CAMEROON: FOOLS ARE THE MAKERS OF RICHES

By AYAH Paul ABINE
At the moment of writing these words, a group of persons in Great Soppo are busy collecting 15.000 francs CFA from each inhabitant of the area in the name of “Great Soppo Water Supply Project”. The population of Great Soppo should be 100.000 people plus. If the team succeeds in collecting 15.000 from 100.000 persons, they will amass the colossal sum of 1.500.000.000 francs. If only 50.000 persons are cajoled into paying, the total collection will be 750.000.000. What a giant project!

In the context of Cameroon, nothing is absolutely wrong with the initiative per ser. Many are similar projects that have successfully been undertaken in various parts of the country, especially in the neglected countryside. But there is something highly questionable about the case of Great Soppo for a number of reasons and antecedents. One can hasten to suggest that the alleged project is only another fraud on the public in a country where the law is the low business of the weak and lowly.

A project of that magnitude, in the first place, needs public discussion, followed by technical study and careful planning. After establishing the estimated cost of the project, the funding population and the estimated cost are juxtaposed. The rate of contributions is then publicly determined, taking into account the two factors. Sufficient sensitization about the collection follows as the next step. Finally comes the actual collection. The consent of the population must be sought and obtained at every stage of the project. In a democratic community, every inhabitant of Great Soppo reserves the right to opt for water from CDE or from the new project in the alternative.

Again, Great Soppo is one of the quarters of the seat of Buea Council. Those collecting the money are not unaware that the former mayor of that council started a water supply project with the catchment situated apparently within Great Soppo. We all know that the objective was to supply water to the lower part of the municipality where Great Soppo lies. That project is still pending completion. The collectors have to convince the inhabitants of Great Soppo that there is honest reason to renounce that project, and hastily embark upon the building of water supply exclusively for Great Soppo.

Thirdly, the seat of Buea Council is largely covered by water supply managed by CDE. The water supply in question had earlier been managed by PWD; and then later by SNEC. If water is now rationed in Buea, the entire municipality so covered is affected. Sufficient proof must therefore be provided that the Great Soppo community suffers special hardship; and that that justifies the necessity and the urgency to carry out a project of that magnitude specifically for Great Soppo. Such proof seems either not to be forthcoming, or it is yet to be disclosed to the ordinary man.

Another indispensable factor is that the collection of the money must be done in a coordinated manner, and in all transparency. Every citizen must part with his money of his own volition. No-one should therefore offer self-serving vicious threats intended to intimidate the ordinary man into submission. We know no law in Cameroon which empowers any group of persons to compel members of the public to pay taxes to private individuals taking refuge under cloudy projects dressed in the apparel of public utility.

What is all the more relevant here is that few serious persons acquainted with the recent past of Great Soppo Traditional Council would honestly hesitate to impugn their probity. Not long ago, the said council got into collusion with the then Divisional Officer of Buea, and they perpetrated a fraud on the public. The so-called “representative of the Head of State” issued an edict enjoining the inhabitants of Great Soppo to pay a tax of 1.000 francs each for the coffers of the council. That was in foolhardy spite for the celebrated principle that there is “no imposition without representation”.

If in the end the council succeeded in defrauding 100.000 persons, they unlawfully collected 100.000.000 francs for themselves. As easy as that! Just half of that number of persons and 50.000.000 francs was up for the grabbing. Characteristically, they got away with it with embarrassing impunity. That, without more, is enough ground to speculate that, encouraged by the success of their previous fraud on the public, the council in question is now up for a bigger deal under the opaque banner of “Great Soppo Water Supply Project”. That is but consistent with my contention that “a taste of the forbidden is a second transgression”!

The unlawful state of affairs in Great Soppo leads one to legitimately wonder aloud how far we are from the status of a failed state. Isn’t the foundation of a failed state the existence of such lawless groups operating independently of and in defiance of the authority of the central government?

Whatever be your answer, the incontrovertible fact is that the first step towards a failed state is “disregard for the law”. And failure or neglect on the part of the central government to act in check adds fuel to the fire without fail. No-one of course nips a conflagration!

If some Cameroonians are so fantastically rich, there surely are so many foolish Cameroonians. Fools are the makers of riches!

THE AFRICAN POPULATION MUST GROW

By Chief A.S Ngwana
The earth is one of the eight planets in our Solar System, Pluto is no longer considered a planet. The superficial area of the earth is 510,066,000 KM2, made up of 148,326,000 KM2 land surface, and 361,740,000 KM2 water surface.

The present world population of 6.801,911,900 Billion people has an average global density of 45.669 people per KM2. Singapore population density is 7022.8 people per KM2, with an income per capita of US$39,500. If the average world density per KM2 were that of Singapore, then the world could in theory, support a population of 1,045,975,832,000 or 1.045 trillion people.

However according to the United Nations Population Division, a professional demographic centre, not connected with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), the world population could level off at about 9 billion, by 2050. A decade ago the projected peak was 12 billion. It would appear that according to these projected figures, the world population will never reach 20 billion not to talk of 1.045 trillion.

Taking other factors into consideration, the world population has been projected to peak in the year 2150 at 9.746 billion and from there start a rapid decline. World historical and predicted populations (in millions)

Region 1750 1800 1850 1900 1950 1999 2008 2050 2150

World 791 978 1,262 1,650 2,521 5,978 6,707 8,909 9,746

Africa 106 107 111 133 221 767 973 1,766 2,308

Asia 502 635 809 947 1,402 3,634 4,054 5,268 5,560

Europe 163 203 276 408 547 729 732 628 517

Latin America and 16 24 38 74 167 511 577 809 912
The Caribbean
Northern 2 7 26 82 172 307 337 392 398 America
Oceania 2 2 2 6 12 30 34 46 51

At creation of man which could have taken place any time between 10 million and 700 thousand years BC, the world population was only 2 people, Adam and Eve, one man one woman. According to the Holy Bible, God blessed them, saying to them, “Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth and conquer it”. “Thou shall not kill”. These two people, man and woman, have been able to populate the earth and now their descendants are today about 6.801 billion people. The human race can only increase through births. In fact it is estimated that since man inherited the earth, there have been about 110 billion people on this planet.

The growth of the world’s population has always been influence more by selfish, political, economic and other materialistic considerations, than by God’s commandment to fill the earth.

When Europe and America wanted their populations to grow, they used slaves from Africa, and in addition, enacted strict laws to encourage population growth. . Individuals have sought to increase their families for economic reasons as during the agrarian era, to enable them produce more food and become rich. Countries and governments have sought to increase their populations in the past by enacting laws and regulations which encouraged Births and discouraged Deaths. The motivations have varied. Governments have been influenced by economic arguments to bolster their working force, so ensuring that the working population was big enough to sustain dependents; they have been persuaded that national defense requires a larger pool from which to recruit troops; and they have been seduced by the notion that national greatness is linked to population.

In 1873 the U.S. Congress enacted the “Comstock Law”, which regulated public access to birth control devices, medicines, or information for the next 60 years. It was illegal to distribute any device, (condoms etc), medicine or information designed to prevent conception, this was applicable even to physicians. In Europe totalitarian regimes of far-left and far-right and fascists regimes, imposed taxes on unmarried adults. State loans were giving at weddings, only to be written off when a couple produced children. State childcare and subsidized goods for children were meant to further encourage reproduction. In France in the 1920s, laws were introduced to limit the sale of contraceptives and payments were allocated to women who stayed (giving birth ) at home

All countries and governments encouraged their population growth, and treated abortion, manslaughter, euthanasia and murder as serious criminal offences, punishable in some cases with the death penalty.

Malthus was wrong when he said people would starve to death as a result of population growth running ahead of food production; so were the 1970s population-controllers who said massive famines would sweep the populous Third World and wipe out millions. This has been disproved by historical facts. Roger Revelle, Former Director of Harvard Centre for Population Studies, estimated that the less developed continents (whose food supplies are most precarious) are capable of feeding 18 billion people, about six times their then population, while Africa alone is capable of feeding 10 billion people, twice the then world population and about 20 times its own population The fact is that the world has developed so quickly and become so rich because the world population exploded in the past 64 years, from 2 billion to 6.707 billion today. GDP has increased by nearly 40 times. The world is much richer today than it was 64 years ago despite the great increase in population.

