20, June 2017
Anglophone Problem: Righting the wrongs of the past 0
The Anglophone crisis that has put Cameroon in the spotlight for all the wrong reasons is still playing out across the entire Anglophone region. Despite current efforts by the government to placate the rebelling Anglophones, most Anglophones hold that the current political dispensation neither protects them and their culture nor does it guarantee their rights. They have been victims of government marginalization for five decades and they hold that the current unitary state has only concentrated powers in a few hands, leaving many Anglophones out of the country’s corridors of power. To buttress their assertion, the citizens of former Southern Cameroons point to so many appointments. They assert that Francophones run the political show and have no regard for the English-speaking minority. An Anglophone has never headed the country and all the top positions in the country are always occupied by Francophones. No Anglophone has ever occupied the post of finance minister. The post of defense minister is a no-go area for Anglophones, while the foreign affairs ministry is a preserve of Francophones even when there are very qualified Anglophones. They hold that each time an Anglophone is appointed as the country’s Prime Minister, he is always surrounded by Francophones whose objective is to neutralize his powers. Sometimes, the government even appoints several deputy prime ministers and places a powerful secretary-general at the Prime Minister’ Office to ensure the Anglophone Prime Minister does not wield the power and authority he deserves.
The injustice against Anglophones does not start and end with ministerial appointments. The appointment of senior police and military officers speaks to the marginalization that has become the Anglophone’s daily fate. Anglophones also point to the running of state-owned corporations and they contend that the appointment of managing directors to head those state-owned corporations calls for a total overhaul of the country. An Anglophone has never been the managing director of the country’s oil refinery, SONARA, even when the refinery and oil fields are located in Anglophone Cameroon. 95% of SONARA employees are Francophones and the employees of this state-owned corporation have been treating the locals with disdain and contempt. Anglophones have some of the finest petroleum engineers Cameroon can boast of, but because of government marginalization and injustice, many of these world-class engineers are plying their trade in distant lands such as Canada and the United States. Canada’s Alberta oil sands bear the hallmarks of Anglophone Cameroonian petroleum engineers. Houston, the United States petroleum headquarters, is home to some of the finest Anglophone Cameroonian petroleum experts, many of whom are occupying senior positions. Unfortunately, they cannot go back home to serve their country because of flagrant injustice against a minority that has a lot to offer.
Similarly, the Société Camerounaise des Dépôts Pétroliers (SCDP) known in English as the Cameroonian Oil Depots Company and the Société Nationale des Hydrocarbures(SNH) known in English as the National Oil and Gas Company of Cameroon are totally being run by Francophones as if there are no qualified Anglophones in the country and this is hurting Anglophones so badly. While SCDP builds oil depots around the country, SNH, established in March 1980, operates in partnership with international oil companies and it is responsible for selling the government’s share of oil output. It holds stakes in projects operated by international partners and all of these operations occur without the knowledge of the Anglophone population which survives thanks to remittances from the Anglophone Diaspora that has made it a duty to support the English-speaking minority back in Cameroon.
While the country’s oil wealth comes from the South West region, the south-westerner has been reduced to a sorry spectator of events in his own region. The closest he gets to the oil is when he is buying fuel at the pump or when he sees oil tankers carrying away his natural wealth into East Cameroon. Cameroon’s oil fields are located in Ndian Division in the South West region, but the people of this region are the least educated. The region is begging for good roads, hospitals and schools for its people and children whereas, it is thanks to Ndian Division that the country has been receiving huge amounts of petro-dollars from the sales of its oil.
It was based on these frustrations that Anglophones called for a federal system that will help address some of the issues created by the corrupt unitary system that has only succeeded to spread death and poverty in the country. Though in recent months, there have been calls for the total independence of Southern Cameroons, many Anglophones will still settle for a federal system that will put in place reliable checks and balances and give the different regions the opportunity to grow at their own pace. The south-westerner is surely waiting for that moment when all the issues will be on the table for him to call for the establishment of a derivation principle that will automatically give him a right to a percentage of the oil that is being taken away from his region.
