Cameroon Parliament:Hon.Ayah’s Strong Arguments against Amendment of ELECAM Ignored as Bill is adopted.

By Christopher Ambe Shu

The bill tabled by the CPDM Government to amend the December 2006 law setting up Elections Cameroon (ELECAM),the so-called independent elections management organ, has been overwhelmingly adopted by the CPDM –dominated National Assembly.

It was adopted last Friday, despite powerful arguments advanced by the usually outspoken Hon Ayah Paul,(pictured) CPDM MP for Akwaya Constituency of the Southwest Region, against its amendment.

If the bill is finally enacted into law by President Paul Biya in the days ahead, political pundits say, then the Ministry of Territorial Administration and Decentralization (MINATD) will take back the management of elections from ELECAM.

Only recently, MINATD which previously managed elections in Cameroon and was widely accused of irregularities and rigging in favor of the ruling CPDM, had handed over elections management to ELECAM, whose independence as an electoral body was highly questioned by opposition parties especially the SDF and Cardinal Democratic Party, civil society leaders, diplomatic representations and even some CPDM bigwigs such as Hon Ayah.

“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 democratization process,” Javier Puyol, head of the European Commission delegation in Yaoundé had told a press conference in Yaounde last November.

“But we were very disappointed … 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 transferring the task of elections organization from MINATD 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 democratization process. This is regrettable. It’s 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 credibility.”

Hon. Ayah while advancing his arguments ,last Friday March 26,against the amendment in the National Assembly before he was cut short by the House Speaker, questioned: “ How can anyone claim to see the independence of ELECAM when the Bill provides for the mandatory membership of administrators in all the “commissions for the revision of registers of electors, commissions in charge of controlling the establishment and distribution of registration cards, local polling commissions as well as council supervisory commissions…?”

“How dare we talk about the independence of ELECAM when “Divisional supervisory commissions, regional supervisory commissions and the National Commission for the Final Counting of Votes shall be chaired by a Judicial Officer (appointed by the President of the Republic as the head of the Higher Judicial Council)”?

The SDF, the leading opposition in Cameroon has insisted that ELECAM is an incredible election management body.(Read Hon. Ayah’s arguments in Parliament below)

Verbatim:
Hon. Ayah’s Address in Parliament against ELECAM Amendment Below:

Mr. President of the National Assembly;

Thank you for recognizing me.

Honourable Members;

I was at the forefront of those who campaigned in favour of the adoption of the substantive Bill on Elections Cameroon – ELECAM – in 2006. A local newspaper even accused me of having been influenced by the Minister of State for Territorial Administration. But in support of the Bill I did stand without wavering; having satisfied my conscience that it was good law.
In supporting the Bill then, I drew inspiration essentially from the fact that there were provisions that made ELECAM independent from, among other bodies, the Administration. I was equally urged on by the fact that ELECAM would henceforth be in charge of all electoral processes in our dear fatherland. Additionally, there was the provision on the financial autonomy of ELECAM.
But when appointments for ELECAM were made, I felt betrayed in that the legal condition precedent of “reputed for” neutrality was illegally transformed into condition subsequent. The law had fallen from its celebrated characteristic of universal application to an instrument of presidential discretion. What a cherished vindication then when on December 31, 2009, the President of the Republic acknowledged before the whole world that ELECAM had deficiencies that warranted correction; and promised to correct them!

But contrary to the high expectations of all and sundry consequent on that presidential confession and the vow to do good, here now is a Bill that seeks to make ELECAM more of a department of the Ministry of Territorial Administration than “an independent electoral body”. What a devastating blow to trust, faith and humility that ELECAM is being subjugated to the very ministry that had previously managed elections with mountainous irregularities warranting the creation of that very electoral body!