MAN is the center of development. Development is by people for people. Where there are no people there is no development. This is the basis of economic development. People produce technology and capital; they are discoverers of resources, the makers of communities, cities, the creators of wealth. As shown by the late Julian Simon, Population growth is positively correlated with economic growth.

The population of Europe today is about 830.4 million that is a density per square Kilometer of about 81.5 people. The population of Africa today is 1 billion that is a density of about 33 people per square kilometer.

For the population of Africa to grow and have the density of Europe per square Kilometer of 81.5 persons and enjoy all that the developed Europe enjoys today, the African population must increase to 2.463 billion people. But according to United Nations projections the African population will only reach that figure in the year 2150, while the population of Europe by the year 2150 would have dropped to 517 million people. The African Population must grow fast to catch up with that of Europe per square kilometer, today.

The predicament of Europe and other industrialized countries like Japan is that their populations are ageing and declining and soon the consequences will be disastrous and catastrophic. Their problem will not be too many children, but too few children, too few children to fill the schools and universities, too few couples buying homes and second cars. Too few consumers and producers to drive the economy forward, and too few workers to provide support, through their tax dollars, for the ballooning population of elderly. All the industrialized countries of Europe and Japan are making serious efforts to stop this declining situation.

“Cash for babies,” Governments across the globe are resorting to bribery to raise birth rates as women increasingly choose not to have babies, (“Women’s Rights) creating a demographic chasm. “Propaganda,” Campaigns have had even less effect. “Immigration,” Many of the countries facing serious population decline have resorted to changing their immigration laws to allow in migrants quickly as a short-term solution to the labor shortage. President Bush decided to reverse American’s policy of depopulating the world. On January 22,2003, President Bush declared in a broadcast that the United States “must protect the lives of innocent children waiting to be born,” but that decision has been reversed by his successor President Obama, and America once more sponsors the killing of innocent children globally through abortion. Europe, Japan and the rest of the industrialized world are trying to stop the fast decline of their populations, but they are not succeeding because decades of false propaganda of “overpopulation” have now had their effect. The “contraceptive and abortion mentality” is now firmly established and their women do not want to have babies. The popular attitude towards children is that they are inconvenient, expensive and, as a group, a threat to the environment.

As we have seen in other exposures, population growth is a must for economic development. Without people there is no development. Africa has to continue growing steadily if it must develop and grow rich. The current world total fertility rate or TFR is 2.2 per woman, not far from replacement rate of 2.1 child per woman and is falling fast globally. Although it is a fundamental right for every African couple to decide the size of their family, government policy should be to encourage every African woman to have at least 5 or 6 children. This material and spiritual sacrifice will pay the parents in their old age and Africa will benefit immensely if it invests in families.

However, there are serious efforts to stall the African population growth and to keep Africa under-populated, underdeveloped and poor.

There are serious Political and economic interests against population growth. After the sudden collapse of communism and the end of the cold war, there was a shift of priorities from military to economic security. The populations of Africa and other developing countries were growing too fast and they could become demographic superpowers causing a shift in the balance of power. Population size is getting more and more important as the determinant of international power. The United States of America and Europe have taken the fight to reduce the populations of developing nations as a priority. The populations of the developing countries must be stopped at all cost.
The methods they use are:

“OVERPOPULATION SCARE”: Sustainable development. Fallacy of Malthusian Theory. Population crisis ideology to influence international agencies and governments.

“WOMENS RIGHTS”: Invoking so called new “Women’s Rights” while underestimating and undermining the woman’s vocation to give life.“ENVIRONMENTAL QUESTIONS”: Invoking them in an excessive or improper way to justify coercive population control.

“CONTRACEPTIVE IMPERIALISM”: Spreading abortifacient products such as RU486, Norplant, and the Pill to very poor countries.

“STERILIZATION AND CONDOMS”: Spreading globally the use of Sterilization and Condoms.

“THE INTERNATIONAL PLANNED PARENTHOOD FEDERATION” with branches all over the developing world as the most effective organization to control population growth.

“COERCION AND DECEIT”: The main organizations being the IMF, USAID, UNICEF and UNFPA. Countries to reduce their populations before they can get aid or soft loans. Many desperately poor developing countries feel they have no choice but to accept this Faustian bargain.

The population-controllers of the 1970s said that massive famine would sweep the populous Third World and wipe out millions. This has been disproved by historical facts. Now they are trying to convince the world that fertility is the cause of environmental destruction. Therefore Africa and other developing countries should control the growth of their populations. Whereas the ozone layer is being destroyed by the developed countries, through their industries and their wanton way of living and extravagant consumption. They produce more than 70% of the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere while Africa produces less than 4%. Climate change is caused by the developed world, not by Africa or the other developing countries. But some governments and NGOs with special economic and political interest want to use this as an opportunity to control the African population. “Slower population growth….would help build social resilience to climate change’s impacts and would contribute to reduction of greenhouse-gas emissions in the future,” the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) says. It said the battle against global warming could be helped if the world slowed population growth by making free condoms and family planning advice more widely available.

The UNFPA would like the UN to fight climate change with free condoms.

One analyst criticized the UNFPA’s pronouncement as alarmist and unhelpful. “It requires a major leap of imagination to believe that free condoms will cool down the climate,” said Caroline Boin, a policy analyst at International Policy Network, a London-based think tank.
In its 1987 report, the UNFPA warned that once the global population hit 5 billion, the world “could degenerate into disaster.” At the time the agency said “more vigorous attempts to slow undue population growth” were needed in many countries.

In 1993 the African Academy of Science refused to sign a declaration, put forward by the Western Academies of Science, in which they had advocated for a “zero population growth”. The note of the African Academy of Science read: “in Africa, population goes on being an important factor for development, without which the natural resources of the continent would remain latent and unexploited”. They also warned that “in some parts of Africa scanty population is a serious problem”UNFPA would like a “UN Climate Agreement” in Copenhagen to include population linkage so that it could facilitate its population control policy. However African countries took a concerted action and boycotted the UN climate talks in Barcelona, saying that scientist say industrial countries should reduce emissions by 25 to 40 percent from 1990 levels by 2020, but targets announced so far amount to far less than the minimum.

The UNFPA was founded with the main hidden agenda of controlling the African population and those of other countries. This UN agency helped set up and run the Chinese one child policy which is responsible for millions of horrible coercive abortions. Because of this policy, there are 37 million more men than women in China. This gender imbalance is the major force driving sexual trafficking of women and girls in Asia.
President George W. Bush stopped American Policy of depopulating Developing Countries. He stopped funding the UNFPA, but his successor President Obama has revoked the suspension and has renewed the funding of UNFPA to carry out its murderous work of depopulating Africa and the rest of the world. Europe is the main supporter of UNFPA, and votes million of dollars every year to UNFPA. African countries should not contribute to the UNFPA because the money is used mainly to depopulate Africa.

The INTERNATIONAL PLANNED PARENTHOOD FEDERATION.

In 1921, Margaret Sanger, the racist and eugenicist woman founded the American Birth Control League which eventually became known as Planned Parenthood. The movement was designed primarily to kill black babies. Sanger was a racist who advocated eugenics, so called “selective breeding”, euthanasia, sterilization, and abortion. She published several books in which she often referred to blacks as “genetically unfit” and “human weeds.”

The International Planned Parenthood Federation is the most effective organization used to kill African children and children all over the developing world through abortion. It has branches all over the developing world.

Today its main activities are spreading CONDOMS, promoting ABORTIONS, and spreading immorality among the youth and destroying family values.

Condoms prevent pregnancies thereby stalling population growth.
Condoms do not stop the spread of AIDS in fact they promote the spread of AIDS.

