Speaking Truth to Power Puts Writer Behind Bars on Trumped Up Charges

By Larry Eyong

An authoritative french-cameroonian writer, has called for the rotation of the office of president, as the only means of forstalling the breakup of Cameroon into two separate countries. Enoh Meyomesse, who hails from president Paul Biya’s Bulu tribe, has detonated a veritable political bombshell by revealing that French President De Gaulle, masterminded the takeover of Southern Cameroon to enable the French to exploit the territory’s oil.

But rather than addressing the issues raised by the writer, he has been jail on trumped up charges of felony theft, and ridiculous charges of sponsoring armed robbery or the theft of gold. A call to the publisher (237-76-16-24-93/76-94-35-53), was  routed to a voice mail.

Enoh Meyomesse who has now been transferred to the remote eastern provincial capital of Bertoua and held without bond, reveals that he became aware of the political fraud that brougth Southern Cameroon under the stranglehold of the French, while studying in Strasbourg-France from 1978-1981. As he states in his political tract,

“contrary to their counterparts of the Kameroun under British administration, the politicians under the French did not really free themselves from France” (p. 24).

Writing in english that reveals the transliteration of french though, Meyomesse says,

“the lack of freedom in the Kamerun under French rule was very important, and it was not easy for the Anglophones to intergrate into this kind of country. Everyday, a newspaper was seized, a journalist was put in jail, his office was destroyed, the political parties and meetings were forbidden, the people  who came to intend (attend to ) them were beaten, the army was everywhere, and there were no liberty of movement for the population , and so on.” (page 25).

STUNNING REVELATIONS.

Meyomesse reveals that the French are afraid of the autonomy of the anglophones. “in 1965 June 19, Charles de Gaulle,  the French president, during an audience in Elysee Palace, asked Ahidjo to abolish English in West Cameroon, because it is a source of division:

“…pourquoi ne faites-vous pas systematiquement apprendre le Francais a vos jeunes compatriotes Anglophones ? Si vous continuez a faire enseigner l”Anglais, vous aurez toujours un pays divise (Jacques Foccart, Journal de l’Elysee, Tome I) (Why do you not systematically require your you anglophone compatriots to learn French? If you continue the teaching of English, you will always have a divided country.)

Meyomesse says in May 20, 1972, at the demand of the French government which had decided to start the explitation of West Cameroon oil, (Ahidjo) abolished the “Federal Republic of Cameron”. He also politially eliminated John Ngu Foncha, who according to Meyomesse, fought for the unification of Cameroon. (Ahidjo) changed the constitution, to ensure that the president of the national assembly, who was an anglophone, Solomon Tandeng Muna will not accede to the presidency. Rather, he now make his Francopone prime minister Paul Biya  to become president.

ENDELEY’S PROPHESY.

Meyomesse, concedes that Dr. Emmanuel Endeley is the pioneer of the struggle for democracy in Cameroon. In an exceptinally long quote he reproduces one of EML Endeley’s groundbreaking and prophetic speeches, intended to forewarn Southern  Cameroonians on the dangers of joining French Cameroon:

 “Nearly everyone in Southern Cameroons has heard the word FREEDOM. Our association with Nigeria for nearly half a century has made us realize what it means to move about freely; to speak in public freely; to worship freely; to speak our minds without fear of molestation. These freedoms and many more will contiuue to be ours if we vote for union with Nigeria.But if you vote for Cameroun Republic, you will invite a new system under which everyone lives in fear of the police and the Army.You will not be free to move about; you cannot lecture freely or discuss your political views in public; (…); and you can be arrested and flogged by the police and even imprisoned without a fair trial. …Under the French system you cannot have a fair trial. Anyone accused of an offence in the Cameroon Republic is manhandled and flogged and is generally treated as guilty criminal. Even the most junior policeam there seems to have the power of “life and death” over the common people! This is a bad system (…) If you vote for Cameroon republic, will forever fail to secure independence for the Southern Cameroons because Cameron Republic is still a COLONY of France. French troops are still stationed in Douala and Yaounde…(…) Who amongst you will like to live in French Cameroon, a country red with the blood of thousands of innocent victims killed by terrorists and the Ahidjo regime? Who amongst you, good citizens of Southern Cameroons will like to live in a land where people’s houses and shops are burnt everyday and looted; where you can be arrested without a fair trial? Who will among you will like to live in a country which lacks complete respect for human dignity and where you cannot speak out your mind freedly or pursue your business in peace?  Surely none of you” (p.34).