How can anyone claim to see the independence of ELECAM when the Bill provides for the mandatory membership of administrators in all the “commissions for the revision of registers of electors, commissions in charge of controlling the establishment and distribution of registration cards, local polling commissions as well as council supervisory commissions…”?
How dare we talk about the independence of ELECAM when “Divisional supervisory commissions, regional supervisory commissions and the National Commission for the Final Counting of Votes shall be chaired by a Judicial Officer (appointed by the President of the Republic as the head of the Higher Judicial Council)”?

Few simpletons there are who would see independence in ELECAM when the amendment provides that the number of the “representatives of Elections Cameroon appointed by the Director General of Elections (to the last-mentioned commissions)…shall be equal to that of the representatives of the Administration”. Is it not a matter of commonsense that the judicial officer who automatically has a casting vote as president will, by the allegiance he owes to the President of the Republic who has appointed him, vote necessarily with the “Administration”?

Would any man with unimpaired reasoning faculty support this power-sharing Bill in the face of the existing substantive law that grants ELECAM exclusive jurisdiction in the management of elections in Cameroon when the said substantive law has not been repealed, not even by an express provision of the amendment Bill currently under debate?

Honorable Members;

It is a contradiction in terms to state that ELECAM is “an independent electoral body” in the face of the provision in the amendment Bill that ELECAM “shall submit to…The Minister in charge of Territorial Administration (who ensures) constant liaison between the Government and Elections Cameroon…copies of minutes of (its) meetings and progress reports”. Can this obligation to report be anything less than servant-master relation? I beg to opine that enacting good laws is of universal benefit. I am helped to that opinion by a recent celebrated example. Some decades ago, Mr. Ian Smith enacted an anti-terrorism law with intent to prop up the unilateral declaration of independence for Southern Rhodesia. He boasted then that there would be no majority rule in that country for a thousand years to come. When majority rule did come within three years, Mr. Smith, feeling the pinch of the law in question, urged the new government to repeal the law. The reply was that, as that was Mr. Ian Smith’s law and not that of the contemporary government, Mr. Smith would repeal his law whenever he formed the next government.

Is it not a fact most notorious that every beginning is an end? It goes without saying then that the laws we enact today could apply to us tomorrow when our party loses majority and we find ourselves in the opposition. No detriment therefore do we suffer in enacting good laws. On the contrary, it is to our eventual benefit.

We certainly cannot claim that we have no skeletons in our cupboards when we rush important legislation through parliament like the rehearsal of vapid rhymes in a nursery school. Common knowledge it is that free, fair and transparent elections have been a constant bone of contention on the African continent. Working for a peaceful future is inconsistent with trifling with matters of elections. It follows that tabling a Bill on elections at noon as it is the case with the instant Bill; having the Bill debated in the relevant committee four hours later, followed by the adoption of the committee report within hours; and then procuring parliament to debate the said Bill on the floor of the House within twenty-four hours of the tabling is at the most jesting.

Where is our seriousness, honorable Members, in our threadbare cloaks of the representatives of the people? Is not it our bounden duty to protect the general interest? In the pursuance of that goal then am I of the settled opinion that we must see beyond the tips of our noses. I should consequently like to think that we ought to be most reluctant to identify with this amendment Bill that compromises good conscience, equity and sane judgment!

Thank you honorable Members for lending me your ears; and thank you Mr. Speaker for recognizing me. May I beg to regain to my chair, Sir?

"President Biya’s Achievements Have Pushed Cameroonians to Call for His Reelection In 2011''

-Ikome Williams Lifange, CPDM Apologist and Finance Committee Chairman of Buea Council

The 25th anniversary of the ruling CPDM was celebrated in Buea in pomp at the Youth and Animation Centre .At the end of the celebration, The RECORDER caught up with a die-hard militant and businessman IKome Williams Lifange for an interview and he began by introducing himself.

I am called IKome Williams Lifange( pictured in CPDM wear) , native of Na’anga –Bokwango, Buea, married and have children. Presently, I am the Director-General of LIFA-WILLS ENTERPRISE, .Buea. I ‘m also a staunch CPDM militant, Let me add that, I am a councilor and Chairman of the Finance Committee of Buea Council.