This is a fact scientifically proven and practically tested. Africans love children.

Polygamy, fornication, and promiscuity are not considered sins, by African customs and traditions.

The HIV/AIDS is spread mainly by sexual intercourse. Polygamy and the African excessive love for many children, encourage Promiscuity, and promiscuity encourages the spread of HIV/AIDS.

Hence Africa South of the Sahara has the highest rate of HIV/AIDS infections in the world about 76%. Condoms are promoted by the agents of dearth, to help the spread of AIDS which eventually kill the victims and stalls population growth. Condoms also promote promiscuity and promiscuity promotes casual sex, which promote unwanted pregnancies leading to abortions. Condoms are a terrible evil.

To control the spread of AIDS, Africans must change their sexual behaviors and embrace ABSTAINANCE before marriage and FIDELITY after marriage, because the more condoms they import, the higher the rate of HIV/AIDS infections.

Our friends will give us free malaria tablets, our enemies will give us free condoms

Today UNFPA and the International Planned Parenthood Federation are spending millions if not billions of dollars to spread and promote the use of condoms to stop the growth of the African population. Today they are spending millions of dollars to promote the heinous crime of abortion, the killing of the African child. They destroy morals by promoting casual sex. They encourage the “woman’s choice” to kill their children by abortion, contrary to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights which declares that “everyone has a right to life, liberty and security of person”. Therefore any person or organization or government, who or which promotes or encourages abortion, has no moral right to condemn torture, unjust wars, genocide or terrorism. Abortion is genocides against children. African governments must control the murderous activities of the UNFPA and the International Planned Parenthood Federation. They are the agents of dearth.

European culture has its roots in Christianity and its laws and customs were based on Christian values and the sanctity of life. Europe has become one of the most anti-Christian Countries in the world. Before, divorce was forbidden, adultery was an offence, abortion was an offence, contraceptives were forbidden, homosexuality was an offence, suicide was forbidden, euthanasia was forbidden. Prostitution, bestiality, necrophilia, paedophilia, pornography, and incest were forbidden, today most of them are legalized or allowed. Europe even wants to remove the Cross, the symbol of Christianity from public places.

There are billions of good God-fearing people in Europe, America and throughout the world, they must rise up against the few misguided or evil people who manipulate public opinion, and control most of the governments of the world. We cannot be indifferent to the destruction of marriage, the family and the sanctity of life. We must rise up to defend them. The choice is between Good or Evil, Light or Darkness, Life or Dearth, God or Satan. GOD MUST REIGN.

Politics and Freedom of Choice

By Tazoacha Asonganyi in Yaounde.

All politics is about power: the power to shape society to fit individual views; the power to create or deny equal opportunity; the power to facilitate or frustrate the exercise of individual freedoms…; the power to determine the conditions of the exercise of power in all domains of society…

A few politicians appear on the scene once in a while, and cause a people or the whole of humanity to experience the important role of politics in their lives. Such are usually remembered with volumes upon volumes of history books and biographies, to celebrate their lives and achievements. The rest of the teaming lot that seeks to have a foothold on the political league are easily burnt on the stake, or quickly disappear from memory.

The few politicians that are celebrated when they leave the stage usually make their mark because of their knowledge of human nature; because of their familiarity with the virtues and infirmities of politics, and because they understand that ambition is a strong human passion that could be insidious! They have the humility to deal with strong human egos, to be tolerant of divergent views, and to always put themselves in the place of others to experience what they are feeling; they understand the motives and desires of others, so they easily overcome personal vendetta, humiliation, and bitterness.

Because of the nature of ambition, politics is and has always been a competitive endeavour, with the people as the coveted audience! At the core of this competition is an urge to meet the expectations of the people and to exceed them, far beyond the “politics” usually referred to as a “game” in which you “win” or you “lose”.

A consequence of the competitive nature of politics is the ritual of running down real or perceived opponents! Depending on whether the politician is one of the few and far-fetched or part of the teaming lot, such ritual can be played out elegantly or inelegantly; reluctantly or with relish, but the finality is that it is always played out! Indeed, our political landscape is littered with debris from such little battles...

The unfolding drama of “crossing-overs”, resignations and the depressing political repartees that are in the news today are just part of the ritual, but such are the handiwork of the teaming lot…

With the much water that has gone under the proverbial bridge in Cameroon since 1990, we are expected to have moved away from the sterile politics of using “poaching” and “crossing-overs” to prove the goodness of the ruling party; now is time for showcasing the concrete actions and achievements of a 30-year old regime, beyond the usual empty noises about peace, security, national unity, and democracy that are more on the lips of the teaming lot than measurable outcomes on the ground.

With nothing to showcase after an obviously tiring 30 years, the space is being filled with distractions like “I will never fail… we are patiently building our country on solid foundations” of peace, stability and unity…; and recognition of “appeals and motions of support as eloquent signs of encouragement…” It does not matter that all of these have nothing to do with “pillars of nation building”, which have always hinged everywhere in the world on strong institutions and the freedom of citizens to choose their leaders through credible elections.
As the clock ticks on and time becomes a pressing factor, all our “politicians” seem to be moving towards the inevitable destination; towards where the story always ends for the teaming lot: creating illusions. They create illusions through engineering resignations from other political parties; through changing key words like “poverty reduction”, to “employment and growth” in strategy documents; through voting inflated budgets that serve embezzlers more than they serve the policy of reducing poverty and providing employment and growth; through changing Prime Ministers that always remain the same toothless bulldogs; through changing managers of a dysfunctional electoral system whose sole purpose is to serve one man…

The Cameroon society is clamouring more urgently today than ever before for “change”. Although some “politicians” continue to claim that the “change” advocated has no palpable content, content no longer really matters because the central issue is to bring on the stage the few and far-fetched politicians to guide the laying of a solid foundation for the concrete and effective peace, stability, unity and democracy needed by the Cameroon of the future.

Cameroon:MP's Protest Against "Undemocratic and Illegal" Adoption of Bills

By Christopher Ambe Shu
As the November Session of Cameroon National Assembly wraps up Saturday Decmber5,after the adoption of the 2010 Budget which stands at Fcfa 2,570 bllion ,and other bills, the past three days have been dramatic as other MP's including those of the ruling CPDM courageously joined the usually outspoken MP for Akwaya,Hon Ayah Paul Abine ,to protest against the "Undemcratic and illegal " adoption of bills .

It all started in the afternoon of December 2nd when Hon Ayah Paul Abine,took to the rostrum and said that, a few months before,Catholic Christians in Douala had taken to task the National Assembly for authorizing the President of the Republic to ratify the Maputo Protocol with alleged sinful provisions.

Hon Ayah added that his concern was not with the veracity of what the Christians alleged about the content of the protocol, but with the fact that Parliament often authorizes the President of the Republic to ratify international instruments that Parliamentarians have not as much as seen, and that it was contrary to the relevant constitutional provisions.

The Member of Parliament for Akwaya then said that he would have nothing to do with the five Bills he was holding if the relevant instruments to be ratified were not made available to him for prior studies.
Otherwise, he insisted, it should be recorded that he did not vote the five Bills purporting to authorize the President of the Republic to ratify the instruments.

The presiding Vice President of the National Assembly, Hon Baoro Theophile, ordered that the relevant instruments be made available to Hon Ayah.But the rest of Members of Parliament shouted that the instruments should be made available to all of them and not just to some.

Even though the instruments were not given to Hon Ayah, as he told the press later, the Vice President declared adopted the three Bills without a vote, implying thereby that Hon Ayah was one with the rest.
When the remaining two of the five Bills came up for debate in the afternoon of December 3, all the Members of Parliament who took to the rostrum, the bulk of whom were of the ruling CPDM party, opposed the adoption of the Bill relative to fresh accords between Cameroon and France.

