Open Letter to Brenda Biya: A Call to Action Amid Controversy

After all, you are an adult, and your choices are your "privacy." But you belong to a generation where we believe that not everything should be shared. That is your choice. Neither I nor anyone else has the right to pass judgment here on such a minor matter.

However, it is incumbent upon me as a Cameroonian to draw your attention to a couple of things... While your images are floating around the Mediterranean Sea, children are dying from waterborne diseases in Cameroon, due to the lack of potable water. Have you ever thought about the number of wells that could provide a decent life to hundreds of thousands of our young compatriots? Have you ever seen images of "schools" in the Far North, where children sit on the floor? This same image recently emerged from among the admitted students at Enam. What have you done with this prestigious education that would have prepared you for public service in Cameroon like your illustrious father?

Clearly, you declined this duty that was imposed upon you. And this is the reason for this letter. What you are today is not who you should have been. It's a pity that what you are doing today is taking a form that no one wanted for you.

My dear Brenda, render the service that you are capable of rendering to the young people of this country: allow the dignity of everyone to be defended, as is the right of anyone to be different, against the background of a political culture surrounding the issue of homosexuality.

Haman Mana