The Anglophone Problem and the Ticking Time Bomb

The country is gradually receding to the transmutation trajectory of a civil war; there is fire on the mountain and no one is running. This should worry the president

By Ekinneh Agbaw-Ebai*

Just when it seems the Biya regime has hit the lowest ebb in governance capacity, it manages to find a further depth in ignominy. The failed meetings between government and representatives of Anglophone teachers and lawyers who have been the arrowhead of the recent protests was yet another predilection of the government digging its own grave beyond the proverbial six feet. Little surprise the outcome was a typical Cameroonian tragic-comedy of errors in which the government brought odium upon itself and advertised in spectacular fashion, how lies and deceit have been elevated to instruments of statecraft. In a continuing orgy of ineptitude and self-delusion, the government tried to put a positive spin on the fiasco even after the Anglophone teachers and lawyers staged a walkout in Bamenda and Yaoundé.

This is more than embarrassing as it betrays a government lacking in the vital attributes of democratic engagement. The empty grandstanding will do nothing, other than escalate the Anglophone problem beyond the point of no return. Once that happens, the government should banish the thought of an abortion after the baby - an independent Anglophone nation - is born. So, while the window of opportunity is still open, President Biya must be told in unmistakable terms that the solution to the Anglophone problem is either a federation or independence for Anglophones. The President may pretend not be in a hurry to address the problem, but the truth is that time is not on his side.

There are reasons for Anglophones to be outraged by the meetings which are a rigmarole begging the main issue. To begin with, how could the government dispatch a team of Anglophone problem deniers to resolve a problem, they ipso facto believe, does not exist? Fame Ndongo who denies the existence of an Anglophone problem as part of the negotiating team only confirms the government’s capacity to shock and scandalize is infinite. Besides, insisting a deal-breaker like federalism is “off the table” only vindicates Anglophones, who suspect, with good reason, that these meetings are merely a subterfuge of divide and conquer, aimed at deflating the momentum of the Anglophone struggle, while running down the clock. If this is the sinister calculation behind government’s thinking, then it is a suicidal mistake.

Some stories are best told straight. The false equivalency by Francophones who equate federalism to secession speaks to an ignorance that is tantalizing and manifestly hypocritical, to say the least. Their illogical arguments are further rendered unacceptable because they wittingly or unwittingly, confirm the fact that they consider Anglophones as a conquered people who can be abused with impunity and their natural resources pillaged to finance the conspicuous consumption and ostentatious lifestyles of corrupt bureaucrats in the name of national unity. What could be more dishonest and self-serving than denying that Anglophones have a right over their God-given resources? Indeed, the lie of an illusional united and indivisible Cameroon has been glued and nourished at the monumental expense of Anglophones who have bent over backwards to breaking point in accommodating the parasitic cabal of Francophone ethnic jingoists who, in their dementia thought patterns, believe they can abuse the instruments of state power to criminally sustain this dubiously crafted Luciferian contraception called Cameroon. This is a hypocritical reality that must be dismantled and Anglophones are saying enough is enough.

It bears repeating that Anglophone Cameroon produces over 60% of national GDP and gets back next to nothing. It is, therefore, provocative, insulting and irresponsible for Francophones to derisively dismiss the Anglophone problem. When a people complain of discrimination and marginalization in a country they call theirs and express a desire to secede as a result, it is not rocket science to know that the best way to respond is not by rolling out the tanks and soldiers. You don’t use force to keep an aggrieved partner in a relationship he/she has expressed a desire to quit. You keep an aggrieved partner in the relationship by addressing his/her grievances.

Regardless of what anyone may think about the Anglophone problem, what even President Biya cannot dispute is that Anglophone grievances are genuine. Anglophones have lost faith in the country and the status quo is not sustainable. After 55 years of marginalization and discrimination, there is no better time than now to address the structural and institutional challenges facing the nation. And Anglophones have made no secret of their intentions to secede if the government refuses dialogue and the return to a federal system of government. But the odor of petrifying arrogance from government officials is matched by their patronizing bellicosity evidenced by their outright rejection of federalism. This is sheer nonsense. Truth be told; Anglophones are not begging for federalism. If the government refuses dialogue, then Anglophones are left no choice than to restore their independence.

It defies common sense that the government is creating committees to negotiate with Anglophones, while government apologists take to the airwaves to deny the existence of a problem the government claims it wants to solve. This most certainly, is not the way to solve the Anglophone problem. It must be stated unequivocally that threats of intimidation and brimstone on Anglophones can only harm the very cause of national unity which the government is seeking to advance. In real terms, the committee meetings underscore the yawning disconnect between government’s ostrich-like grandstanding and bad faith towards Anglophones. The pig-headed effort to address grievances specific to lawyers and teachers outside the gamut of the Anglophone problem indicates the Francophone regime is stuck in the past. You cannot use yesterday’s solutions to solve today’s problems. It will not work.

Biya can no longer pretend not to understand that Anglophones want a dialogue to discuss their future and the government should be under no illusion about the explosive potentialities and danger to national unity, posed by the Anglophone problem. It appears the President seems more preoccupied with the ceremonial aspects of his job and has lost sight of the reasons Cameroonians elected him. Biya must understand that as an employee of the Cameroonian people, he has a constitutional obligation to listen to grievances from every section of the country and to address them. Military force will solve the Anglophone problem and history offers valuable lessons to that effect.

No word can be too strong to condemn the overwhelming force against peaceful Anglophone protests and the extra-judicial killing of Anglophones. The ongoing militarization of Anglophone towns smacks of a deliberate attempt to escalate the situation. In due course, Anglophones will be compelled to respond to the provocation by meeting force with force in legitimate self-defence. Let no one be fooled that Anglophones will stand idly by and watch soldiers shoot and kill them like game. When push eventually comes to shove, the jackboots on the streets of Anglophone towns will become an army of occupation and legitimate reprisal targets. The soldiers might have all the weapons of mass destruction, but Anglophones own their towns; master the terrain and outnumber the invaders and with history on their side, they will overcome. So Quo Vadis?

