Just
like many African countries, Cameroon is experiencing a good number of
disturbing paradoxes. This situation is conspicuous in almost all domains of
life (political, economic, cultural, scientific, economic, financial etc). It
is in this light that worrisome paradoxes appear in the following domains: the
Anglophone Problem and Crisis; bilingualism; cabinet meetings; presidential
presence in the field; the culture of resignation; intellectualism; natural
resources as well as the forces of law and order.
The Anglophone
Problem and Crisis have
glaringly portrayed Cameroon Government’s unwillingness to make good use of
some elementary rules in conflict management and resolution. It wrongly and
strongly believes that it can handle the said problem and crisis
unilaterally.
In
this connection, it has taken some absurd steps. For instance, in 2020, it
organized a ridiculous national dialogue, a dialogue which never involved its
main opponents in and out of Cameroon. Furthermore, it has put the cart before
the horse in issues dealing with disarmament, demobilization and reintegration
in the English-speaking areas affected by the aforementioned problem and
crisis. In other words, it has embarked upon three processes without the end of
hostilities in numerous conflict areas of the English-speaking part of
Cameroon. Worse still, it is both a party to, and judge in, the said crisis, a
judge which has wilfully refused to take the first step in problem solving.
Cameroon
is a bilingual country. Its two
official languages are English and French. Thus, all official documents, press
releases, legal instruments (decisions, orders, decrees, etc), etc should be
published in these languages. A good number of its citizens, especially public
authorities, should endeavour to master these two languages. They should speak
and understand them as well as produce written materials in them.
Unfortunately,
not all Cameroon’s official documents, press releases, legal instruments, etc
are published in both French and English. The dominant language in government
business is French. Most government officials speak and write mostly in French.
The Head of State (President Paul Biya) always speaks in French. Furthermore,
training in military, paramilitary and police institutions is done mostly in
French. Worse still, a good number of English-speaking Cameroonians take
delight in speaking mainly in French!
Any
rational or reasonable government knows the value or essence of cabinet meetings. They are meant to
assess and guide government action, to foresee political and other happenings
in the light of Raymond Boudon’s and François Bourricaud’s commendable
Principle of Political and Other Projections, to provide a systemic road map
for government action, etc. In responsible political
systems, they are held frequently and regularly for the sake of societal
welfare. In such systems, their omnipresence is a necessity.
In
Cameroon, President Paul Biya’s Government does not see the need to hold
cabinet meetings frequently and regularly. In his opinion, Cameroon can be
managed without laying emphasis on this need. It is in this light that he
convenes cabinet meetings once in a while (most often, after intervals of one,
two, three or more years). Cameroon has been managed without frequent and
regular cabinet meetings for quite a very long time. This type of management
can only be rash and haphazard.
The presence of a
good leader
should be felt in the field in all domains. Such a leader should be present in
the field at the physical, moral, psychological, material, pedagogic, political
and other levels. He or she should be close to his or her people in times of
sorrow and joy. His or her people should feel protected by this closeness. The
said closeness should substantially ease the upholding of human rights as
perceived by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human
Rights.
Unfortunately
for Cameroonians, their president is completely absent from the field. He ludicrously
believes that a president can rule his or her country mainly through speeches,
presidential orders and decrees, instructions, etc. He strangely believes that
he can be represented in almost all great occasions. He does not visit his
people (Cameroonians). He handles their problems nonchalantly. Worse still, he
mysteriously thinks that he can rule Cameroon through silence!
In
any society worth its salt, the culture
of resignation is taken very seriously. A State authority of dignity or
integrity should resign whenever he or she feels that his or her action warrants
the need for a resignation. This act portrays a high sense of humility and
responsibility. It contributes to the welfare of societal activities.
Conversely,
a good number of Cameroonians strangely believe that a State authority –
especially a manager of State funds- who resigns is a fool! They irrationally
think that he or she does not love his or her family’s and friend’s welfare. They
do not bother much about issues pertaining to the validity or justification of
cases of resignation concerning State officials. Worse still, many State
authorities are afraid of resigning since the government considers the act of
resigning as sabotage or an act of rebellion. These authorities believe that
those who resign end up in prison.
Cameroon
is a country that is replete with intellectuals.
They are present in almost all domains of life (health, educational aspects,
cultural issues, financial matters, transport, religion, road construction,
political issues, research, etc). A good number of them have a good national
and international reputation.
This
very positive situation is not commensurate with the expected level of
development in Cameroon. In other words, Cameroon is not willing to harness the
abilities of its numerous intellectuals for purposes of enhancing its
developmental process. This unwillingness has prompted many Cameroonians to
leave their country. They are helping other countries to develop in various
domains; they are doing so at the expense of the development needs of their own
country, a country which has directly and indirectly discarded their services.
Cameroon
is one of the few countries in the world that are blessed with great quantities
of natural resources. It has mighty quantities
of forest resources such as timber. It contains a good amount of minerals in
some of its regions. These forest resources and minerals can tremendously
contribute to Cameroon’s welfare.
Paradoxically,
the level of development in Cameroon is a far cry from this reality. In other
words, the aforementioned resources are not playing a substantial role in Cameroon’s
development process. Most of the areas (a good number of them are in the East,
South, Littoral and South-West Regions) in which these resources are found have
very serious development problems, problems concerning health, education, water
and electricity supply, employment, roads, etc. They are amongst the poorest
parts of Cameroon.
In
any respectable country in the world, the forces
of law and order play a noble role, a role which enables citizens to feel
secure in their private and public activities. Citizens respect members of
these forces because they protect their security rights in a dignified manner.
These uniformed security men and women are polite to the public and do play an
educative and counselling role.
Conversely,
in Cameroon, many members of the forces of law and order (gendarmes and police
officers) play a very destructive or damaging role. They are violent with the
public. They collect bribes from innocent citizens through extortion, etc. In
some areas in Cameroon (especially in some conflict-affected spots such as the
North-West and South-West Regions), they are considered as scarecrows. When members of the public see them, they are
frightened or scared. They run away. They do not feel safe at all! In a
nutshell, a good number of Cameroon’s uniformed security men and women
(gendarmes and police officers) are a disgrace to their corps in particular and
Cameroon in general.
Finally,
it should be noted that the foregoing discussion is just the tip of the iceberg
as far as disturbing paradoxes are concerned in Cameroon. There are many other
disturbing paradoxes. They are found in the following domains: transportation,
education, public service, justice, housing and town planning, public contracts,
sports, etc. There is need for the Cameroonian Government and Cameroonians to
cooperate in various ways (practical and non-practical) in order to seriously
handle the said paradoxes.
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