FRENCH BRIBES FOR SOUTHERN CAMEROONIAN POLITICIANS

Meyomesse reveals that the French bribed Southern Cameroonian politicians to accept Ahidjo’s dictat, at the July 17, to July 21, 1961 Foumban conference which sealed the pact of the vassalage of Southern Cameroons to the French puppets in Yaounde. Meyomesse says,

“what happened was scandalous. Immediately, Ahmadou Ahidjo opened his bag , and started to corrupt everybody. After very long and hard discussions, the proceedings started again. All the members of the Southern Cameroons delegation were already corrupted . And what they just refused one or two hours before, they accepted it” (p. 40)

Meyomesse says in

“1991, the Anglophone community was in erruption like a volcano. What was Biya Paul’s answer? Simon Achidi  Achu was appointed Prime minister.What was the result? Zero. The Anglophone’s complains did not stop. After a couple of years, Biya Paul discovered , himself , his error. But, he did not once more take the good decision. He changed the Prime minister. Peter Mafany Musonge became Prime minister, with the same result. Zero. After him, Inoni Ephraim was appointed, zero again and again and again… The Anglophone community’s complains continue. …. The SCNC, the separatist movement called Southern Cameroons National Council is a consequence, a son, of the bad politic we are talking about, and the real fathers of the SCNC are those known by the people, but first Ahidjo Ahmadou, 2nd Biya Paul. They are the real fathers of the Southern Camerons neo-separatism” (p.51) (quotes are verbatim)

The last paragraph of Meyomesse’s explosive tract ends thus:

“The only way to implement some balance , is to institute, in a new constitution we must write and vote, the rotation  between Anglophone and Francophone, at the Presidency of the Republic. It is a question of equality. We must stop the disappearance of the Anglo-Saxon culture in our country. That culture is a great one which has changed the world and improved the life of human kind. There are very good things in the culture we must preserve for the sake of our country and our people… (page 53).

With major political parties and influencial newspapers completely bough over by the Director of Paul Biya’s civil cabinet Martin Belinga Eboutou,on the eve of the October 2011 presidential election, feable protests have been raised by the few remaining courageous voices in the country. Prospects that Enoh Meyomesse will have his day in court, or a fair trial for that matter are remote.

Comments

[BAH ACHO]

for thoes who know the insidious technics used by france for the last one thousand years to kill and exploit people world wide.noting is new in this article.what is extreamly shocking is the fact we have not learn from the past collectively.we continue defining ourselves along occupation lines asANGLOPHONES;FRANCOPHONES created to erace us from the earths sufface interllectually;culturally;linguistically before finally eliminating us phisically.we are not going to suvive collectively as a people if we remain mentaly withen this artificial walls created by our predators.by saying we are anglophones and francophones.we are openly accepting .we are objects of the french and british impire not humans with a history;traditions;and culture to mold and advance.no people in human history have suvived with the language of thier predators while religating thiers to someting usless.we must be very hornest; objective ;and interllectually courigious now to solve the problems created by aryan occupation once and for all.the only solution lies in scraping french and english as language of learning and doing business . replace with an authentic african language while valorizing the differend languages withen the national teritory.children can start learning from youth adge in thier mother languages for at least seven years before moving on to study in the national language.this is what would help re inforce national unity bitween the BETI;BASA;EWONDO;BAKWERI as the same people with matrelilineal traditions.the world has reached the stage of intercontinental administrative systems.we can not continue to think of remaining in fractions easily explioted as design by aryans in the berlin conference.not even a united cameroon would stand alone not to talk of southern cameroon.we need to read world geo political issues and understand how it relates to us as africans.

[limbekid]

@ Bah Acho,

I share your concerns about the Anglophone/Francophone dichotomy, but I don`t think your strategy (adoption of a local language) is feasible.

I believe attempts have been made but failed, due to lack of concensus and political will.

Culture is like osmosis and we are attracted towards certain cultures because of the benefits they offer (mostly percuniary). In the European renaissance period the intellectual elite studied Greek and Latin due to the relative advancement of those cultures.

Scientific study requires precision, and unfortunately most African languages are deficient in this department.

It would not suffice to have a vocabulary, grammar and phonology, there must be content. Researchers for instance, must be ready to publish in these languages, to keep interest alive. It cannot be limmited to administrative use alone.