With negotiation now at an impasse, and the strikes poised to continue, there is a sense of foreboding in the horizon. Obviously, the government will continue to preach dialogue, while deploying brigandage and executive lawlessness to suffocate the protests. Already, Anglophones are endangered species against whom the might and resources of the state are being deployed. Cameroonians of conscience, including Francophones are apprehensive of the Gestapo tactics and invidious persecution of Anglophones; fearing the country is gradually receding to the transmutation trajectory of a civil war. This should worry the president.

The government’s refusal to dialogue with Anglophones is nothing but a manifestation of the culture of arrogance and impunity that has been the modus operandi of successive Francophone governments from Ahidjo to Paul Biya. Regrettably, Biya’s failure to show leadership by taking ownership of the Anglophone problem is a pointer to the abysmal level of the political leadership in the country and its immaturity. The Anglophone case is predicated on the force of the argument and the government’s recourse to the argument of force is a meaningless show of crude power. It is bewildering because it is happening under a supposedly democratic government. It is also ironic because democracy has inbuilt institutional mechanisms, both formal and informal, for addressing differences and conflicts. Interestingly, the accommodation of dissent is a fundamental element in any democracy.

Cameroon’s greatest strength is her diversity. It should never be denied. Without doubt, there are things Cameroonians in their linguistic and ethnic differentiation have as common values that should be the basis for their unity and strength. To paraphrase former US President Bill Clinton, in a different context, there is nothing wrong with Cameroon that cannot be corrected by what is right with Cameroon. All Biya needs to do is get Cameroonians together; give them the opportunity to chart a new way forward, and rediscover those binding ethos of the nation and why it profits all of us to be Cameroonians. The Anglophone problem is a ticking time bomb that requires presidential leadership and political will to defuse. The President can continue to ignore the problem at the nation’s peril.

*Ekinneh Agbaw-Ebai is a Public Intellectual and graduate of Harvard University John F. Kennedy School of Government, where he was Managing Editor of the Harvard Journal of African-American Public Policy. A former Research Analyst for Freedom House, he is a Consultant and lives in Boston, USA. Talk back at ekinneh@yahoo.com

Macron's Election, the Anglophone Problem and the Generational Question (1)

By Ekinneh Agbaw-Ebai

A democratic revolution is on its way in France, while Cameroon is stuck in political sclerosis and inertia with an insipid gerontocracy comprising tired old men, tottering on the borders of senile decay.

           

For Cameroonians, the most obvious lesson from the election of Emmanuel Jean-Michel Frederic Macron as President of France is that the youths too can do it, if the conditions are right. At age 39 and one who has never held elected office, Macron founded La République en Marche (Republic on the Move or REM), a centrist political movement with an ideology, structure, and a campaign machine that within a year, took on and defeated long existing and experienced mainstream political parties on the right and left. In the presidential run-off, Macron trounced Marine Le Pen’s National Front winning over 66% of the vote. In the next chapter of his democratic revolution, Macron’s party, and its allies won a handsome parliamentary majority - a remarkable result for a party founded only 14 months ago. The election of Macron is an opportunity that beckons on Cameroonians, with the next Presidential election in sight. Already, the nation is being treated to a comical spectacle by self-seeking morons and scums stumping around, in a bizarre campaign aimed at getting the “anointed” CPDM incumbent to seek re-election in 2018. These efforts to orchestrate another 7-year mandate for the ailing 84-year-old Paul Biya, stands in mockery to the leadership recruitment process that put a 39 year-old into the French presidency. It is a travesty that insults and diminishes even Biya’s own person. CPDM political jobbers should spare Cameroonians the noise as the nation laments in agony for better governance.

Macron, an investment banker, may not have contested elections before but had substantial experience in the corridors of power. He worked as a public servant; was once a member of the Socialist Party and held different government portfolios. His success is a function of a political environment that is relatively healthy and civilized, where politicians, servant-leaders go into politics for the public interest. It is said that only the deep calls to the deep. Macron’s mentors and senior politicians, like erstwhile President Francois Hollande who leveraged his career are patriotic French politicians who identify and nurture youths with such positive qualities. The leadership recruitment motive and process that put a 39 year-old into the French presidency must therefore be commended. It is worth-noting that though 22 years younger than Biya, Hollande at age 62, chose not to seek re-election because of his low job approval rating. Such sensitivity to public opinion is indeed a mark of statesmanship and the wisdom of a patriot.

Mr. Macron is a man who follows his mind, as exemplified by the story of his marriage. He is one who, believes in the “can do” spirit as evidenced by the movement he put together to win so soon and so spectacularly, the highest office in France and at an age only Napoleon Bonaparte matched. But his success was not manna that dropped from Heaven. Luck, as they say, is when opportunity meets preparation. Macron prepared, and climbed on the shoulders of giants who helped him get to the top. He has a sound education, worked in both public and private sectors and benefitted from older politicians who brought him into government and political exposure. But all these was only possible because his benefactors found him worthy of high responsibilities and leadership roles, hence he rose. In sum, Macron earned his achievement. Indeed, his confidence, his courage, and his competence are clearly demonstrated by his decision to quit the Socialist Party to start his own political movement.

It must be recalled though, that Cameroon once had courageous and capable young people in leadership positions. President, Paul Biya at age 29, was Charge de mission at the Presidency in 1962, and later rose to become prime minister in 1975 at the age of 42. The current Prime Minister Philemon Yang was appointed Minister of Mines and Power at age 28; Bello Bouba was prime minister in 1982 at age 35. At 25, Bello was Secretary General at the Ministry of Defence; at 28, he became Minister, Deputy Secretary General at the Presidency. Before becoming prime minister, Bello was Minister of State on January 7, 1982, at the age of 35. Hamadou Moustapha, currently, Minister in charge of Special Duties at the Presidency was first appointed to this portfolio in 1975 at age 27. Augustin Frédéric Kodock was Secretary of State at the Ministry of Finance in 1963 at age 30. Kamdem Niyim was Health Minister in 1964 at age 23; his Sports counterpart Mbombo Njoya was 27. Ndam Njoya was Education Minister in 1977 at age 35.

Achidi Achu was Minister of Justice in 1972 at age 38. Maikano Abdoulaye was 38 when he became Minister of the Civil Service on June 12, 1970. House speaker, Cavaye Djibril, was first elected at age 30. He has been MP for 47 years; 25 of them as Speaker. Before becoming Senate President, the 84-year-old Niat Njifenji was appointed GM of SONEL in 1970 at age, 40. In 1988, Laurent Esso’o became deputy secretary general at the presidency at age 46 and has never left the government ever since. Joseph Owona was director of the International Relations Institute of Cameroon (IRIC) in 1976, aged 31; Dorothy Njeuma, was 32 when she was appointed Vice Minister of Education in 1975; At age 28, Nzoh Ekanghaki was Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister in 1962, and became Secretary General of the defunct OAU at the age of 38. The list is endless.

Cameroonians find it difficult to understand why these old people are still running the country. Biya inherited the presidency in 1982 and has held office for 34 years and counting. In clearly unmistakable terms, the fact that the four most important personalities of the nation – President Paul Biya (84), Senate President Niat Njifenji (84), House Speaker Cavaye Djibril (77) and PM Philemon Yang (70), combine for a total 313 years is a mark of Cameroon’s regression. Even if their age is not a problem; what about the age of their ideas? These spent forces are clueless, inept and ill-equipped for the complex challenges of nation-building in the 21st century driven by globalization social media, and new information and communication technology. It is regrettable that the ruling class is dominated by people who ought to have joined the president in a well-deserved retirement. That men like Jean Foumane Akame (78), Martin Belinga Eboutou (77), Amadou Ali (74), Laurent Esso’o (74), Bello Bouba (70), Hamadou Moustapha (72), Ayang Luc (70), and others like Achidi Achu (82), Enow Tanjong (80), Ibrahim Mbombo Njoya (80), Mafany Musonge (74), Nfon Victor Mukete (99) are still running the nation’s affairs is most unhelpful to the cause of a better Cameroon. The gerontocracy has perforated the judiciary, as well as the military top brass. René Claude Meka, army chief of staff is 78 years old; the police boss, Martin Mbarga Nguele is 81 and has been a police officer for 68 years and counting; the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, Daniel Mekobe Sone is 72.

These one-party apologists suffer from monolithic hang-over and view global trends towards respect for human rights, press freedom; transparency and accountability in government, rule of law and good governance as intrusions into their personal power and influence. They just cannot understand how dissent is an act of patriotism and that citizens have an obligation to question and hold their leaders accountable. Undoubtedly, the nation gets a raw deal when tired old men facing creeping senility are recycled from political limbo into high public office. The integrity deficit associated with octogenarians running the country is self-seeking, ignominious, whimsical and disdainful political brigandage that has held the nation prostrate. This is a sad commentary on the character of Cameroonian politics and politicians for, after all is considered, neither purposeful leadership nor the public interest is served by these men of yesteryears; who regrettably, are the ones who often catch the President’s fancy powers.

In a genuine democracy or even any context, there is something inherently absurd in one man ruling a country for over three decades and counting. It just cannot be that there are no other capable hands to continue wherever he stops! Democracy thrives on regenerative change and good governance can only be enhanced where fresh ideas from other patriots are allowed. It is a blemish on the leadership quality of any man who fails to nurture new leaders to succeed him. It still holds true that success without a successor is failure. Biya’s continued stay in power therefore subtracts hugely from his standing as a statesman. Besides, his long stay in office denies Cameroonians the experience of peaceful change of leadership and puts the country at risk of disintegration when, as a reluctant mortal, death eventually forces him out of office; a tragedy Cameroon can do without.

The 39-year-old Macron is poised to remake the face and shape of French politics. Biya should look at Macron and realize that he does not have a monopoly of wisdom and should have left office a long time ago. After 34 years in power, it would be an act of statesmanship for Biya not to even contemplate contesting the 2018 election. It is time to begin the process of handing over to a new generation. At 84 years of age, Biya should have long abandoned partisan politics and become a father of the nation who, in tricky times like these with separatist agitations, should be available to be consulted for his wisdom and experience. Alas, in Africa, only Nelson Mandela and a few other leaders have had sufficient self-control, political sagacity and gumption to settle for such pedestal.

In point of fact though, the Anglophone problem is a Cameroonian problem that is deeply embedded in the generational question. In effect, Anglophones are sick and tired of a corrupt leadership recruitment process choked by so-called “godfathers” with dubious connections and access to the corridors of power, who arrogate to themselves the exclusive right to nominate people for appointments to public offices. Cameroon is a great country waiting to happen and needs men and women of character who would make sacrifices for her greatness. Buffeted by a myriad of woes, including a self-serving political class of septuagenarians and octogenarians, redemption is still possible. There is need for sober reflection on the moral imperatives of the political and economic choices facing the nation. Resolving the generational question requires a major paradigm shift and a restructuring of the political system to return the country to federalism.

Flashback...November 24, 1981, 36 years ago, President Ahmadou Ahidjo cuts the ribbon to inaugurate the Song Loulou hydro-electric dam accompanied by Paul Biya (Prime Minister), Marcel Niat Njifenji (GM of SONEL), and Philemon Yang (Minister of Mines, Water and Energy).

Marcel Niat Njifenji (then GM of SONEL) welcomes President Ahidjo to inaugurate the Song Loulou Hydroelectric Power Dam in 1981, under the watchful eyes of Philemon Yang, then Minister of Mines, Water and Energy. Niat was 40 years old when he became SONEL GM in 1970. Yang became Minister at the age of 28. Over 36 years later, Niat (84) is now Senate President, and Yang (70) is PM.

