Tuesday, February 6, 2018

Paul Biya is responsible for the disastrous state of Cameroon by Elie Smith


Paul Biya is responsible for the disastrous state of Cameroon


The economy is down, unemployment sky high, corruption beyond words. Poor governance and appalling human rights record. Crises everywhere in the country. The area in which Paul Biya has demonstrated his incompetence is in the management of the Anglophone crisis. His friends in Cameroon and abroad will frown at this, but it’s the truth.

The current problems began with professional demands unmet by the government and metamophosed into a political demands, for historic wrongs to be corrected.

If you are an honest Cameroonian, you will know that, behind each professional demands of Anglophone Cameroonians, lies the grief of having been cheated in this Union.

What is shocking in all this is that, Paul Biya knows the root causes of the current crisis. But he has refused to address them. He thinks brutal force will beat Anglophones into submission. In his desire to suppress Anglophone Cameroonians, he is not only supported by some Cameroonians, but shockingly by western countries who claims to be custodians of democracy and respect for human rights.

It is now evident that, we are on our own and those western countries marketing liberal democracy prefer dictatorial regimes that serves and protect their interests.

To show that Paul Biya masters the causes of current crisis, he even presided over a special commission in 1978 and had as deputy, a certain Dorothy Njouma. Yet, he keeps on behaving like an ostrich. Most people who were part of the 1978 commission are either quiet or have become apologists of the regime.

In that 1978 commission , the only person who seems to be bold and honest enough to admit that, the people of West Cameroon have been cheated is David Abouem Achioyi.

The rest have either shut up their mouths as already stated or are acting like Paul Biya by either refusing the truth or brutalising Anglophones and yes, some moderate Francophones. Presiding over Cameroon for 35 years, Paul Biya has succeeded a feat, the destruction of the capacity and ability of most Cameroonians to think rationally. He is a calamity to this nation-state. His victims are mostly those who claim to be intellectuals.

These ones are the most dangerous, because they are using their knowledge for sinister purposes. Then you have the rest, who for fear of being arrested or losing the little privilege that, the system may have given them, tend to be moles and zealots in betrayal and in refusing to accept the reality.

Today, you can’t say or write anything about the current crisis, especially when you relay the truth, without you bring called names. What those refusing the truth want is that, the atrocities taking place in the two English-speaking regions of Cameroon should be ignored. However, they want you to denounce the killings of Cameroonian security forces.

What supporters of Paul Biya and his crimes committed on Anglophones, fail to understand is that, for Anglophones to have arrived at this state, they have undergone a lot of injustices in this country. These injustices are not the mere insults of Biafra, Bamenda or les enemie dans la maison. It’s also about wanton killing, rape and now forceful exile, which didn’t start today.

As I write this, there are about 30 thousand Anglophone Cameroonians in exile. Many more have been killed, their properties and villages destroyed. But without shame, most of those who claim are our compatriots publicly call for the assassination of Anglophones. Any Anglophone who is out spoken is either sidelined or shown the door if he is working.

But the one solely responsible for the demise of our nation-state is Paul Biya

Elie Smith

Journalist

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