basically in the teaching profession, hoteliers, unskilled labor managers and a few of them are having high-end professional jobs. With this difference in their professional orientation comes the disparity in their income as well. Because the North Westerners earned more, so is their contributions more in most fundraising events and, it explains a partial reason why their regions are more advanced as they themselves are, when compared to their counterparts from the Southwest Region. The orientations of the peoples of these two regions have been very different. While the North westerners are resolute in introducing their new arrivals to high-income-earning careers, the South westerners insist on having their new arrivals fulfill parental wishes of completing a degree course without any sense of appropriation for the future.

     One would ask the writer why he prefers using the people of the Northwest region as oppose to other natives from the other regions of Cameroon who are also present in the United States. Simply, the natives of the Southwest region and their counterparts from the Northwest region both arrived in the United States about the same time and their educational orientations as well as their contributions in fundraising events have been monitored for as long as these two groups have settled in the United States hence the comparison. In addition, the natives of these two regions of Cameroon share similar cultural values and have received same educational orientation while in Cameroon. Therefore, comparing the two brings out that which is lacking in one, and, correcting behavior or deeds will not only create the awareness that has been lacking in the other but will help in bridging the income disparity gap.    

     The Oroko ethnic tribe is one of the many tribes in the Southwest Region of Cameroon that is lumped up in this debilitating trend. The Oroko elements in the United States are no different from their Southwest counterparts because they too are victims of these unpleasant career orientations. The poor advise or the lack thereof of proper orientation given to the new arrivals is reflected in the jobs that they do as it is reflected in their meager salaries, which determines their meager contributions in Cameroonian fundraising events hence, validating the writer’s observation. This, to me, is one of the reasons why we must take the need for a change seriously. The writer believes that the Oroko Cultural Associations should lead the way in designing programs that would advise Oroko elements, especially those still in Cameroon, to pursue the career path that would change their fortunes. Perhaps, to enable the Oroko elements to compete or change the fortunes of their people and lead the region to an improved lifestyle, extensive career orientation and sensitization programs have to be carried out throughout the Oroko land. In addressing this problem, we suggest the following:

 
a.    Designing a career friendly program;

b.   Design methods of sensitization of the people; and,

c.    Set goals and measure output of program by setting timelines.

     We cannot only blame the Oroko new-arrivals’ problems on the lack of proper orientation by their peers. The root of the problem dates as far back as Cameroon. The orientation of many of our brothers and sisters have rested squarely on the shoulders of our parents whose major objectives is to send their children to Teachers’ Training Colleges and other quick unsubstantiated careers so that they could start working in order to supplement the often meager family income. This quick-fix measure of graduating mostly teachers has not worked favorably for the Oroko people who are always at the bottom of the income  ladder in Cameroon.

     We'd to also examine the results of exit examinations of secondary and high schools in Orokoland and it cemented our findings. A majority of the students graduating from colleges in our divisions, over the years, did so by graduating in mostly liberal arts courses, trending to low-income dead-end jobs. Our students till date continue to pursue liberal arts degrees rather than science degrees that generate better jobs and high income. If we insist on orientating our students on better ways to improve their capacity, we must have therefore addressed the often meager contributions they often give in Cameroonian or in the Oroko fundraising events.  

     Many of the Oroko sons and daughters who are in overseas, and who have had the benefit of encountering other civilizations away from Cameroon---who know the demands of a global economy today---should be in a better position to advise members of our community on the best way forward in addressing these problems but because the Oroko Cultural Association in the United States is the only credible organization in the Orokoland, it must take the lead.

     There is great optimism for the Oroko people; an emerging tribe not only in the Southwest Region. In as much as the government of Cameroon is delaying economic and social development in the area, a massive campaign to adequately orientate the people, molded towards a sound professional orientation, championed by the Oroko Cultural Associations, would result in a change in lifestyle of the people and as a result, the often meager donations to fund projects during fundraising events, which has been an evocative characteristic of our people, would become a story of the past. How can we therefore orientate the Oroko people to turn these misfortunes into fortunes?