As far as the Cameroon situation is concerned, I have always proposed a third option: the adoption of other neutral (preferably non-european), but economically viable language(s) - Mandarin, Arabic, Swahili - to dilute the existing scenario

[TikoPikin]

I am very glad that we can hear this from someone who is not even an Anglophone. I am sadened but not suprised by the action taken by this dictatorship, to silent someone who believes in the power of his own country. What a pathetic situation. We must now garner international support for Enoh Meyomesse to be released without any pre-conditions. Biya's governement is very desperate right now.

[juju]

Larry is right, trumped up charges, like the millionaire celebrity chef arrested for shoplifting a penny worth of cheese...do not swear even on your mother.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504083_162-57355304-504083/celebrity-chef-antony-worrall-thompson-arrested-for-shoplifting-wine-and-cheese/

[BAH ACHO]

LIMBEKID
brother this is not a matter of beliving or not.the truth is right infront of us.for everyone to see and intetrete objectively.it would be naive on our part to think thoes who accepted to continue the aryan project in africa appropriating african people and thier land would do someting serious in elaborating a national language for learning;science;business;and most importantly research.if some of us think culture is like osmossis today.it is the result of a long period of continues domination dating from 7AD with the arab islamic invation then came europeans in the 14th century.this process has left us culturally empty completely alienated.we only exist like objects not people with a culture and language.culture and language is what seal and guarantee the continues existence of every specific human group on earth.everything apart from this is sure extinction in advance.one of the problems with africa today is the fact.we do not consult our best minds when faced with dificulties.we turn to look at europe as reference.but this is sucidal because we do not have the same historical experience.one of africa;s SAGE LATE ANTA DIOP siad a return to encien EGYPT OR KEMET AND NUBIA is the best approach to solving africa;s cultural and political problems.by detaily studying the encien african language MUDU NACHER and MAORETIC LANGUAGE.we would be able to reconceptualize everything in african languages.without this it is impossible.

[BAH ACHO]

the fact an african would propose mandarine;and arab as language of unity for african people.knowing the terible nagative influence of islam is not only bad but disatrous.it reveals the leght of phsycological damage done to our brains.we have been perfectly conditioned mentaly to resist any african approach as primitive and backward.if the chinies;indians;or even arabs where in our situation.no one would ever dream of such humiliation.swahili is already the language of unity for african people.for us to institutionalise and make it work for us.the tradition of science would never be again deeply rooted in africa.if we can not find ways in which our languages would be used in doing science.language carries a lot of knowledge and technics.language is also a tool of alienation.when people speak a pârticular language.they are influence by the culture to which the language belongs.

[bokwoango]

Please release Enoh Meyomesse, he's just exercising his right as a journalist. No journalist should ever be jailed for doing their job, if you object to his writings I suggest you counteract with facts.

[limbekid]

@ Bah Acho,
Interesting conversation here. I'm just pleased someone else is interested in the topic.

Believe me I'm as much an Africanist as you are, but I'm not a utopist. The percuniary advantages of using foreign langauages are obvious (jobs, technological advancement, life-style choices...) and we can't blame the world if Africans are more attracted to these options. In osmosis weaker solutions are attracted towards stronger ones, the same way in culture people are attracted towards dominant cultures. The situation would be reversed if African cultures were as dominant as Western or Oriental cultures.

Like I said, I'm equally alarmed by the Francophone/Anglophone dichotomy in our internal relations, but I'm also aware that there is currently no indigeneous Cameroonian language economically viable enough to guarantee cohesion and concensus. Swahili and Lingala may have taken root in East Africa and the Congos respectively, but let's not forget that these are also hybrid languages. Swahili has also borrowed from Arabic. Opting for the adoption of other foreign languages in Cameroon, has little to do with their origins, but their economic viability.

