Minister Says Foreigners Shouldn't Comment On Cameroon Elections

By Kini Nsom

"We should not allow foreigners to talk about issues that border on our sovereignty," the newly appointed Minister of Communications, Jean Pierre Biyiti Bi Essam, said in a meeting with private media executives on September 17 in Yaounde.

He was referring to the British High Commissioner, the US and the Dutch Ambassadors to Cameroon for observing that the July 22 twin elections were marred by massive fraud.
According to the Minister, such remarks by foreigners on a purely internal affair constitute a flagrant violation of Cameroon's sovereignty.

Biyiti Bi Essam said it was his wish that no such scathing remarks be made again after the September 30 re-runs. At the same time, he urged journalists to demonstrate patriotism by defending Cameroon's sovereignty.

As a journalist by training, the Minister said after his appointment he was eager to meet journalists, especially those of the private media because they play an important role as far as the electoral process is concerned.

He urged the media executives to get close to him and make valuable proposals that would enhance the country's social communication.In view of the upcoming elections, the Minister urged journalists to give elaborate coverage of the polls. He said journalists must respect professional ethics and the law.

In a letter that was later presented to journalists, the Minister sought to dish out lessons to them on election reporting.Hear him "As the mirror of the society, the press has the role of faithfully reporting the opinion of the sovereign people, especially nowadays when new information technology has made it possible for people to directly follow events such as elections taking place anywhere in planet."

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He said it was human that one may have sympathy for a candidate or a political party, but the sovereign people have their choice which translates their timely concern that has to be respected.

"I would, therefore, wish that the Cameroon press be conscious of the fact that it is a vocation and honour of witnessing the choice of the sovereign people which must be respected by everyone at anytime and everywhere," the Minister concluded.

For his part, the President of the Press Card Commission, Sam Ekoka, thanked the Minister for initiating dialogue with the private press that would bring a spirit of camaraderie among stakeholders of the communication industry in the country.

He said he was happy with the fact that the Minister is a journalist who knows all the problems ailing the Cameroon media.Ekoka, however, regretted the fact that some journalists flagrantly violate professional ethics to an extent that some publishers go to press only to print articles that attack people.

Comments

[Ted]

Mr. minister, only objective facts can defend Cameroon's sovereignty. We're in the 21st century, with all the media technologies available, the truth can't be hidden any longer. Mr. minister, if you call a spade a spade, nobody will question you but if you call it a hoe, you will be called upon to explain. watch your words.

[simplice]

Mr Minister, you're only another "sell-out". Don't you know, these embassies sent election observers to the field who inturn took note of all irregularities?. This introductory stupid and incoherent statement of yours is just a clear signature to your ephemeral term of office. When you're sacked,you'll recant all you're now saying.

[M Nje]

What have you seen Mr Minister. The media technologies are only increasing everyday. Most of you and your S.D.Os will end up in Youtube.com. Just keep committing your crimes.

Journalist are suppose to be objective and report FACTS not what you want to hear. Don`t worry. It is a matter of time before advertiser run always completely from that your propaganda machine called C.R.T.V.

Your are lucky you can see these journalist in person to talk to. What are you going to do with internet bloggers. Where will you see them to lecture them on how to blogg. Just wait. Things will catch up with you. By the time many people with have private internet services, individual citizens will be reporting the things your criminal entity call government is doing to the world everyday. All of you in the C.P.D.M. will run but will not hide from your crimes. Inform your Governors, S.D.O and D.O. about that.

[kouakou]

Well, Well, Well, it doesnt surprise me. As I said before, it amazes me how all cameroonians who share in the pot of blood in etoudi always reason like pigs in a desert. Where is your mentallity? Mr Minister, are you actually a reasoning human being? oh, am I violating the sereignity of Cameroon by saying this? well, if you dont know, the patriotic cameroonians are those like us who are sweating here in the sun everyday trying to make a living for ourselves and make our country a better place, but pigs like you bring your dirt and try to soil us up. Every patriotic cameroonian definitely found no problems with the comments of the foreigners or whatever. Some of us did not even go to the polls because we saw your corruption machinery in place. Then you stand here talking this nonsense. And what are you trying to preach to the journalists? that you have to be partial in covering a story? you see? you just told us that you are no journalist yourself. you and your godfather in etoudi made that fake dossier showing that you were trained as a journalist. Shame on you. That is the same situation with my aunt who was promoted minister, but we all in the family know she never went to school, and on tv, they say she has PhD's in some stupid languages. The truth must always be known you know. And no matter what your strategy is, know this is how the future of cameroon is: "The patriotic cameroonians have been silent and living with all this nonsense since 1992. Now you all think they are just silent people, but mark you, they will make their presence felt when your godfather will finally officially make his claim to exted the mendate. That is when you will see that there are actually Cameroonians who are patriotic and have had enough of people like you". God bless you as richly as you deserve.
God bless Cameroon
God Bless Africa

[Ma Mary]

Talking about sovereignty, la republique francais du Cameroune has no right to occupy the Southern Cameroons, and I encourage –not berate and bully like this moonhead bully– journalists to keep reporting the Southern Cameroons story. The man is a false journalist, or he was trained by Pravda in the former Soviet Union.

