14, October 2016

Cameroon needs a decent man to run its affairs 0

Cameroonians are now showing so much indifference towards the complete absence from the national territory of President Biya. The population appears to have withdrawn from the nation-state. So, the continues absence of the 83 year old leader who has already spent 34 years as president seems not to bother anyone! Nobody talks about Biya’s continued stay abroad in a hotel in Geneva and the few individuals, who speak, do so only on television debates or in some obscure political discourse.

The movements of President Biya are now a non-event. His presence in Yaounde sometimes surprises even his kinsmen and collaborators. There is no limitation or accountability on his private trips abroad. In just five months (May-October 2016) Biya has spent 76 days out of Cameroon on lame and ridiculous reasons.

The bulk of Biya’s trips as often announced by state radio and television are devoted to private stays with no added value to the development of Cameroon. It appears Biya and First Lady Chantal are acting a Nollywood movie and the morally bankrupt Cameroonian society is watching.

We call it a Nollywood movie because on the 27th of May 2016, Biya left Cameroon and returned on June the 25th after spending 30 days abroad. On August the 24th, 2016, Biya again including some of his close associates left Cameroon for Switzerland. The delegation returned to Yaoundé on September the 9th after a 17 days relaxation in Geneva. This time around, they returned with a coveted trophy—- Chantal Biya, who had left the country ever since May, 2016.

On September the 16th, the president left the capital again for New York in the United States. The official statement indicated that he was invited to the 71st session of the General Assembly of the UN. While the heads of state, government and delegations present in New York, have all returned to their respective countries after the meeting of the UN, the President of Cameroon is still out of the country. Today Friday, October the 14th makes it nearly 30 days after his last trip. Our nation may fall into the hands of a military thug. The country needs a decent man-a very decent man to run its affairs.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai