Politics

For over a month now, heated debates have been going on among Cameroonians. These debates do focus on an issue which, in turn, divides public opinion, arouses passions which were thought to be forgotten, and rekindles antagonisms, believed to have been dealt with in the past.

This reflection examines successively the arguments of the opposing groups, states my position and formulates a number of practical and useful suggestions.

1. The arguments being discussed
Two groups, at least, are at loggerheads with regard to this passionate issue.

The first group, a majority of them francophones with very few anglophones, maintains energetically that there is no specific anglophone problem in our country. According to proponents of this view, all the ten regions put together do experience similar difficulties, marked by an abject lack of viable infrastructures (roads, water, electricity, hospital, schools, etc.). These observable shortcomings do cause lots of displeasure to the populations in the areas affected, without any exception.

Instead of attempting to use the present grievances to achieve unknown goals, the troublemakers from the Northwest and Southwest Regions, as supporters of the first group hold, ought to join forces with their compatriots from the eight other regions and together push for a meaningful improvement of national infrastructures and the institutions for a better and decentralized political and economic governance.

On the other hand, the second group of Cameroonians who feel concerned with this debate is mainly comprised of anglophones, including a minority of francophones who back their views. Its supporters strongly believe, on their part, that there is without any shadow of a doubt an anglophone problem, initially created by the violation of the resolutions of the July 1961 Foumban Conference, which explicitly recognized the existence of TWO distinct Cameroonian entities which deliberately agreed (i.e. without force) to become united, but on one condition: that the cultural specificity of each part be respected, and that some specific characteristics resulting from history in relation to the way of life of Cameroonians of both sides of the Moungo be considered.

The official languages, French and English, were give equal status by our fundamental law, the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Cameroon.

It should be noted that, according to the second group of people, constitutional equality is not respected on daily bases by the powers that be and by Cameroonian citizens, mostly French-dominated. Is it normal, they wonder, for you to be ridiculed in public places in Yaounde, Douala, Ngaoundere or Bertoua, simply because you sought an information in English? Is it normal for an English-speaking citizen to be told by a civil servant, "I do not understand that your dialect, can't you speak in French like everyone?" Finally, how do we condone the commonly used expression in French "je ne suis pas ton Bamenda (I am not your Bamenda)" interpreted as: "I am not your house servant!"?

This daily abuse of the rights of anglophone Cameroonian citizens is their common lot through out the national territory.

The haughty and condescending behaviour portrayed by lots of francophones (who most often do not measure the ravaging impact of such hurtful and humiliating words towards their own brothers from the other side of the Moungo) may lead to frustration and a sense of revolt. This explains the conviction of some anglophones who generally sympathize with the SCNC secessionist ideology, that francophones are bent on swallowing up their anglosaxon culture and language. Their conclusion? Francophones are responsible for all their woes.

The violent protest orchestrated by a minority of anglophones, can be seen as a result of feeling as Second Class citizens in Cameroon. Unfortunately, in the political arena, impressions are even more important than the reality.

This paper, in a way skims through, perhaps hastily, the main positions of the protagonists of this key debate.

What is to be drawn from these arguments?

2. My stance on the current issue

Given the number of complaints from our anglophone compatriots over the years (some of which have been stated above), it is hard to conclude that there is no "anglophone problem". The mere fact that our own brothers feel ill at ease to the point of expressing their frustrations publicly on mass media and elsewhere, is in and of itself a real problem.
Instead of resorting to individual and collective denial, it is safer for the French-speaking demographic majority, to do everything to understand the twists and turns, the nature and depth of the frustrations experienced by a group of Cameroonians whose historic past is uniquely different.

Many Cameroonian are frequently heard declaring that all the regions do face economic, financial and existential difficulties. This is perfectly true. But none of the eight regions- apart from the Northwest and Southwest- was made to choose freely between uniting with Cameroon or with Nigeria.

It is worth recalling that Resolution 1352 (XIV) of the UN General Assembly of 16th October 1959 as regards the Plebiscite provided TWO alternatives for the populations under British administration attached to Nigeria: either to link with Nigeria or to join francophone Cameroon.

In our analyses , we must therefore keep a sense of proportion.