After my primary education, I went to the prestigious GTHS Ombe where I did my secondary and high school education, specializing in electricity.After school, I picked up a job at SONEL where I worked for three years .I later worked with EME Enterprise in Buea, owned by Business Magnate Ebobi Monangai.

You just celebrated the 25th anniversary of the CPDM.
Honestly speaking; do you think the party is faring well in all aspects?

The CPDM is the best party in Cameroon. That does not mean it does not have problems. There is no human organization without problems. What is important here is that the CPDM leadership quickly looks into identified problems for concrete solutions
The CPDM, as a people-oriented party, has registered a lot of achievements in the political, socio-economic, diplomatic domains and otherwise which I cannot enumerate all here; it is still doing more. No body of good faith will doubt this.
The Party’s blue print of modernizing the country is on-going.

Remember that, when Mr. Paul Biya assumed the presidential office in November 1982 the country was a one-party system. But in March 25, 1985, he transformed the lone party –the CNU into CPDM, introducing democratic reforms within the party.
In 1990, President Biya who is also CPDM national Chairman reintroduced multi-party democracy against protests from certain quarters.

On the social domain, the CPDM administration has done much putting up social facilities across the nation, to improve on living standards.

Come to think of well-equipped hospitals in towns such as the Buea Regional Hospital Annex, and in rural settings. Health centers are spread nation-wide; Modern fixed telephone is reality. With the liberalization of telephone sector mobile telephone companies such as MTN and Orange now serve millions; consider computer centers with internet link in many schools .Cameroon has an ultra modern television network (CRTV). The audio-visual sector is liberalized and there are over 100 private radios and 10 television stations operating in Cameroon. Good roads now link towns and more are still under construction; for example, the recently construed Mutengene-Muea-Kumba highway is there for all to see.

Electricity, water projects are being extended to rural areas. Almost every village has a primary school. Post primary and secondary secondary schools, as well as institutes are more common in Cameroon now than before. Think of the seven state-owned universities (Buea, Douala, Dschang, Ngaoundéré, Yaoundé I, Yaoundé II and Garoua), plus several private universities.

In the economic arena, the CPDM –led administration has created and encouraged foreigners to open companies and industries in Cameroon. His administration, in collaboration with the Brettonwoods institutions, is currently carrying out a structural adjustment program, intended to boost economic growth, alleviate poverty and misery and fight diseases. Cameroon’s economic growth keeps increasing
The CPDM government has set up youth employment programs to assist the youth create jobs opportunities, so to reduce unemployment. The Government recently readjusted salaries of civil servants by15%

Diplomatically, the CPDM government continues to forge relations and maintain good relations with other nations and international organizations.

One of the latest diplomatic victories of the CPDM government was the return of the disputed Bakassi Peninsula to Cameroon by Nigeria.

As I said earlier, a lot has done. In deed, President Biya’s achievements have pushed Cameroonians to call for his reelection in 2010. You can hear such calls almost every moment, week or month.
You might have heard the clarion call not only from CPDM militants but also from other Cameroonians for him to put up his candidature for the presidential elections of 2011, when his second seven year mandate ends. This call was reiterated here in Buea as we celebrated the 25th anniversary of the CPDM.

You are a die-hard CPDM militant. Why did you join this party?

There are many political parties in Cameroon and after monitoring different party activities, I opted for the CPDM, which is considered by me and many others as the best party in the country. The CPDM stands for peace, development and progress; it stands for democratic reforms, respect of Human Rights, rule of Law and freedom of Press and expression.

What then pushed you to become a contractor/businessman?

While I was with EME Monangai Enterprise in Buea I started as an electrician. Later I became the manager of the Electrical Department, and manager for Purchase and Supplies. We executed many contracts for the Government, parastatals and companies such as CDC and SOWEDA.
Mr. Monangai took me not just as a worker but as a son.

