Dion Ngute’s Replacement: Discussions are still underway! ⁰

Discussions about who will be replacing Dion Ngute as the country’s Prime Minister are still going on. The current Prime has fallen out of favour with the ailing president and the ruling party wants to cut out the ineffective Prime Minister from the Star Building and his removal is being considered because of his inability to end the conflict in the two English-speaking regions and his participation in the killing of the former mayor of Ekondo-Titi, Kenneth Nanji.

Sources at the country’s Presidency have informed the Cameroon Intelligence Report that there are two candidates whose profiles fit the ruling party’s mold. The sources added that one of the candidates works at the World Bank in Washington DC while the other one is a South-westerner at the African Development Bank Group who has massive leverage in the unfortunate events which have been playing out in the country’s two English-speaking regions.

The sources added that the AfDB candidate had been received by the Cameroon Ambassador in Abidjan sometime last week and might be concluding arrangements if certain conditions are met. The sources said that the two candidates might help broker a deal which might help the country recover from its self-inflicted wounds. 

Though both candidates hold that an American or Canadian-style federalism might help stem the bloodshed, the government is still insisting on its decentralization policy which has not produced any meaningful results over the last twenty-five years.  This is the sticking point, and this could be responsible for the delay in the appointment of a new cabinet.

“We are all waiting for a new government. Things are at a standstill, and we need fresh blood that can breathe new life into our political and economic systems. I have been informed that the candidate in Abidjan is insisting on major changes so that real peace can return to Cameroon. Things are not working. We need someone who is really respected and has the credibility and trust of the people,” the frustrated CPDM official said.

“Our country is going down the drain and we need someone who can make Cameroonians see the government in a different light. The economy is not working and the killings in the two English-speaking regions have escalated. We cannot be indifferent to this ugly situation. The country’s authorities are really tired, and they too want an end to this unfortunate situation which could have been averted through dialogue,” the source said. 

“We really want the Diaspora to be represented in the government. There should be a Ministry in Charge of the Diaspora, and this should be given to someone who knows the issues facing our people who are living out of the country. I know there is the issue of dual nationality which has been pending for long but since the President is now sending delegations to talk to members of the Diaspora in Europe and North America, I think the attitude will soon be different. I even thought this would be discussed during the ongoing parliamentary session. We need to move very fast if we really love our country,” the Yaoundé-based politician stressed. 

“There is tension within the ruling CPDM as news that the Unity Palace is moving closer to announcing a new government and a new Prime Minister from outside the usual circles. Though many oppose the appointment of an independent person, they truly do not have a choice. The president wants someone with the credibility needed to talk to the separatists and all those who have been in government are tainted. Even the French and certain international organizations hold that the fighting can only be stopped through dialogue and only someone who is not a real politician can put an end to the fighting,” the source said.

“The leading candidate who is in Abidjan is considered as a very strict person who believes in transparency and dialogue. It is even alleged within the government that the secret service has also spoken with him, and a report has been made and submitted to the President. The man is known for his courage to express his mind and is very patriotic. It is being said that he was a civil servant before leaving the country and it is believed that he can deliver the goods. We really need a straightforward person in Cameroon. Our country is falling apart, and we cannot be looking the other way while things crumble,” he concluded.  

Meanwhile, the Cameroon Concord News Group will soon publish the findings of an investigation it commissioned many months ago following the death of Kenneth Nanji, the former Mayor of Ekondo-Titit, who was killed with others as they were heading to Ekondo-Titi to lay the groundwork for the Prime Minister’s visit to Ndian Division. 

Evidence gathered points to Prime Minister Dion Ngute being the brain behind the Bekora killings when he found out that Mr. Nanji was using the violence in Ndian Division to enrich himself at his expense. The D.O. and CPDM sub-section president who also died were simply collateral damage as the real target was Mr. Nanji who used to be the Prime Minister’s henchman but became dishonest and was not aware that those he planned the school killings with had actually thrown him under the bus. 

He was fleecing the Prime Minister out of his money and was not delivering the exact amount of money the Prime Minister was handing to him for him to deliver to General TWO KOBO who had promised Mr. Ngute that he and his boys would not be creating chaos in Ndian Division. 

Mr. Nanji was the mastermind of the killing of students and a teacher in Ekondo-Titi and the G.H.S Ekondo Titi killings were designed to force the Prime Minister to continue providing millions to him for him to deliver to Two Kobo and to get his fair share. The Prime Minister had entered into an agreement with Two Kobo who had agreed to keep a low profile in that area of the country. Details of this saga will soon be published in a special editorial.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai with reports from Rita Akana