Acknowledging the existence of an "anglophone problem" is quite different from asserting that the protesters are right across the board or are granted the right to abuse legal provisions.

It goes without saying that Anglophones can aspire to and hold any position in this country.
When our anglophone compatriots clamour for the full respect of all their rights as citizens of Cameroon, all Cameroonians must work hand in hand so as to make this a reality. We therefore have to change our daily behaviour and adapt it to the spirit and the letter of our fundamental law.

However - and this is very important - when some in this group, though a meagre minority, advocate secession, the profanation of State Symbols, "the return of francophones to their land", in a general atmosphere of violence, Cameroonians of both cultural divides must clearly say NO.

This is why. No group that has preached secession in Africa has ever witnessed economic prosperity in such a context. The Biafra war of secession from the Federal Republic of Nigeria, which was already a federal state at the time, recorded between 500,000-2,000,000 deaths from 1967 to 1970. As for Rwanda, where two groups of citizens wanted to lock horns though not of separate ethnic extractions from anthropological point of view (same culture,e same language, same religion and same history). Their deadly confrontation ended up with at least 800,000 people dead within three months only (April-June 1994).

As far as South Sudan is concerned, the last born of secessionist Republic in Africa, which separated from the Sudan of Khartoum on July 9, 2011. It is far from being an example of a prosperous state. The fratricidal struggle occurring within and without Africa’s youngest Republic has already cost over 150,000 deaths till date. (Source: United Nations, March 2016).
From the foregoing, it can be asserted that no matter the legitimacy of the complaints voiced by several Anglophones groups, "the solution" favouring violence, war and chaos can only be devastating for Cameroon whose identity in Africa and the world lies in the concept "Unity in Diversity". Should we call back to mind that the UN Resolution 1352 of 16th October 1959 already mentioned above gave no room for the creation of a separate State by the anglophone regions of Cameroon.

The confidential internal letter of 10th June 1960, sent by British authorities on the field to their hierarchy at United Nations headquarters, shows evidence of this official position (source: Victor E. Mukete, My odyssey. The story of Cameroon Reunification 2013, p419).

3. To conclude, what concrete proposals?

• The rule of law must always prevail. As no citizen stands above the law, all those who involve themselves in offences, should answer charges before the relevant courts: civil courts for civilians and military courts for the forces of law and order. In respecting these dispositions lie the authority of the State and the safety of everyone under the rule of law.

• Renovate and upgrade the Reunification Monument located in Yaounde. How many Yaounde city dwellers or Cameroonians who pass by are aware of its deep historic significance? It is about time we give it the full extent of its pedagogic significance.

• Consider the creation of the position of a State Mediator charged, among others, with processing files from civil society members or organisations, under clearly defined conditions.

• Review the curricula of secondary and university education and introduce at long last the key sociocultural aspects regarding the ten regions of Cameroon.

• Introduce the teaching of English to francophones and French to anglophones as from the age of five to free young Cameroonians of linguistic imprisonment and make them open to the stimulating horizons offer by all the cultures of their common heritage: Cameroon.

• Accelerate a genuine decentralisation process with the ultimate goal of bringing administration closer to the people and enable proximity rule.

• Take keen interest in identifying and invigorating civil or religious institutions present in the two parts of our territory for the purpose of creating enduring links. For example, the Presbyterian Church of Cameroon (PCC) and Eglise Presbytérienne du Cameroun (EPC), the same should go for all religious institutions on both sides. Furthermore, the Tikar, Bamoun, Mbam and Banso kingdoms which were founded in the 14th Century by one and the same family (two brothers and a sister) are a clear illustration of the cultural links between the so called Anglophone and Francophones.

• Foster a complete change in behaviour towards one another (francophones and anglophones). Do all within our powers to know and acknowledge one another’s cultures and ways of life, and turn away from nefarious prejudices which constitute a danger to the stability of our entire Nation.

• Recall also that the official languages that we speak and defend so passionately today are not a choice made by our Cameroonian ancestors. Indeed, before the 14th November 1884, NOBODY in Cameroon spoke French or English.
That is an irrefutable fact.

LET US THEREFORE AVOID TO FALL INTO THE SAME TRAP THAT PLAGUED LIBYA ENTRY TO CHAOS.