Currently, things are at a standstill in the country. Ghost town operations are still taking place and courts are still closed in the Anglophone region. The government has been struggling to give the impression that all is well, but Anglophones are working hard to cast the government in very bad light. As a means to prove its willingness to address some of the grievances presented by Anglophones, the government has recently transferred many Anglophone judges and magistrates to the Anglophone region. A special entrance examination into the National School of Administration and Magistracy (ENAM), the school that trains administrators and magistrates in the country, has been announced and registrations are currently under way. Some 80 Anglophones will be admitted into the school this year as a major step towards to the withdrawal of Francophone administrators from the English-speaking region of Cameroon. This has been one of the many bones of contention and the government is bending over backwards just to ensure peace returns to the country.
However, many young Anglophones have been wondering if they should sit the exam because of the prevailing political atmosphere in the country. Some think that taking the exam will be like betraying the Anglophone cause which is designed to compel the government to right the wrongs that have led to massive frustrations among Anglophones who, justifiably, think that they have been victims of marginalization over the last five decades. This type of thinking on the part of young Anglophones speaks to the level of unity within the English-speaking minority.
The government is today faced with a huge crisis. It must reestablish its authority in the Anglophone region. However, if that has to happen, the government must make the most of the carrot and not the stick. The stick has failed it, as Anglophones have clearly proven that a minority can bring about significant change in a country. Government authority has been called into questions in the Anglophone region and chaos is gradually replacing the pseudo-peace that has prevailed for more than fifty years. In many parts of the Anglophone region, the government is totally absent. Government authority is on the decline. Police officers are too scared for their lives and many are not working as they would, in normal circumstances. They have been erring on the side of caution in order not to incur the wrath of a frustrated Anglophone population.
The potential for the crowd to explode at the slightest provocation is very high, especially in the North West region, where the people are known for their mercurial temperament. The government holds that this is time to appease instead of causing the situation to escalate. But Anglophones are not interested in the government’s appeasement policy. They want the form of the state to be discussed. They hold that if the government keeps on dilly-dallying on this issue, then it has opted for chaos. They also argue that the government must release all Anglophones arrested and taken to Yaounde. Both the secessionists and federalists argue that Barrister Nkongho Felix Agbor-Balla, Dr. Fontem Neba and Mr. Mancho Bibixy must be released as they did not commit any crime. Sentencing them even to the shortest jail term will be considered by Anglophones as a declaration of war and groups such as SCNC are simply looking for such opportunities to put their well-oiled machines of destruction and violence into action.
Anglophones point out that the country would not be where it is today, if the government had placed dialogue above violence. They claim that the government’s handling of the situation when it all started playing out was, at best, dismal. The nauseating arrogance displayed by government surrogates served as highly inflammable fuel that had been poured into a burning house. The ferocious brutality that was unleashed on students, lawyers and the population spoke to the government’s determination to bring a violent past into the future. These unfortunate circumstances are making it hard for the government to really please Anglophones, especially those whose relatives have been killed or arrested and taken to Francophone Cameroon for trial in courts regarded by Anglophones as Kangaroo courts.
The government’s initial denial and the arrogance of government ministers such as Fame Ndongo, Atanga Nji and Issa Tchiroma make it hard for Anglophones to trust their government. Seven months after University of Buea students were made to drink raw sewage and many young Cameroonians killed, the government of Cameroon is yet to publicly apologize for these brutal actions committed by the country’s police and military. Many Anglophones hold that the government is still not repentant about the loss of human life and without the recognition of police excesses, it will be hard for any real and genuine dialogue to take place. Anglophones want Fame Ndongo, Atanga Nji and Issa Tchiroma to be dismissed from the government as their attitude and arrogance have put the country in the tight spot in which it is today. Leaving them in government is a clear indication that the government does not intend to apologize for the loss of lives. It also implies that it will continue to count on people who have displayed gross disrespect and contempt towards Anglophones to run a country that clearly needs profound and extensive political renewal.