*Ekinneh Agbaw-Ebai is a Public Intellectual and graduate of Harvard University John F. Kennedy School of Government, where he was Managing Editor of the Harvard Journal of African-American Public Policy. A former Research Analyst for Freedom House, he is a Consultant and lives in Boston, Massachusetts, USA.

Cameroon:The Ache the CPDM Party has brought to the Nation and why the Party needs Rebranding

There is ‘probably’ a rationale to see whites dish out inhumane treatment to blacks in a country like America because they do not have the same skin color; but for blacks mistreating their fellow blacks in Cameroon is not only pitiful but it is unconscionable, unimaginable and shameful. Jackson Nanje

On issues as egregious as the Anglophone problem which has the potential of rupturing our make-shift or fragile democracy, CPDM USA and many other diaspora sections are incapable (nomenclatures of the party) of making policy statements that would give advice and consent to the party on the best way forward in resolving the quagmire the country is confronted with, now. Jackson Nanje

 

By Jackson Nanje

    In the face of an Anglophone problem which has the potential of dividing Cameroon into East and West and brothers against sisters who may not yet understand that the real enemy is not each other but the government of Cameroon and the CPDM party; a government and a party that have remained defiant and steadfast in embracing a badly needed change---that is, a complete overhaul of government) which is coming by way of the Anglophone problem. So much has been written thus far about the body politics of Cameroon but a defiant Chairman and surrogates of the CPDM party are only willing to wrap bandages on these problems and are applying temporary desperate measures rather than lasting solutions to solve these ailing problems. In a nutshell, the CPDM party loyalists are unwilling to admit that these problems exist because many are afraid of political reprisal if they spoke out. But a political party can never achieve prominence if its members are afraid to speak truth to power or if they are mere myrmidons (blind followers) of their master. This is the party the CPDM has become; and change, is a must-embrace for party transformation to take place.

     As Communication and Education Officer for CPDM USA since the Section’s inception in 2007, it has been my duty to educate the militants… on party activities and on how power emanates from the basic unit of the party, the Cell to the Central Committee and the Political Bureau. In the United States, however, CPDM USA’s power emanates from the branch, which is the lowest organ (accommodation permitted by the Central Committee) of the party. The Section does not have powers to make suggestions to the bigwigs in Yaoundé because decisions that are deemed pertinent in the running of the party are made by the Central Committee and Political Bureau. On issues as egregious as the Anglophone problem which has the potential of rupturing our make-shift or fragile democracy, CPDM USA and many other diaspora sections are incapable (nomenclatures of the party) of making policy statements that would give advice and consent to the party on the best way forward in resolving the quagmire the country is confronted with, now. This is because of an institutional policy that does not give room for criticism from bottom up. For the party to grow, it must create avenues to seek for useful suggestions from other segments of the party other than the Central Committee and Political Bureau. The older party militants who constitute the Central Committee and Political Bureau do not evaluate things the same way as the young and brightest do. Additionally, the party must have the communication department deal with issues as they come. Ignoring citizens’ demands and concerns have never been an effective way of resolving conflicts especially in this digital age; ignoring them only agitates the population and this has been standard practice of the party----to ignore the concerns of citizens with the hope that their lack of response will cause the problems to disappear. In the United States of America where I live for example, my simple $20,00 contribution to the Democrat Party qualifies me to receive weekly letters from the party and even from President Barack Obama, informing me about the development and changes the party is making to suit the needs of citizens. Further, the Democrat party have regular town hall meetings which enables party militants to provide inputs to grow the party. This is democracy at best, which I strongly suggest the CPDM party should adopt, in order to encourage Cameroonians to see the party as the best choice for them. In today’s digital age, where majority of Cameroonians are connected to the internet, the party must use this modern tool to communicate with every Cameroonian and vice versa. No Cameroonian should have to wait for more than a week for the government to redress his/her grievance. It is unacceptable that the government received letters from Anglophone lawyers asking for a redress of their grievances but they (government) ignored them for more than a year?! This is inconsequential! This happy-go-lucky attitude has constituted the immediate cause of what is brewing as the Cameroon Revolution or coined, “The Anglophone Problem.” What is this Anglophone Problem which is at the verge of causing a revolution in Cameroon?

     When people have a legitimate cause, it is important for their government to listen to them and address their grievances, promptly. After all, we are a government for, by, and of the people. That is the role of each government. Intimidation cannot for a good government make. The current political upheaval started with a written demand from the lawyers to their government, asking of them to address the inequalities they are presently witnessing in the Anglophone Judicial System (Common Law) in which the Francophone Judicial System (Civil Law) has completely bastardized their courts. The Francophone judicial system is diametrically different from the Anglophone judicial system and its importation over to the Anglophone courts cannot render better justice to Anglophone citizens even as the language of dispatch is incomprehensible from the giver (Francophone magistrates) to the taker (Anglophone citizens).

     In addition to the current judicial inequality in the country, the distribution of political power is another serious cause for concern. The Francophones managed almost every branch in government even though there are numerous well trained and capable Anglophone managers in each category where Francophones have been employed around the country who can do even better. Faced with these grotesque injustices, the Anglophone Cameroonian have justifiable reasons to protest the government for a redress of these injustices.

    The Anglophone Teachers too have also decried the infiltration of Francophone-trained teachers who have been deployed in most English-speaking areas who can barely speak a word in English. It is not that the Francophone teachers do not mastered the material; they do so in the French language and conveying this material in a language unfamiliar to them, is a very serious task that put the Anglophone students at a disadvantage.  This is assimilation at worse and it shouldn’t be a surprise to the CPDM-led government to see Anglophone citizens finally defying the odds, by standing up against the brutal axe of the government which lacks proprietary interest of its Anglophone citizens that join the union in good faith through a plebiscite and referendum to become one and indivisible Cameroon. There is ‘probably’ a rationale to see whites dish out inhumane treatment to blacks in countries like America because they do not have the same skin color; but for blacks  mistreating their fellow blacks in Cameroon is not only pitiful but it is unconscionable, unimaginable and shameful.