Pr Jean-Emmanuel Pondi
Professor of Political Science and International Relations
Ph.d., Penn State University
M. Phil., Cambridge University;
M. Sc., London School of Economics.

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Peter Nsoesie

23.Dec.2016

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After refusing the existence of the Anglophone problem and making nonsense of the grievances of Anglophone Teachers, Jean Ernest Massina Ngale Bibehe has made a dramatic turnaround. The minister of secondary education has asked his Regional delegates in the tensed English-speaking regions of Cameroon to submit the files of teachers who find themselves in irregularity.

The order written exclusively in french with no English copy states that the files of teachers who teach in sub systems where they dont have the necessary background should reach the ministry in 48hours. That's by 3pm Wednesday , December 21. 

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Peter Nsoesie

20.Dec.2016

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Change is part of life. To try to go against change is to try to go against the very essence of the meaning of life. So when I read of high government officials and party apparatchiks, moving to Bamenda and Buea, I listen in to hear what the proposals are. Nothing, but a language that divides and the worn-out chant: ‘all is well’.
If there are thousands and thousands of people marching in the streets, if you feel the need to mobilize and explain, then all cannot be well. If people are being shot, buildings burnt and massive arrests taking place and the rule of law starts becoming arbitrary then all cannot be well. Not with my soul, or the soul of any human being.
In this country we are becoming confirmed experts at reinventing the wheel. Unfortunately this happens every time we are faced with a serious problem others have had to deal with before. It appears to me that the easier thing to do should be just to take a look at what others who have struggled through the same tribulation have done. In our case the most obvious thing would be to seek out Canadian experts or at least read up on what they have done. I am more than convinced that our Prime Minister who spent close to nineteen years in Canada knows what all of this is about. He most certainly must have traced the way ahead and unfortunately found some hawks in his path. So then what happened in Canada?  
The Royal Commission on Bilingualism and Biculturalism (1963-1969) is one of the most influential commissions in Canadian history. It brought about sweeping changes to federal and provincial language policy. The commission was a response to the growing unrest among French Canadians in Quebec, who called for the protection of their language and culture, opportunities to participate fully in political and economic decision-making.
Some of the issues that have always excited public attention in Canada from time to time inter alia have been summarized as follows:
the perception of fairness or unfairness in hiring and promoting speakers of one official language over speakers of the other;
the choice of one language over the other for meetings, documents, and internal memoranda (which are sometimes collectively characterized as the work “environment”);
the promotion of bilingual job candidates over people who only speak only one or the other of the two official languages;
the availability (or lack of availability) of language training for public servants, who cannot advance without the ability to speak both languages;
the costs associated with language-based hiring and promotion practices, including the practice of paying a “bilingual bonus” to public servants capable of speaking both official languages;
the need to provide government services to some Canadians in English, and to others in French.
I am sure all of the above might sound very familiar to many. That is not all. According to Wikipedia’s article “OFFICIAL BILINGUALISM IN THE PUBLIC SERVICE OF CANADA”. By the early 1960s, the issue of Canada’s seemingly perpetual inability to create an equitable distribution of jobs in the country’s rapidly expanding public service was becoming a key grievance underlying Quebec nationalism. In 1961, a Royal Commission studying the structure of the federal bureaucracy in Canada organized a special committee to study the issue of bilingualism within the Public Service. The Commission’s 1962 report included recommendations that the federal government “adopt active measures to develop bilingual capacities among its employees on a selective basis”, and that it more actively recruit qualified French Canadians who would have the potential to advance to the senior ranks of the federal administration (Canada, Report of the Royal Commission on Government Organization, vol. I. Ottawa, 1962, p. 267).
The Royal Commission’s multi-volume report, published in 1969, recommended a radical redesign of the Public Service of Canada, in order to establish full equality between the two official languages in the federal administration, and a permanently equitable distribution of jobs, at all levels of seniority, between French-speaking and English-speaking Canadians (Canada, Report of the Royal Commission on Bilingualism and Biculturalism, vol. III, The Work World (Ottawa, 1969).