In effect, he introduced me to the business world and gave me guidelines on how to become a successful businessman. I must add here that he helped me to establish as an independent business.

I started doing contracts as an independent business with the Southwest Provincial Delegation of Public Health, then headed by Late Dr. Luma Andrew. I started by supplying stationery and then hospital equipment to Bokova and Bojongo health centers.
In 2002, I won a government contract of FCFA 25 million to construct a health center in Isangele- Bakassi., which contract I performed very well.

It was quite risky working there because of the tension between Cameroon and Nigeria over the Bakassi Peninsula. I remember that I was involved in a boat accident in the ocean, losing building materials worth over FCFA 6.5 million, which I was transporting

But as a determined young businessman I still braved the odds and executed the contract to the satisfaction of both the beneficiaries and Government.

I have been constructing classrooms under the public investment budget. I have constructed classrooms for Government schools (GS) in Bokwango, Bonankanda, and Babobog in Nguti Subdivision, where it cost 2500FCFA to transport a bag of cement. I constructed the administrative Block of GHS Bokwango Last year I did the completion of the Bwassa-Likombe health centers and supplied flying boats to the Ministry of Livestock and Fishery, intended for the Bakassi area

It should be noted that I was the first contractor to install a drinkable water supply facility in Bakassi area precisely in Kombo Itindi subdivision. I used the desalination system

In fact, I have been executing contracts especially government projects since 1996, when I got my enterprise registered.

Some contractors used to abandon projects half-done after receiving advance payment. How many projects have you abandoned?

You may be astonished to learn that I have not abandoned any and I don’t intend to .I am a patriotic Cameroonian. I love my country. It pleases my heart when a piece of job is given to me and I do it to the satisfaction of all. I like to contribute to the development of this country and to be cited as a development agent, and not otherwise.
I was brought up in a Christian family. I am God-fearing and don’t violate regulations in force.
My mentor, business magnate Ebobi Monangai never abandoned any project half- done and I won’t abandon any also. It is unfortunate that some contractors could abandon projects after receiving money.

Within the CPDM ranks, you are fondly referred to as an International Businesman.Could you throw some light on this?

The word international speaks for itself. I travel a lot. Let me make it clearer that I have international partners such as Echo-Marine in …Trinidad and Tobago. I have partners in France and Nigeria.
Again, the precision with which I execute contracts leaves no one in doubt that I can do projects any where in the world.

What is your assessment of the opposition in Cameroon?

It is a good thing that we have opposition parties in Cameroon. I want to appreciate their efforts to contribute to the development and growth of Cameroon. The opposition is there to monitor activities of the ruling party. They should continue to be pro-active, and shun all acts of vandalism, violence and smear campaign to discredit the good image of the ruling CPDM.

The Southwest Region has a new governor called Koumpa Issa.What is your opinion about him?

I know him as a seasoned administrator. He has served as governor for the Northwest and Centre provinces (now regions) for several years before being appointed as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Southwest Region.
When the new governor paid his first visit to Buea Council, I recall, he said, “The Governor is a normal human being who will be seen in the quarters. And while in the quarters, he will behave as Koumpa Issa and in the office he will behave as governor and some times as a tiger when the situation demands, to ensure the respect of law, peace and progress.”

From his remark at Buea council, I understand that the new governor is a serious man whose actions will be for the common interest. I predict that he will be one of the most successful governors in the history of the region. I am convinced that God will guide him to success.

Cameroon:University of Buea Vice-Chancellor Hailed for Good Leadership

By Christopher Ambe Shu
Professor Vincent P K Titanji,(pictured) Vice-Chancellor of University of Buea (UB), is winning the hearts of more and more people because of his leadership style, which has been described as people-oriented and development-focused.

Not long after the Council of the University, during its 23rd session, expressed satisfaction at the Vice-Chancellor’s administration and performance, students and staff of same institution have followed suit.

Presenting New Year wishes to the Vice-Chancellor on March 26, on campus, the students and staff admitted that the university has passed through some rough moments, but happily added that the Titanji-led administration braved the odds to keep the varsity on the right path.

