The Cruel Death of a Taciturn Zombie: A Day of National Abstinence in Cameroon

By Dr. Peter Wuteh Vakunta

Fellow Cameroonians, at long last la date fatidique (fateful date) is now known. On October 9^th 2011 Cameroonians of all stripes will flock to the polls to elect a new president who will pilot the statecraft for another septennat (seven-year term). Barely two days after setting the date for the much anticipated 2011 presidential election on October 9th, Paul Barthélémy Biya Bi Mvondo’s team moved swiftly, depositing his registration fee into the national treasury before the deadline by close of business on Wednesday august 31^st (Chia).

Cameroonians of all persuasions had hoped that Mr. Biya, nicknamed the “Taciturn Zombie,” would heed the voices of sages calling on him to resist the temptation to commit political suicide by presenting himself as candidate for this tough job for which he has shown gross incompetence. Cameroonians of all ages had wished that Mr. Biya would take stock of his dismal track record since his accession to the supreme magistracy in Cameroon in 1982 and back out of the race. Cameroonians of both genders had prayed in earnest that Mr. Biya would save face by passing the baton to a less senile Cameroonian. Cameroonian youths across the board had thought that Mr. Biya would appease them by announcing his intention to not participate in the race to Etoudi. Tough luck! Alas, he has listened to no one but his own lone voice. And so, here we are once again likely to be saddled with a moribund albatross for seven more years.

The fact of the matter, though, is that the upcoming presidential poll is fraught with unknowns. What will transpire in Cameroon in the aftermath of this election is everyone’s guess. The atmosphere is terribly charged at home and in the Diaspora. For one thing, the Zombie is no longer in the good books of his French bosses for reasons known to all informed Cameroonians. His recent trip to China is an ill-omen, a sign of distasteful things to come. Cameroonians are simply fed up with this egoistic man who governs their country as if he were a mercenary in transit.Agreeing with me is Guerandi Mbara who observes: “nous assistons à la révolte du peuple camerounais contre un régime tyrannique qui ne pense qu’ à pérenniser son pouvoir et paupériser les Camerounais… (1). [we are witnessing the revolt of Cameroonian people against a tyrannical regime that is intent on staying in power perpetually and pauperizing Cameroonians…]

Cameroonians can no longer stomach this man who has run their national economy aground. They want to seize the moment and make a change in their lives and in the lives of their children. As French writer Fanny Pigeaud points out in his book titled Au Cameroun de Paul Biya (2011), “Chaque jour rapproche le Cameroun du moment où le pouvoir changera de mains et où les camerounais devront, s’ils veulent donner l’avenir à leurs enfants, faire le bilan des décennies passées”(8). [Each passing day brings Cameroon closer to the day when power will change hands and Cameroonians will take stock of the past decades if they really want to prepare a future for their children.]

Taking a cue from Pigeaud’s self-fulfilling prophecy, I emit a clarion call for a national day of abstinence throughout the Republic of Cameroon on October 8^th. To prime ourselves for the lethal battle ahead, we need to abstain from alcohol. Liquor numbs the brain.  As a wise man once said, “Drunkenness is nothing but voluntary madness” (Roman philosopher, Mid-1st Century). On this pre-election day, let all Cameroonians observe physical and psychological “Ramadan” by pondering the havoc that the Beti-led government in Yaoundé has wreaked on their once affluent and pristine nation.  Let us reserve October 8^th for stock-taking; Cameroonians will have to reflect on all that has been lost under the inept Biya regime: Cameroon Marketing Board, Victoria Deep Seaport, Mideno, Mideviv, Upper Nun Valley Development Authority (U.N.V.D.A), CDC, Palmol, and more.

Above all, we must abstain from fear. Let us heed the wise saying of an erstwhile American president who once said: “There is nothing to fear but fear itself” (Franklin D. Roosevelt, American 32^nd President, 1933-1945).  Recently, I listened to an interview granted by Cardinal Christian Tumi on Radio France Internationale in which he lamented the fear that has gripped Cameroonians in this day and time. He noted that there are Cameroonians with the mental wherewithal to lead Cameroon in the right direction but are scared to death by fear. He frowned on Biya’s inability to read the handwriting on the wall. In his own words, “Si j'étais Paul Biya je ne me présenterais plus. 30 ans c'est assez. »  [If I were Paul Biya, I would no longer run. 30 years are enough.] But Biya is not a God-fearing man. Not even sure which God he worships. On October 8^th, let us sing requiem for the fear that has become a national epidemic and brace up for the worst case scenario. Like Tunisians, Egyptians, Syrians, and Libyans we must convince ourselves that the tree of liberty is watered by the blood of martyrs. Biya’s days are numbered, make no mistake about that.

More importantly, we must abstain from witch-hunting. Mutual distrust seems to be the very undoing of Cameroonians. The time for back-stabbing should be behind us. Francophone and Anglophone Cameroonians must hold hands as October 9^th approaches for we have a common foe: the vampire at Etoudi and the cancerous system he has erected. South-Westerners and North-Westerners must work in tandem to right the wrongs of the past. If we will do this, it will dawn on Mr. Biya that he is not as invincible as his insane sycophants make him believe. Let October 8^th be a national day of abstinence, a time to ponder the way forward.

Let us abstain from mental slavery. Let us not be like Mr. Biya who once told a French journalist in an interview he granted  at Monte Carlo that he was le meilleur élève du Président Mittérand [the best pupil of President Mitterand].  Biya epitomizes the mentally enslaved African who perceives the world through the prism of the ex-colonizer. Biya is a personification of the machinations of Francafrique.  In this same vein, Nanga-Boko posits: “Hier à Abidjan, aujourd’hui à Yaoundé comme à Douala, la jeunesse s’attaque aux symboles d’une Francafrique qui infantilise. Les suppôts et les supports de la FranceAfrique sont de nos jours ces dictateurs de la zone d’Afrique centrale qui sont maintenus au pouvoir par les bons soins et les services spéciaux de l’Elysée.”(2) [Yesterday in Abidjan, today in Yaoundé like in Douala, the youths are attacking the symbols of Francafrique that infantilizes.Nowadays, the henchmen and support of FranceAfrique are these dictators in the Central African zone who maintain a grip on power through the good services and special assistance of Elysée].  It is this sort of befuddled mindset that has created a crop of mental slaves who pretend to govern Africa.

Let October 8^th be reserved for deep reflection on where we, Cameroonians, would like to be seven years down the line under the presidency of a man who spends three quarters of the year gallivanting in luxuriant cities in the Western world.Cameroonians will bite the bullet or perish under a president who runs around the globe with cash stashed in suit cases like a petty thief.Concurring with me is Hauloury Bengoubi who notes:“C’est sous  le règne de Paul Barthélémy Biya que l’Etat camerounais a subi un pillage systématique…Le volume des capitaux dans les circuits de corruption du président Paul Barthélémy Biya est  difficile à chiffrer à cause du secret d’Etat qui l’entoure.”(4)[it is under Paul Barthélémy Biya’s tenure that Cameroonians have witnessed systematic pillage … the amount of capital siphoned through corrupt channels masterminded by Paul Barthélémy Biya is difficult to estimate given the secrecy that surrounds State affairs.]

Let us avoid wild revelry on October 8^th.I would be pleased to see my compatriots congregating to give serious thought to the fate of the lost generation in Cameroon; those university graduates who constitute a new social class code-named les habitants du Chomencam or the chronically unemployed.Biya’s regime has killed the private sector in Cameroon, thus creating a plethora of young eternally employed citizens. That is why Cameroonian youths are asking this grave-digger to relinquish power once and for all. Let us spend this day in the tranquility of our homes pondering the mortgage of our natural resources to France and other  imperial powers—SONARA in Limbe,  Société nationale des Hydrocarbures (SNH),  Société forestière du Dja et de la Boumba (SFDB), oilfields in the Bakassi Peninsula and more.