     Cameroonians alike, were very hopeful when the Cameroon National Union party under President Ahmadou Ahidjo was rebranded as Cameroon People’s Democratic Movement under President Paul Bartholomew Biya in 1985. The leadership of President Ahmadou Ahidjo of the CNU party, even though some may consider it better when compared to the CPDM of President Biya, it was a constant nightmare and Cameroonians were so pleased to have a new transformational leader; at least, that is the impression Cameroonians had of him when he took over the ruins of the CNU. The people of Cameroon, East and West had so much trust, hope, and expectations that the CPDM party was going to change their economic and political woes. However hopeful and expectant they were over the span of 32years, that hope and expectation have been dashed by an ineffective leader. One can capture the desultory picture of how my people of Ndian division who have voted 100% for the CPDM in past elections, a division which produces 89.5% of Cameroon’s oil have been manhandled by the leadership of the CPDM party. The level of desperation and miserableness the party has brought to the people of Ndian is dreadful and brutal.

     The government of Cameroon started extracting oil from Ndian division in the early 1960s unbeknown even to the Ndian people. And for over 50years of oil extraction, not even a penny has been ploughed back to the division as subvention, royalties, or revenue sharing. The division cannot boast of electricity, a single Petrol or Gas station, lack of adequately equipped schools with resources other than that provided by Parents Teachers’ Association, no hospital, pupils as young as 6years old in the remote areas of Ndian trek about 2hours to attend school in the nearby village because of the absence of roads and schools in their respective villages, no pipe borne water except that which has been gotten through community interventions etc. Annoyingly, while the population of other divisions have grown exponentially, the population of Ndian division has stagnated at 130,000 people since 1975. The census bureau estimates that population increases 3.56% annually. If this is the case, then Ndian division should have a population of about 526,000 inhabitants. Why the population has not changed since 1975 is due to the dark arm of the government whose interest lie in their resources and not of the people. This enslavement must stop! The low population is a justification for the government not to provide any amenities on grounds of sparsely populated division Again, the division is not sparsely populated; the government has never truly provided accurate count of Ndian division's population over the ensuing censors since 1975. Many have blamed the docility of the Ndian people which they say is the reason for their underdevelopment. On the contrary, the Ndian people have petitioned the government severally over the span of 50years but nothing has come of it. Because of the neglect, the Ndian people, not our belly-hungry Ndian politicians, solemnly stands in solidarity with the teachers and lawyers, to demand for reforms and for federated states as the only solution to address age-old neglect.

     The people of Cameroon will understand and shall be glad to bid farewell to the CPDM party Chairman and Cameroon’s President, His Excellency Paul Biya because, it is undoubtable that he and many of his CPDM surrogates have unquestionably ran out of ideas on how to best run the country. These gerontocrats have been exposed by demands of the technological age and as Lord Alfred Tennyson wrote in “Idylls of the King,” on the passing of King Arthur, “the old order changeth, yielding place to new.” The analog way of governance is outdated, outmoded and insipid and can no longer compete with the new digital way of governance. Therefore, for our country to meet up with demands of the 21^st Century, the old guards (gerontocrats) must step aside for new digital performers to move the country forward and they should equally do everything possible to avoid plunging the country into war.

     For Cameroon as a nation to move towards the path of development, the CPDM party must not second guess the intentions of Cameroonians who are genuinely requesting to partner with them to achieve prosperity for our nation. The gerontocrats must add new technologically-inspired youths to propel the party and they must constantly liaise with Cameroonians everywhere for ideas to move the country ahead. The infusion of youths in decision making helps as a learning opportunity from the old to the new and it will help to stabilize the country economically and politically. And as the politicians ponder which political path would be best for the country, I want to shed more light on the issue of federalism or federal form of government that both parties are gravitating towards now than ever before. Majority of Francophone Cameroonians think that when Cameroon adopts the federal form of governance the resource which are found in various Regions are retained by those Regions. Not true! The resources are federally bound and retained by the national government that shares the proceeds to each Region to carry out their development projects. Each Region make their laws but the federal constitution, which all Regions must participate in crafting must be the law of the land. Each Region shall elect their representatives in both Regional and Federal house. The Regions shall also hire and train their police officers who shall be answerable to their Regional governors and mayors. They can also be fired from duty if they violate the laws of the Regions. In short, every citizen shall respect Regional and Federal laws. This is how a civil society functions and my hope is that, the CPDM party should lead this dialogue with the different leaders of the civil societies to move our beloved country forward.

     All these problems sum up the aches of the CPDM party but nonetheless aches they can resolve if they have the interest of Cameroonians at heart. And the ability to resolve these problems amicably could start a new rebranding pathway and prominence for the party. 

Cameroon Politics:The SDF JOSHUA NAMBANGI OSIH---FROM POWER TO THE PEOPLE TO POWER TO THE YOUTH and WOMEN

To win any elections, it requires having a marketable candidate on the platform of a sellable Political party. Is Sesse Joshua OSIH the Clarion call of a party that desperately needs a new blood? If he is, he needs to do a dispassionate introspection on why the SDF has become so impotent and unattractive to voters outside the North West Region or Grassland.        https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ogU6az4G1BU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ok9Vw6UoK7k

By Albert Atabong Motale

The news on Cameroon Journal whether grounded, founded or a possibility of Sesse Joshua Nambangi Osih (JNO) as the successor to the Legend and Political colossus SDF Chairman, Nii John Fru, has elicited some sense of cautious optimism and rekindled hope across the political landscape.  Whatever our political persuasion or divide, it should be seen as a welcome development, a good omen for our democracy, a rare transfer of power from the old to the young and a rare opportunity for our youth to arise and shine.  Cameroon can no longer continue to patronize analogue leaders in this digital age.  JNO provides that window of opportunity and rare hope for the youth in a political terrain firmly under the control and hands of grandfathers and maybe with a few grandmothers.
The role and place of Chairman Nii John Fru in the history of Cameroon cannot be over emphasized as he would be best described as the Father of Multi Party democracy and arguably the best President Cameroon never had. A true patriot and statesman should always quit the stage when the ovation is lowest.       https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ogU6az4G1BU

The story, travails and trajectory of the Social Democratic Front define and encapsulate our democratic struggles as a people, our hopes, missed opportunities, our resignations, pains, sad political miscalculations, our frustrations as social democrats, progressives and critical masses to see CHANGE and POWER TO THE PEOPLE materialize in Cameroon in the last 26 years.