                                  A). Designing a Career-Friendly Program

     Since the purpose of this study is to address the income disparity between the peoples of the Southwest and Northwest regions of Cameroon with a particular focus on the Oroko people---in creating professionally-oriented study awareness programs, which will result in the Oroko people earning high incomes like their northwest counterparts, we are therefore going to be relying on the expertise of the Oroko Cultural Associations to bridge this gap.  The Oroko Cultural Associations, which has championed other projects in the Orokoland in the past, is viewed as the only reliable agency to spearhead any such organized development programs in the area, and deservingly so. In doing so, she must create a brochure with all the different professional careers in the world stating how profitable those professional careers are compared to the ones they have been used to. These careers should be formatted to guide and prepare students from the elementary level (with emphasis on courses which will pave way towards high-earning careers) to terminal degree programs. For instance, we can instruct our pupils and students earlier on, on having good fundamentals in mathematics, chemistry and biology etc, etc. There ought to be more emphasis placed by Oroko students because, these courses are prerequisites to becoming a chemical engineer, a pharmacist, a medical doctor, computer software and hardware engineer, or a nurse etc. Furthermore, with mathematics, biology and physics they could become bio-medical engineers or electrical engineers too. It will even get better if we could put the incomes that obtain in each of these professions so that our students will have to shape their career around these courses with the intention of becoming economically viable in the future. Such is what will propel and inspire the Oroko pupils and students from inception to perform extra-ordinarily and in achieving set goals that would bring desired income or economic benefits to them and our community.

 

     In addition to the above, the school administrators, who shall be made the primary agents to implement these desired changes, should be made aware of the objectives of the association vis-à-vis the needs of the students. Perhaps, with additional incentives to teachers, who are primary agents to enable the objectives of the organization, our fortunes could be quickly realized than we had anticipated.

Graphs as the one below prepares students for future desired expectations

To become a Medical Doctor you need to study	To become a Teacher with a PhD degree in liberal arts	To become a Nurse with a Bs.N degree
Biology & chemistry especially and the income level estimated in dollars is	History, Geography, literature economics, biology, chemistry etc	Biology,Maths, chemistry orientation is needed
Salary range $90,000.00 (45,000,000frs) per year and above	Salary range $32,000(16,000,000frs and up to $60,000(30,000,000frs per year	Salary range $60,000(30,000,000frs) per year and up.
10hrsworkload& up	8hrs workload & up	8hrs workload and up.

     When things are done in this manner, students are inspired to adequately prepare to deal with courses they will ordinarily neglect earlier on during their adaptive ages, like some of us did during our informative school days. Perhaps, all their efforts now should focus on excelling in sciences, which they never paid attention to in the past. Also, videos of Cameroonian professionals in their different professional occupations can serve as role models and could ultimately bring the best in our students, whose goals would be to aspire to be like them. A little effort as this one can easily change the misfortunes of a community overnight.

                             B).Design Methods of Sensitization of the People

      In any normal circumstance, designing a program that would turn the misfortunes of a people into fortunes can be an arduous task; but it is one which is attainable. However, implementing these programs will be grueling task because of the difficulties of the topography in the Oroko area.  Even as we are made aware that implementing these sensitization programs could be an onerous task to carry out but one which educational professionals, working under the guidance of the Oroko Cultural Associations should be able to do. As an organization, we must rigorously pursue the initiative because the output will uplift our people to desired acme. This is what is ordinarily referred to as capacity building of a people. The lack of in these fundamentals has had detrimental effect on how the Oroko people adjust to changing times and how other tribes perceive us as lacking in purpose. Nonetheless, the goal of the association is to vigorously sensitize its people in obtaining desired result---that which will strengthen the Oroko people economically, socially and politically.  The suggestive ways to enable the awareness program to continue are:

a.       To engage the school authorities to devote time and resources to enable success of the program;

b.      To engage Oroko students attending universities to be agents in propagating the objectives of the association in schools in the Oroko land;

c.       The Oroko Cultural Association shall develop a program guide which will design the ways and means of achieving the sensitization programs;

d.      The Oroko Cultural Association should invest a considerable amount of its resources to enable this long term program to work. Its fruits shall be seen in the people who shall later invest their resources in their area and their people. Patience is needed in our people because we are often satisfied with quick-fixes.
e.       The Oroko Cultural Association should be in the position to invest some of their resources so as to enable these goals and objectives; and,
f.        The strengths and weaknesses of the project shall be communicated to the Oroko people world-wide and monitoring mechanisms shall be put in place as well as evaluation methods to determine the program’s impact.

                    C.    Set Goals and Measure Output of Program

     The goal of this effort is to educate our Oroko brothers and sisters on the right and profitable career paths which will enable them to be self-sustaining; and career paths that would create better avenues and enable them to give more, if not in fundraising events but to the Oroko associations and to the Oroko people than their forebears ever gave.

     Our goal therefore, is to ensure that instituted programs achieve desired results. Most of what we are advocating here could be easily achieved. However, we have to work diligently with all parties every step of the way to enable us achieve set goals and also, to imbibe the culture of giving, which is noticeably absent in our people and our heritage.

his paper may not be the solution to the problem the writer is attempting to address; but it can serve as the first in an attempt to start looking closely at solutions. Obviously, there are greater minds that will not only seek solutions such as this but shall improve on this one.