With these men still in office, the government will continue to lose face and its authority in the Anglophone region will continue to take a nosedive. The government’s waning authority is unfortunately giving criminals the courage to carry out their operations in broad day light. Many schools are being burnt down and students who are attempting to write the General Certificate of Education (GCE) exams are being threatened by members of some cloak-and-dagger organizations who hold that until the form of the state is brought up for discussion, Anglophones will not collaborate with the government, especially as they accuse the government of having the bad habit of speaking from both sides of the mouth.
If the government of Cameroon wants peace to return to the country, it must listen to Anglophones. It must seek to right the wrongs of the past as the Anglophone minority is determined to put an end to the patronizing system that has hurt many Cameroonians. Anglophones have legitimate grievances. These are grievances that the old, corrupt unitary state cannot address. After fifty-five years of marginalization, Anglophones hold that the form of the state must change. The reunification John Ngu Foncha and Solomon Tandeng Muna had worked for has brought happiness only to a few. Anglophones are tired of burying their loved ones due to the inefficiencies of the Unitary State. They want federalism and in the absence of federalism, they are prepared to walk away from this hastily stitched marriage that has caused them a lot of pain and suffering. They hold that the ball is in the government’s court, and the longer it delays to find peaceful solutions to the issues, the more chances it creates for secessionists who have taken their gospel of total liberation of Southern Cameroons to the international arena. The government should, at this juncture, understand that those who make peaceful change impossible, only make violent change inevitable. It is time to walk away from the unitary state that has robbed Cameroon and Cameroonians blind. It is time to right the wrongs of the past.
By Joachim Arrey, Ph.D.
Contributing Editor
Cameroon Concord News Group
About the Author: The author of this piece is a keen observer of Cameroon’s political and economic landscape. He has published extensively on the country’s political and economic development, especially in the early 90s when the wind of change was blowing across the African continent. He has served as a translator, technical writer, journalist and editor for several international organizations and corporations across the globe. He studied communication at the University of Leicester in the United Kingdom and technical writing in George Brown College in Toronto, Canada. He is also a trained translator and holds a Ph.D.
25, June 2017
Anglophone Problem: Keeping an eye on the ball 0
The Anglophone problem that has played out for more than seven months in Cameroon seems to be fizzling out, especially as the government is quietly yielding to demands made by Anglophones. Last week, the government finally yielded that the country’s Diaspora is a key element in the country’s efforts to overcome unemployment and poverty. After many years of pressure from Cameroonians living abroad, the government has finally yielded by creating a Department of Diaspora Affairs in the Ministry of External Relations. The department will seek to address issues facing Cameroonians living abroad and will enable them invest back home if they so wish. In the same vein, the Minister of External Relations will host a Diaspora forum in Yaounde from 28-30 June 2017 and prominent on the agenda will be possibilities of acquiring property back home while living abroad and how to invest in Cameroon.This is an acknowledgement of the role the country’s Diaspora can play in its development efforts.
From every indication, Cameroon’s Anglophone minority is gradually changing things in the country. What started as a street demonstration organized by lawyers and teachers is transforming the country in a way nobody could have imagined. Today, the country is slowly being reformed and bilingualism that has existed on paper for many decades is gradually becoming a reality. Francophone ministers who saw English as a foreign language are gradually learning and expressing themselves in English. It was a pleasure to see the Minister of External Relations, Lejeune MbellaMbella, deliver an entire speech in English during a press briefing on Friday, June 23, on the upcoming Diaspora forum. It was indeed amazing to see him deliver that in perfect English. This may not be music to the ears of Anglophone extremists, but they must also understand that it is also a mark of humility and objectivity to acknowledge efforts the government is making to defuse the tension. If any meaningful dialogue has to take place, Anglophones must learn to acknowledge that some steps have been taken to make life better for them, although real issues still linger.