Cameroonians—male, female, and transgender must abstain from sex on October 8^th. Sex numbs mental faculties in times of crisis. Mae West opines that “Sex is emotion in motion.” He couldn’t be closer to the truth. Let us spend that day meditating on what the future holds in store for us and our progeny after October 9^th. Let us take a hard look at the present state of our once sparkling cities (Douala, Yaoundé, Buea, Bamenda, Limbe, Nkongsamba, etc) bequeathed to this lame duck president by former President Ahmadou Ahidjo. They have become ghost towns in decrepitude; where roads have become dead traps.

Let us shun self-interest and deflate our bloated egos on October 8^th.  Egocentrism, ethnocentrism and personality cult are the three cankers that Mr. Biya has wielded with dexterity to keep Cameroonians under lock and key for three decades.  Divide and rule is his modus operandi. Like the recalcitrant Caliban in Shakespeare’s The Tempest, let us break loose from Mr. Biya’s diabolical citadel on October 9th. If we will muster the courage to do this, then it will dawn on Mr. Biya that he is not as indomitable as his praise-singers have bamboozled him into believing.

In conclusion, suffice it to say that the October 9^th presidential poll in Cameroon promises to be a watershed event. Cameroon without Mr. Biya will not be a terrestrial Paradise.  But it will be a wholesome clime that harbors hope for the young and old. I do not say this tongue in cheek. Cameroon, the well-known “Africa in miniature” has lost its charm and luster under a president who dines with mammon, chews the bark of trees and wears a bullet-proof jacket come rain come shine. 

Grinding poverty ushered in by governmental dysfunction has transformed Cameroonians into mindless go-getters. As Pigeaud observes in his book, “la réputation des ressortissants camerounais  s’est considérablement dégradée au cours des dix dernières années, les faisant souvent passer pour des individus évoluant dans le registre de l’escroquerie” (5). [the reputation of Cameroonians has been tarnished considerably in the course of the past ten years, making them look like people involved in underhand deals.] Undoubtedly, October 9^th holds much in store for us. Qui vivra verra!

About the author

Dr. Vakunta is professor of modern languages at the Department of Defense Language Institute in California, USA. He is the author of numerous books including Cry My Beloved Africa: Essays on the Postcolonial Aura in Africa (2007), No Love Lost (2008), Ntarikon (2009) and Indigenization of Language in the Francophone Novel of Africa: A New Literary Canon (2011).  He runs a blog at http://www.vakunta.blogspot.com 

 

Works cited

Bengoubi, Hauloury.Cameroun: “Les raisons pour lesquelles Paul Biya est un véritable prisonnier ambulant.” Retrieved September 1, 2011 from http://lecode.canalblog.com/tag/Cameroun%20Les%20 raisons%20 pour%20les%20esquelles

Chia, Innocent. “ Paul Biya Forestalls Democracy in Cameroon Again.” Retrieved September 3, 2011 from http://www.chiareport.com/2011/09/paul-biya-forestalls-democracy-in-cameroonagain.html#more

Mbara, Guerandi. “Hommage à la jeunesse combattante du Cameroun.” Retrieved September 3, 2011 from http://jeunesse_combattantecamerounmonpays.over.blog.com/pages/Hommage_a_la

Nanga-Boko.  Pourquoi la jeunesse camerounaise conteste.” Retrieved August 31, 2011from http:// www. camerounlink.net/fr/blogs/?SessionID=

Pigeaud, Fanny. Au Cameroun de Paul Biya. Paris: Karthala, 2011.

RFI. “Cameroun: Monseigneur Tumi, ancien archevêque de Douala, dresse un état des lieux du pays à la veille de la présidentielle.” Retrieved September 3,2011from http://www.rfi.fr/search/sinequa_search/%20le%20cardinal%20TUMI%20CAMEROUN%20ET%20LES%20ELECTIONS%20PRESIDENTIELLES%20AU

Shakespeare, William. The Tempest. Cambridge: The University Press, 1623.