As Hon. Ayah was raising a preliminary objection on the procedure the Vice President had followed the day before, declaring adopted the Bills of the day without a vote, the Vice President began to interrupt him. But Hon Ayah, with the support of most of the other

Members of Parliament present, successfully insisted on making his point. He ended up moving that the Bill being debated -be put to the vote at the end of the debates in accordance with the Standing Orders of the House.
When the Minister of Territorial Administration and Decentralization finished answering questions from the Members of Parliament, several deputies requested to take to the rostrum for a second round of debate.
 In the face of overwhelming evidence that the Parliament of Cameroon was on the verge of making history by exceptionally rejecting a Bill tabled by the Government, the Vice President, Hon Baoro Theophile, not only refused to allow the parliamentarians to continue with debates, but he went straight on to declare the Bill adopted without putting it to the vote. The move provoked shouts of disapprobation from the parliamentarians who began to leave the hemicycle in disorder.

 Contacted, Hon Ayah said that, up to the moment of contacting him, the five instruments the President of the Republic was authorized to ratify had not been given to him, or to other Members of Parliament. He added that so had been the system all along, but it would appear some parliamentarians no longer want to give any such blank check.

 Hon Ayah concluded that the Vice President’s undemocratic conduct and the lawless “adoption” of the Bills conclusively confirm his repeated assertion that Cameroon’s Parliament is not more than a “formality institution”.

Gov’t Joins UB Authorities To Crack down on Striking Students

By Mua  Adams

The University of Buea, Cameroon, UB, that saw the light of day in  1993 as a move to decongest the lone and pre-independent state university, University of Yaounde, UNIYAO, has been hit by a major crisis of unprecedented proportion- with students striking and asking to be given their original Anglo-Saxon university status.

   After the first UB strike of 1995 that grossly paralysed the institution, the university was again hit by another strike in November 2009 where active students said to be members of opposition political parties such as SDF, UNDP and others were at the forefront of the demonstrations.

    Amongst the  supposed leaders of the strike were some student leaders and opinion holders like Paul Shipuh, Tabogo Eno-Jah, Ako Stanley, etc who narrowly escaped arrest  and whose whereabouts are still unknown.

At a time when universities world-wide are fast becoming real centers for dialogue and advancement of academic and intellectual debates, the University of Buea, U.B, has grown virile, despotic and criminal.

    The students of UB have been and are reportedly being denied basic right of expression: the free-will to present their plight, their leaders caught, molested, tortured and detained, students fleeing to unknown destinations and abandoning studies, students killed and their bodies used for rituals.

It is today 16 years, since the university of Buea was created but unfortunately, the university appears to have   been turned into a wartime zone with students  reportedly intimidated, some tagged secessionists, imposed draconian laws,  levied at will, molested and student union leaders haunted and students forced to flee, abandoning studies.

   The UB crisis of this November is the outcome of a government’s insensitivity to the cries of her people. The substance of the strike is the request from the students to have the Anglo-Saxon status of the university maintained and not rubbed into mud. According to the striking students, the French system is systematically infiltrating the UB and causing much harm to the originality and authenticity of the much-cherished   Anglo-Saxon university. The students also drew the attention of the authorities that-be that exams were being sold and leaked to students. The students’ union body, which is supposed to be a democratically-elected body, was under the influence of authorities and this, too, did not go well with the students who wanted an independent body that can face the school administration with courage and conviction. The students also protested and demonstrated against the psychological torture of their student’s union leader, Paul Shipuh, who was repeatedly summoned for interrogations and other tactics of intimidation.

    The protests and demonstrations also frowned at the growing phenomenon where marks were traded for cash or kind at the price of excellence. The strong military presence on campus and the sudden closure of all petty businesses offering photo-copying services, fast-food and facilitating their academic work also caught the condemnation of the students as they protested asking for something to be done.

   While protesting peacefully by way of sit-downs on campus and chanting songs of liberation, the leaders still found time to table a memorandum to  UB authorities.

   Amongst other things raised, the memorandum called for: UB authorities not to meddle into student’s union affairs of the UBSU; the re-instatement of the original         

   Anglo-Saxon status of the UB; produce draft transcript for students free-of-charge or cost-free; the provision of students’ answer sheets to manage mistakes and fraud; the cancellation of all forms of taxes levied on exams; a well-spelt out calendar of students’ activities a; an improvement on the security services on campus; a halt on the harassment of students’ leaders and opinion-holders; the re-opening of all the campus businesses; the creation of an atmosphere of peace and love on campus.

   While the dust was yet to settle with the students and authorities trying to break an even ground of dialogue and peace, a truck load of armed-uniformed men and women stormed the UB campus describing the students as instruments of manipulation by politicians and enemies of the state. In the raid and stampede that followed, 19 students and 14 lecturers were reportedly arrested and taken to unknown destinations with scores of others wounded, beaten and forced to flee with injuries.

   Amongst the many students that suffered huge bodily injuries and were reportedly detained included Ayuk Tang, Wabi Frankline, Kenyu Serge Herve, Tata Kwami Mbinglo, Tchaumou Marie Loue.

    After the strike, we also gathered that some students were black listed by authorities and are being sought for by security forces. They included: Mua Atumked, Ako Claude Enobi, Tabogo  Eno-Jah, Bessong Tiku, Nkongho N. Nkongho, Enow Peter, Ernest Acha, Eyambe Ebai, Erickson Abumbi, Jotso Lawrence Peligne, Kingsley Sheteh Newuh and a host of others.

  In the light of the unfolding drama, classes and activities have been grounded. Anxiety has gripped the entire nation as the fate of the students arrested and charged with secession and belonging to the radical wing of the SCNC are on the balance. Parents are confused as they do not know the whereabouts of their children.

   Some students are rumoured to be crossing the boarders to neighbouring Nigeria, Tchad, Gabon as the government Gestapo crack force is at work haunting for student-activists and suspected leaders.

Cameroon:75% of AIDS affected women in 19-24 age bracket

By Liu Fang
YAOUNDE, Nov. 29 (Xinhua) -- Three quarters of women affected by HIV/AIDS in Cameroon are between 19 and 24, three times more than the affected men of the same bracket, the Ministry of Public Health reported on Saturday.

The figures were released as the central African country marked the World AIDS Day, when people working to control the deadly disease in Cameroon deplored the high rate, linking it to the poor economic and socio-cultural plight.

"Essential information on the methods of prevention of HIV/AIDS has not yet sufficiently reached the girls of this age bracket, " said Nestor Ankiba, executive director of Cameroon's Association of Social Marketing (ACMS), a non-profit making organization which facilitates access to health information by the Cameroonian population.

"It's an age group which is more or less naive, the majority of the girls at this age do not even know what they are doing," he added.

 The economic dependence of the girls at this age vis-a-vis their families which are not always rich is the origin of this high rate of contamination, according to the ACMS director.

A study conducted by his organization shows that the majority of their sexual partners are men who are older and have more money than the boys at their age.

In order to call for responsibility from the older people and attract the attention of the young girls on the dangers of inter-generational sexual relations, the ACMS launched in August 2008 a sensitization campaign titled "No to Sponsors, No to HIV/AIDS".

"Multiplication of several sexual partners by these young girls is certainly the main cause of contamination," said Arsene Onana Ndougsa, a peer educator at African Synergies against AIDS and suffering, an NGO headed by Cameroon's First Lady Chantal Biya.

In their multiple foray on the ground to interact with the youth, said Nadia Zibi Effa, another peer educator, the young men are more motivated to know the prevention methods and ways of contamination than the young girls.

Out of 35,780 young people tested voluntarily in August 2009 during the operation "Holidays without AIDS" organized since 2003 by African Synergies, 22,500 were boys and 13,280 were girls.

In the eyes of Zibi Effa, the fear of knowing their status explains the refusal by girls to get tested.

Antoine Socpa, an anthropologist and teacher at the University of Yaounde 1, has published a number of articles on the relationship between poverty and contamination of HIV. Other cultural factors like early marriage, female genital mutilation, scarification of the body by stained objects contribute to the contamination by the virus, he said.