So what is the situation today in Canada? According to Wikipedia, “Today, the built-in barriers to the hiring and promotion of francophones have been overcome. French-speakers ceased to be underrepresented in the Public Service in 1978, and the percentage of public servants who are francophones has been growing steadily ever since. At the management level, French-speakers ceased to be under-represented in 1995. There is now a growing over-representation of persons with French as their first official language in the Public Service. In 2007, francophones occupied 31.5% of positions in the core public administration, and 26.9% in institutions subject to the Official Languages Act, overall.” 
So if we were to borrow from the Canadians the first step will have been the creation National Commission headed by an Anglophone with an Anglophone majority with a mission to make recommendations come into law to rectify the injustices that are known. The archives of this country are loaded with petitions and statistics on the issues now being raised in the streets of Buea and Bamenda and elsewhere. Talking about “états généraux” which funnily enough does not have a proper English translation is nothing concrete.
I have just returned from the attending the 17th Conference of the International Anti Corruption Conference (IACC ) in Panama City. I was elected Chair Council that runs this Conference in 2014 and my mandate runs till 2020. The IACC is the premier global Conference on Anti Corruption. This Panama Meeting brought together 1800 participants, which included the ICIJ (international Consortium of Investigative Journalist) the group of investigative journalists who leaked what is unfortunately now known as the Panama Papers. The theme of this year’s conference was “Time for Justice, Equity, Security, and Trust”. Yes, the Conference was about corruption, but my mind was totally immersed in the news I was from home. As a consequence, I thought of home through the prism of the theme “Time for Justice, Equity, Security, Trust”. In effect Justice and equity is what the cries in the streets of the English-Speaking regions have been about. As matter of fact the same cry can be heard also in many other regions of the country. Security was not provided for those exercising of the simple right to demonstrate peacefully. Even when this was by students chanting “no violence” they met with the furor of Cameroonians in uniform that exercised incredible violence as if they had a score to settle. So what about trust? We have a Constitution that consecrates bilingualism and provides for the respect of common law legal culture without defining the legal institutions that have to ensure their enforcement. As you know, the 1996 provides for autonomous regions with elected officials. This was an idea conceived to counter the argument that was raging after the AAC and the strong movement for a federation. 20 years after nothing has happened. At the very least, the spirit could have been respected by the appointment of governors to regions from where they originate while waiting for elections. The rise of corruption, caused the introduction of article 66 on the declaration of assets. That has not happened and government appointees continue to steal the peoples’ money at the most alarming rate. Instead of dealing with the root of the problems we face, we struggle away with the symptoms. There is no ground for trust. Consequently any promises made are just taken for what they are: promises. Life is about trusting. Those who have lost trust, will always take the chances that they believe will lead to their happiness.

The problems we now face have been exacerbated by serious governance challenges, tribalism, favoritism, and corruption. A system in which everyone is on the rampage at the expense of the state, the poorest and the powerless has slowly been put into place. The victims of this are francophones and Anglophones. The distortion that is being brought by those who paint the issue as an Anglophone Francophone issue is astute. They are trying to mask a failure of governance and the impending threat of system breakdown following the state capture of our resources by a greedy few. Land grabbing is as rampant in Kribi as it is in Limbe. Lack of roads is shameful in the Northwest as in many other regions. Development in the three northern regions and economic hardship has been cited by international reports as being one of the key causes of the ease with which the youth are seduced by Boko Haram. If repression is the only answer to simple demonstrations by the unarmed then we should brace ourselves for sad times in this country. A list should be drawn of all the graduates from ENAM, FMBMS, IRIC, POLYTECHNICS, and other prestigious schools in the country. That list should be used to determine the parentage of all of these graduates. Then we will understand the level of nepotism in our country. These are facts that respect no linguistic or cultural divide. Between 75% to 80% of Cameroonians are under 25. Cameroonians youths now are hungering for a better future. That is an idea. You can oppress all you want but you cannot kill an ideal. That is the inevitable nature of change. There is a wind blowing and it is slowly turning into a tornado, there is nothing we can do to change the direction of this wind, but we can certainly adjust our sails to reach our destination.

In the final analysis we can blame everything on secessionists or any other person for that matter, even on me, since I have now been openly accused of fanning the flames of secession. The facts will not change. In the words of Tony Robbins, “change is inevitable, progress is optional”.