 

 

Comments

[Dr A A Agbormbai]

Storming!

[J. S. Dinga]

This approach might just be the simplest way to tell the entire world what a hoax Cameroon has lived through these past decades. What a painless way to vomit out a lingering dictatorship!

[Dr A A Agbormbai]

In one of my previous commentaries I introduced the Cameroon 50/50 Economic Model by highlighting one of its main features - creating jobs through government's partnering with citizens to develop a vibrant private sector.

This commentary elaborates on further features of the economic side of the Strategic Cameroon Plan that concentrate on job creation.

Cameroon's new-era economy will be founded on tourism (eco-tourism and more traditional tourism), which is the largest source of employment in the world.

We'll turn our forests and fauna into engaging tourist attractions while also developing our beaches. We'll build a network of transport facilities (road network, airports, seaports, railways) to support tourism primarily and then agriculture and industrialization secondarily.

I've developed a protocol for modularizing the development of our transport infrastructure so that the process can be prioritized to determine which projects may be embarked on first (and simultaneously) and which ones will come next or later.

Such modularization makes implementation practical and easy. It also allows us to manage our borrowings while keeping projects financially viable.

Viability requires that we borrow money to implement only projects that will generate sufficient income to neutralise the costs and generate a profit. Naturally, the most lucrative projects take top priority and will be implemented first.

To complete the analysis I need input data from Cameroon, so this part of the plan will wait until I return to Cameroon after we kick Paul Biya out in October.

I want Cameroon to emulate the example of Spain in designing itself around tourism. This provides a great incentive to keep the country very clean while also forcing us to be polite and welcoming to visitors.

The next area of economic development and job creation is agriculture. Commercial agriculture is at odds with eco-tourism and environmental protection. That's why I've put tourism ahead of agriculture as the main drive for our economy.

Commercial agriculture consumes land, forest, and fauna. It also affects the lives of our rural communities. Therefore, this is something we must handle carefully. There has to be a compromise before we can do agriculture.

What we certainly don't want is to invite heartless multinational treasure-hunters to come and destroy our ecosystem and the livelihoods of our indigenous people.

Therefore, commercial agriculture must meet with the approval of environmentalists and any villagers affected before it can go ahead. In general, land used by villagers for their livelihood must be avoided by agricultural commercialization.

The final area of job creation is industralisation. This is something that we shall develop over the long term. We first have to solve our energy crisis, and then find a safe way to dispose of industrial waste without harming our environment. We don't want to industralise and end up with environmental catastrophes.

[Igwacho, Peter Ph.D]

In addition to observing this day in meditation to when our beloved country was plunged down the drain, the fear tactic and its perpetrators should heed to the voice of the people. Let every Cameroonian of voting age go out to the polls and vote Paul Biya out,speak on top of their voices that Paul Biya should go and the time is now, and nobody needs to be fried in a weld puddle for doing just that.

[Watesih]

Agbormbai,Sir this not the time to start fantasizing about what our economy is going to look like.What you are struggling to do is just like writing love poems in a period of war.I thought you were above these petty wits by now.The time we have in our hands now is to wrest the country from the hands of an inconsequential dictator.You have been going forth and back with economic proposals here for the past 6 years,and everything has fallen on deaf ears,so stop pretending to be deaf also.We have to be saying the same thing now,if we want to have a country where economic reforms like the ones you are proposing can make a headway.We should encourage our people to come out for a "punitive vote",where they will carry out their civic duty and make it clear their voices "must" be heard this time around.People should stay put until their votes are counted.They should take the tally and use their mobile phones to send the figures to all other citizens in the country.We should be able to have a clear idea of the whole voting process during the first 24 hours.No need to wait for Elecam,where the boss,Marafat Hamidou Yaya,who is the brainchild behind this paper-tiger is sparing no effort to paint it as a piece of crap.

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