Investigations carried out in northern regions of Cameroon where the practice of excision of young girls still goes on, he said, revealed a high rate of prevalence among girls because the objects used by the women are always stained by blood.

According to him, the sensitization that has cost billions of dollars against AIDS has had limitations since it has not helped in addressing some of the cultural aspects of some ethnic groups on the African continent.

 As a solution, Socpa asked international organizations involved in the fight against AIDS and African leaders to identify the factors that push the girls to get involved in risky activities regardless of the deadly consequences.

Preservatives may not be the only solution to this problem if the conditions of life of these people do not change.

 With a prevalence rate of 5.1 percent, which includes 6.8 percent of women and 4.1 percent of men, 553,000 people are living with HIV in Cameroon, where the first case was reported in 1985. The rate is 9.9 percent in the country's young population.

The central region of the country is the worst hit with 111,287sick people, who account for 47 percent of the total. In the north, 17,418 seropositives were reported, or 15 percent of the total.

The Cameroonian government on May 1, 2007 decided to provide the free antiretroviral treatment for the people living with HIV. There are now 136 health training centers across the country to take care of the patients.

The promotion of usage of preservatives for women is at the center of activities marking the World AIDS Day in Cameroon, which is marked under the theme "I am taking issues in my hands, stop AIDS, keep the promise, women and children without HIV."

The objective, according to health officials, is that each woman should decide for her own health and participate in the prevention of unwanted pregnancies and contribute to the reduction of new infections in Cameroon.

Voluntary testing, conferences, debates and distribution of feminine and masculine preservatives are part of the activities of the national health week launched on Wednesday in the capital Yaounde.
Source:www.chinaview.cn

Cameroon :Nkong Hill Gives Birth to Microfinance Institution

By Mofor Samuel
South West Regional Delegate for Agriculture and Rural Development, Lawrence Forwang, on October 18, 2009 in Buea officially inaugurated the Nkong Credit for Savings and Cooperative Society (NC4D) Ltd, a brainchild of Nkong Hill Top Common Initiative Group Buea. Commissioning the new microfinance institution, the delegate talked of the eagerness and the expectations of the grassroots population of the region with respect to this venture. He went further to say that this population is characterized by poverty, low income levels and low standard of living. And that one of the greatest problem of agriculture where close to 80% of the Cameroonian population is involved in, is the lack of finances for investments, compounded by the difficulties to obtain credits from commercial banks, high interest rates and the unavailability of collaterals and guarantees to satisfy the banks and other lending institutions.

With the only collaterals to farmers being their farmlands and crops, NC4D has come as a welcome relief to the population for their use and benefit.

The delegate equally had some words of advice to the management of NC4D on how they can make their impact felt by the needy population. Amongst others, he talked of mutual confidence within members, large deposits of money are not the type of savings to look for, savings as the basis for obtaining credit, operate on the cooperative philosophy that emphasizes on service rather than profit, loans to be granted for productive purpose and pay expenses of operation and dividends on the savings of its members etc.

Before exhorting NC4D to operate in the light of the prudential, financial and specific accounting norms applicable to savings and credit cooperatives / MFI according to the laws of the Republic of Cameroon concerning the profession, he reminded them that the Central African Banking Commission (COBAC) shall watch out on the quality of their financial situation and accounting management to ensure that ethical rules of the profession are respected.

Earlier on, in a welcome address by the Chairperson of NC4D, Anu Vincent, he said that the presence of all and sundry at the commissioning ceremony was proof that they share the vision of the mother organization, Nkong Hill Top, which strives for a world in which human dignity is protected from the ravages of poverty, ignorance, discrimination and violence. And that their presence is certainly telling them that they can count on them as NC4D sets out to achieve its mission of bringing financial services at moderate rate to the urban unbanked and rural populations.

He equally took all down memory lane by briefly situating NC4D to them. He said that it all began one evening in 1996 in a bar in Great Soppo called Hill Top, when some men and women decided to start a weekly savings club to collectively rescue themselves from the ravenous money lenders who were exploiting the financial crunch occasioned by the civil service salary cuts and the devaluation of FCFA of the early nineties.

It was out of this initiative that emerged Nkong Hill Top Common Initiative group and its several programmes notably NWOCA- Nkong Women Cash Up- project which has seen the Nkong family deliver micro credits to over 600 low income women beneficiaries in Fako and Lebialem Divisions of Cameroon since 2006.

This has been achieved thanks to the commitment of Nkong Hill Top Board and members, the over 98% payback performance of the beneficiaries and enduring support of MRDF London and recently Drombaya, their foreign partners.

Thanks to the findings of an impact assessment on the social impact of NWOCA programme carried out recently by a John Hopkins University intern, the Board of Nkong Hill Top resolved to forge ahead in 2006 to register a Category 1 microfinance institution that is functioning in conformity with the existing national legislation regulating the sector in Cameroon.

With the goal being to promote access to microfinance services for members, the community and especially the urban and rural poor women; and in line with the objectives spelt out in Section 42 of the Law on cooperatives and common initiative groups, the purpose of NC4D Ltd shall be to:

provide members financing at moderate interest rate for both investment and /or production purposes; offer complementary savings and credit services such as risk management, checking system etc; build the capacity of members and the community through educational seminars, workshops and other training activities; and provide financial intermediation services within Cameroon.

While acknowledging with profound gratitude the support that they continue to receive from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development through its Regional Delegate and his extension services, the Ministry of Finance, Softsarl Ltd Douala. Aziverida Ltd London, MRDF London, Drombaya Switzerland, the NGO community in Buea and members of Nkong Hill Top, the Chairperson said in joining them will be coming to a winning community which includes local and international partners linked in productive partnerships for development.

Last but not the least he talked of their being proud of their achievement but that they are very aware of the huge challenges, challenges which are well beyond simply getting to a hill top, challenges which NC4D shall encounter as they strive to reach the mountain top.

Cameroon:RUMPI Project Approves 2010 Work plan, Budgets FCFA 8.9 Billion

By Christopher Ambe Shu

The annual work plans and budget of the Rumpi Area Participatory Development Project (fondly called Rumpi Project) for 2010 have been approved by the Project’s Steering Committee (PSC), chaired by Southwest Governor.

The PSC, which met at its 9th session at Chariot Hotel, in Buea,adopted the project’s 2010 budget in income and expenditure at the sum of eight billion eight hundred and sixty seven million five hundred and forty thousand(8,867,540,000) FCFA.

The PSC represents various project stakeholders and is responsible for the overall supervision of the Rumpi project.

The FCFA 17 billion Rumpi Project, launched in 2004, is intended to reduce poverty in rural areas of the Southwest province by increasing their incomes in a sustainable manner, through improving agricultural output as well as their socio-economic environment.

It is placed under the Southwest Development Authority, SOWEDA-Buea, and co- funded by African Development Bank (ADB75%), Technical Assistance Fund (TAF 8 %), Government of Cameroon (GOC15%) and the beneficiaries (2%), according to official sources.

Opening the 9th session, Dr. Eneme Andrew Ngome, general manager of SOWEDA ,who sat in for the PSC chairman, called on members to be realistic in discussing the budget and to make sure that the budget would not only be realistic but achievable.

He challenged Rumpi administrators and its executing agencies to double efforts in order to fully accomplish their objectives, as the project draws to an end. He said the government attaches much importance to the project with regards to its fight for poverty-alleviation.

Dr Eneme said the project, which has a six-year life span, is at its 5th year and is expected to end in June 2010, if a request for an extension for another one year is not approved. The government had earlier written to the ADB requesting a one year prolongation

The 9th PSC recommended that “the Project should contact the Ministry of Public Works to ensure that, the construction of 15 km along the Sabes-Kendem road be integrated among the works of the Ekok-Mamfe-Bamenda highway to be funded by the African Development bank”.

The PSC also recommended “that the Rumpi Project Implementation Team and partners should take all necessary measures to ensure that certified seeds and other planting materials are available to farmers at the right time of the agricultural calendar”

The PSC members(pictured), according to a statement issued at the end of the sitting, “noted with satisfaction the action taken by the Project management to reinforce the capacity of the Infrastructure Component by recruiting a senior Infrastructure Engineer”

Besong Ntui Ogork, Rumpi Project Coordinator, said they were now focusing on infrastructure development, noting that in the past the project had done much in assisting agricultural activities and farmers in the southwest region.

The PSC met barely two weeks after RUMPI awarded two contracts to E & T Engineering in Douala and SOTAR/SOGES, Douala for the rehabilitation and construction of some 227 km of feeder roads in the Southwest region, for a period of up to 10 months worth about five billion FCFA

The achievements of RUMPI as at now are many which include: education of farmers: construction of rural markets, rural roads, water schemes, and village banks.

Observers say Project coordinator, Besong Ntui Ogork, who is an agricultural expert and masters the development problems of the Southwest region, is greatly responsible for the strides Rumpi Project is making. They recall that he took over as project coordinator when the ADB had stop disbursement to the project but Mr. Besong Ntui Ogorkworked extra hard and  regained  the bank’s confidence,occasioning the resumption of disbursement

Cameroon: Presbyterian Church Elects New Moderator

By Christopher Ambe Shu

The Presbyterian Church in Cameroon (PCC), which is 52 years old, has a new moderator, who is the Chief Shepherd of this Christian organization with a membership of more than one million people.

Rev.Dr.Festus Ambe Asana(pictured) was overwhelmingly elected by the 44th Synod ,dubbed “Synod of Change” ,on November 24 in Kumba, to replace the Rt. Rev.Dr. Nyansako –ni-Nku, who has served in that capacity for ten years, and is due retirement in December.

Rev.Professor Emmanuel Anyambod Anya,rector of Protestant University of Central Africa(PUCA),who had put up his candidature to race with Rev.Dr.Festus Asana, considered the favorite, for office of moderator, withdrew at the last minute, in favor of his lone challenger.That made Rev. Dr.Asana to secure all 92 votes,hence scoring 100% from the electoral college.

Rev. Dr.Asana will officially assume office in January 2010 after an institution and induction ceremony.

Rev.Abwenzoh William Membong ,secretary of the Kumba Presbytery, was also elected as Synod Clerk, to replace Rev. Dr. Festus Ambe Asana, who has served two five-year terms in that office. Rev Abwenzoh beat his lone challenger, Rev. Besong Johnson Tabe by 47 to 45 votes.

In his acceptance speech,Moderator-elect Rev. Dr. Asana emphasised the need for the church to become more united."My ambition is to see the church stronger and more united;that we reason as children of one family,"he said,adding that transparency,hard work and probity must characterise his leadership.

Rev. Dr.Asana’s Profile

Born in Bafut in March 1948, Rev. Dr. Festus Ambe Asana is the first of ten children of late Rev.David Chembe Asana and Monica Bi Asana.

Due to the itinerant missionary nature of his father’s service, young Festus Asana attended Basel/Presbyterian Primary Schools in Nyasoso, Nseh, Kumbo, Buwe-Bukali and Bome.

As a student of Cameroon Protestant College (CPC) Bali where he felt called to the pastoral ministry in his third year (1966). After obtaining the London GCE ordinary Level, he proceeded to Cameroon College of Arts, Science and Technology (CCAST) Bambili where he passed his GCE Advanced level.

Festus Asana began his theological studies at the Faculty of Protestant Theology, Yaoundé graduating in 1976 with a Bachelor’s degree and post-graduate diploma. That same year he began teaching at the Presbyterian Theological College, Nyasoso at the age of 29. He later became Principal of same college

In 1983, he moved to the USA where he studied for an MTS degree at Harvard University, the Divinity School, Cambridge, Massachusetts, graduating as class marshal. He later earned a doctorate degree (Th.D) from Boston University School of Theology.

Upon return to Cameroon, he was reappointed Principal of the Theological College, Kumba and he became the first Dean of the Presbyterian Seminary in 1984 when the school was upgraded to a degree-awarding institution.

Rev Dr. Festus Asana has served the church in various capacities among which are: tutor at CPC Bali (1971-1972); lecturer at Theological College, Nyasoso and Kumba Seminary for 14 years; principal of Theological College, Nyasoso and Kumba for seven years; chaplain of Government Secondary School Nyasoso for three years; pastor of English-Speaking parish, Yaoundé for two years; Chaplian of Presbyterian High School,Kumba(1990);pastor of Kosala Congregation for five years; Dean of the Presbyterian theological Seminary Kumba for five years and Synod Clerk of the Presbyterian Church in Cameroon from 1999 to 2009.

He was ordained in 1978 and is married to Mrs. Jenny Nchang, a teacher by profession and holder of Master’s degree in Early Childhood Education from Lesley college Graduate School,Cambridge,Massachusetts,USA.They have four children.

Rev Dr Asana has co-authored two books and published many articles;been member of the board of Governors of the Cameroon Bible Translation and Literacy association(CABTAL)

EU Condemns Election Management Transfer in Cameroon

 By Tansa Musa
Cameroon’s democ­ra­ti­sa­tion process has suf­fered a seri­ous set­back this year after the gov­ern­ment trans­ferred elec­tions man­age­ment from the Min­istry of Ter­ri­to­r­ial Admin­is­tra­tion (MINAT) to the rul­ing Cameroon People’s Demo­c­ra­tic Move­ment (CPDM) party of Pres­i­dent Paul Biya, says the head of the Euro­pean Com­mis­sion del­e­ga­tion in Yaounde.

“We strongly applauded the government’s deci­sion in 2006 to cre­ate an inde­pen­dent body Elec­tions Cameroon (ELECAM) to man­age elec­tions in the coun­try, believ­ing that this would be the end of flawed polls that has almost resulted in social unrest many times, and a major step for­ward in the democ­ra­ti­sa­tion process,” Javier Puyol told a press con­fer­ence in Yaounde on Friday.

“But we were very dis­ap­pointed this year when the author­i­ties appointed the 12 board mem­bers of ELECAM and 11 of them were mem­bers of the cen­tral com­mit­tee and polit­i­cal bureau of the rul­ing party. In other words, this sim­ply meant trans­fer­ing the task of elec­tions organ­i­sa­tion from MINAT to one of the par­ties in con­test, actu­ally mak­ing it a player and ref­eree at the same time. This was a missed oppor­tu­nity to advance the democ­ra­ti­sa­tion process. This is regret­table. Its a pity. It is already a false start for the 2011 pres­i­den­tial poll which is just by the cor­ner. That elec­tion has already lost its creadibility.”

The Cameroon gov­ern­ment decided to cre­ate ELECAM as an inde­pen­dent elec­toral body in 2006 fol­low­ing per­sis­tent com­plains from the oppo­si­tion, the civil soci­ety and the donor com­mu­nity that pre­vi­ous elec­tions organ­ised by MINAT since the coun­try returned to mul­ti­par­tism in 1991, were grossly irreg­u­lar and designed to favour the CPDM. The law cre­at­ing the body stip­u­lates clearly that mem­bers of its board “shall be des­ig­nated from the midst of inde­pen­dent per­son­al­i­ties of Cameroon­ian nation­al­ity, reputed for their stature, moral upright­ness, intel­lec­tual hon­esty, patri­o­tism, neu­tral­ity and impartiality.”

The move was widely acclaimed as a major step for­ward. Unfor­tu­nately, the spir­its of Cameroo­ni­ans, includ­ing mil­i­tants of the rul­ing party them­selves, were damp­ened when in May pres­i­dent Biya appointed only the big guns of his party — three mem­bers of the polit­i­cal bureau and five mem­bers of the cen­tral com­mit­tee — as mem­bers of ELECAM. This has gen­er­ated wide­spread con­dem­na­tion from within the coun­try and out­side, with the main oppo­si­tion Social Demo­c­ra­tic Front (SDF) party already threat­en­ing “to do every­thing to ensure that the 2011 pres­i­den­tial poll does not hold.