The SDF party which was launched on May 26^, 1990 in Bamenda incidentally shares the same birth place with the ruling Cameroon People’s Democratic Movement (CPDM) party, had the hope of dislodging the CPDM from power and change Cameroon political landscape forever; but after 26^th years it is still an opposition party, with a Chairman listed as one of the serial losers of Presidential elections in Africa.  The accession of Sesse Joshua Nambangi OSIH to the throne and shoes of Nii John Fru and the humongous tasks ahead of him, could be better appreciated vis-a-vis the current state of health of the party he shall be inheriting. The question remains though……. Is Joshua Nambangi OSIH inheriting an asset or a liability? 

Honorable Joshua Osih

The popularity and political fortunes of the SDF and Nii Fru Ndi as the Presidential candidate has been on a constant and steep decline and has dwindled to an extent of becoming anemic and a silent minority party heading towards political oblivion as it has been the case in its outings and performances in national elections since inception. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ogU6az4G1BU

   PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS AND RESULTS

Recall, Chairman Nii John Fru Ndi as candidate in the October 1992 presidential elections received about 36% of the vote against about 40% for incumbent President, Paul Biya, according to official results. The difference was just 4% in an election described as badly rigged in favour of the ruling party Candidate. In the October 2004 Presidential elections, Nii Fru Ndi scored 17.4% of the votes approximately an 18.6% drop from previous outing. And in the 2011 Presidential elections described by most of the International and Domestic observers as` free, fair, and transparent, Nii Fru Ndi pulled 518,175 votes constituting 10.17%, approximately 7% drop against CPDM and President Biya  who scored 3,772,527 constituting 77.99%. These are not the records to give Nii Fru Ndi any validity anymore as a credible leader or candidate of the SDF party in the forthcoming Presidential Elections of 2018 and, as they say, it is better to quit the political scene when still at the top and when only you can see the signs of drowning ship than for everyone to see the ship drown and write an obituary which may undermine your works and struggles over the years past. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ok9Vw6UoK7k

        NATIONAL ASSEMBLY ELECTIONS AND RESULTS

In the May 1997 National Assembly (NA) elections the SDF party won 43 seats---winning 19 out of 20 seats in the North West and 15 out 25 seats in the Western Region. It also made major incursions in Littoral and SW regions as well. In the 2002 NA elections, SDF won only 22 seats losing almost half of its seats and was reduced to a regional party confined to the North West region. Its national appeal as a party that was, had been diminished as a result of these serial losses and for a leader who is doing the nation and the party by still clinging to power even as he is unaware that his best days have long gone-by. 
           https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ogU6az4G1BU

 In the July / September 2007 parliamentary elections, the SDF won 16 out of 180 seats.The official results of the NA elections announced on 17 October 2013 show that, the Social Democratic Front won 18 out of 180 seats, a slight increase of 2 seats. These are not records to give the SDF party any resonance; they are records that speak of change from top to bottom within the party. Change that will transform the SDF party from being looked upon as only a North West Regional party into a National party again.

Can Sesse Joshua OSIH answer the Clarion call of a party that desperately needs new blood?

Sesse Joshua Nambangi OSIH shall be inheriting a party akin to a political train WRECK with a badly knocked down engine in the middle of the forest, with a captain who did not bother to inquire from his passengers why they were disembarking nor accepting the recommendations and expert views from Engineers and mechanics on how to jump start the engine. The SDF slogan Power to the People that swept across the nation like a violent hurricane in the 90s has been decimated and downgraded to a harmless hot air. That is the party Sesse Osih shall be inheriting.

Sesse Osih needs to do a dispassionate introspection on why the SDF has become so impotent and unattractive to voters outside the North West Region or Grassland. To win any elections, it requires having a marketable candidate on the platform of a sellable political party. It is also possible to have a good candidate but on a wrong political party or vice versa.  Osih as a Vice Chairman of the SDF and MP must have heard or read several narratives, diagnostics, prescriptions and remedies to resuscitate the failing health of the SDF party which could, at best, be described as anemic and in an intensive care unit (ICU).

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ok9Vw6UoK7k

 Hon. Osih must rebrand the party and begin to tell the people how they can transform their lives and put money in their pockets. Incidentally, Cameroon has abundant human and natural resources that could be harnessed to pull the country from the woods. The SDF should start telling the people about restructuring the country and reforming the system. They should be bold in telling the people of the need to establish a Federal system with a 20 state Federation; SW Region =4 states. NW region 4 states, Littoral =2 states,  South=1 state, East-1 state, Adamawa- 2 states, Far North – 2 states, North -2 states.West-2 states. 

They should be telling the people about having elected Governors and scrapping Prefects as executive powers at all levels should be vested in the hands of elected officials. They should be telling the people that Democracy means separation of powers with no more Presidential Decrees which is an aberration and forged Law. 

They should be telling the people about introducing Fiscal Federalism so that each state can grow according to its potentials and resources.  We cannot continue to see power so centralized in the hands of those from Centre and South regions.