Nanje Music Production Inc, announces Betondi James' forthcoming New Album: "Ngomo Ya Malle"

                                                                                                                         Betondi James

Nanje Music Production Inc. is back again; this time around, we have gone to their native Oroko land to produce one of the best young artists, James Mukete Nanje, popularly known as “Betondi James”. Nanje Music Production has signed a five years contract with the artist to produce two new albums for this renowned artist. We are delighted to have Mr. Betondi James under the Nanje Music Label.

Under the terms of the contract, the artist and the Production Company have agreed to compose songs that will project the culture of the Oroko people and, shall widely advertise the Oroko music and tradition throughout the country and beyond. The Oroko people have seldom sold their rich customs and traditions to the rest of the world; talk less of selling it to the Cameroon people. Nanje Music Production Inc. sets the selling of the Oroko culture by way of its music, a priority.

Who is Betondi James?   

Betondi James was born on April 3^rd, 1975 in Betenge Balue a village in Ndian division of the South west region in the Republic of Cameroon. His father left the world  when he was just four years old; and as intelligent as he was, Mr. Henry Ibue Elangwe also of blessed memory, and his wife, Mrs. Sarah Elangwe, adopted him as a son and took  the responsibility of educating this talented young man with some help here and there from his biological mother, Mama Maria Bie. He attended Government High School Mbengwi and CCAS Kumba where he successfully obtained his ordinary and advanced level certificates in nineteen ninety-four and ninety-six respectively.  With both his biological and adopted father deceased; Mr. Betondi James was unable to continue with his studies, so, he took employment with Brasseries du Cameroun shortly after completing his high school studies. And, it was while he was employed at Brasseries du Cameroun that he discovered a talent he never knew he had, and that which has brought him as much fame as he has enjoyed so far.  Music has been that calling.

For a man who has been overly appreciative of the gift of life from people, he has never failed to express that gratitude in majority of his compositions. Betondi’s first album, Njomi Mama or thank you mother was widely appreciated by the Oroko people and others throughout Cameroon. There is expectation from fans in waiting for over two years now for his new album who want the artist to meet their expectations. We will not disappoint them. Nanje Music Production Inc., his new production company, understands the pressure and expectations of the artist’s fans and we are ready to exceed those expectations by releasing an exceptionally good quality album titled Ngomo ya Malle or the beats of a sacred tradition.

In Ngomo ya Malle the artist has released ten extra-ordinary songs with the following titles: Ngomo ya Malle, Rua, Esino, Mboka nga Mboka, Matono ma Ngoh, Dior, How we go do, Dinyangi, Dou and Mokousa. Nanje Music Production saw that the fans appreciated Malle ma Mabunu or O Ngenge and have therefore added three of such Malle songs in this new album to satisfy them. We have equally composed three Amekoko songs, a Dior song, and a song to celebrate the life of the dead, another to discuss the unfortunate situation of the Oroko people in Ndian and Meme divisions amongst others. We also have a special song thanking the Oroko people especially in the United States and elsewhere for their benevolence towards their Oroko people in Cameroon.

In Njomi Mama, the artist worked with the gifted Ngomba Emile of Great Soppo, Buea in programming and arranging the album; but in this new album we have gone beyond the confines of Buea to let the artist work with some of the best Cameroon has to offer. We have Mr. Polo Banlog who will work on “Rua, Esino, Mboka nga Mboka and Dou ”, Mr. Aubin Sandjo in “How we go do and Matono Ma Ngoh”, and we took our fans back to Ngomba Emile in “Ngomo ya Malle, Dior,  Mokoussa and Dinyangi”. We did also import the legendary services of the renowned artists, Peugeot Bebey  and Bemo Zina Basame, who did the chorus in Betondi’s previous album, Njomi Mama.The reason why Nanje Music Production  sought these different artists, expensive as they were, to work with Betondi James is not only to provide the artist with a fresh perspective and add a new dimension to his talent pool but also to give his fans added variety, which was lacking in his previous work.

As much as we want to satisfy the fans, all our songs have specific message; the songs shall create awareness in our people and our government to start paying attention to the problems that afflict the Oroko people because we intend to bring these songs and our problems to the World Wide Web and other media outlets.

Two sets of products shall be available for sale: In Cameroon, we shall make products specifically for Cameroon market and its local price while in the overseas market, a more durable and little pricier than that sold in Cameroon. Wait while we prepare the album for its release in February of two thousand and twelve. Below are the interpretations of the forthcoming album tailared to give consumers a heads-up before the album is finally released.