It should be noted that students and workers’ strikes threatened the smooth functioning of the university last year, but the VC demonstrated his leadership qualities, bringing the strikers under control.

On the occasion of Presentation of New Year Wishes to UB Vice- Chancellor, which was massively attended, UB Registrar, Professor Samson N. Abangma, speaking on behalf of the students and Staff, said:

“2009 …was a year when the University of Buea boat was rocked and batted from all fronts by very winds. As a good captain, you (Vice-Chancellor) maintained your calm, realizing that many a successful ship captain know that the route is never throughout peaceful and that the best course of action is not immediately to seek shelter in some safe haven but in engaging the crew to keep the boat on course until the port of anchor is reached.”
He added that ,”Mr. Vice-Chancellor, you qualify to be called Captain Professor Vincent PK Titanji for having led the university of Buea ship in 2009 to the port of anchor for the on-ward journey”

The Registrar said transition in the system of teaching from the Semester-Course-Credit-Honors to the Bachelors-Masters--PhD (BMP) was complete under the leadership of Prof. Titanji. The university, Professor Abangma noted, now has 144 degree programs in the BMP format and 33 PH.D programs. He hailed the VC for encouraging pragmatism in admission of students by “balancing the need to expand access and capacity to cope with the increasing numbers”
In a bid to encourage research activities in UB, funding for research increased and funding schemes expanded, the Registrar said. He noted that in 2009 UB extended its cooperation and signed new agreements with local and international organizations, which enhanced UB’s capacity and expanded opportunities for staff and student exchange.

The Registrar said laudable efforts were made to improve governance,to fight against corruption and promote ethics in the varsity.

“Your policy of maintaining permanent dialogue and consultation with all stakeholders on campus was continued relentlessly”, he told the VC.

In the area of infrastructure, Professor Abangma cited the VC’s achievements, which included: Pedagogic Block II with 600 sitting space; an office block with 50 offices for staff, the UNESCO building.

“We are proud to announce that the Faculty of Health Sciences received new equipment for its laboratories. The giant project for the new Faculty of health Science Complex has been launched “, he said, adding that the project is in advanced state of execution.

The VC was lauded for taking measures that favored students such as paying attention to their plight, regular financial support for their activities, sudsidy for students’ meals at the Varsity restaurant and personal concern about production of students’ individual documents: transcripts, attestaions, ID cards etc.

Non- teaching staff praised the VC for the strides towards ameliorating their working conditions.

“We are witnesses to the fact that within a very short period of time, many demands we had vainly made over the years to erstwhile Administration of this institution have been met”, they noted. They wished that dialogue between them and the Administration “will remain a permanent feature in our relationship”

Concluding his address, Professor Abangma remarked, “The University of Buea is achieving its targets and stands out a shining example of a good university, nationally and Internationally.The University of Buea is an example of a green university; transparency and accountability are hallmarks of its governance”

The Registrar hoped that UB Administration would advance into 2010 with greater optimism, and do the right things.
In his response, an elated Vice-Chancellor Titanji vowed to continue doing his best to keep UB in excellence and in shape in all respects. He urged members of the University community to always be advocates of peace and dialogue, stability, development and academic excellence.

The Vice-Chancellor also used the ceremony to dismiss rumors, sponsored by his detractors that UB registration fees would be increased soon. He insisted that registration fee remains at FCFA 50,000.

The Love of a Father

How fathers can counteract the harmful influence of society on their daughters

By Stephen Flurry

There is no question that girls “grow up in a cultural milieu saturated with sexualizing messages,” as one 2006 report put it. Television, the Internet, movies, magazines and music are all rife with sexually explicit content. In the world of media and advertising, female sexualization is everywhere. Young girls are made to look and dress like adults, while women are constantly “youthified.” The entertainment-driven media get their message across to our daughters loud and clear.

