Another Dry Season Of Discontent

                                By Joseph M. Ndifor

I’m not an economist, but every once in a while, our vials of criticisms, directed at the occupant of Cameroon’s Unity Palace, elicit some counter economic arguments from critics that are worth noting. In response to articles chastising the current regime for Cameroonians’ woes, and apparently impervious to the fact that politics is the bane of all that is wrong with Cameroon, these critics- brilliant ones for that matter!-have naively said that “empowering” Cameroonians “economically” would be a solution to this political malaise. Nice idea, it seems on the surface.

But would the old thesis, which holds that economic clout begets useful political power, apply in Cameroon? Holding onto this thesis in the Cameroonian context further raises questions of this nature: Has James Onobiono, the Cameroonian self-styled “industrialist”, for instance, used his economic muscle for the virtues of Cameroon politics as the wealthy Kennedys and Rockefellers once did for America? (One of the Rockefellers was, in fact, Republican Vice President under Gerald Ford, and another presently serves in the U.S. Senate as a Democrat from the State of West Virginia).

Even as I write-for those who fallaciously believe that Cameroonians can improve their economic lot miraculously without purging the system of corrupt politicians and their practices - there’s a storm brewing over the Cameroon Cooperative Credit Union, an economic initiative deeply rooted in the North West Province that has come under corrosive political influence from Yaoundé. (The Minister of Finance, in collaboration with the former North West Governor, recently suspended the elective bodies of these credit unions).

Proponents of this style of economic empowerment-who are often times evasive about the effects of Cameroon’s bland politics on individuals’ economic initiatives-easily ignore the fate of these once-economic titans: Nangah, Che, Kilo, and so on, who, even before they all passed, were financially broke as a consequence of huge political meddling into business empires that they’d created. (In many instances, and also upon their death, the government and its politicians failed to honor contracts that had been drawn up with these men).

Neither have these individuals who opine for Cameroonian economic empowerment taken into consideration that because of the favorite political atmosphere in the United States at the time, American Jews did thrive economically better than their German brethren who- like Cameroonians under Paul Biya- struggled to eke a living with Adolf Hitler who loomed large. These individuals have also not traveled to Cameroon’s hinterlands to see or experience for themselves some of the harshest economic conditions that men and women, especially those living in villages, do have to put up with.

Besides Cameroon, I’ve often wondered- and this would remain an enduring question-whether meritocracy, discipline, and hard work will ever triumph over cynicism, sloth, and self-indulgence that characterize politicians in other African countries. I was in Lagos, Nigeria in the summer of 1993 when General Ibrahim Babangida, who had shot his way to political power eight years earlier, annulled that year's presidential election, which would have propelled the late Moshood Abiola, a hard-working Yoruba with humongous economic strength, into that country's presidency.

However, the recent arrest of two former ministers in Cameroon, casualties of a probe into the purchase of an aircraft –price tag: a whopping US$75 million! – that was meant for the personal use of the president, ironically, gives one a glimpse into what politics and voodoo economics have in common for a country whose economy has tanked since 1987. The unfolding drama, reminiscent of the 1972 Watergate scandal, is likely an implosion within the regime. Take my word for it.

 

 

Comments

[Dr. Peter Wuteh Vakunta]

The fact of the matter is that the concept of dialectical materialism (Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels) which proposes that every economic order grows to a state of maximum efficiency, while simultaneously developing internal contradictions and weaknesses that contribute to its systemic decay will continue to be the bane of Cameroon as long as the current political dispensation persists.Cameroonians cannot have their cake and eat it, believe me.

Prof Vakunta
U.S. Department of Defense

[Acha Philip]

Without a level political playing field in Cameroon, this country is doomed indeed.

The mention of James Onobiono calls forth the question of noblesse oblige(French for "nobility obliges")in Cameroon. How have these men helped Cameroon like the others in other democracies

[J. S. Dinga]

One Cameroonian says there are two western borders - one at the Mungo bridge for infrastructural development and the other at far away Bakassi for purposes of tax collection. And then there are two moralities as well. One consists of looking squarely at a problem and tackling it while the other involves closing the eyes and the mind and pretending that the problem does not exist. How's that as we enter the new "septennat"?

[limbekid]

"Has James Onobiono, the Cameroonian self styled "industrialist", for instance, used his economic muscle for the virtues of Cameroon politics as the wealthy Kennedys and Rockefellers once did for America?" I think it is infantile to assume benevolence on the part of the Kennedys and the Rockefellers. Many Americans will not agree with you (there`s tons of information on the net about the Rockefellers and the Council on Foreign Relations).

The relationship between big business and government is symbiotic, and the principle is universal. In this regard, the Kennedys and Rockefellers of this world stem from the same gene pool as the Onobionos, Fotsos, Kadjis...(the gene pool of opportunists).

The vulnerability of the Nangahs, Ches and Kilos, is not a result of their being Anglophone, but because of the nature of their activity. Africa is awash with "tenderpreneurs" whose fortunes oscillate with political changes. There is a difference between value creation and value transfer. Those who create value, hold a monopoly over their talent, those who only tranfer value, stand on very slippery ground.

[Dr.Nkenti Samuel]

Limbekid,
The Peacecorps that has served many in third world countries, including Cameroon, was fathered by John F. Kennedy. And to imagine that he and his brothers joint the public service because of a "symbiotic" relationship bewteen big business and goverment is rather misleading.
We all know that their father was a business man, but throughout the years that his sons served in public service, no evidence exists to lend credence that they served because they wanted to "symbiotically" support big businesses.

On the contrary, the peacecorps and other projects exist today because of the sacrifice of this men. I was studying in United States in the late sixties when Bobby Kennedy travelled to South Africa and actually began talking against Apartheid.

Paradoxically, was James Onobiono not out there campaigning for Paul Biya in Cameroon, and has done so throughtout his business career?

Here is a profile of the Kennedy family and their sacrifices. Convince us if these men put their lives on the line while in public service because of a hidden agenda to support big bussiness.

(1)Joseph Patrick "Joe" Kennedy, Jr:Killed in action during World War II

(2) John F. Kennedy: 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963

(3)Robert F. Kennedy: Following a brief victory speech delivered just past midnight on June 5 at The Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles, Kennedy was shot by Sirhan Sirhan. Mortally wounded, he survived for nearly 26 hours, dying early in the morning of June 6.

(4) Ted Kennedy: U.S. Senate, November 7, 1962 – August 25, 2009

(5) Joseph Patrick Kennedy II: He served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from the 8th congressional district of Massachusetts

[J. S. Dinga]

That's right, there was once a James Onobiono, touted all over as a strong mathematician and business magnate etc. But where is he and what the hell has he been doing? Cameroonians are looking for work all over. Should Onobiono not be creating wealth and employment?