The issue of dual nationality that many members of the Cameroon Diaspora are looking forward to, might not feature on the agenda of the upcoming Diaspora forum and this is pushing many members of the country’s Diaspora to question the rationale behind such a forum when a key issue is being intentionally left out of the agenda. It should be mentioned that the creation of the Diaspora Affairs Department is the latest in a series of measures the Yaounde government has taken to appease Anglophones who are threatening to walk away from their Francophone counterparts if the government does not address the issues they have put on the table for discussion, and in the event of such an unfortunate situation, they will be walking away with more than 40% of the country’s wealth, especially oil and gold as the South West Region of the country is endowed with many mineral resources.
The government has been seeking to placate Anglophones since its intimidation strategy flopped. It has created a special section at the National School of Administration and Magistracy (ENAM), the school that trains magistrates and administrators, and some eighty Anglophones will soon be admitted and trained in this school to be transferred to different locations in the Anglophone region. Similarly, only Magistrates and judges with sound common law knowledge will be transferred to Anglophone Cameroon as a confidence building measure.
In the same vein, a common law bench has been established at the country’s Supreme Court and it will be headed by an Anglophone. There are also plans to withdraw Francophone teachers from schools in Anglophone Cameroon, especially in technical colleges where many Francophones teachers have been plying their trade to the dismay of Anglophone students who hold that their Francophone teachers have only rudimentary knowledge of English.
While many moderates and government supporters are hailing these confidence building measures, many Anglophones are still skeptical about the government’s intentions, claiming that the Francophone dominated government cannot be trusted as its dishonesty is legendary. They argue that the government is used to speaking from both sides of its mouth and its promises are not worth the paper on which they are written. They claim that the confidence-building measures may be designed to win hearts and minds in the Anglophone region given that there are elections in the offing. It should be recalled that due to the Anglophone problem, the ruling party has died a natural death in the Anglophone region as most Anglophones do not want to have anything to do with a political party that has helped to enslave them for decades.
The Anglophone Diaspora, for its part, is still calling on Anglophones to keep an eye on the ball. They argue that what appears to be the light at the end of the tunnel may not necessarily be the natural light desired by Anglophones, but the light of an on-coming train that may crush them. They warn that it is too early to celebrate or embrace the government as their leaders and some one hundred Anglophones are still languishing in jails in Francophone Cameroon where they are being held and tried in courts considered by the Anglophone minority as Kangaroo courts.
The Anglophone Diaspora also argues that the main issues remain unaddressed. Federalism which was among the grievances remains a sticking point as government surrogates and the country’s president had earlier declared that the form of the state was non-negotiable and was not up for discussion. Anglophones hold that the unitary system has been an ill-wind to them. It has robbed them of their dignity and made life unbearable for many who could neither speak nor write French. Members of the Anglophone Diaspora argue that with the backing of the French government, the government of Cameroon has marginalized Anglophones for more than five decades. They hold that the government’s marginalization policy is responsible for them leaving their country for distant lands where destructive loneliness and biting cold are blighting their lives.
In their view, this is their opportunity to get all their grievances addressed. For federalists, they are looking forward to the day they will be able to manage their own affairs without the Francophone government in Yaounde imposing a lot of things on them. They hold that a federal system that grants the regions greater autonomy and the right to elect their own governors and mayors will be ideal for them. They say they are sick and tired of government appointees who disrespect and impoverish the population just because they owe their positions to the head of state. They argue that anything short of that will only go a long way in prolonging the stalemate that is crippling the country’s economy and giving the government a black eye.
For the secessionists, they think that the government is guilty as charged and its efforts to appease Anglophones constitute an admission of guilt. They argue that having a clean break with Francophone Cameroon will be the ultimate solution as the past decades have clearly pointed out that no Francophone government in Cameroon can be trusted. The secessionists, led by SCNC, have taken their gospel to all the nooks and crannies of the world and they are winning many hearts and minds, as the government delays to make a decision on the form of the state. They assert that Anglophones and Francophones have ways of life that are clearly at variance. Anglophones are participatory in their approach while Francophones are very centralizing and they consider the president as a demi-god. They claim that a divorce from Francophone Cameroon will be the ideal solution, an idea many Francophones are really averse to.