Puyol said he under­stood Cameroo­ni­ans’ frus­tra­tions with the elec­toral sys­tem and appealed to the author­i­ties to do some­thing to regain the people’s con­fi­dence in the process. Fail­ure to do this, he said he fore­sees reg­is­tra­tion on the voter’s list and turn-out fur­ther declin­ing and cast­ing doubts over the legit­i­macy of those in authority.
“It is sad that Cameroon which has a pop­u­la­tion of close to 20 mil­lion inhab­i­tants has never suc­ceeded to reg­is­ter up to 5 mil­lion on the voter list. Things could be worst in the 2011 pres­i­den­tial elec­tion and that is not good for the coun­try,” he stated.

Observers in the nation’s cap­i­tal say the appoint­ments only came to con­firm Biya’s deter­mi­na­tion to be pres­i­dent of Cameroon for life. In April 2008, after 26 years of rule, Biya, using his party’s fraud­u­lent major­ity in the National Assem­bly (157 of 180 seats), mod­i­fied the con­sti­tu­tion by sup­press­ing the two-term man­date limit, which means he can run again for as many terms as he wants. The 76-year old Biya came to power in 1982 as the hand-picked suc­ces­sor of for­mer head of state Ahmadou Ahidjo. He is today one of Africa’s longest serv­ing rulers

Courtesy:www.newstimeafrica.com (Posted on November 15 )

Cameroon’s Decentralization Begins In 2010

By Christopher Ambe Shu
The year 2010 will usher in a significant feature to Cameroon’s political and democratic reforms .The much-awaited decentralization (devolution of powers) , one of President Biya’s Greater Ambitions’ reforms, will kick off in 2010.

The government is now leaving no stone unturned in its preparations to ensure the smooth take –off.

Decentralization shall give regional and local authorities (councils) administrative and financial autonomy in the management of their interests, and the State shall only “lightly” supervise them.

In the past, mayors who were unable to deliver blamed Senior Divisional Officers, agents of the Central Administration who acted as Supervisory Authority, of frustrating their development plans, for selfish motives.

The Head of Government and Prime Minister, Philemon Yang, who, on November 10,chaired an extra-ordinary session of the National Decentralization Council in Yaounde, has insisted that the devolution of powers ,as promised by President Biya ,must become a reality and irreversible next year.
The National Decentralization Council monitors and assesses the decentralization and implementation process.

The Finance law on the 2010 state budget is expected to set a fraction of the state revenue for the general decentralization allocations.

“The powers to be transferred in 2010 should, in a concrete manner, go to improve the living conditions, environment of the population or at least be geared towards the provision of quality basic education”, Marafa Hamidou Yaya, Minister of State for Territorial Administration and Decentralization, told a recent session of an inter-ministerial committee, also concerned with the preparation of the coming decentralization.

To reiterate its seriousness, the government has published new rules for the management of council human resources.

But decentralization, administration officials say, will start first with sub divisional and city councils, as regions have not yet been put in place.

While mayors have expressed satisfaction that in less than three months they would start enjoying greater autonomy in the management of their municipalities, they have pleaded with the government to cancel heavy debts they inherited, so to permit them to take off well.

“We appreciate government's decentralization efforts, but we are appealing to the government to cancel some of the heavy debts the incumbent mayors inherited-because of the in ability of previous council administrations to settle them.”

Cameroon:Biya urged to launch 2011 Presidential Campaigns in Buea

By Christopher Ambe Shu

Still undecided whether or not to run for reelection at the forth coming presidential polls in 2011, President Paul Biya may find it difficult to turn down popular calls from within his ruling party, the CPDM ,for him to race for another mandate.

At almost all anniversary ceremonial grounds across the country where CPDM militants assembled on November 6 to celebrate President Biya’s 27 years as Cameroon’s second President, clarion calls were made to Mr. Biya to consider running again.

The anniversary theme was “Let’s Build the Future with President Paul Biya”

In Buea ,CPDM militants not only joined the chorus but went ahead to invite Mr. Biya to launch his presidential campaigns in Buea, which they noted, hosts Mt Cameroon, the highest peak in the country.

The Mayor of Buea and Fako 3 CPDM section President, Charles Mbella Moki(pictured above addressing militants), who on behalf of his section, extended the invitation to President Biya, argued that by launching campaigns on the country’s highest peak, the message would flow easily into to the minds of Cameroonians for appreciation.

State media even reported that in some regions militants pleaded with President Biya to call for early elections.

Conscious of the repeated calls for him to run for reelection, President Biya who is also National Chairman of the ruling CPDM,in his first ever letter to militants on the eve to the anniversary, had acknowledged the calls, describing them as a sign of encouragement.

The anniversary offered an opportunity for CPDM officials to showcase President Biya’s socio-economic, political and diplomatic achievements (read: How Biya Has Modernized Cameroon on this site), as well as dismiss allegations that Mr.Biya is a spendthrift and has ill-gotten wealth hidden abroad. Grassroots militants were also urged to start preparing for future political consultations (elections) so to make the CPDM an all-time victory.

Prime Minster Philemon Yang moved to his division of origin,Bui Division ,to boost anniversary celebrations there, during which he rallied support for President Biya and warned North westerners against making wrong political choice, a veiled reference to the opposition SDF party.

In Mfoundi-Yaounde, CPDM Secretary –General Rene Sadi, who presided over anniversary activities in the City Hall, asked militants to make the nation’s capital the bastion of the CPDM. “We all have to adhere to the policy of our Prsident.What Cameroon is today is thanks to our Prsident”, he said.

In Buea,Hon. Emilia Lifaka,Vice President of Cameroon National Assembly and Hon. Meoto Paul, former Director of Cabinet at the PM’s Office, were also busy rallying support for President Biya.


The story was the same at the different ceremonial grounds across the nation.

WHY CAMEROONIAN MANAGERS FAIL

By SNOWSEL ANO-EBIE in Douala
When one critically looks at the Cameroonian society since November 1982, it is not immediately clear whether the citizens have doubted 27 years of benefits or whether their leaders have benefited from 27 years of doubt. One way or the other, there has been benefits and doubts. A dispassionate examination of the business and organizational leadership sectors in the country clearly points to 27 years of managerial failure.


One can consider management as the ability to plan, organise, and coordinate an organisation’s financial, human, material and other resources in order to achieve its objectives. You don’t need to study the management classics, or delve into “Scientific Management” by Frederic W. Taylor, “Management as a Profession” by Mary Parker Follett, or “The Manager’s Job: Folklore and Fact” by Henry Mintzberg, in order to identify managerial failure in Cameroon.


Over the years, Cameroon has been plagued by many problems like corruption which is now a national culture, crippling youth unemployment, ethnocentric calculations that breed tribalism, inability to attain a two digit growth rate and break lose from the grip of the economic crisis, a hideous debt burden, and many other challenges that can all be blamed on mismanagement.


It is the inability to plan, lead, organise, and control, hence the failure of managers, that a country like Cameroon can boast of 50 years of independence, with 27 of those years under the “New Deal”, but the most pressing needs of the citizens have not been addressed.


It is ignorance of the planning processes in management as expounded by management scholar Henri Fayol, and the inability to engage in the kind of long-range planning described by Peter F. Drucker that Cameroon has been deprived of “an express train” between Douala and Yaounde, the “Trans Cameroon Railway” has not been extended from Ngaoundere to Maroua and Kousséri, the hydro electric potential of Menchum Falls has not been tapped to solve the country’s energy needs and even export electricity to countries like Nigeria, the Limbe deep Seaport has stagnated; and the Ring Road, the Kumba-Mamfe Road, and paved roads leading to all divisional headquarters in Cameroon have remained tools of political blackmail.


The failure of Cameroon’s managers can be seen in the reluctance to create technical universities in the country, in the much heralded democratic process that is aborted in its embryonic stage, and in the wanton lack of recreational and sports infrastructure even though “the fighting Lions’ spirit” is exploited for political capital.