1. NGOMO YA MALLE: This is a collection of juju songs from the Oroko land superbly arranged to put people on their feet. The song invokes the spirits to protect the indigenes of the Oroko land. Women do not partake in the malle ceremony as the men invoke the high spirit to protect the entire village from harm.

2. RUA: It is an expression of disappointment from a woman whose highly expected guest fails to show up in a village annual ceremony where other families were happily welcoming their loved ones. With despair and frustration, she asks the hawk to pick her up and drop her anywhere as a solution to her frustrations.

3. MBOKA NGA MBOKA: The artist is reminding his Oroko people especially those in the Diaspora that, despite the fact that the government has abandoned the Oroko land in terms of bringing development and uplifting the lives of his people, the Oroko people, he applauds those in the Diaspora for their continuous initiative to address the many problems of the Oroko land that the government ought to be addressing.

4. ESINO: This song evokes sympathy and raises the public consciousness to the problems of the physically challenged. If only we could understand the difficulties they go through every day, we will appreciate and see the need to help them, and avoid laughing at them out of ignorance. Meanwhile we thank the Almighty for our lives.

5. MATONO MA NGOH: It’s not because you got a Bachelor’s, Master’s or PhD or Doctorate degree that you should be disrespectful of those who chose to ply their trade or talent in carpentering, hairdressing, tailoring, music etc, for theirs too is another type of education useful in our society and sometimes even more useful than the contemporary education. Everyone, despite their educational orientation does contribute to the wellbeing of society.

6. HOW WE GO DO? It is a song exposing certain injustices in our Cameroonian society and also the misconduct of some officials of the government of Cameroon especially as it relates to the appropriation of services to the Oroko people in the South west region, especially those in Ndian division.

7. NGOMO YA DIOR: This is a collection of juju songs from a very highly sacred society in the Oroko land.

8. DINYANGI: It is a collection of birth celebration (born-house) songs in the Oroko land carefully selected to keep people on their feet and shoulders. Some of the songs have some unnecessary humor, which only women are allowed to sing them and make merry of them.

9. DOU: A generic requiem for the dead, which is song during the celebration of life.

10. Ituka Ya MOKOUSA: The artist denounces some frustrating customs and traditions in the Cameroonian communities, especially in the Oroko tribe whereby, a widow is subjected to sufferings, humiliations and deprivation of the rights to possess the wealth she and her late husband worked for before his death. The law must protect the widow in doing away with these outdated customs and traditions, the artist cries.

The album is dedicated to the sons and daughters of late Tata Netongo Mukete of Betenge Balue. It is equally dedicated to my producer’s late father, Pah Denis A. Nanje of Dikome Balue and to Maureen Ngonde Nanje and Iya Maria Bie, my producer’s late sister and my mother respectively; and to the entire Oroko community in the Diaspora for their relentless effort of providing humanitarian aid to the Oroko people in Cameroon. If I am who I am today is because of my beloved adopted father, Late Papa Henry Ibue Elangwe and wife, Mami Sarah Elangwe, who both gave me everything a parent should give  to their child(ren). Thank you.

Artist and composer of all songs: Betondi James feat. Peugeot Bebey(3 & 10) Irene Ngassa feat. (5 & 9)

Arranger: Ngomba Emile (1.7. 8 &10) Polo Banlog (2 3, 4 &9) Aubin Sandjo (5 &; 6).

Programmer: Ngomba Emile (1.7.8 & 10) Pala Bass (2.4&6) Emmanuel Dou (3 &; 9)

Mixer: M1 Studio Molyko, Buea (1.7.8 &;10) Polo Banlog (2,3 ,4 &; 9); Aubin Sandjo (5 &; 6)

Chorus: Bemo Basame (8 &; 10) Moka Monique(3.5 & 9) Peugeot Bebey; Betondi James (1 & 7) Irene Ngassa (2 &; 4)

Guitarist: Lady Bass (2 & 4), Martylo Njielo (10) David Mesumbe (Bass 1.7.10) Ngebo Solo (3&9); Rufen Lembe (5 & 6)

Mastering: Polo Banlog Mega-X Digital

Jacket Design: By Roosevelt Djatche

Production: Nanje Music Production, Inc. Nanjemusicproduction@gmail.com or United States: 1.404.834.1710

Cameroon: 01123774800650; 01123796529403. Canada: 1.647.868.2046

www.youtube.com/NanjeMusicProduction

Jackson Nanje is the Chief Executive Officer of Nanje Music Production Inc,. a music production company based in Cameroon.