To bridge the gap in thinking, the government has recently established a bilingualism commission chaired by Mr. Peter MafanyMusonge, a former prime minister who is being criticized by Anglophones forspreading hate speech against people from the North West region of a Cameroon as a strategy to split the Anglophone minority and kill the Anglophone struggle. Mr. Musonge who had not measured the anger of the Anglophone minority, had thought old ways would help bring about peace in the marginalized Anglophone region. But he later learned that Anglophones had learned the lessons of the past and would not yield to the government’s divide-and-rule tactics.
However Anglophones are more focused on the big picture. They argue that addressing the injustice that has been theirs over the last five decades does not start and end with setting up an emasculated commission on bilingualism. Theyargue that the system is an Augean stable and it is time to cleanse it. They point to the appointment of senior police officers and the military brass. Cameroon has more than thirty army generals, but Anglophones do not have more than three generals even though they account for 20% of the population. They also point to the running of state-owned corporations as testimony to the marginalization that has become normal in a country that is supposed to theirs too. It should be pointed out that an Anglophone has never been the managing director of the country’s oil refinery, SONARA, even when the refinery and oil fields are located in Anglophone Cameroon. 95% of SONARA staff are Francophones and these employees have been treating Anglophones with contempt.
It should be recalled that Anglophones have some of the finest petroleum engineers Cameroon can boast of. Many of them have been trained in some of the best American, Canadian and British universities, but because of government marginalization and injustice, many of these world-class engineers are plying their trade in distant lands such as Canada and the United States. Canada’s Alberta oil sands bear the hallmarks of Anglophone Cameroonian petroleum engineers. Houston, the United States petroleum headquarters, is home to some of the finest Anglophone Cameroonian petroleum experts, many of whom are occupying senior positions, but cannot go back home to serve their country because of flagrant injustice against Anglophones.
While the government is working hard to appease Anglophones, many political experts are advising the country’s minority to keep its eye on the ball. The end goal is not yet attained. Anglophones are sick and tired of a unitary system that has caused a lot of pain and suffering in the country. It is a system that is predicated on cronyism; a system wherein a party stalwart can hold more than three top positions while the poor keep on dying in heart-breaking circumstances. While federalism is not a panacea, federalists hold that it will surely go a long way in reducing the corruption that has become the current system’s hallmark. They hold that it will give Cameroonians the ability and opportunity to determine their own fate and destiny.
But fans of the unitary state, many of whom are Francophones, hold that it is an ideal system. For decades, a few who have had the opportunity to be part of the cabal have played God and they have been working very hard to sustain the status quo. The Anglophone minority has succeeded to sell its story of federalism to many Francophones and many are also looking forward to the creation of that federal structure that will reduce their pain and suffering. If anybody had doubts that a few can change a system, Anglophones in Cameroon have the answer. But while rejoicing, they must still keep their eye on the ball. The light at the end of the tunnel may not be genuine. Though the cloud is still dark, it is possible to see the first signs of the silver lining on that thick, dark cloud. Cameroon is changing and will surely be changing for the better. The government may be dragging its feet on the issue of federalism, but the only other option is secession. The government of Cameroon has never given anything to Anglophones on a platter of gold. For those who have a good memory, they can attest to the fact that the GCE Board was established after many Anglophones had been arrested and brutalized. The University of Buea, an Anglo-Saxon university, was established in the early nineties after the frustration of Anglophone students had boiled over. A few lives were lost, but the university was granted. It is therefore normal for the government to drag its feet on the issue of federalism, but it will finally yield, especially as Anglophone activists have demonstrated that they have the capacity to make the Anglophone region ungovernable.
By Joachim Arrey, Ph.D
Contributing Editor
Cameroon Concord News Group
About the Author: The author of this piece is a keen observer of Cameroon’s political and economic landscape. He has published extensively on the country’s political and economic development, especially in the early 90s when the wind of change was blowing across the African continent. He has served as a translator, technical writer, journalist and editor for several international organizations and corporations across the globe. He studied communication at the University of Leicester in the United Kingdom and technical writing in George Brown College in Toronto, Canada. He is also a trained translator and holds a Ph.D.