Those who have sat in Management classrooms, studied Management Courses, and taken time off to master the Management Classics, know that effective managers rely on two things; the ability to manage, and the opportunity to do so. Unfortunately, in Cameroon, those who have been saddled with the opportunity to manage national organisations and institutions have for the most part been overtaken by their glaring deficiency in managerial skills. It is very difficult, and almost impossible to find any Cameroonian parastatal or state corporation where the managers do not squander opportunities, waste resources, and kill the talents of the people who have been entrusted into their care. The resultant consequence of managerial failure is mismanagement which can aptly be described as one of Cameroon’s greatest nightmares alongside absentee leadership.


There are many reasons why Cameroonian managers fail and the most obvious is poor education. The greater majority of people who lord it over Cameroonian organisations don’t have a management education. All those managing directors, general managers, and chief executive officers, who preside over billions of CFA Francs of tax payers money, have not been trained in the “Principles of Management”, Managerial Economics, Finance, and Accounting. Why would they not fail?


In Cameroon, many managers are technocrats who are appointed up the rungs of the organisation from service heads or first line managers to directors or middle managers and finally to general managers or top management. The disadvantage of this system is that while such managers may succeed with the operational aspects of the organisation, they woefully fail in the functional aspects like budgeting, financial reporting, accounting, and human resource allocation. When one expects teachers, medical doctors, engineers, journalists, lawyers, and other professionals to get academic training in order to become efficient and effective, people who aspire to occupy management positions or ramble into the management field by some struck of luck, desperately need to undergo training in order to speak the language of management and avoid the kind of ignorance that nurtures failure.


Even managers who claim to have training in their CVs are for the most part talking of their stay in the National School of Administration and Magistracy ENAM in Yaounde. For a long time, to qualify as a manager in Cameroon one was required to be a civil administrator trained at ENAM. Graduates from this “prestigious” school of Administration have imposed themselves on state owned companies and organisations. Administration has been erroneously equated to Management. The negative results in terms of failed policies, companies that have been brought down and driven out of existence, cumbersome organisation charts, squandered opportunities, and misplaced priorities are there for everyone to see. Unfortunately, the ENAM myth is still considered a prerequisite for top managers in Cameroon.


Another reason why Cameroonian managers fail is because they are selected through a system of appointments whose underlying motive is to reward political allies and their “God children”, punish Regions of the country that are politically hostile to the present dispensation, and perpetuate a reign of ethnic and tribal hegemony.


The other risk is that appointments are at the discretionary mercy of the person making them, and many unqualified and inexperienced people get appointed, some of them directly from school into top management. Managerial failure can only be the logical outcome.


It is indeed unfortunate that a Developing country like Cameroon has not adopted the MBA or Masters in Business Administration as a standard qualification for all top managers. In other African countries foreign and locally trained MBAs have already taken charge of the economy and national institutions but this is not the case in Cameroon.

Management by political appointments and management by “trial-and-error” have failed Cameroon. Only a logical system based on merit, a sound education, and a solid experience, can turn the tides of managerial failure in Cameroon around.

How Biya Has Modernized Cameroon

By Christopher Ambe Shu

Like it or not, Paul Biya’s 27 years as Cameroon’s President have been eventful, as his blueprint of modernizing the country is being implemented. It could be slow, but it has been steady. Mr. Biya desires to be described as a great achiever. Just staying in power, democratically elected, for 27 years  is a telling achievement.
Even if he has weaknesses - which is normal as a human being, his successes in the political, socio-economic, diplomatic domains and otherwise are there for any person of good faith appreciate. But to completely dismiss Mr. Biya‘s 27-year stay at the helm of power as wasted years, as leading opposition parties in Cameroon claim, is too unfair.
 Democratic Reforms
Politically, to begin with, when he assumed the presidential office on November 6, 1982, the country was a one-party system. Democracy was barely practiced within the party. But in March 1985, he transformed the lone party – the CNU - into CPDM, introducing democratic reforms within the party. He reintroduced multi-party democracy in 1990, against protests from some learned Cameroonians. 
 Today, Cameroon has over 200 political parties, with citizens free to belong to any of their choice or even to form more. With the multiplicity of parties came greater freedom of expression. Cameroonians under former President Ahmadou Ahidjo did not actually enjoy freedom of expression.
Since 1992 elections - notably presidential, municipal and parliamentary - have been organized for Cameroonians to democratically choose their leaders and representatives. It is true complaints of electoral fraud and rigging have been alleged by mostly loser-opposition parties such as the SDF, but the Supreme Court has always adjudicated on such complaints.
President Biya listened to calls from the opposition, who felt that the Ministry of Territorial Administration charged with organizing elections, was not trustworthy, and created the National Elections Observatory (NEO) to supervise polls. The opposition still doubted its credibility, insisting on the creation of an independent electoral body, which President Biya has created in ELECAM.
To ensure that democratic tenets are respected, President Biya set up the National Commission on Human Rights and Freedoms to promote Human rights, and abolished administrative censorship of the press.

Improving Infrastructure

On the social domain, the Biya Administration has been doing much to put up social facilities across the nation, to improve living standards.
One can easily find well-equipped hospitals in towns and rural settings. Health centers are spread nationwide. The telephone system has been modernized. Deregulation of telecoms has ushered in MTN and Orange, who now serve millions. Consider computer centers with internet link in many schools. Cameroon has an ultra modern television network (CRTV). With President Biya deregulating the audio-visual sector, there are over 100 private radios and 10 television stations operating in Cameroon.


Major roads have been constructed linking towns and more are still under construction. Electricity and water projects are being extended to rural areas. Almost every village has a primary school. Secondary and high schools as well as institutes are far common in Cameroon now than before. The country now has seven state-owned universities (Buea, Douala, Dschang, Ngaoundéré, Yaoundé I, Yaoundé II and Garoua), plus several privately owned universities. There are many other social facilities that can not be all mentioned here.
 In the economic arena, the Biya administration has created and encouraged foreigners to open companies and industries in Cameroon. His administration, in collaboration with the Brettonwoods institutons, is currently carrying out a structural adjustment program, intended to boost economic growth, alleviate poverty and misery and fight diseases. Cameroon‘s economic growth is steady.

Conscious that Cameroon is endowed with abundant natural and human resources, the Biya regime has set up youth employment programs and projects in different ministries. For civil servants, the Government recently decreed a 15 percent pay raise.
There is no doubt that Cameroon, with one of the best-endowed primary commodity economies in sub-Saharan Africa, still faces problems such as high unemployment, corruption, and embezzlement of public funds, injustices and human rights abuses. But measures have taken by the Biya Administration to check such ills. Many government officials have been thrown in prison for embezzlement and corruption. Many more are currently detained, awaiting trial.
 Opponents accuse President Biya of lacking the political will to put in place institutions provided for by the 1996 revised constitution, such as the Senate and the Constitutional Council. But they forget to note that President Biya has insisted that these institutions world soon be put in place.

Successful Diplomacy

Under President Biya, Cameroon continues to forge relations and maintain good relations with other important nations and international organizations. Cameroon is known as an island of peace in a turbulent Central African sub-region.


One of his latest diplomatic victories was the the return of Bakassi Peninsula to Cameroon by Nigeria. Cameroon and Nigeria disputed over the legal ownership of the peninsula for years. But conscious that Bakassi belongs to Cameroon, President Paul Biya finally brought the matter before the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations.

In October 2002, the ICJ ruled that sovereignty over the Bakassi Peninsula lies with Cameroon. And in August 2008, Nigeria finally ceded Bakassi to Cameroon.This was widely considered as a huge diplomatic victory for President Biya.
Due to President Biya’s track record of successes, militants of his ruling party and other Cameroonians are already calling on him to run for re-election in 2011, when his second seven year mandate ends
NB:This Article was First Published at  www.cameroonforum.net