[Tita Mofaw]

Better watch your tongue Mr. minister.Each time Paul Biya appoints one of your lots u get so excited to start clapping hands and saying stupid things.
Who told you that any country in Africa is soverign or has attended the level to enjoy any soverignty.Better be careful the way you run those big lips when making a remark to someone from washington. Know that it would not take more than a few hours for the US embassy in Cameroon to topple this your regime and beleive me they would not even need the assisstance of washington to do so.

[Kumbaboy]

By suggesting foreign nationals not comment about elections in Cameroon, Monsieur Jean Pierre Biyiti Bi Essam once again shows a weakness of formation.

The educational system that forms people in Bi Essam's mold is the same that brought up the intellectually challenged Jacques Fame Ndongo. Remember Ndongo for cheating students who passed an entrance exam and sending the wrong message to a million students.

How can Bi Essam implement his own recommendation? Is Bi Essam advocating Government Policy? Can Bi Essam police the air waves? Who made him Minister?

KB

[Fon]

Mr Biyiti Bi Essam´s days as minister are already numbered; he is too myopic.

Any country without economic power should forget right of sovereignty. When Cameroon wants to be declared the poorest country on planet earth, she bows down to IMF and world Bank directives on what she must do even against her wish, and forgets about sovereignty.The witless minister thinks of sovereignty only when the conduct of elections is called to question by the very foreigners that Cameroon is ready to dance to their tune inorder to be declared a poor country. Where is the sovereignty when of Cameroon when her economic policies are dictated by IMF and World bank? As an example,can Cameroon as a sovereignty nation that Mr. minister claims decide on her own, what to privatise and what not to privatise?

[DaDiceman]

I am no fan of Mugabe, but this is where Europe's stand against that vile dictator is unprincipled; Mugabe is doing nothing that the likes of Biya are not doing. Why pick on Mugabe? Biya's "elections" are as much of a joke as anything that Mugabe can come up with, but here we are with Mr. Biyiti Bi Essam essentially thumbing his distorted nose at the international community. What are they going to do? Nothing!

From The Sunday Times
September 23, 2007

Why pick on Mugabe when Africa is teeming with tyrants?
Rod Liddle
On the face of it, Gordon Brown’s determination to boycott the Europe-Africa summit if Robert Mugabe is invited, seems thoroughly decent and principled. The meeting, due to be held in the sort of halfway house of Portugal, would not be a very agreeable affair even without Zimbabwe’s Big Bob; a few days of European leaders being blackmailed for money by a bunch of unscrupulous thugs and culminating in some ghastly, cringing statement of apology from whitey for slavery, or colonialism, or not letting Egypt into the Eurovision Song Contest.
But given our official disgust at Mugabe’s regime, Brown surely cannot go; he will have to send a suitably down-market underling. I suggest Margaret Beckett.
There’s a bit of truth, too, in the allegation that the prime minister has attempted to “multilateralise” our problems with Zimbabwe and has unfairly singled Mugabe out for special opprobrium.
This point has been made by the president of neighbouring Zambia, Levy Mwanawasa, and he knows well of what he speaks. His own “election” to high office in 2002 was, of course, rigged, according to independent observers.
His party – called, hilariously, the Movement for Multiparty Democracy – apparently used vast sums of state cash in its electioneering and happily tampered with the ballot boxes.
Since the election, Amnesty International report that there is “widespread harassment and intimidation of people perceived to be critical of the government” as well as continual and flagrant abuses of human rights, opposition leaders peremptorily locked up and plenty of beatings from the police for anyone who steps out of line.
Meanwhile, some 75% of Levy’s benighted subjects live in what the United Nations describes as “absolute poverty”, on less than a dollar per day. Cheated in elections, beaten by the police and starved. You can understand Mwanawasa’s genuine puzzlement: just what is it, exactly, that Mugabe is doing that’s so wrong?
Indeed, according to Amnesty International, Zimbabwe does not figure in the top 10 of African countries for what it calls “horrendous” human rights abuses; it comes instead towards the top of the second division for unlawful detentions, beatings, torture and executions. According to Amnesty, there are at least 24 other African countries in which, like Zimbabwe, freedom of expression simply does not exist and there are none at all where it is entirely free and untrammelled.
And all is not exactly rosy in Nelson Mandela’s South Africa, where the white liberals who fought for the overthrow of apartheid are now getting the hell out as quickly as they can.
It is true that with an inflation rate of a commendable 7,500%, Zimbabwe punches slightly above its weight in the great African league of staggering economic incompetence. But that alone should not be enough to cast the country as a terrible anomaly. It is anything but: it is, if we’re honest, entirely typical.
If Robert Mugabe has his invitation withdrawn, the European leaders will still be sitting down for talks with megalomaniac and corrupt bullies, tyrants, despots, criminals and purblind Marxist ideologues, a substantial proportion of whom will depart office having fleeced their country of every last penny they can lay their hands on.
Never mind worrying about Big Bob – just stay at home, Gordon.

[Fon]

I applaud Gordon Brown’s decision; it is a step in the right direction.

[Tikoman]

Whoever made this man a minister is himself a complete failure.