The coming of Osih as the successor to the legendary Nii John Fru shall be the first time in our history for a citizen of Ndian and of the South West Region to be a National Chairman or flag bearer of a major political party with members at the National Assembly.  Joshua Osih shall arguably be the youngest National Chairman of a political party with MPs in Parliament in Cameroon.  The accession of Joshua as National Chairman of the SDF or its flag bearer signifies hope to the youth in a country where 75% of the political class is made of great grandfathers and most were already Ministers when Joshua Osih was born. It shall signify a paradigm and generational shift and a very positive development for Cameroon and Central African region, (CEMC) with the highest collection of sit tight and longest serving dictators in the world. 

Hon. Osih should understand that, the main objective, goal and vision of any political party are to win elections and capture power.  The SDF has missed several opportunities because of its political naivety, misjudgment, idealistic posturing, rigidness, hallucinations and unproductive posture of boycotting elections and hoping CPDM shall effect the `Change` to suit the yearnings and aspirations of the SDF. Osih should be mindful of the fact that, good laws do not make good people but good men make good laws. Change might be the only thing which is constant but the most difficult to effect.  The priority of OSIH`s SDF should be winning majority seats at the National Assembly at the next elections.

                             https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ogU6az4G1BU

Fortunately for Sesse Osih, there are so many leaders, models and templates to adopt, modify and adapt to the Cameroonian context.  David Cameron at 40 was the Leader of Conservative Party in UK and at 43 led the party to victory, became Prime Minister and retired at 49. Whether it is the Senegalese, Ivorian, Kenyan, Sierra Leonean, Malawian, Zambian or Nigerian models to understudy, UNITY and MERGERS of opposition parties into a formidable force are critical to winning any elections in Africa.  The CPDM might not be a `dream party ` or a Love Boat but it remains the only national party and most organised with militants in every village in Cameroon and in the diaspora. The CPDM party prints have become Sunday wears, a national attire and costume by our folks, attending weddings, church services and social functions.  Whether it is wore out of poverty, lack of alternative dresses they serve as unconscious adverts for the party. All these can change with Joshua OSIH’s message of Federalism or Federated States making decisions rather than President Paul Biya’s message of power consolidation in the Unity Palace.

The SDF shall need to restructure the party to reflect and align it to a modern democratic political party. One of the reforms badly needed is to separate the office of the National Chairman from the Presidential flag bearer of the party. Let the flagbearership contest be open to all who meet the requirements because the more, the merrier. This will help to deepen internal party democracy, win back skeptics and energise the grassroots. It makes no sense for the SDF to have party structure akin to Westminster Political system whereas Cameroon is practicing a Presidential system even though it has all the trappings of a Constitutional Dictatorship. The SDF needs to abolish the appointments of shadow Ministers which are relevant for parliamentary system and replace them with party communicators headed by a Director of Media and Publicity.  The first contest and test for any political party contesting elections is to win the popularity contest. Once any political wins the popularity contest, it can begin to dictate public debates and drive its agenda or manifestos with relative ease. 

The SDF is not only a train with a broken down engine but has also lost its voice. Most modern political parties invest so much on communication and publicity for obvious reasons as people tend to believe more in what they hear and see. For instance, who speaks for the SDF on the economy, new Penal code or Biya long private stay abroad? Who speak for the SDF on the autonomy of Universities, proposed relocation of CDC Head office, poor educational and health facilities in Cameroon? Who speak for the SDF on the absence and diminishing role of Cameroon in African affairs? Who speaks for the SDF manifestos and to clean the perception of SDF as a graffi party?  The SDF shall need strategists and researchers to drive the party ideology and ideals. 

Fortunately Osih understands the pains and frustrations of an average Cameroonian whether those residing in Madie –Ngolo, Dikome Balue, Meangwe–Ngolo, whose living conditions are same like 70% of Cameroonians living in rural communities. He understands that, the policy of the CPDM is not to allow their President to visit rural areas especially communities which do not have paved roads. He understands that, CPDM finds it difficult to win urban areas but sweeps all the rural areas, which might not have the big numbers but has large numbers of Parliamentary seats and election figures could easily be manipulated. He should equally understand that, elections could only be rigged when the party is popular. That is why lawyers should be position in all polling stations to monitor the election in conjunction with international observers. All these shall be planned ahead of the 2018 Cameroon Presidential Elections.

Joshua is inheriting the SDF at the time its fortunes are at its lowest ebb but with tremendous potentials and opportunities especially at a time when Cameroonians are so tired, frustrated, with no light at the end of the tunnel and their feet are tired. And with the current political dispensation and marginalization in Cameroon by the CPDM party, these events should serve as a clarion call for Joshua Osih to start building alliances. The first to build is that with Cameroon Diaspora. The Cameroonians in the diaspora are not in synch with the policies of the CPDM party and Osih can be that change that Cameroonians have been waiting for. He is the epitome of bilingualism because speaks both language fluently, He is knowledgeable, intelligent, humble and a quintessential leader. He is equally a very handsome man that can attract every eye in a room. With OSIH, SDF already has a marketable candidate and could transform SDF into a sellable party to the Youth and Women who form the critical mass of Cameroon electoral system.

CAMEROON:The Anglophone Problem and a Nation’s Embarrassment

By Ekinneh Agbor Ebai

The odious scenes of police brutality captured on social media, were pathetic, disgraceful and reinforces Cameroon’s image as a country with highly dysfunctional institutions where bizarre things can happen.

     No other event lately, perhaps, dramatizes the growing contradictions of Cameroon better than the brigandage witnessed on the streets of Buea and Bamenda with its trail of violence in which lawyers, teachers, university students and innocent civilians were beaten, arrested, tortured, raped and detained by rampaging soldiers acting on “orders from above.” The brutality deployed against Anglophones for exercising their constitutionally guaranteed rights to free speech and peaceful assembly is simply mind-boggling, inexcusable and stand condemned in all ramifications. In the judgment of an average sense of decency, the crude police assault is a moral weakness of asinine proportion that calls into question, the real character of the nation’s leadership. The lawlessness by security forces was an insult to democracy and constitutional rectitude that neither edifies the country, nor the President, on whose desk, the buck stops. Cameroonians deserve full explanation for this unbelievable shame.

