“We should solve the Anglophone Crisis as a Nation”
The Party is celebrating its 34th Anniversary and it is but proper that we seek your opinion on the performance of the party so far.
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We celebrated the fiftieth anniversary of the country and now we are celebrating the 34th anniversary of the leadership of Paul Biya. The grounds we have covered in more than half of the 50 years is highly commendable and we can only give account of the progress for these 34 years.
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As a political party how far has the CPDM gone in pushing Cameroon towards Democracy and Emergence?
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CPDM has contributed so much in 34 years in terms of progress. We have always operated within a democratic framework throughout the 34 years that we’ve been at the helm of power in Cameroon. What we really need is peace and we’ve done that so it’s a great achievement. President Paul Biya is poised to take Cameroon to the stage of emergence by 2035.
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After 34 years, are you in support of another term of office for President Paul Biya?
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I am a militant of the party no matter the position and President Paul Biya is leader of that same party. It is his government and it is his party. You do not impose on any militant but if he is determined to continue, it is left for the party to support him and it is left for the population to endorse that taking into account his successful 34 years of peaceful administration.
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How successful do you think the party has been towards bringing people together?
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From the beginning CPDM has been going step by step towards our goal in peace. We’ve also talked to people to work for our country. If you see the improvement and the contribution individuals and organisations are making then you will agree with me that we are moving towards somewhere. We West Cameroonians voted for reunification and so far we’ve had it. We voted it in peace and we are living it in peace. Democracy is what we are practicing and there are hurdles on the way but we are moving forward step by step and it’s admirable.
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What is your take on the fact that some Cameroonians of English expression call themselves Southern Cameroonians and are actually gunning for a separate state?
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Come on, that’s simply politics. I am the Fon of Mankon and I’ve been here for more than fifty years.We worked for independence and we’ve celebrated our fiftieth year of reunification. I have been a member of the party for 34 years. I provided land for the construction of the Congress hall in Bamenda. I was the Chairman of the Mankon Council. We now have the Bamenda City Council with a government Delegate and this is all progress administratively. You cannot have democracy without people talking otherwise it will be a democracy with people who are dead. If we don’t have problems then Cameroon is dead. Cameroon moved from a mandated territory to independence. The Germans and subsequently the British ruled Cameroon. Today we are ruling ourselves. Every time there is change, people must talk. What sense is there to break all that we’ve built as a nation and start all over again? You can’t move forward without talking and without mistakes. The worse of it is to start afresh because if we start a new Cameroon, in fifty years we would have discovered other problems and some may resolve to start again. We’ve gone far more than half a century. If you stop to think you will see that it has not been good for all of us. In that case it is right to say that the government should do something.
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Do Anglophones in Cameroon have a problem?
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They do have a problem. Government has always moved forward by solving problems and if they have a problem the government will solve it just like it’s been solving problems all along. The country should never think of moving backward and starting all over. If the Anglophones have a problem the whole country should solve it. We should solve the Anglophone problem as a nation. If they think that the problem can only be solved trough separation ten when they eventually have a problem after separation maybe another separation will be required. Together we must move forward. We must accept that we solved the problem by the plebiscite we had. We were divided by the colonial people. We became an independent nation by a plebiscite. If we have another plebiscite we should be aimed at solving the problems that we have. We can’t move forward without problems. I am Fon of Mankon. Don’t you think I have problems with the other Fons of the Northwest? We should discuss the problem, find a solution and move on. Life is full of problems and you don’t solve problems by running away from them.
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How has the party evolved in this strategic part of the country called the Northwest Region?
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I equally have a problem. Why don’t I have a tarred road to the palace? I simply want the road to be tarred but I don’t want the country to be divided simply because I have a problem. Life is changing and we must change with the trends. I am dissatisfied with the level of development in the Northwest region like any Cameroonian is dissatisfied with the problems that they are facing. I normally want the problems to be looked into. Northwest needs a greater share in the national cake.
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Your highness, you certainly have a message for Cameroonians on this 34th anniversary of the party.
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I have been Fon since independence. I have tested the reunification we voted for. I have tested the CPDM. I went to Parliament as an independent candidate in 1960. I became a member of the CNU Party. With my new party I provided the land for the party Congress hall. We are presently working together to solve our individual problems. Cameroon needs everyone onboard so that all of us can be part of that emergence. I have to take myself into development efforts just like anyone of you. To do this we have to accept that all of us belong to one country. Those who are working will get there and those who are talking will continue to talk.
Interviewed by Francis Ekongang Nzante and Nchong Chrisantus in 2016
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