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Rita Akana

20.Dec.2016

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As the date for the traditional end of year’s message of 84year old president Paul Biya on December 30 draws near, Anglophones in Cameroon who down tools and embark on a strike action for over two months now, are set to await the speech with a lot of skepticism and optimism while some fear for its outcome.

But the question on the minds of pundits’ is; will Biya exalt or show some remorse towards the Anglophone problem or will he just ignore it as he is reputed for? This reporter after speaking to some prominent Anglophones in the two English speaking regions of Cameroon, gathered that not only do they (Anglophones) anxiously await the head of states message but equally noted that it will matter a lot as to if the strike will take a different twist or not.

It is worth pointing out that since the strike which started with Common Law Lawyers and later snowballed to its current state started, the head of state in his usual mannerism decided to remain mute and give almost a deaf ear on the upheavals and plights raised by the various parties. In a recent conducted vox pop, respondents expressed the will that the head of state should have made a statement on the current situation. Prominent figures including legal minds, peace crusaders have taken turns to criticize the dead silence of President Paul Biya which they describe as “disturbing” and “provocative”.

From the spyglasses of this reporter, the head of state who for the pass 34years is yet to address the nation in English during his end of year address broadcast “live” on the state run CRTV, might have more viewership as all and sundry will be watching to hear what he will have to say on the Anglophone problems or if he will neglect it as he has for the pass months being doing. Another school of thought hold it that, the head of state commenting on the Anglophone strike could go a long way to quill down tempers of the English speaking Cameroonians who believe they have been marginalized for the past 60years.

Many had questioned why he failed to make a statement on TV or visit Bamenda after the strike went violent as it was speculated that his presence could have helped to put an end to the strike that continue to paralyzed courts and schools in the North West and South West Regions.

As the president mounts the rostrum to address the nation on December 30, political observers have advised that to give Cameroonians a sign that they truly are one and should remain that way, President Biya should address the nation for the first time in English while taking considerable time to address the ongoing strike action in the two English Speaking Regions of Cameroon.

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Amos Fofung

20.Dec.2016

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Out of nearly 2,000 temporary staff in the Presidency of the Republic, only half received their monthly salary ranging from 16,000 FCFA to 20,000 FCFA. The transaction was suspended for lack of liquidity and was scheduled after the end of the year.

According to Le Quotidien L’Épervier Plus published on December 16, 2016, the temporary staff in the Presidency of the Republic of Cameroon are angry and made it known. “Sources close to the stewardship report that, on behalf of December 2016, many temporary agents were unable to take their monthly salary, which ranges between 16,000 FCFA and 20,000 FCFA.

This despite the fact that these employees would already accumulate many months of wage arrears,“the paper said.
According to the source, it was on 9 December 2016 that some temporary agents were invited to receive their pay. Almost half of the 2000 agents went to the cash register. “But against all odds, while the payroll ceremony continued on December 14, 2016, those who were waiting on that day were informed that the payer no longer have cash. They will have to wait until the end of the year celebrations pass to take possession oftheir pay.
According to the newspaper, many observers wonder if the Presidency of the Republic is running out of liquidity.

In view of the number(2000) of young people recruited, it was foreseeable that at some point the Presidency would be confronted with difficulties related to the salary of the latter. Many young people have already thrown in the towel. Some of them prefer to be drivers of motorcycle taxis, “rather than receiving irregular salaries from catechists.”Others who have also gone with badges stamped Presidency of the Republic of Cameroon (PRC) indulge in scams from imprudent people.

There are also some who are unfortunately involved in cases of robbery and assault.

Cameroontoday

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Rita Akana

17.Dec.2016

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The former Minister of Territorial Administration and Decentralization, Marafa Hamidou Yaya has given his opinion on the ongoing tension in the English-speaking regions of Cameroon. Though the former Secretary General at the Presidency, presently incarcerated disagrees with a return to federalism, he however believes that key aspects of the federal period be incorporated in modern day Cameroon.

Full letter below, Translated from the Original French text.