At the same time, crafty marketers lurk in our midst, spying on our children, appealing to their carnal and lustful desires, packaging vile products, and then preying on the spending habits of young people they desperately hope you aren’t supervising.

As fathers, how can we counteract the onslaught? How can we protect our daughters?

Your daughter is your responsibility. Don’t let society bring her up. That’s your job: to raise her up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord (Ephesians 6:4).

You can do it! Here’s how.

1. Spend Time With Her

Nothing is more selfish and irresponsible than siring children without regard to the responsibilities of fatherhood. Your daughter is your responsibility.

In As the Twig is Bent, Leslie Hohman wrote, “Most fathers and mothers—especially fathers—do not devote many hours enthusiastically to their daughters and sons after the first novelty of babyhood is past. They listen to the troubles of middle childhood when they have to, and occasionally come swooping off their perches for sudden reprimands. By the time children are old enough to be really interesting as companions to the average parent, it is too late. The children have been forced to establish other interests, pleasures, and affection relations.” That’s what happens when you ignore her. You force her to fill that void with other interests and pleasures—like boys and popular culture.

One of the conclusions Mary Eberstadt drew in her 2004 book Home-Alone America is that teenagers are far more likely to engage in sex and experiment with drugs and alcohol when their parents are absent. On the other hand, a father’s involvement in his daughter’s life puts her at tremendous advantage over her peers, as Meg Meeker wrote in Strong Fathers, Strong Daughters: “With overwhelming evidence, the [studies show] that kids who feel connected to their parents (and who spend more time with them) fare much better than kids who don’t. Parents keep kids out of trouble; parental influence can be more important than pressure; and specifically, daughters who spend more time with their fathers are less likely to drink, take drugs, have sex as teenagers, or have out-of-wedlock babies. Your time with her matters.”

Don’t make the tragic mistake of substituting physical things for the one gift your daughter really wants from you: your time. That’s all that really matters. True love is expressed by giving your time and your energy—not your money. Make personal sacrifices for her welfare and well-being.

2. Restrict Media Influence

A September 2004 study found that children who view lots of televised sexual content are twice as likely to experiment with sex as those who watch significantly less sexual content. The restrictions and standards you put in place for your family’s media intake do make a difference. But in too many cases, fathers are failing to act, as Eberstadt points out in her book: “American parents tell every survey and outlet available about their disgust with popular culture, and yet toddlers watch more hours of television year by year; some 65 percent of kids 8 to 18 have television sets in their bedrooms, and some 58 percent of households watch television during dinner.”

We know it’s wrong—we know its influence adversely affects adolescent behavior—and we do nothing about it. That is an absolute shame.

All too often, fathers rely on television to keep their children occupied—and then when our daughters turn out bad, we blame television. How convenient.

Your daughter is your responsibility. Don’t allow her to indiscriminately view whatever she wants. Monitor what she watches on the one television you place in the living room of your house. Even during acceptable programming, view it with her. Apply these same standards across the board. Get rid of teen magazines that teach girls how to be “hot” so they can manipulate boys. Check up on the music she downloads, the websites she visits, the people she communicates with through e-mail and instant messenger. Get to know her friends at school—who she hangs out with. Let them know about your standards. They’ll respect you for it.

3. Establish God’s Moral Authority in Her Life

Ultimately, of course, our objective as fathers is to teach our daughters to be most concerned about what God thinks. It’s not enough for her to merely accept God’s existence. In John 13:13, Jesus said to His disciples, “Ye call me Master and Lord: and ye say well; for so I am.” They were right to refer to Him as their Master—that’s what He was! And if they accepted Him as their Master, Christ went on to say, then they needed to follow in His steps—to do as their Master said.

This principle is a fundamental building block for life: In every human endeavor, there will always be a teacher-student relationship, whether it’s parent-child, teacher-pupil, boss-employee, minister-member, or Lord-servant. Fathers who won’t reinforce this principle with their daughters are not properly preparing them for their future.

“Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man” (Ecclesiastes 12:13). True education begins with fearing God—which means we submit to His moral authority with honor and reverence.

Loving discipline is the greatest key there is to learning, because a disciplined mind will be an attentive learner. It will be more responsive to instructions; more discerning of good and evil. That’s why God says the rod and reproof actually give wisdom (Proverbs 29:15).

New Testament theology is based on the same principle (Ephesians 6:1-4; Hebrews 12:6-8). God punishes His children because He loves them. Shouldn’t we follow His lead and do the same with our daughters?

4. Diligently Teach

To fathers, God gives this charge: “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it” (Proverbs 22:6).

God admonished the ancient Israelites to “diligently” teach their children the laws of God “when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up” (Deuteronomy 6:6-7). To teach diligently means to repeat, reiterate, or do something again and again.

In his masterful textbook for life, The Missing Dimension in Sex (free upon request), Mr. Armstrong wrote, “If teenagers had been properly taught what they needed to know about sex, from the very first and second years of their lives, by informed and loving parents, the frightful tragedies of teenage and premarital sex would have been reduced to the barest minimum” (emphasis mine). Begin teaching early—and do it often. Don’t wait until a crisis before you reach out to your daughter. Don’t expect Mom to handle all the teaching while you make the money.

Don’t rely on schools to do your job. Even if schools get the instruction right, which they most often don’t, they are still poor substitutes for a loving father who is diligently teaching his daughter how to live.

Mr. Armstrong wrote, “Of course you cannot tell a 2- or 3-year-old more than a small part of sex knowledge. But as the child grows older, explain more from time to time. Keep ahead of the ‘gutter.’” This is the basic rule to remember in teaching your daughter about sexuality: Stay ahead of the gutter. It requires vigilance to do that! It means you establish God’s standard of conduct in your home and enforce those rules. It means you’re in regular communication with your daughter, making sure you’re well ahead of the gutter knowledge she absorbs from worldly influences.

5. Set the Right Example

No human father is perfect, but before we set out to shape the life of our daughters, we had better get our own act together first. Teaching is administered most effectively by simply setting the right example. As Hohman put it in his book, “Parental example is probably the greatest single factor in training. What you yourself do is of greater influence than anything you can say, especially if your actions belie your words. Your children will inevitably desire to be like you and to act like you” (op. cit.). And when your daughter grows up, we might add, she will most likely marry someone just like you.

Be the kind of man you hope she will marry someday—a sincerely humble man who submits to God’s law. One with the spiritual courage and determination needed to lead his family the way Jesus Christ leads His Church. A man who loves his wife and flees from sexual lust. A man of sacrifice and service. A hard worker and good provider who makes time for his wife and children—a good family man. A discerning man of wisdom and understanding who leans on God’s counsel—and who takes the time to teach. A good communicator—one who talks to God, his wife and his children.

Your daughter desperately needs you to be that man. Spend time with her, restrict the world’s evil influences in her life, be authoritative and decisive—lovingly lead—and teach her from God’s Instruction Manual. But above all, be the man you want her to be with for the rest of her life.

Courtesy: theTrumpet.com (March 12, 2010)

SOILING CAMEROON’S IMAGE ABROAD

By AYAH Paul ABINE
President Paul Biya, the national chairman of our party, the CPDM, said fairly recently that issues of great moment are not settled in the street. Some of his overzealous lieutenants seemingly failed to comprehend or to retain that caution. It logically behoves the committed and loyal members of the party to inform those lieutenants that legal proceedings, by analogy, are not determined by town-criers. They are within the exclusive jurisdiction of the competent courts. Interfering with legal proceedings by anyone of whatever eminence, even by mere undue comments likely to influence judicial process, amounts to the criminal offence of contempt of court. The current trial of some Cameroonians for alleged such comments in respect pf the Albatros affair ought to be a lesson for everyone who reasons.