[BAH ACHO]

LIMBEKID
if i where to follow your line of reasoning.technological advancement and jobs can only be archived through foriegn languages?technology is universal.where difference comes in is the paradigm.we must learn to advance with our authenticity in all domians.the reason many africans are runing after western culture is clear cultural;mental alienation.the consequences of alienation could be seen on some of our people world wide.from skin bleaching;putting on artificial hairs;etc is clear prove we have lost contact with our originality .not fully grounded in our own cultures;language etc.we continue immitating others distroying ourselves phsycologically;phisically.this is someting you can see on african women and men where ever you live.the are six hundred languages withen india .written with the same alphabet and this reflects in the cultural behaviour of people from india.the are so many languages in cameroon that can be used.BAKA;BASA;EWONDO .it is a matter of confidence and self determination.the are many latin words in english.but does this make english a latin language?economics is the result of a culture social organizations etc.the momment a people drop thier language.they become differend people not themselves.without the effective use of african languages learning and doing business.the tradition of science would never be deeply rooted in africa again.when japanies recive documents in english.the first thing they do is translating the documents into japanies for complete understanding.then modify the knowledge according to thier immagination.we are traumatized in a way we now want to colonize ourselves with the language of others?

[Mallam Shehu]

Limbekid,
what about Kamtok? Introducing our languages as official languages would in no way imply that we will have to drop European languages, no. Those languages will be vital for foreign exchange. Should we ever achieve our own economic wonder, then shall we decide what to do with those European languages.
Do you know that French was once the sole official language of England for almost half a decade? By then English was worse than Kamtok, there was no correct or wrong spelling for example. Spelling depended most on who held the ink-horn. The English fought very hard to revive their language through consensus and language conventions/policies without feeling ashamed of it, as a matter of facts. Why can't we do same? The number of our languages is not the problem at all. The problem is the number of tribalism-chips we've all got in our brains. That's the folly in the whole debate.
We can make it with our languages, Limbekid. Ask linguists like Peter V. or A. Ngefac, they will all tell you it is possible.

[BAH ACHO]

MALLAM SHESHU.
after a detail analyses of what we have gone through for the last 1500 years.i am convinced if africa does not strip english;french ;arab;portugues as languages of learning doing business and science.we would continue to live at the margins of history. objects not subjects of history creators innovators etc.every language on earth contains knowledge technic etc.without language research which is the motor of science is impossible.the only foreign language africa should retain as cominucation tool with the rest of the world is english.but we must not use english in teaching .children should only be expossed to english after they master the mother language;national language and continental language swahili first.

[J. S. Dinga]

Mzee Limbekid,
Na sema kiswahili? Tafadhali, ninataka coca cola baridi, kahawa moto, pesa kubwa na Matango. Usisimame hapa!

How would a new hybrid language in Cameroon look like compared to the above? And how long will it take to train the language teachers who then will come and teach the kids? I am saying nothing of jobs, technology and the rest which usually are created along with their corresponding lingua franca. I leave that to the dreamers and theoreticians who build castles in the air, to avoid a real and important issue like the arrest and detention of a fellow citizen on trumped charges.

[limbekid]

@ J.S. Dinga,
I don`t think it is wise or responsible to assume innocence, just because we share the political opinions of the accused. I would advise caution, until irrefutable evidence supporting his innocence.

[J. S. Dinga]

Well, well, well. This view point is most interesting, coming from you, Limbekid. At one point I assumed that we were on the same page. I guess I was wrong, very wrong indeed.

I had assumed that you, like me, were a defendant of a Cameroon that is supposed to be a state of law and has said so on many occasions. I also assumed that we all know that in a state of law, innocence is presumed until proven otherwise through the courts(the famous due process). Isn't that the core of it?

[limbekid]

J.S. Dinga,
We are still on the same page. I was equally perplexed as to why the issue was tried in a military court, but having read the full artcle, the only explanation I could gather is that it was decided thus because it was a case of armed robbery. The point I am trying to put through is that, while we clamour for clarity and a fair trial, we should keep an open mind. We cannot asumme the charges are trumped up, just because of political affiliations with the accused.

[Kuaté André]

No writer has ever been jailed in Cameroon for criticising the regime in place. Don’t be stupid by saying such a thing happened. People write on President Paul Biya and his government everyday and it has been so for years, without experiencing any aggression and it is not today such things will start.
Enoh Meyomesse will is neither the first nor the last to write on the government, I don’t see why he should be arrested. It makes no sense.

[Olivia Membu]

I wonder if this is a special writer, how is he different for the other writers in our country? I don’t think it is because he is a politician as well. He neither the best writer nor the most important politician in the country, very few Cameroonians know this man. He was arrested and proofs of illegal acts provided to warrant his arrest. The rest will be settled with the court.

[juju]

Small minded folks jealous of looting elites will swear even at the cunt of a robberess