Cameroonians, Cameroonians, dear Anglophone and Francophone compatriots,
In recent weeks the anguish of Anglophone Cameroonians has turned into anger when lawyers and teachers have taken to the streets of Bamenda and Buea to demand greater respect for the bilingualism of our country in its judicial and educational systems. In recent days, this anger has unfortunately been transformed into violence: in these streets, young partisans of the independence of the English-speaking provinces are now confronting the forces of order. Blood flows, men die. How did we get there ? Why do Cameroonians today face other Cameroonians? Why this outpouring of fratricidal violence?

Through the referendum of May 20, 1972, the people of Cameroon chose to put an end to federalism to give birth to a "United Republic of Cameroon", the ambition of all, anglophone and francophone, He said, to prepare for the arrival of a new, bicultural Cameroonian, an equal heir to the "lessons" retained by the two regencies and likely to draw the best from these two inheritances. Current events prove enough that this project has failed. Two distinct Cameroonian identities coexist today, and Anglophones rightly feel a sense of being marginalized, of being citizens of a lower rank than Francophones. Since bilingualism enshrined in our Constitution is applied in a profoundly unequal manner in administration, justice and education, they do not enjoy equal opportunities which should be granted to all citizens of a modern and democratic state. This inequality also affects their living conditions: they suffer, even more than their Francophone compatriots, from unemployment and the lack of infrastructure. And the anglophones have no recourse, no relay to denounce these discriminations, since, finally, their community is largely kept apart from the key positions of the State and the administration, including within their own regions .

Anglophone Cameroonians, who today feel that their destiny escapes them, rightly denounce the betrayal of the spirit of the unification pact established in 1972 between the representatives of the two communities. Failure to respect this pact, the primary responsibility lies with francophones, and the latter must acknowledge their wrongs. In addition, from "United Republic", our country became simple "Republic" by the change of the law by a simple majority, a semantic sliding announcing the gradual forgetting of the bicultural identity of Cameroon by a monoculture power! And centralizing. Francophone leaders did not fulfill the commitments they made in 1972 to their English-speaking compatriots. But the Anglophone leaders who had taken part in this unification pact also failed in their duties: this drift of French power, they did not know - or not wanted, too satisfied with their personal privileges - to denounce it.
Do the new generation of Anglophone Cameroonians, who suffer the combined effects of this betrayal and renunciation, have to turn their backs on their Cameroonian identity, our common history? Not to mention the illusory and suicidal character of Anglophone Cameroon's independence, the return to federalism, which many Anglophones are calling for today, is not a solution to their difficulties.
To return today to two federated states, one English-speaking and one French-speaking, would definitively devalue the failure of the 1972 pact and would only accentuate the marginal economic and geographical character of the English-speaking regions. On the contrary, it is necessary to give life to the 1972 Pact, and finally to build a United Republic of Cameroon.
Because bilingualism, a legacy of our history, is now an opportunity for our country. As the only bilingual Franco-British country in the world with Canada, an inspiring model, Cameroon could be more effectively integrated into the practices and codes of a globalized world by introducing an egalitarian bilingualism.

To achieve this, the ghost of federalism must not be resurrected, but rather the choice of modernity and progress, that of diversity in unity, and finally the decentralization of the country. Representatives of the two communities must sit down at a table and write a new code of living together on the basis of past experience and the decentralization laws of 2004. This enhanced consultation will be constructive to the development of Anglophone Cameroon's infrastructure and could, for example, lead to the construction of a new international airport in this area or the construction of a university twinned with a prestigious international institution offering specific training and advanced (pilot, high-tech, ..) and non-existent in the French-speaking area. I propose today that a National Council of Unification be created at the highest level of the State: it will meet every six months to evaluate the implementation of this code, the purpose of which will be the advent of Cameroonian New, rich of its double culture. To mark symbolically but powerfully the break with the centralizing policy that the government has been leading for more than 30 years, I also propose that our country regain its name of "United Republic of Cameroon" as well as the flag sporting two yellow stars on the green band, Instead of a yellow star on the red band as is currently the case. The return to the spirit of 1972 is the best guarantee of a harmonious and prosperous future for all Cameroonians.
Yaounde, 12 December 2016
Marafa Hamidou Yaya

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Peter Nsoesie

17.Dec.2016

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