Curious therefore is the present invasion of the Cameroonian media by some CPDM barons declaring not guilty our party’s national chairman said to be standing trial before a French court. One is not saying that the presumption of innocence enshrined in our Constitution and in several international instruments is not applicable to the accused here. Far from it! That presumption is of universal application without distinction.


But it is customary that it is the accused who “denies any wrongdoing” either formally before the court in a plea of “not guilty”, or informally outside the court, occasionally to the press. Where the accused feels that he lacks the ability to defend himself, he briefs a lawyer. Even then, the lawyer does his job before the relevant court and hardly on the media.


What those persons who have purportedly supplanted the French court are doing gravely soils the image of Cameroon before the international community in that their conduct is seen either as the display of ignorance by persons in high places in Cameroon, or a demonstration of anarchical arrogance.


One would have liked to think that suing the President of the Republic is but wholly consistent with the legal provision that all men are equal before the law. Nor does it depart from the very President’s recent declaration that Cameroon is in a state of law. In a state of law, wrongdoings and/or differences between citizens are determined by courts of law and not by emotional outpourings and/or the manipulation of public opinion with vacant veracity. Being quick to assert that those who have had recourse to legal process intend to destabilize Cameroon is a dangerous instance of such manipulation. Few persons in their right senses would claim that legal process destabilizes. On the contrary, conspiratorial silence does as much as sycophantic connivance or the self-serving encouragement of wrongdoing real, feared or presumed.


Those overzealous defenders of the instant accused who have purportedly supplanted the French court have only finally drawn the attention of the international community to the undermining of Cameroon’s judiciary by some unpatriotic Cameroonians in positions of authority. No exaggeration it is to state authoritatively that our domestic law courts are virtually irrelevant today. Whoever has watched “Blood In My Hands” on Equinox Television would be one with the writer without fail on that point. And who is that Cameroonian that would dispute that a week hardly goes by without the lynching of some Cameroonian just because someone has objectively or subjectively accused him of even just attempting to steal, maybe only necessaries?


The loss of faith in the domestic courts has been orchestrated by the creation of courts in closets where the celebrated legal right to a public hearing before a court of competent jurisdiction has ceased to hold sway. As a matter of fact, there are so many quasi courts in Cameroon today that the mainstream courts are more of observers. Let us attempt here to substantiate that assertion with a cursory look at just one area.

It is no news in today’s Cameroon when the media announce that some worker of the Ministry of Trade has seized tons of cement, rice, domestic gas and the like from a trader and sold by public auction. Not only is such distress done without any legal process whatsoever, but the auction sales are done behind the law and necessarily without proper accountability. The allegation usually has been that the trader was hording the goods, or that he was selling at prices higher than authorized in our “free economy”.


But the Constitution of Cameroon provides clearly that “every person (is entitled) to a fair hearing before the courts”. Only in Cameroon would anyone imagine, let alone argue, that a civil servant in the Ministry of Trade is a court; much less that he has the authority to convict a citizen without “a fair hearing”, and to proceed to enforce his own “judgment”. The truth about our country though is that constitutional provisions outside those on presidential powers and prerogatives can be amended by a mere order of a minister, or even his subordinate at the local level.


And what helps to perpetuate the situation is that the cowardly Cameroonian offers no resistance to those illegalities. Compassion still must we have for the helpless citizen! He knows only too well that going to court would eventually be more costly in that the courts would compliantly throw out the case with costs. The filing fee, the brief, costs and vengeful punitive taxes would cripple the poor trader much more. He therefore has no choice but to endure the plunder in awful silence.


Accustomed to such institutionalized interference with process before the domestic courts, those CPDM lieutenants have instinctively felt they could similarly mount pressure on the French court. But they have only ended up damaging our country’s image beyond repairs, oblivious of one important consequence. Only a powerful, independent judiciary allays the fears of the international business community; and that’s what attracts investors. Such thoughtless open interference with justice even on the international scene can only be ruinous to our abstract programmes to attract foreign investment. And so much the worse for Cameroon!