     To the utter embarrassment of the nation, the images of police brutality which went viral on social media were pathetic, disgraceful and devoid of any perfunctory exaggeration. By any streak of the imagination, this cowardly and barbaric fury towards life, liberty and civility, is one of the most odious image-battering events that only reinforces Cameroon’s international image as a country with highly dysfunctional institutions where bizarre things can happen. Cameroonian leaders at all levels must be hiding their heads in shame. Certainly Anglophones must be allowed to examine the basis of their co-existence. To deny them this right for fear that they may disagree to live together is like building on a shaky foundation.

     After many false starts, dashed hopes, and perennially low expectation, Cameroon needs a change of direction and Anglophones want to reset the agenda. Government apologists denouncing the ongoing protests as a rally of miscreants must realize that the use of overwhelming force is a very risky strategy that could backfire and, in the worst case scenario, crystallize into the formation of armed groups in legitimate self-defense of Anglophones. Once that line is crossed, the clamors for secession will only grow louder. History is dotted with too many such examples and Cameroon cannot afford to go down this route. The government claims without any evidence that the protests are the handiwork of unseen “foreign hands” and refuse to acknowledge that the motivations for the protests rest on the skewed nature of Cameroon as a country. For many years, Francophone-led governments from Ahidjo to Paul Biya have maintained a portentous imbalance and inequitable structure that marginalizes Anglophones and disfavors meritocracy. They have glossed over the continuous discrimination of Anglophones in a progressive fashion to a point of assimilation. And by so doing they have foisted a forced unanimity.

     With the groundswell of protests, the unity of Cameroon, for want of a suitable metaphor, seems to be held at gunpoint. Obviously, these protests point to issues that have not been resolved. Unfortunately, the government response has been violence and provocative belligerence, instead of finding a midway for which the nation’s diversity can be respected, and a sense of belonging maintained without making anyone feel any loss of their identity. The government must cease and desist from perpetrating acts of violence against Anglophones as this risk enthroning instability that could dismember the country.

     Notwithstanding, it is simplistic to view the demonstrations as an event orchestrated by disgruntled elements reliving an inglorious reverie from some botched re-unification experiment because the deeper import of the protests transcend the Anglophone agenda. Protest is a living philosophy of justice that appears wherever and whenever oppression, impunity, injustice and structural violence rear their heads. In a democracy, the people alone matter; peaceful protests is an integral part of democracy; people should air their views, however jaundiced. What is going on is symbolic of the discontent experienced by many ethno-political interests for whom the Cameroon question remains unanswered.  

     That Cameroon as a nation is living a lie or its rulers are living in denial is not in doubt. It wants to be a prosperous and politically stable country, yet it is holding down this potential for prosperity and stability by maintaining a supercilious, garrisoned, centralized government, whilst paying lip service to regional decentralization. Nothing is working in the country and the bond that binds the ethnic nationalities appears tenuous, if not snapping, fundamentally threatening the unity of the country. The unity in diversity hitherto advertised as “Africa in miniature” has been supplanted by diversity in unity, such that Cameroonians see themselves first in the mold of their ethnic nationality. This explains why Cameroon is politically weak and structurally fragile, giving rise to negative and frightening prognostications.

     Without equivocation, all is not well with the country. For too long, successive Francophone-led governments have undermined the essential differences in the various interests of the Cameroonian people; and so unresolved matters about the aspirations of Cameroon’s heterogeneous interests have become a ticking time bomb. To assume that these do not exist, or to gloss over them is to play the ostrich like Fame Ndongo stuck in clannish grand-standing; wearing the garb of an ethnic jingoist and pontificating about a united Cameroon. The truth of the matter is that the current structure of Cameroon today, holds down the levers of development in the country, stunts its growth, truncates its progress and actually threatens its unity. The present political structure with its insensitive centripetal exertions provides vents for sundry injustices in the polity that must be corrected to liberate the nation’s full potentials.

     For the avoidance of doubt, Anglophones have a right to determine whether the political configuration of the country as it stands today should remain as it is in form and in character; whether the structures of the existing order, are suitable for the nation’s complexities as a bilingual, multi-ethnic and multi-religious nation. Cameroon is a great country waiting to happen and needs men and women who would make sacrifices for her greatness. It is indeed unfortunate that Francophone political leaders seem to wittingly or unwittingly consider Anglophones as “enemies in the house” rather than as Cameroonians with a different vision of how the country can be run. The Francophone political class needs to learn and understand that leadership is not about ethnic domination or selfish power equation; it is rather a disposition of moral strength and sacrifice to act in the public interest. Rather than exacerbate tension and heat the polity unnecessarily, the government should find answers to the thorny issues that created this monstrosity in the first place.

     The ongoing violence does little credit to the image of Cameroon’s democracy. The depth of suspicion and ill feeling towards Anglophones is unhealthy for a nation in distress. Too much pain has been inflicted and certain pertinent points need to be made. One is that Anglophones have been treated as “beasts of no nation” in a way that is provocative and vexatious. Besides, if the government thinks brute force is the appropriate response to legitimate Anglophone grievances; that is a huge mistake as history beckons with lessons. Anglophones may have borne the provocation with admirable equanimity, but let the government be under no illusions: Anglophones have been mightily insulted and never again should it happen. The discrimination and marginalization of Anglophones has had its day and must now end in the interest of peace and stability. In the meantime, the government should spare Cameroonians the noise and let Anglophone voices be heard as they cry in agony for better governance.

 *Ekinneh Agbaw-Ebai is a Public Intellectual and graduate of Harvard University John F. Kennedy School of Government, where he was Managing Editor of the Harvard Journal of African-American Public Policy. A former Research Analyst for Freedom House. He is a Consultant and lives in Boston, USA. Talk back at ekinneh@yahoo.com